Fluttershy found herself seizing up at the sensation of the Thorn (a male) suddenly moving behind her and using her as living shield. On the opposite side of the room was Ponyville’s resident greeter/party planner/ and randomness generator, Pinkie Pie.

“Wow, Fluttershy wasn’t joking. You really are scared of ponies.” Pinkie said with a half smile. The party pony made her way into the room stopping half way between Fluttershy and the deer.

Thorn was attempting to determine how the pink mare had managed to come up behind him, without making a sound on the noisy floor. Then realized exactly what he was behind and quickly increased the distance between himself and the pegasus. His heart rate was back to panic levels and the fact that the pink mare had somehow materialized next to him only added to his panic.

"I-I...How? Where did you come from?!" Thorn exclaimed, pointing to the pink mare.

"Well, when a mare and a stallion love each other-" Pinkie started before being interrupted by Thorn.

"Not what I meant! I mean how'd you get behind me without making a noise?"

"Oh! That's easy, I used the vents." Pinkie stated matter-of-factly.

Thorn cocked an eyebrow, "Vents?" He'd never heard that word used in that context.

"Yeah!" She walked over to a silvery metal grate and gave it a light tap, causing the grate to fall, and revealed a decently sized air vent. "See? Nice and spacious!"

Thorn was hesitant but he eventually summed up the courage to check the mare's claim. Sure enough what she had said was true, but what confused him was the cool breeze escaping the vent. "The air is cold in here, how is that possible? Winter is still months away."

Pinkie shot the buck an odd look, "It's air conditioning. You don't have that where you're from?"

Thorn merely shook his head opting to keep Pinkie in his sights. He was wary of this new pony, she seemed...odd.

"Weird. Anyway, what's your name?" Pinkie asked with a smile.

"It's Thorn" He answered slowly. He then remembered what he heard before being startled, "You said your name was...Pinkie Pie, right?", Thorn asked still keeping his eye on the mare.

"Yeppers! Pinkamena Dianne Pie. So, now that we're introduced, what kind of cake do you like?", Pinkie inquired with a wide grin on her face.

Again, Thorn was confused as this was another word he was unfamiliar with. "What is cake?", He asked innocently.

Pinkie's pupils shrank to near pinpricks as she heard the three words that assaulted her ears. At first, she assumed it as just a harmless joke, but as she looked at the buck's confused face and noticed how it wasn't switching to the "gotcha" look, she began to realize the horrid truth. She suddenly ran up to the buck and, despite the size difference, picked the buck up in her hooves and shook him vigorously. "HOW DO YOU NOT KNOW ABOUT CAKE!?" She yelled as she shook Thorn.

"I doOoOon't knoOoOoOw!? We juUuUust doOoOon't have it!" Thorn said as his body was violently shaking.

Once again, Pinkie's ears were assaulted by another set of words that went against her perception of life. A place that did not have cake. The statement caused Pinkie to drop the now dizzy Thorn unceremoniously onto the ground.

The thump was enough to snap Fluttershy out of her stupor and notice the scenario playing out near her. She saw Thorn on the ground looking dazed and confused, while Pinkie looked like she'd been told something earth shattering. She attended to her friend first, "Um, Pinkie? Is something wrong?"

Pinkie slowly turned to Fluttershy pulled her close, "Bring him by Sugar Cube Corner around sundown! I have work to do!" And with that she took off at blinding speeds, once again leaving Fluttershy and Thorn alone. Fluttershy was still unsure what had happened but assumed Pinkie was planning a party for Thorn. She turned her attention to aforementioned buck as he got back to his hooves.

"Sorry, for Pinkie. She tends to get, um...excited when there are new arrivals. I hope she didn't scare you." Fluttershy asked in her usual quiet tone.

Thorn, to his credit recovered from his full body shake, although he was still seeing some stars. He shook off the rest of his disorientation before speaking to Fluttershy, "She...startled me, for certain. Is she...always that...uh...energetic?"

The pegasus mare gave him a sheepish nod.

This gave Thorn pause, and he hoped that maybe he might limit his interactions with the energetic mare. Something about her just seemed off to Thorn, and he didn't like how 'feely' she was either. He didn't like being around the ponies, period...Although...he felt strangely comfortable around Fluttershy. He wasn't sure why, but he wasn't as scared of her. He was wary of her sure, but he didn't feel scared in her presence. He was going to question what made her so different from the alicorn or the pink mare, but he remembered that he had an important objective that he needed to do: Get back home.

"Uh, Fluttershy, I...I appreciate you and your friends taking care of me, but I need to get home." Thorn stated in a calm, but serious tone.

"Oh, of course, sorry to have kept you." ,Fluttershy said while avoiding eye contact by hiding behind her mane. She was still holding a bit of a blush from being in close proximity to Thorn, but it had subsided to a mild pink. Why is that so...adorable...and why do I keep thinking that?! Thorn thought as he was suddenly working to hide his own blush of embarrassment.

"Ah, it's fine. Really. Now, I really should be going. My family will be worried that I haven't returned yet."

The mare looked up slightly with a bit of interest, "Oh, you have a family?"

Thorn nodded as he began to leave the room, "Yes, my mother along with my younger sister."

Fluttershy nodded in understanding as she followed behind Thorn. She was starting to feel a bit more at ease around Thorn and she was happy to see he was relaxing a bit around her too. At least, he seems like a nice pony... deer. A nice deer. It just seems odd that he's scared of ponies. Fluttershy thought as she followed behind Thorn. However, this train of thought shifted to another line of reasoning. Do...all deer think we're monsters? Oh, I hope not. I couldn't stand it if- "Oof" Fluttershy squeaked as she ran into something solid. She looked to see that Thorn had stopped in the middle of a hallway intersection. He was looking down each hallway several times, looking more and more confused.

"Um, Mr. Thorn...is everything...okay?" Fluttershy asked with concern.

Thorn's blush returned as he gave Fluttershy an embarrassed chuckle, "Hehe, uh...which way is the exit?...and my stuff?"

Fluttershy giggled a bit and took the lead, "The exit is this way. Nurse Redheart put your armor and bag in a storage bin near the entrance."

Thorn gave a sheepish thank you and followed behind the pegasus until they reached the front entrance. True to Fluttershy's word, Thorn's armor and satchel bag were in a locked storage bin near the front. Although Nurse Redheart had clocked out during the night, the on-duty nurse was able to return Thorn's personal effects, albeit while giving Thorn a curious look. Thorn managed to not freak out as much as he did initially. His heart rate still jumped when he saw the pony nurse, but he was able to keep his expression fairly neutral.

“Are you okay?” Fluttershy asked timidly as Thorn put his armor back on.
Thorn turned to the mare as he put his helmet on. He was still struggling to determine how to feel about these ponies. She’s nice. The ponies here took care of me while I slept. Nothing adds up to the stories! Especially, this one. She’s timid, barely speaks above a whisper, and I could swear she doesn’t want to get within a few feet of me. It doesn’t match!...Although...the pink one might be up to something. “Yeah, just...trying to deal with...this.”, he replied while motioning to everything around him. His expression was a bittersweet smile and his discomfort was becoming apparent.

Fluttershy noted the bucks unease and she thought of something to help him relax a bit. “Um...you know there was a time...when...I was scared of other ponies...and I’m...still a bit scared of them.”

Thorn cocked an eyebrow in confusion, “Why’s that?”

“Well...when I was a filly...I was teased because of my poor flying. When I came to Ponyville, I assumed that...everypony would make fun of me. I learned that...not all of them are like that...but I still...get scared sometimes.”

Thorn wasn’t sure what to do. He understood what the mare was trying to do, but what he didn’t understand was why. Within the span of an hour, every preconceived notion he had about ponies had been put in a box, then put into another box, then mailed to him and summarily smashed with a comically oversized hammer. Why did the stories exist if they were wrong? Something wasn’t adding up. Maybe the Great Tree knows? It's been around for a long time maybe it knows something. Thorn made a mental note to ask The Great Tree when he got back. He then put his focus back on the mare. “I...I’m sorry...and thank you. I realize you’re trying to be friendly. I’m just realizing...my idea of ponies is...being put into question”, Thorn stated with some conflict in his voice.

“It’s okay. You...just seem very, you know, worried every time you see a pony. I...can...relate to that, so I just thought it might...make you feel...um...more...hmmm” Fluttershy tried to finished her sentence but she started getting nervous as she noticed Thorn focusing on her.

Thorn put on a light hearted smile. When Fluttershy got flustered like that she looked very cute. “Seems you are still working on those fears.”

“S-sorry, I still get nervous around new ponies...and deer” she replied with a growing blush.

The buck continued to smile, “It is fine.” He turned toward the door of the hospital and his smile dimmed slightly. Speaking of dealing with fears. The buck took a deep breath and let it out slowly as he approached the door. This was not going to be pleasant. He opened the door with a hoof and stepped out into Ponyville. He was thankful to find that there weren’t many ponies around, but the feeling was short-lived when he noticed his destination required him to travel through the town. The fates are conspiring to scare me to death. Thorn groaned mentally.

The buck started making his way into town when he heard Fluttershy calling to him. Thorn turned to find the mare nervously hiding behind her mane. “Um...Mr. Thorn...I know that you need to get home...but...um...Would you be okay talking to....my friend, Twilight? If you want, that is.”

Thorn had to think for a moment about who Twilight was, and upon the realization that this was the purple alicorn from the night before he began to feel his heart rate rise. He then forced himself to calm down and think. Ok, ok. My idea of ponies may not entirely correct. Maybe...Thorn gulped as the thought came into his mind. Maybe I should...at least talk to the alicorn.

Thorn slowly and reluctantly affirmed he would speak with the alicorn princess. If only to get some information on ponies and maybe quell his fears. A tiny smile graced the pegasus’ face, “Oh thank you. Twilight was very curious about you...but she was told to rest after she was healed last night. She should still be at the library. I can lead you there...if you want.”

Thorn gave her the okay to lead and the two made their way to the library; however, while Fluttershy was happy to be seeing her friend, she worried that Thorn might attract attention like he did last night. She didn’t mention it, as she didn’t want to inconvenience Thorn. She just hoped the town hadn’t fully awakened.

Unfortunately for both Thorn and Fluttershy, Ponyville was wide awake. To say the trip to the library was awkward would be an understatement. The citizens of Ponyville were well aware that there was something new and unexpected in Ponyville. Word had spread the night before about Twilight and Fluttershy arriving with an odd creature, but now that the aforementioned creature was clearly visible on the streets, there wasn’t a single eye that wasn’t looking in Thorn and Fluttershy’s direction. As the two moved through Ponyville, all sound seemed to give way to silence and nary a soul dared break it.

Thorn didn’t have to look to know that there were many eyes on him, and Fluttershy was just as aware. Even with the attention on Thorn, Fluttershy couldn’t help but shrink as there was an inordinate amount of attention partially in her direction. Thorn was feeling uncomfortable, but he was managing to hold his composure. For the most part, many of the ponies were staring with intense interest and others with general curiosity. The two continued their walk in a general silence, neither wanting to say anything that might garner more unwanted attention. However, fate didn’t see fit to allow the two to travel unimpeded.

As the two continued their trek toward the Golden Oaks Library, two words broke the silence and caused everypony’s focus to shift toward the source.

“LOOK OUT!”

Thorn turned a bit too late, as he turned to see an orange blur slammed into his side at full speed. The buck was knocked to the grounds and skidded for a few feet. When Thorn stopped, he looked to see what had hit him. He found a small orange pegasus filly laying on top of him. Although she was wearing a helmet, Thorn could see the purple mane hiding beneath.

“Ow ow ow. Sorry about that. Hope you’re oka-” The filly started before getting a good look at something that had acted as her brake. “Whoa...what are you?” The little filly asked with wide-eyed curiosity.

“I’m a-”

“SCOOTALOO! Where’d ya go?” Called out a new voice. Thorn and the now named Scootaloo turned to see two more fillies looking around for their friend. When they did spot their orange, winged friend, they also spotted Thorn. The two new fillies, an alabaster white unicorn with a two-toned mane and a yellow earth pony with a red mane and bow, saw their friend on top of some creature as tall as Princess Celestia but had branch like horns. The two looked at each other, then back to Thorn. Everypony around merely watched as the scenario unfolded, each wanting to see how the creature was going to react.

The two fillies slowly approached as Scootaloo slid off of Thorn. The buck got back on his hooves and watched as the fillies reunited. After a quick check to make sure their friend was okay the three turned to Thorn. Fluttershy watched as well, but she shook herself of her shock and went to check on Thorn and Scootaloo. “Are you two okay? That was a nasty crash.”

Thorn nodded, “I am fine. The armor took the brunt of the hit.” He then turned to the orange pegasus, “Are you okay?”

Scootaloo nodded, “Yeah, I’m fine. I’ve taken worse. So, you didn’t answer my question. Who and what are you?”

Thorn lowered himself to the filly’s eye level. His heart was still pounding in his chest, partially to the initial surprise of the impact and that there were still a lot of ponies around him. He did his best to look calm and put on a small smile. “My name is Thorn. I am a deer of the forest.”

The three fillies all shared the same expression of awe as they looked over the deer. Then came a barrage of questions from the fillies in rapid succession.

“You live in the forest?”

“What’s it like?”

“Why are you here?”

“You have horns, can you use magic?”

Thorn was blown back by the verbal assault, but he found it oddly calming. Their questions seemed sincere and innocent. It vaguely reminded him of his own sister when she got excited about learning a new running technique. When he looked around he noticed that many of the citizens were sharing similar looks. They wanted to know about him...no ill intent...just curiosity.

The tales were wrong. They’re...not evil at all...yet my heart still threatens to burst from my chest. This is going to take some time. Thorn looked at fillies, who were still spewing questions in rapid succession. The buck cleared his throat to get the fillies attention. When their focus was on him, he made a modest proposal that might settle everything in one fell swoop. "How about this? Fluttershy is taking me to see her friend, Twilight. She has some questions for me as well. If you so desire, you may come along and I will do my best to answer your questions if you will answer mine. Sound fair?" Thorn proposed with a smile.

The three fillies nodded feverishly in unison and some of the most curious residents of Ponyville even seemed interested. "Very well then." Thorn nodded while holding his smile and turned to his escort, "Shall we continue?"

Fluttershy nodded as she attempted to hide a small blush on her face. When he smiles, he looks really sweet...oh my, what am I thinking? The mare nodded and began towards the Golden Oaks Library with a deer, the fillies, and a few curious souls, in tow.

Author's Notes:

So fear subsides (a little) Next time, Q&A.