Gabriel had to hold on to a tree to keep from falling, as he realized the impossible truth. “I'm not dreaming, it's all too clear, too precise. I'm thinking too clearly. And I feel pain...” A part of his mind still didn't want to accept what the yet overwhelming evidence announced. “Why? Why me? What did I do to deserve this?”.

It was at this point that Fluttershy decided to finally step out of the shadows and approach the visibly distressed human. “Are you... okay?”

Gabriel, a little taken aback by the question, observed the newcomer. She had a sympathetic look on her face, like her fellows now. “No... No I'm not okay...”

“Why's that?”

“Because... I don't understand what's happening to me! I just... I just want to know why I'm here! And how I'm getting home!”

Fluttershy put her hoof on Gabriel's shoulder, who was about to counter her gesture but recovered, and continued: “Ho... Don't worry, I'm sure Twilight will be able to help you. She's the most magically gifted unicorn I know”.

“Magic !?”

“Yes, isn't it Twilight?”

Twilight, who was watching the scene intently, blushed a little as she replied, “Stop it, Fluttershy, I'm not THAT good.... But I think I might be able to help you, indeed.”

Gabriel looked at the ponies, who seemed to want to help him for some reason. He had to admit too, now that he'd calmed down, that they were kind of cute. He suddenly blamed himself for his behavior a few moments ago. “Look, I'm... I'm really sorry for yelling at you, really, I... I wasn't in my right mind.”

Apple Jack smiled as he replied, “Well, you were in a panic, that's understandable, we don't blame you”

Rarity added: “Yes, the most important thing is that you apologized, dear...”

"Thanks..."

Twilight said: “Well, I suppose the best thing to do now is to go home and send a letter to Princess Celestia to let her know you're coming, she'll surely know better than I what to do.”

“Uhm... Who's that?”

“Don't tell me you don't know who Princess Celestia is?” She asked as if it were a crime.

Rarity intervened: “Darling, this young man obviously comes from a very distant place, it's only natural that he doesn't know...”

“Yes, you're right Rarity, I'll explain you later” The 6 friends set off towards the village, then turned around when they realized he wasn't following them. “You're... coming with us, aren't you?”

Gabriel thought for a moment, then decided he had nothing better to do here anyway. “Uhm... Yes, yes of course! Let me just grab a few things...” He headed for his car and retrieved his phone and wallet, as well as the keys. He hesitated for a moment to follow them in the car, but finally decided it would be better to stay on foot for now. Especially as he didn't want to cause another panic in the village. After locking his Fiesta, he set off with the ponygirls. “I'd be surprised if they knew how to steal a car anyway".

As they walked, Gabriel asked a new question. “I'm really grateful for your help, but... Why do you want to help me?”

Pinkie jumped as she replied, “Because that's what friends do!”

“But, we don't even know each other!”

“Of course we do, this isn't the first time I've seen you!”

“The first time was five minutes ago!”

“See, I told you!”

Gabriel decided to give up. He was both annoyed and amused by the pink pony. He turned his attention back to Twilight. “Uh, tell me, Twilight... Didn't I scare the locals too much earlier?”

“Well, to be honest, yes, a little. Even a lot. That's why we came to see what you were and if you were dangerous...”

Rainbow added: “Yeah, everyone was in a panic, screaming that we were under attack by aliens or something. So when I saw you running away, I chased you to see where you were going!”

“And when you caught up with me? Why didn't you, like, stop me?”

Rainbow suddenly blushed as if she'd just been asked about her period. “Um... It's not because I was scared of you or anything, I could have stopped you if I wanted to! It's just that, you didn't seem very mean, and then... I wanted the others to be there, because... We work as a team... OKAY?!”

“Okaaaaaay... Anyway, I also wanted to apologize for that, I... I reacted a bit like a jerk.”

Twilight smiled “Don't worry, I'm sure they'll understand. The most important thing is that you didn't hurt anyone.”

“Won't they... be too scared when they see me coming?”

“Well... they might be a little surprised, that's true... But if they see you don't mean them any harm, they'll relax.”

“Okay, if you say so...”

They finally crossed the small village and, as expected, all eyes fell on him. He felt like a circus animal for everyone to admire, and he didn't like it one bit. He was beginning to wonder why he hadn't just packed up his car and got the hell out of there. Fortunately, the fact that he was with 6 of them seemed to appease them a little, and they just stared at him quizzically.

Gabriel, for his part, admired the ground, trying to make himself as small as possible. “God, I hope we get there soon...”. Even so, he noticed 3 of what appeared to be children, watching him intently. He wasn't going to lie, they were adorable. He then felt a surge of sympathy and decided to put on his best smile (at least, he was trying )and wave to the trio, to show that he was being kind.

This obviously had the desired effect, as the one in the middle, a yellow with red hair and a ribbon on her head, returned the wave. The other two, an orange one with wings and purple hair, and a white one with a horn and pink/purple hair, continued to stare at him with their bewildered little heads.

After a short walk, they finally arrived in front of a gigantic tree, which had windows and a door built into it. “Here we are!” said Twilight.

“What? This is your house?”

“Well, technically, it's the village library, but it's also where I live.”

“But... You've got to be kidding me!”

“Well, take a look for yourself...” She stepped forward and opened the door, then stepped inside. She turned around, “Are you coming?”.

Gabriel advanced cautiously, and had to bend over to avoid hitting his head as he passed through the door. When he found himself inside, he couldn't believe his eyes. There was indeed a living room, as if the tree had been hollowed out from the inside. Everything, be it shelves, walls or stairs, was carved from wood. And there were books. Lots of books. Probably more than he'd ever seen in his life. “But... yet... the tree is alive, there are still green leaves on it...”

Twilight turned around again, surprised by the human's words. “Uhm... Yes, so what?”

“How... How can this tree still be alive when it's literally hollow inside?” Twilight didn't have time to answer as he continued: “Wait, don't say anything. It's magic, isn't it?”

“Well, it's more or less that, yes” Addressing someone else this time, she shouted, ”Spike! We're home!”

Footsteps echoed up the stairs and a small green and purple shape appeared. “Already? You were able to catch the...” He paused in his sentence when he caught sight of Gabriel, who was also shocked to see him.

Twilight intervened: “Um, Spike, this is Gabriel. He's a human, and he's lost out here. Gabriel, this is Spike, my number one assistant” Gabriel's brain overheated as he tried to make sense of what his eyes were seeing. He looked like a large reptile that had undergone extensive mutations to... Well, to look like a cartoon character...

After a small awkward moment, Spike decided to break the ice. “Well, hi...” he said, holding out his hand to Gabriel.

The latter took it gently to shake it and replied in a small voice, “Nice to meet you...”

“In any case, you could say I would have seen it all...” He turned to see the face of an owl perched 2cm from him. “Houhou!”

Gabriel jumped back 1 meter as if he'd just touched a lit cigar lighter. “HOLY SHIT WHAT'S THAT!”

Twilight replied “Uh..., this is Owlowiscious. My, uh, second assistant number one”.

Gabriel looked at the owl again, then apologized “Ho, uh, sorry, I guess I overreacted a bit. Well, hello, Mr. Owl, uh...”

“Houhou”

“Is that the only thing you know how to say?”

“Houhou”

“Okay, I get it” Gabriel rubbed his temples. He was getting a headache from all the weirdness. “Well, from now on, I'm going to make myself a rule: no more trying to figure out what's going on here!”

Apple Jack then spoke up. “Well, folks, it's not that I'm bored or anything, but I've still got a lot of work waiting for me at the farm.”

Rarity added: “And I've still got some orders to finish by tomorrow”.

“My animals are probably waiting to be fed by now” declared Fluttershy.

As for Rainbow Dash, she said something about having to deal with the weather or something. Everyone seemed to have an excuse to leave, except... “Pinkie Pie, aren't you leaving too?” Twilight asked.

“Oh no, I've finished everything I had to do today! Besides, it's not every day you meet a... What did you say again? Human? That's such a funny word! Human, human, human...”

“Well all right, have it your way. Can I ask you to wait here for a moment while I write my letter? I won't be long. Spike, can you look after our guests until I get there?”

“Uh, sure Twilight!”

“Thanks, see you in a bit!” She climbed the stairs and went into what Gabriel assumed was her office or bedroom. He turned and looked at Pinkie, who had a huge, almost frightening smile on her face. He wasn't sure if he was happy to be locked up with her and that lizard thing.

“Well, looks like it's just the three of us! A pony, a human and a dragon!” Pinkie says.

“A dragon... Okay, why not?” thought Gabriel.

“So...” began Spike, ”would you like something to drink?”

A comforting image took shape in Gabriel's mind. An image in the shape of a glass overflowing with foam. Foam from a sacred golden liquid of malt and hops...

Author's Note

Hello to all my readers!

Thank you so much for all your feedback, I didn't think my story would be so well received!

I'd like to apologize if my chapters are a bit short and take a while to come out. I'm just an amateur writer and I write this after hours, so it can sometimes take time. But as they say, quality is better than quantity!

Also, I'd like to warn you that my chapters may be subject to change, if I realize that this or that could have been written better, or that I could have added that.

Don't worry, I still have chapters in mind, so please be patient and enjoy!