Graycoat of Everfree

Chapters

Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
100% No Speaking
Between a Rock And a Party
In Which More Sleeping Happens
Friendship is Forgetting
Piercing the Veil
Chapter 1
Chapter 2

Chapter 3

(Honestly I didn't like the first part of this chapter it felt way to rushed, and I wanted to get that loose end tied up as fast as possible, hopefully the rest of the chapter makes up for that.)

Chapter 3

Graycoat stared at the parchment on his desk wondering how it happened.

"Did I finish it before I fell asleep?" He racked his brain trying to remember. He looked over his notes trying to see what he wrote last, from there he understood how it was solved. But who solved it was the question, he thought back to last night, and realized who solved it. He grabbed the paper and ran to the library.

Twilight and Spike had just started to eat breakfast when there was a crash at the door.

"The library isn't open for another hour... Oh hello." She said as Graycoat picked himself up.

"Did you do this?" The stallion said hurriedly, pointing at the document. His eyes twitching slightly as she looked over the document. She nodded with a smile, he gave a groan and starting hitting his head against the door.

"Is there something wrong?" She said wincing slightly every time his head made contact with the door.

"The last time this happened my coworker and I were tied up in court for a year." He stopped and just let his head rest on the door.

"I still don't see what the issue is." She said as she looked over the document again.

"It isn't my work." He stated blandly. "If I don't have permission to use it, its infringement and then I have to go back to court..." He trailed off, thinking about the legal predicament that loomed over head.

"Why don't you just write down both of our names?" She looked at the stallion quizzically as he thought it over. He looked at the document and then back at the mare, trying to make the connection.

"Why didn't I think of that?" He said planting his on hoof on his face.

"We all make small mistakes." She said reassuringly. She floated a quill over to the parchment and signed her name next to his.

"I better get this sent off soon." He said already walking out the door.

"If you ever need any help don't hesitate to stop by." She paused. "Just remember to knock next time." Graycoat chuckled nervously and started his walk home.

As he walked, Graycoat was soon joined by Pinkie pie who was hopping joyfully as usual.

"Hiya Graycoat, you wanna have some fun?" She said grinning from ear to ear.

"Not right now Pinkie I have work that I need to finish."

"Oh come on, it will only take a second." The pink mare insisted as she hopped along with him. This continued as they walked to his home, but Pinkie pie's train of thought soon traveled elsewhere as she began to ramble. He tuned most of it out, but some of the more sane ideas did get through. As his home came into view Pinkie pie was recalling one of the many adventures she and her friends had.

"Then Twilight got so mad she turned into fire, and I wished I had marshmallows."

"Hold on, you're telling me that you are able to tell the future based on a variety of bodily twitches?" As he said that Pinkie's tail began to twitch, and a dead tree branch fell in front of him.

"I guess that makes sense." He looked back at the mare who was still smiling. The two had arrived at his home and they walked inside. He looked over the parchment making sure everything was in order, he rolled it up, sealed it and in a flash of gray flame it was gone. The pink mare was looking around the house in awe.

"What are you doing, you've already been here." The pink mare smiled and give him a shrug, and went back to examining the many stacks of parchment.

"So what is this thing you wanted to do?" Graycoat said with a hint of hesitation. Pinkie pie smiled and pushed him out the door.

Pinkie pie lead him to an unused area of Sweet Apple Acres, which had a bunch of different objects that were similar to trampolines.

"Is Applejack ok with you using their land like?" Graycoat said looking at the mare.

"She said this dirt isn't good for growing crops, so I can use it for whatever I want, I think that this dirt is just lazy and doesn't want to let things grow." She gave the ground an accusing look, much to Graycoat's bewilderment.

"Stand over here." She said motioning to a patch of freshly dug dirt. As he stepped on the patch of dirt, he heard a soft click and the sound of a spring decompressing. Before he knew it he was airborne. His trajectory landed him on a trampoline and he bounced from object to object till he crashed into the ground moments later.

"What the buck was that!?" He shouted, holding the side he hit the ground with. The response he got was the sound of a spring and the cheerful giggling of Pinkie pie as was launched into the air. He tried to get up but was too late, the pink mare barreled into him and the two ended up a good twenty hooves away. Winded from the impact, he tried unsuccessfully to push the still giggling mare off of him. The pushing made her stop giggling and he felt the weight on his chest ease up.

"Wasn't that fun?" The mare's question, made him open his eyes, but he was not prepared for what he saw. Her face was no longer than an inch away from his, he looked down and saw that she was straddling his abdomen. His face became a crimson red and could feel his heartbeat in his face. He could only stare into her eyes as she waited for his answer.

"What in tarnation are you two doin?" A voice with the faintest hint of disgust broke the silence. The two looked over at Applejack who was giving them a stern look. Graycoat was way too embarrassed to respond and laid there mouth a gape.

"We're having fun of course." Applejack was about to respond but then noticed all the bouncy objects and put two and two together.

"Okay ah just wanted to make sure you guys weren't doin anything inappropriate." She shot the stallion a look and he frantically shook his head, unable to move because he was still being straddled. "Ah'll just leave you two be." The orange earth pony chuckled as she walked away. That boy is in fer a world of trouble, Applejack thought to herself as she walked back to her farm.

The two continued to sit there. Graycoat continued to blush with no sign of stopping. Soon Pinkie pie began to blush as she started realize why he was, but for some reason she didn't move.

"Soooo?" She asked nervously, unsure of how he would respond.

"Huh?" He forgot he was asked a question.

"Did you have fun?" She asked again. He had that feeling of lightness again as he planned to say his answer.

"yes." He whispered, his breath heavy from his increased heart rate. Upon hearing his answer the blush immediately left her cheeks, as she helped him up so they could do more activities. The two ponies did many activities throughout the rest of day most of which involved becoming airborne, something that intrigued Graycoat, but didn't feel it was important.

As the sun set, the two ponies went their separate ways. That night the two reflected on their day, one felt like it was a great day and fell asleep, the other couldn't sleep wondering if what had happened meant anything.

(If I finish it today I will probably post Chapter 4 later, and from there try to keep a regular updating schedule.)

Chapter 4

Graycoat watched as the cyan colored Pegasus streaked through the sky. Rainbow dash was showing her new routine to Fluttershy when he came over and decided to watch as well. It had been two days since his small adventure with Pinkie pie and he hadn't seen her since then. He didn't go looking for her though, hoping to understand the emotion he felt that day before he saw her again. He spent the last two days trying to learn more about the other ponies he met at the party, and saw this as an opportunity to get to meet both of the Pegasi.

“So you're like the town's vet?” He looked over at the yellow Pegasus watching the routine intently.

“I guess so, I just really like taking care of my animal friends.” She spoke softly with her eyes still fixed on the cyan Pegasus. Graycoat returned his attention to Rainbow dash as she was preparing for her next trick. She would fly into a large cloud fast enough causing it to burst and creating a dazzling array of colors in her wake. She sped towards the large cloud, but when she made contact instead of going through she bounced off and crashed into the ground.

“What the hay!?” Rainbow dash said rubbing her head. The trio turned their gaze to the cloud, which had started moving. Soon a shape had begun to emerge from the clouds, it was a hot air balloon with a giggling Pinkie pie at the helm.

“Okay that was a pretty good prank Pinkie Pie.” Rainbow dash chuckled as she flew up to the hot air balloon.

“Hiya guys!” Pinkie Pie said waving at the two ponies on the ground. She let air out of the balloon and had soon touched down.

“So what are you guys up to?” The pink mare smiled as Rainbow Dash landed next to them.

“I was showing these two my new routine, but I'm not feeling it anymore.” She said obviously annoyed that her routine had been cut short.

“Ooo I know, we can go adventuring in the Everfree Forest.” Pinkie Pie said as she started to hop around.

“Oh no I wouldn't go there, only monsters and scary things live there.” Fluttershy said as she started to shiver. “Oh but not you.” She said to Graycoat remembering that he lived there.

“I should probably get back to work.” Rainbow Dash said noticing clouds beginning to form over Ponyville.

“What about you Graycoat?” The pink mare said turning towards him. He was busy pawing at the ground and trying to make a good excuse for not going.

“Uhh..” Was all he could say before he was cut off.

“Great let's go!” She said as she dragged him off into the forest.

Once again Graycoat found himself alone with Pinkie Pie, but this time in the dangerous Everfree Forest. Every now and then Pinkie would look back at the stallion and give him a smile as they continued walking. The two were quiet as they walked, Pinkie Pie was distracted by all the different colors, and Graycoat was busy thinking about Pinkie Pie. He had started to look at the surrounding trees, in an attempt to both examine the foliage, and look out for any dangers, when he returned his gaze forward he saw that Pinkie Pie had stopped and was now facing towards him.

“You're being awfully quiet.” The pink mare said with a smile, and at a volume that was just a bit too loud.

“Too much noise attracts unwanted attention.” He said cautious of any sign of movement in the undergrowth. “It is also easier to think when its quiet.”

“Whatcha thinking about?” The mare asked at the same volume.

“Things, and try not to be so lou-”

“What kind of things?”

“Nothing important.” Their voices drowned out the sound of sticks and underbrush as a figure moved closer to the pair.

“Everything is important sill-.” Suddenly a timber wolf tackles the pink mare. Graycoat charges forward but is cut off by two more timber wolves. He dodges the first one to leap at him but the second wolf catches him on the muzzle. He jumped over the wolf and kicked it as hard as he could into a nearby tree. He charged at the timber wolf that had pinned Pinkie Pie and successfully launched it into the bushes. He helped the pink mare up and did a quick check for any serious injuries.

“RUN!” He shouted at the pink mare, there was a moment of hesitation but she followed his command. He turned around to see that the timber wolves had regrouped and were extremely hostile. He tried to remember the spell he learned that was effective against these creatures, he closed his eyes and began to concentrate. One of the timber wolves saw this as an opportunity to attack and leaped at the stallion. With the wolf mere hooves away, the stallion's eyes snapped open and a burning slash cut through the air. The two halves landed at Greycoat's sides, smoldering at where the two halves used to meet. The smaller of the two remaining timber wolves fled, fearing the same fate, but the one that attacked Pinkie Pie remained. The two charged at each other and Graycoat slashed at the timber wolf. The timber wolf evaded the near invisible attack, and brought its claws across the stallion's side. Graycoat kicked in response, but the wolf dodged the attack and tried to claw his face, only to be met by a burning sensation as its legs were cleaved off. The timber wolf, now unable to escape or fight back, was quickly dispatched. With the adrenaline now gone, he started to feel the pain from his wounds. He checked the wounds on his side, and was relieved to see that they weren't serious, he turned to see Pinkie Pie return to the clearing.

“Graycoat... you're hurt.” The pink mare said with obvious concern in her voice.

“All that matters is if your okay.”

“I think so.” The mare replied. Her breathing was shallow, but Graycoat blamed it on the events that transpired.

“Let's get out of here it isn't safe.” The mare only nodded and they left the clearing.

“We're almost out of here.” Graycoat said as he turned to look back at his companion. But he wasn't greeted the same smile, Pinkie Pie's breathing was still shallow and she looked weak. He stopped dead in his tracks, and the pink mare gave him a weak smile before collapsing.

“PINKIE PIE!” He screamed as he ran to her side. The mare was barely conscious as he inspected her body for any serious wounds. He found bruising near her fore legs and hoped it wasn't too serious. He levitated her onto his back and used what was left of his energy to teleport him to the only pony he knew could help.

The two reappeared in Ponyville, where it was now raining. He didn't arrive exactly where he wanted, but the library was still in walking distance. He struggled with the extra weight and had tried his best to be as fast and as careful as possible. He arrived at the library and knocked on the door as loud as he could.

“Goodness what happened to you two?” Twilight asked when she opened the door.

“Not right now, is there a hospital?”

“Why did you come here instead of the hospital?” She said answering his question and asking her own.

“Because I don't know where it is.” His voice contained a mixture of anger and urgency that helped get his point across. With a sudden flash the three ponies were now inside the hospital.

“We need a Doctor!” Twilight shouted at one of the nurses, who went to get the doctor, as another nurse walked over to them.

“What happened?” The nurse asked, and Graycoat told her about the timber wolf attack and the bruises. She relayed this information to the doctor when he arrived. They took Pinkie Pie into the emergency room. His exhaustion finally started to catch up to him, and he just sat down exactly where he arrived and didn't move. A nurse walked up to him and asked if he wanted his wounds treated, but he declined. The room was silent as the two waited for an update on their friend.

“What if she doesn't make it?” The stallion broke the silence, his voice hoarse.

“Don't talk like that, she will make it through.” The purple mare said as she walked towards him. The stallion looked up at the mare, tears streaming down his cheeks.

“Its not you fault, all you can do now is hope that she pulls through.” At that moment the nurse that went with the doctor came back.

“She has a fractured ribcage and some internal bleeding but besides that nothing too life threatening.” The nurse left again.

“See, she'll be fine.” Twilight reassured the gray stallion.

Two hour had passed, since they last received news of Pinkie Pies condition. Twilight left after the first hour leaving Graycoat alone with his thoughts. Just then a nurse walked through and over to Graycoat.

“The surgery was a success, and you can go in and see her, but she isn't awake.” Graycoat nodded and the nurse led him to the room. The nurse left and Graycoat walked over to the sleeping mare. He sat there and looked at the mare, hoping that she would open her eyes, but he sucumbed to his exhaustion and was soon asleep.

Chapter 5

(So I was able to kick that writer's block to the curb, and now we have a real chapter 5, enjoy.)

Chapter 5

Graycoat woke up on the cold tile floor of the hospital. The sun had already rose and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. He stood up and walked over to the window, which overlooked the town. From there he could make out the market place, and in the distance he could see the Everfree Forest, the dangerous place he called home. He recalled the events of last night and shuddered when he remembered the timber wolf attack. The gash on his muzzle burned as he remembered the fight, but it faded as he thought about the events prior. He was so entrenched in thought that he failed to hear the approach of somepony trying their best to be quiet on the hard tile floor. Suddenly his vision was blocked out, and the sudden smell of baked goods wafted into his nostrils.

"Guess who!" A familiar voice said to him.

"Uhh Ponius Maximus?" The stallion had decided to play along, and started to think of silly names.

"Noope, guess again!"

"Umm Ditsy Doo?"

"Oh come on, that name doesn't even sound real." The pink mare sounded disappointed, and gave a stern look at no one.

"Uhh Pinkie Pie." He said trying to make it sound like a legitimate guess.

"How did you do that, are you a spy?" The pink mare moved her hooves away, the smile on her face not matching the tone of her voice. The pink mare hugged him despite the pain it caused her.

"Thank you for protecting me." The mare said still holding him in her embrace. Graycoat wanted to hug her back but was afraid of hurting her, and just stood there awkwardly. The mare released him and they gave each other an smile as the doctor walked through the door.

"Ahh good you're awake, you are now free to leave, but do not do anything dangerous for a few days, you could accidentally undo the surgery." The doctor smiled and then left, with Pinkie Pie and Graycoat shortly after.

On their walk back they met up with the rest of the group.

"Where are all you ponies going?" Pinkie Pie asked looking at her friends who were surprised to see her out of the hospital.

"Well we were coming to see you." Twilight Sparkle said looking at the two.

"We came as soon as Twilight told us." Rarity said. "My word, you two look simply dreadful." She said looking over the two.

"Now that's not a nice thing ta say Rarity." Applejack scolded the white unicorn.

"Well it is the truth." Rarity replied. The two began to argue and Pinkie Pie and Graycoat looked at each other. Both of them had mud splattered on their fur, their manes were disheveled, and blood had dried around his wounds. The two ponies began to laugh, and soon Rarity and Applejack had stopped arguing.

It had been two weeks since Pinkie Pie had been released from the hospital, and their injuries had long since healed. The scar on Graycoat muzzle had healed, but now appeared to be a permanent feature. He was heading to Sugarcube Corner to meet up with Pinkie Pie, and have an adventure that hopefully didn't end with a trip to the hospital. He walked through the door and saw Pinkie Pie sitting on the floor. Suddenly she started to shake rapidly and the suddenly stop.

"Uhh Pinkie Pie, what was that?" Graycoat asked staring at the pink pony.

"The last time I felt that was at Froggy Bottom Bog." Pinkie Pie said. Graycoat remembered how she told him of that day, and remembered the hydra and was beginning to regret this decision.

"Do you know where it is coming from this time?" He said hesitantly, hoping that it was somewhere safe.

"I don't know." The pink mare said looking at him. Somehow that answer was more unnerving than hearing it might have been somewhere dangerous.

"Since it will happen no matter what, we might as well make the best of the day that we can." He said looking at the pink mare who nodded in agreement. The two headed out the door, when Pinkie is hit with another spasm slowing her down. Today is going to be a long day. Graycoat thought to himself.

Every activity they had done or tried to do was affected by her sudden and random spasms. As the day progressed her spasms became longer and often put her in danger. They were on there last activity, and by now it seemed like Pinkie Pie never stopped shaking.The two had stopped in front of a hot air balloon and Pinkie motioned for him to get in.

"A hot air balloon that seems rather... safe." He said looking at the pink mare who had stopped shaking. The mare only nodded as she joined him in the basket, and cut the anchors. Once they had gained altitude Graycoat noticed that the weather team were bringing in storm clouds.

"Uhh Pinkie Pie shouldn't we be heading back down?" He asked pointing at the growing storm clouds.

"What's the fun in that?" She said smiling.

"Pinkie, this is in no way safe, if we fall we'll be lucky if we live." The mare continued to smile as they were overtaken by storm clouds, and it began to rain. He tried telling her to bring them down but was drowned out by the low rumble of thunder. Pinkie Pie spasms started back up, shaking the entire balloon. The ropes connecting the basket to the balloon snapped and the two ponies screamed as they plummeted from the sky. The basket crashed into the high trees of the Everfree Forest, the sheer number of branches breaking their fall. Graycoat looked out of the now sideways basket, and say the branches they were resting on were already starting to give way. Then Pinkie Pie started shaking again.

"Pinkie Pie you have to stop sha-" He was interrupted by the sound of the branches breaking and the basket fell to the forest floor. The two ponies fell out of the basket, and tumbled independently to the ground. Graycoat hit the ground first, followed by the basket which exploded in a shower of wicker prices. Graycoat barely had time to catch his breath before Pinkie Pie landed on him an knocked the air back out.

"Make it stop!" She cried as she continued to spasm. The mare's shaking made it hard for him to breath and made it impossible to move her. He thought back to the last time this happened, and he came up with an idea. He wrapped his hooves around her neck and brought her face to his. He kissed her and the shaking stopped.

100% No Speaking

Chapter 6

He held her for what felt like an eternity. When he finally pulled away, he winced fearing the repercussions for his action. He opened one eye and looked up at the pink mare who looked deep in thought, her face frozen in a state of vague shock. The rain had soaked the pair, Graycoat's short mane had been splattered in mud and Pinkie pie's mane, no longer poofy, hung in his face. He was still pinned by the mare, waiting for any change of emotion. Time dragged on and he waved a hoof in front of her face hoping gain her attention. He received no response, he brushed her face with his hoof hoping that would work. The sudden touch brought her back to reality, she got off of him and started to walk away. He followed her hoping, but lost her among the dense foliage.

He soon exited the forest and found himself near the library. By now the sun had already set, and even though the rain had let up, the town was empty. He sighed heavily as he made the long walk back to his home, the light rain slowly washing the mud from his mane.

Vacation. He had never requested vacation time before, but ever since she had received the patent with Twilight's name on it, she noted a change in his work habit. His writing once formal and straight forward, started to vary in style and seemed like it wasn't written by a machine. His employer chuckled at the thought of him interacting with others and began writing the approval letter. She sent the letter and walked to the window, watching the magic aura make its way to the Everfree forest, and she hoped that he would enjoy his time off.

Graycoat lay on the hard wood floor of his home as he stared into the middle distance. Scattered around him were the charred remains of the numerous stacks of parchment he had tried to burn in a misguided attempt at erasing himself from existence. What he didn't burn was used to make a makeshift bed that did nothing to aid his attempts at sleep. It had been three days since the balloon incident, and two days since he asked for vacation time. Having never requested vacation time before his letter was extremely straight forward, but managed to roundabout in every way possible. He gave no indication of how much time he wanted, so his employer gave him two weeks with a note saying to make the best of it. He frowned in reflection, feeling that he was disappointing her by being miserable. He hadn't slept since that night, and any attempt lead to nothing.

His introspective was interrupted by a soft knock at his door. He rose slowly, and walked to the door opening it to find Fluttershy outside. She was obviously frightened about being in the forest, compounded by the fact that night was approaching. Her fear left when she saw the pony before her in his current state. He told her that he wasn't getting much sleep, and he added a light smile hoping she wouldn't pry. The yellow pegasus told him of a tea recipe that should help, and left hoping to get home before nightfall. He placed the ingredients in a cup and started boiling water. Many of the ingredients came from the Everfree forest, odd seeing as how Fluttershy avoided the forest as much as possible. As he poured the water an earthy aroma, accented by the smell of tree bark, and a certain dampness, entered his nostrils. He couldn't bring himself to drink it. He pushed the cup away, buried his head in his hooves and began to weep softly, as the sun finally set.

Pinkie pie hadn't left Sugarcube corner for three days. What little time she spent out of her room, was only used for eating. This new behavior worried the Cakes greatly, and they weren't the only ones to notice. By the second day her absence had been noticed and all of her friends had stopped by to check on her. She evaded their questions, saying that she was planning something and it was a secret. No pony knew for sure if she was actually planning something, but they knew she was hiding something. Yet no pony pried, knowing it was impossible to get information from her.

She wasn't known for stopping what she was doing and thinking deeply. But now her time was spent looking out her window deep in thought as the day progressed. She hadn't seen Graycoat since she left him alone in the Everfree forest. Everytime she thought back to that day she became more confused about his actions. She struggled with the new emotions she was feeling as she paced around her room. She returned to her window and watched as the sun set behind the trees in the distance. Her thoughts returned to the gray unicorn that lived there, but she pushed this away as she entered her bed and was soon asleep.

Graycoat had fallen asleep but only for an hour. He brought his head off the table and looked at the cup of tea. It had long sense grew cold, but the aroma persisted. It was still night time, and the forest was only illuminated by the moon. He lay down on the floor and looked out the window hoping to sleep, but it never came.

The sun rose above the tree tops and the sudden light blinded him temporarily. He stood up and walked to the bathroom. He frowned as he looked at his reflection, and turned on the shower. His mane had become matted and grungy, his eyes were bloodshot, and heavy bags from lack of sleep. He sat in the shower long after cleaning himself, thinking about how long it takes for him to dry completely. He toweled himself off and walked back into the other room. He looked at the remnants of the parchment he burned secretly wishing he wrote down everything he burned. He looked at his desk and noticed that the top wasn't fully closed. He walked over to it, wondering how he didn't notice it before. He opened it carefully not knowing what was inside. Inside the desk were three barely inflated balloons. He closed the desk, disappointed that he hadn't discovered it sooner.

He heard a soft noise, but wasn't sure if it was real. He heard it again coming from the door, and believed it to be a knock. He walked to the door expecting it to be Fluttershy checking on him. He opened the door but no pony was there, he rubbed his head wondering if had been hearing things, until he saw the small package in front of the door. It was light and had no post markings. He placed it on the table and started to open it, unsure of what it might contain. He removed the top of the box and looked inside only to find it empty. He looked the box over again hoping to find out where it came from. He flipped over the lid and found a singular word. Yes. Confused he turned back towards the door, only to be greeted by a shower of confetti, and someponie's lips embracing his.

The confetti settled and Pinkie Pie pulled away from the shocked unicorn. He started to speak but she placed her hoof on her mouth not letting him ruin the moment.

Between a Rock And a Party

Chapter 7

Graycoat was woken by a slight bump that caused him to hit his head. He opened his eyes to see the sky directly above him, abduction the clouds were moving by unusually fast.

"You're awake!" Pinkie Pie said happily, blocking his view of the sky. There was another bump causing their heads to collide, Graycoat writhed in pain, Pinkie Pie was unfazed.

Graycoat stood up rubbing his head, and realized that he was in a cart moving through a place he didn't recognize.

"Pinkie where are we, and more importantly where are you taking me?" He looked at the pink mare who was now at the front of the cart.

"We're going to my family's rock farm."

"And why are you taking... Wait what the hay is a rock farm?"

"We farm rocks, what else would a rock farm do silly?" He was baffled at how one would make a living off growing rocks, but more so the idea of growing rocks.

"Why are you taking me along?" Pinkie pie's response was a shrug, and Graycoat wondered why he was such a heavy sleeper. He turned and looked in the direction opposite of where they were going. He couldn't see Ponyville or the Everfree Forest in the distance, and could only guess at how far they had traveled.

"Pinkie Pie could you wake me up or at least ask me if I want to go somewhere, instead of moving me while I sleep?"

"But then you might not want to go and then the trip won't be as fun." She turned towards him, and was obviously upset at the idea of having less fun. Graycoat sighed, unable to express his frustration without sounding angry. He walked to the front of the cart and sat down next to her. In the distance he could make out a grain silo but was unable to make out what color it was.

"Is that the farm over there." He pointed in the direction of the grain silo.

"Yeah." Her head drooped and she started pawing at the bottom of the cart.

"Are you alright?" He asked, worried about her sudden change in emotion.

"Yep!" She smiled, but continued to paw at the cart as they arrived outside the gate to the farm. Graycoat stepped out of the cart and saw the most depressing place he has ever been. Almost everything was some shade of gray, from the barn to the rocks. Even the dirt and surrounding trees had a hint of gray to them. Oh Celestia this is depressing, He thought as he looked at the farm.

"Well we're here, the Pie Family Rock Farm." Pinkie Pie said as she pushed open the gate. The walked towards the barn and were greeted by two ponies, one was a stallion whose coat was a dull tan and wore a hat, the other was a mare with a whitish colored coat.

"Pinkamena Diane Pie, it so good to see you again." Sue Pie said as her daughter hugged her. Graycoat stifled a laugh as he heard her full name.

"Who's the colt?" Clyde asked, staring at Graycoat intensely. Annoyed by being called a colt Graycoat matched Clyde's gaze.

"Clyde that is no way to talk to a guest." Sue said to her husband. "Who's your friend?"

"His name is Graycoat, he lives in the forest near Ponyville." Pinkie Pie said as she returned to his side.

"Oh so this is the young stallion who saved my daughter from the timber wolves." There was a sense on interest in Clyde's stare, along with the same animosity as before. "We've read quite a bit about you, come in and meet the family." Sue and Clyde turned around and entered the house.

"You wrote about me?" Graycoat said looking at Pinkie Pie.

"Well duh, I always write about my day." Pinkie Pie smiled and followed her parents into the house.

"Pinkamena why don't you introduce your friend." Sue Pie told her. As Pinkie Pie introduced her family, Graycoat noticed that she was the only one whose coat is colorful, and he couldn't stop himself from laughing. He soon became aware of the strange looks he was getting.

"Oh sorry I just remembered something funny, its nice meeting you all." He smiled, slightly embarrassed about his laughter.

When they had arrived the sun had already started to set, and after introductions they ate dinner. Dinner was eaten in silence, while peaceful it was extremely unnerving. He could feel Pinkie Pie struggle as she tried not to talk. After dinner Sue brought him to the room where he would be sleeping.

"This room does have access to the roof so there is a slight draft." Sue said as she left closing the door. He walked over to the window, but that proved pointless when he saw that it hadn't been cleaned in years. He walked up the ladder to the roof and was astonished by what he saw. The moonlight had removed the gray tint from everything and was being reflected off the rocks that littered the ground. He sat on the roof and looked at the beautiful scene that looked desolate earlier.

"I would come up her every night, until my parents got tired of coming up here to wake me up." Graycoat hadn't noticed Pinkie Pie sitting next to him until she spoke.

"It really is beautiful." He replied. The two sat in silence as more stars began to appear.

"Graycoat can I ask you something?" Pinkie pie said now looking at him.

"Only if I get to ask you one.”

“What was so funny earlier?” She said returning her gaze to the night sky.

“I realized we don't really fit in with our families.” Pinkie Pie looked at him, confused by his statement. “Your family seems to take things rather seriously, where as you often try to have as much fun as possible, hay even your coat doesn't match theirs.” Pinkie Pie listened intently as he spoke. “Like you my coat is different from the rest of my family, but more so that they named me for it.” He looked away from her, trying to push away memories of his childhood. “It really isn't that funny, but to me it was.”

“Oh.” She spoke quietly, realizing the pain he just caused himself. Silence crept back over them, only to be broken by the distant call of an owl.

“Why were you upset earlier?” Graycoat's voice broke the silence.

“ I wasn't up-” Before she could finish, he gave her a stern look, and she sighed. “Coming back here reminds me of when I was a filly, and how much I disliked this place.” She gained a faraway look in her eyes, as she remembered. “The only thing I enjoyed was coming up her and watching the moon until I fell asleep. But then they started to scold me for it and I no longer enjoyed coming up here.” As she recalled her youth, her hair began to droop and lose its poofiness. “Then the day that I saw the Sonic Rainboom, I wanted everyone to feel the joy that I felt when I saw it, and I threw a party hoping that it would work.” Graycoat watched the light return to her eyes as spoke of the day she got her Cutie Mark. “And it worked! Never before had I seen my parents so happy. But the next day it was like the party never happened.” Just as suddenly as her joy came, it left. “There would be no more fun after that, and every time I tried to have a party, my parents would stop it.” Her hair now hung straight just like her sister's, her coat a darker hue, and a look of defeat on her face. Graycoat realized how important fun was to her, and why she pursued it, even if it was hazardous to her health. He tried to get her attention but failed, she was too caught up in her memories to hear him.

"Pinkie Pie I'm sorry." He reached out with his hoof to touch her, bringing her back to reality. "I should have never had asked you about it." She turned her gaze away from him as he brought himself closer to her. Once again the two had grown quiet. Pinkie Pie started to rest her head on his neck, and soon she fell asleep. He drank in the scent of baked goods that still lingered in her fur, and rested his head on hers, and he joined her in sleep.

In Which More Sleeping Happens

(Here we are, the product of two weeks of blood, sweat, and aww who am I kidding this was postponed by schoolwork, video games and other pony related things. So here is Chapter 8)

Chapter 8

Graycoat walked into Sugarcube corner. As he looked around at the light pink building and noticed a softness to everything, he wasn't sure of what caused but he soon forgot about it as he noticed the pink mare walking towards him.

"Hi!" She said hugging him. As she embraced him, he noticed a sweet aroma around her.

"Pinkie Pie, why do you smell like cotton candy?" She blushed at his question, knowing he had discovered her secret.

"Well... My hair is cotton candy." He stared at her in disbelief. She moved her head closer to his, so he could see for himself. He licked her hair and his eyes shot open. Her hair is cotton candy, He thought to himself as he continued to taste her hair. As he continued to lick her hair, her blush grew. He noticed that despite his licking her hair remained, instead of dissolving like normal cotton candy, in response he bit down on her hair receiving a small yep from the mare. Soon the two found themselves on the floor, Graycoat still gnawing on her hair and breathing in its sweet aroma.

"Graycoat..." She said through heavy breathes her blush still growing. He looked down at her and continued to chew on her hair. "What are you doing?" The question rang in his ears and woke him from his dream. He found himself back on the gritty roof of The Pie Family Home. In the distance he could see the first rays of dawn. He noticed a strange texture in his mouth, and realized Pinkie Pie was giving him a confused look. He had started chewing on her hair in his sleep, and his face turned beet red.

"Umm..." The last few strands falling out his mouth, now frayed by his chewing. He stared at her trying to avoid telling her about his dream.

"Did you dream that my hair was made of cotton candy?" He stared at her, dumbfounded by the accuracy of her question. "I have that dream all the time, but I never get to eat it." She looked longingly at her hair thinking of what could be.

"Why... How did you know?" He tilted his head as he looked at her quizzically.

"Why else would you be eating my hair." She gave him a look, that made him feel stupid for asking. The two stood up, and knocked the grit from the roof, off of their coats. The walked back to the roof hatch and headed back inside. Pinkie Pie headed back to her room, and Graycoat climbed up into his bed. He trouble sleeping on the bed, stiff from lack of use. He closed his eyes, but knew he was going to be sore in the morning.

Graycoat was woken by loud knocking at the room's door. He turned his head to respond but was greeted by a horrible cracking noise from his neck. He rose from the stiff mattress, his back and joints aching from the short time he spent in the bed, and walked over to the door.

"There's breakfast downstairs, make sure you eat enough, you have a long trip back." Sue smiled at him we he opened the door. She headed down the hall towards the stairs and Graycoat walked to the bathroom. He examined himself in the mirror making sure there was no grit in his mane and coat before heading back into the hallway. Pinkie Pie was waiting for him in the hall and walked with him downstairs.

"How did you sleep?" She asked as they descended the stairs.

"Well my bed felt like it was made out last season harvest." The two of them laughed softly at his joke as the entered the dining room of the farm house. Breakfast was silent like last night's dinner, and once again Pinkie Pie struggled to contain herself. As they finished eating a bell rang out in the distance.

"That must be your carriage, we'll walk you to the gate." Sue looked at her husband and they rose from their seats. Pinkie Pie hugged her sisters goodbye, and the the four of them left the farmhouse.

"Stay safe and keep out of trouble." Sue told her daughter as they hugged.

"Keep her safe." Clyde said sternly, as he kept his glare fixed on Graycoat. He only nodded in response and the two climbed into the carriage. As the carriage pulled away Pinkie waved one last good bye to her family, until the farm was a speck in the distance.

The sun had started to set, when they had arrived in Ponyville. Pinkie Pie immediately headed back to Sugarcube corner eager to return to the den of sugar that she called home. Graycoat made his way to the library hoping to find a book on magic, so he could at least be productive during his vacation. As he walked through the library door he saw Twilight practicing magic on a rather disgruntled looking baby dragon.

"Hey Twilight, what's with the baby dragon?" Graycoat said as he examined the shelf, trying to decipher this week's organization system.

"My name is Spike, and don't you know the library is closed?" The purple dragon sounded irritated, a direct cause of the experiment constantly failing, resulting in rocks landing on his head.

"Twilight told me that friends are always welcome." He said looking over his shoulder. "Which doesn't explain why you're here." He said returning his attention back to the shelves.

"I live here, I'm Twilight's, uhh... assistant friend?" He shrugged unsure of his relationship with the pony that hatched him.

"What, does she keep you in the small place between the Dictionary and the Daring Doo novels?" He grinned evilly, as he continued to mess with the now irate dragon.

"This coming from the guy that had no frie-"

"SPIKE! That is no way to talk to someone you just met!" Twilight glared at the young dragon.

"But he star-"

"No buts, apologize to him right now."

"I'm sorry." The dragon grumbled angrily, before storming off upstairs. "Make fun of my height will he, I'll show him." He mumbled as he ascended the staircase.

"In all fairness I did start." Graycoat said, eliciting a disappointed look from Twilight.

"So how was your trip with Pinkie Pie?" She asked while closing the book she was reading from.

"How did you know about?" He asked, his attention no longer focused on finding a book.

"She left a note saying that you and her were going to visit the rock farm, I take it you didn't really agree to go."

"You know Pinkie, kidnap first, ask permission later." They chuckled lightly at his like, and Graycoat sat in a chair opposite to her. "It was okay I guess, except for the horrible pain caused by the bed I slept in."

"Well at least the rest of the trip was enjoyable." She said with a smile.

"Umm about that." Twilight's smile faded and turned into a look of intense worry. "Has Pinkie Pie ever acted... differently?" Twilight racked her brain as she thought about his question.

"On her birthday, she did get very upset and claimed that we longer wanted to be her friend, after we tried to throw her a surprise party, and her hair was flat, and her coat seemed darker for some reason, why do you ask?"

"The same thing happened when she was talking about her filly days."

"Pinkie Pie is... Odd to say the least. I should have told you about her quirks before anything serious happened." Graycoat tilted his head at the last remark.

"What do you mean by anything serious?"

"It turns out Pinkie is only good at keeping secrets when she promises to." She chuckled lightly as he began to process what she meant.

“Oh...” His face turned red once he realized what she meant. He shifted uncomfortably in his seat wondering how much Pinkie had told her.

“Calm down, she didn't give any specifics, she just said she found her special somepony, and I just used deductive reasoning to conclude it was you.” She gave him a lighthearted smile and he became less flustered.

“How did you figure it was me though, there must be like ten available stallions in Ponyville alone.”

“First off this is Pinkie Pie we're talking about, most ponies can't handle that level of hyper, secondly this is the most I have ever seen her spend time with one pony, which made it rather obvious. Saving her life probably had quite the effect on her as well.”

“Well I guess it is rather obvious.” He tussled his own hair, unsure of what to do with his hooves.

“But like I was saying, Pinkie Pie isn't your average mare. She makes it her job to make sure all her friends are happy. I'm not sure if she realizes that it isn't just a different type of friendship. The worst thing you could do is not have fun, as you saw for yourself it makes her very unhappy.”

“I can't help but feel your trying to dumb this down for me.” He raised an eyebrow at her.

“Just a little.” She said sheepishly.

“You do realize that my job requires creating very technical inventions.” He responded flatly.

“Sorry for dumbing it down, I just wanted to say it in a way that was easy to understand and wasn't insulting to Pinkie Pie. What I'm trying to say is that there is a lot about Pinkie Pie that we don't understand, such as her Pinkie sense, and you have to realize that it will all make sense in due time. Now back to business, what kind of book were you looking to checkout.” Twilight said as she levitated a pair of glasses onto her nose.

“ I was looking for an advanced magic book...”

“Here we are.” She said levitating the book over to him.

“That was... fast.” He said wondering how he couldn't find it sooner. He bid Twilight farewell and headed on his walk home. Despite the increased danger of the Everfree Forest at night his journey home was uneventful. His door was still unlocked from when he was kidnapped the day before. The light from his horn illuminated his dark home, and after placing the book on the table he lit a candle illuminating his home further. He noticed a figure behind one of the stacks of parchment, and when he moved closer he saw that it was Pinkie Pie. He smiled when she realized that she had been waiting for him to come home so she could surprise him. He placed a small kiss on her forehead and received a small smile from the sleeping mare. He lay down next to her and soon fell asleep.

Friendship is Forgetting

Chapter 9

Twilight and Graycoat were heading to the library. She had asked for his help with a spell, and his was happy to oblige, eager to get away from the boredom of his vacation. There was a noticeable increase of flight activity today, but with the lack of clouds Graycoat assumed there was some sort of event.

“Hey Ellis!” A voice called out above them.

“Good god, five years and you still get it wrong.” Graycoat shouted up to the yellow pegasus, as he made his slow descent.

“Like I told the captain 'If we aren't using are real names I'll call you whatever I want.'” The yellow pegasus chuckled.

“Yeah, then who spent the rest of the night scrubbing the latrines with his toothbrush.” Graycoat smirked at his friend.

“It was worth every time I got to call him cocoa bean.” He smiled wistfully and then closed his wings. “Oh where are my manners, my name is Eagle eye, and you are..?” He held out his hoof to Twilight.

“My name is Twilight Sparkle.” She said returning his hoof shake. “How do you know Graycoat?”

“Oh me and little Gray go way back.” He said as he tussled Graycoat's mane.

“Was he your co-worker that got tangled up in that patent dispute?” Twilight asked, as Graycoat pushed his invasive friend off.

“Who, Eagle eye? I doubt he even knows how his wings work.” He jeered at his friend.

“Come on man, at least give me some credit. They wouldn't have hired me if I didn't know anything about aerodynamics.” He chuckled again. “So what are you two up to?”

“Well Graycoat was going to help me with a spell, but I should probably let you catch up.” Twilight said and had started to walk away.

“Nah you should come along, we can talk about the past, and Graycoat can talk about himself because we all know how much he likes to talk about himself.” He smiled evilly at his friend. The two continued to bicker as they made there way to a nearby restaurant.

“Since I'm in the area I should stop by the parchment store and get some supplies, as long as you two are okay with that.” The two stallions nodded and she left for the parchment store.

“Well I always thought you may have been a bit self centered, but never a full blown narcissist." Eagle eye remarked leaning back in his chair.

"What?"

"Twilight, she is like a female version of you. Bookish, nerdy, a tad bit eccentric, -"

"Socially awkward." Graycoat said harshly, glaring at the friend sitting across from him.

"Hey, your words."

"And I fail to see how having a friend with a similar personality..." Eagle eye raised his brow when heard friend. "You think were together, don't you." His hostility turned into exasperation.

"You aren't? Wow I never thought you had it in you-"

"No you ass! I would never do that to someone I care about. Betray there trust like that, its despicable."

"So you do have feelings for her." Graycoat slammed his hoof into his forehead.

"You know that word I said earlier, friend?" Graycoat grumbled. "Don't look any further than that, you won't find anything."

"Come to think of it, I don't see why I thought you two were a thing. In the past you were always so distant and hostile I thought you were one of those emo's."

"I would rather be an emo, than a dumbass who can't even figure out how to put his armor on."

"Hey man, that thing was complicated, you should know, you built the damn thing. You know I'm just messing, no need to get all ax crazy on me." He laughed and leaned further back. Graycoat took a sip of water, and stared out the window, enjoying the silence.

"Soooo..." Eagle eye made random noises with his mouth, and tapped his hooves on the table. "Dibs."

"What?"

"I call dibs."

"On what?" Graycoat said, starting to get annoyed.

"Twilight." There was silence. "What?"

"You arrogant pile of horse apples." Graycoat spoke with fiery indignation. "First off you don't even know if she even has a special somepony already, or if she even like stallions. Secondly, dibs? Who the buck told you it was acceptable to call dibs on another pony?"

"Why are you getting so offended? You said you didn't like her, that's fair game in my book. I think you're just mad that I planned ahead."

"Implying that I am not currently in a relationship."

"...what?"

"You heard me."

"How the hay does that even work? When you aren't emotionally distant, you're an unbearable ass."

"Lets just say that stallions bring out the worst in me." It was at this time that Twilight had returned from her errand, and was now heading towards the table.

"Not a word of what we talked about is to leave this table." Eagle eye then made a ziping motion across his mouth, causing Graycoat to roll his eyes.

"Sorry about that, I hope you two did some catching up." Twilight took the seat next to Eagle eye.

"Yeah I remembered why I stopped talking to him."

"Oh Graycoat is such a kidder." He said reaching across the table in an attempt to tousle his hair, and received an agitated snort from the gray unicorn.

"Have you two ordered yet? It would be strange if you haven't yet, this place usually has good service."

"They were probably waiting for you to return so we could order at the same time." Graycoat said, while passing her a menu. They were silent as they looked, and then Graycoat noticed a strange noise emanating from the planter near the window.

"Hiya guys!" Pinkie Pie said bursting from the planter.

"HOLY HORSE APPLES!" Eagle eye screamed as he fell out of his chair.

"Oh I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you, I just get so excited when I get to meet new people, that I can't help but surprise them, and who doesn't like surprises, well besides Fluttershy-"

"I think he gets it Pinkie Pie." Twilight said, interrupting her before her train of though derailed any further. Pinkie Pie looked towards the pegasus who was now using his chair as cover, and nodding his head violently. She sat down next to Graycoat and smiled happily at the pegasus who was now returning to his seat.

"Hi my name is Pinkie Pie what's yours?"

"Uhh.. Eagle eye." He was still jittery from her arrival.

"Do you like flying? I went flying once, but I had to use a hot air balloon because I don't have wings, and I went to Rainbow Dash's house and replaced her shampoo with hair dye, and her hair turned brown and she wasn't happy, but I thought it hilarious. This one time I went swimming, but I had to use a whale because I don't have fins, and there were all these seaponies singing..." Twilight had long since covered her ears, and Eagle eye stared in shock as she kept going.

"What is this? Who is she? Is this some weird form of torture?"

"No she just really likes making new friends." He tapped her on the shoulder. "Pinkie pie."

"Huh? Oh sorry." She blushed and smiled sheepishly, realizing she had been rambling. Twilight uncovered her ears just as the waiter came to take their order. The four of the made idle small talk as they waited for the food, and while they ate. After paying the bill the four headed towards the center of town.

"Oh my gosh, I just remembered I have to make cupcakes for an order for tomorrow. Bye guys." Pinkie Pie waved goodbye to her friends and headed towards Sugarcube Corner. The remain three made their way to the library.

"So where are you living now Eagle eye?" They were sitting in the main room of the library, Twilight was in the kitchen preparing some tea.

"Cloudsdale, but boy those clouds get really boring." He yawned, trying to get comfortable in his seat. “Its better than Canterlot though, I swear everyone there had a sliver spoon up their-”

“Ixnay on the anterlotcay!” Graycoat whispered loudly, with frantic leg movement.

“Exnay on the what?”

“Don't talk badly about Canterlot.”

“Why? I thought you hated that place.”

“Not everyone here hated living there.” He said motioning towards the kitchen with his head. Eagle eye frowned, hoping she didn't hear him. “So what do you do for a job now?”

“Well when I moved to Cloudsdale, the Guard was real eager to get me to join, but I told them repeatedly that it wasn't going to happen. Its funny, I still get letters from them asking me to join.”

“Wait, why would the Cloudsdale Guard be so eager to have you join?” Twilight asked, as she walked into the room bringing tea.

“Well being the top marksmen in my graduating class at the guard academy helps. But it was probably knowing who our previous employer was.” He said looking towards Graycoat who was now unusually silent.

“I don't get it, what sort of job requires a skilled marksmen and a inventor?” Twilight asked. Suddenly Graycoat stood up and left the library, not even bothering to close the door while he left. “Why did he leave? Did I say something to offend him?” Twilight asked worried that she might have jeopardized his friendship. “What happened in the past?”

“You didn't anger or upset him.” Eagle eye breathed a heavy sigh. “He doesn't like talking about the past... none of us do.”

Piercing the Veil

(Short chapter that way I can start work on other chapters)

Chapter 10

"Who is 'us'? What did you ponies do?" Twilight asked, angry about their unwillingness to talk. Eagle eye stared at his tea, which was now long past an enjoyable temperature. He took a sip of the lukewarm tea, and cleared his throat.

"We were part of a special task force called the SolarOPs." He took another sip of tea. "It was created after Nightmare Moon's revolution, to handle the stuff that was way out of the guard's league."

"Why would that be needed? From what I understand there were no wars after Nightmare Moon's banishment."

"History is written by the victor, but there was no victor after the uprising. Celestial banished her own sister to the moon for a thousand years nobody would be proud of that."

"That still doesn't explain why it was needed."

"Twilight you live less than a days walk away from Tartarus, and the still very dangerous Everfree forest, and you saw how useful the guard was during the Changeling invasion. This a dangerous land, of course we were needed."

"How am I supposed to believe this, where as all the history books say that those thousand years were peaceful."

"Graycoat was the one who had access to all the information, he would verify everything I've said, if he would even consider talking about it."

"Did he not like his job? It couldn't have been that bad, and I doubt that it was your boss, Celestial is the kindest most understanding pony I know."

"It only happened in the last year of the SolarOPs existence. I'm not sure how but the task force was acquired by a ruthless business man. We were no longer a force for good." He looked sadly at his now cold cup of tea and set it down.

"I still don't see how Graycoat fits into this." Twilight said, eagerly taking in all this new information.

"He was part of a two pony team that created all the technology we used. Everything from the armor to the communications devices we used were hoof made by two gifted unicorns, hoof picked by Princess Celestia herself." Suddenly the door opened and Graycoat stoped in the door way. "You're back, I thought you hated talking about the past."

"I'll manage." He said, closing the door behind him. They sat there in silence for a few minutes waiting to see who would talk first.

"Are you gonna talk, or am I going to have to talk for you?" Graycoat remained silent. "Fine. Graycoat was accepted into Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns, at the age of 8, for his stable knowledge of general magic. At the age of 10 he was placed under academic probation after creating a spell that made eggs hatch a full grown hydra, and then used it on two other students that were harassing him. At the age of 12 he was placed under academic probation again for using a spell that attracted snakes, on the same students as before. His knowledge of spell creation didn't go unnoticed. At the age of 14 he was pulled from classes and was selected for the SolarOPs' technological development team, citing extensive knowledge in Magic Theory and Technological applications." Graycoat turns his head slowly towards his friend, disturbed by his almost biographical knowledge of him.

"Dude."

"What, did I forget something?"

"Why do you know so much about my life?"

"After the dissolution of the OPs, the biographical files were made declassified. I wanted to make sure you weren't killed."

"Wait why was there a possibility that he was dead?" Twilight asked.

"Short answer: Ethical discrepancies. Long answer-"

"Let's leave it at that." Graycoat said interrupting him.

"What why?"

"Now is not the time to talk about it."

"Goddammit!" Eagle eye flashed with anger. "Its never the time to talk about it with you. Maybe if you talked about it, you wouldn't be such an ass!"

"You know damn well that neither you, or I, or her are ready to talk about what we've done!" Graycoat matched his anger.

"You always say 'we', you had no involvement with the actual missions!"

"I provided you with the technology to carry out those missions, their blood is on my hooves just as much as yours!"

"Dammit whose blood is on your hooves!" Twilight shouted breaking the two out of their argument. The two stared at her silently. The distant rumble of thunder passed, and a light drizzle started outside. "Well?" Twilight said impatiently.

"All you." Graycoat once again left the library. And as Eagle eye stared at the mare, he realized that Graycoat was right, he wasn't ready to talk about it.

"I.. I should go." He said quietly, and made his way towards the door.

“Wait.” She followed but when she reached the door he was already gone. She breathed a heavy sigh and closed the door to the library.

Chapter 1

The sun rose above the lower trees of the Everfree forest, and pierced the darkness of a small secluded cottage.

The sudden light broke the lone inhabitant's train of thought. The gray unicorn yawned as he rubbed his eyes, heavy from lack of sleep. The stallion glared at the parchment strewn across his desk, his eyes focusing on the document directly in front of him. The parchment was covered with scrawls of incomplete thoughts, and magic incantations. He turned the page in the magic book that was lying on the floor, hoping to discover what was wrong with the spell.

That train of thought was soon broken by a rumble from his stomach. He groaned at the thought of having to postpone his work, but realized he hadn't eaten since yesterday morning. He walked away from his desk, carefully avoiding the many stacks of parchment that littered the room and entered his kitchen. Unlike the rest of his house, the kitchen was clean, but only because he was rarely in it. He opened the cabinet hoping that there was an apple treat or something of that nature that would quickly sate his hunger. In his sleep deprived state it took him a minute to understand that he had no food in his home, and another minute to realize that he would have to go into town to get some.

He preferred his seclusion over living in Ponyville, it meant that he wouldn't be bothered by other ponies when he is trying to think. He reluctantly put on his saddle bag, grateful for the fact that it covered his blank flank, having never discovered his special talent. He grabbed the little amount of bits that he received for his last patent, and left his home.

As he walked he counted his bits, and silently hoped that bread hadn't gone up in price since the last time he came into town. He skirted around the house of the yellow Pegasus that lived near the forest. He had seen her before but she avoided talking to him as much as he avoided her. He soon arrived at the market and quickly walked over to the Sugarcube Corner.

“Oh hello Graycoat, we haven't seen you for awhile.” Said Mrs. Cake with a smile. The Cakes where the only ponies to know his name in Ponyville, despite all the ponies that visit Sugarcube Corner.

“I've been busy.” He responded calmly. He disliked small talk, but knew that it was a necessary evil if he wanted to appear normal.

“The usual?” The blue mare inquired. Graycoat nodded and pulled his bit bag out of a pouch on his saddle bag. Mrs. Cake placed three loaves of bread on the counter, the smell of which made Graycoat salivate, and his stomach rumble loudly. He gave her the rest of his bits and floated the loaves into his saddle bag. He bid Mrs. Cake farewell and left Sugarcube Corner.

He walked back through the Market with a smile since everything went as planned. He hears a loud gasp but continues walking not caring for what caused. Suddenly he is hit in the side by what feels like a freight train and lands a good fifteen hooves from where he was standing. He looks up to see what tackled him only to see a pink blur hopping up in down.

“See I told you he was real Twilight!” Said a bouncy, happy voice that he could only assume came from the pink blob.

“Well I don't think you needed to tackle him Pinkie.” Said a more concerned yet scolding voice, as a purple blob came into view, and stopped next to the pink one.

“I wanted to make sure you saw him.” Said the pink blob happily. The unicorn shook his head in an attempt to correct his vision, and when it did he saw that his assailants were two mares.

“Hi!” The pink one said as she brought his face close to his, and he felt his cheeks warm at this sudden breech of privacy.

“Sorry about my friend she can be a bit... eccentric.” Said the purple one who gave a sideways glance at the pink pony next to her that was making strange faces. “I don't think I have ever seen you in town before, my name is Twilight Sparkle.” She said with a polite smile.

“And I'm Pinkie Pie!” Said the pink one who then through confetti into the air. By now the gray stallion picked himself up, and was becoming nervous at this sudden assault of attention.

“What's your name?” The purple mare asked with a slight smile. Graycoat could only stammer at the question and ran from the mares after not being able to reply.

“Wait!” The pink mare shouted as he ran away. She tried to pursue him but was stopped by Twilight.

“Let him be Pinkie. That was obviously was an uncomfortable situation for him.” The pink mare frowned at her friend, and they started to head back to the library. On the way Twilight turned her head to say something to the pink mare, but when she did Pinkie was already long gone.

He returned home tired and visibly out of breath from his run. His side still hurt from the tackle and he was no longer hungry, which upset him greatly. He put the loaves away in the cabinet and started towards his desk, but was interrupted by the sound of twigs snapping. He pressed himself up against the wall and crept towards the window near the door. He feared that timberwolves had followed him home and tensed his hind leg's, ready for a fight.

He peered over the window sill slowly, to see how many had followed him, but breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that the front of his home was empty. He stood up and yawned sleepily as he walked back to his desk.

“Hi!” Pinkie Pie said, her sudden apparition catching the unicorn off guard.

“How did you-”

“What are you doing here?” The pink pony said as she cut him off, and he could only stammer as he tried to make sense of what just happened. He regained his composure and decided to try as quickly as possible to get this mare out of his home.

“What are you doing here, seeing as how I live here.” The gray stallion asked annoyed by her silly question.

“You can't live here, there is no bed, silly.” She chuckled and then tousled his hair, causing him to scowl at the pony. He realized that he didn't have a bed, which confused him when he thought about it.

“You never did give Twilight your name.” The pink mare said while examining one of the many stacks of parchment.

“ Its Graycoat, now if you'll please leave I have work to finish.” He said leading her to the door.

“Work? No you've got a party to prepare for!” The pink pony said with glee.

“I'm not going to a party.”

“Don't be silly, of course you are going, the party is for you after all!” The pink pony smiled brightly at him. What kind of pony throws a party for somepony they barely know? He thought to himself.

“If I say I'll go, will you leave?” He sighed reluctantly.

“I won't take no for an answer!”

He agreed to her invitation and she left as suddenly as she had arrived.

“How did she do that?” The gray stallion wondered, and then pushed all thoughts about the strange pony, out of his mind. He walked back over to his desk and looked over his papers. He jotted down a few notes and then looked at the paper quizzically, and slumped over on to the desk asleep.

(So that's it for the first chapter, if you enjoyed it don't forget to like it, if you find any errors please point them out. I'm currently writing the second chapter so expect it sometime tomorrow and then the next chapter whenever I finish it.)

(If you felt that it started a bit slow, so did I and I hope it becomes more interesting as it develops.)

Chapter 2

Graycoat awoke, his head still planted on the desk but kept his eyes shut. Come on just a few more minutes, the sun isn't even up yet. As if it had been cued he felt the warmth of the suns rays hit his face. Damn I guess I have to get up. He opened his eyes but not to the sight of the sun rising above the tree tops, but rather the light from a candle, in the mouth of a pink pony

“Surprise, you almost slept through your party silly!” Pinkie pie chuckled as the stallion woke up. He realized that he and his desk had been moved to Sugarcube corner.

“What... how did... why didn't you just wake me up and bring me here?” the stallion inquired angrily since he would have to haul the desk back.

“Because it wouldn't have been a surprise.” The pink mare grinned. It was at this time that Graycoat realized that there were other ponies there, and remembered his blank flank. He quickly looked down and saw he was still wearing his saddle bags much to his relief. He examined the crowd and recognized the purple unicorn from earlier, she gave a light smile as encouragement.

“I want you to meet my five bestest friends in ALL of Ponyville, You already met Twilight.” She said as she pointed to the purple mare. The pink pony had placed a front leg around his neck and used her other leg to point.

“This is Rainbow Dash, Applejack and Rarity!” Pinkie said with a smile as she pointed out the remaining mares in front of him.

“Um Pinkie pie there are only four ponies in front of us.” The stallion said as he tried to get her leg off of him. This revelation was met with a small “eep” coming from the potted plant, to which Pinkie immediately jumped behind.

“And this is Fluttershy!” Pinkie said as she pushed the yellow Pegasus from behind her hiding spot. The two ponies recognized each other, and instantly looked away out of habit.

“Why is he wearing saddlebags?” The brash cyan Pegasus asked.

“Why don't ya take em off sugarcube, they must be mighty uncomfortable.”

“I'd rather not.” The gray stallion smiled nervously while he backed his way towards the door.

“OH NO YOU DON'T!” Pinkie pie shouted as she ran to intercept him. For the second time in one day he was tackled, but this time he fought back. In the ensuing struggle the saddle bags were kicked off of him and then he was kicked out of the dust cloud created by the scuffle. As the dust cleared the room was eerily silent.

“What?” The stallion then followed the gaze of the mares directly to his flank. His eyes narrowed and heart rate slowed. Before anypony could say anything he bolted to the door and left before Pinkie had a chance to react.

Graycoat ran. He ran with no intention of stopping for anypony. He wanted to run forever, escape this life and never return. In the darkness a root embraced his hoof, and barreled hard into a nearby tree. His head rang and his lungs screamed for air from both the run and his impact with the tree. He reflected on what happened at the party, and a single tear rolled down his cheek. He wiped it away and stared at the stain left on his leg. He realized what the tear meant, and in a fit confusion and rage he bucked the tree behind him as hard as he could muster.

"That tree doesn't have any fruit silly." The pink mare said as she bounced towards.

"You." The stallion said with noticable anger in his voice, causing Pinkie to stop where she was. "You ruined my life!"

"I didn't ruin your life, I made it mor-"

"NO!" The stallion interupted, his face contorted into a snarl as he advanced on the pink pony. "I enjoyed my life of solitude, I could work without fear of interuption." As he moved closer his eyes started to betray his intended aggresion, hot tears started to stream down his face, but this went unnoticed by the now visibly upset mare. "Then you tackle me out of nowhere and destroyed my life entirely." The two ponies were now face to face. He looked at the mare who now had tears starting to stream down her face. These new emotions started to overwhelm him as he realized in horror at what he did.

His scowl broke and all traces of anger left as he broke down in front of the mare. He apoligiezed repeatedly through his sobs as he embraced her around the neck. Pinkie pie returned his embrace, and the two held to each like there was no tomorrow. After what felt like hours, the two broke away.

"Pinkie... I'm so sor-" The pink mare placed a hoof to his muzzle, effectively silencing him.

"You said it enough already." She said giving him a small smile, her eyes still moist from crying. As he looked upon her, he felt something new, a lightness that made him feel like a colt again. A solitary tear rolled down Pinkie's face, and he brushed it away, causing the two to blush.

"We should probably head back." The stallion said, breaking the silence. Pinkie nodded quietly, and the two walked back to Sugarcube corner.

The two ponies walked through the entrance of Sugarcube corner, and were greeted by five apolegetic ponies.

"You're back, I think Applejack and Rainbow Dash have something to say." Said Twilight Sparkle as she motioned towards the two.

"Graycoat, a'hm mite sorry that we put ya in that situation." Applejack said while adjusting her hat.

"Yeah sorry about tha- woah what happened to you two?" Rainbow Dash said as she looked at Graycoat and Pinkie. The two ponies looked at each other in the light of the building, and saw that their eyes were bloodshot, and the fur near their eyes was matted and still damp.

"That doesn't matter right now. What does matter is that I shouldn't have tried to hide myself from you guys, and doing so was rude." The stallion swallowed knowing what he was gonna do next. "I have a blank flank." He cringed expecting some sort of horrified reaction, but when it didn't come he opened his eyes.

"Darling it doesn't matter what your special talent is, all that matters is if you are a good person on the inside." Rarity said with an encouraging smile. He looked at the rest of the ponies who nodded an agreement. He had finnaly felt something that he thought he never would: acceptence.And with that he began to cry.

"Oh no don't cry!" Pinkie Pie said as she and her friends moved to comfort him. He leapt at Pinkie and tackled her to the ground with a powerful embrace.

"Thank you... Thank you so much." He said through joyful tears.

"YAAAAAY!" Pinkie giggled as confetti shot into the air and with that the party was underway.

As the party wore on Applejack was the first to leave, needing sleep if she wanted to be useful for harvesting apples the following morning. One by one the rest left until it was just Pinkie, Graycoat and her pet alligator(crocodile?) Gummy.

"Why is he called Gummy?" Graycoat asked looking at the tiny reptile.

"Because he doesn't have any teeth!" The mare said as she opened her pet's mouth.

"Uh huh... That is certainly... interesting." He said as he looked into the creature's maw, he looked up and saw Pinkie balancing cupcakes on her nose. Graycoat gave her a quizzical look, she giggled and ate them all in one bite. He stood up and stretched his back, and headed towards the door.

"You're leaving?" She said with a frown.

"I had a great time." Graycoat said with a smile. She returned his smile and he left.

The walk back to the Everfree forest was uneventful, and gave him time to think. He entered his house and lied down on clear spot on the floor and slept. His dreams featured a certain pink mare and he couldn't be happier.

Graycoat woke with a start and immediately remembered what day it was.

"Oh buck its due today!" He looked over and saw his desk had been returned to him. He rushed over and checked to see if the document was there. He breathed a sigh of relief when he found it, and quickly looked it over, hoping that he could finish it before noon. But as he looked it over he felt a sense of dispare, the problem he had been trying to solve, had already been answered.

End Chapter 2