When the Sun Met the Moon and the Stars Collidedby SnowmanmeltingChapters1 Forgotten Fridays2 Informative Saturdays3 Feverish Tuesdays4 Thoughtful Saturdays1 Forgotten FridaysIt never crossed Twilight Sparkle's mind that destiny could be so cynical and twisted when it came to all the different ways of making fun of her. Or that things would end this way, even. The Celestia who was now entering the room with a cup of tea in her hands, wasn't a Princess, nor the maximum authority of the place, nor an immortal demigoddess. Neither was she a pony in this case. She was the human version 一counterpart? 一 of her mentor, her idol, of whom turned her back in defense of an unknown pony without thinking twice. It could be that Twilight's accusations had been reckless in execution, but it didn't deserve the gesture. Right? "It's lavender tea sweetened with honey, it'll help you sleep better." Celestia sat at the edge of the bed, after Twilight accepted the drink with a small nod of gratitude. Initially, between the whirlwind of emotions and the fact that there wasn't much lighting, Twilight didn't notice the main characteristic that distinguished both them: this Celestia’s hair didn't have that glow of radiant sparks, nor the soft and constant undulation, impregnated with magic so strong that only can be held by someone with the ability of moving a celestial body. It was a rainbow of solid pastel tones. Wavy, luminous and well cared for, without any trace of magic. Like everything in this universe. The younger girl only focused on drinking the tea in hopes that sleep would attack her as quickly as possible. These had been the worst days of her entire life, and she couldn't wait for them to become distant memories located in mental pools at the bottom of the unconsciousness. "I know maybe it's not the best question, but how are you feeling?" Celestia remained impassive but attentive; soft, measured, as Twilight remembered the Princess. Maybe they shared more similarities than mere appearances, which made it inevitable to find the most appropriate answer. Was it in a strictly medical sense or did include more than just her physical state? Should she give an ambiguous and, at the same time, concrete answer to summarise her general state? Did she even want to give some kind of answer at all? Her eyes went down to the ceramic mug, half empty. No levitation spell, no hooves held it, but fingers. Phalanges connected to a palm that, as a whole, formed the so-called hands. Fingers that with their nails could scratch in a vain defense attempt, hands that could close in furious fists and leave more bruises than once believed possible to have. Given all this Celestia had done for her so far, the ex-unicorn resolved that in spite of her discomfort she should at least answer. “A little better, I think,” Twilight started slowly. “The analgesics are working and I almost don’t feel the headache…” According to the specialists that treated her in the hospital, she was lucky not to have any serious concussions. Only significant bruises and slight scrapes that would take about a month to disappear completely. However, Twilight wasn't sure whether to call it luck, having the left side of her face swollen and five shades darker than its original pigmentation. Or ten, maybe. Color variant differences by pigment combination had never been her forte, probably Rarity or Pinkie Pie had a more accurate idea. “Are you sure that’s all?” Celestia asked again, in a way that reminded Twilight of those psychologists whose intention is to create introspection on the topic addressed. Soft and, despite the word choice, without putting pressure. But again, it was another question that she wasn't sure she wanted to answer. Too many feelings were spinning around her to explain them in such a light, synthetic way. Twilight had crossed the portal by mistake carrying a whirlwind of negative emotions, and when she ended up in this world, she clung to the stupid and positivist idea that at any moment the sun would rise, as logic indicates. But she forgot completely that logic and science always have exceptions or variants to reach the same result, depending on the paradigm or its speculative theories. Not to mention the fact that even if it was a parallel world, there was no guarantee the worldviews would be the same. Twilight managed to understand this at the same time she realized that humans couldn't control the weather, just predict it and act accordingly, and all she could do was scream and try to find the fastest exit. The only thing she achieved was more blows and a sore throat. So saying that she felt bad, anguished, humiliated, or guilty was a big, vague lie. There were so many things, so many sensations, so many adjectives that came to mind, that somehow when trying to evoke them they nullified in a distressing pressure on the chest. One that she tried in vain to undo with undissolved honey and the tea that was left. One that didn't let her breathe regularly. One that when trying to take a mouthful of air to relax, only obtained incomplete syllables and wet cheeks despite her attempts to remove all traces of rebellious tears. Even as Celestia wrapped her in her arms, filling her with soft words of encouragement accompanied by hair stroking, Twilight couldn't help clinging to her tightly and breaking into tears. Even with the cold tingling in her back. How cynical could fate be so that the most infamous figure to turn her back on her became the only one who had dared to give her a chance? “I know it's hard to see it now, but soon everything will be fine, okay?” Celestia spoke in a soft tone when Twilight seemed to get her breathing back to normal, several minutes later. Twilight managed to say a simple "yes" under her breath, still not losing the grip around the older woman's torso or lifting her head that was resting from Celestia's shoulder. Human movements felt natural to perform now, and though she wasn't very much in favor of physical interaction, she had to admit that somehow it felt much warmer and comforting than the Princess' wings did on the fur. Even if she wasn't entirely sure if that opinion was actually due to continuous exposure to cold nights winds. Still, Celestia spoke with such certainty that helped the ex-unicorn feel a little less insignificant, a bit less tiny in a room that wasn't her own. Within a strange and completely alien world that so far gave her both fascination and complete misery. It made her think that the bad feelings were temporary and that, this time, the sunbeams that showed through the clouds would last until a sunny day. “Thanks. For everything,” Twilight whispered, once the embrace was undone and she felt a little calmer. The anguish wasn't gone, no, pretending so was absurd. But venting always helped. “It means a lot.” The woman in front of her might not be a Princess, nor her idol whom she dreamed of ever resembling, or a pony in this case. She was her human version, who at first sight Twilight confused with the equestrian one, believing that she had crossed the portal to take her back to their world. But she was the version that didn't doubt a second of the validity of her words and made sure that she received proper medical attention. This Celestia even offered lodging in her house until she found another place to stay. “It's nothing, honey, really.” Celestia offered a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes, but the gesture was enough for the younger girl to try to mirror it. “Now just try to rest, okay? It has been a pretty hectic day.” Celestia behaved as Twilight would have expected the Princess, who always said she cared about the well-being of all her subjects. And even though she couldn't be completely annoyed by the latter's reaction at her brother's wedding, the bitter taste that fiasco left lasted to even now, several days later, and definitely didn't help. After another quick hug and another lavender and honey infusion to finish mashing the nerves, Twilight was finally falling into the dream world. Hoping that when she woke up the next morning, memories of the past few days would already be scattered behind the fog of the unconscious. Twilight woke up with a loud sound that she could barely make out as wood against some kind of frame, and opened her eyes in panic when she understood where it came from. Fear magnified its asleep omnipresence in an icy current of electricity, clawing bones and putting hairs on edge in mere seconds, dominating any form of logical thought that might have appeared as a rival. Protection was its first order, which given the circumstances, resulted in Twilight trying to make herself as small as possible. Ignoring the muted whimper of her back, she collided between the head of the bed and the corner of the wall, hoping to blend in with the room like a simple bulge under the sheets. Not again, not again, not again. Please, please don't... "Aaahhh!" The bulge stopped in its tracks. Was that a feminine voice, or had she already began to rave? "A-are you okay?" It was a female voice, one she wasn't sure she recognized but seemed on edge. But the fact that it wasn't the opposite sex made her heart rate slow down enough to stop hearing it gallop over her ears. The ex-unicorn opened her eyes, which had already begun to ache from how hard she had closed them —the left one still throbbing thanks to the damned bruise she had there, and breathed in as much air her lungs allowed to take courage and spy who it was. Twilight blinked a couple of times thanks to the sudden light in the room, and between the small black spots on the vision, the things around her took their respective shape and color. The bed on the left side, a perfectly tidy desk that occupied most of the adjacent wall, a bookshelf on the next wall, followed by the door and the human figure of a girl leaning against the closet with one hand on her chest, her face a mixture of worry, confusion, curiosity and relief. The memories of the events that took place in the past hours came back to the surface as quickly as they left, as well as that small sense of security that was enough to drown the fear. However, what resurfaced now was the discomfort when she took awareness of the situation. This wasn't her room, nor her world, nor her original body, even the pajamas were borrowed. This wasn't her bedroom, but that of the girl who was watching her and waiting for an answer less than two meters away. Celestia's daughter. She was mentioned in a small conversation about rules Twilight had to follow if she stayed here, which were basic and logical because, well, she was a stranger. Even though Celestia had initially confused her with her human counterpart. "I-I'm sorry, I thought... I was... somewhere else," she mumbled when remembering she had been asked a question, not knowing where to look except for the 一now一 interesting check quilt. She was in the room of Summer... Streamer? No, that didn't sound quite right. But Twilight was shaking like a scared filly under the sheets of her bed. To say that she felt totally out of place was perhaps too light a phrase. The other girl shook her head, dismissing it with a wave of her hand. "It's okay. I think, uh, we both got scared." The red-haired girl with golden locks gave a small chuckle that Twilight thought sounded a bit nervous. "Are you sure you are okay, though? That sounded like it hurt." The painkillers had already taken effect on most of her body, but for some reason, her back continued to complain. Or did she have a bruise there and hadn't noticed? Anyway, this last hit will surely leave a mark. She hated how easy it was for her to bruise, no matter the body, and the fact that she was clumsier in the current one didn't help. Even so, Twilight nodded, not to feel more embarrassed than necessary. "Yes, I'm... I'm okay…" The quilt was interesting not only in color but texture too. It didn't feel so soft to the touch, would it be made of cotton, like the ones from Equestria? Twilight swallowed the urge to snort, no longer understanding why she tried to pretend that she had some dignity left. The girl in front of her was Celestia's daughter, yes, and she had already made a fool of herself in front of her. "I'm taking up your space, right? I-I'm sorry, I'll just g--" "No, no, not at all!" The redhead quickly made a gesture with her hands to reinforce her idea. "It was my suggestion. You can stay, really." A pause. "...You sure?" The affirmative gesture had enough resolution for Twilight to object a second time. "Wow, that's... such a nice gesture, I mean, you barely know me and, uh, well, thank you." She bit her tongue, to try to stop babbling things and sink deeper into shame. She didn't even understand the direction of her actions, maybe the bruises hadn't been as light as the doctors believed and they were affecting her brain activity. Or maybe it was the exhaustion along with the side effects of the pills she had to take. Or maybe all of the above. Twilight made a mental note of looking for some book on human anatomy and psychology. There she would surely find better answers. Checking some information pamphlets wouldn't be a bad idea either. The girl in front of her crossed her arms, and after a few seconds in which she seemed to be thinking carefully, she licked her lips before finally speaking. "Let's say that I know this world's Twilight Sparkle quite well. She's technically my cousin." A pause. A very long pause. She was sure her heart stopped for a second, along with her breathing. She definitely didn't expect that answer. Twilight never said her name. Even if Celestia mentioned it to her, which was quite likely, she couldn't know she was Sparkle instead of Twinkle. When she found out she had a human counterpart, Twilight lied in that small aspect to avoid any kind of confusion. She already had too many problems to add something extra like her parents, for example. Besides, the explicit mention of "this world" implied that there were others, right? At least, Equestria was a parallel version of this world. Twilight had no idea if other worlds existed, as far as portals were concerned all the information was in Canterlot library’s forbidden section. But if she knew that, then it was likely that-- "H-how do you know about...?" For some reason, her voice came out lower than intended, but she decided to leave the sentence unfinished so as not to give unnecessary information. The redhead, who now Twilight realized had been looking at her expectantly all this time, leaned against the wardrobe. For some reason, she now seemed unsure, at least more than what her appearance might suggest, with a leather jacket and black jeans. "I guess you mean Equestria, right?" She inquired softly. Twilight nodded slowly. Both were testing the waters, it seemed. "Let's say I tied some knots. Like you confused Celestia with the Princess, and, uh, you mentioned the mirror. So I figured... you were from there." At the last comment, the ex-unicorn slowly nodded again. If she knew, then no point in hiding it. Twilight wasn't sure what else to say or do, exactly. One part of her head was asking questions about what, who, how, when, where and why, that the other party, the most rational and logical 一within which allowed such conditions一 began to silence at all costs. At another point in her life, she would have burst into questions, in her need to obtain information about this world, and from the idea of learning something new. Now the best thing she could do was shut her mouth. Not that she had too much of a right to ask, they already had enough hospitality as to have to put up with someone who wanted to put her muzzle in where it didn't concern her. Eh, nose, the nose. "I'm also from Equestria," she commented, answering a couple of questions and at the same time making a few more because Twilight without constant questioning wasn't Twilight. "Really?" the ex-unicorn asked, perhaps quicker than necessary. "Yep. About... five years ago." The redhead seemed not to notice, choosing to hang the jacket on the rack behind the door that Twilight didn't remember since when exactly it was closed. "It's a long story. But I suppose I can say I understand that first sensation of, well, feeling everything foreign and at the same time not." More questions came to Twilight's mind, she decided to swallow them. The redhead turned her back to her, looking for something between the drawers and the shelves on the open side of the wardrobe. There was a moderate amount of clothing, all folded in an orderly fashion, apparently by type or function. Twilight still didn't understand too much the difference between bedding and normal clothes. Were they not to cover the body and protect it, and nothing else? "Yeah. It's, it's weird, to be honest." The ex-unicorn allowed herself to barely raise the corners of her lips. "But I think I got used to it." Twilight had no idea how many days she had been wandering around the city, eight or ten at least, maybe fifteen. But by the forth, she felt much more comfortable, as if this was her natural form all her life. So natural, that even, in a moment, crossed her mind the fleeting idea that in truth all that happened was just a product of her imagination. She erased that thought as soon as it came. The other girl in the room closed the sliding door of the wardrobe with a wooden sound against a frame, much like the one that had awakened her. Agreeing with Twilight's last comment while looking for another couple of things in the room. Twilight didn't stop feeling out of place and was about to say again that she could find another place to sleep, if not for the fact that the redhead would probably insist not to. "I'm gonna take a shower. Whatever you need, we're in the next room," she said, pointing her thumb behind her, already with a towel on her shoulder and the other hand on the doorknob. "Oh, and uh, I think I never told you my name. I'm Sunset Shimmer." They exchanged a simple greeting, Twilight tried again to lift the corners of her lips a bit to try and be as polite as possible. There could be no dignity left but she could still pretend, she supposed. She made another mental note to try to work on memorizing names because there was no point in learning whole books by heart but not knowing what someone was called. Once again, lights off, the full darkness of the night, and weariness forced her to close her eyes and attempt to rest. She had too much stress, too many emotions, too many questions, her head was going to explode. Fate again seemed to mock her more and more, with its laughter and impossible coincidences. Not only did the one who had turned her back on one side of the mirror gave her an opportunity in another, but also had a daughter that came from the same place, that came from Equestria. It was one chance in a million, but after so much bad luck, it wasn't necessarily a bad thing. When Twilight found herself falling again into the dream world, she did it with an extra bit of certainty that maybe, after so many misfortunes, after so many cloudy days, finally the sun would come out. Author's Note I'm back with something less long and less dramatic (pff as if). It will deal with serious topics, but such will be very lightly implied and not necessarily the main topic. Just... Keep that in mind, please. Next chapter will be up probably next week! 2 Informative SaturdaysTwilight's expectations on how to get up the next day proved to be too much. And she didn't even have an idea what they were, exactly. It surely must have been some unconscious manifestation. Or maybe it had to do with the fact that she remembered half of what happened the day before. Too much information to process, too many facts, an excessive amount of instructions to remember, and various introductions ended up making her head pure chaos. Twilight could have a very good capacity for retention and memory, but even for her, it proved to be too much. Especially when, at the same time, she was trying to forget about other things. The effect of the painkillers had already passed, so when she woke up, she was hit with a five-second panic and a wave of pure pain as she suddenly tried to get up. Until a quick look reminded her of where she was and she lay back on the bed with forcibly relaxed muscles. Twilight wasn't the type of po-- person who found it hard to get up, or who liked to stay in bed before getting ready for the day. Maybe it was because she always stayed late for some reason or another, and when she woke up it was in time or about to fall behind schedule. However, this time it took a few minutes to gather the will to move. Not only because of that wave of anguish that together with the pain kept her tied to the bed. But also because the sheets were comfortable, soft, and very warm. At least she had managed to rest more than any previous day. She should thank Sunset Shimmer for insisting that she sleep in her bed. After finally gathering the will to get up, Twilight decided to comb what would probably be a messy mane with her fingers. She didn't feel like going to the bathroom because it meant looking in the mirror and ruining the neutral mood she had. Having an eye without being able to function in the right way was more than enough. "Good morning..." she greeted after checking that it was around ten o'clock in the morning. Sunset Shimmer returned the greeting from the living room table, never looking up from the papers in front of her. And since there was no sign of Celestia, Twilight decided to occupy the seat next to the girl as discreetly as possible. Her violet eyes watched with curiosity what seemed to have her so busy. It didn't take long to discover that it was level five Algebra according to the book on the side of the table. But the formulas that the redhead wrote at full speed on the paper were too familiar. They reminded Twilight of her time at Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns and the Spell Theory classes. The intermediate ones, the advanced ones had much more complex limits. Twilight continued to watch and swallow the effervescent curiosity of asking the purpose of magic formulas if in this world magic was supposed to be nonexistent. Were there exceptions? Could it be reduced to a specific group in particular? Or is it that they were subject to variability according to species, as in Equestria? If this was the case, then the chances of reopening the portal could be greatly amplified. "...Twilight?" The girl in question left her trance, looking up at a now clear space since everything had been organized in a neat pile in a corner, to meet the expectant look of Sunset Shimmer. She didn't have to give any kind of response to make it clear that she had no idea what the question was. "I'm gonna make some oatmeal with milk and honey. Do you like it? If not, I can make you something else..." the redhead repeated slowly. Twilight just gave a little nod. "That would be fine. Thank you." The redhead mimicked her affirmative gesture, and without further ado went to the kitchen a few meters behind her initial position. The apartment didn't have big spaces in comparison to the typical Equestrian architecture, but was a size comfortable enough to put several furniture without obtaining the sensation it reduced much of the space. It was more than enough for two people to live in, or maybe three if necessary changes were made. Three, thought the purple-haired girl. Not knowing whether to feel guilty for breaking into the daily lives of the inhabitants of the home or grateful to whoever was the deity of this world for having such luck. Sunset Shimmer reappeared in a short time with two bowls of oatmeal and, after a second trip, with a couple of spoons, ground cinnamon and a pot of honey. "So, did you sleep well?" asked the redhead while throwing a small spoonful of each item to her breakfast. "Yes." Twilight decided to put her last mental note into practice before she forgot it. "Thanks, again." The other girl just nodded as a sign that it was nothing, like the night before. She was definitely more grateful for being lucky enough to run into such nice people. The only sound that followed for a couple of minutes was that of the metal spoons against the ceramic bowls, the ticking of the clock, and more occasionally, the quick sound that was reproduced by the... cell? No, cell phone, or something like that. Those rectangular touchscreen objects that everyone interacted with constantly, everywhere, at all times. Twilight didn't understand exactly what they did, what made them so valuable and indispensable to everyday life, or why it was so important to own one. "I suppose you have a few questions, right?" Said the redhead once she put aside the technological device, taking her out of the self-absorption again. A few was a very vague and short word to describe the complexity of her insatiable curiosity as intense as a headache, which fortunately was starting to die a little. Millions, would be, a more appropriate term. In another moment, she would have packed the girl with questions. Thousands of questions about this universe and how it's magic worked —if it existed, based on what she saw a few minutes ago— their customs and culture, technological advances, the political system... She could write hundreds of books, reports or monographs on each subject! Twilight had paid attention to all her surroundings since crossing the portal, taking mental notes of every detail. But if she had to start somewhere, among so many things, she was most curious about since the previous night was how Sunset Shimmer had ended up here. The mirror portal was in a rather unusual section in the Canterlot Castle, and only someone with regular access could have found it. Of course, there was the possibility that five years ago it was located in a different place, but it was clear that it wasn't of public knowledge. Still, she didn't have the slightest right nor was it her business to ask, having met her less than twenty-four hours ago. Therefore, she crossed it off the endless list and went back to digging for something else of real relevance. One appeared, or rather several, that she hadn't been able to solve after all these days and that she had unconsciously pushed to the bottom of her memory. Not as deep as certain other facts. But let's say that it being a trigger for her bad decisions, Twilight preferred to take it as something light that would be solved later on its own. It was time to test if it really would be like that. If there was any small chance of being able to return home. "Is it okay if I ask, what you know about... about the portal?" Sunset Shimmer blinked in surprise for a second, before recomposing and continuing as she did two minutes ago. "Well... I know that it opens for about three days every... thirty? Yes, thirty moons. I can't tell you if there are more, I haven't encountered any." Thirty moons. Thirty moons were equal to two and a half years. She couldn't go back to Equestria, her home, for thirty moons, for two and a half years. And worst of all, Twilight wasn't surprised. She had no idea why, maybe it had to do with the fact that the portal was closed when she found it again and that was when she decided to take a route in the opposite direction of the previous one that resulted in the worst decision in the history of worst decisions she could have ever made, not only in the last month but in her whole life because she chose to stay with that stupid positivism that the sun would come out at any moment and everything would end well perfect and radiant but resulted in-- "Are you okay?" She wasn't surprised. Not with the portal, nor her attitude, nor the consequences. She wasn't surprised at all. On the contrary, it was so, so obvious. Twilight swallowed almost without chewing an entire spoonful of her breakfast. She was in a neutral mood today, she didn't want to ruin it. She wasn't going to ruin it. As much as the involuntary tear that escaped her left eye tried to prove otherwise. Twilight placed a hand on her cheek to cover it, pretending to rest her head on her hand. "Yeah, it's nothing..." she mumbled, making circles with the spoon in her oatmeal. She was hungry, but now she felt as if her stomach had closed. "You didn't know." It was a statement with a more inquisitive tone than anything else. Twilight denied slowly, not knowing if the headache had finally subsided or if it was the opposite. "The information about portals is in the restricted section of the Canterlot Library. And I couldn't go to the Princess to ask her for permission." Actually, she could have sought her out to inform her of the opening of the portal. Even if the Princess was angry because of the "scandal" that Twilight had been the protagonist of at the rehearsal of her brother's wedding. Would that have been a better option, now knowing this new information? Maybe yes. Or maybe not and she would be still sitting in the same place now. Did it make sense to think about this fifteen days later? No, not at all. Anyway, making a wedding when you had the entire city on high alert about an unknown enemy was absurd. But in Canterlot everyone always liked to give that appearance of peace and self-sufficiency typical of the nobility, even though everyone knew that it was non-existent when it came to the capital of Equestria. "I thought it would open in less time." In much less time, but, again, it didn't surprise her. So for the sake of her mental stability, she decided to shrug her shoulders and dismiss the matter for the moment. "I guess I'll have to get used to this world, then." Besides, it wasn't as if someone on the other side of the mirror cared, no matter how much it hurt. Ergo, the only thing left for her to do was think of a long-term plan. Sunset Shimmer looked at her funny for a second, blinking, before answering. "…Okay." She instantly recomposed as if she didn't want to look much into that subject. "I assume you're going to want some recommendations, then, right?" Twilight tried to nod in the most controlled way possible, to hide her childlike enthusiasm at the thought of learning new things and finally being able to resolve some doubts. "Where do you think should I start?" Improve hand motility? Though she was sure she had improved a lot by learning by imitation and by, well, trial and error. Become familiar with all those technological devices? That was part of their culture in a certain way, right? Sunset Shimmer thought for a moment, biting the tip of her thumb of one hand while drumming the fingers of the other on the table. "The first thing that comes to mind, and I guess you already know this, but... Don't tell people that you come from a parallel dimension, much less that they all are... uh, talking equines." Twilight couldn't help frowning at such a description, even though it had some kind of accuracy. The redhead looked at her with a guilty expression. "Here, magic doesn't exist, it isn't something that can be proven by science or technology. Plus humans are the only ones with the ability of abstract thinking and articulated language. I know for a fact that they won’t take you very seriously." It was nothing that the —Damned? Blissful?— experience didn't show her, but might as well know why exactly. In Equestria, magic manifested itself in all possible forms. One lived with both the internal one and the external that possessed the rest of the living beings that surrounded them. It was natural and could be easily explained through scientific laws and paradigms that applied nothing more than to that reality. If this was a world based on science and technology, where magic had no possible explanation, then it made sense that it was considered as something fictitious and non-existent. Still, when she had the chance, she wanted to find out the exact purpose for the formulas she had seen before. "Another thing is the use of hands." Sunset Shimmer now listed with her fingers. Twilight just watched her, paying close attention and enlisted herself to take mental notes. "I see you take the spoon the right way, so I don’t think you'll spend a lot of time learning how to write." The ex-unicorn nodded, encouraged at the thought of being able to have summaries and notes on a piece of paper. There was a point where certain things were inevitable to forget. Maybe, if she carried a notebook with her, it would be a little simpler. What followed was a little overview of general technology, the basic functions of household appliances, or things already common in society such as television and air conditioning. The importance of the cell phone along with the inter...net, which together were the great communicational tools of the century, and another few questions and answers that Twilight commented on when she felt was the right moment. Despite everything, the morning ended up taking an interesting and positive turn. Sunset Shimmer managed to ease several of her doubts regarding cultural behavior. And about an hour and a half later, both teenagers found themselves involved in a lively conversation. Unfortunately, when it came for Twilight to inquire about her human counterpart, Celestia arrived with lunch and they were forced to change the subject. Anyhow, there was time for that and many more questions, she would be here for two and a half years. But this time she would do things right, take slow steps. She would think the possibilities over and over again, to then evaluate all the possible options and work out a plan on how to live here until the portal opened up again. After all, the worst had already happened, the best and most logical thing to do was to leave it all behind and simply move on. Author's Note Thanks to Jay as always for the help! Without her, this would be a mess, haha. So this story ended up having the amount of attention that I expected for my other story. Oh well, it happens I'm still writing next chapter, hopefully, it will be up by the end of this month 3 Feverish TuesdaysIn the last few weeks, Twilight woke up in a different place almost every day. Like that one time she opened her eyes to the complaints of the public library manager, saying that if she had problems at home, running away would only cause trouble. Or at the small museum where something similar happened. Or when misfortune led her to find herself in... However, where she least expected to wake up on a Tuesday at around five in the morning was in the bathtub, wondering when she thought taking a hot bath with clothes still on was a good idea. It wasn't until her senses were fully awakened that Twilight noticed the wet cloth on her forehead, her warm cheeks and the slight ringing in her ears. And she concluded that it was probably the fever she had been coming down with since the night before, plus the side effects of the antibiotics. That, along with her tendency to have high body temperature, was the perfect result for the flu. If it weren’t for Celestia appearing to ask how she was doing, Twilight would have seized the opportunity to test how it felt to breathe with lungs full of water. Seriously, anything else to add to the list? The only good thing about this was that it made for a good excuse to not leave the house. Even though she had to promise she would go to the hospital if she had a fever again, just in case. Fortunately, it was enough with a tea, a long nap, and a real shower to return to a more or less normal state. She still had somewhat of a headache, with a chill running through her body from time to time and the immediate need for tissues. At the moment she was in the living room. Sunset Shimmer insisted that she didn't mind Twilight sleeping in her bed for a few more days, but the girl declined the offer. She didn't want to impose, especially when the exhaustion was falling like lead on her shoulders. She barely slept since the invitation to Shining's wedding. Plus, after traveling through the city on high alert, any spongy and warm surface was enough. Besides, watching television from a sofa-bed was a rare but comfortable experience. The device consisted of a thin rectangle with a black frame, which transmitted via satellite a variety of shows for all kinds of audiences. Like a cinema inside your house but without the need for a projector, or a dark room. And if it was boring, you could change the channel through a remote control with colorful buttons. The most surreal of it all was Celestia sitting next to her, having vegetarian stew for lunch along with Twilight. Of course, she didn't let the younger girl help with the cooking, using the excuse that the doctor had suggested bed rest. Though Twilight still only felt confident enough to prepare food in the microwave, where you had to press buttons and not use knives. In her "prized pupil" days, when she fell ill the Princess used to keep her company with a cup of tea, extra readings, and answers outside the curriculum. Those were unique moments, where she spent her time with a pony of infinite wisdom and centuries of experience instead of a simple mentor. Where she could get closer to her and the invisible barrier of formality weakened a bit. In contrast, her counterpart was more of a simple person. As Twilight supposed the Princess should be in private or in her youth. It took eighty-nine hours to realize it, seeing how affectionate she was with her adopted daughter and staying to take care of Twilight like she had known her all her life; forming theories about who could be the perpetrator of the crime in a television series. It gave Twilight a sensation of comfort that, maybe, was urgently needed right now. "When's the next episode?" asked the younger girl with enthusiasm, when dramatic music gave way to production credits. She expected at least one more, or other series with the same theme. She always liked mystery and detective novels. It proved a good way to learn about the technological resources and the legal process required to solve a case. "I didn't know about this series, it's interesting." "I think around five or six in the afternoon." Celestia couldn't help laughing when she saw Twilight deflate like a balloon with a childish pout. "It’s quite a popular genre. But you don't watch TV much, I assume?" "I grew up without one." According to Sunset's explanation the other day, owning a television had been a common thing for at least three or four decades. Still, there were controversies about whether the content transmitted was one hundred percent benign, and some people preferred not owning one. "My parents always prioritized reading." "Well, that's a good thing. You always learn something new reading." Choosing to simply let her be, Twilight gave her empty bowl to Celestia when she got up in the direction of the kitchen. She was only a bit sore, but it was enough to not want to move too much, not that she had the actual strength to do it. In the next few minutes, Twilight watched the commercials while she waited for the next series on the wonderful entertainment device in front of her. Most included catchy songs that got stuck in her head, especially those that featured kids products. She even found herself humming a shampoo song. Celestia sat down next to her with two cups of tea right at the beginning of what looked to be a medical series. "Twilight... I didn't ask you before because I couldn't find a good time," began the older woman, in a tone that seemed casual but serious at the same time. "But, do you know where your parents are?" Well, if she had to answer honestly, she knew. They still lived in the same house in south Canterlot, where both of their children grew up and moved out in their own time. The Canterlot a closed portal away, of course. Was there a way to answer that question without raising any doubts about her mental health? "At home, I guess... Or at work." They didn't change their routine much. Otherwise, Twilight always found out at the very last minute. Celestia then looked at her with an unreadable expression. It seemed neutral, but the long silence and the slight frown said something else. Something Twilight wasn't sure she wanted to decipher. "Don't you think they'll be worried about you?" she finally inquired. "...I don't know, maybe?" Twilight bit her tongue for speaking so fast. For things like this, she ended up with bruises. She didn't want to give the impression that her parents didn't care where she was or how she was doing. They always got along well. She visited them twice a month in Canterlot, on family reunions or birthdays, and they kept in contact via letters. However, they weren't exactly close. Spike knew her better than them, just because they grew up together. Her parents had a different point of view, they took another approach to victories and what they considered "failures." Twilight had never invited them to Ponyville show them where she lived for that very reason. By Celestia, she didn't want to imagine if they saw her now. They would surely tell her how disappointed they were for everything she did and failed to do because Twilight Sparkle couldn't afford to fail even if the stars were against her. The sudden feeling of a hand on her shoulder made her muscles tense, and a chill ran through every nerve point in her body. Twilight tried to diminish it with a heavy drink of tea, to make it disappear along with her hate for the sake of maintaining a neutral mood. Sometimes it wasn't an easy task, especially when out of nowhere she was afraid of even her own shadow. She wasn't in danger, no one was threatening her. So why was she acting like this? Why did she feel so ashamed and vulnerable? Don't say anything, don't say anything, don't say an-- “What happened, Twilight?” asked Celestia, her voice soft and measured like last Friday, except less firm as the younger girl wasn't crying her eyes out this time. The hand was still there on her shoulder, warm and reassuring. It was a nice feeling. One that she tried to keep conscious against the voice of the fear echoing in a corner her head, screaming that she should run. Run as fast as possible, get away from that m-- “Nothing. I can’t fix it,” she murmured, feeling her throat like it was three days ago, with its raspiness being fresh and new. “So what’s the point in thinking about it?” “How are you so sure it can’t be fixed?” Twilight stared at her blackish color tea with faint steam. Her thumbs went back and forth on the edge of the glass mug between her hands. A white duvet with flowers of various colors covered the lower part of the body. Were they roses or a similar flower? She had never been very good at gardening. At no time did she take notice of her arms, exposed from almost the shoulders down to the hands. Analgesics and creams could help reduce the pain of the bruises, but that didn't mean they disappeared in three days, or that she wanted to see them all the time. “I’m proof enough.” What for? If the image that greeted her in the mirror every time she looked from the corner of her eye or by accident was proof enough. Proof that she never stopped to think and consider her words before speaking. That she should have kept some things to herself. That her decisions have consequences which were nobody's fault but her own. That she couldn't turn back time even with magic. That she wanted to be in Equestria, celebrating a wedding with friends or crying under the sheets of her bed in Ponyville. Twilight wanted to be at home, not at the extradimensional copy of it. It took a moment for Celestia to answer, she always seemed to take a moment to reflect and say what she considered most convenient. An enviable quality. “I think you only are proof of a strong girl, who needs to take her own time to heal properly.” It was easy to imagine the Princess telling her something similar. It made it easier to think her mentor wasn't mad at her, even if it was an illusion. A pretty good illusion. Twilight just smiled a little at her, slightly nodding as Celestia hugged her by the shoulders. It gave her a feeling of care and comfort that, however false it might be, was urgently needed right now. At least she had that, right? Peace and calm, and the possibility of deciding how to move forward from now on, without surprises or last-minute plans. Good thing Twilight already had an idea of what to do. It was late at night. Most people were already at home, having a late dinner or sleeping, as was the case of the girls. Twilight had no problems falling asleep quickly, even with television in the background. On the contrary, Sunset asked her to sit on the edge of the bed and chat, as she couldn't relax enough no matter her exhaustion. Celestia hoped it remained a rare thing, or she would start worrying. However, at the moment she had other things to concern about. How she would explain all of this in detail was one of them. She had talked to Luna on Saturday morning, just to get a second opinion. Both agreed not to say a thing until Celestia felt a hundred percent sure. Not like there were many options to choose from, it was a "yes or no" question. And perhaps it was intuition, but there was something that told her she was right. The phone conversation started casual as always, catching up on what they had been doing in the three weeks they hadn't seen each other. Of course, there was the question of why she was calling them suddenly on a Tuesday night. It was then that Celestia went looking for a coat in her closet, knowing that they would want to meet immediately. "I think..." She took a deep breath, an excited chill running through her skin when she realized she was about to pronounce a phrase she thought only possible in dreams. "I think I found her." Author's Note 3 months Thanks to Jay for helping and to my pre-readers for helping as always. Idk what this would be without them. A mess, surely. Btw, does this chapter read more, er, fluently? If not, any tips? I'm trying to improve my translation. Anyways, I'd like to hear your theories! ~~maybe you come up with a better plotline and I can steal it, muahaha~~ 4 Thoughtful SaturdaysTime flies when you're only trying to exist as little as possible and wait for the days to pass by. Hiding behind multiple books or television, in her nest made of bedsheets and tissues, is how Twilight managed to get to Saturday in the blink of an eye. A strategy she used as a filly when she had too much free time between the end of school and the beginning of summer activities. Omitting the flu, of course, that one took part in winter breaks. Seven days later, physical pain was almost non-existent, the swelling on her bruises had gone down and they even looked a bit brighter. It wasn't a drastic change, secondary effects and daily medicine still standing, but it was less tragic than before. The wonders of good eating habits and taking necessary rest. Now the only thing left was the distant memory, comfort words that sounded empty at this point, and the "oh, right" that came to the mind as quickly as it left. The change from a constant state of alarm to peaceful reading afternoons and some calligraphy practice to improve fine motor skills. Necessary and entertaining distractions. Which, somehow, led Twilight to her current activity of washing the dishes. Celestia and Sunset Shimmer insisted that she didn't need to do anything, but they always tidied up everything before leaving in the morning. It didn't sit well to her to sit and do nothing, mostly when there was no excuse to treat her as if she was going to break anymore. "You're still singing that shampoo song?" Sunset commented, amused, while entering the kitchen. Days ago that she and Celestia were victims of Twilight's constant humming to commercial songs. "I can't take it out of my mind, it has a purple dragon!" she excused herself, trying to suppress a pout. She was doing a lot of filly things lately. "It reminds me of Spike." Twilight whispered that last part to herself, but Sunset somehow managed to hear it, because she stopped in her tracks and turned around to see her. "Spike?" she asked slowly, confused. "You mean your... your puppy, right?" Twilight blinked, perplexed. "Uh, no. He's a baby dragon in Equestria." Well, it did make some sense, since dragons here apparently were mythological creatures, or at least lived thousands of years ago. It still made her curious about how the portal worked. Did it make whoever crossed it take the same form as their counterpart? Did it use a criteria? Some type of algorithm? Or was it just a random choice? "Wait, was he the dragon that almost sets a whole room on fire in Canterlot's castle?" Sunset leaned against the counter, with sudden interest. Twilight didn't really want to talk about anything that could end in how she got here. However, not answering would create more questions, and this was just something incidental. "Actually, he only set a table on fire by accident and rumors escalated, as usual." Twilight shrugged, running the sponge over the last couple of dishes left, while, thinking of some way to divert the conversation. "But, how do you know that? Did you live near the castle?" ...And to try and find out a little more about the redhead. So far, she just named Equestria when it came to making comparisons. Twilight was still curious about how she knew about the portal. Maybe she was from the nobility? No, no, that didn't guarantee anything. She turned off the tap and started to dry her hands with a dishcloth while waiting for an answer. That, for some reason, took a couple of seconds to arrive. "...I went to the Celestia's School," Sunset finally said. "I mean, it's kinda the same, right?" Twilight almost drops the dishcloth. At least it was fabric and not glass. Why didn't that occur to her? "Really?" Sunset nodded with an indifference that made a good contrast to Twilight's curiosity. "How is it that we never met?" "Let's say... I was a pretty boring girl that lived with her nose stuck in books." The redhead shrugged returning to her initial task of opening and closing the cupboards. Well, Twilight wasn't expecting that. "...Would it be a very rare coincidence if I told you that I did the same?" Twilight arched an eyebrow, with a smile that was both nervous and a bit funny. A small one, because it still had restrictions on the left side of the face. And because a real smile, the natural ones that you might find on a picture, required much more effort. "You did? Past tense? Are you sure?" Sunset turned in her direction with arms crossed and a smirk that made Twilight consider throwing her the dishcloth instead of folding it and putting it on the counter. She chose to do the latter and merely frowned. "Hey, I have to spend my time somehow." "Or, you could accompany me to the supermarket..." Twilight looked at her, puzzled. "I mean, I think you didn't go out in the entire week and maybe you wanted some fresh air." There was a pause in which neither of them said anything, and Sunset ran a nervous hand through the back of her neck. "And maybe I'm too lazy to go on my own..." Going out. Outside. Twilight barely went to the balcony once or twice, and it never occurred to her moving beyond that. It was safer inside, within blankets, four walls and no one asking unnecessary questions like in the hospital. That didn't mean she couldn't try. She was starting to get bored at the house, her cold was almost cured, and she had already done her "mourning", so to speak. It was time to go out and face the real world. Little by little. Baby steps. Slow, clumsy and shaky until she felt confident enough again. Twilight wanted to go outside, just to try it out. Accompanied, of course. On her own, she wouldn't make it past the entrance. "Yeah, okay." She helped with the groceries, did something different and took a fresh breath of air. How bad could it be? "I'm ready when you are." Sunset stared at her, a funny expression in her face. "...You going out with slippers?" Twilight looked down. Uh, oh. "I'll lend you clothes." Wearing leggings was like putting on a somewhat thicker second skin. They did feel slightly tighter, though, but just at the beginning. That, along with a mid-thigh sweatshirt, made an outfit not only warm and practical but also comfortable as pajamas. In Equestria, Twilight wore clothing at formal events, mostly dresses or something extra in winter. Not that it was bothersome in itself, but taking them off at the end of the day was relieving. In this case, or rather, in this body, it was the opposite. And truth to be told, she could get used to this kind of thing. The sweatshirt had pockets! What would be hard to get used to was elevators and the feeling that they dragged you down, with a subtle suction that caused dizziness. Sunset assured her it was a matter of getting used to it, and that it depended on the device. Twilight had her doubts. But a minute later they were already crossing the building's entrance doors, so she preferred to concentrate on filling her lungs with fresh air and the smell of recently cut grass, observing her surroundings as they approached the sidewalk. The building had a green front at the entrance that went all the way to the back, like a small garden, edged by low bushes that framed its perimeter. Like the one next door, and the ones in the opposite block. They varied in design, size, and heights, but all seemed to follow that same pattern in terms of space. And, to tell the truth, it was nice. Twilight went to several different places in the city, and in some, the newest constructions didn't even have a pot by the window, all grey and square. Here they had trees by the sidewalk, and the sound of the birds chirping could be heard over the cars. People came and went calmly, the weather was neither too cold nor too hot. It was nice. And disturbing. Everything felt disturbing, for some reason. The tranquility more than anything, as if it was intended for Twilight to let down her guard so something would attack her. What, specifically? She wasn't sure. Something. That was enough for the imperious need to look back every two seconds to be present. She wasn't paying attention to it, but the pressure at the back neck grew by the minute. Not that something bad would happen. No, no, why would it? For what purpose? She had nothing to lose, why would she lose something? Well, something else. What else? Really, what else? If the only thing that saved her was pity and some survival instinct and the little logic that remained along with the despair to-- Stop it, stop it, stop it! Nothing's going to happen. Keep calm, take a deep breath… Somewhere behind them, a car blew its horn. And Twilight jumped, scared for a millisecond as if it were the first time she heard one. Maybe she should have stayed. "...Are you okay?" The slight concern in Sunset's tone made Twilight want to go hide in the nearest bush for the rest of her life. By Celestia! How embarrassing, getting scared like a filly over nothing. Twilight nodded, inhaling deeply and exhaling slowly. Suddenly her left eye was throbbing. For a moment, she had the feeling Sunset was going to say something else besides the "ok" she murmured, but they kept walking instead. Twilight looked behind her shoulder to check how much had they walked. And maybe to make sure no one was following them. They were already on the second block out of three. Of three. Only three blocks, she could walk three blocks. She had to. Luckily, Sunset started talking about the weather, the trees and the allergies they brought. The most trivial conversation, that Twilight did her best to focus on, over imaginary attacks product of an active imagination. Pure nonsense. Silly, illogical and unfounded nonsense. And it worked, for the most part. Twilight couldn't remember any market in Equestria with so many product quantity as this one. The Canterlot Central Market could be the most similar, it even had a bigger building, but the sellers had individual stands for each of their specialities. You could find all kinds of things, hire services, repairs, whatever. Beyond that, the smaller stores were mostly dedicated to a specific thing. Here, it was just tall shelves with an infinity of products of all kind, variety, and colors, to both sides of the central aisle, which had signs in each corridor indicating specific sections and what could be found there. Everything had a package of an elaborate design, was canned, or had the same company logo on more than one occasion. “I’m still impressed with the mass level of production things have,” murmured Twilight while they went back to the first section they entered, with fruits, vegetables and everything else that needed refrigeration. They stopped at a lower aisle located in the middle, with a variety of supposedly fresh pasta. Even those that claimed to be more... handmade, had quite an elaborate packaging. Sunset just shrugged at that comment. "Well, the technology it's a lot more advanced, —you eat ravioli, right? Sorry, I'm just thinking about dinner—" Twilight nodded quickly. "Back on track, I guess there's also the fact that there's more population here." The ex-unicorn frowned, following the redhead on the other side of the shelve, where all types of cheeses were exposed. And tried not to look behind her despite her morbidness, where there was an entire wall with nothing but meat. Just thinking about it made her hair stood on end. Technological development was stronger on this side, that's for sure, a look to the different means of transport was proof enough. However, the other part... "But shouldn't this world have the same amount of population than in Equestria, if everyone has their respective counterpart?" Sunset stared at two brands of grated cheese as if contemplating more than just the fact of which one to choose. "I don't have one, " she said at last. “So I guess that's not a strict rule.” Twilight forgot how to blink for a moment. “...You don’t?” “Nope. When I first came here, they took my fingerprints and a DNA sample to see if it matched with someone registered in the system.” She took a blue cheese bag and started heading towards the checkout. Twilight following close behind, still somewhat surprised. “As far as I know, I’m the only Sunset Shimmer in the country.” Again, Sunset shrugged, like she couldn’t care less. And that’s where the conversation ended. Between refrigerators full of sodas and more shelves with sweet things that divided each checkout line while they waited for their turn to pay. Twilight couldn't help feeling ignored, somehow. Topics related to Equestria always were comparisons, of what was done and should be done here, contrary to over there, as Sunset said. It was understandable that at this point she couldn’t share her enthusiasm but, these were parallel universes! How many times could you live such an experience? “Hey, you think Flurry would like one of these?” Twilight turned her sight left, where Sunset was looking at a row of elephant-shaped, baby teething rings, conveniently hanging from a corner. Why so many products? At this rate, she wouldn’t be surprised to find more in the ceiling. “If Flurry is a baby, I don’t see why not, it's cute.” Sunset turned quickly in her direction, confusion on her face, as if instead of speaking to Twilight, her question was directed towards... nothing? The air? She looked at the redhead with even more confusion. “Oh! I was actually--nevermind. Uh, yeah, she just started grabbing things. I see her on Monday, so I wanted to gift her something, but I gotta ask first because she’s the first grandchild in the family and--” Sunset stopped in her tracks, staring at Twilight for a moment “You have no idea who I’m talking about, do you?” The ex-unicorn blinked, again, not sure about why the question. “...A baby named Flurry?” she offered. It was then that Sunset seemed to realize something, Twilight wasn’t quite sure what, but it wasn’t until they took a step forward in the line that she spoke again. “You have siblings, right?” “And older brother. And Spike's like a little brother, why?” “Well...” Wait a minute. Brother. Baby. First grandchild. Wedding on the other side of the portal... It wasn’t hard to put two and two together. “Shining has a daughter?” The man before them in the line turned around to look at her reluctantly, and Twilight shrank with the shame of raising her voice more than she should. Sunset didn't even pay him attention, nodding with a small smile. “Uh-huh, she five months old, and lovely.” A daughter. Her brother had a daughter here. Did that mean she was an aunt now? Well, an interdimensional aunt, to be exact. She couldn’t imagine herself as such, nor could imagine Shining with a baby in his arms, for that matter. How did five-month-old human babies look like, anyway? She had seen several babies, but they all looked like miniature people to her. However, that wasn’t the most important detail, per se. It was their turn to pay. Sunset asked her to put the toilet paper pack she had been unconsciously hugging all this time on the magic moving tape. They only bought five things, so once everything was paid for, Twilight asked the important question. “Sunset, do know by chance who's the baby’s mother?” The redhead carried the cloth bag over her shoulder, no matter how much Twilight had wanted to carry something herself, to not feel useless, or at least to keep her hands occupied on the way back. “Shining’s wife, Cadance. They married two years ago, I think.” “And, uh, is… is she nice?” she asked under her breath. It wasn’t the best question, but she needed to clear up any doubts. “Yeah, super.” Was Sunset’s reply, surprised. “Why? Over there she isn’t?” “No, no. Just doing field research.” So, on this side of the portal nothing went wrong, they married a while ago and even had a daughter. The ideal ending, everyone was happy. Well, who said it had to be different on the other side? Perhaps Canterlot's greatest threat was Twilight wanting to "ruin" the wedding. Or maybe it was the other way around, the big threat was the bride and groom getting a happy ending. None of that explained the temporality issues, though. Was the time flow different? Or was it the same and events occurred at a different time due to variations in socio-cultural environments? Or was one already “destined” to do certain actions? But if that were true and she ended up here, shouldn’t her counterpart end up in another universe, too? On top of that, the fact that Sunset didn’t seem to have a respective human version only left room for even more questions and theories. Like the balance management between the two words in both actions (again, “destiny?”) and the criteria used to transform someone from one species to another. Would the portal have a proportion law? And if so, what aspects did it take into account? Heights, widths, ages? What happened to extra limbs such as wings or horns? Did they add in height, or were they added in some other way to human anatomy? And about the-- “Still thinking?” "Eh?" Twilight turned around, with a movement that even she felt more had more force than necessary. Her body kept giving automatic responses at the most inopportune moments. Great. “Oh, uh, something like that.” They were reaching the corner of the block now, and Twilight made sure to watch Sunset's step and looked both ways before crossing the street. "I guess it must be weird, suddenly finding out your brother has a child and everything..." “I guess it is...” she murmured, her head still into ways of conversions and supposed parallels. Sunset pulled her out of it with the simple gesture of raising an eyebrow. “I mean, in Equestria, he was about to get married, so it’s just rare that here that’s old news.” Not like it wasn’t important, or that she didn’t care about Shining no matter where he was from, but anything related to the wedding still felt bitter on the mouth. It brought bad memories and a lot of awful feelings. Better to make unverifiable hypothesis. "Oh, you left before that?" Twilight frowned. She never left, no by her own will as Sunset seemed to imply. Could it be that Sunset did that, though? Just left Equestria by choice? Could one do that? She nodded anyway. "Yeah, we… we had a fight," mumbled Twilight, hoping that it was enough to satisfy the redhead's curiosity. Which, was completely justified, considering Twilight was the one who had been living in her house for eight days, not the other way around. Right. Sometimes she forgot such detail. Maybe it had to do with how comfortable she felt there, no? Twilight preferred not to add anything else and turn her sight to the stores they were passing by, since she didn’t pay them much attention the first time. Most were service-related, a laundry, a hardware store, an ice cream parlor from which a person came out with a huge ice cream cone with colorful sprinkles... Maybe, when the weather was hotter she could ask to come here. She was curious about the sticker on the door that said it was self-made. "Please tell me that's not where your bruises come from." Twilight stopped dead, and this time her gestures were fully conscious. “What? No.” It took her a moment, and a lot of blinking, to process what she just heard. “No, no. Not at all.” And to try to understand how she came to that conclusion until she remembered the last words, and the little detail of the bruises on her face, the ones hiding under her clothes, and the reasons why she had to take an obligatory rest of at least three days. It was one of those moments where she remembered everything that happened with an “oh, right” that came as quickly as it left. “It’s okay. I think I get what your line of thought was.” And between her looks and bad phrasing, it could lead to confusion, right? “But that was a while ago and, uh, I fell last week.” Both a figurative and literal truth. She did stumble upon a step and had a couple of scratches, perhaps a bruise on the knee from when it hit the floor. In her first days. Details no one had to know. Not even herself. “Ah.” Was Sunset’s only answer, before they resumed walking. It wasn’t until they reached the end of the block that she spoke again. “How long has it been since you went through the portal?” “About… ten days before I stayed with you, maybe more.” And now it was the redhead's turn to stare. “And you were wandering around the city? For ten days? Alone?” Sunset’s cyan eyes widened with each question, as if Twilight was talking about a journey through Equestria or something similar. “Uh-huh.” It wasn’t. At all. “Wow… When I first got here, I wandered around for a bit. I guess it’s common sense, right? Just trying to figure out where you are. And, uh, after a while later some coffee shop owners invited me tea and croissants, because it's not common for a girl of that age to be on her own.” Sunset made a pause, and Twilight for a moment wanted to ask what exactly one thing had to do with the other, but decided against it. “I just stared at the mug for like an hour until I figured out I had to use my hands.” “I know, right? I’m so used to use magic for everything that I would run into doors.” Sunset tried not to laugh, but now that she said it out loud, it sounded even more ridiculous to Twilight. “Now it’s still a bit weird, but I got used to it.” Now she made hand gestures by reflex, but that didn’t mean she didn’t miss her magic, or her original body, or her entire world. Nostalgia appeared every day, no matter how many distractions Twilight tried to conjure up. “Honestly, I’m remembering all this stuff just because I’m talking to you. Like, five years doesn’t seem too much, but still are five years. A lot of things happen in the middle.” Too many. Twilight hadn’t even planned what to do in the next two and a half years ahead. Because that’s what this was all about, applying a long-term formula, the only thing that worked. Improvisation was fine as long as you could speculate possible outcomes, instead of throwing yourself into the void. Two seconds of thinking about the consequences of certain past events were enough to know in what that resulted in. But for now, planning could wait. Wait until she felt better about everything. Meanwhile, they kept walking back to the apartment, the topic diverting to a more lively theme. Twilight felt less intimidated by the outside itself, and Sunset’s posture made her feel secure. If Sunset was calm, then why should Twilight feel nervous? And that’s how she looked when they reached the building entrance, in the tinted glass reflection. A Twilight with a more relaxed posture, blue pants, a grey sweater of the kind that’s comfortable and fluffy with a shirt underneath, just to keep the formality, her typical loose hair and-- And a stunned face without the slightest scratch. Author's Note Ah~ Ah~ Ah~ Mucha espuma, hace que mi pelo sea fuerte. Así sí, sí, sí. Más fuerte que un dragón-gón-gón ♪♪♪ 2018? 2018 doesn't exist, it's a conspiracy theory. Thanks to Martina, Tamara, and Scampy for helping me out with this one !
1 Forgotten FridaysIt never crossed Twilight Sparkle's mind that destiny could be so cynical and twisted when it came to all the different ways of making fun of her. Or that things would end this way, even. The Celestia who was now entering the room with a cup of tea in her hands, wasn't a Princess, nor the maximum authority of the place, nor an immortal demigoddess. Neither was she a pony in this case. She was the human version 一counterpart? 一 of her mentor, her idol, of whom turned her back in defense of an unknown pony without thinking twice. It could be that Twilight's accusations had been reckless in execution, but it didn't deserve the gesture. Right? "It's lavender tea sweetened with honey, it'll help you sleep better." Celestia sat at the edge of the bed, after Twilight accepted the drink with a small nod of gratitude. Initially, between the whirlwind of emotions and the fact that there wasn't much lighting, Twilight didn't notice the main characteristic that distinguished both them: this Celestia’s hair didn't have that glow of radiant sparks, nor the soft and constant undulation, impregnated with magic so strong that only can be held by someone with the ability of moving a celestial body. It was a rainbow of solid pastel tones. Wavy, luminous and well cared for, without any trace of magic. Like everything in this universe. The younger girl only focused on drinking the tea in hopes that sleep would attack her as quickly as possible. These had been the worst days of her entire life, and she couldn't wait for them to become distant memories located in mental pools at the bottom of the unconsciousness. "I know maybe it's not the best question, but how are you feeling?" Celestia remained impassive but attentive; soft, measured, as Twilight remembered the Princess. Maybe they shared more similarities than mere appearances, which made it inevitable to find the most appropriate answer. Was it in a strictly medical sense or did include more than just her physical state? Should she give an ambiguous and, at the same time, concrete answer to summarise her general state? Did she even want to give some kind of answer at all? Her eyes went down to the ceramic mug, half empty. No levitation spell, no hooves held it, but fingers. Phalanges connected to a palm that, as a whole, formed the so-called hands. Fingers that with their nails could scratch in a vain defense attempt, hands that could close in furious fists and leave more bruises than once believed possible to have. Given all this Celestia had done for her so far, the ex-unicorn resolved that in spite of her discomfort she should at least answer. “A little better, I think,” Twilight started slowly. “The analgesics are working and I almost don’t feel the headache…” According to the specialists that treated her in the hospital, she was lucky not to have any serious concussions. Only significant bruises and slight scrapes that would take about a month to disappear completely. However, Twilight wasn't sure whether to call it luck, having the left side of her face swollen and five shades darker than its original pigmentation. Or ten, maybe. Color variant differences by pigment combination had never been her forte, probably Rarity or Pinkie Pie had a more accurate idea. “Are you sure that’s all?” Celestia asked again, in a way that reminded Twilight of those psychologists whose intention is to create introspection on the topic addressed. Soft and, despite the word choice, without putting pressure. But again, it was another question that she wasn't sure she wanted to answer. Too many feelings were spinning around her to explain them in such a light, synthetic way. Twilight had crossed the portal by mistake carrying a whirlwind of negative emotions, and when she ended up in this world, she clung to the stupid and positivist idea that at any moment the sun would rise, as logic indicates. But she forgot completely that logic and science always have exceptions or variants to reach the same result, depending on the paradigm or its speculative theories. Not to mention the fact that even if it was a parallel world, there was no guarantee the worldviews would be the same. Twilight managed to understand this at the same time she realized that humans couldn't control the weather, just predict it and act accordingly, and all she could do was scream and try to find the fastest exit. The only thing she achieved was more blows and a sore throat. So saying that she felt bad, anguished, humiliated, or guilty was a big, vague lie. There were so many things, so many sensations, so many adjectives that came to mind, that somehow when trying to evoke them they nullified in a distressing pressure on the chest. One that she tried in vain to undo with undissolved honey and the tea that was left. One that didn't let her breathe regularly. One that when trying to take a mouthful of air to relax, only obtained incomplete syllables and wet cheeks despite her attempts to remove all traces of rebellious tears. Even as Celestia wrapped her in her arms, filling her with soft words of encouragement accompanied by hair stroking, Twilight couldn't help clinging to her tightly and breaking into tears. Even with the cold tingling in her back. How cynical could fate be so that the most infamous figure to turn her back on her became the only one who had dared to give her a chance? “I know it's hard to see it now, but soon everything will be fine, okay?” Celestia spoke in a soft tone when Twilight seemed to get her breathing back to normal, several minutes later. Twilight managed to say a simple "yes" under her breath, still not losing the grip around the older woman's torso or lifting her head that was resting from Celestia's shoulder. Human movements felt natural to perform now, and though she wasn't very much in favor of physical interaction, she had to admit that somehow it felt much warmer and comforting than the Princess' wings did on the fur. Even if she wasn't entirely sure if that opinion was actually due to continuous exposure to cold nights winds. Still, Celestia spoke with such certainty that helped the ex-unicorn feel a little less insignificant, a bit less tiny in a room that wasn't her own. Within a strange and completely alien world that so far gave her both fascination and complete misery. It made her think that the bad feelings were temporary and that, this time, the sunbeams that showed through the clouds would last until a sunny day. “Thanks. For everything,” Twilight whispered, once the embrace was undone and she felt a little calmer. The anguish wasn't gone, no, pretending so was absurd. But venting always helped. “It means a lot.” The woman in front of her might not be a Princess, nor her idol whom she dreamed of ever resembling, or a pony in this case. She was her human version, who at first sight Twilight confused with the equestrian one, believing that she had crossed the portal to take her back to their world. But she was the version that didn't doubt a second of the validity of her words and made sure that she received proper medical attention. This Celestia even offered lodging in her house until she found another place to stay. “It's nothing, honey, really.” Celestia offered a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes, but the gesture was enough for the younger girl to try to mirror it. “Now just try to rest, okay? It has been a pretty hectic day.” Celestia behaved as Twilight would have expected the Princess, who always said she cared about the well-being of all her subjects. And even though she couldn't be completely annoyed by the latter's reaction at her brother's wedding, the bitter taste that fiasco left lasted to even now, several days later, and definitely didn't help. After another quick hug and another lavender and honey infusion to finish mashing the nerves, Twilight was finally falling into the dream world. Hoping that when she woke up the next morning, memories of the past few days would already be scattered behind the fog of the unconscious. Twilight woke up with a loud sound that she could barely make out as wood against some kind of frame, and opened her eyes in panic when she understood where it came from. Fear magnified its asleep omnipresence in an icy current of electricity, clawing bones and putting hairs on edge in mere seconds, dominating any form of logical thought that might have appeared as a rival. Protection was its first order, which given the circumstances, resulted in Twilight trying to make herself as small as possible. Ignoring the muted whimper of her back, she collided between the head of the bed and the corner of the wall, hoping to blend in with the room like a simple bulge under the sheets. Not again, not again, not again. Please, please don't... "Aaahhh!" The bulge stopped in its tracks. Was that a feminine voice, or had she already began to rave? "A-are you okay?" It was a female voice, one she wasn't sure she recognized but seemed on edge. But the fact that it wasn't the opposite sex made her heart rate slow down enough to stop hearing it gallop over her ears. The ex-unicorn opened her eyes, which had already begun to ache from how hard she had closed them —the left one still throbbing thanks to the damned bruise she had there, and breathed in as much air her lungs allowed to take courage and spy who it was. Twilight blinked a couple of times thanks to the sudden light in the room, and between the small black spots on the vision, the things around her took their respective shape and color. The bed on the left side, a perfectly tidy desk that occupied most of the adjacent wall, a bookshelf on the next wall, followed by the door and the human figure of a girl leaning against the closet with one hand on her chest, her face a mixture of worry, confusion, curiosity and relief. The memories of the events that took place in the past hours came back to the surface as quickly as they left, as well as that small sense of security that was enough to drown the fear. However, what resurfaced now was the discomfort when she took awareness of the situation. This wasn't her room, nor her world, nor her original body, even the pajamas were borrowed. This wasn't her bedroom, but that of the girl who was watching her and waiting for an answer less than two meters away. Celestia's daughter. She was mentioned in a small conversation about rules Twilight had to follow if she stayed here, which were basic and logical because, well, she was a stranger. Even though Celestia had initially confused her with her human counterpart. "I-I'm sorry, I thought... I was... somewhere else," she mumbled when remembering she had been asked a question, not knowing where to look except for the 一now一 interesting check quilt. She was in the room of Summer... Streamer? No, that didn't sound quite right. But Twilight was shaking like a scared filly under the sheets of her bed. To say that she felt totally out of place was perhaps too light a phrase. The other girl shook her head, dismissing it with a wave of her hand. "It's okay. I think, uh, we both got scared." The red-haired girl with golden locks gave a small chuckle that Twilight thought sounded a bit nervous. "Are you sure you are okay, though? That sounded like it hurt." The painkillers had already taken effect on most of her body, but for some reason, her back continued to complain. Or did she have a bruise there and hadn't noticed? Anyway, this last hit will surely leave a mark. She hated how easy it was for her to bruise, no matter the body, and the fact that she was clumsier in the current one didn't help. Even so, Twilight nodded, not to feel more embarrassed than necessary. "Yes, I'm... I'm okay…" The quilt was interesting not only in color but texture too. It didn't feel so soft to the touch, would it be made of cotton, like the ones from Equestria? Twilight swallowed the urge to snort, no longer understanding why she tried to pretend that she had some dignity left. The girl in front of her was Celestia's daughter, yes, and she had already made a fool of herself in front of her. "I'm taking up your space, right? I-I'm sorry, I'll just g--" "No, no, not at all!" The redhead quickly made a gesture with her hands to reinforce her idea. "It was my suggestion. You can stay, really." A pause. "...You sure?" The affirmative gesture had enough resolution for Twilight to object a second time. "Wow, that's... such a nice gesture, I mean, you barely know me and, uh, well, thank you." She bit her tongue, to try to stop babbling things and sink deeper into shame. She didn't even understand the direction of her actions, maybe the bruises hadn't been as light as the doctors believed and they were affecting her brain activity. Or maybe it was the exhaustion along with the side effects of the pills she had to take. Or maybe all of the above. Twilight made a mental note of looking for some book on human anatomy and psychology. There she would surely find better answers. Checking some information pamphlets wouldn't be a bad idea either. The girl in front of her crossed her arms, and after a few seconds in which she seemed to be thinking carefully, she licked her lips before finally speaking. "Let's say that I know this world's Twilight Sparkle quite well. She's technically my cousin." A pause. A very long pause. She was sure her heart stopped for a second, along with her breathing. She definitely didn't expect that answer. Twilight never said her name. Even if Celestia mentioned it to her, which was quite likely, she couldn't know she was Sparkle instead of Twinkle. When she found out she had a human counterpart, Twilight lied in that small aspect to avoid any kind of confusion. She already had too many problems to add something extra like her parents, for example. Besides, the explicit mention of "this world" implied that there were others, right? At least, Equestria was a parallel version of this world. Twilight had no idea if other worlds existed, as far as portals were concerned all the information was in Canterlot library’s forbidden section. But if she knew that, then it was likely that-- "H-how do you know about...?" For some reason, her voice came out lower than intended, but she decided to leave the sentence unfinished so as not to give unnecessary information. The redhead, who now Twilight realized had been looking at her expectantly all this time, leaned against the wardrobe. For some reason, she now seemed unsure, at least more than what her appearance might suggest, with a leather jacket and black jeans. "I guess you mean Equestria, right?" She inquired softly. Twilight nodded slowly. Both were testing the waters, it seemed. "Let's say I tied some knots. Like you confused Celestia with the Princess, and, uh, you mentioned the mirror. So I figured... you were from there." At the last comment, the ex-unicorn slowly nodded again. If she knew, then no point in hiding it. Twilight wasn't sure what else to say or do, exactly. One part of her head was asking questions about what, who, how, when, where and why, that the other party, the most rational and logical 一within which allowed such conditions一 began to silence at all costs. At another point in her life, she would have burst into questions, in her need to obtain information about this world, and from the idea of learning something new. Now the best thing she could do was shut her mouth. Not that she had too much of a right to ask, they already had enough hospitality as to have to put up with someone who wanted to put her muzzle in where it didn't concern her. Eh, nose, the nose. "I'm also from Equestria," she commented, answering a couple of questions and at the same time making a few more because Twilight without constant questioning wasn't Twilight. "Really?" the ex-unicorn asked, perhaps quicker than necessary. "Yep. About... five years ago." The redhead seemed not to notice, choosing to hang the jacket on the rack behind the door that Twilight didn't remember since when exactly it was closed. "It's a long story. But I suppose I can say I understand that first sensation of, well, feeling everything foreign and at the same time not." More questions came to Twilight's mind, she decided to swallow them. The redhead turned her back to her, looking for something between the drawers and the shelves on the open side of the wardrobe. There was a moderate amount of clothing, all folded in an orderly fashion, apparently by type or function. Twilight still didn't understand too much the difference between bedding and normal clothes. Were they not to cover the body and protect it, and nothing else? "Yeah. It's, it's weird, to be honest." The ex-unicorn allowed herself to barely raise the corners of her lips. "But I think I got used to it." Twilight had no idea how many days she had been wandering around the city, eight or ten at least, maybe fifteen. But by the forth, she felt much more comfortable, as if this was her natural form all her life. So natural, that even, in a moment, crossed her mind the fleeting idea that in truth all that happened was just a product of her imagination. She erased that thought as soon as it came. The other girl in the room closed the sliding door of the wardrobe with a wooden sound against a frame, much like the one that had awakened her. Agreeing with Twilight's last comment while looking for another couple of things in the room. Twilight didn't stop feeling out of place and was about to say again that she could find another place to sleep, if not for the fact that the redhead would probably insist not to. "I'm gonna take a shower. Whatever you need, we're in the next room," she said, pointing her thumb behind her, already with a towel on her shoulder and the other hand on the doorknob. "Oh, and uh, I think I never told you my name. I'm Sunset Shimmer." They exchanged a simple greeting, Twilight tried again to lift the corners of her lips a bit to try and be as polite as possible. There could be no dignity left but she could still pretend, she supposed. She made another mental note to try to work on memorizing names because there was no point in learning whole books by heart but not knowing what someone was called. Once again, lights off, the full darkness of the night, and weariness forced her to close her eyes and attempt to rest. She had too much stress, too many emotions, too many questions, her head was going to explode. Fate again seemed to mock her more and more, with its laughter and impossible coincidences. Not only did the one who had turned her back on one side of the mirror gave her an opportunity in another, but also had a daughter that came from the same place, that came from Equestria. It was one chance in a million, but after so much bad luck, it wasn't necessarily a bad thing. When Twilight found herself falling again into the dream world, she did it with an extra bit of certainty that maybe, after so many misfortunes, after so many cloudy days, finally the sun would come out. Author's Note I'm back with something less long and less dramatic (pff as if). It will deal with serious topics, but such will be very lightly implied and not necessarily the main topic. Just... Keep that in mind, please. Next chapter will be up probably next week!
2 Informative SaturdaysTwilight's expectations on how to get up the next day proved to be too much. And she didn't even have an idea what they were, exactly. It surely must have been some unconscious manifestation. Or maybe it had to do with the fact that she remembered half of what happened the day before. Too much information to process, too many facts, an excessive amount of instructions to remember, and various introductions ended up making her head pure chaos. Twilight could have a very good capacity for retention and memory, but even for her, it proved to be too much. Especially when, at the same time, she was trying to forget about other things. The effect of the painkillers had already passed, so when she woke up, she was hit with a five-second panic and a wave of pure pain as she suddenly tried to get up. Until a quick look reminded her of where she was and she lay back on the bed with forcibly relaxed muscles. Twilight wasn't the type of po-- person who found it hard to get up, or who liked to stay in bed before getting ready for the day. Maybe it was because she always stayed late for some reason or another, and when she woke up it was in time or about to fall behind schedule. However, this time it took a few minutes to gather the will to move. Not only because of that wave of anguish that together with the pain kept her tied to the bed. But also because the sheets were comfortable, soft, and very warm. At least she had managed to rest more than any previous day. She should thank Sunset Shimmer for insisting that she sleep in her bed. After finally gathering the will to get up, Twilight decided to comb what would probably be a messy mane with her fingers. She didn't feel like going to the bathroom because it meant looking in the mirror and ruining the neutral mood she had. Having an eye without being able to function in the right way was more than enough. "Good morning..." she greeted after checking that it was around ten o'clock in the morning. Sunset Shimmer returned the greeting from the living room table, never looking up from the papers in front of her. And since there was no sign of Celestia, Twilight decided to occupy the seat next to the girl as discreetly as possible. Her violet eyes watched with curiosity what seemed to have her so busy. It didn't take long to discover that it was level five Algebra according to the book on the side of the table. But the formulas that the redhead wrote at full speed on the paper were too familiar. They reminded Twilight of her time at Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns and the Spell Theory classes. The intermediate ones, the advanced ones had much more complex limits. Twilight continued to watch and swallow the effervescent curiosity of asking the purpose of magic formulas if in this world magic was supposed to be nonexistent. Were there exceptions? Could it be reduced to a specific group in particular? Or is it that they were subject to variability according to species, as in Equestria? If this was the case, then the chances of reopening the portal could be greatly amplified. "...Twilight?" The girl in question left her trance, looking up at a now clear space since everything had been organized in a neat pile in a corner, to meet the expectant look of Sunset Shimmer. She didn't have to give any kind of response to make it clear that she had no idea what the question was. "I'm gonna make some oatmeal with milk and honey. Do you like it? If not, I can make you something else..." the redhead repeated slowly. Twilight just gave a little nod. "That would be fine. Thank you." The redhead mimicked her affirmative gesture, and without further ado went to the kitchen a few meters behind her initial position. The apartment didn't have big spaces in comparison to the typical Equestrian architecture, but was a size comfortable enough to put several furniture without obtaining the sensation it reduced much of the space. It was more than enough for two people to live in, or maybe three if necessary changes were made. Three, thought the purple-haired girl. Not knowing whether to feel guilty for breaking into the daily lives of the inhabitants of the home or grateful to whoever was the deity of this world for having such luck. Sunset Shimmer reappeared in a short time with two bowls of oatmeal and, after a second trip, with a couple of spoons, ground cinnamon and a pot of honey. "So, did you sleep well?" asked the redhead while throwing a small spoonful of each item to her breakfast. "Yes." Twilight decided to put her last mental note into practice before she forgot it. "Thanks, again." The other girl just nodded as a sign that it was nothing, like the night before. She was definitely more grateful for being lucky enough to run into such nice people. The only sound that followed for a couple of minutes was that of the metal spoons against the ceramic bowls, the ticking of the clock, and more occasionally, the quick sound that was reproduced by the... cell? No, cell phone, or something like that. Those rectangular touchscreen objects that everyone interacted with constantly, everywhere, at all times. Twilight didn't understand exactly what they did, what made them so valuable and indispensable to everyday life, or why it was so important to own one. "I suppose you have a few questions, right?" Said the redhead once she put aside the technological device, taking her out of the self-absorption again. A few was a very vague and short word to describe the complexity of her insatiable curiosity as intense as a headache, which fortunately was starting to die a little. Millions, would be, a more appropriate term. In another moment, she would have packed the girl with questions. Thousands of questions about this universe and how it's magic worked —if it existed, based on what she saw a few minutes ago— their customs and culture, technological advances, the political system... She could write hundreds of books, reports or monographs on each subject! Twilight had paid attention to all her surroundings since crossing the portal, taking mental notes of every detail. But if she had to start somewhere, among so many things, she was most curious about since the previous night was how Sunset Shimmer had ended up here. The mirror portal was in a rather unusual section in the Canterlot Castle, and only someone with regular access could have found it. Of course, there was the possibility that five years ago it was located in a different place, but it was clear that it wasn't of public knowledge. Still, she didn't have the slightest right nor was it her business to ask, having met her less than twenty-four hours ago. Therefore, she crossed it off the endless list and went back to digging for something else of real relevance. One appeared, or rather several, that she hadn't been able to solve after all these days and that she had unconsciously pushed to the bottom of her memory. Not as deep as certain other facts. But let's say that it being a trigger for her bad decisions, Twilight preferred to take it as something light that would be solved later on its own. It was time to test if it really would be like that. If there was any small chance of being able to return home. "Is it okay if I ask, what you know about... about the portal?" Sunset Shimmer blinked in surprise for a second, before recomposing and continuing as she did two minutes ago. "Well... I know that it opens for about three days every... thirty? Yes, thirty moons. I can't tell you if there are more, I haven't encountered any." Thirty moons. Thirty moons were equal to two and a half years. She couldn't go back to Equestria, her home, for thirty moons, for two and a half years. And worst of all, Twilight wasn't surprised. She had no idea why, maybe it had to do with the fact that the portal was closed when she found it again and that was when she decided to take a route in the opposite direction of the previous one that resulted in the worst decision in the history of worst decisions she could have ever made, not only in the last month but in her whole life because she chose to stay with that stupid positivism that the sun would come out at any moment and everything would end well perfect and radiant but resulted in-- "Are you okay?" She wasn't surprised. Not with the portal, nor her attitude, nor the consequences. She wasn't surprised at all. On the contrary, it was so, so obvious. Twilight swallowed almost without chewing an entire spoonful of her breakfast. She was in a neutral mood today, she didn't want to ruin it. She wasn't going to ruin it. As much as the involuntary tear that escaped her left eye tried to prove otherwise. Twilight placed a hand on her cheek to cover it, pretending to rest her head on her hand. "Yeah, it's nothing..." she mumbled, making circles with the spoon in her oatmeal. She was hungry, but now she felt as if her stomach had closed. "You didn't know." It was a statement with a more inquisitive tone than anything else. Twilight denied slowly, not knowing if the headache had finally subsided or if it was the opposite. "The information about portals is in the restricted section of the Canterlot Library. And I couldn't go to the Princess to ask her for permission." Actually, she could have sought her out to inform her of the opening of the portal. Even if the Princess was angry because of the "scandal" that Twilight had been the protagonist of at the rehearsal of her brother's wedding. Would that have been a better option, now knowing this new information? Maybe yes. Or maybe not and she would be still sitting in the same place now. Did it make sense to think about this fifteen days later? No, not at all. Anyway, making a wedding when you had the entire city on high alert about an unknown enemy was absurd. But in Canterlot everyone always liked to give that appearance of peace and self-sufficiency typical of the nobility, even though everyone knew that it was non-existent when it came to the capital of Equestria. "I thought it would open in less time." In much less time, but, again, it didn't surprise her. So for the sake of her mental stability, she decided to shrug her shoulders and dismiss the matter for the moment. "I guess I'll have to get used to this world, then." Besides, it wasn't as if someone on the other side of the mirror cared, no matter how much it hurt. Ergo, the only thing left for her to do was think of a long-term plan. Sunset Shimmer looked at her funny for a second, blinking, before answering. "…Okay." She instantly recomposed as if she didn't want to look much into that subject. "I assume you're going to want some recommendations, then, right?" Twilight tried to nod in the most controlled way possible, to hide her childlike enthusiasm at the thought of learning new things and finally being able to resolve some doubts. "Where do you think should I start?" Improve hand motility? Though she was sure she had improved a lot by learning by imitation and by, well, trial and error. Become familiar with all those technological devices? That was part of their culture in a certain way, right? Sunset Shimmer thought for a moment, biting the tip of her thumb of one hand while drumming the fingers of the other on the table. "The first thing that comes to mind, and I guess you already know this, but... Don't tell people that you come from a parallel dimension, much less that they all are... uh, talking equines." Twilight couldn't help frowning at such a description, even though it had some kind of accuracy. The redhead looked at her with a guilty expression. "Here, magic doesn't exist, it isn't something that can be proven by science or technology. Plus humans are the only ones with the ability of abstract thinking and articulated language. I know for a fact that they won’t take you very seriously." It was nothing that the —Damned? Blissful?— experience didn't show her, but might as well know why exactly. In Equestria, magic manifested itself in all possible forms. One lived with both the internal one and the external that possessed the rest of the living beings that surrounded them. It was natural and could be easily explained through scientific laws and paradigms that applied nothing more than to that reality. If this was a world based on science and technology, where magic had no possible explanation, then it made sense that it was considered as something fictitious and non-existent. Still, when she had the chance, she wanted to find out the exact purpose for the formulas she had seen before. "Another thing is the use of hands." Sunset Shimmer now listed with her fingers. Twilight just watched her, paying close attention and enlisted herself to take mental notes. "I see you take the spoon the right way, so I don’t think you'll spend a lot of time learning how to write." The ex-unicorn nodded, encouraged at the thought of being able to have summaries and notes on a piece of paper. There was a point where certain things were inevitable to forget. Maybe, if she carried a notebook with her, it would be a little simpler. What followed was a little overview of general technology, the basic functions of household appliances, or things already common in society such as television and air conditioning. The importance of the cell phone along with the inter...net, which together were the great communicational tools of the century, and another few questions and answers that Twilight commented on when she felt was the right moment. Despite everything, the morning ended up taking an interesting and positive turn. Sunset Shimmer managed to ease several of her doubts regarding cultural behavior. And about an hour and a half later, both teenagers found themselves involved in a lively conversation. Unfortunately, when it came for Twilight to inquire about her human counterpart, Celestia arrived with lunch and they were forced to change the subject. Anyhow, there was time for that and many more questions, she would be here for two and a half years. But this time she would do things right, take slow steps. She would think the possibilities over and over again, to then evaluate all the possible options and work out a plan on how to live here until the portal opened up again. After all, the worst had already happened, the best and most logical thing to do was to leave it all behind and simply move on. Author's Note Thanks to Jay as always for the help! Without her, this would be a mess, haha. So this story ended up having the amount of attention that I expected for my other story. Oh well, it happens I'm still writing next chapter, hopefully, it will be up by the end of this month
3 Feverish TuesdaysIn the last few weeks, Twilight woke up in a different place almost every day. Like that one time she opened her eyes to the complaints of the public library manager, saying that if she had problems at home, running away would only cause trouble. Or at the small museum where something similar happened. Or when misfortune led her to find herself in... However, where she least expected to wake up on a Tuesday at around five in the morning was in the bathtub, wondering when she thought taking a hot bath with clothes still on was a good idea. It wasn't until her senses were fully awakened that Twilight noticed the wet cloth on her forehead, her warm cheeks and the slight ringing in her ears. And she concluded that it was probably the fever she had been coming down with since the night before, plus the side effects of the antibiotics. That, along with her tendency to have high body temperature, was the perfect result for the flu. If it weren’t for Celestia appearing to ask how she was doing, Twilight would have seized the opportunity to test how it felt to breathe with lungs full of water. Seriously, anything else to add to the list? The only good thing about this was that it made for a good excuse to not leave the house. Even though she had to promise she would go to the hospital if she had a fever again, just in case. Fortunately, it was enough with a tea, a long nap, and a real shower to return to a more or less normal state. She still had somewhat of a headache, with a chill running through her body from time to time and the immediate need for tissues. At the moment she was in the living room. Sunset Shimmer insisted that she didn't mind Twilight sleeping in her bed for a few more days, but the girl declined the offer. She didn't want to impose, especially when the exhaustion was falling like lead on her shoulders. She barely slept since the invitation to Shining's wedding. Plus, after traveling through the city on high alert, any spongy and warm surface was enough. Besides, watching television from a sofa-bed was a rare but comfortable experience. The device consisted of a thin rectangle with a black frame, which transmitted via satellite a variety of shows for all kinds of audiences. Like a cinema inside your house but without the need for a projector, or a dark room. And if it was boring, you could change the channel through a remote control with colorful buttons. The most surreal of it all was Celestia sitting next to her, having vegetarian stew for lunch along with Twilight. Of course, she didn't let the younger girl help with the cooking, using the excuse that the doctor had suggested bed rest. Though Twilight still only felt confident enough to prepare food in the microwave, where you had to press buttons and not use knives. In her "prized pupil" days, when she fell ill the Princess used to keep her company with a cup of tea, extra readings, and answers outside the curriculum. Those were unique moments, where she spent her time with a pony of infinite wisdom and centuries of experience instead of a simple mentor. Where she could get closer to her and the invisible barrier of formality weakened a bit. In contrast, her counterpart was more of a simple person. As Twilight supposed the Princess should be in private or in her youth. It took eighty-nine hours to realize it, seeing how affectionate she was with her adopted daughter and staying to take care of Twilight like she had known her all her life; forming theories about who could be the perpetrator of the crime in a television series. It gave Twilight a sensation of comfort that, maybe, was urgently needed right now. "When's the next episode?" asked the younger girl with enthusiasm, when dramatic music gave way to production credits. She expected at least one more, or other series with the same theme. She always liked mystery and detective novels. It proved a good way to learn about the technological resources and the legal process required to solve a case. "I didn't know about this series, it's interesting." "I think around five or six in the afternoon." Celestia couldn't help laughing when she saw Twilight deflate like a balloon with a childish pout. "It’s quite a popular genre. But you don't watch TV much, I assume?" "I grew up without one." According to Sunset's explanation the other day, owning a television had been a common thing for at least three or four decades. Still, there were controversies about whether the content transmitted was one hundred percent benign, and some people preferred not owning one. "My parents always prioritized reading." "Well, that's a good thing. You always learn something new reading." Choosing to simply let her be, Twilight gave her empty bowl to Celestia when she got up in the direction of the kitchen. She was only a bit sore, but it was enough to not want to move too much, not that she had the actual strength to do it. In the next few minutes, Twilight watched the commercials while she waited for the next series on the wonderful entertainment device in front of her. Most included catchy songs that got stuck in her head, especially those that featured kids products. She even found herself humming a shampoo song. Celestia sat down next to her with two cups of tea right at the beginning of what looked to be a medical series. "Twilight... I didn't ask you before because I couldn't find a good time," began the older woman, in a tone that seemed casual but serious at the same time. "But, do you know where your parents are?" Well, if she had to answer honestly, she knew. They still lived in the same house in south Canterlot, where both of their children grew up and moved out in their own time. The Canterlot a closed portal away, of course. Was there a way to answer that question without raising any doubts about her mental health? "At home, I guess... Or at work." They didn't change their routine much. Otherwise, Twilight always found out at the very last minute. Celestia then looked at her with an unreadable expression. It seemed neutral, but the long silence and the slight frown said something else. Something Twilight wasn't sure she wanted to decipher. "Don't you think they'll be worried about you?" she finally inquired. "...I don't know, maybe?" Twilight bit her tongue for speaking so fast. For things like this, she ended up with bruises. She didn't want to give the impression that her parents didn't care where she was or how she was doing. They always got along well. She visited them twice a month in Canterlot, on family reunions or birthdays, and they kept in contact via letters. However, they weren't exactly close. Spike knew her better than them, just because they grew up together. Her parents had a different point of view, they took another approach to victories and what they considered "failures." Twilight had never invited them to Ponyville show them where she lived for that very reason. By Celestia, she didn't want to imagine if they saw her now. They would surely tell her how disappointed they were for everything she did and failed to do because Twilight Sparkle couldn't afford to fail even if the stars were against her. The sudden feeling of a hand on her shoulder made her muscles tense, and a chill ran through every nerve point in her body. Twilight tried to diminish it with a heavy drink of tea, to make it disappear along with her hate for the sake of maintaining a neutral mood. Sometimes it wasn't an easy task, especially when out of nowhere she was afraid of even her own shadow. She wasn't in danger, no one was threatening her. So why was she acting like this? Why did she feel so ashamed and vulnerable? Don't say anything, don't say anything, don't say an-- “What happened, Twilight?” asked Celestia, her voice soft and measured like last Friday, except less firm as the younger girl wasn't crying her eyes out this time. The hand was still there on her shoulder, warm and reassuring. It was a nice feeling. One that she tried to keep conscious against the voice of the fear echoing in a corner her head, screaming that she should run. Run as fast as possible, get away from that m-- “Nothing. I can’t fix it,” she murmured, feeling her throat like it was three days ago, with its raspiness being fresh and new. “So what’s the point in thinking about it?” “How are you so sure it can’t be fixed?” Twilight stared at her blackish color tea with faint steam. Her thumbs went back and forth on the edge of the glass mug between her hands. A white duvet with flowers of various colors covered the lower part of the body. Were they roses or a similar flower? She had never been very good at gardening. At no time did she take notice of her arms, exposed from almost the shoulders down to the hands. Analgesics and creams could help reduce the pain of the bruises, but that didn't mean they disappeared in three days, or that she wanted to see them all the time. “I’m proof enough.” What for? If the image that greeted her in the mirror every time she looked from the corner of her eye or by accident was proof enough. Proof that she never stopped to think and consider her words before speaking. That she should have kept some things to herself. That her decisions have consequences which were nobody's fault but her own. That she couldn't turn back time even with magic. That she wanted to be in Equestria, celebrating a wedding with friends or crying under the sheets of her bed in Ponyville. Twilight wanted to be at home, not at the extradimensional copy of it. It took a moment for Celestia to answer, she always seemed to take a moment to reflect and say what she considered most convenient. An enviable quality. “I think you only are proof of a strong girl, who needs to take her own time to heal properly.” It was easy to imagine the Princess telling her something similar. It made it easier to think her mentor wasn't mad at her, even if it was an illusion. A pretty good illusion. Twilight just smiled a little at her, slightly nodding as Celestia hugged her by the shoulders. It gave her a feeling of care and comfort that, however false it might be, was urgently needed right now. At least she had that, right? Peace and calm, and the possibility of deciding how to move forward from now on, without surprises or last-minute plans. Good thing Twilight already had an idea of what to do. It was late at night. Most people were already at home, having a late dinner or sleeping, as was the case of the girls. Twilight had no problems falling asleep quickly, even with television in the background. On the contrary, Sunset asked her to sit on the edge of the bed and chat, as she couldn't relax enough no matter her exhaustion. Celestia hoped it remained a rare thing, or she would start worrying. However, at the moment she had other things to concern about. How she would explain all of this in detail was one of them. She had talked to Luna on Saturday morning, just to get a second opinion. Both agreed not to say a thing until Celestia felt a hundred percent sure. Not like there were many options to choose from, it was a "yes or no" question. And perhaps it was intuition, but there was something that told her she was right. The phone conversation started casual as always, catching up on what they had been doing in the three weeks they hadn't seen each other. Of course, there was the question of why she was calling them suddenly on a Tuesday night. It was then that Celestia went looking for a coat in her closet, knowing that they would want to meet immediately. "I think..." She took a deep breath, an excited chill running through her skin when she realized she was about to pronounce a phrase she thought only possible in dreams. "I think I found her." Author's Note 3 months Thanks to Jay for helping and to my pre-readers for helping as always. Idk what this would be without them. A mess, surely. Btw, does this chapter read more, er, fluently? If not, any tips? I'm trying to improve my translation. Anyways, I'd like to hear your theories! ~~maybe you come up with a better plotline and I can steal it, muahaha~~
4 Thoughtful SaturdaysTime flies when you're only trying to exist as little as possible and wait for the days to pass by. Hiding behind multiple books or television, in her nest made of bedsheets and tissues, is how Twilight managed to get to Saturday in the blink of an eye. A strategy she used as a filly when she had too much free time between the end of school and the beginning of summer activities. Omitting the flu, of course, that one took part in winter breaks. Seven days later, physical pain was almost non-existent, the swelling on her bruises had gone down and they even looked a bit brighter. It wasn't a drastic change, secondary effects and daily medicine still standing, but it was less tragic than before. The wonders of good eating habits and taking necessary rest. Now the only thing left was the distant memory, comfort words that sounded empty at this point, and the "oh, right" that came to the mind as quickly as it left. The change from a constant state of alarm to peaceful reading afternoons and some calligraphy practice to improve fine motor skills. Necessary and entertaining distractions. Which, somehow, led Twilight to her current activity of washing the dishes. Celestia and Sunset Shimmer insisted that she didn't need to do anything, but they always tidied up everything before leaving in the morning. It didn't sit well to her to sit and do nothing, mostly when there was no excuse to treat her as if she was going to break anymore. "You're still singing that shampoo song?" Sunset commented, amused, while entering the kitchen. Days ago that she and Celestia were victims of Twilight's constant humming to commercial songs. "I can't take it out of my mind, it has a purple dragon!" she excused herself, trying to suppress a pout. She was doing a lot of filly things lately. "It reminds me of Spike." Twilight whispered that last part to herself, but Sunset somehow managed to hear it, because she stopped in her tracks and turned around to see her. "Spike?" she asked slowly, confused. "You mean your... your puppy, right?" Twilight blinked, perplexed. "Uh, no. He's a baby dragon in Equestria." Well, it did make some sense, since dragons here apparently were mythological creatures, or at least lived thousands of years ago. It still made her curious about how the portal worked. Did it make whoever crossed it take the same form as their counterpart? Did it use a criteria? Some type of algorithm? Or was it just a random choice? "Wait, was he the dragon that almost sets a whole room on fire in Canterlot's castle?" Sunset leaned against the counter, with sudden interest. Twilight didn't really want to talk about anything that could end in how she got here. However, not answering would create more questions, and this was just something incidental. "Actually, he only set a table on fire by accident and rumors escalated, as usual." Twilight shrugged, running the sponge over the last couple of dishes left, while, thinking of some way to divert the conversation. "But, how do you know that? Did you live near the castle?" ...And to try and find out a little more about the redhead. So far, she just named Equestria when it came to making comparisons. Twilight was still curious about how she knew about the portal. Maybe she was from the nobility? No, no, that didn't guarantee anything. She turned off the tap and started to dry her hands with a dishcloth while waiting for an answer. That, for some reason, took a couple of seconds to arrive. "...I went to the Celestia's School," Sunset finally said. "I mean, it's kinda the same, right?" Twilight almost drops the dishcloth. At least it was fabric and not glass. Why didn't that occur to her? "Really?" Sunset nodded with an indifference that made a good contrast to Twilight's curiosity. "How is it that we never met?" "Let's say... I was a pretty boring girl that lived with her nose stuck in books." The redhead shrugged returning to her initial task of opening and closing the cupboards. Well, Twilight wasn't expecting that. "...Would it be a very rare coincidence if I told you that I did the same?" Twilight arched an eyebrow, with a smile that was both nervous and a bit funny. A small one, because it still had restrictions on the left side of the face. And because a real smile, the natural ones that you might find on a picture, required much more effort. "You did? Past tense? Are you sure?" Sunset turned in her direction with arms crossed and a smirk that made Twilight consider throwing her the dishcloth instead of folding it and putting it on the counter. She chose to do the latter and merely frowned. "Hey, I have to spend my time somehow." "Or, you could accompany me to the supermarket..." Twilight looked at her, puzzled. "I mean, I think you didn't go out in the entire week and maybe you wanted some fresh air." There was a pause in which neither of them said anything, and Sunset ran a nervous hand through the back of her neck. "And maybe I'm too lazy to go on my own..." Going out. Outside. Twilight barely went to the balcony once or twice, and it never occurred to her moving beyond that. It was safer inside, within blankets, four walls and no one asking unnecessary questions like in the hospital. That didn't mean she couldn't try. She was starting to get bored at the house, her cold was almost cured, and she had already done her "mourning", so to speak. It was time to go out and face the real world. Little by little. Baby steps. Slow, clumsy and shaky until she felt confident enough again. Twilight wanted to go outside, just to try it out. Accompanied, of course. On her own, she wouldn't make it past the entrance. "Yeah, okay." She helped with the groceries, did something different and took a fresh breath of air. How bad could it be? "I'm ready when you are." Sunset stared at her, a funny expression in her face. "...You going out with slippers?" Twilight looked down. Uh, oh. "I'll lend you clothes." Wearing leggings was like putting on a somewhat thicker second skin. They did feel slightly tighter, though, but just at the beginning. That, along with a mid-thigh sweatshirt, made an outfit not only warm and practical but also comfortable as pajamas. In Equestria, Twilight wore clothing at formal events, mostly dresses or something extra in winter. Not that it was bothersome in itself, but taking them off at the end of the day was relieving. In this case, or rather, in this body, it was the opposite. And truth to be told, she could get used to this kind of thing. The sweatshirt had pockets! What would be hard to get used to was elevators and the feeling that they dragged you down, with a subtle suction that caused dizziness. Sunset assured her it was a matter of getting used to it, and that it depended on the device. Twilight had her doubts. But a minute later they were already crossing the building's entrance doors, so she preferred to concentrate on filling her lungs with fresh air and the smell of recently cut grass, observing her surroundings as they approached the sidewalk. The building had a green front at the entrance that went all the way to the back, like a small garden, edged by low bushes that framed its perimeter. Like the one next door, and the ones in the opposite block. They varied in design, size, and heights, but all seemed to follow that same pattern in terms of space. And, to tell the truth, it was nice. Twilight went to several different places in the city, and in some, the newest constructions didn't even have a pot by the window, all grey and square. Here they had trees by the sidewalk, and the sound of the birds chirping could be heard over the cars. People came and went calmly, the weather was neither too cold nor too hot. It was nice. And disturbing. Everything felt disturbing, for some reason. The tranquility more than anything, as if it was intended for Twilight to let down her guard so something would attack her. What, specifically? She wasn't sure. Something. That was enough for the imperious need to look back every two seconds to be present. She wasn't paying attention to it, but the pressure at the back neck grew by the minute. Not that something bad would happen. No, no, why would it? For what purpose? She had nothing to lose, why would she lose something? Well, something else. What else? Really, what else? If the only thing that saved her was pity and some survival instinct and the little logic that remained along with the despair to-- Stop it, stop it, stop it! Nothing's going to happen. Keep calm, take a deep breath… Somewhere behind them, a car blew its horn. And Twilight jumped, scared for a millisecond as if it were the first time she heard one. Maybe she should have stayed. "...Are you okay?" The slight concern in Sunset's tone made Twilight want to go hide in the nearest bush for the rest of her life. By Celestia! How embarrassing, getting scared like a filly over nothing. Twilight nodded, inhaling deeply and exhaling slowly. Suddenly her left eye was throbbing. For a moment, she had the feeling Sunset was going to say something else besides the "ok" she murmured, but they kept walking instead. Twilight looked behind her shoulder to check how much had they walked. And maybe to make sure no one was following them. They were already on the second block out of three. Of three. Only three blocks, she could walk three blocks. She had to. Luckily, Sunset started talking about the weather, the trees and the allergies they brought. The most trivial conversation, that Twilight did her best to focus on, over imaginary attacks product of an active imagination. Pure nonsense. Silly, illogical and unfounded nonsense. And it worked, for the most part. Twilight couldn't remember any market in Equestria with so many product quantity as this one. The Canterlot Central Market could be the most similar, it even had a bigger building, but the sellers had individual stands for each of their specialities. You could find all kinds of things, hire services, repairs, whatever. Beyond that, the smaller stores were mostly dedicated to a specific thing. Here, it was just tall shelves with an infinity of products of all kind, variety, and colors, to both sides of the central aisle, which had signs in each corridor indicating specific sections and what could be found there. Everything had a package of an elaborate design, was canned, or had the same company logo on more than one occasion. “I’m still impressed with the mass level of production things have,” murmured Twilight while they went back to the first section they entered, with fruits, vegetables and everything else that needed refrigeration. They stopped at a lower aisle located in the middle, with a variety of supposedly fresh pasta. Even those that claimed to be more... handmade, had quite an elaborate packaging. Sunset just shrugged at that comment. "Well, the technology it's a lot more advanced, —you eat ravioli, right? Sorry, I'm just thinking about dinner—" Twilight nodded quickly. "Back on track, I guess there's also the fact that there's more population here." The ex-unicorn frowned, following the redhead on the other side of the shelve, where all types of cheeses were exposed. And tried not to look behind her despite her morbidness, where there was an entire wall with nothing but meat. Just thinking about it made her hair stood on end. Technological development was stronger on this side, that's for sure, a look to the different means of transport was proof enough. However, the other part... "But shouldn't this world have the same amount of population than in Equestria, if everyone has their respective counterpart?" Sunset stared at two brands of grated cheese as if contemplating more than just the fact of which one to choose. "I don't have one, " she said at last. “So I guess that's not a strict rule.” Twilight forgot how to blink for a moment. “...You don’t?” “Nope. When I first came here, they took my fingerprints and a DNA sample to see if it matched with someone registered in the system.” She took a blue cheese bag and started heading towards the checkout. Twilight following close behind, still somewhat surprised. “As far as I know, I’m the only Sunset Shimmer in the country.” Again, Sunset shrugged, like she couldn’t care less. And that’s where the conversation ended. Between refrigerators full of sodas and more shelves with sweet things that divided each checkout line while they waited for their turn to pay. Twilight couldn't help feeling ignored, somehow. Topics related to Equestria always were comparisons, of what was done and should be done here, contrary to over there, as Sunset said. It was understandable that at this point she couldn’t share her enthusiasm but, these were parallel universes! How many times could you live such an experience? “Hey, you think Flurry would like one of these?” Twilight turned her sight left, where Sunset was looking at a row of elephant-shaped, baby teething rings, conveniently hanging from a corner. Why so many products? At this rate, she wouldn’t be surprised to find more in the ceiling. “If Flurry is a baby, I don’t see why not, it's cute.” Sunset turned quickly in her direction, confusion on her face, as if instead of speaking to Twilight, her question was directed towards... nothing? The air? She looked at the redhead with even more confusion. “Oh! I was actually--nevermind. Uh, yeah, she just started grabbing things. I see her on Monday, so I wanted to gift her something, but I gotta ask first because she’s the first grandchild in the family and--” Sunset stopped in her tracks, staring at Twilight for a moment “You have no idea who I’m talking about, do you?” The ex-unicorn blinked, again, not sure about why the question. “...A baby named Flurry?” she offered. It was then that Sunset seemed to realize something, Twilight wasn’t quite sure what, but it wasn’t until they took a step forward in the line that she spoke again. “You have siblings, right?” “And older brother. And Spike's like a little brother, why?” “Well...” Wait a minute. Brother. Baby. First grandchild. Wedding on the other side of the portal... It wasn’t hard to put two and two together. “Shining has a daughter?” The man before them in the line turned around to look at her reluctantly, and Twilight shrank with the shame of raising her voice more than she should. Sunset didn't even pay him attention, nodding with a small smile. “Uh-huh, she five months old, and lovely.” A daughter. Her brother had a daughter here. Did that mean she was an aunt now? Well, an interdimensional aunt, to be exact. She couldn’t imagine herself as such, nor could imagine Shining with a baby in his arms, for that matter. How did five-month-old human babies look like, anyway? She had seen several babies, but they all looked like miniature people to her. However, that wasn’t the most important detail, per se. It was their turn to pay. Sunset asked her to put the toilet paper pack she had been unconsciously hugging all this time on the magic moving tape. They only bought five things, so once everything was paid for, Twilight asked the important question. “Sunset, do know by chance who's the baby’s mother?” The redhead carried the cloth bag over her shoulder, no matter how much Twilight had wanted to carry something herself, to not feel useless, or at least to keep her hands occupied on the way back. “Shining’s wife, Cadance. They married two years ago, I think.” “And, uh, is… is she nice?” she asked under her breath. It wasn’t the best question, but she needed to clear up any doubts. “Yeah, super.” Was Sunset’s reply, surprised. “Why? Over there she isn’t?” “No, no. Just doing field research.” So, on this side of the portal nothing went wrong, they married a while ago and even had a daughter. The ideal ending, everyone was happy. Well, who said it had to be different on the other side? Perhaps Canterlot's greatest threat was Twilight wanting to "ruin" the wedding. Or maybe it was the other way around, the big threat was the bride and groom getting a happy ending. None of that explained the temporality issues, though. Was the time flow different? Or was it the same and events occurred at a different time due to variations in socio-cultural environments? Or was one already “destined” to do certain actions? But if that were true and she ended up here, shouldn’t her counterpart end up in another universe, too? On top of that, the fact that Sunset didn’t seem to have a respective human version only left room for even more questions and theories. Like the balance management between the two words in both actions (again, “destiny?”) and the criteria used to transform someone from one species to another. Would the portal have a proportion law? And if so, what aspects did it take into account? Heights, widths, ages? What happened to extra limbs such as wings or horns? Did they add in height, or were they added in some other way to human anatomy? And about the-- “Still thinking?” "Eh?" Twilight turned around, with a movement that even she felt more had more force than necessary. Her body kept giving automatic responses at the most inopportune moments. Great. “Oh, uh, something like that.” They were reaching the corner of the block now, and Twilight made sure to watch Sunset's step and looked both ways before crossing the street. "I guess it must be weird, suddenly finding out your brother has a child and everything..." “I guess it is...” she murmured, her head still into ways of conversions and supposed parallels. Sunset pulled her out of it with the simple gesture of raising an eyebrow. “I mean, in Equestria, he was about to get married, so it’s just rare that here that’s old news.” Not like it wasn’t important, or that she didn’t care about Shining no matter where he was from, but anything related to the wedding still felt bitter on the mouth. It brought bad memories and a lot of awful feelings. Better to make unverifiable hypothesis. "Oh, you left before that?" Twilight frowned. She never left, no by her own will as Sunset seemed to imply. Could it be that Sunset did that, though? Just left Equestria by choice? Could one do that? She nodded anyway. "Yeah, we… we had a fight," mumbled Twilight, hoping that it was enough to satisfy the redhead's curiosity. Which, was completely justified, considering Twilight was the one who had been living in her house for eight days, not the other way around. Right. Sometimes she forgot such detail. Maybe it had to do with how comfortable she felt there, no? Twilight preferred not to add anything else and turn her sight to the stores they were passing by, since she didn’t pay them much attention the first time. Most were service-related, a laundry, a hardware store, an ice cream parlor from which a person came out with a huge ice cream cone with colorful sprinkles... Maybe, when the weather was hotter she could ask to come here. She was curious about the sticker on the door that said it was self-made. "Please tell me that's not where your bruises come from." Twilight stopped dead, and this time her gestures were fully conscious. “What? No.” It took her a moment, and a lot of blinking, to process what she just heard. “No, no. Not at all.” And to try to understand how she came to that conclusion until she remembered the last words, and the little detail of the bruises on her face, the ones hiding under her clothes, and the reasons why she had to take an obligatory rest of at least three days. It was one of those moments where she remembered everything that happened with an “oh, right” that came as quickly as it left. “It’s okay. I think I get what your line of thought was.” And between her looks and bad phrasing, it could lead to confusion, right? “But that was a while ago and, uh, I fell last week.” Both a figurative and literal truth. She did stumble upon a step and had a couple of scratches, perhaps a bruise on the knee from when it hit the floor. In her first days. Details no one had to know. Not even herself. “Ah.” Was Sunset’s only answer, before they resumed walking. It wasn’t until they reached the end of the block that she spoke again. “How long has it been since you went through the portal?” “About… ten days before I stayed with you, maybe more.” And now it was the redhead's turn to stare. “And you were wandering around the city? For ten days? Alone?” Sunset’s cyan eyes widened with each question, as if Twilight was talking about a journey through Equestria or something similar. “Uh-huh.” It wasn’t. At all. “Wow… When I first got here, I wandered around for a bit. I guess it’s common sense, right? Just trying to figure out where you are. And, uh, after a while later some coffee shop owners invited me tea and croissants, because it's not common for a girl of that age to be on her own.” Sunset made a pause, and Twilight for a moment wanted to ask what exactly one thing had to do with the other, but decided against it. “I just stared at the mug for like an hour until I figured out I had to use my hands.” “I know, right? I’m so used to use magic for everything that I would run into doors.” Sunset tried not to laugh, but now that she said it out loud, it sounded even more ridiculous to Twilight. “Now it’s still a bit weird, but I got used to it.” Now she made hand gestures by reflex, but that didn’t mean she didn’t miss her magic, or her original body, or her entire world. Nostalgia appeared every day, no matter how many distractions Twilight tried to conjure up. “Honestly, I’m remembering all this stuff just because I’m talking to you. Like, five years doesn’t seem too much, but still are five years. A lot of things happen in the middle.” Too many. Twilight hadn’t even planned what to do in the next two and a half years ahead. Because that’s what this was all about, applying a long-term formula, the only thing that worked. Improvisation was fine as long as you could speculate possible outcomes, instead of throwing yourself into the void. Two seconds of thinking about the consequences of certain past events were enough to know in what that resulted in. But for now, planning could wait. Wait until she felt better about everything. Meanwhile, they kept walking back to the apartment, the topic diverting to a more lively theme. Twilight felt less intimidated by the outside itself, and Sunset’s posture made her feel secure. If Sunset was calm, then why should Twilight feel nervous? And that’s how she looked when they reached the building entrance, in the tinted glass reflection. A Twilight with a more relaxed posture, blue pants, a grey sweater of the kind that’s comfortable and fluffy with a shirt underneath, just to keep the formality, her typical loose hair and-- And a stunned face without the slightest scratch. Author's Note Ah~ Ah~ Ah~ Mucha espuma, hace que mi pelo sea fuerte. Así sí, sí, sí. Más fuerte que un dragón-gón-gón ♪♪♪ 2018? 2018 doesn't exist, it's a conspiracy theory. Thanks to Martina, Tamara, and Scampy for helping me out with this one !
