The Angels have Landed

Chapters

Chapter 01: Double-Vision
Chapter 02: Welcome Wagon
Chapter 03: Pancake's Labyrinth
Chapter 04: Instant-Friendship, just add Lunch!
Chapter 05: Splash 'n Crash
Chapter 06: The Identity Game
Chapter 07: The Twins' New Wheels
Chapter 08: The Deep End

Chapter 01: Double-Vision

Expanse of blue, and void of cloud. Not a breeze to ease the heat. A shortcut through a shaded alley was to much of a temptation compared to the open street. Why she wore shoes, she will never know - it had been like this a while. The days of spring were summer-strong, the blazing sun was early this year. At least the alley offered some reprieve, it never saw any sun during the day until high summer, when the sun was at it’s highest point, in the sky. She looked towards that sky, and wondered… would it ever rain again? It had seemed like such a long time.

“Is a little breeze too much to ask for?” She asked the universe. She stopped for a moment, wiping the sweat from her forehead - as if that would make a difference. Her clothing was already sweat-soaked in various places, and it was not a comfortable feeling. She had broken out the summer clothes and everything, and opted for the lightest outfit she could possibly find - well, until her older sister started making some suggestions.

“Siiiis!!” She had moaned. “It’s too hot to worry about fashion and stuff! I just want to wear something nice and cool!”

“Now, Sweetie Belle,” her sister had told her. “You can always dress for summer with style, and this dress and summer shoes will look darling…”

“I can appreciate the dress, sis… but shoes?” Sweetie Belle reasoned. “Can’t I wear sandals or something?”

“Oh, now this isn’t really fair on me,” her sister had responded. “You did say you would try these shoes as my guinea pig.”

“Only because you made me! Seriously, why do I have to wear these again?”

“Because you promised you would, remember?” Her sister told her. “And after all, you have had weeks to try them out… and I cannot afford to wait another day, I need to know if I can make orders or not.”

“Fiiine…” Sweetie Belle sighed. She wished she had done this when her sister first talked her into it - it was too hot for shoes, lately.

“The heat isn’t that bad, is it? I mean, I know it’s gotten a bit warm, but it is still only spring” her sister assured her.

“Well maybe someone needs to remind the universe of that,” Sweetie Belle huffed, blowing a little on a strand of her purple and pink hair which had strayed down in front of her face.

“Well… that is true,” her sister acknowledged. “But for me… pleeeease..? You did say you would...”

“Okay…” Sweetie Belle sighed again. “But I’m taking them off once I meet up with the girls!”

“…if they haven’t melted to my feet, yet,” Sweetie thought. She continued down the alley. It was much more pleasant, that was for sure - although it did feel a little stuffy.

“Rarity would kill me if she knew I wore these shoes down here,” Sweetie Belle realised. It wasn’t as if it was going to make her change her mind - it was either alleyway express or a Sweetie puddle on the sidewalk, and she was sure that melting into a puddle was the more unpleasant experience. Besides, the alley wasn’t that bad, perhaps a few sandy grains, a few unkempt blades of grass, some stacked crates, an overflowing dumpster…

“Okay, it’s a disaster in Rarity’s world,” Sweetie conceded to herself.

She stopped suddenly next to the stack of crates. Something felt strange inside. There was something else here… someone else… it felt like she was not alone.

“He...hello..?” Sweetie tried to call out, as feeble as an attempt could be. It was quiet - too quiet. She could feel her hairs stand on end, and a cold shiver washed over her - though not the type of cold shiver she would have wanted, given the heat.

A sudden tap, followed by another tap, followed by two more taps in increasingly rapid succession broke the silence, followed by a rolling sound. Sweetie spun around, catching a paper milkshake cup on the ground, before it came to stop.

“Great, now I’m going crazy from the heat,” Sweetie Belle groaned, as she turned back around, her eyes meeting a child, standing right in front of her. She shrieked, her skeleton jumping from her body, and running for the hills. Her heart remained in her chest, however given the fact it was slamming about all over the place, she knew it was trying to make it’s own escape.

“What… don’t…!” Sweetie Belle tried to say, in attempt that it wasn’t very nice to give frights.

“Oh! Um… sorry!!” The child laughed.

Sweetie Belle regained a more manageable heart rate, and the blood began to flow properly once more. Her skeleton had also returned to her. Once she was complete again, she realised the child in front of her was not someone she knew.

The child stood perhaps four foot… four in height? Maybe five? Sweetie wasn’t entirely sure without some method of measurement, but definitely shorter, and definitely younger, that was for sure. She was also a girl, that seemed glaringly obvious, flat-chest as well, as one would expect from a child. She was possibly around nine years old, perhaps ten - but not older, Sweetie decided - that would seem absurd.

The girl wore a white t-shirt with a sleepy, smiling star on the front. She wore black shorts, and a pair of violet sandals. She had a golden-blonde colour to her hair, which reached to her shoulders, and her eyes had blends of blue and tinges of pink.

“I haven’t seen you before…” Sweetie Belle said. That said, there were probably a lot of people she hadn’t seen before, so it was probably sounded like an obviously stupid thing to utter, in hindsight.

“I’m new, we just moved,” the girl said, making Sweetie Belle feel a little less silly. “My name’s Starwishes, what’s yours?”

“Sweetie Belle,” Sweetie replied. She had also now noticed the girl’s accent - it was definitely foreign… kinda cute-sounding, in her opinion, but she could not quite pin where abouts in the world it was from.
Is it down-underish? No… not quite. But perhaps close? Or not? I don’t know! This was definitely going to drive her insane if she thought too much on it.

“You’re not from anywhere around here, are you?” Sweetie Belle asked her.

“Nope!” Came the response. Except… Starwishes’ mouth did not move when she said it. And it… came from behind Sweetie Belle. Sweetie turned to the direction of the girl’s voice, to find she was now behind her. She looked back to where she was, only to find the space no longer occupied.

“How… how did you get over..?” Sweetie stammered. One moment this girl was in front of her… the next, she heard her behind her, and she was there, and no longer in front of her…

“Um..?” The girl replied, a little confused. “I’ve been standing here a little while, now…”
Sweetie Belle looked again to where Starwishes was initially, then back to where she was now - except, she was no longer there.

“Are you okay..?” Starwishes asked, with a concerned look on her face. Sweetie Belle spun around again, and the girl was back where she was at first.

“I’m… fine…” Sweetie Belle answered. Was the heat of the day finally getting to her?

“Maybe you should sit down or something,” Starwishes suggested, although… had she said it? Sweetie could have sworn her mouth did not move. The girl smiled softly as she helped Sweetie onto the bottom row of crates. “Have you been out in the sun all day?”

A hand touched Sweetie’s forehead, but from behind her. She realised there were two legs on either side of her, dangling, and she looked up. Now she was above her, sitting on the second row of crates which were on top of the first. Sweetie looked back to where Starwishes had been before, but was no longer there.

“You do feel a bit hot…” The girl told her.

She is… is she TELEPORTING ALL OVER THE PLACE? Sweetie Belle thought to herself. It seemed ridiculous, she was just delusional from the sun. It was driving her crazy. Now she knew how it felt for Rarity whenever a speck of dust ended up on one of her dresses.

“How did you get up there so fast..?” Sweetie Belle asked. She had to know if she was delusional.

“I climbed up here,” came the response.

“But weren’t you down here just before?” Came the next question.

“Down there..? Hmm… nope, I wasn’t there…”

“But I am,” Starwishes’ voice came again, once again, from in front of Sweetie Belle. Sweetie Belle looked back up - nothing. No one.

“WHAT IS GOING ON HERE??” Sweetie Belle cried out.

“Hey, Sweetie Belle, are you okay?” Came a familiar voice. Sweetie Belle looked upwards to an emergency escape platform, about a storey off the ground. The voice belonged to a girl with short pink hair who wore a black t-shirt and green shorts.

“Scootaloo!” Sweetie cried out, before stopping. What he she was a delusion as well? “Are you the real Scootaloo? Or am I really going insane?”

“I think I’m the real Scootaloo,” Scootaloo pondered aloud. “At least as real as you and your two new friends there…”

Sweetie Belle fell silent suddenly. TWO?

Sweetie Belle looked at Starwishes. She then looked back to where she thought she saw Starwishes, and a face was peering over the edge of the highest row of crates, with a sheepish grin. She then looked to Starwishes again, who was still present in front of her, then back again to the one on top of the crates above her.

“You’re TWINS??” Sweetie Belle realised.

“Yup!” Both Starwishes and her sibling chimed.

“I DON’T BELIEVE IT!! I AM GOING TO GO CRAZY!!” Sweetie Belle screamed.

“Whoa, hey, calm down, Sweetie Belle!” Scootaloo jumped from the platform, landing on the crates next to her.

“Do you have ANY IDEA how much I was freaking out??” Sweetie Belle uttered at Scootaloo. “I thought I was losing my mind!!”

“Yeah, I know, I saw the whole thing,” Scootaloo grinned.

“You WHAT??” Sweetie Belle screeched. “You were sitting up there, watching the whole time, and didn’t say ANYTHING??”

“Hey, come on, it was funny!” Scootaloo tried to defend herself. “I was going to say something - I saw you come down this way and I was going to call out to you, but then they showed up, and started pranking you! I couldn’t pass this up!”

“I’M GOING TO KILL YOU!!” Sweetie screeched at her.

“Is she always like that?” One of the twins asked Scootaloo. Both of the twins and Scootaloo were walking together. Scootaloo had said they could join them, if they had nothing else to do. Sweetie Belle stayed behind a little, still in recovery mode.

“Nah… well, sometimes,” Scootaloo replied. “I guess it depends. So… twins, huh? That’s freaky!”

“We’ve been twins since before we were born,” Starwishes told her.

“That’s generally how it works,” Scootaloo said. “So what do we call you?”

“Well, that’s my brother, Dreamstar,” Starwishes introduced.

“And that’s my sister, Starwishes,” Dreamstar concluded the twin-side introduction.

“Really? You’re a boy?” Scootaloo noted, a little shocked.

“Which one of us?” Both twins asked, simultaneously.
Scootaloo stopped for a moment, and looked at the two. “Which one of you is which again..?”

The twins looked blankly at Scootaloo, before a mischievous grin slowly began spreading across their faces. Both of them wore the same clothes. Both had the same hair style. Both were identical in every way. Sweetie Belle saw Scoot’s expression, and cracked up laughing - she had finally snapped, it seemed.
This was going to be a long day.

Author's Note

Well... first chapter! Practice, though!! ^^;;

Chapter 02: Welcome Wagon

“Hey, girls!” Was the first voice that greeted them once the quartet arrived at their destination, whatever their destination was. Dreamstar and Starwishes certainly never saw it coming, they had no idea where they were going - all they were doing was following Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo to wherever it was they were going. Although it seemed that wherever it was they were going, they were now there. Which was here.

The voice had a heavy country accent, and was produced by another girl, of similar age to Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo. She had magenta hair, tied in a bow, and wore a black tee, and denim shorts. She sat on the railing of a treehouse, above the ground. She immediately noticed the double numbers.

“Who’re they?” She asked with a curious tone. “And why am I seeing double?”

“Oh, yeah!” Scootaloo remembered. “This is Dreamstar, and Starwishes. Guys, this is Apple Bloom.

“Hi,” Dreamstar gave a little shyish wave.

“Nice to meet ya,” Starwishes did the same.

Apple Bloom blinked. “Which one is which, yer saying?”

“Errr…” Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo looked at each other. They then looked at the twins. The twins looked at them back, and gave a little smile.

“Y’know, it would be easier if they weren’t wearing the same clothes as each other,” Sweetie Belle murmured to Scootaloo.

“Oh! I got it!” Scootaloo realised. “Dreamstar is the boy, Starwishes is the girl! There!”

Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom stared at the twins for a moment, then to Scootaloo.

“They both look like girls to me,” Apple Bloom told her.

“Yeeeeeeeah I don’t know,” Scootaloo confessed. Dreamstar and Starwishes looked at each other and chuckled.

Scootaloo walked up to the twins, and closed in for a moment, first with one, then the other, looking for any sign of development in the chest. She found nothing.

“I don’t suppose you would mind waiting a few years for my answer, would you?” Scootaloo bargained.

“No way,” Apple Bloom told her.

“Yeah, Scootaloo, do you have any idea how confusing it will get while we wait for Starwishes to… start developing?” Sweetie Belle said. “I don’t wanna go crazy over this… at least not again!”

“We don’t mind,” Dreamstar admitted, both twins grinning.

“Why don’t we just like, y’know, ask which one’s which?” Apple Bloom suggested.

“Oh yeah…” Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle realised the obvious.

“Which one of you is Dreamstar, and which one is Starwishes?” Scootaloo asked.

“That’s Dreamstar,” Starwishes pointed to her brother.

“And that’s Starwishes,” Dreamstar pointed to her sister.

“See? That was sure easy,” Apple Bloom said.

“A little too easy…” Sweetie Belle added, with a suspicious tone. She had the feeling it wasn’t that easy at all.

“So what happens later?” Scootaloo asked. “When we take our eyes off them, and we all move around? Won’t we lose track of who’s who again?”

“I KNEW it was too easy!” Sweetie Belle restated.

“I guess we could wear something a little different…” Starwishes pondered aloud.

“Yeah, I mean we usually wear the same thing, almost, at least,” Dreamstar added. “But you have that skirt you could wear…”

“Why can’t you wear the skirt?” Starwishes protested, playfully.

“Because I think it’s your turn to wear the skirt…” Dreamstar replied, seemingly in thought.

“Yeah, I think the joke’s going to get old,” Starwishes put forward. “I mean, I guess at least until the end of the day…”

“...we’re stuck wearing what we’re wearing,” Dreamstar completed the sentence.

“Unless we ditch the clothes and go naked!” Starwishes excitedly proposed.

“And then we can get arrested and go to jail!” Dreamstar excitedly added.

“You two are weird…” Apple Bloom said. She heard a vibration, and pulled a phone from her pocket.

“What if we invited them to come with us?” Scootaloo suggested. “If they joined in, then we would have no problem-”

“Are you nuts?” Sweetie Belle cut in. “We can’t just do that! I mean, sure it would be-”

“Ah, dangit!” Apple Bloom interrupted.

“What’s wrong?” Scootaloo asked.

“I just got a text from ma sister, apparently she’s heading over to Sunset’s place to talk to her about band stuff!”

“But we were supposed to go there today!” Sweetie Belle complained. “I was looking forward to taking a nice refreshing dip in the lake, too! I’m already hot and bothered as it is!”

“Can we come, too?” Starwishes asked. “We love swimming!”

The three friends stopped for a moment.

“Well… I’d like to extend an invitation and all…” Apple Bloom began.

“It’s just… well…” Scootaloo continued.

“Apple Bloom’s sister and Sunset Shimmer are going to be discussing important stuff with their band and all, so us being there will probably be really distracting,” Sweetie Belle concluded the explanation. “Sunset lives right by the lake.”

“That makes sense!” Starwishes agreed.

“Also, we don’t have any togs with us,” Dreamstar added.

“Togs? What are they?” Scootaloo asked.

“It’s what people wear when they go swimming,” Starwishes explained.

“Oh, swimsuits? Is that what you call them where you are from?” Sweetie Belle asked.

Dreamstar and Starwishes nodded.

“They’re from far away,” Sweetie Belle filled in for Scootaloo and Apple Bloom.

“Ya know, I think I had that figured out,” Apple Bloom said. “The accent kinda gives it away.”

“Soooo… now what?” Scootaloo asked.

“Well I’m still roasting,” Apple Bloom said. “So can we at least go find something to cool us all off?”

“I can appreciate that plan,” Sweetie Belle seconded the notion. “How about an ice cream or something?”

“What do we do with these two?” Scootaloo enquired, gesturing to the twins.

“Can we come?” Dreamstar asked.

“We have money,” Starwishes added.

“I guess they can come…” Sweetie Belle so no objection. “As long as you two behave!”

“We promise!” The twins chimed, while crossing their fingers behind their backs.

The parlour was not as crowded as the CMC (which is what Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo referred as) had expected. Given that the sun was punishing all those who dared tread outside, it seemed strange that there weren’t as many people present.

Starwishes had the same frame of mind in regards to population expectation. Dreamstar guessed that they simply did not make it. The twins respectfully suggested that they hold a memorial service afterwards for the lost and melted.

Once they had picked out their ice creams, and then their tables. The CMC, who sat themselves across from the twins, decided to begin the conversation by asking about the twins and where they were from.

“Well… they have more than one name,” Starwishes said.

“Some call it the Angel Islands, some call it the Archipelago of Heaven…” Dreamstar continued.

“It’s all pretty much angel-related and such,” Starwishes said. “Legends mentioned angels, or people from the sky…”

“Maybe they were aliens?” Dreamstar suggested. “Though people in the past would probably think they were angels…”

“Like us!” Starwishes stated, quite modestly.

“More like demons,” Sweetie Belle jokingly whispered to Apple Bloom. Apple Bloom nodded.

“So where is this Angel Archipelago, or Heaven Islands, or whatever?” Scootaloo asked.

“Angel Islands,” Sweetie Belle corrected her.

“What are you, an atlas?” Scootaloo asked.

“Girls, let’s try to stay on track, shall we?” Apple Bloom suggested. “Besides, I don’t know where it is, either.”

“It’s a group of islands in the Southern Hemisphere, right in the middle of the ocean,” Sweetie Belle explained.

“Well, wherever it is, your accents sound pretty cool to me,” Scootaloo told the twins.

“Really?” Dreamstar and Starwishes asked. They looked at each other, then back to the CMC.

“I guess we’ve never really thought about it…” Dreamstar admitted, with a sheepish smile, while a mop of crazy pink, followed by eager curious eyes, slowly rose behind the seat they sat on.

“Even though everyone around here has a different accent,” Starwishes added, as the crazy mop and eyes sank slowly behind the seating again.

“HI GIRLS!!” Came the sudden, and very unexpected appearance of a messy, pink-haired girl, who spontaneously sprung up between the twins. The entire table erupted in alarm, organs leaping for the ceiling all around.

“PINKIE PIE!!” Sweetie Belle cried. “You gave us all a heart attack!”

“Yer tellin’ me!” Apple Bloom said, as she pounded herself on the chest, making sure that hers was still beating properly.

“Hehe! Sorry!” Pinkie apologised. “I just saw you all together and just HAD to come say hi!!”

Pinkie Pie was suddenly quiet. She realised there were extras. Well-

“THERE IS SOMEONE NEW IN TOWN!!” Pinkie Pie exploded, interrupting the story’s narration. Dreamstar was faced with extreme pink hyperactivity. “OH WOW HI I mean HOW DO YOU DO I’m Pinkie Pie NICE TO MEET YOU!!”

“Uh… hi…?” Dreamstar replied, taken off-guard. “H-how do you-”

“Know that you are new? I know EVERYBODY so if I have never seen you before, that means you are new!” Pinkie Pie interrupted, and explained. She then realised that Dreamstar’s twin was sitting on the other side of her. She looked back at Dreamstar, then to Starwishes.

“OH MY GOD THEY’RE MULTIPLYING!!” Pinkie panicked, jumping up onto the table, drawing a metre-long club sandwich out of nowhere like a sword, ready to take down the hoard.

“Pinkie Pie! They’re twins!” Sweetie Belle said to her.

“I knew that…” Pinkie Pie lied, tossing the sandwich into the air, opening her mouth, and letting the whole thing fall unimpeded down her throat.

“How did she do that..?” Starwishes wondered, aloud.

“It’s best not to ask…” Scootaloo told her. Sweetie Belle’s phone toned, indicating she had a text message.

“Do you know what we neeeeed?” Pinkie Pie asked, before giving no actual time for anyone to answer. “A PARTY!! A welcome-to-town-party planned by yours truly!! And you’re invited, and you’re invited, and you’re invited - heck, the whole town is invited!!”

“Uh, Pinkie?” Apple Bloom began.

“There will be cupcakes, regular cakes, mega-cakes, cake buildings and mountains of cake, and cakes of soap!!” Pinkie Pie carried on.

“Cakes of soap..?” Scootaloo asked, confused. “Why cakes of soap?”

“For washing your hands first, silly!!” Pinkie Pie replied. “You can’t eat food without the proper hygiene!”

“You’re not going to mix UP the soak in the actual cakes, are you?” Apple Bloom asked.

“OOOOOOO…” Pinkie Pie replied, in awe. “Then it will be TWICE as fun!! Cakes that give everyone BUBBLE BREATH!!”

“Er… no,” Scootaloo refused.

“Oh, I guess you’re right, it might make the cakes taste funny…” Pinkie Pie realised. “But at least you won’t have to brush your teeth afterwards!”

Scootaloo face-palmed.

“Oh, great…” Sweetie Belle said.

“What’s wrong?” Apple Bloom asked.

“Sunset just texted me, she says Apple Jack is still there and the band discussion could take a while longer,” Sweetie explained. “She also says that they have not been able to iron out a few kinks because they are still waiting on Pinkie Pie…”

“I KNEW I had somewhere I had to be!” Pinkie Pie remembered. “Heheheee… won’t I look silly when I arrive late! OH! The party will have to be put on hold! BYE!!”
With that, Pinkie Pie morphed into a rocket and blasted off, through the door. An explosion rocked the neighbourhood somewhere down the road, but it did not seem to bother anyone.

“A party..?” Dreamstar asked.

“Yeah, you can be sure of that if Pinkie has anything to do with it,” Scootaloo explained.

“We like parties,” Starwishes said. “Especially if there are yummy things to eat.”

“Pinkie Pie throws the BEST parties,” Apple Bloom assured them.

“Soooo… what are we going to do now?” Sweetie Belle asked her companions. “It looks like we won’t be going swimming anytime soon…”

“We could always head back to the clubhouse and do stuff there,” Apple Bloom suggested.

“Yeah, that’s an idea!” Scootaloo agreed. “At least we can cool off naturally…”

“As much as I’m keen for it, what about these two?” Sweetie Belle gestured to the twins. The twins pointed to themselves, as if to say, ‘who, us?’

“Ah get the feeling they don’t know too many people, yet…” Apple Bloom said.

“I don’t mind if they tag along, they can join us, can’t they?” Scootaloo shrugged.

“I dunno if that’s a good idea…” Apple Bloom replied.

“Yeah, especially given… you know,” Sweetie Belle added.

“I guess…” Scootaloo reluctantly agreed.

“I think we have to go, anyway…” Dreamstar began.

“Yeah… we probably should have been home by now,” Starwishes continued from her brother. “Mum wants to make sure we’re all prepared for school and stuff…”

“That sucks... “ Scootaloo said.

“But hey, I’m sure you’ll make plenty of new friends at your new school!” Sweetie Belle told them.

“Just like us! You already made four today!” Apple Bloom said.

“You really think of us as your friends?” Starwishes asked, grinning.

“Of course!” Scootaloo replied.

“Just… keep the pranks to a minimum, okay?” Sweetie Belle added. The twins looked at each other and smiled.
“Yeah, I thought so…” Sweetie Belle sighed.

Chapter 03: Pancake's Labyrinth

“Muurrrrr…” Dreamstar mumbled, as he staggered down the hallway.

“Muurrrrr…” Starwishes replied, as she staggered past her brother, in the opposite direction.

Cue a pause, followed by the noise of a toilet flushing.

“Murr…” Dreamstar murmured to his sister, as they passed each other in the hallway again.

“Murr…” Starwishes replied. They swapped destinations.

Cue a pause, followed by the noise of a toilet flushing. Again.

Next, bring in a third figure, dressed in a light aqua short-sleeved shirt, large collar opening, and light blue shorts. 35 years old, yet a face one would mistake for being fresh out of high school. Her hair was of similar style to the two zombie clones wandering the hallway, currently looking for their brains.

She halted, and watched with growing anticipation as her twin offspring headed towards each other again. Both siblings smacked their heads together, followed by a syncronised duo collapse to the floor.

“Ooow…” Both twins moaned, rubbing their heads.

“And a good morning to the two of you, too!” Their mother said to them, with an amused satisfaction.

Dreamstar and Starwishes looked at each other, with an almost blank expression, before helping each other up. Now they were awake.

“Breakfast’s on the table,” their mother announced. At that, both of her children had a rumbly tummy… their stomachs had also awoken, and it was time for a food offering to be made.

“Thanks Mum!!” Both twins called in unison, as they dashed down the hallway, down the stairs, and burst into the dining room. Their mother could only shake her head. How she ever was able to raise those two without going insane was a mystery. Or perhaps she was already insane, but didn’t know it.

She wasn’t quite like her children in her youth, despite the fact she and her spawn had many similarities - her hair, though the same colour, had wisps of white, although reached past her shoulders, whereas her kids hair was a bit shorter. Her eyes were the same as the twins, although save for the pink tinge, which was more of a mystery of genetics. They certainly hadn’t gotten it from their father, Lunartome… in fact, a lot of things they had not inherited from their father… although he was a little cheeky. Which is probably where their kids had gotten it from. Following her children’s path of starvation, she made her way downstairs, and joined her contribution to future generations.

“Ravenous things,” Lunartome observed, as Dreamstar and Starwishes, parked at the table, were downing down pancakes. He was a light-blue-haired fellow himself, but short in length (the hair) and less wavy as his wife or children. At the same age as his wife, he looked older, perhaps in his late twenties. He wore a white short-sleeve dress shirt, jeans, and some semi-casual black shoes.

“Pass the syrup?” Starwishes asked her brother. Dreamstar passed it to her.
“Thanks!”

“Are you sure it’s wise to give them anything with sugar in it today, Celes?” Lunartome asked his wife, as Starwishes finished pouring syrup on her next stack of pancakes.

“Syrup, please!” Dreamstar rang. Starwishes passed the syrup back to her brother, who then proceeded to pour it on his new pancake stack. “Thank you!”

“No, of course not,” Celestialstar answered her husband. She began to hug him. “First day all around…”

“At least I can be consoled by the fact that they will be at school when the sugar kicks in,” Lunartome told Celestialstar. “And that you will be here, and I will be at work…”

“Those poor, poor teachers…” Celestialstar shook her head. Lunartome then pulled out of the hug suddenly, grabbing the half-cup of coffee sitting on the bench, and downing it quickly.

“I better go,” Lunartome told her, realising the urgency of the time. He kissed her, twice in succession, before rounding the table, ruffling his kid’s hair a little, and disappearing towards the front door.

“Bye Dad!” The twins both called out. Celestialstar seated herself at the table for breakfast with her children.

“Thanks for the pancakes!” Dreamstar chimed, starting conversation.

“Yes, thank you!” Starwishes added.

“It’s your first day at a new school, I thought it would be a nice treat, seeing as you two are obsessed with pancakes,” Celestialstar said. She helped herself to some of the pancakes… before they were gone. “You better pick up the pace, though… I can take care of the dishes.”

“But… we want more pancakes…” Starwishes pouted.

“Moooorre....” Dreamstar emphasised the necessities of life.

“And have you two sick on the first day? I don’t think so!” Celestialstar smirked.

“We don’t mind!” Dreamstar sang.

“We can have more pancakes, then!” Starwishes joined the performance.

“I don’t think so,” Celestialstar told them. “I will not make you any more pancakes!”

“Awww…” Dreamstar and Starwishes uttered, with much sadness. Their number had come to an end. Also, so had their pancakes. All gone.

“Gone…” Dreamstar began.

“But not forgotten,” Starwishes completed the sentence, patting her tummy.

“Now, are you two almost ready for school?” Celestialstar asked them both.

“We’re totally ready!” Starwishes assured her mother.

“We packed all our things last night before bed and put our schoolbags in the living room, see?” Dreamstar added, pointing to two identical purple bags, sitting next to the couch.

“Are you two sure?” Celestialstar asked them. “You’re not forgetting anything else important?”

“Our teeth,” Dreamstar told his sister.

“Awww, but I wanted to blast people with our breakfast breath!” Starwishes moaned.

“Anything other than that..?” Celestialstar interrupted her hatchlings. The two youths looked at their mother, before looking at each other. They looked back to their mother for a clue. She pinched her shirt near the shoulders and tugged at it lightly, twice.

“We’re not dressed yet,” Starwishes turned to her brother.

“We are not,” Dreamstar agreed with his sister. Celestialstar shook her head in her hands.

After the two had emerged from upstairs again, this time fully dressed. They both wore a white t-shirt with a sleepy, smiling star on the front, however where Dreamstar wore black shorts, his sister wore a short black skirt. They then proceeded to carry on from where they left off.

“You two would have probably gone right off to school if I hadn’t said anything,” their mother told them.

“At least they would know which one of us is which!” Starwishes saw the brighter side.

“Plus the ultimate in all-body air conditioning!” Dreamstar added.

“Please don’t be any trouble, today…” Celestialstar pleaded with her kids. She knew they loved to play pranks here and there, and in an entirely new setting, they were easy.

“We promise…” Dreamstar told her.

“Thank you,” their mother said.

“...to do our best,” Starwishes completed the sentence.

“Okay, school, now!” Celestialstar began to chase them, with a playful growl. The twins laughed as she did so, grabbing their bags. Their mother stood at the front door. Dreamstar and Starwishes gathered, put on their sandals, and proceeded to leave the house.

“Have a nice first day,” Celestialstar kissed them both.

“Thanks, Mum,” they kissed back. They hugged their mother goodbye, before leaving through the front door.

There were exchanges of waves as the twins reached the sidewalk, and after a short while, they were out of sight.

“That poor, poor school…” Celestialstar sighed, smiling, thinking about all of the students who would come into contact with her brood.

“We have to go in there?” Starwishes asked. The building before them stood about three storeys tall, and was wide enough as it was. “It looks humongous!”

“At least it has a horse…” Dreamstar said, pointing to a white horse statue, standing tall and proud. “Maybe we can ride it into battle!”

The school itself was reddish primarily in colour, and had a cross-style of both what you might expect a school to look like, and a castle. There was a dome on the roof, complete with a castle tower sticking out of the top.

“Do you think a king lives in there?” Starwishes asked. “And a group of knights, sworn to defend the school from outside forces? And wizards? Do you think there are wizards?”

“And the sports! Do you think they do jousting?” Dreamstar added. Starwishes nudged him slightly. “Well… I guess we should go inside, then..?”

“We probably should…” Starwishes replied. The two of them were feeling a tad nervous, now. She took her brother’s hand. “Together?”

“Together!” Dreamstar agreed.

The foyer of the school was larger than the twins had expected, and again, it looked like a half-castle hybrid. There were corridors and stairs leading in different directions, and those stairs led to an upper level which also had corridors. Banners hung from the second level, blue, depicting a golden horse. The twins guessed that this school might have a thing for horses.

Students were moving about, mostly chatting with others. Dreamstar and Starwishes considered asking one of them for directions, but weren’t sure how to go about it. In truth, the twins were usually shy in a new situation… the more new people, the newer the place, the more quiet and reserved they usually would be. And this school was not only huge, but had so many students. And not only that, but even the students were big!

“So… now what?” Dreamstar asked his sister.

“Um… we could try that way?” Starwishes suggested, pointing down the hallway which led dead ahead of them.

“I guess that’s a start…” Dreamstar agreed. Still holding his sister’s hand, he led her down the hallway. It was not busy per say, but Dreamstar kept thinking that they would be bowled over at any moment. They reached a fork in the road, which Dreamstar studied. “This way..?”

It took a few turns and a flight of stairs before they realised they were lost. They had never been in a school this big, so it was at least a little daunting. They found a window, which they decided to use to get their bearings… except, the view was not of any landmarks of familiarity, but a sports field with a track.

“Uh-oh, I think we’re lost…” Dreamstar realised.

“We’re supposed to go to the assembly hall first though today, right?” Starwishes inquired.

“Yeah, but you could probably hide a hundred assembly halls in this place!” Dreamstar reasoned. “We could be wandering these corridors…”

“...forever…” Starwishes joined in her brother’s resignation.

“You two look a little lost.”

Dreamstar and Starwishes turned their attentions to a girl with dark-blue hair, with purple and pink, tied in a bun, and wearing a school uniform. Given everyone else wore more casual clothing, she felt a little out of place. That said, the twins didn’t feel completely locked-in and set with the school, either.

The girl paused at the realisation she was facing two identical kids. After all, it was not every day you met twins. She pushed up the black-rimmed glasses she wore with her fists, and rubbed her eyes, just to be sure she wasn’t seeing double. But she was.

“You’re… twins,” The girl observed, after she had taken a moment.

“She’s good,” Dreamstar whispered to his sister, as the girl seemed to observe them more. Starwishes giggled.

“Oh… my, sorry for the stare,” the girl apologised. “I didn’t really mean to come off as a little… er, y’know, weird…”

“That’s okay, we’re weird, too!” Starwishes assured her. “I’m Starwishes, this is my brother, Dreamstar!”

“Twilight Sparkle, nice to meet you… You’re not from around here, are you?” Twilight asked, noting the accent.

“Greetings from across the great sea!” Dreamstar saluted.

“Oh…” Twilight paused for a moment. “Which sea?”

“The big one,” Dreamstar replied.

“Dreamstar…” Starwishes nudged her brother, with a little urgency.

“Oh, um… could you please tell us where the assembly hall is..?” Dreamstar asked, switching to serious-mode.

“Downstairs, main corridor… if you actually wait for the school bell, you can just follow everyone,” Twilight suggested. She noted their heights and appearance. “Wait. Why do you need to go to the assembly hall? Aren’t you like… I don’t know, kinda small to be at this school?”

“Are you sure this is the right school?” Dreamstar whispered to her sister, although not inaudibly.

“Yeah, the one with the horse statue outside, right?” Starwishes whispered back.

“Um… guys?” Twilight drew the attention back to her. She gave a slightly awkward grin and wave once she had it.

“Yes?” Both twins replied, in unison.

“I think the elementary school is that way,” she told them, pointing in a random direction. Well, it wasn’t really a random direction, however given that the twins had no sense of direction in this labyrinth, it might as well have been.

“Elementary?” Starwishes asked. Both twins were confused by the word.

“My dear Watson?” Dreamstar asked his sister.

“Oh, unless you called it something else where you’re from,” Twilight reasoned. The school bell rang through the hallway.

“The bell! Dreamstar, we have to follow the others!” Starwishes told him.

“Yeah, otherwise we’ll never find it!” Dreamstar agreed, taking his sister’s hand, both running off. They suddenly paused momentarily. “Oh!”

“Thanks for your help!” Starwishes called back to Twilight.

“It was nice meeting you!” Dreamstar added, before they resumed their hunt.

“No, wait!” Twilight cried out, in a failed attempt to explain that they were in the wrong school. “Well… this is certainly going to be awkward…”

The twins eventually found the main corridor again, however given that they actually had to find the corridor again meant they missed the stampede. Now they weren’t sure which way to go.

“We should have stayed with that Twilight girl,” Dreamstar realised. “She would have probably gone to the hall… but she’s probably gone, now.”

“Now what do we do?” Starwishes asked him.

Before he could think of an answer, they both spotted another student who had obviously lagged behind the rest. They looked at each other, then both ran after the student. To their relief, he led them to where they had searching for their entire lives. Finally, their long journey was over. They entered into the hall, which was now full of students.

“What now..?” Dreamstar asked, not sure where to go. Obviously, to find those in the same year as them, but that was going to be tricky, since everyone else was kind of blocking their view.

“Find the smallest students, and cling on tight,” Starwishes advised him. They then clung on to each other. Problem solved.

They spotted a couple of empty seats right along the back, at the end, next to the entrance, so they decided they might as well take them. The student next to them looked at them strangely, but said nothing.

“Good morning, students,” a woman at the front of the hall greeted the assembly. “First of all, Principal Celestia would like to mention a few things.”

A woman with green, blue, and pink hair got up to speak.

“Do you think she is the king?” Dreamstar whispered to his sister.

“I don’t know, she doesn’t have a mustache,” Starwishes whispered back.

“Good morning, everyone,” the principal greeted. “First of all, I’d like to take this opportunity to congratulate the Friendship Games Magazine Committee for their outstanding work in putting together a wonderful memorabilia of the Friendship Games which took place a few weeks ago… minus the obvious, of course… and that everyone can get their own copy from your teachers when you attend homeroom tomorrow morning. I am proud of the work put into this addition, and given that this was our most… memorable Friendship Games in the history of this school, I am sure that none of you will want to miss out on getting a copy.”

The hall responded with applause, which then died down to make way for other announcements. One was about the cafeteria menu. Another talked about a first club meeting and its roaring success. Then came something about randomly spontaneously apparating cupcakes.

“So… what do we do afterwards?” Dreamstar asked his sister, as other school staff took to the stand, making their announcements.

“I have no idea,” Starwishes confessed. “We were supposed to find the hall, and apparently we’d be fine?”

“...and finally, can our new students please remain behind after assembly,” a woman with dark blue hair hair announced, who had been introduced as Principal Luna. The twins seemed confused by what appeared to be implied as the school having two principals. “Everyone else, please proceed to your first class.”

The twins realised that meant them. After all, they were new students, and it was now painfully obvious as to why they had been told that they only needed to worry about finding the assembly hall.

The sea of students began to drain through the doors, slowly emptying the hall, like a bathtub. Only instead of leaving the twins sparkly and clean, this tub left them feeling a little intimidated, seeing the big, tall students passing by, as they sat, small and unsure, as if they might get sucked down the plughole. Also, this bath had no bubbles. The twins loved bubbles.

Within a few minutes, the hall had emptied, save for the twins, and a couple others, one being that Principal Luna character who had instructed them to remain behind. Luna began approaching the two, who remained seated

Dreamstar and Starwishes supposed that since Principal Celestia might be the king, then perhaps this Principal Luna was the queen. However, it was impossible to know for sure, since she did not have a mustache.

“You are our new students?” Luna asked the twins, with a look of surprise on her face.

Dreamstar and Starwishes nodded. Principal Luna raised her eyebrow a little.

“You certainly don’t look very much like high school students,” Luna observed. “You are both quite small for the role…”

“Mum says our small size is made up for by our unique personalities!” Dreamstar told her.

“Yes, your mother did warn me about your unique personalities when she signed you both up for this school,” Luna replied. “Rest assured, I can see right through your shenanigans.”

“Aww…” The twins pouted. It seemed like they would have to be on their best behaviour with this one. That, or perhaps… a challenge?

“No challenge,” Luna told them, after she seemed to read their minds. “Now if you will both follow me, I will take you to your first class.”

Author's Note

The downside of writing a fanfiction is that you must replicate pre-established characters that you did not create yourself... it is one of the reasons I prefer to create an original story with original characters, as opposed to using characters I myself did not create.
When you use your own characters, you know exactly how they will speak and act, since their personality is born out of your own mind.
With pre-established characters, you must observe what actions they have taken in the past, and make an attempt to replicate them in your own scenarios.

In a nutshell, we can but do our best. :3

Chapter 04: Instant-Friendship, just add Lunch!

Dreamstar and Starwishes both peered through the door window of the classroom which Luna had brought them to. It was actually a small class, to both of their relief, although it wasn’t like it was enough to drown out the nervous mites eating away at their joints. Luna herself was already in the classroom, having told the pair to wait outside while she talked to the teacher.

The teacher had a somewhat magenta coloured hair, with two different shades. She wore a white shirt, with a green floral patterned skirt which reached her knees, and a pair of brown open lady’s shoes… although the twins would just call them sandals, close enough. She looked through the door window at the twins, as Luna beckoned them to come in.

Dreamstar was the closest to the doorknob, so he turned it and pushed the door open, somewhat awkwardly. His sister hid behind him, and pushed him from behind, which Dreamstar didn’t quite appreciate very much, and wished that he had taken Starwishes’ place, so that he could hide behind her instead.

Dreamstar was pushed through the door, with Starwishes’ half-hiding behind him, using him as a shield. Dreamstar then turned slightly, grabbed Starwishes by the arms, and swapped places with her, which caused the class to erupt with laughter.

“I’m sure I can leave them in your very capable hands,” Luna said to the teacher.

“I’m sure they’ll fit in just fine,” the teacher assured her.

“Now, I have some other matters to attend to,” Principal Luna announced. “I’ll leave you in Miss Cheerilee’s care.”

“Thank you, Principal Luna,” Dreamstar thanked her.

“Yes, thank you,” Starwishes said.

“It’s Vice-Principal Luna,” Luna sighed. “It’s my sister who is the principal.”

“I thought they were both principals?” Starwishes whispered to her brother.

“That’s what I thought I heard…” Dreamstar whispered back. The class began to laugh again, given they had overheard their whispers. Luna rolled her eyes.

“There is only one principal at this school, and that is Principal Celestia,” Vice-Principal Luna told them. “You might want to remember to listen more carefully in the future if you want to succeed.”

The twins nodded.

“Miss Cheerilee,” Vice-Principal Luna acknowledged.

“Vice-Principal Luna,” Miss Cheerilee replied, before the ‘principal-turned-vice-principal’ took her leave.

“Alright, class? This is Dreamstar and Starwishes, they will be joining us,” Miss Cheerilee introduced. There was a confused silence, before a hand went up.

“Which one is which?” A girl towards the back asked.

“Yeah, they both look exactly the same!” Another piped up.

“Oh, um... “ Dreamstar began. “I’m Dreamstar…”

“...and I’m Starwishes,” his sister introduced.

“Are you both girls?” Another curious question.

“Yes,” Starwishes replied, her nervousness fading a bit.

“Hey!” Dreamstar complained. “I’m not a girl!”

The class laughed again.

“Okay, you two,” Cheerilee cut in. As much as this was an amusing performance, she really wanted to get her class underway. She welcomed the two to choose a desk, though suggested they try the front row.

The twins quickly skimmed the front row, before Starwishes grabbed his hand and led him along, before then maneuvering him in front of her and pushing him along, so that she wouldn’t end up next to a girl she did not know yet. That, and forcing her brother to sit next to a girl, which Dreamstar knew she did on purpose. Someday, he would get revenge for that… of which she would then get revenge for. And so the cycle goes.

The girl the twins were sitting next to had light yellow hair, lighter than the twins. She wore a light purple-blue t-shirt which had a yellow sun with orange rays on it. Dreamstar looked at both his and Starwishes’ tees, which had their own symbol on it, except the tee colour was white for them. The girl’s skirt, though, was white, and she wore blue shoes with white socks.

Dreamstar and Starwishes both wondered if she was hot in those shoes, although today didn’t seem to be so bad. Although that said, it was still the morning, and the school had air conditioning. The twins wondered if the school also had air shampooing.

“Hi,” The girl greeted. “I’m Sunny Daze!”

“Hi,” Dreamstar smiled. “I’m Dreamstar!”

“And I’m Starwishes!” Starwishes greeted back.

“Hey so, are you two actually new students?” Sunny asked them. “Because you don’t look like high school students…”

“We are,” Starwishes said.

“We just look young for our age,” Dreamstar explained.

“Oh wow, that must be pretty cool sometimes!” Sunny Daze said. “You could get-”

“Into kid’s playgrounds in restaurants-” Starwishes interrupted.

“And get in for children’s-” Dreamstar added.

“Prices?” Sunny Daze interrupted Dreamstar.

“YES!” The twins exclaimed excitedly.

“Okay class, can we have some attention, please?” Cheerilee began. She began to recite some basic theories made by people in the past regarding the different types of literature.

“Oh,” Sunny Daze added, in a hushed voice. “And this is Peachy Pie!”

“Hi!” A girl with orange hair waved from the other side of Sunny whispered. She wore a green top and blue shorts, and also pink shoes.

“Hello!” The twins greeted back, both their voices hushed as to not drown out the teacher.

“...which is why Sunny Daze and Peachy Pie will be explaining to me now why they aren’t paying attention,” Miss Cheerilee said.

“Wait what?” Peachy Pie said. Sunny Daze also suddenly focused on Cheerilee, who was now staring at them both.

“A little focus, please… this is the last term of the year, and there are exams at the end of it,” Cheerilee told them.

“Um… sorry,” Dreamstar apologised for them.

“Yeah, it was our fault…” Starwishes added. “We don’t know anyone yet, so... “

“We kinda talked too,” Dreamstar admitted.

“Well I can appreciate that,” Cheerilee told them. “And I’m glad they are making you feel at home with us.”

“I feel less nervous already,” Starwishes said to Sunny Daze and Peachy Pie.

“I’ll put you four into a group for this classes assignment,” Cheerilee smiled. “I was going to mention the assignment afterwards, so I will talked about it later. Now, back to the lesson… can anyone tell me why Sanscript denounced class representation expressed in the style of writing?”

A boy in the back attemped the answer, though only got it half-right. The twins would have to admit they wouldn’t have had the slightest idea what Miss Cheerilee was talking about, given their introduction to classes, however she had assured them they would be fine, and that she would not expect too much of them until they were clued into the ciriculum.

“We’ll talk later!” Sunny whispered.

“Okay!” Dreamstar and Starwishes whispered back.

“So how does it work?” Dreamstar asked, as the newly-formed quartet of ponies made their way through the corridor. Having made instant-friends that morning was a big plus, since now they had someone to show them where everything was. And since that they shared classes, it made things even simpler.

“The cafeteria?” Sunny Daze responded, with her own question.

“You don’t have cafeterias in the school you’re from?” Peachy Pie asked, confused at the prospect of it.

“Well, no…” Dreamstar replied.

“We just took our own lunch to school,” Starwishes explained.

“That’s weird,” Peachy said, trying to imagine it.

“It’s weird that a school gives you lunch,” Dreamstar countered.

“Is that common, here?” Starwishes asked.

“Well I’ve never heard of a school that didn’t serve lunch,” Sunny admitted.

The four entered the school cafeteria, and immediately the twins looked about them. It was basically just like a regular old cafe or fast food restaurant, at least that’s what they initially pegged it as. It was also buzzing with many other students, and it seemed like all of the tables were already taken.

“Come on, we’ll show you how it works around here!” Sunny said to the twins.

Upon reaching the counter, Sunny and Peachy took a tray, which Dreamstar and Starwishes did the same. The line didn’t seem too long, at least, and the twins tried to peer forward a little, observing the system of lunch acquirement, so that they might be successful in their mission.

“I haven’t seen you two before,” the elderly lady behind the counter said, once it was now their turn. “Are you kids on a high school visit or something?”

The cafeteria lady had white hair, and wore a creamish-coloured top with what looked like a short orange-coloured scarf with an apple pattern. In a way, it reminded the twins of Miss Cheerilee’s floral-patterned skirt.

“Oh no, they’re new,” Peachy Pie told her.

“New students, that is,” Sunny Daze added.

“You’re a little short,” The cafeteria lady observed. “Nothing my own school-cooked meals won’t fix!”

The cafeteria lady scooped some macaroni cheese onto their trays.

“Is this macaroni cheese?” Both twins asked, simultaneously.

“That’s right! It’s a school staple on Mondays,” the cafeteria lady told them. “Eat my food, and you’ll grow big and strong! The name’s Granny Smith, by the way.”

“I’m Starwishes,” Starwishes introduced herself.

“And I’m Dreamstar,” Dreamstar followed suit.

“Nice to meet ya,” Granny Smith said. “Now don’t you be letting that food get cold, also you’re holding up the line.”

The twins both looked back, to find a line had grown a bit since they last really took noticed.

“Oh,” Starwishes began.

“Sorry…” Dreamstar grinned, awkwardly, as the group began to move away from the counter.

“Now we just have to find a table,” Peachy Pie mentioned, and upon casting their attention back to the cafeteria’s populace, Dreamstar, Starwishes, and Sunny Daze saw that it might be a little bit of a mission.

“There’s one!” Sunny claimed, as she noted a group of students vacating.

“Nice catch, Sunny! Let’s grab it before someone else gets to it!” Peachy said, before breaking into a bit of a jog.

“Hey, no running in the cafeteria!” A boy shouted out. Dreamstar and Starwishes did not know which boy said it, however, although they and Sunny decided to let the race and territory claim to Peachy Pie.

“We got a window seat!” Starwishes sang.

“Best table,” Dreamstar observed.

“Actually, the best table is over there,” Sunny Daze pointed, over to another table with a group of girls around it.

“Ugh, they left their trays here,” Peachy Pie uttered, upon realising that the previous occupants of their table had left their mess behind, and pushed them to the side.

“Hey, at least we got a table!” Dreamstar looked on the brighter side.

“Yeah, that’s true! And we don’t have to share it with anyone else!” Peachy Pie added. “We hardly ever get our own table, we usually have to share with someone else!”

“Still feels a bit awkward when we have to pick a table with someone random at it,” Sunny Daze confessed.

“Or a table where there isn’t enough room for the both of us,” Peachy Pie said. “We always like to sit together.”

“Dreamstar and I always sit together as well,” Starwishes told them. “We do everything together!”

“It’s like we’re best friends,” Dreamstar explained.

“Only better!” Starwishes added.

“That’s… pretty awesome,” Peachy said. “But I mean, you’re both siblings, surely you must get on each other’s nerves a lot…”

“Yeeeeah…” Dreamstar admitted.

“I guess we do a bit…” Starwishes pondered.

“Forcing me to go first this morning,” Dreamstar said to his sister, recounting their first classroom appearance that morning.

“And you making me go first with that girl in the alley,” Starwishes recalled a prior event. “It was your idea.”

“You had the same idea!” Dreamstar told her.

“Yeah, well… still,” Starwishes said. “You’re my big brother, you need to protect me.”

“Starwishes, we’re the same age as each other!” Dreamstar pointed out.

“I could watch this all day,” Peachy Pie sat there, being entertained by the twin’s harmless little squabble. “If this is siblings fighting, then I think I can get you two.”

“Oh, yeah!” Sunny Daze brought up, after swallowing a spoonful of macaroni cheese. “So how old are you exactly?”

“Thirteen,” both twins answered in unison.

“Really?” Peachy asked, with a mouthful of food. “I thought you had be to be like, fourteen when you start high school?”

“We were thirteen when we started high school,” Starwishes said.

“Everyone else who started at our old high school was 13,” Dreamstar explained. “Well… there was one girl, she was twelve.”

“How does someone start high school at twelve years old?” Peachy Pie asked, flabbergasted, as the twins sampled their lunch. “Was she super-smart or something?”

“No, her birthday was in March, after the start of the school year,” Dreamstar told her. “So that’s how she was in the same year as us.”

“But March isn’t even near the beginning of the school year…” Sunny Daze told him, as Dreamstar took another bite.

“Yeah, the school year is kinda different,” Starwishes explained. “School goes from February to the beginning of December. I think here it’s…”

“September to… May or June,” Dreamstar said.

“That’s weird,” Peachy said.

“It’s weird how your school year goes from one year to the next,” Starwishes countered.

“Touche,” Peachy admitted. “So do you guys get mistaken as kids much?”

“Oh, all the time,” Dreamstar complained, although his mischievous grin and tone spoke sarcasm.

“Honestly, when you guys first came into class this morning, I thought you were just visiting for the day, or less,” Peachy Pie admitted. “I thought you guys were like nine or something.”

“I thought ten,” Sunny Daze said.

“Sunny’s closer, she wins!” Dreamstar cheered.

“Hooray!” Sunny threw her hands up, champion of the table.

“You just lost your title of the youngest-looking student,” Peachy told Sunny.

“So… I don’t win anything?” Sunny realised her title forfeiture.

“Well, people think you are twelve,” Peachy Pie told her. “But these guys look younger than you…”

“Ah, but…!” Sunny Daze countered. “Dreamstar and Starwishes are also younger than me!”

“So... how old are you guys?” Starwishes asked. Peachy had asked them, now it was their turn!

“Well, I’m fifteen,” Peachy replied. “My birthday was last month. Sunny is still fourteen, she’s almost kind of like you, in a way.”

“She is?” Dreamstar asked.

“Well… my birthday isn’t until summer,” Sunny explained. “Well, at least when I was enrolled for high school I was still thirteen...”

“Her birthday is riiiiight at the end of summer break,” Peachy said. “If she were just a tiny bit younger, she would have literally started high school as a thirteen year-old.”

“At least my birthday is during summer break,” Sunny told her. “I’d rather have my birthday during break, than on a school day.”

“When’s your birthday?” Peachy inquired the twins.

“Twentieth of October,” Starwishes replied.

“Autumn babies!” Sunny exclaimed.

“Spring, actually…” Dreamstar corrected her.

“How can you be born in the spring if you were born in October?” Peachy asked.

“It’s when spring is for us…” Starwishes answered her.

“Just like how it’s autumn where we’re from, but instead it’s spring here,” Dreamstar explained. “The seasons are the other way around here than in the southern hemisphere.”

“Oh, I get it…” Peachy realised. “I mean, I knew you were from far away…”

“Yeah, you have these really interesting accents!” Sunny told them. “I’ve been trying to figure out where you are from, but I haven’t, yet.”

“Well… I suppose we could just tell you…” Starwishes supposed.

“...but then, that wouldn’t be very fun, would it?” Dreamstar added.

“Well… that’s pure evil,” Peachy said, putting it bluntly.

“Us? Evil? Never!” Dreamstar grinned, mischievously.

“Mwahahahahahahaaa!!” Starwishes laughed, raising her arms into the air, pronouncing the horror the twins wrought upon the world. It was a pity there was no lightning to emphasise the unholy terror of what came with it.

“Oh noes, we’re doomed!” Sunny Daze realised, her plead to the heavens, ignored.

“And then, when the midnight hour draws ever closer, they descend upon their victims, devouring their souls, and their sanity,” Dreamstar recited, waving his hands and fingers about, in spooky fashion. “And in that moment, the victims lose their minds, seeking brains of those still living…”

“Brains…” Starwishes joined in. “BRAINS!!”

“Oh my gosh, take Sunny!” Peachy pleaded, hoping to be spared. She turned to Sunny Daze, who slowly turned her head to Peachy, a slow smile spreading across her face with gazeless eyes, followed by the licking of her lips. A moment of silence fell as the scene froze in place, before the four fell into fits of laughter.

“Hey, what are you guys doing tomorrow after school?” Sunny brought up, after they had recovered.

“Us?” Dreamstar replied, before looking to his sister.

“Going home, I guess?” Starwishes answered.

“I guess we might do something else, though…” Dreamstar continued. “We don’t really have any plans…”

Sunny Daze and Peachy Pie looked at each other.

“I don’t suppose you know how to rollerskate, right?” Peachy Pie asked them.

“Well…” Dreamstar began.

“Not really…” Starwishes smiled, nervously.

“We could teach you!” Sunny beamed.

“Us? Rollerskate?” The twins asked.

“Sure!” Peachy Pie told them. “Sunny and I go rollerskating all the time! If you learned how to rollerskate, we could go everywhere together!”

“Oh wow… that sounds like fun!” Starwishes exclaimed. “But…”

“...we don’t have rollerskates,” Dreamstar said.

“Hey, that’s no problem!” Peachy smiled.

“There is a skating rink where you can rent a pair,” Sunny explained. “It doesn’t even cost that much for the afternoon!”

“What do you think?” Dreamstar turned to his sister.

“Me? I think you want to go skating!” Starwishes told her brother.

“And I think you do, too!” Dreamstar told her. The twins returned their attention to Sunny and Peachy.

“Let’s do it!” They both cheered.

Author's Note

One thing I wondered when it came to a new class before writing this chapter was... who would be in the class? Which characters would be there? And who would become their friends?
I then remembered a pair of young ponies, Sunny Daze and Peachy Pie, so I thought they might work - I very well couldn't use the CMC, since they are in a different year for this one!

Interestingly, another MLP fanfic I started writing years ago also has a Sunny Daze. It was supposed to be Sunny Days, given her brother's name, but then I thought Daze would suit better when I envisioned her dancing and being creative.
I also find it kind of funny how when FiM first came out, there was a Celestia and Luna, when I already had my pony parent's names as Celestialstar and Lunartome... sometimes it feels like the universe is mocking me. xD

Chapter 05: Splash 'n Crash

“Roller skating?” Celestialstar repeated. Her children had completed their first day at a new school, and she wanted to know how everything had gone, what the school was like, and what the teachers and students were like. Also, if they managed to drive anyone insane, yet.

The family sat around the coffee table in the livingroom, sans Lunartome, who was still out for the day. Celestialstar had managed to wrangle her twin spawn the moment they came in through the front door, the tale of their new school experience in another land one that just could not wait. And while the heat outside had come into full-force over the course of the day, the mother of two knew she would not get all of her answers right away, as the twins had their eye on the pool out back.
For now, she wanted to at least get some talk in. Also, she had made ice-cold smoothies for them, which was a good draw.

“Uh-huh!” Dreamstar and Starwishes nodded. They had already told their mother about how they had gotten themselves a tad lost that morning, about how big the school was, and their introduction to their new class, and then to their meeting of Sunny Daze and Peachy Pie. And of course, the eventual leading to their invitation.

“It sounds like you two had quite a day, and already you two have made friends!” Celestialstar said, overjoyed that her kids were already settling in. “Oh, however… I was supposed to tell you both this morning, but I forgot to tell you when you almost left the house naked as the day you were born. I had booked you in for a trim tomorrow, after school.”

“Aww…” Dreamstar moaned.

“Really?” Starwishes asked. They were disappointed, given they said they would go rollerskating with Sunny and Peacy.

“It’s not like it will take all afternoon,” their mother told them. “Besides, I had no idea you would have already made plans. It’s just a bit of a summer cut, not too much - just a bit of a shorten and tidy-up. Do you think your friends could wait for just a bit?”

The twins looked at each other, then back to their mother.

“Yeah, I’m sure they will…” Dreamstar reasoned.

“What time is the haircut?” Starwishes inquired.

“3:30,” Celestialstar replied. “I’ll pick you up from school… I could pick up your new friends as well, if they’d like a ride.”

“You just want to meet them,” Starwishes realised, smirking.

“I just want to get to know them,” Celestialstar assured her. “If they are going to be your friends, and they were to ever come over, I would need to know what is wrong with them to actually want to be friends with you, and what kind of medication they need to take.”

“HEY!” Dreamstar and Starwishes protested. They knew their mother was kidding, though.

“What planet they are from…” Celestialstar continued with a list. “And figuring out a way to stop them in their plans for taking over the Earth using you two as their doomsday device.”

“Mum, please!” Starwishes protested.

“We already promised that we would only ever use our powers for evil,” Dreamstar explained. “And there is nothing that can stop us!”

“Oh, we’ll see about that!” Celestialstar exclaimed, grabbing both of her children in a light lock in each arm, using her hands to rub their heads. The twins laughed in reaction to this attack, before pulling themselves free.

“Mum…” Starwishes began.

“Did Dad finish with the pool, yet?” Dreamstar completed the question.

“He did,” Celestialstar replied. “The pool is completely ready to go, and filled to the brim. I knew you two would have that on your minds when you came home, which is why I made these smoothies, so I could ask you how your first day was, before you vanished outside.

“It did work,” Dreamstar admitted to his sister.

“I still want to try the pool out,” Starwishes told him.

“So,” Dreamstar began, both twins turning to their mother.

“Can we?” Both twins asked in unison.

“I think I’m done with you for now,” Celestialstar replied. “Go nuts.”

“YES!” The twins cheered together, before pulling off all of their clothes at top speed, setting a world record, and dashing like the wind out of the back sliding door.

“Hey! Don’t leave your clothes just lying about the living room!” Their mother shouted after them - but it was too late. By the time she began her sentence, both siblings were had already left the deck, and were moments away from - and there it was, water splashing everywhere. She knew she had to be faster, next time.

Both twins resurfaced almost at the same time, and took a moment. Back at home, they lived right by the ocean, and given that the climate of their home islands were quite warm all year round, a swim was always an instant heat-relief for them. Here, they lived aways from the ocean, and up until today, the pool was out of action. The twins had badgered their parents about having a place with a pool, since swimming was a common pleasure for the two. They knew that there were other places to swim, such as a local pool, and of course a pool at the school, but for them, it just wouldn’t be the same - here, they would have to wear togs, swimming trunks, bathing suits… whatever they called them here now, anyway. Back at home, they would normally just swim naked, and it was more than just a preference for them.

The backyard of their new house was quite open - it had a generally flat lawn, which eventually sloped down a hill, and into a wooded area. That was another thing the family looked for, a spot closer to nature, a spot where they could have some form solitude and peace. Their old home was similar, although that was probably down to the fact that where they came from did not have very many people. Celestialstar and Lunartome wanted to at least have something similar, for they too felt that living right in the middle of suburbia would be too much of a shock.

Starwishes thought of something, but then realised that her brother had vanished. It was not long until she knew where to, as suddenly, she felt her brother make contact underneath her, and she was suddenly thrust up out of the water!

“Dreamstar!!” Starwishes screamed, but it was too late - she had already been rocketed into the air, as high as her brother could muster, and she splashed backwards into the water.

Dreamstar was laughing as Starwishes came up for air, and as soon as she caught a couple of breaths, she launched a retaliatory strike against her brother, jumping on top of him and forcing him underwater. The twins continued this playful struggle for sibling superiority, until sometime after, during which they were giving each other piggyback rides around the pool.

“So, how’s the pool?” The voice of their father interrupted their games. The twins hadn’t even noticed he was home, or that he had come out and onto the deck.

“Hi, Dad!” Starwishes greeted.

“When did you get home?” Dreamstar asked.

“About ten minutes ago,” Lunartome replied. “Your mother says dinner will be ready in five minutes.

“Five minutes?” The twins reacted, with shock. What time was it? How long had they been in the pool already? They looked towards the sun, which was lower in the sky than they had expected. They then looked at their fingertips.

“I’m going all wrinkly!” Dreamstar exclaimed.

“No! I don’t want to be old!” Starwishes cried. The two latched on to each other, in a tight embrace, feigning tears over their misery and misfortune at their ‘rapid aging.’ Lunartome stood there, wondering what half of the family his children got it from. He was certain it was not his.

“I left a couple of towels on the deckchairs,” their father told them. “We’re having dinner on the deck tonight, so you might want to get out of the pool, now.

The twins realised they were hungry… they hadn’t noticed it until just now. They got out of the pool, and each took a towel. Wrapping themselves in them and standing there, as the early evening sun, still quite warm, helped in their drying.

Their mother came out, and set some plates onto the deck table. She then went back inside, and then emerged twice more, once with cutlery, and then once more with their evening meal.

“Alright, dinner’s ready!” Celestialstar called out, though more to her husband, since her children were standing there, now mostly dry. “Lunartome!”

The twins hung their towels over the back of their chosen deckchairs, and took a seat. It was not uncommon for them to join the dinner table naked, just as much as it was not uncommon at the breakfast table. They were actually more used to being unclothed rather than clothed, something they had always been since they were little.

Tonight, the dinner served consisted of a summer salad, minted potato, and chicken. Only the chicken was hot, since Celestialstar did not have time to cook it earlier. Otherwise, that would have likely been cold, too. It was not until Lunartome joined them that they finally began dishing up and eating.

“So your mother tells me that you have some new friends,” Lunartome said to his children.

“Mhm,” the twins nodded, food in their mouth. Dreamstar swallowed first.

“They invited us to go roller skating tomorrow, after school,” Dreamstar said.

“You don’t know how to rollerskate,” Lunartome told them.

“We know,” Starwishes said. “But they said they would teach us.”

“Do you have rollerskates?” Lunartome asked. It was a half-rhetorical question.

“No,” Starwishes answered.

“But there is a place in town where you can hire them for the afternoon,” Dreamstar explained.

“Well I’m glad to hear you’re making friends,” Lunartome told them.

“What about you, Dad?” Starwishes asked.

“What did you do today?” Dreamstar added.

“Similar to you, I’d dare say,” Lunartome replied. “It’s a little busy, settling in, but the implementation of the embassy is going smoothly. I had a lot of paperwork to do today.”

“That sounds so interesting!” Starwishes said, sarcastically. Lunartome gave her a strange look with an amused grin, and nudged her softly on the shoulder with his fist.

“I also went looking around town today,” Celestialstar added to the conversation.

“Looking for potential shops?” Lunartome asked.

“Yes, I have,” Celestialstar replied. “I saw a cute little shop which I think would be perfect!”

“It’s going to be the best shop in the entire country!” Dreamstar cheered.

“You’re probably going to be so busy,” Starwishes told her, imagining the crowds.

“Haha, we shall see,” Celestialstar told them.

“I can count on you two to help out, can’t I?” Lunartome asked Dreamstar and Starwishes.

“Yep!” Dreamstar replied.

“Of course!” Starwishes added.

“Thanks, you two!” Celestialstar smiled.

Sunny Daze and Peachy Pie had no issue the next day with waiting for the twins while they had their hair mutilated. In fact, they welcomed the free ride into town, as a car with air conditioning beat a walk in the heat any day of the week. The twins also mentioned that their mother had potentially suspected that they were aliens, in a joking tone, to which Peachy jokingly wanted to know how she found out.

They had not made any new friends in school that day, although they did meet a few more students in passing. For the time being, the twins stuck to Sunny and Peachy like glue, especially since the mysteries of Canterlot High had yet to be imparted onto them. They also noted how a lot of their classmates had cottoned on to which twin was which based on what they wore, which made things less complicated for their class, overall.

Celestialstar was already waiting in the car for them when school was over. This made waiting outside for her not an option, and that they would not have to risk melting onto the pavement. One thing the twins did wonder, however, was given that they would be rollerskating, and given the heat, that it might be too hot. But their friends told them about how the skating rink where they would be going was all indoors, which brought a sigh of relief.

“So, you must be Sunny Daze and Peachy Pie,” Celestialstar said as they greeted each other at the car.

“Hello,” Peachy greeted.

“Hi,” Sunny waved a little. She seemed to be a little shy in this encounter, compared to when she first met Dreamstar and Starwishes.

“Don’t worry, I’m not going to eat you,” Celestialstar assured her, as the others moved about, trying to figure who would sit where. The twins, given that they always sat together, usually sat in the back, since there was only a single passenger seat in the front. Peachy Pie nominated herself to sit in the front, leaving Sunny to take the remaining backseat.

It was not a very long drive, and the haircut appointment was soon over. Sunny commented on their haircut, telling them how good it looked on them. Peachy was more curious as to why they had to have the same hairstyle as each other. Celestialstar had offered to drive them to the rink, however Peachy informed her that it wasn’t too far from where they were parked.

“This is for you,” Celestialstar said to her kids, presenting them each with some cash.

“Thanks, Mum!” The twins sang.

“You’re father and I decided that we’d treat you the afternoon,” Celestialstar told them. “You kids go have fun!”

“Thanks! We will!” Starwishes grinned.

“Oh,” Celestialstar added, turning to Sunny and Peachy. “You’re welcome to come over sometime, if it’s okay with your parents.”

“That’d be cool!” Peachy Pie replied.

“Thank you!” Sunny Daze said.

“Please don’t break my children,” Celestialstar requested.

“We’ll try to keep them in at least three pieces!” Sunny chimed.

The skating rink was not as large as the twins had imagined - they had pictured something of a behemoth, when in fact the rink itself was probably only as twice as the size of the school hall. There did not seem to be very many people about, although Sunny and Peachy explained to them that it gets busier during the weekends, and school holidays.

“So… what do we do?” Dreamstar asked.

“First, we get you guys some skates!” Peachy Pie announced, gesturing over to the counter near the entrance. “Come on!”

The twins felt nervous. They had never been skating before, what if they weren’t very good? What if they would not be able to pick it up?

“Hello, girls!” The elderly man at the service counter greeted. “The usual pass?”

“Yup,” Peachy Pie replied. “Also, we have a couple of new friends who are new, and want to learn how to skate.”

“Ah, so I am guessing you will need roller skates, then,” the man realised. “What shoe size are you?”

“Um…” Dreamstar began.

“We… don’t really know,” Starwishes confessed.

“The shoe sizes are different here,” Dreamstar grinned, feeling a little awkward. “So… we don’t know.”

“That’s fine,” the man assured them. “We’ll just try some skates until we find a pair that fit you. Let’s see… I’d say, given by the look of you… let’s try a size 6.”

The old man presented them both with a pair of size 6 roller skates, which both twins got their feet into easily.

“Well?” Sunny asked.

“Too big,” the twins replied simultaneously.

“Let’s try a size 5, then…” The old man suggested, passing over another pair. These skates were much more snug, although Dreamstar wondered if it was still too big.

“Does it feel too loose?” Sunny asked.

“Well… not really,” Dreamstar replied. Starwishes inquired about the size 4, but found that it was too tight for her liking.

“We’re size 5,” Starwishes informed him.

“Great, let’s pay and get a locker to put our schoolbags into,” Peachy said. After paying, and entrusting their possessions to a locker (of which Peachy Pie took possession of the key), the next challenge was to begin.

Sunny Daze and Peachy Pie rolled ahead on rollerskates of their own, while Dreamstar and Starwishes were not quite as graceful, and found themselves holding on to each other for the sake of their health. They found their way onto the rink itself by pulling themselves along the rink’s edge. Once on the rink, they hesitated to let go of the railing.

“You guys are going to have to let go sometime,” Peachy told them. The twins decided she was right, but were a little nervous about how this would end up - with both of their rear ends on the concrete floor. They resolved to let go together, which they seemed to manage without falling over, and then gripping onto each other’s arms.

“Okay, good! Now you have to let go of each other,” Peachy Pie told them.

Dreamstar and Starwishes looked at each other. They themselves saw no need to let go of each other, they were quite fine with not collapsing in a heap.

“Okay, Sunny… you take Dreamstar, I’ll take Starwishes,” Peachy Pie told her co-tutor.

“Okay!” Sunny said, smiling. Peachy rolled over towards Starwishes, and took her hand, separating the twins. Sunny did the same, only with Dreamstar. Taking Dreamstar’s hand, she gently pulled Dreamstar along. He began to lose his balance, the wheels sliding out from underneath him - but Sunny caught both of his arms in hers, and managed to steady him.

“Okay, you have to just make sure you keep your balance, that’s important,” Sunny told him, smiling. “I’ll hold on to you, but we’ll start moving around. Don’t move your feet in crazy directions…”

“I’m not sure how to,” Dreamstar confessed, fearing that by the end of the day, he will have made himself quite familiar with the hospital.

“Just… have you ever been skiing?” Sunny Daze asked him. “Oh… wait, you come from some tropical island…”

“Yeah, I have…” Dreamstar answered. “There are mountains where I come from, some are high enough and get snow in the winter. It just doesn’t snow else except for those mountains. Starwishes and I went skiing a few times.”

“Oh really? I thought all of the islands didn’t have snow and it was basically summer all year round,” Sunny admitted, feeling a little bit stupid.

“You just have to be higher up,” Dreamstar told her. “Though, some years there isn’t enough snow for skiing and snowboarding…”

“Oh, okay!” Sunny understood.

“So… anyway?” Dreamstar hinted, wanting to know where Sunny Daze was going with this.

“Oh, right!” Sunny remembered. “Anyway, so when you ski, you just-”

“OH!” Dreamstar realised. “Because you control the skis with your feet!”

“Right!” Sunny exclaimed. “So, it’s a little bit different, but I at least think it’s sorta the same, so just watch my feet as well!”

“Right!” Dreamstar said.

“Just don’t overthink it, okay?” Sunny instructed.

“Got it!” Dreamstar replied.

It was a little bit awkward, and while it probably didn’t seem like it, it sure felt like there were some close calls. Starwishes herself had similar close calls, but both of them seemed to improve quite impressively - at least, from their own point of views. Peachy pointed out that while they were doing pretty well, they still looked awkward and seemed to go all over the place. Still, the twins managed to skate about by themselves, even if it wasn’t with graceful precision.

The afternoon wore on, and it was decided that they would end their skating date for today. The twins wanted to try one more lap around the rink, having found a growing courage in their skating, to which Peachy suggested a race. They took off, and while the twins’ awkward skate-racing impeded their ability to keep up with Peachy and Sunny, they at least were able to skate somewhat decently.

It was no real competition - Peachy and Sunny reached the rink entrance first. Skating to a stop, they waited for their pupils to finish.

“They’re doing really well, don’tcha think?” Sunny said to Peachy.

“Yeah, better than I thought they would, anyway!” Peachy admitted.

“I think we just found us some new skating buddies!” Sunny chimed happily.

“If they keep it up, they might even be able to challenge us to a decent race!” Peachy said, happily. “If they keep this up, they’ll be skating well enough in a couple weeks!”

“OH MY GOD HELP!!” Starwishes screamed.

“HOW DO YOU STOP THIS THING??” Dreamstar cried out. Sunny and Peachy took their eyes off each other long enough to realise their roles in the twin’s crash-landing, and creating a skate rink sprawl on the ground.

“Ow…” Sunny moaned. The twins agreed with their own post-crash moan-based commentary.

“Maybe a couple weeks is a bit too optimistic,” Peachy Pie groaned. “How about a couple hundred years?”

Chapter 06: The Identity Game

“So, how about Saturday?” Sunny Daze suggested. The four friends were between classes, and had no real hurry getting to their next, since the bell had yet to ring. Their topics of conversation had been about their roller skating escapades the day before, and how they miraculously avoided the ICU. Now it came back to how the twins’ mother had suggested Sunny Daze and Peachy Pie coming over.

“This Saturday?” Peachy Pie asked. “Yeah… I’m not doing anything this weekend.”

“Then we should ask Mum and Dad,” Dreamstar said to Starwishes.

“Our first playdate since moving here!” Starwishes noted gleefully.

“Playdate?” Peachy laughed. “Who still calls them playdates?”

“Mum does,” Dreamstar and Starwishes replied together.

“Y’know… it’s kinda freaky when you do that,” Peachy smiled.

“Do what?” Dreamstar and Starwishes asked.

“That!” Peachy Pie said. “You two always seem to be in sync with each other or something… have you never noticed that?”

“We do?” The twins asked, before looking at each other.

“You just did it again!” Peachy Pie snorted. “Do you have some kind of creepy twin-telepathy thing going on?”

“I think it’s cute,” Sunny admitted. “It’s like a sign of your closeness with each other! You also have this habit where one of you begins a sentence, and the other one finishes it!”

“Yeah,” Peachy Pie agreed. “It’s like you know what the other is thinking… you never noticed that?”

“I guess not…” Dreamstar replied.

“Maybe it’s because we’re always like that?” Starwishes pondered to her brother.

“So… we don’t notice it, because it’s just a normal everyday thing?” Dreamstar continued.

“Yeah,” Starwishes replied. The two paused for a moment, before looking back to Sunny and Peachy. “Is it really that weird?”

“Well…” Peachy began. “Nah… I guess not.”

“It’s just something special you two have,” Sunny told them. The school bell rang, signalling the beginning of the next class.

“I guess we need to go to class,” Peachy observed. “We’re still up for this afternoon, right?”

“Yeah!” Dreamstar cheered.

“Of course!” Starwishes said.

The afternoon brought with it another skating session at the rink. The twins still had enough money from the day before, and they were determined to perfect their skating. They only wished they had their own skates…

“Dreamstar, no!” Sunny Daze called out. “Keep your…”

Unfortunately, Dreamstar’s rear met the ground. Sunny skated up to him, and took his hand, helping him up.

“I don’t get it,” Dreamstar said, confused. “I’m sure we were better at this yesterday…”

“This is only your second time!” Sunny told him. “You’re just not used to it yet.”

“Don’t worry,” Peachy Pie assured him. “Your sister has tumbled a few times…”

Dreamstar looked towards his sister, who was starting to lose control, before grabbing and flopping herself over the railing.

“HEY, STARWISHES!” Peachy Pie called out. Starwishes looked up, righted herself, and skated over to join the other three.

“I’m sorry,” Starwishes apologised. “I know I was better yesterday…”

“That’s what I had said,” Dreamstar told her.

“You guys will get the hang of it,” Peachy assured them. “It’s not like Sunny and I were pros from the get-go…”

“You bruised your butt,” Sunny smirked

“You crashed into a tree!” Peachy giggled.

“I can’t wait to crash into my first tree,” Dreamstar said, imagining his future skating achievements.

“I wanted to crash into that tree!” Starwishes objected.

“Nah, the tree’s mine!” Dreamstar said.

“Give me that tree!” Starwishes screeched, launching an all-out play-fight with her brother.

“No! Find your own tree to crash into!” Dreamstar refused, play-fighting back.

Forgetting that they were actually on wheels, the two lost their balance and collapsed in a heap on the ground. Sunny covered her eyes. Peachy took enjoyment in the free entertainment.

“I’m so glad I came here today,” Peachy gratefully said to the universe.

Sunny Daze once again helped Dreamstar up, while Peachy did the same for Starwishes.

“You know, Dreamstar, I can’t always pick you up,” Sunny told him.

“Haha… sorry,” Dreamstar grinned, a little embarrassed.

“Yeah girl,” Peachy said to Starwishes, helping her up. “Starting a scrap on a pair of skates isn’t really the smartest idea. It was pretty funny, though!”

“Hey…” Starwishes began.

“Hmm?”

“Just… you know which of us is which,” Starwishes observed. “You knew that was Dreamstar, and that I was Starwishes…”

“Hey yeah!” Dreamstar realised. “You haven’t gotten us mixed up!”

“Well, it was hard to tell you apart at first,” Sunny Daze admitted. “Like on the first day, especially…”

“But we figured it out,” Peachy Pie stated, with a proud look on her face. “And now we both know who is who just by looking at you!”

“Yeah but how?” Starwishes asked.

“That’s our secret!” Peachy Pie replied, divulging no more information on that matter. “Now… are we gonna skate, or are we gonna skate?”

“Skate!” Sunny agreed. Starwishes and Dreamstar looked at each other, perplexed.

“Come on!” Sunny said cheerfully, as she took Dreamstar by the hands, and dragged him away.

“Whoa!” Dreamstar uttered, as he was whisked from his sister.

“Ready to try again?” Peachy Pie asked Starwishes, holding out her hand.

Starwishes hesitated for a moment, her mind still on the previous conundrum, before taking her skating partner’s hand.

“Sure!” Starwishes nodded.

The twins really were improving. Not that it was by any significant level, but as their skating session went on, they both were becoming fairly confident they had gotten better than the day before at the end of it… and especially from the beginning of their second skating session, where they ended up falling all over the place.

“You two seem to be picking it up,” Celestialstar had told them, after the twins had arrived home. The two had wasted no time ditching their clothes - it was just too warm, and after all that skating, followed by walking home, they could have done with a wash. However this time, their mother made sure to tell them not to leave it on the floor.

“Sunny and Peachy say we’re doing really well,” Dreamstar said, sitting himself next to his sister upon the stool beside the bar after the two had deposited their clothes in the wash basket.

“And we only fell over a million times today!” Starwishes added.

“I think it was closer to a million and three,” Dreamstar corrected her.

“It sounds like you are having fun,” Celestialstar said.

“We are!” Both twins sang, with a smile.

“You two should have invited Sunny and Peachy over,” Celestialstar told them.

“They said they had to go home,” Starwishes replied.

“Oh but… they did say they could come over on Saturday,” Dreamstar said.

“Then Dad will have met them, too!” Starwishes exclaimed.

“Oh, about that…” Celestialstar began. “Your father will be out of town this weekend for work-related reasons.”

“Oh…” Dreamstar reacted.

“What time is he leaving…?” Starwishes asked, wondering if he would at least be able to catch them before disappearing.

“About 7:30 in the morning,” Celestialstar replied.

“Oh…” Starwishes responded.

“Sorry, you two…” Celestialstar apologised. “But you do know that there are things that he needs to take care of before everything has settled down.”

“We know…” The twins said.

“They are still welcome to come,” Celestialstar told them. “I will have some things I need to do as well, so I will be in and out. But I’m sure you kids will manage without me.”

“And then you come back, and found we have starved to death…” Dreamstar began explaining a very realistic scenario.

“Our skeletons lying there, on the floor,” Starwishes continued. “Still chanting and praying for the sandwiches that shall never come…”

“I’m sure you two know how to make sandwiches,” Celestialstar assured them. “Or do you want me to leave instructions on how to put a sandwich together?”

“We shall not sully our hands with such tasks of servitude,” Starwishes said, waving her hand dismissively and jokingly implying that a servant was exactly what their mother was.

“Grraaaaagh!!” Celestialstar erupted, beginning to run around the bar, indicating her twin spawn it was time to escape. She half-chased them across the room, and they disappeared in a flash through the sliding door, and jumped into the pool.
It was their only sanctuary from the mother-monster. They surfaced when they were sure they were safe.

“So… what do you think?” Dreamstar asked his sister.

“About Sunny and Peachy being able to tell us apart?” Starwishes responded. That was probably one of the best things about their relationship with each other - they tended to know what the other was thinking, or talking about. It made conversations, and pranks (more importantly) easier. In fact, given that they pretty much knew what the other was thinking at any given moment for the most part, many had even guessed that the two might be telepathic.

The twins swam around the pool a little, pondering the notion. Sunny Daze and Peachy Pie weren’t the only ones, but their classmates, and even some of the other students had started addressing them by name, correctly.

“You think they actually can tell us apart?” Starwishes asked.

“I don’t know,” Dreamstar replied. “Hardly anyone can tell us apart… even Mum and Dad can have trouble sometimes…”

“True,” Starwishes said. “But then, whenever we are home we are usually naked, so it’s not like they get us mixed up that often. It’s only when we are dressed that we can confuse them…”

“Yeah, I bet it’s our clothes!” Dreamstar logically concluded. “You have been wearing a skirt, I’ve been wearing shorts, that’s how everyone is telling us apart… I mean, it makes sense, right?”

“We’ve only been at that school for three days,” Starwishes reasoned. “There is NO WAY they can just tell us apart.”

“Definitely the clothes!” Dreamstar stated. “I can’t believe we didn’t figure that out sooner!”

“Well we usually wear the same clothes, anyway,” Starwishes said. “I mean, throughout that afternoon when we met Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom, and Scootaloo, they couldn’t tell us apart at all, but we were wearing the exact same thing as each other that day.”

“Hey… what if we tested that theory?” Dreamstar suggested.

“What, both go to school wearing shorts?” Starwishes asked. “What about… if we just swapped places?”

“That’s what I was thinking!” Dreamstar began to grin, with a sinister twinkle in his eye.

“Oh… I love it,” Starwishes reflected Dreamstar’s expression. If there was ever a random spectator to this situation, they would have thought there was a mirror in the pool.

“So… shall we?” Dreamstar smirked.

“Yes, let’s,” Starwishes agreed.

If there was ever a need to complete the mood, there would be thunder and lightning. They did, however, put on a malevolent laugh. Their mother could only look on from inside the house, wondering in horror what kind of sinister prank those two were concocting now.
She decided that she did not want to know.

It was another heated morning the following day, which made Dreamstar glad they were going with their prank - Starwishes’ skirt provided more relief than a pair of shorts. With everyone thinking they had them pegged, and not getting them mixed up (at least, those that knew them well enough, especially Sunny Daze and Peachy Pie), they were confident that posing as the other would fool them easily.

Their parents seemed to notice something was up when they emerged ready for school that morning, however they couldn’t quite put their finger on it. A lot of parents can tell siblings apart, even when they are identical. Usually, however, the twin’s parents often told them apart simply because of lack of clothes around the house, making telling them apart when dressed a little more difficult. It usually took a little while, but even then, as identical as they were to each other, it seemed like they had their own unique tell that only their parents could see… well, their mother, mostly. Their father, less so.

“You think they’ll fall for it?” Starwishes asked Dreamstar. For today, she wore the same black shorts Dreamstar and her wore when they met Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom, and Scootaloo, and the same kind of shorts Dreamstar wore on the first day of school.

“Definitely!” Dreamstar replied, with a grin on his face. Today, he wore Starwishes’ black skirt, which she had worn on the first day of school, as well as other unmentionables. Truth is, they did a complete clothes-swap for today.

“You know, you’re going to have to use the girl’s bathroom, right?” Starwishes smirked.

“And you’re going to have to use the boy’s bathroom!” Dreamstar reminded her, similar expression.

“Easy enough,” Starwishes said. “I’ll just use the toilets in the stalls, no one will know it’s me!”

“And I have to use the toilets in the stalls,” said Dreamstar. “No urinal, so no one will know it’s me!”

The two began giggling together, as they approached the school. Sunny Daze and Peachy Pie were waiting by the statue outside of the school for them.

“Hey! Dreamstar, Starwishes!!” Peachy Pie called out, waving. The twins broke into a half-run, slowing and stopping upon reaching them.

“Sorry we’re late!” Dreamstar apologised.

“Yeah, we got a bit held up,” Starwishes explained.

“Ah, that’s okay,” Peachy Pie said. “I only got here about a couple minutes ago.”

“I’ve been here five minutes,” Sunny Daze told them. “So it hasn’t been that long.”

“That’s good…” Dreamstar and Starwishes said, together in relief.

“So… yeah,” Peachy Pie began, assuming the position of getting the suggestion ball rolling. “As much as it’s a nice day, can we go inside, now? Gettin’ kind of hot…”

“It is getting hot already,” Dreamstar noted.

“I have no objections finding shade!” Starwishes voted for Peachy’s proposal.

“Beautiful,” said Peachy. “Let’s get moving, before the sun cranks up the heat any more.”

The quartet made their way to the front entrance, and began their way up the steps.

“So Dreamstar,” Sunny Daze began, turning to Starwishes. “You were great on the rink, you didn’t step on my feet once!”

Dreamstar looked at Starwishes, who was receiving his kudos. Starwishes looked to him, and they both fought back a smile.

“Hey, yeah,” Peachy looked to Dreamstar. “You too, girl! Didn’t have to scoop you off the ground as many times as I did on Tuesday! I reckon you two will be skating champs in no time!”

“Thanks,” Dreamstar and Starwishes said, unable to hold their grins back.

“Don’t look too proud!” Peachy Pie warned them. “You’ll still have to race us when you are good enough, and trust me, that day is a long way away!”

“It is…?” Starwishes responded.

“Don’t worry, you’re both doing great, don’t listen to her,” Sunny assured them.

The foyer was buzzing as usual with students, who were for the most part either tracking down their lockers, or conversing with their fellow peers. The lockers were where they were headed for now, first to Sunny and Peachy’s, and then to the twins. Sunny and Peachy traveled in front, to save the entire group mowing through everyone else in the corridor, while Dreamstar and Starwishes walked behind them.

“I think we were right!” Starwishes whispered to her brother. “They got us mixed up!”

“I knew they would!” Dreamstar whispered back. “Can you imagine the look on their faces when they find out we swapped places?”

“If they ever figure it out!” Starwishes replied. The two begin to snicker under their breath.

The day continued as much as they expected, each and every student who had been able to tell them apart before, got them mixed up. Dreamstar was always assumed to be Starwishes, while Starwishes was always assumed to be Dreamstar. No one questioned it, no one ever thought they might be wrong. But boy, were they all wrong! Throughout the morning, Peachy Pie and Sunny Daze would catch Dreamstar and Starwishes giggling to themselves, and while at first they passed it off as some little joke between the two, the more they giggled, the more curiouser Peachy and Sunny became.

“Okay, you two,” Peachy Pie finally brought it up. They were in the lunchroom, having their lunches, and the twins had been mistaken once again, and thus, laughing once again. Only, Peachy Pie and Sunny Daze had no idea why they were in such a mood.

“Hmm…?” The twins responded.

“You guys have been snickering all day,” Peachy Pie told them. “What’s so funny?”

“Oh, I dunno,” Dreamstar grinned. Starwishes snorted.

“Guys, what’s funny, seriously?” Sunny Daze demanded to know. She, too, had gotten far too curious about what was bubbling within those two.

“Oh, it’s nothing,” Starwishes assured her.

Peachy Pie and Sunny Daze looked at each other, and Peachy Pie shrugged.

One of their classmates walked by, and noted them at the table. He greeted Peachy and Sunny first, before moving onto the twins.

“Starwishes, Dreamstar,” he nodded, first to Dreamstar when he said Starwishes’ name, then to Starwishes when he said Dreamstar’s name. Each of the four greeted him back. Once he was about five seconds gone, the twins cracked up into fits of laughter.

“Oh my gosh, seriously?” Peachy Pie cried out. “What is WITH you two today??”

“Nothing!” The twins cried, still hooting. You could see the tears in their eyes. Sunny Daze begin to catch the giggles, before bursting out into laughter.

“ET TU, SUNNY?” Peachy Pie cried out. She really had no idea what was going on. “Seriously, Sunny! What’s the joke?”

“I don’t know!” Sunny Daze confessed, while laughing. “I don’t even know why I’m laughing!!”

The addition of Sunny laughing made it even funnier, fuel to the fire, and it felt like everyone in the school cafeteria was looking over in their direction.

“Guys, please!” Peachy Pie pleaded, an involuntary grin starting the blossom on her face. “Everyone is going to think we’re crazy!!”

The trio suddenly stopped laughing… if but for a momentary pause. Then suddenly, all four of them suddenly burst into laughter, and it was like it was a roller coaster ride that could never stop.

“Oh my gosh!” Peachy Pie cried, between fits of giggles. “Please... stop!! We’re going to be thrown into a mental hospital!!”

This only caused them to laugh even more, and truly, some of the other students did wonder if they had gone completely crackers.

“In come the men in white coats!” Dreamstar cheered, painting their destiny, before the fits continued.

It was after a while they had decided to relocate, for several reasons. One being that they needed fresh air, another being that if any men in white coats that did come to take them away would not be able to find them.
They were now hiding.

They also tried to get past their insanity stage by trying to talk about other things.

“Have you guys ever played dodgeball?” Peachy Pie asked the twins.

“Dodgeball?” The twins enquired, both with blank looks on their faces.

“Wow…” Peachy Pie realised. “You guys have so much to catch up on!”

“But what is it?” Dreamstar asked.

“Basically, people throw balls at you, and you dodge them,” Peachy explained. “You guys need to know that for this afternoon.”

“We’re playing dodgeball this afternoon?” Starwishes asked.

“It’s our last class,” Sunny replied. “You guys do have your P.E. clothes, right?”

“Oh, yes!” Starwishes replied.

“Like we’d ever forget that!” Dreamstar said, eyeing his sister from the corner of his eye. She returned that same side-glance, with a small smile on her face.

“Hey guys, we need to go…” Starwishes brought up.

“Go?” Peachy Pie asked. “Where to?”

“To the bathroom!” Dreamstar rolled his eyes. “We’re starting to reach busting-levels!”

“Do you guys have like… syncronised bladders or something?” asked Peachy Pie.

“Actually,” Sunny Daze confessed. “I need to go, too…”

“Fine, well I don’t need to go, but I’ll offer my moral support,” Peachy Pie agreed, as they had reached the bathroom. She turned to Starwishes. “Hey, Dreamstar, you’ll be fine by yourself in that scary boy’s bathroom all by yourself, won’t you?”

“I’m the man,” Starwishes nodded, pretending to be awesome. Peachy decided to just nod back, because she could appreciate being awesome. She then pushed Dreamstar and Sunny Daze through the doors to the girl’s bathroom. “Don’t hold up the line, guys!”

Starwishes snickered a little as Peachy and Sunny had once again got them the wrong way around. But seriously, she had to go, so she played her part and wandered into the boy’s toilets.

“Hey, Starwishes!” Peachy called out, as she leaned against the basins, waiting for her female comrades (although one of them was secretly male) to complete their missions and emerge victorious.

“Yeah?” Dreamstar replied, from inside one of the stalls.

“How close are you and your brother?” Peachy asked. “I mean, seriously?”

“We’re really close,” Dreamstar replied. “We’ve been like that for our whole lives!”

“You two just seem to be in total sync with each other,” Sunny told him, from her own stall. “I don’t know if this sounds weird, but even now it feels really weird that you two are actually apart and in different rooms.”

“Hey yeah,” thought Peachy. “Do you guys like… freak out when you two are apart or anything?”

“A little…” Dreamstar admitted. “I mean… we can be in different rooms or be apart for a little while, but… then after a while we kinda get…”

“Anxious?” Peachy asked.

“I think I’ve seen it a tiny bit,” Sunny recalled, as a toilet flushed. “Like… now, when we are in different bathrooms from him. Well, of course we would be, but you know what I mean, right?”

“I guess I do feel a bit uneasy with… him not being here,” Dreamstar admitted, almost slipping up and saying ‘her’. He finished up and flushed his toilet, and emerged, victorious, from the stall. Peachy remained leaning against the basins, while Sunny was dealing to her hands. Dreamstar began washing his.

“I wonder what it would be like when you guys move out of home…” Peachy Pie wondered. “I mean… would you guys live together? Would you be able to live apart, in separate houses?”

“I don’t know…” Dreamstar replied. He began to wonder about it, trying to imagine him living in a separate house from his sister. The very thought of it made him feel very uneasy and paranoid.

Starwishes was already waiting for them when they came forth from the bathroom of which they had entered. It appeared she had beaten them in the race of loos.

“I win!” Starwishes claimed her victory.

“Boys are faster at going to the bathroom,” Peachy Pie told her, in an attempt to nullify the places of the races.

Dreamstar looked at Starwishes. Starwishes returned his look. The group began making their way through the corridor. The twins had so far had everyone fooled, and they were enjoying the sweet amusement fruit of the prank tree of which they had planted.

The last class of the day was now looming before them, as the four friends made their way towards the school gymnasium. The twins had at this point wondered how they would tackle the changing rooms, as it was not quite as simple as using the stalls in the bathrooms. The obvious tactic in this case would be to dawdle, to wait for all, if not most, of the other students to have changed and left the changing rooms before reaching the point of undress where a bulge, or lack thereof, could be noticed, IF it ever would be. Unless, of course, they didn’t have anyone change near them, then that would be easy. It was times like this that made Starwishes’ underdevelopment of her chest not an issue in any way - although both twins knew that in a short time, whether it be a year from now, or a few, that advantage when it came to sex-based identification trickery would become obsolete.

Starwishes entered the boy’s changing rooms after separating from her group, and proceeded to find a place to change. There were only a few boys there, the rest had already changed and left. She looked about, one boy had just finished changing, and jogged past her. A couple others were midway through changing, in underpants form. Another one was just starting to get changed.

She picked the corner, on the other side of the room, and began to change. She heard a few of the other boys rush out, and then the last, as she had reached that fabled underpants stage.

“Hey Dreamstar, you better hurry up! You don’t want to be the last one out!” The boy had urged to her, as he ran out the door. She finished changing into her P.E. clothes, a white pair of shorts with a blue tee.

In the girl’s changing room, Dreamstar, Sunny, and Peachy found a similar situation to Dreamstar’s female counterpart’s observation. Some girls were getting changed, though others were having little chats as they went along, slowing down their dress-speed a little. Some were jogging out of the changing room, others were still in transition between casual clothes mode and P.E. mode. Dreamstar wondered what would happen if suddenly they knew if he was really Dreamstar, and not Starwishes, as everyone was assuming. He decided to wander over to the far side of the room (like a mirror to his sister’s action), and start to get changed.

“So how exactly do you play dodgeball?” Dreamstar asked, as he started with his top, though also creating a situation to stall a little. “Apart from dodging the ball, I mean…”

“It’s really all there is to it,” Peachy Pie told him. She had already changed into her P.E. shorts, and was changing her shirt. Her chest had started to develop, he noted, and wondered when the same would happen for his sister. “You dodge the ball, you throw balls back. Don’t get hit, try to hit the other team. It’s really simple.”

“Well, there are some rules,” Sunny explained. She was a little slower than Peachy, and was less developed than Peachy as well. In fact, at a quick glance, it was almost like she hadn’t started, despite being older than Starwishes. Dreamstar realised everyone seemed to develop at different ages, and then wondered how long it would be before it would kick in for him and his sister - well, the overall puberty part, that is, the growth spurts, the body hair, all of that in general.

“I’m surrounded by children,” Peachy Pie observed, noting the fact that Sunny Daze, and whom she thought was Starwishes, to be both flat-chested.

“We’re forming an alliance,” Dreamstar explained. “We shall take over the world!”

“You’ll never stop the Boob Brigade!” Peachy claimed, in defiance. “Soon, you shall both have magnificent breasts, and will be assimilated into our ranks!”

“The thought of that is weird,” Sunny admitted, pulling her P.E. shirt over her head, completing the change. Peachy was already done. “The idea of me growing breasts freaks me out…”

“Well… at the rate you’re going, you’ll be flat-chested forever!” mocked Peachy Pie.

Peachy Pie and Sunny Daze were already done. Dreamstar had put his tee on - it was pink. The girls slowly began to make their way to the door, giving some time for Dreamstar to catch up. Dreamstar took the opportunity to pull down his skirt, and replace it with a pair of identical white shorts to which his sister had. With that, he was ready. He caught up to the other two, and then met Starwishes in the gymnasium.

“Hey Dreamstar, you ready to try some dodgeball?” Peachy Pie asked Starwishes.

“I don’t know…” Starwishes replied.

“Yeah, I’m still not sure,” Dreamstar added his concerns.

“I wonder where the teacher is…” Sunny Daze brought up. Upon taking note of Sunny’s question, the rest of the quartet noticed that they really were missing one teacher. The class at this time just seemed to loiter, as if waiting for a master to appear. After a couple of minutes, it seemed like that would not be the case, and the class was already babbling about a range of differing conversation topics.

“Maybe the teacher got eaten?” Dreamstar suggested.

“It’s possible,” Peachy Pie replied. The twins weren’t sure if she was joking or being serious. “This school can get pret-ty weird, I tell you.”

“He’s always on time,” Sunny Daze said.

“Yeah I know, right?” Peachy agreed. “Eaten, probably. We’re probably next.”

“Can I get everyone’s attention!” A new voice broke over the gabble. The gabble continued a little, dying down to only half-gabble. “HELLOOOOO?”

The attention of the class was brought to an older student, who was now standing in front of them. She had a rainbow assortment of colour in her hair, and despite being dressed for the class, she was most definitely not young enough to be in it. She bounced a ball occasionally with one of her hands.

“What’s Rainbow Dash doing here?” Peachy Pie asked rhetorically.

“Rainbow Dash?” Dreamstar and Starwishes repeated the name, in unison, before looking back to the rainbow-haired girl.

“Okay, guys! Listen up!” Rainbow Dash began. “You’re regular P.E. teacher had to go home - basically, he got himself injured pretty bad, and had to get himself checked out at the hospital.”

“Is he going to be okay?” One of the classmates asked.

“He’s going to be just fine!” Rainbow Dash assured them. “He just has to stay home and rest up a bit. On the downside, that means he is not here. But on the bright side, I’ve decided in all my awesomeness to take today’s class! I mean, I wasn’t about to let your class be cancelled, not when it’s dodgeball! Now… you guys DO know how to play, right? Oh, who am I kidding - you’d have to be living under a ROCK to have never played dodgeball!”

Dreamstar and Starwishes raised their hands.

“So!” Rainbow Dash continued, not noticing the two inquiring hands. “Who’s ready to get started?”

“How do you play dodgeball?” The twins both asked, after realising their raised hands were not noted.

The class was silent. Rainbow Dash froze momentarily in time. Her eyes were like saucers. She came out of it to find the source of her personal temporal pause.

“You… don’t know how to play dodgeball…?” Rainbow Dash asked, in a state of disbelief. Everyone who is ANYONE knows how to play dodgeball!

The twins looked at each other, turned back to Rainbow Dash, and shook their heads.

“Oooooookay…” Rainbow Dash responded, as if she had found a glitch in the universe. She walked up to the twins, and noted their statue. “Aren’t you guys… y’know, a smidge tiny for high school?”

“We’re bigger on the inside,” Dreamstar stated.

“We’re compact people!” Starwishes announced.

“Um… riiiiiiight,” Rainbow Dash responded, unsure what to make of their strange replies. “What do I call you two?”

“Magic Man!” The twins exclaimed. They then looked to each other, realising they had given the same name.

“You can’t be Magic Man, I’m Magic Man!” Starwishes began.

“No, I’m the one who thought of it first, I’m Magic Man!” Dreamstar protested. “You pick another name!”

“Why?” Starwishes argued. “I started saying ‘Magic Man’ a split second before you started saying it!”

“Na-uh,” Dreamstar argued back. “I have dibs!”

“No you don’t!”

“I do so!!”

The twins then broke into a scrap, although it was clear to see that the scrap was clearly friendly, and hardly, if at all, serious. Rainbow Dash, along with the rest of the class (some of them beginning to laugh), just stared at them, trying to figure out what the heck was up with these two.

“Is this normal…?” Rainbow Dash asked, desperately wanting an answer to that specific question.

“Sadly, yes…” Peachy Pie sighed. Sunny Daze was giggling.

“Alright, you guys!” Rainbow Dash said, picking both of the siblings off the floor, and keeping them apart. The twins hissed at each other and made cat noises.

“Fine…” Dreamstar surrendered. “You can be Magic Man. I’ll be Captain Awesome!”

“No,” Rainbow Dash explained. “Because I am the captain, and I am awesome. Therefore, if anyone is Captain Awesome, I am!”

After establishing the twins’ real names, as well as instructions as to how to play dodgeball (to which Rainbow Dash still couldn’t believe was unknown to them - although she supposed she could compare them to Twilight (a name the twins remembered from the first day), however then she discounted that possibility since Twilight would have read all about it), Rainbow Dash had begun dividing the class into two teams.

“Aww, man…” Rainbow Dash moaned to herself.

“What’s wrong?” Dreamstar asked.

“There are an even number of you guys here,” Rainbow Dash observed. “That means I can’t join in, it wouldn’t be fair, I love dodgeball!!”

The class looked at her.

“But y’know…” Rainbow Dash began, realising she might look a bit silly, and thus tried to save herself. “Being as awesome as I am, it wouldn’t be fair if I was on any of the teams! So that’s cool!!”

“Okay, so what team am I on?” Starwishes asked. She, her brother, Sunny Daze, and another student were still waiting for team placement. Peachy Pie had been assigned to the red team.

“Okay, Sunny Daze, right? Sunny, you go on the blue team,” Rainbow Dash decided.

“Okay!” Sunny Daze said.

“And Starwishes…” Rainbow Dash began, turning to the twins. She moved her finger between the two. “Which one of you is Starwishes?”

The twins pointed to each other. It could said that one was pointing to the real Starwishes, while the other was pointing to the fake. Rainbow Dash realised this was not going to work like this.

“Okay,” Rainbow Dash said, resorting to shirt colour. “Pink one, you go on the blue team, blue one, you’re on the…”

The twins waited patiently. Rainbow Dash was reconsidering her decision. She was not entirely sure if putting them on separate teams would help. True, it would probably be fairer if each team had an inexperienced player, but given that they were exact duplicates of each other made her think that this was going to give her a headache. Her head was already hurting. She wondered what Twilight would do, and then suddenly realised there would be charts and studies, research carried out, and all sorts of sciency-geeky stuff that Rainbow Dash had no understanding for. And just thinking of it was making her headache worse.

“No, you guys each on opposing teams,” Rainbow Dash decided to go with her initial thoughts. Fair was fair. “Pink one on red, blue one on blue.”

The twins saluted, before realising they were playing against each other.

“You’re going to die,” Starwishes told her brother.

“After you,” Dreamstar politely responded, ever the gentleman.

“Watch out,” Peachy told Dreamstar, as he joined the red team. “Everyone knows you are new, so they’ll probably try to eliminate you, first.”

“Thanks,” Dreamstar replied.

“Be careful,” Sunny told Starwishes, once she joined the blue team. “They’ll probably aim for you first.”

“Okay, thanks,” Starwishes said. She looked over towards the opposite team. She saw her brother, staring back at her, and Peachy Pie was next to him.

The whistle blew, and the game was underway!!

Both of the twins hesitated, unsure what to do, in that moment forgetting the first part of the game. Others rushed for the balls in the centre, and tossed them back to their respective sides, and the balls began to fly.

It wasn’t long before a ball was lobbed towards Dreamstar - it seemed Peachy Pie was right on aiming for the inexperienced players, first. Luckily, Dreamstar saw it coming, and managed to moved out of the way. Starwishes herself found a ball heading her way, but for her, she had even less warning.

The game took its first victim rather quickly - luckily for the twins, it was neither of them… yet. The eliminated team member from the red team was benched.

“Look out!” Peachy Pie shouted to Dreamstar, and Dreamstar turned just in time to see a ball fly his way. He literally jumped to the side, before falling onto the floor from lack of balance and ongoing momentum.

“GET UP!” Peachy Pie shouted in urgency, although the warning was too late. Dreamstar saw someone on the blue team struck out, just before a ball came to claim him. He was out already.

Dreamstar took his place on the bench, and watched as the others continued the slaughter. Starwishes was struck only seconds after Dreamstar took the bench - it seemed like all the pre-emptive warning regarding them being targets was not enough to save them… they lacked experience in playing the game itself.

Sunny Daze tried to dodge a ball, however it made contact with her chest. Not fast enough. She joined Starwishes on the opposing team’s bench. All that was left was Peachy Pie - well, Peachy Pie and a mess of other students. At least, to the twins and Sunny Daze, Peachy Pie was now their last hope.

A whistle blew, as a player threw a ball while out of bounds, and was instantly disqualified. Another player, on the red team, was hit by a ball, but Peachy then caught it, saving the ball’s target, and eliminating the player on the blue team who threw it. In a way, Dreamstar and Starwishes were kind of glad they were eliminated early on, because now they got to see how the game was played, without having to worry about focusing on staying alive themselves.

Their hopes died, however, when Peachy took a hit. She was eliminated from the game, which was a shame - she was one of four players left. She would be remembered, however. Lest we forget. She approached the red bench, and the student next to Dreamstar, as well as Dreamstar, instinctively shuffled to make room for her to sit down.

“Congrats on not being the first one to be out,” Peachy Pie said to Dreamstar.

“Why thank you,” said Dreamstar, who then looked towards Starwishes. “Next time maybe I’ll last longer than my evil twin.”

“He probably lasted longer because he’s a boy,” the boy on the other side of Peachy Pie brought up. He was a grey-haired boy who was wearing a yellow shirt with black shorts. Fire Ash, if Dreamstar remembered correctly… he had not really gotten to know him, yet.

“That’s stupid!” Peachy Pie protested. “You can’t say someone is better at something just because they are a boy! I lasted longer than you!”

Some of the others in the benched red team snickered, and Fire Ash decided to not try speculate further on it.

“Sorry, Starwishes…” Fire Ash apologised to Dreamstar. Dreamstar grinned at the sudden thought that he had that since he and Starwishes had traded places, that he was actually proof that Peachy Pie was right… insult to injury.

It wasn’t long after that the second round was about to begin. The twins both figured that it might be best to try go for offense, rather than just defence. The less attackers on the opposing team, the less balls they’d have to worry about.

The whistle started, and while Starwishes never managed to get her hands on a balls, someone rolled on her way, which she took without hesitation. She quickly skimmed the red team for a target, at first thinking about trying to go for her brother, but then saw another player not paying attention. She threw the ball at him, and missed. He hardly even knew he had been targeted.

Dreamstar, on the other hand, never managed to get one of the first balls, although he took the opportunity of claiming one which collided with one of his team mates. A chance to avenge them, Dreamstar thought, and took aim at a girl on the other team. He realised his aim was off once the ball was flying, but by dumb luck, the girl actually moved into the ball’s projectory, and Dreamstar became the first twin to score a hit.

Starwishes saw the hit, but hadn’t seen who threw the ball. Sunny recovered the ball, and threw it red-side, bouncing once, before being caught by Peachy Pie, who then through the ball back, knocking out another blue team member.

So far, Dreamstar was still in, lasting longer than the first round. He saw a ball hurtle towards him at the last second, and was hit, although lucky for him, Peachy Pie caught the ball before it hit the ground, eliminating the one who threw it. A ball bounced past Dreamstar, which he claimed, and then scanned the opposing team for a target. He was glad to see his sister was still in, so he threw the ball at her, and hit her.
Truly, beautiful sibling love.

“HEY!” Starwishes cried out, feeling betrayed by her own brother.

“Oh my gosh, Starwishes!” Peachy exclaimed, surprised. “I never thought you’d go for your own brother!”

“All’s fair in love and wa-OW!” Dreamstar responded, with the traditional yelp of being hit himself. And now he, too, was out.

Once again, the twins were benched.

“That was evil,” Sunny said to Starwishes, as she came to sit down next to her on the blue bench.

“I’m going to get that traitor,” Starwishes told Sunny.

The second round ended, and a third began. And for each consecutive round since, the twins found throwing the balls at each other to be somewhat therapeutic - for getting revenge on the other, and so forth. They soon realised that focusing on just each other was probably not a great idea, since they ended up being eliminated by other players because of it, so they began focusing on the game itself.

Rainbow Dash had declared the final round, since time was almost up for class. It was probably very well, since the heat of the day and the continuous play of dodgeball really did cause things to sweat up. None of the twins lasted long in the final round, Starwishes was out first, and Dreamstar only lasted about a minute longer.

Panting, both twins, deciding to sit on the same bench together, rather than in their respective team benches (since this was the last round), and watched as Peachy Pie made it to being one of the last three in the game. Sunny was with them, and commented on how it had become unfair, since the blue team had two players, and she was the last red. The game did not last much longer, leaving the blue team with the final victory.

“Okay guys, that was awesome!” Rainbow Dash congratulated the class. “One of the best games of dodgeball I have ever seen!! The sweat, the tears, the no mercy!!”

Most of the students mumbled. The heat had gotten to them after the continuous play, round after round. Some puffed, some dripped sweat on the floor.

“Yeah…” Rainbow Dash noted, taking it as a response. “You guys did great, but I think SOME of you might need to hit the showers…”

The class looked to her, as if to wait her instruction. After all, she was in charge today. It just took a moment for Rainbow Dash to realise that.

“Uh… you can go, now!” Rainbow Dash told them, realising they weren’t leaving. “Seriously, you guys smell awful!”

The class made their way to the changing rooms, and the twins began to follow the mass.

“Hey, you two!” Rainbow Dash called out. “What were your names again? Dream and Wish?”

“Dreamstar and Starwishes,” Sunny Daze corrected her.

“You guys go ahead,” Starwishes told Sunny and Peachy. She figured if her and her brother were both delayed, the better chance they could get a shower. They were so hot and bothered, and semi-soaked in sweat, a shower would be magical before heading home.

“Not bad for your first time playing dodgeball…” Rainbow Dash said, coyly. “I mean, you guys didn’t start out great, but you really did start to get the hang of it!”

“Thanks…” Both twins said.

“Wow… are you guys like… telepathic or something?” Rainbow Dash joked.

“Sometimes,” Dreamstar replied.

“Especially when we have found a new victim,” Starwishes added. Rainbow Dash paused, with the kind of expression where she wasn’t sure what to think.

“O...kay,” Rainbow Dash responded. She decided to change the subject. “You guys know Scoot?”

“Scoot?” Starwishes asked, confused.

“Does she mean Scootaloo?” Dreamstar asked his sister.

“Yeah!” Rainbow Dash confirmed. “She’s a little buddy of mine!”

“Yeah, we know her!” Starwishes said.

“We met her just last Sunday!” Dreamstar told Rainbow Dash.

“I was wondering if you two were the two kids she met,” said Rainbow Dash.

“Really?” Dreamstar asked.

“How would you have known it was us?” Starwishes asked.

“Come on, like there would be any doubt!” Rainbow Dash said. “You guys are twins! New to town! It’s kinda obvious.”

“Well I guess that’s true,” Dreamstar grinned to his sister, who grinned back.

“Does she go to this school?” Starwishes asked. “We haven’t seen her since we started, we thought she might go here…”

“Yeah, but she’s in a different year than you two,” Rainbow Dash explained. “Also, she’s always hanging out with Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle, and lately they’ve been hatching some kind of plan, I guess. Those three are always up to something! But you’re bound to run into her sooner or later.”

“I think those three think we’re little kids,” Dreamstar smiled, amused at the mistaken age.

“Yeah, about that!” Rainbow Dash began. “How old are you guys?”

“Thirteen,” the twins both answered.

“Wow. You really don’t look thirteen,” Rainbow Dash admitted.

“How old do we look?” Starwishes inquired.

“I dunno,” Rainbow Dash replied. “I guess I would say like… nine or something? Definitely not high school. Heck, not even middle school!”

“That Twilight girl thought we were in elementary school,” Dreamstar reminded Starwishes.

“Ha! Really?” Rainbow Dash asked, amused. “I wish I could have seen her face when she found out you were thirteen years old!”

“Actually…” Starwishes began.

“Didn’t the bell ring and we ran off to find the hall?” Dreamstar recalled. “I don’t think we ever told her…”

“Oh yeah, we didn’t know what an elementary school was, it’s like primary school,” Starwishes continued.

“I’m guessing you aren’t from waaaaay outta town,” Rainbow Dash noted. There was the sound of a vibration, and she took her phone from her pocket. “Gotta run! I have to meet my friends and it’s kinda important. Keep it up with dodgeball, and maybe someday you will be almost good enough to take me on!”

“Haha, okay,” Dreamstar agreed. Now they had two things to master, skating AND dodgeball!

“It was nice meeting you!” Starwishes said. “Thanks for the game!”

“Hey, no problem!” Rainbow Dash waved, as she began to run off. “I’ll seeya round!”

“She seemed cool,” said Dreamstar.

“Yeah, though maybe a bit vain,” Starwishes added. The two made their way towards the changing rooms.

“At least she… actually, no…” Dreamstar began. “She did think she was better than everyone else!”

“At least she was nice,” Starwishes said. “And not like those other people who thinks they are so great that they are above everyone and that everyone else is useless… she actually wants us to get better at it!”

“Yeah, so she will have worthy competition!” Dreamstar grinned. “I guess that’s her thing, she wants to be the best, but also wants a challenge… what happens when she really is the best?”

Starwishes shrugged. They parted ways into the separate changing rooms, hoping their little delay with Rainbow Dash was enough.

Dreamstar entered the girl’s changing room to find one of the girls already leaving. She passed him, left through the door, wishing him farewell as she did, and then Dreamstar found himself the only one left - the others had already gone. He wandered over to his things, and began rummaging through his bag, finding his towel, and placing it next to his bag, so that he wouldn’t have wet hands going through his things afterwards. He stripped his clothes off, walked over to the showers, and turned one of them on.

Meanwhile, Starwishes found the boy’s changing room void of life. Locating her own things, she proceeded to find her towel, and have her shower. She removed her t-shirt first, but just as she was sliding the shirt down her arms, she heard a bit of a commotion, getting louder, and then a bunch of boys burst through the door and into the changing room. Some of the boys looked at her, most of them taking a double-take. These were students Starwishes had never met, and she remembered that both she and Dreamstar looked feminine - they probably had to look again because at first glance they thought she was a girl (which she was).

The boys were wet, wearing nothing but their swimming togs and draped in a towel. Starwishes logically assumed they had been in the school pool.

“Hey,” one of the boys greeted to her, to which she sort of gave a blank slight-nod, unsure how to proceed. The showers were turned on, and a bunch of the boys began to wash themselves off, yacking and joking and laughing away. Starwishes pulled her P.E. top back over her - she was not going to shower with a bunch of boys, especially boys who she didn’t even know. Besides, it wasn’t like there was a free shower anymore - more boys than showers had arrived, and most of them were using them. Starwishes decided to leave the changing room as is.

Starwishes wandered over, with her things, to the girl’s changing room. From inside, all she heard was a single shower running - Dreamstar obviously had the place to himself. She decided that since everyone was gone, and the boy’s changing room was full, that she would just join him. It wasn’t like they had never showered before, after all.

“Hey, Dreamstar!” Came a familiar voice, right from behind her. Starwishes jumped from the fright, not expecting to find Peachy Pie still here.

“Peachy Pie!” Starwishes gasped, finding her breath. “Don’t scare me like that!”

“Haha, sorry!” Peachy apologised. “Aren’t you going to shower and stuff? I think you could do with one… where’s Starwishes?”

“She’s… in the shower,” Starwishes replied. “And I was going to have a shower, but a whole bunch of boys showed up and took over the changing room, and the showers, so… I’m going to wait here for my sister…”

“Oh yeah, that would have been the boy’s underwater hockey team,” Peachy Pie told her.

“Ah…” said Starwishes. “What are you still doing here?”

“Me?” Peachy Pie replied.

“Yeah… I thought you were going home?” Starwishes asked.

“Oh yeah, well I was supposed to meet my parents right after school, but after I had showered and stuff, I saw I had a message from them,” Peachy explained. “Turns out there’s no rush, so I decided to wait for you three.”

“Us three?” Starwishes asked.

“Sunny’s still around,” Peachy Pie replied, giving a quick glance around, as a soft pounding of feet made their way towards them. Sunny Daze had come almost as if saying her name had summoned her.

“Sunny!” Starwishes reacted, surprised.

“Dreamstar, hi!” Sunny replied.

“What are you still doing here?” Starwishes asked. Sunny Daze was still in her P.E. clothes, which seemed weird, since everyone else had already changed and left.

“I stayed behind to help tidy up,” Sunny explained. “Make sure all the balls are accounted, for, that sort of thing. Then Rainbow Dash stopped by to check if everything was in order, and asked me to take something to one of the classrooms before the teacher left, because she had to run and was late. So after that, I came back here…”

“Sounds like fun,” Peachy Pie said. “But you should probably change and stuff. Dreamstar and I are just waiting for Starwishes.”

“Oh, okay!” Sunny Daze said, noticing the sound of the shower running. “So Starwishes is in the shower?”

“...yes.” Starwishes decided to reply, with a smile. A smile that might have been a smidge sinister, perhaps.

“Oh cool,” said Sunny. She pushed through the door, and entered the girl’s changing room.

“SO PEACHY PIE,” Starwishes began, with an ever-growing smile of satisfaction on her face. “What are your plans for after?”

“Well, I still need to meet my parents,” Peachy Pie explained. She noted the change in Starwishes’ demeanor, and wasn’t sure what to make of it.

Dreamstar daydreamed as the water trickled down his body. He kept wondering about this weekend, about how they were going to have their first friends over since moving here. He wondered what kinds of things they would do - there was swimming, of course… they had a pool. An adventure in the forest was definitely an option, like an adventure, a quest. Video games… he wondered if Peachy Pie and Sunny Daze liked playing video games? Both he and Starwishes did, they always played together, unless it was a single player, in that case they had to take turns, while the other would watch.

He heard a slight jolt in the pipes just behind him, a second shower?

“Hi, Starwishes!” Someone greeted his sister. Dreamstar instantly turned around, his daydream world coming to a halt, and found himself standing right there in front of Sunny Daze… both naked as the day they were born.

Dreamstar was silent in that moment, standing exposed, without any sudden thought to turn or hide. Sunny, too, was silent, her hand still on the faucet, her brain seemingly stopped as if waiting for that single cue in the river of time to indicate a reaction.

“About 10:30, I think,” Peachy Pie had answered Starwishes, after being asked what time she thought she might be over that Saturday.

“Oh... my... WHAT??” Sunny’s shocked reaction came through from the changing room. Peachy Pie took that cue and dashed into the changing room herself, to see what was wrong, leaving Starwishes outside. Upon rushing in and finding Sunny Daze, standing there naked, half-wet from the shower she had just turned on, and one of their naked twin-friends, frozen in place, with an expression that seemed to say they had no idea what to do next. Peachy glanced down, and saw that ‘Starwishes’ had a penis.

“What…” Peachy Pie uttered, locked in a form of wide-eyed confusion. There was a moment of very awkward silence, which just had to be broken.

“Hey Dreamstar, have they figured out we swapped places, yet?” Starwishes blurted out casually upon bursting in and joining the group, with an almost evil smirk upon her face.

Author's Note

Hopefully this chapter came out okay... I've been so drained, lately, so I am currently second-guessing myself at the moment and questioning my abilities.

On the bright side, Starwishes is an angel.
Maybe.
Okay, nope.

Chapter 07: The Twins' New Wheels

The early morning sun streamed in through the bedroom windows, striking Dreamstar’s sleeping face. There were some clouds in the sky, however none stood in the way of those brilliant morning rays, which began to annoyingly attempt to pry the young teen’s eyes open with a prolonging persistence. It did not take long for the morning sun to have its way, and Dreamstar opened his eyes briefly, squinted, before covering his eyes with his hands, before rubbing them. He moved his head, so that the sun was no longer directly aiming to blind him with its radiance.

Dreamstar propped his head a bit, noting the weight of part of a second body just above his stomach. His sister was still sleeping, sprawled in unusual position on his bed. She, like him, lay on her back. She was using her brother’s stomach as a pillow, rather than using an actual pillow - the sheets had been pushed almost completely off the end of the bed, only Dreamstar’s right foot was covered. It had been a warm night, and during the night they must have pushed the covers off. Her arms spread out in either direction - one crossing his thigh, the hand resting somewhere around his knees. The other traveled more towards where her head should have been, near her pillow. One leg went on an angle towards the corner of the bed, while the other headed to the side, her knee bent, and her leg actually hanging off the edge.

It was always weird to wake up before her, or vice versa. They usually woke up together, however that pesky sunlight had decided this morning would be different. It was not unusual for either one of them to be in the other’s bed with them - they did have their own beds, however they hardly ever slept alone. In fact, neither one of them could ever recall sleeping apart from the other, as they had the habit of sleeping together in the same bed for as long as they could remember - even longer, according to their mother. They had shared the same crib, and as kids, the same room, and despite having their own beds, it was a habit that never let go.

Dreamstar wondered if he should jostle her awake. After all, it’s not like he could get up if she was half on top of him. Then again, they usually got up together. Dreamstar remembered what Sunny Daze and Peachy Pie had said about he and his sister always seeming to be in sync with each other.

Dreamstar yawned, before squeezing his eyes shut as he remembered that moment when Sunny Daze was just standing there, naked, in the showers, and her seeing him in the same state of being. Peachy Pie, rushing in, coming to a sudden halt, freezing in place, and then his sister coming along, asking if they had figured their prank out yet, before cracking up laughing. One would think that perhaps she would have prevented Sunny from entering the changing rooms in order to avoid all forms of awkward situations, but not Starwishes. She just had to make their eventual reveal of their prank all the more… amusing.
For herself. It was one of those things that the twins loved to do - to turn things on the other sometimes. When it came to pranks, they would either be trying to prank others as a team, or they would be trying to prank each other. Sometimes, they would turn traitor against each other during a team effort, just because they would think it was funny. This time, the prank was really more turned on everyone - except for Starwishes, that is.

Dreamstar did try to get some manner of revenge, but grabbing her and pulling her fully clothed under a running shower so that she and her P.E. clothes were completely drenched did not really count for much in the form of payback. The only real downside to that action for her was that her underpants had become completely soaked, and given she was in her P.E. clothes, it just meant going home, dressed as per usual, sans underwear. Hardly payback at all.

Dreamstar wondered what Sunny Daze and Peachy Pie thought of all this… it wasn’t as if he was bothered by them seeing him nude, but he wasn’t sure about the other way around. He found it hard to read their responses in that moment, and in that moment where Starwishes had burst in laughing, Dreamstar snapped out of his frozen state and made his move to salvage whatever kind of revenge he could. And then after being soaked, Starwishes just ditched her P.E. gear and took her shower, unashamed. Sunny and Peachy were not sure how to react at that point, with Sunny still wet from the shower, and Peachy unsure what to do next. The mood for their two friends lightened a little, although for them it seemed a little awkward. Well, maybe a little more for Sunny, who was completely naked herself in the shower with two crazy nutjobs who seemed to be both out to get each other, or brimming with a happy step. This made her hesitate to both continue her own shower in her current company, and to leave quickly and get dressed. Starwishes then dragged Sunny into conversation, regaling everyone with how hilarious it was, before laughing her head off, resulting in Dreamstar launching a new attack, leading to the twins scrapping playfully with each other again. It did take some of the edge off, seeing this, so Sunny decided to just continue the shower, anyway, albeit with a tinge of awkwardness. Peachy Pie decided instead to leave the changing room and go outside to wait for them, an action followed by Dreamstar and Starwishes slipping up on the shower floor. As much of an awkward situation it was for Sunny, she suddenly let out a little bit of a laugh at this, momentarily.

Afterwards, upon meeting up outside again, the twins dressed now in their regular clothes (Starwishes taking her skirt, Dreamstar his shorts - the prank had run its course), the conversation between the friends had seemed a little less chatty. Dreamstar and Starwishes had been talking about as much as they usually did, and Sunny Daze talked a little, although not as much, given what had just happened. She hadn’t felt humiliated or anything, just… a little in shock from the event. Peachy Pie hadn’t said a single word, and didn’t seem to pay much attention to her friends.

“Peachy…?” Starwishes had asked, noting her silence.

Peachy Pie stopped, as did Dreamstar, Starwishes, and Sunny Daze. They all looked at her, wondering if she was okay. Peachy took one look at the three, saw their concerned expressions, and then suddenly burst into uncontrollable fits of laughter!

“GUYS!” Peachy Pie laughed. “Oh my GOSH!! SERIOUSLY? And Sunny… you just… naked, right there in front of… and you were BOTH naked, and… THE LOOK ON YOUR FACES!! And then Starwishes… ‘HAVE THEY FIGURED OUT WE SWAPPED PLACES YET?’ when Dreamstar is COMPLETELY naked and we can see EVERYTHING and that he ISN’T Starwishes and…”

At that point, Peachy Pie erupted into greater laughter, losing the ability to form complex language. To be honest, the twins thought they had broken her - one of their many mission objectives, accomplished, they guessed.

Sunny Daze began to snort a little, a grin forming on her face. Despite ending up naked in front of a naked boy in the showers, she guessed she was starting to appreciate the funny side of it all, although she probably was not as far gone as Peachy Pie, who was in need of repairs.

“GUYS!!” Peachy Pie had begun crying. “GUYS!! You… I mean GUYS!! SERIOUSLY!!”

Peachy Pie let herself fall over, curling herself into a ball. She was now crying from all her laughing, and now she was begging for herself to stop laughing.

The relationship with their friends seemed to remain intact, after all, the rest of the afternoon until Peachy Pie had to go meet her parents, they had mellowed out. Both Sunny and Peachy had finally understood why the twins had found random moments in the day so funny, because they had swapped places, and were amused with the fact that people, assuming their identities based on their clothes alone, were getting them mixed up so badly, while addressing them so confidently.

With Saturday now here, Dreamstar thought about how Sunny and Peachy were going to be here in just mere hours. He looked at the time, and noticed it was almost seven o’clock. He wondered what time they would arrive - after all, the times they gave weren’t entirely solid. Peachy Pie estimated about 10:30, while Sunny Daze wasn’t sure, but they said they would meet each other and come over together.

That considered, Dreamstar then looked back to his sister, who was still snoozing away, and thought about the prank again, and how his payback in the showers just wasn’t enough. He ran his fingers through her hair, wondering how such an innocent face could be so evil. He then remembered that he, too, had the same face as her. She looked so peaceful as she slept.

Dreamstar carefully moved a little, as so not to wake his sister, shifting his body down the bed, before softly tucking his hands under her shoulder, the other somewhere around the small of her back and the top of her buttock, and being absolutely careful not to jerk her suddenly, gently rolled her off the edge of the bed.

Lunartome was already up when the twins emerged from their room, obviously, since he had to leave early. The two encountered him in the bathroom - he was in the shower, as the two used the hand basin one after the other following the usual morning dunny ritual.

Dreamstar and Starwishes then made their way downstairs, and proceeded to indulge in Saturday morning cartoons in the living room.

The twins heard their father come downstairs, but rather than greet them, he headed straight for the kitchen. It seemed like he didn’t have much time before he had to go. He made himself a quick and simple breakfast - a couple pieces of toast, one with jam, one with marmite, and the usual early morning coffee of which he always partook.

The light sounds of steps coming down the stairs alerted the twins to their mother coming down, making sure she was up before her husband left. Usually, she slept in a little, usually until about half-past eight on Saturdays. Dreamstar and Starwishes turned about on the sofa they were sitting on, and rested with their tummy against the backing, arms resting on the top of the back, and watching their parents go about their business. Celestialstar began by grabbing herself a cereal bowl, and switched the jug on to make herself some tea. Lunartome hurried himself upstairs, returning in less than a minute with a briefcase. It was weird seeing him with a briefcase, the twins had recently started joking that he was a secret agent, and his mission here in this foreign country was classified.

“Have you got everything?” Celestialstar asked him.

“Yes, everything is taken care of,” Lunartome replied.

“Have you got a change of clothes?” Celestialstar asked.

“My bag is in the car, don’t worry!” Lunartome assured her. He looked at the clock, before looking back to his wife. “I better get going.”

The two gave a quick cuddle and a kiss, before Lunartome turned his attention to his pair of naked demon spawn clones.

“Sorry I can’t meet your friends today,” Lunartome apologised.

“That’s okay,” the twins told him. Lunartome paused, as if to consider ramifications.

“Don’t worry, I will return tomorrow and save you from the double-demon,” Lunartome assured his wife.

“Please come back,” Celestialstar begged. “I’m scared…”

Lunartome and Celestialstar both held onto each other again, as if they were both terrified.

“HEY!” Dreamstar and Starwishes cried out together.

“We’re not THAT evil!” Dreamstar protested.

“Um… yes we are,” Starwishes reminded her brother.

“Oh,” Dreamstar realised, before both of them lowered their positions on the sofa, so only their eyes and above were peering over the back, staring at their parents, as if waiting for a moment to strike.

“I seriously have to go,” Lunartome said, before a quick exchange of kisses were made. He looked to the twins. “Don’t burn the house down.”

“Awwww…” The twins pouted. And with that, their father left through the back door. Dreamstar and Starwishes wandered over to the balcony above the garage, where their mother joined them.

The area by the garage was rather large. The garage itself was under the house, and in front of it was a large pad, big enough to park three cars on the outside. The family only had one car for the time being. The twins had wondered why their father hadn’t gone downstairs into the garage, but he had already parked the car outside prior to the twins waking up.

Lunartome looked up to his family, and gave a wave, before climbing into the car. Celestialstar and the twins waved back. The car started, reversed around, turned, and then began to drive up the driveway, which was a gentle slope which curved near the end, coming out onto the road, next to the letterbox. After pausing at the end, the car turned onto the road, and left their line of sight.

“And they never saw him again…” Dreamstar murmured.

“He better come back, he has to save me from you monsters!” Celestialstar joked, wrapping her arms around her kids and giving them a squeeze. “Come on, you two, time for breakfast.”

After a short and fairly uneventful journey to the kitchen, and after experiencing the hardships of obtaining a bowl of cereal, as well as a cuppa, the twins joined their mother at the dining room table, so that they might feast together.

“What time are Sunny Daze and Peachy Pie supposed to arrive?” Celestialstar asked.

“Don’t know,” Starwishes replied.

“10:30?” Dreamstar said.

“Give or take,” Starwishes added.

“Peachy Pie had said maybe 10:30, Sunny Daze didn’t have a time,” Dreamstar explained, taking a bite into his cereal.

“They decided to meet up and show up together,” said Starwishes, also taking a bite, before continuing with a full mouth. “So we don’t know exactly.”

“I have to go into town soon,” Celestialstar told her children. “So I will probably not be here when they arrive, but I should be home before lunchtime. By the way...”

The twins stopped devouring their cereal and looked up together.

“...your father and I got you two something,” Celestialstar continued.

“Present?” The twins brightened up. They loved presents. Especially when it was for them.

“Don’t get used to it,” their mother told them, finishing off her tea, and taking her dishes to the kitchen. She then left the room.

The twins looked at each other. Present? What would it be? And more to the point, why? After all, it wasn’t their birthday for about five months!

Celestialstar returned with two boxes. One for each sibling, it would have appeared.

“There is a box for each of you,” Celestialstar announced. “So… which box will you two pick?”

“That one!” The twins pointed to the box on the left, both at the same time.

“Try again,” their mother told them.

“That one!” The twins attempted again, but both pointing to the same box.

“You can’t both have the same box!” Celestialstar stressed.

“Okay…” Dreamstar said. He looked at his sister. His sister returned his glance.

“That one!” Both twins cried out, both pointing to the other box.

“Oh, for crying out loud!” Celestialstar uttered, deciding instead to just give them each whatever box she felt like.

The twins took the boxes, and opened them, finding each with a pair of brand new roller skates.

“You got us roller skates?” Starwishes said, her eyes having widened at the reveal.

“Your father and I had been talking,” Celestialstar told them, as the twins removed a skate each from their own box. “And since you seem to like skating, and since your friends both love skating, we figured you would probably be happy with a pair of your own, so that you can go skating all over the place with Sunny and Peachy.”

Dreamstar and Starwishes studied their roller skates. Their pairs were almost identical - Dreamstar’s pair was primarily blue, with pink inners, a pink tongue, white laces, and pink at the foot-end. Starwishes’ skates were primarily pink, with blue inners, a blue tongue, white laces, and blue at the front. Both designs had a warm yellow star on the outside of both skates, and both pairs of skates had pink wheels.

The twins were silent. They had no idea what to say!

“Well, don’t thank me all at once!” Celestialstar said, breaking the silence. The twins jumped from their chairs, and hugged their mother tightly.

“We love them so much!” Starwishes exclaimed.

“Thanks, Mum!” Dreamstar said.

“You two are welcome,” their mother told them. They slowly parted from their mother a little. “But I want you two to do the dishes first, then you can try them out, deal?”

“Deal!!” Both twins sang, happily.

After taking care of the dishes and tidying up the dining room table, both Dreamstar and Starwishes wasted no time running up stairs to find a pair of socks. Once procured, they came downstairs rather quickly, seated themselves at the table, and implemented the sock initiation sequence. Once successful, they proceeded to sort out the laces of their skates, making sure they were threaded properly, and pulled said skates onto their sock-covered feet. Tying their laces, their transformation was then complete.

They skated a little along the tiles, reaching the front door without falling over. They both held onto each other for additional support, before opening and exiting the house - the area in front of the garage would be perfect for skating around, like a mini-skate rink! The problem was getting there. One option would be to get to the end of the path out by the road, before coming down the driveway, which was a slope, before coming to a flat surface. Another option would be probably to attempt to skate on the grass, which also was a slope, leading down to the descending driveway and car area. Instead, they decided to do it the awesome way (which included not skating down a slope). Once on the grass, they both sat on their little bottoms, and using their hands behind them, with their skates in front of them, they steadied themselves down the grassy slope. If the skates were to ever give way, they would gently fall onto their bottoms onto the soft grass and not graze their butt cheeks.
Probably would be wiser to put some pants on to avoid such a scenario, but oh well, too late now! (Not really, they were just too lazy, and they didn’t feel like putting clothes on).

It did not take long for them to be skating generally well, it seemed like their practice at the rink had helped quite a bit, and they were off to an even better start than when they started their second round of skating that past Wednesday. They used each other for balance a number of times - if one of the twins felt wobbly, they would just grab on to the other for support, and then all was well. They found the concrete pad to be quite a nice surface to skate on - a little different from at the rink, as the rink felt polish-smooth… the concrete in front of their house felt a little more gritty.

Their mother had come out to watch them skate from atop the balcony a couple of times, before she had to take care of a few errands. Since she had no access to a car (since her husband took it, that meanie), she had to walk. Upon exiting out the front door, she watched for a moment as her twin offspring were practicing with the bottom of the driveway slope - building up speed, skating up the driveway a little, before turning and letting gravity do the rest.

“Looking good!” Celestialstar complimented the twins. She had never actually seen them skate, but from her own opinion, they were doing better than she would be!

The twins stopped as their mother continued to address them.

“I’m heading out now,” Celestialstar told them. “I should be back by lunchtime. Don’t forget that Sunny and Peachy will be here, soon.”

“We haven’t forgotten,” Starwishes called out, assuring their mother. Both twins did wonder why their mother would remind them of something like that.

“Not like we’d forget!” Dreamstar told her.

“Just making sure,” their mother told them, hinting at the fact that they were still naked, save for their socks and skates.

“We’re not children,” said Starwishes.

“That… is debatable,” Celestialstar told her. “I’ll see you two later!”

“Bye!!” The twins waved, as their mother waved back. If they were able to get up that driveway easily, they would have skated with her to the footpath, however that would probably have to wait for another day, after more skating practice.

“You think it’s this one?” Sunny Daze asked her comrade, as streets in this part of town were a little less known to her.

“I think so,” Peachy Pie replied. The street led down a hill, towards a wooded area. The twins had described the street - about 200 metres long with a house at the end of it, no other houses, just grass and trees, with a single footpath on one side.

“Do you know how long 200 metres is?” Peachy Pie asked.

“I don’t know,” Sunny replied.

“Gah… I wish they would have just said it in feet, it would be so much easier!” Peachy Pie complained.

“Does it really matter?” Sunny asked. “I mean, they did say what street it was, but there is no street sign, but they did describe it to us…”

“Yeah, I just never thought they lived right on the edge of town,” Peachy said, as she looked back. The rest of the town spread out below them, all down hill. They had skated all the way up this hill, now they had to skate down.

“Come on!” Sunny Daze cheered. “We can only try, right? This is the right street, you’re just paranoid!”

“I’m not paranoid, I just don’t want to skate uphill again!” Peachy stated. Sunny began making the descent downhill on the footpath, Peachy then followed.

“Seems weird to have a footpath on a road that only leads to one house,” Peachy commented. “You think they had planned to build a whole heap of houses here?”

“I dunno,” Sunny shrugged. The gravity made the ride downhill a smooth one. “What time did we say we were going to be there?”

“Well… I guesstimated 10:30, but eh… 10:20 is close enough,” Peachy replied.

They reached the end, and found a path leading towards a two-storey house with a driveway leading down a slope - the twins had described that, too. They figured they must have the right house - the description matched well enough, and also, they were sure they could hear the twins yapping away somewhere down the drive.

They skated along the path to the house, and almost immediately spotted the twins skating around the end of their driveway. But the skating was not the first thing they noticed.
Starwishes was the first to spot them.

“HIII!!” Starwishes waved out, as Dreamstar made a turn on his skates, and realised their guests had arrived.

“Hi!” Dreamstar then joined in the greeting. Sunny and Peachy just stood there, almost similar to the other day in the showers, but with not quite the same punch.

“Hi… guys!” Sunny waved back.

Peachy gave a slight half-wave, but she had the kind of expression on her face that spelled a three-letter acronym, one starting with W, ending with F, and has a T in the middle.

The twins scrambled to try make their way up the grass slope, with their skates still on. Dreamstar reached the top first, and almost slipped - if not for Sunny who caught his arms. Starwishes ended up crawling up the last part of the slope, before getting to her feet.

“You have your own skates!” Sunny noted, looking down at Dreamstar’s, although was not able to avoid seeing Dreamstar’s bits ‘n pieces during her glance. She thought it might be better to just retake eye contact, just to avoid any potential discomfort.

“Yeah!” Dreamstar said. “Mum and Dad got them for us!”

“Now we can all go skating together!” Starwishes exclaimed, excitedly.

“That is really awesome!!” Sunny gleamed. “I can’t wait!”

“Was it easy to find us?” Dreamstar asked.

“Of course it was,” Peachy Pie replied. She was still wondering what the heck was going on.

“It wasn’t too hard to find,” Sunny told Dreamstar, then smiling. “Though Peachy wasn’t so sure…”

“Hey, there was no street sign,” Peachy pointed out.

“Also we didn’t know how long 200 metres was,” Sunny admitted. “We use feet, here.”

“Well, you still made it!” Starwishes chimed.

“And glad to be here!” Sunny said. She was still holding onto Dreamstar’s arms.There was a little moment of silence.

“Okay, someone has to say it,” Peachy Pie brought up, realising Sunny wasn’t going to do it. “Why are you two naked?”

“Oh… we just didn’t get dressed this morning,” Starwishes replied. “We did think about it last night, you know… but then we thought you’ve already seen us naked, so…”

“So…?” Peachy Pie inquired. Dreamstar and Starwishes looked at each other, then back to their guests.

“Well… we did think about putting clothes on before you came, but…” Dreamstar began.

“I guess we lost track of time trying out our new skates…” Starwishes admitted.

“Sorry, we’re just used to being naked at home, so I guess we forgot...” Dreamstar confessed. “You don’t think that’s… weird, do you?”

Sunny and Peachy looked at each other.

“Well… no, I don’t think it’s really that weird,” Sunny replied, with a slight blush.

“I think it’s a little bit weird,” Peachy said. “So… what you are getting at… are you guys nudists or something?”

“Nudists?” Dreamstar and Starwishes asked. They had never heard the term before.

Peachy Pie just stared at them. She just didn’t even know anymore.

Chapter 08: The Deep End

“I didn’t know there was a name for it,” Starwishes confessed, after Peachy Pie gave them the abridged definition of a nudist.

“Me either,” Dreamstar admitted.

As much as the twins preferred to live sans clothing when they could, wherever they could, they had no idea there was a specific term to describe anyone who would prefer to live casually clothesless. As far as they were concerned, if you were naked, you were naked, and that was just it.

“Do you guys want something to drink?” Starwishes offered, as she began to untie her skate laces.

“Sure, I’m a bit thirsty after skating here,” Sunny Daze accepted.

“Yeah… okay,” Peachy agreed. The group removed their skates, and their socks, and leaving them by the front door, entered the house.

Dreamstar and Starwishes immediately made a beeline for the kitchen, where Dreamstar took four glasses from the cupboard, while Starwishes produced juice from the fridge.

Sunny and Peachy watched them, going about their little process in their birthday suits, though Sunny then began to pay more attention to her friend’s new house, leaving Peachy alone in her twin-centric thoughts.

Peachy wasn’t entirely sure what to think of this. It wasn’t as if she had any problems with nudists, it was just their choice, and it wasn’t as if living or going around casually naked was actually wrong in her mind. But she had never met any before, and she never thought for a second she would end up befriending any. She supposed that perhaps had she met any, she would probably not have become friends with them - it’s not that nudity bothered her, it was just… it kinda bothered her. Contradiction in all that right there.

Sunny came back after taking a little peek around the immediate area of the house, though not straying too far in case it was considered rude without permission. She came into the kitchen, and Dreamstar handed her a glass of juice, which she thanked him for, before taking a swig which consumed half of the glass’ contents.

Dreamstar handed a glass to Peachy, which Peachy took.

“Thanks,” Peachy said. She then looked towards Sunny, who seemed to all of a sudden lack the realisation that these two were naked. She knew Sunny accepted many things in her stride, but this being one of them? Peachy never saw that coming. Or perhaps she just being polite?

“You guys have a nice house,” Peachy noted, as they made themselves comfortable in the living room. She kept wondering if Dreamstar and Starwishes would actually leave to get dressed or not.

“It’s a really cool house!” Starwishes agreed, with extra kudos going to the dwelling.

“We still haven’t gotten used to a house with stairs, yet…” Dreamstar told them. “The house we grew up in was all one storey.”

“It was also away from the nearest town,” Starwishes reminisced. “There were some other houses in the area, but they were a distance apart… the nearest one was close by, but most of the others you couldn’t see from our house because of the hills and trees.”

“Our new house had hillage and trees,” said Dreamstar. “So it’s almost like home, except a bigger house and different trees.”

The party fell silent for a short while, as if the conversation had run out.

“Did you guys go naked all the time?” Peachy asked.

“All the time,” Starwishes replied. “Well… not all the time…”

“We didn’t go naked when we went to school or anything,” Dreamstar explained. “But at home we did…”

“I’m jealous…” Sunny Daze unexpectedly stated.

“Wait what?” Peachy Pie started, surprised at the sudden admission. “Jealous of being naked?”

“Well… kinda,” Sunny confessed. She was starting to redden in the face.

“Wait. Hold the phone!” Peachy began, trying to wrap her mind around the limited news. “Are you saying that you are a nudist now, too?”

“No, of course I’m not!” Sunny blushed. “But… I’ve always kind of liked the idea, that’s all…”

“Do you go around naked?” Peachy interrogated. What exactly her friend’s level on this, she had to know. She had been her best friend for years, and didn’t know anything about this. Why would she only be finding out anything like that now?

“N-no!! Of course not!” Sunny blushed. “I mean… okay, sometimes I sleep naked in the summer when it’s too hot for a t-shirt, but… I would never walk around naked!!”

“How come?” Starwishes asked.

“What if someone saw?” Sunny stressed. “What would they think? And I’m not sure if I’d be okay if someone saw me, either!”

“Then why did you stay in the shower the other day?” Peachy asked.

“Oh…” Sunny stopped. She felt her heart suddenly lurch to a halt, as if it had been thumped. “Well… see… well I guess… I guess seeing Dreamstar and Starwishes naked and not being bothered by being naked kinda… made me… sorta okay with it…?”

“...uh-huh.” Peachy responded.

“Part of me was like… ‘run away!’” Sunny explained. “But another part of me just felt as though it would be weird if I did, so I guess I wasn’t sure what to do, and… I guess a small part of me just wanted it to be… normal, I guess…?”

“Being naked in a shower with a boy,” Peachy smirked.

“It’s not like that!” Sunny argued. “I guess… I dunno…”

“Should we get dressed?” Starwishes asked their guests. She wasn’t sure if Sunny Daze and Peachy Pie were comfortable or not, there seemed to be a whole bunch of mixed signals. And she and her brother had just guessed that since they had seen them naked before, then there wouldn’t be anything to worry about.

“We can put some clothes on if it will make you feel more comfortable,” Dreamstar told Sunny and Peachy.

“Yeah… we thought it would be okay since you had already seen us,” Starwishes confessed. “We didn’t think it would bother you so much…”

“Oh!” Sunny responded. “I’m not bothered, really! I did not mean to make you think it made me uncomfortable, I mean… like I said, I just envy the fact you can be so comfortable without clothes on… and it must feel nice, well… at least when it’s not cold…”

Peachy sighed. “Look… it’s not that I’m actually bothered. It’s more like… it’s weird because I’m not used to this kinda thing. Y’know, hanging out all casual with people’s bits and pieces just… there. I’m fine with it, honest. It’s just a little bit weird for me.”

“Okay…” The twins both said, after a momentary pause. Another pause followed.

“So what should we do first?” Sunny asked, breaking the ice.

“Well… how about the grand tour?” Peachy Pie suggested.

The tour itself wasn’t so much the stuff of Hollywood, but it was a great place to start.

“So you guys both sleep in the same room?” Peachy Pie observed, when the twins’ room was next on the guided tour.

“Yep,” the twins replied.

“You guys have like… two extra rooms,” Peachy pointed out. “You could have your own room, y’know.”

“We know,” said Dreamstar.

“We just don’t like sleeping apart,” Starwishes explained. “We’ve been like that forever…”

“Pff the way you two are I wouldn’t be surprised if you slept in the same bed,” Peachy joked.

“We do,” the twins replied, seriously. Peachy Pie stopped. Of course they would.

“That’s really cute,” Sunny beamed.

“You guys sleep naked too, right?” Peachy asked.

“Yeah…” Dreamstar replied.

“Do you two snuggle?” Peachy Pie added, sort of teasingly.

“Well… yeah,” Starwishes answered.

“Do you guys like… y’know,” Peachy then asked.

“OH MY GOSH PEACHY PIE!!” Sunny cried, turning all shades of red.

“Y’know…?” Dreamstar asked, not sure what she had been implying. He looked to his sister, who had the same confused look on her face.

“I’m kidding!!” Peachy Pie assured Sunny. “But… seriously, sleeping together in the same bed naked is pretty… out there.”

“Don’t mind her,” Sunny apologised to the twins.

“What was she on about?” Dreamstar asked, still confused.

“Nothing…” Peachy replied, in an exaggerated, drawn-out tone. She began to whistle as the group moved on, as if to offer some attention to herself, and passed one of her fingers through a ring she made of her other finger and thumb, whether anyone saw it or not.

“You guys have a pool?” Peachy made the observation, after they came down the stairs and made for the deck.

“Yep!” Starwishes replied, proudly.

“Hey, should we go for a swim?” Dreamstar suggested.

“I don’t have my swimsuit!” Peachy Pie stated. “You never said you had a pool! I would have brought mine!”

“I don’t have mine, either…” Sunny Daze told them.

“Why do you just go naked?” Peachy suggested.

“N-naked?” Sunny Daze stuttered a little.

“Sure, they’ve already seen you naked,” Peachy Pie reasoned.

“I wouldn’t want to… I mean,” Sunny panicked a little. She wasn’t sure how to answer such a question.

“You don’t have to if you don’t want to,” Dreamstar assured her. “Not everyone likes swimming naked…”

“Oh…” Sunny blushed. “It’s… not that, it’s… I mean, it’s something I wouldn’t mind trying… if....”

“Sunny…?” Peachy Pie enquired. Was she really saying what she thought she was saying?

Sunny went silent, and was red. Was she really going to say it? Was she going to admit it?

“Sunny oh my gosh, just spit it out!” Peachy Pie exclaimed.

“I want to try it!” Sunny spat out, her eyes closed. “I’ve always wanted to try it but was too scared to because people would see me!”

“Wow…” Peachy said. “Seriously?”

Sunny Daze opened her eyes, her cheeks were puffed red.

“We can make it a pool day!” Starwishes proclaimed.

“We do have some snacks and stuff,” Dreamstar added. “What do you think?”

Sunny hesitated with her answer. She was not sure if she wanted to proceed with her announcement. She was curious, of course she was. But she was also very nervous. She had never told anyone about this, either… but since Dreamstar and Starwishes were comfortable in her own skin, a small part of her deep inside was trying to take advantage of the situation.

“I don’t know…” Sunny replied. Now she seemed to be flip-flopping.

“Do it!” Peachy Pie encouraged her. “Why not? I mean if you have always wanted to try it, you should! And it’s not like we haven’t seen you naked before, so it’s not like we’re going to judge you or anything. Not like those other two would be bothered, either… I mean look at them!”

Sunny looked towards Dreamstar and Starwishes. Dreamstar was making a helicopter.

“Well that was just wrong,” Peachy Pie stated. Sunny snorted at the immaturity of the situation.

“See?” Peachy Pie pointed out. “You’re fine with it! You just have to be comfortable with your own skin, and you can be! I mean you showered with them, for crying out loud!”

“I guess you’re right,” Sunny admitted. “So… you don’t mind, either?”

“If you wanna go right ahead, then just go right ahead,” Peachy Pie assured her. “I’m not bothered.”

“And I won’t mind or be bothered with you being naked,” Sunny returned the assurance.

“Me either,” Starwishes added.

“Same!” Dreamstar said.

“Hey no, I’m not taking my clothes off, no way!” Peachy Pie clarified. “I’m staying covered, thanks!”

The vote to use the pool first was quite unanimous, although lacking a swim suit of her own, Peachy Pie suggested they put off their pool plans after a skate to her house so that they could get her swimsuit. Starwishes then suggested that since she would be swimming naked, that she could borrow her swimsuit. And with Sunny braving the world of skinny dipping, it meant that only one swimsuit was needed.

“You sure this is going to fit me?” Peachy Pie asked, as she held up Starwishes’ swimsuit. “I mean, you aren’t exactly my size.”

“You could always try it on,” Sunny told her, still dressed, and most likely trying to put off her disrobing.

“You should just take it all off,” Peachy Pie suggested, noticing that Sunny was hesitating. “Like, just quickly. Otherwise you’ll never get to that pool.”

“I… know,” Sunny agreed.

“It’s not like we haven’t seen you naked before,” Dreamstar reminded her, trying to give her a little boost.

“Yeah, and it didn’t freak you out that much, did it?” Peachy Pie asked.

“Okay…” Sunny Daze breathed. She knew she had to just get it over and done with. They had already seen her naked before, and Dreamstar was the only boy. She looked towards Dreamstar, who was sitting on his bed, next to his sister. Her eyes fell slightly, momentarily gawking between his legs, before catching herself again. She blushed.

Sunny then took her t-shirt off, and tossed it onto Starwishes’ bed. She then slipped her fingers inside the sides of her skirt and underpants, and hesitated for a split second, before resolving to just get it over and done with. She pulled both down, and kicked them off, although not so perfectly, causing her to stumble backwards.
And now she stood in her birthday suit for all to see.

“Was that so bad?” Peachy Pie asked, grinning. She knew that Sunny was feeling awkward. Sunny didn’t say anything, she just stood there.

“You look great,” Starwishes assured Sunny Daze.

“Th-thanks,” Sunny replied.

“You actually look nicer like this!” Dreamstar complimented. Sunny Daze suddenly felt an eruption of red-face gush suddenly at what he said.

“OOOOH SUNNY IS BLUSHING HARD-OUT!!” Peachy Pie teased.

“WHY AREN’T YOU GETTING CHANGED?” Sunny Daze countered, trying to change the subject.

“I’m not getting changed with Dreamstar here,” Peachy Pie said, looking straight at the only boy in the room with a gaze that seemed to say ‘get out’.

“Come on!” Starwishes said, noting the cue, taking her brother in one arm and Sunny in the other. “Let’s go!”

The group, minus Peachy Pie, came down the stairs and made their way out onto the deck. Sunny felt a slight anxious panic inside her back, given that now she was outside, naked as the day she was born. She had not been naked outside for years, not since she was a preschooler. She wondered if anyone would jump out at any time, but then remembered that the house was at the end of an empty street. Also, this was private property.

“Together, okay?” Starwishes said. “One… two… three!”

The three of them leapt from the deck, Starwishes and Dreamstar almost leaping together, Sunny Daze almost being left behind, awkwardly jumping in as well. The water was fairly cool - the sun had not heated the water up so much yet, given that it was still morning.

Sunny surfaced, and paused, kicking her feet in place. The others surfaced as well. Sunny noticed how it felt - to feel the water all around her body… it was refreshing. It was amazing. She never thought it was feel so… different, and so good, compared to being in the water in a swimsuit. She still felt a bit awkward, but not so much anymore.

“This thing feels tight,” Peachy Pie’s voice interrupted the group. She had now joined them on the deck, wearing Starwishes’ swimsuit.

“It looks too small,” Sunny observed.

“I said it would be!” Peachy Pie reminded her.

“Sorry…” Starwishes apologised. “I don’t have any togs which are larger…”

“It’s fine, maybe I’ll get used to it,” Peachy Pie told her. Peachy then took a quick two steps, before leaping, and bombing. The water splashed over the others, and Peachy surfaced, grimacing a bit. “That was not the most comfortable of bombs…”