The bell that signaled the end of the day rang and the students of Canterlot high school made their way out of the doors at the front of the building. Everyone was with their friends except for one: Thunder Cat, he was alone, like usual. He didn't have any friends anymore, he cut himself off from them, Thunder Cat wouldn't admit it but he was afraid of losing them like he lost his mother. Thunder Cat slowly made his way to the statue that was placed in the middle of the front lawn of the school. Last year during the fall festival, Twilight Sparkle came out of the statue to retrieve her crown that was stolen by Sunset Shimmer. Thunder Cat approached the statue and sat in front in front of it with his back to the statue. The first day of his junior year had just ended but his day was spent dealing with the pain and sadness of the previous day, the day his mother died. Thunder Cats mother was severely ill and the night she died he had a feeling that it would be the last time he ever saw her smile. Her death was saddening but it was only part of his pain, the main reason of his pain was where she died. His mother died in his arms when he gave her a good night's hug before going to bed.
Thunder Cat wished he could travel to Twilight's world so he didn't have to return home and see his father and step-mother. After his mother's death, Thunder Cat and his father drifted apart, and after his father remarried, they drifted even farther apart. Thunder Cat's step-mother did not care for him, she cared for her new born son and Thunder Cat's father but not him.
Thunder Cat let out a long sigh as the first fat rain drops fell from the clouds above. It always seemed to rain on the first day of school and Thunder Cat wanted to believe that it was his mother shedding tears as she watched him carry the heart ache of her death. The rain began to fall faster now and thunder echoed in the distance, Thunder Cat should have tried to find some cover from the storm but he was content with sitting in the rain and watching the lighting crack the sky and hearing the thunder boom a few seconds after.
"If you can see me mom, please let me escape from this place". Thunder Cat pleaded with himself. As if his wish was being granted, a bolt of lighting struck the statue he was sitting against, the statue began to glow and Thunder Cat fell back wards into the statue. Thunder Cat couldn't believe it he was traveling to Equestria! Thunder Cat wondered what kind of pony he would be, a unicorn, or maybe a Pegasus, he was excited but he was also nervous. Would the other ponies accept him, or would he be an outcast like he was back home?
He tumbled out of the mirror, landed flat on his back, his head hitting the floor with a loud thud.
"Ow, well that hurt!" Thunder Cat said as he lifted himself up on to two legs, he lost his balance immediately and fell on all fours, which felt strangely better than walking on two legs. Thunder Cat looked back into the mirror to see what his appearance was and how it had changed. He was now a grey stallion with a blue and red Mohawk.
Well the hair is not really my style but I can live with it and those wings do look pretty cool. Thunder Cat thought
"WAIT, WHAT, I have wings!" Exclaimed Thunder Cat The sudden outburst must have alerted some other ponies because he heard the sound of hooves striking the tiles. A few seconds later three ponies dressed in armor burst in the room and surrounded Thunder Cat.
"Who are you and why are you here?" asked the guard pony on the left
"My name is Thunder Cat and I just fell out of the mirror after I wished to be sent here so I could let go of this pain I have in my heart." Explained Thunder Cat. He doubted that these ponies would believe his story and he was right, the three guards started to move closer to Thunder Cat.
"Stop right there, don't move any closer to him!" Ordered an unknown mare
The guards froze in their tracks when they heard the voice. The guards turned to so Thunder Cat could see the owner of the voice. The mare had a bright pink coat and her mane was a mix of colors ranging from yellow, to a dark pink, to violet. Thunder Cat was taken aback by her beauty.
Wow she is pretty, wait what am I saying she is a pony and I am a human, oh wait I forgot that I am also a pony now. Thought Thunder Cat.
"What do you want to do to the trespasser Princess Cadence?" asked the guard on the right
"She's a princess!?" Exclaimed Thunder Cat. The guards glared at Thunder Cat in annoyance after his outburst.
"Yes I am a princess, and as my guard said my name is Cadence, and what is your name?" questioned the princess
"My name is Thunder Cat ma'am." Responded Thunder Cat with a bow, hoping he did not offend the princess by not bowing earlier. The princess giggled at thunder Cat's attempt to bow.
"There is no need to bow before me, but you may want to work on your bows in the future Thunder Cat." Giggled the princess. Thunder Cat got up in a hurry not wanting to embarrass himself further.
"If you don't mind me asking princess, uh where are we, this looks a lot like a castle?" inquired Thunder Cat
Princess Cadence smiled and said "Welcome to the Crystal Empire Thunder Cat"
Thunder Cat looked in wonder when Princess Cadence told him that he was in the Crystal Empire.
Too bad I have no idea what you are talking about princess Thunder Cat confessed to himself.
"So you came from the mirror, is that right Thunder Cat?" Asked Princess Cadence
The princess' question broke Thunder Cat's train of thought "Oh, um, yes I did come from the mirror, well I fell out of the mirror." Confessed Thunder Cat
After A few minutes of silence the princess told Thunder Cat to follow her to the outside of the castle so he could get a bite to eat and see the rest of the empire. The princess lead Thunder Cat to some food stalls near the castle.
"Oh, hello princess, and who is this good looking stallion?" asked the owner of the stall
"This is Thunder Cat and he came from the magic mirror in the castle." Explained Cadence
"Oh, well he is a piece of eye candy, I bet he has Shining armor all jealous." Teased the lime green pony who ran the stall. Princess Cadence giggled and told Thunder Cat to get whatever he wanted.
"Um, could I have two apples please?" Thunder Cat asked shyly. The Lime green mare nodded and picked two apples from under the counter.
"It is going to cost 4 bits but since you are so handsome I will lower the cost to 2 bits." Said the pony
"Oh by the way my name is Pear Cider my handsome stallion." Said Pear Cider as she eyed Thunder Cat like a lion would a gazelle. Pear Cider's remark and the way she talked to Thunder Cat made him blush, wanting to leave the stall before Pear Cider had the chance to harass him further, Thunder Cat paid for the apples and smiled and walked away with Cadence.
"Well its looks like you have an admirer Thunder." Giggled the princess. Thunder Cat not wanting to really talk about it bit into one of the apples he had bought, the apple was bright red and tasted better than any apple he had before.
"Where do you get these apples from?" asked Thunder Cat with admiration
"We get them from Sweet Apple Acres in Ponyville." Responded Cadence
I am going to have to visit that place and ask if I can get some more of these awesome apples. Thought Thunder Cat. The rest of the day was mostly Princess Cadence showing Thunder Cat around the Empire and talking to a few of the crystal ponies. At the end of the day Cadence and Thunder Cat were in the castle talking.
"Um, princess, if you don't mind me asking, do you know a Twilight Sparkle by any chance?" asked Thunder Cat
"Of course I know Twilight Sparkle we are best friends and she is my sister-in-law, why do you ask?" Cadence responded
"Well, you see, she came to my world after her crown was stolen by Sunset Shimmer and, um, I wanted to know if she lived nearby so I could ask her some questions and maybe learn to fly." Thunder Cat sheepishly answered
"Oh, well she lives in Ponyville, I can get you on the next train there if you want?" asked Cadence
"That would be nice, if it is not too much trouble." Said Thunder Cat
"There is no need to be so shy, Thunder Cat, we are friends aren't we?" asked Cadence
"I don't have any friends anymore, I cut myself off from them after my mother died." Said Thunder Cat, there was a pain in his voice.
"Oh, I didn't know, I'm sorry if I brought back some painful memories." Said Cadence trying to make up for what she said.
"It's ok, I don't talk about it much." Whispered Thunder Cat
Cadence taking the hint, changed the subject to something hopefully less painful to talk about.
"So how did you like the Crystal Empire Thunder Cat?" Asked Cadence
"It was awesome, the architecture was splendid, the apples were fantastic, and everyone was so nice." Exclaimed Thunder Cat with glee
"I don't want to sound rude but it's every pony, not everyone." Critiqued Cadence
"Oh, my bad, I'm still getting use to everything here." Said Thunder Cat embarrassed that he didn't say it right. Before any more questions could be asked or answered, the door to the throne room opened revealing a white stallion with a blue mane.
"Hello Dear I'm home!" Said the stallion with a lot of joy in his voice
"Oh, Shining Armor my love, welcome home" Responded Cadence
The two embraced each other like they have not seen each other in quite some time. After the couple broke off their hug, Shining Armor noticed Thunder Cat.
"Hello, I don't believe we have met, my name is Shining Armor. What is your name?" asked Shining Armor
"Oh, um, my name is Thunder Cat, nice to meet you, Cadence has told me a lot about you. I did not know That Twilight Sparkle had a brother." Said Thunder Cat
"Wait how do you know my sister?" Shining Armor asked suspiciously
"Oh, he came from the magic mirror this afternoon, he said he saw your sister in his world when she went to retrieve her crown from Sunset Shimmer." Said Cadence trying to calm the situation down
"Oh, okay, so what brings you to our world Thunder Cat?" Asked Shining Armor
Thunder Cat's expression saddened "I'm here to start anew, and find a way to rid myself of this heart ache that weighs my heart down." Thunder Cat explained
"He doesn't like to talk about it, so please don't bring it up." Whispered Cadence to her husband. Shining Armor gave her a slight nod, and decided to change the subject.
"So Thunder Cat, are you going anywhere?" Asked Shining Armor
"I will be heading to Ponyville tomorrow, Cadence told me that is where I will find Twilight and Sweet Apple Acres." Explaining Thunder Cat, he put in some joy when he said Sweet Apple Acres. Shining Armor nodded and the trio of ponies talked for an hour longer. Thunder Cat was more tired than usual, even though he does not sleep much due to the nightmares he has of the night his mother died.
*YAWN* "Oh, I'm sorry, I am awfully tired, do you have an extra room I can sleep in tonight?" inquired Thunder Cat
"Yes we do have a few extra rooms for when we have guests." Said Princess Cadence. She signaled for him to follow her to one of the spare rooms.
"You can sleep in here for the night." Stated Cadence. The room was larger than the room he had at home in his world, and there was a king sized bed with what looked like a pavilion on top of it.
"Wow, this room is amazing, it is so much larger than the room I had back home." Uttered Thunder Cat his voice was filled with awe at the size of the room he would be sleeping in.
"Well, sleep well Thunder Cat." Said Cadence
"Thank you." Smiled Thunder Cat I'll try and get some sleep but I probably won't get much thought Thunder Cat. While he slept Thunder Cat dreamt of the usual dreams that he had, but the one that lasted the longest was the night his mother died. In the middle of his dream a dark blue alicorn mare with a mane that looked like the night sky.
Why does this dream haunt so? Asked the alicorn mare
This is the night I lost someone very dear to me. Said Thunder Cat. Though he did not want to go deeper into the subject, the mare in front of him had a hint of curiosity in her eyes.
Who did you lose she inquired
I lost my mother and ever since her death I have had this dream every night, I don't get much sleep due to it and I have grown to accept that I won't sleep much anymore. Said Thunder Cat
How long have you been having this reoccurring nightmare? Asked the alicorn
For two years I have had this dream, and who are you anyway? Asked Thunder Cat
My name is Princess Luna, I raise the moon every night and help who are in trouble in their dreams. Said Luna, who seemed a little hurt that Thunder Cat did not know who she was.
Oh, ok my name is Thunder Cat and I traveled through the magic mirror in the Crystal Empire earlier this afternoon. Said Thunder Cat, realizing that Princess Luna looked a whole lot like Vice Principal Luna.
Ah, that would explain why you did not know who I was, how did you get through the mirror anyway, it was supposed to be closed for 30 moons. Wondered Luna
Isn't 30 moons a month? And the statue in my world was struck by lighting and began to glow when I fell backwards into it. Said Thunder Cat. The conversation went on for some time mainly about how Thunder Cat got through the mirror and how his dream was affecting his life.
Moring is upon us and I must be off to lower the moon, Thunder Cat be aware that if you keep a hold of your pain, you will not be able to move forward in life. Warned Luna. And with that she was gone and Thunder Cat woke up to find that He had slept through the night for the first time and three months.
"Thank you Luna." Whispered Thunder Cat with a smile. The grey stallion climbed out of bed and put his hoodie back on, he always wore his hoodie no matter the season, and he felt safe from the eyes of others. He looked into the mirror that was in the room and decided to take off his hoodie and told himself he would move forward in life like Luna said. A knock on the door startled Thunder Cat and a familiar voice came from the other side.
"Thunder Cat, its Cadence, breakfast is ready if you are hungry." Said Cadence. Thunder Cat opened the door so he could see her face.
"Breakfast would be great, what are we having?" He asked.
Cadence seemed to be caught off guard from Thunder Cat's happiness that morning "We have a large variety of items, and you seem happier this morning." Cadence said as she led Thunder Cat to the dining area. Thunder Cat told her of his dream from last night and how Princess Luna gave him some advice.
"Luna is such a great princess, but it was not always that way, there was a time where she was jealous of her sister and the how the ponies enjoyed the sun that she brought, and despised how the ponies slept and ignored her night, to make a long story short, Celestia had to banish Luna into the moon for 1000 years, but when she returned Twilight and her friends stopped nightmare moon and returned Luna to what she is today." Explained Cadence. When they arrived in the dining are Thunder Cat saw the table where the food was, and he was surprised to see so much food! Apples, pastries, sugar cubes, and so much more.
"Whoa, that is a lot of food, are we expected to eat it all?" Wondered Thunder Cat. Cadence shock her head and giggled. Thunder Cat let out a sigh of relief, he knew he could not imagine eating all the food that was on the table. Shining Armor was already at the table waiting for them.
"It seems our guest, is feeling well rested and is hungry." Said Shining Armor as he watched Thunder Cat sit in a random seat and begin to put food onto his plate. After breakfast Thunder Cat decided to pack his things and get ready to leave for Ponyville, most of his things were already in his saddle bag which be brought from home. He said his final goodbyes and made his way to the train station just outside the Empire. Cadence and Shining Armor saw him off at the train station, before he got on to the train he bought some more apples from Pear Cider.
"Goodbye Thunder Cat, and when you see Twilight tell her that her brother says hello." Said Shining Armor Cadence asked the same thing and Thunder Cat promised to tell Twilight that they said hello. The train ride was boring and uneventful, Thunder Cat passed the time by listening to music on his phone. Thunder Cat may have dozed off but he was unsure, by the time he opened his eyes the train was about to stop in Ponyville. Once the train stopped, he stepped off and looked around to get his bearings. Thunder Cat stood at the station for a minute or two then walked into town. Looming in the distance Thunder Cat saw what looked to be a castle but couldn't get a good enough view of it, deciding to look into it later he wondered into town square, when suddenly a pink pony suddenly appeared in his face.
"Hi!" Shouted the pink pony
"Ah" exclaimed Thunder Cat, her sudden appearance startled Thunder Cat.
"You almost gave me a heart attack!" said Thunder Cat still trying to calm his heart down.
"Oh, my name is Pinkie Pie and I saw you, you were alone, and if you were alone that must mean you don't have any friends, you must be lonely and ponies who are lonely are sad to." Explained Pinkie
"Yes, I am alone and I don't have any friends, by the way my name is Thunder Cat and" before he could finish his sentence Pinkie interrupted.
"You came from the world that Twilight went to when Sunset Shimmer stole her crown and you are here to find Twilight to ask her some questions and you want to get some apples from sweet apple acres while you are here." Stated Pinkie
Thunder Cat stood there with his mouth hanging open. "How did you know all that?" Asked Thunder Cat
"Just a hunch." Giggled Pinkie.
"If you are looking for Twilight she is at Sweet Apple Acres helping Apple Jack buck some apples." Said Pinkie
"Thank you Pinkie pie." Said Thunder Cat. He decided he was going to fly there, so he opened his wings and flapped them until he was in the air. He thought it would have been easier but it was difficult, he was trying best and was failing until a blue Pegasus helped Thunder Cat to regain his balance.
"Whoa, it's okay I've got you, you seem to be having trouble with flying, the names Rainbow Dash by the way." She said
"Thank you, I'm pretty new to this sort of thing, I have only been in this world for only a day and never had time to practice." Said Thunder Cat
"You came through the mirror in the Crystal Empire!" Exclaimed Rainbow Dash
"Yes I did, and I'm in Ponyville looking for Twilight Sparkle, Pinkie Pie said she was at Sweet Apple Acres, can you help me get there?" Asked Thunder Cat. Rainbow Dash nodded and helped him get to the apple farm. The farm was massive! So many trees beholding apples of all colors. Down below in the middle of it all were some different color spots, an orange one, a red one, and a purple one. Rainbow Dash and Thunder Cat made their decent on the farm, Rainbow landed very gracefully, and Thunder Cat, he landed like a rock, there was little to no grace in his landing.
Rainbow was trying her hardest not to laugh "You really do need to practice your flying." Said Rainbow Dash in between giggles. Thunder Cat rolled his eyes at the rainbow Pegasus.
"Rainbow Dash, why don't you help him up, he could be hurt." Ordered the purple unicorn, no not a unicorn, Thunder Cat took a closer look at the purple mare in front of him and he saw wings.
She's an alicorn! Thunder Cat thought to himself
"I'm fine!" Blurted Thunder Cat as he shot up off the ground, Thunder Cat now had trouble keeping his balance on the ground and in the air.
"Oh my, he may be hurt, sugar cube." Said the orange mare next to the alicorn.
"I think you are right Apple Jack." Said the purple mare. Their voices sounded like an echo to Thunder Cat, he had fallen over twice as he tried to walk, and then the world went dark as he fell the third time. When Thunder Cat woke up he was lying on a couch inside of an unknown house, he looked around at his surroundings and saw that it looked like a country home, like pictures he had seen in a magazine once. All of a sudden a voice broke the silence startling Thunder Cat.
"It looks like our guest has finally woken up, so how are you feeling?" asked the old green apple mare
"How long was I out for?" said Thunder Cat ignoring the mare's question
"You have been sleeping there for 2 days." Responded the mare
"What! I have been here for 2 days, I didn't think I was hurt that bad just a bit shaken up." Said Thunder Cat with disbelief in his voice. The Apple Jack walked into the room and noticed Thunder Cat had woken up.
"Ah, how are you feeling sugar cube?" She asked with a heavy country accent
"I feel a whole lot better than I did when I landed, but what I don't understand is why I was asleep for 2 days." Thunder Cat said
"Well, you had a pretty bad concussion from your landing, I kind of expected you to be asleep for a few more days with those bags under your eyes and all." Said Apple Jack
"Oh, I haven't been sleeping very well for some time, but I would rather not talk about it if that's ok." Said Thunder Cat
"That's fine sugar cube, you can talk about it whenever you are ready to talk about it." Said Apple Jack.
"Granny, why don't you introduce yourself to our guest while I go and get Big Mac, and Apple Bloom." Said Apple Jack as she walked out of the house.
"Oh, yes, my name is Granny Smith and I help out my grandchildren run Sweet Apple Acres." She said with a smile on her face.
"My, name is Thunder Cat, and I have to say that your apples are the best that I have tasted." Thunder Cat said with admiration. Apple Jack came back into the house with a large red stallion and a yellow filly trailing behind her.
"Thunder Cat I would like to introduce you to Big Macintosh and Apple Bloom." Apple said with pride
"Hello, I'm Thunder Cat, it's nice to meet you both." Said Thunder Cat
"Howdy." Said Big Mac
"It's nice to meet you." Said Apple Bloom
"Well isn't this touching." Said an unknown voice with a lisp. Thunder Cat looked around for the source of the voice only to see it coming from a strange looking lamp.
"Discord, what are you doing here?" Said Apple Jack. Discord came out of his hiding place and started floating above the ponies below.
"Oh, I was on my way to see Fluttershy but she wasn't home and I heard of a new Pegasus came into town from Pinkie. She told me that he is looking for Twilight and to get some apples from you Apple Jack." Said Discord who was now drinking an apple.
"Oh, is that right Thunder Cat, you are looking for Twilight?" Asked Apple Jack
"Oh, um, yes I am looking for her, that and I was hoping to get some more of your awesome apples." Said Thunder Cat.
"Oh, did I forget to mention that he came from the mirror that Twilight went through to get her crown back." Added Discord
"Well why didn't you say that Thunder Cat, Twi is defiantly going to want to see you after she hears that." Said Apple Jack with enthusiasm. Apple Jack pulled Thunder Cat up off the couch and told him to follow her to Twilight's castle. Discord followed as well, Thunder Cat could only wonder why though. The trio arrived at their destination to see Twilight opening the door to leave.
"Hello Apple Jack, Discord and um I didn't catch your name." She said
"My name is Thunder Cat." He said trying to keep the nervousness out of his voice.
"Twi, you have to hear this, Thunder Cat comes from the world on the other side of the magic mirror." Said Apple Jack. Twilights face went from being calm to surprise before Apple jack finisher her sentence.
"Is it true, you come from the world on the other side of the mirror Thunder Cat?" Asked Twilight with surprise
"Yes I do, I saw you when you were in my world getting your crown back, you probably didn't notice me, and no one really does anymore. I was what you did with the magic of friendship to defeat Sunset Shimmer, I guess what I'm trying to say is: will you teach me how to make friends? It has been two years since I had any friends." Pleaded Thunder Cat. Everypony could tell by the tone of his voice was telling the truth. The group was shocked at the words they had just heard.
"Has it really been two years since you had a friend?" Asked Apple Jack with disbelief in her voice
"Yes, I cut myself off from them when my mother died, which was two years ago." Said Thunder Cat. Pinkie Pie appeared from nowhere, making everypony question how she does it.
"You don't have any friends, well we will have to change that and quick!" Exclaimed Pinkie
Tears welled up around Thunder Cat's eyes. "You would do that for me, but you don't even know me." Said Thunder Cat wiping the tears from his eyes. Pinkie Pie put her hoof around Thunder Cat.
"Of course I will, I'm friends with everypony." Said Pinkie Pie
"When Pinkie wants to be friends with you she will stop at nothing until she is your friend." Said Apple Jack warningly. Thunder Cat nodded and Pinkie smiled from ear to ear at his agreement for her to be his friend.
"This call for a PARTY!" yelled Pinkie Pie, and she bolted off to plan her party for Thunder Cat.
"Does she do that often?" Asked Thunder Cat wondering how Pinkie has so much energy.
"Yes she does." Said both Apple Jack and Twilight
"Oh, Thunder Cat, um how is everyone back in your world?" Asked Twilight
"I guess they are doing fine. I never talk to them and they don't talk to me, I was an outcast back home." Said Thunder Cat
"Oh." Said Twilight, she looked down after his answer.
"Oh, Twilight, before I forget, Princess Cadence and Shining Armor say hello, and I going to wonder around for a bit, okay?" Said Thunder Cat
"Oh, sure that's fine." Said Twilight. Thunder Cat pulled out some head phones and started to listen to music as he walked away. Thunder Cat once again found himself in the town center, he took off his headphones and looked around at the stores and anything else his eyes saw. Thunder Cat decided to walk into the sweet shop and by some chocolate. After spending a few minutes in the sweet shop Thunder Cat wondered around Ponyville some more until he came across a building that looked like a gingerbread house. The corners were lined with what looked like pink frosting, most of the outside of the building had pink somewhere on it. Thunder Cat was not a big fan of the color, but he shrugged it off and went inside. The first thing he saw was a display full of cakes and on top was a register meaning that this was bakery. The pony he saw behind the counter was Pinkie Pie, she waved and zoomed over to Thunder Cat to talk.
"Hey Thunder Cat, what's up?" Said enthusiastically
"Just wondering around Ponyville. What is this place Pinkie?" Thunder Cat asked
"This is Sugar Cube Corner, the most coolest place to buy anything sweet!" Pinkie Pie said over flowing her voice with joy. Thunder Cat saw all the balloons and decorations for a party.
"Who, is the party for?" Asked Thunder Cat, by the time he finished his sentence he knew what the answer was.
"It's for you, silly!" Exclaimed Pinkie Pie. All over the main room of the store was decorated for his party.
"Wow, I haven't anyone throw me a party since I was just a child, you are a great friend Pinkie." Said Thunder Cat still looking at the decorations. A few minutes passed and everypony that he knew and more arrived to the party. Most of the ponies that showed up Thunder Cat did not know, but he was encouraged to talk and make more friends.
"H… Hello." Thunder Cat said nervously as he walked up to a yellow Pegasus mare. The mare looks down instead of meeting his gaze.
"Hi." She whispers
"M…My name is Thunder Cat and I'm trying to make friends, uh, w… what is your name?" Thunder Cat asked.
"I'm Fluttershy." She said with the faintest whisper
"I… I'm sorry I didn't catch that." Thunder Said
"I'm Fluttershy." She said still whispering.
"I guess we can still be friends even if I don't know your name." Said Thunder Cat trying not to sound bitter. Thunder Cat walked away and found Rainbow Dash getting some cake, he walked up to her wanting to start up a conversation.
"Hey Rainbow Dash." Thunder Cat said
"Oh, hey Thunder, are you feeling okay, I mean after being asleep for two days?" She asked
"Yea, I'm fine Rainbow Dash." Thunder Cat said as he grabbed a piece of cake. Thunder wondered who that yellow mare and why she was so shy, but that could wait he was starving. He took his first bite of cake and it was good, a little too sweet for his taste but he was too hungry to care at the moment.
"So how are you doing darling?" an unknown voice said behind Thunder Cat. The sudden voice caused Thunder to jump and nearly choke on his cake. After a few ragged breaths Thunder turned to see who was talking. A white unicorn was standing in front of him, she looked like she had seen something awful.
"Um, I'm sorry darling I didn't know you were so jumpy." The unicorn said stepping back a bit
"It's ok, but you look so familiar for some reason." Thunder Cat said trying to remember who she looked like. His eyes widened and his mouth dropped as he remembered.
"You look exactly like Ruby Star." He said in a mix of horror and awe
"And who might that be darling." The white unicorn said
"S…she was the girl I fell in l…l…love with." Thunder Cat said, his brain was moving a mile a minute trying to process this new information. Suddenly the music of the party stopped and all the ponies turned to see what was going on. With all eyes on Thunder Cat he couldn't think of anything to say and bolted out of the building and took flight to hide somewhere that no one would look for him. He sees and unknown forest on the edge of town and decides to hide in the forest.
"Okay no one followed me, good" Thunder said in-between huffs. He heard that pegasi like he were able to stand on clouds and went to find out if it was true. He landed on one of the clouds that dotted the sky, the cloud felt strange under his hooves but was stable enough to stand on.
"Well would you look at that the new guy is standing on clouds now, a big improvement from falling on your head trying to land." Said Discord who was rowing a boat through the sky.
"That was one time, it was my first time flying." Thunder Cat as he wondered how Discord could do such strange things.
"Well, I should warn you the forest you are in is the Everfree forest and is full of nasty creatures." Discord said still rowing his boat.
"Uh, D…Discord, have you ever been in love?" Asked Thunder Cat
"No, why do you ask?" Discord asked
"It's not important." Thunder said. Discord shrugged and disappeared. Thunder hadn't heard or seen any other pony since he ran from the party, he was tired and wanted nothing more than to be left alone. Thunder laid down on the cloud and shut his eyes. About an hour later Thunder could hear a distant voice calling out to him
"Hey, are you okay?" The voice said. It got closer and closer until it was right in front of him, Thunder rolled over, and hoping whoever was talking would take the hint and go away. But the voice was still there.
"Hey, mister are you okay?" The voice asked again. Thunder let out a long sigh and rolled over to see who was talking. He saw a little orange filly who was hovering next to him.
"What do you want kid?" Thunder Asked
"Well, you are napping on cloud in the Everfree forest and I wanted to know if you were okay." The filly said
"I was napping because I was tired and the Everfree forest doesn't scare me." Thunder said and rolled over to continue his nap. The filly took the hint that time and flew off. Another hour later two voices approached Thunder.
"Hey, get up, come on you should get up." Said the first voice
"Yea come on get up." Copied the second voice. Thunder rolled over to sea Rainbow dash and the orange filly hovering there.
"What do you want now?" Thunder said annoyed
"Well you seemed down last time so I brought by the coolest Pegasus I know, Rainbow Dash!" The filly exclaimed. All Thunder Cat wanted was to be left alone, but it seemed that wasn't going to happen any time soon.
"Rainbow Dash, kid, please just leave me alone, that is all I ask of you, this afternoon wasn't too kind to me." He said
"Oh come on Thunder Cat all because you embarrassed yourself at the party doesn't mean you should leave and not return." Rainbow Dash said
"You don't know what it's like to be the sad man, you don't know what it's like to be fated, to telling only lies." Thunder Cat said with tears welling up in his eyes
"Whoa, what do you mean?" Asked Rainbow Dash as she was taken aback by his response
"After my mother died, I cut myself off from everyone, I didn't want anyone to get close to me, I was afraid that they would leave and I would be alone. I made myself alone and that's how it was for two long years, and now I am trying to learn what it means to have friends again." Sobbed Thunder. Rainbow Dash put a hoof on his shoulder.
"Hey, it's okay, I didn't have a lot of friends when I was a filly but here I am with friends and you can make friends too, it just takes some time." She said trying to comfort Thunder. The orange filly landed on the cloud Thunder was on and tried to comfort him as well.
"I may not know what it's like but I know what it means to have friends." Said the orange filly. Thunder got up and took flight, he was unsure and needed time to think.
"Sorry I just need some time to think, give me week to think it all over." Thunder said over his shoulder as he flew away.
The week goes by and Thunder had spent it thinking and practicing his flying skills. He hadn't slept at all during the week, so the bags under his eyes had gotten darker. Thunder half walked half stumbled to the large shop that was in front of him. He was trying not to pass out from the lack of sleep, he knocked on the door of the shop. The white unicorn from the party answered the door.
"Yes, can I help you?" She asked
"I need to talk to you about the party, can I come in?" Thunder said
"Oh, yes, please come in, make yourself at home." She said as she directed him to a couch. Thunder Cat sat on the couch nearly passing out from the confines of the couch.
"So what did you want to talk about dear?" The white unicorn asked
"Please don't call me dear or darling, it reminds me too much of Ruby Star, just call me Thunder." Thunder said with some venom in his voice
"Okay then Thunder, who is this Ruby Star anyway?" She asked. Thunder let out a long and depressed sigh.
"She was the love of my life, even though I never told her how I felt. Her hair was done the same way yours is, and she walked with a certain elegance that just made her stand out." Thunder said trying to picture her in his head as best he could.
"She caught my eye one day while walking through the halls. I couldn't help but stare, she just looked so perfect and I knew from that moment on I was in love." Thunder continued. He knew that was a long time ago and he didn't have any more feeling for her or anyone else, maybe one day he would, but that was for a later day.
"So what ever happened to her?" The unicorn asked
"Well after I cut myself off from the world she went on to date the captain of the football team and I don't know anything else, because I am now here in your world instead of mine and you know that is how it will stay." Thunder said as his eye lids became too heavy to keep open. He slumped over on to Rarity. Thunder felt someone shake him, he waited for it to stop but the shaking got fiercer. He moaned in protest, then a sigh came from the pony who was shaking him, then he felt a sharp pain on his head.
"Ouch, what the hell was that for?" Thunder growled. He saw Twilight and the white unicorn standing there.
"I asked you a question, why the hell did you hit me for?" He growled
"Because you wouldn't wake up, that is why I hit you." Said Twilight getting into Thunder's face
"You know there is a saying in my world, when a girl likes a boy she is mean and hits him, does that mean you have something for me?" Thunder said, he knew she would deny it and get out of his face and that was exactly what he was hoping for.
"No, I don't have a thing for you!" Twilight exclaimed backing out of Thunder's face. He laughed.
"I knew you would do that, and that is why I did it, so you would get out of my face." He said getting off the couch and making his way to the door. Just before he opened the door he looked over his shoulder.
"Thanks for letting me sleep on your couch white ruby." He said
"My name is Rarity, please use it." Rarity said
"Sure Rarity." Thunder said as he walked out the door. He squinted as the sun light hit his eyes.
How long was I asleep for? He thought to himself. Thunder made his way to the castle, he passed so many stores and houses on his way and a lot of the ponies didn't glance his way.
Well at least I don't have all eyes on me. He thought. He reached the castle and opened the main door. Thunder made his way to the throne room, he took out a piece of paper and a pencil and began to write.
Dear Twilight and friends,
I am going to take a trip across your world and try to make some friends. Ponyville just isn't the town for me, I hope you understand. My first stop will be Canterlot and then the Crystal Empire. By the time you read this I will be long gone, but do not feel sad, feel joyous that I am on my way to make friends and have the time of my life.
Sincerely
Thunder Cat
Thunder Cat left the note on Twilights throne and turned to leave, to see Rainbow Dash looking at him. With a faint smile on his face Thunder made his way to the door.
"Wait! What are you doing here?" Rainbow asked
"I'm leaving, make sure Twilight reads that note, will you?" Thunder asked as he opened the door.
"WAIT!" Rainbow yelled "What do you mean you are leaving?" She asked
"I'm leaving Ponyville to travel the world." Thunder said
"But, but what about the friends you made in Ponyville, what about me?" She asked regretting the last part
"What are you trying to say Dash?" Thunder asked raising an eyebrow
"N…nothing, I'm just saying what about your friends here." Dash said her cheeks becoming a bright red. Thunder walked up to Rainbow Dash.
"I wish, I could answer that, but I don't think I have any friends here. I was onlyfor a few days, most of them were spent passed out on a couch in a house." Thunder said looking down.
"But really what did you mean by, what about me?" Thunder asked. Rainbow Dash's face became an even brighter red, she sighed.
"I like you. There I said it." Rainbow said a little embarrassed. Thunder Cat let out a booming laughter that could have shook the castle if he was any bigger.
"You know you are the first pony to tell me that, and wait are you being serious?" Thunder asked in surprise. Rainbow nodded and blushed.
"Oh, well still that is the first time anyone or anypony has told me that." Thunder said regretting that he had laughed. Rainbow Dash moved a little closer to Thunder. She was so close, but he didn't want to ruin the moment by trying to kiss her, that's to say if he could kiss her at all in the first place. Rainbow Dash moved ever closer to him, Thunder leaned in and Rainbow did the same. The kiss felt like a dam of passion has burst open, Thunder had never felt like that.
"So, will you stay in Ponyville for me?" Rainbow asked
"I can give Ponyville another chance, if it means I get to spent time with you." Thunder said, he heard a gasp as he turned to see Twilight and Rarity standing there.
"How much did you two see?" Rainbow asked with horror in her voice
"We saw everything." Twilight said
"Yes darling we saw everything, but its okay your secret is safe with us." Rarity said trying to comfort her friend. Thunder was a little confused, how they got in here without him hearing and why is Rainbow Dash so afraid of letting people know about her feelings.
"No, I think everypony should know about Thunder and I. Ponies should know that I have a loving and caring side." Rainbow said putting her wing around Thunder and kissing him on the cheek.
"Well let me say that you two look perfect together. Don't they Twilight?" Rarity asked
"Yes they do." Twilight said
"One question, how did you get in here, I would have heard your hooves hitting the floor." Thunder said
"Magic, I used a teleportation spell." Twilight said. Thunder nodded, he now understood. Thunder kissed Rainbow Dash and made his way to the door.
"I'll be in the market if you need me." Thunder said as he walked out of the door. Thunder Cat was excited, his first girlfriend but he was also nervous, this was his first relationship he didn't know what couples did. He was deep in thought when Apple Jack tapped him on the shoulder.
"Oh, hey Apple Jack. What's up?" Thunder Asked
"Well I was just coming by to see how everything was going. Why are you smiling and just standing here?" AJ asked
"The others can tell you, I'm off to the market to buy some food." Thunder said as he waved good bye to the orange Earth pony. Thunder Cat arrived in the market and headed to the apple stall run by Big Macintosh.
"Hey Big Mac. Is business good?" Asked Thunder
"Eeyup." Said Big Mac. Thunder bought a few apples and slipped them into his saddle bag, he went to a few other stalls but nothing really caught his eye. It wasn't until he stopped by a jewelry stall and remembered.
"Oh crap, I totally forgot to give my world's Rainbow Dash her necklace back!" Thunder said loudly. He flew back to the castle as fast as he could. Thunder burst into the castle.
"Have you seen Rainbow anywhere?" Asked Thunder in between breaths
"Um she went out to get some food." Apple jack said
"Do you know where she went to get her food?" Thunder asked still trying to catch his breath
"From the market." Said Apple Jack
"I must have passed her on the way here." Thunder said mostly to himself
"Congrats for the both of you by the way." Said Apple Jack but Thunder was already out the door. Thunder slowed down this time trying to find Rainbow Dash. He spotted her buying some carrots, he landed behind her.
"I found you, good." Thunder said to his mare-friend
"Were you looking for me?" She asked
"Yes, I have something that belongs to you, well my world's you." He said as he took the necklace out of his saddle bag.
"She lost it when Twilight defeated Sunset Shimmer." Thunder said as he presented it to Rainbow Dash.
"It looks like my cutie mark." Rainbow said as she took the necklace. Thunder put it around her neck, he mover her hair out of the way and her fragrance tickled his nose.
"You look great." Thunder said leaning over and kissing Rainbow on the cheek, Rainbow blushed and kissed him back.
"Thank you for this." Rainbow said hugging her colt-friend. Many months pass by and Thunder is still dating Rainbow Dash but he wants to take their relationship to the next level. Thunder had been saving up from work to do this. He makes his way to the train station and heads to Canterlot in the night. He arrives in Canterlot that morning and, Thunder knew exactly where he needed to go. Thunder finds the jewelry shop and steps inside.
"Hello sir, what can I do for you today?" Asked the shop owner.
"I would like to see your engagement rings please." Thunder said. The owner nodded and went into the back to get the rings.
I hope Rainbow Dash doesn't freak out when she finds me gone. Thunder thought. The owner came from the back with a display case in his magic, he placed the case on the counter. Thunder saw so many options to choose from, he wanted a something that expressed how much he loved Rainbow Dash. He looked through the rings and only one caught his eye, a gold ring with a rainbow diamond as the center stone.
"I would like to purchase that one please." Thunder said as he pointed to the ring
"Of course sir, good choice." The owner said as he took the ring out of the case and placed it in a small box. Thunder paid for the ring and went back to the train station. So many thoughts were running through Thunder's mind when he arrived back in Ponyville, Rainbow Dash was waiting there and she did not look very happy.
"Where have you been?" She yelled
"I was in Canterlot." Thunder said
"Why were you in Canterlot, are you cheating on me?" She asked as she got in Thunder's face.
"Oh, no, I would never do that to you." Thunder said kind of offended. He was going to propose to her today, but he didn't know where to do it at.
"What's with the bag?" Rainbow asked
"It's, um, nothing." He said nervously. Before she could ask any more questions he flew off, to find somewhere to propose.
"Man, it is hearts and hooves day and I can't find a place to do it at, what a bummer." Thunder mumbled
"What can't you find a place to do?" Asked FlutterShy as she flew next to Thunder
"Oh, hey, um, it's a secret." He said, he knew she wouldn't press it due to her shy nature.
"Oh, okay." FlutterShy said sounding let down
"Okay I will tell you but you have to promise not to tell anyone else okay." Thunder said. FlutterShy nodded. Thunder took the small box out and opened it to show her.
"I'm going to ask Rainbow Dash to marry me." He said. FlutterShy gasped at the news.
"Do you think she will like it?" Thunder asked, the yellow Pegasus quickly nodded.
"I think she will love it." She said with a smile. Thunder smiled and waved good-bye and flew off, he thought of doing it at Sweet Apple Acres but rejected the idea, and a wedding would be nice there but not to propose. Next he thought of Sugar Cube Corner and again rejected the idea, one it wasn't an ideal place to propose, two Pinkie Pie. The last place he thought of was the castle, and again rejected the idea, it would feel too formal. Thunder was lost in thought when Rarity walked up behind him.
"What are you doing Thunder?" Asked Rarity
"Trying to find a place that feels right to propose." Thunder said still lost in though
"WHAT, you are going to propose!?" Rarity yelled. Her yelling pulled Thunder from his thoughts and he rushed over and placed a hoof over Rarity's mouth. His eyes darted from side to side and every other direction to make sure Rainbow Dash wasn't nearby.
"Did you have to yell?" Thunder whispered angrily. He let his hoof drop from Rarity's mouth so she could talk.
"Sorry, who are you proposing to?" She asked
"The man on the moon, who do you think?" He said sarcastically. All of a sudden Rainbow Dash flew over, and Thunder moved faster than ever to hide. Once the coast was clear Thunder looked out from where he was hiding, which was in a dumpster in the alley way he was near.
"Thunder, why are you hiding from Rainbow?" Rarity asked
"I want this to be a secret, you have to promise you won't tell anypony else." Thunder said
"Of course." Rarity said. With that Rarity walked away and Thunder got out of the dumpster and thought of other places to propose. Still wondering through town he came across Scootaloo.
"Hey, kid, you think you can help me?" He asked thinking she would know something
"Sure, what do you need?" She asked. Thunder Cat took out the same little box he showed FlutterShy.
"I'm trying to find a good place to propose to Rainbow Dash and you worship her so, you think you can help me find a good way to do it?" Thunder asked
"Yea, sure!" She exclaimed. Scootaloo looked in the sky and saw a lot of clouds and she had an idea.
"Why don't you move the clouds to say it?" She said
"Kid you are a genius." Thunder said as he patted her on the head.
"I'm going to need some help with this." He said as she looked down. Scootaloo jumped into the air and raced upwards to the clouds. The pair moved the clouds to spell out the words: Will you marry me? It took a bit longer than expected but the job was done, now all Thunder needed was to get Rainbow Dash out here to see it. He found Rainbow hanging out in the market place.
"Hey, I need to show you something important." Thunder said as he kissed her
"I don't know, if I go out there and there is another mare I am going to kill you." She said getting up
"I promise you on my mother's grave there is not another mare." Thunder said lifting up his right hoof. The two flew in silence to the spot. Once they arrived Thunder had everything planned out.
"Uh, is there something in the sky over there?" Thunder asked pointing to the part of sky the message was in.
"Yea, there is it says: Will you marry me?" Rainbow said, the words sank in and she turned to Thunder who was on one knee with the little box in his hooves.
"Rainbow, I went to Canterlot to buy this, and I wanted this moment to be perfect. So I did it all in secret, but to the point, in the months that we have been together I fell in love with you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you." Thunder said as he opened the box to expose the rainbow diamond within.
"Yes, I will marry you, and I have felt the same way, over the months we were a couple I fell in love with you." Rainbow said with tears of joy in her eyes.