Everyday Life as a Non-Pony OC, Chapter 13
Twilight looked fervently at a magical window displaying my dreams as I slept on my nearby bed. The magical window was connected to my head by multiple magical tendrils. The picture received, however, was distorted and blurry. It was as if looking at a television whose antenna was askew. As she played and paused the dreams, she occasionally screwed up her eyes in concentration. She pulled a duplicate window from the first. Holding a still frame of the dream, she put it off to the side. After doing this four times, she let her head droop, and the window to my dreams cut out, though the still images she pulle9d from it remained.
"Fawkes…. Fawkes! Wake up!" Twilight said urgently, placing a hoof upon my shoulder and shaking me. I awoke and stared groggily into her still trained face. I stared for a few seconds until the fog of sleep cleared from my mind, and I remembered why I was asleep in the middle of the day, to begin with.
"Twilight, did you get anything?" I asked, looking around and spotting the four images floating nearby. Without a word from Twilight, I slid off the bed and moved towards the floating magic windows. I grabbed a jar off a nearby table, and staring at them for a moment, slid the bottle over it and screwed the cap on tightly. "That's the only one, Twi," I said, as Twilight stopped straining and dismissed the spells, causing the windows of the dream to dissipate into sparkling wisps and vanish. The one I had bottled remained inside its glass cell.
"It's an enchanted bottle. As long as it's not unscrewed, the magic within the bottle should preserve this memory with its stored-up magic. I've been pouring as much magic as I could into the enchantment every night for a week. It should last a little over a month in there." Twilight replies to the look of amazement that the one in the bottle remained while the others disappeared. "So, what is this?" She asked, motioning with her head toward the image in the bottle, which has now swelled to fill in the entire bottle and stretch itself out on the surface like a curved video screen.
"This is the face I told you about last week," I started. I had told Twilight about the odd dreams and Visions I was getting in my sleep, about the scarred eye and part of the face that's been tainting my dreams since I arrived in Equestria. Also, the voices that tend to accompany it. "I also usually hear a deep, croaking voice saying something along the lines of 'soon, he will be ready for you soon' and similar things." I finish as Twilight studies the image of the eye.
"I can't make out enough detail, Fawkes. The image is just too low quality. I'm sorry, but I don't know enough about Dream Magic to help here. It's an art lost to time. Legends say the younger of the two great sisters had used dream magic. I was planning to book a trip to the Royal Canterlot Library; perhaps we can ask to see Princess Luna simultaneously. She may be able to help us. I'll see if I can ask Princess Celestia to let us talk to Princess Luna about it."
As we talked, we descended from the upper loft where tile beds are and down into the library proper, which Twilight uses as a study/living area. I go to sit in an oversized armchair that's large enough to fit me, but as I start to lower myself into it, Twilight shouts something to me. However, it was too late, and as my weight hit the chair, a lengthy flatulating sound rang forth from my bottom.
"I was trying to tell you. Pinkie was messing with that chair this morning; she and Rainbow Dash have been on a prank fest lately. They got poor Spike with a thundercloud and made him hiccup for hours." Just as Twilight finished speaking, a flash of pink had cried out in my mind. Moments later, Pinkie Pie had flung herself through the study window, the panes of glass swinging back and forth like a pair of saloon doors, before coming to rest perfectly still and fixed in the window again.
"Aaargh, I missed it! I wanted to see that go off, but Rainbow has been hanging out with her mean old griffon friend, and she doesn't have time for pranks all of a sudden!" cried the Pink Pony in a single breath.
"Oh, is Gilda here already?" I asked casually, holding up a book I had picked off the shelf about equestrian theology and flipping past the cover and intro pages.
"You know her?" Pinkie asked in surprise before suddenly relaxing. "Oh yeah, all that stuff about knowing the future because you saw it in a TV show. I forgot about that." Pinkie said, nodding solemnly.
I spent the next few minutes explaining how Pinkie found Gilda extremely rude and how Twilight thought she was jealous that Rainbow Dash was spending more time with Gilda than her. Trying to give her the benefit of the doubt, she observed Gilda. She saw her stealing and scaring Fluttershy, and about the party where Rainbow set all those pranks, causing Gilda to reveal her true self.
"A party! That's a great idea, Fawkes! I'll go get Rainbow and explain the plan to her and get started." Pinkie said immediately and then zoomed off, leaving, as usual, a Pinkie shaped dust cloud that dissipated slowly.
"Plan?" I questioned Twilight, who looked at me, equally nonplussed. "I was just telling her what happened in the show…. Whatever, I'm going to try to see if I can stop Gilda from terrorizing Fluttershy. See you later, Twi.
I reached the market a few minutes later and saw Fluttershy guiding a small group of ducklings through the square. Looking around, I also spotted Gilda strutting past the booths on an apparent collision course with her.
Strolling forward, I put myself in-between them. Fluttershy gently bumped me and moved to the side, apologizing profusely in her timid voice. As she backed away, still leading the ducks, a loud voice told me to move. I looked over to see Gilda staring at me, looking none too happy.
"Didn't you hear me, you… whatever you are? Are you deaf AND ugly? Must suck to be you." She said, loudly pointing to one side with a wing. "I told you to MOVE!"
"If I were deaf and ugly, I'd be you. No, wait, I'd have to add stupid for that to be true. It's called 'going around me.' It's not that hard." I said calmly, staring the griffon in the eye. She was a bit taller than a pony but still barely came up to my chest.
"What did you say to me? Are you looking to get a taste of my talons?" She asked, holding one up threateningly for emphasis. "I don't appreciate hairless apes like you, telling me what to do!" she said explosively, the feathers around her head and neck puffing up.
"And I don't appreciate you treating my friends like crap. You need to apologize to Pinkie. Despite how you treated her, she and Rainbow are throwing you a party at Sugar Cube Corner to celebrate your coming to see your friend. I'd appreciate it if you respected their efforts a bit. Pinkie is trying to make friends."
"I don't need any namby-pamby pony friends. I'm too cool for that." Gilda said, crouching down as if she was about to leap into the air and take off.
"Oh, does that Include Dash? I'll go tell her you didn't want to come to her party because you were too cool to be seen with her." I said challengingly. Gilda stared up at me, still crouched for flight.
"I'll be there, for Dash. But don't expect me to talk to the Pink Nutjob or stay too long." Gilda took off after finishing, the force of her wing beat causing me to sway in the wind. I took a look around the market square to see many of the passersby staring at me and whispering to themselves. I shrugged to myself and walked off towards Sugar Cube Corner to see if I could help prepare for the party.
When I told Twilight, Pinkie, and Rainbow about my interaction with Gilda, Pinkie started hopping around the room repeatedly, saying, "I told you." At the same time, Twilight looked at me, concerned.
"Weren't you scared? She's a griffon, Fawkes. She could have ripped you to pieces!"
"Could have? Potentially, but I know she wouldn't. She's rude and mean, but she wouldn't actively hurt someone. She is not evil. Griffinstone just isn't the place you read about anymore. It's a rough place to grow up. She needs manners and humility. She won't learn them unless someone stands up to her, proving that she can't get her way by screaming at her problems or threatening them.
"She's a-comin'" shouted Applejack from the window, about an hour later as we finished putting the last touches on the party. Ponies were coming in to enjoy the party, as Pinkie always makes her parties open access.
The party went about the same as it did in the canon, but Gilda was just as sure that I was involved in the pranks as Pinkie was. Rainbow and I decided to pull Gilda aside and talk to her, hopefully putting a happier spin on the ending.
"What do you want, Ape?" Gilda snarled, staring directly at me.
"He's not an ape!" Rainbow snaps indignantly. "Listen, Gilda, I want to keep being friends with you. We've been friends for years. Junior Flight Camp was one of the best times of my life, and I want to keep those memories. That's why I wanted to introduce you to my current friends."
Gilda looked over at her and opened her beak to speak but seemed unable to say anything.
"I'm sorry for the rudeness I showed you, back at the market, Gilda," I said, holding my hands up in a clasped ball in front of my chest. You were rude to me, so I was rude back. I should have been nicer."
"Yeah, sure. YOU'RE sorry." She said sarcastically. Why should I believe anything you say?"
"Because he's MY friend. If you want to maintain our friendship, you should at least show my other friends some respect." Interjected Dash. "I already told you. I was the one who pranked you at the party, not Pinkie and not Fawkes. He's even apologized for being rude to you earlier. If you can't bring yourself to forgive him, then…. I guess we're through." She finished morosely.
Gilda stared at Rainbow Dash for a few minutes, then at me, and back at Dash. She opened her mouth to speak a few times, but no sound came out. She turned and walked away towards the door before stopping and walking back again.
"Dash, you're right. I'm sorry. But I'm going to clear off for a bit anyway. I'll come by again sometime… maybe." She said slowly, ignoring me entirely and talking only to Rainbow Dash.
"It's not me you need to apologize to. It's them," She said, holding out a hoof in my direction and at Pinkie in the background, laughing with Spike in a corner. Gilda hung her head for a second and raised it again. She mumbled something incoherent that sounded like sorry.
"I'm sorry, what was that? I couldn't quite hear you." I said politely, although I had severe trouble hiding the mischievous grin threatening to take over my face.
"I said I'm SORRY, OKAY?" Gilda shouted at me before charging toward the door, several startled ponies jumping out of her way with shrieks of surprise.
"I accept your apology and hope to see you soon!" I shout after her, Dash having a laugh beside me, as she waved at the back of the retreating griffon.
"You know, she wasn't that bad after all!" said a voice from between the two of us. Rainbow and I start slightly before turning to see Pinkie Pie standing in between us. "I guess she was just a bit misunderstood."
"Eh, not really. She was mean and rude, but she just needed to be shown what losses that kind of behaviour might give her. Some friendships are worth fighting to keep. You never know if they might come in use down to the road." I said sagely, crossing my arms and nodding."
Once the party wrapped up, we stayed behind to help clean up. Mr. and Mrs. Cake offered to pay us a couple of muffins each for helping out, but Dash and I declined them. Pinkie ate the lot before turning to us.
"What? You said you didn't want them," she said. We all had a laugh before each heading home. Once Twilight, Spike and I got home, we collapsed into our respective beds and fell asleep near instantly. It had been a busy day.
The following day progressed without incident until Twilight cantered up to me slightly before noon, holding a letter aloft with her magic.
"great news, Fawkes! Not only did Princess Celestia approve my visit to the Royal Canterlot Library, but she said Luna agreed to see us to help with the dreams." She exclaimed excitedly, and she floated the letter in front of me to grab and read it.
"That's good?" I posed as a question, startled about the sudden news. "Wait, why do you need approval to go to the Royal Library?" I turned to her and asked. I recalled the time travel episode, where she was trying to sneak into the library; however, Spike and Pinkie didn't bother, as anyone was allowed there. "Isn't the royal library free use to any Canterlot residents?"
"Oh, it is. I wasn't getting permission to go into the library. I was asking permission to suspend my studies for a day, so I can leave Ponyville to visit it." She said, matter-of-factly, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"Okay. I'm going to nip this in the bud," I say out loud, looking Twilight directly in the eye. "First of all, you have free studies. The Princess isn't monitoring your every move, and she won't tell you off if you don't write her a report every day or if you leave town." I hold up a hand to silence Twilight as she tries to retort immediately. "Secondly, yes, I can prove this. It actually caused an issue in the show where you started trying to CAUSE friendship problems because you were afraid to miss a report. It ended up with the entire town going mad, trying to fight over your Smartypants doll. Lastly, don't you think the Princess and your friends in Canterlot would enjoy seeing you now and again? Before you came here, weren't you and Spike going to go to Moondancer's birthday? Your studies are important, but so is your social life. That's something Princess Celestia was trying to teach you by sending you here, to begin with."
Twilight just stood nonplussed for a moment before composing herself and responding.
"Hmm. That's an interesting thought… but how would Smartypants start a fight over the whole town? Never mind. I don't think I want to know. I'll talk to the Princess about my studies when we get there. We're headed out tomorrow. I don't know how long we will be staying, so pack for a few days, just to be safe, okay?" without even waiting for a response, she turned around and walked away, leaving me to collect myself before headed off to pack my own bags.
The trip to Canterlot was thankfully uneventful; as we approached the gates of the castle, a shout caused us to look up in surprise suddenly, interrupting the conversation we were having.
"Twily! It's been forever!" Shining Armor called out to us from the ramparts above the gate as he stood watch with a couple of other guards. His horn glowed for a moment, and the gate opened, allowing us access to the outer courtyard where he trotted down from the guard post to meet us.
"Shining Armor! How are you doing?" Twilight hugged her brother and then turned to me and started to introduce me. "This is my Human friend, Fawkes."
"We've met ready, actually." Replied Shining Armor sheepishly.
"You… Oh? What? When?" Sputtered Twilight, obviously caught unawares by this revelation.
"Oh, sorry, Twi, I meant to tell you but forgot. I met him when I had my meeting with the Princess last week. When I got home, and you told me what happened back in Ponyville, it slipped my mind." I say, brushing my hair nervously with my hand.
"Yeah, the Princess asked me to come and collect the human from the station, as she felt he probably didn't know his way through the town to the castle." Shining Armor finished.
"Oh, well, that makes sense," Twilight said, but she had a clear note of disappointment in her voice. "I was just hoping to introduce one of my best friends to my favourite brother."
"He's your only brother…," I pointed out as Shining Armor says, "I'm your only brother," at the same time. Looking at each other, the three of us share a laugh.
"Hang on, one of your best friends, since when have I earned 'best friend' status? I figured I was just a regular friend, maybe a favourite experiment?" I asked Twilight quietly as Shining Armor turned and said he'd lead us into the castle.
"Well, you're all my best friends. You, Rainbow, Pinkie, Rarity, Fluttershy, Applejack, and of course Spike. You don't just take down a thousand-year-old tyrant from the moon together and not become best friends." Twilight says in her 'well, that was obvious' voice.
"Well, she wasn't technically FROM the moon. She was just imprisoned there…." I say, trailing off when I see the look on her face.
"No need to be pedantic, Fawkes." She says with a giggle as Celestia walks into the entrance hall from a side room and waves in greeting.
"There's always a need for pedantics," I say as she walks away with her Mentor, waving goodbye.
"It's good to see that she's made a real friend. She's always been so smart, but I've worried she'd neglect social activities for studies." Shining Armor said as we made our way off a different side door and started climbing the stairs to a tall tower overseeing the castle's east side.
"Only one of many, actually. You should come and visit Ponyville sometime and meet the others. I'm sure you know Spike already, but there are 5 other ponies she's in a tight group with." I said, starting to struggle with my breath as we made it several floors up, with seemingly no end to the spiral staircase up the tower.
Eventually, we make it to the top. I lean against the wall and hold up a finger to signal that I need a moment.
"You… uh, okay?" he says, not even slightly winded, despite having walked up the same set of stairs.
Yeah… fine… just not used to quite that much… stair… climbing." I say, punctuating the statement with breaths. After I'd caught my breath again, Shining Armor explained that as Princess Luna had agreed to see me, I had to be cautious. She was still sensitive about what happened and that he would be just outside the door if there was any trouble. After a quick frisk for weapons ("Sorry mate, it IS my job"), he knocks on the door, and I hear a young and regal voice speak from behind it.
"We are ready; you may enter."
Shining Armor opens the door with his magic and stands aside, motioning for me to enter. I walk inside and see a dark blue Alicorn, taller than the usual pony but smaller than Celestia, standing before me. Her dark bluish mane flowing as if by magic, looking nearly identical to a beautiful night sky. It was far different to see in life compared to on television. After staring for a second or two, I came to my senses and bowed low to her.
"Good afternoon, Princess Luna. Thank you for agreeing to see me on such short notice.
"We have interest in meeting you as well, Human." She said regally. "We have never actually met one of your species before and thus stand to gain as much as you. You may simply address Us as Luna, as you do with Our sister. Formalities are not as important here in Our chambers. You helped save Us when We… were out of control." There was a definite venom in her voice as she said those few last words.
"If it's all the same to you, I'm still going to call you Princess. I actually do address your sister with her title and wouldn't dream of doing otherwise." I responded with another short bow. "but thank you for seeing me in such a light. I didn't do much to help. It was Twilight and her friends that did all the work." I pointed out, rubbing the back of my neck nervously.
"You may call Us so if you see fit. However, do not discredit your actions on that fateful night. Nightmare Moon may have been in control, but We… that is to say…I had glimpses of what was happening." She spoke with an unsure tone as if she was forcing herself to talk about an issue she'd rather not do so. "The battle against Nightmare Moon is one We remember almost fully. It was you who distracted her until the others were ready. It was you who reminded Twilight to look inside herself for the answers…."
"I didn't change anything," I interrupted her. "What happened was going to happen anyway. All I did was help get things back on track after I derailed them, to begin with. I didn't fix anything; I just cleaned up a mess I made." I finished and looked at Luna, expecting her to be mad at me for interrupting her, but instead found her smiling and giggling at me.
"We understand where you are coming from. We, too, blame Ourselves for what happened, even though Our sister has told Us she does not blame Us for what happened. She even had… the audacity to suggest that she was at fault for Our mistake." She looked darkly off into the distance as if recalling an unpleasant memory before continuing, "but if you truly feel as such, there is something you can do for Us. Think of it as payment for the services rendered by Us unto you today. We have had trouble…adjusting. It has been over a thousand years since We walked among our subjects. We would request your help in adjusting to a more… modern life." She finished, looking at me with a tentative look, biting her bottom lip in anticipation.
"I'm… I'm sorry, Princess, but I'm not from… around here." I had almost said 'This world' but decided against it quite yet. "I'm still trying to adjust myself, so I'm not entirely sure I'm the right guy for the job."
"Yes, Our sister did tell Us if your particular situation; a dimensional traveller of sorts in unfamiliar lands. However, that is exactly why you are the perfect choice for Our predicament. Despite not being of this world, you have adjusted very well. You do not shy away from what is different but instead, accept it with arms outstretched. That is why We picked you." Luna stated, looking almost excited as she said the last few words, but quickly composed herself upon finishing.
"Uhm… well…. I'm flattered, but considering my circumstances, I was technically used to it all already, as I'd seen it for years. I'm not sure exactly what you know about the world I came from, though…." I said nervously, not sure whether I should tell the Princess about the show in my world.
"our sister has told Us everything. We are aware of the existence of the media in your world that revealed our existence to you. Still, one would argue that it would be a considerable shock to see something you always thought was fiction become a reality. Considering your original world and what was revealed to you makes it more impressive that you have adapted so easily, thus my selection of you. This does not need to be an immediate resolution. We are simply asking you to advise Us in matters that we might have when it comes to the process of adapting to the Modern Era." Princess Luna finished with a grand sweep of her hoof foreleg as if giving a dramatic speech. I gave a light smile and a slight chuckle.
"Alright, you win, Princess Luna. If you have questions, send me a letter, or I suppose you can always approach me in my dreams and ask me for advice on a particular matter. For one, maybe lay off the whole Royal Speech thing. The 'We's,' 'Our's,' 'Thou's' and such. No one really speaks like that anymore. You are the Princess. Be commanding, be authoritative, but most of all, be you. Imagine how you'd speak casually to say, your sister, and speak normally to other people." I bowed lightly as I finished my statement to show my respect despite the less formal speech.
"We… I… might not be able to visit your dreams. I have tried a few times after hearing your story from my sister, but something prevents me. That is another reason We…I… invited you here today. To see if there is anything I can do to perhaps access your dreams. You may just be incompatible with our magic." She looks thoughtfully at me as if trying to see my very soul within me before continuing. "My word, speaking in such a casual way, leaves an odd feeling in my mouth. It just feels… I'm not sure." She pondered aloud.
"If you're not comfortable with it, Princess Luna, you don't have to do it. It was just a suggestion." I started to say before she quickly cut me off.
"Oh, I meant nothing of the sort!" she said loudly and suddenly. "I simply meant it was a curious sensation. Almost liberating. It is as if I was doing something I had been told was… naughty for all my life and found out it was perfectly allowed." She reassured.
"Well, what did you mean by you can't come into my dreams? I was hoping that you'd be able to do just that and see if you could make any sense of what I've been seeing. Here." I slip off the backpack I was wearing and remove the magical jar from it that held the still image of dream taken the previous morning."
"You misunderstand, Human…Fawkes, I should say. I simply said I hadn't been able to access your dreams until now. I never said it wasn't possible. Now that you're here, we can experiment with different situations and see if something is blocking my access. It is far easier if you are in close proximity when I use my magic." Luna explained.
"Oh, that reminds me. You haven't. Are the Tantabus yet, have you?" I asked seriously.
"Tantabus? I'm not sure what you mean." She responded questioningly.
"Later in the show, it was revealed you created some sort of dream creature, designed to turn your dreams into nightmares, Fuelled by your guilt of Nightmare Moon. You called it the Tantabus. Eventually, it gained too much power, threatened to escape into the waking world, and was stopped by the collective efforts of the town and the power of dreams." I explained. Luna sat and stared in awe at my words.
"I had considered. Making such a being. I was just figuring out the best way to do so before I did. You would advise against this?" She questioned.
"I would," I said flatly. "It does not end well."
"Very well. I shall not do so. But back to you. I want you to stay here a few days, so we can run some magical tests on you. Perhaps we can enter your dreams yet." She proudly states, a look of curious excitement on her face. I agree to her terms, and we start making plans for the tests to run over the next few days.