Evan’s perspective,

Sunday, May 3rd, 2014...

I nearly burst out from under my blanket, heart pounding in my chest. I gasped rather loudly, sweat beading down my face and bare back. My chest continued to inflate and deflate at a rather quick pace. My vision darted around the dimly lit room, searching for… something.

My breathing started to rapidly decline as I realized nothing was happening. All my memories from the dream vanished and I couldn’t recall what had happened, but whatever it was… it must’ve been bad.

I laid flat onto my bed before releasing a long exhale. Lassie pounced up onto the side of my bed, her body weight weighing down my mattress on her side. I looked to her with a slight smirk. “You’re getting fat,” I joked.

She gave a frowny face before whining in retort. I simply rolled my eyes then rolled over. Within seconds I felt her paws tapping against my exposed side. Her paws began to push into my skin, each paw pushing at a different time.

I let out a groan and rolled onto my back. “What?” I murmured. She stepped up onto my gut and began pushing into my gut while panting heavily. I hadn’t noticed, but she had been growing lately. Rather than just a small pup, she was about adolescent size for a Rough Collie.

“You saying I’m fat?” I asked sleepily and she barked happily before hopping in circles on my stomach. “Mmm…” I groaned then rolled onto my side again. Instead of leaving me to be a fatty, she began to bark loudly while pawing at my sides again.

“Ugh… dog…” I moaned but still she persisted. As I rolled back over onto my back, she lept onto my chest and began to prance around. I groaned irritably as her nails began to dig into my chest.

“What do you want?” I asked. She lept off my body, onto the floor, and rushed over to her small domain. As quickly as she left, she returned with a bright green tennis ball in her mouth.

Her front legs perched on my bed side while her hindlegs supported her from the ground. She plopped the tennis ball onto my bed then began to pant heavily. “Oh… fetch?” I asked in a mumbling tone. She yipped and I simply grabbed the ball then tossed it to the other side of the room.

She watched in a rather joyless way as the ball bounced away but never actually moved from her position on the side of my bed. Soon after the ball stopped bouncing, she looked back to me and barked. “The point of fetch is that you retrieve the ball.”

She grabbed my blanket with her teeth then pulled it off my body. “AGH!” I gasped as a rather cool chill surrounded my body. Living in the basement wasn’t exactly the greatest plan if one wanted to stay warm.

Lassie quickly pulled my blanket across the floor, leaving it in the middle of the room, before retrieving her ball and coming back to my bed side. “I have a better idea, dog,” I began in an irritated voice. “How ‘bout you retrieve my blanket instead?” I asked, but she didn’t reply.

I pointed to my blanket, which still resided in the middle of the room. “My blanket, the one you took off.” Instead, she dropped the ball at my side, rushed over to the wall, hopped up onto some of the weight equipment, and finally pawed at the closed window.

While whimpering, she managed to slide open the window with her paws. A warm draft entered my room, sending shivers up my back as my body adjusted to the new temperature. Standing up, I paced over and looked out the window.

It was just reaching sunrise and looked to be a wonderful day. “What? You wanna go outside?” I asked and she barked excitedly. I let out a deep sigh before turning and pacing over to my heaping pile of clothes.

I would have to wash them soon…

A thought came to my mind. ‘I think there’s a laundromat in town… if I took my clothes before going with Lassie, then went back in an hour, put them into the dryer… they’d be done by the time Lassie gets bored.’

I nodded as I came up with my fool proof plan. In retrospect, I hadn’t played with Lassie lately, so I suppose some friendly play time with her wasn’t out of the question. Thinking back to yesterday, I suppose I could’ve played with her then too. I hadn’t done anything other than laze around the entire day.

Slipping on a semi-fresh white T-shirt, blue jeans, and grey socks, I grabbed my steel toed Terra work boots and nodded to Lassie. “One thing first,” I told her and she gave me a pouty face.

“Oh don’t act like that, all I need to do is stop at the laundry place in town and wash some clothes,” I informed her and she quickly yipped then grabbed her tennis ball. I quickly retrieved a large black garbage bag and stuffed it with my clothes before pitching it over my shoulder and making my way upstairs, Lassie in quick pursuit. She pranced with an almost regal trot, her tennis ball residing inside her mouth.

As I reached the entrance to the library, a young voice called my name. “Uhh, hey Evan. Whatcha doin’?” I turned to see who it was, only to find my small dragon friend.

“Hey Spike. Not much, going out with Lassie,” I replied. He twittled his thumbs in nervous thought.

“Uhm… can I come with you?” he asked and I merely shrugged.

“Knock yourself out,” I said and he smiled brightly before pacing to my side as we left. Goddess only knows why he was up at this time, but I wasn’t going to bother to ask him.

We left and moseyed through Ponyville until finally we stumbled across the laundromat. I let myself inside, making my way to the back washing machines before dumping all my laundry into one load.

Coining the machine with just a single bit, the machine started its cycle. As I turned to leave, a friendly face caught my attention. “Hey Ms. Cheerilee,” I called out to the dark pink mare, who turned and waved back.

“Well hello Evan! It’s been quite some time since I last saw you. How have you been?” she asked in an upbeat tone.

“Oh you know, the usual,” I replied as Spike, Lassie, and I made our way towards the exit. “You?” I asked.

“Oh, same old same old…” she trailed off and let a smirk cross her face. “Tell me, I haven’t seen you much anymore. I thought perhaps you’d end up being a regular at the school,” she replied but I just rolled my eyes.

“I was never much one for schooling. I might pop by every so often but uhh… meh. I did my time, you know?” I asked but she tilted her head in confusion. “Uh… ha-ha… I went to school for a long time back on my world, and I wasn’t really planning on spending all that much time in school afterwards,” I told her with a small snicker.

“Oh… well, I was really hoping to have you in again. I was planning on perhaps a class picnic, but I’d need somepony big and strong to help out. I was thinking… maybe you could help?” she asked with a flutter of her eyes.

I put on a very forced smile and nodded. “Of course… I’d, uhh… love to,” I replied in a very fluent lie.

“Oh wonderful. I’ll give you a ring when I have a better idea of when I’m going to do it. I’m sure the children will love it!” she announced happily. She lept to her hindlegs and planted a kiss on my cheek before settling back down to all fours. “Thank you Evan, you don’t know how much this means to me.”

I gave her a nod, along with a fake smile as I left. “I can only imagine. See yah around Cherry,” I gave my goodbye and left. As we reached a further distance, I groaned and set my right hand over my face.

“Oh my god… class picnics are so fucking retarded…” I groaned, forgetting I had a youngling with me.

“Why?” Spike asked and I let out a silent gasp.

“Oh… sorry, pardon my language… I forgot you were here,” I apologized for my rough swearing then snickered. “Class picnics are just so… childish and… just… ugh!” I then realized that Cheerilee’s class was comprised of all colts and fillies. “Well, then again… I guess they might enjoy it."

An image of the class, Cheerilee, and I in an open meadow with several picnic blankets and baskets… and rainbows and butterflies… and sunshine, entered my mind. I shuddered. “Oh my god… I can’t believe I agreed to this,” I muttered and Spike looked to me curiously.

“So… if you didn’t want to do it… why’d you agree to?” he asked and I just shrugged.

“I have difficulty saying no to good friends.” I let out a humored laugh.

“Oh… uhm… you don’t think… that what I do is stupid… do you?” he asked feverishly but I merely waved my hand.

“Nooo,” I assured the young dragon truthfully. “There’s a difference between being a kid and…” I trailed off and shuddered as even more goofy images entered my mind. “Being stupid,” I added to the end.

“Well… what’s so dumb about a class picnic?” Spike asked and I let out a sigh.

“I guess it’s just still hard for me to grasp the idea of it. See, I came from a school where they locked the kindergarten kids in a gigantic cage during recess, while the rest of the children were separated by grade, then forced to play either in the forest, or in a field.” I snickered before bursting into laughter as I remembered hearing about how one of the kindergarten children was tossed into ‘The Calming Room’.

“Oh my god…” I laughed loudly. Both Spike and Lassie stopped. “I remember when I was in… was I in grade one?” I thought to myself then nodded. “Yeah, I must’ve been… anyway, when I was in grade one, I remember this creepy door in my public school. It had no markings, and a tinted window that you couldn’t see into. I asked the teacher what it was for and then she was like, ‘That’s where we throw the bad children until they behave.’ But I thought she was just joking around,” I informed Spike. He tilted his head in curiosity as I continued my story.

“Then about… oh, maybe two years ago I guess… maybe three. Anyway, it turns out that, since teachers aren’t allowed to…like…” I began to make hand motions as I tried explaining it. “Since they can’t like… physically detain a student in any way deemed ‘physically harmful’, when a kid started to act up, they’d just toss them in this room and lock them in there,” I informed him. “The room was like… a four foot by four foot room..." I started to have difficulty talking as laughter chattered my voice. "With padded walls and floor. So they’d toss you into this room and lock you in... then they’d like… turn off the lights and leave you in there... until you calmed down.” I laughed loudly as it became too much to bear.

Spike had a look of petrified shock on his face. “That’s awful,” Spike gasped but I snickered.

“Oh… Oooh… oh that’s not the best part. So this one kid… he’s like four years old. He started to get angry about something so they just tossed him in this room, locked him in, and left him there and he pissed himself. In the end his mother found out, got into an uproar, then it turned into a social media issue.” Tears came to my eyes as I was laughing so hard.

“That’s awful,” Spike commented but I merely shrugged.

“Yeah… but you see, that was normal for me back on my world. Children getting locked in dungeon rooms, kindergarteners locked in giant cages during recess, all that good stuff. So now, I’m here… in a world where children… foals… colts and fillies… they have class picnics… rainbows and sunshine… for me it’s just goofy.” I looked to him and gave him a half assed smile.

“Oh man… that’s crazy. How did the schools get away with that?” he asked and I just shrugged.

“Dunno, never finished reading the article. I was laughing to hard. I think there was something about the school board appraising the use of the dungeon rooms,” I informed him and he gulped in fear.

“Oh man… I’m glad I don’t live in your old world,” he commented and I just shrugged. Suddenly, as we were walking along, Lassie stopped me by pulling on my pant leg. We all stopped and Lassie began to bark and yip.

“What’s up pooch?” I asked. She lifted her nose into the air and sniffed. Both Spike and I immediately caught wind of a wonderful smelling aroma. “Ohhh…” My stomach began to rumble, along with Spike’s.

My tongue began to lace around the insides of my mouth as I could nearly taste the fresh pastries on my tongue. Almost as if I was mesmerized, I began to follow the wonderful smell.

At first I thought perhaps it was coming from Sugarcube Corner, but soon we found ourselves near a small set up stage. “Trixie?” I gasped, rushing forwards and into the small, shanty home.

As I entered, Trixie gasped in shock, then quickly settled as she realized whom it was. “Oh… why hello. THE GREAT AND POWERFUL… Ahem… sorry. Trixie greats you with open hooves,” she stated, and then returned to the small stove she had running.

“Woah… Trixie… since when were you good at cooking?” I asked and she shot me a look, one with a raised eyebrow as if I had just challenged her greatness.

“The Great and Powerful Trixie is good at many things!” she boomed in her boastful voice, before switching to a more subtle one. “Cooking being one of them,” she informed me rather casually before levitating over a tray of freshly baked cookies. “Care to try them?” she asked and I nodded.

Letting Spike take a few, I took a couple myself before offering Lassie a handful, the last of which made Trixie gasp. “Are you really going to feed that dog cookies?!” she gasped and I nodded.

Trixie just rolled her eyes then removed a tray of muffins from the oven before turning it off. In retrospect, it was good I was here. I had promised to watch out for her after all… but in hindsight, perhaps she was watching out for me, feeding me cookies and what not.

“So Trixie,” I began and she turned to me with wonder. “I’ve been meaning to get around and ask… how have you been?” I asked and she just shrugged with a smile.

“Getting along fine. Not many things in this town to do, but Trixie digresses… the ponies here are very nice despite everything she’s done,” she replied and I smiled. Her third person persona was kind of funny.

I took a seat with Spike while Lassie sat with Trixie, the duo quickly becoming acquainted… mostly by Lassie giving Trixie puppy dog eyes and conning the magician into feeding her more banana-nut muffins.

We sat and conversed for a while longer before I realized that perhaps my laundry was finished. “Well Trixie, I hate to be a bother, but I have to go finish my laundry.” With that I went to leave, but she stopped me.

“Oh wait… do you mind if Trixie tags along? She needs to do some laundry of her own,” she asked. I didn’t see why not and nodded. Now a group of four, Trixie carried her laundry, which didn’t look at all dirty, with a levitation spell and followed us to the laundromat.

We arrived and, much to my prior assumptions, my laundry was finished. I began tossing my wet laundry into a dryer while Trixie began tossing hers into a washing machine.

“Shoot,” Trixie muttered. “Burdy, do you have a bit Trixie can borrow? She forgot her change at home,” she asked. I turned to give her some change and nearly gasped in shock. She looked so much different. She had taken off all her clothes… not that many ponies wore clothing in Ponyville, but…

Her hair was down and looked finely groomed. Her fur seemed to gleam while her tail trailed along with a sharp, gleaming straightness. She looked beautiful… GAH… I shouldn’t think of her that way, especially after what she had been through… but she was pretty like this.

“Uh… uhm… yeah, uh… here,” I stammered, offering her several bits. She smiled and graciously took the coins, swiveling and coining the machine. In the brief moment that she swiveled around, her tail fluffed, offering a fine view of her slightly arched rump.

I gulped and quickly spun around, embarrassed that I had just looked at her in that way… what was happening to me? I would’ve never looked down there on a mare when I first arrived, but now…

I scratched my head feverishly. I set my own laundry to dry then thumbed the machine to run. Biting my lower lip, I forced away the image that still burned itself into my mind. Lassie tugged at my leg, pawing a tennis ball to my feet before sitting, panting excitedly.

“Alright Lassie, let’s go…” I trailed off and looked to Trixie. “Wanna tag along?” I asked the mare. Perhaps it would be nice to hang out with the boastful magician… or whatever she considered herself now.

Trixie looked to me with a somewhat shocked face. “You’re asking… The Great and Powerful Trixie if she’d like to… hang out with you?” she asked and I nodded. “I’d like that,” she replied, not using a third person persona. With that the four of us left, now following Lassie who yipped, barked, and pranced around the streets until finally leading us to a small meadow.

Lassie turned to me, front end low as she growled playfully. “Alright Lassie… go far,” I told her then gave the tennis ball a heave. The green ball soared through the air and Lassie quickly chased it down as it bounced through the tall grass. Lassie's sharp sense of smell somehow managed to lead her through the grass and to her prize.

Trixie trotted about before pacing several circles around a spot in heavy grass to finally plop down. She seemed content while watching Lassie and I play fetch. Lassie returned with the ball, drool covering most of it. I grabbed the ball and tossed it a second time, a bit further this time. The ball landed in some heavy grass far off in the distance, maybe fifty… sixty yards.

Spike stood idly by and I felt a sudden surge of sadness for the dragon. I had nothing for him or Trixie to really do. I had originally meant it to be just Lassie and me. I thought to myself then snapped my fingers as a thought came to mind.

“Hey Spike… you ever fly a kite?” I asked. He looked to me and I smiled. “Hey Trixie, you wanna build a kite?” I asked. I saw Trixie’s head poke up from the grass.

With a thought that I haven’t actually heard about before, I took off my shirt, seeing as how we didn’t have a kite. Lassie quickly returned with the tennis ball, but I didn’t throw it.

“Lassie, can you get me two or three really sturdy sticks?” I asked and she yipped then scurried off into the distance. I looked to Trixie and Spike. “You guys have flown kites before, right?” I asked. Spike nodded, but Trixie shook her head.

“What?” I gasped, shocked that she had never once flown a kite.

“I never really… took interest in it. It seemed rather silly and foalish.” I was baffled. Even as a kid I had flown a kite… though only a few times one summer, because I got the kite stuck in a tree and never got another one ever again.

The returning childhood memories of mine drove me to new happiness. I really wanted to go flying a kite right now, no matter how childish it seemed. Lassie quickly returned with about five rigid sticks in her mouth.

Placing my shirt on the ground, Spike, Trixie and I quickly went about constructing a kite. In mere seconds, I realized we’d need string of some sort. “Lassie, we need string,” I told my canine companion.

To my astonishment, Lassie left in a fume of dust, then returned only minutes after, with a roll of string in her mouth. Stringing together the stick structure inside my shirt, we constructed a cheap kite, and then attached the roll of string to the bottom of the kite.

“Well… if it doesn’t work… I’ll just have to buy one.” I grabbed a nearby stick and placed it through the hole in the roll of string. Handing it to Trixie, I licked my finger and felt for the wind direction.

“Okay, the wind’s blowing this way, so you have to try and get the broad of the kite to catch the wind,” I informed her, but she shook her head.

“I have a better idea,” she informed me, her horn already glowing. I was about to state that levitating the kite with her magic defeated the purpose of it, but she surprised me as she changed the weather around us. 'Woah... now that is great and powerful...' I thought silently.

The wind picked up and was a little more gusty. Picking the shirt kite up in her mouth, Trixie gave it a toss and the shirt was caught in the draft. It was quickly pulled into the air and Trixie took hold of the string spool and to let the kite fly higher into the sky.

I watched the kite float around in the air, a smile creeping across my lips. I felt… weird… almost like I was a kid again.

I didn’t keep track of time, but a fair amount must’ve past while I watched the kite fly about freely. Spike spoke up, “Can I try? That looks cool.” I looked over to Trixie and Spike.

Trixie, a smile on her face, gave control of the kite to Spike. Spike laughed as he took control of the kite during the small windstorm. From time to time, the strength of the wind against the kite would pull the small dragon forwards. “Aww man… this is so cool,” Spike murmured to himself.

Trixie sat, her horn lighting up from time to time to change the direction of the wind. I looked to the tennis ball that sat idly by and picked it up. With a whistle, I called my puppy who was sitting with nothing to do.

“Yo Lassie… catch,” I called, flinging the ball across the meadow. Lassie’s ears perked up and she zoomed away after the ball, barking wildly in happiness. Time passed, Trixie and Spike played with the kite, Lassie and I screwed around with the tennis ball… and a stick she found in which we played tug-of-war with... and she dug a hole in the meadow to bury the stick afterwards because...

As the day reached noon, a fairly familiar voice caught our attention. “Hey Spike!” A bubbly voice called as Sweetie Belle quickly trotted over. She paced up to us, looking mostly to Spike.

“Spike, I was wondering if maybe you’d like to come with me to Sugarcube Corner. They have a special on right now, but it’s for two ponies and it’d be way too much for me to eat alone,” she asked.

Spike looked to her, then to the kite, then to me. “Knock yourself out kid. You only live once, right?” I told him. The duo went to rush off, but Trixie stopped them.

“Wait… Spike, take the kite with you. You two might have more fun with it than I will,” Trixie offered and Spike’s eyes went wide with excitement.

“Really?” he replied and she nodded in a sign of generosity. Spike accepted and the duo rushed off with the kite.

“You know Trixie,” I began, her looking to me. “I really think it’s great that you’re being nice to ponies and all but…” I trailed off then gave a shiver. “That was my shirt you just gave away.”

She went pale faced as she realized what she had so innocently done. “Oh… I’m sorry… well, perhaps your laundry is done. Besides, I need to go back and finish my own,” she stated.

Lassie quickly came to my side, the green tennis ball residing in the grip of her jaws, and our group started for the laundromat.

As we stepped in, Trixie immediately went for her wet laundry while I pulled mine out of the dryer and stacked it. Trixie again turned to me in need of change which I happily offered.

With that taken care of, the three of us left, leaving my stacked laundry on a nearby table inside. As we stepped outside, we spotted Sweetie Belle and Spike laughing through the streets with the shirt kite.

Trixie sighed. “Ahh… young love,” she chimed and I raised an eyebrow with a slight frown.

“Young love?” I asked. She simply nodded in reply.

“It’s a wonderful thing, isn’t it?” she asked, but I merely shrugged.

“Two things… I don’t think that’s young love, and secondly, I don’t know.” But she just shook her head.

“Oh no… that’s young love if I’ve ever seen it,” Trixie informed me, but I had to break her stride.

“Don’t think so. Spike loves Rarity,” I informed her but Trixie sighed, shaking her head in slight humor.

“But does he really love her? Or just think she’s pretty? There’s a difference. What they have is young love. Spike might not yet know it… but it’ll dawn upon him soon. Besides, didn’t you ever love when you were young?” she asked but I shook my head.

“No,” I replied bluntly and she stopped.

“Never?” she asked and I nodded.

“Not in the way you’re asking… I mean, I’ve thought a girl was pretty, but never loved any. Can’t let emotion get in the way of progress,” I informed her and she stopped in her tracks.

“Progress of what? What could be more important than loving somepony special?” she asked. Funny, I didn’t take her for a life counselor. I pondered the question for a moment.

“Progress of having fun,” I told her, but she tilted her head.

“That doesn’t even make any sense. You can easily have fun with somepony you love. Probably more fun,” she stated but I shook my head.

“Nah… well, not where I came from. Most of the girls were crazy and bitches… and the other ones were like me. ‘Screw relationships, single life is better and less stressful,’” I informed her and Trixie was now at a loss.

“That’s terrible. How could somepony think being alone in life would be better than being in love?” she asked but I just shrugged.

“Well see… from my perspective… I always had friends telling me to get a girlfriend, while at the same time they’d be in a relationship. Then about a month later, something would happen, they’d break up, and my buddy would be heartbroken, and I would say, ‘Don’t mean to be a dick, but that’s why I stay single,’” I informed her but Trixie didn’t agree.

“But if you don’t take a chance in love, how will you ever know if it’s right for you or not?” she asked but I replied easier than she could’ve guessed.

“But why take the risk when I can just… not love, and have a lot of fun?” I asked and she was baffled for words. “Anyway… A little Belle tells me there’s a special on in Sugarcube Corner for two. I’m hungry, wanna tag along?” I asked.

Trixie rolled her eyes then nodded. Lassie barked at me and I nodded, grinning down at the energetic little pup. “Yes Lassie, you can have some too.”

We arrived at Sugarcube Corner shortly after. Pinkie immediately spotted me and bounced over. “HIYAHEVANHOWAREYAHTODAY?!” she asked in her regular, bubbly voice.

“Uhm… hi Pinkie. I hear there’s some good food today. Figured I’d stop by,” I responded, not having a clue to what it was she said.

She looked to Trixie and waved erratically before bouncing back towards the front counter. The place was rather short on customers today, only having a few ponies here and there… and even two donkeys… weird.

Lassie, Trixie and I took a seat near one of the front windows, settling down and finally relaxing. Before I could say anything, Trixie brought up the subject I wish I had won. “I still can’t believe you’ve never loved.”

“Well, like I said, I’ve loved, just not like that,” I began as I picked up Lassie and dug my face into her plush fur. “Example… oooh! I love you SOOO much Lassie!” I giggled, rubbing my nose against her face. Lassie started licking my nose in reply.

She squeaked a bark that sounded kinda like a dog’s giggle… it sounded very strange. Trixie just rolled her eyes, finally dropping the subject. Pinkie bounced over and offered us all menus, even Lassie.

I quickly came to the assumption that I wanted some fries and water. Trixie got a hay sandwich and some sorta fruit drink… the picture had a fruity little umbrella and a lemon slice…

“Come to think of it, I want one of those too,” I ordered, having a sudden craving for the strange looking tropical drink. Lassie pawed at the menu, barking as she showed what she wanted, which was mostly just biscuits and treats.

“Okie dokey lokey!” Pinkie announced then bounced off. Before I could even speak… let alone before the laws of physics would even allow, Pinkie zipped back to our side with all our food.

My left brow lowered while my right raised high. My mouth was agape in shock of how exactly she managed to get our food that fast. One might think perhaps it was already ready, but the steam from the freshly baked goods was present, proving it was fresh.

“I… I… alright,” I shrugged, handing over what I owed her for the meal. Pinkie just… tucked the change into her mane.

“Hope you enjoy it,” she giggled then bounced off in her regular, bubbly way.

Trixie smiled and rested a hoof over my hand. “Thank you for taking me out. It’s not often I can honestly say I spent time with a true friend.” I sighed, placing my free hand over top of her hoof.

“Don’t worry about it. You’re pretty cool in my books,” I informed her. I heard some snuffing coming from Lassie. She was sorting through some muffins and what not. She stood on the table like the foolish young pup that she was… well, I guess she wasn’t a puppy anymore. Though not full size, she was partly way there.

Trixie giggled as several heads turned our way. I laughed as well, reaching over and rubbing up and down my canine friend’s back. “Awe… who’s a good girl?” I asked, Lassie answering by chewing up some muffins, making a terrible mess on the table.

Her paws were still dirty, leaving paw prints on the table, but the majority of the mess came from the muffin and cookie crumbs. I turned my attention back to Trixie and thought hard for a moment.

I didn’t want to bring up harsh memories of Tristan… but she seemed to know a little bit about love. Either that or she just wanted to pry into my past love life, which was extremely minuscule at the very most.

“So Trixie, how about you?” I asked and she turned her attention to me. “Have you ever… you know… loved?” I asked, hoping that Tristan wouldn’t be brought up. She looked to the side while her chin rested on her hoof.

“No,” she replied rather calmly and almost… sadly.

“Love interests?” I asked, somewhat curious if the mare had ever fallen in love with another.

“Once or twice but… they didn’t see me in the same way,” she replied rather modestly, just before taking a bite out of her hay sandwich. “How about you? Oh... wait, I guess I already asked,” she corrected herself then took a mouthful of her sandwich.

“Nah, not really. It was never my scene, yah know?” I stated and she only nodded.

“You’ll find somepony. They say there’s somepony out there for everypo… everyone,” she told me, quickly restating her last part in partial realization that I wasn’t a pony.

“Yeah well… goddessdammit!” I swore rather loudly, shocking Trixie. I pointed to Lassie, whom had eaten my fries. Trixie snickered and I turned to her with a stale glance. “How would you like it if Lassie ate your food?” I asked irritably, but Trixie didn’t reply, she just kept snickering.

I quickly ordered another batch of fries, of which Lassie got half. After about another half an hour, Trixie, Lassie and I packed up then headed out and back into the open meadow fields.

I flopped down and let out an exhausted sigh. Trixie brought up a random subject that I would’ve never thought of. “So… I don’t think you have a cutie mark… right?” she asked.

“That’s right,” I replied and she was quick to bring up another question.

“So… how do you know your special talent in life?” she asked me.

“I don’t.” I let out a yawn and stretched out in the grass.

“Do you ever wonder what your special talent is?” she asked and I rolled my eyes. If only she knew that ponies and humans weren’t all that closely alike.

“Not really. I’m good with the random assortment of things and… well, that’s just it. How about you?” I asked and she sat up, looking to me with a curious look.

“What about me? I know what my special talent is. I even have my cutie mark to prove it, see?” She twisted to one side, placing her rump in full view.

“That’s not what I meant… I shoulda asked if you like your special talent or…” I trailed off. There was a moment’s pause before Trixie replied.

“Well of course I love my special talent. I’m the Great and Powerful Trixie! Greatest magician to ever step hoof on Equestrian soil…” she trailed off while I just laid in the grass, my eyes closed as I basked in the sunlight. “Are you even listening?!” she asked, rather irritably.

I nodded. “Yep… just resting my eyes. You were saying?” I queued for her to continue.

“Well… like I said,” she continued, “I’m the greatest magician of all time.” She stopped and I just figured she was done, but then she continued with something I wasn’t expecting. “But sometimes… I just wish I didn’t have to be great and powerful… sometimes I just wish I could be normal. Like other ponies. Live in a townhome, have a family…” she trailed off with a wistful sigh.

I hadn’t noticed, but my body was extremely exhausted from… something. “Well that’s the dream, right?” I mumbled, not really thinking of a proper reply.

“What?! No it’s not. Everypony wants to be famous. To be somepony everypony else knows. To be on the frontline of newspapers… are you even listening?!” she asked again, getting irritated.

I felt a light jab hit my side as she poked at my dozing body. I nodded and let out a series of vocal mumbles that were for the most part just grumbles. She finally let out a sigh then curled up beside me. “You’re hopeless,” she laughed rather innocently.

Just before I passed out, I felt Lassie snuggle up underneath my left arm and nestle deep into my body’s warmth.

Years ago…

It was winter… and it was goddamn cold. I guess that’s why Americans always refer to it as ‘A Canadian winter’ when things get bellow negative thirty degrees Celsius. I stood in the kitchen, cooking up a batch of crispy bacon and scrambled eggs with cheese… and some toast… and cereal... and sliced oranges.

My mouth chewed on nothing as my stomach grumbled in anticipation. As I finally finished the bacon and eggs, I took out the spatula and scooped myself some of the heavenly food.

Taking two slices of toast from the toaster over, I slapped some cheesy scrambled eggs onto the toast, then three strips of bacon, making myself a breakfast sandwich.

I sat down, peering out the window and towards the snowy forest. As I sat eating my sandwich, I watched the snow gently fall from the sky. It was kind of pretty… and kind of reminded me of a goofy Disney flick.

A wooden cabin in the woods during a beautiful and gentle winter snowfall. I continued to watch until… I squinted my eyes as my mouth went wide in… a mix between shock and disbelief.

Ally, my best old hunting dog, was dragging something… bloody. She tugged aggressively on something of fair size, a trail of fresh blood following her. “What. The. Fuck,” I grunted.

Seeing as how she wasn’t in any sort of discomfort, I simply left her to drag the… corpse, into the yard. I watched as she pulled it into the yard and started gnawing on it. A figure staggered into the kitchen.

“Morning,” I greeted my mother. She was drowsy and was still very hung-over… actually, I think she was still drunk, judging by how she stood and her facial expression.

“Heh.” She gave a very drunken laugh, then made her way to the window. “Whatcha lookin’ at?” she asked, piecing together a drunken sentence.

“Ally killed something… I think,” I stated, not knowing what she killed, or for that matter, how she killed it.

“HA!” she laughed. “The lizard killed it.” I rolled my eyes. Yup, she was drunk. “You know… when she first came here, we used to call her lizard!” she announced, now making it obvious that she wasn't just drunk, she was heavily intoxicated.

“No… we never called her lizard,” I informed her, but she shook her head.

“You don’t remember because… when we first got her… and we first came here, you used to cook on a little stove and do your dishes in a tiny sink and you were the best little nig,” she finally lost it and couldn’t piece together her thoughts.

I just rolled my eyes. “Want some breakfast?” I asked, directing her attention to the freshly cooked breakfast.

She inspected the food then turned to me. “And now you’re cooking on a big stove, because-s-e you’r-re all grown up… and you’re… the Chinese eats dogs, so make sure they don’t get Lizard.”

I groaned, placing my right hand over my face in pity for her. I quickly finished up then placed my dishes in the sink before going downstairs. I slipped into the gun room and fished out the vintage double barrel shotgun from the gun cabinet, along with four shells of two and three quarter inch double aught buckshot.

I slipped two shells into the chambers of the side by side shotgun before clicking it shut.

This shotgun could’ve been a vintage show gun… had it been kept in good repair. It was first owned by my… great, great something-or-other grandfather Joseph when he first arrived from Mother Russia, just before the Russian civil war.

As the family tale goes, when he arrived, the first firearm he bought was this shotgun. As the tale goes on, he hunted everything from rabbit to moose. The right barrel was rifled and could chamber shotgun slugs. Despite the shotgun being ancient, the rifling was still present.

When I started using it, I was rather agitated with the fact it was never maintained. It took me hours to clean the powder fouling and lead deposits from the barrel. In the end, even though I didn’t legally own the gun, it had kind of become mine, passed down from generation to generation. Despite naming just about every gun I owned... I never named this one... it just wouldn't feel right I guess.

I slipped on some winter clothes and made my way outside. Ally was still chewing on… what looked like the chest cavity of a medium sized mammal. I got closer and saw that chunks of fur were still present on the hide and it looked like a… small deer.

“Ally… what the hell did you do?” I asked and she looked up to me. Seeing the shotgun in my hands, her tail went erratic and she hopped to all fours and started racing off into the deep snow, thinking that we were going hunting.

I pressed a finger to the chest cavity, and though it was cold, it was still a little mushy, meaning it hadn’t died all that long ago. I stood up and began to follow the blood trail, wondering how the hell she had managed to kill a deer.

Thoughts began to wander my mind. It was a little small to be an adult, and since it was winter now… it was probably just a fawn deer… poor thing. But even with the snow so deep, I was wondering just how the hell Ally had managed to kill a fawn deer all on her own.

I started making my way through the forest, following the blood trail, until I arrived at the small river that ran through the property. Entrails, fur, and blood were all smeared over a semi-large area.

I was shocked… there was no way Ally had done this. I stepped forwards and observed the trail. There was several… “Coyotes…” I mumbled in a deep voice. Bastards had been running rampant and unchecked lately.

I followed the markings and things literally played an animation in my mind as I looked at the tracks. Even though I was here… it was like things were rewinded, and I was watching some sort of vision from the past.

A young fawn deer rushed through the thick snow, its long legs having difficulty traversing through the snow. It struggled as it trudged along. Coyotes yipped and snarled as about... seven fogged into view.

The fawn screeched in petrified fear as the nimble coyotes simply glided across the snow. As the deer reached the bridge crossing, the coyotes struck, all of them latching to the deer, pulling it to the ground.

They began to aggressively assault the screeching fawn, pulling its stomach apart and gruesomely gutting the poor thing, eating it while it was still alive. A snarl turned my attention to the trail, along with the attention of the coyotes.

A lone canine stepped forwards and Ally growled viciously. The half dozen or so coyotes snarled and snipped while Ally stepped forwards cautiously. As she continued her approach, the coyotes charged forwards.

Ally lept onto the leading coyote and bit down hard on its neck while another went for her exposed back. Ally quickly kicked and scratched with her hindlegs. Letting go of the grip on the coyote’s neck, she switched her attention to another, barking aggressively and rather loudly as she nipped at the next coyote's neck.

Another coyote bit at her lower leg, but she kicked and pawed at its eyes with her untrimmed, sharp nails. Her pitbull muzzle bit down with brutal force around the coyote’s neck while she shook aggressively.

The coyote whimpered and tried to pull away. She obliged its need, but only to change her attack to another. She lept forwards, tackling a coyote to its back and biting its exposed neck.

For whatever reason, she didn’t kill it, rather simply bit hard then attacked another. Taking a few strides back, the coyotes stalked towards her. Ally began curled her lips, revealing her sharp teeth and the coyotes stepped back. With her prize won, she gripped the remains of the chest cavity and began pulling it away, leaving the coyotes to the remains…

So that’s what all that barking was about a while back… how she went toe-to-toe with coyotes and why they didn’t attack her as she pulled away their kill… maybe it was some kind of animal pride… or maybe I just wasn’t as good at tracking and I was reading the tracks wrong.

I gave Ally a pat on the back. “Good job pup… even if it was a stupid decision.” I placed the foregrip of the shotgun on my shoulder, barrel facing behind me, and began making my way back to my home.

Present day…

I awoke peacefully… well, kind of. Trixie was nudging me awake, but she was subtle about it. “Mmm…” I moaned as I awoke. My neck was being slightly strangled as the Christian cross around my neck had gotten tangled in some tall grass.

I pulled the necklace free from the grass and sat up, the cross dangling freely against my bare chest. “Evan… the children have a problem,” Trixie informed me.

I was about to ask ‘What children’ when I quickly spotted Spike and Sweetie Belle… without the shirt kite. “What’s up?” I asked and Spike chuckled nervously.

“I’m really sorry… it was an accident. I swear, the wind caught it and…” he stammered nervously. I scratched the back of my head in confusion. I was still drowsy, having just awoken, and couldn’t puzzle together what he was saying.

“So what’s wrong?” I asked.

“Well…” Sweetie Belle began and Spike finished.

“We kinda got the kite stuck,” he informed me. I blinked then rubbed the back of my head.

“Okay… so what’s the problem?”

Minutes later…

When they told me ‘We got the kite stuck in a tree.’ I thought it would’ve been a tiny tree, maybe twenty feet high… but they ‘REALLY’ got it stuck. It was in a humongous tree on the edge of the Everfree.

The kite itself was about… fifty… maybe sixty feet up. It was getting late and the sun was getting ready to set. Trixie’s horn flared and tugged on the kite, but it was snagged up really good and threatened to break if Trixie pulled too hard.

“So… what now?” Spike asked.

I let out a sigh and gulped. I didn’t mind climbing trees, but… that was really high and the kite was out pretty far onto the branch. “Well… nothing much,” I replied, and both Spike’s and Sweetie Belle’s faces fell.

A distant memory resurfaced. I remembered when I got my first, and only, kite stuck up high in a tree. But despite being only twenty feet up, no one would climb the tree for me to get the kite, and I’d never flown a kite since… well, until today.

A feeling surfaced in my stomach. I wouldn’t make Spike or Sweetie Belle climb the tree, and I wasn’t sure how well Trixie could climb. “I’ll climb up and get it… Trixie, can you catch me in your magic if I fall?” I asked and she nodded.

“Evan, we could always just-“ Trixie began but I cut her short.

“Nope! I won’t hear it. My kite flying was ruined as a kid, and I won’t let their experience be ruined because somepony wouldn’t get the kite for them… plus that’s my shirt,” I stated.

“BUT-“ Trixie began, but I was already climbing the tree. At first it was alright, but as I started getting to about… thirty feet, things started getting awry. It was as if the tree was swaying widly.

“Just don’t look down, just don’t look down…” I trailed off and finally reached the tree branch where the kite was stuck. Luckily the branch was thick, very thick, probably three feet in diameter.

I gripped the tree, almost like I was giving it a bear hug, and began shimmying across towards the kite. As I made my way across, my vision glanced down and things seemed impossibly high.

“GAH! WHY AM I UP HERE?!” I screamed, shivers running down my back. The branch seemed to sway aggressively in the wind, almost as if it was ready to snap. Inside I was screaming like a little girl.

Sure, I could fearlessly fight a pack of Timberwolves, fight some Manticore, or demons or… whatever… but this, like needles, was a big no-no in my books. “OOOH MAN… I DON’T LIKE THIS!” I screamed.

Finally reaching the kite, I slowly reached out, pulled it free, and then tossed it down. Trixie called out to me. “Okay, now just come down already!” she called out, almost as fearful as I was.

I went to go back, but I could barely manage. The wind blew and swayed the branch more. My body stiffened and refused to move. “FUCK THIS!” I screamed, not wanting to move as more shivers went down my back.

“EVAN! HURRY UP, PLEASE!” Trixie cried, but my body simply gripped harder against the tree branch. I looked back and it seemed as if the tree’s main body was impossibly far away.

I’d say call the fire department, but they probably didn’t like me very much after my last encounter with them. I tried to shimmy back further, but again ended up stiffening up again when the branch started to sway in the wind.

“EVAN!” Trixie called out, but I didn’t answer. “LET GO!” she called and my eyes went wide.

“WHAT?!” I yelled back.

“LET GO!” she screamed and I looked over the side to see her. From here, she looked like a tiny ant… or maybe that was just my imagination playing tricks on me.

“ARE YOU FUCKING INSANE?!” I cried, but she shook her head.

“NO, REALLY. JUMP, AND I'LL CATCH YOU IN MY MAGIC!” she offered.

“NO WAY, THAT’S INSANE!” I yelled back.

“Evan! Jump and I will catch you! Please... just trust me,” she yelled less frantically and in a more controlled voice. I looked over the side of the branch and whimpered.

“Oh my God… I can’t be seriously contemplating this,” I murmured to myself. “Promise?!” I yelled and she nodded.

“I promise, trust me!” she yelled back in a trustworthy voice.

I took several deep breaths and edged over the side. “Okay… I’m gonna jump… you better catch me… or else,” I warned, frightened right to the core of my soul. I tried shimmying over the edge, but ended up upside down and still gripping the tree branch.

“JUMP ALREADY!” Trixie yelled. I took in a deep breath then, with a bout of faith, let go. I ended up screaming like a little filly as I fell through the air. My eyes were clenched shut as I continued to scream until my lungs were exhausted.

Finally, after what seemed like ages, I cracked open my right eye. I found that I was being levitated just inches above the ground. Trixie smiled. “I told you that you could trust me,” she replied.

My heart was still pounding and I wasn’t really thinking. “Oh my God… I almost died,” I wheezed and Trixie rolled her eyes.

“You know that I could’ve just levitated you up, then you could’ve grabbed the kite,” she informed me and I nearly went into a fit of rage.

“WHY DIDN’T YOU SAY SOMETHING EARLIER!” I yelled and she shrugged.

“I tried to, but you were too stubborn and wouldn’t listen,” she replied and I thought about it. She had tried to tell me something, but I thought she was just going to say leave the kite.

Spike spoke up. “Wow, you were totally awesome up there,” he said, but I shook my head.

“Are you kidding me?! I was screaming like a little filly,” I replied, but he shook his head in return.

“So? I don’t know a single earth pony who would climb up there just to get a kite,” Spike chipped in and my heart rested easy. Lassie barked and caught my attention. In her mouth was a pencil and paper.

I looked to my friends and smiled. “Thanks. You guys are the best,” I told them and Trixie rolled her eyes.

“The Great and Powerful Trixie is not a ‘guy’, she is a mare,” she retorted, but I just rolled my eyes then grabbed the paper and pencil from Lassie and scribbled down a note about my lesson of friendship.

Dear Princess Purple Sparkles,
Today I was taughted a lesson of friendship. Sometimes, even if you’re intentions are the best, you end up too stubborn to listen to even a close friend. In the end, if you had’ve just listened to your friend, perhaps a great deal of trouble could’ve been avoided, but even so, they will always be there for you when you need it.