The walk to town is uneventful. It’s easy to figure out where I need to go. I just need to follow the path and keep going until I hit civilization. What I’m going to do once I get there…..that, I’m less sure about.

I mean, look at me. I’m a stranger in a strange land, illiterate, unemployed, and unprepared. And Unlike Valentine, I don’t have a Jill to bring me up to speed. Applejack seems well-meaning enough, but I’m not sure she’d want to have a stranger crashing on her couch.

Even if she did, I’m not sure how comfortable I’d be taking her up on it. I’d feel…uncomfortable, at best with coasting by on pity. And it would be pity.

I don’t like the way her grandmother spoke about my being a stallion, and I’m suspecting that it relates to what I am beginning to suspect is one of those cultural differences I was hoping wouldn't cause too much friction.

She didn’t just say unicorn after all, she said unicorn stallion. Are Stallions considered the weaker of the sexes in this world? Or at least, possibly in the context of this set of subspecies.

But dwelling on it isn't going to do me much good right now. I have to get my head in the game and try to get my situation in order before these issues become…problematic.

I can fix the illiteracy given a bit of time and a willingness to learn, both of which I have in abundant supply, and ample motivation to capitalize on. But until then, my employment options are going to be significantly limited. I’m already feeling a bit overwhelmed just trying to figure out what buildings are without being able to read the signs. And that’s with visual aids from logos. Forget about reading simple written instructions or labels.

Sure there’s always good old manual labor to turn to but well…I don't think I’m particularly strong. At least, not in comparison to the Earth Ponies. If Granny Smith was able to mog me on that hoofshake as easily as she did, I can't imagine I would be any match physically for a younger specimen.

I should be able to cast magic, in theory, but even if I had some idea of how much of that is practical in a manual labor work environment, I don't exactly know how to use any of it.

And of course, fixing that without the help of a very patient teacher would again require me to learn how to read. Yeah, that’s definitely going to be a roadblock for the foreseeable future.

As I’m mulling this over, I start looking around for someone or er…some*pony* who looks like they don't mind being asked a question or two. I won't get them answered just walking around talking to myself after all. I spot what looks like a winner further down the street and coming my way.

She’s pink, a brighter pink than me, with a mane approaching the same shade as my coat. Her bright blue eyes seem to glimmer with a barely restrained mirth, a grin stretched across her face as she trots her way down the street. Her flank is adorned by a trio of balloons. Perhaps some kind of children's entertainer?

I cough softly and make a careful approach, pushing down my nerves as best I can and returning her smile with one of my own as I attempt to catch her attention. “Er…Excuse me miss…do you know where I could find-”

As I begin to speak, she turns her head towards me, seeming intent on listening. However, as she lays eyes on me, they go wide. She gasps and leaps into the air, hanging there for a few moments longer than seems entirely feasible before vanishing in a rush of wind and a puff of dust, already well down the path the way I had come from before I can properly process what was even happening.

“Ah,” I say flatly, the smile on my face dropping. I give a small sigh and shrug as I begin walking again.

“Excuse me, Mister. What was it that you were wanting to ask?” I hear a gentle-sounding voice issue out the inquiry from above. I look up to see another pony, what looks to be a pegasus hovering above me, her wings keeping her aloft with relatively slow, lazy-looking strokes for their size compared to her body.

Her coat is a soft grey color, and both her eyes and mane sport a soothing gold color, the former of which stare off in different directions. Her flank has markings that look like bubbles. She’s honestly kind of adorable. Soft looking, I suppose would be the right words for it.

She’s got some sort of uniform on, a brown shirt with a white collar and white cuffs at the ends of the sleeves. She has a hat to match, emblazoned with an arrow with wings. Probably some sort of delivery service if I had to put money on it.

And er…if I had money with which to do the putting on…

In any case, she is offering to answer my question, and I am certainly not trying to start looking a gift pony in the mouth right now. I clear my throat again before speaking. “I was going to ask her where I can find the er…government buildings. I was hoping to ask about resources for education?” Yeah, I think I’ll let her make of that what she wills. I’m a bit too embarrassed to admit I can’t read to a total stranger, as nice as she may be.

She nods and hums softly, rubbing at her chin as she hovers in the air. “Well, if you want to learn, the school is actually down that way. I’m sure Miss Cheerilee could teach you whatever you need to know, she’s really smart.” The mare says chipperly as she points down the street. “You just go that way and take the third left from here and go straight until you see the building with all of the foals in it, you can’t miss it.”

Huh...well, not what I was looking for, but I guess that’s a start, and this Cheerilee mare will probably have a better idea of what I need to be asking after than this one. Hell, maybe she might even be able to give me a bit of after-school tutoring. As much as that sounds like the lead-up to an especially corny X-rated outing, it would be quite helpful.

“Oh, well alright, thanks!” I say appreciatively as I start back on my way again. “Have a nice day.”

“You too! If you need anything delivered, Just let me know, I’m pretty good at it.” She says, giving me a little salute before seeming to realize something and flying off at a fairly good clip. I suppose she was in the middle of work. She must have forgotten herself for a moment there helping me out. I chuckle a bit at the display as I continue walking, feeling a bit better about my prospects now that I at least have a concrete place to start looking.

I follow the grey mare directions, third left down the way, and then straight on. As the afternoon drags on, the familiar sound of a dismissal bell grabs my attention, quickly followed by the boisterous sounds of recently released children.

A gaggle of little ones, foals, streams out of a nearby building. Its overall design, like many of the buildings I have seen on my walk, seems almost archaic in comparison to what I am used to. The building is decorated with a very healthy smattering of pink red and white, dotted throughout with heart motifs. There is a sign posted up in front of the building with text that I cannot read, decorated with a large icon of an open book.

Yeah, I am pretty sure this is the schoolhouse the mare from before was talking about. After all of the little ones filter out and are on their way, I give a small sigh before walking up to the door. I steel myself for a moment before raising a hoof and firmly knocking three times.

“Just a minute please!” A warm, matronly voice calls out, muffled slightly by the door, accompanied by the sounds of rummaging and cabinets being closed before the click of a lock sounds and the door opens.

An earth pony mare opens the door, greeting me with kind, verdant green eyes. Her mane is a delicate, floral pink with a light stripe through it that flights with being white, and her coat is a rich, pleasant fuchsia. A quick look at her flank reveals a Cutie Mark depicting three smiling flowers.

She smiles kindly down towards my chest, recognition of some sort filling her eyes for a moment before she quickly obscures it. She clears her throat and looks upward to meet my eyes, something else creeping into her smile that I do not recognize. “O-oh! Sorry, I thought it might be one of the foals coming back for something. You know how forgetful little ones can be.” She says a tad sheepishly. “Was there something I can do for you, sir? I Don’t think I recognize you from any of the recent parent-teacher meetings…”

Seeing her budding confusion, I give her a reassuring smile and shake my head. Now it is my turn to be sheepish, I believe. “Oh, nonono! I am not here about any of the foals. I was here to ask after...whether or not you offered after-school tutoring?”

Her eyes widen as I speak, her hoof twitches off of the ground for a moment but settles again quickly as her cheeks become quickly tinged with a bit of red as she gives me a look that sits somewhere between flattered and heavily indignant. “That’s awfully bold of you to be asking somepony you just met a minute ago! You know, just because you’re tall with a pretty face doesn’t mean you can just waltz up to any mare you please and-”

“Please allow me to elaborate further, I mean that literally. I can’t read.” I say as firmly and bluntly as I can manage to get the words to roll off of my tongue as I look down unamused at the flustered mare. “I was hoping you might be able to help me with fixing that, or at least point me to someone who can if you would be so kind.” I continue patiently, well aware of how my initial inquiry must have sounded given the limited context. Really what the hell was I thinking, I was even thinking about how cheesy it sounded not five minutes ago. I really should be more mindful.

As she listens to my explanation, her eyes widen a bit, and she seems to calm down a bit, then she gives a mildly incredulous squint as she leans in a bit to inspect me. “You can’t read? Really now…” she says as she brings a hoof up to rub at her chin.

“Er…yes, that’s what I said. “I say a bit awkwardly as I back a few steps away from the mare. “I’m sorry if this is a bother, I just thought you might be able to help, the nice delivery mare told me you might be able to-”

Mentioning the mare from earlier seems to grab her attention. “Oh, Derpy told you to come here?” she tilts her head at the inquiry, her gaze becoming a bit less firm as she mulls that over.

“Y-yes, the grey one with the blonde mane. I am not from around these parts you see, and I figured illiteracy would be a big issue if I were to try to find a job and uh…I’m sorry if it seems like I'm doing a bit, I promise I’m not, I just sort of showed up here and I don’t know what any of the signs say or what I should do or where I should go and..and uh…”

As I continue to ramble on, her expression softens further into one of genuine concern. “Hey now, calm down. I believe you, okay? I’m sorry for making an assumption like that, it was very rude of me. Here…” She says softly as she reaches up and brushes away a tear from my eye. Oh huh, was I crying? I guess I am stressing over this pretty hard.

She offers me a reassuring smile and places her hoof on the ground again. “If you’re serious about wanting to learn, It would be shameful of me as an educator to turn you away, especially if you are in such a bad way…” She says as she seems to mull something over before giving a small stomp, looking pleased with her conclusion. “Come to the library in about two hours, okay? It’s the building made out of a big tree in the middle of town, you can’t miss it, and you can see it from most places pretty easily. I have some things to take care of after class, but once I have that wrapped up I’ll see if we can’t get you started on the basics.”

I break out into a wide smile and feel myself sag a bit as tension I had not been aware I was holding dissipated and I let out a sigh of relief. “Thank you miss, er…Cheerilee, right? That’s what she told me your name was if I remember right.”

“You do, and it is, and you are very welcome mister…” she asks as she looks me up and down expectantly.

Oh! Fuck, I went and forgot to introduce myself, didn’t I? No wonder she was put off, I was being pretty rude, thinking about it. “Sorry, My name is Rose, Rose Tint,” I say quickly, giving a sheepish, apologetic smile as I start to back away again. “Again, thank you, and er…I’ll see you at the library,” I say as I turn and start trotting off, feeling more than a bit embarrassed at my conduct in this exchange. I hear her issue a small chuckle as she more cheerfully waves me off before walking back into the schoolhouse, prompting me to pick up my pace.

Well, that’s one issue closer to being resolved. Now there’s only a dozen or so more to go. In the meantime, I have a bit more time to kill before Cheerilee wants me at the library, and a bit more than that before I’m due to go back to see the farmfolk for dinner. Now how am I going to kill it…?

Sorry for the wait everyone! I got kinda caught up in some recent releases (Palworld, and Balatro if you're curious) and kinda hyperfixated a bit. But hey, here it is, another new chapter, and our first major divergences from the original storyline if I remember correctly.

I haven't started writing the next chapter as of posting this, so if you want to put your two cents in as to who Rose should talk to or how he should kill the next few hours, drop your suggestions down below in the comments section for me to take a peek at ^^.