A Hard Truth

*Knock Knock Knock*

"It's open, Springs." I call out, not bothering to lift myself off of the bed to greet the maid in question, who was now entering the room. As has been the norm for the past two days, ever since the Blueblood incident, Spring Cleaning would come to my room at 7:00 and ensure that I was awake, willingly or not. Because of this, I found myself now waking up a good 10 minutes beforehand, in which I'd wash myself and get dressed, before she'd even arrive. Soon after, Flash Sentry would arrive, either to take me to one of the princesses, or to just keep me safe, what with Blueblood most likely plotting revenge on me.

Speaking of Blueblood, the princesses had decided that, with his attempt on my life, he'd be under house arrest for the duration of my stay whilst a more suitable punishment was to be decided at a later date. During this time, he'd only be allowed to leave his room under supervision from at least three guards, and he needed either Celestia's or Luna's permission. 'I doubt that's going to stop him from cooking up a few ways to off me later, though. Still, good luck with that, mate.

True to her word, Celestia did in fact reward both Flash Sentry and Spring Cleaning for what they'd done for me that morning, just not in the way they'd expected. For Flash, he was assigned the role of my bodyguard so as to keep me safe in the event that somepony like Blueblood decides that my right to exist had now expired, a commendation from the Princess herself and a nice pay rise to boot. As for Springs, she was also given a substantial increase in pay, whilst at the same time being made my personal maid. It was weird, at first, having my own butler, but she doesn't seem to have a problem with it so far. In fact, I think she enjoys being around me.

Actually, no. She enjoys being around Flash, if the glances she's been giving him now and again were anything. 'I wonder if he knows, yet. She blushes whenever they talk to eachother, and they're rather cute. Granted, I don't have much experience in the relationship sector, but even I can tell she likes him. I'll see if I can't find out later if Flash likes her back, after I get today over and done with.'

Today was going to be a hard day for me. Yesterday, after dinner, Celestia and Luna had spoken to me privately. They had decided that today would be the day that we finally got around to talking about my future in Equestria, and whether or not they could send me back to Earth. Whilst I was happy at first, knowing I was going to get the answers that I'd been wanting for the past few weeks, I was now finding myself nervous, perhaps even worried, at what they were going to tell me. I didn't get much sleep last night, with my thoughts not permitting me the luxury.

Would I be able to go back? If so, did I even want to go back? I had a life back on Earth, as crappy as it was. Here? I also had a life, with those who care about me. But the fact of the matter remained that, unlike on Earth, they weren't human. They were living, breathing, talking ponies. Equestria had things I didn't believe, things I thought could only exist in a fantasy realm, and yet here I was. But that was the problem. I come from a place where these things only exist in a story, or in the mind of a child. These things shouldn't physically exist.

Whether I like it or not, I don't belong here. 'Way to depress yourself, Alex. Good job.'

"Good morning, Greyson. Sleep well?" She asked, like she had done every other morning so far.

"No. I passed in my sleep, and decided that there was no better way of spending my afterlife than haunting a castle." I remarked, getting a chuckle from the maid. "Here to be my alarm clock as usual?"

"How did you know?" She mocked, giving me a sarcastic look. 'Oh, she's learning.'

"Oi, don't be sarcastic with me, Springy. That's my job." Standing up from the bed, I turn to the two maids, looking between them both, before double checking. 'Since when did Springs have a twin?' Shaking my head, I realise that there was, in fact, only one maid, who was giving me a quizzical stare.

"Are you alright?" She asks, confused by my odd behaviour. 'Weird, man. I don't remember taking anything last night.'

"Yea Springs, I'm fine. Just got up too fast." I say, reassuring the mare, keeping eye contact with her. This staring contest of ours only lasted a few moments, before Flash Sentry decided to make an appearance, entering the room.

"Am I interrupting something?" He asks, looking at the pair of us. 'Hmm... Let's test him.'

"Yea mate. Springs just proposed to me, and our wedding is in a fortnight. You wanna be the best stallion?" I lie, hoping for a reaction. Eyes widening in surprise, he looks at Spring's, who was just as surprised as he was.

"You-you-you're getting married?" He stutters, unable to hide the dissapointment in his voice, much to my satisfaction. 'So he does like her, eh? Okay, I can work with this.' Before she could respond, however, I laugh.

"I'm kidding, Flash. Calm yourself, pair of you." I say, chuckling. Seeing the momentary wave of relief flash over his face, I smirk. "Speaking of weddings, though, when's yours happening?" I ask, to nopony in particular. Seeing the confusion flash over their faces, I smile. "Don't give me that look, you two. Anypony with a set of eyes can see that the pair of you like each other." Blushing, they turn to each other, unable to make eye contact.

"You li-"
"You li-" 'Seriously?'
"Sorry, you were saying?"
"No, erm...you go first." 'Wow. This is like one of those horrid romantic films, where they both keep talking at the same time. End me now.' Realising they weren't getting anywhere other than cutting each other off and looking like a pair of idiots, I hurry them along.

"Right, I'm going to leave this room, and you both can talk to each other like a pair of adults. Have fun, kids." And with that, I make my way out of the room, turning down the corridor, before stopping. 'Fuck it, let's see how it ends.' Turning back around, I listen in to their conversation, only hearing a few parts here and there. Finally, I hear a thump. Confused, I peak into the room, I see Spring's hugging the living hell out of Flash, the smile on her face threatening to fly off to god knows where. Flash, on the other hand, held the same smile, albeit slightly forced, what with his windpipe being constricted. Looking over to me, I give him a knowing thumps up and smile, before coming away and heading back down the corridor, getting a hoofbump from one of the guards who had also decided to eavesdrop. 'Doesn't matter what species, lads are lads.'

Making my way to the throne room, where I knew at least one of the princesses would most likely be, I found myself face to face with Princess Cadance, unsurprisingly accompanied by Shining Armour.

"Good morning, Greyson." Greets the princess, giving me a kind smile.

"G'morning Princess, Captain. Either of you two know where Celestia or Luna are?" I ask.

"They're both in the throne room." She answers. "We were just heading there now, if you'd like to join us?"

"Yea, sure. I need to talk to them anyway, about my whole 'Alien' situation." At this, they both turn to face me.

"Are they sending you home?" Questions the captain.

"To be honest? I have no clue. That's one of the questions I need answering, along with a couple dozen more." 'Including whether or not I'm in danger, if what happened in Ponyville is a reccuring thing.' My thoughts shift to what happened last week, when I collapsed in Ponyville's park, and how I was unconscious for at least a few hours. That isn't normal and for all I knew, it could be the prelude to something much worse, perhaps even something fatal. As it happens, I'd rather not leave it to chance. Making idle conversation with the duo, we make our way down the corridors.

A few minutes later, and we'd arrived outside the throne room. Before we entered, however, Shining pulled me to one side, gesturing for Cadance to go in without us. With the princess now out of earshot, Shining sighs.

"Greyson, we're friends right?" He asks out of the blue.

"Uh..sure..yea? What's up?" I question, perplexed at this unusual question.

"Well...It's about Princess Cadance...I..erm..-" 'Oh my god, are you being serious. First Flash, now the captain? Cupid reporting for duty, sir!'

"You like her, don't you." I flatly say, a knowing smile on my face. Giving me a nod, I continue. "Does she know?" At this, he gives me a confused look.

"Well, obviously. We've been together for some time, now." He remarks, as if it was common knowledge. For the castle's residents, maybe. For the human who's been here for a few days? Not so much.

"Oh...well then, that's good. I didn't know you were a thing, exactly, but okay. Nice one, cap." I compliment. Giving me a half smile at my words, he sighs.

"So we've been together for a while, and I...well...I...I-"

"Oh for Christ's sake You love her, don't you." This freezes him in place. Slowly nodding, I smile. "Thought so. Now lemme guess. You love her, she most likely loves you, and you want to go to the next stage in your relationship, right?" He nods. "Good. So, marriage, is it?" Another nod. "Splendid. And you don't know if she wants to go that far, yet, correct?" Yet another nod. 'I'm on a roll.' "Well then, I can't help you." I say, to which he looks up in shock.

"But-"

"Oi oi, I'm not finished." I interrupt, silencing the love struck captain. "I can't help you figure out whether she wants to get married or not, by the fact that I'm not going to ask her. That falls to you, Shining." I say, looking into his eyes. We hold this stare for a few moments, before he sighs in resignation.

"You're right. I need to ask Cadance if she's ready for this." He says, to which I nod. "But what about the princesses? What would they say?" He suddenly asks, eyes wide.

"Well...erm...hold up, Cadance is adopted, yea?"

"She is Celestia's adopted niece, so yes." He answers. 'Okay, good enough for me.'

"Well then, that makes Celestia, and Luna for that matter, the closest thing she has to family right now. I can't say much for Luna, seeing as how she hasn't exactly been around to know you for as long as her sister, but Celestia? She likes you, I can easily tell you that."

"But does she like me enough to give me her blessings? It's her niece we're talking about." 'Hmm...Wait a second...Aha! When I arrived!'

"Let me take you back to the day you took me to the throne room. When me and Sunshine we're heading off to her study, what did she tell you exactly, after dismissing you?" I ask, watching as he looks to the floor, trying to remember her words. Moments later, his eyes widen in realisation, as he looks back up to me.

"If you're looking for my niece-"

"-she'll be in her room." I finish for him. "See? Why would she tell you that if she didn't want you to be with her? She obviously doesn't mind you being with her, so what's to fear? When you get in there, just propose to the girl and see what happens. If she says yes, hip hip hooray. If not, well...meh, she'll say yes, I'm sure of it." I reassure him, patting the stallion on the shoulder. Moments later, he nods.

"Yea...yea, you're right. I can't just wait forever. Okay...I'll do it." Giving the captain a smile, I'm about to turn back to the throne room doors, before he opens his mouth again. "Hey, do you have a mare back home?" He asks, a sly smile on his face.

"Nope." Is my simple answer. This shocks the captain, as his eyes widen in surprise.

"What? How can you not have a marefriend if you knew exactly what to say to me?" Exclaims the astonished stallion.

"You know Flash and Springs? I'm pretty sure I just hooked the two of them up literally 10 minutes ago." Hearing this little piece of information, he chuckles.

"No kidding? I had a feeling the two of them would end up together." I raise an eyebrow at this. "Seriously, I did. For as long as I've been Captain, I've seen them giving each other looks before, when the other wasn't looking. It doesn't take a genius to see that they both like each other, but neither of them seemed to know how the other felt."

"Yea, I've noticed that as well. But hey, they figured each other out it seems, though it took an alien matchmaker to get them together." I joke, getting a smile from the captain.

"You are one of a kind, Greyson." 'That I am, kiddo.'

"That I am. Now, come on you two, let's go talk to the mares." I say, gesturing for the Captain Armours to follow me. 'Wait...What?' My own puzzled thoughts were mimicked by Shining Armour, who was also confused at what I just said. Looking to his sides, he looks back to me.

"Erm, Greyson? There's just us?" Shaking my head, I blink a few times, before the captain's clone vanished. 'Okay...that happened..'

"Yea, don't mind me, just uh...never mind, let's go." Shrugging, he comes up beside me as we enter the throne room, as I grow ever concerned about my mental state.

Entering the throne room, I looked to the far end of the room, seeing all three of the princesses conversing amongst themselves. Seeing Cadance blushing at the sight of Shining Armour, and the two diarchs smirking at each other, I could only guess as to what their conversation had been about. 'I wonder...was Cadance asking the princesses what Shining was asking me? Hmm...' Making our way towards them, the three mares turn to us.

"Ah, here they are. Greyson, Captain Armour, we were beginning to think you had somehow gotten lost." Joked the solar diarch. 'Funny.'

"Nope, was just giving the captain here some advice. Speaking of which...?" I say, nudging the captain. Knowing what I was getting at, the captain steeled himself, and turned to Cadance. 'Damn, I should've grabbed some popcorn.'

"Cadance, I need to ask you something....something very important to me." He starts, looking her in the eyes as I walk to stand beside the other princesses. Looking to me for clarification, all they get is silence as I gesture to the pair in front of us.
"We've been together for a while now, and during all that time, I've loved every second of it. Being with you has been one of the best things to ever happen to me." He says, trying his hardest to keep himself from breaking down, unlike Cadance whose eyes were tearing up at the scene unfolding before her. "But...I don't want to be your coltfriend anymore." He says, to all our confusion. However, our confusion is replaced with happiness and surprise, when he lowers himself to the ground slightly, and levitates a small box between himself and Cadance. 'Holy shit it's happening! THE BOY IS BECOMING A MAN!' "Instead, will you do me the honor, and-" He's unable to finish his sentence, however, when he's tackled to the ground by a pink blur.

"YES! YES! YES!" Cried Cadance, smothering the poor stallion. Moments later, and she realised that Shining was struggling to breath, though I doubt that he was going to complain. Releasing him, he stood up, before they once more embraced, this time with tears of happiness coming from the both of them. Giving Shining the same reaction that I had given to Flash and Springs not too long ago, I smirk. 'Well what do y'know, Alex. You've brought these two and Flash and Springs together. That'll do Alex, that'll do.'

However, like all good things, they must come to an end.

Moments later, the all to familiar, yet unwelcome, sense of fatigue that had been causing me problems recently had decided to return. This time, stronger than ever. Slowly staggering backwards, I lean against Luna's throne for support, the ponies in the room all oblivious to my plight. Unlike last time, however, I wasn't plagued by a coughing fit this time. Instead? I was most likely having a heart attack, if the sharp pains in my chest were anything to go by. Grabbing at my shirt, I could feel my legs giving way, as I hear Cadance calling my name.

"So Greyson, it was you who told Shining t-GREYSON!?" She cries, as I tumble down the steps towards her. Landing on my back, I'm quickly surrounded by the mares and one captain, moments later being joined by a pair of guards. Turning to the guards in question, Shining begins barking orders, before they run out of the room.

I've no time to contemplate where the guards had been sent to, when out of nowhere, I begin to feel cold, and my body starts to react to such a drastic change of temperature. I was shivering for what must have only been a few seconds, before I stopped as quickly as I'd began. Instead, the cold was had suddenly been replaced with warmth, and a strange sense of calmness swept over me. Weakly glancing upwards, I notice both Celestia and Luna's horns were glowing, who were both staring at me in horror and...realisation? I've no time to time to think on their reactions, when my body decides that now would be the best time to take a break on functioning. 'Am I dying? Heh, not how I imagined going out. Dying fucking sucks.' The sight of the royals standing over me was to be the last thing I see, before darkness overtook my sight, my consciousness following seconds later.

'Hello darkness my old frieennddd~'

Waking up after god knows how long, I realise that I was no longer lying on the cold floor of the throne room. Instead, I was in a bed, most likely a hospital bed to be exact. Opening my eyes, I quickly come to the realisation of two things. First, this was definitely not the throne room. Secondly, it was very bloody bright, and I had to shut my eyes on account of being nearly blinded. 'Yep, not the throne room.' Opening my eyes once again, slowly this time, I'm able to get a good look at my surroundings, as I look to my right. As I'd established, this wasn't the throne room. Instead, I appeared to be in a hospital of sorts, with multiple beds lined up against the walls. Looking to the left, I see more of the same. However, I notice that there was nopony around. No nurses, doctors, anything.

"Hello?" I call out, hoping for an answer. When I get none, I slump back into the bed. Suddenly, I'm gripped by a rather terrifying thought. 'Was I.....in a coma? Did I dream all that up? The ponies, the castle, everything?... No. No fucking way. I did NOT go through all that shit in a coma, no way in hell.' Knowing I wouldn't get any answers lying in a bed, however comfortable said bed may be, I throw the covers off of me and rise to my feet. Letting myself get reacquainted with standing on two feet, I slowly make my way around the bed, heading towards a nearby set of doors.

Opening the doors, my fears are dashed when I see an a familiar face heading towards me. Or muzzle in this case. Seeing that Spring Cleaning had yet to notice me, and seeing how she was heading towards this very room, I quickly step back inside, and close the doors, moving to the side. Moments later, the door opens and Springs trots in, not noticing how I was now behind her. It took her a few seconds to realise that the bed she was walking towards was now vacant. Letting out a shocked gasp, she drops what she had been carrying onto the floor and turns on the spot, only to be greeted by a smirking human.

"How y'doin, Springs?" I say, unable to keep the smile off of my face at her reaction. Shaking herself out of her stupor, she mimics my smile, and gallops towards me. Knowing what was coming, I fall to one knee and hold my arms out, catching the mare in a hug, her forelegs wrapping themselves around my neck. Moments later, she releases me, tears of happiness falling from her eyes.

"Yo-you're alright!" She cries, wiping away tears.

"You don't say?" I remark, chuckling. At this, she shakes her head, punching my shoulder and trying to look angry, yet failing and looking adorable as all hell.

"Seriously? You collapse in the throne room, fall into a two day coma, and the first thing you do when waking up is be sarcastic? Are you kidding me?" She says, giving me an exasperated look. 'Two days? Yep, Princesses have some explaining to do.' Smirking, I rise to my feet.

"Nope. I'm the same sarcastic arsehole you know and love, Springy." I say, looking at the chuckling mare. "Well, you love Flash more than me, but you get the point." I quip, getting a blush from the mare. "So you're both together, then?" Getting a nod, I smile. "Nice one. Took you both long enough. Now, can we please get out of here? I need answers, and something to drink. Preferably something strong." Turning on the spot, I make my way towards the doors, being followed by Springs.

Heading down the corridor, it's not long before we come face to face with another pony, who is as equally shocked, but thankfully less physical, than Springs.

"Greyson? You're awake?!"

"No, I'm sleep walking." At this, he rolls his eyes.

"Well, if you're going to be sarcastic, we can already tell you're fine, then." He groans, before we both shake hands/hoofs. "Thank Celestia you're okay, Greyson. We've been worried sick about you." He admits. 'Daww.'

"Worried about me? Mate, I'm Al-*Ahem* Greyson. I'm immortal." I joke, though internally cringing at my slip up. Thankfully, neither of them seemed to notice that I'd almost said my first name, and looked at each other, smiling. "As cute as the pair of you are, I need to talk to the princesses. Mind leading me there, oh bodyguard of mine?" With a nod, he gestures for us to follow him, leading us down the halls towards wherever the royals were. Nodding to a pair of guards, who were shocked at the fact that I was up and about, I smile. 'Seems everyone's happy that I'm still kicking. Oh mate, I wonder how the princesses will react? No wait, how will Blueballs react? That'll be something to see.'

The journey wasn't a long one, thankfully, and I found myself outside of the princesses study. Having duties they needed to fulfill, both Springs and Flash left me alone. Reaching for the door, I hear voices inside, and I decide to listen in on the rooms occupants.

"-ver awaken?" 'That Luna? She sounds pretty upset.'

"I'm unsure, Lulu. It could take days, weeks, years...maybe never." 'And there's Celestia. Anyone else?'

"So he may never wake up?" 'Oh, and Cadance as well. Cool, they're all here.'

"...There is a chance, yes." '

"Surely there must be something we can do?" Asks Cadance, before the three turn towards the door.

"Well for starters, Princess, you can make me the best man to your wedding." I say, striding into the room. No sooner had I said that, I found myself tackled to the floor, thankfully landing on something soft. "Nice to see you to, Luna." I laugh, wrapping my arms around the princess. After what felt like a good few minutes, the princesses finally releases me, allowing me to get back to my feet. Turning to Cadance and Celestia, I open my arms outwards. "Anyone else?" I joke, not expecting them to take me up on my offer.

Newsflash: They did.

A few minutes of hugging, tears, and overall sappiness later, and I was now sat comfortably on the ground. Looking to the three mares, who were looking right back at me, I get straight to the point.

"So what in the hell happened to me, then?" I ask, looking right at the solar diarch. Taking a moment to word her explanation, she looks into my eyes.

"As you've already said, your world is devoid of magic, yes?" Nodding, she continues. "Here in Equestria, magic is involved in everything. The weather? Magic. The sun and moon? Magic. Even life itself. You've already seen the different types of ponies. It's how the Pegasus are able to walk on clouds, it's how Unicorns are able to perform their spells, and it's how the Earth Ponies have such strength and endurance compared to the previous two variants." She says, explaining how invaluable magic was to everypony. "Now let me ask you a question. Has what happened in the throne room that day happened before, in your limited time in Equestria?" She asks, her tone serious and her eyes staring intently into my own. 'Well...There was the time in the library...then the park...then the throne room.'

"Twice, this one being my third." I admit, before finding myself worried at her reaction. "Why? What's happening to me, Celestia?" I ask, nervous as to what her answer would be.

"Your body has been adapting itself to it's new environment. More accurately, it has...changed." Noticing my confused look, she continues. "As I just told you, magic exists everywhere. In the sky, in the ground, in every. living. being. For something to exist, and yet not have magic involved in it in some shape or form is unheard of, and quite frankly, impossible. What you have been experiencing as of late, is your body reacting to magic itself. Thankfully, your body has now fully acclimated itself, and so you won't go through what you have done again." Hearing this, I let out a sigh of relief.

"Thank god for that." I say, happy to know that I won't go through an ordeal like that again. However, my joy vanishes, when I notice all three of the princesses' pained expressions. "Is...is that not a good thing? I'm fine now, right?" Looking into my eyes, Celestia continues once more.

"Because your body has now adapted to our world, it would be impossible for it to re-adapt to a world without magic. As it stands, magic has now become a part of you, and whilst you may not be able to stand on clouds, cast spells, or be as strong as an average earth pony, you have now become part of Equestria itself. To that end, if you were to be sent back to Earth, the magic in you would die. And...and you along with it." She finishes, tearing up slightly. '..........'

"So If I were to be sent back to Earth, I'd die." I realise, my voice having no emotion whatsoever. Staring at the ground, I don't feel her wings wrap around me. I don't hear them trying to comfort me. I continue to stare at the ground, what I'd just been told going through my head, again, and again. I don't know how to feel at this. I've just been told that, if I were to return home, I'd die. My life there was now over. It had just ended with that one sentence. Everything I'd known there, everything I'd come to love? Hate? Enjoy? Gone.

So why did I not feel anything at this moment? Hate? Sadness? Loss? Nothing. I felt nothing. Why?

I'm not sure how long I'd been sat like this, lost in my own little world, but eventually, I look up from the floor and into the eyes of all three princesses. Rising to my feet, I walk to a nearby window, gazing upon Canterlot. In the distance, I see Ponyville, the sight of it bringing a small smile to my face. Turning around, I make my way to the doors, before turning back around to look at the three royals, who were giving me looks of concern, sadness, and reassurance.

"Blueblood won't be happy." I say, still devoid of emotion. This brings out a smile from the three mares, however. A moment later, and I exit the study, wanting nothing more than to return to my room and to get absolutely hammered, as every sane man does after being told that going home meant certain death. Seeing as how I would be unlikely to do so, I settle for the alternative of crawling into bed and refusing to exist for a few days.

Reaching my room, I enter and lock the door, before heading to my bed. Sitting on it, I sit there for a few moments, the knowledge that I was trapped in this world still being the most prominent thing on my mind. Sighing, I look to the ceiling, saying the one thing that perfectly sums up my whole situation

"Shit." I mutter, before I fall backwards into the bed, content to lie here for the foreseeable future.

Author's Notes:

Well...This chapter was a clusterfuck of events. First, Alex manages to hookup Springs and Flash. Then, he gives Shining a pep talk about talking to Cadance and witnesses his proposal. And finally, we now know that Greyson is stuck in Equestria, unless he wants to die returning to Earth. Aint that a kick in the head.

Also, I just realised that I've yet to describe how Spring Cleaning looks, so here you go. She's an Earth pony, with a dark blue coat and a silver mane. I'm postitively atrocious when it comes to drawing, so just work with what you've read.

Finally, with the Christmas holidays now done and dusted, school will be throwing a wrench in my writing schedule, with tomorrow being the start of the new term, so please be patient if this story isn't updated for days on end. I'll still be writing, but I'll now have a few more things to balance alongside it. Until next time, folks! Peace.