Per request; Warning: Lots of internal monologuing ahead. Chapter is skippable as no actual action progresses plot, but the primary motivation of the main character is detailed in this section and will affect much that occurs later. (11/11/2024)

Silver lining: I suppose that additional experience of pain is confirmation that this place is not Heaven or some other afterlife; and since there are periods in between the pain where there isn't any pain, then this place isn't Hell either.

I can feel good. I can feel bad. I can think.

I believe that covers most ontological bases that a dream wouldn't usually dare try.

I think there's another test about someone else gaining knowledge without my knowledge of it, but that sounds like some trouble. Therefore, for the time being, I think I can assume I am real and so is everything else around me -until I encounter something to challenge that. And I really hope that doesn't happen.

I've a growing list of problems, and I am not equipped for an epistemological one... How do I even know these words? ... Sh!t.

Ignoring all that for now. Got bigger issues, I think: water, food, shelter, when, where, who, what…

Gotta make the best decisions you can with the best information you have, after all; and right now no decision or refusing to decide are also decisions.

In. Out.
Alright, on your hooves, Me. Me… Hm~ Don't seem to remember my name. Pretty sure I had one. That's~ probably not good. I'll have to add that to the list, too -an ever lengthening list. Name seems pretty low on the priorities for now.

Let's do some orientation for now. On top of a warf. Where am I?

That is a coil of rope -or at least, it's what I think I would perceive as a coil of rope. For all I know, it's called something entirely different here with completely different properties. And possibly gravity isn't considered a theoretical force on this planet.

I did just basically fly a short distance despite the crash -that nopony saw or can testify occurred!- and if magic and Discord exists then- ah. Yup. Impossible may very well be a rule of physics around here. How does one prepare for that?

Questions for later. Focus, Brain.
Hey. Do not blame me for your focus issues.
You- but- what?
Focus, dude. You got sh!t to do.
Oh, right. Thanks, Brain.
Everybody gets one.
...Wait. What! That was my one? That's not fair. I want a re-do! ... Brain? Brain! That's not fair!

...Bu~ck.

Oh, the rope! I'm going to call it 'rope' for now.

Seems like a pretty big coil. Are they supposed to be that big? Ocean is out thataways -at least, I assume its an ocean by the smell of the salt and assuming their table of elements matches up and combines with those I know in the ways I know.

I wonder if salt affects equines in this world like it did wherever I was Before. Toxicosis is akin to inebriation, right? Could I be drunk on salt right now? Is that why I'm... Hm~ I don't think I feel drunk. Don't taste salt in my mouth. None on my lips. Little bit of sand in my fur. I can smell a little salt from the sand... mm, tastes like sand.

Okay, I think I'm probably sober.

D@mn. Being smashed would answer a lot of questions right now… Maybe I can try that later…

Large body of water over there -not much on the horizon and less that I recognize... And the other way is: a city or what I assume is a city. Buildings. Lots of them.

Okay...

I don't immediately recognize it. What town names do I know? Ponyville and Canterlot… um~ is that all? Maybe I’ll remember more later.

…

Well, that looks too big to be Ponyville, and I think that town is near a forest -not a salty body of water. Canterlot is supposed to be landlocked as well -maybe- and might be on the side of a mountain somewhere… I’d like to see how that was done.

The place before me does not resemble anything particularly iconic between those two. Nuts.

Shadows- the sun is a little bit behind the buildings. Could be morning or evening. I'm pretty sure the sun is supposed to go East to West on Equus. Do I know that? ...Ugh~

Okay. I need to stop. Just assume some things and then adjust accordingly afterwards.

For the moment, I am going to assume I am on Equus -the planet on which the country of Equestria is located... I think. At least, that's what my mind wants to assume -assuming that is where I am.

Harmony, please don't let this be some insane or post-apocalyptic zombie planet.

And I'm assuming the sun goes from East to West for now. Definitely need to find a history book soon… and a science book… ooh- and magic!

Hm~ can I read? I hope we all speak and write something similar. That could make everything wa~y easier if the language barrier is not a barrier. I do suppose the odds are rather astronomical that the inhabitants of this world would use the same language as the one I used Before, though.

Closer to me, near the ground, there is some movement. Equine shapes on a... boardwalk? Focus, Eyes. You two can do it. The ponies don't seem that far away -relatively speaking... and they are bi~g. Way bigger than me. Am I super small? This isn't like a Gulliver's Travels type of thing, is it? No~

I can see over this coil of rope but just barely... Yeah, I think I'm just small.

Wait.
In. Out. I've got -what I assume are- male parts.
Wait.
In. Out. I might not be big enough to be a stallion.
Wait.
In. Out. I may or may not be big enough to be a colt.
Wait.
In. Out. In. Out. I might be a foal.
What... A foal? What!

Actually, that makes some sense. I seem to remember somepony saying something about zygotes and the ‘path of least resistance’ rule or something.

I might be a foal: a young equine child. A little pegasus with an even littler horn. There was a word for that, right? What types are there? Pegasi, unicorns, the regular ones, zebras, um... bats maybe? I think there were a bunch, actually. Some that swim. One that disguises itself. I think there is one with cloven hooves and fire. Hmm... and then there were the rare ones that were mixtures.

...

Something with corn? Haul-the-corn, maul-the-corn, ball-of-corn… All-the-corn? Yeah. That sounds close. I might be one of those with all-the-corns.

Whose corn is it? Mine. All mine. That's who.

I think I remember there was... is... will be an all-the-corn baby. Only one all-the-corn baby. When that event happens depends on when I am now.

Alley-corn? Oh! That's the word: alicorn. Alicorn. Right. I knew that.

Alicorns have wings and horns. I think the baby alicorn's name will be Flurry or Skyla or Inova or something, and her horn is huge for a foal. Like super huge. And massive wings... and an extra big head...

I wonder how unicorn babies come out with huge honking pokers like that...

I think I'll put a pin on that thought and am going to try to be super, super nice to Flurry's mom if I ever meet her. That poor, poor lady. Especially if the horn actually is like an 'egg tooth.'

I think it was a kid's show, so they couldn't even think about showing what kind of damage a foal like that could do on egress but...

*shudder* "Brr~”

She's an alicorn, too, I think... Candy-Enza? Canned-easy? Candy? Candy. Eh, close enough.

My horn isn't big like Flurry's -not like any of them, really. So that means I'm not likely in Flurry's body and merely perceiving myself differently. That's a good thing. Possessing some other pony's body sounds like major trouble.

Although I may just be seeing myself one way while the ponies of this world could see me as another. None of my senses feel off; don't think I'm getting mixed signals... I'll have to monitor that.

The alicorns I think I know about are all female. They are all female... Unless they're all gender swapped in this universe? No evidence of that from this warf, and I can't really tell from those ponies I can see walking around the boardwalk.

Most look like earth-ponies. Earth-ponies: the word for ‘regular ponies’ -supposing those terms are even used in that way. Except I don't think they're regular the way I think of as regular. Earth-ponies from Equestria should have their own magics the way the others have their own types which would make them as magical as anything else. Right?

Ah, that one over there is a unicorn. Horn is visible. Bigger than mine. Maybe they are all born small like mine and get bigger as a pony grows?

Or maybe I'm going to get called all kinds of things: microhorn, nub, stumpy?

And other ponies will say things like, 'Small up there, small down there,' 'At least he can cast a spell for a few seconds,' 'Might as well just use the mare's room,' and, 'Wait, you're a dude?' Geeze, thanks, everypony.

Whatever. It's how you use it... or maybe mine is just small.

Any with wings? Flying around? Yup. There's one. Maybe all pegasi have modest horns like me, but it never came up in the lore?

Can't figure any of this out from here by this sampling of the population, I guess; and I don't think there's any way I could verify without getting into somepony's mane to check for microhorns, anyway.

Alright. Focus. Focus, dude. You're not focusing on the issues at... hoof? Issues at hoof.

Summarize: I'm a pony. Probably a foal. Likely I'm a rare variant -possibly an alicorn. If this is the Equestria that I know of, then alicorns are a big deal.

The Equestria I know of does not have male alicorns. Pretty sure my twig and two-berries down there means I'm a male. Knowledge of this would change all kinds of things.

Male alicorn plus female alicorns means...

More alicorns?

If other nations learned that Equestria's alicorns all-of-a-sudden had the ability to start multiplying, how would they react? I’d probably go nuts if it were me. I do not think it would be a good nuts either. Bad nuts. Nasty, dirty, salty nuts. Like World War on Equus levels of nuts.

Even if ponies are as harmonious and peaceful as I hope they are, there’s no telling what the other creatures of the world will do.

Fear.

It can change the kindest, most loving person inside. It can make the tamest person feral. How can anyone know what to expect?

What could it do to creatures of Harmony? Make them skiddish? Mistrustful? Dangerous?

Even herbivores are the most destructive creatures when cornered and scared and determined to protect their own. And there should be other sentient beings in this world besides ponies.

If your nation's rivals found out you were building super weapons, they'd have three choices: submit, build their own super weapons to force a stalemate, or strike you first before you completed construction or development. What other choices are there?

Yup. That would be bad. Very bad. That is assuming I am what I think I am, and I am where I think I am. Two very, very big assumptions to be sure, but I only have so much to go off of right now. Maybe it won't be as bad as that? Hope for the best, prepare for the worst...

... Prepare for the worst...

One alicorn can raise and lower the sun and moon. Maybe they all can after a certain amount of time. Hell, the Princess of Friendship -whoever that is- is called out to confront hostile forces more than any of the others.

Friendship. Magic battles. Friendship! Magic battles! How are those two things related?

***
‘In Equestria, we pony hard, but we friendship harder… wait. Rainbow, what does that even-?’ -Princess of Friendship.
***

…I have a lot to learn about this culture.

Foreign countries would be right to fear a rapid increase of alicorn population and act accordingly. Thinking of them as super weapons isn't much of a stretch, I don't think. They're all females... and now there is a male. A single male. One. Me.

Oh.

Oh~ this is bad. I mean, this could be bad. Maybe it's not.
Just- just breathe.
In.
Out. Harmony, help me!

Another question: when am I? Maybe I'm late. Maybe it's okay if there's a male alicorn right now, because all of the things that are supposed to happen already have?

If I am in Equestria or on their planet Equus, then I will need to know when I am. If it's anytime during or before the end of the events I'm aware of, then...

Oh, horseapples -sh!t. I mean: oh, sh!t. Come on, Me. You're still you. You don't know your name or much about where you were before, but you also don't need to be using Pinkie-curses yet -whatever those are supposed to be... Yet... You're a... well, you were a... huh. Well, I think I used to be grown-up enough to swear properly. At least, I remember what bad words are and sort of how they're supposed to be used. That's something.

Dude! Get on with it!
What? Right.

If I'm a foal -if comparing myself to those ponies over there is any indication- in a pony town then… I wonder if I have a family. That would be amazing! Did some magic zap me into existence on the beach or in the water, or was I physically born again into this world -probably not too long ago- like that pony hypothesized?

I didn't see any other pony on the beach, and I don't recall any interactions with any other pony or creature up to this point.

...I hope there wasn't some accident at sea. That would -that would be really- no! I don't have time to grieve for a family that may or may not have ever existed.

In.
Out. That feels good. Focus on that.
In.
Out. Think about good things.
In.
Out. I'm probably a foal. Spawning next to dense population might be a good thing for that. If I were a normal foal, I'd just wander around until somepony took me in, and I could just let the systems in place work for me: foster systems, orphanages, government help, or just some kind passer-by...

As I am currently, somepony would eventually brush my mane or wash me or nuzzle my head and then -boom- front page news soon followed by boots on the streets, arrows, spears, spells, and screaming…

...Sh!t.

This all started out so wonderfully.

I was going to be a normal pony, go to school, make friends, get a job…

… But I'm not a normal pony. Am I? Probably not. Even if by some miracle male alicorns are not a rarity beyond rarities…

None of this is a very harmonious way of thinking. Is it? Probably not when I keep assuming the worst outcomes.

In. Out. Calm down.
In. Out. Focus.
In. Out. Calm. Down.
Breathing feels good but hyperventilation does not. Noted.

Work through the problems. One thing at a time.

In.
There are no problems -only solutions I have not found yet.
Out.

If somepony were to help me, they'd have to be exceptionally tight lipped or remarkably stupid or such a well-known liar that nopony would believe them even if they did talk to others about me. If this is the Equestria that I know, then the pool of candidates meeting those criterion are small indeed.

I assume the core cultural principals of this country are: friendship and magic and harmony, I assume. And the magical being responsible for... something in this world is called Harmony. Maybe.
In.
Out.

Harmony, this I promise you, if you're real: there will be no wars in this world on my account. None. I won'd let it. I'll take myself out of the equation if it will save your ponies. Please forgive my intrusion, and...

...I hope you're real, Harmony.

Okay. Nope. No tears. Stop it. Not yet. Not now. I got sh!t to do.

Focus.
In. Out. In. Out.
Focus.

Is it possible for a foal to survive on the streets of an Equestrian city -unnoticed- long enough to learn how to fend for myself elsewhere? Maybe if I found a Fagin or Artful Dodger... Somehow, I think organized crime is going to be very difficult to locate -let alone to infiltrate as a foal.

If the events of the show are concurrent or yet-to-pass, then my goal should be to go and be far away from anypony so that my presence does not derail the successes which are supposed to happen. Background. Maybe I can find some background ponies and just chill off to the side despite my… problem?

Hopefully my existence has not changed anything already. Maybe it did. Buck if that’s the case.

I only need to be in this city just long enough to grow up some and learn how to survive without ponies -to be alone. Alone... as a -probably mostly- herbivorous herd-centric social species.

Curses! Why couldn't I just be a normal pony!? Alicorn sucks and I’m too young for this.

Hopefully, the long life of an alicorn does not translate to an extended foalhood, too... I'll cross that bridge later.
In.
Out. Good things…
Okay. My horn is small. My horn is small.

My horn is small?

Oh! My horn is small! Maybe I can use that? It... should be easier to hide than a big one -supposing it doesn't grow. Just have to move my mane around a bit and -yeah!

Probably won’t stay that way when I fly and may have to get something to cover it later, but that should be good for now. It’ll be fine.

I just have to be sneaky like a Solid Serpent, baby.

While I am -probably- a foal which will garner attention that I don't want, I am also small myself; and small things are usually sneakier than bigger ones. Less noticeable.

Those two things are some fine assets for now: small hide-able horn and a small, sneaky, hide-able body. I think I can work with that.

I just have to hide and sneak and steal and probably lie. A lot.

... Please don't be angry, Harmony. It’s not because I want to; it’s to save lives… I hope…

Hah~ at least, I do feel a little better now.

I have some good assets and a plan and a big pile of questions currently without answers, and I did all that without any help from Brain. You hear that!? I did it all by myself.
What was that? Sorry. There wasn't anything worth paying attention to, so I didn't. You want to maybe go through all that again?
...Ugh, no. No, I do not.
Suit yourself.
Jerk.
What?
Nothing.

Now for my next missions: sustenance, shelter, and continuing my orientation.

What do foals eat? Am I so young that I have to avoid solids? I got... some teeth. Their positions seem odd, and they are shaped a little differently than I think I used to have. How many teeth are foals supposed to have? Have I weened yet? I... don't know.

There is a lot I don't know.

That could get tricky. Seriously. Like, if I haven’t weened, how might one stealthily suckle a wet-nurse? Just do a hit-and-run: sneak in, grab a mouthful, and getaway before anypony gets wise?

Gonna have to do my best, I guess. Harmony can’t fault me for that… Right?

Horses and ponies where I was before were borne able to walk, so my mobility doesn't reveal much for my age. Neither Flurry nor the Cake Twins -whoever they are- were exactly stationary soon after birth -or are... or will be...

Next mission: I need a map and a look at the moon. Those could tell me some things about when and where I am.

…All while observing the Pony Prime Directive. I am so bucked.

I think I'm ready to move from behind this coil of rope and get things started, Harmony. Have mercy on me, please.

Okay. Game on, Equestri- woah, look at that butterfly. That’s beautiful.

Author's Note

Originally Chapter Two was one piece, but MC took a sharp emotional turn based on a lot of -at the moment- baseless assumptions and ruminations, and I thought the pendulum swing of the ambiance needed some sort of split.

DWK, in his Totally Legit Recap series, describes Twilight’s rapid adaption to the Mirror World as masterful while admitting he’d completely shut down if suddenly encountering a new body and reality; I’d like to think the colt is somewhere in the middle of that spectrum right now.

Yes, the colt’s Brain is its own separate character. I don't know why that is so funny to me, but it is.

Inova is an alicorn filly in a FimFic I recommend, The Alicorn Fillies Redux.

Fagin and the Artful Dodger are characters from another Dickens' story, Oliver Twist. I honestly did not expect I'd be able to squeeze two Dickens' references to so close together... Huh...

But there’s supposed to be some comedy in this story, colt. All this worrying! Geeze, would it kill you to throw a pie?