I squeezed my eyes shut, fear threatening to overcome me. “Oh, please, Lord, please…” I whispered as I lay on the ground, “please don’t let this be real.”

I quickly opened them again to see that nothing had changed since I had them open a few seconds ago. There were still a pair of hooves attached to silver-coated legs in front of me, their view obscured just a little by the Christmas-gold hair I now wore. I watched the foreign limbs start to shake as tears started to well up in my eyes. I desperately didn’t want to be where I was.

“Please, God, don’t let me be here!” I asked again, louder this time. “Please don’t let this be happening to me!”

I was lying on my back, staring up at the moon. It was a clear night outside, calm and bright, and I could sense it was nearing twilight as I heard birds chirping around me. It was quiet where I lay, with dark houses in front of me, signifying that whatever creatures were in there were still sleeping. Creatures like me I assumed, the thought of which made the tears that were forming threaten to spill out.

“Calm down,” I whispered to myself, hating the voice that came out. I absolutely hated it, and felt a few tear droplets work their way out. “Calm down!” I demanded myself, still whispering, trying to take deep breaths. “You’re going to be fine! You just have to calm down. You’ll be okay.”

I was lying to myself. I wasn’t going to be fine. I didn’t know what just happened to me, and didn’t know why it happened either, but I knew four things about my current situation that would make sure I wasn’t going to be fine. The first thing was that I wasn’t at home, or anywhere near it. I didn’t know exactly where I was, but I did know I wasn’t on Earth, what with the strange looking buildings that had overly bright, unrealistic colors, as well as the unicorn shaped face made from the dark spots of the moon. Besides, I knew that no one from Earth looked like how I looked.

My current form was the second thing. I wasn’t a human being. I was a… I didn’t know. I assumed I was something a lot like a horse, but not entirely the same. I didn’t look entirely like one, nor did I feel like one, not that I knew what being a horse felt like. I did know that horses had eyes on the sides of their faces and long muzzles, neither of which was the case for me. The face on this body was rounded, with its eyes in front. As well, the coat I wore felt more like fur than it did hair, and I felt much smaller than an actual horse. The word pony came to mind when I thought about my new appearance.

Because of how small the body I inhabited felt, another word came to mind: child. It was the third thing that was upsetting me. I felt like I was in a child’s body, or, in this case, a child pony’s body. I didn’t want to be a child. I didn’t want to be subject to the whims of others. I knew that whoever saw me- whether human, horse-like thing, or anything else otherwise- would be concerned about me and want an explanation. For some reason, I really didn’t want to deal with that. I did not want to relive childhood, especially not as a horse in a world I didn't.

The final thing I was upset with was my voice. It was squeaky and high pitched like a child’s. More than that, it sounded like a girl’s, with a body to match it. It took only a few seconds of me being here to figure out I was no longer in a male’s body, and I didn’t like it. On its own, it would trouble me, but combined with everything else that was happening at the exact same time, the thought of being a girl now was so uncomfortable that I had to choke back my tears. I had a sudden, extreme urge to break down right then and there.

“Don’t break down,” I thought to myself, closing my eyes. “Don’t break down. There’s no reason to break down. Surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

It was a phrase I liked, my confirmation verse in fact, and I found myself saying it often, mostly whenever I was getting frustrated or feeling troubled. To me, it said, "God is always with you and he'll never leave. It's not worth getting angry or upset over little things because He's always with you, and you should never be afraid because He has a plan for your life." However, as I said it, it didn't give me the comfort it usually did. I was still very afraid of my current situation, and felt the very tiniest sliver of doubt in the words I thought.

“Stop that,” I whispered to myself harshly, clenching my jaw. “There's no reason to doubt or be afraid. Figure out what’s going on and where you’re at, and go from there.”

I lifted my head and looked around again for a few seconds, as though I'd suddenly recognize where I was, before giving up. I knew it was a waste of time. Laying there looking around wasn't going to tell me where I was. I needed to get up and get to… somewhere. I didn’t know where, or what to do when I got there, but doing something was better than nothing.

I turned over to my stomach and carefully stood up, my new legs shaking. It wasn’t just the newfound anxiety and panic I had though. The sensation of standing felt awkward, like I was standing on my tippy toes, except with just one toe that was completely flat. It felt like my feet were positioned where my ankles should have been, and I nearly fell over just standing.

“Carefully,” I told myself as I took a shaky step forward. “Go slow.” I felt clumsy as I started forward, moving as slowly as possible to make up for any lack of coordination I now had. My joints didn’t move how I expected, and I had no idea what the correct technique was. Not that it mattered though. I had no idea where I was stumbling off to or where anyone who could help me would be, if there was someone who could do something.

I suddenly felt another wave of panic and terror at that thought, the idea that I would stay here forever, and fell back down to the ground. I was very afraid, but I forced myself to take another breath and push the fear back down. “Surely always,” I whispered again, this time with a little more conviction.

I watched both the sun rise and the moon fall as I stayed laying on the ground. I noticed that they were moving much faster than they would in the real world, and let that observation give me a little hope. It was a bit unnerving to watch, but I took it as a sign that I might have been dreaming. It didn’t feel like one, but it was a convenient and reasonable explanation. The idea that I was somehow lucid dreaming made more sense than the idea of me actually being wherever I was as whatever I was. Not that it wasn’t impossible for me to truly be here, but I was more comfortable with the idea that this was a dream. The idea that I was really here had more uncomfortable implications attached to it than just what was stated before, and I decided that I would just go with the idea that I was dreaming for the time being, despite not completely believing it.

I took a second to try and remember what happened immediately leading up to my appearance, but came up empty. The previous day was blank in my mind, as were the several days before them. It was concerning, but I tried to convince myself that, since this was a dream, I’d have trouble remembering things that happened in the real world. I didn’t know how true that actually was, but I liked the explanation.

I watched as the sun reached the midway point in the sky just a few minutes later before it finally stopped moving, and noticed other creatures, ponies like me, make their way out of their houses. They were a multitude of colors, from dark red to bright blue to brilliant yellow and everything else in between, all a weird cartoonish sort of color that colored everything around me. They had smallish mouths near the bottom of their faces, along with impossibly large eyes that took up about two-thirds of their headspace. It was a bit creepy of a sight to see, and creepier to know that I probably looked very similar to them.

I let the sight of them feed into my explanation that this was just a dream, that this wasn’t real. Nothing this… bizarre looking could possibly exist in real life. The thought calmed me down as I continued to look at them as they did… whatever it was they typically did. Mostly just hurrying off to different places, smiling at and greeting each other as they passed by. As they left what looked to be their homes, I began to see that there were a few distinct differences that separated them into smaller groups of creatures than just horse-ponies. They were simple enough, unicorns with horns, pegasi with wings, and regular ponies with neither. Quickly looking myself over, I saw that I was a regular… pony. Or, as regular a pony I could be, given what I was seeing in front of me.

I took a quick breath and closed my eyes again as I continued to lay on the ground. “Calm down,” I quietly told myself. “This is a dream. This isn’t real. You’re going to be fine because this isn’t real.”

“What are you doing?” someone, somepony, a girl, suddenly asked me, a curious tone in her voice.

My eyes once again shot open as I looked to see a small pegasus who was no bigger than me. She had an orange coat that contrasted well against her purple hair, mane, with matching purple eyes to go along with it. Her wings were small, smaller than I expected, and I got a sort of ‘tomboy’ vibe from her appearance despite just meeting her.

“Why are you laying on the ground?”

“I… I don’t know,” I answered, taking a breath to keep myself calm as I found myself hating the girlish, childish voice that came out, believing a little more that this was a dream. “I’ve no idea what I’m doing.”

She stared at me silently with a questioning look on her face for a few seconds before speaking again. “Are you okay? Cause, no offense, you look like you’re about to cry.”

I closed my eyes for a second and sighed. “Yes, I’m fine,” I lied as I picked myself back up from off the ground.

She watched skeptically as I slowly did so, my legs shaking under me once again. As I concentrated on not falling over, the pegasus asked, “Are you sure you’re okay?”

“This is a dream. It’s not real,” I thought, before answering, “Yeah, I’m pretty sure, but I don’t really know.”

“Okay… if you say so,” she told me doubtfully. “Who are you anyway? I haven’t seen you around here before.”

“This isn’t real,” I told myself again, more forcefully this time. “This. Isn’t. Real. You’re going to be fine.”

"No, I'm not from around here," I answered simply, staring at my legs, my hooves, as I once again started to take very small, shaky steps forward. I wanted to make my way to somewhere else, even if I didn't know where somewhere else was. I didn't know why, but the idea of going somewhere else made me more hopeful that none of this actually happened to me. It made me more hopeful that this was all a dream.

“Are you absolutely sure you’re okay?” the pegasus asked me as she watched me slowly and awkwardly move forward. I nodded my head, but she pressed further, unconvinced. “You don’t look okay. Are you sick?”

“No, I’m fine,” I said, half to her and half to myself. “I’m just… I don’t know. I just wasn't expecting to be here. I’m probably fine though.”

“What were you doing laying in the middle of the road anyway? Trying to get a cutie mark in getting trampled on?”

I stopped my attempt at walking and debated for a moment whether I should ask the obvious question or to just answer with “no”. A few seconds later, I decided that my question's implication, if it had one, didn’t matter since this was a dream. “What’s a cutie mark?” I asked the orange pegasus.

Her eyes went wide in shock at that, as though I asked what year it was. “You don’t know what a cutie mark is?” she asked back, completely flabbergasted.

“No…” I trailed off. “Not really”

She continued to stare at me with eyes that clearly didn’t believe what her ears heard. “Uh, I think we should find a grown-up. You’re definitely not okay.”

“Why are you moving so slowly?” the orange pegasus asked me, sounding exasperated as she used her head to push me from behind. “We need to get you to the hospital! You could have brain damage!”

“Don’t push me,” I told her. “I don’t want to trip and fall over. And I don’t have brain damage.”

“Maybe that’s why you were laying on the ground earlier!” she continued. “Maybe you tripped and hit your head, and now you can’t remember what cutie marks are!”

“This isn’t real, this is a dream,” I silently told myself before speaking again. “I don’t have brain damage,” I asserted, “and I’m pretty sure no one in my family has a ‘cutie mark’.”

“Wait, what?” she started, taken aback as she stopped pushing. “Nopony in your family has a cutie mark?”

“No, not that I know of,” I explained, “which would be why I don’t know what that is.”

“Not even your parents?”

“Um, no?”

“How is that even possible!” she almost yelled. “Everypony has to get their cutie mark eventually! Right?”

“Well, my parents aren’t ponies, so…”

I said those words and immediately hated them. It forced me to fight back another wave of anxiety at the prospect of this... scenario being real. This wasn’t me. I wasn’t a pony. I was an adult human male, not this… horse girl. This was a dream. It had to be. At the very least, I would tell myself it was until I was proven otherwise. There were a lot of uncomfortable things I’d have to work through if this was truly reality, and I really didn’t want to deal with them if I didn’t have to.

“Hmmm…” she said thoughtfully. “I guess it makes sense why you wouldn’t know… Hey! I have an idea! Since you said you’re not from here and you obviously don’t know anything about being a pony, you could come to school with us today and learn about it!”

My inclination was to say no. I’d only been there a few minutes, but somehow it felt like saying yes was accepting this… situation as reality. But I forced myself to rid that inclination from my mind. This wasn’t real, and saying yes wouldn’t mean anything. The only way for this to be real was if God put me here, and while I couldn’t say for absolute certain he didn’t put me here, I still believed it was highly unlikely that that was the case. This was just a dream. A lucid, highly realistic dream, but a dream nonetheless.

“Come on!” she insisted, seeing my doubt. “Your parents won’t get mad at you, will they? If they’re not ponies, this could be your only opportunity to learn about cutie marks! Me and my friend Sweetie Belle could teach you all about them!”

I focused on the words ‘your only opportunity’ and let them relax me. This was obviously a dream, and my subconscious was trying to tell me so. It was saying that I should just go along with it because this wasn’t real.

“Well… if you say so…” I told her, deciding to play this dream out. “I don’t see why not.”

“Great!” she let out, putting on a wide smile. “I’m sure Miss Cheerliee won’t mind! Her classroom is actually really close to here! Just follow me!” The pegasus then quickly turned around and raced forward in what I assumed to be the direction of the school. I watched her run for a few seconds before she stopped and called out to me. “Come on!” she yelled, then started to run again.

“Lord, if it’s in your will, please let this be a dream,” I whispered in prayer as I once again started to make my way forward.

I stared at my feet, my hooves, the whole time as I moved. I talked to myself as I did so, telling myself which leg to move, gradually speeding up from a crawl to a slow walk. Apparently, though, the pace I was going wasn’t fast enough for the pegasus, as I saw her come rushing back to me. “You’re going so slow!” she complained. “It’ll take years to get there at this rate! What's taking you so long?”

“I don’t want to trip,” I told her as I continued to walk on what felt like my tippy toes. “How far away are we going?”

“The schoolhouse is right there,” she told me, using a leg to point in its direction. It was a small, red building, and looked to fit the definition of ‘schoolhouse’. From where we stood, it looked to be about three or four hundred yards away. “If we sprint, we could get there in, like, a minute,” she told me.

“I won’t run,” I responded. “Like I said, I don’t want to trip.”

“Well, no offense, but I’m gonna run. I’ll go down there and tell Miss Cheerilee you’re coming.” With that, she took off again, leaving me to slowly follow in her direction.

It took about ten minutes for me to catch up to her with as slow as I was going, and saw the building in full detail when I got there. It looked to be a one room building, with a large school bell on top and a small playground in the back. I thought it looked very girly, with hearts plastered all over the building and its overall red and pink color. There were also a lot of what I assumed to be kids standing around talking, all of them just as brightly colored as everything else around me. They were every color on the spectrum, from white to dark brown to brilliant blue to bright yellow. If the orange pegasus I met earlier was any indication, I’d guess they were in the seven to ten-year-old age group. I briefly considered not going, both because of the kids and the school's design, but eventually decided to play along with whatever scenario I hoped was a result of my subconscious.

“There she is!” the orange colored pegasus said to a larger, mauve colored… pony with pink hair, who I automatically assumed to be a school teacher, seeing as she was the largest person around. “That’s her!” she continued, pointing at me.

I felt myself blush at those words, embarrassed. I was uncomfortable by the use of the word 'she' to refer to me, and once again, the anxiety of this situation being real started to creep up on me. However, I forced myself to ignore it as the larger horse-creature approached me.

“Hello,” she started politely with a smile. “My name is Miss Cheerilee, and I’m the teacher of this schoolhouse. Scootaloo tells me you’re new here to Ponyville?”

She wore a smile while she said it, but I could tell she was concerned. She likely saw my slow, awkward walk up to her, and that pegasus, Scootaloo, might have told her about the fact that I was found lying on the ground. It would be an understandable reaction. Still, I decided not to be concerned about it since this wasn’t real.

“Um, yes,” I answered, all of a sudden feeling very shy. “I, um, I…”

“She said her parents weren’t ponies, so I thought it would be a good idea if she came to our class for the day!” Scootaloo interrupted. “I mean, she doesn’t even know what a cutie mark is!”

“Do your parents know you’re here?” the teacher asked me.

I debated for a second whether or not to lie to her before opting to stay neutral. “I don’t think my parents would mind that I’m here.”

I didn't like saying that. I felt like I was lying just saying those words, even though it was probably a technically true statement. Even if it wasn’t true, it wouldn’t have been the fact that I was saying something I knew to be false, it was the fact that I was intentionally misleading someone to benefit myself. Still, it might not have been wrong to say because I wasn’t trying to benefit myself at her expense, but I didn’t like the idea that I only might have not been doing something wrong.

“No,” I thought to myself. “You’re not doing anything wrong. What you tell these… horses… doesn’t matter because this isn’t real. This is just a dream.”

Miss Cheerilee looked at me skeptically for a few seconds before she spoke. “Well, you’re certainly welcome to join us for class if that’s the case,” she told me. “If you want to head inside, we’re actually getting ready to start our first lesson in a few minutes.”

She probably figured that it was better to keep me in her sights than it was to turn me loose, and she watched as I followed Scootaloo inside the building. “You can sit next to me,” the pegasus chattered excitedly as she sat down, pointing to a desk next to her. "I’ll show you my friend Sweetie Belle once she gets here!”

I was suddenly feeling like this dream was lasting a very long time. I’d never had a lucid dream before and had only been here for a few minutes, but I was suddenly feeling like this dream had been going on for too long. I quietly sat in the seat next to her as I tried to put my fears out of my head.

“Stop it,” I whispered to myself, trying to keep myself calm. “Nothing is going to happen. This isn't real.”

“So where are you from?” Scootaloo asked curiously. “It has to be really far away for somepony to not even know what a cutie mark is and to have parents who aren’t ponies!”

I decided to take the opportunity to distract myself from my worries. Before I could answer though, I heard the teacher, along with about a dozen kids, join us inside the building.

“Alright class,” Miss Cheerilee said as they sat down at their desks, “we have a new student joining us for today, and I’d like you all to give her your full attention while she tells us about herself.” She then turned to me and asked, “Would you like to come up and introduce yourself for us?”

I blushed again, once again feeling shy. “Can I introduce myself while sitting here?” I asked.

“Everypony introduces themselves at the front of the class,” she explained politely with a smile. “Why don’t you come on up?” I don’t know why, but I shook my head, and she pressed further. “All you have to do is tell us your name and where you’re from,” she encouraged.

I sighed. “This isn’t real,” I told myself as I answered, "Okay," and stood and started the trip to the front of the room. “Just play along,” I told myself silently.

I noticed her watching my footsteps as I made my way up to her. She clearly trying to see if something was wrong with them, however, she didn’t comment on it, opting instead to ask me to turn around and face the class.

“How about we start with your name?” the teacher offered.

I took a breath and closed my eyes. “My name’s Ashle... er. Asher”

I had never been more insecure about my name in my whole life. My real name is Ashley, but I’d never really thought much of it. I knew it was a popular girl's name, but where I lived, I knew more guys with the name than girls. It wasn’t something I was ever teased about and I wasn’t ever really bothered by my having the name. However, at that moment, given my current form, I was feeling very bothered and insecure by the name I was given.

She clearly thought it was a strange name, or maybe she was confused by my stumble while saying it, but she quickly moved on to the next question. “Can you tell us where you’re from?”

“Um, I’m from a big city,” I answered kind of quietly. There was a brief silence, and I added, “It’s far away.”

“How old are you, Asher?”

My fear and anxiety made itself known again at that question, and I started to feel lightheaded as my limbs started to shake. It’d been a long time since I’d been this nervous over anything. The idea of this being real was absolutely frightening. I didn't want to be a child, I didn't want to be a pony, and I didn't want to be a girl. I certainly didn't want to be all three at once.

“Are you okay?” she asked me, concerned.

“I’m fine,” I lied, speaking softly. “I just need some water.”

“Well, we have a water fountain in the back of the class, near the restroom. You can take a seat after that if you’d like.”

“Thank you.”

I found my way to the water fountain and took several swallows. It tasted clean and sweet, and I tried not to let the thought of how real it seemed add to my fear. I knew I could taste things in my dreams. It had happened to me before. It wasn’t out of the ordinary.

I took another sip of water and swished it around my mouth, closing my eyes. “This isn’t real,” I thought. “I’m going to be fine. This isn’t real. There’s no reasonable explanation for my current... form besides the fact that I’m having a lucid dream. I should relax and enjoy it, especially since I don’t know if I’ll ever have an experience like this again.” Those thoughts didn’t make me relax much, but they did help a tiny bit. At the very least, my legs stopped shaking. “God’s not dead. He’s surely alive,” I whispered again, adding "And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

I looked at the restroom in front of me and debated whether to use it or not. If I did, either I would wake up or I would prove this was real. However, I decided not to. I didn’t need confirmation that this wasn’t real, because I knew it wasn’t. Besides, I would wet myself in real life, and that wasn’t something I was really keen on doing.

I relaxed more, convincing myself more that this was a dream, and headed back to where I was sitting.

I sat back in the desk next to Scootaloo, watching as Miss Cheerliee looked at me with concern. The teacher was silent for several seconds after I sat back down, her eyes firmly fixated on me, before she started to speak again.

“Okay, class. Today, we’re going to start learning more about…”

“Are your parents really not ponies?” a voice behind me asked in a whisper. I looked behind me to see a white coated unicorn staring at me. Her hair, mane, was pink and purple, and she had a high pitched voice that I thought sounded like a toddler's. She had green eyes that were genuinely curious, if not a little disbelieving, of the fact I about my parents that I told Scootaloo.

“Yes,” I whispered back to her. “My parents aren’t ponies.”

“What kind of creatures are they then?”

I shook my head and quickly looked forward, not wanting to talk about it at that moment. “I might tell you later,” I said dismissively, placing my eyes on the teacher.

“She doesn’t even know what a cutie mark is!” Scootaloo whispered to the girl loudly as I tried to hide my embarrassment by the use of the word ‘she’.

“Really? That’s crazy!”

“I know! She should totally-”

“Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle,” I heard the teacher interrupt them. “Is what you’re whispering about anything you’d like to share with the whole class?”

“Um, no,” Scootaloo got out. “Sorry, Miss Cheerilee.”

With that, the two of them went silent as the woman started back on her lesson. It was largely uneventful, and the class stayed largely quiet as she taught what was a basic math lesson. Every so often she’d call on one of them to answer a question, although she never called on me. It felt like a typical school day, and was, in a word, boring, but also a tiny bit nerve-wracking. This day felt like it was going on a lot longer than it should have been for a dream, but I tried to convince myself that it was because my dream was lucid.

It felt like a couple of hours had passed since the class started before Miss Cheerilee ended the lesson. “Alright my little ponies,” she said, “it’s time for our break. I don’t think I have to remind any of you to stay near the school and be back inside in one hour, do I?” She then looked straight at me and told me, “Asher? Would you stay back here for a little while, sweetie? Everypony else, you’re free to go.”

I let out a small breath, internally cringing at the use of the word 'sweetie' as I watched everyone else practically run out of the room. Scootaloo stayed behind a little bit longer with the pony who sat behind me and called, “You should totally hang out with me and Sweetie Belle when Miss Cheerilee lets you leave!” With that, the two quickly ran outside with the rest of the students.

I watched as the teacher made her way up to my desk and looked down at me. “So how are you enjoying our classroom so far, Asher?” she asked with a kind smile.

“It’s fine,” I answered politely. “Good.” I paused for a second, adding, "You seem like a nice teacher."

“Thank you. I'm glad you think so. I saw you made a friend in Scootaloo. She told me your parents weren’t ponies. Is that true?”

Another wave of apprehensiveness shot up through me, and I closed my eyes. I’d never been so nervous in my whole life as I was in the last few hours, but I forced myself to keep calm. I opened them again shortly afterward, answering, “Yes, that’s true.”

She still had a smile on her face when I opened my eyes again, but she seemed more concerned. However, she still tried to continue to talk to me in the same cheery tone. "That's interesting. What kind of creatures are they?"

I could feel my apprehension turning into discomfort. "I'd really rather not talk about it right now," I told her.

"Oh, I'm sorry," she said sheepishly, wearing an apologetic smile. "Can I ask about how you moved here, though?"

I felt like she was trying to figure out something about me, which wasn't surprising. She was an adult, I was a child. Scootaloo probably told her about me, she saw me walk awkwardly, and I probably looked to her like I was going to be sick earlier. She'd naturally be concerned.

"Well, I'm not moving here. I'm only going to be here for a little while."

"Oh, okay. Can I ask how long?"

"I don't know. Probably only a day, then I'm going back home."

"I see. Can you tell me where home is? I mean, where is your family staying while you’re here?”

My words trailed off. “Um, well I…”

“Yes?” she asked, her smile dropping, the concern she had for me showing itself.

I don’t know why I was feeling the need to lie to her. This wasn’t real. Whether or not I told the truth wouldn’t affect anything. Still, I decided to be vague, and said, “I don’t really know.” I saw the look on her face, and quickly added, “But I’m sure I’ll be fine.”

This time, she trailed off. “I see…” She gave me a blank stare for several seconds, before continuing. “Well, if there’s anything you need while you’re here in Ponyville, please don’t be afraid to ask, okay?”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” I answered, noncommittal.

With that, she put her smile back on. “You can head outside for break now. I’m sure Scootaloo and her friend Sweetie Belle are waiting for you.”

Cheerilee watched as the filly slowly and clumsily made her way out the door. She didn’t know what to make of Asher. It was already odd that she said her parents weren’t ponies. Combine that with the trouble the filly seemed like she had with walking, along with the fact that Scootaloo told her she was lying on the ground when she found her, and she was understandably concerned. The fact that she stumbled in her words when introducing herself as though she was hiding something didn’t help matters. It was worrying, and Cheerilee couldn’t help but think that she was running away, or that she was in an accident, or that some other horrible thing was happening.

The teacher had a general grasp on what she should do right now, but had no idea how to go about it. She knew in theory. She’d been trained on what to do, but she’d never actually faced the situation in real life. She knew she had to keep the filly from becoming suspicious and from wandering off…

And she’d just sent her outside! Cheerilee quickly rushed out of the building to see that, much to her relief, Asher was standing and talking to Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle. Or rather, the two were talking to her while the filly listened quietly. The teacher sighed in relief, taking the opportunity to get the class’s attention.

“Excuse me? Everypony?” The whole class quickly put her attention on her, and she continued. “I know I said you all could go outside for recess, but I have something I need to take care of, and I really need you all to stay in the classroom.” She heard several cries of disappointment, and added, “To make up for it, we’ll make this break extra long okay? Now I need you all to head inside. Nopony is allowed to leave until I get back, understand?”

“Tell us what kind of creatures your parents are!” Scootaloo told me excitedly as the three of us sat back down inside. “We really want to know!”

Before I could say anything though, we were interrupted by a mean sounding voice. “Why are you two talking to the new girl?” another girl’s voice asked condescendingly. I turned and saw not one, but two girls marching up to me. One of them had a silver coat like mine and light grey hair with glasses, along with a necklace of pearls. The other one had a pink coat and hair that was purple and white, with a tiara worn on top of her head. They both sent a look my way that suggested they didn’t like me

“She acts weird and walks funny.” the pink one said to them. “Why would you ever want to hang out with her?”

“Hey, leave her alone, Diamond Tiara!” Scootaloo’s friend, Sweetie Belle, let out in a very squeaky voice. “She’s not doing anything to you!”

“Yes she did!” the girl, Diamond Tiara, argued. “She's making us stay inside for recess! A new pony shows up, and all of a sudden we can't be outside? It’s obviously her fault we’re in here!”

“It’s not her fault she’s new in town!”

“She talks weird, she walks weird, she had a weird name, and she said her parents aren’t even ponies. I knew you two were losers, but why would you ever hang out with someone like her?”

“Stop being a bully, Diamond! Those things aren’t her fault!”

I found Scootaloo agreeing with her that I was weird to be an interesting way to try and defend someone, but I didn’t let it get under my skin. They were kids and they were trying to defend me. Besides, even if they weren’t, this was a dream so it didn’t matter.

“She’s the one who caused us to have recess inside!” Diamond Tiara said defensively.

“She didn’t mean to! That’s no reason to bully her!”

“We don’t even know who she is!”

“You would if you would’ve asked her!”

I didn’t care about being considered weird, but even if this was a dream, I really didn’t like the idea of kids fighting because of me. I wanted to put a stop to it. “I’m sorry I made you stay inside,” I apologized, “but I’d really rather not have you guys fighting because of me.” I wanted what I said to sound assertive, but this… voice made it seem shyer than I was intending.

The girl with the tiara stared at me for several seconds before responding. “Whatever,” she humphed. “Hang out with her. It just proves what losers you both are. Come on, Silver Spoon.” With that, the two left, Scootaloo rolling her eyes as they walked away haughtily.

“I can’t stand those two!” Scootaloo quietly seethed as the three of us watched them leave. “They pick on us every day!”

“Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon are the worst!” Sweetie Belle agreed.

“You can, ah, just try ignoring them,” I offered, feeling uncomfortable about the whole situation. I quickly tried to change the subject, saying, “You never told me what a cutie mark is.”

“I still don’t understand how you don’t know what that is,” the pegasus told me, not nearly as excited or happy sounding as she was before. “I mean, even if your parents aren’t ponies, you have to have heard about it at some point, right?”

“No, I can’t say I ever have,” I told the two of them innocently.

“It’s a mark you get when you discover your special talent!” the unicorn told me.

“It’s what makes you different from everypony else!” Scootaloo added.

I thought that was interesting, and briefly wondered what my special talent would be if the dream I was having was real. I was working on my business degree, and was the manager of a restaurant, but didn’t know if those things counted as ‘special talents’. I was religious, but nowhere near qualified to be a priest or any sort of thought leader. Honestly, I could have been a bit more up-to-date with my knowledge of the Bible. I wasn’t super smart or physically gifted, and honestly struggled to come up with something that I was better than average at. However, I put that depressing thought out of my head. It didn’t matter what ‘special talent’ I might have because this wasn’t real.

“None of us have ours yet, though,” the pegasus continued. “We’re all still blank flanks.”

“Blank flanks?”

“That’s where a pony gets their cutie mark, on their flank,” Sweetie Belle said, pointing to her side, near her butt. She then gave me a puzzled expression, asking, “Have you never seen a pony with a cutie mark before?”

“I’ve never seen any other ponies before,” I told them. At least, I didn’t ever see ponies like them.

“What! Did you even live in Equestria?” I debated asking what that was, but decided to simply assume that was where this dream was taking place, and answered with a no. “What kind of pony are you?” Scootaloo asked me.

I shrugged, not quite wanting to say I wasn't a pony yet. “No offense,” the other one told me, “but Diamond Tiara was right. You really are weird.”

I shrugged again, simply saying, “I guess.”

“You never told us about your parents,” Scootaloo said.

“Yeah, tell us what your family’s like!” Sweetie Belle added.

“Well, I mean,” I started as I thought about them. “They’re pretty normal, I think.”

At least, I thought they were normal enough. I still lived with them as an only child in Delaware while I was finishing school, and thought that they were good enough parents. I loved them, and they loved me, but we disagreed on quite a lot. Normally, from my experience, it was the parents who were religious conservatives and the child who was atheist, but in my case, it was the other way around. There were very few points I could safely say we agreed on, and I mostly tried to avoid talking to them about things like that.

I contrasted well against a lot of the people I knew. If I had to label myself, I’d say that I was a “moderately religious” person. I went to church every Sunday. I was baptized and took Confirmation as a Lutheran. I prayed before every meal and celebrated major religious holidays and all that jazz. Outside of church, though, I mostly didn’t talk about my faith, and never discussed politics. I really didn’t like making people angry, and knew it was one of those things where, if it was brought up, people would argue. A little bit also had to do with the image I knew I would give off by talking about my beliefs, and the tiny bit of shame that would come with it. I knew I shouldn’t have been ashamed to discuss it, but it was the feeling I got, and I felt ashamed for feeling ashamed of talking about it. Because of that, I decided to simply avoid the feedback loop by changing the subject whenever it was brought up.

“What kind of creatures are they?” Scootaloo asked.

“Humans,” I said simply. I didn't want to say that I was a human yet, but had no issue with saying that my parents were. Not that they knew what a human was. The two of them gave me a blank stare like they didn’t understand, so I decided to elaborate.

“Um, well, start by imagining a… pony,” I explained. “Except without a tail or fur, and very tall. Oh, and they only use two legs to walk, and have hands instead of hooves. That’s basically what a human is.”

I received another blank stare from them for a few seconds before one of them asked, “And you’ve never seen another pony ever?”

“Nothing like you all, no.”

“That’s so weird!” she announced. “Were all your friends hu… hoom… uh, those things, too?”

By now, a few other students had come over and started to listen in curiously on what I told them. It once again brought back my unease, and that sneaking suspicion that this wasn’t a dream tried to work itself upon me again. I started to feel a bit nauseous from the conversation, despite being okay just a few seconds ago. I didn't know what it was, but, for some reason, I didn't like the direction this conversation was headed in.

“Are you alright?” Scootaloo asked. “You look a little sick.”

“I’m fine,” I answered. “I just- I don’t want to talk about it anymore.”

The rest of the break we had I thought was fairly boring, it being spent playing a class sized game of 'Duck Duck Goose'. Or rather, they played while I watched, seeing as I lacked any sense of coordination at that point. Everyone else besides Diamond Tiara and her friend participated, the two seeming content to talk to each other and occasionally glance at me angrily. It went on for a while before Miss Cheerilee finally returned from whatever it was she was taking care of.

"I'm sorry I was gone for so long everypony," she apologized to us. "I had something very important I needed to do. I trust that you were all well behaved while I was gone-"

"What did ya have ta do that was so important?" someone asked her curiously in a very thick country accent.

"Nothing that you need to be concerned about, Apple Bloom," the teacher answered as she made her way to the front of the room. “In any case, let’s get started on reading and writing. I’ll keep this portion of class a bit short to make sure we get out on time. If everypony could get out his and her notebook and pencil, please?”

I copied Scootaloo and used my nose to open my desk, finding nothing inside. That was to be expected though, considering I was supposed to be a new student in this dream. I looked up and watched as Miss Cheerilee used her mouth to take a notebook and pencil from her own desk and headed over to me.

“Here you are, Asher,” she told me kindly, setting the materials in front of me. “I know you told me that you’d only be here for today, but I thought I’d let you have a whole notebook just in case.”

I decided to ignore the implication of her words, knowing it would just make me nervous for no reason, especially considering this wasn’t real. Instead, I watched as she went back to the front of the class, turning and facing us to say, “We’ll keep our lesson easy and just have a writing prompt for today.”

With that, she used her mouth to pick up a piece of chalk and write something on the board, and said once she was finished, “I want you all to write a one-page story based on this sentence.”

I couldn’t help but feel my skin, my coat, prickle up and my mouth go dry at what was written on the chalkboard. Or rather, at what wasn’t written. I couldn’t make out the squiggles that were written in the place of letters. I didn’t understand what was going on; I’d watched her write numbers and math symbols on the board during the last lesson and could read them perfectly. Whatever she wrote on the board should have been just as understandable. The fact that it wasn't brought back the nervousness I'd been feeling the last few hours.

I realized that the nervousness I’d been feeling all morning could be much better described as a creeping sense of dread, and not knowing what was written on the board only added to it. I really didn't want this to be real. I didn't want to be this... animal. The thought of being an animal was extremely scary, to the point where I had to force my legs not to shake. I tried to keep myself calm, though, and pushed everything being an animal might mean out of my mind. I would deal with that when it came to that, if it came to that, which it wouldn't because this was just a dream.

“Lord, please just let this be a dream,” I whispered, nearly inaudible, closing my eyes as I did so. “Please, when the morning comes, let me wake up safely in my bed. I ask-”

“What are you whispering about?” the orange pegasus next to me interrupted curiously.

I opened my eyes again to see her staring intently at me. “Um, it’s nothing,” I told her, giving an embarrassed cough. “Can you tell me what the teacher wrote?” I asked quickly.

“You can’t read what Miss Cheerilee wrote?” I shook my head, and she started, “It says we have to start our story with-”

“Scootaloo,” the teacher called out flatly. “I hope there’s a good reason you’re whispering during class again.”

“I was just helping Asher with the assignment, Miss Cheerilee,” Scootaloo explained. “She said she couldn’t read what the board said.”

That was another thing that was really starting to bother me. I was getting intensely uncomfortable with the use of the word ‘she’ to refer to me. It made my skin prickle more, but I forced myself to ignore it as the teacher started to speak to me.

“Is that true, Asher?” she asked, seeming like she wanted to add more onto her question.

She watched me carefully as I debated my response. I had a feeling I knew what she was thinking. She didn’t look at me like I was in trouble, she looked at me like she was concerned about me. I worded my statement with the same care she watched me with, and told her, "Yes. I can’t read what the board says.”

She stared at me for a little while longer, and I felt myself blush as I looked down at my desk. “Can I get another drink of water, please?” I asked, my mouth feeling even drier.

“Yes, of course,” she told me, and waited expectantly as I went to the fountain for the second time that day. I was feeling very self-conscious as she watched me walk over and take another drink. I was hating how suspicious she was of me, and wished that she had someone else to put her attention on.

“Now,” she said as I made my way back to my seat, “For those of you in the back who can’t see what’s written, it says, ‘as I opened the door, you wouldn’t believe what I saw’. As I said, I want you all to write a one-page story based on this sentence. I’ll give you all about an hour to work on it, and then we’ll be done with class for today.”

Cheerilee tried to use lesson planning for the next day to distract herself from how inadequate of a solution she had for the filly. It wasn’t good, but it was the best she could come up with on extremely short notice. Of course, she might not have needed to do anything. Cheerilee might simply have been overreacting, and preferred to think so. However, despite what she hoped, she knew she had to prepare for the worst. For now, though, she tried to put the thought out of her head and focused on creating her lesson plan. Or, she tried at least. Thinking about tomorrow simply made her more concerned about what she should do and how she should handle Asher.

Eventually, to try and put those thoughts out of her head, the teacher got up from her desk and started to walk around the classroom to view the current progress of each student’s work. She went row by row, working her way front to back, taking a little while before getting to Asher. Unlike the other students, several of whom were already a quarter to halfway done as Cheerilee passed them by, she was sitting there staring at her pencil, her page notably blank, seeming like she had no idea what to do.

“Asher?” she asked. “Are you okay, sweetie?”

The teacher watched her flinch a tiny bit at her voice. “Yes. I’m fine,” she answered quietly without looking up. “I’m just thinking. I’m sorry.”

“You’re okay. I just hope I can see what you can come up with before you leave us.” Asher didn’t respond to that, and simply kept on staring at her pencil. The teacher waited silently next to her for a few seconds, seeing if she would start to write something. When she didn’t, Cheerilee started to speak again.

“You know, I’m sure if you wrote down the first sentence, you’d start to come up with something.”

“Um, I’m fine,” she responded shyly. “I- I’m sure I’ll think of something.” She gazed up at the teacher, and then quickly looked back down, slightly embarrassed. “I can’t write when people are watching me,” she added.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Cheerilee smiled sweetly. “I’ll leave you alone now.”

The teacher walked on to see what the next few students had written, waiting a few minutes before glancing at the filly again. She didn’t know how she should feel as she watched her use her mouth to shakily copy down what was written on the board. It honestly looked like she’d never written anything in her whole life, seeing how slowly she was going and how she glanced back up at the board every few seconds in an effort to imitate what was written.

“Of course, it could just be that she’s not feeling well,” Cheelilee thought to herself. “She does seem a little sick. Besides, you remember what you thought about Scootaloo, right? You’re probably overreacting. You’re just concerned because she’s new.”

I didn’t even bother trying to write with the hoof I now possessed, opting instead to pick up the pencil with my mouth like most of the rest of the class had done. I tried to ignore the fact that Miss Cheerilee had also picked it up with her mouth when she gave it to me as I very carefully started to copy down what she wrote on the board. It took a few minutes for me to even figure out how to press down hard enough in the notebook to get something written, and even then, they were still only just dark enough for me to see. After that, I started to copy the words, the squiggles, she wrote on the board, but I wasn’t able to get more than three-quarters of the way through the sentence before Miss Cheerilee called the class’s attention again.

“Okay, class. I know we haven’t had much time to work on our stories, but it looks like it’s almost time for lunch. I’ll have you all finish up what you were writing tomorrow. For now though, you can all put your notebooks away and I’ll let you be dismissed.”

I’d never seen a group of kids leave a school so quickly. In the blink of an eye, there were only four of us left in the building, although I let it how quickly they left be a sign that this wasn't real. Although, it was weird to know that it was only lunchtime. It felt like a whole day had gone by in the span of a few hours. I decided to be ignorant and simply say it was because of the dream I was having as well.

“You should come and eat lunch with me and Sweetie Belle, Asher!” Scootaloo told me. “Then we can tell you more about cutie marks and stuff. I mean, if your parents don’t care.”

“I don’t think they’ll care,” I started, “but I’m not sure-”

“Oh, you should totally let us meet your parents!” Sweetie Belle got out in a high pitched voice. “I wanna see what they look like!”

“If it’s not a problem, I’d really like to meet them, too,” Miss Cheerilee told me, suddenly appearing next to us. She was once again wearing a smile, one that I’d come to know well in just a few hours. It was that same kind smile that let me clearly see how concerned she was despite her attempt to hide it.

“Um, I’m not sure if you can,” I told the three of them.

“Why not?” Miss Cheerilee pressed in a voice that blended curiosity, suspicion, and worry.

I'd never been so apprehensive in my whole life as I'd been in the last few hours since I got there. I decided that I needed to verbalize the reality of the situation. “Well, uh…” I started nervously.

"Yes?" Miss Cheerilee asked, tilting her head slightly.

I swallowed and said, “You won’t be able to because this is just a dream. This isn’t real, so...”

The three looked at me with expressions that asked me if I was being serious, the teacher herself raising an eyebrow. I looked back down at my desk and quickly said, “That- that was a joke.”

“Aunt Holiday! Auntie Lofty!” Scootaloo called just as the four of us made our way out of the building. I watched her quickly run up to two… ponies and ask, “What are you two doing here?”

I watched two of them, one a pegasus and the other a normal pony, smile and make their way up to her. The latter looked like she was a bit on the heavier side, with red hair and a red-tinted, off-white colored coat. The former looked like she was a bit older than her companion and on the thinner side, with a cream-colored coat and short blue hair. I saw that she was also wearing a sweater, which I found… odd to say the least. No one else was wearing clothes, so it stuck out to me. It also made me a tiny bit self conscious at my lack of clothing, but I pushed that feeling away, telling myself that it didn’t matter because this was a dream.

“What, are we not allowed to pick our favorite niece up from school?” the one with the sweater asked with a light laugh.

“I’m your only niece,” Scootaloo laughed back. “And you don’t need to pick me up from school. You guys haven’t before.”

“Well, if you’re so certain about us not picking you up,” the pegasus continued playfully, “I guess me and Aunt Holiday can just go to Sugarcube corner by ourselves…”

“I- I just said you don’t have to pick me up,” the orange pegasus backtracked quickly. “But I mean, you can if you want.”

“Well, why don’t we head on over now then?” the other pony, Holiday I learned, responded with a kind smile in a very heavy British accent.

“Oh! Oh!” Scootaloo started excitedly. “Can my friends come, too?” she asked.

“Sure they can come,” Holiday said. She then turned to us two, telling us, “It just needs to be okay with your guardians, Sweetie Belle and…”

She took a few steps closer to me and squinted, inspecting me. “I don’t think I’ve seen you with Scootaloo,” she commented. “What’s your name, little filly?”

Something about the way she said that made an unwanted connotation pop into my head. I very much got the impression that her calling me ‘little filly’ was the equivalent of her calling me ‘little girl’, the knowledge of which made me blush hard. I looked back to the teacher for a second only to see her smile and nod at me.

“Aww, shy are we?” the woman continued as I stared at the ground, still blushing.

“That’s Asher,” Scootaloo told her, introducing me. “She’s new in Ponyville.”

“She said her parents aren’t ponies!” Sweetie Belle added.

“That’s very interesting,” she said politely, in a way that was meant to sound surprising, but gave me the impression she’d already been told this. “If your parents don’t mind, you can come and eat with us if you’d like.”

I knew I should just go along with it since this was just a dream. However, I found myself wavering at the prospect. I really didn’t like the idea of being a kid, and was very ill at ease with everyone using ‘she’ and ‘her’ to refer to me. I knew it shouldn’t have mattered since this wasn’t real, but I could feel it getting to me.

“Thank you, but I’d really rather not,” I said shyly, still looking at the ground.

“Oh, is it your parents?” she asked. “Do they need you back home?”

“It’s not them. It’s just…” I started, trailing off. I was feeling extremely paranoid. I knew she was trying to bait me into going by asking about my parents. I didn’t know why I was concerned though. It wasn’t like any of this was real. But that feeling of paranoia remained.

“If your parents don’t mind,” the teacher interjected, “then you should go with them. I think it would be fun, and you could get to spend more time with Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle.” She then gasped as if something occurred to her and said, “You know what would be really fun? If you had a sleepover with Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle! Don’t you think that would be fun, Asher? I’m sure Miss Holiday and Miss Lofty wouldn’t mind.”

I didn’t think it was possible for me to blush harder. I was hating this feeling of being treated like a little girl. I also realized immediately that setting up this situation was what Miss Cheerilee was doing while she was out “taking care of something”. I was probably giving off the vibe of some kid who was homeless or who ran away. She probably wanted to make sure I was safe, and this was her way of doing that.

Before I could protest though, Holiday spoke up. “Lofty and I think it’s a wonderful idea, Miss Cheerilee,” she said in a way that confirmed that this was a preplanned arrangement. “What do you say, Scootaloo?”

“Yeah!” she answered. “The three of us should totally have a sleepover! Right, Sweetie Belle?”

“Yeah! I’m sure my sister, Rarity, won’t mind!”

With that, the group’s eyes turned to me. I was still looking at the ground when Scootaloo spoke. “Come on! It’ll be fun! We can play games and eat snacks and tell stories…”

“Plus, we can teach you about ponies since you said you've never seen anypony else!”

“Yeah!”

I rubbed my hoof behind my leg and exhaled. “I- I don’t know,” I stammered in a whisper. I really didn’t know how I felt about having a sleepover with children, especially little girls, and the idea made me apprehensive. “I really don’t know,” I continued, embarrassed.

“I really think you should go,” Miss Cheerilee told me, looking down at me with an almost sad smile. “I think it would be a lot of fun if you girls had a sleepover together. You could eat some Ponyville food, sleep in a nice, warm bed, and then go home with your parents tomorrow.”

I did my very best to ignore my intense embarrassment at continuously being called a girl and my irrational paranoia at her clearly thinking I was homeless as I closed my eyes. “Just go along with it,” I told myself. “This dream should end soon. At the very least, the day is halfway over, so it’s just another half a day of this at most. Then you’ll wake up at home in bed and forget all about this a few minutes after that.”

“Okay,” I said quietly. “I… I’ll go.”

“Yay!” Scootaloo cheered. “This is gonna be so much fun!”

“Lord,” I silently prayed, “If it’s in your will, please let this dream end by the end of the day. Please don’t let this be real. I ask that you wake me up in my home after I fall asleep.”

The walk over to the restaurant took a little while because of how slowly I was going. The two girls urged me to go faster, enthusiastically telling me about how good the place we were going to was.

“Sugarcube corner is the best restaurant in Ponyville!” Sweetie Belle squeaked. “They have cakes and pies and cookies and ice cream-”

“It’s really good! You’re going to love it!”

“If we ever get there! You’re walking soooo slowly!”

“Um, I don’t want to trip,” I said, looking at my feet, my hooves. “I’m sorry,” I continued.

“I’m sure there’s still going to be treats for us at Sugarcube corner when we get there,” Holiday chuckled. “Let’s let Asher walk at her own pace.” She went silent for a few seconds, then continued, “Actually, why don’t you two run along ahead of us. Lofty, could you go with them?”

“Not a problem,” she told her, and I watched her give her a quick kiss before heading off with them.

I immediately grimaced and felt my cheeks go red at the sight. I felt very bothered by the site for multiple reasons. Part of it was my extreme dislike at what they were doing, and part of it was my own insecurity that their kiss brought me. However, I forced those unpleasant thoughts out of my head. First of all, I wasn’t like that. Plain and simple. Second, being gay wasn’t wrong, the actual act itself was what was wrong. And even if it wasn’t just the act itself that was wrong, this was an animal and animals don’t have to follow the ten commandments. And even if they did, this was a dream, so none of what she did actually mattered.

"How are you feeling, Asher?"

“Oh, why am I so horrible?” I thought. “It’s not like I… ugh. Unless you’re going to say something, stop judging her. You don't get to judge people. Only God gets to judge them. You just get to politely tell them that it's wrong, and it doesn't look like you're doing that. Besides, it’s not like you… ugh! Unless you can say you’re sinless, stop being judgemental. Unless you’re going to speak up and say something to her, stop thinking about it. This isn’t real, and even if it was, it’s not like you can say you’re any… ugh, I hate myself!”

“Asher, are you okay?” Holiday asked me.

I looked back up at her and saw that she had a concerned look on her face. I realized then that I had stopped walking and was clenching my teeth to their breaking point. I took a breath to try and relax myself, responding, “Yes, I’m fine. I’m sorry.”

“Well, why don’t we keep going and meet up with Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle, okay?” she told me in her thick British accent. “I’m sure they’re waiting for us at Sugarcube Corner already.”

With that, we started our slow progress once again. We were quiet for a few minutes before a building that looked a lot like a gingerbread house started to enter our view. As well, about that time was when she started to try and engage me.

“How are you liking it in Ponyville so far, Asher?” she asked. “I know Miss Cheerilee told me you just got here, but I hope you’re enjoying it so far.”

“It’s good,” I told her simply, staring at my hooves as I walked, making sure that I didn’t trip.

“That’s good. I hope Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle are treating you well. I know you girls will have a lot of fun sleeping over tonight.” She paused, and I could almost feel her smiling at me while I still looked at the ground as she continued. “Speaking of which, how are your parents? Miss Cheerilee told me that they aren’t ponies.”

“Yes, that’s true.”

“That’s interesting. Are they here for the Summer Sun Celebration?”

“I- I don’t know what that is.”

“Ah, okay. I guess it is still a bit early for that. Can I ask what kind of creatures they are?” she asked.

“Well, um, they’re tall…” I started before changing my mind. “Actually,” I told her, “I don’t want to talk about it.” I loved my parents, I really did, but I preferred not to think about them when I could because of how different we were from each other.

“Are you sure they’ll be okay with you staying over tonight?” she questioned. “I know you told us they wouldn’t care, but maybe we can talk to them just to be sure.”

“It’s- that’s fine,” I got out. “You don’t need to do that. They won’t care.” There was a brief period of silence before I chuckled nervously.

“Are you sure?” she asked. “If there’s something wrong, you can tell us.”

For a moment, I considered expanding on what I started to tell the rest of them back in the classroom, but decided against it. I didn’t need more of the crazy looks they gave me back there, and it wouldn't change anything anyway. This dream would end when it would end, and that would be that. Whether or not I told her wouldn’t affect that.

She stared silently back at me for a little while as we walked before commenting. “Well, as long as your parents aren’t concerned, then there shouldn’t be an issue.”

I didn’t want to mislead her. I really hated misleading her. I knew that she was concerned about me and that my concern about what she thought was irrational since this wasn’t real, but I was feeling paranoid anyway. I really didn’t want this to be real, and didn’t know what I would do if it was.

“You guys took forever to get here,” Scootaloo said to me, her mouth filled with brownies. “I honestly started to think that maybe you died.”

“We saved you some food though,” Sweetie Belle added.

“We didn’t know what you wanted, so we got you some muffins.”

“Chocolate chip!”

“Um, thank you,” I told the two politely as I stared at the plate of half a dozen muffins. “I don’t mean to be rude, but is there anything else?” I asked.

“What, you don’t like muffins?” Lofty asked me, sounding a bit confused.

“I do,” I explained, “but I was just… expecting something different… I’m sorry.”

“You don’t have to apologize,” she told me. “What do you want to eat?”

“Well, are there any more… lunch-type foods? I’m just not that big a fan of desserts...”

"Oh, well, they don't really serve "lunch" food here... but we can eat someplace else if you'd like," she offered.

"Oh, no, you don't need to do that," I backtracked. "Muffins are fine. Thank you though, uh, Miss Lofty."

"We'll take some if you don't want them," Scootaloo said. I heard Holiday clear her throat and saw her give the girl a look, and she continued, "If you want to share, I mean."

"Sure, you can both have one if you want," I told them. I watched them each excitedly take one, then closed my eyes and whispered an almost inaudible prayer over my food.

"Our Father in heaven, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, we come before you to thank you for the food you've provided for us to eat. Please bless this food for the nourishment of our body through your loving Son. In Christ Jesus's name we pray, amen."

I reopened my eyes to see four sets of eyes casting weird stares at me, and immediately felt very self-conscious. I'd whispered prayers in public before, and never received stares from people because of it. I was feeling very uneasy right then from their looks.

"Uhhhh... what were you doing?" Sweetie Belle asked me curiously.

For some reason, I felt myself tense up, as though I was doing something wrong. "What do you mean?" I asked back.

"You had your eyes closed and were whispering something."

"Yeah, you did that in class, too," Scootaloo

I felt very on the spot at that moment and very uncomfortable. "Well, um, I was just..."

“OH MY GOSH!” someone suddenly yelled, startling me. The next thing I knew, I was face to face with a bright pink mare with blue eyes and a very creepy smile. I fell out of my chair and onto my back in surprise at her sight.

“I’ve never seen you in Ponyville before! What’s your name? Where are you from? Do you have any friends yet? How old are you?”

On and on she went, asking another question before I even had a chance to answer the previous. Someone coming up like this would normally startle me, but with how sudden it happened, it had me frightened to the point where I almost peed myself like a little kid. Almost. I luckily wasn’t a little kid and had enough self control to not do that. As much as I was disliking this dream, I would have really disliked wetting the bed in real life. Still, though, the pink pony was freaking me out.

“Oh! I know!” she said as she hopped up and down like a rabbit, something that shouldn’t have been possible for her to do. “I should throw you a ‘Welcome to Ponyville’ surprise party! Don’t you think that’s a good idea? Huh?”

Suddenly, her face was against mine, our noses touching. She looked at me like she was waiting for an answer, and I stared back at her wide eyed at the unexpected gesture. I didn’t know who she was, but she was entirely too close for comfort.

"Uh, Pinkie?" Scootaloo said as I started to back away, speechless. "I think you're scaring her."

"I'm sorry!" The pink horse giggled. "I just get so excited to meet somepony new!" Then, she gasped again, saying, "I just got the perfect idea for the surprise party I'm going to throw for you! You're going to have so much fun! I have to get to work!" With that, she ran off, disappearing again.

“Uhhhh, what was that?” I asked, still laying on the ground, still a bit startled by what had happened.

"That was Pinkie being Pinkie," Lofty told me with a light laugh. "Meeting somepony new is like a holiday to her."

“Oh, don’t mind her,” Holiday said. “Pinkie Pie's a very nice mare. She just gets a little over-excited sometimes She does that to everypony she meets.”

“She throws a party for every new pony in Ponyville,” Scootaloo added. “She won’t let you leave without one.”

“Okay, so the filly is staying with us tonight,” Lofty said as she, Cheerilee, and Mayor Mare sat in an office in the Town Hall. “What are we going to do with her tomorrow?”

“Well,” Cheerilee started, “I was thinking that I would cancel class for my older students to try and talk to her tomorrow. I know it would be better to get to her today, but she just seems so timid and sensitive, and I don’t want to make her scared.”

“Word should be arriving soon to nearby cities with her description to see if anypony is missing her,” Mayor Mare commented. “Although I have to ask: do you really believe her when she says her parents aren’t ponies?”

“Well… I’m not sure,” the teacher answered. “It seems unlikely since she told me she’d only be here for one day and we haven’t seen any other creature here, but I’m not entirely sure. She seemed uncomfortable talking about it, and it didn’t sound to me like she was lying.”

“Not to mention, Scootaloo and her friend said they wanted to teach her about ponies,” Lofty added.

“Of course, we would have noticed creatures who aren’t ponies wandering around Ponyville, don’t you think?” Mayor Mare spoke up.

“Well, I’m not sure how truthful she’s being when she says those things. She might just not want to go back to her parents for whatever reason. Of course, all of this could just be a big misunderstanding and she could be telling the complete truth.”

“Okay, what do we do if she’s not telling the truth?”

“Well, like I said,” Cheerilee told them, “I’ll talk to her tomorrow, and we can have her stay with you, Lofty, for the time being. Actually, even if she’s being truthful, we might see if she can’t stay with you and Holiday, at least for a couple of days. There are some other things about her that have me a little bit concerned.”

“Okay, bear in mind that if she ends up staying long term, Scootaloo’s parents should be back just after the Summer Sun Celebration, so she won't be able to stay with Holiday and I much after that.”

“Oh, I’m sure that won’t be an issue,” Cheerilee told her. “There're plenty of adults in Ponyville Asher can stay with when we get to that point.”

“If we get to that point,” Mayor Mare corrected. “It’s still possible that we’re overreacting to her being new, and getting overly concerned for no reason… although I guess it is better to be overly concerned than it is to be under concerned.”

“I really hope we’re being overly concerned about her,” Cheeilee said, then silently thought, "I really hope I'm being overly concerned about her."

Everything about this situation was making me uncomfortable. I really, really, really didn’t like the idea of having a sleepover with little girls, the idea of which only being made worse by the fact that I was a little girl myself. I was almost afraid of the situation I was in, and had to force myself not to hyperventilate as I followed the group into Scootaloo’s house. I was feeling extremely nervous, and I tried to put those feelings out of my head by telling myself that this wasn’t real for what had to have been the twentieth time that day.

“Just get to the end of the day,” I thought to myself. “Once you go to sleep, you’ll wake up at home and this will be over. Just get to the end of the day.”

The house we entered into was kind of old-timey looking. With pale blue walls that had random knick-knacks hanging up on them and a sewing machine sitting on a table in what looked to be a dining room, it gave me the impression that this was an older person’s home, and was what I would have expected to find in someone’s grandmother’s house.

“Why don’t you show your friends to your room, Scoot?” Holiday told the pegasus. “Help them get situated and such before you guys get to doing whatever you’re going to do for the afternoon?”

“Okay!” the girl said excitedly. “Follow me!”

I followed the two of them up a set of stairs and into what I assumed to be Scootaloo’s room. It had pink walls and toys on the ground, which contrasted against posters of a blue pony with rainbow-colored hair and a skateboard and scooter leaning against one of the dressers. It looked to me like a crossover between a bedroom for a little girl and a preteen, and I got the feeling that she was sort of a tomboy. Taking another look around though, a concerning question quickly came to mind.

“Where are we going to sleep?” I asked.

Scootaloo laughed at that like it was the most obvious answer in the world. “On the bed, of course! Where else would you two sleep?” At that response, I felt a wave of anxiety and nauseousness wash over me as Sweetie Belle laughed along with her.

“I- I’m not sure I’m okay with that,” I said shyly as I looked down at the ground, embarrassed.

“Why? I’m pretty sure there’s enough room for both of you…”

“Plus, we can snuggle!” Sweetie Belle added. I felt another wave of anxiety come over me as I tried to respond to that suggestion.

“I- I really, really don’t want to do that,” I stammered out, blushing hard at the idea of being snuggled by her. I absolutely did not want to snuggle with them, and found myself wishing I would wake up before the time came to go to sleep. “I’d rather not sleep in the same room, honestly,” I continued.

There was a brief pause before Scootaloo asked, “Do you not like us?” The two of them looked hurt by what I said, and I tried to explain myself to them.

“Well,” I started, “I mean, I’m actually a boy, so…”

Their hurt expressions were quickly replaced by looks of confusion at that suggestion. “You’re a boy?” Scootaloo asked skeptically.

“Um, yes,” I whispered, feeling my already warm cheeks get hotter. “I’m a boy.”

Before I could stop her, I saw Sweetie Belle was getting behind me and tilting her head to look under me. “You don’t look like a colt,” she said.

“Don’t look at me!” I told her, almost yelling as I crossed my legs, completely embarrassed and slightly ashamed. “Please don’t do that!” I said as I subconsciously tucked my tail in between my legs. I’d been largely trying to ignore the fact that I was currently indecent, and she just brought it to the forefront. Right then, I’d never felt so anxious and embarrassed in my whole life.

“Don’t do what?” Sweetie Belle asked me innocently.

“Don’t… just don't... nothing. Never mind.” I got out, trying to get off the subject. “I’m not a girl, okay?”

“Then what are you? Cause you don’t look like a colt to me.”

“I’m a boy who’s-” I started to say, then suddenly stopped. I knew exactly what I was about to say and felt ashamed of myself because of it. I’m a boy who’s inside a girl’s body. If I’d been told that by someone even yesterday, I wouldn’t have taken them seriously. I wouldn’t have been mean to them or said anything, but I would have gone out of my way to make sure I wasn’t around them, and might have laughed at them behind closed doors. Internally, I would have simply said, ‘You’re a girl in a girl’s body’ and completely dismissed them. Right now though, I was cringing at myself for thinking that before.

“No, it’s not the same,” I thought. “This is different. You’re actually a boy. They’re not… You’re not actually... Oh, why am I so horrible?”

“A boy who’s what?” Scootaloo asked, curious about what I was going to tell her.

“Nothing,” I told her. “I have to go to the bathroom.”

Asher gazed into the mirror in the bathroom.

What she saw was a pony, a filly, with a bright silver coat, long golden hair, and light blue eyes. It made her think of Christmas colors, ruined only by the fact that her eyes weren’t green. Despite having no clue what the beauty standards in Equestria were, she guessed she looked nice enough. With her small size and large puppy dog eyes, she might go as far as to say she was cute. It didn’t change the fact that she absolutely hated her appearance, however.

“This is real, isn’t it?” Asher whispered as she looked herself in the eye. She couldn’t stand looking at the girl she saw. Despite being a pony, what she saw in the mirror looked distinctly feminine to her, as well as to the ponies around her. She clenched her jaw at the sight of herself, starting to tear up for the second time that day.

She closed her eyes and started to speak again. “Please don’t let this be real,” she said aloud quietly. “Please just let me wake up at home in my bed when I open my eyes.” When she did open her eyes again however, all she saw was the same silver-coated filly in the mirror.

“This isn’t real,” Asher told herself, trying to fight back the urge to start crying. “This can’t be real. There’s no way this is real.” She watched the filly in the mirror copy her shaking legs and trembling lips. Seeing the mirror copy her movements only added to the sense of dread she was already feeling.

“Why is this happening to me?” she asked no one as her tears hit the floor. “I don't want to be here. I don’t want to be a girl.” That’s what was getting to her the most. She felt like she could deal with being away from home, with being a pony, and with being a child. It was being a girl that was getting to her, and she quietly sobbed at the idea of being one for the rest of her life.

“No, stop it,” she told herself after a few moments. “This isn’t real. There’s no way for this to be real.” She used a hoof to wipe her eyes and continued to try and calm herself down. “This isn’t real,” she said. “The only way for this to be real would be for God to have put you here, and I’m pretty sure God wouldn’t do that. So this isn’t real. This is just a dream.”

Asher took a few deep breaths and slowly let them out, trying to relax herself as she rubbed her eyes again. She was really hoping the dream she was in would end soon, but decided she could settle for waiting until the end of the day for it to end. She told herself it wouldn’t be that bad. She would just go through the motions of the dream she was in, go to sleep, and completely forget about this in the morning. Everything was going to be fine.

“I really have to pee,” the filly thought as she went towards the toilet before catching herself. “Wait, I can't do that.” she said to herself. “I don’t want to pee in real life.”

That was partly true. She didn’t want to risk wetting herself in real life. But more than that, she was afraid that she would use the restroom and nothing would happen and she’d still be a filly. Despite her knowing that it was increasingly unlikely, she didn’t want to give up on the idea that this was a dream, and decided she would hold out as long as possible. She would keep telling herself that this was a dream until proven otherwise.

“I can hold out,” she told herself. “No, actually, I don’t even need to go. This is all just in my head. This isn’t real. This. Isn’t. Real.”

Asher took one last look at herself in the mirror and sighed as she made her way out of the bathroom, stumbling into Holiday as she exited.

“Oh, I’m sorry!” the mare apologized as she helped the filly back up, using her teeth to grab her by the neck. “That was my fault. I’m sorry. Are you okay?”

The filly sniffed, telling her, “I’m fine. You didn’t hurt me.”

“Are you feeling okay?” Holiday asked a bit more quietly, seeing the sadness that was painted on her face. She placed a hoof on the filly's forehead and pushed some of her hair out of her eyes, asking, “Is something bothering you?”

She sighed, answering, “I’m fine. I promise.”

“Are you feeling sick or are your hooves bothering you? You look like you’re a little unsteady when you walk.”

“I just feel a little light-headed,” Asher said. “I’m fine though.”

Holiday stared at her with a concerned expression for a little while before finally speaking. “Well,” she told her, “if there’s anything you need, you forget that you can always ask me or Miss Lofty.”

“Okay, thank you."

The second I stepped back into the room, I was tackled by Scootaloo. It wasn’t a very pleasant feeling, seeing as I still didn’t have any sense of coordination, causing my legs to get painfully tangled up under me. Not to mention, I still had to pee, and having a small child land on top of me didn’t help.

“Ha! I got you!” the pegasus asked from on top of my back. “Did I scare you?”

“Oh, that hurt…” I got out. I was slightly concerned by the pain that I felt, but I put the thought of this being real out of my head. I’d felt pain in my dreams before, so it wasn’t completely out of the ordinary.

“Oops, sorry,” Scootaloo said with an embarrassed chuckle. “I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

“Can you get off of me, please?” I asked. “My leg is stuck under me and it hurts.”

“You should tell us about your parents!” Sweetie Belle exclaimed as Scootaloo moved from on top of me. “We really want to know what kind of creatures they are!”

“I- I’m kind of not in the mood to talk about them,” I told her as I rubbed the back of my leg. There wasn’t any particular reason I didn’t want to talk about them, it was just something I wasn’t in the mood to do.

“Come on!” the girl begged. “Please? We’ve been waiting all day for you to tell us!”

“I don’t know… I’m kind of tired right now anyway…”

“How are you tired already? It’s only like two o’clock! There’s still six hours until Celestia lowers the sun!”

I made a mental note of that. Nighttime was at eight. At eight o’clock I would go to sleep and this dream would end.

“Besides,” Sweetie Belle squeaked out, “we haven’t even taught you about ponies yet!”

“Yeah!” Scootaloo added. “We still have to teach you about ponies since you don’t know!” I sighed quietly, causing Scootaloo to frown. “Is something wrong?”

“Nothing. It’s just…” I trailed off.

“Just what?”

“It’s just that I’m afraid,” I thought. “I’m afraid that this is real and that God put me here and that I’ll be stuck here forever.” However, I kept these thoughts internalized as I took a breath.

“I’m fine,” I told them dismissively, picking myself up off the ground. “I’m just feeling a little sick is all. You can teach me about ponies right now if you want to.”

“Well, okay,” Sweetie Belle said. “First-”

“No, wait!” Scootaloo interrupted. “I’ve got something that will make you feel a hundred times better and can teach you about ponies!”

“Hey! Rainbow Dash!” Scootaloo called out a while later. The three of us were standing outside under a cloud, looking up at a bright blue pony with rainbow-colored hair taking a nap. It looked like the same pony that Scootaloo had posters of in her room, and based on the excited look she had on her face, I could tell she adored this person.

I watched the pegasus yawn and stretch her legs at Scootaloo’s voice, and then suddenly shot down and scooped the girl up. I watched them fly around for a little bit, Scootaloo laughing as she rode on the pegasus’s back before she was set back down again a few seconds later.

“How’s it going, squirt?” the pony, Rainbow Dash, asked, wearing a smile on her face. “Long time, no see.”

“Hey, Rainbow Dash!” Scootaloo said to her again. “We just wanted to show you our new friend! Her name is Asher, and she’s new to Ponyville!” She then turned to me and said, “Asher, this is Rainbow Dash, the greatest pegasus in the world!”

“That’s right!” Rainbow Dash confirmed. “I’m the greatest flier in Equestria! You’re looking at a future Wonderbolt!”

“Uhh… what’s a Wonderbolt?” I asked her. I didn’t know why I felt the need to ask. I knew asking would just make them confused. But I was curious and wanted to know what it was.

While I did expect confusion, what I didn’t expect the pegasus to do was fly up and come nose to nose with me like that other pink person did. I found myself stumbling backward onto my back like last time as she stared at me, slack-jawed and wide-eyed.

“WHAT?” the blue pony yelled. “You don’t know who the Wonderbolts are?”

“I- I don’t-”

“They’re the most talented fliers in all of Equestria! Everypony knows who they are! How can you not know about them?”

She kept her nose pressed up against mine as she stared into my eyes, waiting for a response from me. Honestly, it was a bit frightening, and I could feel my heart rate pick up as she continued to stare. I didn’t know what it was about these horses, but from what I could tell, they seemed to have no sense of personal space.

“Well?” she pressed, wanting an answer.

The moment seemed to last forever as she kept her face pressed up against mine. I was feeling very intimidated by her and found myself speechless because of it. Fortunately, though, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo eventually broke the silence.

“She doesn’t know because she doesn’t know anything about ponies.”

“She doesn’t even know what a cutie mark is!”

Finally she turned away from me as she said, “But how can she not know who the Wonderbolts are? Everypony knows who they are!”

From what I could tell based on appearances, she looked like an adult. However, the way she acted to me seemed much more like a child, or maybe someone in their early teens. She didn’t seem very mature from what I could tell.

“Well, she told us her parents aren’t ponies, so that’s probably why.”

The blue pegasus turned back to face me again, thankfully not nose to nose, and said, “So your parents aren’t ponies, huh? Then what kind of creatures are they?”

“Um, they- they’re hu-humans…” I stammered out nervously.

“Oh yeah?” she asked suspiciously. “And what exactly is a ‘human’?” I didn’t know why, but something about the way she asked me that was making me apprehensive.

“Uh, they’re r-really tall and have two legs and… you’re really freaking me out.”

“Why?” she asked, suddenly coming nose to nose with me again. “Is it because you’re secretly a spy trying to overthrow Equestria?”

“...what?” I got out.

“Maybe we should report you to Princess Celestia and have you interrogated. What do you think of that, spy?”

She stared me dead in the eye for a few more seconds, seeming completely serious, before she fell over as she burst out laughing.

“I got you good, didn’t I?” she laughed. “You really believed me, didn’t you?”

“Not really,” I thought as I stayed on my back, looking up at her. “You were just starting to make me claustrophobic.” This little joke she tried to pull on me just reaffirmed in my mind that, despite being as big as Miss Cheerilee, she was probably closer in age to Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle than she was to the teacher. Or, at the very least, she was a very immature adult.

“Listen, kid,” she started, “How you don't know who the Wonderbolts are, I don't know. But I can teach you all about them. I know everything there is to know. The history, their current members-”

“Why don’t you show her some of your tricks, Rainbow?” Scootaloo interrupted. I could tell that if she hadn’t, she would have started prattling off about them, whoever they were.

"You can show her some of the moves the Wonderbolts do!" I could tell she mostly wanted to watch the pegasus do tricks, but I didn't mind much and decided to go along with it.

“Okay, watch this!”

Asher sat up and watched as Rainbow Dash did… something. The filly couldn’t quite tell. She thought it looked quite a bit like a stunt plane routine, with many sharp turns and corkscrews and loop de loops. It looked impressive enough and seemed difficult to do, but it wasn’t really her thing. Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle seemed awed and looked like they were enjoying it, but the best she could say was that it was interesting.

After about a minute, the pegasus came to a stop in front of her and asked, “So what do you think? Impressed yet?”

“Uh, yeah,” Asher told her politely, trying not to be rude. “It was good.”

“What, you didn’t like it?”

“No, I liked it,” she said defensively. “It’s just… not really… it’s just not really what I’m into. But it was good.”

“Oh yeah?” the pegasus started, seeming up to the challenge of impressing the filly. “Tough to impress, huh? Well, check this out!”

“She’s sure to like this!” the pegasus thought as she did another short routine. “It always impresses Scootaloo!”

“You’re amazing, Rainbow Dash!” Scootaloo called happily. “You look awesome!”

The mare looked down to see both Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo enjoying her moves, but was surprised to see the silver-coated filly watching with a blank, almost bored, expression on her face. Still nothing?” the mare asked herself, confused. “How can she not be impressed by this? What if I…? Hmmmmm...”

All of a sudden, Asher found herself on Rainbow Dash’s back, soaring through the sky at who knew how high. Her eyes went wide as she immediately tensed up in fear. She absolutely hated heights, and found her forelegs wrapping tightly around Rainbow Dash’s neck.

“Pretty cool, huh?” the rainbow maned pony asked.

“I- I- I- I don’t-”

“If you like that, watch this!”

The filly’s grip on the pegasus’s neck tightened further as the two flew higher. Asher found herself wishing that she had fingers so she could latch on further. She shut her eyes and clenched her teeth in an effort to keep herself from being so scared.

“What do you think, kid?” Rainbow Dash asked as she looked back at her. What she saw though wasn’t what she expected. The filly on her back looked terrified, shaking and holding back tears as she breathed deeply to try and keep herself calm.

“Please put me down,” she asked, her voice cracking.

“Whoa, I’m sorry!” the mare apologized as she quickly descended. The filly gratefully stepped off her back and lay down in the grass as the pegasus rubbed a hoof behind her head.

“I’m sorry,” Rainbow Dash chuckled nervously. “We might have gone a little bit high there. I’m sorry… uh, are you alright?”

“I’m fine,” Asher said breathlessly, her eyes still closed. “I just… give me a few minutes to lay down.”

“Uh, you’re not mad at me are you?”

“No, just…” She shivered before she continued, “Please don’t do that again. I literally almost wet myself.”

“I, uh, I wasn’t intentionally trying to scare you. I promise.”

“I know. It’s fine," the filly said in between breaths.

Rainbow Dash frowned as she started to think silently to herself. “Crap, she’s gonna think I was trying to bully her because of this and that joke I tried to play earlier. I don’t want her to think I’m a bully… Ugh!”

“Uh… I think I should go…” Rainbow Dash trailed off. “But I promise I’ll try and make it up to you. I really didn’t mean to scare you like that.” She waited a second for Asher to respond, but only watched the filly sigh without saying anything. With that, she flew off a few moments later.

“Well that was a big waste of time,” Sweetie Belle said. “Rainbow Dash didn’t even get to teach her anything.”

“Yeah, and she wasn’t even impressed by her moves, and Rainbow Dash can impress anypony!”

“Is it okay if we went back now?” Asher whispered as she sniffed and slowly stood up. “It looks like the sun’s going down.”

Both Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle looked up to see Celestia quickly lowering the sun. “That’s weird. I didn’t think we were out here for that long. Maybe Princess Celestia’s lowering it early today.”

“Maybe. But I guess we should go back now. We don’t want my aunts to worry about us.”

“Stop shaking,” I told myself as the three of us walked back home. “It’s over now. Just breathe.”

“Please don’t be mad at Rainbow Dash,” Scootaloo told me as we walked. “She wouldn’t have done it if she knew you were scared. I promise.”

I sighed. “I’m fine. I’m just tired. I just want to go home and go to sleep,” silently adding, “and not pee my pants.” It had been hours since I first had water back in the classroom, and while I’d been effectively ignoring the sensation, right now, it was starting to become painful.

“But what about our sleepover?” Sweetie Belle protested. “We haven’t even taught you about ponies yet!”

“I learned that you ponies don’t have any concept of personal space,” I thought, but kept that thought internalized. Instead, I said, “I’ll still have a sleepover, I just don’t know how much I’m gonna learn tonight. I’d really rather just go to sleep.”

“Oh, okay,” the unicorn responded with disappointment in her voice. “You’ll be here tomorrow though, right?”

“Um, probably not. I’m sorry.”

There was a period of silence as we made our way back up to and inside of Scootaloo’s house. We entered to see Holiday and Lofty sitting at the table, the former sewing and the latter reading a book. There was also the smell of food coming from the kitchen that made my stomach grumble. I’d only had muffins to eat all day, and I was hungry.

“Huh,” Scootaloo said thoughtfully. “I thought Pinkie would've had your party all set to go already.”

“My party?”

“Yeah. She usually throws it the same day she meets somepony new… I wonder what’s holding her up.”

I’d already forgotten that detail of my encounter with the pony, but forced myself not to be worried. I wasn’t going to let myself get worked up over what was more than likely nothing, so I instead wondered what was for dinner. However, before I could ask, Holiday spoke up.

“I’m glad you girls are back,” she told us. “Supper’s just about ready now. We’re having lasagna tonight.”

“Lasagna,” I thought as the three of us sat at the table. “My favorite. Might as well end this dream on a positive note.”

“So Asher,” Holiday started a few minutes later as she served us up, “can I ask what your parents are like? What are their names?”

“Well,” I started to respond as I picked up the fork, “their names are- oh my gosh!”

The four of them watched as the fork dropped from Asher’s grasp, the filly staring at her hoof with a look of shock on her face.

“What is it, Asher?” Lofty asked with concern as her wife frowned.

“Drat,” Holiday thought. “She was so close to telling us their names.”

“I- I-” the filly stuttered. “How did I do that?”

“Do what now?”

“How did I pick up the fork?” she asked, still staring at her hoof and sounding completely flabbergasted. “I’m not supposed to be able to do that!”

“What do you mean?” Sweetie Belle asked, talking with a mouth full of veggie lasagna.

“I’m a horse! This is a hoof! Hooves aren’t supposed to be able to pick up things!”

“Uhhhh…” Holiday started, staring uncomprehendingly at Asher, knowing that what she said didn’t make much sense. “Well, I guess most ponies can’t, but um... From what I understand, most Earth Ponies can use their hooves to grip things, at least to some extent.” She picked up her fork to demonstrate and said, “See?” She paused for a moment and asked, “Do you not think you should be able to?”

The filly ignored her and reached for the fork again, this time unable to move it at all. “It’s not working,” she said aloud. She tried a few more times to pick it up, but without success.

“That’s dream logic,” she told herself silently as she closed her eyes. “The second I notice I’m doing something, I’m unable to do it. That’s one hundred percent dream logic.”

“Are you okay?” Holiday asked. “I know you said you were feeling a little sick earlier. Maybe we should get your parents.”

“No I’m fine,” Asher said with a sigh. “I’m just really tired. I don’t know why I got so nervous."

One more time, the filly tried to pick up the fork next to her. When she was unable, however, she decided to copy Scootaloo’s and Sweetie Belle’s method of simply using their mouths to eat.

“I’m concerned about her,” Lofty mouthed to Holiday while the fillies started to talk about something.

“I know,” the mare mouthed back. “So am I.”

“Do you think something happened to her?” Lofty asked, whispering now.

“I don’t know,” she answered. “I really hope not. She just seems so… I don’t know.”

Before the five of them knew it, dinner was over and the three fillies were upstairs in Scootaloo’s room talking to each other. They were sitting on the floor in a circle as Scootaloo finished telling a story about watching Rainbow Dash.

“Anyway,” the pegasus started after she finished up, “do you wanna tell a story next, Asher?”

“I’m fine,” Asher said as she crossed her legs uncomfortably. She’d been awake all day, and despite her not really having all that much to drink, her bladder was starting to become painful.

“I’d really rather go to sleep now, honestly,” she continued.

“But it’s not even late!” Sweetie Belle protested. “We could read a book or play a game- and you haven’t even learned anything about ponies or told us about your parents!”

“I know,” she told them, “but I’m really tired, and really want to go to sleep. I’m sorry. I’ll see if I can do all those things tomorrow morning, okay?”

She really hated lying, but she figured that it wouldn't matter since she wouldn't see them tomorrow, or probably ever again after she woke up.

“Well…” the unicorn trailed off, “okay…”

“Me and Sweetie Belle are gonna stay up since it’s only nine o’clock. We’ll be quiet though, so you can go to sleep.”

“Okay,” Asher yawned as she climbed up onto the bed. “That’s fine.”

“Go to sleep,” I told myself as I kept my eyes closed. “Go. To. Sleep.”

I was still awake a few hours after I crawled into bed. By this time, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle were asleep next to me, both of them snoring loudly as I lay at the edge of the bed to avoid being so close to them. I was having trouble falling asleep because of how apprehensive I was. I was concerned that I would go to sleep and wake back up here the next day, and I almost didn't want to fall asleep because of it.

Eventually, though, I was able to drift off, and found myself waking up in my own bed. I breathed a sigh of relief at the familiar sight, glad that that dream was finally over.

“Oh, thank you, Lord,” I whispered. “Thank you for letting me wake up. Oh, that was an awful dream… I have to use the bathroom."

“Asher? Are you okay?”

“Ugh,” Asher got out as she groggily opened an eye. “What- what the heck is this?” She looked around the room with a confused expression as something warm and wet touched her.

“What the heck is going on?” she asked the mare holding her before going wide-eyed at the realization a few seconds later. “Wait, no. No, no, no, no, no. This- this- this isn’t real! This can’t be happening to me!”

“Hey, you’re okay,” Holiday told the filly. “You’re okay. Everything’s going to be fine.”

“I- I- I’m not- supposed to b-be here…” she got out as she started to gasp for air. "I went through the whole day! I'm not..."

“Huh? Asher? Why are you awake?” Scootaloo asked, being woken up herself by the noise. “Wait, did you wet the bed?”

The filly was shaking and breathing hard, on the edge of hyperventilating. Despite all day knowing in the back of her mind that this was more than likely real, she nonetheless found herself shocked that she was still in Equestria. More than that, though, she was afraid of everything that being in Equestria might entail.

“You’re going to be alright, Asher,” Holiday said in a comforting tone as she stroked the filly’s mane. “Everything’s going to be fine.”

“I- I… this…” she started to say before fainting and falling off the bed.

The sound of hooves and voices drifted into Sweetie Belle’s sleep. She heard a thud and a pony yelling, followed by a grunt and the sound of hooves running away. A few moments later, she heard more yelling, this time in the distance, then silence as running hooves faded away. She considered waking up for a second, but decided against it, at least until she felt something.

“Uh, what- what is that?” Sweetie Belle asked sleepily, rubbing her eyes. She sniffed, starting, “Is that- did you wet the bed, Scootaloo?”

“No,” Scootaloo answered with a yawn. “I think Asher did, and now Aunt Holiday is probably helping her get cleaned up.”

“Oh. I guess that’s why she didn’t want to sleep in the bed with us earlier.”

“Yeah…” Scootaloo paused, rubbing her eyes, then continued, “I think she fell off the bed and hit her head, too.”

“Is she okay?”

“I don’t know.”

“Girls?” a voice asked as a mare entered the still dark room. “Are you awake?”

“Yeah,” Scootaloo answered, rubbing her eyes again. “Asher wet the bed, and I think she hit her head.”

“That's what Aunt Holiday told me. She's with her now taking her to the hospital.”

“Wait, really? Is she okay?”

“I think she’ll be okay, but we just want to make sure.”

“Oh, okay.”

There was a silence building as Lofty considered how to start what she wanted to say next. While she did know that it wasn't going to be permanent, she didn't know how this was going to work exactly yet. Still, though, she felt like she should mention it to her now so she wasn't caught off guard later.

“How would you feel, Scootaloo,” she started, “if Asher stayed with us for a little while?”

“Wait, really?” Scooatloo asked, her eyes widening. “Yes!”

“Now it’s not a guarantee, it’s just a possibility. Aunt Holiday and I will talk to you more about it tomorrow... or I guess today, seeing as it's almost waking up time as it is."

“Yay! Asher gets to stay in Ponyville!” Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle exclaimed excitedly at the same time.

“So just to be clear, we said that, while sleeping over at your house, she wet the bed, woke up confused and disoriented, and then fainted and hit her head falling on the ground?” Redheart asked. “Is that correct?”

“Yes, that’s right,” Holiday answered.

“And you were in the room when this happened?”

“Yes I was.”

The nurse wrote down her words, squinting as she did so. “Where are her parents?” she asked.

“We don’t know,” Cheerilee broke in, watching the conversation between them take place. “She claims they aren’t ponies, and from what one of my students told me, she was found lying on the ground just before sunrise yesterday.” She paused, then added, “Mayor Mare and I decided that it would be best for her to stay with Lofty and Holiday for the time being.”

The three of them were talking softly next to Asher as she lay in a hospital bed. It was early morning, the sun expected to be risen up in the sky in just a couple of hours, when Holiday brought the filly in. On the way over, she stopped by to get Cheerilee, who was normally awake at this time. From there, they headed over to Ponyville General, and were now talking to nurse Redheart about the filly.

“I see…” the nurse trailed off as she cast a glance at Asher. She was silent for a second as she wrote, then continued, “In any case, from what you’re telling me, it sounds like she fell over from exhaustion as soon as she woke up and hit her head that way.”

“Are you sure?” Holiday asked with concern. “What if it’s something else? She told me yesterday that she was feeling sick.”

“She told me the same thing during class, too,” Cheerilee added. “She walked weirdly, almost with a limp, and honestly seemed confused and anxious of everything around her. I- I’m honestly concerned she doesn’t even know how to read. I think she might have lied about her name, too. She said it was Asher, but it sounded to me like she was going to say something different.”

Redheart did think it was a bit peculiar what they were saying, but decided not to comment on it. "I understand," she told them. "When she wakes up, I’ll make sure to speak to her about all of that. I’ll be back in a few minutes to check more on her.”

Bright lights and the sound of voices forced me awake.

I could feel the sensation of someone’s hand in my hair as I cracked an eye open. Bright lights and white walls filled my vision, completely unlike the home I was used to. There was a dresser and a computer monitor and a curtain covered in flowers that was meant to separate different areas of the place I was in. It was a very bizarre sight, and I couldn’t immediately tell where I was.

“Oh, my head hurts,” I thought as I looked down at my silver-coated hooves. “Was I in an accident? I don’t remember getting hurt…”

I must have made a noise, a sound of discomfort, because the person whose hand was in my hair said something to me.

“Hey, it’s okay,” a woman whispered in a voice I recognized, but couldn’t immediately place. “It’s okay,” she said. “Just stay still. You’re gonna be okay.”

I continued to stare at my appendages, trying to understand what I was looking at. They seemed incredibly familiar and out of place at the same time, and for a second I couldn’t quite figure out why. They seemed normal, normal enough for hooves anyway, and had a nice bright color that I quite liked.

“Wait, hooves?” I finally realized. “Why do I have hooves? What is going on?”

I turned my head to look up and saw two horses that I knew I recognized, one with a red-tinted coat and hair that reminded me of fire, the other with a pinkish white mane and a dark magenta colored coat. The sight of them threw me completely off, and I struggled to make sense of what I was seeing.

“Miss Holiday and Miss Cheerilee?” I thought. “What are they doing here? What is going on?”

All of a sudden, it clicked. This was the dream I had. The dream that turned out to be real. I remembered the entire previous day. My appearance, meeting those two girls, the school day, going to sleep… I was supposed to wake up at home. This was supposed to have been over. And yet I was still here.

“What am I still doing here?” I fearfully thought to myself. “I’m not supposed to be here. God, why is this happening to me? What is going on?”

I tried my very best not to start freaking out right then, but I could already feel my muscles tense up and my breathing become faster. For the second or third time in less than a day, I could feel tears form as my teeth chattered at the prospect of being here and what it all meant, but I tried to force myself to stay calm. However, I knew I wasn’t doing a very good job by the way Holiday talked to me.

“Hey, it’s okay,” she told me, Cheerilee gazing sympathetically at me as Holiday wrapped me in a hug. “The nurse is going to be back here really soon. I promise.”

“I’m not supposed to be here…” I whispered shakily, looking back down at my hooves tearfully. “I need to go home…”

I watched the silver legs in front of me shake as my breathing continued to get faster. I could feel my heart beating quicker and harder and my chest starting to hurt as I looked around the small area, hoping something would prove that I wasn't actually here. Suddenly though, my body was turned so that I was facing someone.

“Look at me, Asher,” Cheerilee asserted forcefully as she stared me in the eye. She put a hoof on one of mine and continued, “It’s going to be okay. I know you don’t feel okay right now, but you’re going to be okay.”

“I- I…” I closed my eyes and put a hoof on my chest. “Oh, I feel like I’m having a heart attack.”

“I’ll go get the nurse,” Holiday said, getting up as Cheerilee continued to stare into my eyes, putting a hoof in my hair.

“I want you to take some slow, deep breaths, okay?” the teacher told me, much softer this time. I tried to follow her directions, but it was difficult to fight the panicky feeling welling up inside me. Nevertheless, I found myself very, very slowly started to calm down as I felt her hoof stroke my mane in a relaxing sort of motion. It seemed like she knew what she was doing, which wasn't that surprising to me, seeing as she was a school teacher.

"I know you might be scared right now, but you're going to be okay."

I absolutely hated this feeling I had, this feeling that I was trapped here no matter what. I didn’t want to be this… animal! I was the wrong age, the wrong sex, the wrong species, and in the wrong world, and it absolutely terrified me. However, before I could start to get worked up again, I watched as someone else entered the room.

“Look who’s awake!” Redheart said with a smile as she entered. She immediately saw the look on the filly’s face as she did so, and approached softly, Holiday following behind her. “How are you feeling?” the mare asked.

The silver-coated filly sniffed. “I’m not supposed to be here,” she got out. She knew it was childlike, but at that point, she couldn’t help it. She felt like everything around her was crumbling, and she was just barely hanging on.

“I want to go home,” she continued.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Redheart replied sympathetically. “I promise we’ll try to get you home. But first, I’d like to give you a checkup and talk to you privately. Is that okay?”

“I guess…” she answered quietly, Cheerilee and Holiday taking this as their cue to exit the curtained off area.

“Is it okay if I just started by asking what your name is?”

“A-a-ashley…” the filly sniffed out, then realized what she said and quickly tried to take it back. “I mean, I’m sorry. It’s- it’s Asher.”

“Hey, I think Ashley is a very nice name,” she told her, almost whispering as she used a hoof to move some hair from in front of the filly’s eyes. “Is it okay if I called you that?” she asked.

“I- I don't… I… I guess,” she got out, keeping herself composed enough to avoid crying.

“Can I ask what your parents' names are, Ashley?”

“Garnet and Opal…”

“Garnet and Opal,” Redheart repeated as she wrote the names down. “How old are you, Ashley?”

She didn’t immediately answer, instead taking a second to take a deep breath as she felt herself becoming anxious. She knew exactly what would happen when she answered her question. She knew it would seem utterly ridiculous to the nurse, and knew that if she was on the other side, it would seem that way to her, too.

“You’re not going to believe me…” she said quietly.

“Why wouldn’t I believe you?”

The filly paused for a moment, then sniffed and said, “Because I’m almost twenty-five…”

“Oh, uh, okay…” the nurse trailed off, unsure how to react. “That’s, uh…”

“You don’t believe me…”

“Hey, now,” she tried to tell her. “I never said I don’t believe you-”

“But I know you don't because this isn’t supposed to be happening to me,” the filly got out. “All of this, it’s… it’s not supposed to be happening to me. I’m not supposed to be here… Oh, Lord, why are you letting this happen to me? This shouldn’t be happening!”

“Hey, hey now,” Redheart started as she watched the filly start go get herself worked up. “It’s okay. It’s going to be okay.”

“It’s not going to be okay…” she gasped. “This shouldn’t be happening…”

“It’s going to be okay,” the mare asserted, putting a hoof around her and rubbing her shoulder. “You’re going to be okay, Ashley.”

“Please don’t call me that,” Asher choked out, once again fighting back tears. “I really don’t want to be called that. I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay. You don’t need to be sorry. I’ll call you Asher if that’s what you want.”

Asher used her hooves to wipe her eyes. “I’m too old to be acting like this. I’m sorry."

“You don’t need to be sorry. I should be sorry for making you uncomfortable.”

Asher sniffed. “I don’t normally get upset by the name Ashley,” she said. "It’s just… it’s just... everything! So much of everything right now!”

"I promise, it's going to be okay," she said as she leaned down to look at her head. “Why don't we start that check-up now, hmm? Do you hear ringing in your ears or see double?”

“No…”

“That’s good. Do you feel light headed or nauseous at all?” The filly shook her head, immediately regretting it as she did so. “I don't think you're going to want to shake your head right now, Ashley- I mean, Asher. Do you remember what happened when you woke up?”

“This morning or yesterday?” Asher asked, her voice cracking a bit.

“Why don’t we start with this morning, when you were in Miss Holiday’s house.”

The filly blushed slightly, saying, “I woke up because I peed, then I passed out again and hit my head.”

“Oh, that must’ve hurt. Were you scared?”

I knew exactly where this was going, and I wanted to put an end to it before it began. I closed my eyes and took a few breaths before answering her.

“I was afraid because I’m not supposed to be here. I thought I would be back home in my normal body when I woke up, and I wasn’t, and… and I want to go home.”

I couldn’t help but add that to the end. I’d never been homesick before, but at that moment, I was feeling an absolutely soul-crushing wave of homesickness, one that made me just want to ball up and cry, and extreme anxiety at the thought that I would be trapped here forever.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” the nurse told me sympathetically. “I promise, we’ll do everything we can to get you home. But can I ask what you mean when you say you thought you would be back in your “normal body”?

“I mean I’m not a pony,” I told her, almost as a matter of fact.

“You’re not a pony?” she asked, raising an eyebrow. I shook my head, and despite the fact that I knew she didn’t believe me, she continued on. “That’s interesting, because you sure look like a pony to me."

"I'm not," I managed to say in a small voice.

She was silent for a second, probably debating whether or not I was lying, crazy, or had a concussion, before she continued. "Well, in any case, it looks like you hit your head really hard when you fell, hard enough to leave a bruise… do you know when your last checkup was, Asher?”

“No,” I told her honestly.

“Well, in that case, I think we’ll give you a full checkup. Can you open your mouth for me, please?”

“Oh my…” Redheart said quietly as she looked into my mouth. I gave her a concerned look as she asked me, “Do you eat meat, Asher?”

“Um, yes… I mean, sometimes,” I answered honestly, almost whispering. I watched her cringe at my answer, and couldn’t help but add, “I’m sorry.”

“Oh, you don’t- you don’t… need to be sorry…” she got out as she continued to look around my mouth. “It’s just, uh, most ponies…”

“They don’t eat meat,” I finished for her. “I know.”

“Not that they can’t eat meat,” she said quickly. “It’s just, um… eating meat is, uh… well…” I must have looked upset because she tried to change the subject. “Why don’t we move on?” she offered. “Miss Cheerilee said that you’re having trouble walking. Is that true?”

“A little bit, yes.”

“Well let’s have a look at your legs and hooves then,” she said as she bent down to feel them with her own hooves. “Does anything hurt?” she asked as she looked them over.

“No.”

“What if I bend them like this? Does this hurt?” I shook my head, and immediately regretted it as she continued, “I want you to try and grip my hooves as hard as you can, okay?”

“Okay…”

She placed her hooves on top of mine, and I tried to do… something. I didn’t know what. But even as I tried, I could tell nothing was happening from the look she was giving me.

“Are you having trouble, sweetie?” she asked.

I ignored my discomfort at the word ‘sweetie’ as I responded, “I don’t know how to do it.”

Her look of concern changed to one of shock. “You can’t use your hooves?” she asked, surprised.

“I don’t know. I mean, I was able to pick something up yesterday, a fork, but once I noticed I was doing it, it fell.”

“That’s… that’s strange. How long have you been having trouble holding things?”

I felt myself blush at her question as I quietly answered, “Since I became a pony.”

“When you became a pony?” she asked curiously as she raised an eyebrow while continuing to examine me, matching the quietness of my voice. “Were you not a pony before?”

“No,” I managed to say with a sigh. "I shouldn't be one now."

“You said before that you weren’t a pony,” she started as she stopped what she was doing to look me in the eye. “Can I ask when you became one?”

“Yesterday morning…”

“I see…” she trailed off. “Can I ask what happened when you became a pony?”

“Well, I… I don’t really remember. I do remember waking up on the ground, and then I was a pony.”

“That must’ve been very scary for you.”

“It was terrifying,” I admitted. “It’s making me nervous now.”

"You don’t need to be scared of us,” she tried to tell me as she put a hoof on my shoulder. “I promise we won’t hurt you here.”

Once again, I could tell what route this conversation was taking and what conclusions she was drawing from this, and wanted to put a stop to it immediately.

“I just- I want to make sure you aren’t getting the wrong idea,” I told her. “I wasn’t, like, sexually abused or anything. I really wasn’t physically a pony before yesterday.”

“I understand,” she responded in a manner that was supposed to be reassuring, but only told me she didn’t believe me. “In any case,” she continued as she quickly got out a stethoscope, “why don’t we keep going? Can you sit up and breathe in deep for me?”

I followed her instructions and took deep breaths so she could listen to my lungs. While breathing didn’t make me feel better about the situation I was in, it did help me relax a little bit more. It was just a little bit, but it was certainly better than nothing.

“Your lungs sound fine. Now I’m going to listen to your tummy here and make sure it sounds good, too. If you could lay back down, please?”

“Okay,” I managed to say with a little less of the nervousness I spoke with before. As she listened, she tried to engage me somewhat.

“Do you like it in Ponyville so far?” she asked.

“Yes, it’s nice,” I answered simply.

“That’s good. Have you made any friends yet?”

For some reason, I felt embarrassed, and blushed as I answered her. “I think so, um… Scootaloo. Oh, and Sweetie Belle.”

“Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle, huh? I know both of those fillies. Has Scootaloo showed you any of her tricks yet?”

“Tricks?”

“Yeah. Scootaloo is really good with that scooter of hers. You should ask her to show you some of her tricks later.” She paused for a second after that, then continued, “Okay, Asher, I’m just going to take a quick look to make sure everything looks alright down there, okay?”

“Okay…”

Even as I tried to stay relaxed, I couldn’t help but tense up as she examined me. This whole situation was just absolutely killing me. Even as I tried to ignore it right then, I couldn’t get it out of my head that I wasn’t supposed to be there, I wasn’t supposed to be a pony, and I certainly wasn’t supposed to be a girl.

“Lord,” I thought as I clenched my jaw, “I ask for your strength and your guidance in these moments. Let me have the courage to face this situation and faith in whatever your will is. Please let me… I don’t know. Let me… let me... I don’t know.”

“Just relax for me, sweetie.”

"Oh, Lord, why is this happening to me?"

It was hard to get relaxed again, especially with her calling me sweetie. As hard as I tried, I couldn’t help but start to breathe faster. It wasn’t her examining me that was getting to me, it was what she was examining. I wasn’t supposed to be a girl. I wasn’t supposed to be a child. I wasn’t supposed to be a pony. I wasn’t supposed to be… here!

I closed my eyes. I knew that being nervous and panicky wasn’t going to help me change anything, but even if I wasn’t nervous, I had absolutely no idea what I was supposed to do. I had no idea how to change anything. I was stuck in this… animal’s body, and all I could do was go along with it. It was impossible to force the fact out of my head because I was living it every second, and it was absolutely killing me.

Asher couldn’t help but start to sniffle again. She knew how Nurse Redheart would view her tears at that exact moment, and tried to stop herself from getting teary eyed, but couldn’t. Everything about her current predicament was getting to her, and she was lucky that she hadn't simply broken down completely in the past day of being in Ponyville.

“Hey, it’s okay,” Nurse Redheart said, the filly suddenly feeling her hoof in her mane. “It’s okay. I promise I won’t hurt you. Nopony is going to hurt you…”

“I… oh, I can’t do this…” Asher got out.

“You’re okay,” the nurse continued, gently stroking her mane. “Nopony will hurt you. It’s okay.”

“It’s not going to be okay!” she got out. “I’m not supposed to be here! I’m not supposed to be a pony! I’m a human being! Not this… ugh!” She put her hooves on her eyes and started to breathe faster, trying to keep herself from crying. She hated the frustration and anxiety and fear that she felt, and hated that, as far as she knew so far, those feelings would last forever.

“God, why is this happening to me?” she asked aloud, breathless.

“It’s going to be okay,” the nurse started again in a comforting way, her voice both quiet and firm. "You don't need to be scared."

"I- I c-can't help it…"

“Just calm down and tell me what’s wrong, okay? It's going to be alright.”

“I’m trying,” she sniffled out. “I’m trying to stay calm. I r-really am. It’s just- it’s hard. I’ve never been so terrified in my whole life...”

“You don’t have to be scared. It’s going to be okay. Just take some deep breaths and tell me what’s going on, okay? Everything’s going to be fine.”

There was a pause as the filly took a few moments to breathe, then she said, “I’m not supposed to be here. I’m supposed to be an adult human male, not this… horse girl!” Asher hiccuped as she finished, choking back tears and forcing herself not to cry.

“Can you tell me what you mean?” RedHeart asked kindly.

“I mean I’m not a girl!” she answered, exasperated. “I’m supposed to be a boy, I’m supposed to be a human, and I’m supposed to be an adult!”

Redheart squinted at her, trying to process what she said. “Um… how long have you… felt like that?” she asked carefully.

“The last day,” she sniffed out bitterly, breathing slowly to stay calm. “Since I got here.”

“The last day? Can you tell me a little about where you’re from?” The nurse was trying to distract her from being upset, and it seemed to be working from what she could tell. Not only that, but she was also curious to see exactly what Asher would say about her life, seeing as she already claimed not to be a filly.

She gave another sniffle as she calmed down a little bit more, quietly answering, “I'm from Delaware…”

“Delamare? What’s it like there?”

“It’s small and flat and by the ocean…” She swallowed, continuing, “There’s not that many people there, and I live in a city called Wilmington…”

“That sounds like a very nice place. How long have you lived there?”

“Since I was four. Me and- my parents and I lived with my great grandparents until I was ten. I’m going to move out after I finish my degree this year. I mean, I was...” She hiccuped at the end of her sentence, working to keep herself calm.

“Can I ask what your parents do?”

“My mom is unemployed, and my dad is a mechanic.”

Despite her interest in the filly’s mother being unemployed, the nurse asked the obvious question. “You're dad's a mechanic? What kinds of things does your dad fix?”

“Cars,” she answered, which prompted a weird expression and raised eyebrow from Redheart. “They- they’re machines that can go places really fast. Um, I- I guess it’s like a scooter, but faster. Um, and you need a license to drive them”

“That’s interesting. Do ponies use ‘cars’ to get around often?”

“Yes, but, um, not ponies. There aren’t any ponies where I’m from.”

“Are you the only pony where you live?”

“I- well, I’m not a pony either…”

“I see…”

Asher sighed, rubbing her eyes. “You don’t believe me,” she spoke quietly.

“I didn’t-”

“I know you don’t believe me,” she interrupted. She hiccuped again, took a few slow breaths, then continued, “I know you don’t believe me because I wouldn’t believe me. You didn’t believe me earlier about my age, so I don’t see why you would believe me now…”

She stared at her hooves and sniffed as Redheart stared at her. The mare was trying to piece together what the words she was saying meant. They didn’t really make any sense, but then again, she did hit her head, and might have had a concussion. Of course, it could also have been some sort of mental health issue, but it didn’t really seem like that was the case, and if it was, the nurse really didn’t want to get tied in to that sort of thing. Honestly, if she had to guess, she’d say she was lying about all this and was a runaway foal.

“Hmmm… there’s an idea,” Redheart thought. “A runaway foal… maybe attention seeking behavior? Hmmmm…”

“I just... I really don't want to be here...” Asher whispered sadly.

“I understand,” Redheart replied sympathetically, already thinking about how she would hand her back to Cheerilee in a little while. “We’ll do everything we can to get you home. It’s going to be okay.”

“If you say so…" the filly whispered, already starting to believe it wasn't possible.

“Well, from what I could gather, she seems fine physically,” Nurse Redheart told Cheerilee and Holiday. “She’s physically healthy, and it doesn’t seem like she has a concussion or anything serious like that.”

“But?” the yellow mare asked worriedly.

The nurse exhaled sharply and continued, “But I do think she’s displaying some, um… attention seeking behavior.”

Holiday looked confused by what she said, but Cheerilee seemed more suspicious, and asked “What kind of behavior?”

“Well, for example, she said she used to live by the ocean in Delamare even though it’s nowhere near the ocean. She doesn’t seem sick like you said she said she felt. She also seemed to suggest that she couldn’t use her hooves, and I know you were also concerned about how she walks, however, I wasn’t able to see anything wrong with her legs at all, and she also admitted that she was able to pick things up ‘when she didn’t notice it’. Then she said she isn’t a pony…”

“She said she’s not a pony? I know she said her parents aren't ponies, but...”

“Yes. She also told me that she’s not a filly and she’s an adult.”

“Well…”

“Then she said that nopony where she’s from is a pony, and they used things called ‘cars’ to get around.”

“Hmmm… she did tell me that her parents weren’t ponies, and she was reluctant to go into details about it…”

Holiday was tempted to interrupt. She wanted to say that, to her, it didn’t seem like she was lying, at least not intentionally. She wanted to say that she seemed genuinely anxious and upset when she heard her talking to herself in the bathroom yesterday, and that, when she looked at her, what she saw was a shy and scared little filly who wanted to go home. However, she decided not to voice her opinions. She wasn’t a nurse or a schoolteacher, and didn’t work with foals every day like they did, and decided it was probably best to let them do their work uninterrupted by her thoughts.

“It does seem like a plausible explanation,” Cheerilee continued, “but I’ll also have to have a chat with her to see what she tells me. There are some things that don’t make sense to me. Not everything adds up.”

Nurse Redheart knew that not everything added up. Attention seeking behavior didn’t explain why the filly would openly tell her that what she said would seem ridiculous, not to mention the fact that the filly seemed on the edge of an anxiety attack more than once. However, like Holiday, she kept her thoughts to herself, but only to keep herself from potentially being tied to a mental health case. That was something she really didn’t want to deal with, and would rather have Cheerilee handle on her behalf.

“But, um,” Nurse Redheart started again, “she looks physically healthy as far as I can tell. No signs of abuse or anything like that, and her head seems fine. I’d say she’s okay to be released.”

“Okay, then Holiday and I will take it from here,” the teacher responded. “Thank you for taking a look at her.”

“Oh, and one more thing: she said her parents were Garnet and Opal, and that her real name is Ashley.”

I was an animal now, and it was absolutely scaring me.

If there was one thing I knew about animals, it's that they weren't people. Animals didn’t have consciousness, they didn’t have a soul, and they didn’t go to heaven or hell. They followed God’s commands and that was it. They didn’t have the capacity to think like humans did.

Which, given my current situation, had a few potential meanings. The first was that this wasn’t real, which I’d already ruled out earlier that morning. Of course, it was still technically possible that this was a dream, but at that point, the odds of this being the case were effectively zero, and I hardly even believed that was the case even yesterday. With that, I moved onto the second option, which was that I simply didn’t have consciousness. However, even thinking about that as a possibility was silly. If I had enough sense to think about the idea of not having consciousness, then I was conscious.

That thought led me to the most frightening possibility, which was that God simply wasn’t real. Just the thought of that made me have to catch my breath. I couldn’t bear to think that God didn’t exist, and it filled me with a sense of dread. If he wasn’t real, that meant… nothing. Absolutely nothing. Everything I did was just meaningless. When I died, there would just be nothing. I would cease to exist.

I had to take a breath because I was freaking myself out. God was real, and I knew that. Probably. Except this scenario was leaving open the distinct possibility that he wasn’t...

“No,” I told myself. “God is real. He proved that to me over and over again, time after time. Just my being here is proof enough that he’s real, because nothing else can explain this.” I was never ever going to accept that God didn’t exist, no matter what. He was real, and I was sure of it. Of course, being this… horse wasn’t helping to convince me of that fact, but I decided to just accept that I didn’t understand it, which wasn't that hard for me to do.

It was only a few seconds later that Cheerilee and Holiday entered the curtained area again. I must not have looked that well because they quickly made their way over, the former putting her hoof in my hair.

“Are you feeling okay, Asher?” the teacher asked sympathetically.

“Yeah, I’m just freaking myself out for no reason,” I told her.

“Do you want to tell us about it?”

“I’m just…” I trailed off, then sighed. “I’m just thinking about how I’m not supposed to be a pony…”

“Nurse Redheart told me you said that. Do you want to talk about it?”

“I mean, I don’t know. I don’t think there’s anything I can do about it, and I’m pretty sure you don’t believe me, and I’m really trying to stay calm, but this is all just so…”

“It’s okay,” she said in a comforting voice as she started to stroke my hair. “Why don’t you take a breath and tell me about your home?”

I forced myself to take another breath as I started to speak. “Okay, um, very first, um, I’m not from this world. At all.”

“You’re not from this world?” she asked curiously, tilting her head slightly in a way that made me blush. “Can you tell me what you mean?”

“I mean um...” I started again, “the place I’m from, it’s nowhere in this world. Ummm… it’s called Earth, and um…”

“But Nurse Redheart told me you were from Delamare. Is that not true?”

“I am from Delaware,” I tried to explain. “Delaware is in the United States, and the United States is on Earth.”

“Oh, okay. I understand.”

I had to close my eyes and take a silent breath. The way she spoke sounded like she was speaking to a little girl. It was like she was talking to a lying child that she didn’t believe, and I absolutely hated it. I hated that it was what she was seeing in front of her, and that there was nothing I could do about it. I hated how little control I had over the situation, how little control I had over my own emotions.

“Oh, Lord, please don’t let this be real!” I desperately prayed silently.

“Hey, it’s okay,” she told me quietly. “Why don’t you tell me what kind of creatures live in ‘Earth’? Is it Earth Ponies like you?”

I opened my eyes again and took a slow breath, wishing I had fists to clench to help me stay calm. “No,” I explained. “There are horses, but there aren’t any ponies where I live. They’re humans. They have two legs and hands and are six feet tall…”

“Is that what your parents are?” she asked me.

“Yes, they’re humans, like…”

I suddenly noticed I was staring at my silver-coated limbs as I trailed off. My hooves. That’s what they were. I wasn’t a human anymore, I was a pony. I was supposed to be a human, but I wasn’t, and there was nothing I could do about it.

“I probably sound so crazy to you,” I told her, feeling myself starting to get worked up again and my chest starting to tighten as I continued to stare at my now shaking hooves.

“I don’t think you sound crazy...”

“I know I sound crazy because this shouldn’t even be real! This should be a dream!” I really hated this anxious feeling I had, and tried very hard not to get worked up again. I was so over the panic I was feeling, but I couldn’t help but feel it. I was having the worst morning of my whole life, and talking to them about it and knowing they didn’t believe me was making it worse. At that moment, I felt like I was living in a nightmare.

“I’m going to be stuck here forever, aren’t I?” I asked aloud, mostly to myself as I started to once again get the urge to break down and cry.

“Hey, it’s okay,” she whispered. “We’ll get you home.” She started to stroke my mane as she continued, “You don’t need to panic. It’s going to be okay.”

“I’m trying not to panic,” I said breathlessly as I started to get the extreme urge to break down. “I’m really trying not to panic. I don't want to panic. It’s just I’ve never been so anxious in my whole life and I feel like I’m getting overwhelmed.”

“It’s going to be okay. Can you tell me why you’re feeling overwhelmed?”

“Cause I’m here right now and this isn’t a dream! That means God put me here and there’s nothing I can do about it! I’m going to be stuck here forever!”

The whole time I’d been here, I’d been avoiding the urge to cry. I really, really didn’t want to cry, but I could feel the tears forming once again and see my vision becoming blurry.

“Everyone’s probably afraid and looking for me now…” I choked out. “I’m probably never going to see my parents again... Oh, no...”

I couldn’t hold back anymore and started to cry. It was what I wanted to do since I first got here, but forced myself not to. But right then, I couldn’t stop myself from sobbing. I already knew I would be stuck here forever. I knew that yesterday, but forced myself to deny it. I was going to be trapped in this little girl’s body forever, and it was absolutely killing me.

It was only a few moments of crying, though, maybe a minute, before I realized that, not only was I was in a little girl's body, I was acting like a little girl, too. I was naturally a passive and more introverted person by nature, but I didn’t believe I was overly passive and timid like I’d been acting the last two days. Just like the name Ashley, the way I normally acted and how I acted recently was rubbing me the wrong way. I realized that I was being overly sensitive to everything around me, and while I felt like I had a good excuse to do so, I wanted to put a stop to it anyway.

“Stop crying,” I told myself silently as I rubbed my eyes and closed my eyes tightly in an effort to make the tears stop. “Stop being so sensitive. You’re a man, not the shy little girl you’ve been acting like.”

Cheerilee was almost convinced that the filly wasn’t attention seeking. Almost. However, the way she was able to quickly compose herself after suddenly bursting into tears was throwing her off and made her doubtful again. It seemed like it was real, but it also seemed like it was done to get herself sympathy. However, before she could ask about it, the filly started to speak again.

“I’m fine,” she asserted. “I’m fine. I’m sorry. It’s just- this is really stressful. I’m sorry. I'm being sensitive for no reason. I'm sorry.”

That was another thing about her. The way she spoke was… not right. It was like she was speaking to an adult. It wasn’t that noticeable, but it was there, and the teacher did think it was interesting. However, she opted not to ask about it as she started to speak again.

“You’re okay,” Cheerilee responded. “You're not being sensitive. Do you feel a little better now?”

“I mean, yeah,” Asher answered, blushing and continuing to rub her eyes. “I guess.”

“That’s good to hear. I do have a question though.”

“What?”

“You said before that God put you here. Can you tell me who that is?”

The filly looked up at her, confused. “You don’t know who God is?” she asked, seeming surprised.

“Ah, no? I can’t say I do. Is that a pony?”

“No, He’s… God. Like… the creator of the universe. Everything exists because of Him.” She saw the teacher looked confused, so continued. “He’s… the Great I Am. Omniscient and omnipresent. He’s not, like… well... He transcends reality. He’s... the God of Israel. That’s the best way to describe Him. The God of Abraham. But you don’t know what Israel or who Abraham is...”

"Can you tell me what he's like?"

“He’s benevolent and all powerful, filled with mercy and grace… Um, He’s the giver of life and raiser of the sun...”

“That sounds kind of like Princess Celestia to me.”

“I- I don’t- I have no idea who that is.”

Cheerilee frowned. Now she was almost certain that she was attention seeking, as there was no way she didn’t know who Celestia was. The only thing was that it honestly didn’t seem like she was looking for attention. It honestly seemed like she was being truthful in the things she said, but the teacher couldn’t be sure. It was either the filly believed the things she said, or she was a very good actor. It was all just so bizarre.

“Why don’t we go over to the school and give you a quick knowledge test?”

As she did every morning, Princess Celestia raised the sun.

It wasn’t a long process, taking only a few minutes to lower the moon and bring the sun high into the sky where it belonged. She quite enjoyed doing so for her little ponies, typically taking the time to paint a picturesque scene over Equestria. However, today she wasn’t quite as up to it as she normally was. She felt something… strange. Something out of place. She couldn’t tell what it was, but it made her uneasy.

This wasn’t the first time she got this feeling. She felt the same thing the previous morning, albeit much more intense yesterday than right now. She couldn’t tell exactly where it came from, but she had a feeling it was coming from Ponyville, the soon-to-be site of the one thousandth Summer Sun Celebration. She knew that this would be the year her sister would return, but it felt like there was something else, something she was missing. It felt like there was something else that wasn’t supposed to be there. It wasn’t necessarily bad, it was just… unexpected, and it was throwing her off.

Just as she had finished her daily ritual, a letter appeared before her, sent from her pupil, Twilight Sparkle, explaining how she believed that Nightmare Moon would return during this year’s Summer Sun Celebration. The princess knew she was correct of course, and wanted her to be the one to find the Elements of Harmony and bring her sister back to her, however, this feeling she had was making her anxious. She wanted her pupil to be a princess, for Twilight to succeed her in ruling Equestria, but she was nervous. She was afraid that whatever was causing her to have this feeling would interfere with that, whether on purpose or by accident.

“Calm down, Celestia,” the alicorn thought to herself. “Nothing’s going to happen. You’re just worried about Luna’s return. Besides, Twilight’s a very observant pony. She’ll notice if something is amiss and report it to me.”

With that, Celestia decided she would send a letter of her own back to Twilight, giving her the task of making friends, as well as making sure that everything in Ponyville was in order for her Summer Sun Celebration.

I was feeling a lot more self conscious and uncomfortable in public than I was yesterday as Cheerilee and I walked across the town to the school. I really didn’t like the idea of having myself… exposed like this. It was easy to ignore yesterday because I was forcing myself to believe I wasn’t here, but now it was much more difficult. Yes, I had fur and a tail, but just from what I could feel of myself and see on these ponies, I could tell it wasn’t covering me that well. The fact that we were getting smiles and waves from random people as we walked as though nothing was wrong somehow made it worse, and I found myself blushing in embarrassment.

“Stop it,” I told myself. “You’re being sensitive again. You need to buck up and stop being so sensitive. You’re not a little girl, and these are animals. It’s not different than being undressed in front of a dog. They don’t care, and there’s nothing to be uncomfortable about.” But even as I told myself that, I couldn’t help the fact that it bothered me.

The sun quickly rose as we walked, once again taking just a couple of minutes to get to the center of the sky as we entered the schoolhouse. Just like yesterday, it was unnerving to watch, and quickly brought a question to mind.

“How does the sun do that?”

“How does the sun do what?” Cheerilee asked back, confused.

“How does it get to the middle of the sky so quickly? It should take it several hours to get that far.”

“Oh, well that’s Princess Celestia. She raises the sun and the moon over Equestria each day.”

“Is she- is she a real person?” I got out nervously. “Who physically raises the sun?” The idea that a horse physically raised the sun in this world was freaky to me.

“Yes,” the teacher responded. “She’s a real pony who lives in Canterlot and rules over Equestria. But enough of that for now. Why don’t you take a seat while I get an exam out to you?”

“This is a test I give to everypony who moves to Ponyville for the first time,” Cheerilee explained as she made her way back to the filly, pencil and paper in her mouth. Asher briefly wondered how she was able to talk and keep the paper from getting wet at the same time, but quickly put the thought out of her head as the materials were set in front of her.

“We’ll start off with math since it looked like you were able to do that pretty easily yesterday,” the teacher told her as she glanced at the paper. “It shouldn’t be too difficult, but if you do find yourself struggling, you can just skip any problems you don’t know.”

“Uh, okay, um…” Asher trailed off shyly. “I’m sorry, um…”

“What is it?”

“Can you- can you write it out for me?” she asked, her cheeks going red.

“Write it out for you?”

“The answers, I mean,” she explained, then held up her hooves. “I don’t know how to use these things at all, so I won’t be able to write it out.”

“Well, why don’t you try first?” Cheerilee suggested. “Then we can see what we can do if you can’t do it?”

“Okay…” Asher grabbed at the pencil, trying to pick it up, but was only able to push it and make it roll around. “I was able to do it yesterday when I didn’t notice, but now I can’t…”

“That’s okay,” Cheeilee told her kindly. “Why don’t you use your mouth to write for right now, and we’ll work on hoof writing later?” She noticed the filly looked uncomfortable with that suggestion, but didn’t say anything, instead simply picking up the pencil and holding it between her teeth.

She moved to stand over her shoulder and watched her slowly work her way through the questions, noticing her speed being controlled almost entirely how long it took her to write out the answers. It took her nearly an hour to complete the front and back of the paper, but all of the answers she gave were correct, even on the most difficult questions that even some Ponyville adults couldn’t do.

“Well, it looks like you did a very good job, Asher,” Cheerilee applauded with a smile. “It looks like you’re a very smart filly! You did better than anypony else your age.”

“I- I’m no smarter than anyone else,” the filly answered back quietly. “It’s just- I’m an adult, so I already knew all of that stuff.”

Cheerilee’s smile dropped at that. She was almost ready to believe the filly was seeking attention, however, perfect math scores would be something very difficult to fake. However, she decided to play this out before coming to any conclusions.

“Well, you should be very proud of how well you did, sweetie, regardless of how old you are.” She watched her blush, and perhaps cringe slightly, as she continued, “Why don’t we move on to reading and writing?”

“Um, I… I can’t read,” Asher said, almost inaudible.

“What was that, sweetie?”

“I can’t read,” she said again, looking down at her desk. She didn’t know why she felt embarrassed. She was an alien from another world. It shouldn’t have been expected that she would even understand what they were saying, let alone be able to read their writing. Still though, she couldn’t help but feel ashamed of herself. She was self conscious of the fact that everypony else her age could read but she couldn’t, and she hated it. She hated how sensitive she was being now that she was self conscious of it, and hated how emotional she was. She was starting to get worried that her being a little girl was messing with her head, and hated that she couldn’t do anything about it.

“You can’t read at all?” the teacher asked, wanting clarification.

“Well, I can read,” she quietly explained. “I just can’t read whatever language you ponies write in.”

“Well, how about we get another sheet of paper, and you can show me what language you write in, hmmm?,” Cheerilee told her as she quickly went to her desk to grab it. She set it down over the test and continued, “You can just write a quick poem or song if you’d like, or a happy memory you have.”

Asher sighed, but didn’t answer, instead simply picking up the pencil and slowly scratching out what she wanted to write. As she did, Cheerilee quickly realized that what she meant was that she wrote and read in Unicorn Script. Still though, everypony should have known how to read regular Ponish, and the fact that she couldn’t wasn't ideal. It seemed she would have to spend time working with her on that. She also made a mental note to contact authorities in Canterlot, since that was where Unicorn Script was most common.

The other thing she realized was that her writing was… complex. She couldn’t tell whether what she was writing was a poem or a song, but it seemed like what she was writing was much more thought out than most foals her age would write. Despite how long it took and the paper’s relative messiness, she thought what was written was quite impressive, if a bit sad seeming.

He doesn’t live there
Anymore
He wasted precious time
The life he used to live
Is over
He lost some peace of mind

Little thoughts of heaven
Secretly waiting
To escape
You catch a glimpse of sadness
As he went down
This tragic way...

Now he’s saying

My life
Has washed away
I guess this is the end
I’ll take another ride
Some other day
And wait to breathe again

“This is very well written,” Cheeilee told me. “Can I ask what it means?”

I sighed again and answered, “It doesn’t matter. It’s not like you believe me anyway.”

“Asher…”

She sounded sad, and I couldn’t help but sniffle because of it. I was feeling very tired right then, and placed my chin on the desk and closed my eyes. It was only a few seconds though before Cheerilee spoke again.

“Why don’t we move onto history?” she said quietly.

“I don’t know any history,” I told her, keeping my eyes closed. “Like I said, I’m not from here, so I won’t know anything.”

“Well, why don’t you just start by telling me what you do know?” she suggested kindly.

“I mean… I know this is a place called… Equine? Or Equestria? And I’m pretty sure this city is called Ponyville. I know there are at least three types of ponies, and that I’m apparently an Earth Pony and should be able to use my hooves to pick things up. Um, and you told me that Celestia…” I shuddered, swallowed, and continued, “You told me that Celestia rules this world and physically raises the sun. And, um, and that God sounds a lot like her.”

I could tell by the look on her face that she was debating whether to ask me about God or the place I was from, before she finally said, “Why don’t you tell me about who 'God' is. Is he somepony you’ve met?”

“Well, um, met isn’t really the right word, uh… the best way to describe it would be that he’s all around us and is inside of me.” With my words, I watched her face contort as she tried and failed to keep a neutral expression. It took me a few seconds to realize how she was interpreting what I said, and when I did, I cringed too.

“He- he lives inside of you?” she asked, trying to keep her voice even.

“That didn’t come out the right way,” I responded quietly.

“Well, um… can you tell me what you meant when you said that?”

“I mean, uh, I mean…” I didn’t know why but the words I wanted to say were escaping me, and I was drawing a blank on how to clarify. “Let’s… let’s just move on please."

“Does he, uh, make you do anything you don’t want to do?”

“I mean, well, um…” I trailed off, thinking about me being a pony right then. “I- I guess technically, but I mean, I- I… I really don’t like the way these questions are phrased.”

“What kinds of things does he make you do?”

“Well, I mean, I- God doesn’t really make me do anything for the most part, but, um, I guess there are the Ten Commandments. I mean, I guess that’s… but I could choose to...” There was just… something keeping me from saying what I wanted to say the way I wanted to say it, and I didn't know what it was.

“Ten Commandments?” she asked. “Can you tell me what those are?”

I closed my eyes and quickly recited, “Thou shall have no other gods, thou shall not misuse the name of the Lord thy God, remember the sabbath day and keep it holy, honor thy father and thy mother, thou shall not murder, thou shall not commit adultery, thou shall not steal, thou shall not bear false witness against thy neighbor, thou shall not covet thy neighbors house, or his wife, or his slaves or his animals or anything else that belongs to him.”

There was a lot there for Cheerilee to pick apart in what Asher said. Some of it seemed reasonable enough, like don’t murder and don’t steal, but other things had her… concerned, like the filly’s mention of slaves and other “gods”, whatever those were. It also didn’t help that she seemed to understand what things like “coveting” and “adultery” were. However, she decided to start with something she felt might be easier to discuss.

“What is ‘the sabbath’?” she asked, trying to sound curious and not suspicious.

“The sabbath? That’s… that’s a day of rest from working.” Before Cheerilee could ask more, Asher explained, “In essence, it’s the weekend.”

“Ah, okay. What kinds of things do you do on the weekend?”

“Uhh… like I said, it’s a day of rest, but, I mean…” She tried to think of a way to describe it that would make Cheerilee understand without her getting the wrong impression. “Saturday is just a normal day really, and Sunday is when I go to church.”

“What is church?”

“Church is the place we go to worship God.” The filly watched the teacher struggle to keep a flat expression. “You’re taking this the wrong way…”

“I’m not taking anything in any way, I promise,” she told her. “But can you tell me what kinds of things you do while you ‘worship God’?”

“I- I- no, because you’re not- the way you’re talking is making it seem like you think I’m in a cult or being abused or something when that’s not what’s happening.”

“I promise I don’t think those things,” she lied as she put her hoof on top of Asher’s.

“Whatever,” she sighed. “I don’t want to talk about it anymore.”

“Why don’t you tell me about not being a filly? How long have you felt that way?”

“I don’t feel like I’m not a filly,” she started, working out that filly was what they used to say girl in this world, “I’m just… not. I’m physically not a girl. And you probably think I sound crazy because I think I sound crazy.”

“I don’t think-”

“Yes you do,” she interrupted. “It doesn’t make any sense that- ugh!” She felt herself becoming emotional again, clenching her teeth as tears started to form again. “I’m a man physically trapped inside this filly’s body, and I’m not supposed to be, but even saying that sounds so ridiculously stupid!”

“It’s not stupid to feel that way,” Cheerilee said as her hoof moved to Asher’s forehead, pushing her hair up some.

“Yes it is!” she cried. “It’s stupid, and I’m acting so sensitive because of it!”

“It’s not stupid, and you’re not being sensitive,” she insisted. “It’s okay to feel that way, and it’s okay to cry sometimes.”

“I’m sorry,” she choked out. “I’m sorry. This is all just getting to me so badly.”

“You don’t need to be sorry. It’s going to be okay.”

“I…” she got out, wiping her eyes and trying to calm back down. "I might as well stop being a baby and just get used to the fact that this won’t change. I...”

I stopped, thinking over what I was about to say, what I’d been thinking and saying this whole time. God put me here. I already knew that, but why? Why did He put me here? There had to have been a reason for me to be here. I didn’t think I’d be in this position for the sake of it.

I didn’t think I was here to convert these ponies or anything like that. They were animals, and animals didn’t go to heaven, so it’d be almost pointless to try. Still, though, I couldn’t be sure, so I decided I’d make a little bit of an effort later. But not right now, because everything I said was being taken the wrong way.

The most likely explanation to me was that my faith was being tested. Yes, that was it. My faith was being tested, to see if I could be strong. That had to be what was happening, and made the most sense to me. It explained why I was a pony now and a girl.

“Maybe he wants you to be happy, and thinks this is what will do it,” I thought.

I blushed at that thought and banished it almost immediately. This… situation wasn’t going to make me happy. I was already perfectly happy before, on the path to a relatively successful life, hopefully opening up my own business or becoming a general manager or higher somewhere after I finished college. I didn’t see how being a little girl would make me anything but upset and depressed. I didn’t want to be one, and never once had I ever thought about wanting to be one. I certainly didn’t want to be one now.

Did I?

“No, stop that,” I thought. “You know good and well you’ve never thought that, not even one time, so don’t try and say you’ve felt that way before. You’re letting this body distort your thinking.”

“Asher?” Cheerilee suddenly said, interrupting my thinking. “Are you feeling okay?”

“Huh? What?” I looked at her and saw that she looked concerned as she stared back at me.

“You were staring off for a good while. Is everything alright? You can tell me anything you’d like.”

“Yes, I’m fine,” I told her, my voice sounding way more timid and shy than I had intended. “I was just thinking to myself.”

“Was it anything you wanted to talk to me about?”

“No, it’s fine. It’s nothing.”

“Okay, well, in that case, I was wondering if it was okay if I asked you a personal question.”

“I… don’t see why not,” I responded, wondering where this was going.

“Well, actually, first, I know you said your name is Asher, but Nurse Redheart told me your real name is Ashley. I know you told her you didn’t like it, but is it okay if I called you that?”

“I…” Stop being a big baby. Stop being so sensitive. It’s a boy’s name. “Yes, that’s fine, I guess.” I paused, then before I could stop myself, added, “But only between us, please. No one else.”

“Okay, Ashley,” she started as I forced myself not to cringe at her immediate use of my name, “I was just wondering how often you wet the bed.”

I didn’t know what question I was expecting her to ask, but that wasn’t it. I’m certain that the confusion was evident on my face, because she continued, “I’m sorry. I know it’s embarrassing, but I need you to be honest please.”

“I… what? I don’t wet the bed,” I got out, blushing. “That was the first time since I was seven, and it wasn’t my fault.”

“Oh, I know it’s not your fault,” she said kindly. “Nopony is saying it’s your fault. Everypony has accidents, even adults. It’s just-”

“I didn’t have an accident,” I interrupted. “I- I thought I was awake when I was asleep, so I tried to use it then. I wouldn’t normally have accidents because I’m an adult.”

I watched her frown as she spoke again. “It’s okay to have accidents sometimes, Ashley,” she told me. “You don’t have to be embarrassed about that or make up excuses.”

“I’m not making up excuses! I’m really not this filly! I- ugh, I sound crazy!” I closed my eyes and took a breath to gather myself, then continued, “I held it all day yesterday cause I thought that yesterday was a dream, and then I wet the bed because I thought I was awake while I was asleep.”

She kneeled down to get down to eye level with me. “I’m not trying to make you upset, sweetie,” she said quietly, “but I need you to be honest because what you’re saying is making it sound like something really bad happened to you. Do you understand?”

“I’m being honest,” I said equally as quiet, “I just- what I want to say isn’t coming out the way I want it to and- and it’s making you think I sound crazy.”

“I don’t think you sound crazy. It’s just-”

“Can we just stop talking about this, please? I don't want to keep talking about this. I- I need to go to the restroom.”

“Asher, stop it,” the filly told herself as she looked in the mirror. “You need to get a grip. You’re being emotional and getting all worked up, and you’re making everything worse because of it. You just- you just have to…”

She trailed off as she continued to stare at her reflection. She still didn’t like what she saw, and clenched her teeth in a frown because of it. It wasn’t that she was ugly. In fact, she thought she looked rather nice. The problem was that she wasn’t supposed to look like this at all. This shouldn’t have been happening to her. Why was this happening to her?

“Stop it,” she continued. “Stop asking why this is happening. You don’t get to ask why this is happening. It’s not your place to ask why.” She closed her eyes and silently recited, “My thoughts are not your thoughts. My ways are not your ways. Just like the heavens are higher than the earth, so is what you will higher than what I will.”

“Ashley?” Cheerilee suddenly interrupted. “Are you okay? You’ve been in there for a little while now.”

“Yes, I’m fine,” she called back quickly. “I’ll be out in a minute.”

“If you need any help, you know you can ask me.”

“I know. I’m fine,” she replied, then closed her eyes once again. “Lord, please let your will be your will, and allow me to have faith in whatever your will for me is. In your son Jesus name I pray, amen.”

She opened her eyes again, now debating whether to use the restroom for its intended purpose or simply to leave, before deciding on the latter. “I’m stuck as a girl and I still can’t use my hooves,” she thought. “I really don’t want to have to ask Miss Cheerilee for help.” With that, she left and quickly sat back down in the seat she was in.

The teacher gave her a concerned look as she did so, asking, “Are you feeling okay? It didn’t sound like you were using the restroom in there to me.”

With a blush, Asher responded, “Yes, I’m fine. I’m just… mentally and emotionally off right now. I’m not in the right state of mind.”

“Can you tell me why?”

She sighed at that, almost annoyed. “I already told you why,” she answered quietly.

“Do you want to tell me again, Ashley?”

She cringed to herself at the use of her name by Cheerilee. “It’s just a name,” she thought to herself as she continued, “No, because what I want to say isn’t coming out the right way and it’s making you think I’m crazy. It’s not like what I say will prove I’m a human, and what you hear won’t be able to prove I’m not a human, so why bother?”

“Ashley-”

“I really don’t want to talk about it anymore, at least not until I can put all my thoughts together,” she told her with finality.

“Well… okay,” she conceded. “Anyway, how about we get something to eat? It’s a little past breakfast, but we’ve been up a long time, so there shouldn’t be an issue.”

“Yes, please,” she replied, “but before that, can I get some clothes if that's okay?”

“Clothes?” Cheerilee asked, confused.

“Yes please,” she answered. The teacher continued to stare at her, confused and a bit suspicious, and she continued, “I- I don’t like being in public… like this...”

“Being in public like what, sweetie?”

“Like… I don’t like being this exposed.”

“Exposed?”

She blushed and looked down at the desk as she explained, “I… I don’t like the fact that everyone… everyone can see my backside.” She quickly looked up again to see Cheerilee cringing and added exasperated, “I wasn’t sexually abused. I just don’t want everyone to see back there.”

“Well, we can certainly stop by the Boutique on our way to Miss Lofty and Miss Holiday after we get some food. How does that sound?”

“If we could, please? That would be nice.”

Before I knew it, we were sitting at a table under an awning of an outdoor restaurant with food in front of us. More veggie lasagna was served, which I thought was strange, but didn’t pay much attention to it. I was more concerned with my still lack of ability to use my hooves.

“Are you sure you can’t use them?” she questioned. “You said you were able to do it when you weren’t paying attention. Maybe try doing what you did before?”

I exhaled as I put my hoof flat against the fork, trying to imagine having fingers again. I didn’t expect it to work at all, and predictably wasn’t able to do more than push it around on the table.

“Can you please tell me how to do this?” I asked her, starting to feel desperate despite only trying a few times. I was feeling very limited right then, and didn’t want to have to ask for help with basic tasks like I would if I couldn’t figure out how to do this.

“Well, um… you just…” she tried to say, seeming like she was struggling to think of how to explain it. It made sense though. It’d be like me trying to explain how to use hands to someone who didn’t have them or wasn’t able to use them.

“Well… it’s difficult to explain,” she continued. “Are you sure you can’t do it?”

“Why would I lie about this?” I asked. “I’m not making it up. How am I supposed to even use the restroom if I can’t use these things?”

“Well, I guess you’ll just have to get help in that case,” she told me, a matter of fact tone in her voice.

“I shouldn’t have to deal with this!” I yelled in frustration, slamming my hooves on the table. I forced myself to take a breath and keep calm though. I needed to stop being emotional and get it in my head that it wasn’t my place to question why this was happening. I needed to just accept it and move on, and stop lingering on why. I was certain the why would come later.

“You can still use your mouth to do things,” she said. “It’s really not that big of an issue. Why don’t you eat your food?”

“I’m not hungry,” I responded, slightly bitter, crossing my legs in front of me.

“Hey, it’s going to be okay,” she tried to tell me. “I know you’re frustrated and upset, but it’s going to be okay.” She paused, adding, “Maybe you’ll feel better if you talk to me about what’s going on?”

Exhaling a breath, I started again, “I told you I don’t want to talk anymore right now. I know I’ve been complaining a lot and I’m being emotional and everything I say sounds crazy, but I just… need time. I need time to… take this all in and collect my thoughts. I’m all scrambled up right now and I'm just going to keep saying things the wrong way if I keep going, and it’s just going to make things worse. I don’t want to say any more about anything right now. I’m sorry.”

She sighed at that, clearly disappointed at that answer. “You don’t need to be sorry. Why don’t we get you a to-go box and go down to the Boutique, then take you back to Miss Holiday and Lofty and let you get more acquainted with them?”

“My dearest, most faithful student Twilight,” Spike read as the two stood in Twilight’s room in Canterlot, “you know that I value your diligence and that I trust you completely. However, you simply must stop reading those dusty old books! There is more to a young pony’s life than studying, so I’m sending you to supervise preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration in this year’s location: Ponyville. I would like you to report back to me each day with updates on how things move along with preparations, as well as notes on any interesting mares, stallions, or foals you meet along the way. Keeping up with interesting ponies is even more important for the other task I have for you, which is to make some friends! I know you’ll carry out both of these tasks to the best of your ability, and look forward to seeing you again during the Summer Sun Celebration. Your teacher, Princess Celestia.”

Twilight sighed in disappointment at her mentor’s request. “She wants me to make friends?” she asked aloud from her room in Canterlot. “What could be so important about that?”

“Hey! At least the princess arranged for you to stay in a library! That should cheer you up!”

She thought for a moment before deciding, “Yes, it does. I’ll check on preparations quickly each day and make note of the ponies I see, and then spend the rest of my time studying and looking for ways to prevent the return of Nightmare Moon.”

“But… then when will you have time to make friends like the princess said?”

“I am her faithful student and will do my royal duty, but the fate of Equestria does not rest on me making friends. Now, Spike, let’s head out to Ponyville. The Summer Sun Celebration, and Nightmare Moon’s return, is only two weeks away.”

Quickly, Asher and her teacher headed to their next destination. As they did so, Cheerilee tried to think about what she should do next. No word had come back from anywhere nearby of a missing filly that fit her description, which was odd, and the teacher knew she had to start thinking about the long term. Lofty already made it clear that she wasn’t somepony she could have her stay with for more than a few weeks, and she obviously couldn’t just let her stay on the street.

She tried to think of her options, and concluded that the best were the Apples, which wasn’t that great of an option, the Cakes, which really wasn’t that great of an option, and Rarity, who she didn’t think would be able to properly take care of her because of how much she worked. Really, the best option would be to keep her with Lofty and Holiday if she could, but at that point, it didn’t seem very likely that would happen.

This whole thing was just so… complicated. Peculiar. Strange. She still honestly couldn’t tell if the filly was lying or if she truly believed what she said, but at the moment she was leaning towards the former. Of course, there was still the tiny chance that when she said she was from another world she was being truthful, but that was unlikely in Cheerilee’s opinion cause if it was true, Princess Celestia would have noticed. No, the most likely explanation was that she was a runaway who was either hurt by her previous guardians or was an attention seeker, and Cheeilee would figure out which was the case. Maybe if she just pushed her a little bit more, she would get something useful? She didn't want her to close up completely like she seemed she was about to do...

After several minutes of walking, the two found themselves coming up upon the Carousel Boutique, the bell ringing as they entered. Asher looked around for a moment before cringing to herself at the sight. She expected to be in a clothing shop, and while that was currently the case, judging from what she saw, this was a shop that sold dresses in particular. Sure, there were other clothes, but the vast majority of what she saw was girls clothes and dresses.

“Is… is it- does it have to be here?” she asked, a mix of disappointment and embarrassment apparent in her voice.

“What’s wrong with here?” Cheerilee asked back, confusion on her face.

“It’s- it’s just…” she trailed off before sighing. “Nothing. Never mind.”

She really didn’t like the idea of getting something from this place, but she tried to keep herself relaxed. “Stop being emotional,” she told herself. “Yes, it’s a girls clothing store, but you’re just getting something nice and neutral to cover yourself with, like a pair of pants or something…” Although, looking around, she wasn’t sure she would find something like that.

“Helllloooo and welcome to the Carousel Boutique!” a voice called, one with an accent that the filly couldn’t place. The voice belonged to a white mare with dark purple hair and a horn signifying she was a unicorn. With long lashes and what looked to be gloss on her hooves, Asher could tell this mare was more of a girly girl.

“It’s quite lovely to see you again, Cheerilee,” she continued. Then, leaning up close to the silver-coated foal, asked, “And who is this pretty, young filly?”

She blushed and backed up a bit, afraid to have her nose bumped into for a third time as Cheerilee explained, “This is Ashley. She prefers to be called Asher, and she’s new in Ponyville. I believe she’s already made friends with your sister, Sweetie Belle.”

“I see,” Rarity commented. “Well, little filly, we have a policy here at the Carousel Boutique that friends of Sweetie Belle get to pick out a dress for free. Actually, I believe I have just the thing to go with that lovely coat and mane of yours.”

“Umm, I don’t really want-”

“Now, now, now dear,” Rarity interrupted as she looked around her shop for what she wanted. “I won’t be taking no for an answer. Now let’s see… I know I have just the perfect outfit for you here somewhere… ah! There it is!”

Before she could protest, the mare was using her magic to take a dress off its hanger and holding it up against her, squinting as she determined whether it would be acceptable for her to wear.

“I do think this would look quite lovely on you. Dark green will complement your coat and mane well, and red ribbons would complete the look…” Rarity paused, seeing the weird expression on her face, and asked, “Would you care to try it on?”

Quickly though, despite what she expected, the filly shook her head, keeping her mouth tight shut. Sure, she might have looked like a girl right then, but she wasn’t one. She was a boy. She knew that. She wasn’t even a pony. She was an adult human male. She knew that. She was just…

“Lord, I know it’s not my place to question you, but is this really your will?” Asher prayed. “Is it really your will for me to be this way? What could me being here possibly accomplish? I truly don’t mean to question you, I just wish I understood…”

“Are you sure?” Rarity pressed. “It’s really no trouble to give to you, and I stitched it by hoof myself. If you don’t like the colors, I’m certain we could find something else. I do believe pink and purple would compliment you very nicely as well.”

“I just- no thank you,” she answered, trying to assert herself but once again having her voice come out shyer than she anticipated. “I’d really just rather have some pants or something if it’s no trouble.”

“Pants?”

Based on the look she got both from the unicorn and the teacher, she instantly knew that pants wouldn’t be an option, and blushed harder. She really, really didn’t want to wear a dress, and decided that it would be better to wear nothing at all like the rest of the ponies she saw than to put on a dress.

“Actually, nevermind,” she tried to backtrack. “I actually don’t want anything. I’m sorry.”

“I promise you, it’s absolutely no trouble on my part. As I said, you’re a friend of Sweetie Belle’s, and any friend of my little sister is a friend of mine. I really would like it if you took it.” Once again though, the filly shook her head, and Rarity asked, “Just try it on? Please? If you don’t like it, you can give it right back. Just try it on for me?”

“I- I’d really rather not. I’d really rather not. I’m sorry.”

“Are you sure, darling?” Asher nodded her head, and Rarity continued, “How about you take it home with you anyway?”

“I- I don’t want to… I won’t wear it… I don’t want to wear that… I'm sorry...”

Cheerilee saw the sad look on Rarity's face and said, "You can’t know if you don’t like it if you don’t try it on. I’m sure she has a dressing room around here where you can be in private if you’d like.”

“I certainly do!” the unicorn confirmed excitedly. “It’s just this way, in the back.”

Before I could stop it, I was being ushered into a small dressing room filled with mirrors, with Cheerilee trailing behind me. I wanted anything but to try it on, and honestly didn’t even want to say I owned it, but at that point it was starting to feel out of my control.

“I don’t want to put that on,” I told her, trying to put on a frustrated expression but feeling like it was coming out more awkward and shy. “I already told you that I’m a boy. I don’t want to wear that.”

“Now, Ashley,” Cheerilee started like an upset parent as I cringed at my name, “you told me you wanted some clothes, and Rarity is offering to give this to you for free. I know she’ll be really upset if you said no without at least trying it on, and an upset Rarity isn't fun to deal with.”

“I just wanted something to cover me up!” I protested. “I don’t want… that!”

“But why?” she asked me, clearly confused.

“Because I’m a boy!” I yelled, definitely loud enough for other people to hear. “I’m not even supposed to be a pony, but I’m just stuck like this! I’m really trying my hardest not to complain, but… ugh!”

I closed my eyes and forced myself to breathe. I wasn’t going to make myself cry again, and I was going to try and be less emotional. I grit my teeth and tried my hardest to keep myself from yelling at Cheerilee in frustration.

“I really just wish you would listen to me!” I huffed, unable to stop myself from stamping a hoof in frustration. “None of you have been listening to me since I’ve been here and you all probably think I’m lying and crazy!”

She paused for a second at that thought before admitting, “You’re right. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to try and push this on you. I don’t know what came over me. We can get you something else if you’d like.”

“No, just- never mind,” I told her dismissively. “I don’t want anything. I just- ugh! Why am I even going along with this at all?”

In that moment, I realized that, while I was stuck here, that didn't mean I had to go along with whatever these ponies said, and with that realization, turned and walked off.

“Stop following me!” I demanded the teacher as I tried to stomp away from her. I tried my best to sound aggressive as I walked, but I knew it was coming out more pouty and sad. I wasn’t good at being aggressive, even as a human, and this little girl's voice was just making it worse.

“I’m an adult! I don’t need you to follow me!” I continued as I stomped.

“No you’re not,” she told me calmly, staying directly behind me. “You can’t just wander off on your own, Ashley.”

“Stop calling me that!” I yelled frustratedly without thinking. “I don’t like that name! I don’t want to be called that!”

I knew I was just being emotional, but I really couldn’t help it. I couldn’t tell if it was because I hadn’t fully wrapped my mind around being a pony or if it was just because I was in a child’s body, but I knew I had to stop. However, even as I thought that, I couldn’t stop myself from feeling ready to cry.

“You’re not my mom or dad, so please just stop following me!” I demanded, knowing that it sounded like I was about to cry. However, my demands went unanswered, and the next thing I knew, Cheerilee was using her teeth to pick me up by the neck like a cat. It wasn't painful at all, but I couldn't help but feel more frustrated by the move.

“Now Ashley,” she was somehow able to say as she kept her teeth firmly around the fat of my neck, carrying me off in the direction we came from, “I know you said you’re not from Ponyville, but I can’t have you running off all on your own until we find your guardians.”

“I’m an adult!”

“Well,” she said calmly, “why don’t you prove it by acting like one?”

She continued to hold me as she walked for about a minute before setting me back down, which I responded to by immediately setting off once again in the opposite direction of the school before she was able to say a word. At that point, I didn’t care about whether or not I was acting like an adult. I just wanted to get away from her, even if it meant reconfirming in her mind whatever she thought about me.

I heard her sigh as she followed me, staying silent as I walked. Despite her being behind me and seeing other people, ponies, out and about, it was the first quiet moment I’d had since I’d gotten there, and it made me start to think. What was I going to do? What was I supposed to do? I was in a world I didn’t understand in an unfamiliar body as a child. I knew that being emotional wasn’t going to be helpful, and yet here I was, acting emotional and stomping off as if there was anything I could do.

“No, you’re not being emotional,” I thought. “These ponies just aren’t listening to you. You just need to… do something. I just wish I knew what…”

“Ashley?” Cheerilee asked, still directly behind me. “Can I talk to you?” Despite my urge to just flat out tell her no, I stopped and turned around to face her as she started simply, “What’s wrong?”

“I already told you what’s wrong,” I answered frustratedly as I turned back around but refrained from walking. “You just haven’t been listening to me.”

“Ash-”

“No,” I interrupted. “Tell me why you don’t believe me. Why would you think I’m lying about not being a girl?”

She let out a breath before saying, “Well, if you really were a colt from another world like you said, I’m sure Princess Celestia would’ve noticed by now.”

“And I guess it’s safe to assume that there’s no way for me to be able to talk to her at all since, from what you told me before, she’s the ruler of wherever we are.”

“No, you won’t be able to,” she confirmed.

“So I guess I’m just going to…”

I couldn’t help but sit down and put my head in my hooves as I started to feel sorry for myself. I’d been there just over twenty-four hours and I was just… letting myself get worked up. I needed a moment to relax and get myself straight, but so far, that moment hadn’t come, and it was screwing with my emotions.

“What would I even do anyway if you did believe me?” I said aloud, mostly to myself. “It’s not like anything would change. I’m going to be stuck here, and I don’t even know why. I wish I just knew why…”

“Well…” she started awkwardly as she sat down next to me, clearly trying to get me to talk again. “Why do you think you’re here?”

I knew she wasn’t going to understand, but I couldn’t help at least trying to talk out my problems, and answered, “I don’t know. I mean, I have a few ideas, but I really don’t know. I just… wish I knew what I was supposed to be doing here...”

“Lord,” I silently prayed, “please, I just ask that you give me a sign as to what I’m supposed to be doing here…”

“Well, um… what do you think you’re supposed to be doing?” the teacher asked cautiously.

“I don’t know. I have no idea. I’m just- I’m sorry. You’re right. I’m not acting like an adult right now. I’m sorry. I’m just… getting myself overwhelmed.”

“You’re okay,” she told me kindly, then paused before adding, “Why don’t we go back to the boutique and pick out a nice dress for you?”

I sighed disappointedly, frustratedly, saying, “I don’t want a dress. I just- how do you not know what pants are, but you do know what dresses are?”

“Why don’t you explain to me what they are?”

“Forget it. I’ll just- I’ll be fine I guess…”

“What about a shirt or a hoodie?” she asked. “I’m sure Miss Rarity has something like that, or could stitch something up for you. Would you wear something like that?”

“Yes,” I answered. “I’d like that please.”

She gave me a kind, gentle smile as she asked, “Why don’t we head over there now?”

I considered it for a second, before standing up and telling her, “Okay, but I’d really like it if you did something for me.”

“What’s that, dear?”

“I’d… really like it if you treated me like an adult and listened to what I’m telling you. You’ve just been treating me like a liar and dismissing me this whole time, and... I really don’t like it… and I don’t like the name Ashely...”

“I’m sorry,” she apologized. “You’re right. I haven’t been listening to you, and I’m sorry. If you don’t like the name Ashely, I won’t call you that.”

I felt like she was brushing past the bulk of what I was saying, but decided to be satisfied for the moment, and let her lead me back to the clothing store.

What we returned to was a unicorn that was a mess of tears. She was standing in a corner of the room, her mascara clearly running, sniffling and crying, hanging her head low. I instantly felt bad at the sight, automatically knowing she was crying because of me, and found myself wishing I hadn’t complained and stomped off.

Cheerilee cleared her throat and called, “Rarity? I have a filly here with me who told me she'd like you to design something for her.”

I blushed at the teacher's words as Rarity turned around and saw me, and then flinched as she suddenly ran up to me and wrapped her hooves around me without warning. It was one of the things I was going to have to get used to, the fact that nobody here had any sense of personal space.

“Oh, I’m so sorry, darling!” she cried as she held me tightly. “I didn’t mean to overwhelm you like that! I truly didn’t intend to pressure you! I just wonder how you’ll ever be able to forgive me!”

“I- I forgive you,” I stammared. “Please put me down though.”

“Oh, of course dear,” she responded, quickly letting me go and laughing nervously. “I’m terribly sorry. I do still hope I can make something for you however, if that’s quite alright.”

Her change of emotion from crying to fine in a second was very jarring to me, but with the hope of preventing more tears from her, reluctantly said, “Yes, please. Um, I’d like a shirt or a hoodie if it’s no trouble…”

“Not any trouble at all!” she assured me happily, excited that she could make something for me. “Let me just take some quick measurements of you here…”

The filly drew in a loud breath and tensed up fearfully as Rarity brought the tape measure up to her. She was just starting to get used to the idea of being a pony and living in Equestria when she saw something that nearly caused her to scream in surprise. It was a new wrinkle she didn't expect.

“How- how are you d-doing that?” Asher stuttered out quietly, nervously.

“Doing what darling?”

“How are you lifting the tape measure?” she asked barely above a whisper, her eyes trained on the transparent blue color that was wrapped around it.

“Why with my magic, of course!” the mare answered without batting an eye as she continued to measure her.

She flinched hard at that news and clenched her teeth, not liking the idea at all. She really, really didn’t want to be involved with magic, and being around it was making her very nervous.

“Is something wrong, dear?” Rarity asked a few moments later, finally noticing the way she looked.

“I really don’t want to be around magic,” Asher responded quickly as she continued to stare at the tape. “At all.”

“Can I ask why?” Cheerilee jumped in.

“I don’t want to talk about it right now,” the filly continued, the anxiety evident in her voice. “I just don’t want to be around it, please.”

“Give me just one more second here darling,” Rarity said, who’d already gone back to measuring her. “There! I’m done. Now, what color were you wanting it to be?”

“I- I um- give me one second,” she said, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath to try to get relaxed again.

"Are... you alright, darling?" the unicorn asked. "I didn't scare you did I?"

"No, I'm fine," she answered a bit shakily, keeping her eyes closed and still breathing. After several seconds, she opened her eyes and finally answered, “Blue. I'd- I'd like my hoodie dark blue, please.”

Rarity waited a moment for her to continue, and when she didn’t, asked, “Was there anything else you wanted on it? Any other colors or particular patterns?”

“No. Just solid blue, please, if that’s okay.”

“Are you sure? I can add anything you’d like, dear.”

She blushed again, and, afraid to make the mare cry again, told her, “I mean, you can add other stuff if you want to.”

“I assure you miss, by this time tomorrow, I shall deliver you with a hoodie that’s positively amazing!”

“I’m sure it will be, Rarity,” Cheerilee agreed. “For now though, Asher and I will be going back to Miss Holiday’s, where she's staying. We’ll see you tomorrow though. Goodbye for now.”

“Toodeloo!” she called as the two headed out.

The teacher waited until they were a bit of a ways away from the boutique before starting, “Can I ask why you don’t like magic?”

She didn’t answer, instead asking, “Can… can other ponies do that? Can other ponies use magic?”

“Well, everypony has magic,” Cheerilee explained. “Unicorns have magic to use levitation and cast spells, Pegasi have magic in their wings to fly and control the weather, and Earth Ponies like you and I can lift things with our hooves and are stronger than other types of ponies with our magic.”

The filly’s ears went down at that, hating the sound of it. She really, really didn’t want to associate herself with magic, and was nervous about the fact that she would be. However, she consoled herself with the fact that, at the very least, if she had magic in her hooves like the teacher suggested, it was because God gave it to her, and not because of… other things.

“Is something wrong?”

“It’s nothing,” she told her, her ears still pressed flat. “I don’t want to talk about it right now.”

“Are you sure? You can tell me anything. I’ll listen to you like you asked me to earlier.”

With an exhale, she quietly said, just above a whisper, “You’re not listening to me again right now.”

“Oh, you’re right,” Cheerilee chuckled awkwardly. “I’m sorry. You can tell me later if you want. But please promise you’ll tell me eventually. It’s not good to keep everything internalized.

“I haven’t kept anything internalized as of yet,” she thought as she assured her, “I promise I’ll tell you, but not right now. I need to get my thoughts straight and emotions under control. I’m not… acting right.”

“Come on, Twilight,” Spike said to the mare as the two walked through the town. “You’ve got two weeks to check on preparations! We should explore and meet other ponies! Maybe they have interesting things to talk about!”

“Well…” she trailed off thoughtfully as she watched a mare and a filly having some sort of conversation. As the two approached, she was able to pick up bits of their discussion, watching as the filly walked a bit awkwardly on her hooves.

“...you ponies have any sense of personal space?”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, all of you ponies don’t seem to mind me not having clothes on or coming up to me and touching me nose to nose or flying me everywhere and scaring me.”

“Who picked you up and flew- oh! I’m sorry. Excuse us, please,” Cheerilee apologized as she bumped into the princess’s pupil.

“It’s no trouble. But um, can you tell me where Golden Oaks Library is by chance?”

“It’ll just be straight down this road on the left. You should get there in a few minutes.”

“Thank you, ma’am.”

“It’s not a problem, miss.”

“That was certainly interesting,” Twilight thought as the two pairs made their separate ways, turning to take one last look at the filly, who was looking back at her as well.

“Is- is that a dinosaur?” the filly asked her teacher as she stood staring at the purple and green creature, more surprised than afraid, almost completely unaware that the purple pony she passed was staring directly at her.

“It looked like a dragon to me,” Cheerilee said, stopping a few paces ahead of her. “It looks like a baby one to me, though,” she added.

“There are dragons here, too?” Asher asked in disbelief. “What else is there?”

“There aren't any dragons here specifically,” the mare explained. “That’s actually the first one I’ve seen up close. Most of them live in the Dragon Lands as far as I know.”

“I- nevermind. I don’t wanna know about it,” she decided. “It sounds like something out of Dragon Tales. But like I was saying, none of you ponies have any sense of personal space.”

“Well, who picked you up and flew you around?”

“I don’t know. Someone blue with rainbow-colored hair...” She trailed off, then added, “I don’t like heights.”

“Oh, that’s just Rainbow Dash,” Cheerilee told her. “I assume Scootaloo said you guys should see her?”

“Yes, she did.”

“I’ll have a little talk with her about that when I can, I promise,” she assured her as they came into view of Scootaloo’s parents' house. “Well, here we are.”

“Yeah, I guess,” Asher said quietly with a sigh, then took a breath and told her teacher, “Thank you for trying to take me out to eat and trying to get me something to wear. I know I was… being difficult… but I- I appreciate it anyway…” By the time she finished, she was blushing and looking at her hooves.

“You don’t have to thank me,” she responded. “It’s no trouble. I know you’ve been stressed out since you got here, and part of it is my fault. I’m sorry.”

“It’s- it’s okay,” she answered back shyly. "It's not your fault." There was a second of silence before she added, “Can we go inside now?”

“Of course! Head right on in.”

Her hooves fumbled with the knob for a few moments before she was able to push the door open, then immediately jumped back in shock, startled by the sight before her.

“Surprise!” I heard a bunch of people scream at the same time as I looked into the house. There were probably thirty or forty ponies in there, mostly kids from what I could see, along with several adults. I suddenly remembered that one pink pony, Pinkie Pie, saying she would throw me a party to welcome me here, but with everything else that happened, I’d honestly forgotten about it. It seemed like ages ago she said that even though in reality it was less than twenty-four hours ago.

“Are you surprised?” she asked as she suddenly put herself directly in front of me, almost on top of me. “Are you? Are you? Are you?”

“I- um- yes, I- I am,” I stuttered out, shaking my head to regain my composure. “I just-”

“I knew I would surprise you!” she interrupted me. “I was thinking about throwing you a party yesterday, but Miss Lofty said no, and then I heard that you were with Miss Cheerilee this morning, so I knew it would be the perfect opportunity to throw one for you! So I went around town and got all of your new classmates so you could make more friends so you won’t be lonely! Do you like it, Asher? Do you?”

“Ummm… I- yes, but-”

“I knew you would, even if you seem like an adult to me. But never mind that! Let’s party!”

With that, she hopped away like a rabbit, leaving me standing there as music started playing from somewhere and people began to talk to each other.

“That was… I don’t know,” I said aloud as I watched as Scootaloo came up to me. “I’m really not sure about her.”

“That’s just Pinkie being Pinkie,” she responded. “I told you she throws everypony a party. She can be annoying sometimes, but at least she makes up for it by throwing the best parties. Nopony is better at parties than her.”

“Yeah…” I trailed off, looking around. The scene looked like something straight out of a TV show, with cupcakes and candy and a punch bowl as refreshments, and kiddie party games like ring toss and pin the tail on the pony that even the adults were taking part in. It looked nice enough, and I guessed that it would be fun to someone Scootaloo’s age, but to me, it looked… boring. It didn’t really help that I wasn’t that big of a fan of parties to begin with. Not that I hated them, they just weren't really my thing.

“So… what are we supposed to do?” I asked.

“Well, it’s a welcome to Ponyville party,” Scootaloo explained. “Maybe you should try and meet some new ponies. Hey! Sweetie Belle and I can walk around and introduce you to some!”

I frowned at that idea and said, “Maybe we could just wait for them to come to us. I mean, if this is a welcome party, then I think-”

“Oh no!” she suddenly interrupted. “Sweetie Belle's not here! I need to go get her!”

I turned around in time to watch her run out the door and leave me alone. I had no idea what I should be doing, and so just stood there in the middle of the room for several minutes while everyone else talked and laughed around me until a voice behind me started speaking.

“So you’re the new girl, huh?” it said as I turned around to see the pink and grey ponies I recognized from class yesterday. “I can’t believe you actually have to live with Scootaloo.”

“She’s like, the worst filly in Ponyville. We can’t stand her.”

“Uhh… can I ask why?” I asked cautiously. I wasn't entirely sure if I should've been talking to them, but without anything else to do, decided to engage them. Besides, I figured it would be good to know what other people thought about the person I was staying with.

“She stole our friend from us!” the pink one said. “Sweetie Belle used to be our friend, and she stole her from us!”

I couldn’t help but smile at that. They were children and had childish sorts of problems, and I couldn’t help but think that it was amusing

“You think this is funny?” she asked me accusingly.

“No,” I answered, dropping my smile. “It’s just… why don’t you just all be friends with each other?”

“Be friends with that loser?” she asked as though it was the most horrifying thing in the world. “She doesn’t even like any of the same things we like! She only cares about that dumb scooter and being a Wonderbolt and obsessing over Rainbow Dash. I don’t get why Sweetie Belle even hangs out with her.”

“Well, um… maybe you could have Sweetie Belle hang out with you some days? And she could be with Scootaloo the others?” I offered.

“Sweetie Belle’s a lost cause by now,” the grey one said. “We’re looking for a new friend now, and Diamond and I think you should be it.”

“Uh, what?” I got out, confused.

“I know we made fun of you before,” the grey one started, “but that’s only because you were hanging out with that chicken. You don’t sound funny like a lot of the other fillies in our class, plus, you look pretty like us. If you were our friend, we could do your mane and dress up and have sleepovers-”

“Plus, my daddy’s the richest pony in town, and I could get him to buy you whatever you want.”

“And my family goes all over Equestria, and would let me take you with us if you were our friend.”

It sounded suspicious, like they were trying to sell me a used car, and from what I’d seen of them up to that point, they weren’t really the type of people I wanted to be around. Not only that, but I honestly didn’t want to do any of what they suggested we could do, and couldn’t help it as my cheeks went back to what seemed to be a semi-permanent state of pink. However, I didn’t want to outright tell them that I didn't really want to be with them for fear of them getting angry with me.

“That uh- that sounds very nice,” I got out, “but um-”

“Hold that thought,” the pink girl suddenly interrupted. “The chicken is back.”

I turned and watched Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle make their way up to us, smiling and talking to each other until they saw us. At our sight, their expressions hardened and they quickened their pace.

“Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara!” Sweetie Belle called out loudly, making me cringe as I looked around, expecting eyes to be drawn to us at her voice. “What are you two doing here?” she squeaked.

“We’re here for the party we were invited to,” Diamond Tiara answered with a smirk on her face. “Obviously.”

“Well, get away from her!” Scootaloo responded, taking a threatening step towards the two of them. “Go bother somepony else!”

"What makes you think we're bothering her?" she asked. "Does she look like she's bothered by us?"

“What, are you the only one that can talk to the new girl?” Silver Spoon got out. “Just because you met her first?”

“We were just asking her if she wanted to have a sleepover with us next weekend, right Asher?”

“Uh, I mean, to that effect somewhat, yes,” I answered as I looked at the ground, trying to both avoid lying and conflict.

“Yeah, well, she doesn’t want to stay with jerks like you,” the orange pegasus told them.

“Says who?” Diamond asked. “Just because she lives with you doesn’t mean you control her, Scootaloo.”

“Yeah,” the other one chipped in. “What are you, her mom?”

“Well, um… she, uh… she-'' Scootaloo stammered, tripping over her words.

“We’ll just get out of here and let her make her own decision on who she wants to hang out with, unlike someponies. We’ll see you in class tomorrow, right Asher?”

“Um, yes, I… guess…”

With that, the two of them left, leaving Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo standing next to me.

“You wouldn’t really have a sleepover with those two would you?” the latter asked. “They’re the biggest jerks in Ponyville!”

“I- I never said yes or no, and uh… can we- can we do something else? I really don’t want to talk about this, and I don’t like it when you fight because of me…”

“We were just trying to make sure they weren’t making fun of you.”

“I know, it just… I don't want anyone to fight because of me… can we please do something else? Like, play a game or something?”

It didn’t take Asher all that long to realize that her lack of hoof use and coordination would make it difficult to play most games, and so for the most part she sat watching the other foals while she tried to think.

Settling with the fact that she was here and was a pony now was at the top of her to-do list, and she felt like she was slowly but surely doing that. That was step one. Step two was figuring out what she was supposed to be doing here, and what it had to do with being a pony, a child, and a girl. After that, once she figured those things out, she could start to make more sense of her circumstances and work from there.

She began to wonder if she should even try convincing these ponies that she was telling the truth about her not being from there or that she was an adult male. Not that she would deny those things, but it was starting to seem like a waste of effort doing so. Her situation wasn’t going to change, so there wasn’t any real reason to try and convince these ponies about herself.

That didn’t mean that she would just automatically go along with whatever these ponies said. She wasn’t just going to suddenly start wearing dresses or using magic or-

“Wait,” she suddenly thought, realizing what she was previously thinking about and reexamining step two. “Am I… what? Hold on. Am I really… am I really… a girl right now?”

She quickly looked herself over, taking herself in. She knew she looked like a pony and therefore was a pony. Telling herself that she was still a human right then would’ve been weird. By that same logic, telling herself that she was a boy right then should’ve been weird, but the idea of saying that she wasn’t one felt awful to her.

“Am I really a girl right now?” she asked herself. “I mean, I know I’m a boy, but… if I’m stuck as… oh no…”

She quickly shook her head to get that horrible thought out of her head and decided to stop thinking. That wasn’t the kind of thought she wanted to have in her head, and decided to focus on… the lack of ponies around her. It looked like everypony besides Pinkie Pie, Sweetie Belle, and the ponies who lived in the home had already left, leaving Pinkie to do the cleaning.

“Is it over already?” Asher asked curiously, surprised that she could’ve been sitting thinking for so long when it only felt like a few minutes.

“Of course it is, silly!” the mare said, still sounding excited. “Everypony else was playing games and having fun while you were sitting there all quiet and gloomy watching them.” Then she gasped and said, “Oh no! Don’t tell me you didn’t make any new friends! That would be just horrible, and I’d have to throw you a ‘help-Asher-make-new-friends’ party!”

“That’s fine,” the filly responded quickly. “You don't need to do that. Uh, what day is it today though? Actually, what time is it, too?”

“It’s Wednesday, silly filly! And it’s about to be three, which means you have at least three more hours to have fun!”

“Yeah…” she trailed off, seeming like this day was taking even longer than yesterday was. “What do you ponies do all day, if I can ask?”

“Oh, fillies your age do lots of things, like talk and dance and play pretend and dress up and try to find their special talent and-”

As she talked, Asher was starting to put together that the word filly was the equivalent of saying girl in this world. When Pinkie talked about what fillies her age did, she was saying what girls Asher’s age did, and Asher found herself frowning because of it.

“And that’s not 'just us ponies' cause you’re a pony, too, silly! Oh! Maybe you’re pretending to be an alien from another world who’s trying to infiltrate Equestria and turned into a filly to disguise yourself! Can I play with you? Can I? Please?”

Asher suppressed a groan as she sighed, “I’m not playing a game. I’m really… never mind.” Then she yawned and said, “I think I’m just going to go to sleep for tonight. I’ve been up since… I don’t know when.”

“Not until you’ve taken a bath, missy,” she suddenly heard Lofty say behind her. “I’m pretty sure you didn’t have one yesterday, and I know you didn’t take one after you woke up this morning. You need to get in before dinner time.”

This time, Asher couldn’t suppress her groan as she rolled her eyes and said, “Of course, I need a bath.”

“How in the world do I use these things?” I silently asked myself as I sat in the warm water looking at my hooves. I once again tried to use them to pick up the soap and the washing towel, but only watched as they pushed the objects they tried to grab. It was frustrating to see because I knew I could do it, seeing as I picked up the fork last night, but for some reason wasn’t. I really didn’t want to have to rely on people to do basic tasks and growled at my lack of ability.

“Lord, just please let me figure out how to use these hooves…” I prayed. “Please just let me figure out how to do this…”

Almost the very next instant I heard a knock on the door and Lofty calling out, “Are you okay in there? Do you need any help? You’ve been in there for a while.”

“No, I’m fine,” I automatically answered, before suddenly getting an idea and changing my mind. “Actually, can you get Miss Holiday, please?”

“Sure thing,” she answered, and then about a minute later I watched the beige pony walk in. I felt my ears flatten against my head as I took a breath, trying to hide my embarrassment. I didn’t see why I was though. I was just as exposed now as I was before, but for some reason, I couldn’t help but be ashamed of myself.

“I need help using these hooves,” I said quickly before she could ask, intentionally not looking in her direction. “I can’t pick things up and I need to use the restroom, and I don’t want to have to get help with that.”

“Ah, well… hmmm…” she trailed off. “Let me think… I know you’ve already tried to pick things up before… Is your grip weak, or…?”

“I don’t have any grip at all with these stupid things,” I told her, frustration creeping into my voice. “I was able to pick up the fork last night, but when I realized what I was doing, I dropped it, and haven’t been able to pick up anything else since.”

“Okay, well… how did you eat and write and use the restroom before?”

“I wasn’t a pony before!” I said exasperatedly, knowing that I was sounding pouty.

“I see…” she trailed off again. “I’m no doctor but… well... why don’t you try gripping my hooves?” she asked, extending them out to me. “Let me feel how strong it is. I want you to grip as hard as you can.”

I leaned partway out of the tub and touched mine to her’s as I tried to do something. Even pressed up flat against mine, I could feel her hooves gripping around mine like a hand. It was a very weird sensation, but after a few seconds, I was able to feel myself gripping around her’s as though I had fingers again.

“Hey- hey!” I shouted excitedly, unable to contain my excitement. “I’m doing it! I’m actually doing it! I'm grabbing your hoof!”

“It looks like you are,” she said with a smile, seeming happy to see me happy.

“Yes! Yes! Thank you! Thank you, God! Thank you! Oh my gosh, I’m so happy!”

Holiday was genuinely happy to see Asher happy, although it once again reaffirmed the doubt in her mind that she was looking for attention. While she didn't know why her gripping Asher's hooves somehow made her able to grip back, she was fairly certain that if she were seeking attention, she wouldn’t be this excited about being able to do something so simple. However, she put that thought in the back of her mind for now as something to bring up to Cheerilee later when she had the chance.

“I’m glad you’re able to use your hooves, sweetie,” she said gently. “Now why don’t we get you dried off and brushed up so you can go back to playing with Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle?”

“Okay, okay,” she responded, calming down from her excitement, not even feeling bothered when she was called ‘sweetie’. “But first,” she added, “I really do need to go to the restroom.”

“Okay.”

Asher watched her stand there for a few moments, then stuttered out, “Um, that means, um…”

“Oh,” the mare chuckled sheepishly. “I’m sorry. I’ll step out for now. Just call me back when you’re finished.”

The filly sighed and stepped out of the tub once she left, silently thinking, “Oh, thank you, God. Thank you for letting me be able to do this. Thank you for always answering my prayers and being with me and guiding over me. Thank you.”

Holiday waited by the door for Asher for a few minutes before she finally heard her call out that she was done.

“Oh dear,” she said as she reentered, taking in the wet filly. “You didn’t even shake yourself off after getting out. You’re dripping wet and there’s water all over the floor.”

“I’m sorry,” she told her. “I didn’t know I was supposed to shake off…”

“You’re fine. It’s just something to remember for next time. Now let me get you dried off,” she told her, quickly placing towels on her and rubbing her down and drying her off. Asher closed her eyes while she did, hating the feeling of being treated like a child. However, she didn’t protest mostly because she figured this would be the only time Holiday would do this for her since she could use her hooves properly now.

“Now I look like a wet puppy,” the filly commented once the mare was done drying her off.

“Well let me get your coat and mane brushed out,” she said as she grabbed a brush and sat down in the middle of the floor. Asher shook her head at that, but watched as the mare waited patiently for her to come and reluctantly sighed and sat down in front of her.

“I don’t want anything done to me,” she told her as she began. “I just want it brushed- oh my gosh!”

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Holiday apologized as she lifted the brush out of her coat. “I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

“Keep going,” she asked, then shivered as her coat started to be brushed again. “Oh, that feels really nice,” she said as she lay down completely.

“Have you never had your coat brushed before?” the mare asked curiously, watching the filly shake her head and close her eyes.

“Don’t stop though,” she said as she let out a sigh of contentment.

“Are you sure?” Holiday laughed as she continued. “You might fall asleep if I don’t, and then I can style your mane however I want to.”

“I'll stay awake,” she responded as she suddenly found herself drifting off. "I won't fall asleep."

“Hey, Asher?” Holiday said quietly as she brushed the filly’s mane. “Sweetie? It’s time for you to wake up.”

She opened her eyes groggily, forgetting for a second where she was and looking around confused. What was she doing in a little girl’s room? And why was there a horse touching her hair?

“What am I doing here?” she asked tiredly, not fully coherent.

“You fell asleep while I was brushing your coat, dear,” Holiday answered, chuckling a bit at how adorable she thought Asher was.

“Oh yeah, I did fall asleep didn’t I?” she yawned, continuing without thinking, “The brushing felt really nice though.”

“It must have. It put you to sleep almost on the spot. You slept right through dinner and the entire night, but now you need to get up for school.”

“How long do you guys go to school?” she asked as she stretched her legs. “It didn’t feel like it was that long before I don’t think.”

“That’s a question you’re going to want to ask Miss Cheerilee when you see her. For now, though, why don’t we get you downstairs with Scootaloo so you can have something to eat? The last thing you had was at Pinkie Pie’s party I’m sure.”

“Yeah, I’m kind of hungry,” she admitted as she started to wake up, then suddenly thought of something. “But, um… I- I have a question first.”

“What’s that?”

“Um… how old do I look to you?”

“Well, how old are you?” Holiday joked with a grin, planning to just return her answer to her, but saw the filly frowning still and dropped her smile.

“I… don’t know.”

“You don’t know how old you are?”

“No…” she trailed off, then continuing, “I mean, I know how old I am, I’m about to turn twenty-five, but… I don’t look twenty-four to you, do I?”

“Well, how old do you feel like you are?”

“I don’t know… as old as Scootaloo? And she seems like she’s eight? Or ten?”

“Well, I’d say you look about that age, but why do you want to know?”

“Well, um…" she said awkwardly, embarrassed, for some reason thinking about the fact that she was near the age of puberty. "I- I just, um… I just- I… nothing. Never mind.”

“Are you sure? You can talk to me about anything you want to.”

“It’s nothing,” she assured her. “I might ask about it later though, but… not right now…”

Holiday wanted to press, but decided not to, instead telling her, “If you're sure, then you can head on downstairs. Miss Lofty already fixed something for you before coming back up here.”

“Okay, thank you. I appreciate it.”

The mare watched Asher quickly leave, and then, after waiting a few seconds for her to get down the stairs, went to see her wife in the other bedroom.

“Have you heard anything from Cheerilee or Mayor Mare about her yet, Lofty?” she asked as she entered, the pegasus laying back in bed, reading.

“Huh? Oh, no, I haven’t,” she answered. “Actually, I saw her a bit while I was out yesterday, and she said she still hadn’t gotten anything back from Canterlot, and most of the other nearby towns have said they haven’t had a missing pony reported..”

“It’s really strange, isn’t it?” Holiday said aloud, half talking to herself. “That she just showed up in Ponyville and after two days still nopony can say she’s the filly they’re missing? And how she said she was a boy and thinks she’s an adult… she seemed genuinely surprised and happy when I helped her find her hoof grip.”

“You don’t think she’s actually being serious when she says she’s from another world and didn’t use to be a pony, do you?”

“Well, no, but… it is worth considering at least a tiny bit, right?” Holiday suggested. “I mean, I honestly think both Cheerilee and that nurse are just brushing her off, truthfully.”

Lofty thought for a second, then responded, “Well, if you ask me, I don’t think she’s from someplace outside of Equestria, I think she has some..." She tapped the side of her head with her hoof to indicate what she wanted to say, then continued, "But I do agree that at least Cheerilee seemed like she was brushing her off a little bit when I talked to her, and Mayor Mare, too.”

“You think they were?”

“That’s what it seemed like to me. But honestly, if I had to guess…” She trailed off, leaving a bit of silence hanging in the air. Holiday raised her eyebrows at her, and then figured out what she was thinking when Lofty grimaced.

“You think-” Holiday started, then, as though somepony were listening, looked around and whispered, “You think she was abused? Like they were asking her about at the hospital?”

“It would make sense at least, why she’s so shy and says she’s an adult and a colt and why nopony’s reporting her missing,” her wife explained. “But either way, I think she might need to see a therapist. She’s kind of… weird…”

“She didn’t have any problems when she was around me. At least, none that I could see.”

“Are you going to try to talk to her?”

“I want to try, if you think it’s a good idea.”

“How often do you guys have school?” I asked Scootaloo as the two of us made our way over to Cheerilee’s schoolhouse. “Cause it feels like it’s summer to me, and I think I heard Cheerilee say something about a summer festival.”

“We have school on Tuesday and Thursday during the spring,” she explained to me, “and then it’s all week during fall and winter.”

“Is it not summer yet then?”

She shook her head, continuing, “Summer isn’t until the Summer Sun Celebration. It’s the longest day of the year.”

“Oh, the solstice,” I commented, only to get a strange look from her. “Never mind. It’s just a word for the longest and shortest day.”

“Ohhh… are you really not a pony?” she suddenly asked me, catching me completely off guard.

“What?”

“You don’t act like a pony to me, and talk kind of like an adult… you’re not just pretending to be an alien are you?”

“Well, I’m not an alien,” I started, “I’m just not… I mean, I’m not supposed to be a horse. I promise I’m not lying when I say I’m not… oh no…”

I couldn’t help but fall down and tear up once I started thinking about the fact that I was a pony, and put my head in my hands as I started to. No, my hooves. These dumb hooves that I now had that I absolutely didn’t want.

“Asher?” Scootaloo asked as she stood next to me, sounding concerned as I started to cry.

“I’m not a human anymore,” I got out. “I’m not a human and I’m supposed to be, and it’s killing me. I don’t want to be this… whatever I am!”

I didn’t know why it was taking me so long to accept what happened. Up to that point, I felt like there were a few times I was able to cope with it, and then other times where it just became completely overwhelming. It was just… a powerful sense that I wasn’t supposed to be what I was, and I absolutely hated it. I didn’t know exactly what it was, but I found myself wanting to just be able to accept that this wasn’t going to change so the feeling would go away.

“Is this dysphoria?” I thought to myself as I cried. “Is that what I have? Lord, please, I pray that, whatever this is, you allow me the strength to accept what’s happened to me and you take this feeling away from me.”

I lay there for a few minutes, hoping something would happen right then, but not being surprised when nothing did. I did think though that I started to feel a little bit better, but much more slowly than I was hoping for.

“Stop acting like this,” I told myself. “You’re supposed to be an adult and yet you’re acting like a child. Just grow up and accept that it won’t change. Why can’t you just accept that?”

I lay there quietly crying to myself for a few minutes, Scootaloo speaking up after a while, saying, “Um… I think, um, we should…”

“Just go ahead of me,” I sniffled out. “I’m just going to lay here for a little while if that’s okay.”

“Uh, okay. If you say so.”

“Just accept it, Ash,” I told myself as I watched her walk. “Just accept that nothing’s going to change. You were put here and that’s it. What’s taking you so long to get that through your head. You’re not a human anymore. You’re not an adult anymore. You’re not a boy anymore. Just get that through your head. You’re not a boy anymore. You’re just a…”

I growled to myself as I dug my hooves into my forehead. Why did I have to be a girl? I could see a pony and a kid since everyone else here was ponies and I wouldn’t have any place to stay if I was an adult, but why a girl? What was the point of that?

“Why couldn’t I have just been a boy?” I asked myself aloud. “It’d make this so much easier to get over if I could’ve just stayed a boy…” I closed my eyes, another couple of tears running down as I whispered, “I don’t want to be a girl."

“Why are you laying on the road?” a familiar voice, Diamond Tiara I remembered, called out to me. “You’re gonna mess up your coat like that,” she told me as I rubbed my eyes and sniffed a little bit, turning around to watch her and her companion walk up to me.

“I’m just feeling really terrible cause...,” I started without thinking as they approached before stopping. “It’s… it’s nothing. Never mind. What are you two doing here?”

“It’s Thursday,” the pink girl, filly, answered. “It’s time for school.”

“Oh yeah…” I said, forgetting about that. “I guess that’s where Scootaloo and I were going.”

“Did you two fight?” Silver Spoon asked. “She didn’t hurt you, did she?”

“No, I just-”

“You should walk with us since you’re our friend now,” Diamond interrupted as she held out a hoof to help me up. “You’re totally coming to our sleepover next week, right? It’s going to be on Thursday, and we don’t invite just anypony to hang out with us.”

“I mean, I guess,” I answered automatically as the three of us started to walk back to the schoolhouse. “I’m just a little-”

“That’s perfect! It should give you a break from having to live with her,” Silver Spoon said.

“It must be awful,” the other agreed. “How do you do it?”

“Asher!” I heard Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo call before I could answer. “What are you doing with those two?” she asked as she and Sweetie Belle came running up to me.

“She’s walking with us to school cause you abandoned her on the road, Scootaloo,” Diamond Tiara answered before I could.

“Yeah, she’s our friend now,” Silver Spoon added.

“Scootaloo didn’t abandon me-” I tried to get out.

“I didn’t abandon her! She told me to go ahead! You probably found her and started making fun of her!”

“We weren’t making fun of her! She wanted to come with us! Right, Asher?”

“Yes, I did, but-”

“How can you want to be friends with them?” Sweetie Belle jumped in. “They’re the meanest ponies in class!”

“I don’t even-”

“She wants to be our friend cause she’s pretty like us and she…”

I stopped listening and sighed to myself as they began to argue back and forth. I didn’t want kids fighting over being my friend, and grumbled to myself because of it. This was exactly like being back in elementary school, and it made me frustrated that I couldn’t really do that much about it. From what I could tell and from what I was told yesterday, it didn’t seem like this fighting was something that would just end, so I did the next best thing I could and simply walked away towards the schoolhouse that was only a couple of dozen or so yards away.

I sat down quickly in my seat and put my head on my desk, sighing again in frustration and still a bit emotional from earlier. I wanted to be able to go into work or study for school or go to church or something, but all I could do right then was sit at my desk and think to myself about my problems and make myself more frustrated.

“If I could just figure out what I’m supposed to be doing here-” I said aloud, exasperated, before Miss Cheerilee came up to me.

“You don’t have to be in here quite yet,” she told me, responding to my comment. “We still have some time before class starts. You can go out and play with your friends for now if you’d like.”

The fact that she used the word play didn’t help the bitter mood I was developing, and I angrily told her, “I don’t like kids.”

“You don’t like kids?”

“They’re out there fighting over being my friend and it’s annoying,” I explained grumpily. “They did it yesterday at the party and the day before that at recess. I felt bad the first time, but now it’s just irritating. I don’t want to have to hear fighting whenever I’m around them. I can’t even get a word in with them.”

“I see… I’ll have a little chat with them soon. But other than that, how are you doing?”

“I’m fine I guess. Miss Holiday showed me how to use my hooves to grip things, so I’m better. I’m just… being emotional again right now…”

“It’s okay to be emotional. It’s not good to hold everything in. Can I ask if there’s anything else making you upset besides your friends fighting?”

“No. I’m not in the right headspace to talk about it right now.” She gave me a look like she wanted to know more, and I continued, “It’s about the everything else I told you yesterday that you didn’t believe.”

“Asher-”

“I’ll be fine. I promise.”

She squinted at me before finally saying, “Okay, but if you need to tell me anything, you can talk to me anytime. Let me go speak with your friends now though.”

I rolled my eyes as she left, mumbling grumpily to myself. I guess I could tell her anything, but I knew she either wouldn’t believe me or would just take what I said out of context. Not that there was anything I could do about it, or any real reason to tell her anything anyway.

“The best I can do for now is go through the motions, I guess. I just wish I knew what I was supposed to be doing…”

The silver-coated filly sighed to herself often as the dull school day seemingly dragged on forever. She was used to taking classes, and in fact remembered driving into class the day before she became a pony. However, she wasn’t particularly used to being taught things she already knew. From what she could tell, this was third to fourth-grade level education, and found herself extremely bored because of it.

She did pay more attention once Cheeilee moved into history, and was a little bit interested in what she had to say then.

“As most of you know, our very own Ponyville is holding the Summer Sun Celebration very soon, but do you all know how many years it will have been since the first one was held?” The foals didn't know and no hooves raised up to answer, so she continued, “It was one thousand years ago. This is the one-thousandth Summer Sun Celebration.”

Asher looked skeptical at that and asked aloud, “Was it exactly a thousand years ago? And this exactly is the thousandth anniversary?”

“Yup! This is number one thousand,” Cheerilee confirmed, forgetting to reprimand her for not raising her hoof to ask a question.

“That… that can’t be a coincidence, can it?" she thought. "I’m sent here on exactly the one thousandth sun fesitval?”

“Legend has it that during the celebration, a pony’s magic gets stronger, so pegasi fly faster, earth ponies become stronger, and unicorns can cast more powerful spells.” It was all things she told her class the previous year about the festival, but Asher found herself very interested in what Cheerilee was telling them.

“This… this can’t be a coincidence. And it’s in this city?”

“And Princess Celestia will come right here to Ponyville to raise the sun in the middle of the night!”

“And the princess is going to come here to raise the sun? This can’t be a coincidence! I’m sure God put me here because of something to do with that!”

“Okay, class,” Miss Cheerilee finally called. “I know you all have been working very hard, so I’ll give you all a little bit of extra recess. Be back inside at.. twelve forty-five? We’ll say one o’clock. Have fun!”

Just like a couple of days ago, the class rushed outside while I followed behind them, going a little bit slower as I tried to think to myself. I thought I knew what I was supposed to be doing, or at least had a hint as to when I was supposed to be doing… something, but even that I really couldn’t be sure of. Other than what the teacher told me, I really had no idea what this holiday was or what I would even do on that day, assuming there was something I needed to do.

“This could just be a coincidence, you know,” I thought to myself. “The reason could be something else entirely. Besides, that holiday doesn’t really explain why you’re… no, stop. You really need to stop questioning what happened. I mean… is it even appropriate to be searching for a reason for being here? Even if it seems completely pointless to you, it’s still not your will that brought you here… Maybe I should try to do some research and see-”

“Hey, Asher!” someone, Diamond Tiara, called, waving her pink hoof in the air. “You should come sit with Silver Spoon and I!”

“I’d really rather not,” I called back. “I don’t like having you ponies fight over me.”

“We’re not going to fight over you,” she assured me.

“Yeah,” the grey filly agreed. “Miss Cheerilee said that we get to hang out with you during recess cause you already live with those two weirdos.”

“Well, I mean, I guess that’s pretty fair…” I trailed off, not really wanting to be with either of them at that very moment. “But, um… do you know if we can leave and do other things right now?”

“Like what?”

“Ah, like… I don’t know, like… I- I don’t know. Can we- achoo!”

“Celestia bless you,” the pink filly responded politely, which caused me to cringe.

“I don’t like that,” I told them, my face grimacing. “I really don’t- achoo! Achoo!”

“Are you sick or something?” the silver filly asked, backing away from me a bit.

“No, I just got something in my nose,” I explained as I used a hoof to rub it. “But um, anyway, what did you guys want to do?”

“You said you wanted to go to the library?”

“Oh yeah, um… do you think we can go? Actually, is there a library around here at all? Wait, nevermind, I can’t read anything you ponies write… dang it…”

“Why do you want to go to the library anyway? There’s nothing to do there.”

“And what do you mean ‘you ponies’?”

“I’m not a- nothing. It’s nothing,” I told them as I walked over and sat down next to them. “What do you guys do for fun?”

“We talk to each other,” Silver Spoon said, leaning back against a tree, the three of us positioned a bit farther away from the schoolhouse than the rest of the class.

“Yeah, like look at-”

“Achoo!” I sneezed again, sniffling as I closed my eyes and rubbed my nose. “Is there- is there pollen out here or something?”

“Noooooo…”

“Don’t take this the wrong way, but if you’re sick, we don’t want you near us.”

“Yeah.”

“It’s probably just allergies or something,” I told them as I sniffed again and rubbed my nose and eyes. “I’m probably fine.”

The two of them stared at me suspiciously before Diamond reluctantly told me, “Fine, I guess. But if we get sick, we’re going to be mad at you.”

“I don’t think I’ll get you sick. But, um, what is it you guys do again?”

“We talk about other ponies,” she explained, pointing to an ivory coated girl with red hair. “Like, look at Twist with those glasses and ugly braces.”

“Hi, I’m Thwitht,” the other one mocked. “She sounds like such a dork,” she said as the two of them laughed.

“That’s, um, that’s a bit mean…” I responded quietly.

“Or those two, Snips and Snails?”

“They’re the dumbest colts in our class.”

“Yeah, and what about-”

“Is there anything else you two do?” I interrupted. “Like, do you two play games or anything?”

“Not the games they play,” Silver Spoon squinted.

“Those games are for foals like them,” Diamond Tiara added.

“What about that holiday Miss Cheerilee said is coming up?” I asked. “Is there anything special about it?”

“Not really. It’s just some dumb holiday. The only thing we like about it is that we can stay up later and it means that school is over.”

“I mean, since it’s in Ponyville this year, that means a bunch of ponies from other cities will come to see Princess Celestia, but other than that-”

“Achoo!”

“Okay, we really don’t want you near us if you’re getting sick,” Diamond Tiara said, sounding concerned as the two scooted away from me a bit before standing up to walk away. “We’ll… talk to you later. When you stop sneezing.”

“Why are you sitting all alone, Asher?” Cheerilee asked as she made her way up to the filly.

“They left because they think I’m sick,” she answered back simply as she lay down in the shade, a bit of the sun hitting her head and mane. “I don’t mind though. I need time to clear my head, and being alone helps.”

“What are you clearing your head of?” the teacher asked politely.

“I already said that I’m not talking about that with… achoo!”

“Are you sure you’re not sick?” Cheerilee asked as she bent down and put a hoof to her forehead. “You feel kind of warm.”

“That’s because I’m laying with my head in the sun, but no, I’m not sick. I think I just have allergies or something.”

“Okay, but if you start to feel sick, please tell me or your guardians when you get back home, okay sweetie?”

With a blush, the filly responded, “Okay. Will do.”

There was an awkward few seconds of silence before Cheerilee leaned down a bit farther, asking, “Why don’t you go play with your classmates? I don’t think you want to be laying alone all recess, do you?”

“I’m fine,” she answered, looking away. “Like I said, I’m taking some time to try and clear my head, and I'm an adult anyway, so… oh, I do have a question actually. Is that princess, Celestia, is she… what is she? I mean, other than the princess, I mean. Also, is there a queen? Or a king?”

“Well, as I said before, she’s the ruler of Equestria. And no, there’s no king or queen. Princess Celestia is the highest authority in Equestria.”

“Okay, so, umm…” the filly trailed off. She tried to think to herself. She knew that the teacher told her that she physically raised the sun each morning, remembered the way she was described yesterday, and thought about the fact that Diamond Tiara specifically said ‘Celestia’ bless you. All of those things combined made her… nervous. From what she could tell, this princess they were referring to was an actual, physical person that would be coming to Ponyville in two weeks, and just that thought made her anxious. She really didn’t like the fact that this pony was, from the descriptions she heard, almighty, and she found herself a little bit afraid to meet her.

“And she’s a real pony?” she asked. “Who’s gonna be here during the Summer Sun- achoo! Ahack, ahack…”

“Honey, I think you’re getting sick,” Cheerilee said, lifting the scruff of her neck to help her stand up. “I might have to have you miss the rest of class and send you home early…”

“I’m fine,” she asserted. “I promise. I don’t feel sick. Like I said for the third time now, it’s probably allergies or something.”

“Have you had allergies before? Have you got all your shots from the doctor?”

“Yes, every spring and summer, and yes, I’ve been vaccinated. I mean, not as a pony, but as a human.”

“Well… I’ll trust you… but if you feel sick or like you’re about to throw up, please tell me, okay?”

“Okay…” she answered as she went back to laying down.

I didn’t think I was sick, but slowly through the rest of recess and class, I could say that I was feeling gradually worse, sneezing often enough that it started to hurt my nose and throat. The fact that Miss Cheerilee brought up shots made me actually accept the possibility that I was sick. I had only appeared here a few days ago, so I certainly wasn’t immune to anything these ponies were carrying.

Still, I didn’t really feel that bad throughout the rest of the teacher's lessons and heading back to Holiday and Lofty’s house, and so, as I walked with Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle, the latter decided we should pass our stop by and head over to her home.

“I’m with my sister Rarity right now,” she explained to me squeakily, “and she and I live on the top floor of her store.”

“Weren’t you saying earlier how she has something for Asher?” Scootaloo asked. “A jacket or something?”

“Oh yeah, she did tell me to tell you she had what you asked for made already, Asher.”

“She made a hoodie that quickly?” I asked, kind of surprised as we pulled up. “In less than a day?”

“My sister’s really good at sewing, it’s her special talent!”

"Oh hey, Asher, Diamond and Silver weren't mean to you, were they?" Scootaloo asked seriously. "Cause if they were-"

"They weren't mean to me," I assured her.

"What did you three do all recess?" Sweetie Belle asked.

"Well, we talked to each other for a- achoo!- for a little bit, and then they left because they thought I was getting sick... but um, they were kind of making fun of other ponies. Apparently, that's all they do, is talk about you guys."

"That's cause they're the biggest bullies in class, like we've been telling you!"

"I can't believe you actually said yes to sleeping over with them, Asher!"

"It's probably going to be awful. It wasn't any fun when I used to sleep over with them..."

“I see… ummm, how old are you and Scootaloo if I can ask?”

“We’re both ten,” Scootaloo answered as we stepped into the store, a bell ringing as we did. “So are a lot of the ponies in our class.”

That felt weird to me, because from what I gathered, they sounded and acted more like they were in the seven to eight-year-old range. However, seeing as they had no reason to lie as far as I could tell, I took their word for it, and made a note that, as far as I knew, the body I was in looked ten.

“Rarity, we’re here!” Sweetie Belle called to her sister. “Asher’s here, too!”

“Asher’s here?” the unicorn called back. “Oh good! I have something that I know she’ll love!”

Before I could stop her, she was on top of me and placing me into her gift, a dark blue hoodie with green swirls and yellow flowers patterned against it. It was very girly looking, and I felt absolutely embarrassed wearing it. However, I couldn’t say I had much room to complain, seeing as I explicitly said she could add whatever she wanted to it.

“Oh, you look just adorable in it!” Rarity told me as she clapped her hooves somehow, causing the two girls next to me to giggle. “What do you think? Do you like it, dear?”

“It’s umm…” I started, clearing my throat. “It’s good,” I lied, reminding myself that while it was a lie, it wasn’t bearing false witness per se. “I, um- it’s good.”

“You can tell me if you don’t like it,” she said, which I knew I couldn’t do, just judging by her reaction yesterday to me declining a dress from her. “I can fix it up however you want.”

“It’s fine, I promise,” I assured her, wanting the conversation to end. “Ah, do you guys want to go to the library?" I asked, turning to the two girls next to me. "I can’t really read and I kind of need your help.”

“Hello?” Scootaloo called as the three entered Golden Oaks Library. “Is anypony here?”

“I’m here!” somepony, Twilight Sparkle, called as she made her way down the steps, carrying Spike on her back as she did so.

“Oh, it’s you again,” Asher announced in recognition. “Are you- achoo!- are you the librarian?”

“Is that a dragon?” Scootaloo asked curiously, tilting her head.

“Is there anything to eat in here?” Sweetie Belle asked. “I’m starving!”

“Ugh, I don’t have time for this!” the mare said frustratedly as she marched past them, out the door. “Just browse the library and put everything back when you’re done. I have things I need to do.”

“Ugh, this is boring!” Scootaloo announced as the three of them looked through the library. “What’s the point of this anyway? We’ll never find anything here! Let’s just do something else!”

Asher sighed to herself as she looked at the spines of the books. Interestingly enough, the titles were written in English, but the insides of each one were all just filled with squiggles as far as she could read. She knew she'd need Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo’s help reading through them, assuming she knew what she was looking for, which she didn’t. Besides, what was she even hoping to find? Some plot to destroy the world? It probably really was just a coincidence that the holiday that was coming up was on its one-thousandth anniversary, as well as the fact that it was being celebrated there.

The filly sighed to herself again, telling her friends, “I guess we can go… I guess there’s nothing here…”

“Do you really think something’s gonna happen during the Summer Sun Celebration?”

“I don’t know… I was kind of guessing more than anything… I mean, how can it be just a coincidence that I'm sent here for exactly number one thousand?” Asher asked, exasperated, sitting down roughly at the table in the library.

“Hey, maybe there’s something about where you’re from that can help you?” Scootaloo offered, trying to get her to talk about herself.

“Yeah, what’s it like where you came from?” Sweetie Belle jumped in, much more obvious about what the two of them wanted.

“I mean, it’s just like here, except there’s humans instead of ponies, and it has better technology and stuff.”

“What’s techo-nology?” the white filly squeaked.

“Technology is… it’s anything that’s not… it’s anything that you use to- achoo!- to make your life easier. Like, for example, books are a form of technology. And so are clothes and plates and houses and basically everything that’s made by humans… or ponies in this case. We just have better technology, or, basically, better tools. Better versions of things.”

“Well how do you get the better version of a book?” Scootaloo asked.

“Well, you…” Asher started before looking up to the ceiling, trying to figure out how to communicate what she wanted to clearly. “Hold on, let me think of a way to explain what I want to say…”

She looked around the room for a few seconds, then got an idea and took a book that was already on the table they were at and opened it to the cover.

“Okay, so, you know how this book is filled with pages of words, right? Well, imagine if all of the words in that book plus every book in this library could fit on the cover of this book, and it was still perfectly readable and you only saw one page at a time, and you could get to whatever page or book you wanted just by touching the cover. That’s the kind of thing we have on Earth.”

“That sounds really cool! What kind of spell do you have to do that?”

Asher frowned at that suggestion, explaining, “There’s no- well… for all intents and purposes, there’s no magic on… achoo! I think I actually am getting sick...”

“Well, then how did you get here?” Sweetie Belle asked innocently. “And how did you become a filly like you said?”

“I don’t really…” she started, about to tell them she didn’t want to talk about it before changing her mind. “Okay, so this time, I want you to imagine someone who’s…” She paused for a second, trying to think about how to explain the concept of God to a kid who’d never heard of him, before continuing, “Imagine someone who’s omniscient, omnipotent, and omnipresent.”

“Wait, what do all those words mean?”

“It means someone who knows everything, can do anything, and is everywhere all at once. And also this person is invisible. That’s the person who sent me here.”

“That… that’s freaky,” Scootaloo commented. “And also sounds like Princess Celestia, except she’s not invisible and isn’t everywhere. I mean, I don’t think she’s everywhere, anyway…”

“Wait, how can somepony be everywhere at once?” Sweetie Belle asked thoughtfully.

“God’s not a pony,” Asher started, ignoring the nervousness she felt at the comment about Celestia, “and I don’t really mean physically everywhere at once. It’s more like… how air is everywhere at once, but you don’t really notice it. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t everywhere. That’s kind of like how God is to put it simply.”

“Ohhhhh… so that’s the pony who brought you here? And why you’re trying to find books about the Summer Sun Celebration?”

“Yes. Correct. That is right.”

“Well if he can do anything, why didn’t he just tell you what to do before he teleported you here?”

“That’s… not a question I have the answer to. I’m kind of waiting to be told why.” Asher watched as Sweetie Belle opened her mouth and quickly continued, “Not that he physically tells me why. He doesn’t. It’s more like a feeling you get. Like how you can tell your parents want you to do something just by looking at them. It’s like that.” She had the urge to add that she didn’t want them to think she was crazy, but forced herself not to.

“So is that why you told us you were a colt before?” Scootaloo asked innocently.

Asher blushed at that and held her ears flat against her head, her grey fur almost becoming a shade of red. She had some… ideas as to why she might have been a filly, but her ideas why being true would mean that her having to do something at the Summer Sun Celebration would be completely wrong. She growled to herself slightly, more ashamed of herself than angry.

“Maybe it’s because you need to learn to be nicer to people who are different from you rather than just try to avoid them,” she thought to herself. “Maybe that’s why you’re a girl now, so you can stop being so mean to people like that. Maybe that’s why you were put with those two ladies, Holiday and Lofty, did you consider that? Maybe you’re a girl because… ugh, I really, really hate myself…”

“Let’s just go…” Asher answered back after a while, sighing to herself.

“There you three are!” Lofty said as we came into the house. “Where were you girls all afternoon?”

“We were at the library,” Scootaloo explained as I looked down at myself and remembered what I was wearing. A blue hoodie with yellow flowers on it. I scowled at myself as I quickly started to pull it off, surprising myself at how well my hooves acted now as compared to the previous two days, almost losing my grip thinking about it too much. Once I got it off, I held it out in front of me and examined it closer. It was nice enough I figured, except it was a piece of girls' clothing, and for that reason alone, I knew I wasn’t going to be wearing it that often.

“Would God even want me to wear this? I mean, it’s a… wait, what am I saying? It’s a piece of clothing! I don’t think He’ll care whether or not I wear a hoodie or a dress. Not that I will because it’s girls’ clothes, but…”

I closed my eyes and let the thought hang. I wasn’t a girl. Probably. That probably was what was scaring me. I really didn’t want to be a girl. I really, really didn’t want to be a girl. I didn’t want to be stuck like this forever.

“But if God made me a girl, then I’m a girl now, aren’t I? I can’t just… oh, I hate this so badly…”

“Did you hear me, missy?” Lofty suddenly said, leaning down in front of me, startling me. “It’s time for you three to take a bath before dinner.”

“Oh! Um, yeah, sorry,” I got out, shaking my head and noticing that Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle had already left. I followed upstairs after them and headed to the bathroom, peering in for a second before turning my head, completely embarrassed.

“What’s wrong? Scootaloo asked innocently as she and Sweetie Belle sat in the tub, the latter turning the water on and adding bubbles as the former spoke.

“Why- why are you and she- she and…” I stuttered, turning my head a little bit to look back in.

“We already told Aunty Lofty she was spending the night, remember? And then she said we three have to take a bath before dinner?”

“Okay, but why- why... why are you taking a bath with her?”

“Um, because we’re friends?” Sweetie Belle told me, sounding confused. “You can get in, too. There’s enough room for all three of us in here.”

I was probably more embarrassed right then at that suggestion than I was at any other time up to that point. Of course, they didn’t care, seeing as they were kids, but I was neither a kid nor a girl, as far as I considered myself at least. I stared at the floor silently as they waited for me to say something.

“Well, are you going to get in?” Scootaloo asked.

“N-no!” I answered quickly, shaking my head and taking a step back. “I’m not- no!”

“Why not?”

“Be-because I’m a grown man! I can’t- I can’t take a bath with you!”

“What’s this about not taking a bath?” Holiday broke in, walking up behind me.

“I’m not- I’m not- I won’t- I’m not taking a bath with little girls,” I told her as I turned around, trying to put conviction into my voice. “That’s where I’m drawing the line at.”

“Hey! We’re not little!”

“Not even for Miss Lofty and I?” she asked. “It’s really better to take one before dinner so you have more time to play with-”

“No,” I responded firmly. “I’m not taking a bath with them. Bathing with someone else is as far as I go.”

“Are you sure? It looks like they’ll be sad, sitting all alone in there without you, Asher…”

I didn’t turn to look at them, instead keeping my gaze firmly fixed on the mare in front of me, trying to wear a forceful expression to show that I wasn’t going to change my mind.

“Well… I won’t make you take a bath right now if you promise to take one right after supper, okay?”

“Okay, I will. I just don’t- I want to be alone. I’m not taking a bath with someone else.”

“Lofty and I really don’t like to waste water, but… I’ll see what I can do about that. But since you’re not bathing right now, I do want to take a moment to talk to you alone.”

“Okay…”

“What’s going on, sweetie?” Holiday asked as the two of them entered her room, taking seats on the bed. “Why don’t you want to take a bath with your friends?”

Her face became red with embarrassment as she told her, “Because people where I’m from don’t take baths with each other. I know you ponies don’t care about certain things, but I do, and I’m not comfortable taking a bath with girls. Not to mention the fact that I’m an adult male and they’re little girls, and I already have to sleep in the same bed as them…”

“Okay, can you tell me where you are from? And what do you mean you’re a male?”

“Are you just gonna brush off everything I’m saying? Cause I don’t want to talk to you if you’re not gonna listen to me. I might as well save my breath.”

“I’ll listen to you,” she assured her, using a hoof to pet Asher’s leg a bit. “I know it seems like a lot of ponies aren’t listening to you, but I’ll listen, I promise.”

She almost didn’t want to believe the mare, but she decided to trust her, seeing the genuine look she was giving her. Besides, she seemed nice enough, like she actually cared about her from what she could tell, and talked to her more than any of the other adults.

“Well, I’m from somewhere- Achoo!- called Earth, a place that doesn’t have any ponies and has better technology than this place,” she said, telling her what she told Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo. “And I mean I’m not a girl. I’m physically not a girl… well, I mean, I am right now, but I didn’t use to be. I’m a boy, and used to physically look like one, too.”

“Well, you certainly look like a girl to me,” Holiday responded politely, almost as though she were talking to a child. “How are you going to find a boy and get married if you tell ponies you’re a boy, too?”

That was a question she was unprepared to hear, and it caused her cheeks to go almost crimson and her ears to stand up, the tips almost starting to turn red, too. It was along the lines of what she’d been thinking about before, but forced herself to push away before she could think too deeply into it.

“Thoughts are thoughts, and actions are actions,” she told herself silently. “Thoughts don’t become actions until you either act upon them or speak them into existence. Until then, they’re only thoughts, nothing more.”

“I don’t like colts…” Asher said quietly, looking away from Holiday and rubbing her hooves along the bed.

“Oh, well it’s okay to like fillies, too. You don’t have to say you’re a colt to-”

“I don’t like girls, either,” she told her, her ears dropping back down. “I don’t like anyone. I’m like… asexual or something probably.”

“It’s okay to be a girl and like girls, sweetie.”

“No, it’s not, at least, not the way you’re implying that. And I’m not a girl. I’m not a girl, and I don’t like girls, and even if I were and did, it wouldn’t be okay to just... act on that like you're suggesting it is.”

“I promise it’s okay, Asher,” Holiday told her kindly, bringing a hoof up to her side to pet her. “Lofty and I are both girls, and we like each other. You don’t need to say you’re a colt to like fillies, I promise.”

“There you go, not listening to me,” she said angrily, crossing her hooves. “Why do I even say anything? None of you listen to me… I’m not a filly...”

“I’m sorry,” the mare apologized, realizing she was treating her the way Cheerilee and Nurse Redheart did. “I believe you,” she lied. “You’re a colt. Besides, even if you weren’t a filly and didn’t like them, it’d be okay to be a colt and like colts, too.”

“I don’t like colts,” she said to her again, her ears pricking back up a little bit and some of the red returning to her face. She tried to say it with the same tone as she had when saying she didn’t like girls, but couldn’t help but have it come out much more quiet and shy than before.

"I'm not... like that... I don't like boys..." she trailed off, her voice soft as she spoke.

“Okay, I believe you, you don’t like colts,” Holiday answered back softly. “But if you did, that would be perfectly okay, and nopony would get mad at you or not like you.”

“Whatever,” she sighed quietly, turning away from her. “Can you ask about something else? I don’t want to talk about this anymore.”

“So, um… can you tell me where you’re from?” Holiday asked me kindly.

“Well, um, it’s like I was telling Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle. It’s a place called Earth that’s basically like this place except it’s… kind of different? As far as I can tell it’s mostly the same though, kind of.”

“What kinds of creatures live there?” she asked me. “Earth ponies I bet?”

“Uh, I’m not exactly sure what you mean when you say an ‘earth pony’, but I’m going to assume you’re not talking about regular horses, so no. There’s… we’ll, there’s a lot of different animals, but I guess the main thing is that there are people, unlike here.”

“What do they look like, if I can ask?”

“They’re tall, and lanky looking I guess?” I explained. “So, well…” trying to think of how to describe it as best I could, “it’d be like… if you stood on just your hind legs all the time and walked like that, you’d resemble a human more, and I think you'd be about as tall as one if you did that? Except you’d also need feet and hands, and ears more on the side of your head, and no fur… also, we don’t, um- we don’t go around naked…” I couldn’t help but blush once I finished that thought.

“Okay, so if you’re a colt… err, a boy, since you’re not a human… did you want me to… call you a boy as well?”

“Yes! Yes please!” I answered quickly. “I would like to be called a boy because that’s what I am. That would make me feel, like, twelve times better if you did that.”

“Well, I can… certainly see what I can do about that. I can’t speak for what we’ll do in public, but I can say, at least right now, that I know a very handsome boy, and his name is Asher.”

“Oh my gosh!” I laughed for what I thought was the first time as a pony, taking in the feeling of genuine happiness, almost euphoria if felt like. “Oh my gosh! Oh, that makes me- achoo!- that makes me really happy!”

Holiday couldn’t help but smile at her smile. She was almost certain that it was the first time she saw the filly smile since she met her… or him? She wasn’t entirely convinced about her being a boy, but if it made her smile, she would go along with calling her one for now.

“Well, I think you’re a very nice boy,” she told her, watching her grin widely at that. “But other than creatures, what else is different about it?”

“Well, there are cars and computers and skyscrapers and things like that… like, honestly, if there were humans here, I’d say this was someplace on Earth, either very remote or sometime in the past… maybe the sixteen hundreds? What with the thatched roofing and all…”

“What exactly is a skyscraper?”

“It’s a building that’s really tall, thousands of feet, and it looks like it ‘touches the sky’. Most buildings on Earth aren’t that tall, but you can tell you’re in a really big city when you see them.”

“Oh, I see,” she answered, realizing what she was talking about. “We have a few buildings like that in Manehattan and Canterlot. I’ve never heard them called ‘skyscrapers’ though… have you ever been to those places?”

“Um… I’ve been to Manhattan quite a few times, but not Canterlot…”

“That’s certainly interesting. Miss Cheerilee says you write in the same language they use in those places.”

“Wait, I’m confused,” Asher started. “They don’t speak a different language in those places do they?” When Holiday shook her head, the filly continued, “Then how do you come up with two entirely different ways of writing for the same language?”

“Well, Canterlot and Manehattan have more unicorns than most other places, and a lot of them...don’t look very fondly upon other ponies. So because of that, and since they have magic, they can write fancier-looking letters than most ponies can, who have to use their mouths and hooves, to try and separate themselves from other ponies more. At least, that’s how it was explained to me.”

“That… doesn’t make sense to me, and sounds kind of racist, but I’ll accept that explanation.”

“But can you tell me what those other things are, too?” she asked. “Cars and computers?”

“Well, a computer… is going to be difficult to describe, but basically, it’s a box that holds information about everything you could possibly imagine and more. Well, not exactly that, but that’s the simplest way to describe it without getting all complicated.” Holiday opened her mouth to ask about that, but before she could, Asher continued, “As for a car, that’s just a machine you use to get places faster than walking.”

“Like a train?”

“Not exactly a train, but in essence- wait, you ponies have trains here? Like, with engines and everything?”

“Well, yes... it’s how we’re able to travel hundreds of miles without walking.”

Asher stared blankly at that answer before responding, “I’m not- I’m not going to question it. That doesn’t make any sense, but whatever… achoo! Achoo!”

“Are you feeling sick at all, sweetie?” the mare asked as she put a hoof to her forehead. “I feel like you’re sneezing quite a bit…”

“I don’t know…” she answered. “I thought I was just allergic to something at school, but I think I might be… I don’t feel sick though.”

“Your forehead feels really warm to me… Why don’t we see if those two are done in the bathroom yet so we can eat dinner and have you take a bath and then lie down?”

Just like I promised her earlier, I was in the bathtub after dinner, laying on my back in the water and staring at the ceiling. I really didn’t feel that bad, although I was starting to think that little by little I didn’t feel that well. However, laying in the warm water certainly helped how I felt.

I spent most of the few minutes I was in there trying to decide if I was doing the right thing, letting her call me a boy. I mean, I was a boy, but that was the keyword. Was. If I was still considered one now, I didn’t know, but I did know I certainly didn’t look like one; all of these ponies regarded me as a girl, and if God brought me here and made me a girl, then I couldn’t just go around trying to subvert that, could I? Or was it bad to be letting them refer to me as a girl so often and not trying to correct them? Did it matter at all to Him? I didn’t know, but really wished I did. However, I decided that, for now, I would keep asserting myself as a boy when I could.

“Lord,” I prayed, “please, whatever your will is, please let that be your will, and I ask you to help me follow what your will is to the best of my ability.”

With that, I dried myself off and headed to Scootaloo’s room, starting to sniffle a bit as I laid down in her bed. It was a quiet few minutes I had alone before she and Sweetie Belle returned.

“So what do you wanna do, Asher?” the orange pegasus asked immediately as the two entered, jumping into the bed. “We can stay up late and tell stories and play games and read books-”

“Yeah! We have all weekend! We don’t have to go back to school until Tuesday!” Sweetie Belle added.

“I don’t know…” I responded, realizing that the two had been mostly asking me what I wanted to do. “What do you guys want to do? Because I was thinking about just going to sleep for the night…”

“You should tell us a story!” they said together, Sweetie Belle continuing, “You said you’re not a pony, so you should have a bunch of cool stories!”

“I mean, I don’t know…” I trailed off. “I’m kind of… boring honestly…”

“You’re saying you're an alien from another world, and you’re boring?”

“Well, I mean… I’m sorry… I could tell you stories about my job I guess?”

“You have a job?”

“Yeah,” I answered. “I’m a manager in a restaurant… I guess there’s- achoo!- stories there? Like, one time, this lady got so mad at us that we messed up her order, that she asked to speak to me just so she could throw her sandwich in my face.”

“Wait, she threw food in your face because you messed it up?” Scootaloo asked, seeming surprised.

“Yeah,” I responded, smiling a little bit. “We didn't do it on purpose or anything, but customers where I work are like that. We had a guy who threatened to beat up one of my employees because his order was wrong even though the police were standing right behind him in line.” I chuckled, continuing, “He couldn’t believe it when he was being arrested because the guy pressed charges on him. Or there was the lady who honestly thought we were a bank and pulled up to the window trying to cash a check.”

The two of them laughed a little bit at that, Sweetie Belle saying, “Tell us more stories!”

"Well, there was the time..."

“Do you hear that, Lofty?” Holiday asked, looking up from her book for a moment, listening to the fillies giggle in the room across from them. “It sounds like they’re laughing in there, and I think I can hear Asher laughing with them.”

“That’s good,” Lofty responded, yawning as she did so. “It seems like she’s getting settled in. Oh, did you talk to her yet?”

“I did, and from it, there were… a few things.”

“Like what?”

“Well… first, I think she’s getting sick. She said she doesn’t feel sick, but she was sneezing a lot, and I think she might have a slight fever, so if we can, I think we should buy her some medication tomorrow.”

“I can try and pick up something for her. What are the other things?”

“Well, the main other thing is that… she really seems convinced that she’s from another world and that she’s a boy, so… I told her I would call her a boy in private.” She watched Lofty scrunch up her face at that, and quickly continued, “Now, before you tell me it’s a bad idea-”

“I wasn’t going to say that.”

“-it was the first time I actually saw her smile and laugh since we met her. It looked like it made her genuinely happy, and I really think it brightened her mood overall.”

“I understand…”

“But?”

“But nothing,” Lofty answered. “I just think that… well… I mean, I don’t know… I still think she needs an actual therapist or something. She’s kind of… not right. Like, she's always... I don't know. She's just a little bit... off. Do you actually think she thinks she’s a boy?”

“I can’t say for sure, but she definitely seems insecure about something… I did steer the conversation in the ‘who does she like’ direction, and she was kind of aggressive in saying she didn’t like fillies, which is why I was kind of thinking that…”

“I know where you’re going with that, and it makes sense,” Lofty commented. “We did say she was probably from Canterlot, right? Or Manehattan? They are more… uptight and traditional in those places, so she could’ve been told it’s not okay…”

“But anyway, I just don’t like seeing her so… I don’t know. She sometimes looks like she’s feeling hopeless to me, and I really don’t like seeing that, so I told her I would call her a boy in private, when it’s just me and her, at least for a little while.”

“Well, those fillies didn’t clean up after themselves,” Twilight muttered as she entered, rolling her eyes at the state of the library. It wasn’t really that big of a mess, only a few books that weren’t put away, but it still frustrated her to see.

“Spike!” she called before making her way over to the tables to see what it was they were looking over. She squinted at the books that still lay open, quickly reading the titles of the pages they were looking at and noticing they were all about the upcoming Summer Sun Celebration. Her instinct was to just write it off as curious school foals interested in the upcoming holiday, but she did notice that the grey filly she saw yesterday was here with them. She frowned, thinking to herself for a minute before deciding that it probably wasn’t a coincidence. She only saw her for a few seconds, but in those few seconds, Twilight automatically thought she was very strange. She was certain that this was just the kind of ‘interesting’ pony Princess Celestia would want to know about.

“Spiiiiike!” she called again, before turning around to see the dragon standing behind her. “Take a letter,” she instructed.

Celestia dropped her student's letter to the side as she sat on her bed, having just lowered the sun. She was… she didn’t know. Nervous wasn’t quite the word, but she was a bit worried. Twilight was going to be her successor. She had no doubt about that. But even as sure as she was, she didn’t want random events potentially interfering with that.

She sighed to herself, debating what she should do. Maybe go down to Ponyville herself and see the filly? Take her back to Canterlot and… no. That wasn’t a good idea. She wasn’t scheduled to be in Ponyville until the day of the Summer Sun Celebration, and she didn’t want to worry her subjects by just dragging some random foal off with her. Besides, it was only one pony her pupil described, and there were thousands of ponies in Ponyville, and hundreds of cities in Equestria. Who was to say that this was the pony giving her that worried feeling she had? That the one who gave it to her was even in Ponyville at all?

“My heart is to say, of course,” the princess sighed to herself, laying in her bed. Whoever it was probably didn’t even intentionally want to cause trouble. It certainly didn’t feel that way to Celestia. But intentional or not, she didn’t want anything coming in between her and her plan for her student.

“Oh, what do I do about this?” she asked herself silently. “Just let things play out how they be? Leave things up to chance?”

She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, trying to relax herself. Things would be fine. Things would work out. Things always worked out. Besides, it was early. It was best to not get into the middle of things and inadvertently cause trouble she didn’t intend to. She would be there during the Summer Sun Celebration, during her sister’s return, and get a chance to see her for herself. There wasn’t any reason to get worked up…

Although it might not hurt to just take a quick look at her before then if she could...

“Asher?” Lofty whispered. “Can you sit up for me, sweetie?”

I shut my already closed eyes tighter at her voice, shaking my head slightly, which only made it pound worse. I felt absolutely terrible, so much worse right then than I felt when I went to sleep.

“Please?” she asked me, whispering a bit louder. “Just for a little bit so I can take a look at you?”

“No…” I whispered back hoarsley, tearing up a little bit. I hated being sick. I could never stand it, not before, and not now. I got sick a lot when I was a kid, and it always made me more… emotional, which wasn’t something I liked being. If I had to pick between being sick and injuring myself, I would pick the latter every time.

“I just want to go back to sleep…” I whispered, turning my head away from her, feeling like I was sweating under my fur.

“I know, but I just want to make sure your fever isn’t too high,” she responded as she gently lifted me up. I kept my eyes closed, but even still I could tell there was sunlight making its way through the windows, and it was hurting my head to being facing towards.

“What time is it?” I asked as I carefully opened my eyes to see Lofty holding me, Holiday standing behind her as she did so.

“It’s almost noon, dear,” she answered as she stuck a thermometer in my mouth. “But it’s okay. We’ll let you get back to sleep soon, okay? Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle are outside right now so they don’t get sick, too.”

“They might already… achoo! Ow…”

I put my hooves on my head with that, unable to stop myself from crying quietly because of how badly the sneeze made my head pound. I didn’t know what I had, but it felt horrible, and I desperately wished I would get over it quickly.

“Hey, it’s okay,” Holiday told me as she made her way over and stroked my mane, causing me to wince.

“Please don’t touch my head…” I responded, still whispering.

“Oh, I’m sorry. It’ll be okay. After Miss Lofty gets your temperature, we’ll let you go back to sleep, okay?”

“I’ve got it. It’s… one hundred and two point eight… that’s… kind of high…”

“Do you think we should take her to the doctor?” Holiday asked.

“I really just want to go to sleep,” I whispered tiredly, sadly, sniffling as I did so.

“I know you do, Sweetie,” Lofty told me as she moved up to pet my mane, “but we want to make sure you’re okay. We’ll let you go to sleep once we get back, alright?”

“I don’t know why,” I complained as I lay back down gently. “It’s not like that doctor will believe me. She didn’t believe me before, she’ll probably just think I’m lying about being sick now…” I coughed weakly, then continued, “I really don’t like being sick…”

“I know you don’t like it,” Lofty told me, “but that’s why we need to go see the doctor, so they can make you all better. The sooner we leave, the sooner we can get back.”

“I’d really rather not,” I whispered, trying to close my eyes again before I was picked up.

“Come on, Asher,” Holiday said. “We need to get going, missy… er, I mean, mister.”

Lofty and Holiday watched as the filly gave a small smile as she weakly grabbed onto the latter’s neck. The mare gave a smirk to her wife as they both saw her reaction, before quickly setting back off for Ponyville General for the second time that week. As they walked, the two whispered to each other, Asher falling back asleep as they did so.

“She really actually likes being called a colt?” Lofty asked.

“I told you,” Holiday responded. “I know it’s weird, but like I said, it’s just about the only time I’ve seen her smile.”

“It’s very weird, but… I mean… I guess… I don’t have any problem with it, but you know she needs to see a psychiatrist, or a therapist. But I mean… I guess she really won’t be with us for too long anyway…” With that thought, Lofty scowled and looked at the ground.

“What are you thinking about?” Holiday asked her carefully.

“I’m really not too fond of her going back into Cheerilee’s hooves. I mean, we both know she doesn’t really take her seriously. Heck, Asher knows she doesn’t take her seriously. It’s apparent she doesn’t like her, or the nurses she saw from what it sounds like.”

“I know but…”

“I’m almost compelled to have her stay with us, but you know we can’t do that, and she certainly can’t stay with Scootaloo, what with how often your brother is away. Anyway, it’s a conversation for later. When we can, we do have to talk to that teacher. I want to have a serious conversation with her.”

It wasn’t long before the two of them made their way into the hospital, Holiday directing them over to nurse Tenderheart, intentionally avoiding Redheart.

“Oh my, the poor dear is sick isn’t she?” the nurse said as the two set the filly on the examination table, causing her to wake up and start to cough.

“She is,” Lofty explained as she stroked her mane while Asher laid on her stomach, legs tucked underneath her. “We think she was starting to get sick yesterday, although she said she was fine, and she ended up waking up really sick today.”

“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that. What kinds of symptoms does she have?” the nurse asked, getting out her stethoscope and starting to examine her.

“Well, she was sneezing a lot, and I think she might have had a cough if I remember right? Her temperature is also really high, one-oh-two point something.”

“Her lungs don’t sound great…” the nurse commented before bending down to quietly ask, “What feels the worst, dear?”

“My head is pounding…” Asher whispered with a sniff, barely audible as she placed her hooves on her head and ears.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Tenderheart told her and touched her mane lightly. "We'll get our doctor in here to magically examine you and see what’s going on, what's making you sick.”

“I don’t like magic…” the filly said quietly. “I don’t want magic…”

“Aww, I know it’s scary sweetie, but we need to know what’s wrong so we can make you all better,” Tenderheart told her before looking back up at Holiday and Lofty. “Let me go in and get the doctor. He should be here in just a minute.”

As she promised, it was only a minute before the doctor came in, a tan-colored horse with glasses, a brown mane, and a lab coat. Asher had already fallen back to sleep by the time he got in, Holiday gently petting her back.

“Ah, I was told the little filly doesn’t like magic,” he said with a small smile, “but it looks like she’s already back to sleep, so it shouldn’t be an issue.” With that, he stared at Asher intensely and concentrated, enveloping the filly in his blue magic as he looked around her. It was only a few seconds that he looked around before he raised his eyebrows, seeming confused.

“What is it?” Holiday asked as she grabbed her wife’s hoof.

“It’s… well, hmmm…” the unicorn trailed off, staring at her again as he looked inside of her. “Has she gotten all of her vaccinations?

“Well, um, we’re not really sure,” Lofty told him. “Right now she’s just being fostered with us until we find out where her guardians are… but why?”

“Well, it might be hard to believe, but it’s looking like... actually, we're going to test her blood just to make sure I'm not seeing anything incorrectly.” Then he sighed, groaning, “We’re gonna have to make sure the whole town is up to date on their vaccinations if it comes back for diphtheria…”

I opened my eyes slowly and saw that I was still laying on the examination table, Lofty and Holiday standing with me as the latter pet my mane and back.

“Wha… we’re still here?” I asked tiredly as I carefully turned my head to the side and laid on my cheek. “What are we doing here? I thought we’d be back home by now…”

“I know, sweetie,” Holiday told me, “but the doctor is just going to see what’s wrong with you. He should be back any minute now with some medicine that will make you feel all better, and then we’ll take you back home and get you to bed. Does that sound nice?” It absolutely did sound nice, and I found myself wishing I was back in bed right then.

“Lord,” I said aloud, too tired to try and keep the prayer in my head, or to even try to close my eyes, “please let this sickness go away. I pray that your will is your will, and I pray that you let this sickness go away. Amen.”

I watched Holiday and Lofty give me a look, but it seemed they decided not to comment on it, and instead went back to petting me as I stared listlessly at the door. I’d been there… what, four days? And yet I was already sick, which made sense to me, seeing as I wasn’t vaccinated for anything and was in an entirely new body that didn’t exist before and had a completely brand new immune system. I could only hope that whatever this was wasn’t serious or that they had something to give to me for it.

“This is going to last for days isn’t it?” I thought to myself, still staring blankly at the door, doing my very best to keep my emotions in check for once. “Wait, what day even is it? It was… Tuesday when I got here? I should’ve been at work… I wonder if they have someone working for me. Maybe they think I just up and quit after only calling in one day in the last three years… I wonder if the police are searching for me. I hope I at least had the lights off in my apartment. I can’t remember if I did though…”

“It’s going to be okay, Asher,” Holiday whispered as she continued to pet me. “You’ll get better soon.”

“I hope so,” I told her quietly, finally closing my eyes because the light hurt my head too much. “I don’t like being sick. You probably just think I’m a sick little girl, don’t you… Achoo! Ow...”

“No, I think you’re a sick little colt,” she responded gently, “one who I know will start to feel better if sh- err, he just gives it some time.”

“Lord, I thank you for at least- I mean, for in your grace, letting me stay with these two,” I silently added to my prayer, smiling at her words for just a moment before frowning again at my headache.

“It’ll get better sweetie,” she continued. “I promise.”

"I just want to go home," I told her tiredly. "I don't want to be here. I want to go home..."

I didn’t know how long it was before someone else finally came in, but it felt like a long time. When someone did enter, I opened my eyes again to see that it was the same brown pony from before, this time carrying in his magic six or seven shots of what I could only assume to be vaccinations I needed.

He could clearly see my expression drop at the sight of them, because he immediately started apologizing as he came up to me, saying, “I’m sorry. I really don’t want to have to do this to you, but from what your blood is telling us, you’ll spend the next few months being sick if we don’t get you up to date on your vaccinations.”

“I know…” I sighed, knowing that I sounded like I was about to cry because of it as I closed my eyes again.

“I promise this won’t take long dear,” he told me, starting to prepare the first one and rub me with what I could only assume were alcohol wipes. “Would you rather have them all in the same leg, or just spread out over your body?”

“Just put them all in one spot,” I responded, yawning again as I put my hooves on my ears, wishing my head would stop pounding. "I really don't care at this point. I really hate being sick..."

“You two are up to date on your vaccinations aren’t you?” Doctor Horse asked as he quickly stuck the first shot in, Asher barely flinching at the pain, slightly grateful that it took her mind off her head even a little bit.

“Holiday and I?” Lofty asked back. “Yes, and Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo… might be? You would have to ask their parents though.”

“That’s good, because she does have diphtheria, unfortunately… has she been sneezing and coughing in school and such? How long has she been sick?”

“As far as we can tell, it was only just yesterday she started to sneeze and cough and feel sick. She told us it was just allergies before, and she didn't seem that bad and wasn't complaining yesterday, but... yeah.”

“Well, we might not need too much medication then… we have a stack of orders already sent out to Canterlot, and it should be coming in by train in just a few hours. Luckily we made a cure centuries ago for a situation like this… heh, imagine if this was mumps though. That would be a nightmare. Not that this isn’t serious, but as they say, it can always be worse.”

“Well, it’s certainly a good thing there's medicine coming in.”

“Yup, enough for her and all her classmates and about a hundred other ponies if need be,” he explained as he concentrated on making sure all the shots were administered. “Along with about five hundred vaccines just to be safe and make sure nopony else gets sick. We don’t like to play around with the big ones like diphtheria. Her classmates might not like her after this though, but I’m sure they’d prefer it to being sick along with her.”

He paused, sighing as he continued, “Anyway, I guess we also need to send a letter to Mayor Mare to make sure nopony tries to come to town for the holiday.”

“Wait, you’re going to cancel the Summer Sun Celebration because of this?” Holiday asked, surprised.

“Well, not cancel it. Can’t really do that, seeing as it’s Celestia who raises the sun, but… well, this year, the actual celebration portion of it that’s supposed to happen in Ponyville will have to be restricted to just Ponyville residents, unfortunately. Can’t chance anypony getting sick, after all.”

“Great,” the filly whispered, causing the other three ponies to jump as they almost forgot she was there. “I guess I ruined an entire holiday for a whole country.”

Celestia had finally convinced herself that she would go out and had just stood up from her throne when she was interrupted by one of her servants.

“Princess Celestia,” Raven Inkwell said respectfully, bowing in her presence.

“Arise, my little pony,” she commanded, then smiled and, in a much friendlier voice, continued, “You know you aren’t expected to bow before me.”

“You know I will anyway,” she smiled back as she looked up at her, standing straight up again. “It’s a matter of respect to me, and if anypony deserves it, it’s you, Princess.”

“I do appreciate how you feel, Raven, but I assure you, it’s not needed. Now I must ask, what brings you to my ear?”

“I thought you should know,” she started politely, “that there’s a report of somepony with diphtheria coming out of Ponyville. We actually just received a request for medication and vaccinations that are going on their way now.”

“Ponyville…” Celestia trailed off thoughtfully. “I just sent my pupil off to Ponyville to prepare for the Summer Sun Celebration, and was on the verge of heading out there myself. Do we know who it is who contracted it? How long has it been that they’ve been sick?”

“From what I’ve been told, it’s a little filly, and her guardians say she just became sick yesterday. I’ve also been told that, while many ponies might have been exposed, because it’s been caught early, there shouldn’t be too many cases, and the cases there are should remain localized. However, they are planning on closing off the town for the holiday.”

“I see…” Celestia said, thinking about Twilight Sparkle’s letter from yesterday. A silver filly with a golden mane who was curious about the Summer Sun Celebration and was acting strangely. It sounded like this was the filly she was looking for, although the fact that she mentioned that she already had guardians did mean that she couldn’t just take her off to Canterlot like she wanted, especially if she was sick... well, maybe. That would be something to consider once she met the foal. She wasn't quite sure about that yet. Still, she wanted to at least meet her and see if she was somepony to be worried about, considering she was already causing chaos and starting to mess up her plans, perhaps inadvertently, but doing so nonetheless. Once she did, she could figure out what to do with her from there.

“Raven,” Celestia told her after a minute of silence, “please make sure to reschedule any events I have planned for today. I believe I’ll be taking a look around Ponyville.”

“Stay well, Princess,” Raven responded politely.

It was a few hours before Asher and her guardians were allowed to head home, feeling a bit better after being given some medicine, although her leg was aching from how many shots she was given. She almost wished she asked for them to be spread around, but she figured that’d just make all of them hurt a bit when she flexed them. Besides, she could live with it, seeing as it would prevent her from catching something worse later.

She watched the small town as she rode on Lofty’s back, doing her best to avoid coughing into her mane as she did so. She had to admit, it was a nice, little town and looked very friendly, although she would still much rather be at work than be sick and a pony. And a child. And a girl. It was annoying, although at that particular moment, she couldn’t muster up much strength to be too upset about it.

“At least they’re starting to believe me,” she thought. “Or maybe at least humoring me, not like that nurse and that teacher. What am I even supposed to be doing here? This sucks…”

Maybe she wasn’t supposed to be doing anything at all. Maybe she should’ve been looking at this as an opportunity. An opportunity to do what, she didn’t know, but perhaps at least considering the thought that she was gifted something would make her feel better.

“Makes for a crummy gift though,” she muttered silently, before catching herself. “No, stop that. Don’t ever think like that. Any gift is a gift from God, and should be accepted graciously. Besides, you’re not even supposed to be questioning this anymore, Ash, remember? Whatever His will is, it will be His will, and that’s it.”

With that thought, she cleared her mind for the rest of the trip home, sinking into the bed once she was set in it.

“Are you feeling up to eating something?” Lofty asked once she was set down. "None of us have had anything to eat all day, and I know I’m hungry.”

“I’m fine for now,” she answered, her voice still quiet and weak. “But can I take a bath? That usually helps me feel better…”

“Absolutely. Do you think you’ll be okay on your own?”

“Yes, I’ll be fine, but if you could carry me in there, that’d be nice. I can do the rest from there though.”

“Princess Celestia!” Twilight started as she opened the door to Golden Oaks Library, coming face to face with her mentor. “I- what are you doing here so early? The Summer Sun Celebration isn’t until the twenty-first! Is this about that filly I was telling you about? Do you think she has something to do with Nightmare Moon’s return? Should we-”

“Be at ease, Twilight,” Celestia told her calmly, putting a hoof on her shoulder. “I’m only here to ask about the filly you saw, and more importantly, to check on preparations and make sure you’re finding friends as I requested.”

“The planning is going well, Princess,” she responded quickly, “but apparently somepony got sick and now they’re considering canceling the Summer Sun Celebration! I’m pretty sure I saw that filly sneezing yesterday, and wouldn’t be surprised if-”

“Twilight, please, be at ease,” Celestia said again, this time with a bit of force in her voice. “Although it might be closed off to only Ponyville residents this year, I assure you, the Summer Sun Celebration will proceed as it always has, and would like you to continue preparing for the holiday.”

“But what about that foal? And what about Nightmare Moon?” the purple pony asked. “She and her friends were looking up stuff about the Summer Sun Celebration, and I don’t think that’s a coincidence. She probably knows something about Nightmare Moon's return, and might even have something to do with it!”

The alicorn chuckled at her student, saying, “You really do need to get your head out of all those books you read. I’m only here to check on my little ponies, and since she’s the one who got sick first, I’d like to visit her first to make sure she’s doing well.”

“I really think you should-”

“Twilight?” Celestia interrupted, raising her eyebrow. Her pupil was confused for a second, before deflating, realizing what she was telling her.

“Be at ease,” she muttered, looking at her hooves, disappointed and slightly annoyed, even despite the fact that it was Celestia of all ponies.

“I’m sure you’re doing well in the task I’ve given you, and I’m sure you’ll find many friends available to you here if you take the time to look for them. I trust that you’ll follow my directions to the best of your ability, and look forward to seeing you again during the holiday.”

“Yes, princess,” Twilight huffed as she left, leaving her alone with her thoughts. “Maybe it won’t be all bad… but I know that filly has to have something to do with Nightmare Moon’s return, or at least knows something about it. Is she planning something? How can Celestia expect me to make friends at a time like this? Ugh…”

I took time to relax as I slipped into the bathtub, the hot water feeling nice against my coat as I closed my eyes and rested my head on the back edge of the tub. It felt soothing, relaxing, and the quiet of the room helped my head stop pounding so much. I always felt better when I took a bath or shower when I was sick, and it seemed this was already helping me then.

I let my mouth go below the water, making sure to keep my nose in the air while I rested my eyes. However, the next thing I knew I was drifting off as the water soaked into my fur, then inhaling water into my lungs and feeling my nose burn as I violently coughed, my headache coming back worse than before. I leaned over the side of the tub to cough up the liquid in my lungs, sneezing painfully as I did so, and it seemed as though just a second later the two women, mares, were rushing to my aid to try to do what they could to help, patting my back with a hoof as I tried to force the water out.

“Are you okay?” they asked worriedly. “What happened?”

“I started to fall asleep and breathed in some water,” I explained in between coughs, the tears springing back into my eyes as I shivered, honestly not caring anymore about the fact that I sounded like a little girl with as miserable as I felt. “I just want to go to sleep.”

“I’m sorry, sweetie,” Holiday told me, hugging me close. “Let's get you all dried off and put to bed, okay?”

“Okay,” I whispered back.

The princess took her time to get to her destination, opting to follow her instinct rather than ask about the filly to the mayor of Ponyville. As she walked, she stopped to smile and greet her star-struck subjects, less numerous throughout the town than she would have expected to see. But then she remembered hearing about the case of diphtheria the filly had and figured that her ponies were already advised of the situation and were staying in their homes out of caution. Still though, there were more than a few out and about, and each one that saw her stopped to greet her enthusiastically, and she made sure to return each and every one with a greeting of her own.

The house she went to was on the edge of town, with no other ponies out near it luckily, and, after doing a quick check to make sure no creature had followed her, lightly rapped on the door with her hoof, adjusting her wings and making sure her crown was still in place correctly.

“Coming!” a voice called from far within the home, taking a few minutes to get to the door as Celestia listened carefully to the sound of their hooves against the floor. She stood at attention waiting patiently for them, and gave a kind smile as she saw an older pegasus mare open the door.

“Eep!” Lofty squeaked out, falling back on her rear as she stared up at the very last pony she expected to see show up to her door. The white alicorn was absolutely intimidating to stare up at, and despite her smile, Lofty half expected to be escorted to Tartarus for some unknown crime she might have committed.

“P-p-p-princess…” Lofty was able to get out before Celestia spoke to her, her voice calm and gentle.

“Is it alright if I stepped into your home?” she asked politely. The mare who was asked, in her confusion, quickly shook her head, before realizing what she was doing and furiously nodding, crawling backward on her back as the alicorn stepped in, acting as though she were some fearsome creature.

“It’s quite a beautiful home you have, my little pony,” Celestia commented politely as she stepped inside, the mare finally standing up again as she stepped back away from her unconsciously, keeping her distance. “Very beautiful,” she continued. “I wish I had a home quite as nice as this one.”

“C-c-c-can I m-m-make you some t-tea?” Lofty stuttered out, her wings stretched out as she stood defensively, as though Celestia would strike at any time. The question earned a chuckle from the princess as she shook her head.

“That’s very considerate of you, but no thank you,” she responded. “I’m actually here to meet with a little filly who I believe is in your care. She’s silver coated and has a golden mane from what I hear. May I ask if she’s around?”

“A-a-asher?” Lofty asked. “She-she-she was t-telling the truth about n-not being a filly?”

Celestia giggled at that to keep her calm, dodging the question as she explained, “I got word from Canterlot that filly of yours has diphtheria, and wanted to pay her a personal visit because of it, especially since this year’s Summer Sun Celebration will be restricted to just Ponyville. Would it be okay if I met privately with her?”

“Uh… uh, yeah! Yes! Yes, princess, of course you can!”

“If you would be so kind as to lead me to her, miss…?” Lofty ignored her request for a name as she already turned to call to her wife up the stairs.

“Holiday! Uh, some-somepony is here to meet- to see, Asher! I’m- I’m bringing her up with me!”

“Okay!” I heard Holiday call as I pressed my hooves to my ears, the pony, the mare, still drying me off. I didn’t know what it was about, except for hearing Lofty say that someone wanted to meet with me. I had no idea who it could be, and was too tired and aching to try and think of who it was.

“It’s okay, I’m sure it won’t take long,” Holiday whispered to me as she rubbed the towel over me. “It’s probably a doctor sent here to make sure you’re okay. We’ll let you get right back to sleep once they’re done.”

With that, she set the towel in the hamper as she motioned me to follow her into the hall, the two of us able to hear the sounds of footsteps coming up the stairs. It was only a few seconds before the two ponies came into view, but Holiday gasped first anyway, followed by an involuntary squeak from me as I stepped back fearfully from just the sheer size of this pony. She was more than a head taller than Lofty who was in front of her, more like a shoulder or two taller from what it looked like, and impossibly large, her head looking as though it was just inches from the ceiling. She had on what looked to be gold plated armor on her feet, as well as a necklace and crown that was encrusted with purple jewels, one that she was somehow able to place into her hair against all odds. Her mane and tail were both colored like a rainbow, although only half of one, as it was largely pastel blues and greens as well as a bit of pink that made it up. The hair she had on her head and tail both somehow flowed constantly in the air, being carried along by some non-existent breeze. She also had a long, very long horn like a unicorn and wings that stretched out, seemingly with grandeur, as she placed her eyes on me.

I couldn’t help but take another step back in fear as I stared back at her. I could only assume this was Princess Celestia.

Celestia smiled kindly at the filly, happy to have found her, doing her best to ease the otherworlder’s fears as the frightened pony stepped back again and almost tripped into the bathtub. If it weren’t for the overwhelming sense of anxiousness the mare got from seeing her, she would’ve thought she were just any other foal. However, the feeling alone she got from her told her otherwise.

Despite this, she kept her body and mind calm, portraying her usual friendliness and gentleness as best she could. She didn’t want the filly to be frightened or afraid, even in the face of her own nervousness and worry.

“Hello there, my little pony,” Celestia started gently, taking a few steps forward and leaning down to put her face close to the filly’s. “Can I ask what your name is?”

“_Ashley...” the filly squeaked out quietly, almost inaudible, staring back at the princess as her heart beat quickly like a frightened rabbit.

“It’s very nice to meet you, Ashley,” the princess answered back with a smile. “Is it okay if I spoke to you alone?” She shook her head quickly at that question, looking completely terrified of her, and Celestia continued, “Do you know who I am?” With that she nodded and took another step back only to trip and start falling into the bathtub, being caught by the mare’s magic. This caused her to squeak and freeze up completely, unused to the sensation around her, watching as her body was briefly trapped in the golden glow of her magic before he was set upright once again. She stood absolutely frozen as the princess stood smiling, starting to get a bit concerned about the look on her face.

“Are you alright, Ashley?” Celestia asked to no answer. It made her drop her own smile as she looked at the filly expectantly. She turned back to see Holiday and Lofty only starting on at her, looks of surprise and curiosity painted on their faces before turning back to Asher.

“Ashley?” She started again, taking a small step forward and watching as she tensed up fearfully at her movement. Still, despite this, the princess leaned her head down and used her nose to nuzzle Asher’s. Even despite being a strange creature from another world, she still looked like an adorable, if scared, little filly, and the alicorn couldn’t help but treat her as such. It caused Asher to scrunch up her face at the gesture, earning a smile from the princess.

“Why do ponies like touching my nose so much?” Asher asked quietly as she used a hoof to rub it, seeming a bit more settled and snapped out of her terror to Celestia now. She giggled at the cute sight before speaking.

“Is it alright if I spoke with you, ma’am?” Celestia asked again, watching as she blushed and nodded this time. “Is it okay if we did so privately?” the mare asked.

“I- I guess…” she got out. “I- I wanted to find you and speak with you before… but, um…”

“I’d quite love to meet you and know more about you,” she said, “if that’s okay with you. Shall we speak in your room?”

“Princess Celestia is in my house?” Scootaloo practically screamed in shock as she and Sweetie Belle stood stupefied, staring at her and Asher walking into their room.

“Yes, she is,” Holiday told them as she used a hoof to direct the two of them into another room. “However, she wants to speak to her alone, and I’d like you two to leave them be.”

“Whoa…” Scootaloo trailed off as she stared at the door, Sweetie Belle jumping in to finish the thought she was about to start.

“She really is a colt and an alien like she said, isn’t she?”

“Now, uh, I don’t know about that, you two,” Lofty laughed nervously. “She’s actually here because Asher has diphtheria and wants to make sure she’s getting better. Speaking of which, did you two get all of your shots?”

“What do you think she’s doing in Ponyville?” Scootaloo asked her friend, ignoring the mare.

“I don’t know. Maybe she’s here to-”

“Girls. Did you get all of your shots?”

“Uhhh… yeah, I think so,” Scootaloo answered, shaking her head and looking back to her guardian.

“My parents took me to get all of mine a few weeks ago."

“Good, good,” Lofty sighed in relief. “So you shouldn’t get sick if she keeps staying in your room-”

Just as she got the words out, Celestia came back out the door with the filly on her back, who once again looked absolutely terrified as she clenched her hooves around her neck as though she would fall off at any moment.

“I’m sorry to have bothered you all,” the alicorn said, “but if it’s alright, I’d like to take this young filly to Canterlot to be treated for her sickness.”

I really wished I had done something besides nod my head when she talked to me, because the next I knew we were flying high above the clouds, my arms wrapped around her neck as I practically strangled her as we flew. This was higher than before, so much higher than when I flew on that other pony’s back, Rainbow Dash. I absolutely hated it, and kept my face buried in her still flowing mane as she flew me off to… wherever we were going. Her castle in Canterlot from what she told me.

She said she wanted to speak to me, but she really only asked me about three or four questions before she decided we should leave, all of them yes or no.

“Have you always been a pony?” Head shake. “You entered Equestria on Tuesday I presume?” Nod. “Are you meant to be an adult?” Nod. “Would you be against discussing this elsewhere, in my castle in Canterlot?” Head shake.

With that, we were off, Celestia somehow levitating me off the ground and placing me on her back, explaining to Holiday and Lofty that she was taking me with her to treat me. With the words, she spread her wings and took off into the sky, causing me to gasp at the sudden speed while tears filled my eyes from a combination of the wind in my face, the horrible pounding in my head, and the extreme height we were at. I really didn’t like the height. I didn’t like any of it, from how high we were to her using magic to lift me up to how sick I was to… everything. Once again, I really, really wished I was at home again.

“What if she offers a way to go home?” I asked myself as I kept my eyes firmly in her mane to avoid seeing how high we were. “Do I say yes? Can I really do that if magic is involved? Can I do that if God wants me to be here? Oh, Lord, why is this happening? I know I keep asking, but I just really wish I knew why...”

“Ashley?” Celestia started, her voice a bit hoarse. “If you would loosen your grip just a bit? Even though you are but a filly and I, a princess, you still have earth pony strength and are beginning to choke me.”

“I- I- I don’t like heights…” was all I managed to squeak out, somehow tightening my grip around her in the process.

“I assure you, you will not be dropped,” she told me as she turned her head behind her and looked at me. “Perhaps you can wrap your arms around my waist.”

Her horn lit up with a golden glow, the glow working around my arms as she somehow forced my hands- hooves- loose, my breaths becoming deeper and faster as she gently placed them at her sides. Once she did, I immediately tightened my grip again, feeling like my hooves would shatter if I clenched any harder.

“Be at ease, my little pony,” she told me gently as I looked up for a moment into her purple eyes. “All is well. We will arrive safely.”

“I don’t like this,” I said aloud, half to her, half to myself. “I don’t like any of this. I feel like I was starting to get a little bit comfortable, and now we’re thousands of feet up flying over even the clouds. I just want to be at home. I don’t like this at all.”

“We will see what we can do, my little pony. For now, be calm. We will be in Canterlot shortly.”

Shortly in this case meant staying high in the sky on her back for another good half hour or so, the rest of the trip remaining silent. Once I felt her hooves on the ground, I quickly hopped off her back, somehow landing upright as I did so, wiping the tears out of my eyes. Then, when I opened them again, I stepped back in surprise at the sight before me.

She didn’t lie when she said we would be going to her castle, and it certainly was a castle before me. However, this wasn’t a traditional grey castle like you’d see in medieval Europe. This building was gigantic, colored white and gold and purple with multiple spires jutting into the sky. We looked like we were on a mountain, one that shot straight up into the clouds with a waterfall pouring down it somehow, the main part of the building being built on top of it. Perhaps cliff was a better word to describe it, because about half of the building was built right into the cliff face and about a third jutted off of it. Just from the outside, it looked like a crazy sequence of hallways and rooms and twists and turns, the kind of building it would be incredibly easy to get lost in. It looked like something right out of a TV show or a fairy tale.

“Come along now, Ashley,” the pony said as my mouth hung open just from the sight of it. “We’ve much to discuss now. Although, first…”

“First what?” I asked before I saw her horn light up, then watched as she pointed it towards the sun and forced it to lower, going from high in the middle of the sky to below the horizon in just a few minutes as the moon came up with it. It was a sight that literally took my breath away, and I had to look away from it after a little while, freaking myself out too much after a certain amount of time. Just like the first and second day I was here, I was starting to get filled with the overwhelming sense that this wasn’t real, that this couldn’t be happening. I had to close my eyes and sit down to calm myself down watching it.

“Is something wrong, little filly?” she asked me politely, the concern in her voice clear.

“How- how did you do that?” I stuttered out, my eyes still closed as I sat in the grass. “How did you do that? With magic?”

“I am the ruler of Equestria,” she explained with a kind smile as she looked down at me. “It is my job to make sure my little ponies are given light in the day and darkness at night.”

“Oh, this is too- I don't like this at all... God, why is this happening?”

I debated to myself whether or not I should ask the next question, knowing it was a completely ridiculous question to ask. Even so, I still knew I had to ask just based on what I had seen from her and heard from other ponies, and was afraid of what the answer might be. I almost didn’t want to ask as a result, and really had to gather myself to even consider the fact that there might be even a one percent chance of her answering yes to what I was planning on asking. Despite this, I took a breath and mustered up the strength to ask what I knew I needed to.

“You, um… are you, uh- you’re not…" I paused to close my eyes and take another breath before continuing, "You're not God, are you? I mean, I don’t think you are, but, um…” I couldn’t help but cringe at my question, knowing it was completely ridiculous. If she were, she wouldn’t have needed to ask my name or tell me to loosen my grip. Still, I wanted to ask to get it out of the way right then and there. Besides, even if she answered yes, I had a list of follow-up questions I planned to ask her to prove it.

I watched her chuckle at my words and nervously laughed back as she answered, “You’re not the first to ask that question. Many of my own ponies seem to believe so. But no, I am no deity, even if it seems to others that I am. Although I will admit that I have such aspects in many respects.”

“Oh, good,” I sighed in relief, still cringing a bit. Even if she wasn’t God, I did have a problem that she was comparing herself to Him, even a little bit. It made me incredibly anxious to hear, although I put that to the side right then, relieved that she said no.

“Okay, so then…” I continued, “how did you do that? You just… move the sun? Every day? Have you always done that? Does it not move on its own?”

She let out a genuine laugh at that, explaining, “Despite my age, I cannot claim to have always moved the sun. Before I came about, it took six ponies to move the sun and the moon across the sky each day.”

More relief came from that. She wasn’t all powerful, which was good, I thought.

“Okay, so then why are you saying you have aspects of a- achoo! Ow...”

“Please, my little pony, we’ll have plenty of time to answer your questions. But let us head inside first if we can, before it begins to get cold.”

“She asked if I was a deity?” Celestia thought to herself as the two entered her castle, still able to catch nervous glances coming from Asher’s direction. “Does she think I brought her here?”

The two of them walked through the castle, past the throne room and into the hallway, entering the first room they saw, one with a great view of the mountainside. Asher shuddered at the sight, a sheer dropoff, one that extended what looked to be thousands of feet off the cliff face. Even at night, it was a terrifying view to her.

“This is where you will be staying for the evening, and perhaps tomorrow as well,” Celestia explained as she and the filly walked up to the window to look down the mountain. “I do hope it’s comfortable enough for you.”

“I- achoo!- I don’t like the view… I liked it better with- I mean, I’d rather be staying with Miss Lofty and Holiday…” She couldn't help but blush at the idea that the two of them had grown on her, especially considering her initial reaction to them.

“Hmmm… we can equip you with a better room,” the mare commented, “but that will be a task for later. As well, we shall take you back to Ponyville in due time. For now, however, I would like to inquire about your status.”

“My- my what?”

“Actually, before that, we should have supper served,” she said. “I’ve heard you have been out all day. You must be quite hungry. Is there anything in particular you wish to have?”

“I’m not hungry,” she got out tearfully, unable to stop thinking about how much her head hurt. “I just want to take a nap right now. My nose is still burning and my whole body is aching and… I just want to go to sleep.”

“I see… well then, I shall be back in an hour's time with something prepared for you,” Celestia told her as Asher climbed into bed. “Do rest easily, please.”

“I hope I’m not being too formal…” the princess thought as she watched the filly lay down and almost immediately fall asleep, looking peaceful as she did so. “Where is she from that she knows Ponish? Would she eat pony food? She has to have eaten some before to not be malnourished, but still… she did have canines… hmmm…”

With that, she stepped into the kitchen and decided to have her chefs cook something more akin to what griffons and, in some colder regions, pegasi might eat, fish and leafy greens, as well as a side of flowers, chamomile. She thought it would be a nice enough meal, and figured she should like something on the plate.

With that out of the way, she went to grab a notebook and pen to keep track of the conversation they would have. She knew she really should have told Twilight Sparkle. She would’ve been ecstatic to learn about the filly. However, she had other, more important things to attend to, namely, the Summer Sun Celebration and her sister’s looming return.

Perhaps I should keep her in Ponyville and have her stay with Twilight… it might do each of them good, especially if Twilight can keep a close eye on her and make sure she doesn’t interfere with what I’m planning…”

Much too soon I was being awoken again, although this time it was to the smell of food.

“I did not know what you liked to eat, so I had my chefs prepare fish, rice mixed with spinach, and chamomile flowers.”

“I’m not really that hungry, but it does smell good…”

“It’s best to eat and keep your strength up, so you can fight your illness,” she explained as she floated the plate down to me. “Although uncommon, diphtheria can be quite serious at times.”

“I know that. We get shots for it where I’m from, too. But thank you for the meal.” With that, I closed my eyes in silent prayer before starting on the meal, ignoring the curious look the lady, the mare, was sending my way. It was probably the best food I’d eaten since I became a pony. I realized then just how much meat I’d eaten on a daily basis as a human, and took time to appreciate the flavor of the fish, salmon, one of my favorite foods.

“Is it okay if I spoke to you while you ate, ma’am?” she asked politely as I swallowed another bite.

“I’m- I’m a boy…” I trailed off, suddenly embarrassed as I stared at my plate, looking away from her.

“Ah, I’m sorry sir,” she immediately corrected. “Although that is interesting. Worldgates are not known to change one’s gender. Perhaps you’ve always seen yourself as a mare?”

“No, I haven’t, and we’re not starting down that rabbit hole,” I said tiredly. “I’m a boy. I don’t want to be a girl. And I don’t know what a “worldgate” is, but I do know that it was God who brought me here.”

“Ah, that’s the deity you believed I was, isn’t it?” she figured out. “Where are they now? Here in Equestria?”

“God’s not a physical being,” I explained. “He’s on… another physical plane of existence… it’s like…” I took a moment to think before telling her, “The way it’s been described to me is like a storybook. You can see and affect the people in the story, but the people in the story can’t see or affect you… to put it simply, anyway. It’s more complicated than that, but that’s the gist of it on a very basic level.”

“I see… so if this being brought you here, do you know why so?”

“I- I don’t know. Maybe to teach me a lesson about… why being… not mean, but like… ugh…”

“Yes?”

I continued looking at my plate as I blushed, quickly and quietly answering, “About why being transphobic and homophobic is wrong.” I looked back up at her and saw her tilt her head curiously, quickly adding, “I mean, I’m not sure it’s a coincidence that I’m… in a girl’s body now and I’m staying with those two ladies… never mind.”

“I understand,” she told me as though she were speaking to a child, which made me frown. “Now Ashley-”

“I’m sorry, but it’s- I’m Asher. I know I said Ashley, but I…” I frowned harder, saying again, “It’s Asher, please.”

“Well, Asher,” she started again, “we can see what we can do about these things that have happened to you. Although I must ask where you came from.”

“I’m from a place called Delaware, on Earth,” I told her simply.

“Hmm… Earth… I’ve heard that name before, and I do believe it was one of the places I visited.” She put a hoof to her chin as she looked lost in thought, continuing, “If I’m not mistaken, I believe it was on Star Swirl and I’s restricted worlds list before the mirrors were destroyed…”

“Restricted worlds? Mirrors? What?”

“Nothing for you to be concerned about, Asher,” she told me dismissively as she waved a hoof at me. “Although I don’t believe we’ll be able to send you back quite so easily, if at all. We’ve no worldgates available for us to study, and Star Swirl and I hadn’t put much time into seeing why the mirrors acted the way they acted. I’m certain with enough time we could come up with something, but we’re speaking on the timescale of years or even decades.”

I sighed and closed my eyes at that knowledge. She was effectively saying there was nothing she could do for me, which I had expected, seeing as it was God who brought me here, not me jumping through some portal like she probably thought.

“I’m going to be… no, no. Don’t think like that. I’m supposed to be here since He brought me here. Besides, even if the choice were available, I don’t think He’d want me to mess around with magic and go against His will.”

“I understand,” I told her sadly as I let out a breath, slightly depressed.

“I do appreciate your taking my words well, Asher,” she told me. “Many in your position would not react quite so calmly.”

“Well, it helps that I’ve been here for four days already,” I responded. “And, I mean, if God brought me here, then here is where I’m supposed to be, I guess… I’m just… I don't know, a little bit depressed... wait, why did you say you’re like a deity?”

“I do admit I have aspects of it,” she explained, “and can see why some ponies might think as such. I’ve ruled over Equestria for millennia. I would not fault you if you believed I was one.”

“I- I don’t,” I answered quickly. “I only asked because- because I had to be sure. But there aren’t any other gods. The only god is God.”

“I’m not sure who you are referring to, but I can say the draconequus, Discord, had been called a god and is known as the Lord of Chaos. Although he's currently encased in stone. I don't believe he's the cause of your being in Equestria, if a feat such as that were even possible by him.”

“I- I don’t know who that is, but I don’t think… I- I don’t like this at all. I really don’t like this… when I say “god” I mean omnipotent and omniscient. I don't mean, like, doing weird stuff or being magical.”

“Although I’m not sure about omniscient, I can say that Discord is quite omnipotent,” the princess told me. “The laws of reality bend to his will. He once ruled over Equestria in a state of chaos until my sister and I used the Elements of Harmony to bring him down.”

“I really- achoo!- I really don’t like hearing all of this,” I told her, feeling just the barest, tiniest inkling of doubt in my faith at her words, trying to reassure myself that whoever Discord was, they couldn’t be a god because gods couldn’t be brought down by… whatever the Elements of Harmony were.

“I’m sorry,” she apologized gently, probably seeing the uncomfortable look on my face. “I didn’t mean to upset you. If you’d like, we can change the subject?”

“Yes please,” I responded quickly, grateful for the opportunity to talk about something else.

“If it’s acceptable, I’d like to question you about how you came here and what your world is like since I’ve last visited it. But before that, I assume you have numerous questions for me?”

“I… yes, I do actually,” I answered, quickly remembering something from yesterday. “I, um… I don’t know what I’m doing here or why, but, um… is something going to happen during that… sun holiday they’re planning?”

Celestia immediately dropped her face from neutral to a squinting scowl, which caused Asher to shrink back away from her. She looked almost angry at her for asking, and the filly looked at her hooves nervously as a result.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to… never mind…”

“How did you figure that out?” she asked questioningly, leaning her head down as she took a step closer to her.

“I- I j-just…” she stuttered out nervously, going back to looking at her hooves. “She- she was talking about it in class, that teacher, Miss Cheerilee, saying how that sun celebration was coming up and how it was the one-thousandth year they were doing it. And- and she said it was being held here and that it would be held in a few days, so I figured… I mean, I really don’t think it’s a coincidence that I was put here in the town that holiday is being held on the one-thousandth anniversary exactly, so…” She looked back up at Celestia and squeaked at her intense expression.

The mare realized she was practically glaring at the filly and took a breath to relax as she explained herself.

“I’m sorry. You’re right. You’re quite the observant young man. Something will be happening on that day, the return of my sister, Princess Luna. However, I would appreciate you not sharing this knowledge with anypony else or researching it further. My faithful student, Twilight Sparkle, is handling it, and handle it she will. Although it might be an incredible coincidence, I have my own plans for her and do not want you to steer her away from those plans. Do you understand?”

“I- yes, I won’t, but I… I really don’t like any of this. I just want to go home but I’m here, and I feel like there’s a reason for it and something I should be doing…”

“Just sit patiently,” Celestia told the filly. “I will get Twilight Sparkle to work on something to send you on your way as soon as the Summer Sun Celebration has passed.”

“Okay, but I- ugh, I feel like I’m going to be stuck here forever. I don’t- I don’t want magic used on me, and even if I did, I can’t just say ‘let me go home’ can I? I mean, if God put me here, then who am I to say ‘’Well, I’m just going to leave’?”

Celestia tilted her head again as she asked, “Can you describe this deity to me?”

She sighed at that, explaining, “I was told that He’s like you in that He’s benevolent and graceful, but he’s also omnipotent and omniscient and omnipresent. That’s the very simplest way I can describe Him.”

“And as you said before, their existence is such that we cannot interact with them, but they can interact with us?”

“Not entirely, but that’s the easiest way to describe it.”

“I’m not sure such a being exists.”

Asher rolled her eyes at that, muttering, “Of course you don’t, but I know He does.”

“How do you know?”

“Because of all of my answered prayers, and- and... the simple fact that I’m here at all is proof, isn’t it? I mean, I’m a horse for crying out loud! People don’t just become horses at random! And the fact that you can raise the sun and have magic and the fact that I just so happen to be here on the thousandth year of that summer holiday is all proof. None of that can possibly be a coincidence, and you won’t be able to change my mind on that.”

“I’m not doubting that this isn’t a coincidence, however, I still do not think such a creature could exist.”

“Well, I guess we’ll have to agree to disagree on- achoo!... ugh, I hate being sick…”

“I was hoping to be able to question you tonight, but it seems as though you should rest for the night,” Celestia told her as she picked the plate back up. “We shall discuss more tomorrow. For now, rest your head, my little pony.”

“Okay,” she sighed as she laid back down, allowing the princess to leave again. As she closed her eyes, she quietly mumbled a phrase to herself, “I will fear no evil, for my God is with me, and if my God is with me, whom then shall I fear?”

“A very curious colt,” Celestia thought to herself as she left. “Although that worldgate… it’s changed ponies’ species, but never their sex… hmmm… Perhaps he's ashamed to say he sees himself as a mare? Unless that deity he thinks exists is real and truly brought him here… could such a being exist?” Celestia eventually made it to her own bedroom, still deep in thought.

“What to do with him… having him with Twilight is probably the best course of action… hmmm… I can’t have him messing up my plans though. Except I can't keep him in Canterlot because several ponies in Ponyville have already seen him and know him.”

The mare growled to herself slightly at that. If she had it her way, she would keep Asher in Canterlot. But as it stood, it seemed the best course of action was to stick her with Twilight after the Summer Sun Celebration until a worldgate could be built to send her back. Not that that really mattered anyway. By the time one was built, years would have passed and there’d be no point anymore. She would just have to deal with this until she retired it seemed, a thought that caused her to grumble to herself and sigh again.

“If such a being exists,” Celestia thought to herself, “then I certainly can’t say I like them.”

“Was that really Princess Celestia?” Scootaloo asked, not touching her dinner of mashed potatoes and green beans. “Like, the real Princess Celestia? Standing in our house?”

“She’s just taking Asher to get checked up on,” Lofty explained for what felt like the fiftieth time in the past hour. Not that she believed it herself. Sure, the filly was sick and had caused a little bit of a scare in Ponyville, one that wouldn’t be over until after the holiday, but she didn’t really believe the Princess of Equestria herself would come all the way down to Ponyville just because she was sick. No, it was much more likely that Asher was telling the truth about herself, that that was the reason Celestia came down to take her to Canterlot. Not that she was going to tell the two fillies at the table that.

“She should be back tomorrow or Sunday, like the princess said,'' Holiday added, “and then you girls can go back to listening to her tell stories and playing pretend. Now please eat your food. It won’t taste very good cold.”

“Do you think she’s friendly?” Sweetie Belle asked, then gasped. “Maybe she’s trying to take over the world! That’s why she wanted to know about the Summer Sun Celebration!”

“Maybe she’s-”

“Hush now, girls,” Lofty scolded them. “Those aren’t very nice things to say about your friend, especially when she’s not here.”

“We’re sorry…” the two girls apologized at the same time.

“When she comes back, we expect you to tell her that, too,” Holiday added.

“Wait a minute,” Scootaloo started, suddenly thinking of something. “She told us that she was a boy, so shouldn’t we call her ‘him’?”

“We… will talk about that later. Now eat your dinner, please.”

“Didn’t she say she was some creature called a human?” Scootaloo asked Sweetie Belle once the two were alone in their room. “And was turned into a pony?” she continued. “Maybe that’s why she didn’t know what cutie marks were!”

“Now we have to be extra sure to teach her about being a pony! What if she messes something up and people figure out she’s not one?”

“What if she’s here because her parents were mean to her and turned her into a pony for misbehaving, and so she ran away from them? And that’s why she said her parents weren’t here?”

“What if she killed them and now she’s hiding and trying to blend in as a pony so nopony finds out?”

The two fillies gave each other a serious look for a second before breaking into a fit of laughter at the absurdity of the situation they were able to come up with. They laughed for a few minutes to themselves before Sweetie Belle spoke again.

“Wait, she also said she used to be a colt, which means we need to teach her about being a girl, too!”

“Okay!” Scootaloo agreed. “But, um, not a froo froo girl like your sister, Rarity. She should be more awesome, like Rainbow Dash.”

“But also a little bit fashionable like Rarity, too, so nopony is mean to her.”

“And we can teach her how to get her cutie mark!” the orange pegasus added excitedly. “She said she didn’t even know what it was!”

“We have so much to help her with. This is going to be fun!”

“You don’t really think she- erm, he- is… some creature else, do you?” Lofty asked as she and her wife washed the dishes. “I mean, the Princess of Equestria did show up in our home just this evening to speak to her, and took her to Canterlot…”

“Well…” Holiday responded tentatively, “I mean, it never sounded like she was lying to us… I mean, he, but I guess it is possible that the princess really did get news that quickly, seeing as they have to make restrictions on the Summer Sun Celebration because Asher is sick…”

“What do you think Celestia will do with her? I mean, if she’s telling the truth… or, I mean, if he is, then… what?”

“I mean, I don’t know,” the mare answered. “I’m not sure. I assume Celestia would… send him back to wherever they came from then? I don’t know…”

“Well, I’m sure the princess knows what’s best… although I have to admit, she was a very nice filly… or, um, colt… is it weird that I almost want her to bring Asher back?”

“You know we can’t take care of a foal in the long term, Lofty,” Holiday reminded her.

“I know that, but it would still be nice to take care of Asher until the Summer Sun Celebration was over, anyway, but I guess that would be pretty selfish on our part. Only taking care of him until we had to abandon him.”

“It’s not selfish to want to take care of a foal,” Holiday told her as she moved over to nuzzle her. “Besides, we’re assuming that Princess Celestia is doing more than just making sure she gets better. She said she’d return in a couple of days, didn’t she? I don’t think the princess would lie to us, and if she was mistaken, she would tell us.”

“You’re right,” the pegasus agreed, giving her a quick kiss. “We’re probably getting worked up over nothing. It's probably just because Asher is sick that she's in Canterlot.”

“Don’t get yourself worked up, Celestia,” the princess told herself as she paced around the library. She found herself getting increasingly nervous at the idea that such a being as the one Asher described could exist. She said it with complete confidence, as though there was no way to argue against it, and still with more confidence in her voice. The way she spoke of this deity, it was as though she heard countless times that they didn’t exist, so many times in fact that she didn’t even bother to argue that greatly. The princess knew she was ready to drop the argument anyway, completely indifferent to what Celestia’s opinion was. That was what made her nervous.

She didn’t want such a being to exist. If a deity like that existed, it meant that she wouldn’t be in control of… well, anything. She had a plan set out for her student, Twilight Sparkle, and the introduction of such a creature could mess that up. She already didn’t like that one stranger had landed in her kingdom, and she didn’t know what she would do if more just came flying out of the sky to cause disharmony. It was a frightening prospect, once that Celestia had to take deep breaths to calm herself down from.

“Omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent,” Celestia thought as she walked past the shelves in the library, heading into one of the forbidden sections. “That’s what he said. Such a being cannot exist. Perhaps each of those things individually are possible for some creature to achieve, but not all three at the same time. No being can truly claim to be all-powerful.”

She made her way further until she stopped in front of a book containing a list of worlds that were accessible through the mirrors before they were destroyed, as well as a short description of each one. She only had a few pieces of information, but she could use those few pieces of information to her advantage. With that in mind, she quickly flipped to the couple of pages she had on the world ‘Earth’ and read.

Earth: Age: Unknown. Year: Roughly four hundred days. Day: Roughly twenty-five hours. Climate: Mostly temperate, with tropical and polar regions. Magic: extremely limited and dispersed. Dominant creatures: Minotaur-like apes. Status: Forbidden, known for extreme violence and hostility to other creatures. Do not visit for any reason.

The description continued from there, going over what she and Star Swirl had detailed, among other things, but she didn’t really need the rest. The main thing she wanted to know was how long each year was. About four hundred days. Celestia already knew how old the filly looked, which was around eight to ten years old. All she would need to do was ask her what her age was and then…

“And then he would simply say that this being translated his age correctly among worlds and shrug it off. And if it doesn’t match up, they would shrug it off anyway, and it would be proof that a worldgate wasn’t in play… impossible to prove that this deity doesn’t exist, but quite easy to prove that it does… do I really want to know?”

She thought for a moment before laughing at herself. What kind of question was that? Of course, she wanted to know! It was always better to know that it was to not know. Isn’t that what her faithful student taught her? Sure, knowing might be scary, but if a mere filly could handle knowing that there was an all-powerful deity out there, then surely she could, too. She was the ruler of Equestria for heaven's sakes! It was her job to know, and know she would. Or, at least, she would attempt to.

Before she knew it, she was off to bed and waking up again, raising the sun as she always did and waking up the sleeping filly as well. She couldn’t help but notice how peaceful she looked with her eyes closed, a little less so however once she saw the sweat on her forehead, causing her to quickly head to the infirmary to get more medication for her to take before waking her.

“Huh?” Asher asked sleepily as she groggily opened her eyes. “Where… where am I?” she got out, before gasping as she caught sight of Celestia, taking a second to remember where she was.

“I’m sorry, I did not mean to startle you,” the princess apologized as she gave her a glass of water with a tablet of medicine floating in it. “Your sheets are quite wet from your sweat, and you look a bit worse off this morning,” she explained as the filly took it in her hooves. “This should help to make you get better, or at least to keep your symptoms to a minimum.”

“Thank you,” she responded as she downed the drink, Celestia taking the opportunity to speak to her.

“I must ask, sir,” she said, “how old are you? I don’t believe you’ve told me.”

“I’m going to be twenty-five in a few months,” she responded, pausing to finish the glass, already feeling a bit better. “I’m actually in college, almost finished with my degree.”

“Twenty-five in a few months…” Celestia trailed off as she did some quick math in her head. “That puts you at about… ten thousand days old?”

“Uhhh… let me think…” she got out tiredly, not completely awake as she tried to do some mental math. “Umm… uh…. I- think it’s about nine thousand? Maybe a couple hundred short of that?”

Celestia put on a wide grin at that news, breathing an internal sigh of relief as she commented, “That’s perfect. Everything lines up perfectly.”

“Uhh, what does?”

“You being the age you are,” she explained. “Your body was nine thousand days old in the place you are from, Earth, and so as well, the worldgate you traveled through made your body nine thousand days old here.”

“What? I don’t… what? Are you saying that I’m supposed to- wait, how long is a year here?”

“One thousand days,” Celestia told her. It caused the filly to squint, her tired brain trying to work where she was going with this, not even stopping to consider yet just how long of a life that would entail.

“Oh, I see what you're saying,” Asher responded as she finally realized where she was going with the conversation. “This is about that thing you were talking about yesterday, right? Cause you think some portal brought me here?”

“Well, it seems likely to me based on-”

She interrupted her with a sigh, automatically explaining it away, saying, “God brought me here and made me a filly, so I’m pretty sure He wouldn’t have any trouble making sure I was the correct amount of days old in the place he brought me to.”

The princess sighed at that and opened her mouth to continue before deciding against it. Arguing with her right then wouldn’t have been the right thing to do, so instead, she opted to drop it. She would just have to accept that her position was a losing one and unprovable, not that it really mattered in the end. If such a being existed, then what was she going to do? Yell at it?

“Just go with it, Celestia,” she told herself. “There’s nothing you can do about the cause of his being here. The best you can do is try to send her back. If the deity exists, it exists. If it doesn't, it doesn't. Although, the conversation of his being a filly will have to be discussed eventually, whether because of a worldgate or a deity or some other reason. I’m sure it’s quite uncomfortable for him, however, I still have my own theories as to why...”

I was on Celestia’s back again as she carried me to her dining hall after asking if I wanted to go there or eat in the room, deciding on the former. I figured it was better to see what there was to see instead of staying cooped up the whole time, even if I was sick, and it turned out to be the right decision. It was quite the sight, featuring a long table that extended over a red and gold carpet from one end of the room to the other, with a huge golden chandelier positioned over it. There were also multiple other tables in the room that I assumed would be for other guests, each having a good view of the large stain glass windows that lined the wall on each side of a golden door that lead to somewhere else. Just based on the sight, I almost expected the table in front of us to be already piled high with food to eat, but luckily, it was empty, which I thought was a nice sight to see. At least this princess wasn’t going to waste food it seemed.

“What would you like to eat?” she asked me as she set me down at the head of one side of the table. “Don’t tell other ponies, but I, myself, do enjoy a few slices of bacon every once in a while.”

“Bacon would be nice, please,” I responded, quickly realizing she was trying to make me not as self-conscious about asking for meat products. “And oatmeal if you have it, if that’s okay,” I added.

“Both of those things are absolutely fine,” she told me with a gentle smile. “I’ll have one of my chefs cook it right up for you.”

“Thank you,” I told her politely, watching as she wrote something down and then curiously letting it be burned to ash by a green flame before walking over to take a seat at the other end of the table. It seemed weird, like quite a long distance to be sitting and supposedly having a conversation, but somehow when she started to speak, her words sounded as though they were right next to me.

“Before we begin discussing other matters, I would like to ask how your time in Equestria has been so far, despite its relative briefness. I trust it has been well?”

“I mean, I guess,” I answered. “As well as it can be, given the circumstances.”

“How have you been adjusting?” she asked.

“Not great,” I responded. “I know I should be handling things better but… it’s hard… every day I’ve just been slapped with something different, and it’s been making it difficult.”

“Something different?”

“It’s probably normal for all of you, but, like, on Tuesday, I suddenly changed into a pony and was flown way too high all of a sudden by that girl, Rainbow Dash. On Wednesday I was thrown a party by that pink pony. On Thursday, I started school “officially” I guess, even though I went in on Tuesday. On Friday, I got sick, and now it’s Saturday and I’m talking to the pony princess who raises the sun and says she’s thousands of years old! It’s like I’m in a children’s show! It’s all just been… ugh, it makes me nervous and I don’t like it.”

“I understand,” she told me, not that I was sure she did. “I can only think about how difficult it would be to change from one species to another and be brought into a strange land and not know why. It would be concerning if you weren’t stressed.”

“I know, but I really try not to be. I don’t like being all… wait, how long did you say a year was? One thousand days?” I asked as a scary thought just came to me.

“Yes, one thousand days exactly.”

“One thousand days a year…” I got out nervously, feeling my stress return. “That means if I live to be eighty years old here, I’ll be… well over two hundred. Do- do ponies live that long here?”

“Yes, we do,” she calmly answered, “although eighty is a bit on the younger side. Because we age slower in comparison to the creatures in your world, we also die at older ages, one hundred twenty to one hundred thirty being considered typical. However, I’m certain if you took care of your body and with a bit of luck you could live to be past one hundred sixty. I believe the owner of Sweet Apple Acres in Ponyville recently turned one hundred forty… although I would need to check to see when Ponyville was founded to be sure.”

“Oh, I don’t like that one bit,” I said, closing my eyes. “This is what I’m talking about. It’s just one thing after- wait, what do you mean ‘age slower’? Are you talking about actually growing up?”

“While the age range of rapid growth is likely the same for your kind as it is for ours, that rapid growth isn’t nearly as quick in comparison, and as a result, we live quite a bit longer than your kind. If I’m not mistaken, the average age of death where you come from is fifty?”

“It’s, like, eighty-five I think, but… we’re talking about a thousand days per year, so even if I died at fifty years old, I’d still be… ugh, I don’t like this at all.”

“Dying at fifty would be almost tragically short,” Celestia replied simply as I put my head on the table. “And while it’s much longer than what you’re used to compared to where you’re from and can be scary, you might look at it as an opportunity? If that would help you.”

“I really don’t like this,” I said again. “It’s like everything is set up to contradict… ugh!” I slammed my hooves into the table, then immediately regretted it because the volume of the noise made my head pound.

“Lord, why?” I silently prayed. “I just wish I knew why… I ask for you to give me the strength to continue on, even as scary and impossible as what’s revealed seems to be. I ask that…”

I felt that first tiny inkling of doubt in God starting to form as I prayed, and quickly stopped mid-sentence to change what I was asking for.

“I ask that even in the face of everything, you help me to keep my faith in you strong. In your son Jesus name, I pray, amen.”

I sighed once I was finished, noticing Celestia watching me carefully, and said, “I assume going back isn’t an option? Not that I think God would want me to.” I couldn’t help but have the words out a bit bitterly as I looked at the carpet, trying my best to catch myself.

“I do not believe it will be, simply because all the worldgates we had have since been destroyed. As well, we didn’t properly figure out how to reconstruct them, seeing no need to learn how. I’m sure one could be built, but as I previously told you, we’re speaking on the timescale of years or decades, at which point…”

“Oh, I already know I’m going to be here forever,” I said sadly, my voice cracking as I turned my head to the side and sniffed, then sneezed. “I’m going to be stuck as a pony for the rest of my life and I’m never going to see any of my friends and family again… and there’s nothing I can do about it, except cry I guess...”

I didn’t cry, but I did close my eyes, feeling the pony’s wing rubbing my back comfortingly a few moments later.

“It is hard, yes, but we must…” She didn’t finish her sentence, trailing off and letting the silence hang in the air.

“I’m sorry for getting emotional,” I sighed after a few moments. “I’m just… getting upset and nervous and doubtful when I shouldn’t be because I’m trapped in a world full of ponies as a dumb little girl.”

“I understand,” she responded, letting out a sigh of her own. “Although, about being a filly, I did want to speak with you on that.”

“Okay…?”

She wore a grimace for a moment before starting, “When you say you are a male, are you saying so because you’ve always felt you were a male, or because you’ve always physically been a male?”

“Both,” I answered. “I’ve never been a girl and I’ve never seen myself as one. I am a boy and have always been a boy.”

“Okay… well, on the off chance that it was a worldgate that did this to you and not a deity-”

“It was God. I know that for a fact.”

“Yes, but on the off chance-”

“There is no off chance,” I interrupted. “He absolutely positively did. You can’t explain any of this with Him not doing this.”

“Okay, I understand that,” she explained slowly, “But on the off chance that… never mind. Let’s just move on.”

Celestia was going to say that it was possible that the filly has always seen herself as a mare if the change was the result of a worldgate, but quickly dropped it once she saw that she just wasn’t going to listen to her or accept that possibility. It didn’t really matter to press it anyway. Whether or not she did or didn’t, she was a filly now, and changing that fact would be even more difficult than creating another worldgate.

“Anyway, I did want to discuss the fact that, even though you are a colt, you are currently resembling a filly.”

Asher blushed and looked at her hooves as she grimaced, telling her, “I know what you’re going to say, and it makes me a little uncomfortable.”

“What was I going to say?” she asked as she tilted her head.

“You’re going to say that you can’t do anything,” she replied. “And even if you could do something, I’m not sure if I’d let you because… argh!”

“What is it?”

“If God made me a girl, then that’s what I’m supposed to be, isn’t it? I can’t just go around saying I’m a boy because… ugh!” She put her head in her hand in frustration, weakly pulling her mane. “Why is this happening? This cannot be real...”

Celestia went silent for a moment before asking, “You said before you thought you were supposed to be learning a lesson?”

She huffed and answered, “Yeah, maybe, about why it’s not okay to be transphobic. I wasn’t mean out loud, but… I’m such an awful person…”

“Well,” the princess started, trying to change tactics, “you said this deity was benevolent, so how do you know you haven’t been gifted with something?”

“I guess that’s possible,” she agreed, sniffing again, “but it’s really, really hard to get into that mindset… I’m sorry.”

“That’s understandable, but perhaps thinking of it as so will help you acclimate better? I mean, this deity would have to have chosen you of all creatures to be brought here, even if it was to learn a lesson. I would imagine that being a great honor.”

“Yeah… that’s true,” Asher agreed, starting to feel a little bit better.

“So perhaps keeping that in mind will help you? Knowing that a creature you describe as benevolent wouldn’t lead you astray or abandon you?”

“Yeah…” she agreed, giving a tiny smile. “I know you don’t believe He exists, but hearing that from someone else really does help reorient me. Thank you.”

“No trouble at all, sir,” Celestia replied, rubbing her back a little bit more with her wing. “Although I would like to get back on the topic of you being a filly.”

“Okay…”

“I don’t believe we’ll be able to do very much about that. Body magic is… quite difficult, as well as risky.”

She blushed at that, her ears pressing down against her skull, saying, “I expected you to say that, and I know what you’re gonna tell me… and I really don’t want to be a girl.”

“I understand, but I do think it would be best if you got used to the fact.” Asher sighed sadly at that, lowering her head, and Celestia continued, “We can see what we can do, but I’m not sure we’ll be able to do much. I do believe it would be better if you grew accustomed to that fact now.”

“And then what?” she asked quietly. “I realize that I actually like being a girl? Or do I blush and cringe at myself every time someone calls me one for the rest of my life?” She stopped to take a breath before continuing, “I know that it’s better to think of this as an opportunity, but this is… a lot…”

She closed her eyes and took a few more breaths to stay calm, thinking to herself, “Think of this as a gift. If I need to learn a lesson, then I’m blessed to have the opportunity to learn it. Even if it is hard, I know that God wouldn’t give me more than I can handle.”

The bacon and oatmeal we were served tasted nice, and we ate while Celestia asked me questions about Earth. It was a couple of hours of discussion, with her asking many questions and me explaining and going through the history of the world. It was honestly kind of nice, being able to talk about something relatively normal for a change, and almost found myself enjoying the conversation.

“It is very nice to hear how far Earth has come in all this time,” she told me. “It was quite the… well, frankly, it was abhorrent. The last time Star Swirl and I visited was around eight or nine hundred years ago and it was… quite violent. One of the most violent places we’ve visited actually, which was why we put it on our banned worlds list.”

I frowned a little bit at that, mostly because of the fact that she said she went there, and replied, “Yeah, well… it’s much less like that, violent I mean. I mean, it still kind of is, but much less so, especially after World War Two.”

“You never explained the reason for that. Do you know the cause?”

“Well, um…” I started. “Well, the main reason is technological advancement, some of it good, some of it… not great…”

“Not great?”

“Well, uh, do you know what mutually assured destruction is?”

“I cannot say I’m familiar with that concept.”

“Basically, war… or, large scale war involving the major nations, doesn’t happen anymore because everyone, every major country I mean, has weapons that can kill millions of people all at once, so… attacking one of them would lead to mutually assured destruction.” I couldn’t help but cringe at the slight grimace Celestia wore when I finished.

“I see…” she trailed off, clearly uncomfortable with that thought, then put on a forced smile as she continued, “Well, I am still glad to hear that at least the lives there are better than what they were before, even given the circumstances. But now I do want to hear more about you. You said before you were an adult. What do you do?”

“I- I work in a restaurant,” I answered. “I’m actually the manager of a restaurant, a second assistant, so that’s two levels below general manager, and the lowest you can be to be a salary worker.”

“Do other workers not have salaries?” she asked.

“Salary just means you get a set amount of money per year versus getting paid by the hour. So I might be forced to come in and work more, but the amount I make is always fixed, even if I were told to go home early and worked less than forty hours a week. Not that that’s ever the case.”

“That’s very interesting. Would you say you’re good at it? Is it something you enjoy doing?”

“I guess I enjoy it kind of. It’s not really hard, I think, and I’m almost done with school for it. I have basically one year left on my Master’s degree.”

“Master’s degree?”

“Basically it’s a certificate that says I know how to run a business and will help me get better jobs. Or I can show it to a bank when I give them my business plan if I request a loan to start my own business.”

“I see. That sounds very interesting. I wonder if you’ll get a cutie mark in business? Or maybe a chef cutie mark since you work in a restaurant?”

“Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle told me what a cutie mark was, but could you tell me again please?”

“A cutie mark is a special mark that ponies get when they discover their special talent,” she explained. “It is normally associated with a pony’s destiny, and many times is tied to a pony’s name. For example, with a name such as Ashley, your special talent might involve working with stones or fires. Of course, it doesn’t always have to line up with one’s name, but as I said, many times it does.”

“So, like, you mean there’s predestination here?”

“Well, a bit like that. Each pony has their own destiny, although each pony also has the ability to shape their own destiny as well.”

“That’s… interesting, I guess…” I trailed off, fighting off the nervousness. “And you think I’ll get one?”

“I’m almost certain of it,” she replied. “Everypony gets one when they’re a foal. It could be tomorrow, or it could be five years from now. As I said, it comes when you discover your special talent.”

“Well, I already know what I’m good at, but I mean…”

“Well, perhaps if you did what you were good at, it would appear. Or maybe your special talent is something else? In any case, it does look like you’re feeling better, so I believe we’ll deliver you back to your guardians care.”

“We’re going back now?”

“Yes, unless you believe we should stay here?”

“I mean, I guess I don’t have that choice, do I? And I... think I liked staying with those two, and Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle sorta... But do we have to fly back? I really, really don’t like heights…”

“Hmmm… I suppose we can go back by train if you’d rather? Or we can teleport, although I typically prefer not to waste magic when it’s not necessary.”

“I- I’m not comfortable with teleporting somewhere, or using magic, but we could take a train? Please?”

“Certainly, it’s no trouble at all. I believe the next train should be boarding before noon, and it should only be a couple of hours to Ponyville from there. Although we might have to arrange for a car in the back of the train alone, but even if we can't, it shouldn’t be an issue.” She then put on a gentle smile as she added, "Also, it's very nice to hear that you are making friends."

I couldn't help but put on a bashful smile at that.

The train ride was quite the experience for Celestia, as well as other ponies who saw her. The ponies who saw her stopped in place, surprised that she was out and about, although not completely star struck like they were in Ponyville, seeing as they’d been around her quite often. However, they were quite shocked when they saw her bend her head down and board the train that had stopped in the gate. It was such a surprise that many ponies missed boarding and leaving the train and missing their rides to and from the destinations they needed to get to.

Asher walked behind the mare, Celestia slowing her pace so the filly could keep up, and before they knew it, the two were sitting in the back of the train in a cart of their own, speeding off towards Ponyville.

“I’m not making anyone else sick, am I?” Asher suddenly asked as they sat down alone. “I mean, I feel a lot better because of that medicine, but I’m also walking by a whole bunch of people…”

“That was and is being taken care of. If you noticed, the streets were quite a bit more empty than they normally are.”

“I assume they’re all getting vaccinated because I was sick?” she asked.

“That is correct. A few were vaccinated late last night, but most of them are going out today. Even though Ponyville is being quarantined for the time being, with you being in Canterlot, we want to remain cautious.”

“I’m sorry,” she apologized. “I know I’m causing a whole lot of trouble for you. I know I’m annoying you at least and making your job more difficult.”

“I assure you, you are not annoying me,” the princess told her, “and there’s no need to apologize. It is the result of circumstances beyond your control.”

“You can say that again…” Asher mumbled, causing the two to sit in silence for a few minutes. Celestia watched the filly, who stared out the window as the fields of bright green grass passed her by, nothing more than that, the rolling hills, and the occasional house out in the vast openness of Equestria.

She found herself getting used to how unnaturally bright and unrealistic looking everything was. It was like staring out at a TV show or a children’s book. Everything was just so unnatural, the sky too bright blue, the clouds too pristine white, the hills rolling too perfectly. Even her own silver coat and gold mane looked completely and perfectly uniform unless she ran her hooves through them. And even then, they went back to seemingly perfect without much effort on her part. It was off-putting to look at, almost creepy.

“This is a gift,” she told herself as she sighed. “Even if I don’t like it, even if it’s just to learn a lesson, I’m being given an opportunity to learn something by God. Millions of other people can only dream of the chance, and yet I’m the one who’s here. I should be thankful and appreciative of the opportunity.”

“It’s quite a beautiful sight, isn’t it?” Celestia commented as they rode along. “As you might guess, I mostly view the land from up above, although it is quite nice to be able to see it from the ground.”

“Yes, it looks pretty,” Asher told her politely before turning around away from the window. “Um, how long will it be before we get there?”

“Likely just over two hours,” the princess answered, causing the filly to frown.

“Is there a restroom on this train?”

“I believe so. There should be one at the back of this cart.”

“Okay, thank you,” she replied, Celestia watching her walk off to the back of the long cart before stopping in front of the two doors that lead to each bathroom and staring at them for a long moment, which made the mare get up to follow her.

“I haven’t seen anypony go in there. What are you doing still standing here?”

“I don’t even know which one- I can’t read whatever language this is written in.”

“The one on the left is the mare’s restroom, and the one on the right is the stallion’s restroom,” Celestia explained, intentionally not telling Asher which one she should use. She was interested in seeing what choice she should make, and watched the filly grumble to herself and stomp her hoof.

“Is there a single person restroom for me to use?” she asked, sounding annoyed.

“I do not believe so,” the princess answered. “Although as I said, I don’t believe anypony is in there.”

Asher grumbled to herself again and frowned, the mare noticing her deliberation as the filly said, “I don’t… I can't go in the men’s restroom can I, because I look like this… ugh, I hate this.” She had her face in a deep scowl, and was almost grinding her teeth.

“You told me you are an adult, so that wouldn’t be my choice to make,” Celestia responded. Asher’s cheeks went red at that and she scowled harder as she looked at the ground.

“Can you… please make sure no one is in there?” she asked a bit quieter, having to force the words out.

“Which room would that be?” the mare asked, earning a frustrated huff in response.

“That one!” the filly practically yelled, using a hoof to point to the left. “I can’t use the other one because… ugh! I can’t stand this!”

The princess did as she was asked, just a little bit surprised at the tone she was spoken to with before remembering the filly was an other worlder, and came back out a few seconds later.

“The room is completely empty,” she told her.

“And will you make sure no one goes in there for me please?”

“I will make absolutely certain, I assure you.”

With that, Asher quickly hurried in, leaving Celestia standing alone in the empty car, staring at the door on the opposite end. She didn’t expect anypony to wander in, and tilted her head as she tried to analyze what happened.

“An interesting way of going about things,” she thought to herself. “He says he’s a colt but because he looks like a filly he uses the mare’s restroom, even despite his discomfort, even when expressly told it was his decision to make. Although it makes sense, given his current form. It would likely appear strange if he used the stallion’s room, and he probably figured so as well.”

It was less than two minutes later when Asher appeared again, glancing up to Celestia briefly before blushing embarrassedly and staring back at the ground, her hooves dripping wet from the sink. The princess opened her mouth to speak, but Asher interrupted her before she could.

“I don’t want to talk about it at all,” she said, unable to hide how shy and embarrassed she felt as she unconsciously pressed her ears flat against her head. “I’m a man. I’m only using the women’s restroom for practical purposes.”

“I was just going to ask if you wanted me to order food for lunch. It’s past noon.”

The filly sighed at that, saying, “No, I’m fine. We just ate a few hours ago… I just want to sit back down and... look at the landscape passing by.”

“That’s understandable, we can do that. Let’s head back to our cart.”

It wasn’t too long before the two of us got back to Ponyville, the town practically empty when we arrived, just a couple of ponies out and about, bowing respectfully to Princess Celestia, the woman- mare- giving them a friendly wave as we passed through. I assumed it was so empty because of me, and felt my ears unconsciously droop at the thought.

“Am I still contagious?” I found myself asking as we walked. “Also, can you control your ears? Cause these things seem to just… do stuff automatically.”

“I’m not sure. That would be something to ask a doctor, or perhaps my pupil, Twilight Sparkle. She might know something about it, seeing as she reads everything she can get her hooves on. As for your ears, you should be able to move them however you wish, as well as your tail, but seeing as you likely don’t have much experience in doing so, it might take time.”

“Okay… is there anything else I should be aware of? I’ve been here for a few days now, but I don’t know if there’s anything else I should know.”

“Well, there are many things you should know, but at the moment, I can’t say there is anything that stands out. You’ll learn what you need as time goes on. Anyway, here we are.” We were stopped in front of Holiday and Lofty's house, somehow walking up to it without me realizing it. Although I did think I was getting a mental map of this city in my head. A way to school, a way home, what the train station looked like, the bakery.

“I have a question,” I suddenly asked as the thought came to mind. “Can I live alone? And be treated like an adult? I mean, I know I’m an adult, and you know I’m an adult, so…”

She smiled at me, the kind of smile you give a kid when you think they’re saying something dumb, and it made me frown.

“You’re just as old as all of the other colts and fillies. Besides, where else would you live if not here?”

“I… I don’t know, but aren’t you the princess of this country? I’m pretty sure you could set me up with something.”

“That is true, however, everypony would still see you as a foal and treat you like one. For now, staying here with Miss Lofty and Holiday as your guardians is ideal. I will see what we can work out once I get back after the holiday, however.”

“Can you at least tell them right now that I’m an adult? At least Miss Holiday and Lofty? Please?

She looked down at me with a knowing smile, telling me, “I’m sure I won’t need to. After all, it’s not often that the Princess of Equestria goes to visit somepony, trust me. However, even still, I do expect you to remain in school so you can make friends. As they say, friendship is magic.”

I sighed at that and decided to press a bit further.

“Please? Can you just tell them about me? They’ll believe you if you tell them. Please?”

“I’m sure it won’t be an issue, Asher. Although it might be difficult, a bright young colt like you should be able to navigate what lies ahead.”

“Whatever…” I got out as I looked at my hooves, rolling my eyes. ”Do you at least have any more of whatever medicine you gave me? I think I’m starting to feel sick again somewhat.”

“Your guardians should have received a package of medication from Canterlot. But I do have to get going now. As you may have guessed, there are other things I have to attend to as Princess of Equestria.”

“If you say so, but I do have one more question: if you’re the princess of this country, then is there a king and queen?”

“Well, I guess you could say I am the queen, at least in governance, but those names have a certain… history behind them that I can’t say I’m fond of. But now I must be going. I’ll speak with you again after the Summer Sun Celebration. Farewell for now.”

With that, she teleported away, back to Canterlot I assumed, a loud pop being heard once she left. I tried not to cringe at myself at that. She said everyone here, everypony here, had magic, and she had the power to raise the whole sun, so I could only tell myself that magic existed because God allowed it to exist and gave them whatever abilities they had. I still didn’t like it, but it made me less nervous about it at least.

I made my way up the sidewalk to the door, using a hoof to knock lightly and being greeted by an excited Scootaloo a second later.

“Asher! You’re back!” she practically yelled, causing me to instinctively put my hooves up to my ears, feeling lucky that the medicine I took was still working. I expected to see Holiday and Lofty first, although the sight of Scootaloo wasn’t a surprise.

“What was it like? What did the princess ask you? Are you in trouble? What’s Canterlot like?” A million questions came all at once, and I had to interrupt her in the middle of them.

“Where are Miss Lofty and Holiday? I thought they would be here.”

“Oh, they’re knitting right now, and probably want to know you're back.” With that, she called loudly for them as we walked into the dining area, the two of them standing more on their back legs as they knitted in front of a counter.

“Hey, Asher,” Holiday said casually as she stayed focused on what she was doing, way more casual than she’d ever been in the entire time I’d known her. “Are you feeling any better?”

I couldn’t help but frown at that, the tone in their voice, and sighed, deciding not to bother with it right then, telling her, “I’m still not feeling that well, but I am better. I’ll talk to you later though.”

Asher turned to Scootaloo and asked, “Isn’t Sweetie Belle supposed to be here?”

“She’s going to get some stuff from her sister Rarity,” the orange pegasus responded as they started to walk upstairs. “She said she would be back soon. Oh! What were the guards in Canterlot like? And flying on Princess Celestia’s back?”

Eventually, the conversation got too faint for Holiday and Lofty to hear, and the mares whispered amongst themselves once the two were gone.

“I mean, the princess didn’t even come inside,” Lofty started. “That confirms it, doesn’t it?”

“Well, I mean, maybe she just- sweet Celestia!”

The two were suddenly standing in front of the Princess of Equestria, who had teleported in front of them and quickly put a wing on their muzzles to keep them from speaking.

“Apologizes for my sudden appearance. I did want to speak to you two privately though, without Ashley in our presence if that’s quite alright.”

“Oh my gosh, you just about gave me a heart attack,” Lofty got out as she put a hoof on her chest. "Yes, yes that’s fine. I mean- anything for you, princess.” She and her wife bowed awkwardly at her presence as she spoke.

“Perfect. I did want to start by saying that your thinking that they are from outside of Equestria is correct. How and why this happened, I still cannot determine, but it has happened. And I’ve decided that as of right now, they will remain in your care.”

“So she- she really is telling the truth?” Lofty asked. “She really is an adult? And a colt, too?”

“Asher is telling the truth when they speak of their past life," the princess explained, "however, in regards to being an adult, while they are more mature than the average foal, they are a foal nonetheless. He has confirmed for me that he is nine years old, although timescales where he comes from are different, hence the maturity. As far as being a colt, though, it’s… rather complicated, as you already know. While Asher is steadfast in his… view of himself as a male, I believe that over time their perspective will shift.”

“You think later he’ll stop thinking he's a colt?” Holiday asked.

“I do believe so, yes, although I always could be wrong. However, it's just what I believe will happen based on what I understand about his situation.”

“Why are you trusting us to watch him?” Lofty asked.

“Well, in part because, as of now, we’ve no way of sending them back, but also because Asher expressed a fondness and desire to return to you, and from what I can see, you’re a very nice couple with a great understanding about him, and clearly care for him. Although this should only last through the Summer Sun Celebration, to be clear.”

“Oh, we know that,” the mare explained. “We have to leave after then anyway. Although I am a bit concerned that she might not- he might not have anyplace to go to once we’re gone…”

“Rest assured, they will remain in capable hooves, I can assure you of that.”
`

“Tell me what happened!” Scootaloo practically begged the second we entered the bedroom. “You have to tell me!”

“I flew on her back to Canterlot, she asked me a bunch of questions, gave me some medicine, and then we took the train back. It really wasn’t that spectacular, I promise.”

“But you really are from another world like you said, right?” she asked. “You really are a hu-mare like you said?” I sighed at that question and sat on the ground.

“I don’t know,” I answered. “I know that I was before, but clearly, I’m a pony now, right? I’m basically the exact opposite of what I was, from an adult male human to… this. Ugh…”

“Awww, come on, being a pony isn’t that bad, right?”

“No, it’s not bad,” I responded carefully. “I just… miss being what I was… ugh, this is going to make me cry again…”

“Hey! Me and Sweetie Belle had an idea! We could teach you how to be a pony! That way you can fit in and nopony will know you were ever anything else! And we can also teach you about being a filly since you used to be a colt!”

“That’s the thing. I don’t want to be a pony, and I especially don’t want to be a girl. I want to be me, but I’m not…”

I closed my eyes and put my head in my hooves as I tried to force away my tears. This was a gift. This was a gift. I had to look at it that way. If I was here because God brought me here, then this couldn’t be anything but a gift because I was chosen out of billions of other people in the world and throughout history to be put here. Even if it was horrible, it was still a gift regardless because God brought me here.

“Except that princess was certain I wasn’t,” I suddenly thought, unable to stop it from popping into my head. “She’s certain that I’ve always thought I was a girl and was brought here because of some gate.” That was an almost laughable thought to me. I wasn’t transgender, not in either direction. I’ve never, not even one single time, desired to be a girl, and I certainly didn’t like being one right now. As well, I wasn’t trans right now because I actually was a man. I was actually born as a man and had always been a man. It wasn’t the same as other people saying they were a different gender. I actually was a man. I was just that right now I was…

“I’m just literally trans right now,” I thought to myself, making myself feel worse. “And I can’t do anything about it… oh, I hate this so much. I don't want to be like this." I took in a breath as I continued to myself, "This is a gift, this is a gift, even if it feels absolutely terrible, this is a gift…”

“Are you okay? You’re not going to cry again, are you? Cause you cry even more than Sweetie Belle does.”

“No,” I got out quietly, before clearing my throat and speaking again. “No, I’m not going to cry. I’m sorry. Is there- is there something else we can do? What do you guys do all day on your days off?”

“Oh! We hunt for cutie marks! But um, I think it’s supposed to rain in a little bit. But we can go see if Sweetie Belle has anything we can- oh wait! We’re gonna teach you about being a pony! I remember! Let’s go ask if we can go over to her sister’s house and have a sleepover, that way Rarity can help us!”

“Oh! Princess! You’re back again!”

“Yes, Twilight, I am. I came to talk to you about that filly we were discussing.”

“The silver-coated one? What’s wrong? Do you think she knows something important about Nightmare Moon’s return? Should we-”

“Calm down, Twilight,” Celestia laughed lightheartedly. “I’m only here to tell you that she will be staying under your care after the holiday.”

“Wait, she will? Who is she? Is she somepony dangerous?”

“No, she’s not. She will tell you about herself when you meet her after the holiday. In fact, we three can sit down and I can formally introduce you to her. But for now, what you should know is that her name is Ashely, but she prefers to go by Asher, she’s nine years old, she’s quite intelligent and mature for her age, much like yourself when you were young, and prefers to be referred to as a colt.”

“Wait, she wants to be called a colt? Why?”

“I will explain all of this in further detail when the time comes. But moving onto more important matters: how have the tasks I’ve given to you been going? How are preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration in Ponyville?”

“Well, um, they’re a bit behind schedule right now because of the precautions we’re taking because of that diphtheria case- wait a minute, that was her, wasn’t it? She was the pony who had diphtheria!”

“Yes, Twilight, she was, but I do want to know if preparations will be in place in time for the holiday.”

“Well, sure, they will be, but Ponyville will be closed off to outsiders until after the Summer Sun Celebration, so I don’t know if-”

“That’s fine. I would still like the ponies who are here to have an excellent time, even if there are fewer ponies than we typically would expect. But now most importantly: have you been making friends?”

The purple unicorn pressed her ears against her head at that. “Well, um, I- I’ve been busy with preparations and finding that filly and-”

“Twilight, that is one of the tasks I’ve given to you, remember? I would like to see you make some friends during your time in Ponyville. Perhaps you can start by going to Sweet Apple Acres and speaking with the Apple family. They were one of the first families in Ponyville, and I believe they’ll be in charge of the food for the celebration. That would be a good opportunity for you to meet some other ponies, and perhaps learn a bit about this town’s history as well.”

“I mean, I was going to go down to see them the day of the holiday, but I don’t see why I need to-”

“Twilight?” the princess interrupted, causing her student to look her in the eyes, seeing just a hint of sadness and perhaps a dash of concern on her face. “Promise me Twilight that you will make friends during your time here?”

The mare sighed, answering, “Yes, Princess, I promise I'll make friends.”

“Oh my gosh, it looks awful out there…” I commented as Scootaloo opened the front door. It was raining like she said it would, and heavily at that. There were a few rolls of thunder that could be heard, and they caused me to frown. I really didn’t want to go out in that mess.

"Do we have to go?" I asked. "I thought Sweetie Belle would be coming back here."

“Come on!” she pleaded. “If we sprint, we can get there in like two minutes! It’s not that bad!”

“Maybe we shouldn’t…” I tried to say. “I mean, I’m still sick and all, and that’s just gonna make me worse I'm pretty sure.”

“Come on, please? You can wear your jacket so you don’t get wet! Please?”

I had to admit, there was actually one other thing I was afraid of outside of heights, and that was lightning. Staring at it outside the window from inside was fine.Iin fact, I liked thunderstorms when I was inside. It was nice white noise, and helped me fall asleep at night. But going out in it made me nervous. It wasn’t as deathly terrifying as heights, but if I could avoid it, I would.

“You’re not afraid of thunderstorms are you?” she asked, and I found myself getting a bit defensive.

“No, I just don’t want to get wet or get hit by lightning.”

“Lightning doesn’t hit ponies, dear,” Lofty broke in from her place at the counter. “The weather team always makes sure it hits the ground. You don’t have to worry about that.”

“How? How do they always make sure? Do they control the weather?”

“Um, yes, they do,” she told me as though it was the most obvious thing in the world, raising an eyebrow curiously before putting it back down and sighing. “We’ll tell you more about that when you two get back. Also, when you get back tomorrow, Holiday and I want to speak to you, Asher.”

“If it’s about me not being from Equestria, can we talk about that right now?” I got out. The two of them cringed slightly at that, and I continued, “I already told Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle, so they already know.”

“Yes, um, about that,” she started, “how, um… how old are you exactly?”

“I’m basically twenty-five, although apparently time where I’m from isn’t the same as time here since a year is a thousand days, so I guess I’m eight or nine years old here, probably a few days short of being nine.” I saw both of them smile at that, looking slightly relieved, and I continued, “But I am an adult, just so you know. I’m not a child.”

“Well, you are definitely very mature for your age, but a nine-year-old certainly isn’t an adult, young man, no matter where you come from.”

I was going to argue, but a smile instinctively went up at being called a young man, and it stopped me. Although I wasn’t really ‘young’ per se, it felt incredibly nice to hear anyway, and stopped any argument I had in my head dead in its tracks.

“...you cheated,” I responded after a long moment of silence, keeping the grin plastered on my face. It caused them to smirk back at me, and I couldn’t help but blush at the thought that they might have done that intentionally.

“Maybe we did,” Lofty said cheekily. “I promise though we’ll talk about it later. Why don’t you get your jacket now and head on out with Scootaloo?”

“Well… okay,” I gave in. “But I do want to talk about this. I don’t want this to just be ignored, please.”

“Lofty and I promise we won’t ignore you, sweetie,” Holiday responded. “Now get going. It’s going to get worse out there before it gets better. Oh, and there should be a tablet of medicine for you to take in the bathroom.”

It wasn’t too much long later that Scootaloo and I were walking through the rain, my inability to grasp the function of running in this body causing us to get soaked. I kept myself from getting too freaked out by the lighting by reminding myself that they said lighting doesn’t hit ponies, and remembering that even if it did, the chances were one in a million or less. It was a largely irrational fear, although I found myself wishing I could move faster because of the lightning.

And the rain, too. It was heavy and cold and basically cut straight through the hoodie I wore and into my coat. It made me shiver to walk through, and felt less like summer rain and more like the first rain of spring, the kind that was just a few degrees from turning into sleet and snow. It made my teeth chatter as I followed the filly in front of me to Sweetie Belle’s house.

After several minutes, we made it to the shop that the white unicorn, Rarity, worked at and quickly headed inside, the lady, mare, gasping at the sight of us soaking wet and dripping water onto her floor.

“Oh dear, you both look dreadful!” she exclaimed, putting a hoof up to her mouth as she stared at us. “You two really walked all the way here in the rain? And your jacket, darling! We need to get that in the dryer this instant! What gave you two fillies the idea to go walking out in the rain?”

“We’re having a sleepover with Sweetie Belle,” Scootaloo explained. “We’re going to teach Asher how to be a pony since she didn’t use to be one!” Rarity didn’t listen as she lit up her horn and levitated a towel over to us and roughly rubbed us down, starting with Scootaloo, who tried to push her off and complained.

“Now you’ll have to redo your mane… we might as well get you three in the bath since you’re having a sleepover, get it out of the way for the night…”

“I’d rather- yipe!” was all I managed to squeak out as she rubbed down my rear and tail before levitating the hoodie off of me. Once it got off, I couldn’t resist the overwhelming urge to shake, my body moving automatically as the water was flung off of me. I felt a bit like a dog as I did so, and heard the mare complain once I was done.

“Asher! Please control yourself! You’re going to get the whole store wet that way!”

“I’m sorry,” I apologized, then sneezed loudly, feeling a little inkling of headache because of it. “I couldn’t help it,” I explained. “It’s cold out there. I thought it was supposed to be almost summer.”

“Well, it has been warmer than average,” she explained. “This is probably to help us meet the average before summer starts.”

I didn’t really pay attention to her, closing my eyes and sighing in contentment as she moved the towel up to my back to dry me off. It felt incredibly nice, although not as nice as when Holiday brushed me. Still, I found a part of me wishing she would continue once she was done.

“There. Now you won’t track water everywhere when you get into the bath.”

“I- I want to take a bath by myself please,” I got out. “Please, if that’s okay.”

“We’re not going to be wasting water to have each of you go into the bathroom alone, Asher,” she said, her horn glowing as she picked me up before I could argue, causing me to freeze in place. “Besides, your mane looks positively horrid from your being out in the rain, and I for one won’t stand for it. We simply must get that washed out with shampoo, and it looks like it could stand to be conditioned, too. Now, come on, Scootaloo,” she instructed the orange pegasus before calling up the stairs as she marched up. “Sweetie Belle! Get in here, please!”

Before I knew it and could say anything else, I was being placed in a large tub, enough for about five or six ponies it looked like, and Rarity was turning on the water. She grabbed a large scrub and placed it under the water to lather it up before beginning to work on my back.

I didn’t really have a great opportunity to protest because of how nice the brush felt. I arched my back as she scrubbed and closed my eyes once again, deciding that being a pony had one good thing at least. Getting brushed and scrubbed felt absolutely amazing, better than just about anything I’d felt before. It also made me tired, but it felt incredibly nice, and I almost completely forgot where I was for a good minute.

“You don’t… I’m just a random pony,” I said as she started to work my neck and behind my ears, craning my neck at the feeling as my eyes opened up again. I saw Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle standing in the bathroom with me, which made me uncomfortable, but I guessed it was better than being in the tub with me.

“Do they really have to be in here to… mmmmh, that’s nice…”

“I don’t see what the issue is, little filly. Everypony who has a slumber party with my little sister simply must take a bath.”

“Well, I’m not a filly…” I trailed off, my eyes feeling heavy, trying not to sigh as she scrubbed my neck and shoulders. “I’m an adult, and I’m a boy, so I don’t want to take a bath in front of them.”

“Calm down, dear, we’re almost done,” she said, basically ignoring me. I would have pressed further, but being scrubbed felt incredible. I didn’t know what it was like to be high, but if I had to guess, this was it. I made a mental note to talk to her about them being in here once she was done.

“Close your eyes,” she instructed as I felt something slippery falling onto my head a second later, shampoo I assumed.

“Don’t style my hair,” I told her as she lathered me. “I don’t want it to look any different.” I paused for a second, then continued, “Actually, if you want to, you could cut it shorter, like all the way off, just above a buzz cut.”

“Well, I certainly won’t be doing that, darling. It's too nice to just throw away like that. But there isn’t much I need to do to your mane. It naturally falls into place in a style that seems to suit you, and I wouldn’t want to mess that up.” She said that, but to me, it sounded like she didn’t want to do anything because of my outburst the other day, which, while a bit embarrassing, I decided to take as a good thing.

“Thank you for not messing with it then. I really do appreciate it.”

She used her hooves to scrub me for a few minutes before instructing me to dunk my head below the water to rinse off. Before I knew it, I was being lifted out of the tub, dripping water onto the floor once again. I shook myself once again before staring awkwardly at Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle, the nice feeling of being scrubbed wearing off and embarrassment returning.

“Why do they have to be in here?” I asked, my ears folding back against my head. “I told you, I’m a boy.”

“Well, you certainly don’t look like one to me, little filly,” she replied, “although I’m not sure what being a colt would have to do with anything if you were. I told you before, we don’t want to waste water. Now then, Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, your turn.”

“Ugh, where’s a towel so I can dry off and leave? I don't want to be in here while they bathe.”

“Why don’t you want to take a bath with us, Asher?” Sweetie Belle asked me innocently after we were done. "Do you really not like us?"

“I told you before,” I explained, a bit frustrated. “I’m a boy.”

“So?”

“So… I don’t want to take baths with girls. I don’t know about here, but we don’t do that on Earth. Plus, I’m an adult, and it makes me… very uncomfortable.” I blushed again and quietly said, “I don’t like it. I’m sorry. I don’t even like you being in the same room as me when I’m bathing.”

Their faces went downcast at that before Scootaloo’s eyes lit up once again at an idea.

“That’s what we can teach you about being a pony!” she told me. “The first thing is that ponies like to snuggle and be together, and they like to be petted, too.”

“Yeah, well, I don’t think I’m going to be snuggling anyone anytime soon,” I responded. “And ponies also don’t care about personal space clearly. That was about the fifth or sixth time someone just dragged me off somewhere or lifted me with their... levitation powers... or touched my nose.” I reflexively scrunched up my nose at the thought of Rainbow Dash or Pinkie touching it. “I don’t like it.”

“You don’t like it?” Sweetie Belle asked. “But being petted and snuggled feels soooooo good!”

“I mean, it does I guess, being petted at least…” I answered truthfully. “But I still don’t like it…”

“You liked it!” the girl said, pointing a hoof at me. “I saw you purring when Rarity washed you! Don’t lie!”

“I mean, it felt good, but I don’t like… having my personal space invaded… wait a minute, what day is it tomorrow?”

“Uh, Sunday. Two more days of school, then summer!”

Sunday. Normally I’d head to church Sunday morning, but I was a pony, and I didn’t need to think hard to know there wasn’t going to be a church in Ponyland. It made me feel bad that I wouldn’t be able to go, that I’d be alone on Sunday, without any material to read or study, but I guessed that I could pray to myself and sing alone. It wouldn’t be as nice as being in church, but it would have to do.

“Is there anything to do on Sunday? Also, how long is summer? Two hundred and fifty days I assume?”

“Nuh uh. We’re just going to go cutie mark hunting! Or maybe read. Sometimes Aunt Holiday makes us do that on Sunday. Also, we have to teach you how to be a pony! So we can do that tomorrow, too.”

“And summer has four hundred days, Asher!” Sweetie Belle broke in. “Spring has three hundred days, fall is two hundred, and winter is one hundred.”

“Wait, you’re saying you have four hundred days of school off? Plus, you said you only go to school two days a week in the spring, so that means… uhhhhh… you have… seven hundred days off of school for every year that passes here?”

“I guess…”

“That’s… a lot. Like, an unbelievable amount. You go to school only 300 days out of the year.”

“I mean, I think it’s a lot. We have to go every day all fall and winter!”

“How much school do you do, Asher?”

“In the same period? I do about 500 days of school per thousand days, not counting essays and business modeling and working on my master’s thesis. That would bring it up to about 600 days of school. Each class isn’t that many hours, but I still have to drive in and show up and stuff. Not to mention going into work five days a week.”

“That’s… a lot. I would hate that.”

“You don’t even get all of summer! That sounds terrible!”

“Yeah, it’s what comes with being an adult, and being a human, too, I guess. Go to school every day, graduate and go to college, hope you’re lucky enough to get a scholarship, if not, take out loans to go to class, pay bills, and go to work everyday after that until you retire or die. It’s not very fun.”

“I’m glad I’m not there,” Scootaloo responded. “It sounds horrible.”

“But at least you’re here,” Sweetie Belle added. “Now you don’t have to do all that stuff!” I sighed at that, realizing that they were kids and wouldn’t really get it.

“I guess, but I- I worked hard to get where I was. It wasn’t fun, but I liked where I was headed. I wanted to open a restaurant of my own, or at least buy a franchise from someone and be a business owner. Plus I don’t know anyone here. All my family and friends are there, and I’m never going to see them again, and I miss them… and I don’t even need to mention the fact that I’m a girl now.”

The two of them frowned at that, going silent for a moment before Sweetie Belle told me, “Well, you know us, and we’re your friends. I mean, I hope we’re your friends, otherwise it’d be pretty weird having you sleep over at my sister’s house.”

I couldn’t help but smile at that, replying, “Yes, I can say you two are my friends. Thanks for trying to cheer me up.”

“Yay! Group hug!” the white filly suddenly called out, she and Scootaloo both pouncing on me and causing me to laugh.

I always woke up early on Sunday, and today was no different. The sky out the window was still dark when I opened my eyes, but I could see the room well enough through the light of the moon. It was less like a room and more like an attic with a bed and a few dressers and toys. I could also see that Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle had scooted closer to me while I slept, the latter laying with her back up against mine. I sighed because of it, and kept where I was so as not to wake her despite wanting to get out of bed to stretch my legs.

“What can I do today?” I asked myself silently. “I don’t have a bible or a catechism or anything to study with… I don’t even remember what the sermon for this week was going to be or what the bible verses were.”

I guessed I could sing quietly and try to think of a lesson I should learn for this week, but didn’t know what it should be.

“Maybe that it’s okay to be trans, or at least that you shouldn’t go out of your way to avoid talking to people who are like that,” I found myself thinking, which caused me to cringe and grimace at myself. My gut instinct was to say that it wasn’t what I was supposed to be taking away, but, of course, saying that meant I was in the wrong for saying I was a boy, too, and it made me feel bad to think.

“Ugh, what am I supposed to do, just accept what happened? I mean, it’s not even the same, because I’m actually a boy. It’s not the same at all.”

I could still be nice, though, and not avoid people who are different. That was probably the lesson I was supposed to be taking away. Probably. I mean, there was a chance that this was just a coincidence, and there was some other message I was supposed to be taking away.

“Yeah, right. I’ve been turned into a trangender pony and I’m living with a lesbian couple. That’s probably not a coincidence.”

I sighed to myself. How do I turn this into a bible message? I mean, there was the obvious message, treat others the way you want to be treated, and that you should love your neighbor as yourself. Of course, the bible says you shouldn’t associate with bad company, because bad company ruins good morals. Although I was fairly certain that they didn’t mean to completely ignore people, or talk bad about people in your head, which I did a lot.

“Besides, it’s not like you’re above sin,” I thought to myself. “Unless you’re going to say something out loud, you might as well just not say anything. Being mean, even in your head, is never appropriate.”

I knew that, of course, but it was hard to put into practice. Not that that was an excuse, it wasn’t, but still. Besides, what was written in the bible could be interpreted multiple ways. Being gay might have have been a commandment given just to the people of Israel, just like it was given to them how to celebrate Passover and build the tabernacle, with the ten commandments being what was given to the whole world to follow. And besides, there wasn’t anything in the bible that talked about being trans.

“Except it also talks about sexual immorality in other places of the bible, and in Genesis it says that in the image of God he created us; male and female he created us.”

Ugh, why did I have to think of that?

“Lord, please, I don’t want to be a girl… please give me some indication that I'm doing what’s right. Please, don’t let me have to stay a girl. I don’t want to be a girl for hundreds of years… please, just give me something to say that I won’t have to stay like this... give me something to tell me that I'm doing the right thing...”

I hated how much this was getting to me, every day so far it seemed like, except Tuesday, and I hoped it would get better soon, but I didn’t really count on it unless something changed. I was going to grow up and be an adult mare, and my body was going to fill with whatever hormones mares had, I assumed estrogen like I knew humans had, and it was going to be horrible.

“Lord, please don’t let this happen to me,” I said aloud, forgetting about my sleeping companions as I sniffed and tried to hold back my tears.

“...Asher?” someone said, Sweetie Belle it sounded like, as I laid on my back and saw her sit up. “What time is it? Are you crying again?”

“No, I’m not,” I lied, keeping my voice steady as the tears dripped down. “It looks like it’s about to be dawn, I think.”

“What are you two doing up so early?” Scootaloo asked as she, too, sat up, using her hooves to rub her eyes. “I don’t even think it’s six yet.”

“I think Asher’s crying again.”

“I’m not,” I responded, taking a breath before continuing, “Well, I am, but not really. I’m trying not to. I was just thinking to myself about what we should do today.”

“And that made you cry?”

“No,” I sighed. “It was other stuff. It doesn’t matter.”

“Why do you cry so much?” Scootaloo asked. “I thought you said you were a colt. Colts don’t cry that much, and you cry more than Sweetie Belle.”

“Hey!”

“It’s because I feel bad," I sighed. "Yes, I know boys don’t cry that much, but when you’re a boy stuffed into… actually, I have a better way to explain it. Imagine if tomorrow, instead of being a filly, you became a colt, and instead of being a pony, you became a creature with only two legs, no fur, hands with long fingers instead of hooves, no tail, and you were transported to somewhere with a whole lot of other people that looked like you, and they all told you that you were crazy, and even the people who said you weren’t crazy said they wouldn’t do anything to help you? You’d probably be crying just as much as me, if not more.” I sighed again, adding, “Although being a girl is the worst part. It’s worse than everything else.”

“What’s wrong with being a girl?” Sweetie Belle asked innocently.

“There’s nothing inherently wrong with being a girl, it’s just… not what I’m supposed to be. It’s hard for me to ignore, and it makes me feel bad, and… I don’t like it…”

“Well, I wouldn’t cry,” Scootaloo declared. “I think it’d be cool to be somecreature else. Plus, I could see what it’s like to be a colt, too. It would be fun!”

“Ugh, nevermind. You don’t get it.”

I turned my head away and let the tears roll down silently for a minute, the room quiet for a while until Scootaloo spoke again.

“Soooo… what are we going to do today?”

Another sigh escaped me as I rubbed my eyes and rolled back over, answering, “I don’t know. Today’s the first day I won’t be at the doctor or in school or with the sun princess or anything, so… I don’t know.”

“Oh, we can go looking for our cutie marks!” Sweetie Belle suggested. “We could try being lumberjacks!”

“Ooo, that sounds fun,” Scootaloo agreed, turning to me, clearly wanting to know my opinion.

“I mean, I guess. I wanted to do church stuff, but I don’t know what to do.” She looked at me with a confused expression, and I explained, “Church is basically… to put it short, it’s…” I wanted to choose my words carefully, knowing that worship wouldn’t be a good way to describe it to them.

“Basically, it’s like school, kind of, except you spend an hour learning about God, and you do it on Sundays. Well, normally, there’s Sunday School for kids and bible study for adults for an hour, and then normal church service. It’s normally about 2 hours total. Go in at nine fifteen and leave at eleven fifteen.”

“You go to school on Sunday? Why?”

“To learn about and reflect on God. It’s every Sunday, and it’s nice. I like the people there.”

“That seems boring. Why would you want to do that?”

“It’s… well… we could get into that if you wanted me to, but I don’t know if you do… the very, very short version is that Jesus Christ died for your sins, and that you should both love God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and love other people just as much as you love yourself. Remembering the sabbath, remembering to go into church, is a commandment. That's why we go in, because of that, and because of how much God loves us. There’s more to it than that, but that’s the simplest way to explain it.”

“Who is Jesus Christ?”

“Jesus is the son of God, who He sent to the world to die for our sins.”

“Wait, what?” the filly asked, tilting her head in confusion. “What are sins?”

“Sins are… they’re basically things you’re not supposed to do. If you lie, that’s a sin. If you steal, that’s a sin. If you disobey your parents, that’s a sin. Sin is what… keeps people out of heaven. It’s what causes death. So because of sin, God sent his son Jesus to die for our sins so we don’t have to die.”

“Why don’t ponies where you’re from just not sin?” Scootaloo asked. “That way nopony has to die.”

“Because people are born into sin,” I explained. “Even if you don’t sin, you inherit sin from birth because of the sins of your parents, and their parents, and all the way back to original sin, which comes from Adam and Eve. Which is why Jesus was sent to die for our sins.”

“That doesn’t seem fair,” Sweetie Belle piped in. “You can’t be punished for something you didn’t do, and somepony else shouldn't be punished because other ponies were bad.”

“Yeah, you shouldn’t have to die because you disobeyed your parents, even if you weren’t supposed to.”

“Well, first, not sinning is impossible, because even hating someone in your thoughts is a sin. And second, even if it were, you’d still have original sin, no matter how unfair it may seem. But all you have to do is confess with your mouth and believe in your heart that Jesus is Lord and that he died for your sins.”

“I don’t know, that still doesn’t seem fair. Why does his son have to die because other ponies are bad?”

“Because people by nature are sinful, and because both God, and Jesus, love you enough that He would die for the forgiveness of your sins. That's why Jesus died. To forgive you of your sins.”

“Well, why can’t he just forgive everypony without dying? That doesn’t make any sense to me.”

“Because His forgiveness isn’t just… like… you have to ask for forgiveness. If you don’t really care at all about changing, then what’s the point of being forgiven? You wouldn’t forgive a bully who’s just going to keep bullying you after you’ve been forgiven.”

“I still don’t see why he has to die,” Scootaloo asserted. “I mean, if everypony sins, then didn't the guy who died sin?”

“No, he- that’s what I was missing explaining. He was sinless so he-”

“I thought you said everypony had sin even if they didn’t,” Sweetie Belle jumped in.

“I did, but like I said, Jesus is the son of God. So because of that, he was truly sinless, and by his dying, he defeated death so that we don’t have to die. Just being forgiven wouldn’t defeat death, so that’s why he died. Without his dying, then when we died, we would go to hell because of our sins, but because he died for us, we don’t have to face that.”

“What is hell?”

“Hell is…” I once again stopped to think, trying to think about how to describe it to a kid without making it overly scary. “Hell is where sinners go. Like how heaven is a nice place, hell is… the opposite. Nobody wants to go there, because if you go there, that’s where you’ll stay forever to be punished for your sins. That’s why Jesus died for our sins. So he could stop us from going there as long as we believed in him.”

“But I thought you said that the pony who brought you here, God could do anything,” Scootaloo brought up. “Why doesn’t he just stop ponies from going to hell?”

“Because like I said, there’s no point in forgiving someone if they’re not going to change.”

The orange pegasus thought it over silently before telling me, “I don’t know. It still doesn’t seem fair to me.”

“Oh... well, whatever. Never mind. I’m not even sure it affects you because…” I looked down at myself and sighed, continuing, “Anyway, I guess we can count that as today’s… bible study. Not terribly complicated, but it’s always important to remember, I guess.” With that, I let out a silent prayer.

“Lord, thank you for sending your Son to die for my sins, and thank you for…” I tried to force myself not to feel bad as I continued, “Thank you for… giving me this… opportunity, however difficult it may be to me.”

“Anyway, so… cutie marks in lumberjacking. How do you plan on doing that?”

I had no idea what happened, but somehow we were covered in tree sap before lunchtime. I really didn’t know how we ended up that way, but I had to force myself not to freak out as I felt the hairs in my coat start to stick together. I absolutely hated it as we walked home. It was sticky and horrible as we walked back to Holiday and Lofty’s house, and I made a mental note that we wouldn’t do anything like that ever again. At the very least, I wouldn’t participate in it.

“I need another bath,” I thought as the three of us entered the home, Holiday and Lofty both greeting us as we stepped in.

“Well, well, well, what happened here you three?” Lofty asked as she looked us up and down.

“Lumberjacking happened,” I answered as I sneezed and walked past her. “I’m going to go take a bath. Alone, please.”

“Actually, Miss Holiday and I wanted to talk to you, Asher,” she told me before I could get to far. “We’ve been waiting for you to come back so we could speak with you.”

“Can it wait until after I’m not all sticky?”

“It’ll only take a few minutes, I promise. Or we can talk to you in the bathroom if you want? It’ll just be us three, plus Holiday can help you scrub some of that… what is that?.”

I grumbled at that thought, answering, “Ugh, fine, but as long as it’s only us three. And it’s tree sap from lumberjacking. Don’t ask me how it happened because I don’t have a clue.”

Before I knew it, the three of us were in the upstairs bathroom, Holiday roughly scrubbing the sticky mess out of my back as she and Lofty started to talk to me.

“Lofty and I wanted to talk to you about… your maturity.”

“What is there to talk about?” I asked as she worked the brush into my coat and down to the skin beneath it. “I’m an adult. I don’t know what more needs to be said.”

“Well, ah, how old are you, Asher?”

“I’m twenty-five,” I answered flatly.

That caused the two of them to go silent for a moment. Holiday even stopped working my coat for a second in surprise. Clearly I’d caught them off guard.

“That’s, um… interesting, because Princess Celestia told us you were nine years old."

“Well, I’m about nine thousand days old, but I’m not actually nine. I mean, I'm nine here, but I'm twenty-five on Earth. Before I came here, I lived alone and went to work and paid bills and stuff. I can take care of myself.”

“But didn’t you say you were still in school, dear?” Holiday asked.

“Yes, but that’s college algebra and calculus and statistics and business administration, not… uhh, what grade are ten-year-olds in? Not fourth-grade math.”

“Well, you do still need to go to school anyway. Cheerilee told us you can’t read. Is that true?”

“I can read, but I can’t read in whatever language you guys use. She said I wrote in a language called unicorn script.”

“Well, then, it’d be a good thing for you to go to school and learn regular Ponish, wouldn’t you agree?”

“I guess, but isn’t school about to end anyway? That’s what Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle told me.”

“Well, it’s still best for you to go and get in what you can during the last two days of school before summer.”

“I don’t see why I have to,” I mumbled as I rolled my eyes.

“Sounds like somepony is being a pouty little filly,” Lofty responded, causing me to send a glare her way as my cheeks went red. “Errr, colt I mean. I’m sorry.”

“I’m not sure it’d make a difference if we treated you like a stallion or a colt, Asher,” Holiday said. “You wouldn’t be able to live alone or find a job or anything.”

“Yes, but…” But she was right. Being in this body had limitations, ones that I’d already experienced. Nobody was going to believe me about anything or take me seriously. There was practically no point in telling people I was an adult. But still…

“It doesn’t change the fact that I am one and want to be treated like one,” I explained. “I don’t want to be patronized, and I don’t want to be ignored. I don’t like it that all of you are just doing whatever you want with my life and not giving me any say at all. It’s not fair.”

“Well… actually, you’re right. We’re sorry,” Lofty apologized, her wife speaking up after her.

“You deserve to be listened to, especially since you’ve been saying you were an adult for days and we haven’t been listening to you. But you know we can’t just let you do whatever you want. You have to understand that.”

“I can live with that as long as you don’t completely ignore me like literally everyone else is. When I say I don’t want to do something, I’m not just saying it to be picky or difficult. I’ll more than likely have an actual reason for what I say.”

“We’re sorry. We’ll be better, we promise.”

“Okay, I trust you, and thank you. I really do appreciate it.”

There was another long minute of silence as Holiday scrubbed me. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the feeling of being cleaned once again, deciding that the best thing about being a pony was taking baths and getting my coat brushed. I also thought I felt my embarrassment about bathing in front of ponies, at least these two, starting to wane, which I figured was a good thing. I took a breath and settled back, taking the time to relax as I had my coat cleaned when Holiday spoke again.

“I do have a question, Asher,” Holiday started. “Do you… feel like a filly at all? Or have you ever felt like one?”

“Not at all and never once, not one little bit,” I answered. “Actually, it makes me feel bad that I’m stuck in this body, mostly because of that. It makes me feel terrible.”

“Can I… can we ask why?”

“Because I’m not what I’m supposed to be,” I answered. “I told those two this. It’s because I’m not what I’m supposed to be. It makes me feel terrible to look at myself too much or think about it a lot.”

“So… just to be clear, you don’t like being a filly, or you don’t want to like being a filly?”

“It’s definitely that I don’t like being a girl. At least if it were the latter, I wouldn’t feel quite so bad, because there’d be nothing to feel bad about. But right now… it’s horrible. Actually, it’d be easier to justify if I wanted to be a girl, because then God would have turned me into the thing I wanted to be. But I don’t, and he didn’t, and it’s… ugh. I hate it.”

“Maybe you could try embracing being a girl?” Lofty suggested.

“That’s like… ugh, I hate this example, I really hate this example, but that’d be like me telling you to just embrace marrying a stallion even though you didn’t want to… God, I hate this because it’s making it seem like I’m saying it’s okay to be trans, and I don’t think it is. But if it isn’t, then what I’m doing and the way I feel is wrong, too, because how could I just go against God’s will? I hate this so much.”

I was sure they could see the sadness on my face, because they frowned sadly at me and apologized again while I blinked the tears away.

“I’m sorry…” Holiday said. “Was there… was there anything you wanted us to do, dear? I mean, the princess did say that she thought you would see yourself more as a filly over time, but… was there anything you wanted us to do right now?”

“I don’t know if I want to feel more like a girl, but I’d at least feel better about myself if I did. I think so anyway. I don’t know. It might make me feel worse. But anyway, I don’t know, boys clothes would be nice… and books. Books on business management. And statistics, too. I don’t want to forget what I learned in class, in case there’s a way for me to get back to Earth. Please and thank you, if it’s no trouble. I’d really appreciate it.”

“Let Lofty and I see what we can find,” she responded. With that, she suddenly lifted me out of the tub and set me back on my hooves, announcing, “All done.”

I shook myself off as I grabbed a towel, doing my best not to blush as I gave a quick thank you and dried myself off.

“Was there anything else you wanted to talk to me about?” I asked.

“No, that was it,” Lofty told me, “except that Holiday and I probably won’t be watching over you in the long term. Princess Celestia said she’s going to have you staying with somepony else after the Summer Sun Celebration.”

“Oh, well… I think she said something about that. I can’t remember. But um…” My ears went flat against my head and I blushed as I admitted, “I kind of liked staying with you two, because you actually listen when I say something and try to help me…”

“Awww, well, we like taking care of you, Asher,” she smiled. “If we could, we’d take care of you longer, but we’ll come visit you after we leave.”

“I appreciate both of you, thank you.”

Applejack was not feeling well when Twilight Sparkle visited her farm on the day of the Summer Sun Celebration.

The mare and her family were in charge of preparing the food for the day, which would be pies and fritters and crisps and cider and a whole assortment of other treats, all made with the Apple family’s apples, of course. However, Applejack was not as active as she would have liked to have been. She was sick. Diphtheria was what Granny Smith diagnosed her with. She’d heard about some foal getting it and how most of Ponyville was being vaccinated as a result, but didn’t see why she and her family should have to do anything. Heck, it was better to get sick and get better. It kept her immune system in good working order, she believed. If it weren’t for the schoolhouse in Ponyville, she would’ve kept Applebloom from getting vaccinated, too, but seeing as she needed her little sister to get her education, there wasn’t much she could do.

It seemed though that her plan backfired however, because she didn’t get sick until well after Big Mac and Granny Smith got sick, it creeping up on her yesterday before becoming a full blown illness today. Now because of it, she was laying in bed while her family, her brother, granny, little sister, and her cousins, were all helping out. It made her angry to be cooped up inside the house, but there was nothing she could do about it.

She sighed and grumbled to herself as she lay in bed, turning to look out the window as she watched her family work without her. It was painful to watch, almost as painful as her lungs felt, made even worse when she coughed. They were all out there working, and she was laying in bed being lazy. She couldn’t stand it.

“How are ya feeling, sugarcube?” Granny Smith asked as she entered AJ’s room to check on her. “Ya need anythin’ while Ah’m in here?”

“Ah’m- cough- Ah’m fine, Granny,” she told her, the sweat on her forehead and the snot on her nose clearly indicating that she wasn’t. “Ah don’t see why Ah should be stuck in here. Ah’m perfectly- cough- perfectly… uh, well…”

“Y’all ain’t well, missy,” she retorted. “Y’all jus’ need ta stay in here and git better, ya hear me? Ya don’t wanna be goin’ out there gettin' other ponies sick, do ya?”

“No, granny,” she sighed, rolling her eyes. “It just stinks being cooped up in here all alone when Ah could be out there helpin’ ponies, especially on the most important day of the year. Can’t ya at least give me a table ta build or somethin’? Ah ain’t that bad...”

“Ya are that bad. Ya know Big Mac an’ Ah had what ya have now not a week ago. Ya jus’ need ta stay in here and git better. An’ eat yer apple sauce. Yer gonna wanna keep yer strength up ta fight this thing.”

Applejack opened her mouth to respond, but could only cough painfully before she turned away from her back to the window, a look of frustration and sadness on her face from her inability to do anything. She really, really wished she could be out there helping, but knew that it was probably for the best that she was inside. It didn’t make it hurt any less that she couldn’t help though.

As she looked out the window, watching the clearing skies and the wind through the apple trees, she could see her older brother, Big McIntosh, shaking hooves with somepony, a purple unicorn who was being trailed by a dragon who held a checklist in his hands. The overseer of events in Ponyville for the Summer Sun Celebration, she assumed. She’d heard that somepony would be coming over to make sure everything was running smoothly, and watched as her brother led them around the farm, giving them a few treats to taste, the mare having a happy smile on her face at the end of it all. Clearly everything was going just fine without her. She wasn’t needed on one of the most important days of the year, a thought that made her want to cry. That should’ve been her out there greeting the mare and showing her around, but no. She was sick and forced to stay indoors instead.

“Ugh, Ah hope Ah feel better soon…” Applejack thought to herself sadly. “Granny’s homemade applesauce should do more for me than some little ol’ pill a doctor will give me. Ah hope Ah can meet that mare an’ tell her that Ah helped coordinate things at least, and show her around Sweet Apple Acres, too...”

The next several days were much better than the first five in my opinion. Holiday and Lofty weren’t able to get me any boys' clothes because apparently clothes were more a girl’s thing here, and they didn’t make very many things for boys my size. However, as I requested, they got me books, three to be exact. One on statistics and probability, one on an introduction into calculus, which I guessed was better than nothing even though I largely already knew what was in there, and one on a translation of Ponish to English. Or Ponish to Unicorn Script as they called it. It was a very, very simple looking guide, one made for five-year-olds it looked like, and came with a workbook titled ‘My First Writing Book’ to write what I learned.

It was embarrassing to be handed it, to say the least, but it did help. Not that I was able to memorize more than a few characters. Reading their language was like learning morse code, except more complicated because everything they wrote blended together when they wrote it. Numbers were the same, but each letter and special character was a system of bumps. There were up bumps, down bumps, and flats, which could be either half up or half down. Each letter was represented by a combination of three bumps, for a total of forty four letters, one for each basic sound you could make. It was quite a bit to learn, and was something that would take years to even start to get good at. Luckily though, there were only two days of class left, and Cheerilee was kind enough to accommodate me and write things in English.

Regarding class, somehow we were able to go to the classroom for the last two days of school despite me being sick and effectively closing off Ponyville because of it, although there were quite a bit less kids there than there were before, maybe about half. Namely, those two girls that Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle didn’t like, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, weren’t there, although from what I heard, they weren’t sick, they were just being held out of school because of me. The thought of that still made me feel a bit bad, but Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle seemed to like it.

Other than school, my days largely felt empty. I was used to being active and doing things, either working or sitting in class or at least having the internet to occupy my time. But being both a child and a pony, I had none of those things other than school, and not that much school at that. It meant that my days were mostly spent either reading until I got bored, following Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle around, or sitting around and thinking about how much I didn’t like being here. Which, of course, led to tears more often than I would have liked it to. I felt like I was getting better at controlling myself, but I couldn’t be sure. It certainly felt like it was an everyday occurrence that I cried, or at least every other day. I was still trying to get used to it, the lack of control I had over my emotions, but I found myself getting through it.

Holiday and Lofty looked like they were trying their best to accommodate me, which I appreciated, not that there was much they could do. They did let me go walking out alone when I wanted to, and gave me privacy when I asked for it and referred to me as a boy when they could, and so did Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle, at least at home. In public, which was mostly school, there wasn’t much accommodation. Cheeilee effectively ignored me, and I gave up on asking to be called a boy after a few attempts, and even Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo were hesitant to call me a boy in public. I knew it wasn’t really their fault, but it still made me upset. But things felt like they were getting slowly better as I settled in, very slowly, and before I knew it, it was the Summer Sun Celebration.

It seemed like there was no sign of my getting diphtheria several days ago because the town was active today, with stands and things set up with games and free food, as well as decorations. Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle woke me up early so we can go out and about, and we spent the morning walking around the town, Lofty and Holiday opting to stay at home.

“Oh, let’s get some drinks!” Scootaloo suggested, pointing to a stand stating that it held apple cider. However, right next to it, the sign name of another business caught my attention.

“Wait, hold on. Is that- does that… what is that?” I asked. “Is that- what is a feathers and couches store?”

“Oh, that’s Quills and Sofas,” Sweetie Belle answered. “My sister goes there a lot for their quills when she runs out. I think she bought a sofa there once, too.”

“Wait, do they only sell those two things?” I couldn’t help but ask, completely confused by the idea. “Just quills and sofas? Nothing else?”

“I don’t think so.”

“How do you run a business like that?” I asked, completely taken aback. “What happens if someone else decides to sell quills?”

“Why would somepony else sell quills?” Scootaloo asked innocently.

“To put him out of business and corner the market!” I explained. “I mean, if you only sell two things, and one of those things is just quills, then all I would have to do is sell them as well and make them cheaper, maybe by five or ten percent. I might not even need to do that. If I sell a lot of other stuff, too, then I can mark up the price and still steal business. And I assume not that many people are buying couches, so if someone else sold quills and had, like, the barest basic knowledge of economics, they could eat into whatever profits that store makes easily and take over his market.”

“Well, why would anypony do that? That seems pretty mean, I think.’

“It’s not mean, it’s just business. I don’t need my degree to tell you that unless he sells the best quills in the whole wide world, whatever business structure he has is sitting on a house of cards.”

“Well, I mean, why would anypony want to start selling quills and sofas when he already sells them?”

“To increase their revenue and build their consumer base.” I told them. “I mean, imagine you have a successful business already, and you sell a whole bunch of things, like food and clothes and-”

“Well, well, well, look who it is,” someone interrupted. The three of us turned to see Diamond Tiara and her silver-coated friend marching in our direction, a mean, grinning expression on their faces. Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle immediately tensed up and scowled at the sight of them, and I remembered that these two groups didn’t like each other for whatever reason.

“If it isn’t Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, and the new girl,” she continued as the two started to circle us. “What are you three doing out here?”

“Leave us alone, Diamond!” Scootaloo told her angrily, already yelling. “Go pick on somepony else.”

“I don’t think we want to,” she responded. “Because it’s your fault we had to get shots last week and stay home from school. I didn’t even get to see Silver Spoon until today because of you three.”

“Actually, because of one of you,” Silver Spoon added, glaring at me, “and I think she has something to tell us.”

The two stopped in front of me, standing side by side, and for a moment, I completely forgot what they were talking about.

“Uhhh… what?”

“Leave her alone!” Sweetie Belle told her, stepping in front of them. “She didn’t do anything to you!”

“Yes she did! She made us have to get shots by being next to us when she was sick, even though she said she wasn’t! I couldn’t see my best friend all week because of her!”

“Oh yeah, that,” I remembered as the four of them began to argue with each other. “Oops.”

“We want her to apologize!” Diamond Tiara demanded. “She made us have to stay home from school because she got sick, and we couldn’t even have our sleepover because of her!”

“That’s not her fault! She doesn’t have to-”

“I’m sorry,” I interrupted loudly before the two groups started to fight and yell more. All four fillies looked at me to continue, and I said, “I’m sorry I got you sick… err, made you have to stay home from school. That was my fault, you’re right. I… should’ve known better. I mean, I couldn’t stop myself from getting sick, but… I shouldn’t have sat so close to you when I was sneezing, even if I thought it was just allergies. I’m sorry.”

“Yeah, well…” the pink girl trailed off, eyeing me suspiciously, trying to determine if I was being sincere, which I was. “Good. You should have known better.”

“I still don’t see why you have to hang out with those two though,” Silver Spoon added. "I mean, even if you are sick, those two are the worst."

“Asher can hang out with whoever he wants,” Scootaloo responded, still scowling, her use of the word ‘he’ forcing me to suppress both my and my sudden feeling of happiness. Diamond and Silver didn’t pick up on it, which I decided was a good thing for now since I didn’t want them to fight because of me even more.

“Just because she lives with you doesn’t mean she has to be with you two all the time!”

“Yeah, well, I’m sure Asher doesn’t want to be with ponies like you! Right, Asher?”

“Well…” I looked between the two groups, who were now standing side by side, and offered, “Why don’t we all just go together? I mean, we’re just going to get apple cider right? We can just grab drinks together as one big group.”

“We're not getting drinks with them!” all four of them said at the same time, glaring at me as they used their hooves to point at each other.

I rolled my eyes in response, turning around to walk off as I said, “I guess I’ll get apple cider by myself. I'm not going to listen to you guys fight.”

I didn’t turn to see if they were following me, walking right up to the stand and scrunching my nose at a weird smell. It wasn’t bad, but it was familiar, and I couldn’t name it right away. However, I put the thought out of my head as the pony running the stand greeted me, a stallion with a yellowish orange coat and a country accent.

“Why, hello there little filly!” he said politely, wearing a wide smile. “Looking for a glass of Apple family cider?”

“Um, yes please,” I responded, my ears flattening at being called a filly.

“Let me get that made up for ya.” I watched him pour the drink into a glass mug, noticing it foam like it was carbonated as he poured it. As well, the smell got stronger, and I realized it was coming from the drink itself.

“Here ya are!” he told me, handing me the cider. “That’ll be five bits, please!”

“Uhhhh, I don’t-”

“Nah, Ah’m just messin’ with ya. It’s free today. An’ let me get ya a few tickets so you can get drinks later, too.”

“Okay, thank you,” I told him politely, taking a sip and scrunching up my face at the taste.

“Somethin’ wrong?”

“This… this has alcohol in it… that’s what that smell is. It’s alcohol.”

“That’s right, missy,” he confirmed. “That’s why yer only allowed three extra tickets. It’s not healthy for fillies like you ta have more than that at yer age.”

“Aren’t there drinking laws in this place or something? I mean, I’m an adult, but still.”

“Drinkin’ laws?” he asked curiously, tilting his head and raising an eyebrow.

“...never mind. So I get a drink and three tickets? Four total? That seems like… a lot to me…”

“Well, ya don’t have ta use all of ‘em, and if ya look like yer gettin’ too riled up, Ah won’t be giving you any more.”

“Well, I’ll just take this one and that’s it. You keep the rest of my tickets.”

“Are ya sure? You won’t be able ta get any more than that without any tickets.”

“Yeah, I’m sure. It’s fine. Thank you.”

With that, I turned around to see the four girls behind me reluctantly walking up to me to get drinks as well, glaring at each other as they did so. When they looked at me, they gave me a nervous smile for a second before going back to glaring at each other while they grabbed their tickets and drinks, gulping down about half of their glasses in no time at all.

“This world is so weird,” I thought to myself as I took a sip of my apple cider.

“You k- you know… th-the only time we- we can- that they l-let us have- have apple cider is- is- is… holidays… it’s not fair…”

“I’m pretty sure you’ve had enough cider to drink for now, Scootaloo,” I told her as I watched her and the whole group down three drinks in about an hour and a half. In the same time, I’d had about half of mine, and I could tell that these ponies weren’t handling it well.

“But we still have one… um, yeah,” Diamond got out, holding the ticket in one hoof as she finished the rest of her third drink. ”We should just… uh… put the- the thing so we can have our last one. I mean, we have one left, so yeah.”

“I’m pretty sure you four are drunk,” I responded, “and I really don’t think you should have any more.” They clearly had a low alcohol tolerance, but to be fair, they were around ten, which was part of the reason I was taking my drink slow.

“Oh, so you think just because you’re cuter than us you can- can do whatever you want Asher?” Silver Spoon got out, pointing an accusing hoof at me, which caused me to blush, not liking the idea that kids looked at me like that, especially girls. “Who ma-made you queen of the group?”

“Hey, she’s not prettier than me,” Diamond protested, stomping a hoof and almost stumbling because of it.

“I mean, she a little bit is,” Silver responded, making my face go bright red and causing my ears to flatten. “I’d date her if… if she let me. She’s cute.”

“You say that about everypony, Silver. You said that about Button Mash a few days ago.”

“Hey, Button Mash is mine!” Sweetie Belle yelled, sending an angry glare the girl’s way.

“Okay, this subject is making me uncomfortable, so we’re changing it,” I broke in, thoroughly embarrassed that she felt that way about me.

“See, I- I told you three- you two that you two were annoying her,” Scootaloo said. “Although you’re not as bad as I thought you were, so you get a pass this time.”

“Yeah, we thought you’d be- hic- be uh, stuck up and snobby like always,” Sweetie Belle added. “You guys aren’t that bad.”

“You two aren’t that bad either,” Diamond decided. “I- we- I might in-invite you to our sleepover tonight since you’re not as- as lame as we thought.”

“Oh, Asher has to come, too, cause she’s cute,” Silver added, unsteady on her feet.

“You already said that, Silver,” Diamond told her before looking down at her empty mug. “She already said that, guys.”

“Oh look! It’s Rainbow Dash!” Scootaloo suddenly got out, flapping her wings wildly as she pointed up to a cloud a bit of a ways away. “Let's go see her! She’s so cool!”

Before I knew it, all four of them were half running, half stumbling over to see her. I couldn’t help but sigh and roll my eyes at the sight, and took another gulp of my cider before heading off after them.

The rainbow haired pony had a smile on her face as I approached her, and I could hear them excitedly chattering as I made my way up to them.

“You’re so cool, Rainbow!”

“How do- how do you clear the clouds so, uh, fast?”

“The cider tastes gooood!”

“I know, I’m amazing, I’m just that awesome, and I haven’t had any yet,” she responded, grinning widely. “Gotta keep my senses sharp for clearing the sky tonight. Although clearly you fillies have had a few. I bet you used all four tickets all at once!" She laughed at that thought, adding, "That’s what I did when I was your age.”

“Nuh-uh!” Sweetie Belle protested. “I still have one! And Asher said she, uh, she didn’t want the rest of her- her tickets and gave them away!”

I should’ve expected it, but I was caught off guard when I was on my back again, nose to nose with the pegasus, her eyes wide open in surprise.

“You gave away your tickets?” she asked suspiciously. “What, do you not like apple cider? I knew you were a spy trying to overthrow Equestria! Wait until Princess Celestia hears about this!”

“Please don’t… put your nose so close to mine,” I asked. “That makes me really uncomfortable, especially since all of you ponies seem to like doing that. I don’t want to keep having my nose touched by you guys, especially not with your noses.”

“Hmmm, well, I’ll let you off this time, spy, but you have to answer one question first. Who is the greatest, fastest, more fearsome pony in all of Equestria?”

“Oh! I know! It’s you!” Scootaloo broke in happily. “It’s you! That’s the answer!”

“Well, it is me, but that wasn’t a question for you, squirt. That was a question for… what’s your name again, kid?”

“Asher, and I’m not a kid, I'm an adult,” I replied. “Aaaaaaaaand, I spilled my drink. Thanks.”

“Sorry, kid, you’re not an adult. But let me get you a new drink, be right back.”

“You don’t need to-” I got out, but was cut off by a rush of wind as she ignored me and flew off back to the stand, reappearing just a few seconds later.

“There you are, one brand new drink,” she said, thrusting the mug in my hands- hooves- as I stood up again. “Sorry about that. But hey, at least you have a full mug now! All good?”

“I guess, but I was going to tell you I didn’t need a new drink-”

“But I got you one anyway because I’m just that awesome, aren’t I? Not many other ponies would’ve done that so quickly, I can guarantee that.”

“Yes, but- actually, never mind,” I decided, realizing that arguing wasn’t going to get me anywhere. “Thank you, I appreciate it,” I said with a little bit of a tone, continuing, “now, I need space please?” I wasn’t claustrophobic yet, but I felt like the more time I spent here, the more I would start to get that way.

“I said I’m sorry,” she told me defensively, coming in closer rather than retreating, forcing me to step back. “I really didn’t mean to spill your drink. I was just playing around.”

“I know, and I-”

“Is this because I flew you around before?” she asked. “I’m sorry. I wouldn’t have done it if I knew I was going to scare you. I’m really sorry.”

“I don’t need you to-”

“What if I made it up to you?” she asked. “I could get you more tickets if you want them. Oh! What if I-”

“Rainbow Dash, look at me!” I finally yelled, loud enough to make her stop and listen. “It’s. Fine. Okay?” I told her. “If it wasn’t fine, I promise I would speak up. But it’s fine, okay? Just please…” I trailed off, trying to think of the right way to say what I wanted to tell her. The first thing that came to mind was ‘back off’, which I knew she wasn’t going to take well given her character. I wanted her to get that I wanted her to back off, but I definitely didn’t want to make her upset.

“Just calm down, please. You’re at seven or eight, and you should be at three, okay? Just calm down and give me space. I promise I forgive you for flying me around and for spilling my drink. I’m not mad at all.”

“Oh. Well, okay,” she responded, frowning a bit before smiling again. “I guess I can get pretty out there, and not everypony can handle me, even at five. I’m just that awesome, aren’t I?”

“Hey, if- if Asher’s- if she’s- he’s… wait, I forgot, are you a colt or a filly?” Sweetie Belle said, causing me to scowl.

“Haha, I guess you fillies have had a little too much if you think she’s a colt,” the rainbow haired pony laughed, and I took a swig of my new mug of cider because of it. “Asher’s definitely a filly.”

“Ugh, I’m not a girl,” I told her grumpily. “I know I look like one, but I’m not.”

“Wait, what?” Rainbow Dash asked, now confused. “You only had one mug, right? Or, like, three-quarters of one anyway. Are you that much of a lightweight? I definitely saw that you had mare parts.” It caused my scowl to deepen and my cheeks to become flushed as my ears flattened like it seemed like they always were.

“I know what I look like,” I said, “but I- just because I have- it doesn’t-”

“I mean, I’d say having those things does make you a filly, Asher. Anypony will tell you that.”

“Ugh, I’m going for a walk.”

Before I knew it, I was sitting, or, in my case, laying on a park bench alone, the girls I was friends with off with Rainbow Dash still, doing something else. I was trying to not let my emotions get the best of me like they seemed to be doing a lot lately, and honestly thought I was doing a pretty good job. The sun on my coat felt good, and even though it was supposed to be the official start of summer today, the weather wasn’t too hot, letting the sun feel more like a comfortable blanket as it shined on me. I breathed slow deep breaths and set my drink in the grass next to me, trying to get relaxed after dealing with what were basically drunk kids for the last couple of hours. I had my eyes closed, and kept them that way for I didn’t know how long, until someone started talking to me.

“Hey there,” an unfamiliar voice started, forcing me to open my eyes. “Do you mind if I sit next to you?”

“No, it’s fine,” I answered quietly, scooting over to give them room. It was a stallion, one with an orangish-brown, almost caramel-colored coat and darker brown hair. I also noticed that, as he sat down, he looked a bit… I didn’t know. Either upset or sad would have been the best way to describe it.

It was silent for a few minutes after that, both of us sitting quietly, not really looking each other's way until he finally asked, “Is something wrong?”

“It’s nothing,” I responded. “I’m just getting worked up over the same dumb things I always do.”

“Oh… well, want to tell me what’s wrong?” I looked up at him, and I knew he could tell I was confused because he added, “I mean, if you want to. You just look really sad to me.”

I was about to ask if someone told him to come up to me and talk to me before I remembered that all of the ponies I met up to this point had personal space issues of some kind. Besides, it wasn’t like whoever this pony was was going to believe me anyway.

“I’m just upset because I’m a girl when I’m supposed to be a boy, and it's annoying to have to tell people all the time and it makes me feel bad. It's the worst thing about being a pony, and I hate it with my whole being, and even if I weren’t in this dumb filly’s body, I’d still be a pony and it would still suck. And it’s probably never going to change, and I’m probably never going to see my family and friends again, and it…” I closed my eyes as I took a breath and used my hooves to rub away the wetness that was building up, continuing, “And it sucks really badly, and I hate it with my whole being.”

He didn’t answer right away, and I saw him tilt his head as though processing what I was saying before starting carefully, “I… think I might be able to say that I- I know a little bit about what you’re going through…”

“Wait, what?” I asked, blinking a bit. “You do?”

“Well, um…” he trailed off nervously, looking around before leaning in closer. “Can you, um, can you keep a secret for me?”

I blushed hard at that as the realization hit me and looked away, responding, “I um… I think…” I looked down at my hooves and twirled them a bit, telling him, “I think I know what you’re going to say…” I looked back at him again to see him blushing as well now.

“What- what do you think I’m going to tell you?” he asked, sounding a bit anxious now, looking at his own hooves for a moment before going back to me. “I mean, um… what do- what do you think?”

“I- I think- I think you’re going to say…”

“What?”

“Um, you’re going to say that- that you’re…”

I didn’t know why, but I didn’t want to say what I knew he was going to tell me. I wasn’t sure why I didn’t want to say it though. I knew what he was going to say, and he knew what he was going to say, and I already told him about me, so it wasn’t like he was going to yell at me or something.

“It’s not the same though,” I thought to myself. “Me saying I’m a boy is different than if he’s about to tell me he’s a girl because I actually am a boy. It’s not the same at all.”

“I… I don’t want to say it.” I got out. “I don’t want to tell you what I’m thinking. It’s easier to pretend you’re not… um… the thing I’m thinking.”

“Oh. Well, um…” I watched him swallow and look away again, simply saying, “Okay. I’m sorry.”

“Ugh, I don’t want to have this conversation at all,” I thought to myself. “I know I’m making him feel bad, but what are the odds that out of all the ponies in this town, this particular pony decides to sit down next to me? Probably a million to one, which means that of course God put him here for me to talk to.”

“I’m sorry,” I apologized, my ears flattening. “I don’t- I didn’t mean to make you feel bad.”

“It’s okay. I, um… I think you know what I was… going to tell you anyway. I’ve never actually told anypony else, so… I- I don’t know if that makes you feel better or worse, but um… yeah. I just saw that you looked sad so I wanted to talk to you… I mean, I didn't know that you were going to say you were a boy, but... I'm sorry. I hope I’m not making you feel worse.”

Extremely uncomfortable was what it was making me. I really, really didn’t want to talk to this pony, silently thinking to myself that I’d rather get up and leave right then. Just being around him felt uncomfortable to me. He was kidding himself anyway if he thought that what I thought he was going to say and what I was thinking lined up. He and I weren’t the same at all because I actually was a boy, versus...

“No, stop that,” I told myself silently. “That thinking was- is- the problem in the first place, and is probably the reason you’re like this right now. Even if you want to leave and even if he’s fooling himself, being nice is what you should be doing.”

“So, um… you, um…” I closed my eyes and tried to think about how to say what I wanted to say in the nicest way possible, seeing as I had no experience in this kind of conversation. The idea of just getting up and leaving felt like a good one, but I forced myself to push that thought out of my head and speak.

“Do you, um… think that… you’re a girl? Errr, mare?”

“That’s um… I don’t like the way that question is phrased…” he told me, seeming embarrassed. “But um… I- I... do feel that way, yes…”

“I’m sorry,” I apologized, feeling the urge to leave the conversation grow. However, I forced myself to stay as I continued, “Um, I- I didn’t… I used to actually be a boy before this, as hard as it is to believe, and um… how- how do you deal with… with… you know…? If you want to tell me anyway. I mean, it’s not just me being a girl. I don’t like being a pony in general. But being a girl makes me feel twenty times worse.”

“Well, I- I try to tell myself that eventually it’ll be better, and I’ll be the pony I want to be, even if it’s going to take a long time.”

“But what if it doesn’t change?” I asked. “I mean, I don’t think it’s going to change for me, so… what if it doesn’t ever change?”

“Well, it makes me feel better to tell myself anyway…” he trailed off sadly.

“I guess that makes sense,” I thought to myself. “It’s what I’ve been telling myself, sort of. Although it’s not really the same because he’s… or, I mean… No, I’m not going to call him she, because he’s not actually… ugh, I’m being mean again.”

“I already do that kind of, but I still feel really bad,” I told him.

“Yeah, I know that feeling…”

“I’m sorry.”

Another period of silence followed us, and I couldn’t help but think during it how weird this conversation was. There was no way I should have been able to identify with anything about this pony, and yet I could, and it made me feel bad.

“Ugh, this shouldn’t be happening to me,” I complained. “This sucks and I hate it. I shouldn’t have to deal with this. It’s not… ugh.”

“I’m sorry,” the pony said quietly. “I know exactly how you feel.”

“I don’t think you do…” I mumbled, turning away again.

“I- I do,” he got out. “I know what- what you’re going through and how you feel, kind of at least. I don’t know what you mean when you… talk about being a pony, but I know that-”

“It’s not the same,” I couldn’t help but interrupt, knowing my next words were going to make him upset, but unable to stop myself. “You don’t really know how I feel because you never were a girl whereas I actually did used to be a boy. You’re not actually a girl but I actually am a boy. It’s not the same at all.”

I should’ve known better than to say all of that, because when I turned back to him, he looked like he was about to cry. I instantly frowned at the sight and immediately tried to apologize.

“Wait, hold on, I’m sorry-”

“It’s fine,” he told me, although clearly on the verge of tears, his voice sounding choked up. “I didn’t mean to bother you. I’m sorry.”

“Wait, don’t go…” I tried to say as he got up to leave, sniffling a little bit and giving me one last look before he went away. I felt ashamed of myself because of it, and watched as the pony walked away, head hung low.

“See? This is why you’re like this,” I told myself as I went back to laying down on the bench. “You can’t just be nice to other people.”

I sat there laying on the bench for a few minutes before I realized I should probably find that pony and apologize for making them feel bad.

“Even if you’re completely in the right with what you said,” I thought to myself, “that’s still no excuse for being as mean as you were about it. That doesn’t change the fact though that he… or, I mean, she... they... ugh, it’s not the same at all…”

Of course, it was the same. How could it possibly not be? It wasn’t a coincidence that I was effectively a transgender pony with lesbian guardians who was just approached by another trans pony of all people. There was no doubt about the lesson I was supposed to be learning from all this.

“It’s not like I can disagree anyway. Can I even try to disagree, even if I wanted to? Wouldn’t that just be hurting myself? Oh, God, why does this have to happen to me?”

I tried to hold back my tears, and was on the verge of crying right there when someone else, somepony else, interrupted me.

“Awww, what are you doing sitting there crying all alone for, Asher?” someone, Pinkie, started. “You should be out having fun with your friends, silly filly.”

“It’s kind of hard to do when everyone here calls me a filly,” I retorted, my voice cracking as I spoke. “Not that I don’t deserve it, since I can’t help but be mean, but…” I grumbled angrily, my eyes still wet as I continued, “It’s not like I was out protesting against trans people or something! Everything I thought, I kept internal! It’s not fair!”

“Oh, I don’t think you’re a mean filly, Asher,” she told me, which actually did make me start to cry. “You seem serious a lot of the time, but I don’t think you’re mean, and I’m sure your friends don’t think you’re mean, either!”

I could feel the tears dripping down and then the hug that followed a moment later, which only served to make me more upset.

“Get off of me!” I said through my tears, although I didn’t push her away much. “None of you ponies know how to give me space. Just let me cry on my own for a while.”

“Oh, but hugs make everything better!” she said cheerily, which annoyed me. “But you know what’s even better than a hug? A party! And guess who’s throwing a party? That’s right! It’s me! The best party planner in Ponyville!”

“I really don’t feel like going to a party, Pinkie…” I said half-heartedly, sniffling as I lay my head on the bench while her hooves stayed wrapped around me. “Can I just be by myself for now, please?”

“Oh, I’m sure a party will make you feel better. It’s for an even newer pony in Ponyville named Twilight Sparkle, and it’s going to be at her library! Doesn’t that sound like fun?”

“Not really, but…”

I suddenly thought back to when I was alone with Celestia, and how she said something was going to happen today with her sister and that pony. I was pretty sure she said it was going to happen with that pony, Twilight Sparkle. Not that there was anything I could do. In fact, she specifically told me Twilight would handle it, which was fine by me. I basically already knew what I was doing here, and anything to do with this holiday wasn’t it. Also, although I couldn’t be sure, I had a sneaking suspicion that Twilight was the pony she wanted me to live with.

“I mean…” I started as I tried to rub my eyes, unable to because my limbs were tied up in her grasp. “I really don’t want to, but… where is it going to be at?”

“It’ll be in Golden Oaks Library, and it’ll be a fun, fun, fun time! I’m sure you’d really, really like it! Plus, we can make it a surprise, and you can tell Twilight what being the new pony in Ponyville is like and how to make all sorts of friends like you have!”

“I'm not sure about all that but... maybe,” I sighed. “I’ll… think about it, okay?”

“Oh, please don’t be so sad, silly filly,” she suddenly told me, moving up to rub her cheek against mine and rubbing the wetness around. “Seeing you sad makes me feel sad, and I want you to feel better.”

“Why do you care though?” I asked. “You don’t even know me- well, you saw me for about a minute like two weeks ago.”

“And I threw you that amazing party, remember? Wasn’t it the most fun ever? You even made some new friends so you wouldn't be all alone!”

“It was… a nice thing for you to do for me,” I told her politely, making sure not to tell her that I didn't really care for it, “but that doesn’t really answer my question. Why do you care so much?”

“Because you’re my friend, and cheering up my friends is just what Pinkie’s here to do, silly filly!”

“Please don’t call me a filly,” I told her, making a face and sniffling as I tried to get my emotions under control. “I’m not a girl, and I don’t want to be called one, especially not a silly one.”

“Okie dokie loki!” she responded cheerily, still not releasing me from the hug she had me in. “Can I call you a silly colt then? Or maybe just a silly foal?”

“Being called a colt would be nice, because, I don’t know if I told you before, but I am a boy.”

“A colt with filly parts?” she asked. “You must be one very silly colt then, Asher! You’re so weird, and that’s what makes you fun! Which is why you should go to the party I’m throwing for Twilight Sparkle! What do you say?”

“Well… I’ll go since you’re being nice to me and said you’d call me a boy, but-”

“Perfect! We only have five hours until the party starts, which means we need to get started right away!” With that, she placed me on her back and dragged me with her to the library to get ready for the party.

Twilight went through her day making sure everything was in order for the Summer Sun Celebration, visiting Rainbow Dash after the four fillies she was talking to had left. After she coerced her into clearing the sky like she was supposed to (and getting her mane messed up in the process), she went over to the town hall to visit Rarity, and gave her quite a shock when the unicorn saw her mane. After a little while with her getting her mane fixed and styled a bit, she went off to see Fluttershy to check on the music for the holiday, quickly getting annoyed by the quiet mare’s somehow incessant chatter with Spike. Overall, it took the mare a few hours to get through everything she had to do, and her annoyance with the ponies in Ponyville was quite high after all was said and done.

“Humph, rude much?” Spike asked with a frown after Twilight pushed Fluttershy out of Golden Oaks Library.

“Sorry, Spike,” she apologized to the dragon, “but I have to convince the princess that Nightmare moon is coming, and we’re running out of time! Plus, I need to find that filly so I can make space for her, and I can’t do that with a bunch of crazy ponies trying to make friends all the time! Now where’s the light switch?”

“Surprise!” the whole room said at the same time as the place lit up, Pinkie Pie’s voice cutting through the group the most. “Hi! I’m Pinkie Pie, and I threw this party just for you!” the pink pony told her. “Were you surprised? Were you? Were you? Huh? Huh? Huh?” she asked, already grating on the unicorn’s nerves.

“Very surprised,” the mare being asked answered. “Libraries are supposed to be quiet.”

“Well that’s silly! What kind of welcome party would this be if it were quiet? I mean, duh! Booooooring! You, see, I saw you when you first got here, remember? You were all…”

Twilight groaned, already worn out from her, and began to walk away to pour herself a drink of apple cider, debating what she should do as she did so. Everything in Ponyville was already set up for the Summer Sun Celebration, so that wasn’t an issue. Not that it would be if everything weren’t. The main concern for tonight was Nightmare Moon’s reappearance and the Elements of Harmony, which she had to prepare for, another secondary concern being that filly, Ashley she thought the princess said. Celestia was going to meet with her to formally introduce the two of them. She wondered what importance she had that she wanted Twilight to take care of her.

Speaking of the filly, just as the mare was about to take a sip of the cider she was pouring (which was actually hot sauce), she caught sight of her. She looked just how she remembered the couple of times she saw her before. A bright silver coat and a perfectly golden mane with deep blue eyes. Twilight wasn’t a pony who was particularly concerned about the way she looked, but she had to admit, seeing her now made her just a teensy bit jealous. Not very, but a little. She also noted the small look of annoyance she had as she stood a bit of a distance away from a few other fillies her age, occasionally making a comment but mostly staying out of the conversation they were having.

“And that’s Asher!” Pinkie Pie introduced as Twilight trotted up to her. “He was the newest pony in Ponyville until you came around! Isn’t that exciting? You should say hello to him! But make sure not to call him a silly filly! He said he doesn’t like that.”

The words Pinkie said put a blush and a shy, happy smile on her face, words that she liked to hear. Twilight however, rolled her eyes at the thought. She almost didn’t believe the princess when she said she wanted to be called a colt, and thought the idea of it was ridiculous.

“Hello, ma’am,” Twilight started politely, intentionally making sure to use the word and instantly causing Asher’s smile to drop into a scowl. “My name is Twilight Sparkle. I believe we’ve met before?”

“Not really,” the filly responded, “but I... think I remember you. Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, and I saw you here for like a second when we were coming to study before you ran off.”

“Heh heh, yeah,” Twilight got you as she rubbed a hoof behind her head, a bit embarrassed. “That was rude of me, I’m sorry. I should’ve introduced myself to you guys back there. But as I said, I’m Twilight Sparkle. And you are?”

She said and, sounding a bit reluctant, said, “My name is Asher, and, um… I think Celestia said I was supposed to live with you?”

“Well, that’s Princess Celestia to you, Asher, although you’re right about that. Princess Celestia did tell me to keep an eye on you. You know we had to close off Ponyville to outsiders because of you?”

“Yes, I know,” she said, her ears flattening in embarrassment. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to mess up the holiday for all of you.”

“Well, good,” Twilight told her sternly. “This is the most important day of the year, and everything should be just perfect for Princess Celestia. She wouldn’t want anypony causing a mess.”

Asher’s scowl deepened as she rolled her eyes, already not liking Twilight’s confrontational style.

“So… am I living with you starting tonight?” she asked. “Because if so, I need to tell Miss Holiday and Lofty.”

“I’m not sure, but I don’t see why not. As I said before, Princess Celestia told me she would formally introduce us, but she did tell me a little bit about you before. She said you were like me when I was young, and said you were quite the smart little filly.”

“I… I’m not a girl…” Asher trailed off quietly at that remark, looking at her hooves.

“Oh, Princess Celestia did say something about that before,” Twilight remembered again. “She said you were a girl who would rather be called a boy.”

“I want to be called a boy because I’m not a girl at all,” she couldn’t help but say. “I know I don’t look like one,” she explained, “but I actually am a boy.”

“I mean, you’re not,” Twilight told her simply. “Just because you say you are doesn’t make you one, silly filly.” It made her cheeks red with anger and her already lack of fondness for her turned into dislike. She knew she just added that last bit because Pinkie Pie had said she didn’t like it. She looked up to the pink mare to gauge her reaction, but noticed she was long gone by that point.

There was a little bit of shame mixed into her emotions, too. It was largely the same thing she told that other pony, and now it was being told to her. It made her feel bad to hear, just because it was what she thought a lot of the time when she was a human, and lately what she thought about herself some of the time in Equestria.

“I actually used to be a colt- err, a boy. I was turned into a girl, so it’s not-”

“I mean, I’m not sure I believe that,” Twilight interrupted, “since magically changing your sex is something that's only theoretical, but even if that’s true, you’re not one right now, so that makes you a girl. I mean, you can’t just say you’re a boy and then be a boy. That’s ridiculous.”

“Ugh, I’m not- I don’t- I’m…” Asher closed her eyes and took a breath, more shame starting to kick in as the tears welled up again. She really didn’t want to cry in front of the mare if she could help it.

“Damn it, I was so mean to that other pony. Why did I have to act like that to him… her? I need to find them and apologize.”