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Flamesinger, I totally agree that sentence was horribly worded and I changed it immediately. Which brings me to my next issue. I have limited access to this computer, I have to share it which means that when I do have it I'm usually writing pretty quickly to try and maximize that time. Would you as readers prefer me to take the extra time to thoroughly go over my work and make changes to it or would you prefer me to keep up a quicker pace on chapter releases?

Freedom, I also agree, meat is awesome. I was actually thinking about how I should implement it when I first read your review. I understand that one does not simply give up on our more... carnivorous behaviors easily and had/have plans for meat to be a part of the story.

Finally I would like some other feedback from readers, should I add more OC or try and limit it? Also what are your takes on the ponyfication of humans in HiE fics, I've been debating both these things for some time and was wondering what your thoughts were. I've been talking for long enough now, so here is the next chapter.

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We left the treebrary and immediately found ourselves in the hustle of lunchtime traffic. I was amazed at the amount of ponies I saw, the center of town was a kaleidoscope of colors as they rushed to and fro. "Where did all these ponies come from?" I asked, "Before we left the streets were empty!" We began to walk towards the town square and I soon found myself receiving odd looks from the few ponies that I hadn't met at Pinkie Pie's party.
Applejack looked up as we waded into the crowd, "Well ponies have jobs you know. How else are we supposed to make a living?"
I realized the logic of what she said, until now I'd never really thought about what a normal ponies day to day life would be like. "So where should we head to first?" I asked as we drifted through town.
I heard Applejack's stomach growl and she began to speak, "Well I haven't eaten yet so how does lunch sound?"
I made a noncommittal noise, the thoughts of more pony food making my stomach churn slightly. It wasn't bad, not by a long shot, but as I looked at the menu for the cafe we entered I couldn't help but crave some kind of meat. The thoughts of steak and roasts filled my mind as we sat and I found myself salivating. I had been bothered by the cravings for meat over the past few days but had always pushed the thoughts aside. I looked down at the menu again, quickly skipping over all of the flower based items. Only a few things appeared to be edible and I sighed.
The waiter came up to our table, "What may I get you two today?" he said. I thought I recognized him from the party.
Applejack gave me a look and I motioned for her to go, "Well I'll have a daisy sandwich", she looked up at me.
"I guess I'll have oatmeal with blueberries," I groaned as I leaned back in my chair. The waiter quickly scribbled down our orders and walked back into the cafe. "What I wouldn't give for a cheeseburger" I mumbled to myself.
"What's a cheeseburger?" asked Applejack.
I winced as I realized she had heard me, "Umm, just a type of food we had back on Earth".
Applejack frowned slightly but was soon distracted as the waiter returned with our orders. She dug into her sandwich as I half heartedly poked at my oatmeal.
"You going to eat that?" Applejack asked, already done with her own meal.
"No, you can have it" I said and pushed the bowl over to her; she began to eat again.
I stared at the sky for a few minutes, watching the few clouds that the pegasi had missed drift around gently.
"That really hit the spot" Applejack said, patting her stomach, "Are you going to be fine without lunch?"
"Yeah I'm not hungry" I said, my stomach chose this time to growl loudly. I glanced up nervously but Applejack hadn't heard. "So what's our first stop on the tour?" I asked as she paid the waiter and stood up. I grimaced as I realized how much I had been depending on charity lately.
"Well I was thinking we could start out at the schoolhouse and work our way around town from there." Applejack responded as we walked out from the restaurant. We quickly approached the small building where school was held.
As we approached the small building I asked Applejack a question that had been bothering me, "What kind of classes do they have here?".
"Math, a little bit of science, reading, history, and there's a special class for the unicorns about magic too" Applejack replied as we entered the classroom.
I looked around, the room was bigger than I had expected after seeing the outside. As I looked around the room I realized Cheerilee was sitting at her desk writing something. She looked up, "Oh hello Applejack, and Zach right?" she said, dropping the pencil.
Applejack and I walked up to her desk. "Yep, just taking a tour of the town" I said. An awkward silence began to stretch out and I quickly asked, "So how are the kids doing?".
"Everyone is doing great! Snails and Snips have been doing a lot better lately," she said happily and turned to Applejack, "Apple Bloom really is a very bright filly, she has A's in all of her classes". "Though I doubt Diamond Tiara would be passing without Silver Spoon's help" she mumbled.
I realized I probably hadn't been supposed to hear the last comment and chose to ignore it. "That's good, I hope you have a wonderful day" I said, as we were walking out I turned around, "By the way, I'd be interested to talk to you about science and math some time, just to see how they compare to what humans learn in school". Cheerilee looked excited at the prospect and waved goodbye as we stepped outside.

"Where to next?" I asked.
"I figure we can just wander through town and I'll explain what everything is as we walk". Applejack said. The streets were starting to clear out again as the lunch rush ended. We wandered around town for a while, occasionally stopping at a store. As we walked up to the town hall Applejack turned to me, "Have you talked to the mayor yet?" she asked, "If you are going to be staying here it would probably be a good idea".
"No I haven't" I said, "Might as well get it over with". I walked up to the door and knocked. A small dark brown earth pony, probably a secretary, answered me.
She stepped back in shock after noticing me but still asked, "How may I help you?"
"I was wondering if I could talk with the mayor. I recently have... moved into Ponyville." I replied.
"Oh you must be Zach" said the small pony, "The mayor had plans to look for you later, this makes things easier. Come inside". I turned and gave a questioning look to Applejack but she just motioned for me to go in. I ducked through the door and found myself in a generic secretary's office. "One moment" the pony said, poking her head into another room. I heard the sounds of muffled conversation and the pony turned back to me. "Go right in" she said as she sat down at her desk, "The mayor is waiting".
I walked through the door and was greeted by another oddly familiar sight. Paintings of previous mayors lined the walls and ornate woodwork filled the room. The mayor sat at a dark wooden desk towards the back of the room. She looked up, "Just the pon... human I was hoping to meet".
I walked up to the desk and crouched down on the floor. It was a bit awkward but I had grown used to it since none of the ponies had any chairs. "What did you want to see me about?" I asked.
"Well since you appear to have become a citizen of Ponyville, it is my job to make sure you are settling in" she said, "You are staying at Applejack's home right now, correct? What are your plans for the future?"
It struck me that I hadn't really thought about what I was going to do now that I was here. "Well, I guess I'll try to find a job, maybe helping out at Sweet Apple Acres. Once I have enough bits I'll probably build my own place somewhere. Don't get me wrong, your houses and buildings are well built, just a bit... small" I realized as I said it that the amount of lumber that goes into a human house would probably be extremely expensive here in Equestria.
"Well it sounds like you have a plan laid out. Remember if you ever need any help, just ask" the mayor said, looking back down at the papers on her desk. She didn't say anything more and I took that as a sign that I could go. I walked back outside and looked around. Applejack was nowhere to be seen. I started to walk in the direction of Sweet Apple Acres when I heard a call of "Look out!" I looked up and saw a flash of bright color inches from my face.

I groaned and opened my eyes. "What happened?" I mumbled, rolling over and pushing myself off the ground.
"Sorry about that! I was working on a new trick and I lost control. Luckily you broke my fall or I might have gotten hurt." I recognized the voice immediately. I opened my eyes and was greeted by Rainbow Dash's face hovering a few inches from mine. "You okay?"
I reached up and felt the side of my head, wincing at the large bump forming there. "Yeah just swell" I said, taking a step back, "Do you know where I can get an ice pack?"
"What do you mean?" Rainbow Dash asked, confused.
I realized that without electricity the ponies must not have freezers. "Never mind," I poked my head again; the bump was getting pretty large. I sighed, "I'll deal with it. By the way do you know where Applejack went?"
"She said she had something she needed to do back at Sweet Apple Acres" Rainbow Dash snorted, "That pony works too much, this past week is the most I've ever seen her in town".
I realized I had probably been keeping Applejack from her apple bucking, "I'll help her with it tomorrow, how hard could it be?" I thought. I looked up at Rainbow Dash who was beginning to fly away, "What should I do about this bump?" I asked.
"Go talk to Fluttershy! She helps me out whenever I get hurt in a crash. I gotta go practice some more, see yah!" The pegasus shouted out, Dash had already flown away before I could respond. As my head slowly began to throb I decided to take her advice and made my way out of town. I walked up to the door of Fluttershy's cottage and knocked.
"One moment" came a soft call from inside. The door opened and Fluttershy stood there, "Umm, hello Zach, what are you here for?" she saw the large lump on the side of my head, "Oh my, you're injured! Quick come in, I'll make something to help with the swelling, lay down on the cushions in the corner. Or umm, that is, if you want to" she said, her voice dropping to a whisper.
"That's why I'm here, thanks a lot Fluttershy," I said, walking in and sitting down. Fluttershy quickly gathered up herbs from around her house, grinding them into some kind of paste.
"What happened?" she asked as she ground the herbs.
"Rainbow Dash messed up in a trick and flew into me," I said, resting my head against the wall.
Fluttershy sighed, "I've had ponies in here every day of the week. I don't know who is worse, Dash or that Ditsy Doo".
"What about the normal doctors? Don't people go to them?" I asked as Fluttershy dabbed some of the paste on my bruise.
"The hospital only really does emergencies like when Rainbow Dash broke her wing. They don't work with bruises and cuts. There, all done! The swelling should go down within the next hour or so." Fluttershy said as she stepped back. I was surprised at how much she had talked. Suddenly a small white bunny bounced in through the back door. "Oh, what is it Angel?" Fluttershy asked, the bunny hopped up and down and pointed at its stomach, "Oh! I'm really sorry Zach but I need to feed some of the animals, it's dinner time". She hurried off and I was left alone. I got up and walked back outside. As the day had gone on I had felt more and more like baggage to the ponies so I decided I should follow through on what I had told the mayor and try and get a job at Sweet Apple Acres. I began to walk. The sun was starting to set on Ponyville; I could see a few ponies in the distance making their way to their homes. Ditsy Doo was swerving through the sky, nearly hitting a few buildings as she flew back to Cloudsdale. I thought about my day and was surprised when I realized how many similarities there were between a day back in my home town and a day here. The ponies all did the same things we did on Earth, the only real difference was that they were nicer to each other. The result was a peaceful world filled with happier people. My mood darkened a bit at thoughts of Earth but as I walked I wondered if humans could achieve this kind of harmony if we simply made more of an effort to accept each other. Before I knew it I had arrived back at the orchard. I knocked on the door to the house and opened it. Big Mac, Granny Smith, Apple Bloom, and Applejack were all seated at the dinner table getting ready to eat.
"There you are Zach! What in tarnation took you so long?" Applejack said as I walked in.
"I had a bit of a run in with Rainbow Dash, ended up going to Fluttershy's". I said as I sat down at the plate they had placed at the end of the table.
Applejack rolled her eyes and sighed. We all began to eat; thankfully there were chunks of hard-boiled egg in the salad. It wasn't meat, but it was better than nothing.
"Sorry about leaving earlier" Applejack said, "I wasn't sure how long you would be talking to the mayor and Big Mac has been doing most of the apple bucking lately so I came home to help out".
"That reminds me, is there any way I could possibly help out around here?" I asked, "I've been living on charity since I got here so I want to find some way to repay you".
"My sisters life is worth more than some room in our barn and some food," Applejack said, looking over at Apple Bloom who was still busy eating her food. I opened my mouth to protest but Applejack cut me off, "But if you insist I'm sure we could find a way for you to help out" she and Big Mac looked at me appraisingly, "Ever bucked and apple tree before? With your... body it might be a little challenging".
"No but I'm willing to try" I said as I got up and put my plate away.
"Bucking starts at dawn, make sure you are up in time" Applejack said as she got up.
"Shouldn't be a problem," I replied, "I've always been an early riser. I think I'm going to hit the hay early, my head is still sore from its introduction to Rainbow Dash". The Apples all said good night and I made my way out to the barn. I found a mattress in the corner with a note on it.
Apple Bloom managed to find a spare mattress somewhere, she said something about the Cutie Mark Crusaders and an adventure, I didn't ask for details.
I lay down and was surprised at how comfortable it was. I reminded myself to thank Apple Bloom in the morning and drifted off to sleep.

A/N

This chapter was a bit slower, I've got some things planned out for the next couple of chapters and I hope you continue to read. My thanks to anyone who has or will review, good reviews make my day and any constructive criticism on my writing would be greatly appreciated.

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