*A/N:  Keep in mind every bit of feedback helps motivate me!*

“That’s a fancy lookin’ necklace ya got there, little gal.  I think I’ll be takin’ it from ya!”

A trio of thugs, dressed in tattered clothes and each holding a solid metal baseball bat, approached Loralee and Malcolm as they perused the stock of several stores in the marketplace.  Nobody paid the thugs any mind, because they were the usual rabble of crooks.  So long as they weren’t directly after you, you never tried to stop them.  That was the rule of the marketplace.

This time, they had targeted the little girl on the day of her sixth birthday.  Malcolm had just purchased her a brand new locket with the regular stipend of military money they received from their parents’ services.  The boy was pissed that of all days, the thugs would pick today to harass them.

“Leave her alone.  You ain’t takin’ anything from her!”  Malcolm stood his ground between the three thugs and his sister.  The thugs were hardly intimidated by the ten-year-old boy.

The leader of the group snarled, “And who’s gonna stop us?  Some brat that thinks he’s big?”  He pointed his bat directly at the kid and grinned smugly.

The largest of the group groaned, “Aw c’mon, are we actually gonna beat up a kid?”

The last of the three slapped the large one on the back of the head.  He laughed, “Shuddap, ya dumbass.  Just do what you’re told!”

Malcolm didn’t stand down.  He mumbled, “Fuck off, you bastards.  You ain’t gettin’ the locket!”

The leader’s eyes widened.  He chuckled, “Is that a promise, or a challenge?  Get him boys.”  With a snap of his fingers, his two lackeys jumped into action and darted for the boy.

They were in the middle of swinging their bats when a gunshot rang out and stopped them dead in their tracks.  Smoke rose from the ground where the bullet had made contact, merely inches away from the large thug’s foot.  A tall, dark-skinned man walked up with his gun aimed at the big thug’s head.

“You’re not shooting to kill, Ben?  I’m disappointed.”  Another figure walked up behind the group of thugs and drew his pistol.  He placed the barrel directly against the head of the leader of the thugs.  He chuckled, “Now, you gonna leave these kids alone, or can I shoot?”

The leader slowly turned his head to see who was opposing him.  He was immediately flooded with fear as he saw that the man was none other than the leader of the local gang.  He stammered, “W-we’ll leave em a-alone!  Just d-don’t shoot!”  He dropped his bat and commanded his lackeys to do the same.

They obliged, and before long the three thugs were hightailing it out of the market.  The leader of the gang slowly approached the two siblings, ignoring the confused glares from the surrounding crowd of people.  He placed his hand gently on top of Malcolm’s head.

The boy hesitantly mumbled, “Th-thanks…”

Ben approached the kid with an angry glare plastered on his face.  He scoffed, “You a dumbass, kid?  Don’t you got sense enough to get the hell outta here when thugs are out?”

“Nonsense.”  Ben’s boss chuckled.  “You got guts, kid.  And you’re a family man.  I like that.  I got a feeling I’ll be seeing ya around town.”  With a wave of his hand, he and his dark-skinned employee started their trek out of the market.

Malcolm and Loralee were left to ponder what had just happened.  The exasperated sighs and confused glares from the people in the crowd only helped to further their confusion…

“Boy howdy, your brother sure don’t know what he’s missin’!”  An orange-coat pony—introduced earlier as Applejack—cheered as another mare quickly approached their table with a tray of cupcakes.  

The newly-arrived pink mare—named Pinkie Pie—bounced as she giggled, “Are you sure we shouldn’t just drag him over here to have good time?”  She dropped the tray of cupcakes onto the table, and the six ponies around Loralee each snatched one up.  The last one was hers.

“Yeah, it’s kinda lame that he won’t go to a party made especially for him…”  A cyan Pegasus—rightfully named Rainbow Dash—scoffed as she took a bite from her cupcake.  The pony’s mesmerizing rainbow mane snapped the human from her thoughts.

The girl sighed, “Mac’s never been a people person.  In fact, he’s never been an anything person…”  She picked up her cupcake and took a bite.  A smile immediately spread across her face at the taste of the sweet pastry.

“You simply must talk to him about that, darling.”  A white unicorn—Rarity—levitated her cupcake with magic and took a small nibble before wiping her muzzle elegantly with a napkin.

Loralee shook her head and giggled, “I can’t blame him really.  I mean this is a sort of weird time for us…”

Rarity asked, “Whatever do you mean, dear?”

The human took another bite of her cupcake and said, “This place is so different from our home.  I understand why he’s so hesitant to be friends with all you ponies.”  She took a small sip from her cup of punch.

Twilight Sparkle giggled, “It must be weird, going from a world of humans to a world of ponies.”  The unicorn quickly downed her own cupcake, waiting for the girl’s response.

“I don’t think it has anything to do with you being ponies.”  Loralee said bluntly.

Another Pegasus—known as Fluttershy—asked in a quiet tone, “What do think it is then?”  The quiet mare immediately adopted a look of apology, assuming she offended the human.

The girl sighed, “He’s always hated variables.  If there was a small chance of someone hurting me, he’d never let us get near that person.  If there was a chance that some food would make me sick, he wouldn’t buy it.  If it was possible for me to get hurt while doing something, he wouldn’t let me do it.  He’s always been obsessed with taking care of me…” she paused to take a sip of punch and catch her breath, “…that now he’s having a hard time realizing that he doesn’t need to.”

Applejack scratched her mane and asked, “Whaddya mean he’s havin’ a hard time?  Ain’t that s’posed to be a good thing?”

Loralee diverted her gaze from the ponies and continued, “For seven years, ever since our parents died, everything he’s done has been with my best interest in mind.  He worked for a crime lord because he had to support us.  When he would come home battered, broken, and bloodied, he’d be clutching a bag of money, just to take care of me.  But here, he doesn’t have to work himself to death.  He doesn’t have to protect me because you’re all nice people.  He can’t understand how two places could be so different…”

The six surrounding ponies were sending sympathetic and tear-filled gazes at the human.  Pinkie Pie seemingly spawned a box of tissues in her hands and blew her nose before crying, “That’s soooo touching!”

The human continued, “That’s how I see it, anyway.  He can’t accept that our home was so bad compared to here.  He doesn’t believe that everyone is as nice as they let on.  To him, it could all just be a trick.  That’s probably why he’s at the library reading.  He wants to learn why everyone’s so nice and whether he can trust you all.”  The girl’s smile suddenly faded as tears swelled in her eyes.

Twilight said, “You know you don’t have to explain it to us, Lora.  This is a party; it’s supposed to be fun.  There’s no sense in bringing up baggage.”  She smiled lightly at the human.

Loralee shook her head and wiped the tears from her eyes.  She took another bite of her cupcake and smiled at the ponies.  She giggled, “You’re right, Twilight!  Sorry to bring everyone down like that, I just got a little emotional there for a second.”

“T’ain’t a problem, sugarcube!  C’mon, let’s have some fun!”  Applejack waved a hoof at a few games set up on the opposite side of the room from them.

The human eagerly followed the group of ponies to the other side, where refreshments and games waited for them.  She felt at least ten times better after letting all that bottled up emotion out, and she was happy that the ponies were willing to listen to her vent.

If only Mac could see how friendly they are, maybe he would stop being so closed off and actually try and like this place.  But he’s just too careful.  I’m genuinely surprised he let me go to the party by myself.  I expected him to storm off after us just so he could make sure nobody hurt me…  Maybe this world has changed him a bit, though.

Hours passed as the entirety of the Sugarcube Corner patrons enjoyed games and song and dance.  Loralee managed to show the ponies that, despite her bipedal biology, she could still match them in dancing talent.  She also showed that her coordination and focus was amazing when she managed to pin the tail on the pony poster on her first try.

She even tried her hand at karaoke, and every pony in the building was cheering her on by the end.  Something inside her told her that this place was a paradise, and that she wanted nothing more than to live here forever.  All the ponies were friendly, and for the first time in several years, she was actually having genuine fun.  A party is so much easier to enjoy when you’re not worrying about getting shot by a thug or mugged afterwards.

The sun had set before the party finally died down.  Pastries were devoured, punch was drained, and the guests were worn out.  After most of the guests dispersed, the six ponies and human said their temporary farewells before heading back to their respective homes.  Twilight and Loralee walked back to the library in good moods.

Before making it to her home, Twilight started up a small conversation with the little girl.  She giggled, “You know, thanks to everything you’ve told me, I think I have enough information to write a letter to Princess Celestia.  I’ll probably work on that tonight; I’m feeling kind of hyper after that party.”  She smiled at her companion.

Loralee giggled, “I’m sure she’d want to know all about Mac and me.  Maybe we’ll even get invited to the castle!”  She smiled happily as thoughts of luxurious royalty from old storybooks filled her head.

The unicorn said, “Anything’s possible.  In fact, I’m certain the princess will want to meet you!  I’ll be surprised if she doesn’t send an invitation.”

The two continued the short remainder of the trek in silence, allowing Loralee’s mind to wander as Twilight contemplated exactly what she would write in the letter.

Upon arriving at the library, they found Malcolm passed out with his face buried in the book.  He’d made surprising progress in the tome, of which Twilight was proud and Loralee confused.  After levitating the book onto the nearby table and placing a bookmark inside it for the boy, the unicorn lay him down on the floor and wrapped a blanket around him for comfort.  She gave the other human a blanket and helped her get situated on the floor beside her brother before climbing into her own bed.

They’d been in Equestria for three days, and hardly a change had been seen in Malcolm.  Loralee was beginning to fear that he might never lighten up to the beautiful world around them…

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