In hindsight, Twilight thought with a sigh as she retracted herself into her rose lower body, the rose's petal closing protectively and lovingly around and above her, she really wished she hadn't killed her friends.

Once the rush of what she could do and what she was had worn off, she realized how much of a waste it had been. She had been gorged on all of the blood she had consumed. There was no reason to do that.

Despite what she had become, and her new outlook, Twilight had still loved the girls. But she had been too high. Too overwhelmed with what she could now do, that she hadn't been able to think properly.

Could her friends have become like her? Maybe. Twilight didn't know. And now there was no way to know for sure. Ponyville was a ghost town now. Only she and Willow still remained alive.

Spike though... Twilight crossed her hooves. As much as she had loved the drake, he had been more of a pain in her backside ever since coming back from the Crystal Empire. While she wouldn't argue that he had helped quite a bit, he acted like he had done literally all of the work.

Ungrateful welp.

Twilight shook her head, her ears dropping. Ever since she had come to that clearing, her anger had been roused more and more often than it had ever been before. Why? She still didn't know, and it was driving her nuts.

At least Willow was more than happy to let her vent when she needed to. The mare was more patient than Twilight had ever thought possible. Though the same couldn't always be said for the creature she was merged with.

But she was letting her mind wander. Again. It was something that hadn't changed at all about her it seemed. And Twilight was grateful for that small bit of her old life. She would never trade all of this, as she lovingly stroked the petals around her, for what she had once been. But there were still parts of her old self that she missed.

Being able to read normally was one of them. She couldn't fit in the Golden Oaks Library now. Which put a damper on her reading time. Twilight wasn't even sure if she could still teleport as she was now.

Would she take the flower with her? Or would it separate the two of them? And what happened to her if it did? She didn't know, and Twilight was afraid of what might happen if she tried.

Luckily, Golden Oaks was fireproof (a precaution she had put in place after she and Spike had moved in). Willow's fireball wouldn't do more than scorch the wood. It would just look like the library was on fire.

Twilight giggled at the thought, as she closed her eyes, and allowed her whole body to relax. Today had been a long day, and there was still so much she had to do. Sleep sounded like a good idea at the moment.

***

Outside, Willow was exploring the rest of Ponyville, her companion grumbling the entire time, trying to drag her away from her explorations.

Willow gave him a rather pointed look at one point. "Quit complaining, will you? This used to be my hometown. I'm allowed to look around. I want to see what I missed around here. What changed after I saved your life."

That shut him up, as he gave her a sorrowful look. Her own annoyance melted away at the look. As much as they drove each other nuts sometimes, Willow wouldn't change what had happened to her since that fateful day.

She smiled, as she kissed him on top of the head. "I'm sorry. I know this is a pain for you. But I have to know. My home is around here. I have to know what happened to my parents."

His protests died away, as she drove them on toward a little-used part of Ponyville. After a few more minutes, Willow came around a corner, and stopped dead in her tracks, her ears falling at what was before her.

It was her home. Now abandoned and boarded up. From the looks of things, the house had been abandoned and empty for a long time. The boards on the windows hung loose, and the door was sagging on its hinges.

Willow bit her lip as she came closer. Uncoiling to her full length, she slithered through the open front door.

Dust and cobwebs hung thick on everything. The furniture was cracked, the fireplace cold and dead. The kitchen was home now to nothing more than mice, rats, and spiders. The cupboards were all empty, the doors hanging loose.

Climbing the stairs, Willow came to her parent's bedroom. Their bed was as made and well kept as she remembered. Except for all the dust and cobwebs on everything, it looked like her mom and dad had just stepped out for the day.

Fighting back her tears, Willow turned to the room across the hallway. Her room. Going in, she found it just the way she had left it that morning so long ago. Her parents had never touched it, and the thought made her heart sink. They left it for her. Hoping that she would come back.

But she never had.

Her eyes welling up even more now, Willow turned to her dresser and the picture that sat there, undisturbed ever since that morning. Her tears fell now, no longer caring, as she looked at the photo therein. It showed her and her parents, all three of them happier than any other pony in Ponyville that day, for it had been taken the day Willow had gotten her cutie mark.

Blowing off the dust, Willow grabbed the frame and held it close to her heart, no longer caring if Twilight found her like this, as her tears came in rivers now.

"Mom. Dad. I am so, so, sorry. I never should have left. I never should have gone into the Everfree as I did," she sobbed, falling onto her bed and letting all of her pain out, holding her photo tightly to her heart.

Down below, her companion let out a sad moan, feeling Willow's pain and heartbreak as much as his own.

***

Willow wasn't sure how long she lay in her old bed. At some point, her tears had dried up, leaving her looking around her old room with a forlorn expression. How long had it been since she had left? It hadn't seemed that long to her. But time and her home told her otherwise.

With a forlorn sigh, she began to retract herself from the house, taking one last long look at her parents' bedroom. She had hoped that, whatever had happened in her absence, her mom and dad had stayed together. They were so happy that way.

Pulling herself back down the stairs, Willow thought for just a split second of burning her old home to the ground. She crushed the thought almost as fast as it had come to her. This was still her home. It would stand, and damn anypony who said otherwise. Twilight included.

As she came back out of the front door, her family photo still tightly clutched to her heart, Willow allowed herself to become the passenger. To the obvious delight of her friend, who was more than happy to leave the sad, old house, behind.

With noplace in mind, they wandered around Ponyville aimlessly. As they did, Willow wondered what Twilight was up to at that moment?

***

For her part, Twilight slept rather peacefully. Who knew sleeping in a flower like this was so relaxing? She sure didn't. This beat out the best beds in Canterlot by a long shot.

But as she slept, Twilight couldn't help but feel that something was happening to her. Her whole body tingled. Like she was changing into something new. Again. Was that normal? It felt like her body was becoming more pony again, rather than her more human form. Why? Whatever was going on, it felt amazing, however.

***

With a start, Twilight awoke to the sound of somepony tapping on her flower petals. "Twilight. Are you alright in there? You're glowing," Willow said from outside, worry clear in her voice.

Twilight didn't respond, for heat was growing in her nether regions. It felt like she was in heat. But this was something else. She moaned in delight as a feeling beyond anything she could describe washed over her. If this was what sex felt like, Twilight never wanted it to end. Her whole body shivered in delight, as the feeling grew more and more intense. "Willow. What's happening to me? Why does it feel so good?" Twilight purred in a sensual way.

"Why are you asking me?" Willow shot back. "I don't have any bucking idea of what's going on."

Twilight rolled her eyes, as a new sensation took hold of her. "Stand back. I'm flowering!"

***

Outside, Willow was quick to step back as much as she could, as Twilight's whole body began to shiver and shake. All around her, the flowers transformed into roses, all of them pushing close to touch Twilight's own rose.

One by one, the smaller roses began to wither and die, as they transferred their energy to Twilight. As the final one withered away, Twilight herself began to glow even brighter, before the light died away.

After a moment, the rose began to flower and unwrap its petals from around the mare inside. Twilight leaned out, a sensual smile on her face, her body once again in her alicorn form. Her waist was still merged with the stamen of the rose. Her eyes seemed to be seeing something a million miles away, for though she and Willow were looking at each other, the alicorn didn't respond as Willow waived a hoof in her face.

Willow and her friend shared a concerned look. "Twilight?" She asked as the necklace around Twilight's neck began to blow in an unseen breeze only it seemed to feel.

All at once, though, Twilight's eyes began to glow. At once, her whole body stood upright, her skeleton reforming to accommodate her new permanent change. Her front legs bent into shapes and in ways that a normal pony's legs could never do. Her whole body became more human, her head becoming more angular and her mane wilder in appearance.

But it was her chest that changed the most. Twilight watched with delight as a pair of breasts, bigger even than those she'd had when at Canterlot High, formed, her normal teets disappearing altogether. But she could still feel everything that would allow her to be a mother if she so wished.

After a moment, the changes ended, and Twilight's eyes returned to normal, running a hoof over her new form. "Oh, yeah. I can get used to this."

Willow gulped as she came closer once more. "Um. Twilight? Is that you? Are you alright?"

Twilight giggled, as she took Willow's hooves in her own. "Oh, Willow. I'm fine." Her smile grew. "I'm better than fine, actually. I feel amazing!" She looked down at her new, permanent body. "I don't know what happened. But it feels right all the same."

Willow breathed a sigh of relief, as she looked closer at the new Twilight. She was more beautiful now than when they had first met if it was possible. "So why do you still have hooves? You look human almost if I remember what you showed me of the Other World was right. Shouldn't you have hands?"

Twilight rolled her eyes, as she looked at her arms, which did indeed still in hooves. "I have no idea. Maybe I should have hands. But I can still make this work."

Willow rolled her eyes. "Yeah. How? It's gonna be long before ponies notice something is up with Ponyville. And then what? Take on all of Equestria?"

Twilight shook her head. "No. Even I know that won't end well for us. I overreacted when I did that to my friends. I could have made them like me. I know I could have." She sighed. "But what's done is done."

Willow looked toward Canterlot. She had a bad feeling about all of this. "And what are you going to tell Princess Celestia and Princess Luna about this? I doubt they'll be happy to know what you did. Though everypony totally deserved it if you ask me."

Twilight giggled, as she pets Willow's companion. "Maybe. But we will worry about Celestia and Luna when the time comes. I don't have a plan yet. But I will. I always do."

Author's Note

First off, I need to thank TheHereticLocomotive for the awesome cover art. And for putting up with my strange request. Yes. I didn't give Twilight hands like it would make more sense too.

In fact, I had a chance to change it from hooves to hands, before the artist started adding all the colors and details. But I kept it like this. In hindsight, I should've gone for hands instead. Oh well.

Edit: Finally got out of the Moderation Que. I blame the cover art for it taking till March 23 to be Published, when it was finished on March 21. Thanks to Eldorado for letting me know.

Edit 2: Decided to merge this story as the second chapter of Venus Weed in Twilight. It didn't feel right leaving it as its own separate story. So here it is.