Title:           The Story That Never Was - Chapter 20
Author:          Shermanator
Pastebin link:   http://pastebin.com/P5HNa9y0
First Edit:      Monday 17th of December 2012 09:12:20 PM CDT
Last Edit:       Monday 17th of December 2012 09:12:20 PM CDT

>>It's been a few days since you've last been nearly killed
>>God damn, this world was dangerous
>>But it's okay. Through it all, you have friends
>>Friends who have forgiven you for your sins
>>And a benevolent ruler
>>One who you have forgiven for her mindfuckery
>>Since then, you remember things
>>Not everything, of course
>>She did say that she could not undo the damage already done
>>And she sounded sincere enough for you to believe her
>>She mistook your species as heartless creatures to be used for tools
>>But your actions have earned the respect of those around you
>>And you couldn't be happier
 
>>There's still the job situation to think about
>>Yeah, the princess has offered a few times to take care of it
>>But it's your conservative vein again
>>You want to earn your money
>>You want to be proud of it
>>You want each bit to reflect your blood, sweat, and tears
>>Celestia offered you a position in the palace as one of her personal attendants
>>You have no desire to leave Ponyville, or your friends
>>She understood
>>She then offered you a job as a royal guard, on permanent station in ponyville
>>But after everything you've been through?
>>You had a reputation as one of the superior fighters in Equestria
>>But you were so tired of it
>>Too many battle scars, too many times knocked unconscious, too much drama
>>No, you would like to just live a quiet life in the company of friends
>>A quiet life
>>So you find yourself working with Pinkie Pie
>>Fuck
 
>>“Hey, Anon! Pick up the pace, slowpoke!”
>>“Anon, I need another cookie sheet. You got one for me?”
>>“Hey! Your hands make you good at this!”
>>“Be a dear and clean up a spatula real quick, will you?”
>>“Anon, we need that silverware”
>>You hastily work over a bubbling sink
>>Frilly pink apron shielding you
>>Your back is sore from slouching over for so long
>>The counter is way too short, you have to be on your knees the whole time
>>Wash and dry, wash and dry, wash and dry
>>Dishes, dishes, dishes
>>You were offered this job at Sugarcube Corner, and eagerly accepted
>>You think you did something like this back in your world, but the memory is so warped and corrupt
>>Really, it's just static at this point
>>Good Celestia, these ponies generate a lot of dishes
>>It's just something you never think about until it's in front of you
>>“Anon, dear, you missed a spot on this plate.”
>>You looked over to see Ms. Cake with a pristine plate, save for a small splotch
Sorry, m'am. I'll take care of it.
>>And so your day goes
>>Yeah, fighting regularly got you wounded
>>You got beat up pretty bad
>>Even if you won most of the time, you hardly ever escaped unscathed
>>But this?
>>Oh, Celestia! If this wasn't an honest living, you didn't know what was
 
>>The light of Luna begins to overtake Celestia's
>>You are sweating, leaning over an empty sink
>>Mr. Cake made his way over to you
>>“Hey! Not bad, Anon! We'll see you next week, alright?”
>>You nod
>>The job is only part time, which sucks
>>But holy crap, you can't imagine doing this full time
Yes, sir
 
>>You stand on your two feet and prepare to leave
>>You hang the apron up
>>Grab your coat
>>Get ready to leave the back door
>>Pinkie Pie bounds up to you, smiling as she always does
>>“Hey, Anon? I just wanted to say...”
Thanks, Pinkie.
>>She is thrown off by your interrupting her
>>She actually settles down for a second to look at you, questioning your response
>>You spare her a sincere smile before you open the door and take off
>>You are appreciative that they're so genuinely sorry
>>But you are, too. And you have plenty of reason to be
>>...and you don't want to revisit those darker days
>>No tears
>>Only dreams, now
 
>>You move down the street
>>It's way past the curfew for most of the ponies
>>Every once in a while you will see one coming home from work
>>But the streets are far from the hustle and bustle of the day
>>You see, now, why Luna was – is – so lonely
>>You stop in your tracks and look up to the sky after thrusting your hands in your coat pockets
>>The sky is a dark blue sea of stars
>>But you can still see a few blank spots in the sky
>>A star appears
>>There she is. That's Luna
>>Another appears
>>You watch her work. You cannot see her, but you know that she is there, arranging the night sky
>>Her responsibility is astronomical in scale
>>Any earthly science that you remember truly is powerless, here
>>You wish you could speak to her, to reach up and tell her that she is not alone. But it is not your place
>>With a sigh, you return to the ground and continue moving forward to your home
 
>>“Tehe~!”
>>You don't get two steps in before a giggle stops you
>>Paranoid, you whirl around and hunch over, ready, peering at every surface behind you
Pinkie?
>>You wait
>>No answer
>>You turn and continue home. But now, you are tense
 
>>You come to your house
>>Relief
>>You produce your key from your pocket and start fiddling with the knob
>>“Hehehe~”
>>But then there's another giggle that rings out behind you
>>You jump, key falls to the ground
>>You whirl around again, raising one fist in defense
>>By Celestia, if Pinkie is fucking with you...
>>You hear breathing behind you
>>Instinctively, you whirl around again
>>No one
>>Look down
>>You leap back in surprise
Jumpin Jehosaphat!!
>>Your arms flail up uncontrollably as you recoil
>>“Hi~!”
>>You lower your guard
>>It's... that mint colored pony from the other day
>>You relax. A little bit
Oh... hi, there.
>>There's an awkward silence
>>She cants her head at you, wearing an innocent smile
Hey, uh... were you following me?
>>“Yuh-huh! All day!”
>>Okay, whoa
Who are you, again?
>>“Your BIGGEST fan!”
 
>>Stay cool. This isn't creepy at all
Uh...
>>You start kneeling down to pick up your key
She gasps, eyes go wide, and she leans down to watch the interaction between your hand and the key
You can feel her breath on your hand
>>“That's so cool...”
>>OKAY, time to bring this shit to a close
Well, uh... if yo...
>>“Call me Lyra!”
>>You pause for a moment before you force a smile and flip a finger pistol at her
Lyra! If you'll excuse me, I need to...
>>“Oh! Let me get that for you!”
>>Her horn glows and a shimmering aurora of arcane power drives an exact duplicate of your key out of her mane
>>She opens the door with it and waves you in with a smile
Now hold on one second! Where did you...?
>>“I found it~!”
>>You recall that when they were giving you back your clothes when you left the hospital, they were unable to find your house key on the key ring
>>BULLSHIT
>>You snatch the spare key out of the knob and get inside
>>“Can I come in?”
Uh,
No.
>>You close the door in her face
>>You have a feeling that you're in for another catastrophic chain of events