Twilight at Dawn

Doctor Whooves and I walked towards Twilight's library, the entire town quiet in the wee hours of the morning. I found it intriguing that the building was incorporated into a tree, my thoughts turning to the giant redwood trees of earth and how a person could dig a tunnel that could ferry a car through one. When we reached the door Doctor Whooves reached out of hoof and rapped the door three times before walking off.

"Wait where are you going?" I asked, concerned to meet Twilight alone.

"Home, I'll be keeping an eye on you, if you need to talk, or send a private message to the Princess, you'll know where to find me." The Doctor replied as he stepped towards a blue police booth across the street from the library.

When he disappeared into the blue box I turned to the library as I heard a hurried "Coming!" emanate from within. When the door opened I saw the lavender mare for the first time, adorning her flank was a pink star burst pattern, her mane was straight with a pink highlight that matched the hue of her cutie mark. She looked at me. Had her eyes been smaller I would not have noticed the subtle movement of her gaze shifting from my eyes to my throat, where I had been shot.

"It's good to see you." She stated warmly as she smiled up at me. "When Celestia told me you had gone into a coma ten days ago I was so worried you wouldn't come out." She was worried for me? She did not even know me. Such faith, no doubt strengthened by a goddess who truly existed. "Come in!" She invited as she moved from the door allowing me entrance. "When I got the letter that said you were coming to Ponyville, I got everything prepared for your arrival." She pointed to a bed that looked to be made of three smaller ones bound up together. "I couldn't find a bed that would fit someone your size so I had to improvise." The purple unicorn giggled.

"I hope that was not to expensive." I said, concerned that I was already imposing by mere presence.

"Oh no, not at all, besides, the Princess increased my stipend to cover the expenses of taking care of you .... HUH! Oh my! I'm sorry I totally forgot to ask your name, and tell you mine!"

"It's quite alright, my being here is no doubt quite a bit to take in, I am Edmund Ross, and you are Twilight Sparkle, Princess Celestia spoke quite fondly of you." I replied flattered that she had been so distracted.

"Oh, ok, well, it still was rude of me to forget something so important."

"A name is hardly important without something to associate it with." I stated, Princess Celestia had told me she wanted to teach Twilight what I knew, I figured I could start here.

"What do you mean names aren't important?" Twilight asked.

"A name is a symbol, it is meant to encapsulate the whole of an intelligent being in a few short sounds. But the presence of a symbol requires that you know what is being represented, we have only just met, our names as of yet have no attached meaning." I replied.

"I never thought about it like that, but still, it would be rude to just call you 'big tall thing with pale skin'." Twilight said, casting her eyes downward.

I chuckled. "It would be truthful. Though now I think that we know enough of each other to warrant the use of names."

Twilight yawned and winced. "Well Edmund, its almost One in the morning, we should get to sleep, I want to introduce you to my friends tomorrow, unless ..."

"Unless what?" I asked, puzzled why she would have doubts regarding the prudence of her proposal.

"Unless humans are nocturnal? I mean, you woke up late at night, and you still seem quite ... chipper."

"I had been asleep for ten days prior. I think I would be well rested after that. To answer your question, humans are not generally nocturnal, though our sleeping habits can be inconsistent."

"Ok, goodnight, if you need anything, I'll be on the second floor, but try and be quiet, my assistant Spike is sleeping." I had wondered where the baby dragon Doctor Whooves had mentioned was, with this question answered, I lay upon the bed arranged in the foyer and drifted to sleep.

****

Bodicker held the gun to my neck, a sickening grin plastered across his ugly mug. I couldn't hear the word coming from his mouth but I could sense the emotion, derision, contempt, he thought I was an idiot for what I had done. He was going to wipe me off the face of existence for that, to show the world his truth of what happened to those who question his truth. I saw his finger squeeze the trigger when ...

****

BANG!

"This is your singing telegram we hope it finds you well!

You're invited to a party cause we think your really swell!

We welcome you to Ponyville

And hope you will find thrills!

Don't feel the need to bring a gift just coming will be enough!

Parties are about having fun with friends not getting lots of stuff!"

INHALE, INHALE! I commanded myself as the shock of what just happened began to subside. A pink mare stood before me and judging from her exuberant nature I guessed she was Pinkie Pie.

A purple flash appeared beside my bed and Twilight began yelling. "Pinkie! what are you doing, you terrified Edmund! How did you even know somepony new was in town, he came here are one in the morning!"

Pinkie giggled. "Silly willy Twilight. Every time you go to Canterlot something interesting happens! So, I waited outside the town square to see what it was that was gonna happen!"

Twilight looked quizzically at Pinkie. "You mean to tell me that you staked out my house for the last ten days?"

"Yep!" the party pony bubbled as the back-pack on her blew forth another wave of confetti.

"Excuse me." I said, "But where exactly will this party be, and who is going to be there?"

"Well..." Pinkie began before a purple hoof thrust itself neatly into her muzzle with practised ease when Twilight interrupted.

"Here! The party will be here, and the guests will be just us girls and Spike! Right Pinkie?" Twilight turned to the cotton candy filly, withdrawing her hoof before it became drenched in saliva.

"Sure thing Twilight!" Pinkie saluted before trotting out the door.

"I'm sorry about that," Twilight sighed. "Pinkie can be a little ... very unrestrained, she didn't scare you did she?

"I'm fine, though I ..." I stopped at this point as my eyes chanced upon a purple and lime green lizard began descending the stairs as I rose to my feet. This must have been Spike, the dragon, mentally correcting myself at that moment lest I insult him.

"Twilight, what was all that racket? I thought I heard Pinkie Pie talking about a party. Is it going to be ..." Spike stopped when he saw me.

"Woah, you're tall." He stated matter-of-factly.

"Yes, I am." I replied, the dragon reached only to my knee.

"And you speak Equestrian?" Spike continued.

"Yes, I do." I said smiling at the simplistic questions of youth.

"Cool, when Twilight said we'd be having a guest from another dimension I thought I was going to have to serve tea to some amorphous cloud." Spike said. I was liking him already, plain spoken, but far from rude. Though the word amorphous was quite advanced for someone Doctor Whooves had called a 'baby dragon'.

"Ahem," Twilight interrupted. " Spike, this is Edmund Ross, our guest; Edmund, this is my assistant Spike."

"A pleasure to make your acquaintance good sir!" I offered my hand, bending over and smiling.

"Wow, nobody ever calls me a sir! Except when I talk to Cheerilee while I have a moustache." Spike responded, grabbing my hand and shaking it.

"A moustache?" Now I was thoroughly confounded.

"Oh yeah, when I've been extra helpful Twilight uses her magic to grow me a moustache!" Spike iterated. I was aware of magic's existence in this world from my talk with Doctor Whooves, but such a use brought a smile to my face as I imagined Spike with a handlebar 'stache.

At this point my stomach, tired from now eleven days of being neglected, and my body, now tired of consuming fat to keep myself going united in an unnaturally loud rumble with accompanying cramp.

"Oh dear!" Twilight said. "I'll get you some breakfast ... what do you eat?" She asked.

"Cereal." I replied quickly, in truth I could have gone for a full ham, but I had yet to mention my very human need for animal proteins and thought it would be better to mention it when my stomach wasn't raising a cacophony.

As I entered the kitchen between Twilight and Spike, I spoke. "So, Spike, you excited for the party Pinkie's gonna hold here for me?" I sat at the table as Twilight set a bowl of cereal, spoon, and glass of juice.

"Am I ever, Pinkie always has the best parties!" Spike responded going to a cabinet and pulling out a topaz and promptly biting into it. I was stunned, I stared at him as my brain, to distracted by the sight handed the reigns over to my stomach, prompting me to raise and lower the spoon and feed myself as I continued to look at Spike.

"What?" Spike asked.

"Didn't that hurt when you bit into that rock?"

"No. I have really strong teeth, all dragons eat gems."

"Yikes, remind me to never get between you and your food."

Twilight laughed. "He can get rather protective of his stuff. So." Twilight turned to face me as Spike walked out of the room, mentioning something about tending to a 'PeeWee'. "No doubt the Princess told you why she was sending you here."

"Indeed she did. She wants me to teach you about friendship, and good, and evil." Twilight gulped at my last word, Equestria seemed so at peace, so harmonious, I was hardly surprised that mere mention of anything but would set a pony on edge.

"Alright! Go ahead!" Twilight said eagerly as I finished my cereal and juice, I began walking to the sink to deposit the dishes.

"Very well, let us begin, though I would say that we would best start by my describing to you the foundation upon our explanation of the good will entail."

"What do you mean? How is friendship related to 'the good'?" Twilight inquired.

"Would you disagree that friendship is a good thing?"

"Of course" she said.

"Now what is good?"

"Well ..." Twilight hesitated, no doubt quite confused as to why I was asking such seemingly inane questions. In truth I trusted that she knew these things already, but I wished to make sure she in fact knew this, and how she knew this. "Good is a description of something, it varies depending on what ever it is."

"And I agree, but let me see if this example makes things clearer. Would you say a hammer is good if it is able to drive nails into wood, and do this well."

"Yes," Twilight said. "A hammer is good when it hammers well, any object is good when it performs its function well."

To this I responded. "And what do you think then is the function of a pony, or of a human, as I am, as we both seem to share the same properties, just as all hammers that hammer well have a weighted head and a handle by which they are wielded.

As Twilight opened her mouth to respond a knock at the door sounded, and the matter was dropped as Twilight stood suddenly.