The Journey Chapter 7: Boast Busters
-BEFORE WE BEGIN THIS CHAPTER, I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE READERS AWARE. I HAVE MADE AN EDITORIAL DECISION. I HAVE GONE BACK AND MADE MAJOR CHANGES TO THE PREVIOUS CHAPTERS! TWILIGHT, PINKIE AND I ARE NO LONGER ROMANTICALLY INVOLVED, AND SOME OTHER THINGS CHANGED. Twilight still LIKES me, but not much more is gonna happen than that for a few chapters. I HAVE ALSO REMOVED NEARLY EVERY SINGLE CURSE WORD FROM EARLIER CHAPTERS AND THE STORY IS RATED T, NOT M ANYMORE. I ENCOURAGE YOU TO REREAD! ENJOY!-
I woke up slowly, feeling rays of sunlight attack at my eyeballs to try to wake me up. I slowly blinked my eyes open, welcoming their golden shine.
I looked around the room and gasped, as I didn't immediately recognize where I was. I then remembered all that had happened the previous day. I was in Pinkie Pie's room in Sugarcube Corner.
My mind filled with sweet, happy memories of the party last night. Well, after Gilda left, anyway. Pinkie and I had danced, and had an amazing day together preparing that party together.
I then got a flood of the bad memories. Gilda, Spike coming home, the nightmares….. Oh well. Today is a new day, a fresh start. It'd be silly of me to worry about yesterday.
I walked out of the room to use the bathroom, and in the hallway I saw Mr. and Mrs. Cakes' door was open slightly. OH CRAP, they don't know who I am, or why I'm here! If they think Pinkie and I did anything last night I'm dead meat!
So, I did the only thing I could think of. I went to Pinkie and started to poke her, so she would wake up.
"Pinkie Pie. Pssst! Pinkie Pie! Wake up!"
She moaned as she slowly woke up, yawning. She smiled when she saw me. "Hey there silly, how'd you sleep-" I cut her off because she was talking too loud.
"Pinkie Pie, I don't know what to do! Mr. and Mrs. Cake don't know who I am, or why I'm here! If they see me and think we did anything last night I'm dead meat!"
She just laughed. "Oh Jordan, you worry too much. I have sleepovers with friends all the time, it'll be ok! C'mon, let's go downstairs and get some breakfast!"
She then started bouncing down the stairs, leaving me behind to follow her.
We walked into the kitchen. "So, whatcha wanna eat? We have cake, cookies, pie, OH, and we have lemon drops! Careful, they're spicy!" She giggled as she made a joke about yesterday and I laughed a bit.
"Sounds, great, but why don't we go to the café and get some REAL breakfast. I think I remember hearing the girls say something about meeting up there this morning anyway, during the party."
She nodded. "Ok, let's go then!" We started to walk out, but right then we heard a voice.
"Pinkie Pie, who's your friend?" Mrs. Cake asked.
"Oh, this is my friend, Jordan! Jordan, Mr. and Mrs. Cake!" she exclaimed.
I smiled and walked up to them, shaking hooves with Mr. and giving a giant hug to Mrs.
"Wait, so you're Jordan? Pinkie's talked about you before!" Mr. Cake said.
"Yes, the haybale stacking champion!" Mrs. Cake added in with a slight giggle.
I blushed at them. "Thank you both kindly! It's nice to meet you!"
"Pleasure's all ours, buddy!" Mr. Cake said.
Right then, Pinkie cut in. "Mr. Cake, is it ok if Jordan spends the night tonight too?"
Mr. looked at Mrs. for a second, before they nodded in unison. Pinkie smiled and hugged them both tightly.
"OH, thank both of you! Me and Jordan are gonna go get some breakfast, see you later!" she said before she started bouncing out the door. I rolled my eyes, smiled, and followed her.
We walked to the café, our ears being assaulted by the chirping of birds and crickets, and various other noises of the morningtime.
She and I were actually the first to sit down at the café and had some alone time, so I brought up something that I believed really needed to be said.
"Pinkie?" she turned to me.
"Listen. I just wanted you to know what I'm thinking. Yesterday was really awesome, and I like you a lot. But….. I need some time before I think about a relationship. I'm not saying no at all, but I need some more time. Maybe we can get to know each other a little better?"
She nodded. "Yeah, that's probably best. I've never been with anypony before and I need to make sure I'm ready too! Plus the party business doesn't wait for love!" she giggled as she said the last piece.
"So, it's agreed then? We're not a couple, but we very well could become one?" she nodded and smiled.
I started thinking about something too. Twilight….. was she still crushing on me? Am I being an ass by liking Pinkie as well as her? I don't mean to be, but it would be hard to date her with Spike back home and me not living there anymore. I just don't know.
Right then, Rainbow came to the café, followed by Twilight and Spike, then Rarity, then Fluttershy, then Applejack.
Pinkie and I waved to the girls as they walked to our table. "Hey girls, mornin'!" I said to all of them.
They all remained silent and smirked a bit at us. I gave them an innocent, confused look.
"What? Somebody get murdered?" I said.
Applejack laughed as she got to the table. "It's just funny how you're both here first, ya lovebirds! We all saw y'all at the party last night!" she teased.
I turned pale, with only a blush on my cheeks. "H…..hey, she and I aren't…..together, AJ!"
She slapped me on the back. "Aw schucks, ah was just kiddin with y'all! C'mon y'all, let's order and eat, ah'm stavin!"
With that, we all took our orders and started eating. Rarity pulled Twilight aside for a second.
"Twilight, dear, how do you think it's going with Jordan? Has he responded to you?" Rarity asked.
Twilight nodded. "Yes, a little. He even got me a present yesterday." Twilight pointed to her bag below the table and showed it to Rarity. "But he told me he's scared of the future and what might happen. He's scared of himself, he doesn't trust himself."
Rarity put a hoof to her chin. "Well darling, right now there's not much you can do. Just continue trying to be nice, maybe give him hints. Keep being kind to him, oK sweetie?" Twilight nodded and they turned back to the table.
They did just that and came back to the table to eat. I was talking with the group, telling some jokes to make them laugh.
"OK, OK, what do you call a dragon with no wings? A chicken!" I managed to make everypony laugh, except Spike. He had an angry face and got up from the table. Twilight called after him.
"SPIKE, Jordan was just kidding, come back!" She called after him, but he ran to the bathroom to get away.
"…..I didn't direct the joke to him….. I meant dragons in general! AGH, I should have realized, why am I so stupid?!" I exclaimed.
Pinkie Pie rubbed her hoof on my back. "Hey, take it from Dashie and I, the most important rule of pranking and jokes is to know your audience and be aware. Rainbow wanted to prank Fluttershy yesterday, but I knew that would be a gigantic no-no, so I stopped her. Spike will be fine, don't worry!" she happily assured me.
I sighed. "Should I go try to apologize?" Everypony nodded.
I went to the bathroom and knocked. "Spike? Listen dude, I'm sorry. That joke wasn't directed at you."
I got no response. "Spike, c'mon dude!" he still didn't respond, so I gave up, knowing there was no way to make him talk to me. He hates me now.
I went back to the table and paid for my food, and looked at them as I forced a smile. "Girls, thank you so much for breakfast. It was good while it lasted. Until I messed it up." I sighed and left, walking down the street.
This is a big problem for me, and it's happened a lot of times. I hurt someone's feelings without meaning to! Is it because I'm inconsiderate? Do I just not care? What's wrong with me?
I gotta figure a way to get Spike to accept me as a friend. He just doesn't like me for some reason! I gotta work on that.
Then, suddenly, I got to thinking about yesterday. What am I going to do to support myself? Pinkie asked the Cakes if I could stay one more night, so, I'm ok there. But, what about a home and job after that? I'm not Twilight's assistant anymore. I have nothing to work with right now. I need to really think about this.
Then, a thought slammed my mind like a freight train. "THE JOB POSTER, OF COURSE!" I shouted out loud. Ponies needing help post there all the time, I should look there!
So, I went down to town hall and looked at the poster board. Scanning down it, I read some options out loud.
"Hmm, flower arranger? Nah. Oh, masseuse? Too intimate. Hmm….." I said as I looked down the list. No jobs were piquing my interest!
Until, that is, I got to one near the bottom. "Cello player seeks a practice partner, possibly a duet buddy. Cello will be provided to you if needed!"
I grabbed the paper and held it, and started to think deeply. Back in elementary school back on earth, I played the cello in fifth and sixth grade, and it was probably one of the funnest times I have ever had. The cello was a source of happiness for me, because it gave me something to invest myself in, and practice and try to get good.
To be honest, when I quit in sixth grade, I was mediocre. I quit because drama and stress at the house were just too much, I could barely focus on school, let alone and instrument. So, I quit.
But since then, the hunger inside me to play the cello again has risen. Maybe I should take this job? I might have a lot of fun!
So, I grabbed said poster, and began walking to the address on it. I walked to the outskirts of Ponyville to a very, very interesting house.
It was fancy, elegant and classy on one side, then hip, modern and wild on the other.
I knocked on the door to see a brown female pony with blackish mane and tail looking at me. She was also wearing an adorable pink bowtie. She saw I had the poster and gave a weak smile. She spoke in the most beautiful, English accent I'd ever heard in my life.
"Ah, you must be here for the opening if you have my poster, correct?" I nodded.
"Well then, come in, come in!" She invited me inside, which I gladly accepted and walked in, placing the poster on the table.
"Quite a nice house you've got here, Mrs…..?" I asked openly as I looked at her.
"Octavia, Octavia Melody. And you are?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Jordan. Nice to meet you!" We then happily shook hooves. She gave another weak smile.
"So, why don't you tell me about you? How long have you been playing cello, what is your skill level, etcetera."
I clapped my hooves together and sighed a bit. "I don't actually own one, I played many many years ago, about nine ago. But since then, the desire to play again has risen inside me, and I wanna get better again."
Octavia smiled at me. "Be right back Jordan." She then left the room and came back a few minutes later with a cello.
"This is the cello I'll give you. It's an antique, crafted by Les Pony. It is a true vintage, virtually priceless, and my prized possession. Don't hurt it, ok?"
I gasped in shock as she handed it to me gently. "Wow, Octavia. Words can't even begin to describe how thankful I am for this! This cello is GORGEOUS!" I happily declared.
"Please, call me Tavi, and it's really no problem at all Jordan. Come now, let us play!"
So, we did just that. It was really more of a private lesson than a jam session. Tavi had to re-teach me nearly everything about playing the cello, but it was a lot of fun. For one day I sure learned a heck of a lot! My head kind of hurts, actually. But, I enjoyed it, she is a great teacher and friend, I can tell already.
We mostly played the sections of the big pieces of music. Beetpony's 5th symphony, Ode to Hay, Flight of the Parasprites, etc. It was a grand time.
"You know Jordan, I have to be frank. I don't see you being able to fulfill my job position. But, if you want, I would absolutely love to be your cello teacher!"
I smiled widely. "I'd like that Tavi, you'd be an amazing teacher!" Well, this was good and all, but I still need a job!
Eventually, it got to be later in the day and time to leave. At the door, I turned around to Tavi and smiled.
"Tavi, thanks for today, it was so much fun. See you tomorrow?" She nodded, and I waved. "Bye!"
I left, and started heading towards town. Then, I saw Spike running towards me.
He was carrying a letter, and when he got to me he was panting. "J…..Jordan…..letter, from….. the princess….. here!"
I took the note and started reading it. It said:
"Dear Jordan. I request your presence in my throne room IMMEDIATELY. I have asked Twilight Sparkle to teleport you here. Do not worry, no harm will come of you this time. I warn you, what we are to talk about might change your life. Come alone.
-Princess Celestia"
I nodded as I finished the letter and sighed at Spike. "Spike, dude, listen. I don't know why we have to be this way. I'm sorry we met on such sour circumstances, and I'm sorry about this morning. I think you're a really cool little dude, and want to be your friend. Friends?" I extended my hoof to him and he shook it.
"Friends. And I'm sorry too. I just have trouble being around strangers, let alone living with them. Don't be afraid to come around the library though!" He smiled at me.
"Hey, since I have to go to the library anyway so Twilight can teleport me, how about we take a stroll together and talk?"
He nodded, and so we did just that. He told me about how he'd been hatched by Twily and been her assistant for years. He told me about all the fun they had in Canterlot, but he's never been happier than he has here in Ponyville. That made me smile.
We got to the library and I smiled at Twilight. "You know why I'm here, so get to it brainiac!" I said playfully as I smirked a bit at her.
She rolled her eyes, charged up her horn, and BAM. Next thing I knew, I was in Celestia's throne room.
The princess saw me and smiled. "Ah, Jordan! Good, you're here. Come with me, I have decided for us to go to my private bedroom in the tower. Let us go."
I nodded and started to follow her, albeit nervously. She wanted me to follow her to her bedroom? Curious. Anyway, we eventually got there, and Celestia locked the door.
She sighed. "Jordan. I need to be straightforward. I know what you are."
Before that point, I was kinda distant and not paying much attention to anything. But at those words, at that moment, my eyes snapped right open. Oh crap. This is NOT good for me!
She continued. "I know you are a human, Jordan. Yes, we ponies know of their existence. Earth and the Equine world where we live are, in fact different universes. However, Luna and I are able to keep an eye on that world via our magic. Luna was on the moon for the past thousand years, but I have watched humanity grow and change. All the way from ancient times, to medieval times, to the renaissance, to the world you lived in today. I am not sure if the humans know of our existence, but we know of theirs."
As she spoke, I was madly deep in thought. Different UNIVERSES?! I am living in an alternative universe right now?! And Celestia and Luna have seen mankind evolve, all the wars and horror we have caused. Does that mean they will trust me less because I was a human? Oh man, this is NOT good.
She went on again. "Do you remember the other night, when Luna came into your dreams Jordan? Well, I have to be frank. Her appearance in your dreams was no coincidence. In fact, I asked her to keep an eye on you, for anything suspicious. And did she ever find anything suspicious. When you came to Equestria and I first met you, I had no idea what you really were. I surmised you were different, to say the least. But when Luna told me about your nightmares from your past, everything then seemed to make sense."
Dammit. Luna DID see humans in my dreams. Celestia probably told her to play it off like it was nothing, and trick me. I sighed heavily, feeling defeated.
"Princess, might I speak for a moment? I'm sorry. I'm sorry I lied and I kept secrets. But how ever can I let this information out!? If I tell the other ponies in Ponyville about what I am, I'm sure to be shunned! Outcast, hated, alone. Again….." I sighed again. "Princess. I know what you're leading up to. And you're right. I'm a liar and a monster and I don't deserve to live here, in the company of such amazing friends. And whatever punishment you give me, I fully understand."
I then fell to all fours, expecting her to strike me down, or blast me with magic. Instead, she made me rise to my hooves again.
"Why ever would I punish you Jordan? How you got here, and why, were out of your control. You are here now, and I am more than sure you have a destiny to play here in Equestria. You belong here. And so, that is why I am giving you a choice. Choice one. You can go back home to Earth, and live your previous life again. Choice two, you can stay here in Equestria, but there are some implications."
I gazed at her. "And those are?" I wasn't sure if I really WANTED to know, but I kind of had to know.
She gazed back then closed her eyes as she spoke. "For one, I will erase your memories from earth, and you will be living a clean slate here. It will be as if you'd lived here your whole life, and only I can restore these memories to you. They will be stored in a secret location. For two, you will be a pony forever, and not able to change back. For three, some of your friendships will alter. Everypony you have gotten close to will now simply think of you as a close friend, nothing more. That way, if you do choose to enter a relationship, that choice will be entirely up to you, and nopony can be hurt by said choice. But, honestly Jordan, I recommend you take it slow. Enjoy friendship. Romance and love are not all that you need in life. The love of friendship is the strongest love, and magic there is. Also, everypony will forget anything you told them about your past." She smiled at me widely, though there was some somber melancholy in her words.
I sighed heavily. Jesus, this is a LOT to think about. My brain is giving me a headache just thinking about it. I need to think about this. "Princess, if it's all the same to you, can I walk around for a bit and think? I'll return to this room when I'm ready to make a choice."
She nodded. "Of course. I just kindly ask you don't leave Canterlot, and stay close to the castle if you can. You're free to go Jordan."
I smiled at her as I walked out of the door but then wore a heavy frown after I left the tower. Oh my god, I can't even believe this. Celestia and Luna KNOW that I was a human, for one. They know earth exists and have seen the horrible things there, for two. They know I'm meant to play some big role in Equestria's future, which makes me nervous as all hell, for three. They want me to stay a pony forever for four. And my relationships with the girls will reset to strictly friendships, which means I would have to start over with Pinkie and Twilight, for five!
But….. I love Pinkie and Twilight. I really do. Can I really just stop it, like that? And go back to how things were so many weeks ago? I guess there's no better time to stop a relationship than before it begins, and I guess if I want to live here, I have no choice. THEN AGAIN, Celestia DID tell me that it might be better to stay friends. Maybe I should just do that.
The princess has given me a real opportunity here. I have a chance to start over. No one will be hurt, no one will have any regrets, and I will truly belong here. Everything will be happy and pure, and it will all work out. How can I not gladly accept such an offer?
For the next hour, I thought this all over at Joe's Donut Bar. It was some really hard thinking, coming to some harsh conclusions and realities. I truly don't think I was ever happy back home, let alone as happy as I am in Equestria. The girls mean a lot to me, and I do want to stay here. Even if it means forgetting everything about Earth and starting over again. I then stood up straight and said "I know what I have to do!" and ran to the castle.
Celestia was still in the room when I got there, and I walked over.
"Ah! Jordan, good, you came back. Have you thought about what you want to do?"
I simply nodded at her. "Princess. My mind is made up….. go ahead and do your spell. I love the girls, and I love Equestria, and I want to stay here. No matter the cost. I love it here." I bowed my head towards her.
She smiled. "Good, I am very glad Jordan. Do not worry, this will not hurt a bit."
She then walked over to me, and placed her horn right onto my temple. Suddenly, magic filled it, and I grunted as I felt it. My memories, all of them, were flooding my mind at once. Kindergarten, first grade, second grade, third grade, fourth grade, fifth grade, sixth grade, seventh grade, eighth grade, ninth grade, tenth grade, eleventh. My parents, my siblings, my relatives, my girlfriends, my best friends. All the hugs, the kisses, the warm embraces, the best vacation I ever had in Seattle. All the laughs, the cries, the dark and the happy times I'd had. All the birthdays, the laughs, the tears, the hard times, the good times, my pets, everything I ever knew, Celestia was taking away, into herself via her Horn. Leaving me an empty shell temporarily as a tear slipped from my eye, knowing I would never be the same and could never experience those things again. It was all over, I was starting all over once again. And it was in this moment that I realized how foolish I had been, for years. I WAS happy on earth, but I just didn't know it, because the bad had always outweighed the good. I had a good life there, and this is, sadly, what it takes for me to realize it. And now I'll never get the chance to live that happy life properly. It's all over, gone, done with.
Finally, Celestia finished her work, leaving me empty with a massive headache. Then, she touched her horn to my head once again, this time giving me a magical sort of painkiller, so my headache went away.
"Jordan?" she asked. "How are you feeling?"
I looked around a bit and sighed, a lone tear slipping from my eyes. "It….. it worked. I can't remember anything. At all."
She tenderly stroked my mane with her front hoof. "I'm sorry, but you'll see soon that this is what is best and it needed to happen. If you need a day here in Canterlot to recuperate yourself, you can stay in the tower suite. Nopony else is using it at the moment."
I shook my head. "N….no Princess, thank you, but I just want to see my friends right now. Can you….. teleport me back to Ponyville?" At that point I really just wanted to sleep and recuperate on my own turf, not in the castle.
She nodded. "Should I ask Twilight if you may spend the night at her home?" I nodded, as Pinkie probably wouldn't remember me staying over tonight.
"Ok, I shall see you another time. Have fun, and remember what I've told you." With that, she charged up her horn, cast her spell, and next thing I knew I was in the library.
-CELESTIA'S POV-
I sighed contently at the comforting quietness of my bed chambers. I took a deep breath as I heard a knocking on my door, and told the pony knocking to come in.
It was Luna, my sister. "Sister?" she said. "Will Jordan be alright? Art thou certain this was the right move?"
I simply nodded. "Yes sister, it is for the best. Jordan cannot possibly live in our world while he maintains memories of his past life. He needs to start fresh, he needs to be a PONY."
Luna nodded back. "We understand dear sister. But, where might we ask, will thou keep his treasured memories?"
"They have been synthesized into a liquid via a spell I cast sister. They are being kept in a magical vial, and I am keeping them in a locked strongbox. Nopony will ever have access to them but me."
Luna sighed. "We hope thou art right, dearest sister, for if somepony gets their hooves on his memories, it could spell chaos for our entire realm!"
"Yes, I know sister. But do not worry, I am certain nothing will happen. It is nearly night time sister, come. Let us lower the sun and raise the moon."
So, me and Luna walked to the balcony and did just that. She and I channeled our magic in synchronization, lowering the sun and raising the moon.
I then yawned, tiredly. "Good night dear sister, I shall see you tomorrow."
I then walked back into my chambers and went to sleep.
-JORDAN'S POV, GOLDEN OAK LIBRARY-
When the rushing of air around me finally stopped, I looked around and noticed I was in Twilight's library. She looked up at me from the book she was studying from and smiled.
"Hey there Jordan, what's up?" I just kinda looked at her.
"Jordan? Who's Jordan? If you're talking to me, I'm ok, but man, my head hurts. I think I need to rest Twi." With that, I slowly walked towards the bedrooms upstairs, my head hanging low. Spike saw me and walked up to me.
"Hey dude, how did it go with the Princess? Are you ok? You look sick!"
Right then, I started to feel sick. My head got spin-y, my eyes felt a ton heavy, my hooves started to wobble and I had the most incredible headache ever, along with a panging, sharp pain in my ribs. But I couldn't let anypony know I was ill!
"I…. I'm fine Spike, I just…..need to…..get to….. sleep." While I said this, my words were slurred and my eyes were droopy. Finally, it happened.
I suddenly fell backwards, crashing down the flight of stairs, forcing a gasp from both Spike and Twily.
"JORDAN!" Twilight cried out as she ran to me. "JORDAN, ohmygosh, are you ok?!"
I was hurt, but I looked up and rubbed my head. "Again, who is this Jordan? If you're speaking to me again, then y…..yes Twilight, I'm fine. I just need-" I didn't finish as I quickly fell asleep, right there and then.
Twilight levitated me to the nearby couch and made sure I was comfortable. "Jordan, you're starting to worry me….." she frowned as she walked away.
-BEFORE THE STORY MOVES ON, I MUST EXPLAIN. CELESTIA HAS TAKEN ALL OF JORDAN MEMORIES OF BEFORE HE MOVED TO PONYVILLE. THAT INCLUDES HIS IDENTITY! AND HE FORGETS THE SHOW. IT'S AS IF HE JUST ARRIVED-
I slowly woke up a few hours later, blinking the tiredness out of my eyes to a weird noise.
"TRIXIE! TRIXIE! TRIXIE!" to which somepony who I assumed was this Trixie pony started to speak outside.
"Come one, come all! Come and witness the amazing magic of the Great and Powerful Trixie!"
I slowly got up and walked to the door. When I opened it I nearly went blind, as a firework went off!
Frightened, I recovered myself and walked into the crowd.
"Watch in awe as the Great and Powerful Trixie performs the most spectacular feats of magic ever witnessed by pony eyes!"
I scoffed audibly, as fireworks and applause rang out. Most spectacular feats, eh? We'll see about that. Five bucks says she's nothing but a boasting jerkoff.
"My, my, my! What boasting!" Rarity declared more towards the crowd than at Trixie herself. Spike then stepped in.
"Come on, nopony's as magical as Twi— Twi— Twi— Oh! Hey, Rarity, I, uh— Mustache!" He started to panic that he didn't have a mustache for some reason. I shrugged it off.
"There's nothing wrong with being talented, is there?" Twilight asked her five friends. I could hear a hint of uncertainty, or perhaps some nervousness, in her voice.
"Nothin' at all, 'cep'n when someone goes around showin' it off like a school filly with fancy new ribbons." Applejack replied, holding back a tint of anger in that southern drawl accent.
"Just because one has the ability to perform lots of magic does not make one better than the rest of us!" Rarity shouted to Trixie this time.
"Especially when ya got me around being better than the rest of us. Eh, I mean, yeah, uh, magic shmagic. Boo!" I rolled my eyes and mentally laughed. Oh Rainbow Dash, you never cease to amaze me with how boastful you are.
"Well, well, well, it seems we have some neighsayers in the audience. Who is so ignorant as to challenge the magical ability of the Great and Powerful Trixie? Do they not know that they're in the presence of the most magical unicorn in all of Equestria?"
"*Raspberry* Just who does she think she is?" Rarity again said more to the crowd than at Trixie.
"Yeah! Since we all know that Twilight here is—" Spike was cut off by Twilight.
Twilight leaned down to Spike and told him some things I couldn't hear over the crowd. Oh well. I heard Dash speak.
"So, 'Great and Powerful Trixie'. What makes you think you're so awesome, anyway?" Good question Dash, I'm wondering the same exact thing myself!
"Heh, why, only the Great and Powerful Trixie has magic strong enough to vanquish the dreaded ursa major!" More fanfare and fireworks, now my head hurts.
"When all hope was lost, the ponies of Hoofington had no one to turn to, but the Great and Powerful Trixie stepped in, and with her awesome magic, vanquished the ursa major and sent it back to its cave deep within the Everfree Forest!" I rolled my eyes, what a bunch of crud. The Ursa is nothing but a myth. I've read of them in the library.
"Saw, sweet!" Both Snips and Snails said.
"That settles it." Snips said.
"Trixie truly is the most talented, the most magical, the most awesome unicorn in Ponyville." Snails proclaimed, hoping the crowd would agree.
"No, in all of Equestria!" Snips added.
"How do you know? You didn't see it! And besides, Twi— Mmph! M-mmph!" Spike was cut off by Twilight zipping his mouth shut-literally.
"It's true, my enthusiastic little admirers. Trixie is most certainly the best in Ponyville."
The audience was dead silent, obviously not convinced.
"I have to agree that's kind of a load of bull Trixie. Ursa's are long extinct creatures! I read about them!" However, she didn't really notice me.
"Don't believe the Great and Powerful Trixie? Well then, I hereby challenge you, Ponyvillians. Anything you can do, I can do better. Any takers? Anyone? Hmm? Or is Trixie destined to be the greatest equine who has ever lived!?"
"Please! She's unbearable! Ya gotta show her! Ya just gotta!"
"There's no way I'm going to use my magic now, Spike. Especially since—" She was cut off by Trixie.
"Hmm, how about you?" Trixie said pointing to Twilight. I was getting ready to step in to protect Twilight if needed. "Well, how about it? Hm? Is there anything you can do that the Great and Powerful Trixie can't?" Trixie challenged to Twilight. Twilight looked not scared, but nervous.
"I— I." Was all Twilight could say with how nervous she was.
"Well, little hayseed?" Trixie questioned.
"That's it! I can't stand for no more of this!" Applejack cried out as she stepped towards the stage.
"You show her, AJ!" Spike called out.
"Can your magical powers do this?" Applejack asked before she went about her talent.
And so Applejack impressed the crowd by doing various tricks and stunts with her lasso. I thought it was very spectacular.
"Top that, missy." Applejack boldly challenged the boastful unicorn.
"Oh ye of little talent. Watch and be amazed at the magic of Trixie!" She ONCE AGAIN boasted.
For the next while, Trixie then embarrassed the living daylights out of Applejack, earning laughs and cheers from the crowd.
The audience laughed, it being a ruckus.
"Once again, the Great and Powerful Trixie prevails."
"There's no need to go struttin' around and showin' off like that." Dash surprised me by finally standing up to her.
"Oh?" Trixie flatly asked.
"That's my job!" Dash said intimidation-like to Trixie. Dash obviously takes her job seriously. Annoying everypony.
"They don't call me "Rainbow" and "Dash" for nothin'!" OH, really?! I just thought it was a clever name! No crap Dash!
Dash then proceeded to do stunts in the air, making ponies gasp in awe.
The audience cheered loudly.
"When Trixie is through, the only thing they'll call you is loser!" She pridefully and boldly boasted.
For the next few moments, Trixie in short made a fool out of Dash, using her speed and flying prowess against her.
The audience laughed madly.
"What we need is another unicorn to challenge her. Someone with some magic of her own." Spike said to the crowd.
"Yeah! A unicorn to show this unicorn who's boss." Dash proclaimed.
"A real unicorn to unicorn tussle!" Applejack added.
"Uh..." Twilight could only say, uncomfortably.
I gulped, thinking they mean me.
"Enough! Enough, all of you. I take your hint, but Rarity is above such nonsense. Rainbow Dash and Applejack may behave like ruffians, but Rarity conducts herself with beauty and grace." I rolled my eyes. Oh Rarity, do you ever stop acting like queen bee to everypony? You're as boasty as Dash sometimes.
"Ooo, what's the matter? Afraid you'll get a hair out of place in that rat's nest you call a mane?" Trixie taunted Rarity. I wasn't sure if she was trying to make Rarity fight her or what, but she was ticking Rarity off for sure!
"Oh, it. Is. On! You may think you're tough with all of your so-called powers, but there's more to magic than your brutish ways. A unicorn needs to be more than just muscle. A unicorn needs to have style." Rarity monologue'd to Trixie, droning on a bit.
"Ooh!" The audience let out in unison.
"A unicorn is not a unicorn without grace and beauty." Rarity proclaimed. I rolled my eyes. I sure as heck am not graceful or pretty.
"Rarity won't let Trixie get the best of her! She's strong, she's beautiful, she's—" Spike was stopped dead in his tracks as Trixie used her magic to royally screwup Rarity's perfectly taken care of mane and tail.
"Quick! I need a mirror! Get me a mirror! What did she do to my hair? I know she did something terrible to my hair!" Rarity cried out in horror as she realized Trixie messed with it.
"Nothing." Twilight began.
"It's fine." Rainbow added.
"It's gorgeous." Applejack said lastly, hoping to cheer the white unicorn up.
"It's green. What?" Spike said as he told Rarity what had happened, and got scolding looks for it.
"Ugh, no. Green hair! Not green hair! Such an awful, awful color!" Rarity cried out in distress and disbelief at what had happened to her gorgeous purple hair.
"Well, I never!" Somepony in the audience with, you guessed it, green hair proclaimed.
I walked up to Rarity, hoping I could cheer her up. I stopped her and laid my hoof on her shoulder. "Rarity, please calm down. I promise you, it looks fine. It honestly is a nice change from the purple. Give it a chance. If you hate the shade, dye it!"
She seemed to be taken aback, giving a new outlook on her situation. She smiled. "Ok Jordan, perhaps I shall give it a go. For you."
I scrunched my nose. "WHO IS JORDAN? Why does everypony keep calling me that name?" I said as I walked back to the stage.
Rarity watched me with shock in her eyes. "…..Jordan?" she said sadly as I walked away. "What in the name of Equestria has happened to you?"
"Well Twilight, guess it's up to you. Come on, show her what you're made of!" I heard Spike say proudly as I got back to the stage.
"What do you mean? I'm nothing special." Twilight told Spike, hoping he would drop it.
"Yes, you are! You're better than her!" Spike tried to reason.
"I'm not better than anyone." Twilight declared, firmly.
"Hah! You think you're better than the Great and Powerful Trixie? You think you have more magical talent? Well, come on, show Trixie what you've got. Show us all." Trixie challenged Twilight.
"Who, me? I'm just your run-of-the-mill citizen of Ponyville. No powerful magic here." I then stopped Twilight.
I put my hoof on Twilight's lips to stop her from talking. "Let me Twi" was all I said before I turned to Trixie.
"Hey, Trixie, if you wanna mess with somepony, mess with somepony your own size!" I said as I walked up the stage to her. I had enough of her taunting and hurting of my friends. I was gonna give her whatfor!
Trixie laughed like a maniac and pointed to me with her hoof. "HAHAHA, and who would that be, you!? You don't even have a cutie mark!" She continued to laugh hard, and the audience joined her. My face turned bright red with embarrassment. Oh, how badly I simply wanted to disappear at this moment. The humiliation was maddening!
Finally, she and the audience seemed to collect themselves and stifle the laughter to simple giggles and chuckles every now and then.
"Ok, ok, perhaps Trixie should give you the benefit of the doubt, as I did with my previous competitors. Tell me, what is your name?"
I frowned heavily. My name? My name….. what was my name? Who am i? I could not, for the life of me, remember….. I was just here, that was all there is to it.
Trixie was getting impatient, tapping her hoof on the wood. "COME ON, the great and powerful Trixie does not have all day, what is your name boy?!" she shouted.
"My…..name?" I asked with a puzzled, lost look on my face. She caught on after a few seconds and started laughing like crazy again.
"OH MY DEAR CELESTIA, HE DOESN'T EVEN KNOW HIS OWN NAME!" she cried out to the audience, falling over onto her back and rolling around laughing, as they joined in on the laughter.
Again, my face turned red with embarrassment. I gritted my teeth and ground my hooves against the wood, anger rising. "Sh…..shut up!" I shouted at Trixie and the audience.
Trixie again stifled her laughter and gave me a serious, hurtful stare. "Listen here boy. You are NOTHING. You have no name, no identity, no talents, not even a cutie mark! You pose no challenge to the great and powerful Trixie, and Trixie will not waste her precious, valuable time on such a low life nopony like you! So get off the great and powerful Trixie's stage!"
That was too much. Everything she had just said hit me right in the heart and tears welled in my eyes. She was right. I am a big nothing. I have no name, no identity, no talents, and not even a cutie mark. I can't remember anything about myself, and I'm nothing.
Hiding my now crying eyes with my leg to prevent ponies from seeing the tears fall, I quickly turned towards the stage exit and ran. I didn't care where I was going, I just booked it. I heard Applejack, Rarity, Twilight, Spike, Fluttershy, Pinkie and Dash call after me, but I didn't stop. There was only one thing said that registered, and stuck with me. It was Snips and Snails.
"GET OUT OF TOWN, LOSER!" Both Snips and Snails shouted at me. Trixie laughed again.
"Ha! Once again, the Great and Powerful Trixie has proven herself to be the most amazing unicorn in all of Equestria. Huh, was there ever any doubt?" Trixie again boasted, as she looked at the audience as the special effects went off.
The mane six all jumped onto the stage and gave Trixie scowling glares. "You didn't prove anything. That was just cold hearted, and mean, what you said to Jordan! You bullied him into backing down. That was NOT COOL missy!" Dash proclaimed to Trixie, as she got right into her face about it, anger marking Dash's blue face.
Trixie laughed and blew them off, turning around. "Maybe so, but it was all true. He is NOTHING. The lack of a cutie mark and name proves it!"
"He does have a name, he just….. don't remember fur some odd reason….." Applejack said softly.
Trixie didn't hear them though, as she was walking back to her camper. The girls looked at each other.
"We better find him girls. What if he listens to Snips and Snails and leaves town?" Twilight questioned the girls with worry and sadness in her tone of voice.
"Let's go get him then! C'mon everypony!" Dash said before she, literally, dashed of in flight, being the brave Pegasus she was.
-DIRT FIELD OUTSIDE OF PONYVILLE-
Well, I had officially hit rock bottom. This was it, the crossing of the line. The entire TOWN just laughed at me. I've never felt that embarrassed in all my life. Not even when….. well, I can't remember a time anymore. I remember NOTHING.
So now, here I lie, in a deserted field outside of town, munching on grass and thinking heavily.
Maybe Snips and Snails were right, maybe I SHOULD leave town. I'll take a train, and go far away, yes. That's what I'll do. It's better I leave now, a hollow, unimportant mess, than later.
"Jordan!" Twilight called after me. I scrunched my nose again. Why does everyone keep calling me that name!? I have no name.
The six girls ran up to me, all panting. "D…..don't leave." Was all Twilight could say, as she was gathering her breath.
I gave them stern looks. "Ok, first off, I need to get this out of the way. Who's Jordan, and why have you mistaken me for him?"
Applejack walked up to me. "Sugarcube, we haven't confused somepony for you. You're Jordan! You just can't seem to remember nothin' bout yourself."
"Yeah, you're right. I can't remember anything, but boy oh boy did Trixie help. Everything she said back there was true. LOOK!" I said as I showed them my flank. "BARE. No cutie mark. I'm nothing! I have no talents. I'm useless!" I said as I covered my head with my hooves.
Rarity spoke out next. "That's not true darling! I know without a shadow of a doubt you're the kindest pony I have ever met! Remember earlier with my hair?" I found out she still had the green hair, it was now combed and taken care of like it usually was, just green.
"Yeah, ok, maybe that MIGHT be true. But what good is that when I have no talents?"
"You have loads o' talent pardner! Remember the rodeo in Appleloosa?" She said as she hoisted a golden trophy. I looked at it in awe. "Remember when you beat mah record? That announcin' pony wanted me to give ya your trophy, but ah forgot to. So, here ya go, champ!" She said as she gave me the trophy.
A tear was now in my left eye. "Ok, so maybe I have that, but what about the important stuff? Where do I live, what do I do for a living? WHO AM I?"
At that, everypony was just at a loss for words, until Twilight stepped in. "None of that matters Jordan. What matters is that you're you! You're whoever you want to make yourself be. Your past doesn't matter, you control your own destiny, your own fate! As far as I know, you're Jordan, the kindest, sweetest, most generous stallion I've ever met, and most importantly, our friend!" To this the girls all nodded and went mhm in agreement.
I sighed as I thought. They were all right, as usual. My past doesn't matter. Tomorrow is all that matters now. I need to focus on the road ahead of me. "I am Jordan….. and I am me. Twilight, girls, you're right."
They all cheered and group hugged me, bombarding me with love. I then frowned. "But….. Trixie was right. I am a nopony, I have no talents. I should just leave Ponyville, how can I ever belong here?"
"Whoever said you had to have a special talent to live in Ponyville, darling? Here in Ponyville we accept all manner of ponies! And who knows, you might find your talent yet!"
"Yeah, Rarity's right. So come back to town with us, please?" Pinkie begged with her giant eyes.
I sighed. "Ok, fine. Let's go."
I then walked with them back into town, to Twilight's library. We all spent the next few hours there, talking and having a good time, until they all had to split up and head home for the night.
I looked outside worriedly. Spike had been gone for longer than expected, and I was starting to worry.
"I'm going to look for him Twilight, I'll be back." I said as I went to the front door. She walked up to me and gave me pouty eyes. "Be careful, ok?" I smiled down at her. "No promises, see you later" I joked as I walked outside.
I don't know why, but my first instinct was to head to the outside of town and work my way back to the center. I walked towards the path to the Everfree Forest and stopped when I saw Spike with Snips and Snails.
"Twilight!" Spike shouted as he ran towards me, not noticing me. He ran into me and fell over.
"Spike?" I said as I gave him a puzzled look. "What's wrong?"
He sprang up and ran. "RUN, URSA MAJOR!" he shouted back at me.
"Ursa Major?..." I had no more time to think as a gigantic paw smashed the ground immediately to my left, causing me to action roll to the right.
I looked up with my eyes once I came to a stop and my heart stopped at the sight in front of me. There, about 5 yards from me, was the beast, in the flesh. It was as tall as a four story building, and was MASSIVE.
"NO, that's impossible! Ursa's are EXTINCT. This has to be some magic at work!" However, it quickly became apparent that it was real, as it walked to me and smashed the ground once again, forcing me to action roll. There was a literal crater where it had smashed its paw.
I didn't know what I thought I could do to stop such a massive beast, but I had a massive feeling of pride inside me that I had to try, even if it meant sacrificing my own life. If this thing got into Ponyville, my friends would perish. Better me than the population of an entire town!
I quickly ran towards the Ursa and it growled at me, seeming to track my movements with its eyes. Unsure of what I could do, I stabbed the front side of its right paw with my horn, causing it to roar in pain.
It swatted at me with its left paw, but I quickly rolled away and sprang to my feet. I wiped sweat from my eyebrow to hear Snips and Snails.
"HEY LOSER, stand aside so the great and powerful Trixie can vanquish it, eh?"
I glared at them angrily. "Do you two REALLY think Trixie can do anything to get rid of this GIANT monster? You're a bunch of fools!" The ursa swatted at me with it's paw, and this time it's gigantic claw severed my mustache, cutting it off.
I gasped as I saw the blue hair fluttered down to the ground and glared at the ursa. "OH, IT. IS. ON!" I yelled at it, before I heard a voice behind me.
"JORDAN, stand aside!" It was Twilight. I made the mistake of turning around and staring at her, and the Ursa used this moment to its advantage.
It swiped its mighty paw at me, hitting me hard and sending me flying through the air, all the way into the town hall building; which must have been about four hundred feet.
I hit the wall to the town hall hard. Thankfully, the wall didn't collapse, but I fell to the ground below in a heap.
The next thing I knew, I was gazing up at the stars, not having the strength to move. I heard the clopping of hooves, and turned my head to the left to see the girls and Spike all running to me.
However, Spike stopped Twilight. "Twilight, me and the girls will take care of him, you have to stop the Ursa!" Twilight gulped, nodded and walked towards the Ursa.
As the girls tried to help me, I heard the wind pick up a little. It started to play a tune, and the Ursa got sleepy.
"Nice use of number sixteen" Spike said.
Then, Twilight got a gigantic quilt out of the marketplace, and used tape to put it on the Ursa's paw, using it as a bandaid where I had stabbed it.
After that, Twilight used her magic to grab the water tower, empty it and levitate it towards Sweet Apple Acres. Her horn was now sparking and glowing violently.
Next thing I knew, she levitated the tower to the Ursa's mouth, and the Ursa was sucking on it like a baby on a bottle. What the?!
"That's new" Spike said. Twilight then levitated the Ursa back into the forest, after which the town all cheered. She galloped over to us and looked at me worriedly.
"Jordan, are you ok? You look hurt. Oh, I should have never distracted you, this is my fault!" Twilight said as she looked at me, biting her bottom lip.
I shook my head. "Twilight, it's not your fault. If anything it's mine for thinking I could actually battle that THING."
Dash then punched my arm playfully. "For what it's worth, you gave it one heck of a fight Jordan!"
I chuckled a bit. "Thanks Rainbow."
The girls then ignored me for a second and spoke to Twilight.
"Twilight, that was unbelievable!" Dash announced.
"That was amazing!" Spike proclaimed.
"Heavens to Betsy! We knew you had ability, but not that much!" Applejack stated with joy in her voice.
"I'm sorry. Please, please don't hate me!" Twilight said worriedly.
"Hate you?" Me, Dash, AJ and Rarity all voiced at the same time.
"Why, whatever do you mean, darling?" Rarity asked with surprise in her voice.
"Well, I know how much you all hated Trixie's showing off with her magic tricks, and I just thought—" Twilight was cut off by Rainbow.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Magic's got nothing to do with it. Trixie's just a loudmouth." Dash explained.
"Most unpleasant." Rarity chimed in.
"All hat and no cattle." Wow, thanks AJ, gotta write that one down.
"So, you don't mind my magic tricks?" Twilight asked hopefully.
"Your magic is a part of who you are, sugarcube, and we like who you are. We're proud to have such a powerful, talented unicorn as our friend." Applejack answered honestly as always.
I then voiced my thoughts for the first time. I didn't stand up, I was still lying down, but they looked at me as I spoke. "Twilight, I love you for your magic. I think I speak for the other girls when I say your magic has saved our flanks more than a few times already. Besides, you're my new magic teacher, and I wouldn't rather anyone else to have as a teacher!" I said as I smiled widely at her.
She smiled back, walked to me, and hugged me closely. "Aw, Jordan, you just made me so happy by saying all that. Thank you." She then kissed my cheek, making me blush and smile.
"And after whuppin' that ursa's hindquarters, we're even prouder." Dash said, making me nod in agreement.
"You are?" Twilight asked with wonder and surprise in her voice.
The girls and I all responded with harmonious "Mhm"'s and smiled at her.
"Wow, Twilight, how'd you know what to do with that ursa major?" Spike asked with amazement in his voice.
"That's what I was doing when you came looking for me. I was so intrigued by Trixie's bragging that I was compelled to do a little reading up on them." Twilight said with a little smile. Oh Twi, you and your studying. Saved us once again.
"So it is possible to vanquish an ursa major all by yourself?"
"That wasn't an ursa major. It was a baby, an ursa minor."
"That was just a baby?" Trixie asked in shocked disbelief.
"And it wasn't rampaging. It was just cranky because someone woke it up." OHHHH. That makes sense.
"Awww..." the duo said sadly.
I then laughed a little from where I was lying down, making everypony look at me. "No wonder you got the water tower and everything, you put the poor thing back to sleep. Twilight Sparkle, I hereby proclaim you genius of the year, as if there was any doubt!" This made her blush a little.
"Well, if that was an ursa minor, then what's an ursa major like?"
"You don't wanna know." Twilight said honestly. Oh boy, that can't be good.
"Huh. You may have vanquished an ursa minor, but you will never have the amazing, show-stopping ability of the Great and Powerful Trixie!" She said as a smoke bomb went off and she galloped out of town.
"Why, that little... All the stuff she said to Jordan, and not even an apology!" Dash said as she started to fly, obviously wanting a piece of Trixie.
"Just let her go. Maybe someday she'll learn her lesson. Now, about you two." Twilight directed at Snips and Snails.
"Ah. Uh, we're sorry that we woke up the ursa minor."
"We just wanted to see some awesome magic." Snails said a little sheepishly.
"Yeah! And the way you vanquished that ursa minor was awesome!" Snips said, hoping to avoid any sort of punishment. Twilight glared at them, making it clear they weren't getting out of it.
"We deserve whatever punishment you give us." Snails said humbly, as he realized what they did was wrong.
I then used all the strength in my body to rise to my feet, and look at Twilight. "Twilight, if you're gonna punish them, punish me too. I attacked the ursa foolishly, instead of getting you to help. I'm as big a fool as these two." I said humbly, with my ears hanging low.
Twilight shook her head. "Jordan, you did nothing wrong. You were just trying to protect the town, and that was very noble of you. Nopony else has EVER done battle with an ursa minor before." She said with a smile. She then turned and glared at the dynamic duo.
"For starters, you can clean up this mess, and apologize to Jordan for what you said, you really hurt him. And... What do you think, Spike? Should I give them number twenty five?"
"Oh, twenty five! Yes! And I think I deserve it, too. OH, Jordan too, after what happened."
"Heah?" Snips and Snails and I all said in fright.
"I think you're right." Twilight said with a mischievous grin. Her horn then glowed, and the four of us had moustaches!
"Sweet!" Me and the other boys all said at the same time.
I rubbed my moustache with my hoof and smiled. "Welcome back buddy, I missed you." Making everypony laugh. Twilight rolled her eyes. "You and that moustache are best friends, I swear. C'mon, you should get home and rest."
I then sighed. "Twilight, I have no home anymore, remember? Spike doesn't want me to?"
Twilight smiled at me, looking at Spike. "We had a talk earlier, and Spike feels like you and him really connected today. He's fine with you living at the library, so long as you're comfortable with it."
I, of course gladly took them up on that offer. She had to levitate me home since I was too badly hurt to walk on my own, but I didn't mind. We got home and she levitated me into the guest room bed.
"Need anything, Jordan?" Twilight asked, trying to be helpful.
"Well….. I would like to talk for a moment, is that ok?"
She smiled and nodded. "Of course, what's on your mind?" She then hopped on the bed and sat in front of me.
"Twilight, do you think Princess Celestia knows things before they happen? Can she see the future, or tell when something needs to be done?"
Twilight thought for a moment before she nodded. "Yes, I believe so. Otherwise she would not have sent me to Ponyville when she did, and she did say she knew Nightmare Moon would return. I think that, as the Princess, she has certain powers and abilities we ponies cannot comprehend. Why do you ask?"
I then told Twilight everything that happened earlier. The talk with Celestia, the wiping of my memories, everything. I had to lie and tell her she wiped out my memories of my pre-ponyville life though. I told her about how the princess believes I have a role to play in Equestria's future and how it makes me nervous.
Twilight smiled and rubbed my cheek. "Don't be nervous, it's likely she didn't mean what you think she meant. Everypony has a role to play Jordan, whether it be a simple farm pony like Big Macintosh, or a designer like Rarity. We all have some sort of job to do, big or small."
I nodded as I listened. That made sense. "I wonder what my job is, I wonder what my cutie mark will be. I hate waiting, I hate being a blank flank!"
Twilight smiled. "Patience, young student. You have all the time in the world. OK, bedtime. Here's some water, you need to stay hydrated while you heal. Good night Jordan!" I returned the goodnight, and she turned off the light and went to bed, allowing me to float away to the dream world.
-WOO. THAT WAS A LOT OF WRITING, OVER 10.2K WORDS. I WORKED VERY HARD ON THIS CHAPTER. I'M SORRY IT TOOK SO LONG, EVERYPONY. I JUST GOT JAMPACKED WITH STUFF. I BROKE UP WITH MY GIRLFRIEND, I GOT HORRIBLY SICK, I WENT ON VACATION, AND I GOT WRITERS BLOCK BAD. I PROMISE, NO CHAPTER WILL EVER TAKE A MONTH TO GET DONE AND UPLOAD EVER AGAIN. IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED IN THIS CHAPTER, PLEASE TELL ME IN A REVIEW, I'LL EXPLAIN. THANK YOU!-
