My first story given a less shit name, everything else will be kept exactly as it was in the previous paste

>be anon
>shitposting again tonight, because what else would you do
>at least it gives you a break from work and college
>this goes on for a few hours
>nothing that new has happened in politics
>NK is still playing chicken with the rest of the world
>at least the syria situation's still going well
>the writefags have delivered on more greentexts
>you submit a few responses, but none roll over 50
>dice are fucking rigged
>you check the time, it’s about 3AM
>it’s not like you wanted sleep anyway
>sign off for the night, going straight to bed
>didn’t even bother to take off your pants, you can do that later
>you snuggle up to your plush of (favorite pony) and bid her goodnight
>yes you do, you fucking autist
>.   .   .
>your dreams are... eventful, to say the least
>you fall through a portal into a laboratory somewhere
>it’s bright, and because of that you don’t get a good look at the being controlling it
>they’re distressed by the sound of their voice, though
>you feel yourself change, getting smaller and losing feeling in your hands and feet
>weirdest dream you’ve ever had
>.   .   .
>you don’t want to get out of bed
>your alarm hasn’t gone off yet
>your bed’s all soft and warm
>but you don’t feel tired
>like you actually got enough sleep
>why?
>decide after some internal debate to get up and go about your business
>the first thing you notice is how bright it is
“Oh shit, I’m late!”
>then it hits you
>this isn’t your room
>it’s all crystalline
>the furniture’s weird
>your computer is nowhere to be found
>and there’s a purple horse sitting in a chair nearby
“Where the hell am I?”
>”Good, you’re awake. You’re currently inside my castle, and I’m sorry for accidentally bringing you here. I didn’t expect there to be someone on the other side of that portal when I opened it.”
“Wait, so then-“
>you look down at yourself
>you’re much smaller
>you have no hands
>you’re green
>you’re also a girl now
“Oh god, that wasn’t a dream!”
>”No, I’m afraid it wasn’t. You probably have quite a few questions, and I’m willing to answer them. You’ll find your stuff in the drawer next to your bed, and you can use this room for as long as you’re here. In the meantime, I’ll find you some food; you’re probably hungry.”
>and purple walks out of the room with that last statement
>you look around better, getting an idea of what’s in here
>there’s a chair in the far right corner
>your bed’s in the other right corner
>the back wall’s a massive bookshelf covered in books
>right next to your bed is a table with a drawer, probably where your stuff is
>the door’s near the back left corner
>what to do now?
>wait, what is my stuff?
>should probably check
>it's your clothes and your plush
>IdontknowwhatIexpected.png
>something heavy is in one of your pockets
>it's your phone
>at least you have something to try to pass time with
>but it's dead
"Note to self, ask purple about a way to charge this."
>not much else to do here, so you decide to go and explore a bit
>eventually find purple in what looks to be a kitchen
"Hey, Twilight, about those questions."
>"Hm? Oh, ye- wait, how do you already know my name?"
>Twilight looks fairly confused, but you decide to continue anyway
"That's a long story. Anyway, what happened to me last night?"
>she apparently decides to not press further into that question
>"Follow me, spike can handle the rest of this when he gets back from running errands."
>Twilight leads you further into the castle, and it's quite a walk
>eventually you get to a room that looks like it was meant for interrogation
>there's a table in the middle with two chairs opposite each other
>"Please, sit. I hope you don't mind, but I'd also like to ask you a few questions for as long as you're here. Don't worry, I'll still answer everything you ask, it's just not often that you encounter an alien."
>you find it weird to be called an alien, but you shrug it off
>you take the seat on the left as she takes the one on the right
"Alright, I guess. Ladies first?"
>Twilight giggles slightly at this, which is when you remember that you've been turned into a girl
>However, she becomes more serious as she teleports a clipboard and pen onto the table in front of her
>"Please state your name and age for the record."
"Anonymous, 22 years old."
>she notes this information down quickly and continues
>"Alright Anonymous, for every question I ask I'll be happy to answer one in return. First off, where did you come from?"
"The United States of America. Now, why am I here?"
>she notes down your response and you see her write nearby "What is an America? Inquire further."
>"An experiment I was running involving improved teleportation spells ended up opening a rift directly underneath you, and the portal destabilized before you could be put back."
>half of it goes completely over your head, but an answer's an answer
>"What species do you belong to?"
"I'm a human. Why did you turn me into this?"
>she notes down the answer you gave and you again notice her penning a response reading "Possible relation to mirror, ask Shimmer."
>"I turned you into a pony so as to not draw unneeded attention to your existence here."
>who would be giving the unneeded attention? what makes it unneeded, more importantly?
>"What is your species's greatest achievement?"
"Probably landing people on the moon, but we did that a long time ago."
>this answer seems to genuinely stun Twilight
>she notes this down along with two secondary questions this time, "Possible spacefaring species? Is this even feasible, if so what would it take? Ask Luna."
>she regains her composure and waits for your question
"Why am I now about 10 years younger and a girl?"
>"The transformation spell I used wasn't tuned towards your exact physical makeup, so this is what was generated. And before you ask, I will be able to undo it when it's time for you to go back."
>this answer makes you a little less uneasy about your situation, but you still don't like it
>"Does your species possess magic in any way, shape or form?"
>this question's easy
"No, not unless you count sleight of hand."
>This again appears to puzzle her as she writes this down, adding "Lack of magic intriguing, inquire further. What is 'sleight of hand'?" to her notes.
>you waste no time after she stops writing, immediately asking your most burning question
"When will I be able to go home?"
>Twilight puts her hoof to her chin and appears to be thinking fairly hard
>She eventually comes up with an answer, but it's not one you like
>"I'm not quite sure. The spells I used to open that portal required quite a few rare and valuable items to work properly, and they only had a one-time use."
>This puts a severe dent in whatever hope you had
>butwaitthere'smore.mp3
>"I'm not even sure if the portal that's opened will lead back to where you came from, either. I didn't even expect the portal to open, much less probe into another universe. You could be here for a very long while, or you could be back home in a month."
>At this you break into tears
>Twilight seems at first unsure of what to do
>after about a second, she moves to your side and gives you a hug
>"Don't worry, I'll make sure that you get back and that you're as comfortable and happy as possible while you're here."
>holy shit she's soft
>like, memories of your favorite childhood blanket levels of soft
>and warm too
>unfortunately this doesn't stop your crying, but you at least manage to get enough control to reply
"What about my family, what about everyone that cares?"
>Twilight hesitates for a second as you turn to look at her
>"Don't worry, it'll be fine. I'm going to make sure of it."
>again, this doesn't help much, but she seems to be genuinely trying
>after another few minutes you manage to get control of your emotions again
>a few seconds later she breaks the silence
>"I think that's enough questions for now, why don't we see how spike's handling your food?"
>you instantly go from a look of infathomable sadness to one of surprise, apprehension, and general fear
"Spike?"
>"He's a dragon and my assistant, but don't worry. He's only a baby, he won't bite that hard!"
>Twilight laughs to herself at that last comment as she opens the door for you
>she doesn't know that you're not worried by the fact he's a dragon
>she doesn't know that you're worried about the fact that he's a fuckup when left to his own devices
>you walk out of the room, and follow Twilight back to the kitchen
>back to whatever monstrosity Spike has in store for you
>as it turns out Spike didn’t fuck it up
>it would be pretty hard to fuck up peanut butter and jelly, after all
>all he had to do was put it on the plate
>you take your place in front of your sandwich and dig in
>Spike takes notice of your presence almost immediately
[o]>"Hey Twilight, I picked up what you wanted. Now do I get to meet the new filly?"[/o]
>"Sure, I don’t think she’d mind."
>Twilight shouldn’t assume
>however, you don’t say anything because your mouth is full
>Spike immediately goes over next to you, extending his right hand
[o]>”Hi, my name’s Spike. I’m Twilight’s assistant. What’s your name?”[/o]
>not wanting to seem like a complete dick, you swallow and accept the hand (or is it hoof now?) shake.
“Anonymous.”
[o]>”Nice to meet you, Anonymous!”[/o]
“Y-you too”
>at least it actually fit there
>but now Spike might expect something competent out of you
>you manage to resist the pull of the spaghetti
>for now
>you eat more of the sandwich
[o]>”So... What do you do for fun?”[/o]
>did he not just see me take a bite
>finish chewing sandwich
“Nothing that I can do now.”
[o]>”Well, do you want to go hang out with me?”[/o]
>not really
>he’s looking at you expectantly
>seems a bit desperate, actually
>before you can answer, Twilight chimes in
>”I think it would be a great idea. Spike, why don’t you show Anonymous around Ponyville, too?”
>Ineveraskedforthis.mp4
[o]>”Alright, I’ll meet you out front when you’re done!”[/o]
>Spike leaves, looking quite excited to have a new “friend”
>you look at Twilight with an expression somewhere between annoyance and confusion
>”What? It’s not a bad idea for you to get to know the area. You’ll never know when that information could come in handy.”
>huh, so ponies use that phrase too
>”When you finish your sandwich, I’ll show you where the front door is.”
>you finish the sandwich a few bites later, and Twilight shows you the door
>”Be back before dark, you two. I don’t want you to get lost.”
>it's noon
>how big is this town for her to be worried about curfews
[o]>”Don’t worry, I won’t lose sight of her.”[/o]
>you’d put money on the opposite
>well, if you had money
>”Don’t forget to show Anonymous where the school is, she’ll need to know for tomorrow.”
>school?
>aren’t you past that?
“Why do I need to know where the school is?”
>”Wouldn’t it look odd for a filly to be running around when every other one’s at school?”
>she’s got you there
>guess you’re going to school tomorrow
[o]>”Alright Anonymous, follow me!”[/o]
>Twilight waves goodbye as Spike leads you into town
>you two pass all the major points you’d expect
>Sugarcube Corner is over there
>Carousel Boutique is down the street
>Town Hall’s that way
>blah blah blah
>you don’t really pay attention
>you know where this stuff is
>no you don’t
>oh well, too late
>you snap yourself back to the outside world after this realization
[o]>"...And this is the school, it's run by Ms. Cheerilee. She's nice from what I've heard, so I think you'll have fun there."[/o]
>Cheerilee
>she's a substantial part of your porn folder
>well, she was
>you miss your computer already
>guess you'll get to see whether you're a faggot in mind or body now
>that'll be fun
>wait, Spike's still talking
[o]>"That's about all I have to say on this, so I think it's about time to head back."[/o]
"Alright, lead the way."
[o]>"Actually, I want YOU to lead the way to prove you've been paying attention."[/o]
>shit
>shit
>SHIT
>he's calling your bluff
>to make it worse, you can't see the castle from here
>why are these buildings this tall
>youdungoofed.jpg
>time to try and then fail miserably
"A-alright, let's go."
>choose a random direction
>look back at Spike to gauge his reaction
>he's not giving any clues to if you're right or not
>this is gonna be hard
>rolling for bluff check
>critfail
>you two end up wandering around for a couple of hours
>Spike is not helping at all
>you pass a few landmarks he showed you, but you don't remember anything about how to get back
>eventually you manage to see the castle around a couple smaller buildings
>immediately regain your sense of direction
>you're back at the castle in about 20 minutes after that
>and only three close calls with a mental breakdown
>only a few minutes before sundown too
>success
>standing in the looming shadow of the crystal tree-thing purple calls a castle, Spike finally drops the poker face for one of frustration and disappointment
[o]>"You weren't listening at all, were you?"[/o]
>since he already knows the what, he might as well know the why
"I wouldn't expect you to be able to concentrate well if I put you where I came from for the forseeable future, so lay off."
>Spike loses the expression for a few seconds as he replies in a way you didn't expect
[o]>"Yeah, Manehattan would be a pretty big and confusing place for a filly to live in."[/o]
>Manehattan
>Twilight must have come up with a backstory for you already
>less work for you
>should probably ask her about it though, so you don't fuck it up
>also about a charger
>can't forget the charger
>you need your phone for... reasons
>but back to more pressing matters
>you might need a map of town
"Hey, I've got an idea. I'll tell Twilight that you did a good job of leading me through town and telling me everything important, and you get me a map to cover this all up."
>he's buying it
>wait
>wait no
>he's not buying it
[o]>"Why not just ask for a map yourself? If it's going to be a problem, then why not admit it?"[/o]
>that spaghetti's pulling harder than before now
>but not today
>you're smart
>you know how much Spike lives to please
>you can win this
"If I ask for a map, then that'll tell Twilight that you didn't do a good job telling me anything. Do you really want to deal with an angry Twilight?"
>he looks like he's reconsidered
>took him all of a half-second
[o]>"Alright, I'll get you a map. I'm not losing my ice cream stash again."[/o]
>an ice cream stash?
>you might have to look for that
>Spike goes and opens the front door, yelling to Twilight that you're both back
>you go inside just as the sun disappears below the horizon
>Twilight’s waiting by the door when you get in
>she looks disappointed, but also like she expected this
>”Did you two get lost?”
>this question catches you and Spike off guard
>silence
>play this situation well and you might survive
“Are you going to be mad if I say yes?”
>she changes the disappointed look into a more relaxed one
>”To be honest, I’m just glad you both made it back alright.”
>you feel much more relieved
>so does Spike, from his expression
>Twilight looks back towards you with a stern face
>”Of course, you’re still going to need to know your way around, so I’ll give you a map to use. As for you-“
>she turns to Spike
>”-I expect you to be able to handle these simple tasks. It’s not that hard to show somepony around!”
>wow
>he’s getting murdered
>you should probably step in
“Actually, it was my fault. I wasn’t paying attention so I didn’t know the way back when he tried to test me.”
>Twilight looks surprised now
>she must be used to Spike being the weak link
>figures
>”Spike, is this true?”
>he casts you a glance and starts nodding
>”Then I guess I owe you an apology.”
>she’s turning back towards you
>”Anonymous, because you couldn’t pay attention, you’re going to spend an hour after dinner studying a map of Ponyville.”
>she sounds serious
>who does she think she is
>giving you orders
>you answer to no one
>you must’ve been wearing your contempt on your face, because she’s saying something about it
>”If you want to have any degree of autonomy while you’re here, then I need to be able to trust that you can get around without getting lost.”
>stupid purple, using facts and logic again
>wait
>rewind about 30 seconds
>she said dinner
>you’re actually pretty hungry
>”Let’s get you two fed, I’d imagine that a walk that long would leave you pretty hungry!”
>she read your mind
“Sounds good!”
>you and Spike both follow Twilight back to the kitchen to eat
>you’re welcomed back to the kitchen with an all-too-familiar smell
>is it
>it is
>”I hope you don’t mind having pasta for dinner, it’s pretty much the only stuff left in the pantry.”
>Twilight looks a bit embarrassed at that last bit, but you couldn’t care less
>it’s spaghetti
>you can resist its pull no longer
>wasting no time, you claim a plate of  those alluring noodles
>shoving what would be too much for an adult human in your face, you try to reply
“Thff ff grfff!”
>at least the extra spagoot gets back on your plate
>They both shoot you glances somewhere between disgust and surprise, with maybe a dash of embarrassment by association
>you will eat slower next time
>you will not talk with your mouth full next time
>your face is not a shovel
>fucking spaghetti
>oh well, can’t be un-sperged
>you straighten yourself out as Spike finishes with his decision to eat elsewhere
“Sorry, what I meant to say was that I like pasta quite a bit.”
>understatement of the year
>Twilight hasn’t dropped that face yet
>you’re ded
>wait she’s talking
>”Well... I’m glad you like it.”
>the rest of dinner goes uneventfully
>you manage to keep your spaghetti levels to a minimum
>contrary to popular belief, people AND ponies don’t like spaghetti with their spaghetti
>Spike comes back in at some point to get a spoon for ice cream
>which somehow reminds you of your phone
>wtfbrain.mpeg
>oh well, now’s as good a time as ever
“Hey, I have a question.”
>”Hm?”
>how to best say this in a way she’ll understand
>wing it
“Well, when I came here, I had a device on me that I need for personal reasons. However, it’s dead and I have no way to charge it. Can you look at it and see if you can figure out a way?”
>she’s thinking it over
>”Sure, it would give me a bit more insight as to how your species developed naturally too.”
>leave it to purple to turn an act of good will into a science experiment
>oh well, at least you’ll get your phone back
>damn son, all the reminders are coming back now
“Thanks, that means a lot. Also, I heard about part of my backstory from Spike, can I hear the rest? You know, getting the story straight and all?”
>Twilight seems to brighten up a bit at this
>how long was she waiting to go into this?
>”You’re a filly from Manehattan who has always been gifted in her studies, and as such you were easily able to win an essay contest that had you transfer to Ponyville to study with me as your teacher!”
>no wonder she looks a bit excited about this
>she gets an excuse to show off how smart and important she is
>but it sounds plausible
>and that’s all that matters
>you know the story to hold to as well, so that’s good
>Twilight magics the plates and leftover pasta back over onto a counter and gets up
>”Now that we’re both done, you’ve got a map to study.”
>oh
>right
>the map
>Twilight leads you back through the castle to what looks like a military logistics center
>these design choices
>you probably wouldn’t pay the designers for shit like this
>not unless you had your personal army
>but they’re not your personal army
>maps rolled up onto various shelves
>a big table in the middle
>even the bluish purple of the walls seems a bit dull here
>but this isn’t the map room that you know about
>no, this one doesn’t have six chairs and a tree hanging from the ceiling
>it’s just a boring map room
>at least the map of Ponyville has some pretty colors
>you also manage to pay better attention this time
>at the end of the studying, Twilight gives you a pop quiz
>ace that shit
>much better than high school geography
>”And I think that’s about it for today, I’d suggest you go and rest up for tomorrow.”
>what’s happening tomorrow?
>oh right
>school
“Do I really have to if my cover story is that I’m learning from you?”
>Twilight doesn’t miss a beat when responding
>”Yes, you do. Ms. Cheerilee’s a much better teacher than I am when it comes to subjects like history, and the history of Equestria is what you need to learn most. I won’t care about your other grades as long as you’re passing, but I WILL be paying attention to history.”
>rules and regulations of your school attendance all in one
>guess not having to pay attention for the majority of subjects gives you plenty of time to catalog this shit for when you get back
>that’ll be a green the other anons will like
>the other anons
>you’ve never met them IRL, so why do you miss them too?
>probably because they’re your only friends
>wow that’s sad
>apparently Twilight’s hugging you again
>she must’ve seen the look on your face
>at least you’re not crying this time
>”Don’t worry, I’m still going to make sure you get home safe. It’s going to be okay.”
>she’s still really soft
>like seriously, why are these ponies so soft
>this time it actually helps
“Thanks, Twilight.”
> that’s all you can get out as you lean into the hug, wrapping your hooves around her in response
>you can get used to this
>too bad all it cost you was your life, your humanity, and your dick
>you continue to embrace her for as long as you can before she moves you to her back
>this isn’t a bad spot either
>still warm
>the rhythmic rocking caused by her movement only makes you more tired
>and this is how you two stay until you get back to your room
>why is she magicing you off
>no
>that was comfy
>”Good night, I’ll see you in the morning.”
>she’s leaving
>stop her
“Wait!”
>she turns back
>”Yes?”
>Ididn’tthinkI’dgetthisfar.zip
“C-can you tuck me in?”
>nice execution, faggot
>”I don’t see a reason why I couldn’t.”
>she’s coming back
>success
>and you only dropped a little bit of spaghetti
>she lifts you back up and carries you into the room
>before you get into bed, you make sure to grab your plush
>you also realize that it’s almost as big as you are now
>hmm
>this could be useful
>not sure how, but it could
>Twilight looks at it a bit odd but doesn’t say anything
>you get as comfy as possible as she pulls the blanket over you
>Twilight gives you another hug before leaving again
>shit’s comfy
>all those other anons would be so jealous if they knew you were getting this much attention from purple
>all those other anons you won’t see tonight
>your computer you may never see again
>your family that thinks you could be dead
>all that time you spent with them, potentially meaningless now
>left alone to your own thoughts, the weight of the day’s events come crashing down upon you
>you thought you were alone then
>you were wrong
>this is advanced loneliness
>you break down and cry
>you’re not sure for how long
>eventually the tears stop falling
>you don’t stop crying though
>some time later you eventually fall into sleep
>.   .   .
>you're back in your room
>your alarm goes off
>was all that a dream?
>relief floods you
>get ready for college again
>never gonna take life for granted again
>1st class is easy
>professor asks some brain dead question
>raise your hand because you know this
>nobody else does
>heh, dumbfags
>"Does anyone know the answer?"
>yeah, you do
>"Anyone at all?"
>can he not see my hand
>"I guess you'll all just have to review it later, it WILL be on the final."
>that was weird
>oh well
>rest of your classes go similarly
>what is going on
>let's see if work is any different
>go to your job
>retail sucks, but it's a paycheck
>go to work your shift
>wait
>why is there a new trainee
>why is he working your shift
>it's like you don't exist anymore
>wait
>WAIT
>you whip out your phone as you become increasingly worried at this revelation
>text your mother
>no response
>text your father
>no response either
>text your sister, she always replies fast
>reply
>there is hope
>"who is this?"
>you type out as fast as you can
"it's anon, remember?"
>"really funny, anon's been dead for days."
>WHAT
>THE
>FUCK
>your phone suddenly drops from your hands
>why are your hands now transparent
>WHY ARE THEY BECOMING MORE TRANSPARENT
>full panic mode
>the last thought you have is one of regret and repentance as you fade out of existence
>you open your eyes and bolt upright
"I'M SORRY, I DON'T WANT TO BE DEAD"
>wait
>you're not dead
>everyone just thinks you are
>you break back into tears
>you haven't even been asleep for three hours
>this is going to be a long night

>be Twilight
>you just put Anonymous to bed
>what a fascinating creature
>it's amazing what a simple physical change can do to a subject's psychological state
>but that's not your main focus
>your main focus is to make sure that he (she?) can return back safely to his (her?) point of origin
>this is gonna be hard
>maybe Celestia could be convinced to help fund this in exchange for the information you've gathered already about Anon
>Anon
>that's an easier thing to say than Anonymous
>Anon it is
>quit getting sidetracked, you've got work to do
>pulling out a scroll and pen, you begin to draft a letter
"Dear Princess Celestia,
I have some news. I've managed to make limited contact with another universe, through which a human has come through. The odd thing is, it seems to only superficially resemble the humans we know; but this isn't why I'm writing to you now. This human has been wrongfully affected by my actions, and I wish to correct that by sending him home. This is the part where you come in.
In order to replicate the procedure that brought the human (Anonymous) here, I need access to some very specific and rare magic items. These items, as logic would dictate, would be hard to track down and would also cost quite a lot to collect, and is why I'm asking for your help. In return for this, I'll give you any information I can collect from him, and keep you informed about anything new he mentions.
Your faithful student, Twilight Sparkle."
>seems convincing enough
>let's hope Celestia will actually help with something for once
>now to find Spike
>you decide on the standard method
"SPIKE!"
>you hear running from a lower floor
>he really shouldn't be getting more ice cream this late, and you're not going on another midnight run to refill his stash
>that was only for his birthday
>he shows up moments later, out of breath
[o]>"What... What do you need?"[/o]
"I need you to send this letter to Celestia."
>his expression changes, now knowing that he ran up multiple flights of stairs for this
[o]>"Why now? Couldn't you send it tomorrow when she isn't tired, and when I don't have a bowl of mint chip melting?"[/o]
>of course he's worrying about his ice cream
>dragons and their possessions
"Unfortunately, no. This is an urgent letter, and Celestia of all ponies should know about its contents."
>Spike grunts in frustration, but ultimately sends the letter
[o]>"Can I go now?"[/o]
>nope.avi
>you expect this'll get a reply within minutes
>but he might as well have more reason to stick around
>so you teleport his ice cream up here
"Why not stay up here for a while, you can watch me work on something interesting."
>Spike remains skeptical of your offer
[o]>"Interesting for you, or interesting for me?"[/o]
>whatever your answer is, it won't matter
>you've already grabbed his attention
"Guess I'll just do it without you, if you don't want to stick around."
>Spike dejectedly comes up to your side and looks on as you reveal the object of your interest
>it's what you assume is the object Anon was talking about being "dead"
>you're not quite sure why he chose that particular word though, it doesn't look like it was ever alive to begin with
>it's a black rectangle set into a hard shell, protected by another shell which was softer and easier to remove
>it also has a weird design on the back
>almost looks like a partly eaten apple
>upon closer inspection, there are a few buttons spaced around the shell as well as an opening on one of the smaller sides
[o]>"Dude, what is that?"[/o]
>you look to Spike with one of mild confusion
"I'm not entirely sure myself, but Anon asked for me to look at it for her."
>both of you return your attention to the object
>this will need more than just superficial inspection to figure this thing out
"Okay, we're going to my lab."
>with that, both of you plus the item teleport into your laboratory
>coincidentally, Spike spits up a letter upon arrival
"Go put on a lab coat and a pair of goggles while I read this, Spike. This testing may need some powerful equipment."
>he goes off to a rack holding the necessary gear while you open the scroll
>"Dear Twilight,
>While I appreciate you thinking of me in a time like this, I'm afraid that I must ask to meet this human in person before I agree to anything. Should this indeed be what you say it is, I'd be willing to cover all the expenses regardless of the information you've collected. I'm sorry that I can't tell you my reasoning behind this judgement now, but I'll be more than happy to tell you the next time we meet. All I will say now is that patrols near the badlands are reporting unusual activity.
>As for when this visit should take place, I can adjust my schedules to fit your earliest convenience.
>Kindest regards, Celestia."
>what IS your earliest convenience?
>normally tomorrow, but Anon has school then and this trip would likely be over multiple days
>Saturday it is
>good thing that's the day after tomorrow
[o]>"Alright, I got the stuff on and got yours as well."[/o]
>oh, right
>there's science to do
"Thanks, Spike. Now let's get back to the matter of this... thing."
>you bring it over to a large magic device used to observe the insides of objects
>this should help you figure this thing out
>apply goggles to face, flip down a built in shade
>this could get a bit bright
>the machine activates, creating a bright flash of blue
>perfect
>you retrieve the object and wait for the machine to give you an image of its interior
>it's taking longer than usual
>what is this thing?
>eventually Spike finishes his ice cream and leaves, presumably to go to sleep himself
>you don't need sleep
>that's for the weak
>you're not like Applejack
>you can pull all-nighters like Rainbow can pull off sonic rainbooms
>after a few other minor tests, the machine finally gives you the interior imaging of Anon's mystery item
>what is this
>wait
>you recognize some of this
>it's mechanical, that's for sure
>but how would it work without magic, especially with the apparent complexity of its components?
>wait
>one of the other tests showed something
>the substance analyzer test
>that weird slot has copper in it
>this thing runs off of electricity
>this sends a chill through you
>not because of what electricity implies
>it's simple enough to convert magical potential to electrical potential
>it's what the complexity implies that scares you
>even in the mirror's world, you've never seen anything this complex
>how much power would this pocket-sized monster need to run
>you're not sure, but a rough mental estimate puts this number fairly high
>which leads you to another thought, one that confuses you
>what you assume to be the battery isn't very large
>how would this thing even be able to create the potential difference to work properly?
>but Anon said it's worked before
>at least he (she?) implied it by saying it's dead now
>and your task was to fix it, not tear it apart to find out how it works
>and you have an idea of how it's broken
>this is gonna suck, but you know the necessary spells and have the necessary supplies
>a few hours later and you have a Magic/Energy Converter and a matching cable for the slot
>now to let it charge
>this could take a while
>no sleep for you, it's probably morning by now
>you confirm your suspicion upon exit, as the sun's just starting to rise

>be Anonymous
>your night was terrible
>you got a grand total of 4 hours of sleep
>your dreams were the cause
>nightmares about your family
>nightmares about Earth falling to war and ruin
>that weird dream where Twilight and your mom switched places
>stop it, phantom whyboner
>not the time
>now you’re just sitting awake and exhausted in your bed
>your plush Aryanne is looking at you with the same expression she always has
“I miss home.”
>you don’t expect a reply
>plushes aren’t exactly good at replying to statements
>but that doesn’t matter now
>you just need something to talk to
“I wonder how everybody’s doing.”
>you pull your Aryanne a bit closer, so now its head is resting on your chest
>you sit in silence like this for as long as you can take
>as the first rays of sun creep through your window, you decide that’s enough lying around
>you crawl your way out of bed and into the hallway
>the hallway is considerably darker than your room, even with the little light shining through the translucent walls
>time to see if you can do this without sight
>or without a reasonable amount of sleep
>after some time wandering, you eventually find Twilight looking over some papers
>you also notice that she’s managed to drink half a pot of coffee
>she literally has a half-empty pot of coffee next to her
>it’s still steaming too
>guess she didn’t get much sleep either
“Hey, Twilight.”
>she jumps a bit, before seeing you and relaxing again
>”Good morning Anon, what has you up so early?”
>Anon
>your family called you that
>except your sister, she called you “jerk”
>it was in a playful way though
>”Anon?”
>you snap back to the room you’re in
“Huh?”
>”I asked why you’re up at this hour. It’s 4:43, school starts at 7:30.”
>you decide not to tell her about the nightmares
“I couldn’t sleep. Mind sharing some of that coffee?”
>”Coffee isn’t good for fillies, it could stunt your...”
>she seems to have forgotten what you really are for a minute
>”... Never mind. Are you fine with it black?”
>you aren’t a bitch
>you can handle the flavor
“Sure, thanks.”
>Twilight teleports a cup from somewhere and proceeds to fill it up
>”Here, but be careful. It’s still pretty hot.”
>Isthatachallenge.txt
>you go over to get your cup
>as soon as you grab it, you try to down it all in one go
>fuck that’s hot
>like it’s actually burning the inside of your mouth
>you barely manage to keep the coffee contained in your mouth and the cup
>Twilight looks at you with an expression similar to when you shoved that plate of spaghetti in your face
>it burns as it goes down your throat
>why did you do this
>what is wrong with you
>your face begins to flush and tears begin to form
>but you can't stop now
>you're halfway through
>come on Anon
>power through it
>you're not a bitch
>after what feels like minutes (but was probably seconds) you finish the cup of coffee
>take that, purple
>"Are you alright?"
>you struggle to hold in your regret at pulling that stunt as you utter a shaky reply
"Y... yea-ah, I'm f-fine."
>she still looks concerned
>"Are you sure? That looked like it was pretty painful."
"I-I'm s-sure."
>you can't let her know how painful that was
>why must your autism damn you to doing dumb things regularly
>as the burning fades and the caffeine hits you, you decide to look at the papers that Twilight has in front of her
"What's all this?"
>seeing that you're recovering from your stupidity, she adopts a more relaxed expression
>"This is the data collected from the experiment that brought you here. I'm looking back through it to try to figure out what caused the portal to reach you, and hopefully figure out how to replicate that in the process."
"Cool, anything I'd understand in all that?"
>she cracks a smile
>"Not unless you have a background in theoretical physics and applied magical theory."
>she's got you there
>you were a brainlet when it came to theoretical anything, and you have had no experience with magic before yesterday
>but you weren't bad at everything STEM-related
>you were a decent programmer and a better engineer
>back when you had things to build and program, that is
>at least you still have your phone, for whatever that's worth
>your phone
>did Twilight figure out a way to charge it yet?
>only one way to find out
"Hey Twilight, did you figure out a way to charge that thing I asked you about?"
>"As a matter of fact, I did. I can show you where it is, but I doubt it's anywhere close to finished."
>doesn't matter if it is or not, at least you'll be able to have something from Earth with you
"Alright, where is it?"
>Twilight stands up and collects her papers, teleporting them somewhere
>"I'll show you if you can promise that you won't touch anything once we get to where it is."
>where is it, her lab or something?
"Yeah, sure. Can we go and check on it, now?"
>she seems satisfied enough with your answer and turns towards the door you came in through
>"Then follow me."
>she takes you down several flights of stairs
>eventually you two are down far enough that the dawn's rays no longer penetrate the castle's exterior
>everything is cast in an eerie purple glow from the magic lights fixed to the walls of this stairwell
>finally, Twilight comes to a stop in front of a large door of a material you don't recognize
>she faces a small pad on the wall and applies one of her hooves to it
>a few moments later, the large door slides open without a sound revealing an expansive looking area, colored a sterile shade of white
>it actually is in her lab
>well then
>Twilight turns back towards you with a very serious look in her eyes
>"Remember, don't touch ANYTHING."
"Can I at least touch my phone?"
>she considers this question for a second
>"Yes, but you still shouldn't touch what it's connected to. At least not until you know how to use it."
>what it's connected to?
>how to use it?
>are you getting a new toy?
>Twilight enters the compound, and you follow close behind
>you pass by a myriad of things
>some machines that look surprisingly like some things you've seen on Earth
>some chemicals that are in various states of solid, liquid and gas (contained appropriately, no chemistry for you)
>even a couple biological specimens, like a few parasprites and some of those vines that Discord planted in the s4 opener
>she must have unfinished business with those
>eventually you two come to an area that looks more familiar to you
>various machine parts are shelved in an organized fashion
>some you recognize, some you don't
>but that's not why you're here
>"Your device is on that desk, you're welcome to see how the charging process is going."
>there's your phone
>retrieving it from the desk, you try to power it up
>26% battery, not bad
"Thanks, Twilight. You don't know how much this means to me."
>you trot back over to her and give her as much of a hug as you can with your diminutive stature
>at first she seems genuinely surprised by your reaction to this
>she eventually hugs you back, pressing you into her warm chest fluff
>"I'm glad it meant this much to you."
>you two stay in this embrace for a couple more seconds before you break off towards your phone again
>you notice that Twilight has followed you over, though
>"Would you mind showing me what this is, now that I've gotten it working?"
>sure, why not?
"Sure, I might as well. This is a phone, it's used to make calls and send texts to other people, among other things."
>she teleports another clipboard and pen to herself and begins writing
"This is only one kind of phone, though. There are others that can only make calls, and some others can only make calls and send texts, but this is a smartphone."
>you wait for her to catch up
>about a second after you stop, she looks up at you signalling you to continue
"What makes a smartphone so special is that it can access the internet, and this has allowed people to do many things that used to require a computer when and wherever they want to."
>Twilight looks a bit confused when you mention the internet
>perhaps you should explain that too
"The internet is a massive, globe-spanning communications network utilizing many computers and satellites to allow people from anywhere to instantly communicate with, send information to, or receive information from anyone anywhere else."
>she finishes writing down that last sentence and then poses you a question
>"Can you explain to me what a satellite is?"
>that's easy
>space has always fascinated you, and technology is your specialty
"The dictionary definition is any object in the orbit of a celestial body, but the ones I'm talking about are communications devices meant to relay signals meant to go to places that it wouldn't be able to reach normally, such as locations past the horizon or behind a large natural barrier, like a mountain range."
>and so this continues for a while, you explaining related aspects of humanity's staggering communications networks and Twilight taking notes
>after some time you run out of things to explain as she runs out of questions to ask
>but you never told her about your sekrit klub
>rules 1 and 2
>you've been down here for a while, what time is it?
>you walk over to your phone to check
>7:22
>shit, you're gonna be late!
"Uhhh, Twilight? I don't want to alarm you, but there's 8 minutes until school starts."
>why doesn't she look worried?
>isn't she known for flipping out at moments like this?
>"Don't worry, I planned for you putting up resistance so I pre-packed everything for you last night."
>a green saddlebag materializes next to you, bearing your name.
>you struggle to put it on, but Twilight decides to help you out after a few failed attempts.
>after you've got it on, she gives you a smile
>"Have fun at school!"
"But how am I-"
>a purple flash covers your vision for an instant, before fading to reveal the school house and a number of fillies and colts all filing inside it
"-going to get there?"
>that answers that
>after collecting your thoughts, you enter the small red building to begin your first day of school
>turns out that little red building looks a lot bigger from the inside
>no wonder it can hold this many children
>well, you're all ready according to Twilight, so it's all up to you now
>you look around to find a seat
>there's an open one near the CMC
>nah, they're a bunch of nerds
>one in the back is open, too
>but you're not stupid either
>there's one near the middle of the room that nobody's claimed
>perfect, not too much attention and you don't have to associate with the undesirables
>you go and claim that seat just as the bell rings
>however, there's one thing missing
>er, pony
>Cheerilee isn't here for some odd reason
>a few of the other students notice this
>soon the classroom is buzzing with fillies and colts alike speculating on the location of their teacher
>all this is cut short when Cheerilee finally makes her appearance from outside
>"Good morning class, I apologize for being late. I was grading your tests from yesterday and lost track of time."
>as she makes her way to the front of the room, you catch a glimpse of her flank
>yep, you're a faggot in body
>as long as you don't act on it though, you should be fine
>that's how it works, right?
>your thoughts are cut short by an announcement from the front of the room
>"I see we also have a new student today. Would you like to come up and introduce yourself?"
>as a matter of fact, you wouldn't
>so much for not getting attention
>as you get up and navigate the desks, you can feel the eyes of the entire class boring into you
>why not take a fucking picture, it'll last longer
>professors never pull this shit in college, why do it here?
>because they're all actually 12
>right
>as you make it to the front of the room, the feeling is only magnified as now you can see that every pony in the room's looking at you
>that spaghetti's seeming pretty comfy right now
"M-my name's A-Anonymous."
>you can feel the judgement
>it feels crushing
>you feel a hoof on your shoulder, it's Cheerilee
>"Nice to meet you Anonymous, welcome to class!"
>you notice she's smiling at you
>this doesn't help at all
>makes it a bit worse, actually
"C-can I g-go b-back t-to m-my s-seat n-n-now?"
>"Of course you can."
>with this last sentence Cheerilee takes her spot in front of the blackboard
>relief floods you when you get back to your desk
>you decide to look around the room while Cheerilee goes through some morning announcements
>eventually you find a schedule of the day's events in between a couple of posters for various subjects
>Math: 7:30-9:00
>Recess: 9:00-9:15
>Science: 9:15-10:45
>History: 10:45-12:15
>Lunch: 12:15-1:00
>Writing: 1:00-2:30
>good, now you've got an idea of what you need to look for and when you need to do so
>unfortunately, your body goes into a caffeine crash at this moment and you're unable to stop yourself from falling asleep within seconds
>.   .   .
>this dream seems a bit more normal
>you're sitting on the couch with your mom
>your dad's in the office nearby
>your sister and little brother are sitting on the floor
>apparently you're playing trivial pursuit
>weird, you've never played this game in your life
>oh well, it's your dream
>it's not like the rules matter here
>everyone starts looking at you
>you take a closer look at the board and realize that it's probably your turn
"I forgot, which piece am I?"
>your sister points at a blue circle on the board
[p]>"You're blue, how'd you forget already?"[/p]
>your brother starts laughing
[o]>"Come on Anon, pull your head out of your ass!"[/o]
"You first, m8!"
>your mom's starting to look a bit annoyed
>"Both of you stop, or I might as well just put away the game."
>your mom never did handle banter well
>oh well, time to win this bitch
>you roll the dice
>nat 1
>fuck
>at least you can get a reroll if you answer this question right
>you ace that shit
>the rest of the game goes well, you're crushing everyone else
>eventually you're back at the start, just have to answer this last question and you win
>your sister's the one to ask the question
>she always thought she was smarter, time to prove her wrong
[p]"Alright Jerk, for the game and all the prizes we don't have, you need to answer this question."[/p]
>bring it, bitch!
[p]>"What is 16 times 24?"[/p]
>fucking. easy.
>after a bit of mental math, you reach your answer
"384."
[p]>"Anonymous, wake up and answer the question please."[/p]
>wait what
>you jerk yourself awake
>and tip your chair over in the process
>smooth move
>as you recover from your mishap, Cheerilee repeats her question
>"Anonymous, it's not a good idea to sleep in class. Now, can you please tell me what 16 times 24 is?"
>good thing you didn't knock the answer out of your head when you fell over
"384, and can I get some ice or something? This hurts pretty badly."
>she looks surprised that you answered correctly, seeing as how you'd been asleep this whole time
>"I'll go get you some ice, that fall did look pretty bad."
>a few seconds later and Cheerilee's back with an ice pack
>the rest of the lesson continues smoothly as you keep the ice applied to your head
>so much for finishing that game
>or that dream, for that matter
>it was nice spending time with family again, if only in your mind
>eventually the bell rings again, and you head outside for recess
>all the colts and fillies go for different pieces of playground equipment as soon as they're outside
>not you, you just go to a nice looking bench and sit
>kind of reminds you of when you were home for the holidays not too long ago
>you and your brother went to the park you two used to play at when you were younger
>it was late december, so there was snow and ice everywhere
>you bet him $20 that he couldn't climb up the big slide
>he accepted the bet and then proceeded to get wedged halfway up it
>it took the fire department to get him out
>of course, you really got it from your parents when you two got back 5 hours after you said you would with a fire truck dropping you off
>best $20 you ever lost
>wait, some fillies are coming over
>oh god, it's the CMC
>quick, play dead or something!
>too late, they're here
>and Sweaty Balls is saying something too
[p]>"Hey Anonymous, why are you sitting over here all alone?"[/p]
"Because I wanted to."
[p]>"Well, do you want to go do something with us?"[/p]
>at least she doesn't look desperate for a friend, like Spike
>also, there's no purple here to make your decisions for you
>you're free to tell them to fuck off!
>but you're not a complete dick, so you decide to use a bit of tact
"Not particularly, I like this spot."
[p]>"Then do you mind if we sit with you?"[/p]
>she's persistent
>to make matters worse, you can't find an excuse to turn them away
>you sigh in defeat as they take the adjacent spots on your bench
>you do your best to zone out, but you still end up catching bits and pieces of what they're saying
>Scootaloo is the first to notice your lack of a cutie mark
>they all go insane at this
>eventually the bell rings again and you dart inside as fast as possible
>you were kind of excited for science, but you quickly lose enthusiasm and gain sleep when you find out there's no experiments to do
>luckily, you woke up again a few minutes before history started
>it was a mildly interesting lesson, as it turns out Germaneigh exists and declared independence from Equestria a few hundred years ago
>sadly, Aryanne was the one who started that revolution meaning she's been dead for a couple of centuries
>at least you have an idea of what went through Twilight's head when she saw your plush
>since then it's had relatively peaceful relations with its neighbors, who never challenged it because of technological superiority
>at least they won the war here
>lunch comes afterwards, and you finally see what Twilight packed for you
>it's the leftover spaghetti
>you might love this horse
>everything's pretty alright until the CMC come back over
>not this again
>luckily something diverts them away from you
>success
>wait
>two more ponies are coming over
>it's Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon
>the other two you'd hoped to avoid
>fuck
>Diamond Tiara speaks first
[p]<"I couldn't help but notice you hanging out with those losers earlier, what's wrong with you?"[/p]
>is she trying to mock you?
>her banter is weak
>might as well play along
"It wasn't like I had much of a choice, they came over here."
>her expression changes at this
[p]<"Then why not hang out with us? I promise they'll never bother you again if you do."[/p]
>nah m8
>you don't need anyone's company
>you like this bench anyway
>it's comfy
"Nah, I like this bench."
>and now she looks angry
>what did you even do?
[p]<"You don't get asked by the most popular filly in the school to be her friend very often, I'd suggest you accept."[/p]
>who does she think she is?
>you bow to no one
>except purple, but only because she does stuff for you
>only because she does stuff for you
>yeah
>but this upstart filly isn't Twilight
>so you hop off the bench and get right up in her face
>you're even a couple of inches taller than her
"What are you gonna do if I don't?"
>roll to intimidate
>motherfucking 20
>DT and SS give no complaints as they walk away
>once they're gone, you see a small puddle where DT was standing
>she'd pissed herself!
>you laugh a bit before sitting back down and enjoying the rest of your lunch in peace
>if only you could've pulled something like that off with Chad
>fucking Chad
>biggest dick in high school
>he got arrested in college though
>beat the tar out of somebody and got the cops called on him
>serves him right
>eventually the bell rings again and everyone goes inside for writing
>you see all the mudhorses using their mouthes for the assignment, but you're not some peasant
>you quickly work out a way to grip the pencil with your right hoof and write out everything you need to
>seeing that you have quite a bit of time left still, you decide to start writing down everything that's happened
>gotta get this green to those anons somehow
>you manage to get halfway through your first day here before the bell rings for class to be over
>about time, you're nearly out of paper
>you pack your things and go outside to find Twilight waiting for you
>and she's got suitcases with her
>"How was your first day of school, Anon?"
>no, no, no!
>she doesn't get to just show up with luggage and expect you to not care!
"What's with the bags?"
>an expression of remembrance and mild embarrassment crosses her face for a split second
>"Oh, my bad! I forgot to tell you, we're going to Canterlot for the weekend. I'll explain more once we're on the train."
>wait what
>"Don't worry, I packed everything you'll need as well as your... personal items."
>you walk up to the suitcase with your name on it and peek inside
>yep, that's everything
>even Aryanne and your phone
>at least you won't be missing anything
"Are we leaving now?"
>"Yes we are. I'll teleport us to the station, it would be too long of a walk."
>as the purple flash comes and goes from your eyes for the second time today, you begin to wonder what's so important for you two to be leaving for Canterlot now
>unfortunately for you, Twilight doesn't answer this question until you two are on the train and leaving
>"We're going to Canterlot because Princess Celestia wants to meet you."
>Princess Celestia herself?
>ayy lmao privileges are paying off, then
>you wish you had something more formal to wear
>you decide to ask Twilight about resizing your shirt for your new body
>it may just be a simple blue t-shirt, but it's better than showing up like an unclothed peasant
"Hey Twilight, would it be possible for you to resize my shirt? It may sound a bit weird to you, but I don't want to show up to meet the princesses naked.
>she smiles at your question, but nevertheless delivers a reply
>"If you insist, but I don't see the problem. You've already met one princess without it, you know."
>but she didn't meet you without you wearing it
>besides, it helps you feel more human
"I do insist."
>"Then I'll do that once we get to my parents' house."
>and now you know where you'll be staying
>purple's just a fountain of exposition, isn't she?
>"So, how was your first day of school here?"
"Not bad, caught up on my sleep and learned some stuff about Germaneigh."
>and that's how the train ride continued
>Twilight tries to keep a conversation going, but you've never been good at talking without purpose
>this leads to her pulling out a book and you staring at the scenery
>it's pretty nice out there
>plenty of green fields, a few scattered farmhouses and every once in a while a small town
>Equestria must be pretty important when it comes to agriculture
>as the sun starts setting, you notice that the scenery's changed to rolling green hills
>after the sun sets, your view is entirely dominated by the mountain Canterlot's built onto
>it's not as pretty as the farmland or hills
>kinda dreary, actually
>but the ride is nearly over
>not too long left
>soon enough, the train pulls up to the station and you and Twilight exit
>"Welcome to Canterlot!"
>you stare off into the city around you
>this is when you realize that the show never really did it justice
>this place is big
>that's an understatement
>it's huge
>you're not even sure if there are any materials or ways to build a platform that would be strong enough to hold a city this size
>without magic, at least
>no way humanity could pull this off, at least not for a long time
>Twilight shakes you out of your stupor after a few seconds
>"Come on Anon, it's already late."
>to your surprise, Velvet and Night Light's house isn't too far from the train station
>convenient
>Twilight knocks on the door, and it's answered a few seconds later by Velvet herself
[p]>"Oh, Twilight! Come in, we got your letter!"[/p]
>letter?
>if it got there this quickly, Spike must've sent it
>but then does that mean he can choose where he sends letters?
>you remember to ask him about that later
>Velvet soon notices you
[p]>"And you must be Anonymous! Twilight's told me a lot about you, she says you're very smart!"[/p]
>you follow the two mares as they walk inside, Velvet closing the door behind you three
>"Thanks again for having us on such short notice, mom."
[p]>"Well, your room is upstairs. Why don't you two go put your bags up there, and I will get dinner ready?"[/p]
>sounds like a plan to you
>you grab your stuff and head up the stairs with Twilight behind you
>when you two get to the top, she takes the lead to show you where the room is
>on the way, you both run into Night Light
>"Hi dad, how are you?"
[o]>"Not bad, and who's this?"[/o]
>fuck, he's looking at you
>come on Twilight, draw attention!
>"This is Anonymous, she's living with me in Ponyville while I give her advanced lessons."
>good job, Twilight!
>wait, he's turning back towards you
[o]>"Well then, it's nice to meet you! My name's Night Light."[/o]
>you hope he doesn't expect you to respond
>you never were good in situations like this
>meeting people is hard
>luckily for you, he turns back to Twilight
[o]>"I just finished cleaning up your old room, so feel free to put your things there. I'll see you two downstairs!"[/o]
>with that he heads off towards the stairs
>but which room is Twilight's old room?
>she must know, since she immediately goes towards a door near the end of the hall
>she opens the door as you catch up, showing you the room you two will be in
>"This used to be my room as a filly, but as you can imagine, it opened back up when I moved out."
>it's not a bad sized room
>there are bookshelves, a chair, and a bed in the corner
"I guess we're sharing a bed."
>Twilight looks at the bed and back to you
>"It looks like it, I don't have any problems with that if you don't.
>stop it, phantom boner
>you don't even exist right now
"No problems on my end. Now, about my shirt..."
>you open your suitcase up and pull out your blue shirt
>you receive another reminder of your size when you see that you could easily use it as a blanket
>"Alright, put it down and I'll shrink it down for you."
>you drop the shirt on the floor and Twilight charges up a spell
>a moment later, your shirt is once again a perfect fit
"Thanks!"
>as you put your shirt back, Velvet calls that dinner's ready
>Twilight turns to you as soon as you get up
>"Please use your manners this time, I don't want my parents thinking you were raised in a zoo."
"Don't worry, I only act like that with pasta."
>this answer seems to satisfy her, and you two go downstairs to eat
>much to Twilight's clear relief, dinner isn't spaghetti
>it's sandwiches
>you can live with this
>everyone takes a sandwich and you choose a seat between Twilight and Night Light
>they all have conversations as they're eating, catching up with what's been going on since they've last met, etc
>but you? you just stay quiet because of an old memory this had brought up
>it was the last christmas before you went off to college
>your grandfather had died only a few days before
>nobody in the family took it well, especially you
>sure, you put up a front and tried your best to move on, but it really shook you
>he was easily your favorite relative
>you two used to have so much fun when you were younger
>he always bent the rules for you and your siblings
>always took you three for car rides
>no, this is not the time or place for these feels!
>you bring yourself out of it only to realize that everybody's already finished eating
>well, everybody but you
>you'd only eaten half your sandwich and were just chewing the same bite for god knows how long
>good, it seems nobody's noticed that yet
>you eat the rest of your food as quickly as you can
>this is what attracts everybody's attention
[p]>"Did you enjoy your food?"[/p]
>Velvet's looking at you expectantly
"Y-yeah, it was good."
>damn autism's acting up again
>she smiles and replies
[p]>"I'm glad you enjoyed it, it's not often we have to cook for company."[/p]
>situation diffused
>you excuse yourself from the table to go to sleep
>you're actually pretty tired
>but you're going back up to the room because you don't want any more nervous stuttering to come out
>at least you can still talk normally to your Aryanne plush
>but that would make you weird
>weirder than a human in a world dominated by colorful miniature horses capable of magic and flight?
>meh, you'll take it over nothing
>you enter the room and pull Aryanne out of your suitcase
"Today's been kind of a ride."
>no response
"I'm trying to hold it together, but it's still only our second day here."
>no response
>"At least we have that going for us, it's not like every person pulled into another universe has a genius princess giving them free room and board while working on a way to get them home."
>no response
"I guess I'm feeling a bit better now, but I'm still more tired than anything. Let's get to sleep, tomorrow I get to meet Celestia!"
>you hop into bed and bring Aryanne up with you, snuggling in as you feel sleep beginning to take you
>but as you're laying there, you find yourself saying a silent prayer
God, I don't know if you can hear me from here, but please help me get home. I don't want my family to be too worried about me, and I still want to be there for them.
>this brings you some comfort, and you can almost hear an answer as you drift off to sleep
>.   .   .
>you’re roused from a dreamless sleep by Twilight getting out of bed next to you
>”It’s time to get up, Anon. It’s the middle of the morning, and more importantly, Celestia’s expecting us soon.”
>and that’s the way your first complete night of sleep in a month ends
>oh well, it’s not like you wanted more sleep anyway
>you force your eyes open to see Twilight getting a few things collected into a saddlebag she brought
>it’s probably all the information about you she has
>soon enough she’s got it put away and is waiting on you to get up
>you unceremoniously fall out of bed and crawl over to your bag
“Just let me get my shirt on, and then we can go.”
>Twilight takes a brush out of her suitcase nearby and brings it over to you
>“Hold on, we aren’t going anywhere with your mane looking like that!”
>your mane?
>what’s wrong with it?
>you would’ve checked to see, but she’s already brushing out the bad spots
>it hurts a bit when she comes to a stubborn part, but otherwise it’s not that bad
>you try to fidget as little as you can to make it easier
>soon enough, Twilight is satisfied with her work and puts the brush back
>”Doesn’t that look better?”
>you have no idea, you couldn’t see it to begin with
“Sure.”
>too bad putting on the shirt undid half of the brushing
>this makes Twilight pull the brush back out and fix it again
“Now can we go?”
>she puts the brush away again
>”Yes we can.”
>she leads the way downstairs, stopping only to grab a couple of fruits for you two and to say goodbye to her parents
>Twilight gives you one of them when you get outside
>it’s a banana
>do you want to eat it now?
>you are pretty hungry
>however, you could save it for the memes
>that’s probably not the best of ideas, though
>yeah, you probably shouldn’t just in case you end up making somepony mad
>you end up wondering how it would’ve went had you saved your banana as you two continue towards the castle
>it wasn’t a bad banana, though
>it definitely made you less hungry
>but it’s still just a banana
>your thoughts about what could have been are soon turned towards thoughts of what will be
>you have no idea what Celestia's going to do or how she's going to do it
>this scares you just a bit, seeing as how she's currently about 6 times your size and hundreds of times more powerful
>so you decide to do the best thing in this scenario
>no, not panic
"Is there anything I should expect when I meet the princess?"
>Twilight thinks for a few moments
>"That's a good question. I suppose a few good things to keep in mind is that she's going to be much bigger than you, but she's very kind and understanding. As long as you don't do anything too extreme, you should be fine."
>that doesn't help much, but it's a start
"About this visit in particular though, is there anything I should be ready for that I don't know about?"
>this has her thinking a bit harder for a bit longer
>"Now that you mention it, she WAS a bit skeptical of your legitimacy when I first contacted her about you. Just tell her the truth about what she wants to know, and let me handle what you can't answer."
>that's a better plan of action
>you keep this all in your mind, mentally rehearsing possible questions and answers as the castle serving as Equestria's capital grows ever closer

>be Celestia
>Twilight sent you a very peculiar letter earlier this week
>apparently there may be other universes, and ones inhabited by sentient life at that!
>it was an unsettling thought at first, but now it excites you more than anything
>it's certainly better than the constant paperwork you have to deal with
>royally declare this, pass that law
>it gets old really fast
>what happened to the days when you just had to move the sun and not manage an entire country?
>sure, Luna helps and Twilight is a godsend, but it all falls back to you whether you like it or not
>but at least it's worth it to make sure all your ponies are happy
>today, though, you've managed to put off the majority of the paperwork for something possibly much more important
>Twilight is bringing the alien she contacted to meet you
>you just wish that her earliest convenience had been a bit later, rescheduling things the day before they're set to happen is a nightmare
>on top of that, recent events in the badlands have convinced you that this might be an infiltration attempt, but it's still a good idea to establish positive relations with this alien should it prove to be what it says it is
>speaking of, you hear Twilight just outside your throne room now
>"... It'll be just fine, she's not that bad!"
[o]>"If you say so, just don't be surprised if I start stuttering again."[/o]
>you also hear something- actually, it sounds more like somepony- else with her
>you don't have to wonder about this alien's appearance for long though, as the throne room's massive doors soon open
>and you're greeted by Twilight and a green filly in a blue shirt
>you're not quite sure what you expected, but it definitely wasn't this
>Twilight's description certainly made it sound like something much different from the creature standing before you
>your surprise and confusion must have been clearly showing, since Twilight gives an explanation after closing the doors behind her
>"Don't worry, I used a spell to change Anonymous here into a pony to draw less suspicion during his stay here."
"Then this Anonymous is the alien you wrote about?"
>"Yes he is."
>you turn to the filly, Anonymous, and charge up a spell you haven't had to use often
>he develops a look of worry as he becomes shrouded in a yellow aura
>that's not good, it could give false results
"Anonymous, you have no need to be worried. If you are who Twilight says you are, then this spell will tell me. I promise that no harm will come to you through it."
>this seems to calm him down enough
>and soon enough, you have your results
>he checks out
>this absolutely floors you
>you've seen a great many things throughout your millennia of life, but an alien wasn't one of them
>the shock of this realization almost has you miss a question he asks
[o]>"I-if you d-don't mind me a-asking, what w-was that spell?"[/o]
>you try to figure out the best way to explain it to him, as magic is likely still a foreign concept to him
"It was a spell to determine your motives, I was making sure you are who you say you are, and you are."
>that was a terrible way to explain it
>at least you're not the only nervous one, judging by the sound of his voice
>but now that you know who he is, you'd like to know what
>and there's no better way to know what something is than by seeing it yourself
"Twilight, would it be possible for you to reverse this transformation?"
>she turns to Anonymous as if looking for approval
>Anonymous still looks a bit shaken from the previous spell, but ultimately fine, so she ignites her own horn for a spell
>"Anon, if you want to keep your shirt intact, I'd suggest you take it off."
>this seems to have brought Anonymous back from his thoughts
[o]>"What? Why do you say that?"[/o]
>had he seriously not been paying attention?
>nevertheless, he removes the shirt and Twilight fires off a single magic beam into him
[o]>"What was that? Wait, why am I getting bigger? WHAT IS GOING ON?"[/o]
>soon enough, Anonymous has changed from a filly not much taller than your leg into a beast that dwarfs even you in height
>this must be a human

>be Anonymous
>today is no longer going so great
>first, Celestia didn't believe you
>at least that was understandable, you'd be skeptical of possible aliens just randomly appearing from botched experiments too
>but this most recent development is what made it go from alright to bad
>you're now a human again, which would be alright
>however, you're a human who is completely naked and standing in front of two of the most powerful beings in this entire world
>so much for looking presentable
>instinctually, your hands shoot downwards to cover yourself and you face Twilight with a face somewhere between embarrassment and rage
"TWILIGHT, A LITTLE MORE WARNING WOULD HAVE BEEN GREAT!"
>Twilight seems a bit insulted at this, but she still maintains a level temper
>"Anonymous, if you had paid better attention, you would've had adequate warning."
>she's got you there, again
>stupid purple using more logic
>as you're thinking of a way to counter her statement, your left arm suddenly shoots up
"What..."
>when you look to see why, you notice that Celestia's holding it there
>she's... inspecting it, too
>you try to pull your arm back, but her magic is a lot stronger than you
"People normally ask before doing something like this, you know."
>she snaps out of her trance at your comment, he face reddening as she looks up at you
[p]>"O-oh, I'm terribly sorry. I couldn't control myself there, and got carried away. Do you mind if I continue?"[/p]
"I suppose not, but-"
>apparently that was all the answer she needed as you feel the magic return around your arm
>her attention then moves to your hand, and she starts individually moving each of your fingers
[p]>"Fascinating!"[/p]
>soon enough, Twilight is right there next to her taking notes
>you would feel more annoyed, but the expressions on their faces is just too cute
>the closest thing you could think of is a dog meeting another dog for the first time
>it almost gives you diabeetus
>they continue on like this, Celestia picking some limb to mess with and Twilight writing down anything of relevance she can, for another while
>it's certainly making you feel like an alien
>your thoughts begin to drift as this is happening, back to your time in high school
>health class, to be particular
>the teacher would put up diagrams of various parts of the human body and what they were
>yes, even some of those diagrams, you perv
>luckily the situation was awkward enough then that nobody stayed on the topic for long
>now, though?
>not so much
>that fact becomes all the more clear when Celestia finally becomes curious of what you've hidden
>this immediately pulls you back to the throne room
>as your arms shoot to your sides, you can't help but yell
"HEY, NOT COOL!"
>Celestia must have figured out what you were covering the instant that your arms weren't covering that spot, because she immediately lets you go
>her entire face then turns a shade of bright red and gives you one of the most embarrassed apologies you've ever heard
[p]>"I'm incredibly sorry, I didn't realize what you were covering. I suppose this would be a good place to stop, I'm certain both of us would appreciate that."[/p]
>you realize that your own face has become flushed as well
>this might be a good time for Twilight to change you back, since you haven't had any boners yet
>wait, nope
>too late
>you still decide to cut your losses though
"Twilight, do you mind changing me back now?"
>you realize that even her face has turned a shade of red from that, and she's trying to hide it behind her writing
>she finishes up what she was writing (probably just waiting for the blushing to stop) and changes you back
>at least now you won't have any more erection problems
>you put back on your shirt and begin staring at the ground
>everypony must have had the same idea, because an awkward silence has fallen on the room
>Celestia is the one to break it first
[p]>"Again, I am very sorry."[/p]
>this seems like as good a time as ever to tell her a bit more about human culture
"It's fine, but in most situations like this between humans, it isn't brought back up. Ever."
>she seems to understand the implications of what you said, but you're not looking up yet
>judging by the sound of her next few words, Celestia isn't quite ready to look at you again either
[p]>"... Well then, if you don't mind, Anonymous, I'd like to speak with Twilight in private. If you talk to one of the guards outside, they'll be happy to show you around."[/p]
>not wanting to be in this room anymore anyway, you get up and walk out the door

>be Twilight
>that was... something
>on the bright side, you now have more data on Anon and his native species
>however, the price is that he, yourself, and Princess Celestia all now have some bad memories
>speaking of the princess, what does she want to talk about that Anonymous can't be here?
>you don't have to wonder for very long
>"I'm about to tell you something that is not to leave this room, under any circumstances. I had Anonymous leave since I'm still not sure he can be trusted with information this important."
>oh, is this going to be another thing where you save the world?
>"Every single scouting party I have sent to monitor the Badlands within the past month has returned with reports of things and events consistent with the creation of a changeling hive."
>changelings?
"Weren't the changelings reformed by Glimmer, though?"
>Celestia stands up and begins pacing
>"Yes, a large amount of changelings were pacified by her actions, and that has been a weight off of my back for a long time. However, the one changeling she failed to convert was Chrysalis, their queen."
>wellthere'syourproblem.tiff
>"Chrysalis is a powerful enough enemy on her own, we both remember what she did back when your brother got married. I fear how she'll handle this most recent blow to not only her but to her entire species, and I know she has some sort of revenge plan forming."
>you still remember that day, it was a hopelessly one-sided battle
>Chrysalis could have easily won, it's a miracle she didn't
"Do you have any plans for dealing with this?"
>Celestia stops and looks directly at you
>"Until now, I didn't. Your friend Anonymous has changed that. He may have some ideas we can use to our advantage, if his world is as advanced as the human world on the other side of the mirror."
>this reminds you about Anon's statements involving the moon
"Speaking of Anon's species, he ended up telling me that one of the greatest things they've accomplished is going to their planet's moon. This is especially curious due to their apparent lack of magic. Do you think this is possible?"
>this really catches Celestia's attention
>she thinks for a while, and eventually comes to an answer
>or rather, a lack of an answer
>"I don't know. That is an area that nopony I know of has ever really looked into, and certainly not to the degree that I assume going to the moon would require. I'd have to ask Luna, she's the only pony I've ever known to go to the moon at all."
>this appears to give Celestia an idea
>"If this is what they've managed to accomplish in terms of exploration, then it must be astounding how well they've perfected combat!"
>that was a leap of logic that would make a pegasus feel inferior
>not even you know where that came from
>is Celestia becoming senile?
>can alicorns even become senile?
"What brought you to that conclusion?"
>she's quick to answer and has a pretty convincing point, though
>"Twilight, you saw Anonymous too. You can't tell me his species hasn't evolved around combat, it's evident by the way he carried himself and the way he reacted to transforming back into a human. If that wasn't enough on its own, he even had some distinct features of a predatory creature."
>it's moments like this that remind you why you still consider Celestia your teacher
>how had you missed all of that?
>forward facing eyes
>sharp, pointed teeth near the front of his mouth
>an incredible reaction time
>and certainly a powerful build, seeing as how he towered even over Celestia as a human
>at the very least, Anon's species is predatory
>at most, they're built for war
>this sends a shiver down your back as you realize just what you've brought to Equestria
"Is violence really the only solution we have to this problem?"
>"If you have any better ideas, I'm all ears.
>you think for as long as you can
>the elements might work, but that didn't work back when they first invaded
>Cadance and Shining might be able to help, but they're probably still dealing with Flurry and the resulting property damage
>Glimmer would probably be murdered personally by Chrysalis
>huh, there really aren't many other solutions you can think of
>Anon might be Equestria's only hope of surviving a rage-fueled changeling attack
"Okay, but how do we get Anon to tell us how to do this?"
>"You're the one closest to him here, and you must have gotten that other information out of him somehow."
>it doesn't sit right with you to abuse your position to learn more
>but it may not matter
>you are a princess too, it's your job to put Equestria before all else
>even your promise to Anon
>but it's not like you could make good on your promise if Chrysalis takes over, anyway
>so it's still alright
>but then why does it still feel wrong?
"Alright. I'll keep questioning him and give you all the information I get."
>"Thank you, Twilight. I'm sure Anonymous won't mind after all's said and done."
>you hope he doesn't
>it is for the good of Equestria, after all

>be Anon
>staying with the guards and touring the castle was fun for only so long
>it also feels like you've been going in circles
>every hallway looks the same
>every stained glass window depicts the same stuff
>eventually you get restless enough to try to strike off on your own
>don't worry, if you get caught you can just say you got lost
>it isn't the most ideal thing to do, but you've been here for two days and haven't done anything interesting except make Diamond Tiara pee herself
>those other anons aren't going to be happy with this boring greentext
>maybe you can find some hints about getting home, too
>at the first point you could, you slipped away to wander the castle
>as soon as you do, you immediately realize this was probably a lot worse of an idea than you considered
>here you are, some unknown filly, wandering around inside the most heavily guarded building in Equestria
>it also doesn't help that security is a lot more tense than FiM lead you to believe
>eventually you find a room that looks good enough to hide in and wait for Twilight to find you
>as you look around your new hiding spot, you notice it's not exactly another room of this castle
>it actually kind of looks like a break room
>there's a couch, a refrigerator (you think), a few cabinets
>and something else
>but why would that be here?
>in one of the corners of the room, there's an arcade machine
>joystick, buttons, coin slot and all
>this could be fun!
>remembering everything about couch stereotypes you can, you reach in between the cushions and pull out a few bits
>time to see what this is
>you go over to the machine to see what game it is
>Pac-Mare
>if it's anything like Pac-Man, you should be pretty good at it
>you insert a coin, and the game starts up
>yep, this is pretty much Pac-Man
>this takes you back
>back to the days when you and your dad used to go out on Saturdays
>you two would go out and get lunch at this one burger joint
>both of you would always get the same thing every time
>after you'd finished your food, you'd go next door to the local arcade
>your dad was a complete nerd back when arcades were cool, so naturally he knew how to beat every game on every machine
>the only one he couldn't quite master was Pac-Man
>you, on the other hand, were only good at Pac-Man
>together, the two of you held every high score in that arcade
>those were some fun Saturdays
>you still went to the arcade near your college every once in a while, but it wasn't the same without your dad there
>and now it's even less so since you're in another universe and aren't even a human anymore
>damn, double nostalgia AND depression
>these levels of feels shouldn't be possible
>you're snapped out of your pity party when you finally lose your first life on stage 7
>come on Anon, this isn't how good you are!
>show these noobs what it's like to be good at games!
>you keep your concentration up through the first hundred levels, until you're pretty sure your score is so maxed that nopony should be able to beat it
>sure enough, when you check the score it's solidly frozen at 999,990
>works just like back home
>you then let yourself die another few times and go to the high score screen
>and there's your score, in top of the board
>time to choose how your score will be immortalized
>you still remember your first choice of name at the arcade of your youth
>A S S
>this makes you giggle to yourself, and after another couple less serious games you soon have all three top places on the board
>they're really gonna have to git gud to beat you
>all this ass kicking has made you a bit tired, so you decide to take a break on the couch and wait for somepony to find you

>be Twilight
>you've just agreed to manipulate Anonymous into giving up whatever he knows about humanity's weapons capabilities
>this is probably the best time then to give Celestia all the information you've gathered about him, then
"I suppose if this is what we're doing, I might as well give you all the data I've collected about him."
>you reach into your saddlebag and pull out a few papers, pictures, and other miscellaneous items pertaining to Anonymous's arrival
>Celestia is clearly impressed by the level of dedication you've put in to understanding him
>she isn't one to be put off by a stack of papers, though
>as she flips through each document you've put together, you can see her face change through a series of expressions
>surprise, doubt, confusion and interest are among them
>"Do you mind if I ask some questions about this information?"
>you don't mind being asked, you just don't have many answers
"Go ahead, but don't expect a solid answer."
>"How did he first react to coming here?"
>that one's easy
"He was half asleep, and so he  didn't have much of one aside from being forced awake by hitting the floor."
>Celestia gives a laugh at the last bit, but resumes a more serious face
>"Alright, how did he first react to being in a different universe when he regained consciousness?"
>this one's also pretty easy to answer, but it's not as sure as the first one
"It appeared to take him a few seconds to realize that he wasn't in the same place or the same body as before, but he was taking it well up until I told him that there wasn't a guarantee of him being able to get home."
>"And how did he react to that?"
>this one still hurts for you to think about
"He... He didn't take it well, and started crying."
>Celestia shows a bit of pity, now knowing Anon's feelings toward his situation
>"Now I understand your promise to him a bit better. There's just two more things I'd like to ask, and then you're free to look for anything that might help you both, or simply go."
>only two more questions
>you must've been able to collect more data than you thought
>either that, or Celestia's managed to figure out some things that you haven't from it
>knowing both of your track records, it could be either
"Alright, shoot."
>"You mentioned Anonymous having a stuffed animal in his possession resembling Aryanne, as well as knowing your name before a formal introduction. Has he given any explanation for either?"
>this is one of the questions that still confuses you
>the worst part is, Anon hasn't given you an answer yet
>that may be partly your fault though, since you never brought it back up
>stupid purple, quit giving yourself problems!
"He hasn't, and I have no way to explain it. I can tell you that it's just as weird as you think it is, though. The stuffed animal doesn't just resemble Aryanne either, it's nearly identical. It even has the proper cutie mark!"
>This stuns Celestia, and judging by the length of her silence, she's also remembering something
>she soon regains her focus and gives you some insight to her thoughts just then
>"Aryanne. She was a proud mare with impressive ideas, and an impressive army to back them up. I remember the day Germaneigh first declared independence like it was yesterday, and I can remember every detail of Aryanne's face as she told me to go fuck myself in this very room."
>such strong language, no wonder it was one of the more violent wars Equestria's ever had
>but, that's politics
>no wonder Celestia's not a fan of it
>"Her ideas worked, though. Germaneigh is still standing and has become a strong nation in its own right. I may not like her, but I would be lying if I said I didn't respect her."
>again, politics
>all this is making you nervous about the day where the crown is passed to you
>you'd rather just keep doing science and going on adventures with your friends
>but this is all distracting from the point at hand
"What was your last question?"
>Celestia's jolted out of her memories by your statement
>"I'm sorry, did I get sidetracked? Anyway, I was just going to ask you about those magical items needed to repeat this procedure."
>you reach into your saddlebag again to pull out a list of materials and procedures for the experiment
"Here's a full explanation of the materials used, the spells cast, and how it was all done."
>Celestia begins to flip through this stack of papers as well
>it's not provoking the same reactions, though
>she just nods every so often
>she finishes looking through the document soon enough, and gives it back
>"Alright, I'll start looking for the items listed tomorrow. It may take some time, but I know that there should be no reason I can't get them."
>that's a load off
>you weren't sure how you managed to collect fire from an Elder Dragon anyway, and you sure didn't want to try it again
>that wasn't even the worst thing you had to find, though
>that title belongs to a shard of Mirror Crystal
>you're not sure how much of the Crystal Tundra you had to search before finding a single cherry pit sized piece
>you would've liked to find more to make the reaction more stable, but spending a month looking for that was long enough
"Thank you for helping me out with this, I'm sure Anon will be happy to hear about it!"
>you gather all your things back up and go to find anon

>be Anon
>you've been sitting here for a while
>does nopony even care?
>is anyone even gonna come in here?
>you're getting hungry again, too
>shit
>and there's no Twilight to get you food either
>guess you should check that thing that looks like a fridge
>you get up and walk over to it
>the handle's pretty high up, but you still manage to reach it
>at least you're not too vertically challenged
>after a solid pull, the door is open
>it actually is a fridge!
>but how do they keep it cold?
>probably more magic
>who supplies all the magic to run this stuff?
>you decide not to think about this since you probably wouldn't know anyways
>time to see if there's anything in here you could eat
>nope, that's claimed
>that is too
>heh, this guy's last name is "Thruster"!
>is all this food claimed?
>as a matter of fact, it is
>rip
>you'll just have to wait it out, since you're not a thief
>maybe you should check the cabinets too
>these aren't as tall as the fridge
>you open one of the cabinets with ease
>it's nothing you can eat
>mainly cleaning supplies
>and no, you're not drinking bleach
>yet
>no, not ever
>you're not enough of a bitch to off yourself
>a search of the other cabinets reveal more things that you can't eat
>one of them does have a deck of cards, though
>might as well play some solitaire
>you play a few rounds of solitaire (mostly losing) before you realize that you have another problem besides hunger
>you have to use the bathroom
>this may be more of a problem than the hunger
>what's worse is that you have no idea where the bathroom is
>you're going to have to venture back into the castle
>this is gonna suck
>you make your way back out, no longer caring if guards find you
>at least they'll know where the bathroom is
>you eventually make your way back to where you ditched the guards, but this doesn't help either
>wait
>you see Twilight!
"Twilight, over here!"
>she turns towards you and starts trotting over
>"There you are, I've been looking for you for a while!"
"I'm sorry about sneaking off and doing my own thing, but we've got more important issues. If I don't get to a bathroom in about a minute, I'm going to end up peeing on the floor."
>she understood your urgency, good
>"Hold on, I'll teleport us there."
>thank you!
>wait, us?
>doesn't matter, urge to pee is reaching critical levels
>as soon as the purple flash is gone from your eyes, you immediately run to the toilet
>doesn't matter that purple's in here with you
>wait, why is she here with you?
>at least she's not looking at you while you're here
>that would make her a pedo
>and weird
"Hey Twilight, why did you come in here with me?"
>"Because it's a big castle, and I'm not going to lose you again inside it."
>that's a valid point
>"Also, we're going to stop by the castle's library before we go, and I know you don't know the way there."
>another valid point
>you finish going to the bathroom and wash your hooves
>Twilight then teleports you two to the library
>the library is just as boring as you expected
>Nothing but big dusty books about things that don’t interest you
>except for a book about physics, that actually looks pretty interesting
>well, it did until you looked inside of it
>it’s not much that you haven’t already learned
>these ponies must not pay very much attention to the sciences that humans do
>after giving almost every book a cursory glance, you go find Twilight
>she’s over at a table with some particularly big and dusty book
>she doesn’t seem to be paying too much attention to you, this book must be pretty interesting
>luckily, it’s pretty easy for you to see the cover from the way she’s holding it
>Theoretical and Applied Magic at a Master Level
>Volume III
>how many of those are there?
>at least 3, apparently
>if only you had some paper, you could continue writing down what’s happened
>but where would you find blank paper in a library?
>if anypony would know, it’s Twilight
“Hey Twilight, do you know where I could find some paper?”
>she looks up from this book with a confused look
>”Why do you need paper?”
>you try to think of a valid excuse
>nope, none
>the truth it is!
“I’m writing down everything that happens to me here.”
>this makes her a bit suspicious
>”Who are you writing this down for?”
“Myself, mainly. I certainly don’t think anyone back home would believe I was here of all places.”
>she puts down the book and gives her full attention to you
>”What do you mean by ‘here of all places’?”
>oh boy
>you’ve gone too far
>Twilight’s probably not going to let it go this time, either
>but you have to try to avoid the question
“A-again, it’s a long story. The paper, please?”
>Twilight gets up, now with a different look on her face
“Good thing you’ll have plenty of time to tell me when we’re back at home.”
>rip
>your attempt didn’t work this time
>guess you now have to figure out the easiest way to tell her that her entire life’s a work of fiction
>this won’t end well
>at least she went to go look for paper
>shit, you don't have a pencil either
>and you're still hungry
>why are you so bad at managing priorities
>well, at least Twilight grabbed you a pencil while getting paper
>now, where were you?
>oh right, about where Spike and you got lost
>you go back to writing down what's been happening
>you get to the start of your first day of school when Twilight finishes checking the book she has
>"Well, I've found nothing in here that helps me at all. Are you hungry, too?"
>food?
>it seems you don't need to ask about food either!
"Yeah, I'm pretty hungry. Where are we going?"
>"There's a few good places nearby, anything you want in particular?"
>you don't really care what it is at this point, you just want food
"I'm not sure, what do you think?"
>she thinks for a second
>"You can never really go wrong with pizza, how does that sound?"
>pizza sounds great
"Sure, let's go get some pizza!"
>just under 20 minutes later, you two are seated in a pizza parlor
>you're looking at the menu, and having a hard time choosing toppings
>no matter how hard you look, there are still no options for pepperoni or bacon
>yet there's still pineapple
>stupid vegans have no taste
>you decide to vocalize your complaints to Twilight
"What does a filly have to do to get some meat around here?"
>"What did you expect? Ponies don't eat that stuff, we aren't built for it."
>that still doesn't answer your question
>oh well
>when the waiter comes, you decide on cheese pizza
>Twilight gets pineapple on hers
>why though?
"What is wrong with you?"
>"Says the filly who only got cheese on hers."
"Cheese pizza is a last resort for when there's nothing good to choose from. You WILLINGLY chose pineapple!"
>"Pineapple's not that bad, you know."
>you see through her lies
>you've tried it, it's pretty nasty
"Maybe to you, it isn't. All of us sane individuals will just keep our quality pizza to ourselves and away from you."
>Twilight's starting to look somewhat amused
>can she handle banter?
>"I can prove how it's better than what you would've chosen."
>bullshit
"Alright, prove it."
>she gets one of the smuggest grins you've ever seen and leans in close
>"Judging by your reaction, pineapple is also a topping where you come from. Given that you had to order cheese, that means what you like isn't available here. There is enough of a demand for pineapple that it's served in two universes, while yours is only in one."
>statistically backed banter
>there are so many things wrong with that argument, but it's obviously just shitposting
>so you respond the best way you know how in this situation
"Shut up..."
>she just leans back and laughs
>stupid purple, go eat a pineapple!
>while you're being butthurt, the pizza comes
>it's pretty decently sized too
>not forgetting your manners, you thank the waiter before digging in
>you may not be some filthy pedo, but this cheese pizza isn't bad
>maybe it's just your hunger, though
>either way, you manage to power down the whole thing in about 7 minutes
>Twilight certainly looks surprised
>she hasn't even finished half of hers
>"I guess you enjoyed your basic cheese pizza."
"More than you're enjoying your garbage pineapple one, if that's how we're judging it."
>that exchange makes you both laugh
>fuck, you could get used to this!
>you'd seen greentexts about Twilight being an absolute cunt
>about her being a manipulative psychopath
>even just an overprotective mother, sometimes
>never did you see one where she was just... friendly
>it's still not where you wanted to be less than a week ago, but still
>this isn't half bad
>Twilight finishes the rest of her pizza and pays the bill, freeing the two of you to go and do some sightseeing
>well, Twilight has already been to a lot of these locations, so she's mainly showing you around
>some cool sights
>some other cool monuments
>kinda reminds you of a family trip to Washington DC
>you all toured the entire city, seeing all the cool sights
>except when it came to going to museums, then everybody split up and looked at what they wanted to see
>you being the nerd that you are went to the natural history museum and the aerospace museum
>other members of your family went to the art museum, and still others went to the national history museum
>afterwards, you all met back up for dinner
>it was a nice trip, but it was also back when you were clueless to the corruption present in that city
>still though, you and your family had fun and that's all that mattered
>you two finish up this tour of Canterlot outside the castle, watching as Luna raised the moon
>that's a solid way to end any day

>be Luna
>you just finished raising the moon
>apparently Twilight had visited today
>friggin Tia, never tells you anything
>worse, she tries to push paperwork on to you
>it was this kind of shit that made you turn into Nightmare Moon
>you've got enough to look after yourself without her giving you her excess
>it's not easy keeping track of every pony on the national watch list
>no, not even when you're being paid to sleep
>that's a lot of ponies to make sure aren't getting into shit
>a couple hundred of them, if memory serves
>you still haven't found Starlight Glimmer yet though, that's beginning to worry you
>wasn't she supposed to be with Twilight?
>oh well, maybe she ran off and got herself killed in the Everfree or something
>you remember back when the royal castle was there
>it sucked, some wild animal got inside almost every other day
>at least you still had that massive system of secret passages and slides
>Tia didn't have any of that installed in this castle
>buzzkill
>speaking of Head Princess Sunbutt, here she comes
>"Luna, I have a question."
"We may have an answer."
>her face changes to very mild contempt
>you know she hates it when you use the royal we with her
>"Anyway, I was wondering what it would take to send a pony to the moon. Twilight brought that up during the meeting today, and you're the only one I can think of that might have an answer."
>how did this come up?
>in what conversation does a trip to the moon ever come up?
>well, besides that one time
>and that other time
>but no other times!
>this is actually a pretty good question though
>you think for as long as you can, remembering everything about your time spent on the moon that you can
>and you reach your answer
"Technically, it would be possible. It would take an absurd amount of time and energy to get there though, and that's not even considering what it would take to keep the pony alive once they got there."
>her face changes to surprise and confusion
>"Keeping the pony alive?"
"Space is a vacuum, and the moon is very far away. In fact, it's so far away that every other planet in this solar system could fit in between it and this planet. The pony would be dead in minutes with no protection from that environment, and the trip there would probably last for multiple days."
>Tia's trying to keep the horror off of her face at that description
>she's not doing a good job of it
>"That... That is good to know."
>luckily you didn't have to deal with any of that dying part
>immortality has its perks
>it was still pretty terrible though
>throwing rocks into orbit was fun until you ran out of rocks
>you did manage to make a pretty neat castle out of the dust, though
>of course, you had to turn it into glass before you could actually make a really big one though
>oh hey, Tia left!
>now you can get back to what you were doing before
>the question is, which one of the guards managed to max out the high score three times on the Pac-Mare machine?

>be Anon
>it's Sunday
>the rest of the previous night wasn't very interesting
>you mainly spent it continuing to write down your escapades
>you got through your day at school
>purple wasn't happy about you being a recluse, but whatever
>you went to sleep early again, because you were tired of losing games of Go Fish to Aryanne
>yeah, she's just a plush, but that didn't explain how she kept winning!
>no sense getting mad over it now
>you're already almost home
>the train's moving along well
>Twilight's reading  another book
>you can see Ponyville on the horizon
>only because of the castle, but oh well
>not too long later, you two are back at the castle
>now let's hope Twilight forgot about the incident in the library
>"Alright, now would you mind telling me about how you seem to have so much knowledge about a universe you've never been to?"
>no such luck
>can you think of a way out of this?
>she's looking at you
>"Today, please?"
>shit, there really isn't going to be a way out
"We shouldn't discuss this here, other ponies might hear it. You should also have a chair, you'll need it."
>Twilight takes the hint and leads you back to the interrogation room you two had your first real conversation in
>you take the seat on the left again
>she goes back to the one on the right
"Alright, are you absolutely sure you want to hear this? Once I say it, there'll be no going back."
>she also teleported in her clipboard and pencil
>"Yes, I am."
"I cannot stress how much this matters. If you want to see how deep the rabbit hole goes, then I'll tell you just how far down it goes. If you want to keep your view of this world around you intact, then we can drop this subject and just go back to what we were doing before."
>"Anon, quit stalling. I doubt it could be any worse than some of the things I've learned."
>impatient, is she?
>well, she won't be for very long
"As far as my universe is concerned, your entire world- EVERYTHING HERE- is nothing but fiction."
>this really catches her off guard
>time to seal the deal
"This is the setting of a cartoon based on the lives of you and your 5 friends and how you all save the world but still deal with regular problems, the entire show being only the 4th in a series of generations of shows all about colored cartoon horses."
>Twilight remains stunned for a few more seconds before shrugging and writing stuff down
>wait
>wait
>WAIT
>she SHRUGGED OFF something that would've put any average person into a state of shock?
>anonymous.exe has crashed
>reboot? [y/n]
>y
>rebooting, please wait...
>Anonymous.exe has restarted
"A-aren't you surprised? Even a little concerned?"
>Twilight finishes writing
>"No, not really."
>uh
>what
"Why not? I'd be in a state of shock if you told me that my entire life's been nothing but a show for children!"
>"It's simple. The entire fact that you're here has made that effectively meaningless because your existence has proved the multiverse theory."
>Multiverse theory?
>doesn't that mean there's infinite universes with infinite possibilities for each one?
>either way, you're going to need to hear that again
"C-can you repeat that?"
>Twilight thinks for a second before replying in easier terms to understand
>"You came to this universe from another universe, proving that there are other universes out there."
>seems reasonable enough
>"The fact that there are other universes means that there's a potentially infinite number of universes, all with different levels of variation."
>you're understanding this so far
>"This level of variation combined with random chance ensures that there is at least one universe where this one is considered fiction, but there's more likely to be an infinite amount that considers this universe to be fiction because of how infinity works, but I'm getting away from the point."
>she lost you again when she started talking about infinity
>"My point is, since you coming here proved that it's possible for other universes to exist, it's guaranteed that at least one of them considers this universe to be fiction, assuming the sample size is as large as the theory states."
>now it's your turn to be floored
>this means there's a universe where your entire life is a TV show with a following of autistic neckbeards too
>but more importantly, you're chances of getting home are so small that they might as well not exist
>you feel the tears coming
>can you stop them?
>lol nope
>not even caring anymore, you fall out of the chair and begin to cry uncontrollably
>through the tears, you see Twilight get up
>you don't want comfort right now
"J-just l-l-eave m-me..."
>Twilight doesn't hesitate, completely ignoring what you said
>"No, I'm not going to leave you. That's the last thing you need in this situation."
>you feel yourself being pulled up by magic
>when you look up, you see her staring at you with a look of determination on her face
>"Anon, I promised to do everything in my power to get you home safe and sound. I'm not going to give up on that, and neither should you."
"W-what does i-it even matter?"
>"It matters because your family will miss you, and you'll never get to see them again. All those other universes out there all have their own yous who have done what their lives called for, now it's time for you to do what yours calls for."
>you feel the tears stop falling
>"Mark my words, you [i]will[/i] make it back okay, and your family will be much happier with your return. Besides, would you really want to put them through the stress of me having to go there myself and tell them you jumped off a building?"
>that last remark makes you crack a smile
>the thought of Twilight showing up at your parents' house and giving them a jar labeled "Anon" was just morbidly absurd enough to make you cheer up a bit
>she sees you smile and starts smiling herself
>"Did that make you feel better?"
>you no longer feel as insignificant
>you're actually less insignificant that normal
>there may be an infinite number of yous, but you're the only one that you need to be concerned about
>there's also quite a few people and a pony who care about your well-being
>nihilism be damned
"Yeah, I'm feeling a lot better."
>Twilight pulls you into another hug, which you gladly reciprocate
>there's no telling what you would've done if she hadn't ignored you
>but you don't want to think about that
>especially not when you've got Twilight's chest fluff to rub your face in
>as you're enjoying Twilight's embrace, you start sending another silent prayer
God, can you please tell my family that I'm alive and well, somehow? Just give them a sign, something to tell them that I'm coming home.
>with renewed conviction and a new perspective to your life, you and Twilight leave the room
>with this renewed conviction comes some new thoughts
>would it be better for you to even try to get home, at this point?
>there's still a basically 0% chance for you to actually get there
>and living with Twilight isn't all that bad, contrary to popular belief
>but would that be very fair to your real family?
>no, it wouldn't
>so you might as well keep trying
>staying with purple isn't that bad of a fallback option, though
>might want to bring this up with Twilight
"Twilight?"
>"Hm?"
"What happens if I can't get back home?"
>she's thinking again
>not for long
>"I guess you'll just have to stay with me until you appear of legal age to be on your own, and you lead a regular life here."
>this brings up thoughts of Anonmare in your mind
>will you really look like that?
>there are worse fates, you guess
>you could be Spike, doomed to look like a child forever
>or you could be stuck with some sicko Twilight that never lets you grow up
>yeah, all things considered, this isn't bad at all!
>eventually you two make it back to one of the more lived-in rooms of the castle
>and Spike's there with a comic book
>you never were into superheroes all that much, but seeing as you left your phone with all your other stuff near the door, you decide to read over his shoulder
>ehh, it's not that great
>it's just that one series with the Pony Avengers or whatever they're called, that episode was only okay to you
>at least this one doesn't seem to be magic
>you might have to go to that store with him sometime, though
>see if there's any quality material for sale there
>not that kind of material, you're not a faggot
>just some actually decent reading material
>after a few seconds, he notices you
[o]>"Oh, hey Anon! Do you want to read this after I'm done? It's a pretty good one."[/o]
>no, you really don't
"No thanks, I'm alright."
[o]>"Okay then, your loss."[/o]
>not really, it's not like you wanted to keep reading after you saw what it was
>instead, you decide to go find your phone
"Hey Twilight, can you tell me where I left my suitcase?"
>"No need to worry, I already teleported it to your room."
>and you know where your room is!
>well, you think you know where your room is!
>you may not know where your room is!
"Alright, thanks. I'm going to go unpack my stuff."
>time to see if you actually remember or not
>was it down this hallway?
>up or down the stairs?
>this is starting to look familiar
>was that picture always there?
>you may be lost
>no wait, you aren't
>just another left turn, and there it is!
>you open the door to your room
>only to find that it isn't
>it's definitely somepony's room, though
>there's a desk, plenty of loose scrolls and papers, a few books, and a bed that looks fairly used
>if that suitcase next to the desk is anything to go by, you've found Twilight's room
>but should you snoop around?
>realistically speaking, no
>but what would the [i]real[/i] Anonfilly do?
>probably search through everything trying to find a way into the liquor cabinet
>yeah, you're not going to do that
>does Twilight even have a liquor cabinet?
>she doesn't really strike you as that type, so your guess is no
>she's probably more of a social drinker anyway
>oh well, time to keep looking
>after another long wander through the halls of the Crystal Castle™, you make it back to your room
>your suitcase is put down in front of your bed
>time to put your stuff away
>your shirt and pants can just go back in that drawer you have
>Aryanne goes back on your bed
>all your writings on this journey can go on top of your bedside table
>and your phone?
>that stays with you
>but how are you going to carry it?
>probably in your mouth
>it's gonna be a bitch to clean the screen back off
>too bad, Twilight probably has some glass cleaner somewhere
>you try not to think of every time you ever brought this phone into the bathroom with you as you pick it up and leave
>it takes you another trek to get back, but eventually you do
>"Welcome back, need me to show you around the castle sometime?"
>Purple's smirking
>couldn't she see you're carrying something?
"Mmff."
>"I'll take that as a yes."
>oh well, at least now you can do all that cool stuff you couldn't before
>now, what games do you have on this thing?
>it's been so long since you've actually used your phone to play games that you can't remember
>you have to get into it first, though
>you hop onto the couch next to Spike in a pose you're no stranger to
>that being a pose where you're more sitting with your back and not your butt
>good posture is for those with weak backs!
>you use your left hoof to take your phone out of your mouth when you're good and comfortable and wipe all the spit on your chest
>it'll wash out, no worries
>you then set about unlocking it, which is surprisingly easy
>turns out the screen registers your hooves as well as it registers a human finger
>after a few misclicks and redos, you've got your phone unlocked
>battery's at 96%
>no signal, but that's to be expected here
>huh, it says you have a few unread texts
>you must've gotten them the night you came here
>might as well see what they are
>just your brother calling you a fag again
>he's going to get the biggest "no u" you can give him when you get back
>there's also a text from your mom
>she and your dad were going to be coming up to your area and wanted to visit
>that's rough
>you don't want to think about how they must've felt when they heard you were missing
>you can't stop yourself from thinking about it, though
>you start fighting back more tears
>it's okay Anonymous, you're going to make it back and everything's going to be alright
>stay strong and make it through, it's what they would want
>you take a deep breath to calm down and then check out your games
>there's not much of a selection
>you eventually choose one that you haven't played in a while
>it's Geometry Dash[s]inb4 mobilefag[/s]
>as soon as you get to the start menu, you remember that this game has some pretty kicking music
>also, no one here even knows what your phone is, so you can have the volume on without someone bitching about it!
>you take your phone off of mute and let the music hit you
>alright, time to see if you haven't lost any skill when you turned into a pony
>you're not doing bad, at least the game's fairly simple to control and doesn't need more than one point of contact
>about halfway through the level, you notice Spike looking over your shoulder
>you pause and face him
"Can I help you?"
[o]>"What's that?"[/o]
>he seems genuinely interested
>would Twilight want you to tell him what it is?
>you'd ask her, but she seems to have gone somewhere
>oh well
"Let me ask you a couple of questions first, and I'll tell you if the answers work out."
[o]>"Okay, ask me."[/o]
"Would Twilight want you to know what this is?"
[o]>"If she didn't want me to know, then she wouldn't have shown me it when she was looking at it for you."[/o]
>hm, can you trust that answer?
"Okay then, do you mind if I ask her about that myself?"
>this'll prove if he's lying or not
[o]>"Go ahead, I'll wait here."[/o]
>okay, maybe he isn't lying
"Alright, last question. Do you promise not to tell any other living being what this is?"
[o]>"Alright, but I don't see why that's necessary."[/o]
"Trust me, it's necessary. Now do you promise, or not?"
[o]>"Yes, I promise. Can you tell me now?"[/o]
>you can, his answers all seem reasonable given what you know about him
"This is my phone, it's a device I use to hold all my information because all those books would be heavy. I've also had some games added on to it, so I have something to do when I'm bored."
>does this mean you can get back to your game?
[o]>"Cool, what other kind of stuff can it do?"[/o]
>apparently not
"Almost anything I need it to, within a reasonable limit. It's pretty useful."
[o]>"Wow!"[/o]
>you take this as Spike being done asking you questions, so you go back to your game
>this level's pretty difficult, but it's not impossible
>you've gotten pretty close to the end a couple of times
>time to see if you can beat it and move on
>as you approach the final few parts of the level, you hit a spike and die
"FUCK!"
>coincidentally, you throw your right hoof in the air and hit a different Spike
>whoops
[o]>"Dude, what was that for?"[/o]
"Sorry, I didn't know you were still there."
>he's rubbing his nose, probably where you hit him
[o]>"I'm alright, just watch out next time."[/o]
>he turns back towards your phone as you restart the level again
>this time you manage to contain your anger as you lose yet again
>you keep trying, and your perseverance is rewarded on your 15th try
"And now I never have to play this level again! High five!"
>you extend your right hoof towards Spike, not hitting him this time
>he slaps it with about as much enthusiasm as someone who's excited and confused
>probably because he is, if his expression's anything to go by
[o]>"You did it! What did you do?"[/o]
>of course he wouldn't understand the significance of this achievement
>he doesn't know this game
"I'll give you the short version: This game is built to piss you off, and it does this by being unnecessarily hard in these later levels. This isn't helped by the fact that there are no checkpoints and there's pretty much no room for error past a certain point. You either do it perfectly, or you restart."
>he looks a bit more impressed
>he should be, he'd probably lose on the first level more than you'd lost on Clutterfunk
>and that's a lot of losing
[o]>"Can I try it?"[/o]
>you don't like handing your phone off to friends
>you don't like handing your phone off to family
>why should you hand it off to Spike, of all creatures?
"No, I don't exactly like others using this."
>he's thinking
[o]>"You're just worried that I'm better."[/o]
>now THIS is definitely a challenge
>but it's a challenge that you're confident you'll win
>so why not make this more interesting?
"Alright, I'll let you try the first level. If you pass it on your first try, I'll let you use my phone when I'm not using it. If you don't, then I get access to your ice cream stash."
>he suddenly looks like he's less willing to try
>did your ploy work?
>wait, no, he's still weighing the options
[o]>"You're on!"[/o]
>at least you get to see him fail miserably now
"The only thing I'm going to tell you is that you touch the screen to make the square jump. Have fun on Stereo Madness!"
>you pull up the level and give your phone to Spike and start watching him
>he made it past the first area alright
>he's actually not doing too terribly
>you start getting a bit worried when he makes it to the rocket part
>is he actually going to win?
>if he wins, he gets access to your phone
>that means he gets access to your pictures
>if he gets access to your pictures, he's going to see some shit that he really shouldn't
>did you fuck up?
>you may have fucked up
>you get increasingly nervous as Spike makes it further through the level
>shit, he's past halfway
>he's cleared 75%, is he going to make it?
>you fucked up
>as you accept your fate, a miracle happens and he dies to one of the last few spikes
>saved from Spike by a spike!
[o]>"Dang! At least I got pretty far."[/o]
>a wave of relief comes across you as you realize that the truth of your origins will continue to elude Spike
"Now, about that ice cream stash?"
>he gets a bit disappointed when he remembers what terms he agreed to
[o]>"I'll show you after dinner."[/o]
>speaking of dinner, what time is it?
>you exit the game when he gives you back your phone and check the time
>5:52
>alright, that must be where Twilight went
>either to get dinner or to make it
>speaking of Twilight, she comes back in from the door opposite you
>"I'm back, and I got din- Anonymous, if you're going to sit like that, then you need to close your legs and not let your tail go limp."
>wait, what?
>sure enough, when you look down you see something exposed that Twilight probably didn't want to see
>now completely embarrassed, you move into a better position with less exposed
"S-sorry!"
>what is this, the second time Twilight's seen your junk this week?
>this better not be a recurring theme
>you turn back towards Spike
"You could've said something."
[o]>"Sorry I wasn't paying attention to how you were sitting, it's not something I usually have to do."[/o]
>does everyone enjoy banter here?
>Fluttershy probably doesn't, but you haven't met her yet
>oh well, you have more important matters to attend to
"Did somepony say something about dinner?"
>"Yeah, I brought back hayburgers and did some grocery shopping as well."
>you get off the couch, not realizing you still had your phone on you
>luckily, it doesn't break when it lands
>after you finish inspecting your phone, you start off towards where you think the kitchen is
"Alright, I'm pretty hungry. Let's eat food!"
>"Anon, it's the other way."
>you turn back around, and you see Spike trying to hold back his laughter
>stupid dragon
"Okay then, the other way it is."
>Twilight stops you before you can get to the other door
>"I think I should lead the way this time, if that's alright."
>yeah, that's probably a better idea than you leading
>might be wandering around for another while before you find anything
"Fair enough."
>not forgetting your phone this time, you pick it back up and follow Twilight
>you three make the walk back to the kitchen in a little under a minute
>good thing Twilight actually knows how to get anywhere here
>you see what you've been waiting for already on the table when you get there
>hayburgers!
>but there's no cheese
>hardly a good burger if there isn't any cheese
>stupid vegan horses
>this is excusable enough as is, but when you take your spot at the table, you notice something
>this thing might as well be a salad on a bun!
>this isn't food, this is a garden!
>you find yourself unable to imagine yourself eating this mockery of a burger, much less actually eat it
>instead you just stare at it
>not Twilight though, she just starts eating
>even Spike doesn't seem to care all too much about the makeup of what's in front of him
>he might be able to eat pretty much anything, considering his favorite food is gemstones too
>no amount of hunger is worth disgracing the Great American Cheeseburger by eating this
>at least the hayfries are decent
>they taste like bread, if bread was shaped like fries
after you finish the hayfries, you turn your attention back towards your phone
>Twilight notices this and asks you a question
>"Do you not want the hayburger?"
>you don't
>you really and honestly don't
"You can have it if you want, I'm not actually that hungry."
>Twilight shrugs
>"Spike, do you want Anon's hayburger?"
[o]>"Nah, I'm saving room."[/o]
>of course he is, probably for more ice cream
>"Well, I hate letting good food go to waste, but-"
>at that moment, you hear vibrations
>excitedly you look back at your phone on the off-chance that you somehow got a message or a call
>nope, nothing
>then what's the vibrating?
>wait, don't the mane six's cutie marks vibrate when something important needs to happen?
>sure enough, you notice Twilight getting up and leaving the room
>this might be interesting!
>you get up and follow her
>Spike gets up too, since everyone else is leaving
>you three make it to the entryway, where Twilight opens the front door to let in none other than Pinkie
[p]>"Heya Twi! I started buzzing, so I came over as quickly as I could!"[/p]
>"Hi Pinkie, let's get up to the map so we can see what we're dealing with."
>as Twilight leads the way to the important map room, Pinkie takes notice of you
>before you could react, she's pretty much directly in front of you
>she's pretty intimidating when she's about 3 inches from your face with the grin of a serial killer on speed
>you won't admit it if you're asked, but that did kinda jumpscare you
[p]>"Oh, Twilight didn't tell me she had a new friend! What's your name?"[/p]
"..."
>for a second, all you can get out is silence
"...A-Anonymous."
>there's your voice!
[p]>"Hi there Anonymous, I'll call you Nonny for short! Sorry I can't throw you a Welcome-to-Ponyville party today, but I promise I'll throw you the biggest, best one that I've ever thrown when we get back!"[/p]
>"Pinkie, the map?"
>Twilight manages to recapture Pinkie's attention and leads her back off to the map room
>that was more terrifying than it should've been
>you notice at this point that you tried (and failed) to hide behind Spike as your first response
>he's just looking at you with a shit-eating grin now
[o]>"She scared you, didn't she?"[/o]
>not. a. word.
"No she didn't!"
[o]>"It's fine, I got a bit scared too with how fast Pinkie cleared the room to get to you."[/o]
>at least you don't feel as much like a wimp now
>but now that Twilight's left for the map room, what do you do?
>you could try to get back to your phone in the kitchen
>but you don't know where it is
>wait, Spike's here too!
>he can lead you there, probably
"Hey Spike, you mind leading me back to the kitchen so I can grab my phone?"
[o]>"Sure, it's back this way."[/o]
>Spike gets you back to the kitchen and your phone, but now what do you do?
>an idea forms
"Do you think Twilight will mind if we listen in on what's happening?"
>Spike starts thinking
>he comes to an answer after a little while
[o]>"I don't think she'd mind, but it was your idea if she does."[/o]
>he's not wrong on that last part
"Alright then, lead the way!"
>you grab your phone again and Spike leads you up to the map room
>it's up surprisingly far in the castle
>you had to climb up more than a couple of floors worth of stairs
>how many floors does this thing have?
>too many for you to bother counting right now
>after the last set of stairs, Spike brings you to a massive hallway
>this must be the length of one of this thing's branches, it's so big
>unfortunately, you two are too late to eavesdrop as Twilight and Pinkie are on their way back to the stairs
>so much for that plan
>Twilight notices you two first and trots up to you
>"Anon, Spike, I'm going to have to leave for a few days. Something's come up in Las Pegasus that Pinkie and I are needed to fix. Spike, you're in charge and I'll give you a list of everything you need to keep track of for me. Anon, I expect you to be able to handle yourself for the most part, but if you need anything, ask Spike. He'll know, and he'll ask me if he doesn't."
>she must be leaving now, by the mild urgency in her voice
>she teleports away, leaving you and Spike with Pinkie
>speaking of, she's over to you two now
[p]>"Heya Spike, sorry for not saying hi earlier!"[/p]
[o]>"Hi pinkie, it's fine. How are you?"[/o]
[p]>"As great as ever, my party cannon just got back from the shop!"[/p]
[o]>"Did you put cake in it instead of confetti again?"[/p]
[p]>"Yep, strawberry flavor this time! Tastiest misfire yet! It was pretty hard to clean up though, but club soda works amazing on stains and I have plenty of it!"[/p]
>Pinkie seems to get an idea and turns to you
[p]>"Hey, that means I get to use my party cannon at your party! But wait, it's supposed to be a surprise, so I won't say any more! Anyway, what's your favorite kind of cake?"[/p]
>she pulls a pencil and some paper out of her mane and looks eagerly at you
>you've never had to think about this before
"Uhhh... I guess chocolate?"
>she writes this down quickly and looks back up at you
[p]>"Favorite party game?"[/p]
>you've never played a party game in your life
>closest thing you've played to one is Smash Bros, but even then it was only with your brother and online
>not to mention that there probably isn't an N64, Gamecube, Wii (u), or even a 3DS here
>you have no idea what to say
>so you try to turn a free response question into a multiple choice one
"What are my options?"
[p]>"Anything you think of, I can get it for you!"[/p]
>that really didn't help
>wait, vidya games!
>there was a Pac-Man machine in the Canterlot Castle, so maybe they've got something like Smash Bros here after all!
"Are there any fighting games, like on arcade machines?"
[p]>"There are a couple, but usually only colts play those. Are you sure?"[/p]
>success
>let's see if your button mashing skills and dumb luck came with you to Equestria!
"Completely."
>she writes that down too
[p]>"That's about all I needed to ask, I'll get on it as soon as I can!"[/p]
>with that, Pinkie puts the paper and pencil back
>Twilight also teleports back up at about this time
>"Here's the list, Spike. I'll be back as soon as I can!"
>she gives Spike a fairly long scroll, and turns towards Pinkie
>"I'll teleport us to the station, it'll be faster than walking."
[p]>"Good thing I brought everything I need with me! Let's blow this popsicle stand! Oooh, can we get popsicles when we get there?"[/p]
>a purple flash hits you and Spike, and when it's gone, Twilight and Pinkie are too
>you turn towards Spike
"Do you have any idea where they're going for this?"
[o]>"Nope, and I guess you don't either."[/o]
"Any idea how long they'll be gone?"
[o]>"Twilight said a few days, but I'm pretty sure it'll be more like four or five."[/o]
>4-5 days without Twilight?
>this is gonna be a bit interesting
>let's hope Spike doesn't mess things up too badly while Twilight's gone
>he's not going to mess up on your watch
>you were probably going to have to help him on some stuff, anyway
>that doesn't matter though, you're an engineer!
>at least you were learning how to be one
>and that means you solve practical problems, like how to stop Spike from burning down a crystal castle before Twilight gets back!
>okay, maybe not that in particular, but you know you can help somehow
>but for now, you're going from confused to bored quickly
"So... What do we do now?"
>Spike looks at his list
[o]>"I don't have anything to do on this list tonight, so I'm not sure."[/o]
>that doesn't help
>does anything really help?
>probably not, you might just have to figure it all out yourself
"Well, what do you normally do when Twilight isn't around?"
>he thinks to himself for a couple of moments
[o]>"Nothing that you'd probably want to do, that's for sure."[/o]
>huh
>does that mean guy things, or genuinely boring shit?
>you'd be up for guy things
>might as well ask about it, then
"I don't know, I may enjoy some of it."
>he sighs
[o]>"Okay, sometimes I try cooking, other times I just read comic books, and if I can't do either, I hang out at Surgarcube Corner."[/o]
>cooking and Sugarcube Corner don't sound too bad
>Sugarcube Corner might not be open this late though
>cooking is just a form of applied chemistry, too
>you aren't that great at chemistry, but you do enjoy doing what you can with it
"Sure, cooking might be fun."
>Spike seems a bit surprised by this
[o]>"Alright, cooking it is!"[/o]
>you just got reminded about something, too
"While we're on the topic of food, you still have to show me where you keep the ice cream."
>he immediately goes from happy to mildly annoyed
[o]>"Yeah, yeah, I'll show you where it is..."[/o]
>you follow Spike back out of the hallway and back down to the kitchen
>the ice cream was here all along?
>wait, no
>he's just grabbing two bowls and some spoons
>how thoughtful, he grabbed one for you!
>this leads you to the realization that he might not be that terrible of a friend
>he then leads you down a set of stairs to the basement
>this looks like Spike's pretty much made it his room
>NEET life at its finest
>there's some furniture, a stack of comic books, even his cat basket
>which he has sitting on top of a perfectly good bed
>ytho.png
>do you see a Rarity plush in there, too?
>hah, what a fag!
>Spike walks over to a cabinet up against a wall
>this must be where it is
>you follow him up to the door of this cabinet and he opens it
>it is where it is, turns out this cabinet is a fully functioning freezer instead of a cabinet!
>wow, there's a lot of ice cream in here
>is this what he hoards as a dragon?
>at least it's not random crap, like that one episode
>that was a shitfest
>pretty much demonstrated how lackluster the Equestrian Armed Forces are
>if he was in 'Murica, he would've been airstriked into chunks
[o]>"What flavor do you want? I've got mint chip, rocky road, cookies and cream, coffee, chocolate, strawberry, vanilla... Pretty much anything you could ask for, actually."[/o]
>What flavor, that's indeed a hard question
>nothing wrong with vanilla, but it's a bit boring by itself
>would Spike mind if you made put some chocolate and strawberry in there, too?
>guess you'll have to ask
"You mind if I take some chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry?"
[o]>"I mind enough that I have to share my ice cream to begin with, at least Neapolitan's good taste."[/o]
>so they call it that here, too
>these ponies never cease to astound you
>Spike pulls out those three containers and one more, it's the rocky road
>after he finishes scooping out the ice cream, he puts the containers back and hands you your bowl
[o]>"Here you go, just don't get it anywhere. I try to keep this room pretty clean."[/o]
>he didn't skimp out on the ice cream, that's cool
>Spike walks over to the bed and sits down before eating
>you choose a nearby chair
>as you sit down, you choose not to sit with your back this time
>mainly because you're facing Spike
>you're not just going to sit like some regular pony, either
>you sit like any normal human would and get comfortable, only to realize that there is no spoon
>at least, not in your bowl
"Hey Spike, can you toss me a spoon?"
>he looks up at you with a confused expression
[o]>"Why do you need a spoon?"[/o]
>stupid mudhorse body!
>at least you think of an excuse
"I don't want to use my face, it'll just get all sticky and turn into a bigger mess than it needs to be."
[o]>"Do you even know how to use a spoon?"[/o]
>bitch, you've been using spoons since before he was even thought of by Lauren Herself!
"I'm pretty sure I can use a spoon.
[o]>"Alright, hold on."[/o]
>he gets up and walks over to you, handing you one of the spoons
>you grab the spoon with your right hoof in the same way you held those pencils
>sure enough, it works like you expected
>Thank god for analogous structures!
>you start eating your ice cream and Spike goes back to his
>you decide to look around a bit more
>this place is actually pretty clean
>no obvious dust or stains
>a lot cleaner than your dorm at college
>that place was almost never clean
>either way, it's not bad
"This is a pretty nice room."
>Spike swallows another bite and responds
[o]>"Yeah, it's alright. I didn't make the design choices, but it's better than having to share the second floor of a library with Twilight."[/o]
>you can agree to that, having to share a room with pretty much anyone isn't exactly the best of experiences
>you didn't mind sharing the room with Twilight at her parents' house, though
>that reminds you about how Spike sends letters
>again, wtf brain?
>now's a good time to ask
"Random thought, but how does you sending a letter work? I know about the fire bit, but I've only heard of you sending them to Celestia before the trip to Canterlot on Friday."
>he may not know how to respond to this
>no wait, he looks like he has an answer
[o]>"I think about who the letter's supposed to go to, at least I think that's how I do it."[/o]
>it's something
[o]>"How's life in Manehattan?"[/o]
>Manehattan?
>quick, think of everything you know about New York City!
>it's big
>a lot of people
>italians
>Trump Tower
"It's big, there are lots of ponies, and it's constantly busy. At least the pizza's pretty good. Oh, and there's also a few rich guys living around there."
>he nods and looks back at his now empty bowl
[o]>"Yeah, I wanted to go there and see some of the sights, but I hear it's even busier than Canterlot which sucked enough to live in."[/o]
>you finish the last bite of your ice cream and get up
"Want to come with me to put away these dishes?"
[o]>"Do you know where the kitchen is yet?"[/o]
>you do not
"No, so I guess you have to anyway."
>you two share a sensible chuckle over this and go put the dirty bowls and spoons in the kitchen
>you grab your phone back off of the table again and decide to go back to your room
>no reason not to
>you wander around again for a few minutes before getting there
>record time!
>you might be able to work your way around this castle someday!
>still, probably not for another week or so
>oh well, you won't have to be here for very long if RNGsus blesses you
>you go inside and put your phone down on the bedside table
>you see your Aryanne plush sitting on your bed giving you that same look when you get there
"And how was your day?"
>no response
>you get in the bed beside her and lay down
"Yeah, suitcases aren't known for being comfortable. We're back at the castle, though!"
>no response
"Things haven't been so bad in the other parts of the castle, but something pretty interesting did happen."
>no response
"there was a bit of commotion earlier and Twilight had to leave for somewhere, but she put Spike in charge."
>no response
"So far he's been pretty cool, I'm just not looking forward to the kind of stuff that may happen because he's Spike."
>no response
"He got this list handed to him by Twilight, and I'm pretty sure I'll have to help him with it at some point. At least he's letting me have some of his ice cream now."
>no response
"It's all in a cabinet in his room, in a freezer disguised as a cabinet."
>no response
"I didn't know he had a room either, but it's honestly not that bad. He keeps it clean and somewhat organized, the only thing I can criticize is that he still uses his basket instead of the bed he has. That, and the fact that he has a Rarity plush."
>no response
"It's just funny to me, he has a plush toy of his waifu who actually exists here!"
>no response
"Yes I see the irony in that, and the real you has been dead for a long time. Can you stop laughing now?"
[o]>"Who are you talking to, Anon?"[/o]
>you whip your head towards the door to see Spike standing there
>he looks pretty confused, too
>When did Spike get here?
>how much did he see?
"You heard nothing, got it?"
[o]>"I don't know what I heard, but I'll keep it secret if you want."[/o]
>time for you to be the confused one
"Mind if I ask why you're here?"
[o]>"I wanted to do one last sweep of the castle before going to bed myself, and decided to say goodnight while I was over here."[/o]
>probably one of his list items from Twilight
>is he going to be doing this until she gets back?
>you might have to stop talking to Aryanne then
>don't want to look like some nutcase
"Alrighty then, goodnight."
[o]>"'Night!"[/o]
>and with that he goes back out into the hall and closes your door
>you turn back to your Aryanne, now without further interruptions
"That was a bit odd, but oh well."
>no response
"You think that was bad? When Twilight and I were at the Canterlot Castle, she came into the bathroom with me when I had to go!"
>awkward no response
"At least she was turned around so she couldn't see me, but yeah, that was pretty gay looking back. That's not even the worst part about Saturday, though."
>no response
"Don't worry, I won't tell you if you don't want to hear it."
>less awkward no response
"Anyway, I have to go to school again tomorrow, so I better get to sleep."
>you turn back towards your phone and set an alarm for 6:15
>plenty of time to get ready and go there
>sleep doesn't come easily at first, but it comes quickly once the sugar is filtered out of your system
>a decent first day of the week, all things considered
>.   .   .
>your dreams are not too bad this time
>they mainly consist of you (human) and Twilight hopping around different universes and seeing what's there
>included are some other fictional universes that you know of
>star wars/trek, pokemon, even 40K
>you two stopped the Death Star from blowing up, crippled a borg cube, caught a legendary, and even fought with Space Marines against the forces of chaos
>the interesting part happened when you were about to press the "EXTERMINATUS" button to clear off a planet held by chaos
>you feel a tap on your shoulder
>you turn around to see Princess Luna standing behind you
>"Are you the creature known as Anonymous?"
>she's pretty short, too
>are humans just complete giants to all ponies?
>probably
"Yeah, and to what do I owe your visit, your majesty?"
>trying to be as polite as you can, you also kneel down
>"Please, save the formality for my sister. I've come to ask a few questions."
>okay, nothing new so far
>you stand back up as she asks her first question
>"Were you the one who maxed the score on the guardstaff's Pac-Mare machine three times?"
>you were, and you're not ashamed in the slightest
"Yes I am."
>she develops a small smirk for an instant but is replaced by her calm demeanor again
>"Then I would like to congratulate you on beating my score and putting those guards even further in their place. However, I regret to inform you that your scores were wiped. Too many of them were complaining about the top three scores being S U C, M A I, and A S S."
>this makes you laugh yourself, you had forgotten what you put down for the initials
"Then tell them that they don't actually have to suck my ass!"
>this takes her completely by surprise and she's just barely able to hold in her own laughter
>she regains her composure after a few seconds, but still keeps a smile on her face
>"I'll tell them tomorrow, I hope you don't mind if I quote you directly."
>now that the fun's over, only one question remains in your mind
>maybe two
>okay, maybe even three, but you're pretty sure she isn't DTF
>first things first, though
"I just have to ask, how'd you figure out it was me?"
>"I heard that Twilight visited on Saturday and brought a guest that Celestia asked for personally. After confronting Tia about this, she told me who you are."
>guess that also answers your second question
>she didn't flip out about you because she knew what to expect
"Anything else you want to ask while you're here?"
>"Yes, is it true that your species has successfully sent members of it to the moon and back?"
>back to the moon, but she might as well know about it
"Yeah, back in 1969 we sent three guys there on the first of several missions. Only Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin actually got to land on it, though. Michael Collins had to stay back in the orbital craft and make sure that they had a way back."
>she looks genuinely stunned for a solid minute
>"You're going to need to tell me more about this later, I need to get back to work for now. Besides, it's nearly morning and you'll wake up soon."
"Then I guess I'll see you tomorrow?"
>"You will, you've managed to catch my attention in multiple ways, and unlike my sister, you don't need to visit me personally."
>and with that, she walks away and fades out of your dream
>now, where were you?
>oh yes, the "EXTERMINATUS" button!
>you pull your arm back dramatically and shoot it forward to press that big, shiny red button that will end all those cultists' lives
>as you push the button, you get a piercing ringing instead of the fire and brimstone you expected
>that must be your phone alarm
>you open your eyes with great disappointment at not being able to massacre chaos followers from orbit before waking up
>you shut off your alarm and roll out of bed, looking about as good as you feel judging by your reflection in the walls
>time to go find a bathroom so you can at least clean yourself up
>you grab your phone and wander out into the hallway to look for one
>still dark, this isn't going to be very fun
>you wander for a few minutes going door to door, and you find a bathroom
>yep, all the necessary equipment is necessary
>a shower, a toilet, and a sink
>time to clean up
>setting your phone down next to the sink, you turn on the shower to what you think is a reasonable temperature
>you check to make sure all the other necessary stuff is present while it's warming up
>yep, there's soap and shampoo
>there's a towel already on the rack
>you don't need clothes because you're a pony
>yep, you're good to go
>now the water just needs to get warm
>you take a seat on the toilet and wait
>you're not risking using your phone here, it's a lot easier to drop it without fingers and you don't want to fish it out if you do
>when you see the shower producing a significant amount of steam, you decide to test the water
>it's pretty spot on, temperature wise
>you get in and just stand for a few moments before actually cleaning yourself
>it takes some brainpower and effort, but you manage to get just about everything
>now to let the shower thoughts take you!
>it's pretty interesting to see where your mind takes you
>it drifts back to the Pac-Man machine
>after some contemplation, you come to the conclusion that Pac-Man may have been the first undead survival game, depending on the formal definition of that genre
>that's enough shower time, the water's starting to get a bit colder
>you step out and turn the water off
>after grabbing the towel, you dry off as best you can and pick your phone back up to leave
>you should probably find Spike, he might know where everything is
>but first you have to find your way to somewhere you can start looking
>might as well try to get back to the kitchen
>as you work your way along, eventually you're greeted by a pleasant smell that makes it much easer to find out where it is
>mere moments later, you find Spike in the kitchen working with a frying pan
>he's also got that gay little apron on
"Can I ask what's in the pan?"
>he visibly jumps at this and turns around
[o]>"Hi Anon, I didn't expect you to be awake yet. I was just making myself breakfast, want some?"[/o]
>you are pretty hungry
"Sure, what are you making?"
[o]>"I'm trying to make pancakes, and it's going pretty well so far."[/o]
>he tries to flip one using only the pan
>he barely catches it
[o]>"Do you want one or two?"[/o]
>you've never really been that big of a fan of pancakes, but you're being offered food
>at any rate, you'll just have one since they look pretty big 
"Just one, do you know where the syrup is?"
>he looks back to the pan before looking back to you
[o]>"I think it's in the cabinet to your left."[/o]
>sure enough, the syrup's in that cabinet
>problem is, it's up too high for you to reach
>you look around for a solution, but there are no stools and the chairs look pretty heavy
>however, there's some room on the shelves leading up and the cabinet's firmly stuck to the wall
>you look at Spike, he's still paying attention to the pancakes
>you put a hoof up on the lowest shelf to test it
>it holds firmly, this crystal stuff must be pretty strong
>using this as leverage, you put your other hoof up on the next highest shelf
>this one holds too
>after a bit more trial, you soon manage to climb up the shelves and get to the level with the syrup
>success
>after grabbing the syrup, you begin making your way back down at a slower pace
>you really don't want to fall and drop all this sticky stuff on you in the process
[o]>"While I'm impressed with your idea, you could've asked me where a stool was."[/o]
>you look over your shoulder to see spike staring up at you, looking mildly amused
>you finish making your way down and use this time to construct a reply
>you put down the syrup bottle, and speak your mind now that your mouth is clear
"It worked, didn't it?"
[o]>"Heh, it did. Yours is on the table, and I'm pretty sure you know where all your school supplies are?"[/o]
"Yeah, they're probably back in my room. Hope I didn't have any homework, I don't really know how Cheerilee deals with that."
>Spike shrugs and goes back to the pan, now holding more batter
[o]>"I'm pretty sure it'll be fine, just check if you have it or not next time."[/o]
>you go take your place at the table with the syrup in tow and eat your pancake
>it's actually one of the best pancakes you've ever had
"Damn Spike, this is good!"
[o]>"Glad you like it, I messed up the recipe a bit. I might have to write that down for the future."[/o]
>after you finish, you check the time
>it's only 6:45
>you're doing alright
>you wander back up to your room to grab your stuff and make it there in record time
>you're getting better at this for sure
>your saddlebag is a bit easier to put on this time, since it's still fastened from when Twilight put it on you
>after another wander around the castle, you make it back to the kitchen
>Spike's now sitting at the table with his own pancake
"See ya later!"
>he swallows a bite that he took
[o]>"Have fun, and say hi to Sweetie Belle for me!"[/o]
>you'd rather not, but it's not exactly that hard to do
>you pick your phone up off the table and put it in your bag, then head down to the front door
>it takes longer than getting to your room, but you still make it in a few minutes
>stepping out to a beautiful morning, you make your way to school
>as you now have the opportunity to walk to school as opposed to being teleported, you decide to look around a bit beforehand
>this town is really quite beautiful in its simplicity
>plenty of houses and small businesses around
>/pol/ really would like it here
>it's a comfy town
>as you make the walk, the sun rises higher above the horizon
>when you get to school, there's a few minutes left before the bell rings, so you go and sit on that bench
>you pass quite a few fillies and colts along the way, including the CMC
>might as well get it over with now
>if you do it now, you won't have to do it later
>just do it, you pansy!
"Hey, Sweetie Belle?"
>she stops talking to the other two and turns towards you
[p]>"Hey Anonymous, how are you?"[/p]
>you don't have to do very much more, just say it and be done
"Spike told me to say hi to you for him, that's about it."
>she looks a bit disappointed that that's all you wanted to say, but she almost instantly brightens back up
[p]>"Alright, tell him I said hi too!"[/p]
"I'll do that. See you around."
>and with that, you walk off back towards your bench
>you have a good view of everything happening when you get back there
>you also notice DT and SS walking around near you
>when they see you, DT immediately starts walking a different direction
>dat nat 20 keeping its effect
>feelsgoodman.jpg
>after some more time spent sitting, the bell rings and you go inside to your desk
>same schedule as before, so you're pretty much just free to fall asleep again
>so, you do
>.   .   .
>your dreams aren't as eventful as the last night's while you're asleep in class
>Luna's probably off doing more important things
>the "EXTERMINATUS" button is nowhere to be found
>and you're a human sitting at a bar
>so far not that weird
>butwaitthere'smore.png
>Celestia's the bartender
[p]>"What would you like to drink?"[/p]
>you're not really a fan of alcohol, but fuck it
>you're 22 and this is a dream
"Jack and coke, please."
>Celestia makes you the drink and hands it to you
>as you drink it, you don't feel any different
>that's to be expected, it's not real after all
>still tastes pretty good though
>you might have to actually try this when you get back home
>or your mind might just be messing with you again
>speaking of your mind, you let it wander while you're sitting in the dream bar
>and of course, it goes back to that moment in the Canterlot Castle
>that one which you were never going to bring up again, especially around Celestia
>this is why you wish you had a different brain sometimes
>but this gives you an idea
>she didn't get to see it and you're starting to feel hot and bothered again for the 9000th time here
>are you sure that dream booze isn't affecting you?
>this is still a dream though, so why the fuck not?
"Hey Tia, want to come to the bathroom with me? We can pick up where we left off in the throne room, and I might be able to show you something new, too."
>she blushes, but the look on her face doesn't say no
[p]>"My shift ends soon, why not?"[/p]
>you get up from the stool you're sitting at and you two head off to the bathroom
>when you two get there, you enter a stall and she comes in with you
>you turn around to face her and start undoing your pants, but she stops you
[p]>"Can I?"[/p]
>why not?
>you stop and let her take over
>she gets your pants down fine
>she's about to get to your underwear
>sudden ringing
>GODDAMNIT
>COCKBLOCKED AGAIN BY REAL LIFE
>you open your eyes, now even more frustrated that you were this morning, to see the other school children running outside for recess
you get up too, and when you do you see a puddle on your own chair
>it's not pee
>let's hope no one sees that
>you go outside to join the rest of the class and take your spot on your bench
>it's pretty comfy, and the sun's nice and warm
>but you're not going to be able to get that dream back, or the other one
>so you just sit in disappointment
>eventually everyone goes inside again, so you follow them in
>you stay awake through science class but don't pay attention
>instead you pull your phone out and play with it under the desk
>when history comes, you put it back away because Twilight wants you to pay attention here
>it's not as interesting as the lesson about Germaneigh, but it's still new information
>Apparently Celestia only formally accepted her role as Princess 1,215 years ago, and was supposed to be splitting her duties with Luna
>we all know how that went
>it's not too much of a problem though, everything's somewhat alright now
>when the lunch bell rings and you go outside, you realized that you never grabbed any food
>fug
>you sit and wait in hunger, your pancake from this morning having already been digested
>you're gonna have to ask Spike about food when you get back
>the other ponies are all eating their food, and you don't have any friends to ask about it
>at least you have food at the castle, there are other yous stuck with Twilights that don't feed them
>or worse, you could be stuck in Lone15's story
>that filly's gonna fucking die, but here you are bitching about forgetting your food
>that thought doesn't really make you feel better when you remember that there are also other yous that didn't forget their lunches
>oh well, only a couple more hours until you can bug Spike about it
>after a long, foodless wait, the lunch bell rings and you head back inside
>writing is pretty easy again
>you notice Ms. Cheerilee staring at you while writing
>probably miring your skills with a pencil
>either that, or she thinks you're weird for using your hoof to write
>fuck what she thinks, this works for you and it works well!
>you hand in the assignment and use the rest of your time to keep writing
>you write through your first day of school right as your second day of school ends
>time to go bother Spike about lunch!
>you pack up your stuff and leave, making it back to the castle in about 20 minutes
>you open the door
>get on the floor
>and yell at the "dinosaur" in the building with you
"Hey Spike, where are you?!"
>he yells back a couple of seconds later
[o]>"I'm in the library!"[/o]
>time to go to the library
>you go to your room and drop off your bag and then try to find the library
>no success
>have you even been to the library?
>how would human you deal with this?
>you got it
"MARCO!"
>silence
>is marco polo even a thing here?
[o]>"What!?"[/o]
>it must not be
>looks like you'll have to explain it
"Just yell back POLO when I yell MARCO, got it!?"
>silence for another second
[o]>"Sure, Whatever!"[/o]
>and so this continues for about 10 minutes until you find your way to the library
>you see spike standing on a ladder dusting a bunch of books
"Hey, what's up?"
>he looks down from his perch
[o]>"Doing list things. Speaking of which, I'm gonna need your help for some of this."[/o]
>your help?
>is it really that hard to do himself?
>did you really not expect this, though?
>you knew you were going to have to help him to not fuck up at some point, just not for him to ask you directly
"Alright, but other matters first. I forgot to grab a lunch for myself, what's in the fridge?"
>Spike slides down the ladder holding the duster
[o]>"There's some stuff there, and I haven't eaten lunch either. Let's go eat!"[/o]
>not too long later, you and Spike are digging through the refrigerator
>it's all just vegetables, kinda disappointing
>but what isn't, in this world of vegans
[o]>"See anything you want, or any ideas on what to make?"[/o]
"Nah, it's all just vegetables to me."
>you look a bit deeper in the fridge and find something that you can work with
>a carton of eggs
"Do you mind if I make lunch, since you made breakfast?"
>Spike looks over to you
[o]>"Do you know how to make what you're gonna make?"[/o]
>fuck yeah, you do!
>it's one of the few things you know how to do without microwave instructions!
"Yeah, I know."
[o]>"Alright, just don't set anything on fire."[/o]
>stupid dragon, he's the one who sets things on fire!
>you grab the rest of the materials you need
>butter, a pan, a bowl, a fork, and a spoon
>time to make some motherfucking eggs
>after some trial and error, you figure out a good way to crack the eggs into the bowl
>from there, it's all much easier
>in a few minutes, you've got two plates of scrambled eggs done
>finally, something with protein!
>you put away the unused eggs and butter and put the dirty dishes with the used ice cream bowls from yesterday
>you give a plate of eggs to Spike and sit down to eat your own plate
>you also grabbed forks for both of you, because you still don't like the idea of shoving your face into food after the spaghetti incident
>as you start eating, you notice Spike just staring at what's in front of him
[o]>"What is this?"[/o]
>he points to the plate with a confused look
"Dude, it's scrambled eggs. Just try it, I swear it's not that bad."
>he reluctantly tries a bit, and then starts eating it more normally
[o]>"Where'd you learn to make this, it tastes good!"[/o]
>you can't tell him exactly where, but you can generalize
"I learned to make it at home."
>not exactly the whole truth, but definitely not a lie
>you go back to eating as Spike decides to make another comment about your choice of food
[o]>"You might have to teach me how to make this, I've never even seen it before."[/o]
>all in due time, Spike
>you finish your food and take the plate to the dirty dish pile
>Spike finishes his food and does the same
"Alright, so what do you need my help with?"
[o]>"We have to go and pick up some things, and before you ask, it IS a two-pony job. She even wrote that down, funnily enough."[/o]
>as you follow Spike to the door, you can only help but think that what you're going to be helping with is either dangerous, important, or both
>you'll just have to wait and see
>as you and Spike are walking to where Spike needs the two of you to be, your thirst for knowledge grows unbearable
"What are we even getting?"
>Spike checks the list that he's carrying with him
[o]>"Uh... A few potions from Zecora."[/o]
>that's it?
>potions?
>there must be a lot of them that are pretty important for Twilight to need you to go with Spike
"Does it say what they're for?"
[o]>"No, it just says what they are and how much of them we should be getting."[/o]
>well that's boring
"Anything else we need to do while we're out, then?"
>Spike pulls the list even further open and starts reading it
[o]>"Nope, not that I can tell. Just these potions, and we need to bring them to her lab."[/o]
>her lab?
>that's more interesting!
>Maybe you could get into some of those machine parts you saw earlier and make something cool
>show purple that she's not the only smart one around here
>or you could fail miserably and hurt yourself or ruin some perfectly good parts
>probably not the best idea
>oh well, this time you might actually get to explore it a bit instead of just going straight to one place to look at one thing
>exploring it would be good enough for now
>as you imagine what untold wonders lie inside Twilight's laboratory, you two get closer and closer to the Everfree Forest
>eventually, the treeline looms directly in front of you and you have no choice but to acknowledge how imposing it all looks
"Zecora actually lives in here?"
>Spike looks up at the treetops and then into the forest
[o]>"Yeah, I don't get it either. It must be a personal choice for her, that's all I can think of."[/o]
>at least here the ziggers stay to themselves
>if only that translated over to Earth
>such wishful thinking won't help, though
>it'll just distract you from real solutions
>besides, don't you have something you're supposed to be doing?
>you pull yourself back to reality and follow Spike into the trees
>the Everfree Forest isn't as spooky as you thought, at least not near the edge
>it's just a regular forest, as far as you can tell here
>you see a deer not too far off
>pretty!
>there's also a small pond a bit farther in
>neat!
>not too bad of a walk so far, light is still filtering through the treetops in beautiful patterns
>as you get farther in, the canopy gets thicker and less light gets through
>now it's not as pretty
>the ponds you pass are now a bit more stagnant looking
>and no deer to be found
>it's also getting a lot spookier very quickly
>you notice yourself getting closer to Spike, who also seems to be noticing the change
>you two continue like this for another few minutes
>suddenly, he stops abruptly
>you do too, since he's still leading you around
>he's frozen for another few seconds, which gives you the chance to hear something
>wood cracking and shifting
>and a lot of it, judging by the sound
>it's also coming from all around you two
>finally Spike interrupts the sound with a whisper
[o]>"Oh no, we're dead out in the open like this!"[/o]
>why are we dead?
>what's going on?
>with questions buzzing through your head, you immediately whisper your own question
"Wait, what? Why are we whispering?"
>Spike turns to you with a look of terror on his face
[o]>"Timberwolves!"[/o]
>timberwolves?
>that's it?
>didn't Applejack make one explode with a few rocks?
>pffft, this isn't that bad!
>you stay standing, as calm as ever with Spike metaphorically shitting himself next to you
"Dude, it's not that bad, it's just a bunch of wood! What are they gonna do, give us splinters?"
>he turns towards you with an expression that tells you that you've gone full retard
[o]>"Timberwolves are one of the most dangerous animals in the forest on their own, and it sounds like an ENTIRE PACK found us!"[/o]
>you soon get an even better idea of just how wrong you are when you see one of them step out from behind a tree
>it's big
>it's ugly
>and judging by all those scars, it's one mean son of a birch
>and he's looking straight at you!
>you lose whatever confidence you had almost instantly and your survival instinct kicks into maximum overdrive to find a way out of this
>right now it's about 50 feet away
>can you run?
>even if you could, where?
>you look around, noticing a few other timberwolves starting to close in as well
>nope, can't do flight
>guess you'll just have to fight
>but how?
>the only things around you are trees, sticks, pebbles, and Spike
>wait
>Spike!
>that's it!
>you regain all of your former confidence as a plan forms in your head, and you whisper to Spike
"We're gonna be fine, I have a plan!"
>Spike stops being scared and turns to you
[o]>"Let me hear it, it's probably better than just letting them kill us."[/o]
>a grin spreads across your face as you put the finishing touches on your plan
"Okay, so timberwolves are wood, right?"
[o]>"Yeah, but I don't know how that helps us."[/o]
>wow, does he really not see it yet?
>guess you'll just have to tell him
"You're a dragon! You have fire! Breathe in their general direction, and they die instead of us!"
>he gets a more worried expression hearing this
[o]>"I don't know if I can, I've only used my fire to send letters!"[/o]
>you get mildly frustrated at this
>every second not putting this plan into action is a second closer to actually dying!
"Then try to send them to a volcano, or something! Just breathe fire at them!"
>the sound of heavy growling from close by tells you that Big Ugly has almost closed the gap
"It's now or never, Spike! Just breathe deep and thin hot thoughts!"
>Spike turns towards Big Ugly, now only about 15 feet away, grits his teeth, inhales, and closes his eyes
>Big Ugly takes this opportunity to jump straight at you two
>you crouch down and say another prayer as he rapidly closes this remaining gap
>right as he's about to tackle you two however, he gets blasted by a huge cloud of green fire
>direct hit!
>when the fire dissipates, you see that it did some pretty heavy damage to Big Ugly, and even managed to catch!
>success!
>as it tries to deal with the now spreading fire consuming it, Big Ugly gets increasingly erratic
>eventually it drops to the ground, and its green eyes fade as Spike's fire turns the rest of its body to ash
>that
>was
>cool!
>You look around, scouting the other timberwolves' reactions to this
>they all look pretty horrified
>guess that guy was their Alpha or something
>one of them eventually breaks rank and runs back off into the forest yelping
>the rest of them follow, doing the same
>heh, pussies!
>you then turn back to Spike, who has a look of awe on his face
[o]>"I actually did it... I actually did it!"[/o]
"Good job, you saved us!"
>he turns towards you
[o]>"No, YOU saved us! I was just ready to sit there and accept it, but you had a plan that worked!"[/o]
>you two turn into an adrenaline-fueled giddy mess about what just happened
>soon you two hear something else, but it's definitely not a timberwolf
>"What is all this commotion I hear, and why are there timberwolves running in fear?"
>it's Zecora
>if only she'd seen what just happened
>Spike is the first to greet her
[o]>"You missed it, Zecora! We were attacked by timberwolves, but Anonymous here had a brilliant plan and I completely torched one!"[/o]
>she looks down to the pile of ash in front of you two with a surprised look on her face
>"I'm glad you two had them beat, fighting even one timberwolf is no easy feat! Now please follow me back, I have what you seek safe at my shack."
>she said it, not you
>Zecora leads you two back to her hut without any more interruptions from the wildlife
>when you all get there, she goes inside and comes out with two baskets of bottles
>they're all full of brightly colored fluids and labeled accordingly
>you watch as Spike goes through them all, checking labels and sizes off of the list
>it's pretty boring to watch, but eventually he finishes checking off one basket and pushes it over to you
[o]>"Can you handle carrying this one, Anon?"[/o]
>you look at the basket a bit closer
>it's just a wicker basket, but it does have a sturdy enough handle
>you can carry this
>you grab the handle in your mouth, trying to not think about where it's been
"Mmhmm!"
>it's not a very heavy basket, either
>Spike finishes checking off the second basket and picks it up
[o]>"That's everything, thanks Zecora!"[/o]
>she turns back to go inside and looks back at you two
>"I hope your return trip goes alright, this forest is more dangerous in the dark and it's almost night."
[o]>"Don't worry, we'll be fine. I've got Anon with me!"[/o]
>"Just remember to follow the light of the moon, and you two will be back at your castle soon!"
>she waves over her shoulder and goes inside while Spike starts walking back out of the forest
>have you two really been in here for that long?
>time flies when you have something to do!
>with your goods in tow, you and Spike make your way back out of the forest without further incident
>soon enough, you look up and see the moon staring you straight in the face
>it really has been that long!
>you two make it back to the castle about 20 minutes after that
>as Spike holds open the door for you, you take one last look at the moon before going inside
>as you two make your way down to the lab, Spike takes the lead again
>the forced silence by you having to carry the basket in your mouth allows you to think about some things
>Spike seemed pretty unprepared to go into the forest before
>is this not the same universe as the show?
>if not, how many other differences are present?
>if it is, then what's his excuse?
>you might have to ask him
>after you can speak without dropping everything, that is
>after you two get back down to that huge set of doors, Spike puts his hand on the same spot Twilight did
>the doors open, but when you look inside you see that a lot of the cool stuff from earlier has been blocked off by magic barriers
>guess she doesn't want Spike touching her stuff
[o]>"I think we can just put these over here."[/o]
>Spike gestures to an area with a large cabinet containing loads of different colored vials and test tubes
>strangely, it's the only area not blocked off
>Twilight must have thought this is where we'd put them
>does that mean she programmed all this security before leaving?
>she must work fast, either that or she can do this while she's doing something else
>you two get over to the large cabinet and put down your baskets
>turns out it's not open, it just has clear doors
>not wanting to lose the chance to explore a bit more, you decide to look at its contents
>only with your eyes though
>for now
>"CONCENTRATED SPELLS"
>this could be pretty interesting
>you get closer to try to read some of the individual labels, but Spike chimes in
[o]>"Anon, I don't think you should touch any of that. It could turn out pretty bad, not even I know what half of them do."[/o]
>stupid dragon, didn't even prepare for every eventuality back in the forest!
>why should you listen?
>besides, you aren't actually going to touch any
"Relax Purple Junior, I wasn't going to touch any."
[o]>"Purple Junior?"[/o]
>you turn back towards Spike who is now confused by that comment
>did you really just say that out loud?
>shit, you did say that out loud
>what now?
>do you play it down and apologize, or just pretend like it never happened
>never happened it is
"What?"
[o]>"Did you just call me Purple Junior?"[/o]
"I think I would remember saying that."
[o]>"Whatever, I just wanted to know what that meant."[/o]
>success
>you're not sure how the other option would've gone, but it's too late to find out
>maybe some other you tried it
>let's hope he's okay
>oh well, enough thinking about what's already happened
>time to see what "concentrated spells" Twilight has!
[o]>"You better not touch any, seriously. There's probably a good reason they're locked down here in the lab."[/o]
>you ignore Spike and get your face nice and close to read labels
>Transformation, Time (forward), Time (reverse), Heat, Cold, Growth, Decay, Teleportation, Animation
>at least those spells seem fairly straightforward
>except Animation, that one's a bit more difficult to guess
>you wonder if you could get away with asking Twilight about it when she gets back
>maybe if you word it right you could get an answer
>nah, you'd just screw that up
"Alright, I've seen all I wanted."
[o]>"I'm just glad you didn't touch any, now let's go. I don't know if Twilight has this place monitored or not, and I don't want her getting suspicious."[/o]
>why would he get suspicious?
>does he think you're some kind of a midget super spy from a neighboring state?
>no, you're just a clueless alien with a sense of curiosity
>he'd probably act the same way on Earth, if he ever went there
>well, if he wasn't captured by some government and held there until they pulled all the information out of him that they could
>that wouldn't be pretty, at least you get to look at a nice color palette while you're stuck here
>Earth was pretty okay-tier when it came to aesthetics, and CIA-gray isn't the most popping of colors
>the US probably wouldn't be too keen on letting him go, either
>they'd probably run experiments on him and dissect him when he inevitably croaks
>dang, this got morbid fast!
>let's take a few steps back, shall we?
>wait, where'd Spike go?
[o]>"Anon? If you're done standing there, we could go back upstairs now."[/o]
>he's over by the door
>dangit, quit getting so lost in your thoughts!
"Hold on, I got really sidetracked."
>you trot over to the door as he opens it, and the two of you step out
>you lead the way back up the stairs this time, since Spike asked
>he must not want you going back for whatever reason
>it's not like you could get in even if you wanted to, those doors are too thick and you aren't him or Twilight
>on a completely unrelated note, you can ask those questions now
>thanks again, brain, for the weirdest timing on your reminders!
"You know, I've been thinking. We were pretty unprepared for what happened in the Everfree back there, were we just supposed to hope for the best?"
[o]>"I actually had an idea of how to deal with anything we might come across at that depth, I just didn't expect timberwolves."[/o]
>did he not remember that time when they went so far that they COMPLETELY LEFT THE FOREST?
"Don't they have some pretty big ranges, though? It seems like one of the things we should've expected the most."
[o]>"Part of the reason that I didn't bother is that they haven't come that close to the edge of the forest in a long time, and I didn't expect them to come back any time soon. Especially not after what happened to drive them that far in, at least."[/o]
>is he talking about when a bunch of them pulled a Voltron but still got BTFO?
>might as well ask
"What drove them in?"
>Spike pretty much confirms what you already knew
>you're not sure what you expected
[o]>"But yeah, that was entirely my fault. I had a plan for rockodiles, a manticore, and even a possible hydra but I didn't have a plan for timberwolves."[/o]
>a plan for a hydra?
>you really want to hear about that one!
"What was the plan for a hydra?"
>he shrugs and gets a small grin
[o]>"Hide before it sees us, and if it does, say a prayer to Celestia and run."[/o]
>yeah, that's about all you could do against a hydra
>you two reach the ground floor and you let Spike take the lead again
"What now?"
[o]>"It's pretty late, so I was thinking about eating. I'm pretty sure you're fine with that?"[/o]
>yes, you are
>side quests make you hungry
"Then let's get some food."
>Spike leads you back to the kitchen and opens a cabinet when you two get there
>he pulls out his gay apron and a less gay-looking spare, probably for you
[o]>"Wanna help?"[/o]
>he offers it to you, and you accept it
>this should be fun
"So, what are we making?"
>he opens the fridge and looks around
[o]>"Hmmm, I have some ideas, but I need to see what's in the pantry before I make any decisions."[/o]
>he takes a minute to look inside a cabinet containing even more food
>you attempt to tie the apron around yourself while he does this
>you're about as successful as when you first tried to put on your saddlebag
>you do manage to get it after trying to put it on like a cape first and laying on your back to tie it
>stupid mudhorse body, this used to be easy before you got stuck in here!
>you stand back up just as Spike finishes gathering ingredients and hardware
[o]>"I've figured out what we're gonna make!"[/o]
>you walk over and look at the ingredients
>you can't immediately tell, but there's still no meat anywhere near here
>fucking vegans
>Spike's a dragon, too!
>shouldn't he be all about meat?
"I have no idea what any of this is for. Can you explain?"
[o]>"I guess you've never had stir fry before, I hope you like it."[/o]
>oh, that's what it all makes!
>you just feel silly now
>you two get to work, with Spike mainly telling you what to do and handling all the more complex parts himself
>you're still kind of a brainlet when it comes to food preparation, but you remembered to wash your hooves before you started without him reminding you
>after a few more minutes, you two have completed the dish
>and you only burned yourself twice!
>that counts as a success, right?
>oh well, at least it was healed well enough with cold water
>you grab a bowl of the stir fry and a fork and go sit down at the table
>Spike joins you at the table shortly after having placed all the used dishes on the pile
>you start eating, and it's not bad
>could still use something of substance, but not bad at all
"Thanks for dinner, man. It's good!"
>Spike finishes chewing a bite he took and swallows it
[o]>"No problem, just remind me to not let you near the stove again."[/o]
>he laughs after saying that
>the rest of dinner goes well and you bring your dishes over to the now decently sized pile
>this is getting pretty big, should you do something about it?
"Hey Spike, think we should clean some of these?"
>he followed you over with his own dishes, so he's also surveying the damages
[o]>"I'll handle it, you should probably see if you have any homework today."[/o]
>homework?
>you weren't paying attention again, do you have any?
>it's definitely too late to ask anypony about it, you may just have to see what you got handed today for assignments and go from that
"I'll go check then. Good night, if I don't see you again today."
>Spike's already started pulling the pile apart and cleaning the pieces
[o]>"Alright, see you tomorrow!"[/o]
>you walk back up to your room, having finally figured out how to get there without getting lost
>time to see what you have to do before tomorrow
>as far as you can tell from searching through papers, nothing
>oh well
>looking over at your bed, you suddenly feel the weight of the day's events hit you and you're instantly wiped
>you decide to check your phone for the time
>10:30, that's pretty late for a school night!
>you can hear your mom yelling at you across dimensions to go to bed
>frig off mom, you're not here!
>I bet Twilight wouldn't care if I stayed up this late!
>now that you're done with your imaginary argument with your mom, you crawl in next to your Aryanne and go to sleep
>.   .   .
>your dreams are fairly similar to the daydream you had in school, except this time there's no bartender Celestia
>that's good, you could be expecting Luna any minute
>instead, you're back wandering around your college with a bunch of EqG abominations
>why are you even here?
>why are these here?
>fucking disgusting, no human is supposed to be these colors!
>you walk away from this mess as far as you can, at least until the render distance shifts to let you not see them anymore
>the rest of the town is deserted, though
>oh well, more room for activities
>now what do you do?
>well, you could try to recreate the Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny, but this isn't Tokyo
>or is it?
>you concentrate as hard as you can with everything you know about Japan's capital and try to project it on to the environment around you
>nope.jpg
>apparently just because it's your dream doesn't mean you can do anything you want
>dang
>can you at least summon in different beings to join you?
>you focus as hard as you can on Godzilla, trying to make your brain take the hint
>after a few seconds, you stop since Godzilla hasn't appeared
>when you look down at the street, however, there is a gecko in front of you!
>it's not the king of the kaiju, but it's sure better than nothing
>sadly, it probably can't handle a bat-grenade or eat Optimus Prime
>it could definitely sneak up on Indiana Jones, though
>you'll work on it
>one day, you shall dream the Ultimate Showdown
>and it will be amazing
>old memes are the best, most of them age like fine wine
>might as well take Godzilla Jr. over to the college and see how badly he can mess up the abominations there while you're waiting
>you pick up the gecko in your left hand and put it on your right shoulder
>it stays right there because it knows it's your dream lizard
>if it's this obedient here, imagine what'll happen when you get back!
>you make the walk back to your college to see that all those "humans" are still populating the area
>you set down Godzilla Jr. on the ground and concentrated on him a bit more
>when you open your eyes again, he's about the size of a horse
>success!
>you hop on its back and start your rampage through the school because fuck it, it's your dream and you can do whatever you want here

>be Princess Luna
>you've checked on everything else you need to for the night, time to see what Anonymous is up to
>you close your eyes and concentrate on him for a second as you teleport to his dreamscape
>when you open your eyes, you see that you're in a town
>it looks like Manehattan in style, but it's buildings are much smaller and still different in a way that you can't quite tell
>is this what an average human town looks like?
>so far you can't tell where he is, as the area seems deserted
>you're going to have to track him through his own mind if you don't want to be searching until the dream ends, and you don't want to be stuck in somepony else's dream when it ends
>then it's just a mess to get back out of later
>after searching through the layers of his subconscious, you eventually get a lock on his location here
>you wander this town for another few minutes until you find another complex of buildings that shows signs of life
>well, showed
>much to your horror, you see blood and viscera splattered all around this courtyard and a set of very large tracks going through it all
>this is bad, Anonymous might be in danger!
>the dream still isn't fading so he's still active here, but if he dies here it could give him some lasting brain damage!
>you run into the complex as fast as you can, keeping on as close a path to Anonymous as you can
>it's not easy to do so, this area's pretty enclosed and it won't help much trying to fly around these buildings
>you can only hope that you get to him before whatever monster is causing this does
>eventually you come to a dead-end blocked off by a large wall
>Anonymous should be right on the other side of it!
>but you also hear screaming
>the monster must have found him first!
>in a split-second decision, you decide to blow the wall with a magic bolt
>you charge up the spell as fast as you can and fire off a shot that sends the wall crumbling inwards in a cloud of dust

>be Anonymous
>your fuck-it fueled rampage atop Godzilla Jr. was cut short by an explosion caving in the wall to your right
>it sends up a massive cloud of dust that has you pull your shirt over your nose until you remember that it isn't real dust
>"CEASE YOUR AGGRESSION BEFORE I BANISH THEE, BEAST"
>that voice
>it's Luna!
>is she talking to you?
>guess you might have some explaining to do
"Hold on, don't shoot! I can explain!"
>you jump off of Godzilla Jr.'s back as the dust clears
>you walk up to Luna, who is at first thankful to see that you're alright
>this changes to a look of horror, disgust, and confusion when she sees what's going on in the room
>bloodstained walls and even more viscera, as well as Godzilla Jr. chewing on what's left of someone
>"I don't think an explanation's necessary, I have enough of an idea of what's happened now."
>her face has turned a slight shade of green, and she doesn't look so good
"Hold on, I'll get you to the bathroom. You don't look alright."
>she lets you lead her away from the scene in that room and over to a nearby bathroom
>as soon as she gets to a sink, she immediately hops up and pukes into it
>poor thing, you guess ponies' dreams aren't this violent or detailed
>she really shouldn't see any of your nightmares, then
>it's probably also a good idea that she didn't know what the "EXTERMINATUS" button did either
>you stand next to her, unsure of what to do for a few more seconds until she picks her head up and wipes off her mouth
"Are you alright?"
>"No, not after seeing that."
>she mumbles something under her breath, and you can barely make out some of what she said
>something about Tia being right and you being a savage
>you would feel offended, but now that you think about it, this was a pretty barbaric and disgusting dream
"Yeah, sorry about this. I guess earlier events put the seed of violence in my mind."
>Luna looks more blue than green again, at least
>she's also regained the composure she had from her last visit
>"Shall we pick up where we left off, or is there anything new you'd like to say?"
>shit, where did you two leave off?
>that's right, moon landings
"Well, we humans have been to the moon several times with probes and a few times with actual people. There were supposed to be 7 missions that went there from my home country, but only 6 actually made it. The 7th had to skip the landing because of technical difficulties."
>Luna seems to have pushed the recent happenings of your dream out of her head and is now focusing on what you're saying more than anything else
>so you continue to explain everything you know about the Apollo missions carried out by the US and include a few other things that you remember about Soviet probes and some planned Chinese and Indian probes
>by the time you've explained that, she seems to have forgotten all about the mess in the next room, still being guarded by Godzilla Jr.
>instead she's turned her focus entirely towards the subject of space and what humans have done with it
>"What else has your species done in terms of space travel?"
"Well, we've created multiple space stations, one of which is used by almost every developed country as a place to study space and how it affects things."
>"And you have been able to send other humans there?"
"Yes, we have. That space station is constantly occupied by people too, but the people rotate out every so often."
>she seems absolutely stunned by this
>while she's taking in that statement, you decide to try to clean up your dream a bit by removing every entity but you and Luna
>you close your eyes and concentrate
>you open them a few seconds later, not knowing whether you succeeded or not
>she's back to looking at you, so if you're going to check you're going to need to do it discreetly
>ah fuck it, the worst that can happen is that she sees what she's already seen
"Hold on, I'm gonna check something."
>you stick your head out of the bathroom, and to your relief, it worked
>no more blood and guts, but no Godzilla Jr. either
"Alright, I cleaned up the damages I caused. Would you like to take a walk around with me?"

>be Luna
>Anonymous went on a murderous rampage in his dream with the help of what you think is a giant gecko before you showed up
>he managed to distract you with more facts about humans and their adventures in space, but you're still pretty shaken
>he said he's fixed it, but do you really want to see?
>not wanting to be rude and incur the wrath of a human, you accept his offer
"I think some fresh air would help, Let's go."
>as you two step out, you see that he has actually fixed it
>maybe he's not as much of an uncaring monster as this dream suggests
>humanity must be an enigma if Anonymous is a good example of an average man
>it's hard to believe that Twilight convinced him to become a filly
>was he convinced?
>you're not entirely sure, you never got the chance to ask her about it
>something to write her a letter about, definitely
>but back to what's around you
>this dreamscape may look a bit odd, but it has its charm
"Would you mind terribly if I asked you where we are?"
>Anonymous looks around and shrugs
>"This is where I went to college before being brought to Equestria. It's a nice campus, but I never went outside that much. Want me to show you around?"
>this place is impressive enough from just walking around it, it must be 3 times the size of an average Equestrian college!
>would you two even be able to complete a tour before the dream changed?
"Why not show me where you spent the most time?"
>"Alright, I'll give you the top five, in no particular order."
>he leads you inside a large building and down a set of stairs
>"This is the computer science room where I had my programming classes."
>the room is full of dark-colored boxes, flat black panels, some other devices, and a bunch of things that look like typewriters, but flatter and with many more buttons
>are these computers?
>you look back to Anonymous after you've finished scanning the room
>"Ready to move on?"
>you nod, and he leads you back out and up the stairs
>instead of going back out though, he climbs further up
>you follow him up, and he turns into a hallway and into a different room
>this one's got a few of those computers from the other one, but it's also got more open space in the middle
>"This is the room where my engineering classes take place, it usually has more people and machines in it though."
>machines?
>those machines must run off of electricity if it's true that humans don't have magic
>that must be a nightmare to work with, magic is a lot easier to use in a circuit
>if only you could've looked at one of those machines he mentioned, then you'd be able to know for sure
>you turn back to him, signalling you're ready to move on
>"Alright, the next two places aren't going to be very interesting, so I'll just walk you past them."
"What makes them so uninteresting?"
>"I'm pretty sure that advanced mathematics and cafeterias exist in Equestria, but feel free to correct me if they don't."
>point taken
"Alright, you might as well just bring me back to the last spot you wanted to show me if the other spots are really that boring."
>"Cool, on to the best and last spot!"
>Anonymous starts walking off back towards the stairs, and you follow
>he leads you down to the ground floor and back out
>instead of taking you to any of the other buildings nearby, he completely leaves the complex and goes to a different looking building nearby
>you continue to follow him as he enters the building and climbs even more stairs, eventually stopping in front of a door
>"And this is where I lived, my apartment!
>he opens the door to reveal...
>a complete mess
>it looks very disorganized and the floor isn't very clean
>"Sorry it's kind of a mess, I usually clean on Saturdays and it was a Thursday when I got brought here. I also wasn't expecting company, but- Oh right, this is a dream! Hold on..."
>you look over to him, and he's got his eyes closed again
>when you turn back around, everything looks much cleaner and more organized
>the floor now looks freshly swept, too!
"Feel free to look around, and I'll get you a drink. Is water fine?"
>he must really be trying to make up for before by being this nice in a dream
>you are feeling pretty thirsty, though
"Water would be lovely, thank you."
>you wander around a bit, seeing the size of this apartment
>it's not very big, but Anonymous has made good use of the space he has
>everything has a place that it fits in, and it fits well
>he taps you on the shoulder and holds out a glass
"Here's the water, are you feeling better than before?"
>you are, at least you're feeling better about keeping in contact with him
"Yes, thank you for asking, but I'm going to have to ask that you don't do something like that again. It's going to take a long time and plenty of whiskey to forget that..."
>"I'm seriously sorry about that, I don't usually have dreams like this. I promise next time I won't be going on any rampages, and I'll do my best to make sure that it never happens again."
>you finish your glass of water as you begin to feel the dream fade
"It appears we're out of time again, same time tomorrow?"
>a small look of disappointment crosses his face
>"Is it almost morning again?"
"No, this dream is just ending. There's still a few hours before you wake up this time, so you won't be left disappointed by that button or that manifestation of my sister."
>yeah, you knew what was really going on in those dreams
>you may not have paid direct attention to him, but you weren't just going to let some good insights to his mind go by without even a cursory glance
>his face turns bright red and he gets very surprised
>"O-oh. I d-didn't know y-you saw that."
>you smile and relax a bit
"Goodbye for tonight, I'll see you again!"
>and with that you exit his dream to go back out to the waking world

>be Anonymous
>Luna just called you out on wanting to fuck her sister
>you could not feel more embarrassed unless she walked in on you during that dream personally
>but how?
>she wasn't there if you remember correctly
>can she just see what goes on in someone's dreams without needing to be there?
>spooky
>you may have to be a bit more careful in your dreams from now on
>.   .   .
>the rest of your sleep was restful, and you don't feel tired when your alarm goes off
>that's good, maybe you won't have to catch up on your sleep in math again
>you climb out of bed and go take your shower like yesterday
>this time no interesting thoughts are had, you just think about if you could make an "incognito mode" for your dreams
>either that, or get a dream proxy
>alternatively, you could try encrypting it
>or just go the inception route and try to create a dream inside of your dream by going to sleep twice
>will any of this even work?
>the first two might not and the third's a bit of a stretch, but the fourth?
>that has at least some potential
>but could Luna still get that far down?
>it's an interesting thought, at the very least
>eventually, when you're clean, you step out and dry off
>castle's a bit colder than usual, must be a cold day out
>you might want to bring your shirt just in case, since you don't have a scarf, jacket, or even socks
>well, you do have socks
>they're just your human socks though, so you've only got two and they probably don't fit
>you walk back to your room and pull your shirt out of the drawer
>it doesn't smell, you should be fine wearing it again
>you put on your shirt and go down to the kitchen looking for Spike
>he's not there
>where is that guy?
>oh well, you have a few guesses
>and the first is probably going to be the right one
>you make your way back to the central staircase and descend into the basement
>sure enough, he's asleep in his basket
>and he's holding his Rarity plush too
>it's moments like these that make you forget he's not much younger than Twilight
>what was she when she hatched him, seven or something?
>and yet he's stayed just about the same size
>rip
>not wanting to bother him, you go back up to the kitchen to see what you can do yourself
>you open the cabinets to check
>you found some cereal, but is there any milk?
>yes there is!
>you're having cereal, then
>what kind of cereal even is this?
>it's basically just cheerios
>you may need some sugar for this
>taking another look in the cabinets, you eventually find a jar full of it
>you grab the jar as best you can and walk back to the cereal and milk you have on the table
>you set the jar on the table and try to figure out the best way to get the sugar into a bowl
>you're an engineer, you can figure this out
>you could try to dump it, but you don't have nearly the amount of control in both hooves as you had in one hand and it would probably spill everywhere
>you could try a spoon, that would minimize spillage and still be fairly efficient
>problem is, it would be a slower process and you still don't have hands
>all of these problems seem to be stemming from the fact that you don't have hands
>you're gonna have to figure out how to deal with this eventually, so why not start now?
>you go and grab a bowl and a spoon and get to work
>after three successful spoons transferred out of five total, you decide that's enough sugar
>should you clean up this mess?
>you really should, but you don't know where a dustpan would be, much less how to use one in your current form
>it makes you feel bad, but you leave it for Spike to clean
>before you do that though, you at least do your best to group it all up
>one last touch before you finish making breakfast
>you flatten the pile out enough to trace the word "sorry" in it with the tip of your hoof
>you then put together your bowl of cereal and eat it
>it's something
>you finish your cereal and put away everything you used to make it, leaving your dishes where the pile used to be
>you go back upstairs to check the time and grab your stuff
>it's 7:01
>you're gonna make it on time, if only just
>you put your saddlebag back on and head outside to go off to school

>be Spike
>you just woke up not too long ago and you're pretty hungry
>you decide to head up to the kitchen because that's where the food always is
>you're greeted by a small mess when you get there
>Anonymous must have already had breakfast and left
>it's a pile of sugar with "sorry" written in it
>this filly is one of the weirdest you've ever met, but at least she's polite
>well, sometimes
>you're still not sure where the "purple jr." comment came from
>you go and pull the dustpan out of a nearby closet and sweep it into a trash can
>now you're free to have your own breakfast
>let's see, what haven't you had in a while?
>cereal seems like a decent idea, and there's less of a mess to clean up afterwards
>you grab the box, a bowl, and a spoon and put them all on the counter
>when you go to get the milk, you figure out that cereal's also what Anon had for breakfast
>the bottle's half empty already!
>you might have to go out and buy more today
>no, you'll definitely have to go out and buy more today
>add one more on to the list of things to do
>speaking of, what do you still have to do?
>you have to finish organizing the library
>you have to clean the halls
>you have to...
>is that really everything that's left for you to do?
>either you worked fast, or Twilight didn't put as much on that list as it seemed
>you can have all the halls cleaned in a couple of hours and the library's already almost organized
>you could finish this today!
>but then what do you do?
>there are a few options, but all of them would be more fun if Anon could come with you
>but first things first and second things second, you're hungry and you have work to do
>you make your own bowl of cereal with the last of the milk and enjoy it with thoughts of things to come
>time to finish organizing the library!
>you run off to the library to pick up where you left off
>you just have to finish putting the last few groups of books on the shelves, and you've already got them layed out
>let's see, these go here and those go there, and that stuff goes WAYYY over there...
>and in a few minutes, you're done!
>off to sweep the halls, and then you're done!
>it takes a bit longer than you expected, but soon enough, you've got them looking spotless
>you decide to check a nearby clock
>it's about 2:00
>you might as well go and meet Anon at school before you get the milk
>she might like the surprise
>yeah, you're gonna do that!
>you go outside, lock up the castle, and head off to the school

>be Anonymous
>you're in school
>it was exactly as cold as you thought it would be, and your shirt definitely helped out
>a few of the other fillies and colts looked at you funny, but it doesn't matter
>this shirt goes beautifully with your coat, and you're willing to fight any stuck up horse that says otherwise!
>but that was a while ago, and now it's time for writing
>you've managed to write through meeting Twilight's parents and walking to the castle before you came to a crossroads
>should you leave in the part about Celestia accidentally seeing your dick?
>the anons would definitely want to know about that, but Celestia wouldn't appreciate you telling anyone
>it all comes down to one question
>who are you going to see again, them or Celestia?
>you're not sure which you'd prefer
>on the one hand, your entire goal here is the implied result of option one
>but on the other, you might be seeing a lot more of Celestia if that doesn't happen
>eventually, you come to an answer
>Celestia doesn't even know you're writing this, and only Twilight will assuming you never get back
>you're pretty much free to put down whatever you want and Celestia wouldn't know
>but that still doesn't feel right to you
>so you make a compromise
>you won't add it now, but you will add it in when you type this all out if you get back home
>that way, nobody here will know anything about her seeing your dick and the anons won't suspect that any of this even happened because it's just another filly greentext!
>you're a genius!
>you go to keep writing, but the bell rings right as you put the pencil to your paper
>oh well, you'll keep writing tomorrow
>you put away your things and go outside
[o]>"Hey, Anon!"[/o]
>and Spike's here
>why is spike here?
"Hi Spike, what's up?"
>he looks pretty proud of himself, whatever has him here must be pretty cool
[o]>"I finished everything on the list Twilight gave me, so I decided to come over here to walk you home!"[/o]
>that is pretty cool
>wasn't that list a couple of feet long?
>and he finished it within two days of getting it
>he's a professional!
"Congrats, man! So, what are we gonna do now?"
[o]>"I'm going to buy milk because we're out first, but then we can do anything you like!"[/o]
>anything you like?
"Alright, I'll think of something. Let's drop off the milk before we do anything though, it'll spoil otherwise."
[o]>"Of course, that would just be a bad idea."[/o]
>and with that, you two went and bought milk and brought it back to the castle
[o]>"Have you thought of anything yet?"[/o]
>you saw quite a few stores along the way home
>there was even a plush store that looked fairly interesting to you, and it might give you an excuse to mess with Spike
>yeah, that could be a fun idea!
"I saw a plush store while we were out, and I couldn't help but notice the one you've got. Wanna get it a friend?"
>you say this with the most shit-eating grin that you can muster
>Spike blushes a bit and gets just a little bit mad
[o]>"At least I don't talk to mine."[/o]
>oh, so that's how this is gonna work?
>you insulted his waifu and he takes it personally
>you probably would've too, to be completely honest, but it's fun to bait
>but you can't see this going anywhere else since he has just as much on you about this, so you drop it
"I'll stop messing with you, but seriously. You want to check it out, or not?"
>now it's his turn to get the shit-eating grin
[o]>"It sounds like you just want an excuse to get your own plush a friend. Sure, I'll come with you."[/o]
>you give him a smirk and nudge him in the shoulder
"It seems like we both need an excuse, now let's go before any more spaghetti shows up."
[o]>"Spaghetti?"[/o]
> why did you say that, he doesn't get it at all
"Don't worry about it, it's a phrase where I come from. Also, are we actually going to buy anything, or just look?"
>he thinks about this
[o]>"Twilight's got enough money set out for us to get a few, but that also means that we probably won't be able to eat out for the rest of the time she's gone."[/o]
>now it's your turn to think
>what's left around here in terms of food?
"Is there still a good amount of food around here, just in case?"
[o]>"Did you forget that Twilight went and bought groceries before she left?"[/o]
>oh yeah, she did
"I can handle eating out of the fridge if you can."
[o]>"Then I guess we're blowing all the food money on plushes!"[/o]
>Spike goes into a drawer and pulls out a sack of bits and you two head off to the door
>it doesn't take you two long to walk back to the store and soon enough, you're inside surveying the merch
>you and Spike split up because neither of you really wants to be near the other in here
>too weird
>it's some good material, but it's not as autistic as some of the really good stuff that the artfags made back home
>there are some really nice looking generic ponies that you're looking at, though
>there aren't any features that would label them as being actual ponies that exist here, but they do have a couple superficial resemblances
>like, there's a mint green unicorn, a purple-ish earth pony, and a gray and blonde pegasus
>nothing else noteworthy, though
>eventually you decide to wander around and look elsewhere
>you find a section with a bunch of plushes that look like humans, oddly enough!
>let's see what gems are here, shall we?
>these aren't those EqG-style humans that were in those three movies, either
>these are humans like back home!
>real, honest-to-god human-looking humans!
>you're barely able to contain your excitement as you look over each one present
>you even recognize some of these
>there's Trump, Putin, Merkel, Trudeau, May, and...
>is that who you think it is?
>he's got the hair
>he's got the clothes
>and he's got the mustache!
>it's Hitler!
>literally the perfect companion for your Aryanne plush!
>you've figured out what you're getting
>you pick up Adolf and go off to find Spike, since he has all the dosh
>you're wandering around the aisles for all of about 3 seconds before you find him
>he's in the aisle with the ponies, looking at some of the ones that you didn't recognize
>too bad he doesn't have as good taste as you do
>you put down Der Führer for long enough to tell Spike that you've made your decision
"I found what I want, can you give me the bits to pay for it?"
>he turns to look at what you chose
>and is now very clearly stifling laughter
[o]>"Gee Anon, I didn't know you were into humans."[/o]
"Gee Spike, I didn't know you were into sucking penis."
>Spike seems a bit surprised at your quick defense and backs off a bit
>that may have been a bit harsh, but he doesn't seem too bothered
[o]>"I just didn't think that humans were something that you'd enjoy, after all it seems more geared towards colts."[/o]
>colts?
>why colts?
>is this like a mirrored version of MLP in your universe, or something?
"Look, I don't care about who it's for. I've made my decision, and I want this one. Can I have the bits, or not?"
>Spike gives you the bag and you take it and Hitler over to the counter to pay
>a nice looking unicorn is running the counter, she must be the owner
>she sees you approaching and stops doing whatever she was doing
[p]>"Can I help you?"[/p]
"Hi, I'd like to buy this please."
>you put the Hitler on the counter with the bits
>she seems a little surprised that you chose a human too, but she doesn't say anything
>oh well, your days of spaghetti-ing over buying merchandise has hardened you to events like this
[p]>"Alright, that'll be 20 bits..."[/p]
>she opens the bag and takes out 20 of them
[p]>"... And here you go! Enjoy the rest of your day."[/p]
"Thanks, you too."
>you pick the bag and now your Hitler back up and go back over to Spike
>he seems to have made a decision on the gray and blonde pegasus
>not terrible, but you've still got better taste
"Here's the bits back, I think we're gonna have some left over."
>you throw him the bag and he catches it
[o]>"Cool. I don't want to spend the rest right away though, just in case we need it for something."[/o]
>if we really needed to save that for something, then you probably shouldn't have blown it on toys
>oh well, that's a problem for later (if it even becomes a problem)
>Spike goes off and purchases his choice, and you two leave the store with still a decent amount of cash, much to your surprise
>you two at first walk in relative silence, but then Spike decides to break it
[o]>"Did you really have to choose Hitler? Out of all the humans, did it really have to be Hitler?"[/o]
>is this little shit doing what you think he's doing?
>he's not going to insult Humanity's Champion on your watch!
"I'll have you know that Hitler did nothing wrong!"
[o]>"Are you kidding? He was a complete meme built specifically to pander to ponies, and he didn't even survive the World War Two ark unless you believe that fan theory that he fled to Argentina."[/o]
>oh, he is gonna get it now!
>you call upon your vast reserves of autism and every waking moment you spent on /mlpol/ to channel your inner nazi
>you then try to stand up on both your hind legs and do as close to a proper roman salute as you can
>you don't fall over in the process, so that's good
>after you finish, he takes a couple seconds to process what you just did
[o]>"Woah, that's some dedication. If only you had put all that time and effort into liking a better character, I might actually be impressed."[/o]
>okay, now you're starting to feel a bit personally insulted
"Alright then, tell me who you think is better."
[o]>"Personally, I think Trump is better. Putin's a close second, though."[/o]
>Putin isn't bad, but Trump is meh tier at best!
"Trump? Why Trump? He isn't even as good of a leader as Hitler was. He constantly tried to compromise with the other side who just didn't let any of it happen, when he would've been much better off just doing what the people who liked him wanted. I can agree with Putin though, he's pretty cool."
>is this just going to turn into political shitposting?
>yes it is, judging by Spike's reply
[o]>"Hitler still managed to lose World War Two with everything he had, how is he a good leader?"[/o]
"Did you forget that he was fighting the rest of the developed world? I'd like to see Trump's America last even a year trying to do that."
[o]>"Wasn't he the entire reason that World War Two was even started?"[/o]
"Only because he turned Germany back into a functioning country after those bongs and frogs decided to run them into the ground."
>this is where the conversation shifts again
[o]>"So you don't like the Brits either?"[/o]
>you think about this
>they were handed Brexit on a silver platter
>they never got around to it, as far as you can remember
>Nigel should've ran for PM
>he never did
"They're okay, but they're certainly not my favorite country."
>Spike perks up a bit hearing this and starts to say something, but stops
[o]>"Have you seen the most recent season yet? I don't want to spoil anything for you by accident."[/o]
>you can't be spoiled about your own world's events, let's hear it!
"Yeah, shoot."
[o]>"Britain just sucks now, they still haven't used Brexit yet and they're pretty much giving in to all the muslims. It's almost like the writers don't remember all the stuff they wrote about pre-World War One and just decided to make them into a bunch of inbred islanders with nothing to show for it."[/o]
>if only he knew how right he was
"I completely agree! Something needs to happen soon with North Korea too, I'm getting tired of waiting for that ark to finish."
>and so you two continued like this, Spike talking about one of his favorite fictional universes and you discussing the happenings of home, all the way back to the castle
>when you get back, you go back up to your room and place your Hitler next to your Aryanne
>at least now you have someone else to play card games with, now
>as you're about to head back downstairs to find Spike again, you decide to check the time
>it's only 4:02
>you've still got time to kill
>time to see if there's anything else Spike wants to do
>as you go back down to look for him, you meet up with him in the hall
>lucky you!
[o]>"Hey Anon, I just got a letter from Twilight. I figured you'd want to see what's in it as well."[/o]
>a letter?
>for you?
>well, for both of you
>but still, it's a start!
"Sure, let's open it!"
>Spike leads you back to the library to open it
>when you get there, Spike chooses a comfy looking chair and you sit in the one next to it
"How much do you want to bet that she's worried about something?"
>Spike cracks a smile at this
[o]>"Twilight's always worried, it's just that it's not always something she can do anything about."[/o]
"She must do a pretty good job of hiding it, then."
>a look you don't immediately recognize crosses Spike's face long enough for it to register in your head
[o]>"Believe me, you don't want to be around when she can't hide it anymore."[/o]
>oh, that look was PTSD
>probably from the events of Lesson Zero
>the only early episode you didn't watch because you just couldn't handle the spaghetti
"Alright, let's open it. I don't think she'd like to be kept waiting."
>Spike peels open the letter and holds it between you two
>"Dear Spike and Anonymous,
>Pinkie and I are doing alright here in Las Pegasus, and we've done what we needed to do. I should be back by tomorrow evening, if nothing unexpected comes up. I hope you two are doing alright, and I bought a souvenir for you both! Spike, I hope you're going to have that list complete when I get back, and you better have done your homework, Anon. See you tomorrow!
>Miss you, Twilight"
>you haven't even had homework to do, and Spike already got his list done
>looks like you two are in the clear for more shenanigans!
"I figured she was going to remind us about something, but it's a reminder that neither of us needs."
[o]>"It's something she does, she just wants to make sure that we're not doing something stupid that could blow up the castle, or something."[/o]
>you laugh a bit at that
"How would we even blow up the castle, all the chemistry stuff is locked in her lab."
>Spike smirks a bit, which is when you remember that those concentrated spells are still just sitting there in that cabinet
>no way you're touching those though, Twilight probably has those under so much security in that cabinet if there's stuff that world-breaking just sitting there
>yeah, doing that would probably be the end of you staying here and getting a free ride home
>but back to the situation at hand!
"So, we've still got more time to kill before we should eat dinner. Anything you want to do?"
>Spike gets up and walks over to the door
[o]>"Now that I know you're a fan of Humans, wanna go and check out the latest one?"[/o]
>a free news update in the form of a nice story?
>that sounds pretty cool, you definitely want in on that!
>but wait, do TVs even exist here?
>oh well, you've probably missed a lot of important business back home
"Sure, lemme see it!"
>you two head down to Spike's room, which is when you realize that it's not a TV show
>it's one of those magical comic books
>even better, you get to see it in person!
>Spike pulls a new-looking book off of his stack and shows you the cover
>"Humanity, F*** Yeah!"
>Issue No. 316
>"Cold War at the Winter Olympics"
>the cover image is of the Pyongyang skyline, with Trump and Kim Jong Un staring each other down from opposite sides
>oh boy, this makes even the Olympics look interesting!
[o]>"This one's a bit of a filler issue since the writer likes drawing out these important arks and everything in them, but it's still pretty good for delivering more exposition."[/o]
>you still can't get over the cover art, it looks almost like some photoshop genius put this together
"Well, what are we waiting for? Open it up!"
[o]>"Just in case, you do know how these magic comic books work, right? We aren't getting back out until we finish the story."[/o]
>that's fine with you, it's probably as close to home as you're getting for a while
"Got it. Let's go!"
>Spike opens the book and places it on his bed as you two are brought into the story
>as soon as it's done, you find yourself standing outside a massive arena, with Spike nearby
>this must be North Korea!
>but neither of you have gotten any costumes or have turned into humans, so this must be more of a spectator story
>as you look around more, you see a huge amount of people filtering into the stadium
"Should we follow them?"
>Spike makes his way over to you through a gap in the crowd
[o]>"I'm pretty sure that's what we're supposed to do."[/o]
>you two get inside the building simple enough, it's kind of lax security for what you expected in NK
>then again, no one seems to notice you two
>when you both make it in, you get a good sense of just how many people are here
>the stands are already pretty filled up, and you notice that the tide from the entrance isn't slowing down
>you scan the stands for anything plot-relevant, and eventually manage to spot Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un seated fairly close together
"Spike, over there!"
>you point them out to him and start moving in their direction
[o]>"Nice job finding them, but wanna explore a bit? They love leaving easter eggs and teasers around."[/o]
>nah, somehow that cheapens the news aspect of it in your mind
"I like seeing the story as it happens, getting spoilers just doesn't seem right to me."
[o]>"Suit yourself, there's some pretty cool stuff that they've left. They even put an alien ship in New Mexico, once. We still haven't figured out when that'll come into play!"[/o]
>huh, guess Ayylmaos really are a thing
>you continue through the stands to where Trump and Kim are, and find two empty seats placed conveniently there
>you take the one closer to Trump while Spike takes the one closer to Kim
>as the event starts (it looks like it's ice skating), you immediately hear Trump's voice
>he's not moving though, so it must be his thoughts
>"I'm surprised South Korea put up with North Korea for long enough to organize all this, is a peaceful solution really possible?"
>"As long as Rocket Boy over there can be persuaded to step down, maybe I won't have to show him what a loser he is."
>Trump then goes silent and you hear a new voice, this time with an unmistakably Korean accent
>"[Stupid orange demon, he doesn't realize at all that this is just a ploy! As soon as the Olympics are over, you're one step closer to being safely under my boot!]"
>that's definitely Kim
>"[We've already done enough testing, and we're ready to launch enough missiles to cripple your closest allies. Seoul is rightfully mine, and Japan isn't going to stop me either!]"
>the internal monologues continue back and forth like this for some time, until the event ends
>Trump and Kim exchange a "friendly" goodbye and start heading out of the stadium
>you two probably need to choose one to follow right about now
"Alright Spike, who do we follow?"
[o]>"It usually doesn't matter in a situation like this, every other time this has happened it's shown both sides somehow. Either way, let's follow Trump."[/o]
>you two get up and follow Trump, who meets up with Mike Pence along the way
[p]>"Hey Donald, how did you enjoy the event?"[/p]
>"I didn't really pay attention, I had other things to think about."
[p]>"Still can't figure out why Kim allowed this to happen? I'm telling you, it's a media ploy. He wants to make himself look good."[/p]
>"No, it's not that. What if he's actually trying to de-escalate the situation? It's a long shot, believe me, but what if?"
[p]>"Don, come on. We both know that Kim's ego is too big for that, he's not going to stop until we stop him or the entire world does. Let's discuss this more at the hotel, I wouldn't put it past these people to tell the police about our conversation."[/p]
>they step into an obviously government car and you two have just enough time to get in yourselves
>it's an awkward fit with you two in the same seat, but it's bearable
>you just wish Spike's tail wasn't digging into your leg
>the car ride doesn't last very long, and you two are soon following Trump and Pence into a very nice looking hotel
>you all get into an elevator and head up to the top floor
>when you get there, Trump pulls out a key and opens a door nearby
>this must be his room
>all of you go inside and Pence takes a seat at a nearby table
>Meanwhile, Trump goes over to his suitcase and pulls out a bottle of expensive looking bourbon and two glasses
>"I just don't get it, Kim hates us. He hates everything we stand for! Why did he put all that down for this? It seems like he just wants his population to figure out how much of a loser he is!"
[p]>"I don't get it either, but it's up to us to prove that we aren't above this. We're representing all of America here, so we have to show that we can play nice whether he's up to something or not."[/p]
>Trump pours them both some booze and puts the bottle away, sitting down across from Pence
>he drinks all of his at once in one swift motion
>"I just hope we don't end up regretting this."
[p]>"We won't, that I can guarantee. God willing, everything's going to turn out just fine."[/p]
>Pence finishes his own drink and leaves for his own room, leaving you two with Trump
>"I hope you're right, Mike. I wouldn't hold anything back if that little bastard so much as touched my country."
>this isn't as much news as you expected, it's almost a drama
>it's entertaining though, that's for sure
>politics never seemed so much like a dramatic subject
>you look over to Spike, now that this scene seems to be over
"What now?"
[o]>"Hold on, it'll probably bring us to the next part."[/o]
>sure enough, the location changes to an imposing room full of North Korean military officials with Kim Jong Un sitting at the head of a long table
>"[Gentlemen, how are the preparations going?]"
>one of the older looking men speaks up first
[p]>"[Everything is going smoothly, we nearly have enough Uranium stockpiled to double our arsenal.]"[/p]
>Kim leans back, smiling
>"[Perfect, those filthy capitalists won't know what hit them until they see the mushroom cloud!]"
>he then goes into some stereotypical villain laugh, with every official around the room clapping or laughing with him
>the scene fades to black, and when you can see again, you're back in Spike's room
[o]>"How'd you like it?"[/p]
>you're more than a bit worried about that last bit, but he can't know about your connection to Earth
"It was pretty good, at least it held my attention better than other filler parts that I've seen."
>this is when your stomach lets out a massive growl
>you must be pretty hungry for it to be that loud, holy shit!
[o]>"Dude, I heard that from here! Let's go get dinner started, I'm pretty hungry too."[/o]
>and you follow Spike back up the stairs to get dinner
>as you follow Spike up the stairs, you run back through the events you saw in the comic
>those were some heavy implications about what's gonna happen after the olympics, you hope that it doesn't come true
>for your family's sake, more than anything
>you realize now just how important it is to get back, should something happen while you're gone
>suddenly you're not so hungry anymore
>you and Spike make it to the kitchen not too long after you come to this realization
>you just sit down at the table and start running facts and numbers through your head while Spike starts looking at the food available
>your family's not near any important locations in the US
>NK's nuclear capabilities probably have the range to get close, though
>how big will the blast be?
>if it's about the size of what was used in WWII, then they're fine
>any bigger and they might be caught in the fallout
[o]>"Anon? You alright?"[/o]
>you're jarred out of your thoughts by Spike now standing next to you
"Huh? Yeah, I'm fine. What's up?"
[o]>"I've asked what you want for the last minute, do you care?"[/o]
"Just make whatever, I'm not really hungry anymore."
>Spike pulls up a chair next to you
[o]>"Okay, now I'm really concerned. What's going on?"[/o]
>you really don't want to tell him
"Don't worry about it, it's nothing."
[o]>"I heard how hungry you were back in my room, and now you say you aren't. Ponies only stop being hungry when they've had food or something's happened, and you haven't had food yet."[/o]
>you really shouldn't tell him
"It's fine, I swear."
[o]>"Come on, Anon. It's not going to help you at all to keep it in, whatever it is. I promise I won't tell anypony."[/o]
>you can't tell him
"Pinkie swear it."
>you can't be serious
>you better fucking not
[o]>"Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye."[/o]
>IT'S TIME TO STOP
"You're not going to believe me, but..."
>this is your last chance to turn back
>you can make up some different excuse and keep your secret safe, or you can just not say anything
>just don't say what you're about to say
>make
>the right
>choice
"..."
[o]>"Anon?"[/o]
"... I'm sorry, I still can't tell you."
>Spike shifts in his chair a bit
[o]>"I'm sorry for asking, then. Is there anything I can do to help, at least?"[/o]
>is there anything he can do to help?
>well, he can keep you updated on those comics, at the very least
>it's your only line of information to what might be going on at home, and that's invaluable
>there isn't much else he can do to help, though
>wait, hold on
>there isn't much else Spike can do, but there's probably something that Twilight can do!
>you brighten up a bit and tell him your plan
"I'm going to need you to send Twilight a letter for me."
[o]>"Alright, I'll go get you some paper and a pen."[/o]
>Spike runs out of the room for a little bit and eventually comes back with a pen and paper, setting them in front of you
[o]>"And while you're writing that, I'll make dinner. I hope you like soup, because I'm pretty good at making it!"[/o]
>soup's not bad, this should be an alright dinner
>now, how do you tell Twilight exactly what's on your mind in a civil way that won't make her any more worried than necessary?
Dear Twilight,
I'm writing this to you now because I don't think it can wait until you get back. Spike showed me a comic book series that bears striking resemblance to my world, and I've become aware of possible events that may threaten the lives of my family. 
Two world leaders with access to powerful weaponry are near a possible conflict, with one of them being willing to use nuclear weapons and the other being the ruler of my home country. If a war breaks out, my family may be threatened by the resulting fallout caused by those nuclear weapons.
At the very least, I'd like to get home as soon as possible to make sure they're alright. 
Please help, Anonymous
>you take the paper and fold it up into a neat little square
"Alright, ready for you to send it."
>Spike turns away from the pot he's watching and walks over
[o]>"Did that help you feel better?"[/o]
>you look up at the ceiling and sigh as he sends the letter
"Not yet, but at least it's something."
>Spike finishes the soup a few minutes later and serves it to you
[o]>"It's cream of mushroom with some extras I added in for flavor, I hope you like it!"[/o]
>you pick up the spoon he gave you-
>hey, he gave you a spoon!
>guess you don't have to ask for silverware anymore
>anyway, you pick up the spoon he gave you and taste it
>it's pretty good
"Hey, what'd you put in this? It's good."
[o]>"Oh, you know, just the basics. Cream, mushrooms, some diced potatoes, some assorted herbs and spices... Soup stuff."[/o]
>he looks flattered that someone likes his cooking this much
>he's honestly good at this, though
>if he had a CM, it would probably have to do with food
>you finish the rest of your soup fairly quickly, having dug your appetite out from under your feelings
>after Spike finishes his own soup, he takes both of your dirty dishes over to the new pile
[o]>"I could go for some ice cream right now, how about you?"[/o]
>ice cream?
>drowning your worries in frozen sugar-milk sounds like a great idea!
"Sure, I've got room left."
>and so you both make the journey back down to Spike's basement for ice cream, equipped with new bowls and spoons
>when you get back down there, Spike opens the cabinet holding your reason for being here
"Can I have some cookie dough this time?"
[o]>"Yeah, want anything else to go with it?"[/o]
>does flavor mixing really work with cookie dough?
>Ben and Jerry made it work at home, but they don't exist here
"Nah, just cookie dough please."
>you give your bowl to him and he takes out the containers holding the strawberry and your flavor of choice
>when he gives you back your bowl, you take it back to the chair you sat in last time and start eating
>the chunks are hard to force the spoon through, but what did you expect?
>you feel like you might owe Spike an apology for earlier, now that you think about it
>he was just trying to help, after all
"Sorry about the mood earlier, just had some heavy stuff on my mind. I'm pretty sure Twilight can help, though."
>Spike looks up from his own bowl
[o]>"It's fine, I have things that I don't like telling others too. I'm sure even Twilight has things that she won't tell anypony about!"[/o]
>what would Twilight not want to tell anyone?
>probably has something to do with her lab
>maybe she tests on other ponies?
>nah, you're pretty sure that only happened in that one episode where she gave Rarity wings
"What would she need to hide to the point that she can't tell anypony? Isn't she the princess of friendship, or something?"
[o]>"Well, I'd be able to tell you if I knew what it was. However, I'm pretty sure the only way I'd be able to find out is by asking her, and that defeats the whole purpose of not telling anypony."[/o]
>he's got a stupid grin on his face
>he was probably being a bit sarcastic with all that
"I get it, no need to be a cheeky cunt about it."
>Spike seems genuinely surprised that you said cunt
[o]>"Did you just say what I think you said?"[/o]
>oh
>is that bad?
"Am... Am I not supposed to say that?"
>Spike thinks for a few seconds
[o]>"I won't stop you if you do say it, but I don't think Twilight will handle it the same way."[/o]
"So, I'm free to say cunt around you?"
>he sighs
[o]>"Yes, I'll allow you to say it when it's just us. I'm serious about Twilight though, don't say it or any other bad words around her. She's not a fan."[/o]
>he looks pretty serious about that last bit
"Alright, I won't say it around her or anypony else."
>you finish the rest of your ice cream soon after this conversation ends, and you spend some more time talking with Spike about other things
>as the conversation shifts away from what you two would do with a million bits and into an argument about how much the town of Ponyville costs, you let out a massive yawn
>shit, you must be pretty tired
"Sorry to cut the conversation short, but I think I'm gonna head off to sleep."
[o]>"Alright, I should probably get to sleep too. See you tomorrow!"[/o]
>you head back up the stairs and to your room, where Hitler and Aryanne are both waiting where you left them
>you then proceed to take your shirt back off and put it in the drawer with your other stuff
"Today's been pretty long, but at least things are still going alright for us."
>neither of them reply
"Yeah, looks like we've all got new friends now!"
>still no replies come as you climb into bed
"Don't worry, I'm not planning on leaving either of you behind when it's time to go home. Aryanne, I'm too attached to you, and Hitler? I'd be delusional if I thought I could find a quality plush of you back home!"
>no replies yet again
>why do you talk to your plushes?
>oh, right, you have no friends
>carry on
"Anyway, good night!"
>and so you drift off to sleep where you will try to test if you can lock Luna out somehow
>.   .   .
>your dreams start off like most other dreams you've had since you got here
>some location on Earth with some population of creatures from equestria
>but that's not what's important
>you're here for science, and nothing else
>okay, maybe also to keep trying to create the Ultimate Showdown
>baby steps, though
>you try your best to summon a second bed in this dream, not caring where it is as long as it's in front of you
>success!
>you're getting better at this, maybe you should try tomorrow night to summon Godzilla again
>but back to what's at hand, you've got a hypothesis to test
>can someone dream within a dream?
>you get into this bed and close your eyes, trying to force a second layer of sleep to manifest
>as you try to force things to happen, you lose all perception of the dream around you
>is it happening?
>time to open your eyes and see
>you open your eyes to see...
>a completely different area!
>it worked!
>at least, you think it worked!
>only time will tell you if it actually worked
>now, time to see where you are
>as you inspect your environment, you find that you're in a region of the pokemon world
>you're not sure what tells you this, but you feel it
>cool, time to see what trouble you can get into here
>you wander around a bit trying to find a settled area
>towns aren't usually far between routes, and this is a route that's pretty far out-of-the-way by the lack of trainers
>you do see a few pokemon when you step into a field, though
>there's a few pidgey and a couple of pidgeotto
>of course, they're just sitting on trees like regular birds though
>nothing interesting
>just being birds
>let's go somewhere else, shall we?
>you keep going, passing under the pidgeys
>as you move further in to the area you're in, you wonder how this dream will be populated
>with humans, ponies, or just you?
>you don't have to wait long to find out, as you see a town coming up
>this might give you an idea of where you are, too
>you walk into the town and see that it's indeed populated by ponies
>wow, what a surprise
>you still don't see Luna, though
>could this work?
>how do inception rules even work for dreams?
>you never actually saw that movie
>oh well, it's not like that's the fictional universe that you're in
>time to actually do something interesting until you find out!
>you go over to the poke mart and summon yourself some dosh to buy a few pokeballs
>the mare at the register gives you the balls and takes the money without a word
>huh, odd
>but you have some balls, let's catch some mons!
>you head back out into the forest to find some pokemon and start your journey
>you're not finding anything interesting out here
>maybe you can summon in a pokemon more interesting than a pidgey or rattata?
>you think as hard as you can about a charmander to try to summon one here
>does dream summoning work within a dream's dream?
>it worked for the money
>sure enough, when you open your eyes you see a charmander
"Fuck yeah!"
>you can't help but yell that out, seeing that this dream^2 is going to get a lot more fun
>you quickly toss a pokeball at it, and it just calmly accepts the capture
>you've got your starter!
>but wait, isn't this where the rival battle happens?
>luckily for you, there's no condescending Blue/Gary to make an ass of himself by choosing squirtle
>so, you just decide to head back out to the town
>"FACE MY CHALLENGE, FELLOW TRAINER!"
>wait
>WHAT
>you turn around, hoping to not see the exact pony you do see

>be Luna
>Anonymous tried to lock you out, but he only changed his dream by trying to create a second level
>it's like he doesn't even know dream physics
>oh well, at least this is a more interesting dreamscape than the last one
>it has some weird creatures in it that seem to have a special kind of magic
>you figured out even more about this dreamscape by looking inside some of Anonymous's memories
>it wasn't easy since memories are very different to dreams, but it was still within your range of abilities
>just barely, but still
>you ended up figuring out what exactly you're supposed to do here, which is catch and battle with these creatures
>after some searching around, you eventually found a discarded ball and a creature that looked suitable to befriend
>it was a small bluish turtle
>it was easy enough to make friends with, you just found some fruit on a local plant and offered it the fruit
>it accepted the capture, too
>now you have a friend!
"Well, fellow trainer? Will you accept this battle?"
>Anonymous stares at you, obviously surprised and confused
>"Wait, how did you even get here?"
>time to let him down easy
"When you tried to create a second dream level, you only changed your dreamscape. This is a definite improvement though! Now, I see that ball you're carrying. Battle me!"
>Anonymous sighs and throws out his own creature
>"Go, charmander..."
>it's a small red lizard with a plume of fire on its tail
>you don't know what your creature's called
>you did hear it say "squirtle" a few times, but that's about it
"Go, my blue friend!"
>the ball you're carrying opens up and your creature comes out
>Anonymous instantly snaps completely upright, and his eye gets a very obvious twitch
>that looks concerning
"Is something wrong?"
>his reply sounds labored and slightly sarcastic
>"No, I just wanted my first battle here to not be a flat-out loss to who I was trying to avoid, but I guess this is okay..."
>lucky for him, you have no idea how this system works since you weren't able to check that deep into his memories
"Then I feel like I should tell you that I don't know what I'm doing. You're probably still going to win."
>this makes him brighten up a bit, and his eye stops twitching
>"Alright, Charmander. Use scratch!"
>the "charmander" walks over to your creature and scratches it
>"Now it's your turn. You want me to explain squirtle's moves?"
>so it's called squirtle!
"Yes, please. Can you also give me a quick rundown on this system of battle, as well?"
>Anonymous thinks for a few seconds and then closes his eyes for another few before responding
>"Well, the battles are turn-based. Each turn is what you and your opponent chooses to do, and in your part of the turn, you can decide to use a move or an item. Right now, we both don't have any items, so all we can do is choose moves. This brings me to your squirtle, which should know tackle and growl right now."
>that's definitely a quick rundown, but it told you pretty much everything you needed to know
"Squirtle, tackle!"
>your "squirtle" now runs up to Anonymous's charmander and jumps on top of it
>this continues for another few turns, until Anonymous's charmander knocks out your Squirtle
"Well, I guess I lost. Good game!"
>Anonymous looks a bit more smug now, and he has a certain glint in his eyes that says that something else is needed besides a "GG"
>"Woah woah woah, hold on! In the rules of pokemon, whoever wins the battle gets some "financial compensation" for their victory. Since neither of us has any money though, what else can you offer me?"
>is that really how this works?
>that's pretty cruel, but judging by the fact that this is all fiction, you guess it's okay?
>and this is his dream, so he'd still be making the rules anyway making all this thought on the matter meaningless
>but you're not sure what exactly you can give him
>IRL money wouldn't be suitable for a dream interaction
>you're not that kind of mare, so you're not taking over where your sister left off either
>you do come to an idea, though
"You seem to not like the fact that I've been keeping tabs on you when you fall asleep, so how about I stop? Twilight's keeping a good enough eye on you, anyway."
>Anonymous nods in satisfaction
>"Yeah, I can agree to that. So, now that you're here, what do you want to know this time?"
>you were hoping to pick back up with learning more about the human world, but why not explore this dreamscape with him?
>it'll certainly be a nice change from observing criminals and saving foals from particularly stubborn nightmares
>yeah, this could be a fun thing to do for once!
"How about we just explore around here this time? We can go back to questions tomorrow."
>"Sounds fun! you're already a better rival than that asshat Blue, so let's go!"
>and so you and Anonymous traveled around, battling and exploring until you had to say goodbye for the night
>even though your relationship with him started out with a much different dynamic, you're starting to warm up to him
>you might even call him a friend
>.   .   .

>be Anonymous
>your dreams were fun, Luna decided to be your rival on a journey through pokemon
>and in a climax fit for the anime itself, you two ended up facing each other for the league title
>unfortunately, she's a fast learner and managed to beat you
>fucking crit hacks
>but it was still fun
>shortly after, you two had to say goodbye again since morning was coming
>you might be getting a new friend
>but for now, you have to go to school
>you turn off your alarm again and check your phone's battery since it's been a while
>fuck, 13%
>looks like you're not playing with it today
>you aren't really mad, though
>your phone's battery has lasted through multiple days here where it used to last for maybe 12 hours at home
>probably because you can't sit around on the internet here
>oh well
>Twilight should be coming home today, and she can show you how that thing she used to charge it works
>you wander out of your room again, feeling that it's a lot colder than yesterday
>what, did a load of snow fall last night?
>when you go back to your room's window, you see that guess was correct
>there's snow everywhere
>this is gonna suck
>you don't even have any cold-weather clothing
>your shirt may have worked yesterday, but it might not work today
>no, it definitely won't work
>not when the snow might be up to your chest
>maybe Spike can be convinced to let you stay home?
>it's worth a shot, at least
>just in case he can't be convinced, you might as well get ready for school anyway
>you go off to your bathroom of choice and get through your shower with greater ease than the last couple times
>you're starting to get used to this new body, aren't you?
>it's not like this wasn't expected, what with you having to spend the forseeable future here
>after you dry yourself off and wander down to find Spike, you start formulating your arguments
>it's too cold and you don't have anything to deal with it
>it's one day, it won't be that important
>...
>is that really it?
>well, let's hope it works
>a few minutes of searching later, you find Spike exiting the bathroom himself
[o]>"Hey Anon, what's up?"[/o]
"I have a question."
[o]>"What is it?"[/o]
>this is the moment of truth
>how you attack this is likely to set the mood for the entire argument
"Can I stay home for just today? I didn't bring any snow supplies and judging by the view from my window, it's up to my chest out there."
>Spike stares at you for a second with a look on his face that you don't immediately recognize
[o]>"That was some bad planning on your part, it's still winter and we get snow. I'm not sure how much I can help you, but I know how Twilight's gonna react if I let you stay."[/o]
>this is what you expected, you've rehearsed for this
>for all of about a minute, but still
"Is there a thermometer around here? I need to check some things."
>now you're not a biofag, but you know about hypothermia and what it does to an adult human
>it would probably be much worse to a small cartoon filly
[o]>"There's one outside, assuming that you want to check the temperature there."[/o]
>perfect, now you can give two of your major points at once!
"Would you mind coming outside with me to check it? I promise we can go back inside when you want to."
>you give him your best challenge-issuing face as you deliver that line
>and his expression changes to exactly what you wanted to see
[o]>"Alright, but [i]I[/i] promise it won't be that bad."[/o]
>so you lead the way back to the front door until you two get there
>you then open it up to a fairly strong gust and only slightly less snow than you expected
"After you, you know where it is after all."
>Spike seems initially startled by the temperature, but he grits his teeth and goes outside
>you follow behind him, trying to see his reaction to this
>the way he's holding himself says it all
>his arms are close in, his breath is visible, and his tail is even wrapped around one of his legs
>he's cold
>of course, you're feeling it too
>however, you're also warmed internally by just how right you are
>it's a much longer walk than it feels like to the thermometer, but it retrospect, it should've been only about 45 seconds
>regardless, you both are now shivering and even you're trying to hold on to whatever heat you have
>damn this lack of body mass!
>oh well, when you two check the temperature, it says all you need to know about that as well
>28 degrees, and with some heavy estimation on the windchill, you put the perceived temperature at about 15 degrees
>that's really cold
"You ready to go back in?"
[o]>"Yes, we've done what you wanted. Let's go."[/o]
>you hear him mumble something under his breath about hot chocolate as he turns around and walks back towards the door
>that sounds nice, you want some too
>but can you have any if he sends you to school anyway?
>probably not
>stupid dragon
>the trip back to the door is pretty much the same length, so you gather up the rest of your arguments while walking
>when you both get back inside, you realize that parts of you have gone completely numb from the cold
>mainly your legs, but that's not too much of a problem now that you're back inside
"So, how was it?"
[o]>"Cold."[/o]
>perfect, now to deal the finishing blow
"It's below freezing out there, not just cold. The walk to school is about 20 minutes and the warmest thing I have is a shirt. Assuming I can make it that far, I would probably be suffering from some form of hypothermia. I don't think there's much of a choice here."
>Spike tries to think of a reply to counter that, but he gives up and accepts defeat some time later
[o]>"Alright, you can stay home today. Only today though, and if Twilight asks about it you're taking full responsibility."[/o]
>more terms and conditions
"Fair enough, now how about we warm up again?"
>he straightens up a bit more and gets a more neutral look on his face
[o]>"That sounds like a great idea, I know where the firewood is and the fireplace is in the library."[/o]
>you wonder about where you're going to get a lighter for all of a second before remembering Spike exists
"Alright, I guess I'll meet you there and bring a blanket or two."
>you go off towards your room trying to find a place where a banket would be stored, while Spike heads somewhere else to grab firewood
>after searching through quite a few rooms, you eventually find a large and fairly fluffy blanket
>perfect!
>grabbing it as best you can, you drag it off in the direction of the library
>at least, you think you do
>after some wandering and a couple wrong turns, you make it there and find Spike lighting the fireplace
>alright, that's good
>you drag the blanket over to a couch and put it up on it
"I found a blanket, but only one. We might need to share, unless you know where more are."
>he shrugs
[o]>"I don't mind sharing if you don't, but I can grab another one if you do."[/o]
>as you think about it, you might not mind that much
>shit, are you even more of a faggot than you expected?
>nah, this doesn't feel like something gay to you
>it just feels like you two are siblings, or something
>he's gone from just some nerd to almost a bro to you
>wow, you really did need more friends
"I don't think I mind."
>you climb on to the couch and wrap yourself up in half the blanket, leaving the rest for Spike
"So, what are we going to do while we're in here?"
>Spike climbs under the blanket next to you, and you see that he brought a large book with him
[o]>"Isn't it obvious? We're in a library!"[/o]
>yeah, that shouldve been pretty obvious
>not wanting to get out of your warm spot, you instead try to read over Spike's shoulder
>it doesn't work as well as you'd like, but he soon gets the hint and places the book in a more neutral position
>the book isn't all that bad, it's some variety of fiction
>there are a few references to other things that you don't quite understand, but you still end up enjoying it
>after another couple of hours, the fire burns out and you realize that you never ate breakfast
>fug
>but you're all warm, do you really have to get up?
>yes, you do
>the hunger is overtaking you
"What time is it?"
>Spike looks up from the book and thinks for a second
[o]>"My guess is around 11:30, but I don't really know."[/o]
>one of you will have to get up and check a clock
"Rock paper scissors for who checks the clock?"
[o]>"Sure, loser goes and only one round?"[/o]
>of course, those are regulation rules
"Yeah, let's start."
>rock
>paper
>scissors
>you threw paper, knowing the general strategy of RPS
>however, he's a good tactician himself and threw scissors
>dang
>you get out from under the blanket and into the slightly colder library to try to find a clock
>you leave the room and go into the much colder hall and eventually find one
>Spike wasn't too far off, it's about 11:24
>no wonder you're this hungry
>you make it back to the library fairly quickly and tell him the time
"So, should we have lunch yet? I'm pretty hungry."
>Spike hops off the couch and walks over
[o]>"Sure, that sounds nice."[/o]
>you two venture out into the colder part of the castle to get some food
>you grab the blanket and try to wrap yourself in it as best you can beforehand, though
>you do a good job of keeping it on you, and it only slips a bit
>after you two get to the kitchen, you sit on a chair and wait while Spike starts making something
>you have an idea of what it is, and your suspicions are only confirmed as time goes on
>it's motherfucking pizza
[o]>"Anything you want me to put on this pizza?"[/o]
>you doubt that he has any pepperoni or bacon
"Nah, plain is fine."
[o]>"Alright, just cheese it is."[/o]
>Spike opens the oven as soon as it's hot enough and puts in the pizza
>now you two just have to wait
[o]>"The pizza will be ready in a half hour, I hope you don't mind."[/o]
"That's fine, I'm willing to wait. So, what do we do in the meantime?"
[o]>"Well, I'm probably going to stay here to make sure it doesn't burn. You can do whatever and I'll find you when it's done."[/o]
>time to do something that you always liked doing on cold days, then
>you make your way to your bathroom and turn on the shower to as hot as you can stand it
>soon enough, it's completely warm and you can see the steam floating out
>you turn it down just a bit to make sure you don't burn yourself, and you just sit in there
>it's just as comfortable as you remember
>how long has it been since you've been able to do this?
>probably a while, seeing as how college ate your time and your dad didn't like you wasting water
>after a while of sitting, you eventually hear a knock on the door
[o]>"Pizza's done, come down when you're ready!"[/o]
>you turn off the shower soon after and towel yourself off before reclaiming your blanket
>it's slightly damp now, but it's much warmer than before
>when you get to the table, you see a piece of pizza with your name on it sitting on the table
>you get a glass of water to go with it and sit down to eat
>you sit in silence savoring the warmth of the pizza, still fresh out of the oven
>as soon as you finish the pizza, you head off to your room since you're feeling a bit drowsy
>you drop the blanket for the second time, climb into your bed, and take a nap
>.   .   .
>your dream takes you back to that bar you were in during your first daydream at school
>unfortunately, no Celestia
>it must be after her shift ended
>that sucks
>there are plenty of other ponies around the bar this time, though
>can you pick any of them up?
>fuck yeah you can, it's your dream!
>but do you really want to right now?
>you know Luna promised to leave you alone aside from the usual meeting time, but can you really trust her?
>only one way to find out
>you call over the bartender (who's a stallion this time) and get another Jack and Coke before looking around for a pony to claim
>you settle on one with an off-white coat and a pink mane and tail who looks pretty enough
>she also doesn't seem to have any other ponies with her, so you won't have any interruptions to complicate the matter
>target locked, initiate phase 2
>you slam your drink and walk over, trying to think of your best pickup line
>gotta make this feel authentic, otherwise it's just another dream fantasy
>you make it to her table, with your chosen lines
"Hey, is this seat taken?"
>she looks up from her drink with a slightly surprised expression
[p]>"No, would you like it?"[/o]
>perfect
>you sit down at the table with her
"Not as much as I'd like to get to know you. My name's Anonymous, what's yours?"
>she blushes and smiles at you
[p]>"Candy Cream."[/p]
>after some more conversation, you manage to convince her to come to the bathroom with you
>she also wants to be the one to take off your pants
>and just like the Celestia dream, you wake up right before you're given your release
>it's almost like someone doesn't want you to have that kind of fun
>fuck that guy
>no, don't fuck that guy
>that's probably just what he wants you to do
>so instead, you decide to take yourself to the bathroom again
>this time, to give yourself the release that your dreams won't
>you brought your phone with you there, since you have a few images of that type saved on there
>not too many, though
>the less there are, the less likely it is for some snooper to find them
>point is, you're gonna rub one out since you're finally at your breaking point
>when you finally get to the bathroom, you lock the door and survey it to best figure out how to do this
>you're not going to risk the toilet since you can't get a replacement phone here
>the shower's also out of the question for that reason
>there isn't much else to choose from
>guess you're doing it on the floor
>you pull your towel off the rack and spread it out as best you can so you can clean up easier
>you put yourself in the most comfortable position you can on the floor and decide to open up your phone
>when you do, you see that it's now 6:53
>that was the longest nap you've ever taken
>also, Twilight's probably back by now
>you've gotta do this fast if you're gonna do it at all
>fuck it, you've gone to all this effort
>one of your hooves drifts between your legs, trying to figure out how this will work
>you feel just how warm and wet you are at your first pass
>it also sends a small shiver up your entire body
>is this really how it feels?
>this might not be too terrible
>of course, you can't help but feel a bit gay doing this for whatever reason
>is it because you're a girl who will be masturbating to pictures of other girls, or because you've still got the mind of a boy and will likely end up shoving something inside yourself?
>it doesn't matter to you now, your base instincts are taking over
>you put yourself into a good rhythm as you pull up the first image on your phone
>it's a good image for this under normal circumstances, but you find yourself focusing more on how you imagine your dreams would've played out
>as your pleasure builds, your mind strays further back to your meeting with Celestia
>this soon takes your entire attention, and you don't even notice as your phone finally dies
>you also start to feel some different urges come up that you...
>well, you actually expected something like this to happen as soon as you started
>god help you
>you stop briefly to search around the bathroom for something to help you
>you find a toothbrush soon enough, and this makes you realize that you haven't brushed your teeth since the day before you came here
>nasty
>but enough of that, you've got to finish!
>getting into a new position, you shove the toothbrush inside yourself as far as you can
>it's a bit small, but it'll work
>after some working and shifting of positions, you eventually find a way that works best
>it only takes you a few seconds from there to come
>that
>was
>even more gay than you expected
>good thing you put down the towel too, you made a mess
>as soon as you get over the conflicting euphoria and guilt of what you just did, you pick up the towel and put it in a corner
>Spike will find it eventually
>that'll be something for you to deal with later, but hopefully later enough that it won't matter
>you also notice that your phone died at some point
>rip, hopefully Twilight's back for you to ask her about the charger
>you pick it up and head back down to the main area of the castle to see if she's actually back yet
>as you enter the living area that you were in on the day Twilight left, you do see her sitting and reading a book with Spike nearby
>"Good evening, Anon. How was your day?"
"Not bad, sorry I wasn't here to welcome you in. I ended up taking a nap, and didn't wake up until a few minutes ago."
>"That's okay, you didn't miss much. Did you and Spike do anything interesting while I was gone?"
>you turn to Spike, who also noticed this question
"Anything you think is worth mentioning?"
[o]>"There was the part of the Everfree trip where we met those timberwolves, that was pretty interesting."[/o]
>"Timberwolves? What happened?"
>Twilight looks surprised and more than a little worried now
"We got attacked by timberwolves when going to pick up those potions. Long story short, Spike burned one to death scaring the rest of them off."
>Twilight now looks more shocked than anything else
>"That's something interesting."
"Enough about us though, how was your trip?"
>she drops this expression for one that's a bit more neutral
>"It was pretty fun, we had to plan a massive festival for the community. I handled a lot of the scheduling and organization, and Pinkie did all the planning and execution of the events. Also, I got your letter. We can discuss that after dinner."
>alright, you're going to get answers!
>but first, dinner
>that sounds good
"Alright, what's for dinner?"
>Twilight thinks for a moment
>"Any input, Spike?"
>Spike thinks for a little longer than Twilight did
[o]>"How about pasta, we haven't had that in a while."[/o]
>Twilight looks reluctant at first, but she eventually caves
>"Alright, I'll make some pasta."
>Twilight leaves for the kitchen and Spike and you follow her
>after you three get there, she pulls out a pot and fills it with water before noticing the dish pile
>"Did either of you think about cleaning up this mess?"
>you get up to take care of it since Spike did it last time
"Yeah, it would've been bigger if Spike hadn't taken care of the last pile."
>she smirks, but doesn't respond when she sees you cleaning the dishes as best you can
>it takes some elbow grease and even more thinking on how to do this, but you eventually make your way through all the dirty dishware
>after you're done, you sit back down at the table near Spike
>you're welcome, dragon
>seeing as how Twilight's now the preoccupied one, you strike up a conversation with Spike
"So, what did you end up doing when I ditched you for a nap?"
[o]>"Went back downstairs and revisited that HFY issue we looked at yesterday. I found some cool things there, and I'm pretty sure I have an idea of what's coming up for the climax of this ark!"[/o]
>as cool as that would be to know, you don't want to hear about the future of your world
>it'll probably be nothing but blackpills anyway
>those pills taste nasty
>well, unless those writers know who the good guys are and are planning on having them win
>that would be great, if that series does happen to be a pure representation of your world
>but you're getting distracted again, you're supposed to be in a conversation!
"Cool, anything else you found out? Like, something kinda funny?"
>he thinks for a moment
[o]>"No, not really. There was a guy eating two hotdogs at once, but that's it."[/o]
>his name must have been bill
>that's why he had two wieners
>you giggle to yourself at that stupid thought before Twilight comes back to the table with some fresh spagoot
"Thanks, Twilight!"
>when you get your plate, you remember your manners this time and not shovel your entire plate in your mouth
>everyone seems happier that way
>after you finish eating your spaghetti and not dropping it, you and Twilight head off to the interrogation room
>when you get there, you two end up taking the same places as the other times you were there
"Alright, where do we start?"
>Twilight teleports the letter you wrote from somewhere
>"Why not with a description of a nuclear weapon and what it does?"
>this is something you don't know too well
"Well, it's a type of explosive device using radioactive materials as the actual explosive. It's an incredibly powerful type of weapon capable of leveling cities at the lowest, and rendering a small country uninhabitable at its strongest."
>Twilight looks horrified at this description, but that doesn't seem to stop her from pulling another pen and paper from somewhere and writing this down
>"Is there anything else that I should know about your species' combat capabilities to get an idea of just how much of a threat this is?"
"No, that's about all you need to know. Now, do you have any idea on how long before I can make it back home?"
>she seems to look mildly frustrated at your answer to her question for some reason, but she still answers yours after dropping the frustration
>"I've asked Celestia for help on gathering the necessary materials, but I haven't heard anything from her yet. I'm sorry."
>you sigh in defeat, your fate now even less certain in your own mind

>be Twilight
>Anon has just proved Celestia's hypothesis correct, despite only giving you a basic overview of their strongest weapons
>humans are ruthless and brutal, having mastered the art of war
>this brings you no pleasant thoughts about how this would be used here, should Celestia actually allow something like this to be produced
>much less used
>that gives you much less pleasant thoughts
>images of a war-torn Equestria where this sort of thing was used flash through your mind, populated with nothing but corpses and savage ponies fighting over the scraps of society
>nevertheless, Celestia asked you about this
>all you can do is attach as grave a warning as you can, based on what little Anonymous has actually told you
>after you finish writing this down, you hear him ask a question
>"... do you have any idea on how long before I can make it back home?"
"I've asked Celestia for help on gathering the necessary materials, but I haven't heard anything from her yet. I'm sorry."
>that's a small lie, on your way back you did receive a letter
>however, it only said that she had managed to track down an Elder Dragon and has sent a party to collect the fire you need
>that's not really too much to care about
>he sighs looking quite defeated after this, and you can't help but still feel sorry for him
>you get up and walk over to Anon's side of the table and place your hoof around his shoulder
"It will be alright, Anon. Celestia's looking for everything I need to recreate what got you here, and I have everything written down to do it again. You're going to get home."
>he looks up at you, looking a bit less depressed
>"I hope it doesn't take too long."
>you don't have an answer for this, so instead you wrap him in a brief hug
>it doesn't last too long though, seeing as how you have some business to attend to
>you dismiss Anon and head down to your own room to draft a letter
>time to draft another letter
>now how do you put all the emphasis necessary into this letter?
>well, probably with the proper use of language
"Dear Princess Celestia,
Anonymous has given me some information involving Humanity's capacity for violence, and has confirmed your hypothesis. However, I am going to ask you to please reconsider your use of human weapons and tell you exactly why you should.
Anonymous expressed concern to me yesterday about a possible war coming in his homeworld, and particularly about the type of weapons that would be used. These weapons are, in his own words, strong enough to cripple a country with only a few. If you should try to make this weapon to use here, I can only see it bringing nothing but conflict, death, and possibly the extinction of us as a species.
However, if you remain adamant on using this information, I will tell you what Anonymous knows about them (though I sincerely hope you decide that defeating Chrysalis isn't worth the death of all life). He says that these weapons are explosives based off of radioactive materials that can level cities. He hasn't told me anything else, but this was enough of a description for me to find it necessary to draft this entire letter.
Sincerely, Twilight"
>this seems very redundant with how often you express your concern at this, but that should only emphasize just how important you think this is
>you decide that this is the letter you want to send after some more internal debate
>you roll it up and tie it before calling Spike to you
"Spike, I have a letter to Celestia that needs to be sent!"
>Spike comes up to your room with another bowl of ice cream, because of course he does
[o]>"Alright, where is it?"[/o]
>you put the letter in front of him, and he sends it
[o]>"Mind if I ask what it was for?"[/o]
>no, you don't really mind
>you'll just keep out the information about Anon being a human and those nuclear weapons
"It was part of how I'm going to help Anon deal with what she wrote to me about yesterday."
>not entirely untrue
>it would probably make him feel worse if he knew that these weapons had come here too
[o]>"Oh, alright. Are you expecting another reply soon?"[/o]
>you're not sure when a reply should be coming, since Celestia can take a long time on important decisions or just leave well enough alone if she's already made up her mind
>regardless, you don't want to leave Spike alone with the letter in case he gets curious
>he's done that a couple of times before, despite you saying for him not to
"I'm not sure when a reply should be coming, but I'd appreciate it if you would stick around anyway."
>he shrugs and sits down on your bed
>at least he's being more cooperative than last time you asked him to send a letter
>anyway, now all you have to do is wait for a response
>while you two are waiting, Anonymous happens to walk in
>"Hey Twilight, I just remembered something. My phone's dead again, and I never learned how to charge it. Can you show me?"
>oops
>that was definitely your fault for not remembering about that
"Sure, follow me back to the lab. Spike, you come with."
>you lead Anon and Spike back down to your laboratory without getting a response yet
>eventually you make it down to the engineering section where you left the Magic/Energy converter
>you bring the smallish device off the table you left it on and let Anon get close to it
"This is a Magic/Energy converter, it's how I charged your device. Inside it is a simple mana-focusing crystal capable of pulling magic out of the surrounding environment and the necessary circuitry to convert it into the electrical charge needed to give your phone power. It should work on its own, and all you need to do to activate it is to make sure it's got enough space around it to pull from."
>he reaches out with a single hoof
>"A-am I allowed to touch it now?"
"Yes you are. You're also free to bring it to your room, where you can use it when you need to."
>Anon reaches out with both hooves now and you drop it from your magic grasp
>"Alright, thanks! I'll go put this in my room!"
>he leaves and you two follow behind
>your reply still hasn't come yet, but you're not sure if that's a bad thing
>the longer it takes, the more likely it is that she's putting thought into her decision
>eventually, after Anonymous went back to his room for the night and even Spike has started his descent into sleep, you get the reply you were waiting for
>nervously, you undo the seal on it and open the letter up
[p]>"Dear Twilight,[/p]
[p]>I'd like to thank you for keeping the promise you made and delivering this information to me. I'll also tell you that your warnings haven't gone unnoticed.[/p]
[p]>I agree that using these "nuclear weapons" would be a terrible idea that could cause more bad than good, and thus I will not call for any development in that field. However, this has only made me more convinced that Anonymous holds the key to us fending off this new potential invasion.[/p]
[p]>I still entirely expect you to continue collecting information about what weapons humans have access to, and even how they work. I am willing to change my stance on anything that proves to be dangerous to not only our opponents but also to us, but only at that. We both remember what's at stake here, so I won't remind you.[/p]
[p]>Kindest regards, Princess Celestia"[/p]
>good, at least she's not willing to kill us all over this
>that relieves you quite a bit, but you still feel worried about what else Anon knows
>that's something for tomorrow, though
>you're feeling quite drained from all this worrying
>so, you let Spike go off back to his room, and you fall asleep yourself

>be Chrysalis
>a few spies you sent into Equestria are supposed to be coming back today, and messages from the ones you sent to Ponyville and Canterlot have both sent back... some interesting information
>soon enough, those same spies enter your throne room a few minutes later with the Canterlot spy holding a record of everything of note
>"Good evening, my queen. We return with news which may prove valuable for our retaliation."
"Welcome home, my children. Please tell me, you've already caught my interest."
>the one with the report flips through a few pages, eventually stopping about halfway through
>"We encountered a new pony which no other parties have identified previously, who seems to have showed up in Ponyville sometime last week. She also seems to spend the majority of her time in close proximity to Twilight Sparkle."
>Twilight Sparkle?
>you banged her brother a couple times, but neither of them knew it was you until you collected enough genetic material to continue your hive's existence
>but what is it that makes that pony so special?
"Would you mind telling me why she managed to grab your attention so quickly?"
>the drone shuffles through the report some more and speaks with the drone stationed in Ponyville
>"Well, she exhibits an age that doesn't line up with how long she's been there and she also has a mental capacity more fit for an adult stallion, as opposed to a filly in grade school. Furthermore, she ended up being called to Canterlot to be brought before Celestia herself."
>this filly is beginning to catch your attention, too
>she must be important in some way if Celestia took time out of her busy schedule to meet her
"That is indeed interesting. Thank you for giving me this important message as soon as you did, you're dismissed."
>this filly seems interesting enough to warrant her own spy, but an adult would be too obvious
>you'll need to send one of the younger drones to keep tabs on her
>it makes you sad to send off one of your young to work so early, but this is a matter of life and death at this point
>you're already running out of usable seed, and you won't be able to get any more for the forseeable future
>you laugh internally at this thought because of how absurd it is, but in your gut you feel that this filly may be the key to saving your species

>be Anonymous
>your dreams were cool
>the setting was just a coffee shop, but Luna still showed up
>instead of regular questioning, it felt more like an actual conversation too
>these pastel cartoon horses and their friendship magic!
>after a pleasant conversation with her and a few cups of nonexistent coffee, the dream unfortunately ends
>oh well, she'll be back tomorrow
>she always is
>a while and a few less entertaining dreams later, you wake up to your alarm
>you turn it off and go about your morning routine, noticing that this morning is much warmer than yesterday
>good, you won't have to deal with cold
>you get through your shower and go downstairs to eat breakfast
>cereal again, nothing special
>Twilight packed you lunch now that she's back
>you thank her for it and go get the rest of your stuff for school
>you make the walk, taking the scenic route, and make it to the school with a few minutes to spare
>you take your usual spot on your favorite bench to wait out the bell and when it rings, you take your spot
>when you do, you notice a new earth pony filly taking that spot near the front
>she's got a light gray coat and a bright green mane with blue eyes
>she also seems to be ignoring all the others around her, regardless of their conversations or attempts to be friendly
>odd, considering every other foal you've seen has been quite open to conversation
>well, besides you
>you don't really count, though
>you're still supposed to be a 22 year-old human male, after all
>she still catches your attention just a bit
>keeping an eye on her might be a good idea
>so you do exactly that
>Cheerilee ends up noticing her too, and does the whole procedure where she calls her up to the front of the room
>"Would you like to introduce yourself?"
>the filly scans the room before responding
[p]>"My name's Emerald Shine."[/p]
>she calmly walks back to her seat after that, but not before locking eyes with you
>huh
>this "Emerald Shine" may be an interesting pony
>you decide to not fall asleep during math today too, instead opting to think about some other issues
>like how realistic a war breaking out would be
>tensions are high, and the US has never been friendly to communists
>NK hasn't exactly let go of how "Great Satan" split their country in the Korean War
>but hopefully neither side is dumb enough to make the first strike
>however, depending on who does, that could mean many things
>US going first brings China in against them with Russia probably staying neutral, and NK going first pretty much brings everyone in against them except China who would stay neutral
>if it was just a war between US and NK though, US beats them in every way
>NK's only hope would be the nukes, so they would definitely come into play
>wait, doesn't the US have missile defense systems?
>wow, you're stupid for forgetting that
>however, if NK is that smart, they might try something worse
>a bioweapon would be terrible to deal with, but with quarantine procedures and medical science being what they are, it probably wouldn't be too damaging
>not to mention that NK might also be risking their own population depending on when where and how it's used
>no matter what, the Geneva Convention will probably be thrown out the window if this war happens
>but has the Geneva Convention ever really mattered?
>not that you can remember
>fug
>well, maybe you should try paying attention for once
>"... Now, the formula we use to find the sides of a right triangle is A squared plus B squared equals C squared..."
>nah, that's boring
>it's not even fun math
>physics is fun math
>and this isn't physics
>well, there's not much else to do so you pull out your phone again and play games under your desk
>when the bell rings, you head back outside to your favorite bench
>and figure out that you were followed there once you sit down
[p]>"Mind if I sit with you? You seem nice."[/o]
>Emerald is looking at you with a neutral expression, not breaking eye contact
>weird
>well, like Machiavelli said, "Keep your friends close and your enemies closer, and keep someone you don't know somewhere in between"
>okay, he didn't say that last part
>but it's not exactly the worst of ideas for figuring out Emerald here
"Sure, I don't mind."
>you scoot over a bit to give her some more space
[p]>"Thanks, uh..."[/p]
>she appears to think for a second
[p]>"I'm sorry, I don't think I know your name yet."[/p]
"Anonymous."
[p]>"Anonymous? That's a nice name. So, Anonymous, how are you?"[/p]
>how [i]are[/i] you?
>could be better, but certainly not bad
"I'm pretty okay right now. How about you?"
[p]>"I'm not too bad either."[/p]
>from there, you two sit in silence through the rest of recess
>when you get back inside, you begin to feel a bit bad for judging Emerald so quickly
>sure, she may act a bit weird, but you'd be lying if you said you didn't when you were this age
>other than that, she probably isn't that bad
>probably just a bit nervous about being at a new school
>it would probably be a good idea to help her get welcomed, and Twilight would probably give you a gold star for making a friend or something
>not that you aren't making friends now, though
>Luna and Spike are both pretty cool, but Twilight might not count them
>that's stupid, they're your best friends here!
>they're also your only friends here
>point taken
>yeah, making friends with Emerald might be a good idea
>alright, let's hope Machiavelli wasn't wrong
>the rest of science goes about as fast as math, but you start to pay attention in history because grades
>this is less interesting than other lessons, it's just about the whole situation with Nightmare Moon and the political/economic fallout that resulted
>still, the fact that Equestria nearly fell into a civil war over this was something interesting
>not sure when you'll get tested on this, but hopefully this information is interesting enough to remember until then
>oh well
>when the lesson's over, the bell rings for lunch
>this time, you wait for Emerald to get up and walk out with her
>both of you end up walking back to your bench, where you two sit back in your spots with your food
>you open your bag to find more leftover pasta
>Twilight is a godsend
>you look over to Emerald who has a sandwich
>she's definitely enjoying it with how fast she's eating it
>you dig in to your spaghetti with the same vigor, finishing it quickly
"So, how was your food?"
[p]>"Pretty good, my mom makes the best sandwiches. How about yours?"[/p]
"I enjoyed it, pasta's my favorite."
>you put the container that held the spaghetti back in your bag and she throws out her garbage
[p]>"So, how long have you been at this school?"[/p]
>odd question, but not too weird
"Since last week, why do you ask?"
[p]>"Well, I guess I'm just nervous about being new here and all."[/p]
"Don't worry, it's not that bad. There are a few foals that aren't the best to be near, but stick with me and they won't cause you any problems."
>she smiles brightly at you
[p]>"Thanks, Anonymous. Can you also show me around town? I haven't been here very long and I'm afraid I might get lost on the way home."[/p]
>you don't see why you can't, and it would also give you something to do after school
"Sure, I'll help you out. Maybe we can even hang out some more?"
[p]>"Yeah, that sounds fun."[/p]
>you two again sit in silence for the rest of lunch, only this time it's a bit less awkward
>when you go back inside for writing, you two again part ways
>the writing lesson is easy again, and you finish it in plenty of time to keep writing down your green
>where were you, again?
>right, Celestia saw your dick
>you write until you get to the trip home, leaving out the less interesting bits for the most part before the bell rings
>you pack up your stuff and wait outside for Emerald to show up
>after a few seconds, she joins you outside
"Ready to go?"
[p]>"Yep!"[/p]
"Alright, I'll show you all the important places."
>you two set about on your trip around town and you show her Town Hall, Sugarcube Corner, and a few other places that you considered important
>it wasn't as long or as gay of a tour as Spike gave you
>at least, you don't think it is
>when you finish showing her the last place on your list, you ask her a question
"Anywhere else you'd like to see before going home?"
>Emerald thinks for a second
[p]>"I heard that Princess Twilight lives here. Do you know where her castle is?"[/p]
>yes you do
"As a matter of fact, yes. Would you like to see it?"
>she gets very excited before forcing herself to calm down some
[p]>"I'd love to!"[/p]
>so you head back to the castle with Emerald following you
>when you two get there, she can't help but marvel at the size of it
[p]>"Whoahhh... It's so tall!"[/p]
>you never really looked at the castle very much before, but when you look up yourself you see that it's very tall
>it almost makes you light-headed to look that far up
>you both are interrupted by the door opening
[o]>"Hey Anon, who's that with you?[/o]
>it's Spike
"Hey Spike, this is Emerald Shine. She's new at the school and asked me to show her around, so I did."
[o]>"Cool, Twilight will be happy to hear you've made a friend."[/o]
>Spike goes back inside and you turn back to Emerald, who now has a stunned expression on her face
"Emerald? You alright?"
>she stares at you for a few more seconds before speaking
[p]>"Do you [i]live[/i] here?"[/p]
>she's intuitive
"Yeah, I'm staying here until I can go back home. Anywhere else you want to see before you have to go home?"
[p]>"Can you show me around the castle?"[/p]
>you think about this
>you should probably ask Twilight first, just in case
"I'm not sure if Twilight would be okay with it, but I'll ask her for you and tell you tomorrow."
>she looks a bit sad at this, but ultimately accepts it
[p]>"Okay then, my parents are expecting me home soon anyway. See you tomorrow!"[/p]
>you wave goodbye to Emerald as she heads off, and you go inside yourself once you can't see her anymore
>when you're inside, you're greeted by a smiling purple
>"So, how was your day?"
>she already knows judging by the look on her face
"Pretty alright, I didn't fall asleep in class for once."
>just because she knows doesn't mean you're just going to outright tell her
>"Did anything unusual happen? You know, like a new student showing up?"
>yep, she's going to pry it out of you if it kills you both
>it's still pretty amusing to be just a bit of a cunt about it though
>but not too much of a cunt, there's a fine line between banter and just being unpleasant
"Now that I think about it, there was a new filly."
>Twilight's starting to lose her smile
>"And how is she?"
"Hmm... She's alright, I guess."
>she drops the smile entirely
>"Anon, Spike already told me. You might as well just say it."
>bingo
"Well, if you already know, then I guess I don't have to keep messing with you. Yeah, I guess I made a friend at school for once."
>"That's great! I'm glad you're finally making friends, it shows that you're able to adapt to this situation!"
"But I'm already on good terms with Spike, and Luna's being cool too. What makes this one so special?"
>she looks surprised for a second before responding
>"Spike doesn't count because you live with him, and Luna? I didn't even know you were in contact with her! How long has this been happening?"
"For a few days, she visits me at night and we either have a conversation, explore my dreams, or both."
>now that you say that out loud, it sounds pretty creepy
>but Luna's pretty much a friend at this point and has seen everything you could do, so what does it matter?
>it probably matters for some ethical reason, but you can't be asked to think about that now
>"But still, this is your first school friend! This is a pretty big milestone!"
>looks like she forgot just how old you are again
"Are you implying I didn't have friends at home?"
>Twilight looks embarrassed again
>"Sorry, it's just easy to forget who you are while you're in that body."
>that's right, you had friends!
>no, you HAVE friends
>you're getting home even if it kills you!
>"Anyway, what's her name?"
>oh, right
>the Princess of Friendship™ is asking you about your new Friend™
"Her name's Emerald Shine. Apparently she just moved here, but I'm not sure where she came from. Also, is it okay if she comes over tomorrow? She asked about it, and I didn't know if you'd be okay with it."
>Twilight considers this for all of a second before replying
>"Of course she can come over, I'll even pull out some board games for you two. Just remember your cover story if you're asked about anything, and you'll be fine."
>alright, one less thing you need to worry about
>you're sure Emerald will be ecstatic tomorrow
"Cool. Now that that's out of the way, what's for dinner?"
>Twilight starts thinking again before speaking
>"Well, I'm not sure. However, this seems like a special occasion, so I know we're definitely going somewhere and wherever it is will be a surprise for you. Does that answer your question?"
>not really
"Yeah, I guess."
>you go off to your room to do something while Twilight goes off to do something else
>when you get there, you drop your bag off and pull out your phone
>not to play games, though
>instead you go to your saved images and scroll through
>looking at pictures of you and your family
>it gives you some major feels, but it also helps you remember what you're doing here
>you're trying to get home
>so then why does it feel like you're not going to?
>no, that isn't an option!
>Twilight is giving you the best opportunity out there to get back, and she's also enlisted the closest thing to pony God there is to help you
>you push away the bad feelings and turn them into all the determination you need to make it back as you put your phone back down
>looking around your room, you notice that you've never actually looked at any of the books on your shelf
>well then
>so you look at some of the books that you can reach, trying to find anything that catches your eye
>you really don't, it's mostly nonfiction and the few fiction books you see are historical fiction
>ew
>looks like you're not reading today
>so you go back to your phone and play more games since you can
>it's not like there's anything else to do

>be Twilight
>Anon made a friend and you got him to tell you without having to physically pull it out of him
>he also told you that Luna was paying him nightly visits
>from what you can tell though, Luna doesn't get out much either
>it might be good for both of them
>but he made a friend in school today, and that's what matters!
>you aren't a useless princess!
>suck it, self-doubt!
>not that you're completely useless, it's just your title
>"Princess of Friendship"
>sure, friendship got you to where you are now, but if your title's supposed to be based off of your skills then wouldn't "Princess of Magic" have worked better?
>that's just your two bits, though
>you didn't get any input in the creation of your title, you just got the wings and shiny things associated with it
>not that you're complaining, being able to fly helps out a lot in daily life
>but back to the matter at hand, your train of thought's derailed enough
>you've got to tell Pinkie something about Anon's surprise party today
>so you teleport off to Sugarcube Corner to tell her
>when you get there, you immediately find Pinkie standing behind the counter
[p]>"Heya, Twi! What brings you over? The party doesn't start for another few hours!"[/p]
"Hi Pinkie, I came over to tell you that Anonymous made a friend today at school with a new filly."
[p]>"Oh, you mean that filly who moved here with her older sister? The one with a green mane and blue eyes?"[/p]
>that matches the description Spike gave you, Pinkie must have already met her
"Actually, that sounds like her. Have you already met her?"
[p]>"Yeah, they showed up yesterday night from the southern train. It seemed like they were in a bit of a hurry, but they still had enough time for me to say hi!"[/p]
>from the southern train in a hurry?
>huh, kinda makes you think
"Well, since you know her, have you already given her an invitation to Anon's party?"
[p]>"Yep! I saw her walking from school after she was done touring with Nonny, and I gave her an invitation!"[/p]
>well alrighty then, that takes care of that
"I guess you already took care of it, then. Thanks!"
>Pinkie smiles at you and giggles
[p]>"No problem! You wanna stick around and see what I've set up so far?"[/p]
>you might as well, it probably won't take too long
"I don't see why I can't, go ahead!"

>be Anonymous
>you decided to play cards again with Aryanne and Hitler
>somehow, this only made you lose harder
>how are a pair of plush toys controlled by you still winning!?
>fucking card counting!
>eventually you get fed up with it and decide to check the time
>it's about 5:00
>you've managed to kill a couple of hours in a less-than-fun way
>maybe you should see what Spike's up to?
>you fold your hand, leaving the two of them to figure out who wins at texas hold'em
>you only had a pair anyways
>you head back down to Spike's room where you find him sitting with his Rarara plush
"Hey, what's up?"
>he jumps again at your voice, dropping the plush
[o]>"Dude, you gotta start giving me a warning before you show up."[/p]
>you smirk and laugh internally at this
"Sure thing, m8. I don't want to ruin your quality time with Rarity, after all..."
>he blushes and glares at you
>this only brings your laughter out
"I'm messing with you, don't blow a fuse. How are ya?"
>he calms down a bit
[o]>"Well, I [i]was[/i] fine."[/o]
>all this over some banter?
>rip, my dude
>well, in his defense, you did get pretty butthurt when he insulted Hitler
>that's not important, though
"Okay, I'm sorry. Now, you want to go do something? I'm tired of losing card games."
>he looks confused about the second part, but ultimately responds
[o]>"Sure, I suppose we could go do something. Anything you want to do in particular?"[/o]
>you think, and eventually come to an answer
"Wanna play cards?"
[o]>"Didn't you just say you were tired of losing at card games, though?"[/o]
"Yeah, I don't think I'll lose if I play against a real opponent though."
>this only makes him more confused
[o]>"Who were you playing with that you lost to and wasn't a real opponent!?"[/o]
"Not important. I'll go get the cards, be back in a second!"
>true to your words, you run back up to your room, grab the cards, and run back down
>you also didn't drop any of them!
>gold star!
>you put the cards on Spike's bed and climb up there with him
"Alright, what game do you want to play?"
[o]>"How about Go Fish?"[/p]
>sounds good
"Alright, do you play with five or seven cards?"
[o]>"Seven."[/p]
>at least he knows how to play the game right
>as you finish dealing out the cards, Twilight enters the room
>"Alright you two, I've figured out what's for dinner. Let's go!"
>so much for your card game
[o]>"Okay, I'm pretty hungry anyway."[/o]
>guess we're leaving
"Cool, what is it?"
>Twilight looks at you with an interesting glint in her eyes
>"I told you, it's a surprise. You'll just have to wait."
>and so you three leave for your surprise dinner somewhere, you fully expecting Twilight to have just picked some average restaurant around here
>as you three walk through the town though, you realize that Twilight's taking a very specific path
>recalling the map you had to study, you're able to start narrowing down possible options
>no, you're not going there
>not there, either
>this is one hell of a detour if we're going there
>if we're seriously going there, you're going to slap somepony
>there's pretty okay, but it's not the best
>eventually the trip goes on for long enough that you know exactly where you're headed
>Sugarcube Corner
>but why there?
>is Twilight willing to let you eat crap food for dinner just for making a friend?
>this must be more important to her than you thought
>oh well, at least you'll be able to spy on Pinkie and see how she's preparing for your party
>wait
>what if this IS your party?
>it's entirely possible that it is
>after all, Pinkie organized an entire party at Twilight's house on the day she first set hoof in Ponyville without even knowing who she was to begin with
>the more you think about it, the more it makes sense that this is probably for your welcome party
>it might just be a happy coincidence that you made a friend, giving Twilight an excuse to lure you here
>little does she know, you've seen your fair share of surprise party setups
>it's definitely a trap, all you have to do is spring it
>and you're gonna do it with style!
>but this is gonna require a bit of your own baiting
"Pssst! Spike!"
>you whisper in his general direction
[o]>"Yeah?"[/o]
>he drops back to where you are in relation to Purple
"I know exactly what's coming and I wanna mess with Pinkie. When we get to Sugarcube Corner, I'm gonna need you to go in first no matter what Twilight says."
>he looks shocked for a second
[o]>"I think you might be the first pony to ever guess when you're getting a surprise party from Pinkie correctly, so I'll help. I wanna see where this is going now."[/o]
>fantastic, your suspicions are confirmed and your plan is set in motion
>now all you need to do is carry out your half of the plan
>as Sugarcube Corner draws nearer, you prepare your opening line
>WASSUP BITCHES!
>no, Twilight would slap you
>HEY EVERYBODY
>nah, that sounds stupid
>GET READ, PONK
>that might work, but how would Pinkie take it?
>she might go crazy or she might laugh her ass off
>alternatively, she might go somewhere in between
>is it worth it?
>probably
>you didn't get to meme on Celestia, but you're not gonna miss this opportunity
>as you three arrive at the destination, you feign surprise
"Why are we here? Twilight, are you really willing to let me eat this much junk food for dinner?"
>Twilight shrugs and steps to the side of the door
>"Why not? You should be able to control yourself, you're smart. Anyways, after you!"
>not today, purple!
"You know, I'm feeling a bit generous. Spike, why don't you go first?"
>Twilight gets a bit nervous
>"No, it's your reward. I insist, go ahead."
>Spike still has your back though
[o]>"Why not? She doesn't mind and we're going to be out here all night if no one else wants to go."[/o]
>she starts glaring daggers at Spike
"Twilight, what's wrong? What's so bad about being generous? Isn't that one of the Elements of Harmony, or something?"
>it's at this point that she realizes she's not winning this without exposing the plan
>so, she gives up
>"Alright, fine. Spike, go ahead."
>she then proceeds to adopt a frustrated face as she sits down and stares into the distance, waiting for it all to go up in smoke
>when Spike opens the door, exactly what you planned for happens
>there's a loud yell of SURPRISE! and multiple party blowers sounding
>you also see some confetti drift out the door
>as the initial yell dies down into confused and disappointed mutters, you enact phase two
>you jump in past Spike and immediately see Pinkie standing in the center of the room, being the most confused
>without giving her a second to react, you scream your chosen line staring her dead in the eyes the whole time with as smug a grin as you can muster
"GET READ, PONK!"
>she recoils slightly in sheer surprise
>if she wasn't stunned into silence, she'd probably have a few words to say
>you start to get worried as the silence stretches on
>did you break her?
>no, wait
>she's doing something
>having finally processed exactly what just happened, she calmly starts nodding and clapping
[p]>"I don't know how you guessed it, but yep! This is your party!"[/p]
>she stands up and walks over to you, starting to giggle a bit
[p]>"You really got me there, you're the first pony to ever guess a party. Enjoy!"[/p]
>and this is when everybody else carries on as normal
>except Twilight, who is still a bit surprised at all this
>so, you decide to confront her on it
"What's up, Twi?"
>you know, while you're calling everypony by nicknames here
>"Did somepony tell you this was happening?"
>she's trying to piece this together
>of course she is
"No, I'm just pretty good at connecting dots. Unless you count Spike telling me after I had already figured it out on the way here, of course."
>"No wonder he was playing along, you probably asked him to help with this."
"Pretty much."
>"Well, I'm impressed. I guess it wasn't much of a surprise, though."
>after that, you two go back in and join the rest of the party
>when you do, you see Emerald standing over near a similar looking mare
>she looks pretty alone, so you decide to join her
"Hey Emerald, how are ya?"
>she sees you and immediately brightens up
[p]>"Hi, Anonymous! This party's pretty cool."[/p]
"I'm glad you're enjoying it, I'm sure Pinkie worked very hard on setting it all up. So, is this your mom?"
>you gesture to the mare standing next to her
[p]>"Actually, this is my sister. Mom sent me here to live with her for a while, so I'm staying here with her."[/p]
>the mare smiles at you before returning to her own conversation
"Cool, cool. Wanna go do something? There's probably an arcade machine around here, I remember Pinkie saying something about it."
[p]>"Sure, Let's go play it! What game even is it?"[/p]
"You know, I'm not actually sure. Whatever it is, I'm pretty sure it'll still be fun."
>you two walk around the area until you find the machine
>however, it's currently occupied by two colts
>this is an easily solved problem, though
"Hey nerds, this is your last round. We want the next play."
>they turn around, looking mildly offended at your comment
[o]>"You two are fillies, you wouldn't even like this game."[/o]
>bitch, please!
"Dude, it's my party and I requested this machine. Now, you have two options. Either you can give up the game nicely after you get destroyed by your friend, or I can destroy you myself and take it."
>he seems to take it personally
[o]>"You're on."[/o]
>let's hope your luck doesn't run out and you can out-play this punk
>his friend steps away from the controls as you step up
[p]>"Anonymous, it's okay. If they want to play the game, why not let them?"[/p]
>she may have a point, but you're gonna school this punk anyway
"At this point, I'm just doing this to prove I'm better. Besides, this guy's probably just a button masher."
>Emerald just moves up to your side to watch you play and the other colt moves to his own friend's side
>the game looks like it's just Mortal Kombat
>time to show this nerd how to play this game properly
>round one, fight
>yep, it's pretty much Mortal Kombat
>you get close to him and start putting in inputs about as fast as you can, managing to do a decent job of beating him up
>you continue this strategy until you manage to get him in a corner
>after that, it's pretty easy to cheese down his health bar
>round two, fight
>your strategy isn't doing so well this time, he got wise to it
>he manages to take this round, but you still have round three
>besides, you haven't even used your secret weapon
>round three, fight
>the round starts, and you have managed to get a proper idea of the controls
>using your newfound strategy, you manage to put up an even fight
>this is gonna be close
>wait, you're seeing a pattern in his movements
>you can abuse this
>sure enough, he falls right into your prediction and you manage to punish him dearly for it
>you're definitely going to win now
>but just to make sure, you trap him in the corner again and cheese down his health bar
>just for that extra disrespect you don't even go for a fatality
>you just teabag him
[o]>"Alright, you won. Play the stupid game."[/o]
>the colt and his friend walk off in shame
>you turn to Emerald
"So, you ready to play?"
[p]>"Well, I don't know if I can beat you but I'll try."[/p]
"Don't worry, all I did was just press buttons in the first round. It works surprisingly well!"
>she takes the other controls and you start another game
>she does well with the button mashing, and it's a pretty even first couple of rounds
>you just barely win on the third round though
>not wanting to be a bad sport to your friend, you do a fatality
>you both stare in awe as your character rips Emerald's character's spine out by their tail
>it's a bloody mess by the time it's over
[p]>"That was intense!"[/p]
>you've seen worse, but you're not going to tell her
"Yeah, I wouldn't want to be the janitor cleaning that up."
>she starts looking a bit more disinterested after this
[p]>"I'm kinda hungry, want to grab some cake?"[/p]
>yeah, you've wanted food for a while now
"Sure, I wonder what flavor it is!"
>you've completely forgotten what you told Pinkie to get
>that is, if you even told her to get something specific
>when you two get there, you find out it's chocolate
>oh yeah, you did say that!
>you grab a slice with a lot of frosting on it and Emerald grabs one with less frosting
>when you do, you also notice some pizzas nearby
>they're all cheese
>probably so ponies that wanted toppings don't get mad that their specific favorite wasn't there
>oh well, it works for you!
"Wanna take some pizza too?"
[p]>"Okay, I don't mind cheese."[/p]
>you two take your food over to an open table and eat it
>it's pretty good, Pinkie makes a mean cake
>after you two finish your food, you decide to think about what to do now
>you've got no ideas
"Anything you want to do?"
>Emerald thinks for a second
[p]>"I'm not sure either. Want to go somewhere less crowded?"[/p]
>sure, that sounds alright with you
"Lead the way, let's go."
>Emerald leads the way to a back room where you probably wouldn't have gotten to without the crowd for cover
>and it's just you two here
>is this going somewhere?
>nah, she's actually twelve as far as you can tell
>and you aren't about to do that and break some sort of law in the process
>she gets kind of close to you and sighs
[p]>"Anonymous, you're a great friend. I'm glad you're just as nice as I thought you'd be, because you're making it a lot better to be here without my mom. Even though it hasn't even been a full day since we met, I still appreciate it."[/p]
>oh
>that's some heavy feelings
"It's no problem, you're a nice pony to hang out with. I don't have many friends here either and even less family, so you're making it better for me too."
>she starts tearing up a bit
>and then out of nowhere, she wraps you in a tight hug
>you let this sink in for a moment before hugging her back
>you two stay embraced like this for another couple of seconds before Emerald breaks off
[p]>"Thanks, I needed to get that out of my system. Wanna stay here for a bit longer, or go back out to the party?"[/p]
>you kinda enjoy this
"I don't mind staying here for a bit longer."
>so you two sit in this back room for a while longer, simply enjoying the other's company
>eventually Twilight and Emerald's sister find you two when it's time to go home, and you two are forced to part ways again
>at least you'll get to see each other again tomorrow!
>when you three get back, Twilight asks you a question
>"So, what were you two doing in the back room?"
>pervert
"Simply having a conversation and enjoying each other's company, what were you expecting?"
>she smiles and responds smoothly
>"I'm not sure, why would two fillies need to sneak off to do that?"
"Well, in our defense, it was a bit of a personal conversation."
>"Then I won't pry any further. It's a good thing too, it's pretty late and you still have school tomorrow."
>oh, today wasn't Friday?
>nope, you counted wrong
>at least tomorrow's Friday!
>oh hey, it's also been exactly a week since you got here!
>and you're still no closer to home
>fug
>well, at least there's work being done on it
>supposedly
"Hey Twilight, before I go to bed, is there any more info from Celestia about getting me home?"
>Twilight starts concentrating, probably to remember the last letter she got
>"Actually, yes. The team sent to collect the first material I need has returned successfully with more than enough to perform the spell, and the second team was deployed to search for the next item."
>never mind
>there has been progress
>now you're one step closer to your first and hopefully only roll of the dice to get home
>that would be nice, have the astronomically, infinitesimally small chance of you making it on the first try actually happen
>yeah, and Twilight's actually a demon who wants to mindbreak you to be her sex slave
>although, statistically speaking, there's a universe where that's true
>but we're getting off topic again
>you need sleep and the weekend's coming
>you bid Twilight and Spike goodnight and head up to your room, only stopping to go to the bathroom
>too much punch
>after that detour, you make it back to your room fairly quickly and get under the covers
>snuggled up next to your Hitler and your Aryanne, you fall asleep in moments
>.   .   .
>your dreams take a different shape this time
>you're out in the middle of a forest and it's night-time
>it's not scary though, it's like you came out here on purpose
>when you look up, the light of the stars still filters down through the trees and the moon is clearly visible
>however, there's no signs of life anywhere nearby
>it's quiet
>so you decide to give yourself some company while waiting for the usual happenings of the night
>you decide to try something you've never tried in a dream before
>clone yourself
>you concentrate as hard as you can on yourself, trying to bring that form out into this world a second time
>when you open your eyes, you see that you succeeded
>kinda
>that's definitely you standing in front of you, but it's not really company
>all you managed to do was create a second model of your body, and it's stuck in a T-pose
>this physics engine, it might as well be Gmod
>well, at least in Gmod you could still spawn NPCs with your player model
>wait, maybe that's how you do it
>you get rid of the T-pose you and instead try to spawn an NPC that looks like you
>when you open your eyes, you see that it didn't work as well as you'd hoped
>it's only a basic rendering, and it's completely oblivious to you
>you sigh and sit down on a nearby stump, disappointed
"I'm not sure if I'll ever master dream physics but if this is all it's capable of at the most complex, then I'm not sure if I want to."
>"Don't worry, I assure you that being able to create manifestations to join you after the initial creation of a dreamscape is entirely possible. You'll need more experience than modifying the environment and creating lesser entities, though."
>hey, company!
>you turn to your right to see Luna staring at your crude attempt at cloning
>"Also, I wouldn't recommend trying to recreate yourself again. It can become quite confusing and lead to a multitude of problems. Trust me, I've tried it."
>oh
>well, you know what you aren't doing tomorrow
>that's cool
"Anyway, how are you?"
>she sits down on a downed tree near you
>"I'm alright, nothing eventful has happened. That's a blessing though, in my line of work. How about you?"
>you heard about what exactly she's supposed to do in the dreamworld yesterday, and you're not surprised that it sucks
"That's good, I ended up getting to go to a party today."
>"Oh, fun! How did that go?"
"It was alright. I got to spend more time with a friend I made today, and that's always a good thing."
>she seems a bit surprised at your last statement
>"I would imagine that making a friend would be higher on your list of noteworthy events than a simple party, who is this friend?"
"Another filly named Emerald Shine. She just moved to Ponyville to live with her sister, and she's pretty nice so far."
>Luna starts thinking for a few seconds
>"I can't say that name is familiar to me. I guess I haven't visited her yet, and I hope I don't have to."
>you don't need clarification for that statement, you know what visitation usually implies
>some kind of a recurring nightmare, or some hellish one-off
>this seems like a good spot to change the subject
"Wanna help me build a campfire?"
>Luna hops off the log and stands up
>"That sounds wonderful!"
>you two spend a while finding various sticks and fallen branches, and you even summon an axe to take down a small tree to make firewood
>after another while and a few different pieces of kindling wasted, the fire starts up
>alright, you two did something!
>but this brings something else to mind as you two return to your original seats
>campfires need a story
>you try to think of any yourself, but you were never good with scary stories
>you were even worse at telling them, though
>so, you go for the next best thing
>how about some education on human culture that really ought to scare her?
"Hey, this scene reminds me of something. Have you ever heard of a wendigo?"
>she considers this for all of a second before replying
>"I have. They were a problem back when Equestria was first founded, but they've been driven from the country since long before I was born."
"Those wendigos may share a similar name to the creature I'm talking about, but I assure you the human version is much, much more horrifying."
>you lean forward as you begin to think through everything you know about these creatures from nights spent on /x/ and the exact wrong part of youtube to be on at 3AM
"In human cultures, a wendigo arises from a person who, in the cold and desperate time of winter, is forced to cast aside their humanity and consume others for their own survival. This is only the myth of how they started, though."
>Luna starts to go wide-eyed and leans forward to listen
"In reality, we don't know much about the wendigos; even to the point of doubting their existence. However, there are people who say they have met these monsters, and their descriptions of them as well as the stories associated with them are truly terrifying."
>you pause for effect
>"You have my interest, do go on."
"Well, these things are described as being about the size of a deer and remarkably similar in look. That is, if you're far enough away. If you get close enough, you'll see that these monsters are in fact much larger and more resemble a deer carcass than a deer.
>as you give this description, you see a deer appear in the distance silhouetted against the dark
>huh
"On top of that, they also have dark, beady eyes and razor-sharp teeth along with long, abnormally large arms and legs tipped with long claws. This description is enough to put some horrid images in your head as is, but it's nothing compared to what they sound like."
>at that moment, you hear an eery screech from off in the forest, kind of like someone trying to use a lawnmower as a meat grinder while sending it through a wood chipper
>and that deer is gone
>now you're confused
"They actually sound kind of like that, from what I've heard."
>Luna looks pretty freaked out now, not that you aren't
>well, this is still your dream
>worst case scenario, you delete it or wake up
"Anyway, these creatures lurk in forests waiting for people to wander in so they can lure them in and tear them apart. They don't just choose humans, though. They'll rip apart and eat anything that moves and leave the leftovers strewn across the landscape, turning it red."
>you notice that the deer's back now, but it's different from before
>it also rears up and lets out the same hair-raising screech, only this time it's closer
>Luna looks like she's terrified
"Don't look now, but I may have accidentally spawned one here. If you want to see it, then turn around. Otherwise, I suggest you get behind me."
>keeping the same expression, she gets up and moves over to you
>only when she's behind you does she turn back and look at it
>knowing this is a dream, you decide to test the limits of what you can do
>staring at it and concentrating as hard as you can, you attempt to force it to walk over
>it responds after a couple of moments, turning towards you and stalking forward
>perfect
>you feel Luna press herself against you, either to get closer to it or to use you as a shield
>probably option two
>as it gets closer and closer, you realize just how big your mind made it
>if it was standing straight up, it would probably be about 10 feet tall
>even you're starting to get a bit spooked, despite being in complete control
>eventually the beast gets close enough that the light of the fire reaches it, letting you two see it in its disgusting splendor
>it really does look like Gollum from LoTR put on a rotted deer skin
>it's two small, pitch black eyes are also focused on you two, darting between you and Luna (who's just barely peeking over your shoulder, despite you still being seated)
>now's the final test
>the decision that turns this dream into a nightmare, or something worthy of "Most Awesome Image on the Internet" if you could take a picture of it
>it crawls closer, stopping mere inches from you
>you can smell it, and it smells just like how it looks
>it slowly opens its mouth, exposing every one if its needle-like teeth
>Luna started shivering a long time ago, but you only now notice since you started shivering too
>it lets out a final ear-splitting scream right in your face before sitting down and losing interest in you two
>perfect
>to confirm that you just did exactly what you think you did, you reach out and poke it
>it turns back to you, but only blinks before going back to looking around and sniffing the air
>you did it
"It's okay to come out from behind me now, the thing's not gonna kill us."
>you hear Luna's slightly muffled reply from behind you and below you
>"I'm fine where I am, you can get rid of it now."
"But I just did all this so you could see what one's like, are you sure?"
>"Completely. Is it gone yet?"
>you decide to pull a little joke
>you get up, leaving nothing between her and the now harmless abomination except the stump
>she didn't see it though, since she's crouched down behind it and covering her eyes
"Alright, it's gone."
>lol nope
>now it's just looking at her like a confused dog
>"Thank you, it was terrifying enough with it on the other side of the-"
>this is when she sees it, it's face now about 6 inches from the side of her head
>what starts off as a stunned and terrified squeak grows into a scream as Luna first freezes, then starts running away, then flies into the air, and finally fires off a spell turning everything within 5 feet of the poor creature into a crater
>it's not just a simple blast, either
>it's a full-blown beam
>she's killing it not just with fire, but with lasers
>when she stops and comes back down, you walk over to what is now a pretty deep hole in your dreamscape
"That was a bit of an overreaction."
>"Well I'm sorry that after you telling me all that, I didn't take it so well when you put one less than a foot away from me!"
"Okay, I guess that was a bit much of me to expect. I'm sorry for freaking you out so much."
>she calms down a bit more, before staring at you disappointed
>"You should be."
"I see that the fire's still intact, want to roast some marshmallows while you're still here?"
>"No, I think that's enough for tonight. I wouldn't be surprised if I have to change my sheets when I wake up, after this."
>Luna leaves after this closing statement, leaving you feeling like a complete ass
>you take the spot on the log and stare up at the now disapproving glare of the moon, waiting for the dream to end
>.   .   .
>you wake up to your alarm, still feeling a little bad
>you go about your morning routine in the same way you have since you got here, thinking about what went wrong and possible ways to fix it
>during your shower, you run through possible arguments as you try to figure out the best way to go about things
>however, it all relies on whether Luna comes back again at some point
>that's where it all falls apart
>there's no way for you to tell if she will or not, so you're pretty much in the dark on this
>after you're done, you head downstairs and get your breakfast
>when you get there, you're greeted by Twilight who's making coffee
>"Good morning, Anon. How was your sleep?"
>she's invested in your life here a fair amount, you might as well tell her
"Well, I may or may not have managed to scare Luna so badly she messed up her bed. Understandably, she wasn't too happy about it and I'm not sure what's going to happen now. Other than that, I slept fine."
>Twilight takes in everything you just told her with a look of mild concentration on her face
>"Do you mind if I give you some advice?"
"Go ahead, I'm not sure what to do at this point."
>"If you haven't already, apologize. After that, let her do what she feels is necessary. If it comes down to it, she'll see one way or another that you really care about this. Luna may not have many friends, but the ones she does have, she isn't willing to let go this easily."
>Twilight's reassurance makes you feel a bit better
>hopefully you'll be able to patch things up tonight, and if not, maybe sometime afterwards
"Thanks, Twi. Now, you mind giving me some of that coffee when it's done?"
>"Sure. I'm glad I could help."

TIMESKIP!

>as usual, math is boring as hell
>it's still not interesting in the slightest since you know all this shit
>you can't fall asleep either, because of the coffee
>so you just stare aimlessly at the ceiling
>"Alright, who can tell me what the answer is for problem C on the worksheet? How about you, Anonymous?"
>Cheerilee called on you for an answer
>you didn't even do the worksheet
>not one to be beaten by some childish math problem though, you look down at the problem and find the answer within moments
"24."
>it's a very unenthusiastic reply, but it's correct
>"Thank you. The answer to problem C is 24, and from that we can tell..."
>Cheerilee's voice fades back into the background as you resume staring at the ceiling
>you stay like this, just blankly staring upwards, until the recess bell rings
>as you get up, you hear Cheerilee from behind you
>"Anonymous, before you leave I'd like to talk with you."
>is this where she tells you that you're in danger of failing because you've done absolutely nothing but fall asleep and play on your phone?
>whatever, you've heard it all through high school and you still passed with good grades
>well, you didn't fail
>either way, she's the teacher
>so you get up and walk over to her
>after all the other students have left, she starts talking
>"Anonymous, I can't help but notice that you're acting extra bored today. Is something wrong?"
>oh
>child psychology time
"Well, My night wasn't too great and now I'm just a bit irritated that I can't fall back asleep."
>she doesn't seem too sure on how to respond to that
>"I'm sorry that your night wasn't restful, but you just reminded me of another question."
>oh boy
>here it comes
>"Why aren't you applying yourself? It's clear that you know the material, so why not just do the work that goes with it? From what I've seen, it wouldn't take you more than a few minutes."
>oh, it's this conversation
"It's been a problem I've had for most of my life. I don't see the point in redoing what I've already done, and it's caused me some problems. Despite that, I still have done nothing to fix it."
>she seems very confused at that answer
>like it's something she's never heard before
>probably because she's never had to teach a 22-year old basic algebra
"Can I go now?"
>"You can go."
>as you walk outside, you hear her sigh
>probably questioning your life choices
>when you get outside, you see Emerald sitting on the bench waiting
[p]>"Hi Anonymous, what was that about?"[/p]
>you hop up on the bench next to her before you reply
"She asked about me being more apathetic than usual, and I told her the reason."
[p]>"Oh. Well, I hope whatever it is isn't too much of a problem."[/p]
"It's not, Twilight already helped me out this morning. Of course, it didn't help that I ended up drinking coffee before I came here. It wouldn't have been as suspicious if I could've fallen asleep."
>and that's when you remember what you asked Twilight yesterday
"Oh, that reminds me! I asked her, and Twilight said it's okay for you to come over after school today."
>she smiles the biggest smile you've seen her have
[p]>"Thanks, Anonymous! I can't wait, it's going to be so cool to go over to a friend's house!"[/p]
>wait, what?
"Have you never been to a friend's house before?"
>she drops the smile for a slightly frustrated sadface
[p]>"No, I never even had any friends at home other than my siblings."[/p]
>wow, that must suck
"Then I suggest you prepare for shenanigans like you've never seen before!"
>you two spend the rest of recess just sitting and enjoying the scenery
>when the bell rings, you two head back inside to your seats
>science is a bit more interesting today since today's lesson involves magic
>Newton would probably be rolling in his grave if he existed here
>yeah, the laws of physics are very different here
>if that wasn't obvious enough from the fact that two gods are needed to change the time of day
>oh well, the lesson soon devolves into stuff that still holds true back home and you go right back to not paying attention
>when history comes, you go back to full alert
>it's not an interesting lesson, much to your disappointment
>it's just about the period in between Luna's exile and her return
>it's very boring and only briefly goes over the creation of Germaneigh
>you wouldn't be surprised if this was one of the more covered topics on the test because of that
>after you fight off caffeine-crash induced sleep for a while, you're brought back to the real world by the lunch bell
>you grab your food and meet up with Emerald on the way to the bench
"What did your sister pack for you today?"
[p]>"A sandwich. Hers aren't as good as mom's, though. What about you?"[/p]
>when you sit down, you look inside your brown paper bag
>it's a sandwich too
"You're not gonna believe this, but it's a sandwich!"
>your mild sarcasm gets a giggle out of her
[p]>"It's almost like sandwiches aren't uncommon!"[/p]
>you two both laugh at this as you pull out and eat your food
>it's a PB&J
>it's alright, but you wish it had a different kind of jelly
>other than that, your food is good
"So, what do you want to do first when we get to the castle?"
[p]>"Why not show me around? I'm sure it'll be confusing to get around at first, and I don't like getting lost."[/p]
>that makes sense, you spent the better part of three days just learning how to find your room
"Alright, I can do that. Anything else?"
[p]>"After that, I'm fine with anything you want to do."[/p]
>you two spend the rest of lunch talking about what you're going to get up to at the castle later today
>when you get back inside, you finish the writing assignment as soon as you're given it
>now, back to writing your green!
>why do you keep forgetting where you leave off?
>just remember, already!
>after thinking for about a minute, you finally remember where you left off
>right, you just got home on Sunday
>you better write fast, you're starting to lag behind on the events
>you manage to get all the way to Monday morning when the bell rings
>cool, now it's the weekend!
>you walk out with Emerald after grabbing your things, and go back to the castle
>when you walk in the door, you announce your return
"We're back!"
>Twilight comes in from another room as soon as she hears this
>"Welcome home, Anon! This must be Emerald?"
[p]>"That's me! Nice to meet you, Princess Twilight!"[/p]
>Twilight blushes at this
>"Just Twilight is fine, please."
[p]>"Oh, alright. Thanks for letting me come over to hang out with Anonymous!"[/p]
>"It's my pleasure, you're one of the first friends Anon's made here. Anyway, I'll get out of your manes and let you go. Have fun!"
>Twilight leaves the room, leaving you two to get down to business
"And now I'll show you the places I know by memory!"
>you lead her off in the direction of the first room
>when you get there, you give a brief description
"This is the kitchen, it's pretty much just a kitchen. Nothing too special."
>after that, you take her to the next room
"And this is the living room. I don't know if it's actually called that, but it's where we all spend the majority of our time when not doing something important."
[p]>"What kind of important things go on?"[/p]
"You know, eating, sleeping, Twilight getting called on some mission, the usual."
>one of those isn't usual for a filly to deal with, but with Twilight, nothing's ever completely normal
>at least not so far
[p]>"Oh, okay. Where next?"[/p]
>you move towards the next room with Emerald following happily
>when you get there, you stop right outside at first
"Now I want you to remember the location of this room, it will be invaluable to you while you're here."
>you open the door showing her what it is
"It's the bathroom. There are probably others, but this is the only one I can help you find."
>she concentrates on this room for a few seconds
[p]>"Alright, I think I've got it."[/p]
"On to the final location!"
>this walk is shorter than the rest, but it's also the most important room to show her
"And for the grand finale, this is my room!"
>you open the door in a flourish, being as flashy as possible for maximum dramatic effect
>it's not as messy as you remember, Twilight must have touched up this room a bit
>your bed's also made
>thanks, Twilight!
"So, how do you like it?"
>she walks in and looks around
[p]>"It's nice, you sure have a lot of books."[/p]
>oh, right
>your wall of uninteresting books
>you join her inside your room
"They're actually Twilight's, I wasn't able to bring much from home."
[p]>"Oh, then what did you get to bring from home?"[/p]
>you don't want to lie, but you can't tell the full truth
"Some clothes and a stuffed animal."
[p]>"Heh, at least you got to bring stuff from home! Mom pretty much just took me to the train station and told me where I was going."[/p]
"Alright, you win the pity contest... For now."
>you flash her a grin and she laughs before jumping on to your bed
[p]>"Anyway, what do you want to do now?"[/p]
>you've got a few ideas
"We could do a lot of things, like... 'The floor is lava', I could ask Twilight about a board game, I've got a deck of cards around here somewhere, or something else. Any input on any of these?"
[p]>"What's 'the floor is lava'?"[/p]
>does she really not know?
>dang, she must not have ever been around another foal for more than a few minutes
"It's a simple game where we try to make it to some specific place without touching the ground, and anything else is fair game. I've never played it myself because my mom would yell at me for climbing on the furniture, but it could be pretty fun."
>it's true, your mom never let you play it with other kids
>she was always just a bit overprotective
>it's not even like you would've gotten hurt!
>well, badly enough to care
>well, badly enough to warrant a trip to the hospital
>come to think of it, she may have been partly right
>but that was back when you didn't have an extra pair of legs to balance on
>you'll be fine!
[p]>"Do you think Twilight would mind?"[/p]
>Twilight can't mind if she doesn't even know it's happening
"Nah, she'll be fine with it as long as we don't get in her way."
>Emerald stands up on your bed
[p]>"Alright, I'm in!"[/p]
"Okay, so before we start, I'm going to say where the safe zone is."
>where should the safe zone be?
>well, where would be a nice place to cool off after spending some undefined amount of time above a massive lava lake?
>somewhere with refreshments, obviously
"The safe zone is the kitchen. If we make it there, we win. If not, we die."
>you hop up on to your own bed next to Emerald
"And the game starts now!"
>just like that, the crystal floor heats up unimaginably fast, nearly exploding into liquid glass
[p]>"How do we get to the kitchen from here? There's plenty of objects to get to the door with, but I didn't see much in the halls."[/p]
"Don't worry, I have an idea. All we need to do is successfully bring a blanket from this bed to the door, and we'll hopefully be able to make it there."
>together, you both quickly pull a sheet off your bed
[p]>"I have an idea on how we can move it, hold still."[/p]
>you hold as still as you can while Emerald wraps the blanket around you before tying it in a loose knot
"You're a genius! Now, all we have to do is make it to the bookshelf and I can make us a path to the door."
>you two start looking around to find a good way to get to the shelf without touching the now fluid floor of Twilight's castle
>eventually, you see it
"The window sill! It's just wide enough for us to cross, and it leads within jumping distance of the bookshelf!"
[p]>"Okay, I'll go first to test it out. Cover me if I fall, okay?"[/p]
>you grab a pillow and wait near the foot of your bed
>Emerald puts a hoof on to the sill to test it, and it holds
>soon, she's completely on it
>she makes it about halfway before starting to lose her balance
[p]>"Anon, I'm falling! Help!"[/p]
>you toss the pillow underneath her, giving her somewhere to land if she can't get back up
>however, she regains her balance shortly
[p]>"Never mind, I guess. I'm almost to the shelf, you can come across when I'm there."[/p]
>after a few more steps, she makes the jump to the shelf and catches it
>it looked like a less-than-comfortable landing, but it worked
"Alright, I'm coming across too. Let's hope I can make it."
>you step on to the ledge, the weight of the blanket tied around you making it much harder to balance
>you can hear the edge of it sizzle as it dips into the white-hot pool below
>it's a miracle that these things don't catch on fire
>Twilight must have heat-proofed everything after the Tree Library exploded that one time
>whatever it is, it's probably going to save both of your lives
>after a few cautious steps, you make it to the opposite edge of the sill
"Move over, I need to jump!"
>Emerald scoots over about a foot, giving you more than enough room
>you hope
>you jump as hard as you can...
>and slam face first into a book
>you manage to hold on to your purchase, though
>you're still alive
>this was a triumph!
>but you can't make any notes about success until you're in the kitchen
>and that's still a long way and multiple floors off
"Step one complete. Now we need to start pulling books off and putting them down, that'll give us a path. It might not be the most stable, but it's a path."
>Emerald nods and starts pulling books off the shelf, letting them fall to the floor
>not being a stranger to making a mess, you also begin throwing books to the floor
>after a few minutes and enough books to make a sizeable pile, you drop off the shelf
>the blanket coils up on top of the scorching fluid near you, but that's not your focus
>you start moving books carefully, eventually managing to make a square island
"Okay, it's safe for you to come down now."
>Emerald jumps down, landing safely on top of your improvised platform
[p]>"It looks like we have enough books, we should start making the path before any of these catch fire. I'm amazed that the blanket hasn't though, it should hold up well on the way to the kitchen."[/p]
>you two start moving the excess books into a stepping-stone like path, all the way to the door
>after it gets long enough, you cross the lake of not-exactly-lava to the door
"Cool, step 2 is complete. The hard part's over, now we just ride the blanket to freedom!"
>you open the door as Emerald crosses the path behind you
[p]>"Here, I'll take the blanket off of you and you put it down in front of us."[/p]
>she makes quick work of the knot, and you throw the blanket over the melted crystal in front of you
>after you two watch to make sure it doesn't catch on fire or sink, you both hop on
[p]>"Now how do we get to the kitchen?"[/p]
"It's simple. The blanket is flexible, so we can move it by pushing off the liquid underneath us since it seems to be more dense than us."
>after this explanation, you two quickly get into a rhythm of stretching and crumpling the blanket to move you two across the river of shining liquid crystal
>it's so smooth, it almost looks solid
>you both know better, though
>one wrong step, and you two are reduced to ash and vapor in seconds
>the progress isn't very fast, but it's manageable and you make it to the staircase faster than you thought
>now comes a more difficult part
"This is gonna be tougher, but I know we can do this. Scrunch up the blanket behind us, and I'll handle the rest."
>Emerald gathers up the blanket behind you both and gathers it up in between you two
[p]>"Be careful, Anon. I don't know how these lava stairs will react to you."[/p]
"Don't worry, I'll be fine!"
>you'll be fine, it's pulling a blanket down a flight of stairs
>how much could go wrong?
>you gather up the front of the blanket in your mouth, preparing to start your journey
>as you take the first step, the blanket goes taut underneath you
>this was not expected
>quickly, you're starting to fall!
>get some footing, or you're going to hit the fluid death below you!
>you flail wildly and manage to get yourself tangled in the blanket before ultimately falling out of it and down the stairs
>you're ded
>no success 4u
>but you've got more pressing matters
>now that the floor's returned, you're falling down the stairs
>this hurts
>you're also gaining speed, and haven't gotten your legs back under you
>oh hold on
>is that a wall coming up?
>as your head hits a very solid object at full speed, you realize that was, in fact, a wall
>Emerald appears to have given up on the game as well, since she's now standing next to you without the blanket
[p]>"Anon, are you alright? That looks like it hurt!"[/p]
>the sharp throbbing on top of your head says you aren't, but you don't want to worry her
"I'm pretty sure I'm fine, that gave me one massive headache though."
>she becomes relieved, dropping the worried look on her face
[p]>"That's good, but maybe we shouldn't keep going. I don't want you to fall again."[/p]
>that seems reasonable
"I'm still in the mood for a drink, though. I'll lead you to the kitchen."
>you keep going down the stairs, ignoring the pain
>you two get all the way to the bottom before Emerald yells out
[p]>"You're bleeding!"[/p]
>guess you're not fine
"Okay, this is probably manageable. Let's go get Twilight, she'll know what to do."
>what she says next scares you
[p]>"It's getting bigger, and it doesn't look like it's stopping!"[/p]
>okay, you're going to have to get help for this
"TWILIGHT!"
>a purple flash appears in front of you
>"What's wrong?"
[p]>"Anonymous fell down the stairs and hit her head, it looks like she's bleeding pretty badly!"[/p]
>"Let me see. Anon, turn around."
>Twilight's calm demeanor is helping you not freak out, but you're still kinda rattled
>"I see what you mean, but it doesn't look too bad. I'll go grab something to help, you two just go to the kitchen and wait for me."
>you two make your way down to the kitchen as Twilight teleports away again
>after you two get there, you sit down in a nearby chair and Emerald takes the one next to it
>you also start to feel the warm trickle of blood down the back of your neck
>let's hope Twilight gets here soon
>it's an apprehensive wait, but soon enough Twilight joins you both
>she's also got a vial of a pink fluid with her
>"This is going to sting a bit, but hold still and don't touch your head until it doesn't hurt anymore."
>without any more warning, she opens the vial and pours it right on top of your head wound
>this doesn't just sting
>it burns
>you must be visibly wincing, because Emerald pipes up
[p]>"What was that you put on her? It looks like it really hurts, considering she didn't even react to the fall."[/p]
>"It's an experimental healing agent I've been working on, but it's nearly out of final testing. I'm confident enough that it'll work on her, so I wouldn't worry too much."
>sure enough, the pain begins to dull
>after another few seconds, the pain's completely gone
>you reach up to where the pain had been mere moments before to find it completely smooth
>there's still some blood, though
>it'll wash out though, so it's not that big of a problem
>"All better?"
"Yeah, thanks Twilight."
>"Okay, now I want to know what you two were doing that Anon fell down the stairs."
"We were playing 'the floor is lava'."
[p]>"Yeah, and we were trying to take a blanket down the stairs, which is when Anonymous fell."[/p]
>Twilight becomes disappointed quickly after hearing this
>"Has nopony ever told either of you that this game isn't a good idea? You're likely to get hurt or break something, as shown by your head."
>that last part was directed at you, obviously
>"You two should really do something else. I'll even go grab the board games for you, just don't do that again."
>this is where you decide to be a smartass
"But then what happens if the floor does become lava?"
>Twilight replies almost instantly
>"Then your body will spontaneously combust due to the ambient heat, and you'll have about a minute and a half before you pass out from the pain and another two before you die completely. On the off-chance that it behaves similarly to the rules of that game, then wait for me and I'll cast a fire-resistance spell on you and you can probably just walk to safety."
>you and Emerald are both stunned into silence at the blunt description she gave
>"My point being, all you're doing is putting yourselves in an unnecessary position that isn't likely to help you but is very likely to hurt you."
>oh, so that was her point
"Point taken."
[p]>"I don't think I'm going to play 'the floor is lava' anytime soon, then."[/p]
>Twilight teleports away again, leaving you two to wait while she finds a board game
>after a while of waiting, Twilight comes back with a box
>"I found this game, and it should be fun enough for two players. No more messing around like that, okay?"
>she puts the box down on the table
>it's monopoly
>why is it always monopoly?
>you don't even really like it that much!
>too much kikery
"Alright, I'm okay with this..."
[p]>"I've never played this before, I hope it's not too hard."[/p]
>you look over at her with a solemn expression
"It's not hard, that I can tell you."
>she brightens up at this
>"If you two want, I can ask Spike if he wants to play with you."
>sure, might as well drag him down with you both
"Yeah, three players is better than two."
>"Then I'll go get him, you two can go and set up wherever you like."
>Twilight walks out of the room and you look back over at Emerald
"Back to my room?"
>she shrugs
[p]>"Sure."[/p]
>you pick up Judaism: The Game and you both head up to your room
>when you get there, you put the box up on your bed and open it
>with all the pieces and the board exposed, you just have to set it up
>you pull out the board and all the fake money, setting it up like you remember before grabbing out all the cards with it
>yep, this is pretty much monopoly from home
>there's even still a car and a boat piece!
>there aren't even cars here!
>what the fuck!
>Hasjew, have some consistency!
>still, you get the rest of the game set up with Emerald watching
>just after it's all there, Twilight comes back with Spike
[o]>"Hey, Twilight said you two wanted to play a game with me?"[/p]
[p]>"Yeah, Anonymous says that this game is more fun with more ponies."[/p]
>Spike hops up next to you both as Twilight leaves the room again
[o]>"Alright, I'll play too. Monopoly?"[/p]
"Monopoly. What piece?"
[o]>"I usually play with the thimble, but I can choose something else."[/o]
"And I usually take the dog, so what piece do you want?"
>you both turn towards Emerald
[p]>"What are the other options?"[/p]
"There's a car, a boat, an iron, a money bag, and a hat."
[p]>"I'll take the hat!"[/p]
>you and Spike both take your chosen pieces and set them up on the board
"Emerald, I'll walk you through the rules as we come to a new part that needs explaining. Okay?"
>she nods
[o]>"So, who's going first?"[/o]
"According to standard rules, it's oldest first and clockwise from there. Standard rules aren't interesting enough though, so I usually decide by rock-paper-scissors."
>they both agree, and you all play to decide the order
>Spike is first, Emerald is second, and you're third
>how did they both pick scissors in the first round?
>this game sucks already
>after a long and only mildly entertaining game, you end up winning
>it's a hollow victory, though
>it doesn't feel good to cheat a child and an idiot out of even fake money
[p]>"That took a while, what time is it?"[/p]
"Hold on, lemme check."
>you reach into your school bag nearby and pull out your phone
>it's 7:30, holy shit
"It's 7:30, why do you ask?"
[p]>"Oh, I had to be home an hour ago! My sister's going to be so worried, I guess this is goodbye for today."[/p]
>Emerald hops off your bed and walks over to the doorway
>you really don't want to see her leave, but if she has to go...
"You know, I could walk you home. It's dark out, and it's a lot less scary when you have a friend with you."
>good idea!
>she looks back at you, with a bittersweet smile on her face
[p]>"Thanks, I appreciate it."[/p]
>you jump off the bed and land behind her
>you two then go back to the front door to start the trip back
>before you can get through it, you're stopped by a voice from behind
>"You two really shouldn't be going out alone this late, I'll come with you to make sure nothing bad happens."
>you both turn around to see Twilight standing behind you a few feet
>you're probably not going to be able to convince her otherwise
>it's also an honestly sound decision
>you're not very big and you're much weaker than you were as a human, you'd get your ass kicked if something happened out there
>sure, that's unlikely, but do you really want to risk it?
>no, you don't
"I think that's a good idea. Emerald, any objections?"
[p]>"No, I agree. I'll get lost by myself and I don't want you to walk back alone."[/p]
>so Twilight joins you two on the walk to Emerald's house
>she doesn't really get in the way much though, she just walks behind you both and lets you do what you do
>and what you do is have a conversation
[p]>"That was fun, wanna come over to my house tomorrow?"[/p]
"Okay, sounds like a plan! Twilight, can I?"
>you look behind yourself to Twilight, who nods
"Cool, I can come over tomorrow! What time do you want me to be there?"
[p]>"How about around ten? That gives us plenty of time to do stuff. Oh, that just gave me an idea! Why not just stay the night with me?"[/p]
>you look back at Twilight
>"Just be back before three on Sunday."
>that's manageable, and it gives you both plenty of time for activities!
[p]>"Great! I'll see you tomorrow, and then we can have even more fun!"[/p]
>you three make it to Emerald's house very soon afterwards, and you say goodbye yet again before leaving with Twilight
>"I guess you have plans for tomorrow, then."
"What, were you hoping I'd do something with you?"
>"Maybe, I have a lot more free time than my other friends and so do you."
"Oh, are you getting jealous of Luna?"
>you give her one of those shit-eating grins you're so fond of
>Twilight just smirks and boops you with her wing
"Hey, that was uncalled for!"
>"Too late, you've already been booped. And I'm not jealous of Luna, her job is even worse than Celestia's!"
>you have a snappy comeback for that
"Yeah, I'd hate to have to deal with some alien asshole every night when I could be sleeping peacefully too."
>she looks over to you in a confused way
>that joke wasn't even good in your head
>nice one
"Let's just forget I said that, alright?"
>"Whatever you say, genius."
>after some more walking in more or less silence, you two get back to the castle
>when you two come in, you're both greeted by a pleasant aroma
>Spike must be making dinner!
>nice, you didn't realize just how hungry you were until now
>you and Twilight make your way up to the kitchen to find Spike doing exactly what you expected
[o]>"I hope you two don't mind, but I started making some food for us."[/o]
>you don't mind
>you don't mind at all
>"Thanks, Spike."
>and Twilight doesn't mind either
>a few minutes later, Spike sets it all down in front of you both and you all eat it happily
>feeling a food coma coming, you tell them both good night and head back up to your room
>you don't forget to grab the blanket back off the stairs
>can't forget your blanket, otherwise you'll get cold
>when you get back to your room, you walk around the mess to your bed
>you just manage to get the blanket on it before you hop on yourself and crash
>.   .   .
>your dreams take you to a canyon, once again at night
>it's a scenic view, and it reminds you pretty heavily of the grand canyon
>the only difference is that this canyon doesn't seem to have a bottom
>that, and there's no tourists anywhere nearby
>maybe they're all outside your render distance?
>that could also explain the lack of a bottom to the canyon
>that's still really deep, though
>you better not fall
>plus, you're not sure if Luna's gonna show up
>that means you really need to stay out of trouble
>not only because it could backfire horribly and turn into a nightmare, but you could also scare her back off with something stupid you decide to do
>so instead, you summon in a chair to sit and enjoy the scenery
>it's just a simple lawn chair, so it serves its purpose well enough
>you look around the landscape and into the sky, your eyes eventually settling on the moon above you
>it's not judging you as harshly as last night
>it almost seems forgiving in its glow
>that's when you notice that it's steadily getting brighter
>eventually it becomes blinding, and you have no choice but to close your eyes and shield your face
>who cares if it's a dream, it still hurts!
>the light fades quickly, and you drop your arm when it's returned to a reasonable amount of light
>"Greetings, Anonymous. I have a few things I'd like to say."
>It's Luna!
>you weren't completely expecting this, so you have no reply
>"I'm sorry. After thinking about last night myself, I'll admit that I overreacted. Also, since I could tell you were worried, I didn't need to change my sheets."
>oh
>you're getting an apology
>cool
"I accept your apology, and I'll make sure that I don't scare you so badly from now on. Are we friends again?"
>she laughs and walks over to you
>"We never stopped. Second, is that offer yesterday about the marshmallows still open? I think they would go great with another story like that one."
>so, she's into getting spooked now?
>fair enough, human mythology is sick and twisted enough to keep her entertained for a while
>you shrug and materialize some fire supplies, another chair, and a bag of marshmallows
"I suppose it is, if you don't mind hearing another chilling tale of humanity's monsters."
>she takes the second chair while you light the fire
>saving two of the longer and skinnier twigs for other purposes, you give one to Luna and tear open the marshmallow bag
"You may have known about what a wendigo is before last night, but did you know about skinwalkers?"
>your dream follows a similar pattern to yesterday's, only this time Luna doesn't mind the presence of the tamed Skinwalker
>she does mind the smell of it, though
>you do too, so you delete it after you both can't hold your breath any longer
>looks like things are back to normal here, too!
>what a way to end a day, with plans made for one friend and a mended relationship with another
>you can't wait for what tomorrow holds though, something tells you it'll be important
>.   .   .
>you're woken up by your alarm at 6:15 again
>you forgot to turn it off
>it's no fun to wake up on time on a Saturday
>but today's still going to be a cool day, you get to go over to a friend's house!
>you haven't done that in years!
>this is gonna be fun!
>you decide to sit in bed for a bit longer, waiting until you get bored to get out
>it's still comfortable, but you need something to do
>so you head to the bathroom to clean yourself
>just because it's a weekend doesn't mean you get to be a alob
>you're a horse, not a pig
>technically, you're not supposed to be either, but that's a problem that we'll deal with when we get to it
>oh well
>when you step out of your room, you notice that it's a bit cold again
>good, you get to show her your shirt!
>you go off to the bathroom just like on any other day
>when you get there, you still just go about your normal procedure
>you don't forget to brush your teeth though, now that you know there's a toothbrush
>don't want to be gross
>after your mouth is sufficiently clean, you head back and grab your shirt
>now to go downstairs for breakfast!
>when you get to the kitchen, you see Twilight with another half-empty pot of coffee
>wow, she must go through this stuff like toilet paper!
"Good morning, another all-nighter?"
>she looks up from another large stack of papers in front of her
>"Yeah, but it's not like you can see the beginning of a supernova every night. How are you?"
>you sit down near her, hoping she'd give you some coffee again
"Pretty good, Luna came back last night and we're still friends. Also, she didn't have any messes to clean up when she woke up."
>"That's good, I'm glad everything worked out. Here's some coffee too, just don't do what you did last time."
>yes, your mild begging worked!
>Twilight teleports a mug in front of you and pours in some of her coffee
>this time you'll drink it in reasonable gulps and not all at once
>"I didn't expect you to be up for another hour, much less ready to leave. What got you up?"
"My alarm, I forgot to turn it off and I didn't want to go back to sleep."
>"I remember that feeling, it sucks. That's why some nights I just don't go to sleep!"
>that's one solution
>it's not a good one, but it's a solution
>you nod and take a swig of your coffee
>it's hot, but manageable in small amounts
>Twilight just drinks another quarter of the pot in one go
"Dude, how do you do that and not die?"
>she looks over at you after she puts the pot back down
>"The wonders of magic. A simple endurance spell can help you do many things, including drink fresh coffee without discomfort."
>somehow that doesn't click with you
"But what if you actually burn yourself?"
>"That's what the regenerative spell is for!"
>she has mastered not caring
"And I'm stuck here drinking hot coffee like a scrub."
>Twilight looks at you in a confused way
>"What's a scrub?"
"A human slang term for a loser."
>she raises her eyebrows and goes back to looking at the papers in front of her
"What's on the paper?"
>"Data from the supernova I observed. It's pretty lengthy because I had many different instruments running at once that were affected, but I know where to look for the exact changes in each of these."
>cool, you would probably get lost if you even tried to look at it
>but, you've never seen a supernova before and you've heard that they can go on for a long time
"Am I able to go outside and see it now?"
>"No, silly! It's completely blocked by the planet by now, so even though it would still technically be visible you still can't look up and see it."
>wait, the planet here still spins?
>so then why do the sun and moon need to be moved?
>what!?
>"Why do you look so confused?"
>Twilight's looking at you in a concerned way
"If the planet rotates, then why do the sun and moon need to be moved?"
>she looks back at her papers and thinks for a long time
>eventually she comes to an answer
>"I... I'm actually not sure. I'll ask Celestia though, since you've made me realize this inconsistency. Thank you, Anon, that's a very interesting point."
>she materializes a paper and pen out of nowhere and starts writing a letter
>obviously to Celestia
>let's hope this doesn't get you both executed for heresy or something
>that would be a stupid way for this all to end
>rip whatever version of you both that does
>they're probably gonna get the guillotine or something
>Twilight finishes writing the letter and rolls it up for later
>"So, is there anything you wanted in here besides coffee?"
>you wanted food
"Yeah, I'm pretty hungry. I don't suppose you'd get me something to eat?"
>Twilight considers this for a second
>"I suppose I could, these papers aren't really showing anything new anyway."
>she gets up and starts looking around the room for things
>eventually she finds some pancake mix in the cabinet that Spike pre-made some time ago
>after checking the date he wrote on it, she decides to use it
>a few minutes later, you both are sitting in front of a stack of pancakes
>a good way to start the day!
"Thanks, Twi. I owe you one!"
>she looks over at you, swallowing a bite of pancake she took
>"Alright, I'll keep that in mind for the future."
>cool, now you might actually owe her something
>that's only a minor issue
>yeah, you're an alien with otherworldly knowledge who just gave a free favor to an incredibly powerful scientist
>that's totally not going to backfire
"No problem."
>you both finish your pancakes and you decide to check a nearby clock
>it's 8:30
>you've still got an hour and a half before you should go to Emerald's house
>you can probably go bother Twilight about doing something in the meantime
>so you go back to the kitchen
"Hey Twilight, you want to do something quickly before I have to go?"
>she looks up from the papers yet again
>"Sure, these papers can wait until tomorrow, why not?"
>she teleports away the pile in front of her and gets up
>"There's some stuff in my lab that I need organized and Spike's not awake yet, want to help me with that?"
>that's something to do, sure!
>and you do usually clean on Saturdays, anyway
"Alright, I can help with that."
>you two head down to the lab to move some stuff around
>it's not interesting at first, but it reminds you of those concentrated spells you saw
"What are those concentrated spells over there?"
>Twilight turns away from the biology section she's working in to look at you
>"Why do you ask?"
"After Spike and I picked up those potions, I ended up seeing that cabinet full of them and coming down here reminded me."
>"Well, that's pretty much all they are. Spells that I concentrated by casting them onto a magical ground connected into a condenser. I'd show you how they work, but it's a long process to get even a small amount. Luckily, a small amount is usually all I need for any given test. I hope that answered your question."
>it did, and told you all you need to know as well
>you really shouldn't touch them now that you know it takes forever to make even a little bit
"Alright, that's good to know. I'll be sure to stay away from these so I don't screw anything up."
>and you will, if you can help it
>"Don't worry, they're safely sealed inside that cabinet. You can still go near it, I'll just know if you open it or not."
>a few minutes later, and you're done with the organization
"Any idea what time it is now?"
>"9:45, you still have a few minutes."
>well, shit
>is there anything you can do that only takes 15 minutes?
"Anything else I can help with in that time?"
>Twilight thinks to herself
>"Not unless you want to help me test some things."
>science?
>you like science!
"Sure, what do you need me to do?"
>"First, I need you to sign this."
>she teleports a paper and pen in front of you
>it's a contract
>you glance over it, it basically just says something along the lines of "You agreed to this, I am not responsible for any ill effects of the experiment unless it doesn't go as planned, etc"
>it's basic legal shit making sure you can't sue Twilight for whatever happens
>you're actually a bit worried now
"Is this really going to be that bad?"
>Twilight walks over to you, holding another vial of pink stuff
>"No, it's just the law that I have to get your written consent for this. You [i]are[/i] okay with this, aren't you?"
"Can you tell me what's going to happen first?"
>"The experiment is basically going to be a formalized repeat of what happened yesterday, since I wasn't able to collect data about how you reacted to the healing agent. I'm going to give you a small cut and then use more of the agent on you and write down the results, and if I'm correct, it should go over in about the same way as your accident."
>oh
>you're not helping with an experiment
>you're part of the experiment
>being a guinea pig isn't that fun, but it's certainly better than what other yous are going through
>also, you've never been a guinea pig before
>this could be interesting
"Alright, I guess I'm in."
>you sign your name where you need to, noticing Twilight admiring the way you write
>or maybe she's confused
>after all, she's probably never seen an earth filly write with her hoof
>"Good, this will help with the last bit of testing quite a bit. Now, please hold out your right hoof."
>you do as she says and Twilight pulls a scalpel over from a nearby table, placing the signed papers in its spot
>"This will hurt a bit, so please hold still."
>she lightly drags the tip across your foreleg, drawing some blood
>it actually doesn't hurt
>it must be really sharp
>either that or she managed to hit a spot where your nerves don't respond as well
>you don't really know, you still aren't a biofag
>"Alright, keep holding still. I'm now applying the agent to your open cut."
>as she drips the pink fluid out of the vial, you brace yourself for the stinging
>it's not nearly as bad as yesterday, probably because it's a much smaller wound
>after a second, it's completely gone again
>"Thank you for your cooperation, Anon. Would you mind answering a few questions, now that the test is over?"
"Not at all."
>Twilight pulls over a nearby clipboard and takes the pen you used to sign the contract with, writing down the important info from what just happened
>"Would you mind telling me what the application of the agent was like, from your perspective?"
"It hurt more than the initial injury, but it also faded pretty quickly as it healed."
>she writes this down on a different paper before asking you another question
>"And on a scale of 1 to 10, how well would you say it worked for its specific purpose?"
"I'd say a solid 10. It's supposed to heal, and it does."
>Twilight writes this down and puts the clipboard back
>"Thanks again, Anon. I'm pretty sure that enough time's passed for you to go and get to Emerald's house on time."
>you wave goodbye to her and head back up and out of the castle, it's time for you to go and meet a friend again!
>the walk to Emerald's house is pretty uneventful, it's just some average Saturday morning stuff going on around you
>other ponies going for walks, doing some early shopping, just average stuff
>the sun's nice and bright, too
>that's nice
>it was cold earlier, but it's warming up fast
>it's still a bit breezy though, so you're glad you brought your shirt anyway
>after a nice walk at a decent pace, you make it to Emerald's house a bit early
>you walk up to the front door and knock
>after a second, the door opens and Emerald's there to greet you
[p]>"Hey Anonymous, how are you?"[/p]
>her green mane and gray coat look a bit wet, almost like she just got done with a shower herself
"I'm pretty good, how about you?"
>she moves out of the doorway to let you in
[p]>"Not bad, I also got some cool news from my sister yesterday!"[/p]
"Oh? What's that?"
[p]>"We're going to see mom tomorrow! Well, my sister and I are. I don't think Twilight would let you come with us."[/p]
"That's cool, I hope the trip goes well."
[p]>"I think it'll be fun, but I'm gonna miss you while I'm there."[/p]
"Dude, it'll be fine! I'm still going to be here when you get back, don't worry!"
>her face changes as the subject of conversation does too
[p]>"Is that your shirt? It looks nice."[/p]
>heck yeah it's your shirt, and damn straight does it look nice!
"Yes it is, thanks!"
>light blue always goes with green
>unless it's something like oversaturated neon green
>then nothing looks good with green
>unless it's just a very mild highlight that doesn't really mess with the overall aesthetic
"Anyway, this is a nice place your sister's got. Mind showing me around?"
[p]>"Oh, of course! Sorry, that actually slipped my mind."[/p]
>Emerald leads you around the house, showing you all the important places
>there's a kitchen, a living area, and a bathroom on the lower floor
>and there's both of their rooms and another bathroom on the upper floor
>after the tour, you both settle in Emerald's room
>it's a nice room, but it's also considerably smaller than your room in the castle
[p]>"So, what do you want to do? My sister's off running some errands right now, so she won't be home for a while."[/p]
>what do you want to do?
>you're fine just hanging out with a friend, you haven't been able to do something like this in a long time!
"To be honest, I'm fine with just about anything. Any options?"
[p]>"I don't know, I suppose we still have the same options as yesterday, but I guess we still shouldn't play 'the floor is lava'."[/p]
>yeah, Emerald's sister doesn't have access to an experimental medical treatment that puts the Medigun to shame in case one of you gets hurt
>wait, you can't play 'the floor is lava', but there's another childhood staple that you [i]can[/i] play!
"Wanna play 'hide and seek'?"
[p]>"How do you play it?"[/p]
>holy shit, has this filly ever been outside before a few days ago?
"One of us is a seeker, and it's their job to find the hiders, or hider in our case. The hider gets 30 seconds to hide, and after that the seeker gets to look for them. The boundary is the house, and we switch places whenever the hider's found."
>she's taking this all in surprisingly slowly
>either that, or she's already thinking of places to hide
[p]>"Alright, that sounds fun. Can I be the hider first?"[/p]
"Sure, let me get in position."
>looks like it was option 2
>you put your face up against her bed with your eyes closed and start counting
"1, 2, 3..."
>you immediately hear her bolt off to somewhere
>you're not sure where though
>wait, are those the stairs?
>okay, she's going downstairs
"7, 8, 9..."
>she's running around downstairs somewhere
>you try to bring up the layout of her house in your mind, since it's still fresh
"14, 15, 16..."
>is that the kitchen?
>yep, that's the kitchen
>she goes silent around this time
>okay, she's in the kitchen somewhere
"23, 24, 25..."
>if she's going to change her spot, she better do it quickly
"28, 29, 30. Ready or not, here I come!"
>you're off to the kitchen!
>when you get downstairs, you find that your estimation of the layout was pretty much spot on
>now you just need to find her in here
>you start checking cabinets, beginning with the ones on the floor
>nope, pots
>and that's pans
>some cutting boards...
>cleaning supplies
>you're still not drinking any, you're not going to go straight to the finals for the darwin award because you were curious how bleach tastes
>and that's all of the lower ones
>she's not in there
>you'd check the upper ones, but there's no way she'd get up there
>there's also a fridge and an oven, but she'd have to be a moron to hide there
>or a tactical genius!
>it's a brilliant move, the more you think about it
>nobody would be stupid enough to hide there for fear of death by extreme temperatures, so nobody would think to check there!
>nobody but you, that is!
>you check the oven first
>nope, not there
>but it does smell like fruit, for some reason
>either it was just cleaned or somebody burned juice
>heh
>now to check the fridge
>nope, she's not in there either
>dang
>at least you know where you're hiding next round
>gotta make sure your 'so stupid it's brilliant' strat works
>after some more looking around, you conclude that she isn't in the kitchen
>as you leave the room however, something makes you reconsider
>somepony giggled behind you
>immediately turning towards the location of the sound, you notice that one of the window curtains looks a bit weird
"You're behind the curtain, get out here."
[p]>"Aw, I didn't expect you to hear that!"[/p]
>Emerald walks out from behind it
[p]>"I guess it's my turn to seek?"[/p]
"Yeah, let's go back to your room and I'll show you the right way to count."
>so you both go back up there, and you show her the proper way to count
"You put your head down and close your eyes, and you count up to 30 out loud. Got it?"
[p]>"Yeah, I got it."[/p]
>Emerald assumes the position and starts counting
[p]>"1, 2, 3, 4..."[/p]
>you then exit the room, trying to be as quiet as possible so she can't find you through sound
>you go back down to the kitchen, and begin debating the choices
>fridge or oven?
>with the oven, you don't have to deal with temperature straight away
>however, you're going to die a lot faster if it gets turned on
>with the fridge, you'll have to deal with temperature straight away
>however, you'll have a bit longer to sit and wait before you die
>are you really willing to risk your life on the best hide and seek spot ever, though?
>this is going to take a while to decide
>you really need to weigh your options
>make sure you make the proper decision
[p]>"Did you even try to hide?"[/p]
>oh shit
>you never even hid, you were thinking so hard!
>you turn around feeling embarrassed
"I'm sorry, I was trying to choose between two spots and I wanted to make the best decision."
[p]>"What spot takes 30 seconds to think over?"[/p]
>do you really want to tell her?
"Either the fridge or the oven, I wanted to make sure I chose the right place."
>her expression immediately changes to one of disbelief
[p]>"Why would you want to hide in either of those places?"[/p]
"Because it's such a stupid place to hide that nopony would ever think to check there! Think about it, who in their right mind would ever choose to hide in either of those places?"
>she thinks it over, giving your idea a fair chance
[p]>"I still think it's a bad idea. Now come on, it's your turn to seek again!"[/p]
>okay, no more of that stupid stuff for you
>you two play hide and seek until Emerald's sister gets back some time later
>you never did try out either of those spots, but you aren't too bothered by that
>it's more important that you keep your life than you keep a victory
>when you both hear the door open, Emerald comes out of her hiding spot and runs over to her sister
[p]>"Hey sis, welcome back! Anonymous and I have been playing 'hide and seek', and it's pretty fun!"[/p]
>"That's nice! Where is Anonymous, anyway?"
>you walk into the room at this time
"Hi, Emerald's Sister. I'm right here!"
>a look of minor confusion crosses her face for a second before she returns to a more bright expression
>"I guess I never told you my name, I'm Sapphire shine."
>yep, they're definitely related
>the only difference is that Sapphire has swapped colors from Emerald, being a blue mane with green eyes
"Nice to meet you, Ms. Shine!"
>she giggles a bit, probably because you two actually met two days ago
>"Nice to meet you too, Anonymous!"
>Sapphire walks to the kitchen holding some bags, probably full of food
>"Sorry I took so long, I had to check that everything for tomorrow was in order before I got food. Did Emerald already tell you what was going on?"
>that was definitely directed with you
"Yeah, that's pretty cool. She said she was a bit disappointed that I couldn't come with, but I think she's fine with it now."
>"That's good, you were acting a bit more disappointed about it earlier."
>that was directed at Emerald
[p]>"I just thought it would be pretty cool to introduce my friend to the rest of the family."[/p]
>"But that can wait until Ms. Twilight lets Anonymous come with us, and I'm not sure if she'd be okay with it."
[p]>"Alright... It's just a shame, I think she would've liked mom."[/p]
>"Shame or not, it's not happening for the forseeable future. Now, I'm pretty hungry. You two want dinner?"
"That sounds good, what is it?"
>"Well, I had some ideas, but I think I'll just leave it as a surprise."
>sounds good to you
[p]>"Hey Anonymous, wanna come back to my room while Sis makes dinner?"[/p]
"Sure, let's go."
>you two go back to Emerald's room and have a conversation
"What's your mom like to make you think she'd like me?"
[p]>"Well, I don't know. She told me to look out for any friends I could make while I was here, and since you're my friend, I think she'll like you."[/p]
>seems reasonable enough
"Alright, what else is she like?"
[p]>"She's kind, caring, and always puts her family first. She's also strong, since she was able to take care of all of us even though it's just her. I guess the older siblings help out too, but mom still does as much of it as she can."[/p]
>wow, she sounds nice!
>the conversation continues in a similar way, eventually being ended by Sapphire calling from the kitchen
>"Fillies, dinner's ready!"
>it's mother fucking sandwiches
>it's some variety of sandwich that these ponies have but no human would even want to eat, but it's still good
>it's really good, actually
"What did you put in this, I think this is the best sandwich I've ever had!"
>"I made it with love, Emerald always says that makes it taste better."
[p]>"It does, I swear. Also, Anonymous, you'd love mom's sandwiches if you think these are great!"[/p]
"Wow, I think I might actually need to meet this mother of yours if she's all that you said AND a great cook!"
>they both laugh with you, and you all finish your food
>after it's all eaten, Sapphire takes the used plates over to the sink
>"Emerald, remember that we have an early morning tomorrow. The train leaves at 9, and I want us to be there at 8:30 just in case."
[p]>"Okay, I'll go get the rest of my stuff packed."[/p]
>they need to be there by 8:30?
>wow, you aren't going to have much time to hang out tomorrow
>that's gonna suck
"I'll come with you, I'll need you to show me where I'm sleeping anyway."
>Emerald looks over to you
[p]>"Alright, come on. We still have time to do some more stuff before we need to go to bed!"[/p]
>so you let Emerald lead you up to her room again, and you also help her load her stuff into a suitcase
>after that, you two start up another conversation
>Emerald decides that it's time to sleep after you two come to an impasse over how a hydra would react to a swarm of parasprites, though
"You never did tell me, where am I sleeping?"
>she thinks about this for a second
[p]>"I suppose the easiest option would just be for us to share the bed, but if you want I can get you some blankets and a pillow and you can choose where you want to sleep."[/p]
>fuck it, you're tired too
"I'm fine with sharing a bed, I guess."
>you've never had the opportunity to do this at home, so you're going to do this as much as you can here
>you both climb into the bed, and you give her a reasonable amount of space in case she's not into that
>but she does the exact opposite, getting right next to you
>damnit, phantom boner!
>go away or we're never getting sleep!
>these ponies and their extra-cuddly kind of friendship, they drive you sexually insane
>it only makes it worse when you realize that Emerald's pressing her back into yours
>fuck, this would be adorable if you weren't the faggot in bed with her
>eventually, you manage to calm down your thoughts to the point where you fall into a somewhat easy sleep
>.   .   .
>your dreams are uneventful but still there
>you're once again in an isolated location by yourself
>it's also very cold
>and pretty dark too
>where are you?
>probably at some pole, if your internal compass is correct for once
>point is, it's not comfy here at all
>so, you close your eyes to summon some stuff
>when you open your eyes again, you see exactly what you wanted to see
>a nice, cozy cabin!
>you walk inside the cabin and sit down on a chair, grabbing a particularly fluffy blanket along the way
>after you get comfortable enough, you summon up something else to help you pass the time
>a gameboy with a copy of Pokemon Red
>you start up a new save file only to find that this game isn't exactly pokemon red
>for one, it has graphics closer to Fire Red
>also, when you get to Oak's Lab, you find your starter choices to be Snivy, Popplio, and Torchic
>wow
>you have no idea what else will happen here, so you're not sure if you'll be facing Brock and Misty again
>fuck it, you take Snivy anyway
>the battle with Gary is pretty much the same, she chooses the fire starter and you win easily
>after that, you find that the routes are pretty much the same too
>only difference is what you find there
>it's almost like this is a romhack
>cool, you've never played one of those!
>you have fun playing this game, and you find that it's pretty much the same as the regular game aside from what's available to catch and battle
>that is, until you beat the champion and move on to the story of Pokemon Gold
>you get to keep your team, too!
>eventually, after beating Archie the first time in the story of Pokemon Sapphire, you notice Luna watching over your shoulder
"You having fun watching?"
>"Actually, I am. Can I try playing it, though?"
"Sure, this is a loose recreation of the thing we did where we went out and caught various creatures and battled with them. Of course, this is a game so the player doesn't look like us, and there's a set story, but other than that it's pretty much the same."
>you give her the gambeboy and she starts leaning over the arm of your chair so you can watch her
>you do this, watching as she finds new pokemon and adds them to your ever-shifting roster according to what needs to be done at that moment
>eventually she makes it to the final battle against Cyrus, where she finally asks you on advice
>"We don't have anything on the team to counter his Crobat, what do I do?"
"Let me see the team."
>she shows you what she's working with, and there's some room to work with
>a Ferrothorn
>a Serperior
>an Arcanine
>a Milotic
>a Noivern
>and a Garchomp
"Go into Ferrothorn; Crobat shouldn't be able to do much to it, and you can stall him out. You should be able to handle the rest of his team from there."
>she does this and it plays out pretty much how you expected it to
>after another 8 turns, Cyrus's Crobat goes down and he sends out his Weavile
>Luna easily destroys it with the Arcanine and then goes on to challenge Dialga
"Nice job, with a bit more learning and some proper ideas on what to do, you could be really good at this game."
>she smiles when she hears this
>she must like being good at things
>eventually, she makes it all the way to the champion battle in Ultra Sun
>she completely curbstomps Hau's team and claims the champion title, beating the game once and for all
"And now you beat the game! Good job!"
>"That wasn't too hard, I wonder what else is left to do with it."
"Well, you could complete the pokedex, you could complete all the post-game content, you could create your dream team and use it to continue to kick butts in things like the Battle Frontier, or you could do all of it."
>"That sounds like a lot, I'm definitely not going to be able to finish it in what time we have left."
>that sounds about right
>hell, it took you over 250 hours to complete the pokedex in Ultra Moon alone
"Yeah, I don't expect you to be able to finish it in the amount of time that any dream holds."
>"Anyway, I sense you waking up soon. I'll see you tomorrow, and then maybe we can pick this game back up where we left off?"
>Luna's's leaving already?
>feels like you just went to sleep still
"Really? I don't think I've been asleep for that long."
>"You haven't, but it seems that something either in your mind or in your environment is forcing you to wake up."
>shit, is something bad going to happen?
"Can you tell me what?"
>Luna closes her eyes, and her horn sparks bright blue for a few seconds
>"I can't find anything in your dream that would be causing this, so it could be an external stimulant. Alternatively, it could be something else like you having to use the bathroom and not being able to hold it."
>Well, if I fall back asleep afterwards, then I'll hopefully see you."
>"And I'll be sure to watch for if you do."
>you and Luna finish exchanging goodbyes and she leaves
>as soon as she does, you feel yourself coming out of the dream
>when you do, you find that you actually do have to use the bathroom
>you get out of bed, being careful not to wake up Emerald in the process
>after you do, you make your way to the upstairs bathroom
>you're just as quiet here as you were in Emerald's room though, you don't want to wake up Sapphire either
>after you make it to the bathroom, you quickly do your business and leave
>as you do, you hear something
>a very light scratching
>almost like an old pen on paper
>being as quiet as you can, you try to locate the source of the sound
>it's coming from Sapphire's room
>she must be writing something
>but it's pretty late, shouldn't she be asleep too?
>she may just be having a hard time getting to sleep, or just doing something she forgot to do earlier
>you're not going to disturb her, that's for sure
>that would just be rude
>so you continue back to Emerald's room to go back to sleep
>and go back to sleep is exactly what you do!
>and when you do, it's something that comes fairly quickly
>.   .   .
>your dreamscape is a nice-looking building
>as you walk around in it, you see a great many cool things
>one thing you don't find is an exit
>no front door, no back door, not even a window
>this house could be underground, in space, or just on the ground
>you can't tell at all
>eventually, a piece of paper flutters down in front of you in a puff of blue
>Luna's here!
>the paper has a map written on it, showing your location in relation to hers
>she has a map of this place?
>well, she can see inside your head
>it's not that much of a stretch to think she found your subconscious layout of this entire thing
>either way, the map holds truely to what you see and you eventually find her sitting on a rather large chair in a large room
>"Welcome, subject, to my throne room!"
>HER throne room?
"You say that, but it's my dream."
>tapping your temple with your index finger, you shift the dream around you to take the spot on the chair instead
"You have no power here, foolish princess."
>"Just because you're sitting in my chair doesn't mean that I can't sit in it too!"
>before you can react, she jumps up into your lap and forces you to the side so she can take half the chair
>you two are just messing around at this point
"Alright, I give you permission to share MY chair. I'm still keeping the fancy part, though."
>you close your eyes and concentrate, turning Luna's half into a wooden stool
>"That's rude, it was my chair to begin with!"
>her horn ignites, and your half of the chair changes into the other half of the stool
"And now neither of us have a chair! We solved the issue, now what?"
>Luna smirks, and begins thinking
>after a few seconds, her horn ignites again and the stool vanishes from underneath you both
>you don't react very quickly, but you don't have much to react to
>you both were sitting in such a way that you both land back-to-back sitting on the ground
>"[i]Now[/i] neither of us has a chair!"
>you laugh a bit at this, and she joins you
>after the laughing dies down, you both stand back up and face each other
"Seriously though, what now?"
>"Didn't you say we could pick up where we left off in that game?"
>oh yeah, you did say that
"Sure, just give me a second. Also, you might want to move a few feet to your right."
>she does that, and you use the opportunity to summon in a couch and that same gameboy and game
>after doing that, you two continue playing the game until you're forced to wake up
>.   .   .
>when you wake up, it's still dark in the room
>just dark enough that you can't tell the identity of the pony standing over you
>wait WHAT
>before you have time to react, the pony forces something over your face
>it's a wet rag
>probably chloroform or something
>you're definitely not going to inhale until it's completely unavoidable
>you aren't going to have much time, though
>you didn't start this off after you inhaled
>you give yourself about 20 seconds before you have to breathe, and about 10 if you struggle hard
>and that's exactly what you do
>however, whoever this is is still much stronger than you
>eventually, you run out of oxygen and are forced to inhale
>as soon as you do, you feel light-headed
>yep, it's chloroform
>as you drift from consciousness, your assailant shifts and you can almost swear that their leg has holes in it
>you're fucked
>.   .   .
>when you come to, you find yourself inside something
>you're not sure what
>it's also dark and a bit damp in here, wherever 'here' is
>it's only just a bit brighter than before you blacked out at the hooves of your attacker, and with an odd green glow
>well, now you're stuck here
>you can only wait and imagine what kind of thing is gonna happen
>if your knowledge of other fillyfictions is anything to go by, this could just be something entirely orchestrated by Twilight
>she's given you no reason to suspect that, though
>it could also just be nothing but random chance
>either way, it's not likely that she'll be able to deus-ex-machina her way to you to save the day
>she hasn't given you any reason to believe that she could do that
>your best option is to see what happens and wait for an opportunity to get out of there yourself
>worse comes to worst, you get raped
>you're still an adult internally, you can handle that
>right?
>well, like those other faggots always said, 'it's not rape if you consent'...
>...huh
>this is surprisingly boring so far
>the air in this confined space is a bit stale, but it's not exactly like there's no air flow
>good, you aren't going to suffocate in here
>that's something you haven't exactly checked, either
>how big is this thing?
>you try to stretch out, only to hit solid walls almost instantly
>oh, it's that small
>good thing you don't have to share this space with Emerald
>wait
>EMERALD
>what happened to her!?
>did the same jerkass that took you take her too?
>this is bad
>you're not the important one here anymore
>there's an actual filly who might be in very grave danger!
>that's it, once you get out of this thing you're finding Emerald
>you're not going to let her get raped on your watch
>now you just need to figure a way out of this thing
>it doesn't seem like there's a way out, though
>as you twist and turn inside your limited surroundings, you find that it's sealed
>at least, to you
>the fact that you haven't suffocated yet tells you that it's not completely sealed
>let's hope that Emerald isn't having to deal with this too
>now that you're really thinking about it, you may just have to wait this out
>fuck
>you yawn, your boredom combined with your lack of good rest finally coming back to you now that the adrenaline's going down
>that's it!
>sleep!
>if you can go back to sleep and get a message to Luna about this, you may be saved!
>you close your eyes, trying to force sleep to come
>...
>.....
>it's not working
>something about your situation isn't letting you sleep
>is it that you're not comfortable enough?
>that could be, this thing's pretty hard
>it could also be the weird glow
>it could be any number of things, actually
>there have even been times where you haven't been able to sleep despite being tired back home
>those were few and far between, though
>would that carry over, though?
>you're not even sure if it was something distinctly wrong with you that caused it
>you could've just been sitting at the computer for too long
>but this isn't helping you get to sleep!
>if you can't do that, then you're definitely on your own
>you sigh in frustration, and slump into the bottom of your tiny prison
>as you lie motionless at the bottom accepting your fate, you realize that you hear something
>you're moving
>you can hear that you're inside something that's moving
>either that, or it's just the echo of blood in your ears
>this could be a confined enough space to do that, and your hearing has improved since you became a filly
>point is, it gives you something to pay attention to
>it could also give you some valuable information
>let's see, what do you hear
>you press your ear to the bottom of this container as best you can
>there's not much that you can immediately tell
>at least it's slightly more defined now
>you can also tell it's not the blood in your ears
>the longer you wait, the more you're able to pick out
>there's a rhythmic clacking below you, and some jostling sounds around you
>what makes that noise?
>you don't know for sure until you hear a horn from somewhere nearby
>you're on a train
>that was definitely a train horn
>okay, something has been established
>this is a decent-ish start
>can you find anything else out?
>maybe about how long you've been here?
>you're hungry, but it's not unbearable
>it must still be that day
>you're also not too thirsty, adding more evidence to that theory
>can you find anything else out from your limited surroundings?
>there's no pony sounds nearby
>you must be in a luggage car
>that means you're inside something that's still small enough to be mobile
>well, shit
>nopony's going to come in here for a while, so you're just kinda stuck
>it's been a little while though, maybe you should try to sleep again
>you close your eyes and get as comfortable as you can, trying to reopen the line of communications you have to Luna
>after a few seconds, you feel your mind start to drift
>could this be it?
>not any more, you excited yourself out of sleep
>good going, faggot
>now let's try that again, without the fucking it all up part
>you calm yourself down and try again, this time with more success
>.   .   .
>your dreamscape much reflects the situation you're in
>it's a dark, cramped room without any interesting features
>actually, it looks an awful lot like a prison cell
>yep, there's a toilet, a sink, and a bed that you're currently sitting on
>is this your mind's way of coping, or finding a way out?
>either way, this is your only hope of getting in contact with somepony who can help
"Luna, if you're there, come and find me. I need help badly."
>there's no answer
"Luna, I'm serious. If you can hear me, I'm in a bad situation and you're the only one who can help."
>there's still no answer
>is she even here?
>wait, didn't she promise to not disturb you during the day?
>...
>.....
>.......
>FUCK!
>she's not paying attention because she thinks this is a normal nap!
>she's not going to pay attention until you go to sleep tonight either for that same reason!
>you're on your own until night falls
>this is quickly becoming the worst-case scenario for you
>you're stuck in a foreign environment on a train to god-knows-where, and it's only you and your attacker that knows you're here
>that's also completely overlooking the fact that your friend may have been snatched by the same creep, and now you're both off to some hellhole
>you can only imagine how Emerald might be taking it
>she's not even old enough to know what's going to happen
>she may be scarred for life, cursed to undergo years of therapy that will never truly fix the problem
>not to mention, you might be her only hope and you're also stuck in the same situation
>this truly isn't going to end well if she's been dragged into this
>this completely destroys whatever confidence you had, and you spend the rest of your dream crying
>you need an adult
>.   .   .
>you wake up to find that your tears weren't just in your dream
>there's a small puddle where your head was, and the side of your face is wet as a result
>enough of this, you need to spend every waking moment from now until you're stuck where you need to be
>first on the list, an assessment of your physical condition to see how much time's passed
>you're both a bit hungrier and thirstier, meaning that it's been a significant amount of time since you fell asleep
>shit, that's valuable information that you'll never get back
>you still need to see what's going on outside, though
>gotta make sure you know if you're still moving or not
>you press your ear to a drier spot and try to listen to your environment
>when you do, you notice that you no longer hear the sounds of a train
>instead, you hear a much different one
>hoofsteps and wheels on dirt
>wherever you are, it certainly doesn't sound like civilization
>this is gonna suck for sure
>maybe you could try and call for help anyway?
"HELP!"
>you yell it as loud as you can, but it doesn't seem to penetrate whatever's holding you
>maybe now would be the optimal time to struggle?
>you wiggle and shift as much as you can, trying to put the absolute maximum amount of force you can into your movement
>you even start to feel your container rock slightly with your movements!
>all your efforts are quickly silenced by the holder of your prison stopping in their tracks and forcing the container still
>well, at least whoever is out there knows you're awake
>but is that really a good thing?
>you're not entirely sure
>probably not
>the rest of your journey continues like this, with you trying to inconvenience your kidnapper at every opportunity
>eventually though, you feel a change in how you're moving
>it's almost entirely downhill
>this could mean any number of things, but you're not sure you like any of them
>eventually though, you come to a stop somewhere after a long time of going down
>this is when you think you're getting let out
>sure enough, you hear a zipper just outside your prison
>wait, a zipper?
>have you been inside a suitcase this whole time?
>you learn that you in fact have when you see a flap open just outside the wall of your now clearly illuminated shell
>what you see when the flap opens is not something you wanted
>a changeling is staring you in the face, with nothing around both of you but stone walls
>you can't exactly tell what it wants from the apparent blank expression it has, but by the way it's eyes are shifting, it's inspecting you
>when it opens its mouth, you get your biggest surprise yet
>"I apologize for the rudeness, Anonymous. Mother really wanted to meet you, and this was the only way I could think of to get you back to the hive without any problems."
>SAPPHIRE?
"Wait, Sapphire? You're a changeling?"
>"Yes, and so is Emerald. Mother sent us to watch you, more specifically, Emerald. I was sent along to make sure she was okay, and to report back to her with whatever she found out."
>your friend AND her sister have been changelings the entire time?
>this is going to take a while to process
>at least this seems to explain a lot
>Emerald never really leaving the house or meeting anypony besides her siblings
>the specific addition of love to food (you don't really care about that though, you WILL fight anyone who says that doesn't make it taste better)
>Emerald's odd behavior on her first day
>in the meantime, you leave your body on autopilot
"...So, what now?"
>Sapphire pulls your cocoon out of the suitcase and begins unsealing it
>"Now you get to meet Mother in person."
>holy shit
>first you meet Twilight, then Celestia, then Luna, and now Chrysalis?
>you didn't think it was possible, but now you're even more floored
>does everyone want to meet you?
>being an alien really does have its perks
>only problem is, this is probably going to drag you into some conflict that you honestly have no place in
>but you're already here and you're not getting back out without Chrysalis's help, so you should probably hear her out
"Alright, where is she?"
>"She's in her personal chamber now, but I can lead you to her."
>now completely unsealed from your cocoon, you step out and dust yourself off
"Thanks, it was starting to get stuffy in there. So, quick question, you all aren't going to kill me, or something?"
>Sapphire looks simultaneously amused and offended
>you didn't even know that was an expression
>"Is that what the other ponies have told you about us? We may not have what they have, but we aren't bloodthirsty savages without any higher thinking. We still have thoughts and emotions, regardless of what they say. But to answer your question, no. We aren't going to kill you or something."
>cool
"Okay, so I suppose we should get going. If Chrysalis wants to see me, I don't think we should keep her waiting for too long."
>Sapphire gives a curt nod and beckons for you to follow her through a nearby tunnel
>as you two navigate this labyrinth of a hive, you can't help but notice two very distinct things
>the first thing you notice is the architecture
>the architecture looks almost gothic in design, with large ornately carved rooms suspended by large pillars and hallways with high, arched ceilings
>it's impressive how much attention to detail was put into this hive, it puts human architecture to shame
>it almost puts Canterlot to shame, too
>and this is all completely underground!
>as you two move further through the massive complex, you notice the second major thing
>the apparent lack of other changelings
>for such an expansive layout, there's not that many other changelings occupying the space
>in fact, the most you've seen in a single room is about 6
>most of the rooms are completely empty, though
>it's kind of sad to see such an impressive work of art not being used to its full extent
>some of the changelings you see wave to Sapphire and she usually waves back, but far more take notice of you and whisper to whoever's near or just simply watch when it's only them in the room
>however, those events are few and far between
>so, you decide to try to make some small-talk with Sapphire instead
"So, is Sapphire actually your name, or is that just the name you used when under your disguise?"
>she thinks to herself for a second
>probably debating whether or not she should give you an answer
>"It's not my real name. That would be Spinneret."
>oh, bug themes
"That's not a bad name, does that mean Emerald's name isn't actually Emerald too?"
>Spinneret responds almost instantly to this
>"No, Emerald is actually named Emerald. The Shine part was just part of the disguise, though."
>oh
>these names and disguises are starting to get confusing
>well, isn't that their job?
>guess that means they're doing it well
"Now that I think about it, where [i]is[/i] Emerald?"
>"If she's where I left her, then she's in the upper levels helping with the newest batch of hatchlings. She doesn't usually stay in one place for long though so she could be anywhere by now."
>okay, so your friend, the changeling, is still around here somewhere
>"Did she know about you bringing me with you?"
>"No, she's too young to know about the sensitivity of information. If I had told her, she probably would have told you and caused some problems by doing so. Secrecy and all."
>she's being surprisingly open about things for a spy
"Should you be telling me all this? It seems almost counterintuitive to your job in Ponyville."
>Spinneret raises her eyebrows(?) for a second before responding
>"Under normal circumstances, yes. However, Mother has stated this enough to me before Emerald and I left: these are not normal circumstances anymore. She wants every one of her children and me to make this as hospitable an environment for you as possible."
>huh, is she going to try some mind games on you?
>you should be able to resist it, now that you have an idea of what to expect
>your thoughts are interrupted by a voice from behind you both
[p]>"Hey, Anonymous! Sis didn't tell me she brought you with us, what's going on?"[/p]
>you and Spinneret both stop in your tracks and turn around
>you both are greeted by the sight of a changeling filly with the brightest green eyes you've ever seen
>she gets the biggest grin you've ever seen a changeling have as she bounds over to you both
[p]>"It's Emerald! I bet you didn't recognize me without the disguise, didn't you?"[/p]
"Honestly, I didn't. I also don't exactly know why I'm here, but I heard Spinneret say that it's because your mother wants to meet me."
>Emerald goes wide-eyed before joining you two on your walk to Chrysalis
[p]>"I [i]knew[/i] Mom would like you! I think you're going to like her, too. And I guess now that you're here, wanna know a secret?"[/p]
>it's almost funny how nonchalantly Emerald's handling this
>it's almost like she's just a regular filly in a changeling suit
"Sure, go ahead."
>she looks down at the floor before responding
[p]>"I actually wasn't lying about anything I said back in Ponyville except that I was told to make friends. Mom told me to look for you, and to try to become your friend. I hope that doesn't change anything, because I still think you're my friend."[/p]
>brutal honesty?
>Spinneret wasn't kidding about the sensitive information part
>well, at least you know you can trust her
"You're still the same filly that became my friend out in that schoolyard, just with a different look. I think it's going to be fine. Twilight might not let you come over any more, though."
>you two both laugh at this, and Spinneret probably rolled her eyes
>you can just barely see her smirk at that remark, judging by what you can see of her face
>"Alright you two, we're almost to Mother's private chamber. Emerald, you stay outside with me. Anonymous, you go inside. Mother's waiting for you."
>eventually you three get to a door at the end of a long hallway guarded by two beefy looking guards
>the one on the left speaks to Spinneret
[o]>"Is this Anonymous?"[/o]
>that thing's got a girly voice for such a huge body and stance
>wait, are all of them mares?
>is this like ants and bees, or something?
>it wouldn't be the weirdest thing you've heard of
>"Yes, I assume Mother is waiting?"
[o]>"Yes, she has specified that this is to be a private conversation."[/o]
>"As I guessed. Don't worry, I've also informed Emerald about this, we will respect the privacy of our guest and our queen."
>Spinneret moves aside and pulls Emerald with her, beckoning you forward
>as she does this, the two guards move aside
>you step up to the door, and that's when you hesitate
"Am... Am I just supposed to open it?"
>you look back at the others, waiting for an answer
>one of the guards is facehoofing, the other sighs, Emerald's stifling a laugh, and Spinneret just looks disappointed
>"It's a door. Yes, you open it!"
>well, now you just look stupid
"Oh, r-right... Guess I'll j-just..."
>damnit, the stutter's back
>and you were doing so well!
>you open the door to the interior chamber of Chrysalis
>you're not sure what you expected, but it's not too far off
>the space is a bit smaller than the rest of the hive's rooms, and much less ornate
>almost like it wasn't a priority to have this room decorated, and it was just enough to have it to begin with
>there's also some furniture that looks like it was brought from outside the hive
>a couch, a chair, a table, and a small bookshelf overflowing with old-looking books
>the room you're in has a couple doorways to other rooms, too
>one leads to a bathroom and another to an apparent magical projection of the sky outside
>upon closer inspection, there's also a bed in that room
>the third room is the one you see Chrysalis waiting in
>she's standing alone, gazing at some pictures she has mounted on the wall
>as you move to the doorway, you see what's in the pictures
>it looks like a younger Chrysalis sitting with an older changeling queen
>probably her mom
>you don't want to interrupt her, but she has business with you
"You wanted to see me, your highness?"
>she turns around to face you, with a welcoming expression on her face
>"Good evening, Anonymous, my name is Chrysalis. I hope your trip here wasn't too off-putting, Spinneret told me about what measures she took to get you here. I would hate to start off on the wrong hoof with you, seeing as how I went to all this effort just to meet you."
>she's being more polite than you expected, could this actually be genuine?
>then again, changelings are born manipulators
>this could just be her natural choice of action to get somepony to do what she wants
"I suppose it wasn't too bad; I would've appreciated a bit of warning, though. So, what do you need?"
>"First off, I'd like you to take a seat."
>Chrysalis points over to the furniture, and you both take a seat
>trying to be polite, you take the chair and leave her the couch
>after you both are seated, she continues
>"Second, I'd like for you to tell me a bit about yourself."
>you shouldn't tell her the actual truth, you have no way of knowing what she'd do with this knowledge
"I'm a filly from Manehattan who's good enough at her studies to win a chance to study under Princess Twilight Sparkle."
>Chrysalis shakes her head at hearing this before responding
>"I have a suspicion that's not the truth. I apologize if I'm being blunt here, but I'd like to hear who you really are."
>shit
>she caught you
>you're not sure you have any other explanation that doesn't sound like complete shit
>you're probably going to have to tell her the truth
"Alright, you caught me. I'm not from here. At all. I'm from an entirely different universe, and I'm not actually a pony. Twilight changed me into this so I could blend in and not cause a panic. I'm actually a 22-year-old human male from a planet called Earth."
>Chrysalis's eyes slowly widen as you give her this explanation
>after you finish, she stands back up and bows in front of you
>"Then I welcome you to the Badlands."
>after she straightens back up and sits back down, she continues
>"That must explain the visit to Canterlot, Celestia was giving you a formal welcome to Equestria. I apologize heavily for any discomfort you've felt on the way here, I didn't know you were this important."
>she was completely in the dark about you being an alien, but she knew about your visit to Canterlot
"Can I ask a question?"
>As many as you like."
"How much did you know about me before today?"
>"I knew that you showed up out of nowhere and that you were in contact with two of the most powerful ponies on this planet, everything else was unknown."
>probably more spies told her this
"Okay, so then why did you want to see me?"
>Chrysalis sighs and looks up for a second
>"I had a gut feeling that you were more important than you looked, and I was right. I wanted to see you because..."
>she pauses, choosing her next words carefully
>she stares you right in the eyes with a somber and slightly desperate expression as she finishes her sentence
>"... Because I need your help."
>she needs your help?
>what can you even do?
>you're just some nobody at home and nothing more than a semi-competent alien here
>maybe you'd be able to do something if you were yourself again, but as you are now?
>you're pretty much dead weight
>you don't even have your phone, so you can't even try to bluff your way out of this with shitty memes and saved screencaps from games!
"Why do you think I'd be able to help you? I can't do much as I am now, and Twilight's the only pony who I know can change me back."
>Chrysalis begins thinking again, occasionally glancing at you
>after a while she gets up and moves over to you
>is she going to start inspecting you too?
>sure enough, she begins looking at you from as many angles as she can while pacing around the chair you're in
>eventually, she reaches a conclusion and moves back to the couch
>"The spell she used was definitely potent, it seems to have been more than a simple disguise. In fact, if I'm correct, you've been completely transformed. The spell is simple enough to reverse, but I'm not able to in my current state. However, you're not as useless as you think right now. Twilight allowed you to keep your mind, and the mind is often the most powerful part of a creature."
>is she saying you're smart?
>if she is, it's certainly making you feel smart
"I will admit that I know a considerable amount that Twilight doesn't, but I'm not sure how much of it is applicable here and I know that there are certain things that shouldn't leave Earth. I'll tell you what you want to know as long as it doesn't fall in the second category."
>"Then I will respect your wishes. All I will ask about what you won't tell me is just why you won't tell me."
>she wants to know why?
>that's a simple enough explanation, and Chrysalis seems to be sane enough to respect your advice
"The reason why I'm not going to tell you about certain things is because their mere existence on Earth has made the planet much more dangerous on a global scale, whether because it's caused a forced dependence on a certain limited material that the global economy might not be able to go without when it's finally used up or because it directly threatens life on a mass scale and can render environments unlivable for years."
>this vague warning seems to have taken hold in her mind easily, since she's now wearing a similar expression to the one that Twilight had when you first told her about nukes
>"I understand. I would hate for the same misfortune to come here that has already claimed your world."
>good, you have physical confirmation
>now you two can get down to business!
"Now that we got that out of the way, would you mind telling me exactly what you need help with? It would probably make both of our lives easier."
>Chrysalis sighs and bows her head as she mentally prepares herself to give you all of her worries about the future
>"I'm not sure if you noticed on the way in, but there weren't many changelings present. In fact, I am running dangerously low on useable seed and I fear every day that this next batch will be the last. The only hope I have is being able to coordinate a proper raid on Equestria, and I don't want to risk any more of my children. Not after what happened before..."
>she turns away and sheds a tear before trying to visibly calm herself down
>what happened before?
>is she talking about that time when Glimmer "redeemed" all those other changelings, turning them into brainwashed pussies?
>as you continue to ponder this, Chrysalis confirms it for you
>"That... That MONSTER and that ungrateful traitor, they took them all! Lured them in with false promises, and took away everything that made them who they were! Now they're nothing... Nothing but mindless slaves to that twisted view of the world..."
>a few more tears leak out, and she once again turns away to try to calm herself down
>wow, this must be really hard on her
>you can't help but feel awkward in this situation, though
>it's not exactly something that you have any experience in dealing with
>after all, you never had kids, much less lost them to communism
>but you feel like you have to do something here
>your mother would always give you a hug when you got sad as a kid, maybe that would help?
>and besides, if Twilight heard this from any other pony, she'd probably do something to try to comfort them
>so you get up off the chair and walk over to Chrysalis, who doesn't notice through her sadness
>when you get there, you reach up around her and give her a hug
>you initially feel her exoskeleton twitch under you in what you think is surprise, but she soon accepts your gesture
>after a few more seconds, she even tentatively wraps a hoof around you and rests her head on your small shoulder
>mind tricks be damned, you're not letting somepony feel that messed up without trying to help!
"I'm not going to pretend to know what you're going through, but it's obvious that you mean what you say. I hope I can help you in any way necessary to make sure that this doesn't happen again."
>"Thank you. It's nice to know that somepony cares."
>Chrysalis breaks off after a second more and wipes her eyes while you return to your chair
>"Back to business?"
"Back to business. So, what do you need to pull off that raid?"
>"I need a way to make sure that if casualties are unavoidable, they aren't changelings."
"Alright. I have some ideas of things that might help, but I don't have the tools or raw materials to make any of them, so I'm not sure how useful any of these ideas will be."
>"You may not have the means, but I do. The badlands are incredibly rich in ores, and I'm sure enough spies can be sent in to gather whatever we can't pull out of the ground."
>good, you have something to work with!
>now, let's see if your time spent with your /k/ommando buddies has actually taught you anything
"Then I'm going to need access to a forge, a drill, a mortar and pestle, and all the iron, carbon, sulfur, and saltpeter you can get."

>be Twilight
>it's been three hours since Anon was supposed to be home
>you were okay for the first 30 minutes, but you've been getting more and more worried with each passing second
>what could be taking him so long?
>it's been too long for him to have lost track of time
>should you go over to their house to check?
>that's probably the best idea
>you don't wait another second and leave the room you were pacing in
"Spike, I'm going out. Tell me if Anon came back when I get back, okay?"
>you yell this in what you think is his general direction
>from across the castle, you hear a faint reply
[o]>"She isn't back?"[/o]
>after that, you hear Spike running towards you
>a few seconds later, Spike is standing in front of you, completely out of breath
"I'm afraid so. I'm going out to check on her and make sure nothing bad's happened."
[o]>"Okay... I'll watch the door..."[/o]
>you both walk down to the front door, and you leave while Spike stays behind
>you walk outside, the evening air cold against you
>you try to remember the route that Emerald took the day before yesterday, and eventually it comes back to you
>you set off back towards the place where you hope Anonymous is still at, walking at a decent pace
>on your way, you can't help but imagine a number of scenarios that may have happened
>he could've been fillynapped on the way home
>he could've suffered another injury during some game and could be at the hospital
>he could've wandered off and gotten lost
>or he may have just lost all sense of time as you thought
>he didn't bring his phone with him and that's what he's been using to check the time
>it's entirely possible, but the pit in your stomach is telling you otherwise
>you keep a straight face and hold yourself together until you get to the house
>you walk up to the front door and knock
>you wait, but there's no response
>you look at one of the nearby windows
>there are no lights on
>nopony's home
>this isn't an ideal situation
>the only other place this could mean is the hospital then
>right?
>you teleport over to the hospital and go check in at the front desk
[p]>"Good evening, Princess. What do you need?"[/p]
"I'm here to see if there have been any green fillies that have passed through going by the name 'Anonymous'."
>the nurse checks the record of incoming patients and eventually comes to an answer that sends you into full panic mode
[p]>"No, I'm afraid there haven't been any fillies going by that name, green or otherwise."[/p]
>you thank the nurse for her help and leave, clinging desperately to your neutral expression
>after you're outside the hospital, you immediately teleport back to the castle
>as soon as you're there, you instantly lose whatever composure you were pretending to have
>in full view of Spike, too
>he rushes over to you, grabbing you by the shoulders
[o]>"What's wrong? Did something happen to her? What's going on?"[/o]
>you push your hurricane of thoughts away for just long enough to form a small coherent answer
"She's gone."

>be Anonymous
>you've left yourself on autopilot for a while, let's see what you come back to
>okay, Sapphire's real name is Spinneret but Emerald's still Emerald
>Chrysalis is here and needs your help
>she broke down in front of you and you gave her a hug
>you agreed to help her raid Equestria
>you went over the necessary materials to make guns
>...
>hold on, rewind
>you agreed to help, and you're planning on doing that with guns?
>you really shouldn't leave yourself on autopilot anymore
>well, genius, how are you getting out of this now?
>Chrysalis stands up from her couch, saying a few words before opening the door for you
>"I can get the iron carbon and sulfur easily, but the saltpeter will be more of an issue. In the meantime, it's been a while since you've eaten. Would you like me to show you where you can get some food?"
>this might be a good time to try and at least lessen the potential damage that your stupid autopilot caused
"Alright, but I just remembered one more condition that I have to help in the way that I plan to. You have to promise me that what I give you will not be used unless absolutely necessary. These tools will be dangerous and have the potential to end a life in an instant; they are not to be treated lightly."
>after you say this, you get up and move over next to Chrysalis
>she takes in what you say and then gives you a reply that makes you less worried
>"I promise. I'll tell any of my soldiers that use one about this, and make sure that they agree to it as well. Now, let's go. I'll show you around myself."
>good, let's hope those soldiers are as obedient as Emerald and Spinneret
>you follow Chrysalis out past the two guards and into the hall, passing through a lot of similar-looking rooms
>almost every single changeling you see along the way ends up saying hello or stopping to wave
>Chrysalis always ends up giving them a smile or returning the greeting, each time looking and sounding just as warm and inviting as the ones before
>she really must care a lot
>would it really be so bad to help her out, if only this once?
>Twilight would probably never forgive you, and that would suck
>but who needs Twilight when you've got bug horse?
>but Twilight is your friend!
>you can't just ditch her like that!
>but Chrysalis is also being just as nice as Twilight was, and even offered to let you become yourself again!
>but Twilight's the only pony who can get you home
>...
>shit, you're right
>unless Chrysalis can do it too
>you remember how powerful she was against Celestia that one time, maybe she could get you home if she had Twilight's notes
>why are you trying to find a way out of this?
>why are [i]you[/i] NOT trying to find a way out of this?
>both of you, shut up!
>we need to think!
>what would be the best option?
>Twilight
>+has connections to princesses
>+already knows everything necessary to get you back to normal and home safely
>+knows lots of cool shit, can probably teach you some science
>probably won't let you act on that knowledge, though
>-it's just her and Spike
>-won't let you be normal for fear of causing public panic
>Chrysalis
>-hated by princesses
>-knows how to make you normal, but not get you home
>-may not know cool shit and thus may not be able to teach you science
>+is willing to let you do whatever you want with the knowledge you currently have, though
>+lots of changelings, you'll never be lonely
>+pretty much implied that she'd change you back if she could
>well, it's pretty much an even split of opposites
>whou would've guessed
>this is going to take more thought
>in the meantime, let's see if we're there yet!
>no, but it seems like we're close
>you can smell food from here
>smells pretty good, actually
>wait, is that?
>is it?
>it smells like it
>you can barely hold in your thoughts as you two make it to the large room with the source of the smell
>yep, it is
>cooking meat!
>you see a couple open fires in pits on one side of the room as well as some other areas holding other types of food being prepared, and a few different changelings managing it all
>one of them comes up to the two of you and offers a greeting
[o]>"Good evening, my queen. I see that the guest is also with you, what may we do for you both?"[/o]
>"Hello, good evening to you as well. Anonymous here hasn't eaten or had anything to drink yet, and I was hoping you could give him something to fix that."
>the changeling then turns to you
[o]>"Alright, what would you like?"[/o]
>hm, what could you get away with asking for?
"Well, what's available?"
>the changeling turns around and surveys the room before her
[o]>"We have pretty much everything you could ask for in stock, since our food supplies are quite full right now."[/o]
>cool, let's see what 'everything' includes!
"Can you get me some of what's making that delicious smell?"
>the changeling looks a bit confused, and shoots a glance at Chrysalis
>Chrysalis nods at her, and she turns back towards you
[o]>"Alright, give me one second. I warn you, though; it may not be good for a pony."[/o]
>well then, good thing you're not a pony!
>well, at least you shouldn't be
>the changeling trots over to a table with plates on it and grabs one before going over to one of the pits
>she levitates out some meat with her stubby, curved horn before placing it on the plate
>she then comes back over at a slower speed to make sure the food doesn't fall off
>once she's back over to you two, she gives you the plate with the meat on it
[o]>"Be careful, it's fresh off the fire."[/o]
>you grab the edge of the plate in your teeth and move over to a flattened rock that looks like it was converted to a table
>on the way though, you end up finding a cup and getting some water for yourself too
>can't forget to drink your fluids
>after you set it down and sit near it Chrysalis gets some food of her own and joins you
>"You may be confused as to why we have animal products available to eat here since you're probably used to pony food by now, but I'll tell you. We changelings are actually capable of eating almost anything, since we often have to blend in to where we're located. However, love is still our main source of energy as a form of magic that we are capable of metabolizing."
>okay, you just got learned some science about changelings
>maybe Chrysalis can teach you some things too
>maybe, just maybe
>though, that is something interesting and a plus for Chrysalis
>you won't have to be a vegan
>you take this opportunity to try some of the meat placed before you, now that it's cooled a bit
>you bite a chunk out of one of the smaller pieces to find a unique flavor
>almost like pork, but cooked in duck fat
>also, is that spices you taste?
>it may be, but it seems to permeate the meat much more evenly than a rub and isn't as apparent as a brine or marinade
>you may just have to ask what this is
"What is this? It's good!"
>Chrysalis swallows a bite of her own food and turns back towards you
>"It's roasted desert krait, it has similar properties to the common dragon except they're much smaller and non-sentient."
>desert krait, huh?
>you might have to find some of them to bring home, it's pretty good!
>well, if you can get home
>also, Twilight might not let you
>stupid purple, ruining all the fun!
>Chrysalis would probably let you do it
>either way, you probably wouldn't get very far trying to pit them against each other to make both deals better
>you'd probably just make the tensions between ponies and changelings worse and make both of them hate you in some way
>oh well
>you and Chrysalis finish up your food and go back out to go see some more of the hive
>first, she takes you to the area where resources are stored and you see a lot of cool things
>massive stacks of ingots, fully assembled tools, and a great number of other items of varying size and importance
>next she takes you over to where changelings sleep and rest
>you see a few changelings come in and a few others leave while you two are there
>they must work in shifts
>after that, you two go back to where Spinneret first let you out of the pod in the suitcase
>turns out that that's the entryway
>well, one of several
>this hive must be massive!
>this is where Chrysalis says the tour needs to end, though
"Oh, alright. So, when am I able to go back?"
>she thinks to herself, eyes shifting around like she's running numbers
>"If it was entirely necessary, you could be back at Twilight's castle by tomorrow afternoon as long as the train is on time. However, since you agreed to help us here, I assume it would be a few days at least and a week at most."
>fug
>Twilight's probably shitting bricks right now and would probably shit out an entire wall if she knew where you were
>but you're not getting out of here without waiting until somepony comes to get you or until Chrysalis lets you, so here you'll stay
"Well then, I guess I'll be sleeping here. Is there any place in particular you'd like me to stay in?"
>Chrysalis weighs all the options in her head before telling you an answer
>"Well, the easiest place for you to stay in would be the resting room, since you could remain in close proximity to your friend Emerald. However, I'm open to sharing my quarters if that's more to your comforts as a guest and ambassador from another world."
>you have options, then
>as interesting as being able to say "I slept with Chrysalis" would be, you don't feel like intruding on her any more than necessary
>she's already being a hospitable host with what she's doing
>Twilight never even gave you a tour either, now that you think about it
>you just had to find everything yourself
>also, the only time you've been treated like a foreign guest around ponies was for that brief time in Celestia's throne room, and we all remember how that ended
>fuck it, staying with cheeselegs might not be all that bad!
"Okay then, I'll go to the resting room. I wouldn't want to overstay my welcome, after all."
>Chrysalis nods and smiles, turning back around in the process
>"Shall I lead you back there, then?"
>you accept her offer, and once there you find an open bed to claim
>it's a bit stiff, but at least the room is kept at the perfect temperature for the number of blankets on the bed
>you soon begin that familiar fall from consciousness as the void left by today's stresses quickly fills with fatigue, and you're asleep in moments
>.   .   .
>your dreams are once again a vivid representation of your situation in real life
>once everything's finished rendering, you see that you're inside a cavernous expanse underground that's studded with gems and laced with shining veins of metal
>what is this, Minecraft?
>well, you're not complaining if it is
>this looks pretty stunning, the light gray of the walls contrasting well with the bright yet subtle technicolor gems and shining metallic bands
>you don't have to wait very long for Luna to show up, though
>in fact, she appears in front of you in a flash of blue as soon as your environment is stable enough
>"Anonymous, where are you? Twilight said that you never made it back to the castle and asked me to find you."
>oh, business right off the bat
>you're going to need to put this as lightly as possible if you don't want any ponies to flip out over you
"I'll tell you, but you need to promise me something first."
>Luna sits down in front of you and holds up her right hoof
>"What is it?"
"You need to not flip out and come to get me, or send anyone to do so. I think I'm in a position here to actually do something, and it'll be ruined if any sort of hostility is shown."
>she looks confused, but she doesn't drop her right hoof as she accepts your promise
"I can't stress that promise enough, but I'll tell you. I'm in the badlands, more specifically inside a changeling hive."
>Luna's eyes widen and she looks like she's about to say something, but you cut her off
"Before you say anything, yes I was brought here against my will. However, after meeting Chrysalis, it's clear that I'm not in any sort of danger. She's actually being quite hospitable, if you can believe it."
>she raises an eyebrow and gives you a confused/disappointed look before stating her argument
>"How do you know that you're not in any danger? This is CHRYSALIS we're talking about, the changeling queen that nearly conquered Equestria in a day!"
"Yes, but that was back when she had a hive with numbers enough to pull that off. There were probably millions of changelings in Canterlot alone on that day, and in this entire hive I haven't seen more than about 100 and can't imagine that there are any more than about 60,000 in total. She's in no position to do anything like she's done before, and that's actually the entire reason why I'm here."
>"She called you to the middle of the badlands and had you delivered into her hive... to ask you for help?"
>you nod at her as she looks at you disbelievingly
"Yeah, as hard as that is to believe. Chrysalis went to all this effort to find me and she wants me to help her. At first I didn't have the best idea of what to do, but now that I can talk to you, I'm pretty sure that you can help me out with an actually good idea for a solution that benefits both Equestria and the badlands."
>"A peaceful solution would be beautiful, but I'm sure tartarus would freeze over before that's possible."
>now it's time for you to actually tell her what you have in mind!
"Trust me, it's entirely possible. These changelings are stacked with resources, and Chrysalis said that they can pull a metric shit-ton of raw material out of the ground. All you would need to do is just make sure that she's got the necessary supplies to maintain her hive and rebuild her species, and I'm pretty sure that she wouldn't be against sharing some of it."
>Luna starts thinking after you finish speaking your point
>could she be actually considering this?
>"Even if this isn't some plot to lower our defenses as you seem to think, how am I going to convince Tia? You seem to forget that Chrysalis nearly killed her during their first formal meeting, and that wasn't even the end of it. Once she's made up her mind, my sister is very hard to convince of the opposite."
>oh, then it wasn't that easy
>you may need to have some better arguments
>shit
"Then I'll work on what I can from here and you try to gauge Celestia's reaction. Also, tell Twilight that I'm going to be gone for about a week at most, but that I'm safe."
>Luna looks up at you with a slightly worried expression on her face
>"And I'll do what I can from Canterlot. I just want you to remember to stay safe; I'm always just a quick nap away if you need my help too."
>you kneel down in front of her and wrap your arms around her in as reassuring a hug as you can give
"I promise I'll be fine. At worst, I might decide to stay here for a bit longer, but I'm pretty sure that won't happen. After all, I don't want to hurt any of you that I'm already friends with!"
>Luna reaches around your neck with her hooves, giving you a hug in return
>"Good, I don't think Chrysalis would be nearly as good of a friend as I am."
>there it is
>that mocking, slightly smug tone
>everything's going to be fine
>now all you have to do is just not incur the wrath of Twilight long enough to make sure that everything goes smoothly
>also, you should probably try to gauge Chrysalis's reaction to a diplomatic solution
>that should be pretty easy, after all you're probably going to be spending a lot of time around her
>you both break out of the hug and you ask a question that should hopefully lighten the mood a bit
"So, you wanna explore around here? It looks pretty cool, and I think I see some branching paths up ahead."
>Luna agrees, and you two spend the rest of the dream spelunking in this huge cave system
>after you two end up seeing everything there is to see (and you stopping for about 30 seconds to laugh at a stalagmite shaped like a penis) , you wake up back inside the hive
>that was a pretty restful sleep
>and when you wake up, you see a young changeling hovering over you with a pair of bright green eyes
>it's Emerald
[p]>"Good morning, Anonymous! I hope you slept well, because Mom wanted me to show you what kind of stuff is out here in the badlands while she's getting everything ready, whatever that means."[/p]
>okay, a day in the life of a changeling
>sounds interesting enough, this never was really explained much in the show if you remember correctly
"Alright, what's first on the list?"
>you hop out of bed and Emerald joins you on the floor
[p]>"First we should probably eat something. I know that it's not fun to work on an empty stomach."[/p]
>so you follow Emerald down to the area where you ate dinner yesterday and eat a nice breakfast of more Desert Krait and also some roasted vegetables
>no offense to Spike's cooking, but you could get used to this
>it actually has some food that you enjoy besides nothing but vegetables and starch!
>after you two finish eating, you follow Emerald up to the surface with a few other changelings
"What are we doing up here?"
[p]>"We're going to collect water from a nearby source. The badlands are a very dry place, but we've figured out a way to get all the moisture necessary out of the environment."[/p]
>she then walks over to a changeling standing near a pile of what looks like backpacks and grabs two of them
>when she gets back over to you, she gives you one
[p]>"Here, put this on. It'll help you carry all the water. Also, when we're on the way to it, I can show you all the cool stuff around here!"[/p]
>you put on the bag, which is surprisingly light for its size
>this isn't how you imagined you'd be spending your first days here, though
>oh well, it's pretty obvious that they're short on labor anyway and it'll give you something to do while trying to find a good angle of attack for convincing Chrysalis
"One question, how far away is this source of water?"
>Emerald thinks to herself for a few seconds while the rest of the changelings gear up
[p]>"About an hour, but don't worry. The time will fly by, and we always go early enough in the morning to make sure no one gets dehydrated."[/p]
>okay, but how does a pony fit this model?
>Emerald must see this concern on your face, because she has an answer for it
[p]>"If things get too bad, you can always check one of the pockets on the pack. There's always an emergency set of rations in case you need it."[/p]
>sure enough, you reach around to check the bag and you pull out a canteen
>soon enough, the rest of the changelings start moving and you two follow close behind
>while the walk is happening, you two also manage to hold a conversation
>every once in a while, Emerald points out a rock formation and tells you what she knows about it too
>eventually though, you ask her a question
"So, do you do work like this every day?"
[p]>"Not every day, but I'm getting close to the point where I have to choose my job for the future. I'm trying out everything a few times just to make sure that I know what I'm good at, and I also want to make sure that what I'm good at is also fun."[/p]
>Emerald shifts her path to get a bit closer to you before going on
[p]>"Between you and me though I'm pretty sure I want to be a spy if only because I'd get to see you more often."[/p]
>wow
>you've had that much of an effect on her that she's willing to make a permanent choice just because of you
>that's commitment
>now if only some of the thots back home could learn from her
>but that's not going to happen
>thots are always thots, and there's nothing that's going to stop that
>maybe you can bring a nice pony home with you if you ask Twilight hard enough?
>probably not
>maybe Emerald would be willing to come home with you if you ask her nicely?
>more likely, but it's still a stretch
>either way, the party you're part of eventually makes it to a large river twisting through the terrain
>wow, this is one hell of a water source
>but what about pulling moisture out of the environment?
>Emerald has an answer for you, though, and you didn't even need to ask
[p]>"This is the water source, it's pulled out of the ground by some pumps placed about 10 miles upstream from a reservoir underground and it flows down to a nearby lake that another party usually hits before nightfall."[/p]
>you follow her up to the bank and copy what she's doing to collect water
>after the pack is full, you put it back on and find that it's still not that heavy
>what is this sorcery?
>you would've killed for a backpack like this at home
>you're pretty sure that hauling around all those books ended up permanently messing with your posture
>oh well, the walk back isn't anymore eventful than the walk there
>you do have to take a swig out of the canteen, but that's about it
>other than that, it's just another conversation
>well, can a debate about who would win in a fight between Celestia and 4 Hydras really be called 'another conversation'?
>you still think that those hydras would at least have a chance
>when you all get back, you see another team of changelings waiting just outside the entrance to the hive
>you do as the others in your group are doing and hand off your pack to one of those who are waiting, and after that everypony heads inside again to go their separate ways
>except for you and Emerald
>that's because you two still have more stuff to do today
>however, that can wait for a bit
>as soon as you two reach the entry room, you two are met by Chrysalis

>be Luna
>Anonymous just finished telling you about his plans for the time he's spending in a changeling hive
>he also managed to convince you to help him with it
>well, you aren't one to go back on your word, so you guess you have to
>you should also keep some tabs on him, now that you know where he is
>after all, you did say that you were only a nap away
>can't be disappointing him, or worse, letting him down when he needs you
>speaking of not letting him down, what do you need to do now that you're up?
>you need to notify Twilight of Anon's situation and plans, and you need to convince your sister to go along with those plans
>whew
>you better notify Twilight first, it's going to take all day to move the brick wall that is your sister
>you pull out a piece of paper and a pen and start thinking about what to write
>well, if you were in Twilight's position, you wouldn't want her to sugarcoat it
>time to write it, you guess
"Dear Twilight,
Thank you again for informing us about Anonymous's disappearance, we appreciate the concern; I managed to make contact with him through a dream, and while I was there, he informed me of his situation and what he wants us to do. Before I tell you where he is though, I need to tell you that he says he is in no danger and is planning on staying for however long it takes to ensure his end of his plans are complete.
Anonymous is currently somewhere in the badlands and inside a changeling hive. Chrysalis herself had him brought there so she could ask him for aid, and Anonymous said that he should be gone for a week at most and that you shouldn't go and get him since any show of hostility may ruin his idea.
I hope you can understand his reasoning, and in case you're worried, I will be making sure he is safe while he's there.
Kindest regards, Luna"
>let's hope that this doesn't send Twilight into one of her legendary freakouts
>you don't want to be responsible for her getting an aneurism and dying as a result
>other than that, there are probably 3 ways she could handle this
>option 1: she reads the letter and replies, doing what Anonymous wants her to do
>option 2: she reads the letter and replies, doing the opposite of what Anonymous wants her to do
>option 3: she reads it, doesn't reply, and does whatever
>in the event of options 2 or 3, you aren't responsible for what happens
>you've done all you can do aside from going there yourself and physically preventing Twilight from leaving her castle
>now all that's left to do is to convince Celestia that a peaceful solution is possible
>this is gonna suck
>you groan in disappointment as you slump down onto your desk, contemplating the monumental task ahead of you
>this is really gonna suck
>well, nothing is going to happen if you just sit here and complain to nopony about it
>you should get it over with now that you've done the only other thing Anonymous asked you to do
>you get up and walk out of your room to go to Celestia's room
>it's a long walk, probably longer than it should be
>stupid designer didn't think about a situation like this when putting together this disappointment of a castle
>there aren't even any slides or trapdoors
>and your pipe organ is still in the other castle
>you were pretty good at it, too
>if you had any input with the design of this castle, you would've made it so much cooler
>but complaining about the castle isn't what you're going to talk to your sister about
>no, you just need to make a treaty with Chrysalis sound like a good idea to her
>let's see what Anonymous gave you to work with
>changelings less than we think
>Chrysalis needs help
>they have resources we'd like
>we have what's needed to help them
>mutually beneficial
>anything you're missing?
>no?
>alright, you have your arguments organized
>now to just run through a few practice arguments in your head
>as you're walking through the halls, you pass a group of guards who salute
>you almost don't notice them as you're trying to cover every possible outcome in your head, but you still manage a hasty salute in return before continuing
>wow, you should probably relax a bit
>you aren't known for performing well under pressure
>yeah, that's not something you want to have weighing you down during this coming argument
>eventually you make it to Celestia's room after finishing a few mental arguments and taking some deep breaths
>you open the old wood door slowly to make sure it doesn't squeak too much
>it still whines a bit, but it's not too loud
>you see Celestia's ear shift towards you as you now stand in the doorway
>however, the rest of her stays firmly rooted to her own desk and the stack of papers currently occupying it
[p]>"Whatever it is, it's probably nothing. You're dismissed."[/p]
>she gave you an automatic reply?
>you do not stand for this
>she's only given you that sort of treatment once before, and you didn't take it at all
>however, you're here on business and not for fun this time
"Tia, I have some important news that's urgent. Would you mind giving me your attention for a few minutes?"
>she looks up for a second at you before returning her disinterested gaze to the pile of text in front of her
[p]>"Sure, go ahead."[/p]
>she's clearly not paying attention
>her pen hasn't even stopped moving
"Dear sister, I would really appreciate it if you gave me your [i]full[/i] attention, given how important this is."
>she doesn't respond for a full 5 seconds
>when she does, it just further confirms that she's not paying attention at all
[p]>"Hm."[/p]
>you have no choice but to stare in disbelief at this, mouth wide open
>you're getting ignored even when you have some ACTUALLY IMPORTANT things to say!
>you feel your eye start to twitch as your blood pressure rises
>this is the kind of shit that made you try to off this bitch to begin with!
>no, you're getting distracted again!
>calm down, Anonymous isn't getting any help if you go crazy.
>you take a few more deep breaths and get your anger back inside the bottle you use as gaming fuel before thinking about how to get Celestia's attention
>eventually it comes to you
>you use your magic to rip the pen away from your sister while she's distracted and throw it across the room
>she turns to you with an expression of disappointment, disgust and surprise while she throws her hooves in the air
[p]>"Luna, I needed that!"[/p]
>now that she's paying attention, you have your opening
"And I need you to listen. I have important news from Anonymous that demands your attention right now that he himself asked me to give you. If you don't want to listen, then I'll give you back your pen and wait for the coming war with the changelings off in my room."
>you had grabbed her attention by throwing her pen, but you held it fast with your passive-aggressive comment
"Are you ready to listen now?"
>Celestia nods slowly, now understanding the full gravity of your news
"Anonymous has been taken to a changeling hive in the badlands where he has been approached by Chrysalis for help. Not only has she figured out that he's an alien, but that he has the knowledge to give her exactly what you've asked Twilight to get him to tell you. However, he has a plan that could resolve all this peacefully, as long as none of us show any potential hostility towards Chrysalis and her hive while Anonymous plants the seeds in her head."
[p]>"When did this happen and why am I only hearing of this now?"[/p]
>did she not see the letter that Twilight sent?
>you distinctly remember giving it to her yesterday
"Anonymous was first found to be missing yesterday. I distinctly remember giving you the relevant letter, but you must not have looked at it."
>Celestia sighs and rubs her eyes before continuing
[p]>"I'm willing to hear his plan out, however I must say that I remain skeptical of possible peace considering all our past interactions with the changelings."[/p]
>she's willing to listen, good
>she seems a lot less difficult than you expected
>can you actually do this?
"Well, Anonymous mentioned that in their current state the changelings are in no position to invade or cause us any trouble. Also, he implied that it wouldn't be a complex matter for us to provide Chrysalis with an answer to her problems and that she may be willing to exchange valuable resources for this aid and protection."
>she seems to consider this
>at least she looks like she's thinking
>after a few more seconds, she replies
[p]>"That does seem like an interesting proposition, but I can see a major flaw in it. The population knows about the changelings' past deeds and may not support us putting aside our differences. It would be much easier to convince the public to fund a war to wipe them out now while they're weak as opposed to funding peace talks. If you can come up with a counter to that, I'll consider that. Otherwise, I'm continuing with my current plans."[/p]
>she returns her focus to her papers and pulls the pen back to her from across the room, giving you no more attention
>well, you tried
>hopefully Anonymous can help you on this
>if he can't, then that's it
>at least you can still find success with Twilight
>as you exit the room to start the journey back to your own, a letter appears
>it's from Twilight
>you got a reply!
>that means it's definitely option 1 or option 2!
>you take the letter and trot off to your room to open it
>when you get back a short while later, you sit back at your desk and unseal it carefully
>the wax is still a bit wet, you don't want to rip the paper accidentally
>when the letter is unsealed and untied, you set it in front of you to see what Twilight says
>"Dear Princess Luna,
>First, I'd like to thank you for telling me where Anonymous is and that he's currently okay. However, I'm not sure that it would be best to have him be in constant contact with Chrysalis for a full week no matter what he thinks he can do. We both know that she is manipulative and stops at nothing to get what she wants. As much as I want to believe Anonymous here, I don't trust Chrysalis farther than I can throw her (without magical aid)."
>is she serious?
>can't you pull rank here?
>can you do ANYTHING here?
>"I'm afraid that I'm not going to allow Anonymous to spend any more time there than necessary since I still need to make sure he is able to remain concealed among the masses until I can get him home. Because of this, I'm making plans to leave on the next southern train to go find him and bring him back.
>Respectfully yours, Twilight"
>...
>...fuck
>you're done
>you have not been able to do anything Anonymous asked
>that's it
>diplomacy may fail because nopony has any faith in any part of this
>you grab the letter between your hooves and throw it into the air and place your head back on your desk, not caring when it flutters back down on to your face
>today is not starting out great

>be Anon
>Chrysalis herself came up to welcome Emerald and you back from your trip
>she calmly walks over to you both with a warm smile
>"Good morning, how did the trip go?"
>Emerald is the first to speak up
[p]>"It was fun, I got to show Anonymous some cool stuff outside and we had a cool conversation! Also, can you settle something for us?"[/p]
>is she seriously bringing up the 'who would win' conversation to her mom?
>"Sure, what's your question?"
[p]>"Who would win in a fight, Celestia or 4 hydras?"[/p]
>she actually did
>Chrysalis puts a hoof to her chin as she thinks for all of a second
>"Celestia, no question. I could take out a hydra easily, and I actually had some trouble with Celestia the last two times I met her."
>dang
>even Chrysalis won't take your side
>fug
>"Anyway, can you give Anonymous and me some privacy, Emerald? We have important matters to discuss."
>Emerald looks a little bummed, but she still listens
[p]>"Okay."[/p]
>she turns to you before leaving, though
[p]>"As soon as you and Mom are done, come find me and we can do more stuff together!"[/p]
>Chrysalis and you wave to Emerald as she leaves and you two go deeper into the hive
>what's going on that you need to talk to Chrissy?
"What's up? What do you need?"
>Chrysalis looks down at you and replies
>"I'll tell you once we get back to my chamber."
>oh
>more private stuff, probably
>or more stuff about you being an ayylien
>well, it could be interesting
>once you two make it back down to Chrysalis's personal quarters and the door is closed, Chrysalis sits down on the chair
>she also drops her calm expression for one that's a bit more apprehensive and tells you what she needs to
>"I ran out."
>ran out?
>ran out of what?
>oh
>oh shit
"That's bad, isn't it?"
>of course it's bad, you retard!
>why did you ask an obvious question like that?
>oh right, you have no experience in a situation like this
>you had no idea what else to do
>oh wait, she's saying something!
>quick, pay attention!
>"Of course it's bad, I have no more material to rebuild my species with! This can be fixed, of course, but we're going to need to move quickly. Every second we don't prepare for that raid or are out on it is a second that this hive stagnates and potentially shrinks."
>now you're on a ticking clock, too
>fantastic
>let's hope you can actually convince her of your idea in this state
>this is probably the exact wrong time, but fuck it
>she still seems levelheaded enough, and she's treated you with respect so far
"I have another question, and I promise this one isn't quite as stupid."
>Chrysalis looks at you from her position on the chair, with a slightly hopeful look on her face
>"I'm listening."
>careful on the delivery here Anon, don't want to set her off by accident
"Hypothetically speaking, if Celestia was willing to help you with your problem in exchange for some of the resources you have, would you be willing to accept it?"
>she now looks at you like you've gone full retard
>"There are so many things that don't work about what you suggested. One, Celestia hates me. She always has, ever since I crashed her niece's wedding. Two, I don't think that she'd be willing to prostitute out one of her citizens for me even if I gave her every ounce of valuables we have for numerous ethical reasons. Three, I have no guarantee that she'll allow me to breed with a stallion with good seed for a growing population. Does that sum it up for you?"
>shot down
>shot down hard
>well, maybe Luna had more success?
>let's hope so, otherwise your plan could crash and burn even harder than it is now
>still, if you can at least hold off any potential hostilities you [i]may[/i] be able to shove that football through that needle hole
>John Elway willing, that is
>now think!
>you've got to find out a way to get her some useable genetic material so you don't have to bring guns here!
>...
>.....
>...wait
>could that actually work?
>you might need to run it past her and see if you're not stupid
"I have another question that may or may not be more or less stupid than the one I just asked."
>Chrysalis sighs and waves for you to go on
"Does it necessarily have to be pony... you know?"
>this gets her thinking again
>she looks around the room a few times, focusing on you for about a second for each pass
>eventually she answers
>"I do remember my mother telling me stories about other queens who, in desperate times, tried to procreate with non-ponies, but the success rate of the offspring was lower and they always carried traits of the father species. If you're implying what I think you're implying, though, it's certainly not going to happen as you are now."
>okay, she just jumped ahead a few more steps than you thought she would
>you feel just awkward enough right now to not immediately say anything, but Chrysalis starts thinking again anyway
>"This must truly be desperate times if I'm considering this, but..."
>she shakes her head and lets out a nervous laugh
>"... But I may just have to take you up on that offer if this raid doesn't happen soon, or worse, is unsuccessful."
>okay
>you may be losing your virginity to a bug horse
>that's cool
>totally what you planned on
>you totally didn't expect this to go a different direction
>but Chrysalis just keeps going
>"I suppose that if I dip into the love reserves I could get enough energy to reverse the spell, but I'd have to make sure that this could even work before we actually go through with this, so I would need to inspect you myself. Would you mind?"
"Now?"
>"Not now, more likely tomorrow. Also, if you're worried about the others finding out, then don't. It will all take place here.
>okay, you've got some time to prepare
>you may need to tell Luna about this and see if she can help you at all
"Okay, I guess; I just have one final question, though. If it's not too much to ask, why did you immediately jump to me as a candidate for... this?"
>Chrysalis stands up and walks over to you, stopping just a few feet away
>"Because despite what's happened here, you've always shown me the same respect I've given you. With the average pony, they just shy away, run in fear, or chase us out in disgust when we're found out. You, however, have done none of that. You didn't judge us by what we are to everypony else, instead you formed your own opinion based on what you saw here. If you as a human are compatible with me at all, I wish that the young that come from this would carry the same humanity that you do."
>holy shit, either she's opened herself up completely to you or she's trying to mess with your head
>the problem is, if she's messing with you, it's working
>fug
>your ego just swelled to twice the size your dick would've here
>don't let the bug cloud your thoughts, Anon!
>consider this carefully and think about everything that could happen, don't just think with your nonexistent boner!
"I'll do it."
>WHAT DID I LITERALLY JUST TELL YOU TO DO?
>*sigh*
>you're hopeless
>you know what, you can just deal with this yourself
>I'm not helping you anymore
>.
>..
>...
>damnit
>you win this round
>Chrysalis gets an optimistic smile and sits back down, which is when you realize that you've been standing this whole time
>you take the spot on the couch as she continues on with a plan of what'll happen
>"Alright then, tomorrow I'll have enough energy to reverse the spell and then we can go from there! Is that alright with you?"
>well, you've already gotten this far
>it's not like you can turn back, or anything
"Sure. Can you also get enough to change me back, just in case? I don't want to cause any sort of a panic because there's suddenly a 6-foot-tall alien running around the hive and getting stuck in small doorways."
>Chrysalis's expression goes from optimistic to confused
>"Just how tall will you be when you're back to normal? Also, how long is a foot?"
>you don't exactly have any measuring utensils around you to demonstrate your point
>is there anything around here that could help?
>well, you know that Chrysalis can change herself to fit a certain role and you have a reasonable guess to go off of with Luna's height
"In order to give you an idea, I'm going to need you to change into somepony for me."
>she stands up out of her chair, still looking confused
"Just as a clarifying point, you change your height too when you change your appearance?"
>"Of course, otherwise it wouldn't be as believable. Now, who do you need me to be?"
"Change into Princess Luna, please."
>Chrysalis is engulfed by a column of green magic, and when it clears, you see an exact replica of Luna
>"Now what? Is there anything else you need me to do?"
>she even sounds like her, this is pretty cool!
>Spy from Team Fortress suddenly comes into your head, and you manage to suppress the giggling from the thought of Chrysalis wearing a paper mask of Luna
"You just need to stand up straight."
>she looks down to check her posture before straightening up to almost a position of attention
"You know how tall you are now? Well, in my normal form you'd currently be about 2/3s of my height."
>Chrysalis looks up at the ceiling, probably trying to gauge just how tall that is
>after she's done, she summons up another green column and comes out of it as herself again
>"That is certainly tall, I understand your concern. I'll make sure that I get enough energy to change you back as well after everything's done."
>Chrysalis sits back down in the chair, one again starting to think
"So, is there anything else you needed while I was here?"
>"Not that I can think of, you're free to go back to Emerald. She's probably somewhere in the middle levels, given her tendency to wander."
>alright, so you know where to check as well
>you say goodbye to Chrysalis and make your way back up to try to find Emerald

>be Twilight
>Luna sent you a letter in response to the one you sent her yesterday, asking you to do something that you really don't want to do
>like tartarus you're going to sit here and wait while Anon goes off and does Celestia-knows-what with some insectoid that wants nothing more than full-blown revenge!
>no, you're going to go there yourself and bring him back
>and you'll squash any bug that gets in your way
>Anon holds too many dangerous secrets to let Chrysalis have, she'll be able to take over the entire planet even with the basic level of human weaponry!
>she's also enough of a manipulator to get that information out of him, Anon's pretty easily persuaded from what you've seen
>as such, you're going to the badlands as soon as you can
>unfortunately the train to the southern border has already left for today, so you'll have to go tomorrow
>on the bright side, this gives you some time to prepare
>you're not sure how strong Chrysalis will be, so you decide to research some other spells to help if you need it
>a few counter spells, a magical anti-magic field and even a spell of tectonic rage
>that should be enough to destroy the entire hive if you need to
>you hope it doesn't come down to dropping the equivalent of a small mountain on top of all of them, though
>you have no idea who else besides changelings are in there and you don't want to possibly hurt Anon in the process
>midway through your study though you feel your flank begin to vibrate
>not now
>any time but now!
>you try and block out the sensation, but everything in that area quickly goes numb
>somehow, the numbness is even more distracting than the vibrating
>guess you'll just have to check that damned map anyway
>you make your way up to the room, being careful to listen for the front door in case any of your friends need to be let in
>however, when you get there, you see something interesting on the map
>you see your own mark, of course
>that's not the weird part
>it's in the badlands
>at least you assume it is
>since it's just a map of Equestria, the badlands are off the side of the table
>your mark is sitting on the edge of the table with an indicator arrow pointing off in the direction of the badlands
>that's not the weirdest part, though
>right next to it with a similar arrow pointing in the same direction is a square with a pink and black checkerboard pattern on it
>what does this mean?
>this map hasn't shown anything that you haven't recognized as being either you or one of your friends, so what is this?
>you teleport up a piece of paper and a few different pens of different colors to try to mark down what the display's showing
>after a few seconds, you get a basic enough drawing and a description to go with it
>it's not often this thing gives you something unexpected, so you've taken to cataloguing when it does
>well, it looks like nothing that isn't new (besides that square, you don't think you've even met a pony with that for a cutie mark)
>plus, you were going that way anyway
>you're not sure if you need to wait for Mr. or Ms. Square to show up, but you're not waiting too long
>you have other important business there
>but what would be the issue happening there?
>you never really know until you get there though, so you shouldn't spend time wondering
>you just need to finish what you're doing and book a ticket for tomorrow

>be Chrysalis
>things are going interestingly, to say the least
>Anonymous has given you a plan B to the plan A he gave you yesterday, and that's pretty cool
>your tactic of manipulation is working well
>who knew that just being brutally honest could get you so far?
>of course, you're not exactly used to leaving yourself completely out there to be judged
>but Anonymous is being very polite about it, which is also cool
>maybe if more ponies were like him you wouldn't have to be like this
>either way, things are going alright considering your state
>the one thing that's making you think is Anonymous's question about Celestia
>you know that he's in contact with her, is it actually possible to solve this without needing to resort to more trickery?
>if it is, then you feel a little bit bad about shutting him down so fast
>maybe you should bring it up with him later?
>yeah, you'll give him some more time with Emerald before bringing him back again
>he's probably going to want a mental break to adjust to plan B
>so you'll give him a couple hours and ask him a few more questions when you need to

>be Anon
>you're going back up through the hive to find Emerald
>it shouldn't be too hard to find her, she's about half the size of every other changeling you've seen and has the only set of green eyes you've seen around here
>all the others are either some shade of blue or a light pinkish color
>eventually you find her in a room with a few other changelings, helping them move supplies from one place to another
"Hey Emerald, what's going on?"
>she waves you over into the group and you take some of her supplies to help
[p]>"I'm helping out the transporters since I had nothing else to do. How was your talk with Mom?"[/p]
>after you manage to balance the supplies you grabbed on your back, you reply
"It was interesting, to say the least. I don't think she'd like me telling you exactly what happened, though."
>she gives you a surprised look as you two continue just behind the rest of the group
[p]>"It must have been pretty important if she doesn't want anypony else knowing about it. Can you at least give me a hint?"[/p]
>can you give her a hint without revealing too much?
>it's going to require some seriously light treading, but you may be able to
"She had some interesting offers for me, and we came to an agreement after some extra conversation. I'm going to have to talk to her again for a little while tomorrow, but I suppose that isn't too unexpected."
>Emerald nods slowly with a thoughtful expression, probably trying to pull meaning out of what you just said
>whatever's going through her head probably isn't the act that you let Chrysalis pull you into
>it will be a bit amusing to be able to truthfully use the insult 'I fucked your mom' in the event of an argument, though
>however, that's a small upside to the possibility of fucking Chrissy
>but is that a downside?
>you're not too sure
>on the one hand, you're doing something that your parents would probably disown you for
>on the other hand, you'd be able to give them way more grandchildren than all of your siblings combined
>but would it matter if they're half-horsebugs from a different universe?
>eh, maybe
>alternatively, things could go another way that you don't yet know
>but you're usually pretty good at predicting things in advance, given enough information
>something tells you that you're either going to fug the bug or give her guns
>so that's what you're betting on happening
>about now you realize that you've been walking next to Emerald for a while and haven't said anything in the past few minutes
"Sorry about that, I got really distracted by my thoughts. Anything else cool going on with you?"
>she turns back towards you from looking around and replies
[p]>"I haven't really done anything else interesting since this morning, but I'm kinda hungry. Wanna get lunch after this?"[/p]
>lunch does sound pretty good, and this walk plus the one you went on this morning is really starting to take effect
"Sure, that sounds pretty good. I'm assuming we're going to the same place as before?"
>you add a bit of sarcasm to the last bit, hoping to get a laugh
>instead, Emerald gives you that one costanza face with her reply
[p]>"Would you rather go get a hayburger?"[/p]
>she has a point
>you shake your head with a giggle
"You got me there, this place has better food than any restaurant I've been to in Equestria."
>after you two finish with your job of delivering supplies with the rest of the group you're in, you two head down to the mess hall and get some food
>it's more krait for you and Emerald also gets some food
>you're starting to feel some discomfort in your gut, but fuck it
>you're a human at heart, you need your protein
>whatever digestive troubles you have are problems for future you
>after you finish, the digestive troubles hit you in spades
>this hurts
>bad
[p]>"Is everything alright, Anonymous?"[/p]
>shit, she sees your pain
>play it off
"I'm fine, where's the bathroom?"
>she immediately recognizes the look on your face and stands up
[p]>"Follow me, I'll try to hurry."[/p]
>you two make your way to the bathroom and you get there just in time
>Emerald waits outside while you go in to try and make yourself feel better
>after a shit worthy of its own separate greentext and a smell that melts the walls around you, you emerge a hollow shell of yourself
[p]>"So... do you still want to help me with stuff? I understand if you don't after... that, though."[/p]
>now you're tired as well as hollow
"I think I need a nap..."
[p]>"Alright, I'll lead you back there. I guess you're not going to eat that much krait now?"[/p]
>she gives you an awkward smile, probably trying to make the situation a bit less heavy
>all you do is nod in agreement with your dead expression
>you two navigate back up to the resting area and you climb back into bed to try and force a timeskip
>maybe some time out of the land of the waking will make you feel better?
>Emerald heads back out to do some more jobs, while you slowly drift into the void
>.   .   .
>your dream's setting is your apartment
>guess your mind's trying to make you as comfortable as possible after that
>so you set up yourself with some snacks in front of your computer, trying to find some of that magic you lost when coming to this world
>of course, now that there isn't an actual community to sit and shitpost with, it's pretty lackluster
>however, at least your brain remembers more porn than you do
>so you just sit in front of your dream computer looking at the porn you had saved and eating poptarts
>you don't have an insane amount saved, but still enough to warrant some organization to your storage
>you never had the biggest collection of anything but you had what you liked, and that's all that mattered
>after a few minutes of doing this, you see a blue reflection next to yours in the darker parts of your monitor
>shit
>"Anonymous, I assume you need my help?"
>you close out of everything as fast as you can before turning around, your mouth still half-full of poptart
>let's hope Luna wasn't paying enough attention to notice your memorized clop folder
>you swallow quickly, only choking on crumbs for a few seconds
"Actually, now that you mention it, I do have some more news."
>she looks more confused than usual with you after witnessing that display
>"Did I interrupt something?
"Nope."
>"Are you sure? I saw you looking at something that you closed pretty quickly, I c-"
"Nah, it's fine."
>"If it was something im-"
"It wasn't."
>"Then what were you-"
"Don't worry about it."
>Luna only looks more confused now, but your poker face eventually forces her to continue back on the original topic
>"... Then I guess I also have some news for you, too. Would you care to go first?"
"Sure. Poptart?"
>you grab the open box off your desk and hold it in front of her
>she looks inside and levitates out one
>it's strawberry flavor
>good taste
>after some inspection, she takes a small bite
>her reaction is... interesting
>at first, she seems to enjoy it
>then, she seems mildly disgusted
>finally, an air of disappointment as she swallows the bite
>"It's not terrible, but this isn't what I expected from a species of your apparent ability."
>regardless of her previous statement, she takes another bite as you start
"Well, I told Chrysalis about my plan. She almost immediately shot it down."
>Luna swallows another bite and responds with something that gives you no comfort
>"Then it's probably not the best of things that Celestia disagreed as well."
>rip your plan
>you sigh and slump farther into your computer chair before saying anything else
"Wow, that sucks. Got any other news that I might need to know about?"
>"Yes. Unfortunately, I think everything that could go wrong has gone wrong. Twilight isn't being cooperative and told me that she would be leaving for the badlands as soon as she can, so you should expect her tomorrow at the very earliest."
>Damnit, purple!
>you had one job!
>however, there's one other thing that you should probably ask Luna about
>especially since you're not sure why you're in this situation to begin with, despite you even asking for clarification
"You have no idea just how wrong it's gone. By the way, I have a question."
>Luna swallows her last bite of poptart before replying and pulling another out of the box
>"Ask and I'll give whatever guidance I can."
"Somehow that conversation with Chrysalis turned into her asking me to... procreate with her."
>she drops both the box and the poptart, as well as her jaw
>Luna starts blinking and stammering as she tries to figure out exactly what the fuck you just said
>"... wHAT"
"... and since my brain pretty much shut down there, I agreed."
>you try to keep the straightest face you can, but you can't help looking slightly nervous
>at least she doesn't seem to care that you never asked a question
>the implied meaning must have gotten through
>after a few more moments of silence, Luna picks her mouth up off the floor and starts trying to find a reply that would actually help
>A-? Hm, mayb-? No, if-?..."
>she sighs and looks at you with disappointment and pity
>"I've got nothing. All I can say is that you better hope Twilight gets there before you have to endure changeling sex. If not, prepare for changeling sex."
>changeling sex?
>is it somehow different from normal sex?
"What's wrong with changeling sex?"
>Luna gathers her thoughts again as she pulls the box of poptarts up off the floor, selecting a new one from it
>"I'm not speaking from any perspective besides one of study, and before you get any ideas, it was part of a class that had much more to offer than this. They tend to have much more stamina in this area than the average pony, being able to last for up to 6 minutes. This combined with the pheromones they release being able to force continued copulation means that they can often cause some low-level psychological trauma in their victim from the extended period of this interaction."
>6 minutes?
>humans can last a lot longer than that, you're fine!
"Alright, then I guess I'm physically prepared, at least."
>"Physically prepared?"
>oh, why did you say that...
>now how do you explain this?
>guess it just has to come out all at once, like ripping off a bandaid
"I guess it's time for an awkward biology lesson! Humans can actually last for over half an hour during sex. Of course, that's not my main problem with this, but at least it means that I won't be too disappointing."
>"Then what [i]is[/i] your problem?"
>Luna just keeps going further into the realm of 'nope', yet she's still asking to try to help you
>bless her
"This'll actually be the first time I ever do this. Not even with another human."
>pokerface.png
>she also poker faces
>TMI?
>TMI, probably
>"I don't think I can help you with that, either."
"I figured. Sorry about all this, I imagine you didn't want to learn half the things you did."
>"At least I'm not my sister."
>a few more awkward seconds follow
>this tension's not going away
>why
>wait, why is being her sister a bad thing?
>nope, not the time to think about it
>it may be an attempt to ease tensions or something, but let's not go further into this hole
>we've gone far enough past too far
>Luna's on her 4th poptart by now
"You enjoying those?"
>"Yes, they seemed to have grown on me."
"Yeah, back at home I usually have at least one box in the cabinet just for that reason."
>that successfully provided a small distraction
>shit, now what?
>not much, since Luna pulls out a small magic orb from thin air
>"Well, it seems you're about to wake up anyway, so I'll just leave now."
"Alright, see you later."
>and she teleports out as you feel your mind fall back into place
>when your eyes open, you see a changeling sitting next to you
>when she speaks, you immediately recognize her
>"Glad you're awake, Mother wants to talk to you again."
>it's Spinneret!
"Nice to see you too. Any word on what it's about?"
>"She said she wants to ask you about something from earlier today, she didn't tell me anything else."
>alright, you're going into this without much of an idea of what's happening
>if she's moved up the schedule and is DTF now, then you're not sure what to do
>guess you just have to lie down and accept it
>literally
>Spinneret leads you back through some more rooms and tunnels until you both get back down to Chrysalis's room
>the guards are more used to you passing through at this point, so they just step aside as you enter
>when you get inside and close the door, you see Chrysalis sitting on the couch and waiting for you
>"Welcome back, Anonymous. I have a few questions to ask you, if you don't mind answering them."
>you don't really have any other options, so you might as well
>you sit down in the chair and nod, waiting for the first question
>"You mentioned a hypothetical situation where a truce between me and Celestia happening. What brought that up?"
>okay, you don't have to tell her about Luna
>yet
>and let's hope it stays that way
"As you already know, I have connections to the princesses. I figured that if I could get you to agree, then they might be willing to put differences aside to remove a threat and gain an ally. Unfortunately, due to recent circumstance, I don't think it's going to happen anymore."
>she dives into thought again, and surfaces a few seconds later
>"What if I told you that should this hypothetically happen, I might be willing to agree?"
"It would be pretty cool, but I still don't think it would happen."
>"Why not?"
"Well... Call it a gut feeling."
>"Oh. Well, if you can make it happen, then I'll gladly accept."
>that's good, now you might want to let her in on some of your apprehensions to the possible fugging
>you know, because Luna couldn't give you help
"Also, while I'm here, can I let you in on a secret?"
>Chrysalis scoots over on the couch and motions for you to come up next to her
>you accept the offer, yet you still keep your distance just a bit by leaning against the arm
"Well, about the plan for if all else fails... That'll actually be my first time."
>you keep a straight face, but you still feel some blood flush your cheeks
>she looks down at you with a kind expression and tries to reassure you
>"Don't worry. If you need the help, I'll guide you. You have nothing to fear from this, just think of it as... A show of good will between our species."
>again with the diplomatic respect
>if she's trying to get inside your head, it's definitely working
>well, judging by your mental reaction, it's already worked
>this actually ends up reassuring you somehow, and it also awakens the phantom whyboner from its thousand-year slumber
>dangit
"That actually helped, thanks. So, see you tomorrow?"
>"See you tomorrow."
>you exit the room to go find Emerald again, now a bit less nervous about what's to come tomorrow
>that was interesting
>you got confirmation that your plan could work as long as Twilight and Celestia don't fuck it up
>this isn't as bad as you thought
>now you just need to find Emerald again
>that's much easier said than done
>you wander around the hive for the second time today and eventually find her taking a breather with some water
"Hey, sorry I couldn't find you immediately. Your mom wanted to talk to me again, and it seemed pretty important."
[p]>"It's fine, I wasn't really doing anything interesting anyway. I'm going to help out the caretakers after this, and unfortunately I don't think you can help with that, but I don't think you can't watch!"[/p]
>alright, cool
>at least you can stick around
"What do the caretakers do?"
>Emerald finishes her water, gets up and tells you
[p]>"They take care of all the hatchlings when Mom can't for whatever reason. Mom hasn't been able to lately because she says she's planning something, so the caretakers have been doing a lot of it and need all the help they can get."[/p]
>oh
>oh shit
>they might not need that extra help for very long, since Chrissy's out of babymaking supplies
>and now you feel bad, since that was kind of in bad taste
>wait, why is Emerald looking at you like that?
[p]>"Anonymous, are you alright?"[/p]
>shit, you were giving it away again!
"Yeah, I'm fine. Let's go, if you're ready."
>she shrugs and motions for you to follow her before heading down a hallway
>after a few more twists, turns, and inclines, you two reach a room that looks a bit more child-friendly than the ornate architecture of the rest of the hive
>edges are dulled, decorations are simpler, and there are a few colors other than slate gray and obsidian black
>they're also stone colors, however they're more interesting varieties like granite and marble
>must have had to pull these from elsewhere since the aesthetics don't really seem natural compared to everything else
>still, it's a change in scenery
>you don't see any changelings in here, though
>there are two hallways that branch off from the room which both seem to lead to more interesting places, at least judging by what you can hear
>on the right is the sound of babbies, and the left holds sounds more akin to a school
"Which way from here?"
[p]>"To the right is the nursery. All the eggs and hatchlings are raised there until they mature enough to learn, which is when they go to the place on the left. That's where we learn about the various jobs and what we can do. You can go down either, but just remember to not disturb anypony. I'm going to the right, though; I'm still tired of that room to the left."[/p]
>so she has similar opinions about school to any other filly, then
"I guess I'll follow you."
>you two head down the right hallway and see multiple rooms, each holding a couple of changelings and various younger ones of different age
>as you two go farther down the hall though, the young ones get younger and younger until you two get to the last room
>the last room has the most adult changelings in it, but the least in total
>that's because it's occupied by eggs
>there's nothing but shiny green and blue eggs
>almost like polished crystal
>but they're not, they're eggs
>still, you feel oddly compelled to touch one
>it looks like it would be really smooth
>when you focus on the rest of the room though, you find that it's a lot larger than the others
>there's also not as many eggs as it looks like there should be
>Emerald doesn't seem to care though, as she calmly walks over to one of the others in the room
[o]>"Welcome back, Em. I see you brought the guest with you, is she here to help too?"[/o]
[p]>"No, I just told her to watch for now since this is a delicate job. How many new arrivals today?"[/p]
>the older changeling seems a bit apprehensive about telling her
>you know the exact reason why, too
[o]>"The thing is... There are none."[/o]
[p]>"None? What's wrong?"[/p]
[o]>"Mother is having some problems, and as a result, there are no new arrivals."[/o]
>Emerald gets a nervous look on her face as she walks back to you
[p]>"Well, I guess I can still show you what happens around here. I hope Mom's alright..."[/p]
>she then shows you what a caretaker does and how they do it
>they make sure each egg is properly cared for by keeping them warm with heated sand as well as inspect them every day for any cracks or signs of development
>gotta make sure they're all developing properly
>as it turns out, they get shinier the further through development they are
>it must be a bad sign that they're all really shiny, then
>wait, no
>they're ordered in terms of shininess
>all the duller ones are at the back of the room getting the most attention
>you still manage to resist your urge to touch one, as smooth and shiny as they look
>as Emerald continues to demonstrate the procedures to taking care of them and explaining it along the way, you find your mind drifting again
>Twilight said she was coming here to get you, and knowing her, she'll be here as soon as possible
>that means that she'll probably be here tomorrow at some point, and that will throw a pretty big wrench into what's left of your plan
>you really don't want that to happen, but you're still not entirely on board with replicating your visit to Celestia with Chrysalis
>you remember that you're also wearing your shirt right now, too
>how long have you been wearing it?
>a couple days, probably
>ew
>you're definitely going to have to wash it when you get back
>you're also going to have to remember to take it off before Chrysalis changes you back tomorrow, if that even happens
>this is your favorite blue shirt and now your only blue shirt
>that's ignoring the fact that it's also just your only shirt, but still!
>you plan on getting home someday, and when you get there, you want to keep your shirt
>it's comfy and you've had it for years
>time to snap back to reality!
>Emerald's still explaining about stuff and you two have moved over to a different part of the room as she explains what different ways things need to be done for eggs of different stages of development
>wow, she knows a lot about this
>this was probably what she was going to do before she got to go out and meet you
>and then your friendship gave her a new perspective on life that made her immediately show preference to spying
>all because you showed her that friendship is magic
>title drop!
>she definitely seems more serious here than she was in Ponyville though, that's for sure
>after she finishes helping out some more, Emerald says goodbye to the other caretakers and you two leave
[p]>"Well, did you enjoy that?"[/p]
"It was a bit interesting. This entire trip's interesting, though, you've been showing me a lot of cool stuff!"
>she blushes and gives you a flattered smile
[p]>"T-thanks, I've never had a friend to show all this before. I'm glad you find it interesting!"[/p]
>her green eyes seem to get just a bit brighter after your comment, too
>did you just feed her?
>yeah, you probably did
>oh well, as Jesus once said, "love thy neighbor", and Emerald's pretty much a neighbor right now
>if not, she's a roommate
"So, anything else cool you want to show me? Also, what time is it?"
>Emerald thinks to herself before igniting her small horn with a column of teal magic
[p]>"The time's about sundown, and I really don't have anything else to do today. What do you want to do?"[/p]
>what do you want to do?
>a great many things you can't do, but now that you think about it, your trip to the bathroom today left a sizeable void in your body
>it may be time for food
"I guess I'm pretty hungry, how about you?"
[p]>"Yeah, I think I'm about ready for dinner too."[/p]
>so you two head back down to the mess hall to get some more food
>this time you don't overload your plate with krait
>you still take some though, moderation being a thing and all
>you also grab plenty of things that look like a pony should be able to eat and not suffer from
>some leafy vegetables, some fruit, stuff your mom would appreciate you eating instead of nothing but poptarts and frozen pizza
>after you get everything, you and Emerald sit at an unoccupied table and get into another conversation
>you both finish your food as the conversation shifts over to geopolitics and global happenings and you both also head back over to the resting room
>it's not too far of a walk, and the conversation doesn't have much time to go anywhere from there
>also, it doesn't come to blows or hurt feelings because neither of you know very much about this world's geopolitical climate
>it's mostly just speculation on both of your parts
>when you two get there, Emerald lets out a pretty big yawn
>she must be pretty tired
[p]>"Hey, do you mind if I turn in a bit early? I'm pretty tired after today."[/p]
"Not at all, you definitely worked harder than I did."
>well then, if she's going to sleep then what do you do?
>she hops into a nearby bed and motions for you to get in with her
[p]>"I'll still talk to you, just don't expect me to stay awake for too much longer."[/p]
>not wanting to disappoint her, you climb in next to Emerald
>she pulls the covers over both of your heads and shifts a bit so she's facing you
"Why'd you do that?"
[p]>"I thought it was a bit cold. Plus, I think it's a bit more comfortable. So, where did we leave off?"[/p]
"Uh... Oh yeah, the Equestrian Reserve."
>and so you two continue on for another while until Emerald closes her eyes
>you wait for a little bit longer until you think she's asleep before trying to get back out
>despite all your sneakiness though, she still responds
[p]>"Stay... Please..."[/p]
>you look back at her and she hasn't even opened her eyes
>that's fucking adorable
>so you decide to stay, partially because you have no idea what you would've done if you hadn't
>it's a big hive and you still have no idea where you are or where you're going when you go somewhere
>the only point you know how to get to is Chrysalis's room, and that's only because it's on the lowest level
>so you stay under the sheets with Emerald
>it goes quite similarly to the day before yesterday
>the only difference is that instead of feeling her fur against yours, you feel her exoskeleton
>it's an odd feeling, but not unpleasant
>it's still warm and a bit flexible, but it's also very smooth
>this is an interesting feeling to say the least
>your phantom boner doesn't make an encore appearance this time, though
>either you're starting to think of her as more of a friend than anything else, or you just subconsciously don't like this feeling
>she still falls right back to sleep though, and after a few more thoughts about the future and what's in store, you do too
>.   .   .
>when your surroundings come back into focus, you're in your apartment again
>and your brother's there
>and you two are playing vidya
>it would be pretty cool, but unfortunately, you're not really home
>you're also not with your real brother
>you also won't have either for a considerable amount of time
>so instead you wait for Luna to show up again
>you've got more news for her
>after a few minutes of waiting, Luna appears in your kitchen and walks over
>"Good evening, Anonymous. Has anything changed for the better?"
"Actually, yes. Chrysalis talked to me again and after some explanation, agreed to be cooperative if we could pull this off. Don't worry, she still doesn't know about you."
>"That's fantastic! I just spent the time checking various things and putting together an argument to use against my sister. Also, I did confirm that Twilight would be there by tomorrow evening. I hope she doesn't mess anything up, but if you can get through to her, then it might just be enough to tip Celestia in our favor!"
>is there a way your plan could still work?
>there just might be!
"Nice! Any advice?"
>Luna considers everything she knows about Twilight over the course of a few seconds
>"Unfortunately, no. I haven't spent nearly enough time around her to be able to help you convince her of something, but as a starting point, why not just tell her what you told me?"
>oh, duh
>the exact argument you already used to get one of the royals on your side to begin with
"I guess I should've remembered that. Alright, so what do you want to do while you're still here?"
>"Do you have any more poptarts? Oh, and is that computer still in use?"
>she points over to the one being held by your "brother", completely oblivious to the situation
"I don't think so, go ahead."
>you close your eyes and remove the dream entity from your room and replace it with a dream prop
>when you open your eyes, Luna has a box of poptarts and is sitting where your "brother" was
>you two spend the rest of this time sitting and playing games until you wake up
>.   .   .
>when you open your eyes, you realize that you woke up before Emerald
>you also notice that she's currently hugging you from behind
>as adorable as that is, you've got business to attend to
>you've gotta warn Chrissy about Purple
>you wiggle your wat out of bed as smoothly as you can so that you don't wake Emerald up
>once you're out, you look around to get your bearings
>there are a few doors nearby, and each one of them leads to somewhere where you can go further down
>cool, let's see if you can navigate your way to Chrysalis on your own
>you head out into a hallway and start walking, passing a few changelings along the way
>most give you a glance as you pass, but none try to stop you or get in your way
>it seems that they realize you have a purpose for walking around alone
>as you go farther and farther down, you try to figure out the best way to go about telling Chrysalis
>no way like the blunt way
>when you get down to the door leading into Chrysalis's room, the guards are the first to stop you
[o]>"Before we let you pass, what business do you have for the Queen?"[/o]
"I have news about something that will happen today that she needs to hear."
[o]>"What is your news?"[/o]
"Twilight Sparkle is on her way."
>both guards look at each other with a slightly nervous expression before one of them turns back to you
[o]>"You may pass."[/o]
>they step aside and one of them knocks on the door
>not too long after, Chrysalis opens it
>"Good morning Anonymous, I didn't expect you to be awake for another while. Come in, please."
>she stands to the side in the entry room, letting you pass and then closing the door
>"What brought you here so early? Are you eager for today?"
>you stand in front of her as she sits down on the couch again
"I'm here for a different reason. Twilight's on her way here."
>Chrysalis near instantly goes from a calm expression to one of complete shock
>"How did she already find you? Spinneret assured me that it would take at least 3 days for her to figure it out and a 4th to get here!"
>you may have to come clean about this
>she leans on an arm of the couch, holding her hoof against her forehead and running through details in her head as you gather the nerve necessary to finally tell her
"Before you hear what I have to say, I just want you to know that it was in the best of intentions and that it can still work if Twilight can be convinced."
>Chrysalis's eyes slowly drift to you as she absorbs what you just said
>"What did you do."
"To start off, I'll tell you that I've been getting visits from Princess Luna regularly in my sleep. Now, on the first night I was here is when I got the idea for the possible truce. I shared that idea with Luna, and after some time, I managed to convince her that it was a good idea and told her to send a letter to Twilight telling her that I was fine and that she needed to wait for me. Unfortunately, Twilight did the exact opposite of that and is now fully aware of both my plan and how she's going to mess it up."
>Chrysalis stands up and sighs, still facing away from you
>"I suppose I can't blame you for trying. I was once like that, so I can understand why you tried. Just remember this: no matter how much ponies talk of friendship and acceptance, it all stops as soon as you aren't one of them. I learned that the hard way."
>are we going to get a backstory?
>that would certainly be interesting!
>"Anyway, thank you for the warning. I suppose I should go prepare for this, in case things get as violent as I expect."
>oh
>Chrysalis leaves the room to talk to the guards, telling them to get everypony to one of the secondary exits and to wait for further instructions
>"Anonymous, I want you to follow them. This is probably going to get too dangerous for you to be in the main area of this hive."
>after this, she walks off to somewhere else in the hive and leaves you with the guards

>be Twilight
>there's still about an hour before you have to be at the train station, and you're doing everything you can to ensure that you can get Anonymous back
>you've memorized all the spells you need and have even packed a couple of magic batteries in case things go wrong
>you can't underestimate your opponent, Chrysalis has defeated your mentor and every other alicorn twice now
>you even researced a few healing spells in case you get injured
>now you just need to make sure that everything is all set here
"Spike, do you have everything you need?"
[o]>"Yeah, I still have the list and I packed the rest of your bag like you asked.[/o]
>good, looks like you've got an hour to kill
>might as well take the scenic route to the station

>be Chrysalis
>Twilight is coming to take Anonymous back, presumably by force
>you are nowhere near strong enough to stand a chance against her as you are now
>you need to get as powerful as you can before she gets here
>you're probably going to need to use up the rest of your supply of love
>desperate times...
>you make your way to a room that few of your changelings know about and open up a small box
>inside it is another small box, a key and a note
>"Only use this if it's absolutely necessary, you set this aside for a reason."
>you left yourself that note when you first built a hive out here, just in case you ever needed a boost to get you through a few extra days before you could get a sizeable population to help
>in all the years that you've been out here, you've never needed the contents of this box until yesterday
>now you're going to use the rest of it up in defense of all you care about
>if you die, so be it
>just as long as none of your children have to
>besides, one of them will rise to the task of taking over and become a new queen soon enough
>probably Emerald, she's still young enough to hold the position for a long time and she's shown to be able to do whatever task lies in front of her no matter what
>no, don't get all ready to die!
>you still have a chance!
>after all, you did manage to subdue the monster that corrupted your children and drain her of her life
>that cunt could beat Twilight whenever she wanted, somehow
>no wonder she was at the top of Equestria's watch list
>it brought you much satisfaction to remove her from existence
>and if you could do that, then you can easily stop Twilight!
>however, you were still much stronger when you did that
>you've been steadily declining until now
>you can barely even do a simple spell right now, much less take on a pony of Twilight's level
>not wasting any more time, you open the second box to expose a shining pink orb that shimmers like the surface of a lake
>it's a little smaller than a hoofball, but it's pure love
>you touch the tip of your horn to it and feel it begin to flow into you
>as you take in more and more of it, you feel your strength return to a level you deem acceptable
>when you look back inside the box though, all you see is a small pinkish marble with a dull glow
>you've taken all you can, any more and you'll have to rebind a whole new pearl to hold love for you
>is that all you're worried about right now?
>having to make a new orb should be the least of your worries, you're going to fight Twilight Sparkle!
>you sigh once again as you touch your horn to what remains of the once-full orb and drain the last of the love from it, leaving it as a small white bead
>you're as prepared as you can get for what's coming, now you just have to make sure everypony else is

>be Anonymous
>you were told to follow the guards
>you did, and they led you to a place that looks an awful lot like a barrack
>from there, they ordered every other guard present to begin sweeping for changelings and to inform any other guards not here of their orders
"Can I help in any way?"
[o]>"Sorry, but no. If something happened and you got injured, the Queen wouldn't be happy. We have everything under control, anyway."[/o]
>well, you offered
>after this, the guards split up and head in all different directions
>one of them leads you to an entrance room, though
>she tells you to wait here and heads back down into the rest of the hive
>over time, you see more and more changelings come in and wait with you
>eventually, Emerald joins you in the room
[p]>"Anonymous, what's going on? Why is everypony getting ready for an emergency evacuation?"[/p]
"Twilight found me."
>her face pretty much mimics Chrysalis's expression and even a few changelings turn and look at you when you say this
>needless to say, they get pretty surprised too
>none of them speak up, though
>cool
>after that, both of you stay silent
>you both pretty much know what Twilight's arrival means
>after a while and a lot more changelings piling into the room, Chrysalis and a few guards show up in the doorway
>"I'm sure many of you have heard by now, but Twilight Sparkle is on the way to our hive. Because of this, I've tasked the guards with evacuating all of you. I'm not willing to risk any of your lives over this, and as such, I'm ordering you all to go to the backup location and wait. I will find you when it's over, and if I don't, then assume the worst. I love you all, goodbye."
>Chrysalis turns around and walks back into the depths of the hive, but the guards stay and move to the exit
>they start moving Changelings outside, which is when you realize something
>if you're not here, then everything's definitely going to fall apart
>you force your way back through the crowd, and by some miracle, you aren't stopped
>probably because they all know you're the reason Twilight's on the warpath
>oh well, all the better!
>you're the reason this happened, and you're going to make sure it gets a happy ending!
>after you're sure nopony else is around, you try to find Chrysalis
>after some searching and many separate instances of going in circles, you eventually find her in a cavernous room that looks like a differently decorated version of Celestia's throne room
>there are two rows of massive stone columns going down the length of the room and the walls are decorated with suspended statues instead of stained glass windows
>the throne itself is also very different
>it's much simpler and without a small set of stairs leading up to it
>as soon as your reverberating hoofsteps reach Chrysalis's ears, she immediately looks up at you
>"Anonymous, what are you doing? I told you to follow the guards!"
"I'm the whole reason this started, so I'm not going to let you fix my mistake for me."

>be Chrysalis
>this human continues to baffle you
>after all the altruism he's already shown, he still thinks that he needs to help in some way
>even though he wouldn't be here if it wasn't for you, he's still willing to stand with you to make sure that everything goes okay
"Fine, I can't stop you from doing what you think is yours to do. However, I'm not going to let any harm come to you. If I tell you to run, you need to run no matter what Twilight says. This could get very dangerous, very quickly."
[o]>"Not if I can help it. I've got a plan, and if Twilight really cares about me enough to go all this way, then it's going to work regardless of how violent it gets. All you need to do is keep a transformation spell on standby in case things get bad."[/o]
>Anonymous has a plan?
>it also sounds better than 'fight Twilight and collapse the hive around you two if you start losing'
>and he's willing to do all this for somepony he met only a couple of days ago!
>if all goes well, you're definitely choosing him as a potential mate
"I'll follow your lead then, just tell me what you need me to do and when."
[o]>"All we need to do for now is just wait."[/o]

>be Twilight
>the train was on time and everything else went smoothly
>you've got all that you need packed
>Spike did everything else you needed him to before you left
>all the spells you know are ready for use
>you know where Anonymous is, to an extent
>Celestia told you where in a letter that gave you the outpost that detected the hive and the direction it's in
>you're prepared to fight Chrysalis
>all else that needs to happen is for you to get there, and you can't make the train go any faster
>all you can do then is wait

>be Anon
>you're running through everything in your mind
>when Twilight gets here, you start talking to her
>if she tries to make you leave, Chrysalis is definitely going to stop her
>if you can convince her, then you're done
>all that's left is to get Luna and bring this up with Celestia
>if not, then there's going to be a fight
>if the fight goes bad, then you're going to signal for Chrysalis to use the spell on you
>after that, then it's a dice roll if you can do what you need to
>it'll probably turn out fine, but if it doesn't, you're going to feel horrible
>let's just hope it doesn't get this far

>be Chrysalis
>you have no idea what Anonymous's plan is, but he looks nervous
"Don't worry, I'll be fine. From what I know about Twilight, we should be able to convince her. If not, I'm sure I can hold my own against her."
>he looks over at you and nods, a look of concentration embedded on his small, green face
>you don't know what creature lies underneath that facade, but it certainly cares more about you than any non-changeling you've met
>it's also putting a lot of thought into this situation
>while Anonymous is thinking, you decide to try to sense if Twilight's nearby yet
>nope, not yet
>it's getting pretty tense here all the same
>eventually Anonymous speaks up again
[o]>"I've got a few things I want to run past Luna, you mind if I take a quick nap?"[/o]
>it doesn't seem like Twilight's taking a route other than the train, so you two probably have a couple of hours before she gets here
"I think you have the time to do that; I'll wake you up if anything new happens."
[o]>"Thanks. I'll see you in about 2 hours."[/o]
>after he says this, Anonymous lays down on the floor and closes his eyes

>be Luna
>Anonymous requested your company just a few seconds ago
>of course you're going to give him an audience, you'd be a bad friend if you didn't
>when you get into his dream, you find him inside a large gothic-styled room
>not wasting any time, you trot over to him
"Hello Anonymous, what do you need?"
[o]>"Well, I just wanted to say that you've helped me out a lot with this, and I wanted to thank you for it. Also, can you make sure Celestia's ready for an appointment if everything goes alright?"[/o]
"Sure, I can do that easily. You're welcome, it's what friends do!"
[o]>"Alright, I'm going to wake myself up now. I'm not sure how much time has passed, and I don't want to leave Chrysalis alone in case Twilight gets here."[/o]
"Good luck!"
[o]>"Thanks, and if all goes well, I'll see you soon!"[/o]
>you wave goodbye to Anonymous and exit the dream as you feel it fall apart around you both

>be Anonymous
>everything's in order
>you have your arguments, you have Chrysalis to back you up, and Luna's making sure everything else is ready too
>all you have to do is just not mess up on your part
>you wake up from your dream to see Chrysalis staring upward with a stoic expression
"Alright, I'm back and Luna was cooperative. Anything new?"
>she looks towards you and answers with two short words
>"She's here."
>Twilight has reached the hive
>this is the moment where it all comes to a head
>this is the moment that decides a lot of things
>or does it?
>well, it's a moment where you have a very important single thing to decide
>you have to convince Twilight that your idea's good
"Alright Chrissy, should we stay here or go meet her?"
>"If I know she's here, then she knows we're here. We should wait to keep a tactical advantage. Also, did you call me 'Chrissy'?"
>Chrysalis looks at you with an odd face
"Yeah, sorry. It just slipped, I'll stop."
>"Actually, I kinda like it."
>well then
>anyway, back to waiting!

>be Twilight
>you've found Chrysalis's hive
>it's not as much of a stronghold as the last one
>there isn't even an anti-magic field
>well, looks like you won't need your anti-magic magic spells
>also, you only sense two presences
>there's one that seems just stronger than you and another that seems quite weak
>school filly levels of weak
>also kind of familiar
>one of them's definitely Chrysalis, and the other is at the very least a very good impersonator of Anon
>only one way to find out

>be Anonymous
>you begin to hear hoofsteps echo through the halls and passages of the hive around you
>Twilight's coming to the throne room
>after a few more apprehensive moments, she enters
"Twilight, I have some stuff to say to you that's very important. You need to listen."
[p]>"Anon, I don't doubt that it's important. However, it's going to need to wait for a bit. Now, go outside; I don't want you getting hurt."[/p]
>no, she is not just going to throw out everything you worked for like this!
"Twilight, I'm completely serious. This is something very important. Please listen."
[p]>"I will, just after I deal with this [i]problem[/i] and we're on the way home. Now, go outside and wait for me."[/p]
>amazing, the logical bookworm is going for the 'shoot first' approach
>"I'm still here, you know."
[p]>"So I noticed, and I'll deal with you as soon as she goes outside."[/p]
>"I can tell you myself that he isn't going to leave without you either leaving peacefully or accepting his idea. He's made that quite clear to me, at least."
[p]>"And what makes you think Anon's a 'he'? She's from Manehattan-"[/p]
>"Save the backstory. He told me himself, and since he's from another world, he deserves his own agency. Let him choose what he wants to do, I know I have."
[p]>"I don't know how you got that information from him, but don't think for a moment that I'll let you use it to spread your evil to another realm!"[/p]
>"Thank you for completely dodging my point, but if that's what you're worried about, then let me tell you that I'm not going to act upon that-"
[p]>"How am I supposed to trust you? Your entire existence is built on deceiving."[/p]
>"If you would listen to him, he would tell you himself; however, you seem to be blind to that."
>after that, they both go silent
>they're only a few inches apart now, and you find that you've retreated back to one of the pillars
>the tension is so thick that you could probably cut it
>well, if you had something sharper and a bit more durable than an average knife
>it seems that the tension's coming to an explosive release when Twilight charges up a spell
>better duck and cover, things are about to go the way you don't want!
>Twilight starts the fight off by firing a massive beam at point blank, which Chrysalis only just manages to block and send flying into a nearby pillar
>it all just escalates from there, getting progressively more powerful as time goes on
>eventually, as you peak your head out from behind your cover pillar, you see them flying around the room like something out of a DBZ fight
>seriously, you can't even tell where they are
>just where they were from massive green-and-purple explosions emanating from some point in the room
>these explosions shake the room each time they happen, bringing dust down from the ceiling and the pillars of the throne room
>the ones that happen farther away feel like a minor earthquake
>the ones that happen closer to you feel like a grenade going off with you a few feet outside kill range
>it's a nervewracking feeling with this all happening so close to you, yet you can't help but watch
>it's like watching Goku and Vegeta fight in person, except it's not Goku or Vegeta fighting here
>eventually they stop long enough for you to see them, but the fighting is still happening
>Twilight and Chrysalis both charge up a massive beam attack while standing at opposite ends of the room
>when they both fire, it collides in the exact middle
>a beam struggle
>you'd complain about fight cliches, but it's happening about 7 yards from you
>you're more concerned with not dying
>so then why are you still watching?
>as the beam struggle continues, you see it being pretty much evenly matched
>whenever one of them starts losing ground, they immediately push back with even more magic
>eventually it ends with another explosion, sending all three of you into a different wall
>Twiligt gets thrown into the wall with the door, Chrysalis gets thrown back into her own throne, and you fly backwards into the wall to Chrysalis's right
>ow
>that REALLY hurt
>you don't seem to be bleeding, though
>that's good
>however, upon closer inspection of your shirt, the back is now shredded
>fuck!
>that was your only shirt!
>your brooding over the loss of your shirt is interrupted as the fighting resumes, seemingly more frenzied than before
>Twilight's not holding anything back now, and it even seems like she recovered instantly from that
>Chrysalis however, is losing ground and fast
>she's still putting up a good fight, though
>somehow, it seems like she gets a second wind as she pushes back Twilight's assault and even starts putting her in a corner
>however, you can only tell this from the explosions happening and not much else
>eventually, Twilight stops on the ground for just long enough to charge a spell from behind a shield
>from your initial judgement, it looks like she's sustained a few injuries
>she's bleeding from a few places and has a few large bruises
>all that heals in an instant, though
>well, so much for that
>after that, Chrysalis only seems to push harder against Twilight
>the attacks are getting weaker, though
>even you can see that
>this is going to be over soon, and you're going to have to do your best to stop it from ending in a way that hurts everyone involved
>eventually, it's Chrysalis that stops and does something
>she's pretty damaged too, having even more cuts, scrapes and bruises than Twilight did
>however, the light of battle still hasn't left her as she charges up a massive spell
>even Twilight realizes this as she preps a shield spell, hoping to block as much of it as she can
>when Chrysalis finally fires off the spell, it rips through Twilight's shield almost instantly and tears into the roof of the room
>you can even see the rays of the setting sun penetrating through the thick cloud of dust that resulted
>however, a shadow in the dust remains hovering in the air
>just obscured by the cloud, the silhouette of Twilight remains firmly in its place, casting an ominous shadow over the whole room
>eventually, the dust clears completely
>Twilight's unharmed
>and she's coming back down
>and Chrysalis has fallen to the floor
>it's over
[p]>"You can't fight anymore, so I suggest you submit. Either go the way of the other changelings, or get sent to whatever afterlife you have, I don't care. You're a menace to pony society, and I will not allow you to threaten us any more."[/p]
>Chrysalis has just enough strength to get back up and insult Twilight before she lands
>"You may do what you like with me, but I'll never submit to somepony who recklessly abandons any thought of reason for settling old scores. What your contemptible companion did to me was enough, and I already made her pay. I wouldn't expect you to understand that though, I'm just another monster to you."
>as Twilight lands in front of Chrysalis, she replies
[p]>"I'm here for Anon alone and nothing else. If removing whatever taint you put on his mind can only be done by ending you, then so be it. Now, what do you choose?"[/p]
>this is it, this is the only chance you have to keep things from getting worse!
>you charge out from behind your pillar and start waving wildly at Chrysalis before running directly for Twilight
>Chrysalis understands immediately what you're going to do and fires off the transformation spell with every ounce of magic she has left
>you can feel the spell hit its mark, but you don't stop
>if anything, you get faster since your now-human form is what you're used to
>you also feel your shirt rip apart at your size change, but that doesn't matter
>Twilight notices the spell go off, but didn't see what it was
>as a result, she assumes it was a lethal strike in your direction and begins charging a lethal strike of her own
>you're within jumping distance now, all you have to do is grab Twilight and you win!
>don't fuck this up!
>with one final step, you jump for Twilight...