The Equestrian Tales of Nathaniel Lloyd (Humanized Version)

"You will keep in perfect peace Him whose mind is steadfast, because He trusts in you." Isaiah 26:3

  I wake up to find myself staring at total blackness as my eyelids are completely shut closed. The right side of my face feels like it has recently collided head-on into a compact iron wall, which hurts --- a lot; and additionally I sense that my body is lying on something comfortable and flat, although I can't tell what it is for sure.

  Suddenly, a hard object lands upon my chest and I sense it moving. I finally open my eyes and see that the thing is a small, snow white rabbit. The little guy sniffs his pink nose across the fabric of my shirt as if he intends to find something, but when he brings his head up and looks right at me with those big, beady, black eyes he pounces off my chest and hops away on the floor below, going somewhere else.

  Gazing around the living room I'm in, I realize that I am still inside the cottage I had spotted outside the forest, and as for what I am laying on it is the green couch that I saw earlier. After waking up I move my body so that I am now sitting on the couch and I give my arms and torso a nice stretch. However, I notice that my left hand that was bitten by those wooden wolves is now covered in bandages --- except for my fingers and thumb --- and I don't see any sign of the sword or my backpack in sight.

  "So you finally stopped sleeping, huh?"

  I make a startled shout and nearly jump off the sofa as I am spooked by the voice behind me, and I quickly turn to see who it is. Sitting at the blue table in the far corner of the living room is a girl in her late teens with large, birdlike, sky blue wings on her back, and for some pecuilar reason that I can not fully grasp her long hair contains all the original colors of the rainbow, in order from red to purple. The black t-shirt that she has on, along with the blue gym shorts and white tennis shoes with electric red laces, give her a very sportive and tomboyish appearance. In between her hands is a book that she has her attention on, and as I look on I see on the top of her left hand what I think to be a tattoo of a cloud with a red, yellow, and blue lightning bolt coming out of it.

  "You have a lot of nerves, you know that?" the girl addresses me as she closes her book and gives me an unfriendly scowl, as if I had done something to make her mad. "You think that just because my friend is the type of person who can't defend herself, that gives you the right to break into her house and try to attack her? Well guess what, bub, it doesn't!"

  "Excuse me?" Is all I can pretty much say, as I have not the slightest clue what the flip she's accusing me of.

  "Don't act like that blow to your head made you lose your memory,"  the girl scorns at me further, throwing deadly daggers at me from her wine-colored eyes. "You knew what you were going to do when you came over here. You were going to hurt Fluttershy while she was helpless. I saw how scared she was of you, you practically had her shaking."

  The brief mention of me frightening someone reminds me of the girl with the pink hair and yellow wings that I had saw when I had first entered the cottage, and I remember the fear in her eyes that was caused by my arrival, which even now makes me feel reprehensive.

  "Wait. You're talking about that girl with the yellow dress and pink hair, right?" I ask calmly. "Where is she? Is she ok? I hope I didn't scare her too bad."

  "What's it to you?" she asks with her arms crossing each other. "You're looking for another chance to finish her off?"

  "What? No. I just want to know if she's alright. And I wasn't trying to hurt her if that's what you think."

  "Ok then," the girl says, still looking at me with an inimical glare. "If you didn't come here to hurt Fluttershy --- but I still think you do --- then why else did you come?"

  "Well, um, I just wanted some directions towards a town near here. There is a town here, isn't there?"

  "Yeah. It's not that far. But what'd you plan on doing when you get there?"

  I keep my mouth closed for a while as I debate in my mind whether or not to tell her that I need to get to town so I can find Twilight Sparkle and give her the book that the centurion gave me. If I do tell her that, I'm afraid that she'll ask me why I need to see this perticular person, and then I might have to tell her all about what happened to me today, including as well that I'm not from this world. Because if I do, she most likely will not believe a single word I say and will presume I'm lying, then she'll contuine to be on my hide like the hounddog she currently is.

  "Well?" she says, and I can sense her patience edging off a bit.

  "I rather not say."

  "Oh come on!" the girl exclaims loudly. "What's the big deal? All I want to know is what your stupid plans for coming here are."

  "I know," I say. "And I don't mean to be rude and all, I really don't, but it's kind of a personal thing that I have to do. I hope you understand. So, can I get my things, wherever they are, and leave?"

  An uncomfortable air of awkward slience spreads throughout the living room as the rainbow haired girl glares at me with her narrowed eyes, and all I do is just wait for something to transpire, but after a while I decide to speak.

  "So...Are you trying to make a decision or are you thinking about something else?" I ask as politely and respectly as can be.

  "You know what I think?" she says. "I think you just want me to believe that you have something to do so I can let you go, and then later on when I'm gone you'll come back here and try to hurt Fluttershy. Like you almost did before!"

  "Look, I already told you that I don't have any intentions on hurting your friend Fluttershy, if that's her name. And there really is something important that I need to do in that town. I'm not lying, I swear."

  "Well if you are saying the truth, then you won't mind telling me why you need to get there."

  "I can't tell you. It's not any of your business," I say in a little frustrated tone, as I just want this pointless interrogation to come to an end.

  "None of my business, huh?" Getting out of her chair, the girl rests her hands flat on the wooden surface of the table and leans over it, facing me much closer. "Incase you haven't figured it out yet through your numbskull head, you broke into the house of one of my closest friends, a sweet and innocent little gal who wouldn't hurt a fly, and you could have done anything you wanted to her, and I can't stand that! So it is my business to know why you're even here in the first---"

  "Rainbow Dash, who are you talking to?"

  A voice that sounds soft like a child's but also mature like a young woman's interrupts the rainbow haired girl and both of us look towards the source of it, and coming down the stairs to my far right is the pink haired girl with the yellow wings.

  When she reaches the bottom, she notices me and the other girl in the living room, but when she takes one good look at me her eyes widen up for a moment in surprise and she stares down at her feet as if she's too afraid to make eye contact with me.

  "Oh. You're awake," she says to me in a timid and almost sad manner, like a little kid during the first day at their new school.

  "Fluttershy, why'd you come down here?" asks the rainbow haired girl. "I was just about to get this creep to tell me what I want to know."

  Fluttershy, the pink haired one, looks directly at the other girl without any trouble and says, "Well I was just in my room trying to take a nap and I heard you talking like you were mad for some reason, so I came down here to see what it was."

  With difficulty and seemly slight hesitation she turns her head and attempts to put her eyes on me, but once again they fall to the floor and she becomes all sad and shy-looking again with her long hair hiding most of her face. Besides the eye-contact problem, I notice that there are other things about this girl, Fluttershy, that gives her such a meek appearance. The she has both of her arms behind her back, the way she looks so small and skinny, and how she nervously twists the tip of her foot against the floor makes her seem so delicate and fragile, like her friend had told me.

  "Um, do you feel ok, mister?" she asks me in a low voice. "I hope that my friend Rainbow Dash didn't hurt you too bad when she hit you. She just wanted to make sure that I was safe."

  I take a quick glance at the girl Rainbow Dash, which I find quite amusing since that name really suits her because of her hair, and remember the boyish voice taht told me to get away from Fluttershy, before my eyes witnessed the flash of rainbow colors and then I get K.O.'d in the face. Connecting the pieces together, I realize that she is the one who got me unconscious.

  I look back at Fluttershy and say, "I'm fine. Although I have a slight ache on the side of my face, I'm doing good. Thanks for asking."

  "Oh, um, you're welcome," Fluttershy replies. "And...um...I'm really glad that you're feeling alright. It's three o'clock in the afternoon and you haven't woked up for a while. I was worried that you were in a coma or something."

  "Woah, woah, woah. Wait a minute," Rainbow Dash says in a way that shows that she had not expected her friend to say that. Using her blue wings to fly in midair, she floats away from the table and goes near Fluttershy, but as she leaves the table one of her wings unintentionally slaps me in the face and I spit out a feather that entered my mouth. "Fluttershy, this guy just came into your house like he owned it with the potential to hurt or do something horrible to you, and you care about him? Aren't you scared?"

  "Well, he didn't look like he wanted to hurt me, he seemed like a very nice and content person.The only reason why I called you for help is because I was frighten by his appearance, but I probably overreacted a bit. Infact, before you knocked him out he told me that he had no intention ot harm me at all, and he just stood there the whole time. Maybe he's lost."

  "He probably just told you that everything was going to be ok so he could have sneak up on you when you didn't expect it," Rainbow Dash says as she gives me a fast, unpleasant look. "He's dangerous, Fluttershy. We both saw that he had a sword with him. I can just smell trouble all over him. Besides, if he didn't wanted to cause a misunderstanding then why didn't he knock on the door instead of just barging in like he decided to?"

  "Actually," I say, and they both look at me, "I did knock at the door but none of you two answered it. I did it twice even. Also where did you guys put my backpack and sword, anyway?"

  "Zip it, Four Eyes!" Rainbow Dash orders. "You talk when I tell you to talk!"

Geez. She sounded like my English professor, Mrs. Erbstein, for a second.

  "Think about it, Fluttershy. Are you really gonna believe him or your best friend who you've known since flight school? For all we know he could be one of those guys who attacked us here in Ponyville two weeks ago, and are causing a lot of crazy stuff to happen all over Equestria."

  "Ponyville?" I say. "Is that what the town here is called? Ponyville? And what is this 'Equestria' place?"

  After finishing my sentence the two girls look at me with perplexed and shocked faces, as if what I had just said made absolutely no since to them at all.

  "What?" I ask, wondering why they seem so confused.

  "How the hay do you not know what Equestria is?" Rainbow Dash asks. "Either you were born yesterday, or I must have knocked the heck out of you."

  "Oh...um...well..."

  I can't think of a single good lie to get me out of the tension I slowly feel rising, as the fear of being caught strikes my heart with a sword. I can only estimate that whatever this Equestria place is is very important and known to the inhabitants of this world, which is why Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy reacted the way they did. They must be assuming that I have lived here for all of my life, and that I know everything about this world.

  As seconds pass on after seconds, Rainbow Dash looks at me with a scowl that is waiting for an answer; even Fluttershy, who at first could barely stare at me, is now curious as to what I will say. There's only one idea that enters my mind as to what I should say, although I didn't want to explain it earlier because of the possible outcome. It's a long shot, but it's the only shot I have to getting out of here.

  "There's something that I probably should have told you before," I start off. "But I didn't say anything at first because I thought that you wouldn't believe me."

  "What is it?" demands Rainbow Dash. "Spill it out."

  "Ok, then. I'm not really from here."

  "We already know that."

  "I don't mean I'm not from this town. I mean that I'm not from this planet, whatever it's called. I'm from another world."

  Just like I had expected, a disbelieving look appears on Rainbow Dash's face. "What? You're joking, right? You really expect us to fall for that?"

  "Nope," I respond. "I'm not joking at all, although I did expect you to say something like you just did. I'm one-hundred percent serious. I'm not from this world."

  "Ok, then," says Rainbow Dash. "If you aren't from Equestria, then where are you from?"

  "Well, in my world, which is named Earth, I'm come from a country known as the United States of America, or America just for short. And back there I live in a city called Charlottesville within the state of Virginia."

  "Ok. So how exactly did you get from your world to here in the first place?"

  "Well..." In hesitation I chuckle nervously and scratch the back of my head. "That's kind of a long story."

  "I have all day," Rainbow Dash says with an unimpressed look. "Go ahead and tell us."

  Taking a deep, relaxing sigh, I say, "Well, this morning I woke up on the couch in my apartment with a nasty headache because I was up last night studying for a test at my university. After I took a shower and ate my breakfest, I left and began to head to the college. It was very nice and beautiful outside so I decided to walk there; it only takes about forty minutes on foot. I was almost there when I spot a construction crew working on the sidewalk that I usually take, so I had to find another route. That's when I found a huge alleyway right next to me that looked like it might have led to the college, so I took it instead. I was only halfway through when I noitce these five men with swords standing behind me, which was very bizzare.

  "One of them, who I think was the leader of the gang, came up and asked me for my name. After I had replied he tried to shot at me with this red jet of energy that flew out of his hand, but I managed to duck it and I ran off further into the alley. They were all chasing after me from behind, but I threw some stuff in their way to slow them down. Just as I thought I was so close to escaping I saw this big brickwall infront of me, and I didn't have any other way of getting out so I was cornered. When the five men catched up and noticed what my problem was they each drawed out their swords and were just about to kill me, when all of a sudden this blinding flash of light explodes between us, and when it disappears there's this man wearing a white hooded cloak with golden armor underneath. One of the men called him a centurion. The centurion got out a twin set of swords that he had with him and engaged in a fight with the five other men. I have never witness something so intense in all my life.

  "He practically saved my life and killed only four of them because the fifth one, the leader, ran away when he was wounded. After that, the centurion gave me the sword that you saw me have earlier as well as a book that I put in my backpack, and he told me that he was sending me to a town in another world --- which I assume is this one --- because my world isn't safe yet, although I don't know why. Also he said that when I get to the town that I should ask the residents where I can find this certain who he told me to give the book to. That's why I need to get there."

  "And who is this person that he wants you to give the book to?" asks Rainbow Dash.

  "Someone known as Twilight Sparkle."

  As soon as that name left my mouth the annoyed scowl that was once on her face has now turned into a furious mask of rage as her eyes flare up with anger and her bare white teeth are shown gritting against each other with such force that I swear to God that they could break apart at any second. Fear is basically touching the center of my heart as I stare at her expression, mentally praying that she won't come over to the couch to pumble me into a million tiny pieces for whatever reason I have caused to upset her.

  Noticing her friend's silent glower, Fluttershy looks at me and says, "Are you sure that the name he told you was Twilight Sparkle?"

  I nod. "Yes, it is. Why? Is there a problem?"

  "It's just that we have a close friend that goes by that name. She lives right here in Ponyville. But why does the...What was he called again?"

  "A centurion."

  "Why did the centurion wanted you to give the book to her? Is it important?"

  I shrug. "I don't know. I was going to ask him some questions when he pulled out this blue stone out of his cloak, and when he held it in front of me it started to glow and I was sent to a wormhole of some sort. After that I ended up in a lush, hot forest, and I spent a whole hour traveling through it so I could get to the town, but I ended up at your cottage instead. And that's pretty much my story, so far."

  "When you say you were in a forest," says Fluttershy, "do you mean the one right next to my house?"

  "Yeah," I reply with another nod. "I came out of those woods and found your house near the river."

  "WHAT?!?" Rainbow Dash shouts at a very high volume without any warning, scaring Fluttershy and I. "There's no way in the entire world you could have gotten out of the Everfree Forest without triggering the force field!"

  "Force field?" What are you talking about? I didn't see any force field when I came out of the woods."

  "You're lying through your teeth! I bet you used some dark magic or powers to help you sneak into the field undetected like a coward. Infact, I'm pretty sure you're one of those guys who tried to kill us during this month, aren't you?"

  "For the last time, I already told you guys that I'm not here to hurt anyone, at all. You heard what I just told you about how I got from my world to here."

  "Phhf!" scoffs Rainbow Dash as she waves her hand in the air in one motion. "As if I'm going to believe that story. It's so fake that is sounds like it came from the imagination of a four year old. I mean seriously --- how can one guy stand against that many enemies by himself?"

  "Well," I say, "it is understandable how that could ever happen, but it did because I saw it with my own eyes."

  "You know what? I've had enough of all this horsing around!" Reaching her breaking point, Rainbow flies back to the table, grabs one of the wooden chairs, and floats infront of me at least ten feet away. She drops the chair on the floor and sits in it backwards with her arms resting on the top.

  Glaring at me angerily, she says, "Fluttershy, go to the library to get Twilight and tell her to come over here, so she can use a spell or something to see if this punk is one of those freaks."

  "W-Why do I have to go get her?" she asks. "Maybe it would be better if I stay here and you go to the library instead, since you're---"

  "No," Rainbow Dash interrupts. "Not to be offensive, Fluttershy, but you're not really the type of person who knows how to fight back. I don't want him to overpower you if you're here by yourself. Trust me, if this dude even thinks about jumping me, it'll be the last thing he ever does."

  "Oh...Well...Ok, then. I'll go ahead and get Twilight."

  Reluctantly, Fluttershy follows her friend's request and walks to the door, and just as she grabs a hold of the handle and creaks it open she stares at me in a way that shows that it is out of interest. But when I move my own eyes to look at her and she notices me, both of her cheeks flush a bright scarlet red and a small "eeep!" escapes from her mouth, and she quickly brings her head down with a shameful frown.

  She exits out of the door and closes it, leaving me and Rainbow alone in the cottage.

  In my curiousity I begin to ponder in my mind on why Fluttershy blushed like a ripe tomato when I made eye contact with her, and why she seemed so embrassed by what she did that she tried to hide her face from me. I know that she gave a very shy introduction of herself with very little words at first, but the way she acted just before she left makes me wonder what she thinks about me, although I already know that Fluttershy thinks that I didn't break into her house to bring any harm upon her.

  A growl cuts me off from my train of thought and I look up to see Rainbow Dash still sitting in the chair with the same, familiar scowl that has been on her face ever since I woke up. That unkind grimace of her's is making feel extremely uneasy in my stomach, and also a bit scared. She's just remaining where she is without making any bodily movement at all, like a marble statue in the middle of the local park; the only part of her that actually does move are her eyelids whenever she blinks.

  Biting my bottom lip, I uncomfortably squirm myself on the couch as I try my best to avoid looking at my taciturn sentry by gazing aimlessly from one corner of the room to another. Oddly at certain moments, I catch glances of woodland creatures that come out of nowhere scurrying across the place, and after a couple of seconds most of them go away somewhere else. Most of the animals that i see are very small species, such as rabbits, mice, mongooses, squirrels, chipmunks, frogs, ducks, hummingbirds, bluejays, and one occasion a lone skunk, which thankfully didn't reek. Seeing as how there's just a whole bunch of them living here, I can assume that Fluttershy must freely invite them to her house without much care nor worry, although I find it quite weird that none of these animals are the household, domesticated kind, like a simple dog or cat.

  I gaze at a clock in the form of a birdhouse on the wall, and by observing its arms I discover that the time is 3:42pm; Flutteshy said that I woke up sometime at three 'o clock, so it's been nearly half an hour since she'd left. Hopefully she will be back soon so I can finally give Twilight Sparkle the book, and also get Rainbow Dash off my back, as well.

  After a while my eyes focus down on my injured hand that is wrapped in soft, white bandages. I recollect the memories of my voyage through the forest after my deadly encounter with the wooden wolves, and I remember how tough and painful it was because of the torturous affliction that was brought upon me. But now I no longer sense it.

  "Hey, Rainbow Dash. Who took care of my hand?"

  "First of all, don't use my name like we know each other, 'cuz we don't. Infact, don't use my name at all when you talk to me. And second, Fluttershy is the one who bandaged it after I knocked your lights out."

  I hold it up infront of my face and examine it. "She must have done a real good job, by the looks of it."

  "Well, if you're that grateful for what she did for you then you won't try any sneaky tricks."

  I look at her with a calm expression and a small smile. "I promise, I won't pull anything stupid. I know that the feelings you have for me right now aren't exactly positive, and I understand why. You're very concern about your friend, Flutteshy, since I came in here all unexpected, and you just want to make sure that she's in safe care. That seems completely reasonable to me."

  With a feeling of suspicion, she narrows her eyebrows. "Why do you sound like you're apologizing for all of a sudden?"

  "To be honest, I feel kind of bad for scaring Fluttershy like that, and then enraging you since you felt like I was trying to hurt her. But the only reason why I came in here without her permission is because I was in need of finding Twilight Sparkle. I swear, I don't have any bad intentions in my mind."

  The scowl on her face starts to fade away at a normal progress, and she stares at the floor.

  "Well...I still believe that you're up to no good. And i'm pretty sure I'll be proven right when Twilight comes over here to settle this."

  I at last relax myself and settle down in the couch, knowing that I don't have to worry about Rainbow Dash glaring at me as if I'm upsetting her. After all the chaos that's occur I think that I deserve a chance to rest a little bit. Don't I?

  "So what is your name, by the way?" Rainbow Dash asks. "You haven't told us what it is yet and we haven't asked you to tell us either."

  "My name's Nathaniel," I say. "Nathaniel Lloyd."

  "Nathaniel? That's a weird name. Doesn't sound like one from Equestria," she adds, before looking at the floor again in silence.

  Many minutes pass on as an air of peace and tranquilty spreads throughout the living room. Other than the constant chatter of animals, the rest of the place is somewhat quiet. I find a window to my left and I look past the glass frame to gaze at the baby blue sky above, along with the numerous white, puffy clouds and that bright yellow star known as the sun. That radiating sphere in the air is so warm that I can feel its shining rays hitting my dark skin through the clear glass. Just admiring the beautiful nature of the outdoors gives me a sense of happiness and serenity inside, as if someone flipped on my light switch and I bright up with positive energy.

  I break away from the window when my ears catch the sound of a door being open. Turning my head I look to see Fluttershy entering the cottage, and behind her is another girl. Her skin is a light tan color and on her forehead is what I think to be a light purple horn. Her long dark blue hair contains two types of highlights, one is purple and the other is rose pink. She is wearing a set of blue jeans and a light purple shirt with dark purple shortsleeves, and as well she has on a pair of black converses.

  "Finally!" Rainbow Dash says to the two girls. "It's about time you guys came. What took you so long?"

  "Fluttershy told me about everything that happened," says the unknown girl. "Is that him over there?"

  The scorn that I dreaded so much returns before returns to Rainbow's face when she puts her eyes on me. "Yeah. That's the creep who had the nerves to break in. I've been watching him like a hawk to make sure that he doesn't try anything funny."

Which I said I wouldn't do, and I haven't

  The girl stares right at me with a calm demeanor and she walks towards the couch.

  "Is it true about what you told my friends?" she asks, standing in front of me. "That you're not from this world, and that instead you live in a far away country called the United States of America?"

  "Yes," I answer clearly.

  "My friend also told me as well about how you were attack on your way to your college and how you were sent from your home to here by that mysterious white cloaked figure the centurion, that is if it's even true. No offensive at all, but the whole thing sounded like it was all made up after she finished talking, but she told me that Rainbow Dash thinks that you're up to no good, and that it would be best if I came over here to see what I can do."

  "Ok."

  Although I have just met her, for some reason that I can't fully explain, I already sense a special vibe coming off of her. When I heard the girl speak to me her words sounded very mature and polite and steady and fluent, without any stuttering or pauses, and while she was talking she kept her complete attention on me the whole time, and during that time her expression was one neither of anger nor shyness, like Rainbow Dash or Fluttershy, but of focus instead. And because of that vibe I am a little curious about what her full character is like, which to me is very unusual because I don't even know who she is exactly.

  Speaking of that...

  "Are you Twilight Sparkle?" I ask.

  "Why, yes. Yes I am," the girl replies, and once again I get that mature/young adult feeling from her, though she looks to be about my age, like the others. "And what is you name? My friend who came to get me never said anything about it."

  "I'm Nathaniel. Nathaniel Lloyd."

  "Well, Nathaniel, my friend, Fluttershy, says that the exact reason that you needed to find me here in Ponyville is because of a book that the centurion supposedly gave you before he teleported you. Am I right?"

  "Yes. He told me that when I find you that we have to follow some instructions that are inside. I would give it to you if I could, but it's in my backpack, and I don't known where it is, along with my sword."

  "Did you lose them before you came here?"

  "No," Rainbow Dash suddenly says. "I took them off of him after I knocked him out and put them in the kitchen so he can't use them."

  The girl, Twilight Sparkle, bites her bottom lip as she turns her head and stares at the floor with her eyes focused on it. I can tell that she is in deep thought about something going on in her head, because that's how I sorta look like when I"m concentrating on a certain topic in my mind.

  After a quick moment of thinking, she looks back at me and says, "I'm going to the kitchen to get your backpack so I can check out the book you're talking about. What does it look like?"

  "It's green, with a little bit of blue"

  Before Twilight can even take a single step, Rainbow Dash flies out of her chair and floats besides her.

  "Wait a second!" she exclaims wildly. "Aren't you forgetting to do something, Twi?"

  "What's wrong, Rainbow?"

  "Didn't Fluttershy tell you that there's a huge chance that this dude might be one of those freaks who tried to kill us this month? Which is why you should probably use some of your magical skills to peek inside that mind of his and find out what he knows about us. He could be one of their assassins or something sent on a mission to finish the rest of us off."

  "Well, Fluttershy said that you had suspicions about him being a burglar or a criminal, but she didn't say anything about him being one of those people who attacked us early this August." She takes a fast look at me and then back to her friend. "And he doesn't even look like one of them, so prehaps I don't need to interrogate him."

Did she just say that this month is August? Isn't it suppose to be February, instead?

  "Ok, that may be true," says Rainbow, "but I still think he's one of them. He said earlier that he was traveling through the Everfree Forest on his way to town when he saw Fluttershy's cottage, which means that he must have gotten through the force field you put up in order to get here."

  At that instant Twilight's eyes went completely wide, and a look of surprise shows itself on her face.

  "Are you sure?" she asks Rainbow Dash. "I would have felt a click in my mind if something was distrubing the force field. Plus it would have gone off."

  "I'm serious. He must have used some kind of black witchcraft to get through without alerting you are setting it off."

  "But Dash," Fluttershy says, still standing near the door. She hasn't said a single word since she left, so I almost forgot that she was even there. "He's an earth human, not a unicorn. He can't perform magic."

  "Well some of those guys who attacked us were mostly earth humans and they did a bunch of freakish stuff pretty much like unicorns, which is even another good reason for why he might be one of them. So what do you think, Twi? Can you perform a spell that can get you inside of his head?"

  Twilight examines me in a way that makes me feel worried and nervous, 'cause even though she doesn't seem angry with me I can sense that she has gain some new feelings for me that I can only assume are rather suspicious.

  "There is a mental search spell I know that allows the user to peek inside of a person's mind for a short amount of time," she says, keeping her eyes on me. "It'll also allow me to see whether his aura contains either positive or negative energy. But I haven't exactly tried it before, so it might be hard for me to conjure."

  "Take all the time you need," Rainbow says. "Just as long as you expose him for what he really is."

  "Hold on a minute. What do you plan on doing?" I ask, my voice containing a hint of fear.

  "I'm going to use a spell to search your mind to see if you know anything about some of the residents in Ponyille or Equestria," Twilight says. "And to see if you're a good or bad person."

  "W-W-What if I don't approve of you looking inside of my head?" I stutter, because I dont' want her to mess up anything in there that'll be permanent, that is if she can even do it, but after all the stuff that I saw today --- men made out of smoke, magical abilites, teleportation, wooden wolves, girls with wings and horns --- I don't highly doubt it.

  "Fluttershy said that you don't have any intentions for hurting anybody here in Ponyville. If you really are telling the truth about that, and the truth that you're from a different world, then you won't be afraid if I check that you are who you say you are. And although I may not show the same hostility towards you like Rainbow Dash does, I don't appreciate people who try to harm my friends or anyone else that I'm close to. So if I do find out that you are lying and that you did come here to do something horrible to Fluttershy, you're going to regret it. I can promise you that."

  Her tone in the last two sentences were not fierce or threatening, but she sounded downright serious, which is enough to make me take a big gulp deep in my throat. Since I have no other opinions to choose from, I simply nod. "OK. Go ahead. I won't fight back or anything."

  Placing both of her hands on each side of my face --- which feels really awkward --- Twilight stares at me with those dark violet eyes of her's and slowly brings her head towards mine. Suddenly, a bright purple aura of light glows around her horn as she moves it near my face, and during that time soft but incredibly scared breaths escape my mouth.

  Just as I have the sudden desire to jump off the couch and runaway, Twilight's horn makes contact with my forehead and immediately this radiant, purple explosion fills up my complete vision, and I am no longer in the living room with the three girls. My whole entire body feels like it's moving through the very fabric of time and space at a numbingly high top speed that I can't even explain. Adruptly, moving images begin to flood my mind, and I soon figure out that they are my memories. My toddlerhood, my childhood, my teenage years, prom night, high school graduation --- they all flash before my eyes as if I'm flipping through TV channels.

  All of these pictures that I see fade away however, and in the blink of an eye I'm back in the living room, still sitting on the couch. Exhausted, Twilight kneels down on the floor as she takes deep, desperate gasps for air, as if her life depends on it. Whatever she did in her mind must have really knocked the wind out of her, while as for me I feel totally normal and unharmed, phsyically and mentally. I guess I shouldn't have been so frighten after all.

  "Wow...," she says in between breaths. "That was... a tough... spell."

  "So it worked, than?" Rainbow asks. "Did you get anything out of him? Is he one of them?"

  Getting off the floor, Twilight shakes her head. "No... He's not one of them. And I didn't see anything about Equestria or Ponyville or us anywhere in his mind. And as for his aura..." The girl gazes at me once more, but this time I see a weird emotion on her face, as if I am somehow intriguing to her sight.

  "Twilight? What were you going to say?" Fluttershy speaks, and that takes Twilight out of her trance.

  "Sorry. I was thinking about something. I was going to say that his aura doesn't seem to be filled with negative energy, at least not a lot. A whole bunch of it is just positive. I think what he said is actually true. Although it might sound strange, he probably isn't from this world."

  A little bit of thankfulness enters my heart as I am glad that Twilight Sparkle believes me. But the feeling I get when Rainbow Dash gives me an evil eye tells another story.

  "I'm not falling for your lie. I still think you're one of them!"

Ugh! Man, why do you still have such a beef against me? Are you really that stubborn?

  "Rainbow," says Twilight, "I just checked the inside of his mind not so long ago. He's telling the truth! Are you that hardheaded? Why do you still assume that he's a threat?"

  "Because he got through the force field without triggering it! Like I said before, he probably did some freakish stuff to get in here, and he might have done the same thing when you went inside his head. He could have tricked you into thinking that he's innocent!"

  "Dash, I'm pretty sure that Nathaniel here didn't do anything at all to mess up my spell. I was in control the whole time, and I should probably look at that book that he was talking about right now. Maybe we can worry about how he got through the field later on."

  "No! I wanna find out right now!" Without any warning, Rainbow Dash grabs the front collar of my Linking Park shirt and pulls me off the couch. She starts to drag me across the room like one would do with a garbage bag, and I try get away from her by prying off her hands, but she's so determined for whatever reason that her grip on me is unbelievably strong.

  "Hey! Let me go!" I shout. "Come on! Will you please stop?"

  "I'll let you go if you tell me what you're up to."

  "But I'm not up to anything, I swear!"

  "Then I'm not letting go!"

  "Rainbow Dash, stop it!" Twilight yells behind us. "What in Equestria do you plan on doing with him?"

  "You'll see. And when you do, you'll believe what I've been saying this whole time."

  Walking past Fluttershy, who just stares at what's happening with her mouth slightly open in confusion, Rainbow opens the door and takes me outside. From the front yard, we walk across the land bridge over the river and go through the grass field. When we reach the edge of the field that is near the forest, Rainbow Dash releases her grip on my collar and I'm free, but I don't run away.

  "This should be far enough," she says to herself.

  Hearing footsteps through the grass, I turn around and see Twilight Sparkle sprinting towards us, with Fluttershy behind her.

  "Rainbow. What did you bring him out here for?" she demands.

  "I want to know how he got through the force field."

  "I don't see it," I say.

  "That's because it's an invisible one, idiot. Stretch your hand out."

  I blink at her. "Why?"

  "Nothing can get in or out of the field. If your hand doesn't manage to get that far, than maybe I'll believe that you're not a threat. Maybe.

  Slowly, I raise my right arm up and gently move it forward. After a few seconds, a strong vibration --- much like the one I had felt when I left the forest --- spreads throughout my body, and in front of my eyes I see a water-like ring of rippling purple light surrounding my arm. If I could see my own expression, my only guess is that I would describe it as astounished.

  Once I take my arm out of the field, Rainbow attempts to do the same thing as me, but her hand is blocked by a smug of purple light which prevents her from going further.

  "I knew it! I'm right!" she yells as she walks near Twilight. "Did you see that? He just got through the force field while I couldn't. And he didn't even use any spells or incantations. You have to believe that he's one of them now."

  Twilight looks at me with a scowl that smells suspicion arising from me, and I can sense that she wants me to explain myself right now.

  "Hey," I say, "I don't have a clue how I was able to do that while Rainbow couldn't, but I swear on my life that I'm not here to hurt anyone."

  "You're just spilling out a bunch of more lies!" Rainbow accuses harshly. "You can stop playing this stupid game, 'cause we all know who you really are. So how did you do that?" She grabs the chain of my cross necklace and moves it closer to her eyes. "Is this how you got through? Is it like magical or something?"

  "Get off!" I yell, smacking her hand off my necklace and stepping back from her. "Don't you think that if I was some assassin or bad guy I would have killed you and your friends by now? But I haven't, so tha should let you know that everything I just told you is the truth."

  She turns her head towards Twilight. "You don't believe him, do you, Twi? You have to realize by now that he could be a danger to everyone in Ponyville. I think that the best thing for you to do is to use a restrianing spell on him and send him to the police station, so he can't hurt anyone. So what do you say?"

  In silence, Twilight places her fist under her chin and goes into deep thought. While focusing on what is on her mind, she often takes random glances between me and Rainbow Dash.

  After three minutes of mental debating, she releases a soft sigh and speaks.

  "Rainbow, I'm going to bring Nathaniel with me to the library so we can check out this book. It's almost getting dark, so I can't do it right now. And since he has nowhere else to go, he'll be staying with me until this matter is settled."

  "What!?!" Rainbow screams. "I can't believe you! You're taking his side over mine? Why?"

  "Because... I just have a feeling that this is the best decision. I don't know why exactly, but that's how I feel. And you don't have to worry about me. I know how do defend myself, at least magically, anyway."

  All Rainbow Dash can do is let out a furious shout into the air, which I admit makes my heart jump a bit.

  "Nathaniel," Twilight says. "Can you go to Fluttershy's kitchen and gather your belongings before we leave?"

  "Sure." I take a jog back towards the frontyard and enter the cottage through the already oepn door. Walking past several animals, I go into the small kitchen next to the living room and find my backpack and the sword laying infront of the refrigerator. After putting on the backpack and the swordbelt, I leave the cottage, respectfully closing the door, and run to the girls back in the field.

  "I'm ready to go," I inform Twilght.

  "Ok, then. Hey, why is your hand covered in bandages? Did something bad happen?"

  "Oh, that. Well, while I was walking through the forest I encountered these four wolves that were made entirely out of wood and they started to chase me. I killed all of them with my sword, but one of them managed to bite me."

  "Wooden wolves? Do you mean timberwolves?"

  I shrug. "I guess so, if that's what they're called."

  "But where did your bandages come from?"

  "Well, your friend, Rainbow Dash, told me taht Fluttershy did it while I was unconscious." I look right at Fluttershy who is on my right. "Is that true?"

  Biting her lip nervously, the poor, shy girl once again cannot make full eye contact with me, so she stares mostly stares at the blades of grass. "Um... Yes, it's true. I... I wrapped up your hand while you were sleeping. It just looked so horrible and bloody that I couldn't let it get infected. I also put some rubbing alcohol and some ointment on your hand so that it may feel well... Um, so how does it feel now?"

  I chuckle. "It feels fine. Better than before, even. You have no idea how much pain I was in before I came to your house. Thanks."

  When Fluttershy catches the small, grateful smile that I shoot at her, she blushes uncontrollably like before and with a little whimper she hides her face underneath her long, pink hair, and because of that I raise my brow in confusion.

  "It'll be dark by the time we reach the library, so we should go right now," Twilight tells me.

  "Ok. Like I said before, I'm ready."

  Before we make our departure, I feel a hand grip my shoulder and spin me around, which leaves me facing an enraged Rainbow Dash.

  "Listen here, you little punk. I don't care what Twilight thinks about you. If you do anything horrible to my friend or anyone else, I'll make you regret the day you were ever born. Got it?"

  Being wise with my words, I carefully say,"I'll keep that in mind, thank you. And I promise that I won't do anything to her at all. Goodbye you two."

  And with that being said, I catch up with Twilight and the two of us walk upon the dirt road overhead, leaving the field.