Day 6:

Fifteenth hour

--

"We all know.."

I paused, my eyes widening in fear.

"Know what? What do you know?!"

The ponies all looked hesitant and afraid. Even the bold Rainbow Dash looked meek and tiny when I met her gaze.

"..The accident," Twilight finally spoke up. Everyone including me looked at her, the ponies almost pleading her with their eyes not to speak anymore, but I wanted to know the truth. The reason why everypony was avoiding me, the reason why they could no longer look at me with straight eyes. The accident? What accident? Did I do something wrong?

"I don't understand what you're talking about." I said, trying to keep my voice level.

Suddenly, something sparked in the back of my mind. "Accident".. No, they couldn't have known. But I already knew, looking into her eyes and the others. It all made sense now.

"You saw it.. you saw it all?" I said in a slow voice.

Nobody moved for a full minute. My muscles were tensed with anxiety. Twilight finally nodded, fully and slowly.

I was trying as hard as I could to not fall to my knees. I felt incredibly weak and exposed - and above all, betrayed.  I took a few steps back, shaking my head. I didn't want to believe it.

"How.." I almost whispered the words. My voice was shaking badly.

"HOW COULD YOU?!"

Suddenly, all the blood vessels in my body popped, my muscles sprang like a fixated spring. I burst out the front entrance and ran. I didn't know where I was going, nor what would happen when I did. I just wanted to get lost in that thick, consuming fog, and never have to look at those poor ponies ever again. I was too weak, and they took advantage of that.

My breath was shallow, but I kept running. It was amazing that I hadn't run into anything yet. My feet just kept going, one after the other, the chilly breeze cutting into my exposed skin. I had left only with a short sleeved dress shirt on and the same pair of ragged old jeans I was introduced to this world in. I didn't care anymore. Maybe, somehow, the fog would swallow me up and send me back to Earth. I felt broken. I never wanted to think about those memories again. The faces of the ponies tore me apart - I never wanted to see them again.

I didn't hate them.

I just never wanted to see them again.

--

Day 5:

Eighteenth hour

--

After putting the trio of foals to bed, I walked back downstairs, careful not to hit my head on the dangerously low wall. Like Fluttershy's cottage, Rarity's boutique had somewhat of a living room area. I settled down on a couch next to a small, lit fireplace. A small lamp flickered on a coffee table to the side - shadow's danced around the room, the fire and the lamp being the only sources of light. The reflection of the flames and the various furniture in the room flickered off the walls, the ceiling, and the ground. I just sat there, staring into the ethereal, burning embers. I just had a near-death experience.. and yet, being with people to share it with lessened the pain. There was nobody for me after the incident but a bunch of lawyers and doctors. They didn't sympathize with me - or at least, they didn't do so with sincerity. But that was okay, I didn't expect them to.

Rarity was taking a bath upstairs. After the terrible encounter with that manticore, I had already taken a dip in the shower. Most of my bruises were still visible, and a scar had formed on my left cheek. Fluttershy thought it looked awful, but I thought it looked pretty neat, passing over the fact that it seared with pain every time I took the bandage off of it. I didn't know how much time passed until the snow white unicorn trotted downstairs. After greeting me, she settled down by the opposite couch and we proceeded in idle chit chat.

"Alan, dear, would you mind doing me a favor?" Rarity said at one point. I nodded.

"Could you please comb my mane? I'm afraid it's not quite neat, and I can't magic it properly without a mirror."

With some difficulty at first, I managed to somewhat begin to straighten out some of the matted strands of hair in the violet mane.

"I must say, I cannot thank you enough for taking care of Sweetie Belle and her friends," the unicorn spoke after a moment, "It means very much to me that you would sacrifice your own well being for foals you don't even know!"

"Well, it was a trial after all." I replied jokingly. To my surprise, Rarity jerked her head towards me with a slightly stern look on her face.

"But what if you hurt even more than you are now? To put you in so much danger is-!"

She stopped mid sentence, looking at me now not furiously, but with an odd expression on her face, as if she was contemplating me. I took this opportunity to gently set her head back into a position where I could comb properly.

"Please hold still, madame, I will have difficulty if my customer does not feel relaxed." I said in a slightly mock elegant voice. She giggled and shushed me.

After I was done, I set the comb down and sat back down.

"Well, I'm do-" I spoke, but suddenly realized that the pony I was talking to was fast asleep. I smiled - I suddenly found it a lot easier to do so often, despite the injury on my cheek. I laid down on the opposite couch and relaxed, staring at the flickering ceiling. I had only spent 6 days here.. and yet, they felt like the most significant 6 days of my life. Of course, this all could be just a dream or something. But even so, these emotions I felt, the words from the ponies, they lifted my spirits in so many more ways that I had imagined. I drifted off to bed with another, half-hearted grin.

= =

Even as she laughed, Rarity couldn't help but feel the tears from days before creep up in her eyes. She almost couldn't bear to look at this bright, smiling face. How did he do it? The white unicorn went over that thought in her mind over and over again. She wouldn't be able to bear losing Sweetie Belle or any of her friends.. and this odd-looking stallion lost everything as a child.

In the dead of the night, the fire had gone out. Rarity looked over to the side, where a dozing, grey-haired youth lay, breathing softly through his lips. She sighed, and stared at the ceiling. What kind of world did he come from, truly..?

= =

End of the Fifth Day

--

Day 6:

Twelfth hour

The rest of the ponies had arranged to meet at Twilight's home again that morning. Apparently, they all had something important to tell me..

--

Day 6:

??? hour

How far had I run? How long had I run? How much longer would I run? I had no clue. My footsteps reverberated against the ground. Gravel crackled, grass shifted through my feet, stone echoed against the soles of my shoes. They all blended together into one giant sound for me. Vengeance nor hate was bottled in my soul. Nothing but emptiness. I felt as terrible as the day of the accident - I didn't lose any of the ponies physically, but I did know that I could never go back.

Not after this.

My surroundings slowly started to get darker. As they did so, more and more trees appeared on the path, roots and vines covered the grass I trekked through. My breathing was hollow with fatigue, but I didn't stop. I wouldn't stop until I was home again.

But what was "home"? Home wasn't that orphanage, nor was it that blank, white dorm. Home was where you felt welcomed, where you felt accepted, where you felt whole. I let out a bloodcurling scream as I put on an extra burst of speed. Eventually, my progress was stopped by an out-sticking root. I tripped and fell on moss. I didn't get up. My heart was racing, going so fast that I feared it would pound out of my chest. My legs felt like they were on fire. All my bruises acted up again, and I had various cuts from branches and shrubs. My hair was a matted mess, and I was covered in grass stains, leaves, and twigs. I couldn't see anything but black and the darkest of green.

I found the strength and rolled on my side, staring up at the moon. It was slightly clouded by the trees and leaves above, but I could still see it, the bright and full ethereal orb of white. I sighed. I felt exhausted, like there was nothing in me anymore. I could almost feel the small candle in my heart being blown out by harsh winds.

My vision faded, my eyes closed, and I started to feel nothing.

A voice with a heavily african placed accent spoke from a distance,

"What is this?"

--

--Sidenotes

Aaagh, sorry guys. Schools been keeping me busy.

Hope this chapter didn't confuse anypony. I had a few cluttered time spans, but I tried to create some profound dramatic effect. I didn't think it worked too well, but OH WELLLLL

In other news, Zebras.