DragonLovingBrony - Wow, that's a lot of reviews! As much as I wish I could respond to each one individually, I don't have an unlimited amount of time, so I'll just answer with a blanket response: Your reviews were all awesome, and I look forward to seeing what you think of the directions the story is going to go in the future.

KillerWow - Genie from Aladdin, when he's first let out of the lamp (Rest In Peace Robin Williams, you will be missed.) Well, at least you've still got access to your account.

Jack1911 - Your wait is over good sir! I have every plan to complete it, and actually have a sequel planned for when I do.

centaurus2 - Lol what can I say? Blake's in a world filled with zany ponies. I'll be keeping an eye out for your next upload.

BronyHomie - Ain't she just?

Guest - Glad to be back

Shodapop98 - It felt off not posting a chapter that whole time. As much as I enjoyed my vacation, I'm glad to be back and putting up chapters for everyone to enjoy.

UnknownHero55 - Yeah, it kinda was, but that's life. (Possible minor spoiler) He'll have Twilight too.

A/N - Howdy everypony, and welcome to the latest installment of A Second Chance! So, I've been hearing a lot lately that I should get paid for this story, both from family/friends and readers alike. At first I dismissed it, not wanting to charge my readers for something I enjoy (even if I could). But then I got to thinking about it, and I realized that if I did, and got paid enough, I could use that as my sole source of income; meaning that I could devote more time to writing and editing chapters, which would mean better quality stories as well as potentially longer chapters. Since I can't get paid for the story directly, my thought was to open a page and share some of my interests with everypony who wanted to support this. I would be posting videos on cooking, bushcraft, gear reviews, video games, and I'd even take requests. The story would continue to update as usual, this would just be a bit of a bonus for those who want support the idea. Now, none of this is set in stone; I want to know what you think before I even think about going through with it. I'll be posting a poll on my profile page asking what you think, and PM's with your thoughts are always welcome. As always, don't forget to follow/favorite, review, and most importantly; enjoy!

Sweetheart returned quickly with a bowl full of what I could only describe as grey goop. Luna picked up the spoon sitting in the stuff and offered it to me. Tentatively, I took a bite of it. I immediately had to resist the urge to spit the offensive goo back out. "What is the matter Blake?" Luna asked, obviously concerned over my shudder of revulsion.

"Guh… No offense to you Sweetheart, but this stuff looks, feels, smells and tastes like puree o' cardboard. I bet if it were possible, it'd even sound like it."

Luna sniffed the remainder of the spoonful and wrinkled her nose at it. "I agree, what is this? Surely it cannot be food."

Sweetheart pawed the ground with a nervous grin. "It's something the hospital's chef likes to whip up for malnourished patients, it's supposed to give you plenty of nutrition that's easy to digest and won't be hard on your stomach or overfill you. I think he calls it 'nutrient paste' or some such. I'm sorry if it tastes bad, but it's the best thing to get you well quickly."

I sighed and looked down at the offensive matter. "Well, can I at least get something to flavor it up? With the way it tastes right now, I may not be able to keep it down long enough to benefit from it."

The plump nurse nodded. "Sure, I'll see if I can find something to make it better." Without another word, she trotted out of the room once more.

So," I started, turning my head to Luna. "How have things been while I was… away?"

She sighed. "They have been hectic, to say the least. There have been several complaints made that we are incompetent as rulers for ever allowing Nightmare Moon into the city to begin with, let alone her capture of both my sister and I as well as the Element Bearers." She sat down next to the bed. "We have done our best to quell these views, but it would seem that recent events have shaken our ponies."

As I listened, I managed to get my magic to respond enough to begin forcing some of the offensive grey glop down my throat, trying to eat it as quickly as I could to avoid the unpleasant taste and texture. Once I had several spoonfuls of the stuff in me, I sparked my magic again, this time to caress Luna's cheek with it. "I do not wish to burden you with such thoughts but… Blake, what are you doing?" I smirked at her reaction as she noticed the aura surrounding my free arm, then the partially empty bowl. "Blake… you did not have to do that…"

"I know, but not being able to reach out and touch you is killing me, especially when it's plain to see that you're stressed out. Now, I know there's more you want to get off your chest."

She sighed. "You are very stubborn Blake Marshall… and that is one of the things I love about you. Very well; my sister and I have devised a way to appease our ponies, though you may not like it."

Why do I get the feeling I know where this is going? "Well, no sense in dragging it out. Lay it on me Luna." I told her, not wanting to beat around the bush.

"To be blunt, my sister and I wish to make you a Knight of Equestria."

My jaw hung open. "L-Luna, that's a great honor, do you really think I deserve something like that? I mean, surely there must be someone better trained who could fulfill the role better than I could."

She looked into my eyes and smiled. "I can understand your apprehension, but we are not doing this simply to add to our military might. If that were the case, you would be partly right, except that we would be forced to choose our candidate from amongst the Equestrian military ranks. However, this is to be a symbolic appointment meant to bolster the morale of our subjects as much as it is to bolster our ability to defend our nation. Thus you would be Sir Blake Marshall, Knight-Defender of Equestria." I opened my mouth to question further, but she placed a hoof over it, silencing me. "Your role would be largely ceremonial in nature, only being called to action in times of immediate threat to our fair land, and even then only to defend it; you would never be called to make an offensive strike."

My jaw worked up and down as my mind struggled to process what Luna had just told me. "So… would that allow us to..."

"Yes," She said with a nod. "That would allow us to continue our courtship unopposed."

I smiled as I once more stroked her cheek with my magic. "Then that settles it; that's all the reason I need to say yes."

Luna smiled widely at me before hopping up and placing one fore-hoof on the bed, quickly wrapping the other around my head and pulled me in for what I thought was going to be a kiss, but instead turned out to be a hug. "It warms my heart to hear you say that Blake, that I am your primary concern when it comes to this decision…" She pulled back from the hug and looked me in the eye. "Does that make me selfish?" She asked after studying me for a moment.

I cupped her cheek with my hand, thankful that our proximity allowed me to do so, and smiled softly at her. "Not as far as I'm concerned it doesn't; after all, everyone wants to be loved."

There was a sudden knock at the door, interrupting our moment. One of Celestia's Solar Guard popped his head in through the door. "Princess Luna." He stated with a respectful bow before stepping the rest of the way through the door. "Princess Celestia would like to see you in the throne room at your earliest convenience to discuss important matters."

Luna sighed and hopped off the bed. "Very well, inform her I shall be there momentarily."

The guard bowed again. "Yes your Highness."

Once the guard had left, Luna looked back to me. "As much as I wish to stay longer and keep you company, I am afraid I must leave you in the doldrums whilst I see what it is my sister wished to speak with me about. It is likely she wishes to discuss the proceedings should you choose to accept our offer."

I gave her a quizzical look. "I thought I already had accepted."

Luna giggled into her hoof. "Oh, I know that, but my sister does not, at least not yet. I believe I shall refrain from informing her for the moment, just to see what it is she has planned." She smiled devilishly. "Perhaps I will even tell her that you are reluctant to assume the role of knight, just to see her reaction. Farewell for now my love, I shall return when I can."

I waved to my Alicorn lover as best I could as she trotted out of the room, leaving me to my thoughts. I wasn't alone for long however, as Sweetheart finally came back with some butter, sugar and mixed berries. "Hmm… Trying to flavor it up like grits?"

She nodded. "It was the only thing I could think of, and it seemed like a good idea." She brought the small tray holding the condiments over to my bedside and with a practiced hop, gently tossed it from her back to the tray in front of me, somehow managing to not spill anything.

"Nice. I take it you get a lot of practice with that?" I asked as I stirred the condiments into the grey paste before taking a bite, relieved that the taste improved to a tolerable level.

She smirked. "Well, being an Earth pony, I don't have the advantage of magic or wings, so I have to make due with what I have."

"Which is being crazy strong compared to the other races." I pointed out.

"This is true, but we also have the weird ability to make plants grow; for some reason, Pegasi and unicorns can't make plants grow to save their lives, but we can."

I thought for a moment about that. "That's… kinda weird; why wouldn't the others be able to grow plants?"

Sweetheart shrugged. "Y'know, I'm not really sure, it's just always kinda been that way. That's something to think about." She grumbled. "...Dang it, now I'm gonna be wondering about that all day."

I chuckled. "Hehehe, you're welcome Sweets. Look on the bright side though; at least it'll give you something to think about for the rest of your shift."

She groaned and slowly placed a hoof to her face and dragged it down. "My mind wanders enough without stuff like that floating around in there. Now I'm gonna need to keep my brain on a leash."

I burst out laughing as the image of Sweetheart going about her day, walking her brain around like a dog on a leash popped into my head. Apparently the same image went through her mind as well, as she was rolling on the floor laughing. After she had recovered, Sweetheart looked over to me, wiping a tear from her eye. "That was certainly an interesting image."

I chuckled as an afterthought of the image flashed through my mind. "That it was. I have a question though; is there any way for me to bathe? I feel pretty funky, and I imagine I don't smell that fresh either."

Sweetheart's face flushed red. "Well, in your condition, you wouldn't be able to take a bath or shower. Your dressings can't get wet, and they wouldn't give you the range of motion you'd need to properly scrub yourself down. The only real option you have is if somepony else were to… bathe you…" The red on her face deepened as those last two words left her mouth.

I sighed. "I figured as much. Well, may as well get it over with, I'd rather that than sit here in my own funk for who knows how long."

Sweetheart seemed startled by my declaration. "O-oh! Umm, let me get the doctor to check your injuries first, and then I'll fetch somepony to get right on that for you."

I quirked an eyebrow. "Can't you do it? I mean, most of me's bandaged up, so I doubt you'll be seeing much more than you already are."

Sweetheart sighed. "That's true, it's just… weird for me, is all. I've never actually given anypony a sponge bath before, let alone a stallion of a different species."

I thought for a moment. "That's understandable, I suppose it would be awkward for you then. I'd just prefer it not be somepony I've never met before."

"Well, you've never met me before today." She offered.

"Yeah… but in the short time we've been interacting, I've gotten a feel for your personality, and I feel like I can trust you. I mean, look how far out of your way you went just to help make my food taste better."

"Alright, I'll go fetch the doctor," She said after staring at the floor in thought. "Then I'll get what I need to… *gulp* give you a bath." Her blush returned as she trotted out of the room.

All I could do at that point was wait for the doctor and Sweetheart to return. I decided to begin reading the Daring Do series Dash had brought me several days ago while I waited. I was nearly done with the second chapter of the first book by the time the doctor finally showed up with Sweetheart in tow, pushing a cart with various sponges and a few buckets sloshing with what I assumed was water. Y'know, I should probably learn his name one of these days.

"Good evening mister Marshall, how are you feeling today?"

I looked out the window for the first time to see that it was indeed evening. "A lot better than I have been, all things considered."

He nodded. "I can only imagine. As much as I trust her as a ruler, I wish Princess Celestia had waited to tell you of your extended lifespan."

Sweetheart gave me a curious look. "What does that mean?"

I sighed and gave her a weak smile. "It means that Luna gave me some of her blood to save my life, but as a result, the magical properties of that same blood extended my natural life expectancy from around one hundred years to potentially three thousand."

Sweetheart's jaw dropped. "Th-that must've been terrible news! How did you cope?"

I chuckled somewhat darkly. "I basically shut down for three days, which is why I was so malnourished when Luna came and got you; I hadn't eaten or drank anything for that entire time." Sweetheart's only response was a disbelieving shake of her head.

The doctor simply stood there through the exchange and allowed me to essentially bring his nurse up to speed on my mental state. When it became apparent that we were finished, he wordlessly lit up his horn and I felt the now-familiar tingling of a medical diagnostic spell working its way through my body. "Hmm… it looks like most of your superficial injuries are healing nicely; now it's just going to be a waiting game for the bones and internal injuries to heal completely. I would say that you could be checked out tomorrow as long as you had someplace within the city to stay, as I wouldn't recommend travel by train just yet. In fact, I believe Princess Luna requested that you be moved to the palace when you were well enough to be moved."

I felt a wave of relief wash over me. "That's great to hear Doc! As great as the care has been here, I'm kinda eager to see something besides the inside of this room."

The doc chuckled. "Yes, I can see how only having blank, white walls to look at all day would leave a pony wanting something different. Don't worry; we can have you checked out in the morning assuming the princesses have a place for you to stay set up. For now though, let's have Nurse Sweetheart here get you cleaned up." He turned to Sweetheart and addressed her. "It should be safe to remove the soft wraps for good, but his hard casts will need to stay on for the moment, since his bones need more time to properly heal."

Sweetheart nodded to the doctor, who then left the room to allow some privacy. Once he was gone, she approached me with the cart. "Well, let's get started, shall we?"

"Don't sound so excited Sweets; I might get the wrong impression." Her entire face lit up as red as a tomato.

"I-I-I umm… I'm not that kind of mare mister Marshall!" She flustered.

I had to fight the urge to burst out laughing. "I know you're not, I was just messing with you."

She laughed nervously. "Oh, r-right."

My nurse for the day began unwrapping the gauze from around the various parts of my body that had received relatively superficial wounds, saving my chest for last, likely due to the sheer amount of gauze surrounding it. Once she had removed all the other bindings, save for the plaster encasing both of my legs, my right arm, and my pelvic region, she began working on my chest wrappings.

After a few minutes of peeling the stuff off, Sweetheart let out a gasp. "Sweet Celestia!" She exclaimed under her breath.

"That bad, huh?" I joked as I attempted to get a good look at whatever was left of my chest.

Sweetheart turned around and pulled a small hoof-mirror off the cart and angled it so I could see for myself. I let out a low whistle as the damage came into view. In the center of my chest was a roughly circular patch of uneven scar-tissue with several thick striations branching out in uneven intervals from the center. All-in-all, it reminded me of a much uglier version of Celestia's cutie mark. Various sections seemed to be sunken somewhat deeper into the flesh, as though the muscle tissue below the skin had been damaged.

"I-it actually doesn't look too bad once you get used to it, I just didn't know you were that badly hurt by Nightmare Moon."

I shrugged as best I could, glad for the added mobility that not having those cursed itchy wrappings all over me. "Coulda been worse, though I might not be here at all if it had been."

"Well, I for one am glad you are; you seem like a good stallion, plus it's not every day you get to meet a real, live hero."

Without another word, Sweetheart pulled one of the sponges off of the cart, wrapping an elastic strap that I hadn't noticed around one of her fore-hooves before dipping it in a bucked of slightly steaming, milky-white fluid. She then wrung it out before gently placing the warm, wet sponge on my arm, lightly scrubbing in little circles. She then dipped the sponge in the other bucket, which seemed to be filled with clean water before repeating the process. Sweetheart continued this over every available patch of skin, seeming to pay extra attention to the fresh scar adorning my chest.

"Wow, that feels much better, what's in that water?"

"Oh, just a few herbs for your skin and a special soap that that rinses off easily. If you'd like, I can have some sent with you so you can stay clean while you finish your recovery." I simply nodded in reply, still basking in the feeling of being mostly clean again. "Alright then. Well, as much as I enjoyed your company, I do have other duties to attend to."

"Sure thing Sweets, take care." I waved as she trotted out with the cart.

Once the pleasant mare was gone, I levitated the Daring Do book over to me with my magic and continued reading until I fell asleep.


I came back to the world with a groan. For some reason, I felt extremely weak and was unable to open my eyes. My body also felt like it was in a different position and free of all of its wrappings. I became faintly aware that I wasn't alone in the room. "So doctor, any idea on when he might wake up?" Wait… I know that voice! There was another, masculine voice that spoke next, but I couldn't make out what was said. "I know he's been through a lot, the fact he's alive at all is a miracle; but he's my husband, and I want him to be alright, I want to hold him and talk to him again…" Her voice started to crack as I faded back into unconsciousness.


My mind slowly woke up again, with the same feeling of weakness and disorientation that I had felt before still nagging at me. This time however, I managed to open my eyes. I looked around to see a very familiar hospital room, though something about it seemed off to me. Before I could figure out what that something was, the door creaked open and someone steeped into the room. My jaw nearly hit the floor as I realized that my visitor wasn't a pony, nor any other race that would be found on the world I had spent over a month calling home.

My visitor was undoubtedly human, and as she backed into the room, pulling something in with her, I got a better look at her. I could tell she was a female by the subtle curves revealed by her plain white sundress and the shock of out-of-control, fiery red hair obscuring her face from me. The woman got the object she was pulling through the door, which appeared to be a medium-sized, rolling suitcase; and as she turned around, my jaw sank even further as I recognized her.

"L-Lauren?" I managed to croak out, my throat dry and scratchy.

My wife froze in place as she heard her name and slowly turned her gaze towards mine. The very second our eyes met, hers filled with tears and she rushed over to my bedside, the suitcase clattering to the floor after tipping over in her haste. "Blake! Oh thank God you're awake!" She practically wailed as she threw her arms around me. "I was so worried you'd never wake up again!"

I did my best to wrap my arms around her, but I was still feeling very weak. "W-what happened? I thought I-" She placed her fingers gently over my mouth.

She sighed and looked in to my eyes. "Well… technically you did… you were clinically dead for just over two minutes before they managed to revive you. I… I thought I lost you…" She started crying into my shoulder. "Wh-when he shot you, I thought it was all over, but someone heard the shot and called nine-one-one. The ambulance ride to the hospital was the scariest thing in my entire life." Her voice cracked the entire time she was talking.

"Shh… it's ok sweetheart, I'm here, and I'm not going anywhere anytime soon." She hugged me a little tighter, but didn't say anything.

We sat like that for who-knows-how-long before the door opened, revealing a man wearing a white lab coat and carrying a clipboard that he seemed to be studying intently, so much so that he didn't notice us embracing on the bed. "Good afternoon Missus Marshall, I'm Doctor Samwright, a neural specialist, and I'll be taking a look at… your husband…" He faltered as he finally noticed us. "Ah, I see he's already awake then. Since that's the case, why don't we get started with a quick mental evaluation and then get you something to eat, hmm?"

"How 'bout something to drink first?" I asked with a dry, scratchy throat.

Lauren moved over to a counter to my left and poured some ice water out of a pitcher and into a glass and pressed a button on the bed's remote, raising me up into more of a sitting position. After I drank my fill, the doctor continued. "Now, it's not uncommon in cases like yours for a semi-comatose patient's brain to remain partially active. This activity can cause vivid dreams, dreams which the patient can have trouble distinguishing from reality. Tell me Mister Marshall, have you experienced any such dreams?"

I looked at him quizzically. "No offense Doc, but if you're a neural specialist, wouldn't you be better suited to looking at C.T. scans of my brain or something?"

He nodded. "Normally you'd be right, but in this case, I need to evaluate what your brain was up to while you were unconscious so I know what the next step is."

"Alright. Truth be told, I did have a really weird dream, though I doubt you'd believe it even if I told you."

He chuckled. "I can understand why you'd think that, but believe me when I tell you that I've heard crazy stories before. One of my previous patients dreamt about being a strange cross between a cat and a ladybug that wielded weaponized popcorn to save a land of sentient dust bunnies from a giant vacuum cleaner."

I chuckled for a moment before sighing. "Ok, here goes doc. While I was out, I had this crazy dream that I really died, and these alien princesses came to me in Limbo and offered me a chance to live again on their homeworld, as a part of some attempt to bring humanity back." He gave me a quizzical look that told me I should elaborate. "Apparently humans were originally from their world, but disappeared from it for some unknown reason and they wanted to bring some of us back once they found out where we had gone."

He stroked his chin. "So, what did these 'aliens' look like?"

I chuckled again. "That's the messed up part, they were ponies. They had strangely expressive and human-like faces, and they were just as smart as any human. There were three main types…"

I spent the next several hours recounting my adventure in Equestria.