Tim could only stand there looking down into the eyes of the dark skinned woman with her hand outstretched to him. Slowly and unconsciously, he extended his hand out to meet hers, delicately gripping it. The woman, apparently named Twilight, smiled warmly at him. Releasing his hand, she looked around the small interior of the boats cabin. Her eyes drifted to the floor and, noticing the puddle of water at her feet, she brought her hand to her mouth and gasped lightly.

“Oh, excuse me! I seem to making a mess of your, eh… home.” With that, the small horn just under her hairline glowed with a light raspberry hue. She then raised her hand with her index finger pointing upwards. Twilight made a twirling motion with her finger and as she did so, all the water from her hair and her clothing spun out from her body and floated in the air around her, drying her instantly. She then quickly opened her fist, extending her fingers out, causing all the floating droplets of water to burst into a puff of steam and evaporated. Witnessing this, Tim jumped back from her in shock, pressing himself against the opposite wall, his arms splayed out to his sides, trying to get as far away from the woman as possible.

“Jesus Christ, lady! W-w-what the hell was that?” Tim began feeling the wall with his hands trying to find a way out of the room before he realized the strange woman was between him and the door. The woman looked at him with apologetic eyes before slowly taking a small step towards him.

“Oh no, no, no, no, no! Please, don’t be alarmed! Trust me, please, I don’t mean to startle you!” She could see that the man was shivering where he stood- whether it be from the cold water permeating his clothes and skin or from fear, she wasn’t quite sure. “Here! Let me help you! Don’t be scared!” She closed the distance between them and Tim pressed himself tighter against the wall. Twilight stepped closer to his body, laying her right hand on the center of his chest, both her hand and her ivory horn glowing with the same raspberry light.

Warmth. A deep, soothing warmth radiated from the small, delicate hand placed upon his sternum. It slowly crept through his chilled body outward from his chest, warming him more so than any wood fire he had sat in front of. A feeling of calming came with the warmth as he noticed steam rising from his body, taking the dampness from his clothes. He leaned his head back against the wall and closed his eyes, letting the relaxing sensation take his mind and body over. Exhaling deeply, he let his arms fall down to his side before lowering his head back down, bringing his bearded chin to his chest. Opening his eyes once more, his gaze was met by the short, colored-haired woman, who had brought her face close to her hand, looking up into his face with concern in her eyes.

“Are… are you ok? Do you feel better now, Mister Tim? I hope that I haven’t shocked you too severely,… I wish to explain myself to you. Please, may we sit?” She motioned toward the captain’s seat behind the wheel of the boat and the small bench seat across from it. Tim raised his head, looking from Twilight’s face to the seats and back to her face. Then her horn. He slowly nodded and Twilight clapsed her hands together. “Perfect!” She made her way to the upright chair at the helm of the boat as Tim slowly eased himself over to the bench sitting down. He rested his elbows on his knees and brought his hands together, wringing them all the while never taking his eyes of the woman’s horn.

Twilight noticed his stare. She blushed slightly, raising her hand and pushing a stray strand of pink and purple hair from her face and tucking it behind her ear. “Ok,… well, first things first. This-“ she pointed to the slender, 4-inch long horn elegantly adorning her forehead. “This horn, it is a trait of my folk, of who I am. I am a female of a race referred to as soul-folk, or magic-users, as it were. The horn is through which I channel my magic, which you witnessed first-hand through the spells I casted to both dry our bodies as well as to help you relax. Oh, I hope you don’t mind that I used my magic on you in the manner I did… I felt it necessary in order to have you in a more reasonable state of mind in which we could have this discussion….”

“Whoa, lady…” Tim raised his hand in order to stop the woman’s voice. “Ya gotta slow down a bit… You’re tellin me that you have a horn growin from your head because you can use magic? Like, real, legit, no smoke-and-mirrors magic? I find all this hard to take in, but seein as how we’re sittin here in bone-dry clothes after me fishin you outta the water in the middle of God-knows-where Alaska after you using that, um, spell, on us…. I guess I can’t argue the fact.” He then buried his face in his hands, trying to take all of what was said to him in. He grunted, blowing hot air through his hands before lowering them slightly, just so his eyes were visible. He looked to the woman who was sitting politely in his chair, her hands resting on the knee of her crossed legs. She was smiling at him ever so slightly, looking directly into his eyes. It was hard to believe, but what other option did he have? A question came to the front of his mind.

“How did you get out here, anyway? You’re all alone, definitely not dressed for the weather and the nearest actual town is at least a fifty or more miles away…. It just don’t make any sense…”

“A Spell!” Twilight beamed, interrupting him. She adjusted herself in the chair, leaning forward over her hands excitedly as she looked into Tim’s eyes. “An interdimensional teleportation spell to be exact!” She softly giggled as she continued “I had never tried such a spell before… it was very, very taxing! I had studied plenty teleportation spells while in Canterlot, as well as Ponyville, but I had to do some intense research in some very ancient tomes in order to find the information I needed in order to prepare for the casting of the aforementioned spell, but I enjoyed it thoroughly! After all, it was of the utmost importance that I find you, Tim, so I had no other option but to succeed in my task…” Her words trailed off as she saw the confused expression on Tim’s face and his raised hand.

“I was going to fast again, wasn’t I?” Tim nodded and lowered his hand as Twilight continued. “I’m so, so sorry! I just get so excited when I get to discuss my magical studies with someone; I just go on and on and on…”

Tim’s hand rose again, staring intently at the giddy woman. A blush slowly came to her face as she shrugged in embarrassment. “Sorry… I was doing it again…”

“It’s alright Miss, uh, Sparkle, was it?” Tim looked to the woman as she nodded in agreement. “Ok, but let me ask you this… Canterlot? Ponyville? Interdimensional teleportation? Where in the world did you come from?” Tim asked again, gradually becoming more and more confused by the woman. Nothing was making sense to him yet, but he was getting pieces to the puzzle slowly. He noticed the woman named Twilight was absentmindedly tracing a finger on the switches on the console of the boat while she seemed to be deep in thought. She clicked her tongue and rolled her eyes up toward the ceiling. She then ceased all movement and then looked back towards Tim.

“Well, you see, as I told you earlier…” She slightly lowered her face and looked toward Tim from under her multi-colored bangs. “I am not from this world. It is a similar world, in most respects, but different in so many ways…”

“Like magic and horns?” Tim spoke up.

“Yes, as well as some other physical characteristics the folk of my land possess. The land I am from is known as Equestria; Canterlot is our Capital and Ponyville is where I reside. My world is a tangent of yours, an alternate dimension, if you will. Apparently, differences in the evolutionary process influenced by the presences of different types of magic has resulted in the variances of my world from yours, seeing as I have sensed no forms of magic in the short time I have been here. Equestria is a wonderful land, and we have been at peace under our rulers for thousands of years...” Twilight lowered her head and sighed. “…Until recently, that is. That is why I am here and have been brought to you.” She then got up from her chair and approached Tim. She lowered herself to her knees and took His hands in her own.

“Tim, my country is in need of help. Our rulers, our princesses, are in dire trouble. It is up to me and my small group of friends, known as the Elements of Harmony, to rescue them and restore order to our land. We have tried and we have failed, so we had to look for assistance from someone of pure heart and noble spirit.” Twilight looked into Tim’s eyes and he could see the beginnings of tears welling up in them. She shook her head. “Months ago I performed a type of seeing spell… a spell to find such a person to help us in our time of need. I was shocked to say the least when the spell showed me a world, and alternate world, where a lone man was battling the elements of an isolated land. I studied for days on end to learn the proper spell to bring me here, to the man I saw in my vision.” She brought a hand to Tim’s cheek, locking eyes with him and drawing his face closer to hers. “The man I saw, the man with the purest of hearts and the noblest intentions who was destined to help my country, was you.”

Tim’s eyes widened in disbelief at what he was hearing. He could only look back into the pleading, purple eyes that were gazing into his own, as if trying to read his soul. How was he, an ex- officer, husband of a deceased wife, father of deceased children, living out in the middle of nowhere away from any and all types of civilization just trying to survive, possibly be the man who was determined to be the best possible candidate to help the citizens of a world unknown to him? He looked away from the woman, turning his face from her hand and staring blankly at the floor. It had to be some sort of mistake. This was all rather hard to believe, but from when he did look into the woman’s eyes, he saw nothing but the truth. He felt her hand on his chin, turning him back to her.

“Please, I know this is a lot to absorb at the moment, but I have no reason to lie to you. All I have to ask of you is one question: will you help us?”

Twilight’s voice lost its steadfast tone and was now soft and trembling. Tim could not bring himself to look at her and simply stood, taking a step towards the large window facing the boats bow and looked upon the scenery before him. His boat was still lodged against the rocky point that this mysterious woman had showed up on no more than an hour or so ago. His hands rested upon the sill of the window, feeling the cold seeping in through the glass. Again, he brought his hands to his face in thought, trying to contemplate the question presented to him. He didn’t understand any of this, but something in his mind was burning inside him, almost yelling at him that he had been alone long enough and if his help was needed by someone going through so much trouble to find him, be damned if he was going to say no. He turned back to the now standing Twilight, hands still over his face. Slowly he ran his hands up over his face and back through his short, salt-and-pepper hair. His eyes met hers again and he could see the sadness and fear in them, a stark contrast from when she first began speaking to him. He then stepped forward and placed both his hands on her shoulders.

“Miss, I still have plenty of questions that I need answered, but something is tellin me I need a change of pace in my life.” He could see Twilight’s somber expression melt from her face as a look of joy and excitement slowly overcome her. “Now, I want my questions answered, but that can come in due time. As to your question- Yes, I will help you. But first, I need to get this boat off the bank and spend a few moments collectin my thoughts… Is that ok with you, Miss Sparkle?”

Twilight then squeaked with excitement as she pushed through Tim’s arms, jumping on to him and embracing him in a tight hug, resting her head on his chest.

“Oh, yes! Thank you, thank you, thank you!” she exclaimed all the while hugging Tim tightly and swaying them both side to side. “Yes, please, do what you need to do, I will stay out of your way and leave you to your thoughts…” She stepped back and ran her hands over her clothing, collecting her composure. “Besides, I need to prepare in order to get us on our way! Thank you ever so much, Tim! Oh! I need to start meditating immediately! I need to prepare myself for the spell!” with that, Twilight sat upon the bench seat, crossed her legs and rested her elbows on her knees, her arms angled out with her index fingers and thumbs touching in an “o” shape. Her horn began to glow softly as she closed her eyes. Tim could only stare in awe as he made his way out the door and onto the deck of the boat. Sliding on his boots and coat, he looked up to the increasingly darkening sky as the clouds of the incoming snow storm were moving in on them. He sighed as he began working to free the boat as the snow began to fall heavier and heavier.

Author's Note

I'm trying to get this story moving.... got a lot of ideas in my head, but need to build up to them. Thanks for reading and if you see any mistakes please let me know seeing as how I am doing my own editing. Likes, dislikes and comments are more than welcome.