Chapters Beneath Celestia’s sun, six ponies moved through the desert. Applejack had recently reconciled with her friends after they had chased her down and demanded an explanation for her behavior following her decision not to return to Ponyville. A couple of serious conversations later and the six mares had reaffirmed their friendship. The only remaining issue was when they would reach town, as the chase had led them far away. Fortunately, the train tracks made for an easy trail to follow.
“Ugh!” groaned Rarity from the cart, “It’s going to take hours to wash off all this dirt! How much farther before we reach civilization?”
“It shouldn’t be that much further,” replied Twilight, “We weren’t chasing Applejack for very long.”
“Maybe not, but we did cover quite a bit o’ distance,” said the aforementioned earth pony, who was helping Fluttershy pull the cart. “Ah’m awful sorry Ah got y’all into this.”
“Applejack, we already said that we forgive you,” chided Twilight, “And we still do. Right now, we just need to focus on getting back to Dodge Junction.”
“Rarity, you worry too much,” declared Rainbow, “We’ll be back before ya know it. Following these tracks’ll be a piece of cake!”
“Ooh! Should I make a cherry cake?” piped Pinkie, “I never made a cherry cake before! I’ve made strawberry cake, apple cake, banana cake, upside-down pineapple cake…”
“Um, excuse me,” mumbled Fluttershy, who suddenly stopped walking.
“Blueberry cake, carrot cake, marble cake…”
“What is it, Fluttershy?” asked Applejack.
“Chocolate cake, chocolate strawberry cake—”
Twilight shoved her hoof into Pinkie’s mouth, though the latter paid it no mind and continued her babbling. “Why are we stopping?” Twilight asked.
Fluttershy pointed into the distance.
Rainbow Dash put a hoof to her forehead in an effort to see better. “Looks like a flock of buzzards. Too far away to worry about, though.”
“But that means there’s something dying out there,” Fluttershy observed. “Maybe we should go help.”
“Fluttershy, if vultures are circling, then whatever’s over there is probably already dead,” said Twilight, who was trying very hard to be reasonable without upsetting her friend.
Rarity cringed in disgust. “I don’t want to be anywhere near dead things, thank you very much.”
“But it could still be alive! What if it’s somepony who got lost, or a momma rabbit that has babies to feed? We have to help!”
Seeing that her generally shy friend had her mind made up, Rainbow Dash decided to step in. “Alright, alright,” she conceded, “I’ll just fly over there and tell you what I see. I’ll be back in no time.”
“Well,” Fluttershy said meekly, “Maybe we should go with you?”
“Are you sure? Even I wouldn’t want to see a dead body and, well, there’s a pretty good chance that we’re gonna see one.”
Fluttershy’s reserved demeanor became a little bolder, which Rainbow was quick to notice. “Well, then we’d better hurry.” She then looked at the ground. “Um, no offense, but if it’s an animal, it’ll need my help.”
Rainbow Dash sighed. “None taken.”
Fluttershy began turning the wagon and Applejack quickly lent her aid. “Alright, hang on, everypony!” declared Applejack before she and Fluttershy took off running.
The dirt beneath the ponies gradually became sand as they drew closer to the flock of vultures. Being faster in the air than her two friends pulling the wagon, Rainbow Dash reached their target first, though the others were not far behind. Lowering herself, but not quite landing for fear of getting too close to a corpse, Rainbow was able to get a good look at the creature below. “What’s a cat doing out here?” she wondered aloud.
The possibly dead animal lying in the sand very closely resembled a house cat, though Rainbow Dash noticed that it was bigger than the average cat, with golden fur and a tuft of hair on the end of its tail. Fluttershy and the others soon reached the cat. The yellow mare unhitched herself from the wagon and did not hesitate to walk right up to the animal. She brought her hoof to its neck, then lowered her head to its chest.
“Is it dead?” Rainbow asked.
“He’s alive!” Fluttershy cried, taking the cat in her forelegs, “But he needs water very soon or he’ll die!”
“But we don’t have any water!” Rainbow protested.
“Then we gotta get back to town fast! He’s barely breathing!” Fluttershy flew back to the wagon and gently laid the feline down while Rainbow Dash landed.
“You want fast?” Rainbow asked, hitching herself to the wagon alongside Applejack, “I’ll give ya fast!”
“We’ll give ya fast,” corrected Applejack. “You just stay in the wagon and see ta that there cat thang.”
“Okay,” replied Fluttershy, who started to fan the dying creature with her wings. With that, the mares began their gallop back to Dodge Junction.
“Wow!” exclaimed Pinkie, who had finished listing cakes for the time being, “That’s a big kitty!”
“Certainly bigger than Opalescence,” commented Rarity.
“I don’t think I’ve seen this kind of subspecies before,” noted Twilight. “I wonder if it’s native to this desert. I’ll have to research it when we get back to Ponyville.”
“Um, I think it’s a lion cub,” said Fluttershy.
“A lion cub?” asked Twilight. “How can you tell?”
“Well, he’s got a tuft of hair at the end of his tail.”
“But what would a lion, much less a cub, be doing out in the middle of the desert?”
“I don’t know. Maybe he got lost and can’t find his momma.” Fluttershy reached down and lightly petted the cub, looking like she was about to cry. “Poor baby, out here all alone. He must be so scared.”
Thanks to the combined might of Applejack and Rainbow Dash pulling the wagon, it wasn’t long before the ponies and their panthera passenger made it back to Dodge Junction. Fluttershy carried the cub to the water tower, which was on the outskirts of town, and filled a nearby bucket. Dipping her hoof into the bucket, she sprinkled a little water onto the cub’s face while her friends gathered around.
“Could you please step back?” Fluttershy requested, “Seeing too many ponies at once might scare him. Not that you’re scary, but…”
“We understand,” said Twilight. The five backed away so Fluttershy could do her work.
The little lion began to stir and let out a very pony-like groan, sounding almost like a foal. Fluttershy ran a hoof through his fur and the cub slowly opened his eyes and blinked at the sight of the yellow pony. “Hey there, little guy,” greeted Fluttershy. She gestured to the bucket. “Here, drink this. You must be really thirsty.” The cub blinked in curiosity, likely because he has never seen a pony before, but greedily gulped down the water until his thirst was quenched. What happened next came as a great shock to the six ponies, even Fluttershy.
“Thanks,” said the cub in perfect Equish, “I’d better go now.”
Author's Note
Hoo boy, this story has been in the back of my mind for quite a while, now. As far as I know, the number of MLP/TLK crossovers can be counted on one hand, so this should be a challenge.
For those of you wondering about my absence, I’d asked for my account to be deleted because I was being insulted and personally attacked for my religious beliefs, which really put a damper on my writing. I should really change my username, now that I think about it.
Hopefully, I can turn out a good story this time. I have an outline, but the blanks need to be filled in.
Stranger in a Strange Land
Run .
That was the only clear thought in the young king’s mind as he ran across the blazing desert sands as fast as his small legs could carry him. He had no idea where he was or how far he was from home. He only knew that he had to keep running. He gulped for air and felt tears sting his eyes, but he did not stop. The heat of the sun beat him mercilessly, exhausting him and burning his feet with each step in the hot sand, but he did not stop. His throat demanded water and his lungs screamed for respite, but he did not stop. He could not stop. He could only run. He did not know how long he could go on, nor could he bring himself to care. He simply kept running.
The king did not know when he had fallen, only that he was now lying on his side. He tried to get up, but failed to do so much as move a single leg. His entire body cried out in agony as his limbs ached and his chest burned. He could not even crawl. All he could do was lie there in the sand, his mind barely acknowledging its scorching heat against his body as he let out a pathetic whimper. The pain faded as the world turned black. Before the darkness took him, the king had one final, torturous thought.
Dad… I’m sorry .
The king felt something cool and wet touch his face. Slowly, he opened his eyes as his mind registered the feeling of water, which explained what woke him up. Groaning from his lingering weariness, his eyes fully opened and he beheld a very strange being standing before him.
The creature appeared to be some sort of deformed, stripeless zebra or antelope. It looked as though it had hooves, but it had neither stripes nor horns, and it was smaller than any of the grazing animals he’d seen. Its coat was as bright as a bird’s feathers, and it even had wings despite its size, but no beak. The king had to blink, for he could not quite believe what he was seeing. What manner of beast was this?
“Hey there, little guy,” it said sweetly, it’s voice clearly female. It pointed to an odd-looking thing that was full of water. Some sort of rock, perhaps? No, it looked like it was taken from a tree. “Here,” said the creature, “Drink this. You must be really thirsty.” The king blinked again, wondering where he was and what all of these things were. Nevertheless, his thirst demanded that he drink. Fortunately, the strange rock/tree thing held enough water to satisfy him, though it did nothing to quell his growing hunger. What could he do to feed himself? He could not hunt, as he hadn’t had enough pouncing lessons with his father. At the thought of his father, the cub wanted to cry. A murderer did not deserve food. He needed to move on. He needed to keep running.
“Thanks,” he said, “I’d better go now.”
The sound of gasps alerted him to other creatures like the one who woke him, these looking even stranger. One of them had wings like the bright yellow one, two of them each had a single horn instead of wings, the bright pink one had neither, and the orange one had some sort of brown shell on her head. The pink one moved directly in front of his face. “YOU CAN TALK?”
Why was she so surprised by that? These creatures were getting weirder by the second. “Uh, yeah. What’s wrong with that?”
“Oh, nothing!” said the purple one with a horn, “We’ve just never met a talking lion before!”
The bright pink one moved in front of his face again. “Hi! I’m Pinkie Pie! What’s your name?”
“Um… I’m Simba and… what are you?”
They all looked at him as if he were the strange one here. “You’ve never seen a pony before?” asked the winged one with the multi-colored mane that reminded Simba of a rainbow.
“No.”
The purple one smiled, gesturing to herself and her friends. “Well, we’re ponies. I’m Twilight Sparkle and, as you can tell by the single horn on my head, I’m a unicorn pony.” She pointed to the white pony. “This is Rarity, who is also a unicorn.” She then indicated Pinkie and the one with the shell on her head. “You’ve met Pinkie and this is Applejack; they’re earth ponies.” Lastly, she gestured to the two ponies with wings. “Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy are pegasi, that’s the plural form of pegasus, and they’re called that because they have wings. There are also alicorns, who have a horn and wings, but there are only three: Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, and Princess Cadance.
“But that’s enough about us. Are there any more of you? Talking lions, I mean. There’s never been any records of lions like you before, which means that this could be the discovery of a previously unknown sapient species! Do you have any kind of social hierarchy? What’s your system of-”
“Excuse me?” asked Rarity, “Sorry to interrupt, darling, but don’t you think you’re overwhelming the poor dear?”
The purple one chuckled, grinning bashfully. “Sorry. Got a little carried away there.”
Simba looked between the ponies, as they called themselves, and he did indeed feel overwhelmed by their weirdness. He really needed to move on before his head started to hurt. “Well… I think I’d better go.” He jumped from whatever rock-thing he had been lying on, landing perfectly on the ground. “It was nice meeting you.”
“Wait!” Fluttershy protested, moving in front of him, “I don’t think it’s a good idea to go out into the hot desert all by yourself.”
“She’s right,” said Rainbow Dash. “You almost died, kid. What were you doing out there, anyway?”
Simba sat down and turned his face away. “It doesn’t matter.”
Fluttershy gently laid her hoof on his back. “Are you lost?”
Simba nodded. He was very lost to end up in such a bizarre place. How he wished he was home.
“Are you trying to find your parents? We’ll help you.”
Simba shook his head, guilt and shame at what he’d done flowing through him. “No. I can’t go back.” His mother would turn away from him, and he’d deserve it.
“What are you talking about?” asked Rainbow Dash.
“Did you run away?” Fluttershy asked gently.
Simba hung his head. “I don’t wanna talk about it.”
Applejack stepped forward. “Aw, Simba, runnin’ away ain’t gonna do any good. Ah should know, Ah tried it. Ya’d feel a lot better if ya just went home. If yer lost, we can help ya find yer family again. They must miss ya somethin’ awful.”
Under different circumstances, Simba might have commented on the orange pony’s extremely peculiar accent. Now, he simply didn’t want to hear any more. He could never show his face in the Pride Lands again, no matter what these ponies said. They had no idea what he did, and they’d have left him to die if they knew. He stood up and started to walk away. “Just leave me alone.”
Fluttershy blocked his path again. “Please don’t go. You’ll die out there on your own.”
The warning should have filled Simba with fear, or perhaps arrogance befitting a child, as some think that they can face a hoard of hyenas and win. Instead, he felt nothing. He could not bring himself to care whether he died or not. He should’ve been the one to die in the first place, not his father. The cub’s stomach moaned for sustenance, but he ignored it and tried to move around Fluttershy, but without success.
“It sounds like you’re starving,” the winged pony said worriedly, “When was the last time you ate anything?”
It was before his father died. He had eaten a share of antelope with Nala. He nearly cried at the thought of what his best friend would think of him now. “I don’t know,” he lied, “Please let me go.”
“I’m sorry, but I can’t,” said Fluttershy. “We can’t let you go alone.”
“There ain’t no food or water out there,” Applejack pointed out.
“You’re lucky that Fluttershy saw the vultures circling you as it is,” said Rarity. “If you try to go out there by yourself, you’ll surely starve to death, or worse.”
Simba was growing tired of these bizarre ponies. Why couldn’t they just leave him alone? “Who asked you?” he snapped, “I don’t want your help, so leave me alone!” He started running toward the desert, away from the ponies and their strangeness. In the desert, he would surely die, but at least he would be alone, as he deserved. At least he would see his father again. He knew that his father couldn’t possibly love a murderer, but he still wanted to see him again. He wanted to hear his voice, even if it was to yell at him; to feel the weight of his mighty paw, not caring if he would be struck for the very first time. All he wanted was to see his father. If he had to die to do that, then so be it.
Rainbow Dash cut off his escape this time. “Are you even listening?” she demanded incredulously. “You’ll die out there!”
“I DON’T CARE!”
The ponies gasped. Satisfied at having stunned them into silence, Simba took off once more, using his aggression to give him focus. He’d made it clear that he didn’t want their help and that he didn’t care what happened to him. They had to leave him alone now. It was only sensible, after all. Why bother helping someone who didn’t want help?
Simba briefly saw a shadow loom over him and felt something grab him, pulling him into a hug. “Let me go!” he demanded, struggling to break free. He brought out his claws and scratched at his captor, but the pony, for he could see the bright fur on her legs, held onto him, adjusting her grip to stop the clawing.
Fluttershy, her voice easily recognized, began to shush him soothingly, rocking him back and forth. “You don’t mean that,” she said, “But even if you did, we care. We’re here for you.”
Simba sorely missed the feeling of a warm embrace, as much as he would deny it. Fluttershy’s presence was reassuring, reminding him so much of his family. Deep down, he wanted this, to be told that everything would be alright while he cried his eyes out. Instead, he continued to struggle. “Stop it!” he protested, “You’re not my mom!”
“But you need help,” she replied, holding him all the while, “And we’re not going to let you die, because we care about you.”
Simba’s struggling diminished and he felt tired. “You don’t even know me,” he moaned in defeat, “You don’t know what I did.”
“No matter what you did, you should never stop caring.”
Simba felt tears hit his cheeks. Why was Fluttershy crying? Before he could ponder this, he felt more pairs of forelegs wrap around him. Why did they all care so much, even after he did everything to make them leave? He found himself longing for comfort, but still felt that he shouldn’t even get it from his family, much less a group of strangers. Desperately, he fought back his own tears. “I… I did something terrible,” he whispered, torn between what he wanted and what he thought he deserved. Would they leave him now?
Applejack was the first to answer. “Even if ya did somethin’ bad, yer family’ll still forgive ya.”
Simba hid his face in Fluttershy’s chest, Uncle Scar’s words echoing in his mind. “No, they won’t.”
“Of course they will.” It was Rarity who spoke this time. “They love you, and forgiveness is an important part of love.”
Simba shook his head, not trusting himself to speak. What would his mother think? Why would she still love him if she knew what he’d done? He felt more tears on his cheeks, but soon realized that these were his own. He sniffled, trying not to cry, only to feel Fluttershy’s hoof gently stroke his back.
“It’s okay,” she soothed, “You can cry if you want to.”
With those words, Simba’s resolve shattered. Beneath the desert sun, embraced by six ponies, the king wept.
Author's Note
Yes, I know lions are color-blind in real life, but I needed a way to separately describe the ponies from Simba’s point of view. Plus, lions can’t talk in reality, either, so this ought to be acceptable.
Simba has a long, hard road ahead of him. The poor kid is very traumatized and suffers from serious self-loathing brought on by survivor’s guilt and Scar’s lies. While Timon and Pumbaa made him suppress the past in canon, the Mane Six will be actively invested in his recovery and reuniting him with his family.
The Elements of Harmony feared for the lion cub who could talk. They had all been equally surprised that he could speak Equish and each were very interested in the lion to one degree or another. For Twilight, Simba’s existence made her scholarly side buzz in anticipation of new knowledge. Fluttershy also craved such knowledge, though her desire was born from her fascination with exotic creatures. Rainbow Dash and Applejack were both interested in what he was capable of compared to a pony. Rarity, ever seeking inspiration, thought of what kind of fashion lions might have, if they even wore clothes at all. Pinkie, of course, wanted to throw a party for the new creature.
Unfortunately, something very wrong became apparent when Simba tried to leave. The six friends quickly realized that the “exotic creature” before them was ultimately a lost child mired in tremendous sadness. His words all but confirmed that he had ran away from home and was scared to go back. Naturally, their hearts went out to Simba, for his parents were surely worried sick about him. They offered the lessons they had learned about love and friendship, but he insisted on being left alone. Rainbow Dash, whose bluntness could rival Applejack’s at times, tried to scare Simba into letting them go with him by stating the obvious fact that he would die if he went out into the desert by himself.
Simba’s response stunned and frightened them. They had never encountered anyone, much less a small child, who didn’t care whether they lived or died. Fluttershy felt her heart ache at the thought of what might’ve happened to make Simba act that way. Nevertheless, she could not let him go. The cub was in dire need of kindness and love.
Feeling tears come into her eyes, Fluttershy flew to Simba and held him despite his resistance. She ignored the slight pain of his tiny claws cutting into her as he struggled and held him tightly. Rainbow Dash was about to give a sharp rebuke to Simba for scratching somepony who was only trying to help, but a firm look from Fluttershy silenced her. It was hardly a Stare, but it made her point. The poor cub was lashing out, trying to hide how sad he was. She shushed and rocked him, letting him know how much they cared. To prove her point, her friends joined in, forming a group hug to comfort the distraught child.
When Simba tried to resist, saying that he had done something terrible, the ponies were skeptical. Each of them had made mistakes in the past that they thought were terrible, only to later realize that they had made mountains out of mole hills. Applejack had most recently learned such a lesson. It would be hard to go back and explain to her family that she had been foolish, but she knew that they would forgive her, just as her friends had. There was no doubt that young Simba had made a similar mistake and was blowing it out of proportion. They only had to help him see that.
Simba tried to put up a front, but it was clear to them that he was trying very hard not to cry. It was only natural, as foals didn’t like others to see them cry. Sensing this, Fluttershy let him know that he could cry as much as he liked. Almost immediately, the floodgates opened and the poor cub cried his eyes out. He wailed and sobbed into Fluttershy’s barrel, the six ponies hugging him all the while.
Eventually, Simba cried himself to sleep. This left the six with the pressing question of what to do with him. Their first and foremost concern, however, was the cuts on Fluttershy’s forelegs.
“You okay?” asked Rainbow Dash. “That had to hurt.”
“I’ll be okay,” Fluttershy assured her.
“What could’ve possessed him to attack you like that?” Rarity asked. “For that matter, how could you possibly have kept holding him?”
“It’s just a few little scratches,” Fluttershy replied. “It happens sometimes when I try to take care of baby animals who only want their mommies.” She gently petted the sleeping cub’s head. “He’s so scared and alone. He needs his momma.”
“We gotta find his family,” declared Applejack. “It ain’t right fer a foal ta be alone like that, even if he ain’t a pony. A child’s a child.”
“I couldn’t agree more,” said Twilight, “But we have no idea where his parents are and he said he was lost, so he can’t tell us where to go.”
“I could take a look around,” Rainbow suggested. “I bet I could spot ‘em easy from the air.”
“But you don’t know where to look,” Twilight countered. “For all we know, Simba might not even be from the desert. He could be from a completely different part of Equestria and only went through the desert because he got lost. We know that he ran away from home, but we have no idea where his home even is. We also don’t know how far he can travel on hoof, or paw in his case, compared to a foal his age. He could be a hundred miles away from home, for all we know.”
“So, where does that leave us?” asked Rarity. “We can’t just leave him. He’ll try to run off into the desert again.”
Fluttershy mumbled something under her breath.
“You say somethin’?” asked Applejack.
“Well,” Fluttershy began, “Maybe he could come with us to Ponyville? Just until he’s ready to go home?”
Applejack shook her head. “That’ll put ‘im further away from his kin. It ain’t right ta keep ‘im from his family like that.”
Fluttershy rubbed a foreleg with one of her hooves. “But… he can’t get food here. He needs meat and I don’t think anypony here can help him with that. I’ve taken care of carnivores before. I-I can give him fish and I sometimes get imported bacon from Griffonstone. If he stays here, the best anypony can give him is some milk and maybe a few…” she gulped, “Field mice.”
Applejack frowned. “Well, Ah don’t want ‘im starvin’ ta death, but Ah still don’t like it.”
“Neither do I,” concurred Rarity, “But Fluttershy has a point. She is the best qualified to take care of the poor thing until we can bring him home.”
“And what are we supposed ta tell ‘im when he’s ready ta go back? That we don’t know where ta look?”
“I have an idea,” Twilight interjected. “We know that Simba and his family can talk, right?”
“Right.”
“So that must mean that, somewhere out there, there’s a society of talking lions, right?”
“Where are ya goin’ with this?”
“I could send a letter to Princess Celestia, asking her to send scouts to look for this society and establish foreign relations with them. Once they make contact, it should be easy to find Simba’s family. All we’d have to do then is send him home when he’s ready.”
Twilight’s friends looked to each other, briefly pondering her plan.
“That’ll work,” said Rainbow Dash.
“Yeah, Ah guess so,” Applejack conceded.
“Rather brilliant, if I do say so myself,” complemented Rarity.
“Yay!” cheered Pinkie, “We’ll have a super special ‘Welcome to Ponyville’ party that’ll cheer him right up!”
“Does his culture even have parties?” wondered Twilight.
Pinkie deflated at that comment. “No parties?” she asked, suddenly very worried.
“That’s just it,” replied Twilight, “We don’t know whether they have parties or not.”
Pinkie’s mane very briefly straightened, only for her to immediately perk up. “Ooh! If he’s never had a party before, he’d need a ‘First Party Ever’ party! It’ll be super duper extra special!”
“Um, Pinkie?” asked Fluttershy.
“We could bring all your animal friends to the party too!”
“Pinkie?”
“Wait, if it’s his first party ever and he’s from far away, should I invite-”
“PINKIE!” her friends minus Fluttershy chorused.
“That’s me!”
“I don’t mean to upset you,” Fluttershy began, “But I don’t think Simba can eat sugar. It might make him sick.”
Pinkie blinked. “Oh, that’s okay! I’ll just have to make some sugar-free cupcakes! I make ‘em all the time for ponies trying to diet!”
The five other ponies stared at Pinkie, shocked by her forethought.
“What? Did something fall out of my mane?”
Rainbow Dash broke the silence with a laugh. “Pinkie, you are so random!”
Her friends joined in, laughing over the quirky pink pony’s antics.
“Okay,” said Twilight when they were finished, “Does anypony know when the next train arrives? I’m positive that we missed the last one.”
They looked to each other, mumbling in uncertainty.
“We’ll have ta go ta the station and check,” said Applejack.
“I should go and buy some milk for Simba,” said Fluttershy. “It won’t be much, but it should help until I can get him fish.”
“Do you want one of us to hold him while you take care of that?” asked Rarity.
“Well, um, if that’s okay with you…”
“It’s no trouble at all,” assured Rarity. She moved closer and hunkered down. “Here.”
“Okay.” With the utmost tenderness, Fluttershy laid the sleeping cub on Rarity’s back. “Be careful not to wake him up.”
“Of course, darling. I’ll take him back to our hotel rooms and stay there.”
“That reminds me,” said Applejack, “Ah’ll have ta get a room there with y’all on account a leavin’ Cherry Jubilee.”
“Good thing we got an extra bed!” sang Pinkie.
“Speaking of beds, perhaps we should acquire a cat-sized one for Simba?” Rarity suggested.
“I can do that,” said Fluttershy.
“Good thinking, Rarity,” complimented Twilight.
“Well, I do have a pet cat, you know.”
“It’s settled, then,” declared Twilight. “We’ll meet back at the at the hotel.”
Rarity carried Simba back to the hotel without any issue. One advantage to staying in such a backwater place as Dodge Junction was that the hotel owners didn’t particularly care whether ponies brought “pets” with them. Anypony who did bring a pet was expected to clean up after it. The hotel was hardly up to Rarity’s standards, but they weren’t planning on staying very long, anyway. Furthermore, she could think of several high society places in Canterlot that would not have permitted Simba to stay, and that simply would not do.
Rarity brought the sleeping cub to the room shared by herself and Fluttershy, soon to be occupied by Simba and Applejack. Twilight, Rainbow, and Pinkie were staying in an adjoining room. Both rooms featured light blue walls, cream-colored flooring with, in Rarity’s opinion, tacky-looking rugs, and a dark brown ceiling. There were, of course, the usual necessities of dressers to store clothes and bathrooms with provided toiletries, though Rarity brought her own. In Rarity and Fluttershy’s room, there were two beds and a foldout couch, the latter of which would serve as Applejack’s bed, not that the farm mare would mind, of course.
Rarity moved over to the beds and, after a moment of consideration, levitated Simba onto Fluttershy’s bed. This was for the best, as Rarity did not want to deal with cat hair and knew that Fluttershy would want the cub close by. Besides, it was only a temporary measure until Fluttershy brought back a cat bed for Simba.
With the cub still asleep, Rarity was able to take a moment and get a good look at him. His fur was very dirty, no doubt from all the running through the desert he must have done. She would have to bathe and wash off the dirt that got in her coat while she was carrying him. His fur was also not very well kept. It was in need of a good grooming. In fact, Rarity surmised, Simba was in dire need of a bath and a comb. That would have to wait, however. The poor cub needed his sleep.
Acquiring the milk for Simba had been an easy task. The mare at the general store had sold Fluttershy a small bottle, no questions asked. Finding a small enough bed, however, was proving difficult. The ponies of Dodge Junction had no need for a pet store and any pet-related products were sold at the general store. Said products consisted almost exclusively of dog food and collars, as the local populace believed that dogs were far more useful than cats.
Determined to provide for the lonely cub in her care, Fluttershy decided to check the general store once again.
“Back so soon?” asked the gray mare at the front.
Fluttershy simply nodded and started scanning the shelves. There had to be something that she could use. A tub? Too big. Bucket? Definitely not. Basket? Fluttershy paused for a moment. She took a closer look at each basket available. There were only a few, but there was one that was just the right size for Simba. The only issue was bedding. Perhaps a blanket? Yes, that would do nicely.
Her mind made up, Fluttershy purchased the basket and a small blanket to serve as a cushion. The blanket was just large enough to also wrap around Simba in case he got cold. Purchases made, Fluttershy started back for the hotel.
“When is the next train for Ponyville?” asked Twilight.
“Tomorrow,” said the cream-colored stallion at the ticket booth. He gestured to a nearby board that listed upcoming arrivals and departures.
“Thank you, sir,” said Twilight, mentally chiding herself for failing to notice something so obvious. She did, however, see the sign that listed ticket prices. “We would like to purchase six adult tickets and one child ticket for the Ponyville train, please.”
The ticket stallion nodded. “Alright, let’s see the bits.”
“That was easy,” commented Rainbow Dash once the tickets were bought.
“Yep,” agreed Applejack. “We best head on back.”
Simba woke up and almost immediately realized that he was sleeping on something very soft. He did not open his eyes, perfectly content to curl up on his mother’s fur. With a soft grunt, he adjusted himself, ready to go back to sleep.
“Is he waking up?”
“Shh!”
Wait, thought Simba. Those voices didn’t sound like his mother. Where was… Oh. Slowly, Simba opened his eyes, dreading the truth. He was not in his den at home. Everything that had happened was not a horrible nightmare. It was all too real.
Simba found himself in a very strange-looking cave with the six ponies who found him in the desert. The walls were different colors and didn’t even look like stone. They were also very flat, not a curve in sight. Truly, it was the most bizarre cave he had ever seen. He would even go so far as to call it unnatural. The thing he was lying on felt soft like fur, only flat and on top of some other thing that he had no point of reference for.
“How are you feeling, dear?”
Simba turned his head to see Rarity. Fluttershy and Applejack were there with her. “Um, I’m okay.” That was a lie, of course, but he wasn’t about to tell the truth. They were being so nice, after all, and part of him didn’t want it to end. He was a coward. “Where am I? Is this your den?”
“Our what?”
Simba was confused. Did she not know what a den was? “You know, where you sleep?”
“Oh! Well, sort of.”
“We don’t live here,” explained Applejack, “It’s just a little room we’re rentin’ fer while we’re here.”
“What’s a room?”
Rarity’s eyes widened considerably. “You’ve never heard of a room before?”
“No. Is it like a cave?”
“Something like that,” replied Fluttershy.
Rarity gasped. “You live in a cave?”
She sounded so distressed, thought Simba. What was wrong with living in a cave? They were great shelter during thunderstorms. “Yeah. Well, I did, but…” Simba shook his head. “I don’t wanna talk about it.”
“Oh, dear.”
Hoping to change the subject, Simba looked down at what he was laying on. “What’s this thing?” he asked. “It feels really soft.”
It was the wrong thing to say, however, as Rarity suddenly looked very distressed. “Oh, dear, dear me!”
“I’m sorry!” Simba cried, “I didn’t mean to upset you!”
“Ya got nothin’ ta say sorry about,” Applejack interjected. “That’s just Rarity bein’ prissy.”
“I am not!” Rarity protested before taking a deep breath. “I am simply surprised that the poor dear doesn’t know about the bliss that is a warm blanket.”
“Sorry,” Simba lamented. His ears pressed flat against his head. Why couldn’t he do anything right?
“No need,” said Rarity. “I’m sorry for upsetting you. Here, let me tell you what this is.”
The soft thing that Simba was sitting on began to glow a very light blue and part of it rose into the air by itself. Rarity’s horn shone with the exact same glow. The young cub found himself enraptured by the magical sight.
“Woah!” Simba exclaimed, suddenly filled with wide-eyed wonder. “How are you doing that?”
“With magic,” she replied. “Everypony has it. Unicorns can cast spells and move things without touching them.”
“An’ earth ponies know how ta work the land an’ are real strong,” Applejack added.
“A Pegasus can fly and walk on clouds,” said Fluttershy.
Simba found himself grinning in amazement and giddiness. “You can walk on clouds?” Fluttershy nodded with a hum of affirmation. “That’s so cool! What do clouds feel like?”
“Well, they’re really soft and fluffy, but a little wet if you stay on them for too long.”
“Wow! I thought only rainclouds were wet.”
“All clouds have water in them.”
“Cool!” Simba turned to Rarity. “Do you make those big, soft things with magic?”
She chuckled and held up the object in question. “We call it a blanket, dear. It’s woven from various fabrics and it keeps you warm.”
That did sound useful, but Rarity’s explanation left Simba with even more questions. “What’s woven mean?”
“An’ here we go,” commented Applejack.
What followed was a lengthy speech about fabrics, where they came from, and how they were woven together to make such things as blankets and clothing.
“It’s made out of plants?” Simba asked, feeling confused. “How can you get something that feels like fur out of plants?”
“Plants and other things,” Rarity replied. “Wool, imagine a special type of fur, can also be used to make something especially warm. It can be quite complicated.”
Simba found himself even more lost than he was before Rarity’s explanation. “Sounds like an awful lotta trouble when you’ve already got fur.”
“It’s well worth the trouble, I say. It can get quite cold during the winter, you know.”
Simba tilted his head. “Huh? What’s winter?”
This time, even Applejack looked surprised. “Ya don’t know what winter is?”
“Maybe he just has a different word for it,” Fluttershy suggested.
“Maybe,” said Simba. “What is it?”
“It’s that time o’ the year when it gets real cold outside and there’s snow everywhere,” Applejack explained.
Simba thought for a moment. “Well, it can get cold at night, but it’s always warm or hot in the daytime. What’s snow?”
“Ya know, that cold, wet, white stuff that falls kinda like rain, but slower, and covers the ground?”
“Uhh, I don’t think we have that.”
“Ya don’t?”
Fluttershy spoke up. “Excuse me, but did you just say that it’s always warm or hot where you come from?”
All this talk of weather was making Simba feel homesick again, but he answered nonetheless. “Yeah.”
“But surely you have seasons,” said Rarity.
“Yeah, we have seasons. There’s the wet season and the dry season. It rains a lot during the wet season, but it’s a lot hotter during the dry season and there’s not much rain. The hippos really like to crowd the water hole then.” Simba could just picture Zazu making the report to his father, saying that the hippos needed a talking to. He sighed and lowered his head in shame.
Fluttershy moved closer. “What’s the matter?”
Simba turned away. “Nothing.”
“Don’t look like nothin’,” Applejack observed. “Yer awful sad about something’. We can see it.”
“I don’t want to talk about it.”
“That’s alright,” said Fluttershy, “We understand.” They didn’t, but Simba kept that thought to himself.
Rarity broke the silence that was about to ensue. “Perhaps we should let Twilight and the others know you’re awake. There’s something we would all like to ask you.”
Simba looked up, wondering what these ponies wanted with him. “Okay.”
“Alright, then. I’ll be right back.” Rarity walked up to a tall object that appeared to have been cut from a tree and her horn shone. Her aura surrounded a small, shiny shell on the side of the tall wooden thing and Simba heard a strange clicking sound. The entire thing, shell and all, swung to the side, revealing another part of the den, or “room,” as the ponies called it. Rarity stepped out and turned to the right, closing the tall thing behind her.
“What is that big thing?” Simba asked, pointing to it with his paw.
“The door?” asked Fluttershy.
“I guess so. What’s it do, and what’s that shiny thing on it?”
Fluttershy patiently explained the purpose of a door and its knob, how it helped with privacy and shelter. Simba saw no need for such a thing. It just got in the way. One would have to stop to open it before they could go anywhere. If someone wanted privacy, why couldn’t they go behind a rock? How bizarre these ponies were.
True to her word, Rarity soon came back with Twilight, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie. “I have so many questions!” exclaimed Twilight, who looked positively giddy. “You only have two seasons? How often does it rain during the wet season? How cold does-”
“Twilight!” yelled Rainbow Dash. “Important question now, egghead questions later.”
The purple pony looked quite embarrassed. “Sorry.” She turned her attention back to Simba. “Okay, we know that you’re probably a long way from home.” Simba’s ears flattened against his head. He couldn’t go back. “And you’re definitely lost, so… do you want to come and stay with us? At least until you’re ready to go home.”
Simba was taken aback. They had already showed him so much kindness and now they wanted him to live with them? He didn’t know what to say. He knew that he didn’t deserve their help, yet he felt drawn to them. Perhaps it was curiosity about their strange world, or maybe he was too much of a coward to go on alone. He turned to look out at the open space that was covered by a clear barrier of some sort. Somewhere out there, beyond the desert, was his old home. It couldn’t be his home anymore. “I can’t go back,” Simba said to himself.
“Ya say that now, but ya’ll change yer mind sooner or later,” said Applejack. Apparently, he had said that out loud. No matter.
Simba turned back to face the six ponies. Could they be his friends? It was selfish and cowardly, but the need to be close to others clawed at him. They could never know the truth about his past. They’d throw him back out into the desert. “Okay,” he mumbled.
“Yay!” Pinkie cheered. Without warning, she grabbed Simba and hugged him, spinning around as she did so. “You’re gonna love Ponyville! It’ll be so much fun and you’ll have the best Welcome to Ponyville party ever!”
Simba couldn’t help but giggle at the spontaneity of it all. He shoved his guilt to the back of his mind and focused on the now. Maybe, just maybe, he could be happy in this strange new world.
Author's Note
Man, this was tough to write. We take our modern day comforts such as blankets and doors for granted. Imagine trying to describe them as if you’re seeing them for the first time with no frame of reference.
If I’m on the right track or doing something seriously wrong, please let me know in your reviews.
Fluttershy was no stranger to taking care of carnivores. She had caught a great deal of fish for them in her time, as she understood the cruel necessity of such creatures needing meat to survive. For her, Simba was no exception. In fact, she was more than willing to provide for the little cub. Thus, she was glad that she bought milk, as there were no fish in Dodge Junction, when Simba’s stomach gave a loud rumble.
“Aw, you’re hungry,” cooed Fluttershy.
Simba briefly adopted a sheepish look on his face. “Yeah.” His expression then brightened. “I’m so hungry, I could eat a whole zebra!”
Fluttershy, to her credit, could honestly say that she was prepared for such talk, as Simba still had dietary needs, regardless of his intelligence and speech capabilities. Nevertheless, she failed to stop herself from wincing ever so slightly. Her friends, however, were far less subtle. Twilight’s eyes threatened to bulge out of her head from how wide they became; Applejack and Rainbow Dash cringed both audibly and visibly; Rarity put a hoof to her mouth and fought the urge to vomit, and Pinkie gasped so dramatically that it would’ve made Rarity envious if she were paying attention.
Simba’s face shifted to one of confusion. “What?”
Fluttershy realized that she needed to take control of the situation. Having had years of experience with similar situations, she knew exactly how to handle it. “Um, Simba? Could you please not talk about eating zebras? One of our friends is a zebra. I know you need to eat meat, but it’s not a very nice thing to talk about.”
Simba blinked. “Oh. Sorry.” She suspected that he didn’t fully understand, but the fact that he willingly apologized was good enough for her. “So, what am I supposed to eat?” he asked.
Fluttershy moved to a nearby saddlebag and pulled out the bottle of milk she had purchased. “Can somepony find a bowl? I mean, if you want to.”
The request snapped her friends out of their shock, as they were not remotely used to carnivores as she was. Pinkie was the first to respond, reaching into her mane and pulling out a small bowl. “It’s supposed to be for Gummy in case he loses his, but Simba can have it as long as he doesn’t try to eat Zecora.”
Simba stared at Pinkie, undoubtedly both confused and fascinated by what she just did. “Wow. Was that magic?”
Rainbow Dash answered before Twilight could open her mouth. “Sure, let’s go with that.”
“Okay, but why was she carrying an empty shell? Why wasn’t it on her head like Applejack’s?”
The mare in question raised her eyebrows. “What the what, now?”
Simba pointed to Applejack’s hat. “There’s a shell on your head.” Rainbow Dash snickered as she realized what the cub was talking about.
Applejack shot a glare towards Rainbow and everypony else, just in case they got any ideas about laughing at her. She then removed her hat and held it out. “Ya mean mah hat?” Simba nodded slowly. She allowed herself a small smile, though she didn’t want him to think she was making fun of him. “Aw, shucks, sugarcube, this ain’t a shell. It’s too soft.” She waved it about for a second to demonstrate her point. “This here’s what we call a hat. Ya wear it on yer head and it keeps the sun outta yer eyes.”
Simba eyed the hat curiously. “So, it’s not a shell? Is it way—? Uh, weave? Erhm…”
“Woven,” Rarity supplied.
“Yeah, that. From plants and stuff?”
“Basically.”
“Oh.”
“Here,” said Fluttershy, pouring some of the milk into the bowl, “We don’t have any meat, but this will help until we can get you some.”
Simba moved toward the bowl and sniffed. Leaning forward, he lapped up a small portion into his mouth. “It’s milk,” he guessed.
“Mmhm,” replied Fluttershy.
Simba frowned. “But only babies drink milk.”
“What are you talking about?” asked Rainbow. “Everypony drinks milk.”
“But I’m not a pony!” Simba protested.
Rainbow waved a hoof. “Every creature drinks milk. It’s good for you. I drink milk. You callin’ me a baby?”
Simba looked at Rainbow as if her mane had suddenly turned white. “But— But that doesn’t make any sense! Everybody knows you get milk from…” He faltered for a second. “From your mother until you get old enough to eat. I’m big enough, I don’t need milk anymore.”
“Actually,” said Twilight, “While you’re technically weaned, milk still has a lot of nutritional benefits. You could go without, but unless you have allergies, it’s not recommended. Plus, given how your diet is basically just meat, and that we don’t have any to give you…” she shuddered at the thought of how they would even acquire such a thing, “Milk is your best option until we get to Ponyville and Fluttershy catches some fish for you.”
Simba blinked, obviously still confused. He opened and closed his mouth a few times, evidently trying to think of a counterargument. Eventually, he sighed. “Well, if there’s nothing else…”. He tentatively leaned toward the bowl once more, then began to drink. It was slow at first, but the speed at which he drank gradually increased, betraying the fact that he was starving. It did not take long for him to completely drain the bowl of its contents.
“Good stuff, right?” said Rainbow.
Simba shrank slightly in embarrassment. “Yeah, I guess.”
Fluttershy gently set her hoof on his back. “Just let us know if you get hungry again, okay?”
“Okay.” Simba then perked up as though he had just remembered something important. “Uh, Twilight?”
“Yes?”
“You said something about a place called Ponyville? Where’s that?”
“Oh, that’s where we live. It’s about a hundred and fifty miles west of here.”
“Wow! That sounds really far! I bet it took weeks to get here!”
Twilight chuckled. “Actually, it only took a couple of hours.”
“Huh? But how? More magic?”
“No, we took the train.”
“The what?”
Before Twilight could answer, Pinkie stepped in. “It’s a giant, iron pony that carries everypony places and goes ‘chugga-chugga-chugga CHOO-CHOO!’”
“It ain’t a pony, but that about sums it up,” said Applejack, following a brief moment of stunned silence.
“So, more magic?” asked Simba.
“Well, actually, the engine is powered by—”
“Twilight, darling,” Rarity interjected, “I don’t mean to be rude, but I don’t think Simba understands what an engine is.”
Hearing this, Twilight decided to take it upon herself to explain exactly how a steam locomotive worked to a lion cub whose culture had not yet invented the wheel. A great deal of questions abounded from both Simba and Twilight; his with intent to understand what she was talking about, and hers to learn more about his homeland and how its inhabitants could possibly survive without the technology that she had taken for granted. This went on for several hours as lion and pony shared details about their respective worlds with each other. While Simba willingly answered general questions, he closed himself off whenever they became personal. He refused to tell the Elements anything related to his family. “I don’t want to talk about it,” he would say. The adults could tell he missed his home, but they did not want to pry. He would be reunited with his loved ones soon enough.
After much discussion and a break or two for mealtimes, during which Simba begrudgingly drank more milk, the little cub started to yawn. It was quickly agreed that Simba could sleep in the basket with Fluttershy, Rarity, and Applejack in the room. The friends bade one another a good night and Fluttershy prepared to tuck Simba in.
“Um, Fluttershy?” he whispered.
“Yes?”
“I gotta go.”
Fearful of the cub’s safety, she tried to dissuade him from leaving. “I don’t think it’s a good idea to go outside at night.”
“No, I gotta go! Bad!”
Fluttershy was about to respond, only to realize what Simba was actually talking about. “Oh! Oh!” She felt a wave of discomfort as she also realized that she would have to show him how to use a bathroom. The needs of the child outweighed her own, however, and she had little choice but to steel herself.
Although Fluttershy felt incredibly awkward throughout the event, there were no problems and she was able to get Simba to wash his paws after showing him how. When all was said and done, she tucked him in and went to sleep in her hotel bed.
“Fluttershy?”
The yellow pegasus awoke to something poking her. She rubbed her eyes and saw Simba on her bed. “Hmm?” she mumbled, “What?”
The cub looked very ashamed of himself, as if he had done something he shouldn’t have. “Um…I…”
Fluttershy yawned. “Are you okay? Do you need to go again? Did you have an accident?”
Simba looked down. “No,” he mumbled.
Fluttershy could already hear the pillow calling her back. She hoped this was important. “What’s the matter?”
“I…I had a bad dream.”
She felt her heart go out to the frightened cub and her drowsiness dissipated. Sitting up in the bed, she reached out and embraced him. Her wings draped over him as he sniffled. “Do you want to sleep with me tonight?” Hesitantly, he nodded into her barrel, mumbling an affirmative. She let go of him to lie back down, then opened her forelegs to invite into another hug. He accepted and she pulled him close, his back to her as she held him. He sniffled again and she shushed him soothingly.
It wasn’t long before Simba fell asleep in Fluttershy’s embrace.
Author's Note
While Fluttershy is the best qualified to take care of Simba, I don’t want her to get all the mother/big sister moments with him. I probably could’ve filled this chapter with Simba and Twilight asking each other questions, but I figured that would be boring. I doubt we’ll ever get fanart of Fluttershy comforting Simba, which would look adorable, but I digress.
Concerning Simba’s reaction to milk, I wanted to establish that he’s still a child and therefore still thinks like a child. Children don’t want to do things they think they’re too old for.
Next chapter, to Ponyville we go!