Have you ever met anyone that loved you so much...and yet you knew that you could never be worthy of their affection, of their love for you?

Be it by money or personality confliction...or my case a timeline that I refused to interfere with.

Well...I suppose I better start at the beginning.

Have you ever read any my little pony fanfictions? Or more specifically have you ever read the unbelievable amount of Human in Equestria stories?

Well I used too...so long ago.

We all know how they tend to start. The Human would be at his house or walking through a convenient forest when all of a sudden he would fall or sneeze or blink...and like that he wakes up either in the Everfree Forest or Twilights library.

Cliché right?

Yeah well it wasn't for me. You see unlike the wide amount of teenagers entering Equestria by some unknown means, I was barely into my teens at the time...or so I was told.

I wish I could be more specific but when I did come to Equestria...I found some memories lacking. Not all of them but mostly the important ones like my family and age and name...you see where I'm going with this?

Well perhaps if I actually start explaining how I got here then you'd understand a little better.

It all started when I opened my eyes, only to find myself in broom closet. I was naturally confused and to be honest still thought I was asleep. So imagine my surprise when I open the door only to find myself being stared at my numerous multicoloured ponies.

Multicoloured ponies I couldn't help but recognize...

Most of whom were wearing armour.

At the time I was only around five foot six, but in comparison to these small creatures I was quite tall. They made up for this quite well however by being both highly trained and as I said before, quite numerous.

Oh I should probably tell you what I look like shouldn't I? Well at the time I had short spiky brown hair that has never really changed over the years. I had and obviously still have bright green eyes, and I think at the time I was wearing a pair of blue jeans, a black t-shirt and white trainers.

Anyway I was dragged kicking and screaming by about three of the guards. One of which was grinding his teeth in frustration as his horn flickered on and off. After about fifteen minutes of pulling, yelling and cursing, the latter being from the ponies believe it or not, I was thrown into a dank and dark cell.

I still haven't told you my name or age at the time have I? Forgive me, I can be quite forgetful...and given what has happened...well by the end of this you might understand why.

Anyway back then I was only fourteen and my name...well I only remembered my first one and that made me more fearful than anything else that had happened to me that day. I mean to have forgotten really important parts of my life...

I knew I had friends but couldn't remember their names. I knew I played rugby but couldn't remember for what team. This and many more were forgotten...except for one ironic thing.

The show I now resided in. I could remember the names of all the Mane Six, the Princesses, the background ponies and most importantly...every episode and the plot that came with it.

As for my name...

I waited in that cell for what felt like days, hiding myself as best I could whilst I merely rested against the furthest corner.

I was only a kid...and I was terrified, despite knowing where I had to be.

Believe it or not I never actually wanted to go to Equestria. I mean come on I was still a kid with a decent amount of friends and some good grades at school.

The door to the dungeon opened after what must have been a good hour or two. And who else could have stepped inside but...

Twilight Sparkle?

Except...she was little. She was just a little filly that couldn't have been any older than she was during her exam.

This was not going the same way as I thought it would have.

Twilight walked as close as she could get to the bars and peered inside at me. I saw all of this through my fingers. Said fingers being on my face in order to give me some sort of security.

"Oooh what are you?" She asked excitedly. "I've never seen anything like you in my books before."

I didn't say anything back to her. I was simply too shocked...too frightened and wary of what was going to happen to me. Despite not being able to remember their faces or names...at that moment all I wanted was my Mom and Dad.

Say whatever you like. Yeah I know I was fourteen...but I was so scared and alone in a world that shouldn't have existed.

After a few minutes of non stop talking/questioning from the purple filly, she was eventually interrupted by a rather sweet sounding voice.

"Twilight there you are! I've been looking all over for you."

I looked behind the small filly to see none other than Princess Cadance. She looked exactly as she did in the show. Her coat was a bright pink and her mane and tail consisted of three different colours.

Purple, pink and golden highlights, all tied up in an ironic ponytail.

But she was much younger than she was in the show. In fact I could of sworn that at that moment she looked about the same age as she did in Twilights flashbacks, where she was foalsitting her.

She instantly noticed me huddled in the corner and walked over to the bars to join Twilight in her staring.

"Oh my...what in the world are you?" She asked rhetorically.

I didn't say anything to her either. It wasn't that she frightened me or anything like that...I was just afraid I'd say something that would give my knowledge of this place away. I mean if someone knew about the future in my world then he or she would be arrested and interrogated until the day they died.

I was pulled away from my thoughts by a rather large form coming up from behind the pair.

"That is the question, is it not Cadance?"

Both Cadance and Twilight jumped in surprise and turned around to see Princess Celestia smiling down at them. Said Princess looked at me with the same kind smile and used her magic to unlock the bars, before she walked inside and stopped a short distance in front of me.

Her horn glowed yet again for a few seconds and I was instantly surrounded by a golden aura...only for it to instantly fade away. She tilted her head in slight confusion at this and lit up her horn again, only for the exact same thing to happen.

"How interesting..." She muttered quietly, so quietly in fact that only I managed to hear her. Cadance and Twilight merely sat at the entrance and watched.

I still hadn't removed my hands from my face...I was even more afraid and needed some sort of comfort, no matter how mediocre.

Celestia suddenly moved forward and touched my leg with her hoof, surprising me and making me jump as a result. To my utter surprise however, it was Celestia herself who was most affected. Her ethereal mane instantly stopped blowing in the nonexistent breeze and rapidly turned a light pink colour.

She then removed her hoof from me and like...well magic, her mane instantly regained its flow and colour.

"I thought so...you're completely immune to magic." She told me, a touch of nervousness to her voice. "But I could feel my magic almost work...perhaps..."

"Princess what's wrong with your magic?" Twilight asked curiously, her eyes sparkling at the anticipation of new knowledge.

Cadance was merely looking at me strangely.

Celestia looked at her student and smiled reflexively at her, something that seemed to have an instant calming effect on the Unicorn.

"I believe that this creature is completely immune to any magic." She explained calmly.

"B-But there's never been a creature completely immune to magic." Twilight stammered nervously, showing her intelligence despite her young age. "Even Dragons aren't completely immune."

"Indeed Twilight...which would mean that this creature is not of this world." Celestia mused, half to herself and half to her student.

"Really Aunty?" Cadance asked, apparently deciding to speak up now that she had stopped staring at me. "Is it an alien then?" She continued excitedly.

As they spoke to each other, my mind was racing to find some sort of solution to my problem. A part of me considered asking Celestia if she could send me home...but by the sound of it this type of thing had never happened before, so what would she know in terms of sending me back. No, if she learned that I could speak then she might not ever let me go...especially if her magic was completely useless against me.

The other part of me was highly considering making a run for it. Because if I was immune to magic then Celestia had no way of stopping me, and despite her guards being stronger than me I doubted they were as fast.

I could still remember my place on my team...whoever they were.

And it was the wing...which according to what little I could recall meant I was quite possibly very quick and agile.

I didn't need to speak, just run.

I suddenly became aware of Celestia looking down at me again and looked back at her, my hands still on my face protectively. The Princess then did something quite...peculiar. She laid down on her stomach in front of me and merely looked at what little she could see of my face.

"Can you understand me?" She asked softly.

I blinked at the question instinctively and shuffled almost unnoticeably. Celestia smiled at this and continued to look right at me.

"Ahh so you can then." She continued calmly. "I am Princess Celestia and ruler of Equestria, which is the world you now reside in...could you perchance let me look at you please?"

I honestly didn't know what to do. I kept looking at the open door and tensing my legs as I considered making a break for it. Celestia apparently noticed this as she put her forehoof on my leg, distracting me and causing her mane to lose its magical properties.

"Please, I promise you that I mean no harm." She pleaded gently.

Despite a rather large part of me screaming at me not too, I took my hands off my face and allowed everypony to look at it properly.

Celestia smiled at this and put a hoof on my cheek, turning my face in different angles so as to get a better look at me.

"You're quite young aren't you?" She mused absentmindedly. "If I were to guess then I'd say about the same age as Cadance, perhaps older...perhaps younger."

As though the magic word was somehow spoken, Cadance trotted over to me and peered at me curiously, smiling the whole time. Twilight walked behind her and clung to her left hindleg as she also looked at me inquisitively.

Celestia then stopped moving my head and gave me a motherly smile...it gave me the weirdest sense of da-ja-vu that I have ever recalled.

"Can you speak?" She asked me softly, smiling at me still and almost electing a small smile of my own in return.

I considered the consequences of speaking...but to be honest she already knew that I was intelligent, so I was doomed either way really.

"Yes." I replied nervously, my voice breaking halfway through the word.

The Princess let loose a rather large smile as I spoke, apparently quite happy that she was making progress...or just happy that her scientific find of the millennia was capable of speech.

I was that frightened at the time that this possibility had already run through my mind.

"Your voice is breaking." Cadance giggled musically, making me go red and glare at her irritably.

She didn't seem to care.

"Yeah it happens." I muttered quietly. To be honest I was surprised that I remembered what my voice breaking actually meant.

"Well that means you're going through puberty then, which would make you about...thirteen or perhaps fourteen." Celestia explained smoothly, although she did chuckle a little herself.

"I'd say fourteen Aunty." Cadance added helpfully. "Some colts at school are thirteen and none of their voices are like his yet."

"The same age as you then." Celestia declared cheerfully, before looking back at me and adding, "Unless you'd care to tell us your age yourself?"

"I don't know." I replied nervously.

Celestia frowned at me curiously and took her hoof off of my leg, something that I didn't realize until she did so and her mane returned back to normal.

"What do you mean?" She asked questioningly.

"I don't remember my age...or much else to be honest." I informed her sheepishly.

Celestia blinked in surprise at this, as did Cadance who looked at me with a rather sad expression.

"So you don't remember anything?" She asked morosely.

I scrunched up my face in concentration and tried to recall all that I could...but it wasn't much.

"I remember my...first name, my school...I play rugby as well and...not much else apart from blurs."

I was lying of course...I still remembered the show and what was going to happen to Cadance when she eventually married Shining Armor. As well as Luna returning, Twilight eventually becoming a Princess and everything else.

"What's rugby?" Cadance asked curiously, snapping me out of my thoughts and causing me to notice Celestia and Twilight looking at me expectantly.

"It's a type of sport which involves two teams, a really weirdly shaped ball that we pass around and...actually that's all I remember."

Cadance frowned at me worriedly for all of about five seconds before she smiled and began to bounce on the spot.

"Well then I suppose you'll just have to make new memories!" She exclaimed enthusiastically.

Celestia smiled at her enthusiasm and nodded in agreement.

"Indeed, perhaps time spent doing other activities will help you remember your forgotten past." She pondered outloud, before shaking her head and standing up quickly. "On another note we've been talking in this dungeon for a while now so let us depart to a more comfortable environment."

She looked down at me and offered her hoof out for me to grasp. I hesitated and bit my lip nervously...and then I was literally pulled awkwardly onto my knees by Cadance.

"Whoa!" I proclaimed loudly. I certainly didn't expect that to happen.

I remember frowning unhappily at the young Alicorn, but she was merely smiling cheerfully whilst she motioned for me to stand.

"Come on stand up, or do you prefer the dirt?" She asked teasingly.

I just rolled my eyes but smiled at her and stood up to my full height, which as I mentioned earlier wasn't very tall back on Earth...but here I was only an inch smaller than Celestia and could easily look at her face without straining my neck.

Said Princess was running her eyes over my body almost questioningly before she finally focused on my face and smiled comfortingly.

"It is not often that I meet an individual who can talk to me at eye level." She told me, a small smirk on her muzzle. "Although if you are only fourteen then I would imagine that you have yet to reach your full height."

Celestia just smiled and shook her head, before walking out of the cell with Cadance and Twilight in tow. Cadance looked back at me and gave an exaggerated groan. Then before I had a chance to so much as blink she had grabbed my hands and was pulling me with her.

She was still pulling me when we entered a large bedroom ten minutes or so later.

"Well then, I suppose we should arrange where you are staying." Celestia said randomly.

"Staying?" I replied questioningly. I didn't want to stay, I wanted to go home...

"Is there no way for me to just...go home?" I asked desperately.

Celestia's calm smile dissolved into a rather sombre frown as she shook her head.

"I don't even know how you arrived my young creature...and if you're really from another world then I don't believe there is a spell in all of Equestria that can help you go home."

And like that...my hopes were crushed.

I felt tears creeping their way onto the corner of my eyes whilst my hands started to shake. But before I could completely break down, I found myself being pushed down onto the bed in a sitting position and embraced by the bright pink Alicorn.

"Wh-what are you doing?" I asked her questioningly.

Cadance looked at me bemusedly albeit with a sad smile...and then she said one thing I'll never forget.

"Making you smile again."

And to my disbelief...she was right. Despite the soul crushing fact that I could never go back home...to my family, my friends and whatever else I had yet to remember...her display of affection however unwanted it may have been...made me smile.

"Alexander." I muttered thankfully.

"Pardon?" Cadance asked, raising an eyebrow curiously.

"Alexander...my name is Alexander, or Alex to my friends."

"I think..." I thought unsurely.

Cadance smiled at me and replied in kind.

"I'm Princess Mi Amore Cadenza...or just Cadance just my friends."

Her magenta coloured eyes met my own and twinkled playfully...something that made me forget about my sadness for a moment.

"It's nice to meet you then...Cadance." I quipped bemusedly, holding my hand out for her to shake.

"Likewise...Alex." She replied, shaking my hand and smiling humorously.

And that was how we met...

It took a few weeks but Celestia pulled some strings within her court and I was eventually given the all clear to go out and meet the locals without the fear of inciting a massive panic. Cadance and Twilight had been keeping me company at the time, minus whenever Cadance had school and Twilight had a lesson with her teacher.

Cadance...was absolutely hilarious. I still don't remember having met anyone with her attitude. She was witty, kind and not afraid to speak her mind. But she was also really good with Twilight. She knew how to make her smile and knew how to wipe away the tears and cheer her up.

Not to mention they had a very familiar and adorable dance.

She was also very supportive during my time of distress. Despite having been told of its impossibility...I still ached to go home.

I missed my parents terribly and the dreams I had of them only served to increase my depression.

But Cadance helped me. And when I was allowed to leave the palace and venture around Canterlot she stuck by me and showed me the more exciting things in the otherwise boring city of nobles. She was also seriously competitive. We visited a really retro arcade where she kicked my ass at nearly every game there...minus Pac-Mare.

I still don't think that anypony has beaten my high score yet.

We also visited a really nice ice-cream parlour that gave both of us a massive scoop of the dairy goodness. Cadance had rum and raison whilst I had hazelnut...it tasted like chocolate spread.

And when I eventually had to return to the castle, where to my surprise she lived as well, she promised to find a way to basically hang out more often.

"It'd be nice if we could see each other more." She said wistfully.

And to my utter surprise...she did find a way on exactly the next day.

She came into my room and more or less yanked me out of my bed with nothing more than my boxers on and took me into the throne room. I think it took a good hour for Celestia to stop laughing.

But once she did, she explained to me that she could enroll me in the same school as Cadance. I would have to take extra lessons in order to bring me up to speed on stuff that most foals learned in what was honestly called Pre-school. But simple stuff like Equis which was basically English, and Mathamatics would be available for me to learn...if I wanted too.

I wanted too.

And so began a life of school, friends, bullies and homework...so much homework. Celestia had done a public announcement in which she more or less said that she was my guardian and to hurt me was to hurt her.

Not that she actually needed to say anything. Cadance was a huge help for me during my first few months, acting as what I think every best friend would act like. She steered me away from the bad side, where all the whorses and jocks stood, rutted and smoked.

Yeah I was shocked too...I would have thought that smoking would be nonexistent here but there you go.

Anyway it wasn't just them that I had to worry about. There were a few times where a rather arrogant Unicorn would try to pick a fight with me...only to realize that his magic had no effect whatsoever and run with his tail between his legs...literally. But at other times it was an Earth pony or Pegasus that felt like they had something to prove.

And apparently I had a temper, as some of the idiotic ponies came to realize. But as I got older my temper lessened and with Cadance's help I learned to keep my cool.

As for Cadance herself...

Well to my absolute surprise she was treated quite badly by some ponies. I would have thought her to be one of the popular ones but she was more akin to nerdy girl then I thought. Not that it bothered me, she was my best friend and always had my back. Not to mention the amount of times where she warded away the "I want to fight the Human" ponies.

And with nothing more than her quick and quite sharp tongue.

Now I bet you're wondering where Shining Armor comes into this. Well...he's one of my friends too. Cadance introduced us on my first day here and to my surprise he was actually a lot more pleasant to me than I thought him to be. Unlike Cadance however he tended to help me beat the shit out of anypony who got way too much in my face.

We were good friends. Not as close as Cadance and I but still...I wouldn't trade his friendship for any other. Cadance and he got on quite well too. She teased him endlessly with her witty humour, whilst he took it all in his stride and rebuffed her with his own jokes. It wasn't hard to see why they would start to fancy each other.

School was brilliant...so much more than any fragmented memory I recovered from home.

I learned quite a bit too...much more than I would ever learn by simply watching the show.

Like I said before, eventually the days began to meld into each other and the next thing I knew I was seventeen and in my last day of school. Yeah apparently everypony finishes school at the age of seventeen here. Which would make the Mane Six twentyish in season three...huh how about that.

Twilight apparently still took school lessons with Celestia, the latter being very capable of teaching her more than just magic.

Anyway it was the last day, which was fantastic news right?

Well...there was a slight problem. One that I had tried my absolute hardest to ignore, especially over the past few months where it had become more apparent.

Princess Cadance...liked me.

And when I say liked, I mean she liked me and not Shining Armor.

It was small and innocent at first. Like the time when I had just gotten out of a fight with a rather pompous Unicorn. He had managed to cut my cheek shallowly with his horn...which was quickly rectified by my fist nearly breaking the thing in two. Anyway after Cadance had pulled me off him, took me into an empty classroom and scolded me to near death, she slowly began to clean the cut.

She was really gentle too, wiping it ever so tenderly with a damp cloth before she put a small plaster over it and pecked it quickly with her lips.

"It'll heal better." She explained, a small but noticeable blush on her cheeks.

And then there was the other time when we were just laying under the shade of an oak tree, talking about whatever we could think of to pass the time. I was so engrossed in our conversation that I didn't really notice how close she was lying next to me. It was only when she rested her head on my shoulder that I realized, but even then I didn't think anything of it. The ponies here were quite affectionate at times and so getting nuzzled by Cadance was nothing new to me. But looking back at it now I really feel like a fool for never really paying attention to her soft moans of happiness as I absentmindedly stroked her back...or the playful twinkle in her magenta eyes as she stared at me innocently.

I honestly just thought that she was being plain old friendly Cadance.

But then the small things become more noticeable.

There were a couple of days where Cadance had come down with some sort of magical cold called...well, Magicold. A Magicold is basically the same as a really bad cold, except instead of snot you sneeze and dribble out magical sparks that can have various effects on other ponies. But seeing as magic had no effect on me, Celestia and most of the Doctors asked if I could watch over the sick mare and help her when she needed it.

I was sixteen at the time, as was she. My birthday was unknown and so Celestia decided to mark my arrival as the day I was born. Cadance's birthday was only a couple of months after my own, so we were more or less always the same age.

Anyway I got a few days off of school as a result whilst still being able to talk to Cadance, so I saw no reason not to. And besides she was my best friend...and friends take care of each other. Anyway I spent the next few days taking care of the sick mare. Her Magicold was making it almost impossible for her to do the simplest tasks like making herself something to eat or focus on her homework.

Washing herself was also something that she found difficult...and so I helped her with it, albeit blushing like a tomato the whole time. But Cadance found it relaxing and with her aching joints my touch must have felt like a godsend.

I did leave the more intimate parts of her body alone however. No amount of persuading would have convinced me to wash that.

And like I said before...the small things escalated and become quite noticeable.

It was just after I had helped her get into bed. I was tucking her in when she put a hoof on my hand and just stared at me intently.

"I...I need to thank you for looking after me." She said sweetly, sniffing back whatever sparks were dying to come out.

"It's been no trouble Cadance, honestly." I replied truthfully.

The mare just smiled and blushed faintly as she bit her lip, staring up at me still with her kind eyes.

"Could you...could you stay with me tonight?" She asked nervously.

I blinked at this odd request but smiled and nodded.

"Um...okay, I'll take the couch."

I was about to make my way over to said couch but was stopped by Cadance gripping my right hand with both hooves.

"I didn't mean the couch Alex." She admitted shyly, her blush darkening as I finally realized what she meant.

"Oh..." I mouthed quietly.

"Y-You don't have too." She exclaimed quickly.

I didn't even get a chance to say anything back.

"It was a silly thought Alex." She ranted rapidly.

"Cadance."

"It really doesn't matter anyway so don't worry about it." She continued, almost falling over her words at the speed in which she said them.

"Cadance!"

"It must be the Magicold, it's making me say things I probably shouldn't and-"

"CADANCE!"

The teenage Alicorn stopped her ranting and merely looked up at me nervously, her eyes wide and doe-like whilst her cheeks were tinged between pink and red.

"Should I keep my top on or off?" I asked cheekily, prompting an even greater tinge of red from the mare.

"Off is fine." She replied sheepishly, a small smile worming its way onto her muzzle.

I did as she asked and took my t-shirt off. I wasn't wearing any footwear and so I had no need to worry about that. Anyway I climbed into her bed and laid down a short distance from her, unsure whether or not to get any closer. Cadance it seemed was not as unsure. She wiggled her way over to me and rested her head on my chest, sniffing back a few magic sparks whilst the others landed on me and fizzed out of existence.

It kinda tickled actually.

"You don't mind me doing this do you?" She asked nervously, lifting her head from my chest with an concerned look in her eyes. "I mean I just get kind of cold sometimes. And with this Magicold it's a bit hard to get warm but I can move away if it's making you uncomfortable and-"

I shushed her by placing my finger on her lips, surprising the mare into incoherent mumbles as she tried to continue talking.

"If you're cold then get close, we can share our body heat." I advised uncertainly.

Cadance blinked in surprise at this and ducked her head in an attempt to hide her smile.

"O-Okay." She stuttered cutely.

The Alicorn snuggled her head back onto my chest and sighed happily, still sniffling somewhat from what I think was the Magicold. I put my arm around her and stroked her back soothingly in an attempt to ease out any of the aches that were bothering her. This resulted in a half asleep "Mhmm thanks Alex..." before she began to snore very quietly.

Believe it or not she got better the next day.

And if I was still in any way uncertain of her affections towards me, then what happened on what was literally called Pony Prom Night changed that forever.

Said prom being a dance that celebrated our last day as students.

Celestia had taken me into her chambers where she instantly began to fuss over my suit and hair.

I haven't really explained much about our relationship have I?

Well despite being my guardian, Celestia tended to act more like my Mother than anything else. There were dark days in my first few months where I would have truly terrible nightmares. So terrible in fact that I would wake up screaming and crying uncontrollably. You have to understand that even though I was fourteen I was still just a kid lost in a world without anything familiar, let alone my parents.

But Celestia would always hear my cries. No matter the time she would come into my room, get into my bed and cuddle with me until I fell asleep with her brushing my hair softly. There was one night not a year later when I had woken up screaming for my Mother, the horrible picture from that dark dream still staining my vision. Celestia came into my chambers and rushed over to me, pulling me into her embrace and shushing me soothingly.

I was nearly fifteen and had been crying out for my Mother...except I hadn't.

Celestia had realized this too...for when I called out for my Mother the first thing I thought of was Celestia, not my nameless and faceless Mother back on Earth.

"Mom..." I whimpered pitifully.

"Shhh it's okay, I'm here." She soothed gently.

Needless to say, Celestia and I have a really close bond. And even though she's never officially adopted me, we both know how we see the other.

She's even called me her little colt numerous times, despite me having grown to a good five foot eleven, as well as being seventeen.

Anyway Celestia was pretty much making sure I looked decent enough for the prom. I was wearing a black suit, white shirt, black trousers and some rather shiny shoes. I had no idea where Celestia had managed to get the measurements and materials from, but the Princess was actually very sneaky when she wanted to be and had a habit of sometimes spoiling me.

Said Princess also liked to ask me the most embarrassing questions sometimes.

Which I swear she does deliberately.

"Okay are you sure you've got everything?" She asked me.

"Yeah I'm positive." I sighed overdramatically, prompting a small smirk from the Princess.

"What about protection?" She teased mercilessly.

"I'm Human." I deadpanned.

"And if what I've heard is anything to go by then they could have a disease." She replied dryly.

"I'm not interested in one night stands Celestia, you know that."

Celestia smiled happily at this before proceeding to give me a warm hug.

"And glad I am to hear it." She admitted cheerfully. "I don't really want my little colt bringing home a foal of his own, especially not from some random mare."

"If it ever happened it wouldn't be from some random mare." I muttered to myself.

"Just my Niece then?" Celestia quipped amusedly, laughing when I pushed her away and spluttered for some form of speech.

"Cadance? I don't even, I mean I think-"

"Calm down Alexander, I was only teasing." She cut me off humorously.

I scowled at my Mother figure and proceeded to make sure my bowtie was on properly.

"Who knew bowties were so cool."

After making doubly sure that I looked at least a bit decent, I made my way towards the door but was stopped by Celestia's hoof. I looked at her and cocked an eyebrow confusedly at her stern yet concerned expression.

"Are you sure you're okay, you've been acting a little...strange recently." She asked worriedly.

I suppose at the time I had...because after discovering Cadance's possible feelings for me I had pretty much realized something truly depressing.

I could never allow myself to return them.

You see I knew what was going to eventually happen in Cadance's future. She would at some point start a relationship with Shining Armor, he would eventually propose and they would get married...after sorting out the Changelings. But if I returned Cadance's feelings then none of that would ever happen. I would completely mess up the timeline and destroy a happiness that had every right to come true.

They were good friends already...all it would take was a little push in the right direction and I could probably hook them up with each other. I could probably even do it at the prom...so why wouldn't I?

Because to my absolute disbelief...I truly felt something for her.

Maybe even love...

She had been there for me right at the start. She became my friend and showed me the fun side to Canterlot. She pleaded for Celestia to pull some strings and enroll me in the same school she went too...all because she really wanted to hang out with me. We have both had our disagreements make no mistake there. But we always apologized and made up, usually with a big tub of ice cream between the two of us and a brand new copy of Daring Doo.

Shining Armor and I tended to hang out at the arcade and challenge other ponies to whatever game they had working. And if we weren't doing that then we would be hoof wrestling or shooting the breeze about the hottest mares in the school...which was something that took a year or so for me to get used to. All in all we were best buddies and had no secrets.

And I had no right to strip from him a future I know he had coming.

Because it certainly wasn't a secret that he liked Cadance. And despite him patting me on the back at the knowledge of Cadance possibly liking me instead of him...I knew he still fancied her. And the fact that he wasn't jealous about it only served to increase my guilt.

He truly was and still is a really decent guy.

"It's nothing Celestia, I'm fine." I lied convincingly.

The Princess just stared at me with a scrutinising glare, as if she was trying to figure out whether or not I was telling the truth. She thankfully moved her hoof out of the way a few moments later, which was good seeing as I was almost starting to sweat.

"You know you can tell me anything right?" She said softly.

"I know Celestia, but I'm honestly okay." I replied, grinning somewhat as she narrowed her eyes knowingly.

She thankfully didn't pursue the topic any further however, choosing instead to kiss my cheek and hope that I had a good time.

The prom was being held in my school obviously. Said school was about a five minute walk from the palace, but with Celestia being the doting Princess she was I ended up being taken there by a carriage.

I arrived at my school not a minute later, and after thanking the guards for taking me I quickly made my way inside. The prom was taking place in the assembly hall which was filled with my fellow students. All of them were wearing some form of clothing, ranging from a simple bowtie to a full blown suit that to this day I have no idea how they got on.

I spotted Shining drinking some punch a short distance away and waved him over. The Unicorn made his way over and grinned at me cheerfully as he eyed my clothing.

"Nice suit." He complimented simply.

"Thanks, you don't look too bad yourself." I replied bemusedly. His attire consisted of a bowtie and the pony version of a black suit. It was simple yet enough for him to gain some looks from random mares.

"I didn't expect so many ponies to actually come." He admitted, looking around at the massive amount of ponies flooding the room.

"Me neither." I agreed, looking around the room myself. "Hey do you know where Cadance is? I haven't seen her since yesterday morning."

"Nope, I haven't seen her for while either...maybe she's too nervous to show up or something."

I cocked an eyebrow at Shining's reply, causing him to grin sheepishly and drink some more from his cup.

Cadance...nervous? If I had ever learned anything about that mare, it was that she had nerves of steel. She stood up to all the bullies and snobby nobles who looked down at her, a Princess, for hanging around with what I learned they called Celestia's pet.

Namely me.

"Hey you got a date?" Shining asked randomly, interrupting my thoughts.

"Uh no, I didn't know who to ask." I reply unconvincingly, prompting Shining to raise an eyebrow.

"Are you serious?" He asked incredulously. "Even a blind Stallion could see how much Cadance wanted you to ask her."

I grimaced guiltily at this...because I knew he was right. Before Cadance had disappeared the previous morning, she had joined me for breakfast and had spent about twenty minutes subtly hinting about her not having a date for prom.

"So...I haven't got a date, what about you?" She asked innocently.

"Uhh no, no I haven't." I replied sheepishly.

"Oh...well that's unfortunate." She continued, tracing her hoof over the table in small circles and looking over at me with doe-like eyes.

"Yup." I agreed, using whatever meagre acting skill I possessed to appear oblivious.

This had continued for about another ten minutes until Cadance had sighed sadly and left the table with a half assed "See you later".

"She'll understand one day..."

This was something I had to remind myself often...because I feared so greatly that I would just give in and tell her how I feel. It's so strange seeing as she is the literal Princess of love, but with my magic nullifying abilities I suppose she never managed to sense just how much I cared for her.

"What about you?" I asked quickly, simultaneously moving the heat off of me.

Shining blinked but rapidly gained a small smirk as he looked past me and nodded. I turned around to see a white coloured Pegasus with a long blond mane trotting over to us happily. She was wearing a rather pretty pink dress that covered up her Cutie Mark, so unfortunately I was unable to specify her special talent.

The mare reached Shining and to my utmost surprise kissed him briefly before pulling him onto the dance floor. Shining gave me an apologetic smile at his abandonment of me, but was quickly sidetracked by the mare nibbling his neck playfully.

Hmm I distinctly remember thinking three words. Three simple yet powerful words...

"What the fuck..."

It didn't add up. Shining was supposed to date and eventually marry Cadance, not whoever this random mare was.

Had I already messed up the timeline by simply being there? Or was this mare just another of his conquests?

I was drawn out from my thoughts by the sound of numerous ponies gasping and whispering to each other suddenly. I noticed that they were all looking at the entrance and so I followed suit and looked in the same direction.

I distinctly remember my mouth opening slightly and yet despite my meagre efforts I was unable to rectify that problem. For you see all the whispering and gasps were the result of one mare...and who else could it have been but her...

She was wearing a rather saucy black dress that parted slightly by her hind legs, revealing her Cutie Mark and brief snippets of her flank to any lucky Stallion that happened to catch a glimpse. Her mane had been set free from what I had believed to be her eternal ponytail. Said ponytail was gone, having been removed and thus allowing her mane to hang loose over her left eye. Her right eye wasn't even looking at any of the gossiping ponies, half of which were in shock from the fact that the nerdy teenage Alicorn was actually...rather hot. But like I said, she wasn't even paying them a second glance. No...Cadance was walking with a purpose right towards me, her gaze focused solely on myself while her muzzle held a small yet confident smirk.

Princess Mi Amore Cadenza looked drop dead gorgeous and by God did she know it.

She swayed her way over and stopped not a few inches in front of me, running her gaze over my attire. I wasn't particularly the strongest guy out there, but with all the fights and running around Shining and I got into I was fairly fit. Not that it stopped me from becoming slightly anxious about my appearance for a few seconds.

But whatever, we all have our moments.

"Hey..." She said simply, her gaze now focused on my face.

My mouth was still partially open, something that Cadance was smirking at ever so slightly.

"Uhh, hey..." Was literally all I could respond with. You see ever since I met Cadance she had always had her mane tied up in a ponytail. And she certainly never put on some form of eyeshadow.

I figured out right there and then why she had it down all the time in every episode that featured her in it.

"You look quite handsome." She admitted, grinning up at me cheekily.

"You don't look to bad yourself." I quipped humorously, having finally regained control of my voice, jaw and pretty much every other part of my body.

Cadance cocked an eyebrow at my reply but kept her bemused grin and pulled a cup of punch over to herself magically, sipping on it absentmindedly.

"Shining's having a good time with Scripture isn't he?" She said conversationally.

I looked over at my friend and the mare he was dancing with. Said mare was smiling at him with the utmost happiness whilst he began to nuzzle her neck affectionately.

"Ten bits say's he ruts her silly later." I replied amusedly.

"Fifteen." She disagreed, her familiar competitive smirk gracing her muzzle.

"Done."

Yeah I may have forgotten to mention this. But Shining Armor wasn't exactly the lovable gentlecolt he was portrayed as in the show. He was actually a well known badcolt that loved to have one night stands. I always imagined that it was Cadance's love for him that pulled him from his emotionless rutting...but from the looks of it I had already screwed that up.

So was there really any harm in a bit more damage to the timeline?

"Hey Cadance." I said randomly, catching her attention as she looked back at me.

"Mhmm?" She replied questioningly.

I took a deep breath and walked closer to her, took her cup out of her magical grasp, put it down and looked right at her with the utmost seriousness.

She actually looked a bit nervous.

"Wanna dance?" I asked cheekily, breaking the nervous tension in the air.

The young Alicorn's expression broke into an extremely wide and joyful smile...something that I couldn't help but return in kind.

"I'd love too." She replied shyly.

I grinned and took her by her right hoof, leading her onto the dance floor where as if on cue a really slow and romantic song had started to play. All around me, every couple were holding onto each other, either by their necks or their hooves.

Either way it was really lovely to look at.

However even though she had grown by quite a bit, Cadance only just came up to my chest and if you add her horn then my bottom lip. So to my dismay a part of me was stumped on how to dance with her properly.

But the Alicorn was always far cleverer then myself. She merely smiled up at me and carefully stood up on her hind legs, placing her front hooves around my shoulders to both balance herself and allow us a position familiar to the other ponies dancing. I was slightly unsure on where to place my hands, but settled for the middle of her back and just a touch above her right Cutie Mark.

Cadance blushed a little at this but hummed happily none the less.

And so we started to dance, something that I had no idea how to do and yet somehow managed to pull it off. I suppose my having feet and her having hooves helped a lot here.

"This is really nice." Cadance muttered happily, gazing at me with ease now that she was more or less my height. Her magenta eyes seemed to shine with joyful pleasure, as if this was what she had wanted for so long.

"It's perfect." I admitted quietly.

Cadance's ears folded back as I said this, her blush deepening as she sighed contently and placed her head on my chest.

To my surprise the song being played was instantly followed up by another slow and romantic one. It was almost as though somepony didn't want us to stop dancing...but I wasn't complaining. I just held the Alicorn tightly, something that she responded to in kind as her hooves gripped my neck just a little more.

"Alexander?"

I blinked at her voice and looked down at her as she pulled her head back from my chest, gazing up at me with such...emotion in her eyes. I had seen this before but only in brief snippets...and never this powerful.

And as if on cue...

As the song came to a slow end and the other ponies around me gazed into each other's eyes, their muzzles nearing the other...

Cadance moved her own small muzzle forward, closing the gap between my lips and her own...

Only for me to turn away, causing her lips to brush against my cheek instead.

Cadance seemed almost comically surprised by this for a moment...until her expression became hurt and saddened.

"Why?"

Such a simple question, yet it tore at my courage to answer it.

"Because we weren't ever meant to be..."

She blinked at this in mild shock. Perhaps it was the bitterness in my tone, or how tightly my eyes were closed in their refusal to shed any tears...but the young Alicorn picked up on what I had said and knew that it wasn't a simple denial.

She knew I had a reason for it...and I damn near cursed her for being so clever.

"Who told you that?" She asked questioningly. My eyes were still closed and I couldn't see her expression, but I could almost feel her eyes searching my face for answers.

"No one did." I confessed bleakly.

And it wasn't a lie either. Nopony had told me that I wasn't destined to be the target of Cadance's love...but I had seen how happy she and Shining looked in the future. And although I had toyed with the idea of ruining this for them...I simply just wasn't that selfish.

Perhaps I never had been or perhaps Celestia's benevolent influence had affected my personality...I still don't know...

"Alex...look at me."

Her tone was pleading, begging almost...and I complied.

I couldn't help but comply.

I opened my eyes to see her own mere inches away, shining with such raw passion that I was rendered silent.

"Please..." She pleaded quietly, her lips centimetres from my own...her warm breath caressing them ever so gently.

Everypony else around us was oblivious to us, yet another slow song influencing the ponies into a blissful dance.

I put my right hand onto her cheek, softly brushing my thumb against her silky fur. Her eyes switched from their passionate gaze, becoming tender and loving at my touch.

"Cadance I've never wanted you as badly as I do right now." I whispered, my voice sounding so tortured and strained as I confessed the feelings that I could never act on. "But no matter what I've seen and no matter what I've done and influenced to the future...I can't ever have you, no matter how much it hurts me inside."

I had no idea where this confession of hurt and self inflicted loneliness was coming from. It was as though every emotion and secret that came with it were bursting from within me simultaneously.

Cadance's eyes were blurry with unshed tears, her confusion and longing unbelievably apparent as I confessed how I felt.

"The future? What are you talking about Alex? I don't understand..."

Ohhh...how I wanted to just kiss her, to take away the hurt in her voice and consume it with my feelings...no.

My love for her...because that's what I felt and felt in abundance.

"I'm so sorry..."

And that was all I could say, my hands leaving her face and body despite her pitiful attempts to keep hold of me.

"No please wait, I don't understand!"She whimpered tearfully, said tears falling from her gorgeous eyes and staining her fur with liquid eyeshadow.

I couldn't look at her anymore. If I did then I feared that I would give in and allow her to hold me once more, to place her lips on mine as I returned her passion with my own. And despite numerous ponies having finally become aware of Cadance's despair I still ran as fast as I could out of there. And I didn't stop there either. I continued running the short distance back to the palace...my home.

I ran through the double doors and the maze of corridors, not even paying the slightest bit of attention as I practically flew past Celestia and down the final path to my door.

"Alex? Alex what's wrong?!" I heard her ask, the familiar sound of her hooves clopping on the marble floor signalling just how close she was. I looked at her as she stopped a short distance away, her expression deeply concerned as she took in my distressed appearance.

I hadn't even noticed the tears until then.

"Sweetie you're crying, what's the matter?" She continued, concern laced within her voice.

What was the matter?

I had just sacrificed my love for Cadance in order to keep the timeline right. And despite the damage that I was sure I had already done...I was still certain that Shining and Cadance could happen...would happen, as long as I stayed away and stopped interfering.

So how did I answer Celestia's question?

"Nothing's the matter...just my own happiness."

Without waiting for her to reply I entered my room and shut the door behind me. I then walked into the centre of the room and for a few moments merely swayed on the spot, looking down at the floor without really seeing anything.

And then I took of my suit and bowtie, chucking them over and onto a chair near my bed. My shoes came off next, followed by my socks and an unbuttoning of my shirt.

After all was said and done I more or less collapsed onto my bed and merely laid back against my pillow, staring up at the ceiling as I had done the floor.

I refused to think about Cadance...yet my mind betrayed me with flashes of her hurt face as I left her alone at the dance. Said flashes kept up for what felt like hours...at the least.

My brooding was interrupted by a series of knocks on my door...followed up by the sweetest of voices.

"Alex...can I come in?"

Author's Notes:

So do you want a Conclusion?

If so then SCREAM it in the comments XD

Anyway I hope you've enjoyed what you've read. I certainly didn't plan on writing so much, I can tell you that :D

Peace Everypony :D