Ryan stood impatiently beside Rarity at the train station, wind blowing his hair around and ponies constantly bumping into him. He looked around, checking, scanning for enemies. The Wraith could very easily be somewhere here, even if he was taller than most of the ponies. This was why Ryan hated being in crowds; too unpredictable.

The train rolled closer to the station, gradually reducing its speed as it approached. The steam poured out of the stack, filling the sky with white clouds. The cow catcher, which was clearly more for decoration, glistened in the light in all its brass glory.

The human and mare stood silently waiting for the train. At least, they had been. “Well, Ryan, this is your first trip to Canterlot. Excited?”

Ryan breathed deeply. “Anxious, really.” He wasn’t about to share his real concerns with her. It would weigh too much on her mind. “What exactly are we going to do?”

Rarity urged him closer. “Well, I’ll be seeing Fancy Pants today, and you’ll come with me to lunch with him tomorrow. I’ll see if I can’t get him to make some clothes for you., After that, you’ll come with me to shop for fun. Then, I guess you’ll be free to do as you will.”

“Alright.”

The train stopped before them, and the doors opened, letting ponies of all sizes and colors pour out. Ryan grabbed Rarity’s shoulder, urging her to wait rather than be crushed by the ingoing and outgoing groups. She realized his point, and decided to wait with him. During the wait, they got quite a surprise in the form of the other Elements of Harmony coming to see them off. Even Rainbow came.

“Hey!” they all shouted.

Rarity turned around and squee’d at the sight of her friends, running over to hug them. “Oh, you girls. Come to see us off?”

“Yeah, we came.” Rainbow said impatiently. Scootaloo bounced up and down on her back. The little filly nudged her hero, getting her to land before Ryan while the other girls talked. “Hey, I want to talk.”

Ryan looked at Scootaloo, who hopped off and went over to the group. “What do you need?”

“I... wanted to thank you. You know, for saving Scootaloo. Just... I don’t know. Thanks?”

“Alright.” Ran replied nonchalantly. “I’ll let her go; she’s probably under enough stress as it is.” He didn’t keep speaking.

“Well?” Rainbow said impatiently.

“Well, what?”

“Aren’t you going to tell me how you can tell that I’m not gracious or whatever? Aren’t you going to keep thinking that I’m some jerk without really getting to know me? I wanna hear it.”

Ryan frowned. “No, I’m not. I can tell that you’re grateful; it’s pretty obvious. Your number one fan is still alive; if you weren’t grateful for that, you would be a terrible pony. What I can tell is that you still don’t trust me at the least, and that odds are, you still don’t like me. And like I said before, I get it. You really think that I like me?”

Rainbow blinked, and Ryan continued. “I’ll let you in on a secret; there’s something out there, out to kill me.” Rainbow’s eyes widened. “You know why I can tell you that? Because I know that you care about as much as I do if that thing gets me. I know that you’ll keep this secret to yourself, either out of a hope that I’ll die or a respect for the fact that I don’t want the others to know. So yes, I know that you’re grateful. No, I don’t think you like me or care about me.”

“Oh.” Rainbow replied.

“And another thing.” Ryan added. “What you said, about not getting to know you? Well, I’m not the one who’s showing overt hate and keeping away from you when possible. That’s all you, little missy.”

Rainbow furrowed her brow, but stayed her tongue. “...Right.”

Ryan paused, and looked over to the group. They were still talking. “I don’t need you to like me. I just need you to get used to the fact that there is a killer in your midst. One who doesn’t hesitate.”

Rainbow Dash swallowed hard and stepped away, her previous fear of him taking over her countenance. She quickly made her way back to the group and instated herself into their conversation. Soon, though, it ended, and all the mares turned their attention to Ryan.

“What?” he asked nervously. They were all staring at him.

Applejack and Twilight stepped forward. “We wanted to thank you for saving Spike and the girls. Not to mention Fluttershy and Zecora.” Twilight began. “Your actions speak louder than any of the words that you have spoken to us.” That actually meant something, too. “We just want you to know that you’ll always have a place in Ponyville.”

Ryan blinked. He hadn’t really thought of that concept in a while. He was a part of their community now, whether that was a good thing or not. “Oh. Umm, thanks.” He couldn’t find any other words.

Pinkie bounced forward and reached up at his face. “AND WE’LL THROW YOU A BIG PARTY FOR SAVING THE DAY!” Ryan picked her up, since that was undoubtedly what she wanted. “IT’LL BE SO MUCH FUN!”

Ryan shook his head with a ghost of a smile. “I bet it will be.” He set her back down and tapped Rarity. “Train’s gonna leave soon.”

“Yes, we must hurry. Ta-ta, ladies!”

“Adios.” The girls all waved at them as they got on the train and made way for Canterlot.

Ryan and Rarity sat quietly on the train as it departed, watching the others wave at them as they rolled away. Rarity waved back, but Ryan just watched silently, pondering. What he was pondering cannot be said, but it was definitely something important. Probably. Maybe.

Once out of view, Rarity turned to Ryan and looked him over. He looked relatively disinterested, even indifferent about going to Canterlot. Though upon closer inspection, she could see that there was something on his mind that he was deeply considering. She opted not to pursue that and instead look over what he was wearing. She had told him to put that silly beret and jacket and other stuff in a bag. He did, but he refused to put away his vest or the items it held. Under the vest, he had a simple T-shirt, though there were still some spots where the blood from before couldn’t be washed away.

His arms grabbed her attention the most. The bandages, more specifically. They were distinctly red now; he clearly hadn’t changed them since she last saw him. She wanted to simply take them off and replace them with some extra fabric, but she honestly didn’t want to see the wounds underneath. From how Fluttershy described the fight to Twilight the previous day, they were rather deep.

Trying to get her mind away from it, she decided to try and start conversation. “So, this is the closest major city we live near.” she said. “What about your home? What kinds of cities did you live near?” She really hoped that she wasn’t overstepping any lines here.

She wasn’t. “The first that comes to mind is New York. A bustling city of over eleven million people, all doing their own things in their own ways.” Rarity ooh’d, and RYan continued. “People from all over the world live and travel there. It’s one of the world’s financial hubs, along with Paris, Hong Kong, and London. I’m sure there are others, but I don’t know them.”

“Wow, that’s really something. Is it a nice city?”

Ryan laughed, getting a confused look from his travel companion. “Well, that depends on where you go. The Bronx is nice in some areas, but not so nice in others. As in, you will be shanked in some areas. Upper West side is really nice, but that’s because all the rich people live there. Then there’s Brooklyn, Queens, and Staten Island. All depends on where you are in each one; but you can still get murdered or saved in any of them.”

“Umm.... wow?”

“Wow indeed.” Ryan concluded.

Rarity sniffed the air; something was amiss. “Do you smell something?” she asked. “It smells like...”

“Blood?” Ryan finished. He lifted his arm. “Yeah, I couldn’t find a replacement, and I wasn’t going to take any of your fabric, so it’s still the same bandage.” He had gone back to Rarity’s the previous night to sleep. He stayed in the basement. “Sorry for the smell.”

Rarity waved her hoof dismissively. “No, no. No need to be sorry. We’ll just take care of that as soon as we arrive.”

Ryan nodded. Then a question came to mind. “Where are we staying again, exactly?”

Rarity gasped. “I never told you, did I? How forgetful of me.” She looked around, then whispered, “We’ll be staying in a hotel near the castle. The princesses have guests from the griffon colonies, or they’re about to, so the castle guest rooms are taken. Celestia paid for the nicest room in the hotel for us.”

“Room?” Ryan asked. Rarity nodded. “Rarity, I think you should know,” he spoke up. “I don’t think it would look very classy if it was discovered that you and I are getting a room.” He didn’t say it loudly, just at about normal tone. It still got some heads to turn. “I mean, we haven’t even gone out to dinner yet.”

Rarity matched his move, though. “Oh, but we will. And I know just what the main course will be.” She looked at him with half-lidded eyes and a dubious smile.

“Hay fries and an oat shake?”

All motion paused. Then, out of seemingly nowhere to the casual observer, Rarity burst into a giggle fit. “Oh, Ryan. You really do know how to make a mare laugh.”

“I just happen to know which buttons to press.” he replied casually.

Rarity let her gigglefit die and watched the land pass by. The train ride to Canterlot was about forty-five minutes long, so they still had about forty minutes to kill. She thought about some things that she could talk to Ryan about. The stuff she wanted to know the most, though, was pretty much off limits. The jacket that he liked to wear was one, as was his beret. The vest was off. But there was something she could ask him.

“So, what are those two things on your vest?” she asked. He had used at least one to save her friends. “What are they for?” She was curious.

Ryan looked down at his Automag, then back to Rarity. “Are you really sure you want to know what these are?” he asked. Rarity nodded. “Alright.” He took the Automag out and released the magazine, then unchambered the remaining round. “This is an Automag.”

“What’s an Automag?” Rarity interrupted.

“I was getting to that.” Rarity blushed and let him go on. “It’s one model of a type of firearm, or gun, used back in my world.”

Rarity blinked, looked at the gun before her, and leaned back a bit. “You... have a gun?”

Ryan nodded. “I needed it to survive in the woods where I was hunting and being hunted. But back to the point...” He paused so that Rarity could get over her shock. “It’s chambered for the .44 Magnum round, one of the most powerful handgun rounds available. It can blow its way through a lot of things. Like Timberwolves.”

“And it was designed for this.” Ryan nodded to her. “I see. Go on.”

“The pistol operates off of a short recoil, rotary bolt with locking lugs, similar to some assault rifles. You don’t know what those are, but they would require another lecture.” So now she was being lectured on firearms. “Fewer than three thousand of this pistol model were made.”

“So it’s rare, I take it? It must be valuable.”

“Only to collectors. Other than that, I really have nothing else to say on it.”

“What about that one?” Rarity asked, pointing to the 1911. “Is it different?”

“Yeah.” Ryan put the unchambered .44 Magnum round back in the magazine, then stuck the magazine in the gun without chambering a round. “It’s the classic 1911 model, manufactured by Colt Firearms. Kind of an ironic name here, considering you wouldn’t want your colts running around with it.”

“What makes it different?” Rarity asked.

“Well, it has different mechanisms, and it’s chambered for the .45 ACP round. Overall, though, both function in pretty much the same way for the same purpose.” Rarity waited for him to continue, then urged him with a motion of her head. “They chamber a round, the hammer hits the back of it, it fires, and the bullet kills something.”

Rarity looked around; they had lost the attention of the other passengers. “Ah. Well, that is... interesting.”

Ryan nodded. “Yeah.” He paused. “You know, the Automag has never killed anyone. This one, at least.” Rarity was confused. “It used to belong to my friend Harris.”

Her eyes softened, and she sunk a little. “Oh.”

“Yeah.” Ryan felt ashamed at his memories. “I nearly killed him. So I sent him away. But he was a stubborn son of a bitch; he followed me into Vietnam. If he hadn’t come along, I would never have killed Narendra. Didn’t stop Narendra from getting me, though.” He put his hand on his chest.

“What happened to Harris?” Rarity asked, hoping to console him.

Ryan shrugged. “Not sure. Last I saw him, and the last time he saw me, I told him to leave me behind in the river. He walked off into the jungle. I can only hope he made it home.”

Rarity put her hoof on Ryan’s hand. “I’m sure he did.”

“Yeah.”

They were quiet for a time. Rarity removed her hoof from Ryan’s hand and stretched out, Ryan looked around at the other passengers. At some point, most had started looking at him and Rarity. He shuffled uncomfortably in his seat.

Rarity noticed this and stood up. “I’m going to get something from my bag. Do you want any food while I’m up?”

“No, I’m good.”

Rarity nodded and went into the overhead compartment. She pulled her bag out and dropped it onto the table she and Ryan had. “I’m going to get myself a snack.” Ryan grunted and nodded, and she walked away.

But she didn’t go to get a snack. She went to talk to some of the other passengers. “Excuse me.” she said in a slight whisper. The well dressed mare and stallion looked at her. “I’m sorry, but I noticed you staring at my friend and I. I have no problem with it, but it makes him very uncomfortable.”

“I can imagine.” the stallion said.

Rarity let that slide. “Yes. Please, try not to stare over there any more. He’s new to Equestria, so it would be better not to startle him. He comes from... another kind of place.”
The mare and stallion nodded, and Rarity went to give the same routine to the other passengers.

When she came back, she noticed that Ryan was looking out the window at the passing scenery. They were on the mountain with about twenty minutes to go, one of the most extraordinary parts of the ride. Below them, the whole of the Everfree Forest was laid out, with Ponyville at the edge. The trees didn’t look menacing from here, and the mountains in the distance, especially in the forest, were incredibly beautiful.

But Ryan wasn’t really looking out at them. Rarity positioned herself so that she could get a good look at his face. He seemed to be spaced out, contemplating something again. His eyes were glazed, and they seemed to be farther away from their usual grayish-hazel tone. They were much more lively, more pony or humanlike. His breathing was slow, and he seemed calm and still as the morning dew.

“What are you thinking about?” Rarity asked as she sat back in her seat.

Without looking back or even moving, Ryan responded, “Not sure.” He turned back to her, and his eyes resumed their depressed tone from prior times. “It can wait.”

“Oh, uh, I wasn’t going to ask you anything else. You can keep thinking.”

Naw, I’m good for now.” Rarity nodded, and they spent the remaining fifteen minutes in silence.

The train screeched to a stop at the Canterlot station. Ryan had to brace himself against his table to keep from moving, while most of the ponies simply allowed themselves to sway with the train’s previous motion. Ryan took a look outside the window; before him, there was a sprawling city of white and blue, primarily, and it looked way overdone. It could only be the capital.

Rarity stood up and used her magic to gather her bags. “Come, Ryan, let us make our way into the city!” She grabbed Ryan with her magic and dragged him out of the train ahead of the rest of the passengers.

She released him as soon as they were out of the train and on the platform. Ryan stood tall, stretching his back, and grunting. He got some looks from some nearby ponies.

“Great. Already, I seem to be attracting more than my share of attention.” Some were whispering, others were blatantly pointing at him. They were sizing him up, though most seemed more interested in his vest and weapons than him himself. “Note to self; find a way to be less tall.” It could at least make him harder to notice.

“Let’s go, Ryan. We need to check in with security.” Ryan followed Rarity to a small building with a stallion wearing some weird costume. “Hello, Jockey.”

“Hello Rarity. Here for Fancy Pants?”

“I’m surprised that you remembered! How sweet.”

Jockey smiled. “Yeah.” He looked at Ryan, and his smile faltered. “Who’s your... friend?”

Rarity moved aside. “Jockey, this is Ryan. Ryan, this is Jockey, lieutenant of transportation in the Canterlot Royal Guard.” The costume wasn’t a costume, apparently.

Ryan rested his forearms on the counter, making his bandages the first thing the guard saw. “What’s up?”

The guards reeled a bit, but pulled himself back. “Not much. What happened to you?”

“Got into a scuffle in the forest. Nothing huge.”

The guard nodded, but Rarity was shocked and cut in. “Nothing huge!? You fought off four timberwolves and saved my little sister and her friends! And Fluttershy and Zecora!”

Ryan closed his eyes and groaned as the guard stared at him slack-jawed. “Wow. Humble, much?” He chuckled. “Well, that makes you a hero. You’re welcome here anytime.” The hero comment bit at Ryan’s mind, but he kept it well hidden.

The guard let them go past and they made their way to the city. Rarity took the lead, but kept Ryan close behind on the way to keep him from getting lost.

They were right at the edge of the city. The white buildings towered over them, confining Ryan to the streets and close quarters. It made him uncomfortable, especially when Rarity called a taxi over.

“Oh, yoohoo! Taxi!” One immediately came by. Rarity leaned in the window and batted her eyelashes at the puller. “Would you be a dear and bring us to the Hanoverian Hotel?” The driver nodded enthusiastically. “Great!” Rarity turned to Ryan. “Let’s go!” Ryan got in after her and they rode off.

While they rode through the city, Ryan took a look out the windows. It was a bustling city, alright; comparable to New York in ponies moving about their lives. Criers shouted at passing ponies, stores had dozens of customers, kids ran through the streets. It brought Ryan home for a minute.

He was jerked back into “reality” when the taxi halted suddenly and threw RYan face first into the wall. Rarity had used her magic to keep herself from the same fate.

“Oh, my! Are you alright?” she asked. Ryan grunted in response, and looked out the window. Some dude was trying to get into the cab, but the puller was yelling at him to get lost. The stallion was ratehr aggressive.

Ryan got up and leaned into the window, pulling out his Automag. Without chambering a round, he pointed it right at the stallion’s forehead. “You wanna die? Try me. I don’t feel like dealing with assholes right now.” The stallion backed off. and they went on their way. When Ryan got back in, Rarity looked at him, freaked out. “There’s no round chambered.” She let out a sigh of relief.

They arrived at the hotel in no time, and Rarity paid the cab driver by giving him his fair and a fake mailing address. He took both gleefully and went on his merry way.

“You’re all heart.” Ryan commented as they approached the doors of the Hanoverian Hotel.

Inside, the ponies of the front lobby looked at the new duo with awe. They had never seen a human before, and he was coming in with Rarity, who had become pretty famous in her own right. While he and Rarity made their way to the front desk, Ryan kept his hand on his Automag, ready to pull in case something happened. He didn’t expect something to happen. Then again, he hadn’t expected to be kidnapped by terrorist human traffickers either.

At the desk, Rarity greeted the deskmare with some familiarity. They had a little conversation, and, thankfully, this time, Rarity didn’t introduce Ryan. “Will there be a colt to bring our things to our room?” Rarity asked. The mare nodded, and Rarity dropped her bags. “Wonderful!” She turned to Ryan. “Let’s go out and do something!”

Ryan quickly picked up the bag with his things. “Alright. Where to?”

“Well, first we need to visit the hospital to get those bandages changed. They look and smell terrible.” Ryan looked around; the ponies’ noses were twitching.

“Lead the way, then.”

Rarity lead Ryan through the city to the hospital. As soon as they were out the door of the hotel, she started telling him about the place. “Canterlot really is one of the greatest, if not the single greatest, cities in Equestria. The hospital we’re going to is among the best for all types of care; broken bones, cuts, or worse. The shopping is truly glorious, so many choices!” She went on.

They were walking through the streets, surrounded by all sorts of ponies and even griffons. Most of them haughtily ignored the two, though all of them dared a look at the new species in their midst. It made Ryan uncomfortable; it was exactly like his first time in Ponyville, minus the haughtiness.

The hospital was in view. “There’s the hospital, Ryan. Once we’re done, what say we-”

“Stuff your mouth and give me all your bits!” Rarity gasped in shock and fell back as a mugger wearing a mask appeared before them. “I ain’t playing!” He had a knife in his mouth.

“Knife!” “Mugger!” “Guards, guards!” the crowd yelled.

Ryan took one look at the mugger. “You know that there are two ways out of this.” he said.

“What?” The mugger was confused.

“Let me ask you a question.” Ryan said, pulling out his Automag and chambering a round. “What do I and my friend here look like?”

The mugger shook his head. “What?”

Ryan, annoyed about a bunch of things, shook his head. “What country you from?!”

“What?”

“What ain’t no country I ever heard of. They speak Equish in What?” The crowd watched in horrified awe. Rarity cowered behind Ryan.

“What?”

“EQUISH, MOTHER FUCKER! Do you speak it!?”

The mugger’s eyes were wide and he stepped back. “Yes?”

“Then you understand what I’m telling you.” The mugger nodded, trying to steel himself. “The let me say again; there are two ways out of this. You can; One: Leave my friend and I alone. Or Two:” Ryan pulled up the Automag. “This can get really ugly.”

The mugger, knife in teeth, thought it over. He was just challenged in front of hundreds of ponies, and the guards had yet to arrive. He locked eyes with Ryan; the cold rage in the human’s eyes told him Come at me. So he did.

He ran at Ryan, swinging the knife with his neck. But Ryan caught his neck with his hand. “Wrong choice.” The human whipped the pistol around, pointed it at the stallion’s hind, pressed the barrel in, and pulled the trigger. The loud BOOM roared from the gun and echoed through the streets, silencing any and all activity. The recoil sent it flying back into the air, and the would-be mugger fell to the ground, screaming.

Ryan put the Automag back in its place. Six shots left. “Come, Rarity. I’m sure someone will take care of this.” Rarity swallowed hard and complied, looking back at the screaming stallion as they went to the hospital.

Rarity spoke up when they were halfway there. “Was that really necessary?” she asked. “I mean, he may never walk again.”

“Well, if he’s not going to rob anypony else, why does that matter? People turn to theft because there is nothing else. Not being able to walk won’t change that for him.” Rarity couldn’t help but to see the logic in Ryan’s words as they made their way to the place where the stallion was likely to be soon anyway.

Once inside the hospital, Rarity hurriedly dragged Ryan to a doctor who could switch out the bandages. The two were brought to a room and had to wait for almost half an hour before they got the doctor.

“Alright, what- oh.” The doctor said as he walked in. “Well, it’s simpler than the nurse made it out to be.” Ryan cocked an eyebrow at the doctor. “Just let me remove the bandages, and I’ll get started.”

Ryan shrugged and let the doctor do his thing. He let his mind wander while the bandages were coming off, mostly to the last time he was in a hospital. Last time, he was there for this same reason, plus to steal medical supplies. That also brought his mind to that remaining morphine syringe, which he seemed to have lost. Oh well.

When the bandages were all the way off, the doctor sucked in his breath through his teeth. “Oh. Maybe the nurse was right.” He looked at Ryan’s face. “This will take about fifteen minutes, and it might feel odd. Just try to relax.”

Ryan didn’t get it until the doctor started. He was using magic, being a unicorn, to fix the torn flesh of his forearms. Ryan found himself fascinated and had to watch as the bits of flesh were burned away and new flesh came seemingly out of nowhere to stitch itself back together. The blood receded back into his arm, and before he knew it, he looked good as new. Only his old scars were still left.

“Alright, all done. Now, that’ll be about sixty bits.” Ryan had no money on him, so he turned to Rarity.

“No worries; I’m treating you on this trip. I’ll get it.” Rarity paid the doctor upfront; not common back home; and the two left the hospital together, ready to face the city.

They walked out of the hospital only to be greeted by a group of royal guards, wearing their ridiculous uniforms of brass armor and helmets with that funky blue fuzz on them. “Halt.” One said. Ryan and Rarity stopped in their tracks.

“Can I help you, sir?” Rarity asked politely. “If this is about that colt in the mask, I can explain my friend’s actions.”

The guards put a hoof up and shook his head. “No need. We just need to get a testimony from him really quick, then we’ll be on our way.”

Rarity turned to Ryan. “Well?”

Ryan shrugged. “Alright. What are your questions, officer?”

“I’m not an officer.” the guard replied, seemingly feeling complemented.

“You could be. Anyway, questions?”

“Right.” The guard pulled up a pad. He, too, was a unicorn, though it was hidden by that stupid helmet. “Questions are; Why? Where? With what did you defend yourself?”

“Why; we were being attacked with a knife. Where; over there. With what; My Automag pistol. Can’t explain that one; national security risk.” The guard went wide-eyed, then just jotted down the notes. “Anything else?”

“No, sir. Have a good day.” Ryan replied in the same manner, and the guards let the duo go.

Rarity did not comment on Ryan’s words to the guards as they left. She walked beside him, looking up at him with a mixture of curiosity and confusion. Ryan tried to ignore it and keep walking, but the look seemed contagious to the ponies around them. In an effort to lose the looks, Ryan took a number of sharp turns, but the constant starting was born from Rarity.

“Rarity, I need you to stop staring at me. I understand that I my body is hard for you not to look at...”

Rarity scoffed and shook her head. “Well, I never. I can assure you, that is not why I was looking.” Ryan nodded, satisfied that he had gotten her to stop starting.

Rarity took the lead again and led him around the nicer areas of the city. She started by taking him to the major shopping center, which wasn’t a mall, but a large collection of buildings with stores. Mostly, it was fashion stores, with pony dresses and crowns and girly things that Ryan had no interest in. Other stores sold gourmet food, and there were some nice restaurants, too. Ryan even spotted a couple of pubs and bars.

“Remember that for later.” he told himself.

Rarity took him back to the hotel, which Ryan had decided to affectionately change the name of from the Hanoverian Hotel to the Hanoi Hilton. He felt like he was a prisoner in this snooty city.

“Well, Ryan, I need to go talk to Fancy Pants now. I trust that you can make your way around?” Rarity asked.

Ryan nodded. “Yeah, I think I can make my way around. I’ll try to avoid trouble.” Rarity nodded happily, handed Ryan a bag of three hundred bits, and then left Ryan to his own devices, waving at him from a taxi she called over. Ryan waved back until she was out of sight.

As soon as she was gone, Ryan walked away from the Hanoi Hilton and went out into the fray in the city. He had absolutely nothing to do right now, something that hadn’t truly plagued him since he first arrived in Equestria. It reminded him of home.

Ryan made his way to the shopping center with the sack of money, wondering what he would even do with it. If they had it available, he would definitely have bought some ammo for his guns, but there was nothing like that. He doubted that weapons were sold here, and armor that would fit him was out of the question. Having crossed all of those things off of the list of possible items to purchase, Ryan figured he would look for tactical gear. Maybe a flashlight he could strap onto his 1911.

With no clue as to where to start looking, he just wandered into the collection of buildings and looked around for any stores that might have what he wanted. Few stores even came close, but that was due to the fashion theme he noticed before. He actually decided to walk into the fourth one he saw.

When he walked in, he got all kinds of ponies looking at him. Most were looking incredibly confused at Ryan, probably due to his vest and still stained shirt. He was an oddity in every possible way to them, and they didn’t bother trying to hide it. Ryan gauged the faces he could see; some were shocked, others looked scared. One he recognized from the streets near where he shot the mugger.

A store clerk trotted on over, unphased by Ryan’s not being a pony. Business is business. “Hello, and welcome. I’m Jack.” First pony with a normal name. Wow. “What can I do for you today?”

Ryan thought for a moment. “Do you sell cloaks? Like the kind with hoods, maybe to protect against rain or something?”

The clerk looked intrigued. “Why, yes. Please, follow me.” Ryan followed the clerk to a back section of the store. As he walked, the other customers actually stopped looking at him, probably because he seemed much more normal now that he was buying stuff. The clerk stopped at a row. “These are our cloaks.”

Before even looking at any, Ryan took a gander at the price tag; none were under two hundred bits. “Hmmm.”

“If these are too expensive, as in you want a bit more practicality, we have others right over here.” The clerk walked on over to another row. “These don’t get more expensive than one hundred bits.”

Ryan nodded. “Nice.” He walked over and took a look at the cloaks before him. There weren’t any cloaks in a camouflage tone, but most were a nice jet black. Ryan pulled one of the larger ones off of the rack. “May I?” The clerk made a motion for him to try it on. When Ryan swung it around, it rested nicely on his shoulders and managed to go down to just above his feet. He walked a few steps in each direction. “I like it.”

“I had a feeling you might. This one is only seventy bits, and its good quality and it’ll last you a long time.” The clerk smiled at his near commission.

Ryan thought. The black cloak could be extremely useful in the forest for avoiding being seen at night. “Alright. I’m sold. Ring’er up.” The clerk got an excited look as he lead Ryan to the counter to buy the hooded cloak.

He didn’t don it when he went outside; it was too hot, the start of September. He thought. He had no idea how the seasons actually worked here. Thinking about it, this was about the time that he would normally be getting ready to go back to school. It would have been his senior year. What were his friends back home doing right now? Or his family? They had no idea where he was...

Ryan threw the cloak over his shoulder and let it go, trying his best not to think about it. He strolled on through the streets, getting fewer looks of awe, but more looks of curiosity and even admiration. One stallion who passed by told gave Ryan a thank you for stopping the mugger. Word travels fast here.

He kept on walking, browsing the windows and shop names to see if anything might come up that he might be able to use. The cloak was useful for stealth, but was there anything else he might be able to use to stay alive in the forest? He could probably use some kind of under armor, and something like leather would be best. But he doubted that there would be any leather around here.

But he did find a store that might have something. The sign above the street was in its fancy letters, but its name suggested anything other than fanciness; Hard Work for Hard Play. Curious, Ryan walked in.

He found himself in a maintenance shop of some kind. All around him, there were parts of varying size, shape, and functionality. Gears, pistons, all sorts of things. In another area of the shop, there were things that a mechanic might wear, like hoof covers, vests, helmets, and... gloves?

Ryan was soon approached by a store clerk. “Hey.” Ryan turned to greet him. “I never saw you before. You new?” Ryan confirmed. “Yeah, thought so. What brings you into my shop? Most of the ponies around here don’t do their own work, so I sell to the ponies who do their work or ponies who do their own work. But you aren’t a pony.”

“That, I am not.” Ryan replied. He looked over the rack of safety wear. “I just came in to browse, but now I’m curious. Why do you have gloves for fingers like these?” Ryan flexed his digits for the store clerk.

“Well, we get all sorts of customers. Young griffons from other lands, ponies, horses from Saddle Arabia, occasionally dragons, albeit small ones, and other creatures with hands. But you’re new to me.”

“I get that alot.” Ryan picked out a pair of gloves that might fit him. “What can you tell me about these?”

The clerk smiled. “Ah, those. Those are light mechanics gloves, mostly used when working with sharp things. They’re made of this new fabric that’s super cut and heat resistant. The name escapes me for some reason...”

“Kevlar?” Ryan responded hopefully.

“Yeah, that’s it.”

At this point in his life, nothing was capable of making Ryan leap with joy. But if something were to, this would certainly have been it.” How much for them?”

“Twenty bits.” Ryan pulled out the money and handed to him, pocketing the gloves. “Thank you.”

The human looked back at the rack, specifically, at the vests. “Mind if I try one of those on?” he asked. The store clerk motioned for him to go for it. Ryan put several vests on until he found one that worked alright. “Same material?” he asked. The clerk nodded. Ryan hopped up and down a little, finding it to be a bit loose. He could fix that later. But there was something else. “What’s this space in here?” There was a series of little pockets inside the vest, front and back.

“Oh, those?” The clerk pulled another vest off. “Well, these vests are meant primarily for ponies designing carriages, which requires a lot of flat pieces. Those pockets just help for carrying the smaller ones.”

Ryan could hardly believe his ears. If he could get some ceramic plates, or even steel, he could get used to it, he would have alight armor vest. It would be perfect for traveling in the Everfree; light, cut resistant and strong protection, plus the stealth of the cloak. While he was at it, Ryan pulled a helmet that looked strong off the rack.

“How much for this, too?” The store clerk asked for one hundred bits, which Ryan eagerly gave him. Then, the human was on his way.

He still had one hundred-ten bits left, so Ryan figured that he might as well try to find those ceramic plates. He carried all of his new things with him, slung over his shoulder, thinking about the forest. With a new vest, he would need new holsters for his guns and a better way to carry his KaBar. That was doable. He would need to have camping supplies to carry out there so he could figure out how he would spend his nights while building an actual home to live in. Then again, why was he even doing that? He could just keep living in tent. In fact, why was he doing any of this? Was this the only thing that kept him going? Could he really be-

His thought were derailed when he ran smack dab into another pony in the street, knocking the both of them over. Ryan dropped his stuff and instinctively, his hands went straight to his weapons. Taking a look down, he saw that there was no attacker, just some random mare that had a couple of bags.

He leaned down and put his own things in a pile before organizing the mare’s things. “Shit, sorry.” he said. “Didn’t see you there.”

“No worries; I know what it’s like to have my head in the clouds.” she replied.

Ryan looked at her; she had a sun yellow coat and wings. Her mane was two toned, a fiery orange theme, brighter on the inside, darker on the outside. Her mane was swept back, like it was windblown, and her tail looked relatively unkempt. Much like his own hair. Her irises were a deep shade of bronze, and she looked pretty casual about getting bowled over by some random creature.

“I take it you fly a lot.” Ryan replied, gathering up her bags and handing them to her. She hung them on her open wings, then closed them. Clever way to carry stuff.

“You never heard of me? That’s a first.” Ryan shrugged. “It’s actually nice not to be stared at uncomfortably.”

“Yeah, I know that feeling.” He looked around; they were being watched by EVERYPONY present. “But not at the moment, I don’t.”

The mare looked around, then scowled. “Alright, I guess we’ll have to move.” Apparently, they were having a conversation. Ryan just shrugged and followed as the mare silently led the way out of the area.

The mare led them to a small park with a bench, then sat down. “I’ve never seen your kind before. What brings you to Equestria?”

Ryan sat beside her. “Magic. And dying, I think.” She blinked incredulously. “Don’t ask; it’s hard enough to think about, and I went through it.” Ryan paused. “The reason I’m in Canterlot, though, is that Rarity brought me here.”

“Rarity?” Spitfire asked. “As in, Element of Generosity Rarity? Famous fashion designer Rarity?” Ryan nodded. “Wow, you’re way up there already in knowing significant ponies.”

Ryan nodded. Yeah, I guess so. Am I to guess that you are also significant, by your rather aloof demeanor towards our encounter? Important people rarely get mad about that, since they already KNOW they’re important.”

The mare made a face, then smacked her forehead. That must have hurt, actually, with hooves and all. “Sorry, I forgot to tell you my name. I’m Spitfire Captain of the Wonderbolts.”

Ryan raised his eyebrows. “Oh. Wow.” He had no idea what to think about that. “Rainbow talks about you guys a lot.”

“Yeah. She’s got potential, but she’s too hot headed, too arrogant.” Ouch. If Rainbow heard that. “She could be great, if she just got over herself a little.”

Ryan nodded. “Yeah, I could see that.”

They spent some time talking, mostly about the other elements and what the Wonderbolts do in Equestria. They sounded a lot like the USAF Pararescuemen and Combat Control Teams. Turns out, they had actually been a branch of Special Forces of Equestria back in the day, but more as Recon Birds, so to speak. They were the 71st Strategic Recon (SR) Battalion. Spitfire regaled him with stories of heroism and bravery from the days of war and the loss of some very talented operators. Ryan actually felt interested in the stories.

Twas not to last. “Well, I have to get back to HQ. My team did a good job in the last performance, so I’m treating them with good beer and a night off.”

Ryan smiled at her. “Well, I wish you a pleasant evening.” Spitfire smiled back and went off.

Ryan looked at his watch; it was almost seven. He didn’t realize he had been out so long, and figured that it was a good time to head back to the Hanoi Hilton. He had already forgotten the actual name. When he got there and walked in with all his stuff, the desk mare instantly recognized him (how could one of them forget?) and greeted him by giving him a key. Ryan thanked her and went on up to his room.

Inside, he threw his new clothes to the side and just waited for Rarity to come back. That was his first plan, at least. His stomach growled, reminding him that he had yet to eat something since she left. He left his room and decided that he would find a little food court eventually if he just walked around on the first floor.

After a bit of time walking around, he did find a small restaurant near the front lobby. When he walked in, the waiter looked at him funny.

“Well, someone needs to control their pets.” the waiter said to himself. Ryan frowned. “You lose your master?” Ryan did not respond. “I really hope this thing is neutered.

“You’re the one who’s gonna end up castrated if you don’t shut the hell up.” The waiter reeled back, startled by Ryan’s sudden threatening speech. “Now are you gonna serve me, or am I gonna have to serve you?”

The waiter looked snootily at him. “Well, I can assure you that we don’t appreciate being spoken to as such here.”

“And I can assure you that I don’t appreciate being called an animal by snobby bitches. Didn’t seem to stop you, though.” Ryan crossed his arms.

“We don’t serve your kind here.”

Ryan laughed. “Oh, so now its racism. I see how it is. I’ll be notifying your manager.” Ryan started to walk away.

“Wait, wait! Is that necessary?” The waiter gave him an awkward smile, to which Ryan gave a leveled stare.

“Apparently.”

Just then, the door behind him opened up. “Ryan, I was wondering where you were!” Ryan turned around; Rarity had come back. “How was your day?”

Ryan shrugged. “Decent. Got some useful stuff. But then I encountered this racist.” Ryan pointed at the waiter casually. “Gonna report him to the hotel manager.”

“Please, don’t! I- I’ll pay for your meals personally, just don’t tell him! I’ll lose the only job I can get!”

Ryan and Rarity exchanged looks, and Rarity smiled. “I think that sounds fair.” she replied. The waiter let out a sigh of relief, and he led them to a table.

They sat down on some cushions, and the waiter left them be. “Oh, waiter, before you go.” The waiter turned. “We’ll be joined by Fancy Pants soon.” The waiter’s eyes bugged out and he nodded excitedly, then left.

Ryan started looking at the menu. he was shocked and glad to see that there was actually meat on it. Probably to serve Griffons. Rarity looked at her own menu, probably just trying to pass the time while they waited for their final guest to arrive. He arrived only minutes later.

“Fancy!” Rarity shouted, getting up to greet her friend and business partner. That kind of thing rarely works back home. “Glad to see you could come.”

Ryan stood up and looked over to note the stallion’s appearance. He was tall, even taller than Big Mac. The guy was alabaster white, much like Rarity, and had a horn to match. He wore a nice suit and a monocle, and he held himself with very regal posture. But he seemed decent right off the bat.

Ryan stepped towards the two friends. “Oh, and Fancy, I would love for you to meet Ryan.” She introduced Ryan. “He’s quite the hero where he comes from.” So he was a hero now? “And here as well.” Maybe.

Ryan extended his hand. “Pleasure to meet you.”

Fancy took it. “The pleasure is mine, old sport.” They all sat down. “So I understand that you have had quite the exploits.” Fancy began.

“I have.” Ryan replied. “None of which too pleasant, I’ll add.” Fancy nodded and didn’t continue with his questions. Ryan already liked him.

Rarity decided to answer instead, though. “Ryan recently fought off four timberwolves and saved my little sister’s life.” Fancy raised his eyebrows, impressed. “He also saved her friends, and my two friends Fluttershy and Zecora.”

“Good show, sir!” Fancy said. “I say, old sport, that really is something. The wonderbolts would be impressed with you.”

Ryan shrugged. “Maybe. Spitfire seemed like a reasonable mare.” His dinnermates raised their brows. “I met her today when I walked right into her and knocked her stuff to the ground. We had a nice conversation after that.”

“My, my. You seem to be meeting all the most influential ponies lately.” Rarity commented. “Before you know it, Ryan will be the one everypony is trying to impress.” She and Fancy laughed.

They ordered their food, and it came pretty quickly. Blackmail will do that. “So, Rarity tells me that you need new clothes.” Fancy started. “I can certainly do that for you if you come to my home tomorrow. It would be interesting to design for a new species such as yourself.”

“That sounds good.” Ryan replied as he ate. WIth that bit of business, done, they all continued eating and chatting about whatever came to mind.

When they finished, Fancy had to go to meet his wife. Before he left, Ryan had one thing to say. “Are you stuck in a... rut?” He added a coy smile at the end.

“I must say that if I don’t find myself in one, I might actually be disappointed.” The two males nodded to each other, Rarity none the wiser. At least, they hoped for that.

They said their goodbyes and went their separate ways, thinking about what awaited them the next day.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Rarity hadn’t questioned about what Ryan bought the day before when he handed her the bag of one hundred-ten remaining bits. She was too busy thinking about what she would do while Fancy Pants took care of Ryan’s measurements and made his clothes. Odds were that she would just spend some time with Fancy’s wife, Fleur. Girl talk while the men were at work.

The cab ride was short to Fancy’s place, a large mansion on the outskirts of the city, where it would actually fit. In the front, there was a big fountain of somepony sitting like The Thinker, pondering some great question. He might have been wondering what the obsession with white in this city was all about.

The lawn was neatly trimmed and dark green , attended by seemingly dozens of workers, all of whom whistled or hummed happy tunes. Shrubberies lined up in the front of the yard, with several rows going back further, almost like a system of trenches in World War I. In between one pair was actually a tiny moat, only about four feet wide.

As they approached, they had to go through a big brass gate with the letters FP on it. A gate guard let them through upon seeing who was inside. Once past him, Ryan took another look; it was very different inside. Inside, there was a pool with two waterslides and a group of ponies playing in it. There was a croquet field, as expected, but there also seemed to be a bunch of ponies playing rugby in another area. They were covered in mud and bruises.

“Well. That’s certainly something.” It was a pleasant surprise to see that this guy wasn’t your average rich boy.

The cab dropped them at the entrance, and Rarity gave him his fare and he went off. Ryan and Rarity watched him go, and while their backs were turned, the doors to the mansion swung open.

“Ah, Rarity and Ryan! Glad to see you again.” Rarity greeted him, and Ryan simply nodded. Fancy returned the gesture. “Come, come, let’s not waste any time. I would love to see you enjoy yourselves in my abode.” At least he didn’t say it was humble.

Fancy Pants led them through several hallways to the room where he and Ryan would respectively work and wait. The halls were interesting; shields and swords hung in various spots, each with a plaque for its story. Portraits of dozens of ponies, including Princess Celestia, hung over doors.

The thing that really caught his attention, though, was the portrait over the room at the end of the hall. “There’s our place.” Fancy said. Ryan looked up at the portrait, his gaze affixed to it. It was of Princess Luna, sitting by a fireplace, looking sad. She had a book in between her forelegs, though the title was indiscernible. Her face said that she lost something dear to her.

Fancy noticed Ryan’s gaze. “I see you are interested in the Princess of the Moon. Are you two acquainted?”

Rarity opened her mouth, but Ryan spoke. “You could say that.” She looked to him, surprised. “We go back a bit.” Back to Indonesia.

Fancy chuckled. “Well, you are full of surprises.”

“You don’t know the half of it.”

Fancy nodded. “Well, I hope to get to know it. Rarity, I’m sure that Fleur would love to see you again. If you want to talk to her, she’s out by the pool watching the kids play.” Rarity nodded, taking the hint to leave. Once she was off, Ryan and Fancy went into the room. “Let us begin.”

Inside the room, Fancy had Ryan stand on a little stage. “I’m not the biggest fan of stages.” Ryan said, remembering the Cambodian compound.

“No worries, it’s just a stand.” Fancy assured him. “Now, if you would remove your clothes, old sport, I can take your measurements.”

Ryan hesitated. “Well, I’m not that kind of guy. At the least, you have to buy me dinner.” Fancy chuckled. “I don’t think you’ll like what you see. Plus, my junk isn’t hidden like yours.”

Fancy nodded. “Well, leave your underwear on. And I promise you I won’t judge or ask.” Ryan relented and removed his shirt and pants.

Fancy had to hold in his gasp, but he managed it fairly easily. The bullet scar on the front of Ryan’s chest dominated his bodily features. Looking at the undamaged skin, he also realized that his forearms probably WEREN’T supposed to look that way. When Fancy moved around him, he saw that the scar on his chest was also on the other side, giving him the chills. He saw the slash marks on his lower back. But the last thing he saw, and the most disturbing, was the big USA carved into his upper back.

Trying to distract himself from the clearly inflicted injuries, Fancy saw that Ryan had a thin rope around his neck. On it, there was a silver pendant in an interesting shape. “What is that?” he asked.

Ryan looked down and lifted it up. “That’s my Shen necklace. Shen means Spirit in Japanese, and God in Chinese.” Fancy had no idea what either of those were, but he let it take his mind from the scars. “I got it after earning my Black Belt.”

Fancy was impressed; few can boast that. “What did you study?” he asked, getting his tools to get started.

“Isshinryu Karate.” Fancy nodded as he began to work.

He kept mostly silent while he worked, speaking mostly to have Ryan move some part of himself so he could get a measurement. Ryan was appreciative of the silence; he could easily tell that Fancy Pants was curious about the scars, but had enough respect for Ryan and self restraint that he stayed his tongue. Him and Mac were good dudes.

Fancy finished taking measurements and let Ryan step off the stand. “Well, now I can start making you some new clothes.” he said. “What exactly do you want me to make?”

Ryan hadn’t expected to be able to choose. He thought. “Well, I could use a couple of good tank tops and denim pants for farm work. After that, I’ll need some casual clothes to wear around, ideally in black, white, or gray tones. I’m a simple guy.” Fancy nodded and used his magic to take supplies from the drawers off to the side of the room. “Other than that, I shall defer to your judgment.”

Fancy nodded some more. “Sounds good to me.”

Ryan sat off to the side and watched as Fancy’s magic did its work putting together Ryan’s new clothes. He had been cool enough to start off with the farm outfits, the only ones Ryan had any real need for. They went by quickly, so Fancy tossed them over to Ryan to try on, since he was still pretty much naked. Ryan put them on and was very much satisfied with what he got, noting how the back of the tops seemed to do a good job of covering the letters carved into his back. They were white and felt pretty durable.

Fancy moved onto normal clothes for the human, making a few simple white T-shirts and a few black ones. He made a few pairs of shorts and more pairs of long pants, all of which were light brown Khakis. He then moved onto making a number of long-sleeved shirts for the human, most of which were black and some gray. None of them, thankfully, were turtlenecks. Turtlenecks are ridiculous.

Once the regular clothes were done, Fancy Pants stopped for a tea break. Not one to be rude to a cool dude, Ryan joined him, leaving for the dining room. They were quiet on the way there.

Once there and sitting at a table, though, Fancy Pants decided to start a conversation. “So, Ryan. If I might ask, where are you from?”

Ryan gave him the whole story on how he was from the United States and explained the nature of the letters on his back. He knew that that would ultimately be the question he would want to have answer to, not how he got them, but what the letters were. He could respect a bit of curiosity in that.

“So yeah. That’s my country.”

“Wow.” Fancy replied. He sipped some tea. “That sounds like quite a place.” Ryan nodded. “What exactly did you plan to do there, if you don’t mind my asking? What did you plan to do with your life?”

Ryan hesitated. Did it even matter if he told him? “I planned on joining my nation’s navy and going into Naval Special Warfare. I wanted to serve my country.”

Fancy smiled. “Ah, a noble path to follow. Is there a symbol attached to this?” Ryan affirmed and briefly explained the symbol of the SEALS and the American Flag; the whole time, Fancy Pants seemed to be concentrating on something, but still listening.

Ryan finished, and a few seconds later, Fancy’s horn glowed again. “You mean like this?” he asked, panting slightly. An image popped into Ryan’s head; it was exactly like the SEAL Trident.

“Yeah, that’s exactly it.”

“And how about this?” He showed Ryan the image of the American Flag.

“Also perfect. Why curious?

The designer shook his head. “Just something for my last bit of clothing for you.” He stood up. “Come, let us finish up.” Ryan followed him back to the Luna room.

In the room, Fancy sat right back down and started working on the last piece. While he did that, he and Ryan talked about random things in their lives; dealing with paparazzi jackasses, living with the Elements of Harmony, dangers that each of their jobs held, and a few things about Ryan’s past. He tried to explain to Fancy that he was no hero, but Fancy Pants countered by saying that he was an Antihero; a hero who is questionable in his morality. It actually made sense.

Ryan had been so distracted that he didn’t notice what Fancy had made. “Done.” the designer said suddenly. He floated the item over to Ryan so he could look at it; it was a black jacket with no hood. On the front, there was a small SEAL Trident put into it. On the back, there was a big American Flag. “What do you think?”

Ryan put it on; it fit perfectly. “Very nice.” He actually did like it, too. “Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it.” Fancy got up and walked over to Ryan to pat him on the back. Might I ask where you’re staying?”

“Well, Rarity is storing me in her basement for now, though I do plan to move pretty far away eventually.” The forest wasn’t that far, but conceptually, it was as far as he would get.

“Well, until then, I was hoping that I might be able to come by every so often and visit. You’re an interesting stallion-”

“Man.”

“You’re an interesting man, Ryan. Maybe sometime next weekend we could go for drinks together in Ponyville? I can’t go out here because they know me too well and I’ll be harassed.”

Ryan thought for a moment. “Alright.” he said, nodding. “That sounds good.” They bumped hoof to fist together to solidify the deal. “Guess I should find Rarity. She said she wanted me to see more of Canterlot.”

The two males left the Luna room and went outside to find the ladies. They found them sunbathing (why? they have fur coats.) by the pool, using their magic to avoid getting wet. As they came up behind them, they heard the ladies talking about something. Never one to pass up on a chance to hear ladies talk privately, the males stopped to listen.

“So do you plan on showing him the Muff?” Fleur asked. The males’ ears perked up.

Rarity hmm’d. “Well, it seems a bit early, but I think I can trust him not to rough up the Muff. Ryan seems like he can control himself pretty well.” Ryan and Fancy looked at each other, traumatized and scandalized respectively. “He shouldn’t be so tough that he makes it seem like a dry, barren old unit.”

Ryan decided to stop listening. “Hey ladies.” Fancy didn’t object. “We just finished.”

Rarity smile at Ryan, and he shied away, drawing a confused look from Rarity. “Ah, we were just talking about you Ryan. I was just telling Fleur how I might show you the Mobile Underground Fighting Flight.” MUFF. Get your mind out of the gutter. “They’re a small section of the Air Guard that deals with covert battles against criminal groups.”

Ryan sighed in relief. “Sounds interesting.” Ryan replied. The ladies were terribly confused at the looks they saw on the males’ faces, but opted to forget about it.

Rarity took up Fleur’s hoof. “It was great to see you again, but I suppose Ryan wants to see the MUFF.” Damn it was weird to hear a mare say that. “I’ll chat with you again sometime!” They waved at each other as Ryan and Rarity left the property, Ryan trying to keep his mind off muff and keep it on track.

They had seen the MUFF, and Ryan was pretty impressed. It was an impressive unit with lots of capabilities. It could hide things very well, it always had special armor and protection, and it was always ready for action. The best part; it wasn’t used that often.

That night, Rarity decided to hit the hay early, being tuckered out from a day of not doing anything but laying in the sun. It’s funny how that always manages to tire people out. Ryan wasn’t sleepy, so he said goodnight and went out into the town to look for a pub or bar he could drink alone in.

The first one he went to refused to serve him because they had no idea what to do about the drinking age. Ryan wasn’t mad; it was a smart business practice. The second turned out to be a gay bar, so Ryan hightailed it outta there pretty fast. He just felt like he didn’t belong, and he would hate to crash their parties.

The third one, though, was exactly what he was looking for. The grizzled looking bouncer didn’t question him, just let him in. Ryan got a table nice and quick, and his server didn’t try anything funny. He wouldn’t mind if she tried to be like Cinny, but right now, he did want his alcohol faster. The day had brought on memories that he wanted to leave behind.

He went through his usual drink, Samaloco Adams, and got somewhat buzzed pretty fast. He was definitely feeling the effects of the stuff on his mind; mostly in that he could hardly feel his mind. The stuff he was drinking was decent and he couldn’t seem to recall his troubles any more, so it was turning out to be a nice night.

Until he was told to leave. “I can tell when someone is drunk and can’t have more. You are; so you gotta go. And don’t try any other places tonight; we’re all connected.” Ryan glared at the waiter, but let it soften since he understood. He was good for now anyway.

“Well, thangks fer the drinks anyway.” He tossed the waiter his money and left, not even noticing how scared the waiter was of the death glare he had just gotten.

Ryan looked at his watch; it was about half past eleven. Seemed like a decent time to be heading back to the Hanoverian Hanoi. Hilton Hotel? No, the Hanoiverian Hotilton. Yeah.

He started to make his way back.The street lights were bright and painful as he passed under them, and the ground seemed to be trying to pull him down with all its might. Ryan had to fight just to stay up.

“Had a bit too much?”

Ryan sighed and turned around. “Fuck off, Wraith. I don’t feel like dealing with you right now.”

The Wraith stepped out of the shadows of an alley. “Maybe so, but I still have to deal with you.” Ryan raised an eyebrow. “And I won’t stop until I’ve dealt with you.”

Ryan raised his arms out to his sides. “Come at me, bro.” He tried to take a seiunchin fighting guard, but it was hard for him at the moment. “I can take you.”

The Wraith shook his head. “I don’t want to fight. Not right now.” He walked over to Ryan and stuck his hands in his pockets. “Come with me.” Suspicious, but not quite in his right mind, Ryan obliged.

They walked down the street in the darkness, yin and yang, different but the same. The Wraith led his counterpart to that same little park where Ryan talked to Spitfire and leaned against a tree. Ryan stood across from him, leaning on the bench from that day.

“What do you want?” Ryan asked. “It better be good.”

The Wraith put his hands together in front of him and stood tall. “I want to know what you’re doing, Ryan.” Ryan sniffed. “I want to know why you’re out getting wasted, trying to forget all about me.” He meant it in more ways than Ryan knew. “I don’t want to be forgotten, Ryan. You need me.”

Ryan laughed. “Need you? You compromised everything I thought I knew was right. You tore my mind to shreds and didn’t even put the pieces back together right. Why the living Hell would I want to remember you?”

The Wraith sighed. “Because I represent more about you than you even know. I represent more than just you; I represent everything that used to be you. I AM you.”

Ryan spat. “Fuck yourself, you self righteous ass. You weren’t me; you aren’t me. And you never will be me.” Ryan stepped forward. “I will fight you until my dying breath. I will put an end to you, and everything you actually represent. I will kill you.”

The Wraith smiled a bit to himself. “Well, the dragon has fangs. But tell me,” He put a hand to his chin. “Why do you want to kill me? You know that you have nothing to gain from it.”

Ryan tried to think about it. He knew that he wanted to, needed to, end the Wraith. The Wraith was what had made him shoot Catherine and Joey. The Wraith was what made him open fire on that room, killing over a dozen people, one of whom was an innocent. The Wraith had made him kill all those people he never knew, those people who had families to take care of.

But he couldn’t find it. “I don’t know. But I will kill you.”

The Wraith shook his head. “Come now, Ryan. You and I both know why you want to get rid of me.” Ryan put his hand to his knife. “It’s because I’m dangerous, to you. But not in the way that you think I am.”

“Bullshit. I know exactly how you're dangerous.”

The Wraith shrugged, and began to walk around Ryan. “Think about it some; you did on the train.” Ryan made a questioning look. “The book?” He seemed clarified now. The Wraith chuckled. He was standing in the middle of the path, with Ryan looking toward the city. “See you around.” Ryan blinked, and he disappeared.

Ryan felt angry. He couldn’t figure out why, just that he was mad. He ran in the direction the Wraith had been in; he had to find him. He had to find him and stab him; a gun failed before. He sprinted out of the park and looked around; nothing.

Nothing of the Wraith, that was.

Off in the distance, Ryan heard a scream. It wasn’t like a scream of, “I’m hurt, call an ambulance!” or “There’s a fire!” It was a scream of, “Help me I’m being attacked!” As soon as the scream hit his ears, Ryan ran in that direction.

The screams were getting lesser and lesser as Ryan ran toward the source, and when he got close to a corner, he could hear the sound of a struggle. He rounded the corner and saw what was happening; there was some stallion, big guy trying to pull a mare somewhere. The mare was light blue with a white, swept back mane. She was a slender pegasus, no match for the hulking Unicorn yanking on her tail.

Time froze; Ryan could see everything. The stallion was trying to pull the mare into an alley, a very dark alley that no one would be able to see into. The mare had several bruises on her side and face, and had a bloody nose. The stallion behind her had a shiner, but it didn’t stop him, or wipe the smirk off his face.

There was a flash; not a real flash, but that was what Ryan saw. In an instant, he was back in Sumatra, Joey behind his back and Nadine helpless against her attackers. Ryan saw the man trying to pull her away by her pant leg; she looked terrified. The man had a sickening smile on his face.

The flash disappeared, and when Ryan looked forward, the struggle had moved into the alley.

He bolted forward; The Wraith disappeared from his mind entirely. A Flaming rage replaced the frozen anger from before. The human’s breathing was deep and rapid, and his veins bulged in his arms, neck, and head. He turned the corner into the alley.

The stallion looked up to see who was coming. “Look bro, go and mind your own-” He stopped mid sentence. The guy he was looking at was no pony. It smelled like rage; its eyes, the only thing he could see in the low light, were blood red. “What the hell-”

“AUURGH!” Ryan let out a guttural roar as he sprinted forward.

The stallion had been on top of the mare, but he was trying his best to extricate himself from her to defend against the coming onslaught. He was too slow, though, and the human was on him.

Ryan shot his fist forward like a cannon, smashing it into the face of the stallion, knocking him way back onto the ground. The mare scrambled off to the side, too scared to move much more. Ryan didn’t miss a beat as he ran forward. The stallion had managed to roll back up and attempted to buck at him. Ryan slid in between the two rocket legs and shot an elbow into the stallion’s groin, taking him down for a moment. He followed up with three punches to the stallion’s side.

The stallion was down, but it wasn’t about to be over. Ryan leaned over and made him stand, then proceeded to beat on the stallion’s face with his elbow and fist. The whole time, the stallion kept saying, “Mercy, mercy!”, but Ryan was to give none of it. He continued his onslaught for another full minute, beating the stallion senseless and smashing his bones and out for blood.

He released the stallion and dropped him to the ground, calming down a little. Ryan turned to speak to the mare. “Are you-”

The stallion, though, was not to let himself lose. He tried to use his magic to push Ryan to the ground, but was too weak to. Ryan spun around, rage refilling his eyes, and roared again as he charged. The stallion was caught in the throat as Ryan brought his forearm forward and slammed it into him. While the stallion tried to regain his breath on the ground, Ryan barraged him with a brutal series of drop elbows and punches. He heard numerous cracks from the stallion’s side as he went, but continued like he didn’t notice them.

The mare watched in absolute terror as Ryan picked the stallion up again. “So you think you can just take whatever you want, huh?” he said. The stallion whimpered. “Only the strongest can live without fear?” Ryan wrapped his fingers around the unicorn stallion’s horn.

“Well, I want this.”

He threw the stallion down and lifted the horn up, and a loud snap filled the alley away, followed by a bloodcurdling scream.

Ryan looked at the horn in his hand, then threw it away, disgusted by it. When he looked back at the stallion, he saw that he had gotten back up; he should have taken out his legs.

The stallion looked at him, a mix of the purest of fear and the hottest of anger in his eyes. The stallion would not give up, not this night. He was the king of this section of town, and the king could take anything he wanted. And now, he wanted the creature’s life. And his horn.

He charged Ryan, but in his weakened state, he was stopped easily by Ryan backhanding him upside the chin. He recovered slightly, just enough to look forward, but he didn’t look forward for long.

Ryan’s hand shot out from behind him and came around in a long arc. In his hand, he gripped his KaBar like it was his lifeline, and he plunged it into the neck of the stallion before he had a chance to move out of the way. Blood poured out of the wound in his neck, and just before he fell to the ground, he looked once into Ryan’s eyes. Then, with a gurgle and spatter of blood coming from his mouth, he fell to the ground.

Ryan looked at his handiwork; he felt strange. He lost his anger all of a sudden, all his passion; he felt like an empty husk now. He knew that he went overboard, he didn’t have to kill the stallion, but he knew that this guy would have just done it again. He felt confused and scared.

He turned tail and fled the scene. The mare yelled after him, “Wait!”, but he didn’t stop. He wanted to get away from this, as far away as possible. He ran and ran, leaving the mare yelling after him behind to deal with the body he had just created. He wished he didn’t have to leave her there, but he did. It was his only chance.

He ran until he was back at the Hanoverian. Once there, he stopped, panting, and looked around. No one was around. At least, that was what he thought.

Up on the rooftop across from the hotel, the Wraith watched him go back into the hotel with a smile on his face. “You’re getting to where I want you, Ryan.” he said. And he disappeared into the night, a fog that blocked all light, and prevented complete darkness.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ryan walked beside Rarity in the massive shopping center, scanning the area for any signs of the Wraith. He hadn’t seen him since the previous night, but he had come to a conclusion; he would kill him. However hard it might be, however long it would take, he would send the Wraith away.

He also had to keep his mind off of that stallion who had tried to rape the mare in the alley. He was still mixed about how to feel about that; on the one hand, he had no qualms about killing him. On the other hand, he had no qualms about killing him. It was enough to hurt his head the previous night, so he left it out to die.

Now, he was with Rarity, perusing the various stores, her trying to splurge and spend exorbitant amounts of bits on him in thank you for everything. He had gotten pretty much everything he wanted on the first day, so he tried to keep the spending down. But Rarity was to have none of that; she insisted that she treat him.

“First, we should go to a spa.” she suggested. Boy oh boy. “If Aloe and Lotus are great, then these ponies make them look like amateurs.” Ryan was sure that Aloe and Lotus would love hearing her say that.

Rarity brought him to the spa, a big, fancy, almost Roma-themed building. She had them start off with the mud bath ordeal, then moved onto sitting in a hot bath. Ryan got some weird looks thanks to the scars on his back and chest, but he was able to ignore them fairly easily. After that, they moved onto the massages, which were, in their own right, pretty good. Lastly, Rarity had the massage mares clean up Ryan’s skin while they worked on her horn.

That was pretty much the morning that day. After the spa treatment, Rarity took him out and window shopped. She was mostly fawning over all the dresses and looking for inspiration for her own works, whereas Ryan looked for practical things. Rarity loved shiny gemstones; Ryan preferred matte black suits.

She brought him into an optical store. “I could use some new sunglasses.” she said. Her old ones were way out of style, and, being a designer, she had to stay in style. Few men can ever truly begin to understand the complex world of designer clothes and shit.

Rarity walked around, leaving Ryan to wander on his own in the store. He figured he might as well look at some new sunglasses, seeing as he had none of his own. He recognized a lot of styles in the store; there were Wayfarers, Club Masters, Teashades, and others. But there was one pair that caught his attention.

“Yo.” he shouted. A clerk came by. “What do you call this style?”

The clerk looked at the pair of sunglasses Ryan was pointing at. “Ah, those are the Air Guardians. They were issued to stallions of the Air Guard back in the day. Really good, sturdy. Not as fashionable, though.”

Ryan looked back at them; they looked exactly like Aviators Sunglasses, with golden frames. He tried them on; they fit surprisingly well, if a bit loose. He could get Twilight or Rarity to fix that, though. “How much?” he asked.

“For you, since they seem to work so well?” The clerk put his hoof to his chin. “Fifteen bits.”

“I’m sold.” The clerk smiled as Ryan pulled out an empty pocket. “Sorry, my friend has all the money.”

The clerk shook his head. “Not a problem. I’ll just wait for her to finish.”

Ryan chuckled. “That could be a while.”

Rarity finished looking around some time later and came back with several new pairs of sunglasses. She dropped them onto the counter delicately, and Ryan his on there without her noticing. She paid a total of like three hundred bits for it all, then stuffed it all into a bag to carry out. Ryan had to finagle his hand into the bag in order to get his pair.

He put his new Aviators on right as they left. “Ryan, where would you like to go next?” She turned and saw his new shades. “Oh. I didn’t see you get those.” She scrutinized him. “They look good on you.” Ryan nodded and they went on shopping.

While they walked, something dawned on Rarity, something terrifying her enough to make her flip the hell out. “What’s wrong Rarity?” Ryan asked, alert but doubtful.

“You need bed sheets!” she shouted. “And pillows, and decorations!” Well, he was right to be doubtful.

She grabbed him with her magic and dragged him to what was basically a Bed, Bath & Beyond, only pony style. As soon as they were inside, she let him go and talked to a clerk.

“My friend here needs sleeping quarters items.” she explained. “I will fund him.”

The clerk looked to Ryan. “Well, alrighty then. Let’s go and shop.” Ryan followed the store clerk around.

Ryan was a simple guy; he didn’t want anything too showy. He would have been fine with simple black or white bed sheets, the material didn’t matter, and he couldn’t care less about ambiance. But that was not the attitude of the ponies on either side of him.

“Ooh, how about this?” Rarity asked, levitating a pillowcase with flowers on it. Ryan passed. “Alright.” She pondered. “How about this?” She brought over a simple white case, to which Ryan nodded.

“Seems good enough.” Rarity beamed and threw it at Ryan to carry. “It is mine, I guess.” he said to himself.

While they did that, the clerk was pulling out some themes for Ryan to look at. It wasn’t shocking to either pony when Ryan took the white sheets. The clerk rang up the purchases and Ryan and Rarity left the store. It would all be shipped to Ponyville the next day, where Sweetie Belle and Fluttershy, who was babysitting, would take care of it.

As they left the store, Rarity looked even more excited than before. “Come, Ryan! The culture of the city is just now coming into full swing!”

Ryan groaned as she dragged him through a sea of ponies to continue their shopping spree.

The day had been easy enough, though navigating through the sea of ponies was hard. He had been bumped into and had his feet stepped on more times than he could count. It was worse than New York; he got the blame when he was stepped on. One guy, who was a particular dick, had to get his lights punched out when he insulted Rarity’s purity. No one batted an eyelash at his beatdown.

Now, he could finally relax and sit down to drink himself into a stupor. He had to go into another section of the city to drink tonight; his little exploit from before was probably all over the neighborhood where he drank the previous night. It had actually been pretty hard to find a good pub; most of them were selling those fancy drinks that all end in “ini”. Ultimately, Ryan came across a pub that looked more than adequate.

When he walked in, he realized that he was exactly where he would either want to be or despise being. He had entered a royal guard hub, where off duty guards went to drink with friends, not get plastered. They were all sharing stories and laughing, playing darts, just generally having a good time. Most of the tables were taken by groups, probably units, and the few that weren’t were getting cleaned up.

Ryan walked in and went to sit at the bar, getting few if any looks on the way there. None of the guards seemed to care; they all must have seen weirder stuff in their lifetimes anyway. When Ryan sat down, it took a minute for the busy bartender to get to him.

“What’ll you have?” he asked, wiping the signature glass of the bartender.

“Samaloco Adams.” Ryan tossed some bits onto the counter; he snagged them off of Rarity earlier so he could drink tonight.

The bartender nodded and retrieved the drink for his new customer. While he waited, Ryan munched on some free pretzels and looked around. The guards present mostly wore nothing, though some had either uniforms or civilian clothes on. The uniformed ones probably just got off duty, and the others may have come from some event.

Ryan got his drink, but the bartender didn’t leave. “So, stranger. What brings you here? Never seen one like you before.” He was referring to guards, of course.

Ryan took a swig. “Well, I’m not a guard, but I didn some similar things in my life. What brings me here? Confusion.”

The bartender nodded and leaned on the bar. “Home troubles, wife..?”

Ryan shook his head. “Nah, some problems with the stuff I did. Contrary to what people in the sixties used to believe, the stuff that happens in Vietnam does follow men home.”

The bartender nodded, but noticed that a stallion at a nearby table’s ears perked up. “Vietnam?”

Ryan finished off his drink in an instant. “Yeah. Had to kill some terrorists and slavers. Still not sure about it all...”

The stallion at the table was looking back at them, seemingly intrigued in whatever this place was called. None of the other guards seemed to hear him, but the bartender knew that if they had, they would all be interested in hearing this. They had all fought terrorists at some point.

The bartender got back up. “Well, I’m sure you did the right thing. I’ll grab you a refill.”

The bartender was gone for a longer time than he should have been. When he came back, he gave Ryan a bottle and a mug. “Here.” Ryan said, going into his pocket.

“No need.” the stallion explained. “It’s been paid for.”

“By who?”

The stallion pointed at a table behind Ryan. “That guard right there. Said you earned it.” The bartender left Ryan to his drink after that.

Ryan looked behind him at a group of guards around a big table. They all wore purple armor, looked like painted steel, and had lunar crests on their flanks. The guard that the bartender had pointed at was looking right at Ryan; his eyes said a lot about him. He had suffered similarly to Ryan. The two males raised their mugs to each other, then went back to drinking.

Ryan sat in silence “Well,” he said as he heard hoofsteps approaching. “Luna told me a lot about you, Starstep.”

Starstep took the cushion next to the human and sat. “I see she has.” He ordered a drink. “What gave me away?”

Ryan refilled his mug and took another swig. “No other guard would look at me with that kind of recognition in his eyes.”

They were silent for a minute. “We thought you were dead.”

“I’m evidently not that easy to kill. You see, I’m like a roach,” Ryan looked forlornly into his mug. “You don’t want me around because of what it means for your home, but here I am.”

Starstep didn’t respond, just sipped his drink. “You’re different.” he said. “Different than I expected, that is.”

“What did you expect?”

Starstep shrugged. “Don’t know. Though I do know that you didn’t used to drink.” Ryan laughed. “But then again, that changes for most everybody.”

Ryan sighed. “Yeah. So how’s Luna?” he asked. “You have any escapades that I should hear?”

Starstep regaled him with the story of how the two princesses double teamed him, and his most recent story of how he got a boner with Luna right on top of him. Ryan chuckled at the stories.

“That sounds like the two of you.”

They were silent again. “You know,” Starstep began. “She really misses you. And she blames herself for your death. Well... seemingly death.”

Ryan took in a deep breath. “It’s not her fault.” It was his. And Discord’s. But at least he was trying to make things right. “She shouldn’t think that.”

Starstep shook his head. “I’ve tried to tell her that, but she won’t listen. It’s just been eating away at her; she cries in her sleep.” It hurt Ryan to hear these things. “I don’t know what to do.”

Ryan finished off his current mug, then set it down with a loud thud. “Well, I should explain to her why she’s wrong, shouldn’t I?”

Starstep grinned next to the human. “I suppose that might help.”

Ryan stood up and dusted himself off. “Thanks for the drinks.” he said. “I’ll see you tomorrow night.”

Starstep raised his glass to the human, and Ryan left the pub with one last thing he had to do before he left Canterlot.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The next day went by quickly. Rarity let him roam freely, as she had some other engagement she needed to attend. Some kind of fashion thing with some business partners or something. He hadn’t done anything, really. He just walked around, seeing whatever sights there were, seeing if he could find Spitfire again. He doubted that he would, seeing as she likely had a busy schedule, so he gave up after a time.

When Rarity returned at around four in the afternoon, she asked him about his day. As stated, he didn’t do anything, but he did tell her that he needed to see Princess Luna. She wanted to know how he knew her, but he refused to elaborate, saying that if it became clear, it would be when she saw him.

So now, they were on their way to the castle to do just that. Ryan decided to wear his old outfit rather than his new clothes. Rarity was all giggly the whole way; apparently, going into the castle unannounced to see royalty was uncommon at best. Ryan felt a bit nervous; he had no idea how Luna might react. She might be ecstatic to see him. Or she might beat the living crap out of him.

The castle was a glorious piece of militarily intriguing architecture. It was situated above the city and on the side of the mountain; not an easy target for anything that couldn’t fly. The walls had turrets with guards holding spears and crossbows, plus some other odd contraption Ryan was unfamiliar with. It wrapped around their forelegs right above the hoof and seemed to have a number of small bolts that would launch from it.

The guards didn’t hesitate to let them in; Starstep must have told them to expect a unique visitor. They eyed Ryan semi-suspiciously as they let him through the front gate, ever vigilant, as that was their job. These guards came off as more capable than those jokers from the train station; their armor looked more legit.

The sun was getting a bit lower in the sky. “Let’s move in.” Ryan said. “The sooner the better.”

They approached the massive double doors of the castle and were stopped by two guards getting in their way. “Halt.” one ordered. “What business do you have here?”

“I’m here to see Luna. Did Starstep tell you to expect me?” The two door guards glanced at each other. “I think she’ll want to see me.”

“Very well.” The guards moved aside and let the mare and human through. “You might have to wait, though. She’s beginning the Lunar Court.” Ryan held back a scoff; he had heard her talk about that.

The pair entered and wandered about for a bit, taking in the sights as they tried to find the courtroom without help. Rarity insisted that they get directions, but as a man, Ryan refused. He would find his own way. They got lost more than once, even ending up on the wrong floor a couple of times. Still, Ryan refused to get help.

Eventually, they found a set of large, golden double doors. This had to be it. “In we go.” Ryan said. He opened the doors slowly; wrong room.

At the end of the large room that was almost more of a hall, Celestia sat upon her big throne, looking bored. “Ryan!” she shouted, sounding excited. She stood up and teleported over to him. “How are you today?” She leaned in close; she must have been really bored.

Ryan shrugged. “Better than the last time you saw me, probably. Can’t honestly tell at this point.” Celestia nodded, half sad but half happy. “Rarity brought me up here for a bit of R&R, and before we leave tomorrow, I hope to see Luna.”

Celestia smiled. “Ah, yes. She wasn’t able to meet you before. Come, I shall take you to her.” Celestia walked past the two and went down the hall.

Rarity smirked at Ryan. “Say nothing.” He wasn’t getting directions; he was being led.

The pair caught up to Celestia and walked on either side of her, watching as passing ponies bowed to their kind ruler as she passed. “You know, I never did like being treated so differently.” Celestia commented in a whisper to Ryan. “It’s like they think I created the world or something.” Ryan nodded, understanding, but in a different sense.

At last, they were before a new set of double doors, this one, a dark shade of blue that bordered on black. Two guards wearing their purple armor stood outside and saluted Celestia as she came up. They gave questioning glances to Ryan and Rarity, but Celestia’s presence indicated that they were alright.

“The court should be starting.” Celestia said. “So try to be on your best behavior.” Ryan nodded as the princess went up to the door.

It opened with a noticeable creak, and when Ryan walked through, he found all eyes on him, including Luna’s.

“Hello Luna.”

****************************************************************************

Luna sighed as she entered the courtroom. She was only holding this court tonight because she had been told that there was a legitimate case to be heard. Somehow, she doubted that. She hadn’t once heard of a legitimate case being brought forth, even in Celestia’s courtroom. It pissed her off at times.

“All rise.” The ponies in the room all rose up as Luna entered the room, showing their respect for her judgement and fairness. Almost immediately after, they all sat right back down. Luna never understood the need for a bailiff to tell them to rise; they always did it anywhere else.

She walked forward, Starstep by her side, and went and sat upon her courtroom seat. It wasn’t quite the throne she sat ton at times, but it was more comfortable thanks to the cushioning on the seat. One had to be comfortable when hearing out the problems of others in order to see their perspectives.

She plopped onto her seat with a sigh. “Let us begin.” The two parties came forward; they laid out their reasons for suing and for defending. The lawsuit was over the sale of alcohol to a minor, who then proceeded to hurt himself. The defendant was saying that he didn’t know, because the minor had a fake I.D., something that could be damning to the plaintiff. It was the first real case Luna had ever had.

The opening statements were made, and the proceedings began. But they were not to last for very long. “Princess, my client’s colt was sold hard liquor by a ruthless business stallion who was more concerned about selling his product than the safety of minors.” Behind them, in the back, the door began to open, making a loud creaking noise. “He chowed clear and present-”

Several ponies gasped in the back. Having been interrupted by the noise, the law pony turned around to see the commotion, as did his opponent. Luna looked to starstep, who had a funny smile on his face, looking to the door. Luna followed his eyes with her own.

What she saw was perhaps the most shocking thing the court could possibly ever see.

“Hello Luna.”

Ryan, her close human friend, the one she had followed through the depths of hell, who had lost himself and tried to protect his friend and her, who had been tortured, beaten, and shot in the chest, who had died in a shitty river in Vietnam, was standing there, alive. Luna’s jaw was loose, hanging like a vine. Her eyes were wide, growing bleary from her tears. She found herself trembling in her seat, unsure of what to think.

The ponies in the room looked back to her, wondering how this creature knew her. She noticed her sister and the Element of Generosity, Rarity, looked to her as well, dumbfounded. They had no idea that she knew him; she never thought that they would meet him.

Luna coughed and regained her composure. “This case is to be kept on hold until further notice.” she ordered. Nopony complained, nopony argued. “This night court is dismissed.” They all left. Except for those who knew to stay.

Once all the nonessential ponies left, Luna left her seat and shakily started to make her way over to Ryan. He just stood in his spot, not knowing what to do. Celestia and Rarity watched in shocked intrigue, anxious to see what would happen. Starstep stayed right next to Luna the whole way, at times helping her to stay standing. Her hooves clopped loudly in the nearly empty room on the tile floor as she slowly walked forward.

She stood before the human, starting into his eyes. She saw exactly what she remembered; pain, anger, sadness. But there was something new, something she couldn’t place. It was enough to make her doubt; she tentatively extended her hoof out to touch him. When she was halfway there, he met her hoof and held it in his hand, silently telling her that he was, in fact, alive, and standing before her. Tears began to flow from her eyes, and his as well.

“Luna-”

She retracted her hoof and then threw it right back at him, striking him across the face. The hoof on the end of her foreleg was hard and could have broken Ryan’s jaw, had she been at full strength. Ryan didn’t move at the obvious assault on his person; he deserved it. He probably deserved more. Behind him, Rarity and Celestia gasped. Starstep looked surprised, but did nothing.

Celestia looked scandalized. “Luna, why would you-”

Before she could finish, Luna threw her forelegs around Ryan, and he returned the gesture by hugging her and holding her tightly. She cried into his shoulder, silencing her sister with the joy and sadness that echoed out with each escaping sob. Behind her, Starstep had an unsure smile on his face, like he didn’t know what to expect from Ryan in Luna’s moment of weakness.

Eventually, by virtue of the silence of the room, the was able to recover enough to speak. “I... I thought that you... I saw you... Narendra... He... How?” she finally asked. She swallowed hard. “I saw him shoot you in the river. How are you alive?”

Ryan took in a deep breath. It was time.

He pushed her away slightly, but kept his hands on her. “I think it’s time you all heard the real story.” he said. Luna wiped away a tear. “But I think that it can probably wait until another time. When can you come to Ponyville?”

Luna nodded happily, ready to answer, and went back to holding Ryan. But Celestia looked unsure. “I don’t know...”

“Discord was involved.”

Both the royal princess’ eyes shot wide and locked onto Ryan. “If that is the case, I will return with you tomorrow to hear it all. I’m sure the other elements will want to hear it as well.”

Ryan nodded, then turned back to Luna. “I want you to rest easy tonight, Luna. Sleep well, get some rest. We’ll talk again tomorrow.”

Luna sniffed loudly, and wiped her face with her foreleg. “Okay.” She felt so relieved that he was alive; now, she could... she didn’t know. But she knew that she could. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Ryan smiled at her, then turned around to Rarity. “Let’s head out.” he said. “I’ll see you ladies and colt tomorrow.” They all said their goodbyes, and Ryan and Rarity went back to the Hanoverian for the night.

Luna sat in her place, unable to make herself move. She was so overcome with joy, so distracted by Ryan’s return that she couldn’t move. She had an unkillable smile on her face, one that made Starstep feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

He patted his princess on her side. “I think you should go get some rest, Princess.”

She nodded. “Yes, I think I should.”

Celestia moved aside to let them pass, happy about her sister’s joy, but still curious as to what made her so happy. She knew Ryan, that much was obvious. But how? Where had she met him? And did this explain her little bout of recent depression? Celestia figured the questions would be answered tomorrow and went to her own quarters to rest. The next day could be a long one.

*************************************************************************************

Ryan and Rarity made their way back to their hotel by cab, and once there, they walked through as casually as possible to avoid arousing suspicion. Ryan had little trouble with it, but Rarity seemed to struggle. Not shocking, considering how many questions she must have had and how excited she was to take the train with the princesses.

As soon as they were in their room and the door was closed, Rarity exploded. “Ryan, what have you not been telling us!?” she shouted, not angrily, but not happily. “How do you know Discord, and why would you withhold further information about yourself from us?”

Ryan sighed. He didn’t want to answer, but she had done a lot for him over the last few days, and would continue so. “Well, you never asked about him.” he replied. “And I never thought that he was that significant here. When he brought me here-”

“He brought you here?!”

Ryan stuck a finger in his ear. “Yes, he did. Please, don’t yell.” Rarity blushed a little and let him go on. “Thank you. When he brought me here, he did so because he felt guilty.”

“Why would he feel guilty? How does one such as him feel guilty?”

Ryan sighed. “The long version of the story will wait until tomorrow, but the short version is that he was heavily involved with everything that happened. And he’s really not that bad.” Rarity looked incredulously at him. “Anyway, can all this just wait until tomorrow?”

Rarity huffed and jumped onto her bed. “I suppose so. But you better have a good explanation.”

Ryan nodded and headed to the bathroom. “I think I do, but that’s irrelevant, isn’t it?” He walked in and turned on the water to the shower. “I’ll be out soon enough to sleep.”

He closed the door relatively gently and Rarity just waited until he was done. While she waited, she decided to take a look at his new jacket. She used her magic to finagle it from the bathroom under the door and held it up side-by-side with the old camo jacket. Both were surprisingly nice, though it was clear that Fancy’s was better made. The camo jacket had obvious fixes on it from the holes Rarity had to repair, something that she was actually rather proud of doing.

She decided to feel the jackets. The one Fancy made for him was very comfortable feeling, high end fabric. Ryan’s old one was rough to the touch, clearly meant for some sort of outdoor work. It was well made, considering what it had gone through and survived. Rarity actually felt like she should learn to make fabric this sturdy for guard clients.

Rarity failed to notice, but Ryan was done and stepped out of the bathroom without his jacket. “Rarity, why did you take my jacket?” he asked.

Rarity jumped at the sudden intrusion of noise and looked like a dog caught going into the cabinet with the treats. “I- I’m sorry, I just had to compare. I wanted to see your old jacket compared to your new one, just to see. I like both, but I like the old one more than expected. Not as much as Fancy’s, but that is to be expected.”

“I guess the fashionista side of you got to you, huh?” Ryan asked. Rarity nodded. “Well, I guess that’s alright. I won’t wear that one anyway.”

Rarity nodded. “Yes, I can see why. I suppose you’ll want to find a frame to hang it up in, though. It represents a big part of your life.”

Ryan looked at his old jacket. “Maybe.”

Rarity nodded again. “Yes, though I may want to occasionally look at it, just in case I need to make you new clothes myself. And there’s a lot I can learn from this, too. I can see it all now...” And she went off.

Ryan thought about everything for a minute. He knew what that jacket represented, or at least had represented. Now he looked at it and saw a piece of cloth with a camo pattern on it. Maybe that was because he had a much nicer one now, courtesy of Rarity and Fancy. They had been very generous; Fancy gave him free clothes, and Rarity treated him to a day of relaxation (albeit difficult) and fresh, new things. If it wasn’t for her, Ryan would still be living in the dirt with nothing but dirty old clothes and sweaty underwear.

She was clearly interested in the jacket. “You know what?” he said, attracting Rarity’s attention and pulling her out of her of her monologue. “Why don’t you keep that old thing?”

Rarity gasped, a huge smile appearing on her face. “Really?!” she shouted. Ryan nodded. “Oh, thank you! I just know that it will be great to have!” She ran up to him and gave him a big hug. “I can do so much with it. Thank you!”

Ryan nodded and patted her head, a little smirk creeping across his face.

“Don’t mention it.”