Breathtaking

Rainbow Dash brought me high up into the air over the small crowd, apparently formed when folks realized Applejack was hauling ass to take care of an emergency. At any rate, Scootaloo was waiting excitedly for us to finally land. She was also yelling to anyone that would listen to her.

"DID YOU SEE THAT?! THAT WAS AWESOME! HE SAVED ME!"

I could already see the skeptical glances from the ponies formed up around us as Rainbow touched down. The moment she let go of me, I plopped my ass down to sit. I might have already died once, but that didn't make me an expert in calmly taking it. I wasn't sitting for more than two seconds before the orange filly lunged into my lap.

"YOU WERE SO TOTALLY AMAZING! THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR CATCHING ME!"

The adrenaline was bleeding off a little, causing some shaking, but I could still smile down at the filly.

"No sweat, hun. Just be more careful, ok?" Rainbow Dash trotted up and Scootaloo looked up at her.

"DASH! DID YOU SEE IT?" The words hardly left her mouth before Rainbow had the filly in her forelegs, hugging her fiercely.

"I should have been there, squirt! It should have been me that found you first!" Rainbow looked like she was almost in tears. "I SWEAR, I'M NEVER GONNA TAKE ANOTHER NAP AGAIN!"

I noticed AJ wink and whisper to another pony I didn't recognize.

"Huh, I'll bet ya ten bits that one don't last a week!"

Dash looked back at me. With a grateful look and tone I most assuredly did not expect, she spoke.

"Thank you, John. Thank you so much. You too, AJ. If you guys weren't here... I don't wanna think about what would have happened." She shuddered visibly and went back to her hug.

"No problem, Rainbow Dash." I said. Before anyone could say something else, a loud shout could be heard.

"He did WHAT?!" Uh oh.

I looked up in time to see Rarity pushing her way through the crowd. Breaking into the center, she looked around wildly until she spotted me.

"WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?!"

"Hey, chica. How's your day goin'?" She charged up to me and threw her forelegs around my neck.

"FIRST, YOU LEAVE ME STANDING IN MY BOUTIQUE WITH THAT PATHETIC EXCUSE FOR A KISS, THEN I DON'T SEE YOU FOR A DAY AND A HALF, THEN I HEAR ALL AT ONCE THAT YOU HAVE A HEAD INJURY, ARE OUT OF A DAY LONG COMA, AND JUST CLIMBED DOWN THE SIDE OF A CLIFF TO SAVE A FILLY YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW!" All I could do was sigh.

"Yeah, I'm a crazy bastard, I know." I winced as she bumped against the knot still on the back of my head, but I did my best to mask the pain.

"If a pathetic excuse for a kiss left you speechless, I'd hate to think of what a real one would do." I said with a chuckle. She rolled her eyes and hugged me again.

"Speechless is hardly always a good thing." She said simply with a small smile. "I trust you won't be risking your neck for a while, correct?" I nodded.

"Correct." She stepped back and began to walk away. Casting a subtle glance backwards, she gave me something to think about for later.

"Good. Now, I would like you to come by the shop as soon as possible. I have something for you." Hmmm... Not sure what to think of that. I stood up, though a little wobbly. You're lucky to be alive, John. Start acting like you could have died and you may just enjoy your time here a little more. Saving folks isn't always worth dying again. Said the little voice in the back of my head. Uh huh, no kiddin'?

"Hey!" Rainbow Dash was calling me. "Hey, John!" I turned to see what she wanted.

"Yes?" She looked... almost embarrassed? I didn't think anyone could shame that pony.

"I just wanted to say thank you. Again. And... you know... sorry. About the stuff..." Applejack cleared her throat loudly and Rainbow rolled her eyes and groaned.

"Oh, come on! I don't apologize like this... well... EVER! Look, I'm sorry for being a jerk and mean to you and kicking you in the back of the head, ok?" I stood still looking at the mare before me. Thinking for a few seconds, I nodded.

"Sure, Rainbow Dash. Its all good." She took flight, Scootaloo holding tight to her back.

"Hey, my friends call me Dash. Consider yourself one of them!" She said before disappearing. I smiled and started walking, but my movement was blocked by a ring of ponies.

"Alright folks, show's over. Trust me, just cause you're starin' like that doesn't mean I'm gonna do a backflip." A few ponies laughed and started to leave. One of the onlookers finally spoke up as he was walking away.

"Hey guy, you need a job? I got some-" He was quickly interrupted by AJ, who ran forward and put a hoof on my shoulder.

"Actually," she started, "Mr. Marshall is already in the employ of Sweet Apple Acres fer more an hour than YEW can pay! Sorry folks, but he's workin' fer me!" The stallion frowned and turned away as I smiled and whispered to AJ out of the side of my mouth.

"So when do I start and how much are we talkin' here?" She smiled at the crowd and similarly voiced her reply.

"Ya can start tomorrow, but don't get yer hopes up. Just cause I said I was payin' yew more don't mean its all in bits, if ya know what I'm sayin'." I chuckled.

"What did I expect from a businesswoman? I'll be there tomorrow, bright and early."

I waved at the ponies and started to walk away. Most of them gave me an approving glance. Others just left. A few more clapped me on the back as I started to make my way through the group on the way towards Rarity's. Now doesn't this feel familiar? Walking barefoot through town and having a bunch of folks stare at me? That's been happening a lot this week.

Stepping into the boutique again was nice. It was calm and slightly darker than the harsh outside was. My eyes felt relief from the headache beginning to form, but it was short lived. I made it about six steps inside before the lights flicked on and Rarity came trotting up from a side room.

"So, I take it my suit's done?" She rolled her eyes.

"Oh, heavens no, I'm just done with THESE." She magically summoned my boots and floated them towards me. A smile spread across my face when I realized how badly I needed a smoke, but then I saw them up close.

"Rarity... Rarity, what did you DO?!" Her eyes narrowed.

"What? Is something amiss?"

"They're... They look... They look brand new!" I wasn't lying either. The stitching wasn't faded anymore and the boots had a slick shine you only got from extensive care or something just off the rack. Hell, the random rough spots and missing chunks were even gone. Rarity smiled slightly and put her nose in the air.

"Well, I AM a mare of fashion. Magic, darling. Repair and restore spells are a staple when you operate in my field." I shook my head in awe.

"Darlin'... this is just... You know how long I've had these boots? Fifteen years. Fifteen long years of constantly getting repaired and resoled. I was hoping to get maybe another five out of them. You have no idea how... Just... Words can't describe." She laughed.

"Yes yes, I know. I am 'awesome' as you like to say so much." I shook my head.

"That may be a little bit of an understatement in this case, hun." She took a step closer to me, dropping the happy tone and sounding quite concerned.

"John, in all seriousness, I was frantic when I found out what you were doing. Please, for the love of Celestia, PLEASE learn some self-control. Please learn to think things through. Even the bravest of stallions would have balked at what you accomplished today." I looked up at her. The pleading sincerity was there in her eyes. I just shook my head and shrugged.

"Hun, there's gonna be some things about me that most folks, including you, could spend a lifetime trying to understand. Call it insanity, but when there's trouble or someone that needs help, I try my best.. There's some folks you can't do anything for, but others just need a little help." Rarity's eyebrow raised slightly.

"I don't believe you." My eyes narrowed at the remark.

"What, you think I'm lyin'?" She shook her head.

"I don't know what to believe. First you say that the human race is this monstrous, bloodthirsty machine bent on destruction, but how can you all be that if there are stallions- I mean MEN like you?" I opened my mouth to reply, but stopped. How did she know I said that?

"I don't know, there's exceptions to every rule I guess. Hey, how did you know that's what I said?" Rarity rolled her eyes.

"Twilight is one of my best friends." Ah, of course.

"At any rate," I concluded, "Its just who I am."

"Hardly the cold-hearted soldier some of us thought you were." I smiled.

"Well, there's a hopeless romantic buried somewhere deep down in here!" That brought forth a laugh from her as I sighed. "Well, I guess I aughta let you get back to it then, huh?" She smiled and nodded, shooing me out of the door.

"Twilight wanted to see you, anyway. Just remember what I said, John. Think more before you act." I pulled on my new/old boots and snapped a sharp salute.

"Yes ma'am!"

Twilight was rummaging through a stack of papers when I stepped into the library.

"Hey Twilight. How're the books treatin' ya?" She barely acknowledged me in her rush to find something.

"URGH! I can't find it anywhere!" I stepped inside, puzzled. "I can't seem to ever find it when I need it and now I need it the most!" Her frustration mounted and she finally called for her assistant. "SPIIIIIIIIIIKE!"

"Its over here!" a small voice called.

"Oh, thank you!" She magically summoned a stack of notes and started to sift through them. Finally, she seemed to notice me.

"Oh, John! So good you came to visit us. I was just about to review some notes over you and your kind. Do you think I could continue the note-taking?" Remembering Rarity's words earlier, I smiled and nodded.

"Didn't you send those notes to the princess?" Twilight grinned and readied a quill with her magic.

"Always make copies! You never know when the worst will happen and your research goes missing!" I chuckled a little wondering if she prepared for everything.

"Well, what would you like to know today, Miss Twilight?" She jumped in immediately; obviously she had been thinking about this quite a bit in the few days since our last chat.

"I would like to talk about your origins. Where did 'humanity' begin? Last time we just jumped in, but let's go back to the very beginning." I thought for a moment, choosing what I wanted to say carefully.

"Well, no one really knows how we started, but there are theories." I pulled out a cigarette. "There is evidence all over that kinda points to a couple of things, but then there's separate religions that all have their own story. It can get pretty confusing for someone that doesn't spend a lifetime either studying all of it or living it. Basically, the most popular thing to say as far as creation is the 'Big Bang' theory." Twilight used her magic to furiously scribble notes.

"Shit, I don't even know the whole idea of it, but basically there was this super-hot ball of stuff, mostly gases just hanging out in space. All of a sudden, it expanded really fast like an explosion and started to cool. When it did, the stars and planets and such formed.

"Anyways, from there, its only more theories. Basically, Earth was just a huge mess of volcanoes and such, but it eventually cooled off, water formed, tiny things started to grow and live and breath. They evolved into something more complex, which evolved into something more complex and so on. After a couple BILLION years, you get us." I finally said. Twilight was still writing furiously.

"Hey Twilight, doesn't Spike normally take your notes? I know I heard him earlier. Is he just not helping today?" Twilight briefly paused in her writing, a look of alarm traced across her face.

"Uh, Spike is just... Busy. Yeah. He's busy with some of his other responsibilities." I rolled my eyes.

"Look, Twilight. He's been like this for a couple days, now. I haven't seen him since I got here and every time I ask about it, I get an awkward, nervous answer. What's going on?" Twilight finally looked up at me.

"John... Its complicated." I shook my head.

"It can't be that complicated."

"No, really John. It involves a lot of-" I stood up in the middle of her explanation and started up the staircase.

"Spike? Spike! Hey guy, come on out and talk to me for a minute." I heard a voice come from above.

"Go away! You're not allowed up here!" I rolled my eyes again.

"Oh really? You're gonna pull the 'restricted section' excuse on me? C'mon over here and tell me."

"No! Go away."

"Look here," I finally said. "Whatever problem ya got with me ain't gonna get fixed if ya don't tell me what's wrong!" Finally a row of green spines appeared over a stack of books followed by a scowling face. He was obviously angry about something.

"YOU look!" he said. "As soon as you got here you've been flirting with the mare of my dreams. I don't want to talk to you now or ever!" I searched my brain for information. The last time I saw Spike was the party. He was put out because... Oh, Rarity. He continued to explain.

"Then, you get drunk and spend the night at her house. HER HOUSE. You're a total jerk and all of the sudden she's letting you stay there!"

"I don't think you've got the whole picture here." I started. He swept it aside and kept going.

"You wake up that morning, put her to work on MORE clothes, KISS her and then take off without another word! But she was EXCITED about it!" I was shocked. The dragon knew a lot from just being in here and listening.

"Spike... I've got a question. Have you ever TOLD her about this?" He stopped.

"Well, not really. She wouldn't let me finish. But I KNOW she knows!" I shook my head.

"Ok, bud. Come sit down over here. Hey Twilight?" I called down. "Do you think you could give us a few minutes?" I heard the front door open as she gladly escaped the area. "I promise to finish the notes with you later."

"Sure," I heard her say. "I needed to go to the market and get more paper anyways." The door closed behind her. I looked at my cigarette. Almost nothing left. Now, that won't do. Not for the chat I'm about to have. I used it to light the next one.

"Ok, Spike," I said to the purple dragon sitting next to me. "How old are you?" He kind of looked at the ground.

"Well, I'm only a baby dragon. I'm 8 years old."

"Right. Ok. And Rarity is?" Spike looked up for a moment.

"Almost 25 I guess?"

"Ok. And that's ok. I always say age is just a number. That doesn't make it different for everyone else, right?" He nodded, but looked curious. "I mean. You are a BABY dragon, though. Don't you think that's a little weird?" He shook his head.

"But I really like her!" I sighed and took a drag.

"What if I told you I was in the same situation you are at one point?" He shook his head.

"No way."

"No, seriously. Maybe not exactly, but I was madly in love with a woman that didn't love me back." Spikes ears perked up a little.

"Hey, how do you know she doesn't-" I stopped him.

"How many times have you talked to her in the last month?" He looked up trying to calculate the number.

"I don't know... a bunch."

"And what do you do when you spend time together? Go to the movies? Meals? Walks? Do you ever just sit and enjoy each other's company?" He thought for a moment.

"No. Usually I'm helping her out. Finding gems, working in her shop, other stuff." I cringed.

"Yeah man. Exactly the same situation. Look, when I started to grow up a little and figure things out, I met a gorgeous young lady. Very nice girl, but she was in love with someone else. I sat down and introduced myself to her and we seemed to hit it off. A few days later and we were inseparable. After a couple of weeks, I told her what I felt. She was amazing in every sense of the word and the guy she was fawning over was a total dick, but she pretty much ignored me.

"I let it go. Figuring that there was a better time and I spent a lot of our time together helping her out with things. We might have been close, but it was a different kind of close. One day, after a whole YEAR of me chasing her, I realized what was wrong. When I came into her life, she didn't need another boyfriend. She needed a best friend. I stopped chasing her. I started being a friend. I told myself that if she needed a friend, then I would be the best damn friend I could be."

"But..." he started. "But I... I really love her." I put my hand on his shoulder.

"I know, guy. I know. And its gonna break your heart, just like it did to me. Girls will always be breakin' yer heart; that's just a fact of life. But one day, you're gonna find someone that doesn't want to do anything except fawn over YOU." He looked at me like I was crazy.

"Yeah right."

"No, seriously! You know, I'm full of stories about this stuff. This one time, I got a message from a buddy of mine. He was in tears. His girlfriend had just broken up with him and he said he really needed someone to talk to and make him feel better." I took another drag on my smoke. "He was lookin' for someone to listen to him cry. Someone to say 'oh man, I'm so sorry. Things are gonna get better.' " I laughed and kept going. "He tried the WRONG DAMN GUY!" Spike looked at me like I had just murdered one of Fluttershy's rabbits.

"What did you DO?!" I smiled and kept going.

"I told him what he needed to hear, not what he wanted to hear. The truth is, this girl he was dating was just childish. She left him for some guy that was better looking and more popular. I didn't say that to him though. I DID say that he needed to quit the cryin', pick himself up, dust himself off, and cowboy the fuck up. By the way, don't repeat that, ok? Anyways, if you spend all of your time pining for a woman that doesn't want you, you won't see everyone else that walks by." I took another drag and continued.

"Oh, he was heartbroken and hated me at first, but I told him all that and he started to kinda see what I was talkin' about. So he listened to my advice. You know what happened?" Spike shook his head. "A month later, he met a girl. Beautiful, kind, charming... Two months after that and they were engaged to be married." His jaw dropped.

"REALLY?!"

"Yes. Really. Look man, things will happen. You'll grow up and you'll find someone you couldn't imagine your life without. Then, you'll look back on your life and see this... and you'll laugh at yourself. Or be embarrassed. Either way, things are gonna get better." Spike looked down.

"But I really do love her. It hurts to try and forget." I gave him a quick hug.

"I know, boss. I know. That's why they call it a crush. Eventually, it does. Rarity and I are just friends right now, so you really don't have anything to worry about as far as me, but it sounded like you really needed someone to talk to you like this." He nodded slowly and sniffed back a tear.

"Yeah, I guess." I patted him on the back.

"I know you don't know me all that well, but if you ever need anything, you can talk to me, got it? I ain't goin' anywhere for a while." He nodded.

"Alright. I'll talk to you." I smiled.

"Cool." I held out my hand to him. "Buddies?" He shook it.

"Buddies."

"Hey, keep your chin up and smile. Never let life get you down. Don't ever sweat the small stuff... cause its ALL small stuff." He scoffed.

"Even dying and appearing in a world like you did?" I thought for a moment.

"Yeah. Even that. Cause look, my life on Earth is over. Done with. There isn't anything I can do about it, is there? So, I get up, dust myself off and keep goin'. Now look! I've got a new home, new friends and a new life. Hell, after saving Scootaloo, I'm not on Ponyville's shun list anymore!" Spike looked alarmed and jumped up to his feet.

"What?! What happened to Scootaloo?!" Well, that was an interesting reaction.

"Well, she nearly fell off the cliff outside of town. I climbed down and grabbed her before she fell and Applejack pulled her up with her lariat rope." Spike looked overly relieved.

"Wow... That's good."

"Probably more good than you know just yet, big guy." He was puzzled but I just kept laughing.

Twilight came back about half an hour later. She had a load of groceries that magically found their way into the appropriate cupboards before she realized Spike was writing down all of my notes on the origins of man.

"Hey Twilight! I was just finishing up notes for you." She looked surprised, but slightly annoyed.

"Oh, I really wanted to hear all of that for myself."

"Its OK, Twilight," I said, "if you have any questions, you can always come and find me." She nodded. Just then I remembered something.

"Hey Twilight... You remember the princesses? I think its time that I got to meet them." Twilight smiled widely.

"The princesses will be very happy to see you, especially after earlier today!"

"You heard about that?"

"Of course! That was the first thing I heard today walking through the market. You certainly are becoming quite the celebrity around here, John. You still have to pick what kind of celebrity you want to be, though. Fillywood bad-boy or respected star?" We both chuckled a little before she continued. "Spike! Take a letter!"

"Dear Princess Celestia,

I am pleased to inform you that John Marshall, the human that recently came to and now resides in Ponyville, is ready to meet with yourself and Princess Luna at the earliest convenience. In addition to making several friends already, John Marshall has also completed a great service to the community by aiding in the rescue of a young filly in need. It is my pleasure to finally send you word signifying his readiness to meet with you. We await the details of our departure and the time of the meeting.

Your Faithful Student,

Twilight Sparkle."

Spike ignited the letter and sent it on its way.

"Are you ready to go, John?" Twilight asked. I thought for a moment.

"Shouldn't I be a little more dressed for the occasion?" Twilight laughed.

"You're already dressed up! What do you need now, a bow tie?" I shrugged and smiled sheepishly.

"I guess I'm ready then." I heard Spike belch loudly and a gout of green flame erupted behind me. Twilight magically seized the scroll that materialized, opened it, and read it aloud.

"My Dearest Twilight and John Marshall... A chariot is on its way from Canterlot to bring you to the castle. Luna and I eagerly await seeing you as soon as you arrive, Princess Celestia." Twilight looked surprised.

"A chariot? My brother must have offered a guard escort. He must know about you coming and be ready to meet you as well!"

"Did you tell him about me?"

"Of course. Just that you yourself were a soldier and he might like to meet you." I nodded quietly, but I was worried about what he might ask. What if they want me to work for them? What if they get ideas from me? What if they see me as a threat?

"John? John, is something wrong?" I looked up.

"No, nothin's wrong. I'm fine. When is this chariot gonna get here anyways?"

"Probably a couple of hours. It doesn't take very long for them to fly over here." Wait. Fly?

"Uh, ok. I'll be right back then." I left the library and headed for Applejack's stand. Walking around the town, I got a lot of looks, most of them approving. That was a nice change. A camera flashed somewhere nearby and I picked up the pace.

The chariot was an interesting experience. If I had to equate it to something I've already done, I would probably say it was like riding on the side bench of a Little Bird helicopter. Small, light, speedy, open. I wanted to hang on for dear life, but I had to trust the pegasi guards in the gold armor. The good thing was the lack of noise. Other than the wind whipping through my hair, there wasn't the sound of rotors or an engine. Very nice.

I chewed on the apple AJ had given me before we left, thinking about what was to come. I wonder what the princesses are like. Twilight seems pretty friendly with that Princess Celestia. Course, it seems that the royalty is more relaxed than you would think. What if she isn't? Shit, I should have dressed up nicer. With what, John? Just relax and enjoy the ride.

Twilight started to explain the area around us and our destination: Canterlot. The trip passed surprisingly quick for how far away it really was, but I didn't complain. Flying always has it's advantages.

"Canterlot Castle has been standing for a little over a thousand years under the rule of Princess Celestia. Her sister, Princess Luna, now shares the crown and responsibilities of changing the days. Years ago, Princess Luna was banished to the moon for her increasing hostilities and selfish desires which transformed her into the creature known as Nightmare Moon. After her thousand year imprisonment on the moon..." Twilight's voice faded out as my brain caught up with what she was saying. I turned towards her slowly with one eyebrow raised.

"Did you just say a thousand years?" Twilight smiled .

"Yes, yes I did! Finally, using the powerful magic artifacts known as the Elements of Harmony, my friends and I defeated Nightmare Moon and restored Princess Luna to her normal-"

"You WHAT?!" I said incredulously.

"Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Pinkie Pie and I used the Elements of Harmony to defeat Nightmare Moon." Twilight repeated. I shook my head in disbelief.

"Y'all must be heroes!" She shrugged.

"I'm not so sure. Its not a big deal. Everything is pretty much just as normal as it was before that day." I tried to wrap my mind around that tid bit of information. So, the princesses are at least a thousand years old and my new friends are like... Superheroes? Applejack and Twilight... Rarity? Really? Better yet, FLUTTERSHY?! A mental image of the yellow pegasus mare in a cape fighting injustice and saving woodland critters made me chuckle as the chariot made its descent into the city and towards the castle grounds.