What makes us?

I follow Celestia down the winding hallways of the castle. Her multicolored mane and tail float in a phantom breeze. The clip clop of her hooves echoes through the nearly endless halls. I begin to take in the sights as we moved along toward a place unknown to me.

Large stained glass windows are spread across the walls reaching almost from the floor to the roof. Each window showing a vibrant display of colors, all combining together to create a masterpiece I have no chance of recreating. As if.. The thought passes through my mind, like a whisper from behind me. It feels familiar yet foreign to me all at once.

Each picture shares a common theme of ponies playing and running in fields and generally enjoying themselves. Yet, somehow, each one has their own special touch that made it unique from its neighbors. A few of the windows show less common themes but still hold their beauty. One was of ponies sleeping under the moon's light, another of two ponies, resembling Celestia and the one she had called Luna, both raising the moon and sun. Light from the outside let the windows give off a glow, shining vibrant colors of spectrum.

My view of the windows is being continually interrupted by large pillars of marble rising from the floor to ceiling. The roof is possibly the least amazing part of the entire castle. It’s domed and raised up quite high, almost as if they expected a giant to enter their halls.

I stop admiring the lovely scenery of the castle and look forward. We are approaching large set of doors. The doors themselves could easily fit a great deal of ponies through at once. They are lower than the pillars and only reached about half way up the wall.

"We generally use these big doors for the Gala so ponies don't have to crowd." Celestia speaks back to me.

"That's a... interesting fact." I lie, not wanting to offend the princess.

We stop and she turns back toward me, "Would you please wait one moment? I need to remind my friends about something."

"Alright..."

She gives me a soothing smile but it feels forced. She turns toward the door as her horn begins to glow white once more. I lean to the side in order to see what she was doing, only to see a similar glow encircling a smaller rectangle on the grand doors. Doors within in doors? I think to myself. Doorception... Once again, a strange thought passes through my mind. The rectangle opens to the side allowing passage to the princess. She walks through the doorway which immediately shuts behind her.

I fiddle with my finger for about a second before my curiosity gets the best of me. I press myself against the crack between the doors. Small tidbits of sound leak through the crack that I could make sense of.

"Are you sure this will work Princess?" The voice of the purple unicorn reaches my ears.

"Yes, it will work fine and Discord," The sound becomes muffled before returning to its former clarity, "There is very little chance this will fail."

Damn, they keep skipping. "Sister, I know you and Discord have history but are you sure?"

I could almost feel the comfort of her voice, "Do not worry, Luna. We will make things right finally."

"Alright sister."

"Are we ready to meet our 'new' guest formally?"

A unison of voices speak up, "Yes, Princess."

I quickly push myself off the wall. I quickly make my way to the nearest pillar and begin to lean on it.  I pretend to look at my paws while secretly checking the door. Soon a similar alabaster shine enveloped the entire door. The door slowly creaks, opening to allow passage. The Princess soon steps out from behind it and looks towards me.

"They're ready for you now." She speaks calmly.

I push myself off the pillar and begin to walk towards the door, "Alright."

I follow Celestia through the door. The sound of the door closing tight fills my ears. I look back to check and sure enough it was shut back into its original location. I look forward, ignoring the fact that my only escape route had been blocked off. Why would I need to run? It's not like they’re going to just randomly attack me...

The room in front of me is much grander than the hall. The roof is as high as the hall's but, instead of being bare, it is decorated with intricate chandlers that twisted and turned like a wall of vines. I must have entered the center room, considering the lack of windows. On the walls, various paintings and long cloth tapestries, showing scenes from what I'd assume are history or fairy tales, adorn them.

Armors that would fit ponies perfectly are spaced between the pillars on the sides of the room. Most of them are of a golden color that matched the guards that stand not too far away. The white earth ponies, beside the mannequins, wearing helmets of same hue with what looked like brushes on top of them. The helmets reached down the back of their neck to intertwine with their golden armor. Their attire seems to reflect even the slightest light that hit them.

I look in the center of the room to see a large table spanning nearly the entire room. Chairs are spread evenly apart and directly across from each other. There are two larger seats at one end of the table with another equally large one on the other.

The six ponies from earlier are seated near the two larger chairs where the blue alicorn sits now. Celestia walks slowly to the other chair beside her sister. She takes a seat herself and the entire attention of the room is given to me. Wow this is possibly the most awkward situation that I can remember. Oh, wait... I could almost hear the echo of a laugh in my head.

"Now Harmony, why don't you take a seat?" Celestia motions to the large chair in front of me.

As I begin to take a seat, the purple unicorn speaks up, "Harmony?"

"It was a name he chose, Twilight. I think it fits him fine." She holds a gentle smile while she spoke.

"I'm sorry, did I choose a name that was sensitive?" I ask with honest curiosity.

"Not at all Harmony. It's just we’re called the Elements of Harmony so there may be some confusion." The white sophisticated unicorn says with a hint of nervousness.

"I could change it if you want."

"NowaythenameHarmonyfitsyouperfectlyanditwouldbeawasteifyoudidntuseitIalsoalreadyorderedthebannersandpartysuppliessoitwouldbesorudetothepartyponiesIorderedthestufffrom!" The pink pony speaks in a blur, making the words blend together.

I scratch my head, "What?"

"Basically she said keep the name." The orange earth pony speaks with a country accent.

"Alright..."

"Shall we get to the business at hand?" Luna says, interrupting the short silence.

"Ah yes, Luna. Well, Harmony, allow me to introduce you to my student and element of magic, Twilight Sparkle."

The purple pony sits forward, "Hello... Harmony."

The purple unicorn looks nervous at the least. She constantly looks back to the princess for reassurance of something then back to me. Her mane is slightly frizzled, showing how much stress she must go through each day. A single magenta strip crossed through her hair. That different..

"Applejack, element of honesty."

"Howdy... Harmony" She paused almost as if she was thinking of a word to use and instead opted for my name.

“Hi...” I have to admit she looks like she’s giving me the ‘Make a move, you’re dead’ signal.

Applejack holds herself with pride. Her mane and coat nearly matched. The signs of a working pony evident on her body. Bits of dust and dirt hang in her mane. Scratch mark lay around her body. The most interesting part of her appearance is the hat. It has a large rim that covers over most of the top of her head. The hat looks worn down but still clearly in good shape. She keeps her eyes on me with an expression of distrust. Geez what did I do.

"Fluttershy, the element of kindness."

I look over to the yellow pegasus who lowers herself under the table, " Hello... it's nice to meet you."

"I'm sorry, I didn't quite hear that."

"Hello, it's nice to meet you." Her voice is a little more audible but still sounds like a whisper.

"Once more, please."

"It's nice to meet you..." Her voice finally became audible.

I smile but that only seemed to frighten her more, "It's nice to meet you, Fluttershy."

She finally rises up from under the table giving me a good view of her. Her yellow coat blends well with her light pink mane. She hides one eye behind her hair while the other shyly peers out. She seems incredibly uncomfortable with the situation making me feel bad for her. Poor thing...

"Anyway, that is Rarity, the element of generosity." The princess points toward the white unicorn.

"Charmed." Her tone remained neutral, almost dead really.

Rarity sits in, possibly, the most proper position I have ever seen. Her purple mane and tail are perfectly trimmed and coiffed. The way her mane and tail contrasts against her white coat seems to radiate sophistication. Her mane and tail lays against her chair and back neatly. I feel improper just by being in such close proximity to her.

"Over there is Pinkie Pie, the element of laughter."

I look over to where she was pointing but see only an empty chair there, "Princess, there’s no...."

A pink blue flashed before my eyes, "Oh my gosh it's so nice to meet you Harmony. Well I met you outside but that was when we were being serious. Now we can be friends! It’ll be fun! We'll have parties, games and so much fun!" Her tone is slower than before but still requires some focusing to understand fully.

"Uh, I'm sure we will, Pinkie..."

Her smile grows larger nearly defying logic. Her pink mane and coat blends perfectly together. Her very presence makes me feel happier. She vanishes once more and, after I blink for a second, reappears in her seat mysteriously. I rub my eyes and look again to make sure I’m not going crazy. How did she do that?

"And the last one is Rainbow Dash, the element of loyalty."

The rainbow maned pegasus flies out of her seat, getting just close enough to stare directly in my eyes. I swear I think I see fire in them...

"Sup.." The word is simple enough but the antagonistic tone clearly gives the message that she did not like me.

My curiosity gets the better of me, "Nice to meet you..."

"I bet it is." She keeps her withering look locked to me.

"Yah.." None of the ponies made a point of stopping her from using that tone this whole time.

She slowly backs off. Her eyes constantly glaring daggers as she flies back to her spot. Her rainbow mane flows back behind her. As she lands, I can clear tell she flew everyday due to the state of how messy and random her hair was. She just seems to buzz with anticipation for the next chance to fly.

"Now that we have introductions over with, let's get to the main issue. Since you've lost your memory, Harmony, we will have to find you a place to stay."

"Yah, I suppose that would be needed." I fake a laugh in order to relieve the tension.

Luna speaks before her sister, "We can offer thou a place at the castle until a suitable replacement home is found."

"You’re being awfully nice, is it because of that Discord pony you were talking about?"

They seem to tense up at the name, "What?!? No, of course not." Twilight tries to act calm and failing horribly, her shifting eyes darting from one space to another.

Princess Celestia looks at Twilight with a reassuring smile that manages to calm her down, "No, Discord is just another one of your kind."

"Another of my kind? Shouldn't I go look for him? Maybe he can help me get my memory back."

Luna's face turns crestfallen, "We're afraid Discord isn't exactly a creature you would want to discuss such matters with."

"Why?"

"Do not worry yourself, Harmony. Discord would only lie to you. He is a trickster and a monster." Once again, an echo of a laugh goes through my mind, sending a slight chill down my back.

"Oh, alright. If he is truly that bad, I guess I'll just wait for my memory to return on its own."

"Tis a wise choice, Harmony. Now, until a new place of residence is found, let us show you your room."

I give a toothy smile, "Alright."

Celestia begins to address the elements, "You six can head back home. I will send a letter when our new friend here has a place."

Twilight smiles, "Alright Princess."

She turns to the guards, "You may also return to your duties."

"Yes ma'am." They say in unison.

The six ponies lift themselves out of their seats and make their way to another door on a side of the room. The guards soon follow after them, making their way to multiple doors that seemed almost hidden to those not looking for them.  Soon the room is vacant with the exception of me, Luna and Celestia. A cold silence fills the room for a moment or so before Celestia speaks.

"Well let's go to your temporary room shall we?" She gives a warm smile similar to the one she gave to Twilight but with a hint of worry behind it.

"Let’s."

I begin to follow the princess through the doors opposite of the ones that the elements had left through. The halls twist and turn. The halls are similar to the previous one but the difference being that there are no grand glass windows that decorate the walls. Only different sets of armor that varied in size, color, material and style line themselves for my eyes to see. A few particular sets intrigue me.

One set of armor looks as if it was pulled straight from nightmares. The helmet has a jagged piece of metal that was meant to firmly wrap around a unicorn’s horn. The metal is of black steel that seems to absorb the light that hit it. The helmet follows the same design of the guards’ armor by extending down the neck. The main piece of armor has what looks like chain-mail to cover the tail and wings of a pegasus without inhibiting their ability to fly. The leg pieces are two pieces with a small divide around the knees in order to allow for finesse in movement.

Another set of armor is almost the exact opposite in temperance. A brilliant white metal that gives off a rainbow sheen anytime light touched it. The horn piece is open for a more comfortable fit over the other armor. The armor runs down the neck in an almost smooth line, only interrupted by small bumps of the seams. The wings and tail are left unprotected but the main piece still remains, keeping a vaguely similar look to the current guard armor. There is no leg protection. This armor is clearly made less for combat and more for show due to the design of vines and symbol of the sun imprinted on it.

We continue down the halls, each section holding another piece of art in either the form of a painting, tapestry or armor, each one with its own flair of style. Very little did designs repeat and when they did, they had obvious changes to give it its own uniqueness. We make our way down further until we finally reach one of the large towers that I had seen from the outside. A long winding stair case leads all the way to the top. The princesses stop at the bottom then turn to face me.

"Well Harmony, this staircase will lead you to your new room. When we find a suitable house for you in Ponyville, we will send a message to you. If you need anything like food or books, ask the guard that will be posted here shortly alright?"

"Uh, yah thank you. I still don't know why you are being so nice to me."

"Has thou given us a reason not to be?" Luna speaks with the same strange vocabulary.

"Well, no."

Celestia smiles briefly, "Then there is your reason. Now if you will excuse us, we have to tell the guards about you and deal with some other work."

"Alright."

The two princesses take separate paths, each off to do their own business. Guess I should go check out my new room. I begin the ascent up the tower. The steps are a nice height, making each step easy. The slope was also decent, most likely lower then it would be if I had built the staircase due to the ponies’ stature. I soon make it to an opening that leads to a single room. In the center is a large master bed with a lovely canopy above it being held up by four wooden pillars from the frame. To the side are a large dresser and a mirror. Well those two things are pointless... I look around the room. There’s nothing special about it besides being on possibly the biggest spire in the castle.

I look towards the bed. The sheets look so soft and orderly. The pillows are arranged perfectly. I make my way over the bed and crouch. With much force, I propel myself upward onto the bed. I begin to fly through the air. I look downward, ready to see the bed coming toward my body. Instead I see the bed moving beyond my body, passing me. I show no signs of lowering or landing on the soft bed. This can't be good.. My head makes contact with the wall, making a solid thunk that reverberates through the room. My entire body bounces back onto the bed. When I hit the bed, I almost instantly lose consciousness.

A/N

Please comment, like and fav. Especially comment, how else am I supposed to know how many ways I fail?

Your Fishy Overlord, Troutking