"So put simply, Fluttershy, Twilight isn't feeling all too well and she's asked me to tell her friends."

"Oh my, that's terrible news," Fluttershy replied. "Is there anything we can do to help, Spike?"

"Well I've been asking if somepony can come and help me at the library," Spike said. "There's too much to do on top of making sure Twilight is all right. Could you help me please?"

Fluttershy looked at the pleading look on Spike's face, his hands clenched together as if in prayer, and smiled warmly

"Of course I'll help you, Spike," she nodded. "I'll even get Toby to help as well. I'm sure that he'd love to, and I'm also sure that Angel can take care of the critters until we get back."

"Great!" Spike cheered. "Thanks, Fluttershy. I'll head back to the library and get things sorted. See you there later!"

Fluttershy waved to the retreating form of the dragon and closed the door before turning around and trotting upstairs. She gently pushed open another door, the smile on her face widening slightly as she took in the form of the sleeping child on the bed. With a contented sigh she walked over and gently roused him.

"Toby?" she cooed. "It's time to wake up, precious."

Toby murmured into his pillow and opened his eyes slowly, looking around the room for a moment before the familiar yellow blob in front of him took the shape of his adoptive mother. The child sat up and yawned, stretching his arms.

"Good morning, momma," he said softly.

"Good morning, sweetheart," Fluttershy replied as she nuzzled his cheek. "I've told Spike that we would help him at the library today, because your Auntie Twilight is feeling very ill."

"Oh, no," Toby said concernedly as he got out of bed and onto Fluttershy's back. "Is she okay? And I'd be happy to help her and Spike in any way I can."

"She's fine," Fluttershy soothed. "Now let's get you cleaned up. Then we can have breakfast and go to the library."

With those words she dropped Toby off at the bathroom door before heading downstairs into the kitchen to start breakfast. A few minutes later two plates of scrambled eggs were on the table, and Toby had come downstairs dressed in his familiar red sweatshirt and blue jeans. Around his neck hung a small locket, which he ran his fingers over gently as he took his seat and began eating.

Breakfast was soon over, allowing Fluttershy and Toby to leave the cottage. Fluttershy placed Angel in charge of her home while she was away, a task he responded to with a salute, and flew to the Golden Oaks library with Toby safely on her back.

Upon arriving at the library, Fluttershy and Toby were put to work by Spike. Fluttershy was tasked with serving visitors to the library, while Spike and Toby cleaned the place up. The relieved smile on Spike's face said everything about how happy he was for the help, and the day passed by in a whirlwind of activity and chatter between the three.

"Thanks for your help, guys," Spike said as he waved the last visitor out, locking the door behind them. "I was able to get so much done than I would have had I been on my own. Next time we're at Sugarcube Corner the treats are on me, okay?"

"It's okay, Spike," Toby replied. "You don't have to do that. Momma and I were glad to help, weren't we?"

"Oh yes," Fluttershy nodded. "We're your friends, Spike, and friends always help each other out when they can."

"They do indeed," a voice croaked. All eyes turned to the stairs, which a groggy Twilight was slowly making her way down. "Thanks to you two I was able to relax and stop worrying about how Spike was coping without me, which has helped my recovery quite a bit. I'm still not one hundred percent, but I'll get there soon!" Toby went to hug Twilight, but she stopped him. "No, no, sweetheart," she said kindly but firmly. "I don't want to risk you catching anything. But I appreciate the gesture all the—"

Before she could finish her sentence, her horn began to glow with a bright purple light. Toby and Fluttershy looked on in awe, while Spike looked worried. But as soon as it started the glow faded, leaving everyone looking confused.

"Well that," Twilight mused, "was certainly ran—ACHOO!"

With the sneeze came a small explosion of magic, which was concentrated on the area directly in front of the stunned alicorn. When the brightness cleared, Twilight grinned sheepishly.

"Excuse me," she giggled. "Now as I was saying, that was certainly random. But with magical illnesses, random is to be expected."

Fluttershy smiled politely and nodded, before her eyes suddenly widened in fear and she gasped. "Toby?" she said. "Toby, where are you?" There was no reply. "Twilight... what did you do?!"

Twilight didn't reply, choosing instead to look frantically around the library calling Toby's name. In a matter of seconds Fluttershy and Spike had joined her, the three of them searching high and low for the missing child.

Toby opened his eyes slowly, unsure of where he was. He remembered a bright light, followed by a loud bang. Taking stock of his surroundings, he came to realise that he was lying on what felt like grass with the clear blue sky above him. As he prepared to sit up, a couple of faces appeared in front of him. They were ponies, but one was wearing a golden helmet which identified him as a member of the Royal Guard.

Oh good, Toby thought. Auntie Twilight must have accidentally teleported me somewhere when she sneezed.

"What do you make of this, Dusk?" one of the ponies asked of the guard. "Do you think Discord is playing another trick?"

Discord? Trick? Toby was aghast. Why would they say that? I thought Discord was good now?

"I'm not sure, Worthy," Dusk replied, before turning his attention to Toby. "Hey there, friend. What's your name?"

"T-Toby," Toby stammered. "My name is Toby."

"Okay, he's not one of Discord's tricks," Dusk said. "Anyway, it's nice to meet you, Toby. My name is Dusk Wind and I'm with the Equestrian Royal Guard," he then pointed at the other stallion. "And this fine gentlecolt is my good friend, Worthy Cause, who is well known for his charity work."

"N-nice to meet you both," Toby said. "Could you please take me back to Ponyville now? Momma Fluttershy and Auntie Twilight must be very worried about me."

Dusk Wind and Worthy Cause exchanged a puzzled glance with each other.

"Er, are you sure you've got the right Fluttershy and Twilight?" Dusk Wind asked hesitantly. "Because we're friends with them both... and neither of them has talked about having a son or a nephew named Toby before."

The colour drained from Toby's face. "N-no," he whimpered. "That can't be right. I was at the library in Ponyville earlier today. Auntie Twilight was ill so Momma Fluttershy and I were helping Spike. Just as we finished, Twilight came downstairs to thank us... and then she sneezed and accidentally teleported me here."

"By the sounds of things, Toby, I think she did more than just teleport you," Worthy Cause said. He turned to Dusk Wind and added, "I think we should take him to see the Prince, because he knows more about this stuff than we do."

Prince? Toby was even more confused. Don't they mean Princess?

Dusk Wind helped Toby to his feet. "Worthy Cause is right," he nodded. "The Prince will almost certainly know what to do. Please, come with us and we'll do what we can to help."

Toby rubbed his arm nervously before following the two stallions into Canterlot Castle. They walked through the endless ornate corridors for what felt like hours before coming to a stop outside the throne room. Dusk Wind knocked on the door a couple of times before opening it. As he did, he turned to Toby.

"Stay close," he said. "Worthy and I will do all the talking. But don't you worry, Toby, the Prince is a great guy. If anypony can help you, then he can."

Toby looked nervously at the floor and gingerly followed both stallions into the room. They walked for a few feet before they stopped, whereupon Dusk and Worthy bowed.

"Rise," a male voice said. "And how many more times do I have to tell you guys, stop with the formal—"

Toby raised his head slightly as the speaker suddenly stopped, only to find himself looking at another human. He was much taller than Toby, clearly an adult, with fair brown hair. He was wearing a suit, a cape and had a crown on his head.

"Prince Geo?" Worthy Cause looked up as well. "Are you all—" he saw Toby and Geo looking at each other and coughed. "Ah, yes, our guest. This is Toby, your Highness. We found him lying on a patch of grass outside of the castle."

"How did he get here?" Geo asked. Dusk Wind opened his mouth to reply but was stopped by a raised hand. "Let him answer. You're not in any trouble, Toby, I just want to know how you got here."

Toby recounted his story to the Prince, who listened with rapt attention. By the time he finished, Geo was clearly concerned.

"I believe your story, Toby, honestly I do," he said. "But I can tell you right now that neither Twilight or Fluttershy have never mentioned you. In fact, I think I can safely say that you have come to us from another universe."

"B-but surely Momma Fluttershy has talked about me?" Toby pleaded, to which Geo shook his head solemnly. "What about Auntie Twilight, has she not mentioned me?"

"Sorry, Toby," Geo sighed. "This is the first time I've ever heard any mention of you. But surely the fact that I'm here has told you that you're not where you're supposed to be?"

As soon as those words left his mouth, Geo groaned. Toby took only a moment to process them before the crushing realisation hit him, causing him to fall to the floor in floods of tears. And in between his panicked sobs, a single word could be heard.

"M-momma..."

Author's Notes:

This is a crossover between the Geoverse, my own series of self-insert HiE fics, and the Tobyverse, a collection of stories about a human child (Toby) in Equestria. This story has been written with the consent of APoeticHeart, creator of the Tobyverse, and it is not a collaboration.

Geoverse readers, take note: This story is canon to current events within the Geoverse. It takes place after the coronation chapter in A Season of Adventure, but a few months before the Epilogue. So there will not be any sign of Ace (sorry, Crimson Star).