James walked with Twilight and her gang back to her tree house that was also serving as the library for Ponyville. Rainbow Dash flew to his left while Applejack kept to his right. They kept a very close eye on him in case he tried to do anything funny. As the group neared town, James noticed all the colorful ponies walking around town. If it wasn’t for the fact of the stuff that he went through at the hospital he would think that he was dreaming. Still, he was impressed by the many colors of the ponies and how they acted like humans did.

Looking around, he did notice one thing was out of place though. As he kept looking around it seemed that there were more females or mares as they were called around then men or otherwise known as stallions. Confused as to why this was, he was about to voice his question when the gang stopped in front of a giant tree. He looked at the tree wondering why everyone stopped there. He noticed then that Twilight was opening the door to the tree. Realizing now that this was Twilight’s tree house and Ponyville’s very own library he couldn’t help but admire that it was an actual house in a tree in the middle of town.

“This house is not that impressive.”

“What are you talking about? There is a house inside a giant oak tree. There is nothing in this world or mine that could be anymore badass.”

“True that no such thing exists, I just don’t find it that impressive in the first place.”

“You always love being stubborn don’t you?”

“Yes, but only because it allows me to have some type of interaction with you.”

“Ah, so you do care about having a conversation with me. I was beginning to think that you didn’t like me.”

“Don’t get the wrong idea here, I only enjoy having conversations with you and nothing else. Also look forward that lavender monster is coming forward.”

“She is not a monster. Her name is Twilight and she is very friendly.”

“I really hope you come out of this false sense of happiness and go back to being normal at some point.”

“Whatever, I’ll do what I want and feel how I want.”

Twilight began to walk over to him and ask him a few other questions that she wanted answered. The human came out of the conversation he was having inside his head to look at the lavender mare coming towards him. If it wasn’t for the fact that he was still coming down from some of his shock he still had, he would think that this lavender mare looked quite beautiful in this library setting.

“James, I was wondering if I could ask you a few more questions?” Twilight asked, but for some reason she seemed kind of nervous thinking that he might either attack her or deny her request.

“I would be glad to answer any of your questions that you may have. I would just like to state that I still have the option to refuse answering a question if I am uncomfortable with it. Plus I would like to maybe quell any fears that anyone may have,” James said, more than happy to answer some questions and it seemed to help with Twilight being nervous about asking.

“It’s anypony not anyone. Gosh, you think somepony might get that right at some point,” Pinkie stated looking a little annoyed at the misuse of simple Equestrian language.

“I’m sorry, what do you mean by that?” James asked, confused at what he said might be wrong somehow.

“Well, since you aren’t back on your home planet with humans most words that include person or one don’t work here. The reason being is that everypony here are ponies and as such use that in their language,” Pinkie replied, happy to help the man understand that his language would need to change to help him fit into pony society.

“Thanks for letting me know that since I may end up being stuck here, but we will all see in due time,” James stated, happy that the pink mare was more than happy to help, but felt a little uneasy about staying here.

“If I am not interrupting anything, I would like to get on with my questions if that is okay with you, James?” Twilight said, trying to hide a little of her frustration at all the interruptions that kept happening.

“Actually, Twi, if you are going to be asking about some things from the human world I think Lyra would like to be a part of this conversation,” Rainbow Dash piped up after being mostly quiet in the library every once in a while looking at James and making threats with her hands when nopony was looking.

“That is actually a good idea, Dash. She would just love to meet a human for the first time and actually get to speak to one might even mean the world to her. Not to mention that it would earn her some bragging rights over everypony for doubting her beliefs,” Twilight commented, actually happy with the idea of another interested party member to talk to James with.

“Are you okay with having another pony over to maybe ask her own questions about your world James?”

“Hey the more the merrier and it might even help to help ease ponies in meeting me.”

“Then hold on a few minutes while I go call Lyra and see if she is interested in coming over.”

Twilight left the library towards her room to go call Lyra. Everyone just sat around in a silent setting. Applejack still keeping her eyes on him for anything that he might do. He just thought to himself that she is just waiting for any type of excuse so she could come over and pummel him into the ground. Pinkie was sitting in a chair with a notepad writing some things down. Dash seemed to be looking through the bookshelves, trying to find a good book to read. Fluttershy was back in a corner trying to hide from him behind her long pink mane. Rarity though on the other hand was staring at James very intently and it was making him a little uncomfortable.

“Is there something wrong there, Rarity?”

“Actually yes there is. I didn’t want to mention it, but your clothing is just atrocious. It has no flare or sense of fashion and just seems very dull.”

“Well I never thought that I would be flung into some other world where there was a fashion designer that actually took her job seriously.”

“So you’re saying that in your world when you get clothing you have nopony to help you pick out the right outfit or even ask your opinion on what you would like?”

“Not really, no, I would love it if they did because it would have helped me from keeping me look like an idiot when I went clothes shopping.”

“Well, I cannot let you go around walking in those clothing. Come to my boutique in the afternoon and I should have some presentable clothing for you. I would like to ask though, what you would like to have?”

“Well, for casual wear for spring and summer time I would like some t-shirts and cargo shorts and I may want some designs on the t-shirts but we can talk about that later. For winter and autumn I would like some jeans. Though I have this feeling and I don’t really know why, but I think a tuxedo would be good to have, but I’ll let you decide on what to do with that.”

“Very well, darling, I will see what I can do for you and try to get your order done for you.”

After having the fashion talk with Rarity, Twilight came in rubbing her ear. Apparently Lyra was more than just happy to come over. From the way she explained it she was so excited that she yelled the rest of the time through the phone nearly blowing out her eardrum. He actually felt nervous seeing how excited this Lyra pony got to speak to him and wondered if he was going to have to deal with another overactive mare like Pinkie. As everyone waited for Lyra to show up it was starting to get late outside.

One by one the mares began to leave beginning with Pinkie saying that she needed to hurry and get to the party store and get some supplies. Next to leave was Applejack saying that she needed to finish her chores tomorrow morning since she never got around to them when James showed up. As she left, she looked him in the eyes and he could tell that her eyes were saying that he better behave himself. After she left, Rarity took her leave wanting to get some of her orders out of the way so she could have time to work with him. Rainbow left without saying anything, but in front of him she stopped and started pointing at her eye and then at him.

He just nodded to this and ignored her. After several minutes the human heard the door open and he thought it was Lyra showing up, but when he turned around he saw Fluttershy leaving. When she saw that he was looking at her she gave a little squeak and rushed out the door. He just looked at the unicorn who just shrugged at the shy pegasus’ actions and waited.

Finally, Lyra showed up and looked very happy to meet the human. She was mint green with a two toned mane color of her fur color and white, almost like a type of mint. Her eyes were very golden and she seemed to have this bright smile to compliment her looks. She wore sneakers and jeans that were light green and a hoodie that was a little darker shade of green. She also had very beautiful curves and a nice bust that wasn’t too big or small.

He blushed a little looking at this mare, but it would seem that even with the way she looked he couldn’t stop staring into her eyes. Those two golden orbs made it seem like no matter how dark one could become she could always find the light. Lyra then walked forward and held out her hand with a huge smile on her face breaking him from his trance.

“Hello there, my name is Lyra Heartstrings and it is a pleasure to meet you.”

“Good evening, Lyra, my name is James Redfield and trust me when I say the pleasure is all mine,” James replied to the greeting and grabbing Lyra’s hand and giving a friendly shake. After finishing the handshake she took her seat next to Twilight across from him.

“I don’t know if Twilight told you or not, but I will say this just for the benefit of the doubt that I have the right to refuse a question if I am uncomfortable with it,” Lyra just nodded her head in acceptance to that.

“Though before we begin, may I ask you a question first, Lyra?”

“Of course you can, James. What would you like to know?”

“Well seeing as to how everyone…”

“It’s everypony, James, try a little harder next time please.” Pinkie said coming out of a flowerpot next to the kitchen doors and then disappearing back inside them.

He looked over to the flowerpot just completely confused at what just happened here. He turned his head back to Twilight and before he could even ask his question she just replied simply that it was Pinkie being Pinkie. Looking back over at the flowerpot, he gave a sigh as he decided to just accept the answer.

“Okay, back to what I was saying. Since everpony knows about your interest in humans, I was wanting to know what got you interested.”

“Well, since it is late and I know Twilight and I want to have our questions answered, I will give you the short version. It began when I was a filly in school and when I was in the library I found a book in the fiction section talking about human heroes. I was so interested in the book that once I began reading all the good humans had done and how they looked really peaked my interest.”

“Well, I guess that is better than any other way to get some sort of interest in things. Books are always a great way to fill your imagination and even give you hope to wanting to learn something new,” Lyra blushed a little at his comment but was able to hide it very quickly when Twilight cleared her throat to get both of their attention.

“So, first question, James. How old are you exactly?”

“I am currently twenty-two but will be twenty-three on November 18th.”

“What was your world like?”

“Usually depends on where you are I would say. There are some beautiful places that would just take your breath away. One place is Niagara Falls. It is a huge waterfall that if you see during the night you can see the starlight’s shimmer off of the water. Then there are some sad places that just make you feel sorry for the poor people. Recently, New Orleans got hit with a hurricane and was just destroyed, leaving rubble everywhere and making many people homeless for a while.”

“What does a typical human diet consist of?”

“Well, humans are omnivores, meaning that we can eat meat, fruit, and vegetables.”

“What allows you to be such a thing?”

“Like most of you I have flat teeth to help with grinding down food. Though I also have these sharp canines for gripping meat and tearing it off.”

“Do you require meat daily to sustain yourself?”

“Not all the time no, but it is usually delicious and humans require some of the nutrients that the protein offers.”

The questions went along like that and no one asked a question that he was completely uncomfortable with. During the time of questioning though apparently a purple dragon came through the door and stopped his walking to look at the human. He looked at the dragon with nervousness just because he was a fire breathing monster. After a little while though, Twilight introduced the dragon to be Spike, her number one assistant. She mentioned that she has been with Spike since she hatched him from an egg.

Not wanting to really ask how and why for now, but save it for later, he just nodded his head and continued on. He had a little conversation with the drake while Twilight and Lyra took the time to review over their notes they have taken so far. After a while he actually respected the young dragon and he and Spike became very fast friends. James took note though that through the entire time of questioning that Twilight was the only one asking the questions. Confused as to why a human focused pony like Lyra never asked any questions he thought he should ask.

“Do you not have any questions for me, Lyra?”

“Well… I kind of do, but I feel that it is not my place to ask such a question.”

“Like I said before to both you and Twilight. You are free to ask any questions that you want. I will let you know if I am uncomfortable with it or not. I also promise not to get angry or bite you from what you may ask.”

“Well… I was wondering if back in your world if you ever had a special somepony in your life?”

“Wait, a special someponey? What do you mean by that?”

“A marefriend or somepony special in your life that you wanted to share your heart with and be with no matter what.”

“Oh I see what you mean there. Though to get to the point I did at one point but not anymore.”

“Is it because you’re trapped here in Equestria unable to possibly see her again?”

“Yes and no. I do miss her, but we are no longer together. We went our separate ways because I thought it would be for the best. My job that I had used to make her worry so much and I couldn’t bear to have that making her upset. So when I was at home with her I had a long conversation about what to do. After some time to think things through she and I decided that for us to both be happy we would go our separate ways.”

“I would be lying if I said that I didn’t miss her, but after a few years of our separation she contacted me. She wanted to apologize for the break up, but she wanted to mention that she met someone and they were getting married. When she told me that I felt happy for her. I thought at first I might feel anger or even some form of jealousy but didn’t, just pure happiness that she found someone to make her happy. So after a while I called her back and congratulated her on her marriage and wished her a happy and prosperous life.”

“What was her name if you don’t mind letting us know?”

“Her name was Maria and she was actually very beautiful the first time I met her. She had a well-toned body and raven black hair that would just make you want to stare at her. Though what really got me attracted to her was her smile. When she would smile it would brighten my day. I could be in one of my darkest moments or on the edge of sadness, but when she would smile it would be a shining light showing me a new path that I could take and try even harder to get better.”

“When did you two first meet?”

“I’m sorry, but that is something I am not comfortable with sharing as of this moment, but maybe someday I will share that story with you all.”

He looked at the clock hanging on the wall and saw that it was eleven at night. The two mares noticed how late it was getting and decided to call it a night for now until later. Lyra waved goodbye as she left and thanked him so much for speaking with her and giving her insight on humans as a whole. When she left, he was led to a spare room in which he would be staying in.

When Twilight was walking away, she turned around and told him that the princesses would be coming with some questions of their own, but that wouldn’t be for a while. He thanked her for the heads up and wished her a good night. He removed his hoodie, socks, shoes, and t-shirt and slipped under his covers. As he fell into his deep slumber he was haunted by his nightmares.

Inside James’ Dream

When he fell asleep and entered his dream world he was expecting the usual happy dreams that he would sometimes get. This was not the case tonight as he saw a destroyed village. The village in question was Ponyville. As he stared in horror at what he saw he heard maniacal laughter from behind. Turning around slowly he was confronted by a huge shadow. The shadow itself just looked at him and couldn’t help but grin at its newest arrival.

“You know that you can never escape your past no matter how hard you try.”

“Everywhere you go you will leave nothing but destruction behind you.”

“You can try to love and feel all you want, but you will just drag them down to the hell that is within you and just end up hurting them.”

“Even if you seek help no one can purge you of your sins or help you forget the pain that you have caused to others.”

“You should embrace the darkness within you and let it help you become stronger.”

“I will not let you consume me foul beast. You can taunt me and even threaten me, but you will never be able to get me to agree to your terms. I will live happily here with my new friends and I will be able to keep everyone safe from what I used to be. I can change no matter what it takes and no matter how long it takes. You will be nothing and always that so you are just better off leaving me alone and never bothering me again.”

After talking back to the shadow it did not seem very pleased with that. Looking down upon him, the shadow snapped its fingers causing the scene to change a bit. There were several loud screams and he recognized who they belonged to. Running towards the noise he ran into his friends, but they were hurt badly. Running over to help them, his friends jumped away from him, terrified for their lives. They kept blaming him for what happened and that he was a monster.

He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. His own friends were scared of him and they didn’t even trust him. Stepping closer to them, Twilight’s horn quickly flared up and fired a magic bolt at him. The bolt struck him through the chest and fell to the ground, having a hard time trying to find his breath. Shadow reappeared above and just laughed at the state he was in. He noticed the shadow walk over to the mares that he believed were his friends and then saw shadow strike out against them, killing them one by one.

James woke with a startle, cold sweat running down his body and his heart trying to escape his chest. He got out of bed and headed downstairs to the kitchen to get a glass of water. He filled up the glass and drank from it greedily. After a couple of glasses he put the cup in the sink and went back to his bed.

‘I will change and I will never go back to the way I was and keep my promise,’ James thought to himself, lying in his bed while he fell back to sleep once again. This time with no dream to distract him.