Seven Years Ago

John

Shouts and giggles could be heard echoing throughout the playground of Ponyville’s one-room schoolhouse. Fillies and colts ran around on the soft grass, playing tag and other games, enjoying their half-hour break before they had to go back and listen to their teacher drone on and on about Equestrian history and literature and math.

Two small fillies sat beneath the shade of an oak tree, taking refuge from the hot summer sun and speaking to one-another. One of them, a cream-colored earth pony with a blue and pink mane and three bon-bons for a cutiemark, leaned over and whispered something into the ear of her friend, prompting a giggle.

“Don’t laugh, Heartstrings! I really like him,” Bon-Bon said, glaring at her friend.

The turquoise unicorn stifled another giggle and put a hoof on her friend’s shoulder.

“I don’t care who you like, Bon-Bon, I just didn’t expect you to like Temp. Ever since he got his cutiemark he’s been calling himself the Doctor and going on about nonsensical Time Lords. It’s really weird,” Heartstrings said as she glanced down to the playground below, where a brown earth pony with an hourglass for a cutiemark was drawing a picture of what looked like a trashcan with a whisk and a toilet plunger for arms with chalk, muttering to himself.

Heartstrings looked back at up at her friend and continued. “And if you do like him, just tell him. Make him some bon-bons or something. It’s your talent, after all.”

“He’s not weird! He’s just, uh, what’s the word? Eccentric! And besides, you’re one to talk. Every day after school you hide behind the trees at Sweet Apple Acres and ogle Applejack’s brother. What was his name? Oh yeah, Big Mac, the strong, silent colt that half the fillies in town have a crush on. So don’t tell me what I should do,” Bon-Bon retorted.

Heartstrings’ face turned from the normal aqua color to a deep crimson as a blush spread from the tips of her ears down to her chin. She averted her eyes and lowered her head, pawing at the ground with a hoof.

“I just think he’s kinda cute. He’s also really sweet. I once saw him playing with a bunch of bunnies in the Whitetail Woods,” she replied bashfully, keeping her eyes locked on the grass. “I’ve never really talked to him and he probably doesn’t even know my name, though.”

Bon-Bon sat back and grinned at her companion. “I’ll tell you what. If you tell Macintosh how you feel, I’ll tell Temp how I feel. Does that sound like a good idea?”

Heartstrings continued to stare at the ground, lost in thought. After about a minute she looked up at Bon-Bon with a small grin.

“Alright, but when are we going to do it? I can’t just go after school today and tell him, I need to figure out what to say. You can bake bon-bons for Temp, but I can’t really do anything special for Macintosh,” she said, glancing back at her flank, which was devoid of a cutiemark. “I want to do something that’ll really get his attention.”

“How about you buy him some chocolate from Sugarcube Corner? I saw him buying some dark chocolate from there once. My mom always told me that the way to a colt’s heart is through his stomach.”

Heartstrings’ grin turned into a full blown smile as she wrapped her forelegs around her friend’s neck, pulling her into a tight hug.

“Thanks, Bon-Bon. You’re the best friend anypony could ask for.”

Bon-Bon smiled and hugged her friend back. “Don’t mention it.”

Their heartfelt moment was interrupted when they heard the school bell ring, signaling the end of recess. The two friends stood and ran back to the schoolhouse, laughing and hoping their confessions would work out.

***

The sun had started to set as Heartstrings stood outside the entrance to Sweet Apple Acres, nervously shifting from hoof to hoof. She had attempted to make herself look as beautiful as possible, taking a bath with various bath-salts and combing her coat until it shone. She had even tied a pink bow into her mane and sprayed herself with a little light perfume. On her back she wore a pair of saddlebags which contained a heart-shaped box of dark chocolate. Heartstrings had spent all night making sure everything was just right, all in an attempt to woo her stallion.

Taking a deep breath, Heartstrings began to trot into the apple orchard, gazing at the different varieties of apples and mentally steeling herself for her confession. You’ve got this, Heartstrings. Just walk up there, say hello, give him the chocolates, and tell him how you feel. It isn’t that hard.

Her mind, however, was giving her different ideas. What if he already has a filly that he likes? What if he doesn’t like the chocolate or thinks I’m ugly? What if he’s allergic to my perfume and dies? What if his work on the farm takes up too much time and he can’t date me? Why would he like me when there are other fillies out there that like him? I’ve never even seen him with another mare besides Applejack and Granny Smith, and the only other pony I’ve seen him really talk to is that wimpy colt Caramel. Wait, he never talks to other mares and he spends most of his time with Caramel. Oh no.

A look of horror slowly worked its way across her face.

What if he’s GAY?

Heartstrings, lost in thought, didn’t notice the red stallion that walked up behind her. He cocked his head and watched as she stood in the middle of the path that ran through the farm, mumbling to herself. He trotted up to her and tapped her on the shoulder with a hoof.

“Excuse me, miss, but are ya lookin’ fer somepony?”

Heartstrings let out a loud “EEEP!” and shot straight into the air before turning around.

“M-M-Macintosh! What’re you doing here?” Heartstrings stammered out at the site of her dream stallion.

Big Mac just looked at her. “Ah live here.”

“Oh. Well of course you do!” the turquoise filly said, mentally berating herself. Stupid stupid stupid! Why did I have to go and say that! Stupid brain!

An awkward silence filled the air as the two ponies stood there, waiting for the other one to speak. Heartstrings stood stock still, averting her eyes from her crush and staring at the ground. Big Mac had the same neutral expression that he always wore on his face, making it impossible to read his thoughts.

Macintosh was the first one to break the silence. “Did ya need anything? Are ya a friend of Applejack’s?”

“Y-yeah, I’m a friend of Applejack’s, but I didn’t come to talk to her. I came to talk to you,” Heartstrings managed to choke out, nervousness and fear apparent in her voice.

“Me? Why would ya wanna talk ta me? I’ve never met ya before.”

“Oh, well, my name is Heartstrings and I, um, li-like…” Here Heartstrings’ voice trailed off into a barely audible mumble.

“Ah didn’t quite catch that, Miss Heartstrings. Could ya repeat it?”

Heartstrings took a deep breath to try and calm herself. Mustering up all the courage she could find in her tiny body, she looked Big Mac in the eye and poured her heart out.

“Macintosh Apple, I love you. I loved you since I first saw you selling apples out in the square after I moved here from Canterlot. I know you don’t know who I am but I think that you’re the kindest, sweetest colt in all of Equestria, and I was wondering if maybe, just maybe, you would give me a chance. I even brought you some chocolate from Sugarcube Corner,” Heartstrings said, levitating the box of sweets out of her saddlebags and waiting for a reply.

Macintosh lifted a hoof and scratched the back of his head and stared at the sky, deep in thought. The two ponies could feel the awkward tension that hung in the air. The red stallion finally turned his eyes to the unicorn filly in front of him and let out a sigh.

“Miss Heartstrings, Ah’m flattered that ya feel that way about me, but Ah can’t return yer feelings. Ah’m sorry.”

The box of chocolates fell from Heartstrings’ magical grip, kicking up a cloud of dust as it hit the ground. She felt a sharp pain in her chest, the pain of heartbreak. Her lower lip trembled and tears started to well up in her eyes. A sob escaped her lips as she managed to squeeze out just one word.

“Why?”

“Well ya see, miss, yer just-’’

Big Mac was cut off as Heartstrings began shouting. “Is it because I’m not pretty enough? Or is it because you don’t like the chocolate? If you tell me I’ll fix it, whatever it is! If you just give me a chance I’ll make you happy! I promise!”

The young filly collapsed onto the ground in a heap, crying into her hooves. Her entire body was shaking and her wails pierced the air of the scenic orchard. Macintosh knelt down beside her and placed a foreleg over her shoulders.

“Come now, Heartstrings, don’t cry. Ah think that yer nice and all, it’s just that yer a bit too young fer romance. Now in a few years you’ll be a nice young mare and a catch fer any stallion, but yer just too young right now,” Macintosh said, trying to comfort her.

Heartstrings stopped her crying and lifted her head up and looked into the emerald eyes of her dream stallion, those beautiful, beautiful green eyes. She could see kindness in them, but also pity. The object of her affection pitied her. A new wave of tears began to form to from in her eyes and her sobbing began anew.

“I’m not too young. I’m only three years younger than you. Please just give me a chance. Just one date. Please,” the turquoise filly said. She was begging at this point. All she wanted was a chance and that was being thrown in her face.

“Ah’m very sorry, Heartstrings, but Ah stand by what Ah said. Ya don’t even have a cutiemark yet. It would be best if ya just forgot about me,” the stallion spoke, gently and in a soothing voice.

“So the only reason you think I’m too young is because I don’t have my cutiemark?” Heartstrings asked, a small amount of anger present in her voice.

“It doesn’t matter if ya have yer cutiemark or not, ya should just wait a few years afore ya-’’

Macintosh was cut off when Heartstrings shoved a hoof into his mouth, stopping him from speaking. She rose off the ground, giving the stallion a glare that would have turned a cockatrice to stone.

“You think that just because I don’t have a cutiemark means that I’m some sort of baby, don’t you? Well I’m not going to put up with that horse manure! I’ve been teased about being a blank-flank before, but I never expected it from you, Macintosh! Well you know what? I don’t care! Go buck yourself, you inconsiderate, mean-spirited, bull-headed prick!” With this statement Heartstrings picked up the chocolates with her magic and crammed the entire mass of sugary goodness and cardboard into the stallion’s mouth before turning around and fleeing.

***

Heartstrings ran and ran. She didn’t pay any attention where she was running; she only knew that she wanted to be alone. Her hooves made clopping noises as they hit the dirt road beneath her, leaving a dust trail in her wake. The dirt road soon gave way to grass, but she kept running. She paid no attention to what was in front of her; her face was pointed to the ground and her vision was blurred by tears. Heartstring felt the heat of the evening sun leave her back as it slipped behind the horizon, yet she didn’t care. She didn’t care that it was getting dark or that her parents were probably worrying about her, the heartbroken filly just wanted to get as far away from everypony as possible and wallow in her sadness. Eventually her legs gave out and she fell onto the ground, out of breath and out of tears.

Panting hard, the filly took a look at her surroundings and realized she had no clue where she was. Giant, twisted trees taller than any building in Ponyville surrounded her like terrifying sentinels, cutting off any light that may have come from the newly risen moon. The canopy was thick and cast frightening shadows across the forest floor. Heartstrings knew of only one place like this, a place that her parents and friends had always told her to never venture into, the Everfree Forest.

Heartstrings began to panic and quickly turned her head around, trying to find the way she had come. She slowly stood up, her legs shaking with fear. Her mind was racing and it felt like her heart was going to beat its way out of her chest. Her eyes darted through the gaps between the trees, looking for any beasts or ghouls that might be lurking behind a tree, waiting to make a tender, delicious filly their lunch.

After about a minute of waiting and no monsters appeared to feast upon her, Heartstrings started to walk in the direction she thought she had come from. Her legs and hooves ached from all the running she had done, and she silently cursed herself for being so stupid as to wander into the Everfree. She hoped that she would find her way back soon; she didn’t want to spend a night in the forest of nightmares. Heartstrings shuddered at the thought of it. A place where animals and plants take care of themselves and the clouds move on their own just wasn’t natural.

After about fifteen minutes of walking and getting nowhere Heartstrings was losing hope. She couldn’t see the edge of the forest and she kept blindly stumbling over roots due to the lack of light coming through the canopy. Part of her wanted to stop and hope she would be found, but part of her wanted to keep going and try to find a way out of the forest as soon as possible. Tripping over a root and falling on her face, Heartstrings went with the first idea. Sitting down on her plot and huddling under a tree, she closed her eyes and waited, but soon drifted off to sleep, mentally and physically exhausted.

A sharp pain in her side from something kicking her made Heartstrings yelp and sit up, quickly backing into the tree and turning to face whatever beast had just attacked her. Instead of a monster she came face to face with a large, black unicorn stallion, looking at her with curious eyes. A smile slowly crept up his face, showing a mass of yellow and rotting teeth.

“Hey, little thing. What’re you doing out in the Everfree during the night? Did you get lost?”

The stallion may have looked a bit scary but it was better than being eaten by a manticore. Heartstrings jumped forward and wrapped her forelegs around the stallion’s neck, burying her face in his mane. “Yes,” she replied. “Please help me.”

The mystery stallion chuckled. “I’ll take you back to camp with my friends and help you get out of here. My name’s Shades. What’s yours?”

“Heartstrings,” the filly said, as Shades levitated her onto his back with magic.

“Heartstrings, eh? Pretty name for a pretty filly,” her new friend replied, making Heartstrings blush a little bit.

They didn’t say anything more as the stallion continued to walk, his horn lighting the way. Around ten minutes passed before Heartstrings heard voices and saw lights through the trees. Shades lifted her off of his back and lead her to a small clearing where she could see three other ponies sitting around a campfire. One was a pegasus with a brown coat and red mane with and a cutiemark of a spear. The other two were twin earth ponies, each one having a blue coat and yellow mane. One had a cutiemark of two swords and the other one had a knife in front of a black circle. Heartstrings glanced at Shades’ flank and saw he had a cutiemark of a noose.

“Hey gents! Look what I found here!” Shades shouted to his companions, who looked up from the fire and smiled when they saw the filly, each one showing rows of teeth that looked like Shades.

The pegasus flew over to them and hovered just above Heartstrings, staring down at her with greedy looking eyes. “Can I have first go at her, Shades? It’s been a while since I’ve had any, and she doesn’t even have a cutiemark yet. She’s just my type.”

“You’ll get a turn once I’m done, Spearhead. Finders keepers.”

Heartstrings was confused and a little scared. Have a go? What does that mean? And why were all the stallions leering at her?

“Mr. Shades, what’s going on? I thought you said you were going to help me get out of here?” Heartstrings asked.

Shades just let out a maniacal laugh, and soon all the other stallions joined in. He lifted her up with his magic and laughed again, straight in her face. “Didn’t your mom ever tell you to not go with strangers, little miss? ‘Cause if not she did a terrible job of raising you.”

The black unicorn lifted his hoof and started to gently rub her flank, still cackling. “Don’t you worry any. We’re just gonna have a little fun, aren’t we, boys?”

Heartstrings began to thrash around in the field of the unicorn’s magic, trying to get escape. “Stop touching me and let me down! My mom told me to not let anypony touch my flank! Get away you weirdoes!” she shouted.

All the stallions began to laugh again. One of the earth ponies, the one with the dagger on his flank, said “Aw, isn’t that just cute.

She thinks she can get away. This’ll be even more fun than I thought.”

Heartstrings had started to cry, still trying to break free. Her mom had told her about weird stallions like this and how they were sick. She didn’t know what they did, but she knew it wasn’t good. She let out a small whimper and closed her eyes, prepared for the worst.

CRACK!

Heartstrings opened her eyes at the sound and saw one of the earth ponies lying on the ground, his head twisted at an unnatural angle. Standing above the pony was a tall, biped creature wearing some sort of green cloak. He had a smooth, white face, and the only hair she could see on him was at the top of his head. His forelegs had claw-like things on the end of them, and in one he held a bar mace that had blood on the end of it.

“What do you think you’re doing, you freak?” shouted Shades, still holding Heartstrings in his magical grip. The thing just smirked and lifted his other claw-thing, which had begun to glow with a pale, blue light. Lightning started to appear and crackle around the blue glow. The thing pointed his mace at Shades and said one thing which forever burned its way into Heartstrings’ mind.

“Saving fillies and hauling ass!”

The unknown biped made a motion with its glowing appendage like it was throwing something and lightning shot from it, spearing Shades in the chest. The stallion screamed as blood poured from where the lightning had hit, and the magical aura keeping Heartstrings suspended died along with its caster. The biped then shot forward with frightening speed, smashing his mace into Spearhead’s left wing with a sickening snapping noise. The pegasus dropped and rolled on the ground, screaming in agony. Picking the filly up with his free arm, the creature turned and faced the other earth pony. The pony, the one with the knife as a cutiemark, reached down and pulled a similar shaped knife from a sheath on his leg.  He charged forward with the blade in his mouth, intent on killing his quarry. The biped nimbly stepped to the side and brought his weapon down on the head of the pony. The stallion dropped as soon as the mace made contact with his skull.

The creature secured Heartstrings under his arm and turned away from the campsite, fleeing at a speed that would make a pegasus jealous. Trees flew by and bushes flew by in a blur as the thing shot through the forest, weaving in and out of trees at break-neck speed. Heartstrings shut her eyes as tight as she could, hoping the creature wouldn’t eat her. The thing slowed down after a minute or two, but Heartstrings could see it had covered quite a large distance in that short amount of time. The biped stopped in front of a cave and walked inside, setting the filly on the ground. He knelt down beside her and asked “So, are you hurt anywhere?”

Heartstrings just screamed and ran to the back of the cave, curling up into a ball and quaking with fear. The biped sighed. “Well that’s to be expected.” He pulled a small, round object from his cloak and spoke one word.

“Meridiem.”

The object floated up to the roof of the cave and gave off a blue light that illuminated the cave’s interior, including the small filly. The biped pulled off his cloak, revealing a suit of black leather armor. The armor was old and patched; it had clearly seen better days. Throwing his cloak on the floor, the creature turned his attention to the cowering filly. He walked over and sat beside her, trying to do his best to calm her down. He gently stroked her mane whispering soothing words. “It’s all right, little one. I’m not going to hurt you, and neither are those stallions. I know I might look scary, but I’m really very nice, and I don’t want to see you scared. Could you smile for me, at least once?”

Heartstrings lifted a hoof that was covering one of her eyes and peaked at the creature. He had no snout and no hair on his face, and he had the goofiest grin on his face Heartstrings had ever seen. She couldn’t help but smile at him.

The creature’s smile grew bigger. “See, I’m not bad. Now how about we introduce ourselves? My name is John, and I’m a human. What’s your name?”

“H-Heartstrings,” the filly said, speaking in a barely audible voice.

“That’s a nice name. Do you want anything? You look kind of thirsty.”

Now that he mentioned it, Heartstrings was thirsty. “I’d like some water, please. Could I also have something to eat, too? I missed dinner.”

John reached to a canteen he had strapped to his side and handed it to Heartstrings, who picked it up between her two from hooves and greedily drank from its contents. The human then stuck his hand into his leather armor and pulled out a small, shiny package that was labeled Quaker’s Granola Bar: Chocolate Chip. He pulled the wrapping off and waited for Heartstrings to finish drinking before giving it to her. The filly picked it up with her magic and carefully took a small bite of it. Her eyes widened when she tasted it and she quickly scarfed it down, looking like some ravenous predator. She looked up at John expectantly, hoping he had more. The human shook his head. “Sorry I don’t have more. I wasn’t planning on being here long so I packed light.”

Heartstrings pouted and stuck her lower lip out at him, eliciting a chuckle from John. She took another drink of the canteen, smacked her lips then looked at him quizzically.

“Where do you come from John? I’ve never heard of a hew-man before,” Heartstrings asked, her voice dripping with curiosity.

“Well, Heartstrings, you probably won’t understand, but I come from a town called Oppidum, in a country called the United States. Well, what used to be the United States.”

“United States? Where on Equus is that?”

“It isn’t on Equus. It’s on a planet called Earth.”

Heartstrings sprang to her hooves, her voice full of excitement. “So you’re an alien? That’s so cool!” The filly jumped circles around John, giggling uncontrollably. “I always knew that aliens existed! And now I’ve met one!”

John laughed at the filly’s reaction and tussled her mane. “Calm down, Heartstrings. It’s not that big of a deal. Besides, we have bigger issues, like what you’re doing out in the Everfree all alone.”

All excitement left the filly as she sat down and pouted again. “I accidentally ran into the forest when stupid Macintosh made me mad.”

“What did he do to make you mad?”

“I told him that I loved him, but he doesn’t like me because I don’t have a cutiemark.”

A puzzled expression found its way across John’s face at the mention of the word cutiemark. He shook his head and stared down at the filly that still had her bottom lip sticking out. This is the most adorable case of the frowns I’ve ever seen, he thought to himself.

“He sounds like a jerk.”

“He is, but I got back at him by shoving an entire box of chocolates down his throat,” Heartstrings said, making a shoving motion with her hooves.

“Damn. That’s a bit overboard, don’t you think?”

“Not really.”

John couldn’t help but chuckle at the unicorn’s seriousness. She glared at him and narrowed her yellow eyes. “What’s so funny?”

“Nothing,” John lied. He looked thoughtful for a moment then stood up and walked to where his cloak was laying on the floor and began rummaging through it. After a few seconds he pulled out a small, wooden instrument that had symbols carved in it and looked like a harp. He ran his fingers over it and a sweet melody filled the cave. John noticed the look of wonder on the filly’s face and sat back down beside her. “It’s called a lyre,” he said. “It’s an instrument that’s been around for many years. Why don’t you give it a try?”

“I’ve heard of these before, but I’ve never played one.” Heartstrings picked it up with her magic and plucked a string with a hoof. She sat there, plucking and strumming strings, and soon a pleasant sound came from the instrument. Heartstrings started to play and sing a song that she had heard her mother sing once before.

You must go where I can not,

Pangur Ban Pangur Ban,

Nil sa saol seo ach ceo,

Is ni bheimid beo,

ach seal beag gearr.

Pangur Ban Pangur Ban,

Nil sa saol seo ach ceo,

Is ni bheimid beo,

ach seal beag gearr

Pangur Ban Pangur Ban,

Nil sa saol seo ach ceo,

Is ni bheimid beo,

ach seal beag gearr

At the end of the song John clapped wildly, making Heartstrings blush. She felt a tickling sensation on her flank and looked back to see what it was. She gasped and almost fainted at what she saw. A lyre had just shown itself on her flank; she had finally gotten her cutiemark!

Heartstrings jumped into the air and started running around the cave in circles shouting “Yes yes yes yes yes yes yes! I finally got my cutiemark!”

John noticed the symbol on her flank and tried to hide his confusion. He didn’t know what a cutiemark was, but he was happy she had one. A sudden idea popped into his head and he grinned.

“Hey Heartstrings? When you get your cutiemark do you normally get presents?”

The ecstatic filly stopped running and answered John. “Yeah, we do!”

“Well I have the perfect present for you. You can have my lyre. It’s old and I really don’t need it. You should have it. You have a talent for it, after all.”

Heartstrings shot forward and wrapped John in the tightest hug she could. “Thankyouthankyouthankyou! I promise I’ll take good care of it. I’ll clean it and practice every day and sleep with it and name it Henry!”

“Henry, huh? Well I’m glad to know that Henry has an owner that’ll love him and has time to play him, unlike me.”

Heartstrings let go of John and let out a loud, long yawn. She had bags under eyes and it was evident that she was exhausted from her ordeal and the excitement of finding her cutiemark.  John scooped her up and wrapped her in his cloak. “It’s time for sleepy fillies to go to bed.”

Heartstrings tried to wiggle her way out of the cloak and protest, but found that it was no use. She was tired, and with the warmth of the cloak around her and knowing that she was being watched over by a friend, she quickly fell into the sweet embrace of sleep.

John held the form of the sleeping filly close to him and picked up the lyre. Slipping it between the cloak and Heartstrings he made sure it was secure and wouldn’t fall out. John said “Extinguere,” and made a motion with his hand and the ball of light at the top of the cave winked out and floated into his palm. Placing it in a fold of his armor, John rushed out of the cave, still holding Heartstrings. He moved quickly through the forest, flitting about the trees like a ghost. Coming to the edge of the forest John could hear worried voices calling out “Heartstrings” again and again.

Walking out of the tree line where nopony would see him, John disentangled his friend from the cloak and set her and her lyre, Henry, on the soft grass where she would be found. He walked back into the trees and waited a few minutes until he heard a joyous cry of “There she is! We found her!” Smiling, John turned and walked back into the Everfree Forest, the light of the moon illuminating him as he went.

Author's note

This chapter took me forever to write, and I had to resubmit it a few times due to stupid editing mistakes. As always, any comments or criticisms are welcome!