The Eight-Six Duo

Chapters

Act 2: Fear
Act 3: Dance to Forget
Act 4: Thunder
Act 5: Lightning
Act 6: Worry
Act 7: Battle to the Limit!
Act 8: Enigma
Act 9: First "Date"
Act 10: The Terrifying Four Wheel Drift
Act 11: Learn to Fly
Act 12: Learn to Drive
Act 13: Impromptu
Act 14: Practice
Act 16: Renshū
Act 17: Dogfight against Spitfire!
Act 18: The Effects of Immortality
Act 19: Why We Race
Act 20: To control the Sun and Moon
Act 21: Painless
Act 22: Learn to Modify
Going on Hiatus. (Will delete when out of Hiatus)
Act 1: The Duo Appears
Act 15: Undeserving

Act 2: Fear

A few hours later, Takumi was walking around the castle. Trixie was following while Starlight was checking on Spike and Itsuki.

"Quick question," Trixie piped up.

"What?" Takumi asked.

"Well, a couple of questions actually. One, where did you two get your hooves on those Corollas?"

"Why?"

"I dunno. Just because."

"Well, the Trueno was my dad's. He bought it new over a decade ago and used it to run deliveries and race on Akina. He made me start the deliveries about six years ago, one thing went to another, and it became mine after he got his own car. Itsuki got the Red Levin a few days ago when we-... got the money for him to so."

"You've been driving for six years?"

"Yeah."

Trixie looked at him. "You... look a bit young though. How old are you?"

"Nineteen."

Trixie stopped walking. "Hold on..." she trailed, making Takumi stop and turn to look at her. He noticed Starlight trotting towards them from down the hall.

"What?" Takumi asked.

"You're nineteen?"

"Yes?"

"And if you've been driving for six years... wait. Wait! That means you've been driving since you were thirteen?!"

"What are we talking about?" Starlight asked, stopping next to Trixie.

"Takumi's been driving since the seventh grade!" Trixie exclaimed.

Starlight's eyes widened as she stared at Takumi. "I'm sorry?!"

Takumi sighed. "Yes. It was illegal. I know. But he made me run the tofu deliveries and I couldn't exactly refuse." he turned around and began walking down the hall.

"Well... huh. Wait, who made you run tofu deliveries?" Starlight asked, her and Trixie following.

"My dad. Now do either of you know where I can sleep? I know It's only three, but I'd like to know since I want to explore... Ponyville."

Starlight and Trixie looked at each other for a second and back at Takumi. "Why?" Starlight asked.

"Because I'm bored. I feel like I'm gonna be stuck here for a while, so I might as well get used to the place. Starting with that town," Takumi explained, looking around the hall.

"You're oddly cheerful about being stuck in a world that isn't even yours," Trixie remarked.

"I'm trying to remain sane. It's better than freaking out."

Takumi stopped suddenly in front of two double doors. The front doors of the castle.

"So you're gonna explore a town you don't even know?" Starlight asked.

"If I can see this castle from over a dozen miles away, then I'll be able to see it from the other side of town." Takumi sighed as he pushed the door open and walked outside. Starlight's eyes widened as she ran after him.

"Wait! Hold on! You're going now?" she asked, slowing and trotting next to him.

"Yeah. Tell Itsuki I'll be back in a few."

"Where exactly are you going?"

"I dunno. I'll just check out the place, maybe I'll chat with some people and see what It's like."

Takumi stopped in front of his white Trueno, staring at it. He put his hoof on the carbon fiber hood, rubbing it a little.

Don't worry girl. We'll be home soon. At least, I hope we get home soon.

"Anyways. Mind setting a room up for me?" Takumi asked, looking at Starlight.

"Uh... sure. Just... promise me that you won't leave the town or anything." Starlight looked at Takumi with almost worried eyes.

To Takumi, she looked cuuuute. In a way, she looked like a pony from that one My Little Pony show he had heard of from overseas. How could he say no to a face like that? He looked away and sighed. "I won't go far."

"Ok. Thanks. I'll prepare a room for you. We have plenty." Starlight slowly turned around, but still had her head turned at Takumi.

"I'd assume so since It's a castle that seems way bigger on the inside than the outside." Takumi glanced at Starlight, who giggled.

"Yeah, it does that. When can I expect you back?"

"Before sundown." Takumi turned away and began walking towards Ponyville. Starlight reluctantly trotted back to the Castle.

After half a minute of slowly walking, Takumi looked back at the castle and saw that Starlight was nowhere to be seen. He bit his lower lip as he looked towards Ponyville, a small medieval-like house not too far from him. "I'll be fine... I'll be fine..." He repeated as he walked past the house and into Ponyville.

He felt so introverted as he watched the townsfolk go about their business. Only a couple of cars rolled through the dirt roads, none of them from what he was used to aside from an 80s hatchback unlike his own. Everything else was pretty American. Like a 1970s pickup truck and what he could only assume was a Ford Mustang. A weird sports-car version. This town was clearly not meant for cars as there were no traffic lights, road markings, or even stop signs for that matter. All the ponies were walking through and made sure to avoid the few cars that drove through.

Ponyville, to Takumi, was very medieval. At first, he had thought it just was a Scottish town, but no. This was totally medieval. Ponies pulled carts, tended to market stands, some even had saddlebags on them. Seeing ponies wearing saddlebags made him look at his wings.

"I could've grabbed some bags. I could have then brought some money. Er, did she say bits?" Takumi wondered as he looked around at the medieval buildings. They all followed a fairly similar style which made him wonder if this place had been frozen in time until recently considering that all the buildings were just so outdated in design compared to the cars.

All buildings... except for one.

He stopped as he saw a building a few hundred feet ahead different from literally every other building. It was bright, had several shiny parts ranging from baby blue on the walls to light pink on the roof. It was rather circular, different from the other building's square shapes except for one he had assumed was a town hall of sorts, considering it was by itself in the middle of the town.

Towards the top, he could see a couple of pony... 'mannequins' if he could call them that. They were black and flat and made the thing resemble a Merry-Go-Round in a way.

"Is that the town hall?" Takumi wondered as he began walking towards the place. He dodged a big red stallion pulling a large cart of apples as he made his way to the place, and couldn't help but look back and smirk. The cart was about the size of a Subaru Impreza and was filled past the brim with apples. It had to weigh at least one and a half tons, yet the stallion seemed like he was pulling it with minimal effort. "Man you gotta admire the strength some ponies can have," Takumi admitted as he looked back at the building. "Even if these ponies are different from my world's ponies, they are still pretty strong."

He stopped in front of the front door and looked around for a sign that said what the place was. However, he saw none. He grimaced. Way to advertise what the place is called... He thought, looking at the front door. Finally, he sighed and slowly pushed it open, slowly walking in.

The door shut behind him as he looked around. And if he could mark down the entire feel, look, and design of this interior to one word, he had the perfect one.

Overdone

He could see the appeal, but man. The reflections and glossiness of the whole thing was giving car dealerships a run for their money. It was all crystally and shiny and... sheesh.

Examining the place some more, he realized that this had to be a clothing shop of sorts. There were pony mannequins with dresses that were definitely not his style, but they made him look at the white sweater he was wearing and made him feel a little bit out of place.

Then again, this whole building was out of place. It contrasted so harshly against the rest of the town and was a huge attention seeker. Even with it being a business, sometimes enough is enough.

Takumi walked up to a small receptionist's desk and could hear two ponies talking in the back, along with the whir of a couple of machines. Judging by where he was, the machines were probably sewing machines.

"Ahem," Someone cleared their throat right behind him, causing him to look around. He found himself face-to-face with a light blue stallion that had dark blue hair, who seemed to be wearing spectacles and a black suit and tie. He was a little bigger than him and was a unicorn.

"Mind moving, please? I have an outfit that is due." He said in almost a rude tone. Takumi didn't say anything as he backed up from the counter. The pony walked up and put his hoof on a small countertop bell, ringing it.

"Be out in a second!" A female pony yelled. Two seconds later, a white mare with purple hair peeked out from a doorway to the right of the desk. "Ah yes! Give us one more minute!" She said, quickly ducking back through the doorway.

A minute later, the same pony came out with a folded black suit that was levitating in front of her. To Takumi, it looked like the exact same outfit the stallion was wearing. The Stallion's horn lit up and the folded suit was enveloped with a light blue glow and was now levitating next to his head.

"And here's your payment." The Stallion said as some gold coins were levitated from the suit that he was wearing, dropping them on the counter.

"Thank you. It has been a pleasure doing business with you." The mare said with a very transatlantic accent. The Stallion nodded before turning around and heading out the door. Takumi watched the mare turn around and begin heading back to the doorway to the back. She glanced behind and her eyes met his own, causing her to gasp.

"Oh my goodness! I almost didn't see you there!" She exclaimed as she turned around and trotted back to the counter. "Sorry about that. What do you need?"

"Um, well, I wanted to know what this place Is called," Takumi explained swiftly.

"Oh why, this is the Carousel Boutique! Haven't you heard of it?" The pony asked. Takumi was a little irked by the accent, but forgave it. It wasn't too bad.

"No, I haven't. I'm kind of uh... new around here."

"Oh. Well, in case you haven't noticed, this is a dress shop. One of the finest in the land and run by me. Rarity!" The pony or 'Rarity' swished her hair back a bit, as if to really emphasize that she was the one who ran the place.

A fashion pony huh? Takumi thought.

"You can either pick an outfit from off the shelf or you could order a custom one. However..." Rarity trailed off as she stared at him. She grimaced. "You might want to order something custom. This shop is a bit uh..."

She couldn't find the words. Takumi glanced around at the dresses and knew what she was trying to say. He looked at her. "Female Biased?"

"Yes! It is. I don't have many male outfits besides suits."

"Huh. Well, I'm not really here for an outfit. I just wanted to know the name is all." Takumi turned to head out.

"Oh! But surely you are wanting to have something that gives you a bit more flair? Something more than that... outfit..." Rarity trailed off again, making Takumi look at his sweater, then at her.

"What?" He asked. "Is there something wrong with my sweater?"

"It's... uh... simple! Yes, that's what it is. Simple."

"This is my favorite sweater so shut up. I like it." Takumi slightly regretted saying that. Technically his favorite sweater was not this one, but one meant for humans. A generic white sweater. But this one did fit him perfectly, so it was somewhat the same. Or maybe it was the same sweater, just modified.

"Oh my, I didn't realize. Sorry."

"Rarity, what is taking you so long?" Another female voice asked as a light blue Unicorn with orange hair that was bigger than the white mare by at least a foot and a half came through the doorway. She was wearing a black outfit of sorts. Not quite a suit, but... something.

"Sorry, I was merely seeing what that pony wants." Rarity replied, glancing at Takumi. "Apparently he simply wanted to know what my establishment was called.

"Pretty much. I'm gonna get going now." Takumi said, walking out the front door.

"Uh-feel free to come back should you change your mind!" Rarity exclaimed just as the door shut. Takumi chuckled.

That reminds me of working at Yuichi's gas station, he thought to himself. I never realized how cheerful that sounded when you were on the receiving end.

Inside, Rarity and the light blue pony walked to the back area. The blue pony chuckled.

"What?" Rarity asked.

"Sorry, It's just that if I didn't know any better, I would have thought that he was an Alicorn." The pony remarked. "I could have sworn he had a horn and wings."

Rarity laughed. "Oh Sassy, I got a pretty good look at him. I only saw wings. And..." Rarity trailed off and stopped, looking confused. "And..."

"What?" Sassy asked, stopping and looking at her.

Rarity looked back at the doorway. "Did... he have a horn?"

Takumi was now a decent distance away from the boutique now, walking around and once again growing mesmerized by the medieval buildings. These are much different than any of the buildings in Shibukawa. He thought. Did Japan ever have buildings like these even back in medieval times?

About ten minutes later, Takumi stopped in front of yet another building that stood out like crazy from the rest. It looked like something Hansel and Gretel would happen across. There were tables outside with ponies and filly's sitting at each. Takumi smirked.

I take it this is a candy shop of sorts? he internally asked before pushing the front... doors open? He was rather surprised to find that the front door was actually two half-doors. One directly on top of the other like what you'd see on a really old farmhouse. "Huh," was all he had to say as he walked in.

He was greeted with a line of four ponies. Nothing much to note. All of them were adults with one filly in between the two in front. So technically five ponies. At the counter talking to the ponies in front was a bright blue mare a bit older looking than the ones he'd seen so far, who had magenta hair that looked like literal icing. It was kind of appetizing if he was being honest. Looking around, the shop was very candy-themed. Sweets lined the shelves on the walls. It almost made Takumi's mouth water.

Knowing he wasn't gonna buy anything, he proceeded to walk to a wall and look at some of the sweets. But no sooner did he start looking at the shelves...

"Hello! Are you new here?" a slightly high-pitched voice exclaimed right next to him, startling him. his eyes were slightly widened as he looked to his left and found a pink pony with deeper pink hair that looked like cotton candy next to him, staring at him with a smile. It was kind of creepy.

"Uh, yeah?" he replied.

"YES! I love meeting new ponies! Where are you from? Oh wait no! Let me guess! Are you from a faraway city?"

"Um... sure," Takumi replied, already annoyed. Technically he was from a faraway city. Shibukawa was a city in Japan, which was where he was from. How far away he was he didn't know. It was either several lightyears away or an entire universe away.

"YES! What's your name? Oh! Oh! Is it-"

"Takumi. Takumi Fujiwara," Takumi interrupted, wanting to get the conversation over with.

"Sorry about her!" the blue pony manning the counter called over. "She just really likes meeting new ponies."

Takumi looked at her. "Alright... well if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna check out the selection," he looked back at the sweets, hoping for a bit of peace and quiet.

"Oh, but I have just a million questions for you!" the pony continued, making Takumi frown. He was growing more annoyed with this idiot. "Like, why are you named that? Because I have never heard of a name like that before in my life!"

Takumi internally groaned as he turned away from the wall and began walking to the front door. The pony continued blabbering on. He stopped and looked at her.

"Listen, if you'll excuse me, I'd rather not talk to a complete stranger unless I want to."

"Come on Pinkie," the blue pony said. "Leave him be. Give him a little time to settle in if he's new."

Takumi nodded to the blue pony before walking out the front door. He was hoping that the pony would listen and stop, but for some godforsaken reason, the pony was still behind him.

"Lady I'm not kidding," Takumi said, anger building up inside of him.

"Oh but-" Pinkie stopped for a split second as Takumi looked at her. She seemed to be focused on his forehead. Takumi glanced up, but only saw the tip of his horn. He looked back. "What?"

Pinkie's eyes continued staring at, Takumi assumed his horn, then snapped to his back. Probably his wings. He rolled his eyes before noticing a small sign on the front wall. He walked over to read it.

Sugarcube Corner

"Huh."

Suddenly, he heard what had to be the record for the longest gasp ever.

"YOU'RE AN ALICORN!" Pinkie screamed suddenly. "OhMyGoshOhMyGoshOhMyGoshOhMyGOSH! I have like a billion questions now! No, I have a GAZILLION questions! Where are you from?! How are you an Alicorn?!? Are you-"

CRACK!

Initial D First Stage Sound Files vol.1 - Anger starts playing

Every pony in the area stopped cold as the sound of cracking wood was heard. They all looked at Takumi who had slammed his hoof into the sign, putting a serious dent in both it and the wall.

"If you don't shut your mouth right now, I'll do it for you," he growled, giving Pinkie the death stare. All ponies at the tables left tips on the tables leaving uneaten foods and drinks.

"Oh come on silly! Why the angwy fa-"

BANG!

Pinkie's face suddenly became quickly acquainted by Takumi's front right hoof. He had punched her square in the jaw, knocking her out cold. He had told her several times to shut the hell up, yet she wouldn't listen. She brought it upon herself.

He scoffed as he walked away, leaving Pinkie on the ground. If there's one thing I now hate, It's people who get all up in your business for no reason, Takumi thought as he walked.

Two hours later, Takumi was walking along the outskirts of town. He looked to his left and saw a very early 20th century American Farm about half a mile away. It had a candy red barn, a well, white fences, a chicken coupe, fields that surrounded the place, pretty much what you'd expect from a farm.

"Huh. I wonder what they grow." He looked up at the sun and noticed that it was pretty late in the day. "I should probably head back to that castle. Starlight or whatever her name was is probably worrying about me."

He began walking back through the town, expecting a half-hour walk, but then stopped. He looked behind and down at his wings and smirked. "I think now is a good of a time as any to put these things to use," he said, unfurling them.

He thought he looked really cool as he slowly moved them up and down, getting into a rhythm. Then, with a hard flap of his wings, he took off into the air. He yelped slightly as he slowed his flapping. It took him a second to find the correct speed, but he was soon hovering.

"Perfect," Takumi said before flapping his wings and pushing himself forward towards the Crystal Castle across town.

He looked down as he flew, watching the townsfolk go about their day. It seemed so normal to him for some reason. Just some townsfolk doing whatever. Running a business, eating at a restaurant, delivering crops or farm equipment, normal things you'd expect from a pseudo-medieval town.

As he cruised through the sky, he suddenly found the bright town of Ponyville disappearing, and it was instead replaced by darkness.

But just as soon as the daylight was replaced by darkness, the darkness was replaced by the interior of a car. His car. He was speeding down a mountain road.

Ahead of him was a bright yellow 1993 Mazda RX-7 FD3S that had been modified with a large rear wing. It was a very stylish 1990s Sports Car with curvaceous lines, a Rotary Engine, overall an amazing car. He followed the FD closely, riding almost on Its rear bumper. The FD braked, making him do the same.

EEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Tires squealed as the two cars rocketed around a right 180-degree turn, also known as a hairpin turn. Takumi noticed that his AE86 did not have a carbon fiber hood and that he was a human now. He didn't mind, knowing this was merely a flashback. The two cars exited the hairpin and sped down a straight, the FD trying to escape but Takumi stayed right on Its tail through a high-speed right curve. They entered another left hairpin, parallel drifting.

Takumi noticed a sticker on the side of the FD as they exited the hairpin.

RedSuns

He knew this FD. He knew it quite well. He watched as the FD slowed for a right corner, and instinctively swerved into the right lane. He began drifting around the corner at high speed, coming mere centimeters from the guardrail. A sudden sharp left corner appeared, making him flick the steering wheel left and snap the 86 in the other direction into the corner.

As soon as he did that, the hallucination was shattered. He found himself looking down at a field, still flying. He sighed.

Oh Keisuke, I still can't believe that on that night, I was just trying to get home while you were trying to outright beat me, Takumi thought, remembering the night. He looked up, and his smirk disappeared as he noticed a bright blue Pegasus with Rainbow hair looking straight at him upside down. "Uh... hi?"

"You know It's not a good idea to fly while distracted, right?" the Pegasus asked with a female voice.

"What would I be able to hit? I'm pretty high up."

"Uh, the castle?" the Pegasus said, flipping herself upright and revealing that Takumi was hovering a few feet away from a purple crystal wall that was part of the castle.

"I didn't hit it though,"

"Well no duh, I stopped you from hitting it," the Pegasus clarified.

"You did? I must have been pretty deep in my daydream then. I didn't even notice."

She giggled. "Yeah, you must've been."

"Mm. Well uh, thanks."

"You bet. See ya!" The Pegasus raced off with a single flap of her wings, quickly accelerating to what had to be over 150MPH. This left Takumi impressed.

Okay, I thought being able to get to a hundred was good, but wow she is much faster. She must have to work pretty hard to do that, Takumi noted.

He slowed his wing-flapping pace and allowed himself to lower down on the front steps. He walked up the steps and opened the front doors, walking through and letting the doors shut behind him.

He silently walked through the halls, watching his reflection stare back at him from the crystalline walls. He looked forward again and saw Itsuki walking ahead, talking with Spike. They looked at him, and Itsuki's face lit up.

"Takumi!" ge yelled suddenly, running towards Takumi.

"Hey Itsuki," Takumi replied, happy to hear a familiar voice.

Itsuki stopped in front of him, Spike stopping next to Itsuki. "Dude, Spike's racetrack is fricken awesome! We had an amazing race against each other! There were jumps, hairpins, even banked turns!"

"Oh nice. Sounds like fun."

"It always is," Spike said. "Hey, we were wondering if you'd like to join us! Could be fun to have a fourth opponent."

"Fourth?"

"Trixie's been hanging out with us. She isn't half bad," Itsuki explained.

"Oh. So you just... left her there alone?"

"No. She went to talk with Starlight. Said we should go wait for you at the front."

"Well, I'm here now."

"Mhm. So! Wanna race?"

Takumi sighed. "No, I think I just want some peace and quiet. I've been thinking about some things and I wanted to ask Starlight a few questions."

"Oh come on!" Spike pouted.

"Sorry. See you two later," he said, walking past the two. They both groaned.

"What a buzzkill..." he heard Spike say. He grimaced.

I wanna race, but I want to ask Starlight some things, he thought.

Several minutes later, Takumi walked up to the second floor and saw Starlight and Trixie talking to each other as they emerged from a door. He could already hear what they were talking about. As Starlight closed the door behind her, and the two just sat there talking.

"I'm sure he'll come around," he heard Trixie say. "No way he's stupid enough to poke around a world he doesn't know."

"Still. I just don't get why It's been several hours since he left," Starlight replied. "What if somepony saw that he was an Alicorn and took him? Where could he be?"

"Uh-" Trixie locked eyes with Takumi, and suddenly smiled. "Right there!" she exclaimed, making Starlight look over at him.

"Oh! Ha!" Starlight laughed. "Didn't see you there! How long have you been back?"

"A few minutes," Takumi said, smiling. These two looked so cute.

"Oh well, in that case, I just cleared out this room. It's next to the stairs and there's a bathroom just across from it." She pointed to a door across from her.

"Sweet. Could I see it?" Takumi asked.

"Sure!" Starlight cheerfully replied as she used her magic to open the door back up. She and Trixie walked inside, Takumi in tow. He looked around at the room, taking in Its rather glamorous design. It was a pretty stark contrast compared to his old room, but at least it wasn't overdone like the Carousel Boutique. It was what he'd expect from a castle like this.

"No windows," Takumi noted.

"Did you want one?" Starlight asked, stopping and looking at him.

"No, it's fine,"

"Huh. Well uh, here it is. If you want me to make any changes, by all means, let me know."

"Nah, I like it like this. Different from my old room, but It's not overdone."

Trixie rolled her eyes. "Did you see the Carousel Boutique?"

"Yeah. I didn't get anything, but the pony who ran it was nice."

"She is. Her name's Rarity," Starlight said. "Very good at her work. But now I'm curious, what exactly did you do in Ponyville?"

Takumi jumped onto the queen-sized bed, feeling the silky linens. It was so different from his old bed. He loved it. He laid down on his stomach, resting his head on a white pillow. He almost completely forgot that two mares were watching him.

When he looked up at the two, he could instantly tell that Trixie was blushing. "What?"

"Never been on a silk bed before?" Starlight asked.

"Nope," Takumi replied, sitting up.

"Great. Now uh, what did you do? In Ponyville?"

"I mostly just looked around. I didn't really talk to anyone aside from uh... Rarity. I visited the Boutique or whatever it is, and also a place called Sugarcube Corner."

"Ah, so you must've met Pinkie Pie?"

Takumi was a little confused. "You mean the pink pony?"

"Yeah."

He winced. "Uh... yeah. I met her. She was annoying."

"She sometimes is. But knowing her, I'm surprised she isn't running around Ponyville at Mach Three telling everypony that you're an Alicorn. Surely she would have noticed. That or she would have already been throwing a party."

"Mach Three... great... yeah, she didn't make any remarks about me being an Alicorn. In fact, she seemed a little..." He quickly thought of the correct words. "Busy."

"Ah. Maybe that's why."

"Maybe. Oh hey, Starlight, I wanted to ask some things about Alicorns."

Starlight sat down on the bed across from him. "Really? Like what?"

"Well... I dunno. Just some things to note. Since, you know, apparently, Alicorns are really important."

"Well uh, where to begin... I guess I can start with how Alicorns are able to hold a considerable amount of magic within them. Much more than your average Unicorn. A Unicorn could hold as much if he or she trained hard enough, but It would take a long time to be able to master the kind of power an Alicorn could have, let alone safely hold it."

"Okay."

"What else... uh, I know that Princess Luna can enter the dream realm. She can go into ponies' dreams and manipulate them to her will. I dunno if the other Princesses can do that but... wait... actually that's a good question. Can the other Alicorns go into dreams?" Starlight looked at Trixie, who shrugged.

"How should I know? Ask them yourself," Trixie replied.

Starlight rolled her eyes. "I mean Celestia is over a thousand years old. Surely she has the ability to do that sort of thing."

They looked back at Takumi, who just stared at Starlight with wide eyes. Starlight grew confused.

"What?" she asked.

"Come again?" Takumi asked back.

"For... what? That Celestia might be able to also interact with dreams?"

"You said Celestia is how old?" Takumi asked, sounding worried.

"Over a thousand years. Why?"

"How is she that old?" Takumi asked.

"That's... just how old Alicorns can be. There is no set and stone thing on exactly how old one can live as we've never seen one die from old age... so at the moment, we might be looking at fifteen hundred plus. Since Celestia still looks pretty young."

"So let me get this straight..." Takumi processed the words. "You mean to tell me... that me and Itsuki... are going to live to be over a thousand years old?" His tone was shaky.

"If you don't get killed by other means, then... yeah."

Takumi looked down at the bed. "So you mean to tell me that... I'm going to outlive all my friends from my world?"

It took a second for Starlight and Trixie to process what Takumi said, but as soon as they did, their hearts sank.

"Oh... oh no..." Starlight slowly said.

"How am I gonna break this to Itsuki..." Takumi slowly said, staring at the blanket he was sitting on.

"Um... we could?" Trixie offered.

"No, no. I'm gonna have to do it. I think it would be better. But... damn... over a thousand years is such a long time..." His breathing became quicker. More shaky, too.

Starlight just sat there, hating seeing Takumi like this. "Do you want us to... um..."

"Leave?" Takumi suggested. "Yeah, you should. I'm gonna need some time to think about this..."

Trixie and Starlight looked at each other, and without a word, they both got up and walked out of the room.

"I'll check on you in a few hours, alright?" Starlight said. When she got no response, she slowly closed the door.

Takumi was left by himself, alone with his thoughts. He couldn't believe it. He was going to live a thousand years.

What's going to happen? He thought. My father, Keisuke, Ryosuke, Akio, all of Project D, all of Japan even, I'm gonna lose them all. Not by crashing on a mountain or anything, but by just outliving them. And a thousand years is such a long time. Japan could be a figment of the past a thousand years from now. I can't lose my birthplace! And my Eight Six... what's gonna happen to my 86 even a hundred years from now? I don't want it to wreck or decay.

Thoughts swirled around his head as he laid on the bed.

I don't want to live a thousand years, he continued thinking. I don't want to lose all my friends. I guess I'll always have Itsuki, but what about everyone else? I don't want to lose them... not like this...

He looked around. "This place isn't exactly bad. Everyone does seem nice, all the ponies look pretty cute... and the cars are the same as the ones from my world. I can deal with living here. But a thousand years of... possibly not being able to go back? My memories of being human would be so far back that I don't think I'd even know whether I became a legend or not..."

He took a deep breath in, held it, then let it out.

"My father trained me to become a legend, but now I'm just gone. All the work he did to train me to drive faster than anyone, put to waste. Same for Ryosuke. He refined my skills. Project D happened so he could find and train extraordinary drivers such as myself. He created the team to be unbeatable. And then of course... we attacked the Wonderbolts. And we were beaten. God... dammit..."

He took another breath in.

"Okay. No. I can pull through. I can wait. I can wait and see if I can get back. I haven't see how crazy magic gets, so... mm..."

He sighed as he pulled the covers over himself, laying on his sighed. He closed his eyes and, within minutes, went into a dreamless sleep.

Act 3: Dance to Forget

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEE-

THWAK!

Takumi slammed his hoof down on an alarm clock he didn't remember ever setting, opening his eyes and looking over at the time.

3:30AM

"Hmph," Was what came out of his mouth as he groggily got out from under the covers. The room was dark, the light's most likely doused by Starlight when she checked on him.

He walked towards the door and pushed it open. He then walked out across the hall and into the door directly across from his room. He pushed it open and found a bathroom. It was as he expected. A crystal-themed bathroom. He barely took note as his horn lit up, flicking the light on and turning the sink on.

Half a minute later, Takumi was rubbing water all over his face with his hooves. It felt surprisingly nice.

He stopped the water and dried off, now feeling more awake. Soon, he found himself walking down a flight of stairs to the first floor. The first thing he noticed was that the map room had light coming from behind its two shut doors which perked his interest. He stopped in front and cracked the door open ever so slightly, and saw several ponies sitting at the map room's center table.

Two of them were Starlight and Trixie, another was the bright blue Pegasus that had stopped him from slamming into the castle, another was Rarity from the Boutique, ANOTHER was Pinkie Pie, another was a normal orange pony with a cowboy hat on, yet another was a yellow Pegasus with pink hair. And last but not least, he saw Itsuki.

What are they doing up this late? Takumi thought as he continued to eavesdrop.

"We were FLYING down the Akina Pass as fast as lightning!" Itsuki exclaimed. "Takumi and I were keeping both the R33 and Miura at bay, but they were right on our tails! It was pretty scary, to say the least. But we were still faster!"

Must be talking about our battle with Nightmare Moon and Heartbreaker. Takumi thought, lightly smiling.

"Whoo doggy, all this talk about this battle o' yours is really riling me up!" The orange mare said with a southern accent.

"I know! Doesn't it sound super duper exciting?!" Takumi heard Pinkie say. He grimaced.

"That does sound pretty cool. But I'd need to experience it for myself to know if this street racing stuff is as cool and fun as streaking through the air in a Wonderbolts race." The blue pegasus remarked.

"You should! It just isn't something you can gauge until you either see it or experience it." Itsuki said. "Maybe I could take you for a run on the downhill in my Levin!"

"Maybe you could." Starlight said before sighing. "I wonder how the princesses would react to this street racing stuff. It is pretty illegal here."

"It is in Japan too. But cops literally never patrol the mountain roads. And whenever they encounter cars that are faster than them they just give up. Unless It's an interceptor." Itsuki clarified.

"Define 'Interceptor'," Starlight asked.

"Mazda RX-7 FD, Honda NSX, I think they just rolled out a new R34 GT-R Interceptor, the list goes on."

"Wow. Not bad. Though I think we have cars that are faster."

"Name one."

"Before we do that, are you absolutely sure that you can't contact Twilight?" Takumi heard Rarity asked. Her accent was way too familiar.

"Yeah, we're sure." Starlight replied. "She's totally cut off connection. The scrolls and messages we try to send simply aren't going."

Everyone groaned.

"ALL connection?" Itsuki asked.

"Yeah." Starlight replied.

"Sheesh. It's like the boy who cried wolf." Itsuki remarked.

"And... what's that?" Trixie asked.

"Long story short, a young boy is watching over sheep to make sure a wolf doesn't come and eat them. He thinks it's funny to yell that there is a wolf when there isn't. The townsfolk are fed up, and when a wolf ACTUALLY comes, they don't believe him. And all the sheep got to kiss their rears goodbye.

Takumi snickered, as did seemingly all the ponies there.

"Yes, that about sums up this situation." Starlight said. "With Twilight up at Canterlot, It would take quite a while to get up there."

"Where is Canterlot?" Itsuki asked. "WHAT is Canterlot?"

"The city on top of Mount Sierra. Can't miss it."

"Oh. Well, I guess that begs the question, who here wants to spend half an hour driving up there?"

"Nopony is going to drive all the way up there at this time in this weather." Starlight said.

"Still."

Takumi sighed and walked away from the door and down the hall to the front doors. His horn lit up with a light yellow glow, and within a split second the keys to his 86 were hovering next to him, also glowing light yellow. He pushed the front doors open and let them shut behind as he walked down the front steps. His sweater helped to fight the nippy coldness that now surrounded him as he walked towards his Trueno.

It was rather foggy as he bit down on the right door handle and pulled the door open before getting in, sitting his rear on the chair and shutting the door with his magic. His horn stopped glowing as he bit on the keys, leaning forward and inserting the key into the ignition. He turned his head.

Curchunka-chunka-chunka-vrooOOOOoooommmmm

The engine purred to life, Takumi listening to the exhaust note as the revs went back down to idle like he had done so many times before. He looked up and noticed that there were other cars in the lot. A car that looked like a white 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air. But it looked a little different from one, so maybe it was something else. Next to it was a crimson red four-door liftback he barely recognized. The front end almost resembled the new NHW10 Prius that had come out just last year, but it was a stretch.

Looking over towards the castle, he noticed a garden hose coming out from the castle. He looked down at the center cupholder and saw an empty paper cup in it. He looked between the two before sighing and opening the door via magic. The cup began floating beside him as he walked over to the garden hose, turning the nozzle and filling the cup up two-thirds of the way. He shut the water off and walked back to his car, getting in and setting the cup down into the cupholder.

Sighing, Takumi put the clutch in and shifted to first gear, slowly letting it out. He used his magic to hover the cup in the air as he drove over the dirt, not wanting it to spill.

Soon, he made it onto the tarmac road that circled Ponyville, so he set the cup back down into the cupholder. He was on the left side of the road instead of the right, not having a care in the world.

Takumi just... drove. He got on a highway, still on the left, and accelerated.

Back at the castle, Itsuki was still talking about the battle.

"Then the Cosmo brake checked the R33, allowing me to get off the embankment and jump drift into the left hairpin just in time!" Itsuki exclaimed.

"Wow!" Spike said, who had now joined them. "That sounds sick! I wonder how Takumi felt about it."

"Yeah, you guys would love to hear his perspective. I'm sure it was amazing. Wait..." Itsuki looked up at a clock that now read 3:49AM. "Oh! That alarm I set must have woken him up by now! Hold on, lemme go get him."

Itsuki got out of his chair and trotted out the room and soon went up some stairs.

"Takumi!" He said as he opened the door, looking in. "You awake?"

No response.

"Takumi?" He asked, quieter this time as he walked all the way in, leaving the door open behind him. He walked over to the bed and pulled the covers off, and found nothing. Takumi wasn't there. He grew confused as he turned around and walked across the hall, knocking on the bathroom door. "Takumi? You in there?" He asked.

Still no response, so he opened the door and peered in. The light was off, so he couldn't have been there. His eyes widened a little.

"Takumi!" He yelled suddenly as he exited the bathroom.

"What's wrong?" Starlight asked, who had just come up the stairs.

"Takumi's not in his room!" Itsuki explained quickly as he ran past her down the stairs. Starlight's eyes widened as she took off after him.

A second later, Itsuki ran into the map room. "Did any of you happen to see Takumi?" He quickly asked, getting everyone's attention. "White Alicorn with black hair?"

Everyone pretty much said no, they hadn't.

"CRAP!" Itsuki yelled as he ran right back out, taking a left towards the front doors. He burst through the doors, and his eyes shot to where his Levin was. Takumi's Trueno was nowhere to be seen. "TAKUMIII!" He yelled as Trixie of all mares ran up next to him.

"What's wrong?" She asked.

"Takumi is gone! His car isn't there!" Itsuki exclaimed.

"It ISN'T?!" Starlight yelled in surprise as she stopped next to the two. Her eyes widened as she saw that the Panda Trueno really was gone. "Oh no... Oh no oh no nonononono..."

"Goddammit!" Itsuki said, stomping on the floor. "Typical of him to leave without saying anything."

A few seconds later, the three were back in the map room. Everyone had worried looks on their faces.

"Ok." Starlight began. "Takumi is gone, we need to find him."

"In THIS weather?!" The blue Pegasus asked. "Have you even seen how foggy it is right now?"

"Obviously I have, Rainbow Dash. But..." She let out a small groan. "I just want to find him immediately. He is way too important for us to lose."

"Well, it shouldn't be that hard to find him." The yellow Pegasus said with a rather soft voice. "Almost nopony is on the roads at this time."

"Still." Starlight replied. "We don't even know how long ago he left. He could be miles away."

"Well, then we should get out there!" The orange southern pony said. "Ah' can grab my car!"

"Yeah, and race along the highways looking for him?" Itsuki asked. "I know Takumi. At this time of night, the only thing he would want to do is attack the mountain pass."

"Well there's a few mountain passes 'round here. Dunno which one he coulda' gone too though." The southerner replied.

"Then ah' don't know," Itsuki said with his own southern-like accent. Though it sounded a little bit australian.

"Are you mockin' me?!"

"A little! I just thought it sounded a bit funny."

"At least you're honest."

Starlight just rolled her eyes. "So who wants to go look for Takumi?" She asked.

Takumi hummed to himself a typical late-90s high-bpm tune as he took an exit ramp to get off the highway, going left onto a road leading to a large mountain. He knew that this was the mountain that he had seen in the rearview mirror as he and Itsuki ended the battle. He stopped singing and sighed.

"My legacy-, no, our legend..." He said to himself, rubbing the Trueno's dashboard. "Our legend has ended. Back in Japan. I was hoping that this was just a dream, a really detailed lucid dream, but no. It wasn't. In a few years, we really will become the White Ghost of Akina. Maybe we'll show up as an actual ghost at around Four, following whoever happens to be on the pass and overtaking them on a corner."

He was now traveling uphill, weaving around a left hairpin.

"I guess our legend hasn't ended, and it will probably live on for years to come." He continued. "People will talk about how the Panda Trueno rose up from Akina, beating everyone it faced. The Akagi RedSuns, Myogi Nightkids, Impact Blue, Team Emperor, all of them. None of them expected that an 86 could beat them. I didn't expect to beat them. Or race them. How did I ever get through life without being a street racer..."

Several minutes later, Takumi pulled into a parking lot at the top of the Canterlot Turnpike. He stopped next to a guardrail facing the mountain's edge. He couldn't see much since the fog faded in after a few hundred feet. It was almost creepy.

Takumi stared at the water in the cup. Not a single drop had spilled from it, which made him smile. Turning the engine off, he got out and looked behind at the lot. It was a weird design to some, a small space several hundred feet long for parking on each side, but it had been done, in his world at least, to allow people to park at the top of Mount Akina and gaze out over the beautiful landscape. That was probably the case here.

He stared at the lots. There wasn't a single car in them. That was to be expected considering the time. But as he stared, he began to hallucinate.

At first, the changes were small. Two guardrails appeared between the road and parking lots, stretching most of the way except for the ends of the lots to allow cars to access them. Then, cars began appearing. Not generic sedans or pickup trucks, but sports cars. Japanese Sports Cars. A Mint Green Nissan S13 Silvia, a white Nissan 180SX, another red 180SX, the list went on. Soon, the lot was filled with over a dozen Japanese Sports Cars, with humans gathered around them.

Takumi yelped when he saw a car with two humans next to him. A white Toyota Corolla Levin was right next to him.

"Itsuki!?" he yelled in surprise at a young man looking at the engine bay of the Levin. It was his friend Itsuki, as a human. He was accompanied by a slightly taller man. "Iketani?" He asked, growing confused when they didn't respond.

He noticed that he was about half the size of Itsuki, his head up to a bit past Itsuki's waist. He stopped right next to them, listening to them talk.

"Yeah, she's sturdy for a 3 Series," Iketani said not in English, but in Japanese.

"Yep!" Itsuki replied, also in Japanese. "I don't even care that I make about 80 horses. Ever since Takumi showed me just how fast a car can be, I've been training to go faster and faster!"

"Guys?" Takumi asked, reaching to push Itsuki's pant leg. He gasped. His hoof had just gone straight through him! He pulled back quickly, looking at his hoof. Nothing had happened to it. He looked around. This is just a hallucination... He thought.

He peeked into the Levin's engine bay, looking at it. His eyes widened a little. Where's the turbo? He wondered. Out of curiosity, he pushed his hoof into the front bumper. Surprisingly, it didn't go through. He sighed and looked around.

"Why is Itsuki using his Eight-Five?" He asked. "I know he sold Its turbo, which is why it doesn't have it, but why would he be using it over his Eight Six?"

He looked over at the road and saw a few more cars. A White Mazda RX-7 FC, the predecessor to the famed RX-7 FD of the 1990s. Speaking of, there was a Yellow RX-7 FD in front of the FC along with an orange Nissan S14 Silvia, successor to the S13. Takumi gasped.

"Wait... are those the... RedSuns?" he asked, trotting over.

He stopped next to the yellow FD. It was the same FD as the one he had passed in his daydream yesterday.

"This is Keisuke's FD, but It's back in the RedSuns spec!" Takumi continued. "Why? And why would Ryosuke race under the RedSuns name? Was I that important to Project D?" He glanced at a man in his mid-20s that was leaning against the white FC. He was six feet tall, had brown eyes, dark blue hair, a dark blue shirt with a white jacket, and white jeans. The man looked like he was deep in thought, as he was simply looking at the ground with his eyes closed.

He looked just behind the FC and saw another man the same height as the FC's driver standing. He had blond hair, a dark grey sweater, forest green jeans, and was fairly muscular.

"Where the hell is that damn thing?" the blonde asked.

"Patience Keisuke," the FC's driver replied. "He'll show."

"HE'S HERE!" Someone yelled before anyone could even breathe. "AKINA'S EIGHT-SIX!"

The crowd cheered as headlights appeared around a curve. It was a black and white Trueno very similar to Takumi's minus the carbon hood and headlights. As it came to a stop several feet in front of the FC3S, Takumi saw Itsuki, Iketani, and another man run to it as the right door opened. He then noticed the lettering on the right side, lettering that made him gasp.

Fujiwara Tofu Shop (Private Use)

"That's my car!" Takumi yelled as he saw a young teenager get out of the car, Itsuki immediately grabbed the teen. "That's... that's me?" Takumi asked, realizing that he was staring at himself.

"Final goddamn lee., Takumi heard Keisuke, the blond man, say, causing him to look back. Keisuke was just staring at Takumi's human counterpart.

Finally, Takumi's mind clicked.

"This... this is my race with Ryosuke..." Takumi said in realization, looking around. "This night held the battle that totally kicked off my racing career. My race with Keisuke, Nakazato, Shingo, hell, even Mako and Sayuki, they were all fine. But this was the race that really kicked things off."

This video is something for PC users. Mobile Users don't need it. Play it in the background as you read.

"You're late," Keisuke growled in a harsh and aggressive tone, causing Takumi to look at him. Keisuke scoffed. "You're still as ignorant as the day I raced you. You were supposed to be here by ten."

There was a pause.

"I've been waiting for you," the FC's driver, Ryosuke, said.

All was silent as Ryosuke stopped leaning on the FC and turned to face Human Takumi. Pony Takumi turned to face his human counterpart who was just staring at Ryosuke. Suddenly, Ryosuke walked straight through Takumi, causing his whole body to tingle. After quickly regaining composure, he watched Ryosuke walk towards Human Takumi, silent. It felt like years.

Step

Finally, Ryosuke stopped a few feet in front of Human Takumi, hands in pockets. The two stared for a moment before finally, Ryosuke spoke.

"I find it impressive that you've been able to learn so many advanced techniques in such a short amount of time," Ryosuke remarked, his tone calm and collected. "Given of course that you're still a teenager."

Takumi looked at Human Takumi.

"It's not a big deal," Human Takumi replied. "I've probably driven Akina Pass more than anyone else, so I'm just really used to it. I don't know any special techniques or anything, I just like to drive." Pony Takumi mouthed the whole sentence perfectly.

Ryosuke just stared. His expression hadn't changed.

"Honestly I think you're overestimating what I'm capable of. The fact is I'm not as good as you think I am."

Ryosuke smiled. "That's an interesting way of looking at it," he remarked. "Either you're extremely modest or you still don't understand the extent of your own potential."

Human Takumi seemed a little surprised, and there was a moment of silence.

"You are quite a... unique kid," Ryosuke finally said, slightly surprising Human Takumi again.

Ryosuke turned around and began to walk to his FC. He took off his white sweater and threw it onto Keisuke's shoulder, and opened the right door of the FC.

"We're doin' this?" Keisuke asked.

Ryosuke looked at him. "Let's get this race started. It should be a fun evening for us." He said, getting into the FC.

Keisuke stood up straight. "Alright! Get these cars off the road!" he yelled to the other racers.

Pony Takumi walked back through the parking lot as several cars started their engines. Piston engines and Rotaries purred to life as cars turned around and pulled into the parking lot. As they did so, Takumi got in his AE86 and started Its engine, the tachometer revving up before slowly crawling back down to idle.

"It wouldn't hurt to follow the race," Takumi admitted. "It's not like they can see me. And it would give me a chance to see just how far I've come." He checked the rearview mirror and was about to shift to reverse when his eyes widened.

He opened the door again and leaned out, looking at the parking lot. Everything was gone. The cars, the people, even the tension. He was alone.

Takumi looked back forward, closing the door. "I guess that's all it was..." he said, staring at the fog that lay past the guardrail. "A hallucination. But..." He groaned. "Why let me go through all of that, just to take it away from me just before the battle begins? To screw with me?"

vrrrrrOOOOOmm- KSH! - vrroooooo-

A rotary engine was fast approaching, making Takumi look in his mirror. Beams of light were appearing from around the trees. The car was coming from Canterlot which sat a quarter mile from where Takumi was. He could tell because he could see the castle that seemed to stretch a third of a mile into the air.

Suddenly, the car appeared from around the bend, flying by at high speed. Its dark blue silhouette resembled a sleek sports car. Takumi couldn't see it well, but it almost looked like an S13. He sighed as it disappeared, and put the Trueno into reverse.

"All that I want..." he slowly said as he put it in first gear and got on the road, eyeing the taillights ahead. "Is to go home. I won't even be able to..." He chuckled. "I won't be able to produce offspring and continue the legend of Akina's Eight-Six. Even if the kid got a different Eight Six, I would be happy. This would have been totally fine if I had at least... did it with someone."

Mr. M - All That I Want starts playing. (Another video to play in the background)

"But no. It had to happen in the heat of my career. With an actual rivaling team to battle, I think I was getting to the point where I would have been able to beat Satoru and the Wonderbolts. It just had to happen THEN. WHY COULDN'T IT HAVE BEEN AFTER I RACED SATORU?!" he yelled, slamming his hoof onto the dashboard.

He sighed. "Would getting with someone even be worth it?" he asked as he traveled around a left corner, not hitting the brakes at all. "I'm gonna live a thousand years, so how would I be able to maintain a relationship with someone? I guess it would be fun for the first decade or so, but after that, whoever I got with would begin to show their age. I'd probably stay looking young."

Takumi turned around a right corner, once again not braking. The water in the cup rolled to one side before settling.

EEEEEEEEE!

He saw the taillights from before disappearing around a right hairpin ahead, making him gasp.

"That's a racer? In this world?" he asked, eyeing the small digital clock on the center of the dashboard. 4:27AM. "Why would anyone race? Even in my world, who in their right mind would race at this time?"

His eyes shifted to the tachometer which slowly increased past 7000RPM's along with the engine's pitch. He could feel himself pushing harder. Finally, he looked forward.

I guess I might as well see how well do racing in pony form. He thought, slamming on the brakes and swerving sideways into the right hairpin.

[EUROBEAT INTENSIFIES]

The Trueno drift through the inside of the hairpin at speed, hitting the apex perfectly and exiting less than an inch from the guardrail. He gripped around a left curve and saw the taillights ahead. They were a wide bright red bar. In the car ahead, Its driver Instantly noticed the headlights fast approaching.

"I thought I saw a car back there!" The driver exclaimed with a slightly low female voice. "But how is it catching up? Is it another racer? At this time?" A pair of cyan-colored pupils looked forward, and the driver gasped as she stepped on the brakes and swerved sideways through a left corner, turning and drifting the other way into a right corner. The car exited, and she exhaled.

"No matter," the driver said. "I shall lose it within a couple of corners. I would not want anypony to find out that I do this."

Behind, the water in the paper cup rolled about as Takumi downshifted and drifted into the same left corner before flicking the other way into the right corner. He exited beautifully and saw the car ahead drift around a left hairpin.

"Now this, I can get used to," Takumi said as he pushed his front hooves into the steering wheel. He suddenly sent the wheel to the left, offsetting the Trueno's weight and sending it sideways into the hairpin. He let the wheel fly the other way and caught the drift, pushing hard on the throttle.

The Panda Trueno careened around the inside before Takumi let it understeer towards the outside. He pressed on the throttle and exited the hairpin centimeters from the guardrail. He eyed the paper cup as the water sloshed towards the rear, just barely cresting the edge of the cup before settling. Takumi smiled as he looked ahead at the taillights that he was quickly gaining.

Wow. I'm not doing that bad, he thought. In fact, I think I'm running at about the same pace I was when I raced Keisuke.

Ahead in the S13 lookalike, the driver gasped, and her cyan eyes went wide.

"What? It is catching up? How?!" The driver asked as her hoof pushed the gear shift around. "I am in a Mazda Cosmo JC!"

The Midnight Blue Mazda Cosmo JC braked and drifted through a quick right corner. Takumi didn't brake and began drifting about a hundred feet before the corner, barely countersteering and flying through it with ease. He straightened out and was now right behind the Cosmo.

The Cosmo driver's eyes went wide with confusion as she stared at the car behind her. "It caught up!? What even is that thing?!"

The driver pressed hard on the throttle and began accelerating away. She pulled away quite a bit until she braked and pulled the handbrake up to initiate a drift. Takumi drifted in behind at speed, downshifting and flooring it with minimal countersteer. The Cosmo's driver looked behind and grew horrified.

"Woah is that-" The driver did a double-take. "Is that the Sprinter?!" she exclaimed as she and Takumi exited the hairpin. The Cosmo fishtailed heavily, costing speed. "That cannot be the Sprinter Trueno I saved the other night!"

They approached a left hairpin. Takumi let out a small groan as he and the Cosmo braked and drifted into the hairpin.

It is! the driver internally yelled. I recognize those symbols! That is the same car I helped in battling Nightmare Moon and Heartbreaker!

They exited. Takumi pressed against the Cosmo's bumper. His tachometer revved up past 10K RPM as their speeds increased. Before long, both cars were flying down a straightaway at high speed. The Cosmo Driver's eyes kept darting to the mirror as Takumi slowly fell behind due to lack of power.

"This is crazy!" the pony said. "I have clearly got power in the straights, but at each corner, he is catching up! How?! It is just a Sprinter!"

The cars approached a left curve that might as well have been a hairpin with the speed they were doing, causing the Cosmo to lock up Its rear wheels and floor it with full countersteer. Takumi groaned again as he went in behind, parallel drifting right behind the Cosmo.

Shoot! the driver thought as they drifted. We are moving so fast! How is that Sprinter keeping up?!

"This is so sloow..." Takumi slowly said with a disinterested tone as they exited the curve. The Cosmo swerved into the left lane suddenly, which made Takumi swerve into the right lane and speed ahead. The Cosmo Driver's Cyan Eyes looked on in aw at the sight,

Does he even know this road? she thought. After this slow right is a sharp left! You gotta slow down!

Takumi oversteered and allowed the rear to kick out, and he began understeering towards the outer guardrail. The Cosmo braked.

"I knew it! You are going in way too fast! Slow down!" the driver yelled.

Takumi let off the throttle and countersteered hard suddenly, causing the 86 to flick the other way into the sharp left corner. The Cosmo's driver gasped at the sight she had just seen.

"What?!"

The 86 disappeared around the bend as the Cosmo slid sideways. The driver pressed a little on the throttle with full countersteer and yelped as the Cosmo slid into the dirt. She pressed the brakes and came to a stop half on and half off the road, completely sideways.

Music ends.

Takumi had watched the scene unfold, and he let off the throttle, smiling. "My first Inertia Drift as a pony. That felt... amazing to pull off." He looked forward, then back at the spun-out Cosmo. "Hmm..."

Back in the Cosmo, the driver stared at her Cosmo's steering wheel, her breathing heavy and shaky.

That move looked... impossible, the driver thought. Yet that maniac did it. I know that Sprinter was quick when I helped it and It's Levin Friend the other night, but how could it have performed that move?

She replayed the scene in her head. The 86 was approaching the guardrail, nothing short of a heavy wind spell should have been able to stop it from careening into the guardrail. Yet, it had flicked the other way and shot to the other side of the road just in time to swing around the left corner.

It looked like... art, she continued thinking. It was so smooth, uninterrupted, and elegant, like my sister at a celebration. And that is really saying something.

I know that an FD is a fast machine, but how could an 86 be that fast? It had speed on the straights, but I was still faster on said straights. So that means that I was losing in the corners. But how? I am in a Mazda Cosmo JC!

"Unless..." she said, looking at the rearview mirror and staring at her dark blue-coated self. "Could it be me? Am I simply not good enough? I have nearly trained my flank off these past three nights since I got this JC, and even more with my R33 before that. Am I simply not good enough?"

vvrOOOoommmm

The pony looked to her right and saw the 86 come to a stop a few feet away on the side of the road, and gasped.

Takumi had decided to come back to make sure the driver of the Cosmo was alright. To him, the spin seemed pretty bad. But as he slowed to a stop on the side of the road, several feet away, he saw that the crash wasn't bad at all. Only the front bumper seemed slightly dislodged on one side. Takumi sighed as he got out. He looked up and saw a dark blue pony about the size of that cyan-colored pony he had seen at the Carousel whatever-it-was getting out of the right side of the Cosmo.

"I know I really should not be doing this, but I must ask, where did you learn to drive like tha-" The pony stopped, and the two stared at each other. Takumi didn't know why she was staring, but he knew why he was staring.

He recognized this pony. Or, not the pony, but he recognized her hair.

The pony's hair flowed like mist around her. It was dark blue with what looked like white sparkly stars in it. Combined with her dark blue coat and royal-looking outfit, it made her look rather beautiful. But Takumi recognized the hair from something else. An image flashed through his mind. An image of a jet black Nissan Skyline BNR33 GTR surrounded by the same dark blue mist, flowing in the wind as it chased him in his 86.

Act 4: Thunder

Takumi blinked twice. "Ahem. Uh, sorry, I didn't mean to stare, I just wanted to know if you were alright."

"You are... fine. I had not realized that you were a pony. I thought you and your friend were um..." The pony trailed off.

"Me and my friend?" Takumi asked.

"Yes, you and that red Levin. I am the driver of the Cosmo that helped you two the other night against that R33 and Miura."

Takumi glanced at the Cosmo. An image of the car slamming on Its brakes right in front of a black R33 flashed through his mind.

"Yeah... I remember you. Thanks for that. You really saved my friend's rear."

The pony tittered. "You are quite welcome."

"Also, what was that about you thinking I was something else? What did you think I was?"

The pony winced, and they continued staring. "I uh... well... you would not know what I was talking about." She looked away. "Many have never heard of such beings."

Takumi thought about it but decided to just go ahead and say what he thought she meant. "Human?"

The pony's eyes widened as she looked back at him. "You have heard of them?"

"I was one of them. Me and my friend."

"But... you are a pony?" The pony was confused. She began slowly walking towards Takumi. He took the moment to analyze the pony some more. She was an Alicorn like him, as she had both a Horn and Wings. Though she had a much more feminine appearance.

"Uh... yeah," Takumi said. Dark blue, looks like there is a crescent moon on that thing she's wearing... wait... He realized something as the pony stopped a few feet in front of him. She was very 'Lunar' themed. "You wouldn't happen to be Princess Luna, would you?" he asked, slightly tilting his head to one side.

The pony looked surprised. "Uhm, yes?"

"Wait..." Takumi realized that this 'Princess' had been racing downhill. A Princess was racing. "What's a Princess like you, doing on Akina? Er- not Akina, whatever this pass is?"

"Uh..." Luna glanced away sheepishly, blushing.

"I don't know how this world works, but I feel like if the leader of my country or any other country from my world was caught-"

"I know!" Luna interrupted. "I know. It is not good to street race. But I have taken the necessary precautions as to not let anypony know that I do this. Like practicing only after one in the morning. Nopony knows that I even own this car."

"Except for me. But that doesn't explain why your racing."

Luna sighed. "About two weeks ago, I decided to cruise down this same road in my Skyline. I believe it was three when I did it. Then this Mazda RX-7 FD came up behind me and flashed its headlights. And due to the music I was listening to at the time... I just uh... could not help myself. And we raced downhill. It ended with me crashing into a guardrail and the FD passing me."

"Oh. Huh."

"I asked the driver if he could recommend any cars for me since he mentioned that an R33 is far too heavy for a mountain pass, so he recommended me the Mazda Cosmo JC. And I only got it a few days ago. Ever since that race with the FD, I just... hehe. I just cannot stop. Racing has consumed me."

Takumi chuckled. "Yeah, that's what racing does to you. Once you experience it, it gets beneath your skin and you just can't stop."

"Exactly. Now I must ask." Luna walked past Takumi and stopped a few feet away from his car. "What do you have in this?" She asked, looking at Takumi.

Takumi stared at her, not knowing what she meant.

"Did you not hear me? What do you have installed? Surely this thing is not stock."

"Oh, that's what you meant. Uh, well, It's got a 4A-GE. Formula Atlantic. Makes... 240 horsepower."

"Really?" Luna looked at the hood of the 86. "I have heard of those. Very prestigious racing engine from years past that is able to sustain extremely high RPMs. I am quite surprised it is in a car of this kind."

Takumi walked over to the right door of the 86. His horn lit up and the door handle also lit up with a light yellow glow, and he pulled the door open. Being able to do that is pretty helpful. Takumi thought. "A friend of mine from the other world says that 240HP is the perfect power for the downhill, so I keep it at that. I'm still quick either way." He said as he popped the hood of the 86.

Luna's eyes widened as she looks back at Takumi. "Quick!? That back there is what you call quick?!"

Takumi got out. "Um, yeah." He smirked. "Heh, even I'm surprised at how well I did. Considering it was my first time practicing as a pony."

Luna breathed in, then slowly breathed out. "True. It is amazing how fast you have been able to adapt from a bipedal being to a quadruped. How long have you been here?"

"Actually it took me a day to get used to it." Takumi clarified. "I've been having lucid dreams for a couple of weeks now. Itsuki's been having the same but only for a week or so. He was a Unicorn, I was always an Alicorn."

This perked Luna's interest. "Dreams?"

"Yeah. It just kind of... happened. We would always appear in a field. For the first week, we weren't together. But when he slept at my place, we were. And he slept at my place every night afterward so we could dream together."

"Really? Either I never noticed your dreams or you were not in the dream realm."

"I don't know. The first time I was a pony, it felt strange. I was with my 86. I was in the middle of a field alone. So I just kind of walked around, tried flying, and woke up a few hours later. It happened again the next night, and by the third night I was just used to it."

"Huh." Luna shifted her gaze at the engine bay and found herself admiring it.

"Wow..." she mumbled. 4A-GEU 20 Valve Silvertop with... what looks like individual throttle bodies. These were used in the best of Toyota's Rally Cars years ago before being replaced by the Blacktop. But what is one doing in this old Corolla?

She slowly began walking around the car while Takumi just stared at her. Takumi rolled his eyes and stared at the Cosmo that was still spun out in the dirt.

RS Watanabe Eight Spoke F8-Type Wheels... Luna continued to think as she glanced at the wheels. She was now on the left side of the car, in between both it and the guardrail. She walked around the rear. Custom muffler... Luna made her way around the right side, noting the markings on the door.

She glanced inside the interior and drew in a small breath. ItalVolanti Formel Red Trim Steering Wheel, TRD Bucket Seats with four-point harness...

"Wow," she said, stepping back in front of the 86. "Just... wow."

"What?" Takumi asked suddenly, looking at her.

"Sorry, I have not been able to get this close to a street racer's car before."

"Why? Are there not many racers in this world?"

"Of course there are. There are plenty I am sure. But I have not been able to get near any because of my... image."

She looked at Takumi, who just stared back with a confused look.

"Would it not turn a few heads when a Princess like me began gazing at somepony's race car for an extended period of time?" She asked. "Don't you think that could generate rumors? Not even my own sister knows that I do this. She does not even know that I own this Cosmo."

Takumi looked back at the Cosmo, thinking about what Luna just said. "Huh. I guess you're right. Which is exactly why I wouldn't want to become a prince or anything."

Luna stared. "Why would you become a prince?"

"Well, Starlight said that since me and Itsuki are Alicorns, we're both pretty much regarded as princes. Er, royals. Whatever she said."

Luna's eyes widened as she finished the scanning spell. She nearly lost the ability to breathe as she saw that she was staring at a new, never-heard-of, MALE, ALICORN! A STALLION! Stallicorn? No- still. Male Alicorn! Or just another Alicorn in general!

"Are you ok?" Takumi asked after a few seconds, seeing the look on Luna's face.

Luna shook her head. "Um- Yes, I am fine. I am just..." She took a deep breath. "I am surprised that you are an Alicorn. I assumed you were a Changeling at first. Only they could have pulled off a look as convincing as yours."

He didn't have any clue what the heck a 'changeling' was, so he just defaulted to a simple reply. "All... right." Takumi's eyes widened a little as he realized something. "Oh... I should probably get back to them now that I think about it."

"Back to who?"

"Back to Starlight and the castle she let me and Itsuki stay in. I did kind of leave without saying anything after eavesdropping a bit. There were a bunch of other ponies there as well. Crowded around a table."

"Oh? What were they talking about?"

Takumi got up on his hind legs and reached his front legs up to the hood. He pulled it down and slammed it shut. "Itsuki was talking about our battle with Heartbreaker and Nightmare Moon and stuff. And how they were going to get word to you guys that me and Itsuki existed. To be honest, I really just came up here because I wanted to see Canterlot again."

"Again?"

"Yeah. A couple of weeks ago I was running a delivery when I found myself there. Not a bad city. Great view, the buildings are a nice change from the ones I'm used to, and the layout is nice."

"Huh..."

"Anyways." Takumi's horn lit up as the right door magically opened. "See you later. I might do another run."

"Wait!" Luna said, making Takumi shut the door and roll down the window, staring at her.

"Are you sure you do not want to sleep in the Castle of Canterlot?" she asked.

Takumi stared at the dashboard for a few seconds. "I don't know..." Man, he thought. That castle is fricken massive. I could wander around it for weeks before finding everything it had to offer. Maybe even months. But on the other hand, I could head back and let Itsuki know that I'm fine. And then there's a third hand I've somehow achieved where I could just sleep in my car.

"Actually..." Takumi slowly said. "I think I'll just do a few more runs, then I'll sleep in my car. I don't know If I'm entirely ready for a castle life yet. That alright with you?" He asked. Luna was surprised.

"You want to sleep in your car?" she asked, tilting her head to one side.

"Just on top of this road. In that parking lot. Might be interesting since I'm a pony."

Luna weighed the options in her head. If he slept in his car in that parking lot, he would be very close to Canterlot. She thought. But he would also run the risk of being taken. Foalnapped even. But I guess the chances of somepony foalnapping a random pony in a car like his would be rather low.

She suddenly had an idea. "How about you sleep in your car, but park inside Canterlot?"

Takumi thought for a second. "What do you mean?"

"Just somewhere close to the castle on the side of the road. That way, should anything happen, we will be close and we will know."

"Mmm... Eh, why not. I guess I'll do it. See you there." Takumi put the 86 in gear.

"Oh. Uh, goodbye... I guess?"

Takumi nodded as the window rolled up and he accelerated off. Luna just stood there as the Panda Trueno disappeared around the corner. Its engine could be heard in the distance, accelerating and revving in harmony with the screeching of tires.

She did want Takumi to sleep in the castle, considering how important he was considering he was an Alicorn. But she also didn't want to anger him and possibly make him leave. Then again, maybe she was just being paranoid.

Looking back at her Mazda Cosmo JC, Luna smiled. Never mind that. I just want to see him race.

10:15AM, Twilight's Castle.

BEEBEEBEEP! BEEBEEBEEP! BEEBEEBEEP! BEEBEEBEEP! BEEBEEBEEP! BEEBEEBEE- click

Itsuki lightly groaned as he rose up from his queen-sized bed, at least it was the same size as one, and lifted his hooves up.

"Still a pony..." he mumbled before yawning. "Awesome."

He got off the bed and walked out the bedroom door. He walked down the hall for a second before walking through a door into a bathroom. After he did his business, he walked out and began making his way down some stairs through the castle.

I don't care what people say, he thought. This place is AWESOME! I get to live in a castle, I got stuck as what is probably the best being I could have gotten stuck as, and I got to have fun and share my story with all those ponies! And none of them looked half bad!

He smiled as he continued talking to himself. "No chicks back in Japan could ever look as unbelievably cute as those ponies. And Rainbow Dash..." He chuckled. "Man, she looked fricken awesome. Her blue coat melded so well with her Rainbow hair which-... heh, with how fast she says she can fly, I sure wonder why she got her name."

He pushed some doors open and found himself in a spacious kitchen.

"And I think she was even staring at me a few times too!" he continued. "Man, I hope I can actually get with a piece like her, She looks and sounds and ACTS too perfect."

"Who are you hoping to get with?" a female voice asked, making Itsuki's gaze shoot upwards to the mare he hadn't noticed when he walked in. It was Starlight.

He started blushing. "S-S-... Starlight?!" Itsuki exclaimed as Starlight stood there in front of the oven, staring at him with a sly smirk on her face. "What are you doing in here!? Why are you awake?!"

"Alarms. Woke up at nine," Starlight calmly replied as she set some pancakes on two plates. "Now which 'piece' are you hoping to get with?"

"Uh- no one! Shut it," Itsuki replied, looking away and walking towards a fridge to open it.

"Is it me?"

Itsuki opened the door. "...No."

"Oh? Then who?"

"Nobody. Pony. Nopony. Shush."

"Come on Itsuki." Starlight said as she poured a bit of syrup on the pancakes. "I heard you as clear as the Crystal Empire's walls talking about a special somepony you're into. Who is it?"

"NOBODY! Pony! Whatever!" Itsuki snapped as he pulled some apple cider out of the fridge via a levitation spell. "I doubt I'll get used to this magic stuff any time soon."

Starlight giggled and rolled her eyes. "Fiiine. Anyways, I made some pancakes."

"I'll grab em' in a second," Itsuki said as he levitated the cider and a cup onto a counter. "So is it just us in the castle or something?" He asked as he poured the cider into the cup.

"There is Spike, but he's asleep. Can't blame him considering how late it was when we all clocked out. Everyone pretty much left. So yeah, It's just us in the castle."

"Of course. After I eat, I'm gonna head to the Akina lookalike to find Takumi. My guess is that he's there."

"Akina lookalike?"

Itsuki looked at Starlight. "The one mountain towards the... north I believe. The one with the massive city."

"That's the Sierra Mountain. And the city on it is Canterlot."

"If the city is Canterlot, then why would they call the mountain-wait- OH SHI- OH GODDAMMIT!" he yelled as he suddenly realized that he was overfilling his cup. He quickly stopped pouring the cider as Starlight burst out laughing.

"You klutz!" Starlight exclaimed as both her horn and some paper towels lit up. Itsuki, now blushing even more than he already was, levitated the cup of cider off the counter as Starlight used her magic to clean it.

"Oh for gods-... urgh. I'm heading to that map room." Itsuki groaned as he levitated both his cup of cider, while also taking a big sip to not let it spill, and a plate of four pancakes as he walked through the kitchen and out the door.

"See you in a second!" Starlight cheerfully called out as the door shut, making Itsuki roll his eyes.

As he walked, drink and plate hovering next to him, he began thinking again.

"I don't get why Takumi would dislike being here." He said. "Everything is just fricken awesome! I don't need to work a job, everyone seems super lax about what you do which is way different from Japan, and the girls-... mares all look great! But holy crap... she seems adventurous, enthusiastic, a lover of speed and adrenaline, her voice is perfect, she looks perfect-"

"Hm. Now, who do I know that is Adventurous, Enthusiastic, and is also a Lover of Speed and Adrenaline?"

Itsuki's eyes widened and his face reddened to no end as he looked to his right and saw Starlight trotting along with him, her plate of pancakes hovering next to her. She looked at him with a very sly and cheeky look on her face. Itsuki's pace slowed, as did Starlight's, and before long they were stopped in the middle of the hallway.

He didn't know what to say. He just stood there like a doofus staring at Starlight with his jaw slightly hung open and a red streak across the middle of his face. After seeing that Itsuki was totally speechless, she giggled.

"Would that special somepony happen to be Rainbow Dash?" Starlight asked.

"How much did you hear..." Itsuki slowly asked back.

"Please, I had a feeling you two would go well together. The way you acted coupled with how I noticed Rainbow Dash look at you every now and again was pretty interesting," Starlight explained as she slowly began walking forward towards some double doors.

Itsuki slowly followed. "Please don't say a word about it."

"I won't. It'll be cute to see how you two get together, so your secret is safe with me and Trixie," Starlight assured as she and Itsuki walked through the doors into the map room.

"Thanks." Itsuki's eyes widened as he processed the end of the sentence. "Hold up- you and TRIXIE? Uh, no! Don't tell her! Why would you tell her?"

"Hey, I should be entitled to telling at least one close friend." Starlight said as she set her plate down on the table. "Trixie and I are pretty close. I doubt she'd be the kind of mare to... uh..." Starlight trailed off as she remembered what Trixie was like.

"On second thought..." Starlight tittered. "I don't think I'll tell Trixie after all."

"Thanks," Itsuki said as he put his plate and drink down on the table, sitting down at the chair that just so happened to have a rainbow lightning bolt on it. Starlight rolled her eyes as she sat down in the chair with party balloons on it, across from Itsuki.

They silently ate their food for a moment before Starlight looked up at Itsuki. He was looking down at his food, probably thinking about Rainbow Dash or Racing or Takumi or just the new world he was in.

If she was being honest, Itsuki didn't look half bad. Although simple, red and black were a great color combination. It suited him. He was pretty average for a stallion who had recently gotten out of high school.

Itsuki's personality was good. He had a cheerful and enthusiastic attitude and seemed to want nothing more than to just have fun and race cars. In fact, that seemed to be all he wanted to do. Even in a different world, universe even, he wanted to race on the Mountain Passes. Cars in general seemed to be his favorite subject.

Starlight didn't have a car. She almost never went anywhere that warranted the need for a car, and whenever she did, the train was a great option. And when the train was unavailable due to something like a track blockage or tracks simply not going to her destination, she could just ask Twilight for a ride.

"Hey Starlight," Itsuki suddenly asked, making Starlight snap out of her thoughts.

"Yeah?" She asked as Itsuki looked up at her.

"You think Rainbow Dash would teach me how to fly?"

Starlight was a bit surprised. "You can't fly?"

"I know how to move my wings. It's just that I don't know the rhythm. I should have asked Takumi before he uppin' left..."

"Hmm... maybe. Actually, she would," Starlight giggled. "Wanna know why?"

"Uh, sure?"

"Because she'd love to be able to brag that she helped not one, but TWO Alicorns fly."

Itsuki smiled. "Ha! Wait, what do you mean two?"

"Twilight told me that back in her early days of being an Alicorn, she had Rainbow Dash help her learn how to fly. So I can only imagine how ecstatic she'd be to get to help yet another Alicorn."

"Oh... wait, Twilight used to not be an Alicorn? I thought being an Alicorn was just something you happened to be born as." Itsuki asked, having finished his food.

"Nope. She used to be a Unicorn believe it or not. It's funny actually. I could never see her as a Unicorn. She looks way too perfect as an Alicorn."

"Huh. So your not just born as one?"

"Under normal circumstances, no. The only naturally born Alicorn we have is Flurry Heart. Cadance's and Shining Armor's daughter."

"Great. So Rainbow Dash would actually show me how to fly?"

"Judging by how she acts, yeah. She would."

SLAM!

The doors into the room suddenly flew open, startling the two ponies. They looked at said doors and saw Spike there, holding a rolled-up piece of paper.

"WE GOTTA GO TO CANTERLOT!"

Author's Note

I had more planned for this part, but to be honest, I hated not uploading. So I moved the planned stuff to the next part. So here's another part. Yay!

Act 5: Lightning

Earlier that morning, 9:09 AM. Canterlot.

Takumi was hung over the steering wheel of his 86, thinking about what he was supposed to do. Truth be told, he had only done one more downhill run before clocking out for the night and parking in Canterlot. He had parked in a small parking lot of a restaurant that was no more than half a mile from Canterlot's Castle.

"I could probably just... I don't know... get some gas and head back to Twilight's Castle." Takumi thought out loud, remembering how low the fuel gauge had been when he parked last night.

Suddenly, his stomach rumbled, causing him to groan. He around the parking lot. Though it had been empty before, there were now a few cars in it. Most of the models he barely recognized. One was a model from the states, a 1950s Cadillac maybe. The only other one he could fully recognize was a silver Mercedes Benz... E-Class W210... with circular headlights......

He scowled as a flashback streaked through his mind. He was still in his 86, and he watched in a smaller parking lot as a high school girl and an older man got in the Benz and drove off.

Shaking the thought out of his head, Takumi sighed and started the engine. The 4A-GE purred to life, climbing in revs before slowly dropping down to idle. It was a sound he had heard hundreds, if not thousands of times before. He glanced over at the Mercedes again and had a thought.

Even if It's not the same car, I might as well do it. He thought as he got out.

Not many people were around as he slowly walked over to the Benz. Soon enough, he was right next to it on the driver's side. He studied the interior. It's exactly what you'd expect out of a 90s luxury car. Silver leather seats, ease of access to basically everything, the automatic shifter sat in the middle of the driver and passenger seats. What through Takumi for a loop was that the car was left-hand drive, something he was not used to.

Glancing around one more time to make sure nobody was watching, Takumi put his front two hooves on the front left fender, raised his left hoof, and swung.

CRACK!

The windshield cracked heavily with a gaping hole on one side appearing beneath his hoof.

He dropped off the fender, backing up and smiling at the car. Again, it wasn't the same car that had caused him to blow his engine out of anger judging by the license plate, but It still gave him a calming sense of revenge. And no, that wasn't a phrase. He literally blew his 86's engine several months back in a race. A race against a black Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution III.

"What the heck are you doing?" a male voice suddenly asked from a few feet away, causing Takumi to look over in a panic.

A yellow stallion with orange hair stood a few feet away, staring at him. A picture of a traffic cone was on his flank, and he was a Pegasus. He even had orange eyes.

"Uh..." Takumi didn't know what to say.

"Why are you in that form?" the stallion asked, confusing Takumi.

"Huh?"

The stallion groaned. "Follow me," he said, walking away. Takumi sighed as he started following.

They walked across the parking lot and into a small dead-end alley. Takumi tensed. He had seen enough movies to know where this was going. Suddenly, the pony stopped and turned to face him.

"What the heck are you doing in that form?" he asked in a rather military-like tone.

"Uh... what form?" Takumi asked.

"AND YOU'RE A STALLI-" The pony groaned. "Listen, I appreciate the creativity, but you do realize that there aren't any MALE Alicorns, right? There aren't any Alicorns that are your size except for Princess Twilight. In fact, the only WHITE Alicorn is Celestia. So what the hell are you doing in that form?" The pony's voice was very demanding, and he struggled to keep it down.

Takumi was beyond confused. What did this pony mean by form? Was this a human he was seeing as a pony?

"Hello? Care to answer me?" the pony asked.

"I-I-... Uh..." Takumi couldn't find the words.

The pony seemed to grow increasingly mad. "MAYBE I didn't make myself clear enough," he said, taking a step towards Takumi, which caused the young Alicorn to back up. "There are NO. MALE. ALICORNS. What is your name drone?!"

Takumi was beginning to hate this idiot. "Takumi!" he quickly said. What the hell does he mean by drone? he wondered.

"Takumi? Never heard of anyling called Takumi. Anyways 'Takumi', the next time I see you, you'd better be a normal pony. Lose the horn at least." The pony walked past him and stopped just outside the alley. He looked back at him. "The queen will be sure to hear of your idiotic shenanigans." He said with a sickening tone. The pony stretched out Its wings, and with a quick flap downwards, the Pegasus took to the skies.

Takumi just stood there. The anger was still present, but now he was more confused than anything. He looked down at the ground.

"What the heck just happened..." He asked nobody in particular. He looked back up and began walking back towards his 86. It had been a few minutes, so it was probably warmed up by now. It felt like it was maybe seventy to eighty degrees. Which was rather impressive considering how close the sun seemed to this planet.

"Any-ling?" Takumi asked. "I can understand 'anypony' since that refers to ponies, but any-'ling'? What creature does that stand for? Agh, I'll need to ask Luna or something. Also, what was he even talking about with there being no Male Alicorns? I guess nobody knows about me or Itsuki but did he have to be so mad about it? He sounded like he wanted me to change my form. Is that something I can do?"

He got in the 86, shutting the door and using his magic to pull the harness around him and buckle himself in. The process was much easier than doing it manually with two arms and hands, that was for sure. He put the clutch in and shifted into reverse, backing up out of the space before smoothly stopping and shifting to first gear.

As he pulled out onto a divided 4 lane Avenue, Takumi could tell how out of place he seemed. Almost every other car was very fancy and luxurious which blended well with the fancy and luxurious buildings that Canterlot had. He recognized some 80s and 90s sedans, along with some 1950s American cars, but some he simply couldn't pin down.

He could see some ponies on the sidewalks with very fancy and overdone outfits staring at his car. Some didn't give any expression as they talked to whoever they were talking two, while others almost looked disgusted.

Takumi pressed the throttle, accelerating a little. The massive castle of Canterlot lay just ahead of him. Car's ceased to be anything but luxurious, which further made his car more of an eyesore to any high and mighty aristocrats that probably lived around here.

The castle was absolutely massive. It looked twice as tall as a Yamato-Class Battleship was long, and several spires were drawn together by beautifully constructed bridges. He began feeling sorry for any staff members that wasn't a winged creature. Traversing the place must take hours.

Canterlot was stupid big for being on a mountain. Almost the sheer side of the mountain. And most of it seemed to be overhanging the edge. How this place got built in the first place he wasn't sure he'd like to know.

Most of the city was perched upon a large sphere of brick. It was interesting to wonder if the sphere had just sewers or perhaps miles upon miles of halls and rooms and bunkers. Perhaps some ponies worked below as slaves, working generators and-...

"Where did that thought come from?" Takumi asked himself as he pressed lightly on the brake, slowing to a stop in front of a chain-link fence gate surrounded by an arch. Beyond the gate was a small parking lot surrounded by concrete brick walls. Said parking lot had just a few cars in it. A dark blue Nissan Skyline R33 on the opposite side next to a wall, a yellow DeLorean close by on the left, and next to the Skyline was a purple sports car.

Tap Tap Tap

Something tapped on the window which caused him to look left. He yelped in surprise as a white stallion with bright yellow armor stood next to his car, staring at him with a rather flat look. The stallion chuckled a bit before lifting his front left hoof and shaking it up and down. Takumi was a little confused.

"Window," the stallion said, his voice muffled.

"Oh." Takumi let out as he pushed his hoof into the switch that controlled his window, rolling the window down. "Sorry." He apologized.

"It's alright," the stallion replied. "Are you Takumi?"

Takumi was a little surprised. How did this pony know his name? He noticed that the stallion had blue hair protruding from the armor, and he had wings.

"Ahem."

"Oh. Sorry. Yeah. I'm Takumi. How did you know?" For a second, Takumi thought this pony understood the writing on his car. Wait no, that didn't make sense. It only contained his last name, not his first name.

"Princess Luna told me to keep an eye out for a black and white Corolla with retractable headlights being driven by a white pony named Takumi," the pony explained. "I thought she was having me on since I've never even heard of the word Takumi, but here we are. Anyways, you can head in. Luna is expecting you."

The guard flew upwards and a second later was on the other side of the gate. He pulled down on what Takumi could only assume was a switch, and the single gate opened inwards towards the right. The pony motioned for him to pull in.

I didn't even mean to end up here. I just wanted to get some gas, Takumi thought. The pony began to look confused when he saw that Takumi wasn't pulling in, which made him sigh. Whatever. He thought as he put the 86 into first gear and pulled through. The pony put his front left arm up to his forehead which made it look like he was... saluting Takumi?

"Either that's something he just does, or Luna has already told ponies to respect me like royalty," Takumi mumbled to himself.

The gate closed behind him once he was through, and he decided to play it safe and pull left into a parking spot in the middle of the lot. It was next to the wall still, and he was away from other cars. Even the DeLorean was four spaces away. Sighing again, he killed the ignition and got out, shutting the door and looking around.

He could see some other ponies that were very similar to the Pegasus that had just let him in. In terms of the armor at least, as it was all yellow. It then clicked in his head that these were guards. Of course they were. This was a castle after all. Their coats were somewhat similar. Some were white, some were grey, a few were light yellow or blue, and they all varied from what kind of pony they were. Some were normal ponies, some were Pegasi, and some were Unicorns.

Takumi began feeling intimidated when he noticed some staring at him. Some were talking to others and would turn away when looked at, while others flat out continued to stare. Granted, they were guards, and it was probably rather strange that somebody with a car like his casually pulled in and parked in what seemed like a parking lot meant for royals, but still.

Is this how intimidating Project D is when we pull up to a battle? Takumi wondered as he looked at a pair of fancy double doors that were just past some steps. He hurriedly trotted over and up the steps and pushed through the doors, shutting them behind. He exhaled. He hated being intimidated like that.

He looked down the hall he was now in. It had a three-way section up ahead that he began walking towards, noting two guards next to the section that were simply talking to each other. The halls were pretty much like what he'd seen in pictures. Red stained carpet down the middle with shiny white walls, accented by golden paint. Takumi assumed it was painted gold because there was no way in hell that someone could accent an entire castle with real gold.

Looking to either side, the halls curved so that he couldn't see around him. And both looked generally the same. Takumi groaned. He knew that Luna apparently wanted to see him, but how the heck was he supposed to find her in a castle this big? The only thing going for him was that Luna seemed pretty unique. Her dark blue coat, mist-like hair, and her size were good indicators. But still.

"This is gonna be fun."

45 Minutes later.

Takumi silently walked through the halls. He still hadn't found Luna, at all, and he was only getting higher in the castle. Admittedly, the views he could see outside were phenomenal. It was the stuff of fantasy. And sometimes he'd end up on the opposite side and see the city of Canterlot. Its general layout was very circular, which was a given considering what it was perched on, and it gave off a very 'City of Tomorrow' feel.

Finally, Takumi stopped and groaned. "This is stupid. At this point, I might as well find a balcony and fly back down to my car. I never wanted to come here in the first place. I was getting gas!"

He looked at the door next to him. His eyes focused on a symbol that had been painted on. It was a pink six-point star surrounded by smaller white six-point stars. It was rather simple. He sighed and raised his hoof to the door.

Knock knock knock

I might as well ask SOMEONE where I can find Luna, Takumi thought.

Suddenly, he heard a very annoyed sounding groan come from inside, along with some rather heavy footsteps. He wondered if he had just woken someone up on accident-

"I SWEAR TO CELESTIA!" a female voice suddenly yelled as the door was slammed open, revealing a purple unicorn mare with dark purple hair, pretty much his size. The pony stared at him, clearly angry. "I have been BURIED under work these past few days, I don't need you coming up here and getting me early in the morning!" the mare angrily said. She began pacing back and forth.

"I already have to deal with enough trying to keep these requests and orders in check. I'm not Celestia!" she snapped, glancing at Takumi. "I'm not used to this amount of work like she is! It doesn't come up often! You think I can just perform one spell and poof! Everything is fixed and ready? NO! LET ME DO CRAP ON MY OWN TIME!"

Takumi didn't know what to think. While the mare had paced, he noticed that she also had wings. So she was an Alicorn. How interesting.

"I... didn't even say anything," Takumi slowly said.

The Alicorn stared at him, confused, but gasped. "Oh! Oh..." Her face reddened as she realized her mistake. "Uh... sorry about that! I thought you were somepony else."

"Seemed so," Takumi replied. "Sorry for waking you up."

"You didn't. I just got finished fixing up my hair when you knocked. I'm just in a bitter mood. Now uh, why did you want me?" She asked, looking at Takumi.

"I was wondering if you could tell me where Luna is. Princess Luna."

The pony seemed confused. "Why?"

"Because I've been walking around this place for like 40 minutes now and I haven't seen any sign of her. She wants to see me." He explained, stretching out his wings a little before putting them back to his sides. It felt nice.

"Oh. Well, I could give you a map-" The pony's eyes widened suddenly, and she stood with her jaw open, looking back and forth between his forehead and his back. Takumi grew confused.

"What?"

The pony lifted her front left hoof and seemed to point at his back. "Wings."

Takumi glanced back at his wings, slightly moving them. "Yes," he replied, looking back.

She pointed at his forehead. "Horn."

"Yes," Takumi replied.

"Wings..." she said, pointing back at his wings.

"Yes."

"Horn..." She pointed back at his horn.

"Yes?" What is this girl getting at? he wondered.

She stopped pointing but kept her hoof off the ground. "Alicorn."

"Apparently."

"You're an Alicorn."

"Apparently. Let me guess, Twilight Sparkle?"

"Yes. A-And you?" Twilight asked.

"Fujiwara Ta- wait, no. Takumi Fujiwara."

Twilight put her hoof back on the ground. She looked like she was barely able to formulate words. "You're a male Alicorn."

"Yes. I'm an Alicorn. Me and Itsuki are male Alicorn's. I don't know what you want me to say."

She just stared as her horn lit up in a pretty magenta color. Soon, a paper and quill came out of her room and were hovering next to each other.

"What's that for?" Takumi asked.

"I'm... writing a message," Twilight tittered. "You wouldn't happen to know where Itsuki is, would you?"

Probably still at your castle with Starlight and Spike."

"Perfect. One moment please." Twilight's excitement seemed to be growing at an extremely alarming rate as she looked at the paper and began writing on it.

One minute later, Twilight's castle.

Starlight sat back down at the table, holding the message out in front of her. She breathed in and began reading aloud.

Dear Spike and Starlight,

Get the girls, get Itsuki, and get your rumps up here. I'm so sorry for not believing you before, but I've just met Takumi and we're on our way to see Luna and Celestia. I don't care how you get up here, be it by train, car, or just flying, but just get up here as quick as you can. I can't wait to see you all here, especially Itsuki.

- Twilight

"Well, that was quick and concise," Starlight remarked as she looked up at Itsuki, who was slightly blushing.

"Why does she especially want to see me?" Itsuki asked, still blushing. Starlight couldn't help but giggle.

"Itsuki, I doubt she wants to see you for whatever you're thinking about. She wants to see you because you're an Alicorn, and she wants to do some research. She LOVES to research."

"She does?"

"Dude, you would not believe how much she reads," Spike intervened. "I remember seeing her reading the day after I was born!"

Itsuki was rather surprised. "Wait, seriously? Dang. What an Egghead."

Starlight burst out laughing. "I-... I-... hoo. You and-" She glanced at Spike, remembering that he wasn't supposed to hear. "You and you-know-who are gonna go perfectly together. You both even share the same definitions for Twilight."

"Who shares the same definitions as Twilight? You mean Rainbow Dash?" Spike asked. Starlight instantly remembered that Spike had at least a two-year head start on knowledge of the Element Bearers. Of course he'd know how Dash defines Twilight.

"How did you know?!" Itsuki blurted.

"I've known them for three years. What did you expect?" Spike turned around and began walking out, feeling smug. "We should probably get going."

Itsuki groaned as he and Starlight began following, Starlight levitating whatever trash was left into a nearby garbage can and putting what wasn't garbage on a different table.

"Of course you'd know then," Itsuki said, annoyed. "Let me guess. You have a crush on Rarity or something?"

Spike stopped dead in his tracks and slowly turned around, staring with his jaw open. Itsuki was a little confused before smiling in realization.

"No way... Did-, Did I actually guess it right?" he asked, a goofy smile appearing on his face.

"How did you know?!" Spike yelled, causing Starlight to laugh. Itsuki walked past Spike.

"I mean hey if you don't tell I don't tell," Itsuki said, still grinning like an idiot. "Now let's go get the others. I-... heh, I assume when she said 'girls' she means the girls at the tables last night?"

"Yep. Pinkie Pie, Apple Jack and Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash and Rarity."

"Huh. That rhymed." Itsuki remarked as the trio made their way towards the front doors.

"Yeah. I guess we'll just take the train and-" Starlight was cut off as Itsuki opened the right door to find Trixie there.

"Oh! Hello Trixie!" Itsuki greeted.

"Oh hey! Ha! Some timing." Trixie greeted back. "I was coming over to see if you guys were gonna do anything."

"We're going to Canterlot!" Starlight cheerfully explained, stopping next to Itsuki. "Guess who FINALLY realized that we weren't lying?!"

Trixie laughed. "Great. For a mare who has a panic attack whenever she's late for anything, she sure took her sweet time realizing the most insane discovery Equestria's ever had."

"Pffft. Yeah. Anyways, we're gonna go get her other friends. Wanna come?"

Trixie's face lit up. "Yes please!"

"Yay! We're gonna go find the others, then we'll hop on the train."

"Can't I just give you a lift up there?" Trixie asked, confusing Starlight.

"You... have a car?" Starlight asked.

"Yeah. I've had one for over a year now."

"You never told me!"

Itsuki tilted his head. "Wait... how?"

"I thought I did!" Trixie defended.

"No, you didn't!" Starlight replied.

"Waitwaitwaitwaitwait hold on..." Itsuki interrupted. "Not ONCE did you ever ask Trixie if she could give you a ride somewhere? Or she never showed up with the dang thing?"

"No. Not really," Starlight replied. "I always asked Twilight for a lift. But why did you get a car?"

"Starlight, you really think I'd be able to travel Equestria by pulling my wagon myself? Fat chance. Which is why I saved up for a car. It's a bit old, but It's still perfect for anything that isn't a muddy road."

"Huh. What is it?"

Trixie backed out of the way and pointed to a car parked next to Itsuki's Levin. A small-ish Burnt Yellow Station Wagon.

"Oh. Nice. I like it." Starlight smiled.

"What is it? Looks Japanese," Itsuki remarked.

"Japanese?" Trixie looked at Itsuki, confused.

"Japanese? As in Japan? Wait, oh. Right. This world doesn't HAVE a place called Japan..."

"So It's a 'your world' thing. Huh. Well, It's a Pessima."

Now Itsuki was confused. "Pessima?" He asked as the three ponies plus dragon walked down the steps towards the cars.

"Yes? Ibishu Pessima LX. Have you never heard of it?"

Itsuki inhaled. "Welllll looks like our worlds don't have all the same cars and companies. I've never heard of the company called Ibishu, nor a car called Pessima. Which..." Itsuki's face suddenly lit up. "Means that I get to see cars I've never seen before!"

Starlight just rolled her eyes and smirked at Itsuki's cheerfulness.

"So are we gonna get everyone and then head to the station?" Spike asked as they all stopped in front of Itsuki's Levin and Starlight's Pessima.

"Well, maybe. Trixie, did you say you could take us?" Starlight asked, looking at Trixie.

"Of course. I can take seven. Spike can ride way in the back," Trixie replied.

"You can take... seven?" Itsuki was confused. He stared at the Pessima's black late-80s looking interior and only saw two front seats and a rear passenger bench seat.

"There's a seat in the rear that can come up," Trixie clarified.

"Oh! That's what happens."

"Mhm. Now let's go get the others," Trixie began walking towards Ponyville. Starlight and Spike followed.

"Want me to go get Fluttershy and Apple Jack?" Starlight asked.

"Sure. I'll get Rarity." Trixie replied.

Spike's eyes widened. "Uh- hey, how about I go get Rarity, and you can get Rainbow Dash?" Spike asked. Both mares rolled their eyes.

"Alright fine," Trixie said. "Itsuki, do you want to-"

kerr chunkachunkachunka vrooOOOOoooommmmmm

An engine suddenly started behind them, causing the three to jump. Looking in the direction of the sound, they saw Itsuki's Levin accelerate slowly and turn towards them.

"What is he doing?" Starlight asked as the red Corolla slowed to a stop next to them, Its window rolled down.

"Now while you guys are gonna walk and find whoever you're gonna find, I'm gonna drive around and find Rainbow Dash. That cool with you?" Itsuki asked, staring at them.

Starlight blinked. "You're gonna drive and find her?"

"Duh. It's faster to pick her up right there than to having to fly back here."

"True... Alright. Well, stick to the outskirts. You don't know Ponyville's laws on driving through town, so just play it safe and stick to the outskirts. And also drive slow. Ponies around here aren't too fond of wannabe rally drivers."

"Got it. See you guys at Canterlot!" Itsuki pressed on the gas and rather harshly sped off, limiting himself to 10MPH.

Starlight, Trixie, and Spike began walking again. Starlight grew a bit concerned.

"You think we should have told him to wait until we got the others? So we could follow him? Does he even know where Canterlot is?"

"I'm sure he'll be fine," Trixie assured. "Even if he doesn't know, Rainbow Dash will."

"Mm."

Itsuki cruised along the outskirts of Ponyville like Starlight said. He drove on the right side of a dirt road, remembering that people here drove on the right and not the left, and avoided ponies when they appeared. He grimaced.

"Ugh, I fricken hate dirt," he complained. "Get's all over the tires and paintwork, you get less grip, dammit. There better be a hose at Canterlot I can use to spray my car down. Wait..." Itsuki realized something and smiled. "If what Starlight says is true, about me and Takumi pretty much being royalty, I could just ask for a full-blown polish when I get there!" He inadvertently took his hooves off the wheel in celebration. "This life is awesome! I'm Royalty! I can do basically whatever I want! Of course, Celestia or whatever her name was is probably gonna dictate what I can and can't do, but I'll still get all sorts of perks! YES!"

BEEEEEEP!

A car blared Its horn causing Itsuki to look back at the road, and he saw that he was about to hit a silver Honda Civic CRX. He yelled in surprise as he quickly put his hooves back on the wheel and jerked the Levin to the right, missing the Civic by inches.

"Stay in your lane ya lunatic!" the driver of the CRX yelled, the voice quickly fading.

"SORRY!" Itsuki yelled back through his window that was still open. He looked back forward. "Sheesh. I really need to stop doing that."

Five minutes later, Itsuki was glancing at what looked to be a small schoolhouse he was passing by. As he continued and looked at a tree nearby, he suddenly slowed to a stop. He saw her.

Rainbow Dash was flying through the air, doing tricks and all sorts of crazy things as a small orange filly cheered for her. She would have looked awesome doing it had she not suddenly turned into a rainbow blur. A second later she landed straight in front of the filly who just cheered. Itsuki smiled.

"My god she's awesome..." Itsuki quietly said, placing his hoof in the middle of the wheel.

BEEP BEEEEEEP!

Rainbow Dash had just landed when both she and the filly in front of her, who's name was Scootaloo, heard a car horn nearby. Both of them looked to the nearby road and saw a red and black hatchback on it, parked and waiting.

"Who's that?" Scootaloo asked, standing up.

"Uh..." Rainbow didn't know for a second, and that's when it clicked. "Oh! I know who it is. Be right back!" She smiled and quickly flew over to the car. Once she got to the right side, her face lit up.

"Itsuki!" She exclaimed as she saw the Red Alicorn in it.

"Hey Rainbow! What's up?" Itsuki asked, smiling.

"Nothin'. Whatcha doing?"

"Long story short, me and the others are heading to Canterlot. I ca-... Tri- er- Starlight told me to come pick you up." Itsuki explained, nearly having a seizure while doing so.

Rainbow Dash grew worried. "Wait... we're going to Canterlot?"

"Yep. Twilight- er, Twilight? Yeah. Twilight asked us to. She found Takumi and wants us up there right now."

"RIGHT NOW?!"

Itsuki winced. "Yes right now!"

"Oh for the love of- I'm trying to-" Rainbow groaned. "I'm playing with Scootaloo!"

Itsuki blinked twice before smirking. "Scootaloo?"

"Yeah. That orange filly over there." Rainbow pointed to Scootaloo who was just waiting.

"Oh. She looks cute." Itsuki admitted. "What's wrong, can't she just come with us?"

"No she ca-" Rainbow cut herself off as she processed the sentence further. Bringing Scootaloo along actually wasn't a half-bad idea. "On second thought... hey Scootaloo!" She yelled.

"Yeah?!" Scootaloo yelled back.

"Wanna come to Canterlot with me?"

The little filly's face lit up like a Christmas tree. "YES!" she screamed without the slightest hint of hesitation. She ran to the nearby tree and grabbed a pair of saddlebags, putting them on her back before running over as fast as she could.

"You're not kidding, right?" Scootaloo giddily asked as she ran around the front.

"Nope!" Rainbow Dash replied. "Twilight has apparently asked me and my friends to head up there, and Itsuki is gonna drive us there.

Scootaloo looked at Itsuki.

"Oh. Hello." She greeted.

"Hey," Itsuki replied. "Anyways, hop on in you two. Scootaloo can sit in the back."

"You got it!" The two pegasi replied as they went around to the other side of the car. Itsuki was ecstatic.

Ohhh this is gonna be so sweeeet! He thought. I get to hang out with Rainbow Dash on the way to Canterlot!

He looked left to see Rainbow Dash putting the left seat forward to allow Scootaloo to hop in the back. After Scootaloo was in the back, she put the seat back and got in, shutting the door and buckling up.

"Alright, let's go," Rainbow said, prompting Itsuki to accelerate.

A few minutes later, they got on the highway and accelerated to a bit above the speed limit.

"This is so exciting!" Scootaloo exclaimed. "I'm actually on my way to Canterlot!"

"Yeah, we are," Rainbow replied nonchalantly. "You excited Itsuki?"

"Judging by the fact that from here it looks like the biggest castle ever, hell yeah I'm excited!" He replied.

"Hey! There is a filly in here you know." Rainbow snapped.

"Shut up Rainbow you swear around me all the time!" Scootaloo said. Itsuki's and Rainbow's eyes went wide as they looked at each other. Itsuki was surprised.

Rainbow put on an innocent face and laughed awkwardly, rubbing the back of her head.

"Alright then." Itsuki looked back at the road. Man she's the cutest. He thought.

"So uh... what do you like to do?" Rainbow Dash asked.

Takumi and Twilight were walking through the castle halls. Twilight was, as expected, bombarding Takumi with plenty of questions about how he got there, his world, and basically whatever else a bookhorse would ask someone who was from another world.

Takumi wasn't too bothered by the questions. It gave him something to do while they walked to the throne room, which was supposedly where Twilight was leading him. And they were supposedly getting close.

"You're gonna be able to remember all of this, right?" Takumi asked as they walked down a hall.

"Of course. I've trained myself to remember many things at once." Twilight replied.

Takumi was unconvinced. "Are you sure? Because I think I've answered over fifty questions now."

"I'll be fine."

Takumi rolled his eyes and kept walking past a set of double doors.

"Ahem." Twilight cleared her throat, making Takumi stop and glance back.

"What?"

"This is the throne room." She said, referring to the double doors. "Also, what the hay is your cutie mark?"

Takumi glanced at his rear, noting the Japanese symbols on it. "That's how you spell my last name in Japanese. Fujiwara." He explained, looking back at her.

"Oh. Is Itsuki's cutie mark the same?"

"Yeah. Takeuchi in Japanese." Takumi walked back and stopped next to her. They were to the right of the doors.

"Alright then. Anyways. I'll quickly head in and notify the two. Be right back." Twilight, without warning, walked through the doors and closed them behind her, whatever greeting she just gave to the princesses muffled. Takumi assumed it was Luna and... Celestia? Celestia. That was the second one's name.

He looked across the hall at a white pillar. Nothing interesting, just a white pillar supporting the ceiling. He looked down.

Why did it have to be me and Itsuki? He thought. Why couldn't it have been anyone else? It could have been any other person. Some kid living a horrid life, a high-ranking diplomat, heck, even my father would do fine in this situation. If he was an Alicorn and was considered royal, at least he'd know what to do considering his place in congress. But no, it had to me and Itsuki. Just two nineteen-year-olds living normal lives whisked away from their friends and family to this place. Whisked away from Project D... My legend...

"Anyways. Nopony else is in the room except the princesses so- oh." Twilight the look on Takumi's face. "What's wrong?"

Takumi blinked. "Nothing. Just thinking about some stuff."

"Oh. Alright then. Uh... let's go." Twilight opened the right door and led Takumi through.

The throne room was... well, a throne room. Bright red carpet down the middle, perfectly symmetrical walls, all that. At the other end were two ponies, one of which Takumi instantly recognized Luna, who was sitting on a throne next to a white pony that looked twice as tall as him. As soon as Luna noticed Takumi, she opened her mouth to speak, but quickly shut it and bit her lip. Excitement was clearly growing inside her.

"Ah. So this is the stallion you said you were bringing in." The white pony said. Takumi noticed how regal she sounded. Suddenly, his jaw slightly opened as he looked at the white unicorn- no, Alicorn. She wore golden attire, her mane and tail somehow flowed like it was in the wind, and she just looked... beautifully regal.

I guess if you're a princess, you do have to look the part. Takumi thought.

"Yep," Twilight replied. "This is him."

"And what is your name, my little pony?"

"Fujiwa-... Takumi Fujiwara," Takumi replied.

"What a... unique name. And why did you want us to meet Twilight?"

Takumi noticed Luna's excitement. Did she never tell Celestia about me or something? he wondered.

"Wellll... he's not really a unicorn." Twilight looked over at Takumi. "Takumi?"

"What?" he asked, looking at her as they stopped several feet before the steps leading up to the thrones.

"Mind uh..." She unfurled her wings and tilted her head back to them, stretching them out wide.

After a second of computing, Takumi did the same with his wings. This will always feel weird, he thought.

Celestia's brain short-circuited upon seeing that she was staring directly at not just another Alicorn, but a male Alicorn. Her jaw hung open a little as she tried to find the words.

Luna, on the other hand, couldn't contain herself any longer. "That is right sister. We have another Alicorn. Two Alicorns in fact."

"You say that like you knew about him," Twilight noted.

"Because I did. We met last night."

Both Celestia and Twilight looked at Luna. "How?" they asked in unison.

Luna's face heated up as she realized how awkward it would be to come up with a lie on why she was on the Canterlot Turnpike instead of going through dreams.

Wait... going through dreams! she thought. "We met while I was searching through dreams. I asked him to come up here."

Takumi almost said they didn't meet that way.

"And you didn't tell us?!" Celestia snapped.

"I wanted to surprise you two!"

Twilight just groaned. "So... Wanna head to someplace a bit more private?"

"Yes. I'd rather keep this quiet for the time being," Celestia agreed as she stood up and walked down the steps. Luna followed. A piece of paper appeared next to her, along with a quill, and she began writing once she stopped a few feet in front of Takumi.

"What are you doing?" Takumi asked.

"Just writing a message to let the Royal Guard know that Luna and I will be unavailable at this time," Celestia replied.

As she wrote on the list, Takumi couldn't help but notice how freaking majestic she looked. Sure, if you were a princess, you'd probably want to look the part of a princess, but she looked amazing!

The way her hair flowed through the air in a way that should have been impossible, her golden regalia, her very-light-shade-of-pink coat, her wings even... just... wow. She was unlike anything he had ever seen.

Realizing that he was staring, Takumi looked around the throne room, noting the stained glass windows lining the room. They all looked neat.

"Anyways," Celestia said as the message next to her whisked away. "Let's go."

The three princesses began walking towards the exit. Takumi didn't notice as he was too focused on looking around him.

"Ahem." Twilight cleared her throat.

"What?" Takumi looked over to see the three looking at him. "Oh. Sorry," he apologized before following.

"So. Takumi," Celestia began as they walked out of the room and down a hall. "How long have you been around?"

"Me and Itsuki? A couple of days now," Takumi replied.

"Hm... Wait, Itsuki?" She looked at him. "Who's Itsuki?"

"I did say we had two new Alicorns you know." Luna reminded.

"I... wow. I cannot believe it. We have not just one, but two new Alicorns. Male ones at that."

Luna giggled. "And why are you specifically surprised about them being male?"

"DO NOT take that the wrong way sister," Celestia angrily snapped. "You know we've never had male Alicorns before. This is much bigger than whatever you think I was thinking about."

Luna grimaced. "I jest."

Takumi was surprised. "Wait... those two are sisters?" he whispered to Twilight who was walking right next to him. Celestia and Luna were ahead.

"Yeah. They are," Twilight whispered back.

"Huh," was all Takumi had to say as Twilight increased her pace to start walking next to the apparent sisters. That actually kind of makes sense.

"Out of curiosity, Takumi," Celestia began again. "What does Itsuki look like?"

"Bright red coat and black hair," he replied.

"That... that's it?"

"Yeah. He matches his Levin."

"...Levin?

"An old Toyota Corolla. An 86."

"Oh. How simple."

Twilight piped up with something that started a conversation between the three. Takumi looked around the halls and thought about how the heck he was to get out of answering the same questions again. The same questions that Twilight had asked him. He wasn't against answering questions since it kept a bit of normalcy in his life, but he wanted to have some time to himself.

Suddenly, he had a thought. When was the last time I showered? he wondered. Like, a week ago?

"Do any of you know where a shower is?" he asked. The three princesses stopped in surprise, which nearly caused Takumi to run into Twilight.

"Why?" Celestia asked.

"Because It's been a week or so since I last showered," Takumi explained.

"How? You look just fine. And you smell fine," Twilight said, taking in a small breath.

"I do? Well... still. Now that I know how long I've spent without a shower I feel uncomfortable."

"Oh. Well uh..." Twilight thought. She knew that Celestia wanted to keep Takumi a... 'secret' for the time being, or at least not have too many ponies find out about him, so she couldn't just let him use any shower.

"You can just tell Celestia and Luna what I told you," Takumi said.

"I could... well, you could just use my shower," Twilight suggested.

Takumi noticed Luna roll her eyes. "You mean up in your room?"

"Yeah."

"You want me to walk all the way back over there?"

"Want a private shower? Then there you go. And before you ask, yes, we have other rooms with their own private bathrooms. But it would take too long to find an open one."

Takumi sighed. "Fine. You three can talk about me and I'll take a shower."

With that, he began walking in the opposite direction, somewhat confusing the princesses.

"Well, he doesn't seem the most sociable," Celestia noted.

"Yes... he does seem that way..." Luna replied.

30 Minutes Later

Itsuki, Rainbow Dash, and Scootaloo were now off the highway and on their way towards the Canterlot Turnpike. They all got well together, being lovers of speed and all that.

Both Rainbow and Scootaloo were seriously interested in Itsuki's street racing shenanigans. So much so that Scootaloo began complaining about not being older and having a license.

"Oh yeah well, It sucked for me as well," Itsuki said. "Waiting to get my license. I wanted it right then and there since I pretty much knew how to drive, but of course the law says no."

"Mmmm..." Scootaloo groaned.

"Anyways, this 'Ryosuke Takahashi' or whatever you call him," Rainbow began. "He was the first person to come close to beating Takumi?"

"Yeah! He was!" Itsuki replied cheerfully. "You shoulda seen it. Ryosuke was right on Takumi's bumper pretty much the whole time and he got passed somewhere in the course. But towards the end, Takumi pushed through and passed him right back!"

"Sheesh. I might need to meet Takumi. He sounds fast as heck."

"Ohhh hohoh. Fast as heck is a total understatement. He's seriously improved since then. Nobody has been able to beat him."

Rainbow laughed. "Nobody? Please. Everypony has suffered at least one loss. Even me."

"One, he's not a pony. Two, he really hasn't. Oh! Here comes the Turnpike! Who wants to see how a street racer tackles the uphill?" Itsuki suddenly asked.

Scootaloo and Rainbow Dash quickly realized what he meant. "Wait, are you gonna-" Scootaloo began.

"Yep!" Itsuki interrupted. Suddenly, he floored it.

Initial D Fourth Stage Sound Files vol.1 - Attack I starts playing.

"Woah!" Both pegasi yelped as the 86 launched forward, all 124 horses being put to use as they approached a large right hairpin.

"Itsuki are you serious?!" Rainbow yelled. "There's gonna be traffic!"

"Says who?!" Itsuki swerved left, then right, flooring it and powersliding the car around the hairpin. Both pegasi yelled in surprise as they came inches from hitting the inside guardrail. Exiting, Itsuki upshifted and gripped through a left hairpin. Itsuki went to the inside, in opposite lanes mind you, to gain the best line around the corner before exiting.

"Sweet Celestia!" Scootaloo yelled as they accelerated past a van, which promptly blared Its horn at them. They gripped around another wide right hairpin and exited swiftly.

"Don't sweat it!" Itsuki yelled. "If I were on the downhill on good tires that haven't been already mutilated, I would be decimating these corners!"

vrrooooOOOm- vrroooooo

The engine rumbled from under the hood as the Levin sped uphill, quickly gripping around a left curve, then a right curve, passing a sedan. Scootaloo was having the time of her life as Itsuki upshifted and sped around a right curve before braking and breaking the car into a drift. He floored it and countersteered around a left corner at high speed, hitting the apex perfectly and exiting an inch from the guardrail.

All Scootaloo and Rainbow Dash could do was pull their seatbelts as tight as she could and hold on as they sped down a straight, fast approaching a left hairpin. Rainbow Dash was horrified.

"Itsuki? Mind slowing down?!" she yelled.

"I know I know!" Itsuki yelled as he slammed hard on the brakes, throwing the three forward in their seats. Itsuki accelerated again and swerved right, then left.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

The tires squealed as Itsuki powerslid through the hairpin's inside edge. He bit his lower lip as they exited towards the outside, barely missing another car. He only just made out that it was a small pickup truck. He put the pedal to the floor and accelerated towards another car that was heading uphill. It looked like a red 90s sports car.

Switching to the left lane, Itsuki blasted by the sports car that revealed itself to be an early 90s Camaro, which swerved away in surprise. Scootaloo couldn't help but smile at how the car felt when under full load. Same went for Rainbow Dash. Both were used to normal driving. Nothing like this.

This feeling... Rainbow Dash thought as she watched Itsuki drive. It's amazing. Hearing the engine rev higher and higher is... is... It's awesome! Why do I love it!? This is breaking the law is it not?!

Itsuki pressed on the brake and swerved to the right, letting off and flooring it through the inside and exiting towards the outside.

"You two ready for more?" He asked as he upshifted.

"Yes!" Scootaloo yelled.

Rainbow was speechless. She couldn't bring herself to say anything. As she watched Itsuki accelerate, she couldn't help but think about how much she loved this.

Itsuki... She began. I might need to take you and your Corolla out tonight on this pass. Because you just showed me my new favorite hobby.

Music Ends.

Author's Note

Well this sure was a long part, wasn't it? Longest so far in fact.

Act 6: Worry

11:07AM, Canterlot. Twilight's room.

Takumi relished the feeling of the warm water running down his hair and around his coat. It wasn't the same as showering as a human, but that didn't matter because it felt so much better. Sure, it was hard to scrub in more places than one, but he managed.

The only complaint he was having so far is how heavy his body began feeling. That was a given, considering the amount of fur that was probably soaking up the water, but It was still annoying.

I wonder how hard it must be for Celestia to shower. He thought, smirking. Especially if she shower's even remotely long, with all the water she'd soak up, she'd weigh at least a hundred pounds heavier. Maybe more.

He put a bottle of soap on the edge of the tub before scrubbing his neck and face. He didn't even attempt to use magic to do this. It felt too good to do it by hand. Hoof.

A couple of minutes later, he sat down on his rump, letting the water soak his hair. He leaned far back against the Enameled Cast Iron, which diverted water to simply hit his chest. He sighed.

"Ok, I will admit." He quietly began. "This world isn't that bad. Being a pony that has both wings and a horn, and being able to do magical things like levitate objects and god knows what else, is extremely convenient."

His smile faltered.

"But I've got a legend to uphold back in Japan! How am I supposed to do that when I'm in a different world? Hell, universe!.. would... Ryosuke replace me?"

He rolled onto his side. His eyelids suddenly began to feel really heavy, and without warning, Takumi passed out. Likely due to him unknowingly supporting fifty extra pounds of water.

Waking up, Takumi found himself on the roof of a car. A lime green car. In a garage.

"What the?" Was his first reaction as he stood upright. He wasn't wet anymore, though he still smelled amazing.

Looking around, it seemed that he was in a single birth garage. Tools were hung on the walls, an oil barrel sat in the corner, and the front door was fully open, curving up to the ceiling.

Rubbing his eyes a bit, Takumi could see outside that he was at a gas station. One that had six pumps. It was probably the most generic thing ever, but Takumi couldn't help but wonder...

Why do I recognize this place? He thought.

Jumping off the car and onto the concrete floor, he walked forward and leaned out the door. But before he could get a good look, he glanced back at the car he had been on.

It was a lime green two-tone Nissan Silvia RPS13. One with a Japanese front plate, and a sticker on the forward right side of the hoof. It took Takumi a second to see what it said, but once he did, his eye's widened.

Akina SpeedStars

"This is Iketani's S13!" Takumi exclaimed. He looked outside as he realized why he recognized the building.

The building in question was known as the 'Esso Gas Station'. Takumi used to work here. It was located in the city of Shibukawa, just down the road from Mount Akina. It was a typical late 90s full-service gas station. Sporting a small space for the workers to have breaks, a single birth garage on the side, and towards the rear was a small car wash.

Takumi began panicking, as he was still in his Alicorn form. What if someone saw him? The logical thing they'd do would be to call emergency services, so that might give him time to escape, steal a car, do something, but still. He was an Alicorn in a world where such a being did not exist.

What if Iketani sees me? What'll he do? Takumi thought as he looked around. The garage had no doors besides the main door, so he couldn't escape to the backlot or anything. And he couldn't just run outside, fly outside even.

"-almost done installing the new spark plug wires." A familiar voice said, making Takumi freeze and look back outside. The voice hadn't said it in English, but rather Japanese.

"Mm. A full spark plug kit? That must have cost a lot." Yet another, slightly less familiar voice replied, also in Japanese.

Takumi was paralyzed as two men walked in. One was wearing a dark blue shirt with a small red bowtie, forest green jeans, and a baseball cap. He was in his early 20s. The other man was also in his early 20s and was wearing a white shirt and black jeans.

"Yeah, but ever since that guy at Suzuki said that I should take a look into replacing them, I always felt like I should. I got the money, so I decided 'hey, why not? I just got the money.' so yeah." The man in uniform explained.

The two walked in and towards a workbench, paying no mind whatsoever to Takumi. This was a bit weird considering he was standing directly in front of the S13, which should have been the first place Iketani look.

Iketani and Kenji... are they blind or can they not see me? Takumi wondered.

"By the way, thanks for helping out today. Boss and I would've never been able to manage all these customers." Iketani, the man in uniform, said as he walked back out to the front of the S13. Takumi dodged him, backing up and watching as Iketani opened the S13's hood.

"Honestly I should just apply here. I always hang out here after normal work anyways." Kenji said.

"Not a half-bad Idea. With Itsuki being an idiot and not showing up neither yesterday nor today, Boss might honestly cut him off." Iketani replied.

Oh god... Takumi thought. They don't even know that Itsuki is actually missing...

"Hey! Iketani! Kenji!" An older man yelled from outside.

"Speak the devil's name, and he appears." Iketani joked. "Yeah?" He asked as an older man walked in the front, wearing a similar Unifrom to Iketani.

"Have either of you heard anything about Itsuki?" The man asked, leaning his shoulder against the edge of the wall.

"No. We haven't." Iketani replied. "Not since Sunday. Last I heard, he and Takumi were heading up to Akina.

"Well, I just got off the phone with his parents. Apparently, they haven't seen him since Sunday either."

"Seriously?"

"Mhm. His Eight-Five is still there, but his Eight-Six isn't. Hasn't been for a while."

"So... he's missing?" Kenji asked.

"That's the worst-case scenario. Let's just hope he took some trip somewhere and hasn't found the time to call."

"Oh... kay." Iketani trailed.

This is happening right now... Takumi realized as he watched the three talk. Of course it would be Yuichi to tell them.

"But..." The older man, Yuichi, continued. "We should let emergency services know. Just in case."

Takumi noticed Iketani grow worried.

"You say that like he is..." Iketani trailed off.

"I'm just being safe, alright." Yuichi quickly replied. "Again, that's the worst-case scenario that he's missing. I'll call Takumi. If he doesn't know, I'll call emergency services and tell them to look out for a Red and Black Levin."

That sentence sent Takumi into a panic. Yuichi was about to call him. Yuichi was about to try and call him. His phone wasn't with him! Or in Equestria! It was back at his father's shop on his nightstand!

This is happening right now. Takumi thought. He didn't dare speak out loud, not wanting to provoke the two. He may have been invisible, but from the one article he read about invisibility, he knew he could most likely still talk and that they could still hear him. What maniac is making me watch this? Are they TRYING to make me freak out and grieve?.. What's gonna happen when they realize I'm missing?

Out of nowhere, he felt himself feel lightheaded. And try as he might to stay up and alert, the world around him got darker and darker, and soon he felt himself hitting the ground.

"Did you hear something?" He faintly heard Iketani ask.

"If my wings are broken and I need a quick ride somewhere, I will ALWAYS ask you." Rainbow Dash said as Itsuki's Red and Black Levin entered Canterlot.

"Why would you're wings break?" Itsuki asked as he decreased speed. "From how good at flying you sound, I can't see you crashing."

"Wellllll..." Rainbow Dash's face reddened. Itsuki snickered.

"Alright, Scootaloo. Tell me." He began, looking at the orange filly in the rearview mirror. "How often does Rainbow Dash crash?"

"A lot," Scootaloo replied. Rainbow Dash's eyes widened.

"A LOT you say?" Itsuki was intrigued. "I might need to pick a new teacher then."

"Waitwaitwaitwait a ne- a new teacher?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Oh yeah! I forgot to ask." Itsuki looked at her. "Mind teaching me how to fly?"

Both pegasi were surprised. "You want me to teach you how to fly?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"I only gained wings yesterday. You think I'd know how to fly?"

"Of cour-... no. I guess you wouldn't. Sure, I can teach ya. I can teach ya to be almost as fast as me." Rainbow crossed her forehooves and look forward with pride.

"Almost?"

"Nobody is faster than me. And that is a fact." She boasted.

"She's right." Scootaloo reinforced.

Itsuki rolled his eyes. "But can you beat The White Ghost of Akina?" He asked slyly.

Rainbow was surprised. "The White Ghost of Akina?"

"Mhm. Fastest downhiller ever. Never beaten."

"Never beaten huh? And just who might this 'White Ghost' be?"

Itsuki could tell that Rainbow Dash was intrigued, but a bit of fear seemed to escape her. She must not be used to hearing of other ponies faster than her. He thought. "Well, he holds the fastest downhill time on Akina Pass. Totally unbeaten. Even the most talented and skilled haven't beaten him."

He could tell that both Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo were getting worried. Especially Rainbow Dash. Ohhhh they don't even know!

"Un...beatable?" Rainbow Dash tentatively said.

"Mhm. Unbeatable regardless of road or conditions, reserved but deranged to drive, the White Ghost of Akina Pass is the force to be reckoned with." Itsuki did his best to sound professional and condescending, finding it adorable to see such a brave mare with a reputation to uphold, seem genuinely scared about someone else who was much, much better than her.

"And wanna know how old he is?" He asked.

Rainbow buried her head in her hooves. "Oh sweet Celestia of course It's a stallion..." She looked back up, feeling hopeful as she knew what her guess was gonna be. "Is he some older stallion? Forties? I'd totally understand if it was somepony way older than me."

"Nineteen." Itsuki couldn't help but smile as both pegasi became defeated.

"Nine... teen?" Rainbow Dash couldn't believe it. A stallion that was younger than her, was much faster and was unbeatable. How she had never heard of this mysterious pegasus she didn't know.

Where even is Mount Akina? She wondered. I've never heard of a mountain like that. What is- That train of thought came to a screeching halt as she realized that Itsuki was having her on. He was just talking about Mount Akina on the way here!

"He's not a pegasus, is he," Rainbow asked flatly.

"Nope. He's an Alicorn."

Rainbow facehoofed as she realized which maniac Itsuki was talking about. "For Celestia's sa-You're talking about Takumi aren't you?!" She yelled. "Street Racing?"

Itsuki burst out laughing. "Ho-how did you NOT rea-he-healize who I was talking about?" The car began slowly drifting out of its lane.

"I was too focused on the-" Rainbow let out a long groan, as did Scootaloo. Scootaloo refocused on the buildings around her, snapping pictures with a camera.

"You two are adorable." He remarked, making them blush.

Rainbow's eyes widened suddenly. "ITSUKI! LOOK OUT!" She yelled.

"What? AH!" He yelled as he swerved right. An air horn sounded as he avoided a semi, fishtailing and nearly slamming into the back end of a sports car.

Itsuki quickly regained control and blushed as he noticed several ponies on the sidewalks give unapproving glares. He groaned a bit. If I had good tires, I could have avoided that just fine!

Looking around the place, Itsuki was quite surprised at the infrastructure. It was very different from the buildings of Shibukawa, and the cars were extremely different from what he was used to. Most of them at least. They were all American makes, and American makes and models were uncommon in Japan.

Suddenly, he realized something. "Hey uh... Rainbow Dash?"

"What?"

"Where the heck are we going? I just remembered we were meeting princesses, but where are we supposed to go?"

"The castle. Where else would we go?" Rainbow pointed. Itsuki looked over at where she was pointed.

His jaw dropped.

Rainbow found it quite cute at how the Alicorn was marveling at the sight. She looked down and noticed that his hooves had fallen off the steering wheel, so she quickly reached a hoof over to keep the car straight.

"That is..." Itsuki was lost. It had been quite some time since he was left totally speechless.

"It's awesome, Isn't it?" Scootaloo asked.

"Yeah... heh..." Itsuki closed his jaw and smirked. "It sure is."

Five minutes later.

Itsuki happily pulled into the private lot, and his face lit up the second he saw Takumi's Panda Trueno parked towards the corner.

"There it is!" He said. "Takumi's 86!"

"Nice." Rainbow Dash said. "Not my taste really, but It's nice."

"Mm. Oh, guess what?" Itsuki pulled into the spot next to Takumi's 86. shutting the engine off. "That car has a racing engine. A full 240HP!"

Rainbow seemed a bit unamused as she unbuckled. "240HP? That's good and all, but I don't think that's something to write home about." She said as she and Itsuki got out. Rainbow flipped her seat forward to let Scootaloo out.

"What!? How?" Itsuki asked.

"There are so many cares with more horsepower than that. R34 Skyline, literally any V8 muscle car, Viper-"

"Do any of those get their power from a four-cylinder?" Itsuki interrupted, getting defensive. "Do any of those cars get their power from a Naturally Aspirated 1.6 Liter engine that revs to 11000RPM?"

Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo were both surprised.

"That's... actually pretty good for what it is." Rainbow Dash admitted.

"Indeed it is, Rainbow Dash." A voice called out suddenly, startling the three. They all looked past Takumi's 86 and saw a dark blue Alicorn. She was a bit taller than them and maintained a regal stature as she walked towards them, stopping right behind Takumi's 86. "It is quite impressive that such an engine is fitted to a car like this." The Alicorn lightly rubbed a hoof against the Trueno's tailgate.

"Princess Luna!" Scootaloo squeed. She quickly remembered exactly who she was talking to, and bowed.

"No need to be so formal little filly." Luna waved for Scootaloo to rise. "Think of this as a visit." She turned to Rainbow Dash. "Now tell me, Miss Dash, why did you bring Scootaloo along?"

Rainbow Dash rubbed the back of her head. "Well, we kinda, sorta, didn't want to leave her. We were in the middle of a practice session when I had to leave. I didn't want to just leave her there, ya know?"

"I understand. Her parents do know, correct?"

Rainbow's eyes widened. "Well, I'm kind of foalsitting while her parents are away, so, not... really?"

"Foalsitting?" Itsuki asked.

Luna looked at Itsuki and smiled. "You must be Itsuki Takeuchi."

"Uh... yeah! That's me."

"Mm. Well, Takumi let me know about you. Me, my sister, and Twilight will be delighted to have you here. As is with you, Rainbow Dash."

"Hey!" Scootaloo piped. "What about me?"

Luna giggled. "Yes Scootaloo, we will be delighted to have you too." She turned to Rainbow Dash. "Now, where are your friends?"

"Oh. Itsuki told me that Starlight and Trixie were getting them." Rainbow replied. "They should be up soon."

"Well, I see no reason why we should not head inside then." Luna turned. "Follow me." She said, and the four began slowly walking towards some stairs.

"So, where's Takumi?" Itsuki asked. "I've been kinda worried about him since he disappeared last night."

"He is taking a shower."

"Oh. That's..." Itsuki looked over at something that had caught his eye. "nice..."

"You and Takumi being here have caused quite the stir between me, my sister, and Princess Twilight. We have yet to inform Princess Cadance. Twilight especially-" Luna cut herself off as she looked back and noticed that Itsuki was gone.

"Uh..." Rainbow was confused as the three looked around. Luna walked back down the stairs past the two young pegasi, looking to the left and seeing Itsuki standing in front of a dark blue Nissan Skyline BNR33 GT-R. It perfectly matched Luna's coat. She smiled.

"Whatcha lookin' at?" She playfully asked as Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo stopped behind her.

"This GT-R! Come on! Dark Blue, super nice," Itsuki said as he walked around it. "The interior looks great. At least there are still good cars here in Equestria. I wonder which lucky guy got enough money to cash in on this baby... ohhh..."

Luna smirked. "That lucky 'guy' is actually a girl." She said. "And how they got enough money to 'cash in' on it is simple."

"What? What do you mean?" Itsuki looked at Luna from the other side of the car.

"Well, when you are regarded as royalty and have a sister with an entire money building, It is quite easy to obtain such funds."

Itsuki looked at Luna, then at the R33, then back at Luna. He stammered a bit, and this continued for about five seconds.

"Y-You-... This is YOURS!?" Itsuki finally yelled.

"It is." She smiled at the young Alicorn's enthusiasm.

"What is a PRINCESS doing with such a sweet set of wheels?!"

"I bought it about three years ago. I decided that having a better mode of transport besides chariot would have been helpful, so I settled for this. I bought it because it was practical and easy to drive."

"Did you now?" Rainbow asked. Scootaloo had begun taking some pictures of the BNR33.

"But... It's a GT-R!" Itsuki said. "What do you mean practical?!"

"Well, this model, if you didn't know, was a slight fail with ponies. It had softer suspension and was longer than the previous R32. Which I guess hurt cornering. I don't see the issue. Corners just fine. And it provides a smooth ride. Not to mention that the all wheel drive makes it easy to accelerate."

Even Luna suddenly began wondering about how the hay she ended up getting an R33 Skyline GT-R of all things. She wasn't into street racing or general car racing in the slightest back then, so why did she get it? She could have gotten some other model. Like a minivan.

I guess I did like the look. And the engine tone is nice. The princess thought.

"Well-... still! A GT-R! How could this be practical?"

"It is practical for a single mare who rarely transports things herself."

That shut Itsuki right up. She was right. When you were single, you didn't exactly need a big car. And it wasn't like the R33 GTR wasn't unpractical. The trunk wasn't the smallest compartment ever, and the rear seats could easily hold things. The same could even be said for the smaller BNR32.

Itsuki found himself continuing to admire the car. Luna rolled her eyes.

"Alright. Let us get going.." She said.

"Alright," Itsuki replied, and the four began walking back up the stairs and through the doors.

"If you are so interested in my R33, you should see Twilight's car," Luna suggested.

"Twilight's car..." Itsuki knew who Twilight was, her friends had told him last night, but he didn't know her car. "What is her car?"

"A Civetta Bolide Twiline." Luna cooly enunciated the word 'Twiline'.

"Um... never heard of it."

"Do you know what a Countach is? Lamborghini?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Sure."

"Think of that."

Luna nodded. "Mhm. It is rather similar. It has a bright purple and pink paintjob, a rear spoiler, and my oh my does it look good. I almost envy her, as it was given to her upon her becoming a Princess."

Itsuki remembered the conversation between him and Starlight from yesterday. How she talked about the car's horsepower rating. He grimaced. "Oh. Yeah. I know what it is I guess. Starlight told me about it. Wait... if Twilight's here, then where's her car?"

"Routine Maintenance," Luna explained. "It is in a shop towards the other side of the castle." Now it was Luna grimacing as she lead them through the halls. You would think that mare would maintain it herself. Knowing her, she knows more about cars and their inner workings than I will over the next few months.

"Something wrong princess?" Rainbow Dash asked, trotting next to Luna.

"Nothing! I was just thinking about something."

"Oh. Alright. So what do you think Twilight is gonna do when we meet her?"

"Knowing her, probably unleash a barrage of questions." Luna joked.

The three girls laughed, but Itsuki was confused, and almost alarmed when he fully processed what Luna had said.

"Wait..." He began. "What is Twilight like?" He asked.

The three girls looked at each other, then at him, awkward looks appearing on their faces.

"Wellll..." They said in unison.

Takumi opened his eyes again, blinking a bit and gauging his surroundings. By the looks of it, he was in a Japanese bedroom. Typical late 90s upper-class kind of thing.

It wasn't the most unique thing in the world. Tan walls, two windows that made Takumi assume that this bedroom was on the corner of whatever house he had appeared in.

A single bed sat in a corner, while in another corner where the two windows met, sat a desk. The desk had typical late 90s technology on it. A white computer and large keyboard, plus a plant and some diagrams were strewn about the desk.

But what Takumi was more focused on, was the man sitting at the desk, clicking away at the computer. A simulation running on the screen. The man had dark blue hair, a black sweater, and jeans. He was in his mid-twenties. Takumi was speechless.

Knock Knock Knock

The man looked over at the door.

"I'm coming in." Said someone in Japanese. A second later, the door opened. Another man, also in his mid-twenties though a bit younger, walked in and shut the door behind him. He had blonde hair and was rather muscular. He had a yellow sweater and jeans on.

"Ah, Keisuke. Good to see you." The man at the computer greeted. "Have you gotten ahold of Takumi yet?"

"No. I haven't." The Blonde, Keisuke, replied. "I called his father. Apparently, Takumi's phone is dead. And apparently he hasn't seen the kid since Sunday."

Takumi's heart deflated as he saw the worry in the man's eyes. The man at the computer.

"Hm... I see..." The man said.

"Ugh. Don't tell him I said this, but it really pisses me off when does bullcrap like this." Keisuke sat down on the bed. Now Takumi was standing in between the two men, listening to the conversation like a fly on the wall.

So, they can't see me either... Takumi thought.

"I can kind of say the same." The man replied. "It gets a bit annoying with how spacey he can be, but that's just the way he is. We can't change that."

"Still. You'd think he would be a bit more considerate about we're supposed to, oh, you know. Deal with Purple Shadow in Ibaraki before the Wonderbolts do? Also, what the heck kind of name is the Wonderbolts anyways? Sounds like the name some kid would use."

The man sighed. "Yes, it is odd for him to just... disappear. A call before doing so would have been nice. But I'm certain that there is a reason why he disappeared in such a hurry. Perhaps a friend of his in Tokyo got in a wreck. Remember Akio? The driver of that S30Z? With what Takumi has told me about him, that kid tears down the expressways so fast, it would be a nightmare to crash."

"Yeah. But I'm pretty sure Takumi would have called by now. Anyways, what are we gonna do? Am I just gonna run the downhill?"

Takumi was worried. Is Ryosuke gonna replace me? Even if It's just temporary? I'm your downhill ace, Ryosuke!

"Hm... I dunno. It just wouldn't feel right to do that. Sure. We could put Kenta or maybe even call up Aisuke and put either of them on Downhill Duty for the time being. But that would bring a bit of disrespect to Takumi, don't you think?"

Keisuke groaned. "I know. Which is why he should get the hell off his ass and call us."

"Again, I'm sure there is a reason as to why he's gone." 'Ryosuke' reassured. "I think I'll call the SpeedStars. They are the closest team to him, it would make sense that they knew where he went. In fact, didn't you meet a couple of the SpeedStars working at a gas station? Back in our days as the RedSuns?"

"Yeah, I did. It's right on the same road as Akina. Can't miss it."

"Mm. I might head out there then."

"You do that. Anyways, I gotta go. My Boxing matches await." Keisuke got up and headed for the door.

"Alright. Hey, ask your buddies if they've seen a white and black 86 with the words 'Fujiwara Tofu Shop' on the side." Ryosuke said as Keisuke opened the door.

"I will. See ya later bro." Keisuke replied before shutting the door.

There was a moment of silence, with Ryosuke staring back at the computer screen. About thirty seconds later, Takumi and Ryosuke heard the muffled sound of a rotary engine starting up in the garage, along with the sound of the garage door opening.

Ryosuke sighed as the rotary engine grew further and further away, quickly fading into nothingness.

"How am I gonna tell him..." Ryosuke slowly said before tapping away at his computer.

Tell him what? Takumi wondered. About me? Does he already know I'm missing?

Ryosuke stopped typing suddenly and just stared at his computer screen. After a few seconds, he grabbed a paper with a drawing on it.

"So many things are happening right now..." Ryosuke began, swiveling the chair away from the desk, almost facing Takumi. "Takumi has gone off without saying anything, the Wonderbolts are still a threat, It's nearing winter..." He stopped, sighing.

The Wonderbolts... Takumi thought.

"And I've been having these dreams..." Ryosuke finally finished as he stared at the paper.

Sighing, Ryosuke put the sheet of paper back on the desk and got up, and without saying anything, he walked out of the room, shutting the door behind him.

Now it was just Takumi in there. He had a couple of options. Try to get out, or maybe wait for Ryosuke to get back and try to talk to him. But there was something bothering him, something that made him walk towards the desk. He used his forehooves to thrust himself upwards a little, then put his forehooves on the edge of the desk. If he was standing up, he would be as tall as he was normally. He figured that much out.

Takumi looked down at the desktop, at the picture Ryosuke was holding. It was... odd. To say the least. It was a sketch of a pegasus. A well done one at that. The pony was drawn just standing there in a normal position, with a slight frown on Its face. It was eerily similar to how the ponies of Equestria looked.

It had dark blue eyes, dark blue mane, and tail, a horn on its forehead, and nothing on its flank. Takumi noticed that its eyes were oddly narrow, and it had... admittedly cute little fangs in Its mouth. He didn't know if the uncolored coat was to signify that this pony was white, or if Ryosuke hadn't colored it in yet. A small black circular shadow sat below the pony's hooves.

I didn't know Ryosuke was a doodler. He thought. Huh. A horn and wing. Alicorn.

Suddenly, he noticed something very off about the wings. They weren't like his, or Itsuki's, or really any pegasus he had seen thus far. They looked like... bat wings.

Bat wings? Why would a pony have bat wings? What even is this? He wondered. And why does it look like a sketch of an actual pony in Equestria?

Takumi's eyes widened.

"Unless..." He said out loud on accident.

"Unless what?" A female voice said suddenly. The voice was muffled and rather distorted, but Takumi could barely make it out as he felt himself waking up.

"Huh? Wha-?" Takumi barely said.

Suddenly, his face was hit by a huge stream of water, which instinctively caused him to open his eyes, which were also hit. You can imagine his pain.

"AH!" Takumi yelled, covering his face as the same female voice began laughing.

When the water was directed off his face, he looked up and saw Luna.

"Wake up sleepyhead!" She joked. "How are you even sleeping in the shower?"

"Uh- Luna!" Takumi jumped up, his face turning red. "What are you doing in here?!"

"I wanted to see if you were alright. You have been in the shower for quite some time you know." Luna turned the water off and levitated a towel for him to grab and drape over himself.

"I..." Takumi trailed off as he realized that he was sleeping. But if he was sleeping, what kinds of dreams were those?

"Something the matter?" Luna asked as she walked out of the bathroom and around the door to give Takumi a bit of privacy while he dried off.

"Well, first off, how come Twilight didn't come for me?" Takumi asked as he dried himself. This was extremely hard because, fun fact, when you are practically a towel yourself, you tend to soak up a lot of water. "Isn't this her room?"

"Well, she is talking with Itsuki. I swear Itsuki is Rainbow Dash's male counterpart. They have the sa-"

"Wait, Itsuki's here?" Takumi cut Luna off.

"Yes. He has been for a while now."

"How long have I been out?!"

"I do not know. Itsuki arrived half an hour after you left us, and he's been here for at least an hour and a half now, so... I guess you've been out for at least an hour."

There was a moment of silence.

Piff "Dangit" Came Takumi's muffled voice.

Luna bit her lip and cringed assuming he had just faceplanted into the towel.

A minute later, Takumi, now wearing his white sweater, walked out. He was still wet in several areas.

"I give up."

Luna giggled. "We will see if there is a sunlit spot in the royal dining room. At least you are not dripping wet."

"Yeah, I'll need to get used to this."

"You will with time. As with all things. Anyways, my sister and Twilight are waiting." Luna walked out of Twilight's room. Takumi followed. "Twilight and her friends are there as well."

"You mean the mares I saw at that table early this morning in-... Twilight's Castle?" If you can call it a castle. The thing looks like a dumb kid's toy.

"If you mean the Element bearers, along with Trixie and Starlight, then yes." Both Alicorns were now in a hallway, with Takumi following Luna.

"Element Bearers?"

"Right, you have not heard of them. I'll explain later." Luna sighed. "By the way, Itsuki should really take care of his Street Racing habit."

"Oh, he told you?"

"Yes. Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo were around, so I couldn't reveal that..." Luna looked around to make sure no guards were near. There were none. "...that I do the same."

"Alright."

"But he liked to talk about it as we made our way towards the dining room. A little surprising considering he was talking to a princess who, for all he knew, could have been very against such form of motorsport."

"Well from where we're from, you can talk about street racing all you want and not many will do much. They might give a glare but that's it. He's used to that kind of thing."

"Mm. Perhaps. I did tell him that if he wanted to talk about racing, he will have to pretend to be talking about circuit racing. Because Princess Twilight isn't exactly the kind of pony who is lax about the law. As is my sister. In fact, my sister is highly against driving in general."

Takumi was a bit surprised. Why would someone be completely against driving? "Why?"

Luna sighed. "I can only assume It's because of her age. She has been around since well before the advent of even Steam Engines. I think she dislikes it because Equestria was transformed rather... severely, with the advent of so many roads being paved."

Takumi looked forward. "Alright... so she prefers not having people get around easily? Er, ponies?"

"It is not that. I just... don't know really. But enough of my sister's insecurities. How are you taking to pony life so far?"

"Uh-..." Takumi didn't speak for a moment as the two walked down some stairs, a couple of guards bowing in respect to the night princess.

"That's a stallion, right?" Takumi barely heard one say.

"Looks like it. I think Luna got herself a special somepony." Another replied jokingly, causing Takumi's face to turn red.

Luna looked at Takumi, immediately seeing his red face. "What?" She asked.

"One of those guards just said something about you getting a Special Somepony." Takumi kept his voice a bit quiet. "I've never heard that term before, but I'm not stupid."

Luna looked back at the guards, who looked to be quietly talking. She smirked. "They are just not used to me walking with anypony that isn't my sister or another form of royalty."

"Like who? Is it just you princesses?"

Luna looked forward. "No, there are other forms. For instance, Prince Blueblood and Prince Shining Armor."

"Oh. Well, at least me and Itsuki aren't the only... soon-to-be princes... what are they like?"

"Well, let me think. Blueblood lives here and Canterlot. You can hold a conversation with him, but he's a bit on the, should I say... 'Stuck-Up' side of things."

"All... right."

"Even his taste in cars is stuck up. At the moment, I think he's going through a small... 'retro' phase. The car he's been using for the past couple of weeks now is, oh what was it... a Mercedes E-Class W210. Silver."

Takumi's eyes widened with horror. "With circular headlights?"

"Mhm. It's a rather interesting choice of a luxury car, to say the least."

"Yeah... that is interesting." Takumi took a deep breath in, then out. "What about Shining Armor? Is that literally his name?"

"It is. Why?"

"Because it just sounds odd is all. Is he a knight?"

"He's a Captain. Trains the Crystal Empire Guard. He is a Prince because he is Princess Cadance's husband."

"Oh."

"However, you and I should be a bit cautious around him. The same should be said for Itsuki."

"Why?"

"Because he's the Captain of the Crystal Empire Guard? And his main choice of transportation is a police car."

Takumi's eyes widened a bit. "Oh."

Luna smirked. "I always found that rather interesting between him and Cadance. He drives a big cruiser, while Cadance drives a Miura. But I digress. Shining Armor is a firm yet kind pony. I am sure that as long as you don't reveal your street racing habit, you two should get along together."

Luna stopped in front of a door, which Takumi did not realize was there, so he walked straight into it.

"Ow!" Takumi yelped, rubbing his muzzle. "You could have said something."

Luna was a bit confused. "It is a... big door? Why would I need to alert to a door like this?"

"Because-" Takumi sighed. "Whatever. Why are we here?"

"This is the dining room. Care to open the door? Or-" Luna cut herself off and didn't speak afterward.

"Or... what?"

"Nothing." She replied. I will ask him tonight. It would be unwise to start talking about the subject in daylight hours. "Ahem, shall we head in? I am sure they're waiting."

Takumi just sighed. "Sure," He said, pushing the door open.

As Takumi expected, the dining room was simple. A large tall room with plenty of tall windows on one wall to let natural light in. A long table sat in the front, where Takumi recognized... well, pretty much every mare he had seen last night, plus Twilight and Celestia. But before he could observe further...

"Takumiii!" Yelled an all-too-familiar voice.

Takumi rolled his eyes as he saw Itsuki jump up out of his seat and run over.

"Hey Itsuki." He greeted.

"Takumi you JERK!" Itsuki suddenly slammed his right forehoof straight into Takumi's left cheek, causing everyone to recoil in surprise.

"OW! Dude!? What was that for?!" Takumi asked, rubbing his cheek.

"What the hell were you thinking last night?!" Itsuki asked. "Leaving us without saying ONE WORD! Where the hell did you go anyways?"

"Calm the heck down Itsuki. I just went to Akina is all."

"You went to Akina? How?!"

"Er, the Canterlot Turnpike."

Itsuki groaned. "Well, next time let us know that you're leaving."

"I woke up to an alarm I never set. I decided to head to the Turnpike because I wanted to be in a familiar place."

"Whatever."

Luna cleared her throat. "Shall we sit down and chat?" She asked.

"Sure," Takumi replied.

The three Alicorns walked over and sat down at the table. Twilight's friends were all visibly excited that there were two new Alicorns in Equestria. Itsuki and Takumi sat down towards the end of the table, next to each other. Luna sat next to Celestia.

Takumi couldn't help but notice a small Orange Pegasus Filly with Bright Purple Hair sitting next to Rainbow Dash. She was the only filly there. Why is there a filly here? Takumi wondered. Is she Rainbow Dash's Daughter or Little Sister or something?

"Now," Celestia said. "You were saying, Itsuki?"

"Anyways, me and Iketani are best buds." Itsuki suddenly began. "Me and Takumi are closer, we've known each other since middle school, but yeah. He's nice. Along with Kenji."

Takumi sighed. Itsuki must be talking about the guys back in Japan. He thought. He was on the left of Itsuki, more towards the end of the table, sunlight enveloping most of him. To be honest, he was surprised nobody was saying anything about how wet he was.

He noticed that he was sitting next to Starlight and a... rather pissed-off-looking Trixie.

"What's up with her?" He quietly asked Starlight, pointing to Trixie who just sat with her head resting on her forehoof.

Starlight sighed. "Long story short, Pinkie Pie was driving behind Trixie in her van as we went up the turnpike. Pinkie tried to pass us, but then a truck was approaching in the opposite direction. Pinkie supposedly forgot that Trixie's Pessima was there, and ended up pitting us sideways into the truck."

"Oh... sheesh. What was her car? I've never heard of a Pessima."

"Just a burnt orange station wagon. Something similar to your car I guess. Slightly compact and boxy."

"Oh. Is everyone ok?"

"Mostly. The Pessima was totaled, and Fluttershy's front right hoof broke since she was sitting in the rear right of the wagon. Which was pretty much where the semi hit."

Takumi looked around. "Uh, who's Fluttershy again?"

Starlight pointed. "The yellow pegasus over there. Pink hair."

Takumi looked over at the pegasus. She was sitting next to Twilight on the opposite end of the table with a cast on her right forehoof. "That must have hurt."

"Mm. We had to kind of pile into the back of Pinkie's van. We kind of forced Pinkie out of the van and into Rarity's car. I drove us up. Because after her forgetting about an entire car, none of us wanted her driving."

"I hope she loses her license," Trixie grumbled as she shot Pinkie a death stare, who was sitting a few spots away on the opposite side of the table. She looked rather downcast.

"Hm." Takumi looked outside. It was cloudy out and likely chilly.

vrrOOooommm

An engine rung in his ears. A Rotary engine, no doubt.

Suddenly, the dining room was gone. Replaced with a dark road, and two cars in front. And two men. Ryosuke and Keisuke Takahashi.

"Keisuke, I'm sorry. He's gone." Ryosuke said, leaning against his FC.

"He can't be gone. Our Ace? Just, missing?" Keisuke was towards Ryosuke's left, clearly distressed.

"I'm sorry." Ryosuke sighed. "I'm shutting down Project D. If Takumi doesn't want to help realize our dreams, then there is no point for the team."

"NO!" Takumi yelled.

He was suddenly snapped back into reality. Everyone was staring at him. He just looked down at the table.

"Is something the matter, Takumi?" Celestia asked.

That wasn't real. I know that. Takumi thought. Without me, Ryosuke will disband the team. I don't want him to shut down Project D!

"Takumi, Jesus. What's wrong?" Itsuki asked, giving him a light punch.

"Uh-..." Takumi needed to find a subject to talk about, something that wasn't about that horrendous hallucination. "Nothing, just... thought I saw something. Uh... Itsuki?" Takumi looked at Itsuki.

"Yeah?"

"This is a question for everyone I guess, but... do you think that our world, is just a dream?"

"Whatever do you mean?" Luna asked.

"I mean, what if we were always ponies?" Takumi began. "What if our world was just one long dream? What if our world... isn't real?"

"It is." Celestia immediately replied.

Takumi and Itsuki looked at her. "It is?" Takumi asked.

"We already have a human world. In fact, there is a portal that goes straight to it. Twilight can attest to that. And before you ask, no. It is not your world."

Takumi's hopes had risen and fallen throughout that sentence. "Alright..." He slowly said.

"Why?" Twilight asked.

"I was just wondering. I may be used to living as a pony, but I just..." Takumi sighed. He had no idea where to go with this. "I want to know why it was me and Itsuki who were sent here."

"Mm. Yes, that is odd." Celestia replied. "We were actually waiting on you to arrive so we could talk about that."

"Oh. Sorry."

"For what?"

"For keeping you guys waiting. I passed out in the shower."

"Oh. Well, you're here now, so now we can start. What happened right before you two got here?"

Takumi and Itsuki looked at each other. "Uh..." They let out.

"Were either of you sent to a sort of dreamscape?" Celestia asked. "Light blue, full of fog, anything of the sort?"

"Um, no. I wasn't. Itsuki?" Takumi replied.

"Mm-Mm. Nope." Itsuki said.

"How very odd... what did you two do right before you became Alicorns?"

"Battled Nightmare Moon and Heartbreaker down Mount Akina Pass." Takumi blurted out without thinking. The look that appeared on Luna's face told him he probably shouldn't have said that.

"You did WHAT?!" Twilight and Celestia yelled at once.

Takumi sighed. "We're gonna have to explain this whole thing, aren't we..." He said, looking down.

Celestia cleared her throat. "Not quite. I know a spell that can let all of us fall into an almost sleep-like state-" Celestia's horn lit up yellow, and drapes were put over all the windows, along with the doors locking. The room would have been plunged into darkness had it not been for the three chandeliers around. "-and see through one's memories. It is illegal to do such a thing, that is unless the one whose memory is being purged agrees."

"That sounds... exploitable," Takumi remarked.

"It would be if it didn't quickly sap you of energy as it would do for any common unicorn. Of course, I'm used to this sort of thing, so I can do it easily."

"Couldn't we be attacked while doing this?" Itsuki asked.

"If the magic senses that our bodies are in danger, we will be disconnected from the dreamstate, and back here immediately."

"Oh. Alright. I'll do it if-"

"We'll do it if it saves us having to explain the whole thing." Takumi interrupted.

"I take it the rest of you would want to partake in this?" Celestia assumed.

A collection of yes's filled the room from everypony present.

"Then let's start, shall we?"

Celestia's horn lit up, and suddenly everything went black.

Act 7: Battle to the Limit!

Author's Note

Hey, look! Actual Title Punctuation!

Act 7: Battle to the Limit!

October 16th, 2:57AM, Mount Akina Pass.

Two young teenagers sat on the side of the road with two cars. A Black and White 1983 Toyota Corolla Trueno GT-APEX, and a Black and Red Toyota Corolla Levin GT-APEX of the same year. Both cars had carbon fiber hoods. On the right side of the Trueno, some Japanese symbols had been painted.

One man was wearing a light green shirt and jeans, along with black shoes. He had normal cream-colored skin and short black hair. He leaned against the Levin. The other was slightly taller and was wearing a white sweater, light blue jeans, and white shoes. He had the same skin tone but had slightly longer brown hair than the other man. He sat next to the Trueno, hands in pockets

"Takumi, are you sure you actually want to go through with this?" The man asked.

"Dude, yeah. I'm not scared of her. Nightmare Moon has been coming after me ever since I went to Fujimi. I want to take her on in a proper battle. You didn't have to come you know. I get that you were staying over at my house and all because of our dreams, but I didn't ask you."

The man sighed. "I guess you didn't. Technically I only came up because I wanted to see Heartbreaker again." He chuckled. "Remember when I beat her last Thursday?"

"Yeah, I do. You scared the crap out of me. I didn't know you'd actually improve like that."

"Mhm. I'll now be known as-" The man jumped forward and reached up with both arms, parting them like an Arch. -"Itsuki! Akina's Supercar Killer!"

Takumi snickered. "Yeah. Hey, maybe I'll bring you along on some of Project D's excursions. Would be fun to have someone to warm the courses up."

Itsuki pointed straight at Takumi. "You'd better! I'll make your life a living hell if you don't!"

Takumi rolled his eyes. "I'm sure you will. Remember that you have a job. You should check in with Yuichi if the excursion happens on a workday."

"I will."

The two sat in silence for a while. There wasn't even a cricket chirping or an owl hooting. It was rather quiet.

A bit too quiet...

Both their spines tingled, and paranoia crept in. It felt like something was out there. Something was watching them.

Takumi glanced behind him, which made Itsuki sigh.

"Forget it Takumi. She's not coming." Itsuki said.

Takumi sighed. "I guess your right. Let's head home."

They got in their cars, starting their 4A-GE engines and pulling out onto the road. Itsuki was in front.

"It's so dumb. The one night I dare her to come out, she doesn't." Takumi complained over a radio transceiver as they slowly accelerated.

"Like a video game that involves Random Chance. You can get screwed twenty times in a row when you don't want to, then when you try to get screwed on purpose, it never happens." Itsuki agreed.

"Looking for me?" A female voice asked suddenly, sounding right in their heads. Their gazes shot behind them, noting the headlights quickly approaching. Takumi's eyes widened.

The black BNR33... He thought.

Back On The Rocks (Soarer Cover) starts playing. (Shit's about to go down the mountain everyone!!)

The 2.6 Liter Straight Six whirred from under the R33's hood, It's Twin Turbo's hissing as it quickly closed the distance. Blue Mist emanated from the GT-R.

"Nightmare Moon!" Takumi yelled as Itsuki instinctively accelerated.

The Lunar Queen laughed. "To be fully honest, you two are rather stubborn. You especially Takumi. Do you really think you can take on my GT-R? After all those other times?"

Takumi grimaced, planting the throttle and tailgating Itsuki. "I've had about enough of you! You, me, and Itsuki are gonna have a proper battle!"

"Fine by me. I'm going to enjoy crushing you."

"Itsuki, are you a part of this or what?" Takumi asked as he pressed against Itsuki's bumper, tempted to pass the slower car.

"Uh-I don't know!" Itsuki noticed a pair of headlights appear around the corner ahead, a Naturally Aspirated V12 roaring as it sped by. It was a midnight purple 1970 Lamborghini P400 Jota. The car slammed on the brakes immediately, spinning around.

"I AM NOW!" Itsuki yelled, flooring it.

"Alright then." Nightmare Moon said. "I see that Heartbreaker is joining in on the fun. Anyways, Three. Two. One. GO!"

The Eight-Six Duo slammed on the brakes and tore into the first corner at high speed, drifting through the inside and accelerating out like raging bulls. Nightmare Moon surprisingly lost ground but caught back up through the next straight with her High Power and AWD.

Takumi followed Itsuki, not wanting to pass and leave him to deal with Nightmare Moon. Both cars hit the brakes and drifted into a right corner, streaking through the inside. Nightmare Moon's blue eyes narrowed as she lost ground.

Just because you can take corners better doesn't mean I can't power by you in the straights. She thought.

Itsuki and Takumi upshifted as they exited the corner. Their gauges rose in unison as Nightmare Moon's R33 closed in behind, pressing against Takumi's bumper. The Lamborghini Miura was further behind but slowly gaining.

The three cars approached a right hairpin. The brake rotors lit up brightly as they braked, Takumi and Itsuki gaining instant distance against the much heavier R33. Exiting the hairpin, the AE86's accelerated hard, leaving the R33 in smoke. Takumi glanced back at the R33 as it accelerated out from the hairpin.

You've been plaguing my dreams long enough, you insufferable demon. He thought. All those dreams, we've been on different mountain passes. Ones I am unfamiliar with. All those have ended with you crashing me. And while I haven't had those dreams for a week now, only weird pony dreams, It was only a matter of time before you and I met again.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Tires squealed as Itsuki and Takumi drifted into a left-right chicane. They drifted with ease and gained ground on Nightmare Moon, who gripped. Takumi's thoughts carried over as he and Itsuki drifted around a sudden left hairpin.

But now, we're on MY home turf. The only being able to outperform me on Akina is my own father. Takumi's eyes narrowed as he and Itsuki exited the hairpin. "Now let's see if you can keep up!"

vrrrrrrrOOOOOOmmm- vrrrrrrrr

Takumi shifted early at 8800RPM as to not accelerate into Itsuki's rear bumper. They accelerated around a left curve, Nightmare Moon's R33 catching up and tailgating in short order.

"Why do you choose to follow your friend, Takumi?" Nightmare Moon asked. Her voice was inside both the teenagers' heads. "He's clearly holding you back."

"Don't talk about him like that!" Takumi and Itsuki yelled in unison, Itsuki replacing 'him' with 'me'.

They entered a right corner and flew through the inside. Try as she did, Nightmare Moon was simply unable to match the 86 Duo's speed through corners. She growled.

Accelerating around a soft left curve, Itsuki saw a right hairpin approaching. Me and Takumi are the best drivers Akina has. He thought. I know we can do this!

Both Corolla's screeched through the inside of the hairpin before coming out the other end, once again gaining good distance on the R33. This distance however was quickly lost because of the R33's outright power and AWD advantage. It caught right back up as the cars accelerated down a straightaway, and braked well behind them. Nightmare Moon was most surprised at how late the 86's were braking.

"How are they braking like that?" Nightmare Moon asked as Takumi and Itsuki drifted around the hairpin. "I have the best Anti-Brake-System on the market yet they can still outperform me?!"

Gears locked into place as Takumi and Itsuki upshifted, accelerating down a long straight. Nightmare Moon smiled.

"This section is long and straight. The perfect place for my R33." She accelerated harder.

"Let's see how your underpowered relics handle the GT-R straight line specialty!" She yelled as she tailgated Takumi. She was just about to swerve into the left lane when she noticed out the corner of her eye... headlights.

Wait, what the heck is that? She looked left. Her eyes widened.

Driving parallel to her was the dark purple 1970 Lamborghini Miura P400 Jota. It had tinted windows, and she couldn't see.

"Heartbreaker!? Get the hell out of my way!" Nightmare Moon yelled, tempted to push the Miura.

"No thanks. I'm comfortable where I'm at." A female voice replied.

Takumi and Itsuki couldn't hear the conversation, but they could see the Miura in their mirrors. It could easily blast by them. Although it was a thirty-something-year-old car, even the early Miura P400 made 345HP N/A, with the Jota making a little over 400 N/A. Naturally Aspirated.

"Come on you!" Itsuki yelled as a left curve approached ahead. He and Takumi braked. "I DARE you to pass!"

Brakelights stalled and Brake Rotors lit up as all cars braked for the curve doing over 100MPH. Takumi and Itsuki drifted into the curve at high speed, skillfully slowing mid-drift and tightening their lines as the curve tightened into a corner.

Nightmare Moon was forced to the outside of the same corner as Heartbreaker refused to move from the inside. She yelped as the corner tightened, braking and suffering severe understeer. Heartbreaker passed on the inside, putting Nightmare Moon in last place.

"Bastard!" Nightmare Moon yelled, accelerating.

Takumi and Itsuki were a couple seconds ahead, skillfully drifting side to side through a right curve, then a sharp left corner. Itsuki noticed a pair of taillights speeding ahead, and picked up the radio.

"Dude, watch out. There's a car ahead!" He said into the radio.

Takumi was surprised. How is he talking to me through the radio? Is he drifting with one hand?! He wondered.

Right Curve, Left Curve, they were gaining serious distance on Nightmare Moon and Heartbreaker through these high-speed curves and quickly gaining on whatever car was ahead. Probably another racer, considering the way it took the corners.

Another Right Curve. Takumi could see the taillights ahead disappear as he and Itsuki drifted through the inside of the curve at high speed. His RPM gauge revved at 9K RPM, while Itsuki's revved at 8K. As a sudden left sweeping curve approached, the Eight-Six Duo flicked left and dove into the inside.

Takumi found time to relax a bit as he saw how far ahead he and Itsuki were from Heartbreaker and Nightmare Moon. It had to be three seconds at least.

"Incoming!" Itsuki's voice yelled out of the radio as they exited the curve. Takumi understood the warning. The taillights from earlier were almost right in front of them. It was a wide red bar, going down a bit towards the ends.

They heard the unmistakable sound of a Rotary Engine whirring from the car as it accelerated, easily leaving them in the dust before braking suddenly for a right hairpin. Itsuki growled a little.

"Does this guy not realize what's happening?!" He yelled.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!

Three sets of tires squealed as the mystery car, Itsuki, and Takumi drifted through the inside of the hairpin, emerging towards the outside. As the three accelerated around a right curve, Takumi thought about what was ahead.

We're about to speed down Akina's longest straightaway. Nightmare Moon and Heartbreaker are sure to catch up. All I need to do is block them.

"Don't think you're getting away that easily." Nightmare Moon's voice rang through everyone's ears as the R33 suddenly appeared behind Takumi, having apparently passed Heartbreaker again.

"For fucks sakes Nightmare Moon, stop talking in our heads!" Takumi yelled.

"Yes, It's rather annoying." Heartbreaker surprisingly agreed. Takumi was surprised at the new voice.

"Alright! Fine!" Nightmare Moon pressed hard on the throttle. "This is what you get for talking to me like that!"

BANG!

Music Ends.

Takumi felt his car get shoved forward. Things moved in slow motion as the Trueno was thrown sideways, Nightmare Moon's R33 flying by. As the 86 turned a full 180 degrees, Takumi could see Heartbreaker's Miura heading straight for him. He could barely make out two panicked glowing magenta eyes staring at him.

He shifted gears and steered, feeling the 86 begin to turn back the other way. Suddenly, it flicked around. He luckily caught it and faced forward again, however he... didn't accelerate.

She bumped me. Just like all those other times. Were his thoughts as he watched the R33 accelerate away. She's out for blood. How am I supposed to compete with a supernatural cheater like that? At least Shingo was human. But she's... she's...

"Takumiii! What the hell happened!? Why is Nightmare Moon right behind me?!" Itsuki yelled through the radio. "SHE'S PUSHING ME!!!"

Takumi's eyes widened. She's pushing him? He gasped. "She's pushing him! NO! GET YOUR ASS AWAY FROM HIM!"

The 4A-GEU Silvertop Engine screamed up to 11K RPM as Takumi nailed the throttle, accelerating away from Heartbreaker and towards Nightmare Moon and Itsuki.

Itsuki's brake rotors heated up as Nightmare Moon pushed him faster and fast. All Itsuki could do was hold the brakes and hold on. Suddenly, he remembered what was at the end of this straightaway.

A hairpin. Itsuki thought. One that goes straight into trees and down the mountain if one were to overcook it! "No! Stop! Please!"

The hairpin came closer and closer. They had already caught up to the mystery car ahead and passed it. Itsuki squeezed his eyes shut, knowing that this was the end for him.

VROOOOOMM-BANG!

Fastway - Go Beat Crazy starts playing.

Everything seemed to slow down as Nightmare Moon's R33 was shoved sideways and off of Itsuki's bumper. Nightmare Moon's eyes looked over in horror as she regained control. To her left was a Mazda Cosmo JC. A dark blue Mazda Cosmo JC Mountain Spec, pushing her.

"What the-!?" Nightmare Moon yelled as the Mazda sped ahead, turning in front of her. Suddenly, it slammed on Its brakes!

"NO!" Nightmare Moon yelled again as she slammed into the rear of the Cosmo just as Takumi caught up. The Cosmo sped up and braked suddenly.

"SCREW YOU NIGHTMARE MOON!" Itsuki yelled as he braked hard for the left hairpin, throwing his 86 sideways as the Cosmo did the same, both of them doing a parallel drift.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!

Takumi couldn't believe what he had just seen. A Mazda Cosmo of all cars had just saved Itsuki from meeting a very gruesome death. He gritted his teeth as he braked and tore into the left hairpin with Nightmare Moon hot on the inside behind him.

Exiting, the three cars accelerated with Takumi quickly catching up to the Cosmo that was tailing Itsuki. He pressed against the bumper of the Cosmo that had dented in significantly, noting the non-japanese license plate, LUN1993.

Who the hell are you? Takumi wondered. Another supernatural being from some other world? Judging by your plate, it sure seems that way.

"I WILL END YOU ALL!" Nightmare Moon suddenly yelled, hurting Takumi and Itsuki's ears. "I WILL SEND ALL OF YOU DOWN THIS MOUNTAIN IF ITS THE LAST THING I DO!"

[EUROBEAT INTENSIFIES]

Itsuki lead the charge as he drifted through the inside of a right corner, the Cosmo attempting to do the same right behind him. However, it understeered and shot to the outside, allowing Takumi to swipe the inside away from it. As they exited, Takumi picked up the radio.

"Having fun up there Itsuki?" He asked. He was sweating.

"Y-Yeah! I am!" Itsuki replied. "Who's this guy in the Cosmo?"

"I don't know. But I'll have to buy them a beer when this is over."

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

The 86 Duo screamed through a left curve and exited centimeters from the guardrail. The Cosmo did Its best to follow, and surprisingly, Heartbreaker was right behind the Cosmo.

BANG!

Takumi barely saw Nightmare Moon clip the guardrail as she exited that same corner behind Heartbreaker. That little tap sent her R33 across the road, almost spinning her out. She, unfortunately, regained control and accelerated next to Heartbreaker.

What did I say? Takumi mentally asked. See? You can't hold a candle to me on Akina. My home course. Only on the straightaways have you caught up to me and Itsuki.

He braked and steered around a right curve. Itsuki was flooring it ahead. Takumi couldn't help but smirk, knowing that Itsuki could keep his throttle floored longer than him. Less power generally means more speed after all.

Itsuki was focused on the hairpin ahead. Takumi and I are the masters of this pass! Nobody, man or machine, can beat us! We shall be known as one thing and one thing only!

Itsuki stared at the inside of the hairpin, not braking in the slightest. Takumi's eyes widened.

"WE ARE THE EIGHT-SIX DUO!"

BANG! BANG!

Itsuki's right tires dropped into a drainage gutter on the inside. The tires pressed into the sides of the gutter as Itsuki steered, and he launched around the hairpin-like a slingshot.

"Holy shit!" Takumi yelled, surprised as he drifted normally around the hairpin. As he exited, one voice filled his head.

"I will destroy you!" Nightmare Moon yelled. "I will destroy you all!"

Takumi accelerated in horror as Nightmare Moon's battered R33 gripped around the hairpin and pressed against his bumper. He felt the R33 pushing him as he watched Itsuki's Red Levin drop into the gutter of the next left hairpin. His jaw slightly dropped when he noticed the Cosmo spin out with Heartbreaker gripping around the inside.

"Fine," Takumi said, growing angry. "You leave me no choice! I'll just have to do it!"

BANG! BANG!

Takumi dropped into the gutter as Nightmare Moon helplessly braked. Her tires had been shredded so much that her Top-Notch ABS couldn't keep them from locking. She understeered hard.

"NO!" Nightmare Moon yelled.

SCEEEEEE!

Nightmare Moon's R33 ground against the guardrail. The pitch-black paint was scraped, and the front right fender buckled inwards, as did the suspension. The R33 continued scraping until just before the turn ended. That's when it happened.

BANG!

The R33's rear end was thrown outwards into the road, the taillights stalling before it stopped harshly. Right in the path of Heartbreaker.

"DON'T-HIT-ME-DON'T-HIT-ME-DON'T-HIT-ME-DON'T-HIT-ME-DON'T-HIT-ME-DON'T-HIT-ME-DON'T-HIT-MEEEE!" Nightmare Moon yelled as Heartbreaker swerved left.

(Yes I know that's an FC and not a Miura. SUE ME.)

Heartbreaker guided the Miura around the R33, arcing it around and dodging it with inches to spare. She corrected the drift and sped off, her carbureted V12 Engine revving high.

Takumi watched the event unfold in his rearview. "Alright Heartbreaker." He said, focusing on the hairpin ahead. "Are you gonna attack as well?"

EEEEEEEE!

Takumi's tires squealed as he Parallel Drifted right behind Itsuki through a right hairpin. As they exited, Takumi looked at the next left hairpin ahead.

"No actually. I'm done racing for tonight." Heartbreaker surprisingly replied. Her voice was calm and in their heads.

Music Ends.

Takumi and Itsuki's eyes widened. "You're done?" They asked in unison, not hearing each other but simultaneously letting off the throttle.

"After that, yeah. I am. I'm not a savage like Nightmare Moon. I prefer to be safe. And considering my choice of vehicle, I'd much rather not get it scratched and dented."

"Well yeah, you're kind of in a thirty-year-old car." Itsuki joked. He spoke through the radio so Takumi could hear as they slowly drove around the hairpin.

"Forty actually." Heartbreaker corrected as she accelerated around the same hairpin. The three exited and drove down a straight, Takumi and Itsuki in the left lane. "Anyways, I'm off. It was fun racing you and that Cosmo. Oh, and Itsuki? Next time we race, It'll be on a different pass. I'm getting a bit sick of you being faster because of your superior Course Knowledge."

Itsuki laughed. "Put me on ANY pass and I'll beat you."

Heartbreaker giggled. "I'd love to see you try. Anyways, see you two later." She passed Takumi and Itsuki in the right lane. As she accelerated around a right hairpin, she had one last thing to say. "Oh, and stop driving on the left. This isn't Eastern Ponyland."

With that, Heartbreaker's V12 revved loudly before suddenly vanishing into the night. Takumi and Itsuki pulled off onto the side of the road. Neither moved for a few moments. It was once again silent save for their idling engines. Itsuki broke the silence by speaking into the radio.

"What a night." He said.

Takumi picked his radio up. "Ya don't say. That was... wow."

"See? I TOLD you we would crush them!"

"You did not."

Itsuki yawned. "Still. We did that. Are you sure It's you that owes that Cosmo's driver a beer?"

Takumi chuckled. "Yeah. They saved me from having a panic attack and having to live with the guilt of watching you die for the read of my life."

"Oh. Alright." Itsuki yawned again. "Have you... do you feel tired all of a sudden?" He asked.

Takumi yawned. "Yeah. Must be because we were so focused on the race. That was just... insane. Nightmare Moon really suffered when she lost her cool." He began resting his chin on the steering wheel.

"Mhm. She was nowhere near skilled enough to become a speed demon like you." Itsuki also rested his head on his steering wheel.

"Yeah..." Takumi yawned. "She... wasn't..."

Everything went black.

I yawned every time I typed the word 'yawn'. Did any of you yawn when reading them?

Everypony opened their eyes to find themselves back in the dining room. They were all astonished at what they had just witnessed.

"Wow..." Celestia said, looking down. "Itsuki, what-... what happened after that?"

"Me and Takumi woke up as Alicorns. After that, we drove towards the only town we could see in the distance." Itsuki explained.

"Ponyville," Twilight assumed.

"Mhm. Then we ended up at your castle."

"That was a bit anticlimactic in a way," Luna admitted. "Nightmare Moon became much less of a threat towards the later parts of the road. And Heartbreaker wasn't a threat the entire time."

"Me and Takumi may have overexaggerated a bit." Itsuki chuckled. "I guess when you see it from a perspective like that... wow. Our battle was really, REALLY cool."

"Yes... it..." Luna trailed off.

"Is something wrong sister?" Celestia asked.

"I am just... I am at a loss for words..."

"Hm. Yes, that was the most interesting... 'battle' I have ever witnessed." There was a sense of recognition in Celestia's eyes.

"It was pretty sweet. Right Takumi?" Itsuki looked over at Takumi.

...

"Takumi?" Itsuki asked, looking around.

"You have gotta be kidding me." Starlight said as she stared at where Takumi was sitting.

Or at least, used to be sitting.

"GOD DAMMIT TAKUMIII!" Itsuki yelled.

About four minutes later.

Takumi sat on the hood of his Trueno, looking down at the tarmac.

"I don't need to be a part of that cursed battle again..." He slowly said.

After a moment, he sighed. "Why was it me and Itsuki? All we did was beat those two in a race on our home course. We had the advantage. It wasn't even the hardest battle I've had on Akina!"

He looked around and noticed a severe lack of guards. At least, he couldn't see any guards from his position. Must be on break. He assumed.

Looking around, the parking lot had a couple more cars than when he came in. Itsuki's Levin was next to his car, the Yellow DeLorean was gone, a light blue American van was in a corner, and that one 1957, or maybe a 56', Chevrolet Bel Air from Twilights castle was there.

He looked at the wall in front of his Trueno. Just a simple white concrete wall. "If me and Itsuki become actual princes, that's just... that's gonna be horrible. We don't know crap about managing even a city! Itsuki especially! And It's not like I ever went to any of my dad's Congress Meetings."

He sighed again. "Why was it me..." That one question had been floating around his head front and center ever since driving up the so-called 'Canterlot Turnpike'. And to think me AND Itsuki are gonna live over a thousand godforsaken years... Can our bodies even deal with that?

Takumi was so focused on his thoughts that he didn't hear the sound of a Carbureted V12 Engine revving a little nearby, along with a car door shutting.

Actually, I guess our bodies can deal with it if Celestia has shown anything. But still. Mentally? How is she able to deal with things like losing damn near every family member? Luna I guess is still here, so... technically she's also a thousand years old. But... still! "Fuck! I'll need to ask them how they coped with living a thousand years."

"BOO!"

Takumi screamed as he was suddenly shoved off his Trueno. He barely stopped his face from hitting the tarmac with his hooves. He could already hear someone laughing behind him.

Furious, he stood up on all fours and turned around. "What the hell was that for?!" He asked.

On the other side of his Trueno was a pink pony about the same size as Luna, laughing uncontrollably. She wore Golden Royal Attire, had a horn, and tri-color hair. The colors consisted of Purple, Magenta, and Light Yellow.

"You... you... oh gosh..." The mare could barely contain herself. "Your. Reaction. Was. Golden!" She opened her eyes and stared at him with a smile. Her eyes were light pink.

"Oh shu- seriously, what the heck was that for?" Takumi noticed that this pony that had just scared the crap out of him also had wings. Horn and Wings. "Oh god... let me guess." He deadpanned. "Princess Cadance?"

"Yep! My turn. Takumi Fujiwara?" Cadance asked.

Takumi was a bit surprised she knew his name already. "Yeah. How'd you know?"

"Celestia told me in a message. As soon as I was done, I hightailed it over here."

Takumi looked around and noticed a, no joke, bright pink 1971 Lamborghini Miura P400SV. It had golden wheels and finishings and side intakes. Takumi's jaw opened a bit.

"Gee. I wonder which car is yours." He joked.

"Mhm. Lamborghini Miura P400SVJ Spider. My first and only car." Cadance cheerfully said. "I take it this is your Corolla?"

"Celestia told you a lot of things in her message, didn't she?"

"Enough to make me average like 130 Miles Per Hour PLUS the whole way here."

Takumi was surprised, but then a bit confused at one thing Cadance had said about her Miura. "What... the heck is an SVJ Spider?"

"It's a Targa Top."

"Oh."

"Oh! By the way, did Celestia happen to put all of us Alicorns in a sort of flashback spell? To a street race between these two Corolla's, Nightmare Moon, and this other mare named Heartbreaker?"

"Yeah. I forced myself out of it and came out here to think."

"Hm. Well, I'll need to let Celestia know to not do that WHILE I AM DRIVING UP A MOUNTAIN ROAD!"

Cadance's sudden outburst startled Takumi. "Uh... what?" He asked.

"I found myself on the side of the road literal centimeters from a tree. So uh, yeah. That was fun."

Takumi chuckled. "I'm sure it was."

"Ah! Takumi!" An all-too-familiar voice said. "There you are!"

Takumi and Cadance looked over and saw Luna trotting towards them. Who would have thought?

Takumi rolled his eyes. "Hi Luna."

"And I see Mi Amore Cadenza has arrived as well."

"Came as soon as I got Celestia's message." Cadance greeted.

Takumi did a double take. "Mi Amore... what?"

"Mi Amore Cadenza. That's my full name. Though everypony just calls me Cadance."

"I can see why."

"Now, Takumi, why did you run off like that?" Luna asked.

"Because I didn't want to relive that same battle twice." Was Takumi's plain and simple answer.

There was a moment of silence.

"Perhaps none of us see that battle the same way you do," Luna said. "Even Itsuki is unfazed by it. You on the other hoof seem to want nothing to do with it."

"Mm. So let me guess. You both want me to head inside so we can talk more about me?"

Luna nodded.

"I've barely heard much about you. All Celestia told me was what Twilight told her." Cadance said.

"So what I told Twilight is what you know..." Takumi sighed. "Well, you two can head inside. I'm gonna get going." Takumi opened the door by biting down on the handle and pulling it open. Both princesses were surprised.

"Wait, what? Why?" Cadance asked.

"Listen." There seemed to be a hint of anger in Takumi's voice.

Initial D First Stage Sound Files vol.1 - Anxiety starts playing.

"I don't want to be thrusted into this whole prince life. Not now. I have some things to think about and I'd rather do it in my car, driving around. It helps me stay calm."

"But... you're not going to be immediately thrust into Prince Life," Luna said. "It takes one several months to even begin to qualify to be a prince or princess."

"Take me for example." Cadance began. "It took me a full two years of learning to be a Princess. Technically I haven't even learned everything. Oh and let's remember how long it took me to adjust to being an Alicorn at all."

Luna said nothing.

"What were you before?" Takumi asked.

"Pegasus."

"Hm. Same here. Sort of." Takumi was just about to get in the Trueno. Luna noticed this.

"And then there's Twilight!" She quickly said. "Remember how long it took her to take to Princess life? For somepony who reads as much as her, even she couldn't take to it so easy for the first few months."

"Yeah. Nice. Whatever. Listen, I'm gonna go get gas. My 86 is about to start running on fumes."

He's definitely growing angrier. Luna thought. "You can just ask somepony to fill it up right here."

Takumi was in the driver's seat. "I can?" He asked, looking up at Luna.

"Yes."

He tilted his head. "Right. And let me guess, I can ask them for a full washdown and a complete tuneup?"

"Preferably not the tuneup, but the full washdown is available."

Takumi just stared as he levitated his keys into the ignition and held them there. Luna wondered where he got them but remembered that he had a sweater on.

Takumi scoffed before suddenly closing the door and keying the ignition. The I4 purred to life, making Luna panic. Takumi just stared ahead for several seconds, his hoof on the gear shift.

After several seconds, Luna saw Takumi sigh, and the engine was shut off. Takumi levitated the keys out of the ignition and back into one of his pockets before getting out, sighing.

"Just ask them to refuel it with high octane and clean it." That was all he said before closing the door, locking it, and walking off. "And DO NOT let them touch the engine or suspension settings."

Luna and Cadance looked at each other.

"Well he doesn't seem the best with ponies," Cadance said.

"I think he is just a bit irked is all, but yes. That does seem to be the case." Luna agreed.

Music Ends.

Takumi walked back through the halls, staring at the floor.

I know they mean well. He thought. They just want to help me and know things about me. I can't blame them. But I just... need more time to deal with this. I can barely think straight.

He heard a pair of hooves trotting behind him. At this point, he could bet money on who it was.

"Luna, if you're gonna keep following me like this, could you at least find me a room to stay in?" He asked.

"Sorry. I don't want you to get lost. Or hurt." Luna replied, slowing her pace and walking next to him.

"I am nineteen years old. I can handle myself."

"Nineteen Years Old in a different body than you are used to, and in a different world. And about that room, I can get it for you within the next hour if you want." Luna smirked. She couldn't help but realize the irony in that she, a goddess and princess, was almost acting like a maid to somepony who wasn't even a prince.

"I know. That's why I need... some time to myself." Takumi slowed his pace a small bit. Luna did the same.

"Time by yourself, or time to talk with somepony you know and trust?" Luna asked.

Takumi looked at her for a couple of seconds before looking back forward. "Maybe... I guess I've spent plenty of time by myself already."

"Mhm. You seem so distant all the time. Off in your own little world, barely listening to whatever is happening around you, if I didn't any better, I would think you were an introvert."

"I'm not an-..." Takumi sighed. "Whatever. About that room?"

"Already wrote a message out. One should be ready within the hour."

Takumi's eyes widened as he looked at her. "...HOW?"

That was the most genuine 'HOW?' Luna had ever heard. She giggled. "I was writing a message while we walked."

"All..." Takumi was at a loss for words as he looked forward. "You know what? I'm just going to assume that everything that happens is normal."

"Do not assume everything is normal. There will be abnormal things."

"I'm sure of it. And It's terrifying."

"Hehe. Yeah. It is at times. But, that is why we have things like the Royal Guard and the Police and the Military."

"Mm..."

There was silence as they walked down a hall, some guards bowing in respect to the princess. Most of them were a bit curious about who exactly Luna was walking with.

"Hey, Luna?"

"Yes Takumi?" Luna looked at Takumi.

The white Alicorn stared at the floor. "Why do you keep following me around? I know I'm from another world and all, plus I'm apparently one of two male Alicorns which is... disconcerting... but you seem a little more clingy to me than the other princesses." He looked at her.

"Uh-... well..." Luna trailed off, not knowing what to say. She looked at the floor.

On one hoof, Takumi was right. The whole 'being from another world and also being one of two MALE Alicorns' thing was a valid reason. It would be good to have a pony of her stature keeping watch of him to make sure nopony tried anything funny with him.

But she also wanted to follow him because he was by far the most enigmatic pony she'd ever met. Not because of the Alicorn thing, but because he was a Nineteen Year Old, with the driving skill of a professional. How could a nineteen-year-old achieve that level of skill? He would've had to have attacked that mountain road every single night for years, even in his sleep. And to her knowledge, the dream realm didn't even exist in his world!

Luna looked over at him for a second before looking back at the floor. He was doing the same. If she was being honest, Takumi looked pretty nice. He didn't have some flashy color scheme like literally every other Alicorn. His coat was white, and his hair was black. No magically wavy hair, no super important role in life, a passive-aggressive attitude, he was simple. Just another pony.

She liked that.

"Well... Takumi... I don't know-" Luna stopped herself as she looked around and noticed that Takumi was not with her. She had stopped in a T-Junction. Looking right, she saw Takumi silently walking away.

"Oh! Takumi? Wait up!" She said, running after him.

30 Minutes Later.

Itsuki had stayed in the dining room, talking about stuff he did back in Japan. Luna had popped in for a second to let everyone in the room know that she was going to get Takumi's room situated. That filled Itsuki with glee as his best friend was getting help from what seemed like a literal and physical goddess tp find a room in a castle. He was sure that if Takumi was getting that sort of treatment, he was gonna get it as well.

"So you worked a full time job in a gas station before you came here?" Twilight asked.

"Mhm. I used to work part time, but I worked up to full time. I hope Iketani is doing well without me." Itsuki replied.

"Huh."

"So uh... Itsuki?" Starlight asked with a rather sly look on her face.

"Yeah?"

"What about your relationships back in Japan? You've told us about Iketani and your other job buddies, but what about relationships outside of that?"

"Uh..."

"Perhaps relationships with a girl?"

Itsuki's face went red hot. Starlight also noticed almost everyone else's face slightly heat up.

"Are you seriously into him?" Trixie whispered in Starlight's ear.

"Nah, I'm just teasin' the kid." Starlight whispered back.

"Well... uh..." Itsuki couldn't help but now realize that he, besides Spike who was sitting next to Twilight, the only male in the room. It had been in the back of his head the whole time, but now the feeling was front and center.

He took a deep breath. "Alright. Well, first, my first relationship, actual relationship not just me talking with some chick during class, was this girl named Saori. He was Takumi's Girlfriend's friend, and me and her were... alright together."

"Takumi has a girlfriend?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Yeah. But he broke up with her a while back. Well, not 'broke up', but more like she just moved away."

"Oh."

"Then there was this other girl. Kazumi. Me and her got along way better. We both loved 86's, we loved racing, and we were basically the same age! We were like a match made in heaven."

"Oh. I'm sorry that you were pulled away from her." Celestia said. "You being in our world now."

"I wasn't pulled away from her. We..." Itsuki trailed off.

Images of a young girl with brown hair, brown eyes, who was wearing an orange shirt and butterscotch sweatpants flashed through his mind.

Listen don't worry about me. You do whatever you gotta do, I'm cool. His words echoed through his mind.

Just, be honest with yourself ok? The only thing you have to do now is jump into the arms of the one guy you really like! He remembered putting his fist to his chest. He had been wearing a yellow shirt and jeans at the time. It was night.

The girl gave a warm smile. You always say... the right thing. She said.

Hm. He remembered closing his eyes and taking a breath in, spreading his arms out. He was ready for a hug from the girl he loved.

However, the girl didn't run into his arms. She turned around and ran to another man that was there, one with black hair, a white shirt, and blue jeans.

The moment Itsuki had opened his eyes, it all went boom.

A minute later, a white and black AE86 Levin with a TRD Ducktail and Carbon Fiber Hood pulled out of the Gas Station Parking Lot they were in, leaving him alone with his own Levin. Not the Red and Black one, but an all-white one with plastic bumpers. An AE85.

Itsuki stood there, alone. His heart was shattered to pieces. He remembered whimpering and putting an arm up to his eyes.

He remembered turning around and running to the edge of the parking lot, trying to pull himself together.

He remembered looking to his right, behind the building, and seeing two men standing there against the wall. Two men that happened to be Iketani and Kenji.

"DAAHHHHHH!" Itsuki yelled, jumping out of his seat and running towards the doors.

"Uh- Itsuki!?" Celestia called after him in vain as the red Alicorn busted through the doors and ran down the hall crying.

Everyone was silent. Starlight took a breath in.

"Well... that wasn't the best topic to talk to him about..." She slowly said.

"It's alright Starlight." Celestia reassured. "None of us knew he'd break down like that."

"What the heck did I just miss?" A new voice asked, causing everyone to look at the door. It was Cadance walking in.

"Oh! Cadance!" Twilight greeted. "You missed a uh... well..."

"I just watched Itsuki, at least I think that was a Red Alicorn I just watched run by me sobbing, run by me. Sobbing. Yeah- seriously what happened?" Cadance stood there.

Twilight sighed. "Starlight asked Itsuki about his relationships. He mentioned this girl named... Kazumi? Yeah. He mentioned a girl from his world named Kazumi. He suddenly stopped talking, began staring off into space, and suddenly he screamed and ran out."

"He did? Oh... I'll need to talk to him. If It's a relationship problem, that is right up my alley."

"Indeed it is." Celestia said.

"Oh by the way, Celestia?" Cadance began.

"Yes Cada-" Celestia stopped herself as she began staring at a very,

VERY. Pissed off Princess of Love.

Act 8: Enigma

Initial D First Stage Sound Files vol.1 - Admiration starts playing.

Itsuki ran through the halls and up and down flights of stairs, passing by several guards that yelled at him to stop, but he didn't listen. He just ran and ran and ran.

The Alicorn slammed through a set of doors and skidded onto a balcony, almost hitting the concrete railing. He just stared before sitting down and burrowing his face into his forehooves.

Kazumi... why... He thought. We were perfect. We loved each other and 86's. We were meant to be! Why did you choose him over me?

He looked up at the sunlit sky. It was the cleanest sky he had ever seen. No smog or anything was in it.

I can understand why I lost Saori. We probably wouldn't have done very well together. To be honest, I didn't really like her. I was too caught up in having an actual girlfriend that I just... didn't see it. But Kazumi... you were mine! WHY?!

Itsuki looked around and was met with a beautiful view of the city. It was so surreal that a city like this didn't have a single skyscraper, or anything modern. Not one building exceeded 75 Feet. Even the buildings back in Shibukawa exceeded that. Looking around, Itsuki felt more... calm. Safe. The view was simply breathtaking.

He wiped the tears off his face via forehoof. "Pull yourself together you idiot. You're in an amazing new world for crying out loud! It's not like I had many back home. Well, sure, my Parents and Iketani and Kenji and... whatever, but they'll be fine! And Kazumi happened four weeks ago... FOUR WEEKS!"

He sighed. "This world has much cuter girls. I know I shouldn't be crushing on something that isn't human or car, but... they look too cute!"

Getting up, Itsuki turned around. "Plus, you've got-"

He stopped as he began staring at the Electric Blue Pegasus he was about to mention, who was standing in the doorway. "...Rainbow Dash... hi..."

Rainbow began blushing. "I was just coming to make sure you weren't going far. C-Celestia told me to do it since I can easily catch up to you."

Itsuki sighed. "Sorry about freaking back there. I must've overreacted, huh?"

"No, you didn't."

Itsuki was surprised. "I didn't?" He wiped another tear off.

"No. I don't know what It's like to lose somepony you love, but I know what It's like to almost lose something you love."

"Like... what?"

"Believe it or not, I haven't always been the awesome Wonderbolt I am now. Back before I joined the Wonderbolts, right before, I always thought I'd just answer the questions and boom! I'm in. Then when Twilight began listing why I was going to fail...well..."

"You freaked out?"

"If you call bawling my eyes out and contemplating my existence as freaking out, then yeah."

Itsuki laughed. "Heh, no clue what the Wonderbolts are, but-"

Music Stops.

He stopped suddenly, his eyes widening suddenly.

"Uh... what?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"The Wonderbolts?" Itsuki asked back.

"Yeah. Super awesome Air Racing Team that also happens to be semi-military."

"And not a Street Racing Team consisting of a Ford Capri and a Ferrari that used to have a Corolla Hatchback as well?"

Rainbow Dash stared, unblinking. "Uh... no?" Street Racing Team? Where did he get THAT idea? She wondered.

"Are you sure?"

"Well last I checked, nopony on the Wonderbolts street races. None of them even own a Ferrari!"

"So... hold on... the Wonderbolts from this world, aren't like the Wonderbolts from my world?"

Rainbow Dash was horribly confused. "You have Wonderbolts in your world?"

"Yeah. A three-man street racing team. Their leader drivers an old Capri, their maniac uphiller drives a Ferrari 308, and their mechanic uses a Mitsubishi Delica!"

"Not one of those cars is on our team."

'Hm. Maybe the leader is from this world... actually, yeah. I wonder if people from this world were put in our world."

"I doubt that." A new voice said.

Rainbow Dash and Itsuki turned to see Cadance standing in the doorway.

"Oh. Hey Cadance." Rainbow Dash greeted.

"So you're Cadance?" Itsuki asked.

"Yep. I was gonna try and cheer you up after seeing you run by, but seems like Rainbow Dash has already done that."

Rainbow Dash blushed.

"I would have been fine!" Itsuki was now blushing. "She just... confused me to the point where I forgot about being sad."

"Confused you?" The girls asked.

"Apparently there's a team called the Wonderbolts in this world. Exactly like a team in my world."

"...odd."

"Anyways. Uh... hey Rainbow Dash, wanna grab a bite?" Itsuki asked.

"Why?" Rainbow asked back, looking at him.

"Because I'm hungry."

"Well no duh. But why not just head to the kitchen and ask for something? You're an Alicorn."

"That's a great idea!" Cadance suddenly said. "Tell them I said you could ask for whatever you wanted."

"Uh... alright then." Itsuki blushed as he walked past Cadance. Rainbow Dash did the same. I just got permission to ask for whatever food I wanted, from a PRINCESS! Itsuki thought. I don't care what people say. This new life is awesome.

Cadance watched the two disappear around a corner, smiling. "Hmm... this could be interesting." She remarked. "This feels much better than chewing out Celestia."

Luna had gotten Takumi a room. One that just so happened to be right next to hers. It wasn't crazy or personalized or anything. It was just a normal guest room you'd find in a castle. A queen-sized bed, a window, and a few other things like the table she and Takumi were sitting at.

"Well. Your father was a great person." Luna said.

"Yeah, he was. Sometimes he can really piss me off though." Takumi grimaced. "Like when he got his new car, he told all his buddies except me. He beat the crap out of me on the Akina Downhill, and I didn't even know it was him."

"Ah, so you know how terrifying it was for me when you started chasing me last night."

"The feeling of being the best racer on your mountain and being chased by someone who just won't go away, passing you like you're parked? Yeah. It's terrifying alright."

"Mm... what car did he buy?"

"The new Impreza WRX STI. GC8D."

"Uh... GC8D? New? Takumi, that generation of the Impreza ended eight years ago."

"It... did?"

"Yeah. The current generation, the GD Series, is seven years old."

Takumi blinked. "...Alright."

"So. Uh..." Luna began blushing. Should I really ask him now? She wondered.

"What?" Takumi tilted his head.

She took a breath in. "How do you drift?"

"Uh- how do I drift?"

"Yes. I know I should ask about this when we're actually on the mountain pass, at night, but now we are alone."

"Oh. Well, you make the front tires slide so that the cars not facing the inside when you turn. Otherwise, you're toast."

Luna grew confused. "That... that sounds more like understeer than oversteer."

"Technically drifting is understeer."

Initial D First Stage Sound Files vol.1 - Enigma starts playing.

Luna's eyes widened.

"Think about it. If the front tires were fully gripping in one of those flashy drifts you were doing last night, they would have pulled the rear back into line. In theory at least. In reality, inertia would carry the rear sideways and cause you to oversteer and spin out. So you countersteer just enough to control the rear from spinning out, but not enough for the front tires to fully grip."

"I... never thought of it like that." She admitted.

Images of Takumi's 86 drifting down the mountain pass flowed through the two Alicorn's minds.

"Not a lot of people do. See, my kind of drift isn't like what you do. On the downhill, when I brake, the weight naturally goes to the front of the car. It's easy to steer into the turn and flick the rear out. It's controlling how far out the rear goes. My kind of drift operates on the very limit of the front tires grip, to the point where the tread is curving."

"C-C-... Curving?"

"Yeah. Where the tread is moving with the road, but in a slightly different direction of the wheel. It's called a slip-angle drift. The inertia of the car carries it around the turn while the front tires are semi-gripping. And when I lightly press the brakes through the turn, a bit more weight goes on the front tires, but not too much. They're more efficiently pressed into the tarmac."

Luna was horrendously confused. "Would a splitter not do that same job? Of pressing the tires into the ground?"

"Yeah. Splitters, Wings, and Spoilers do a good job of providing passive downforce. But the Inertia of a car is what really matters at the end of the day. That's why lightweight cars do so well around corners, especially the Naturally Aspirated ones when exiting a corner."

"A-About that, how do you exit a corner? I can through the corner just fine, but when I exit, I cannot seem to get it right."

"Exiting a corner is pretty easy. When you accelerate, the rear tires slip naturally. You just gotta learn to control when they slip."

"So... don't be too hard on the throttle when exiting. Alright."

"When you exit you want to not have to countersteer. That way the car can spend more time in a straight line. Basically, you don't want to fishtail. You can countersteer a little on exit though. It may cost a couple tenths of a second, but as long as you're good on all other corners, you'll be fine."

"It is just a couple tenths of a second. What is so bad about that?"

"If you lose a couple tenths of a second while exiting each corner on a course like Akina- er, the Canterlot Turnpike, it adds up. The way you exited corners last night, I'd say you're losing thirteen seconds."

Luna's eyes widened. "Thirteen Seconds?!"

"Yeah. Anyways, I gotta head to the bathroom. Be out in a sec."

Music Ends.

Takumi got up and walked over to a door the room had, opening it. Inside was not a closet, but a bathroom.

"Wait, are you KIDDING ME!?" Luna angrily yelled.

"What?" Takumi asked.

"EVERY time I need to relieve myself, I must walk down an entire flight of stairs. Yet this room which is right next to mine has Its own built-in bathroom!?"

"Uh, I guess. Does your room not have one?"

"No!"

"Well, you can just knock every time and use this one then."

Luna groaned.

"Oh by the way," Takumi quickly began. "Stop using your parking brake, Luna. You'll be way slower when even thinking about touching it."

Five minutes later.

As Takumi walked out, he saw Luna looking a bit downcast with her face on the table.

"What's wrong?" He asked.

"Sorry." Luna lifted her head. "I was just thinking about what you said."

"Hm... ah... ACHOO!" Takumi sneezed.

"Bless you."

"Tha-... ACHOO!" Takumi sneezed again.

"Bless you again."

"ACHOO!" Takumi sneezed AGAIN!

Luna got up. "Bless you?"

"Sorry, I don't what's coming over... ah... AH-"

Luna put her right forehoof on Takumi's snoot, silencing it. Takumi stared cross-eyed at her hoof before looking up at her, blushing.

Luna giggled. "You're welcome."

"Um... thanks." Takumi couldn't help but smile a bit.

Ohhh he doesn't even know the etiquette of booping! That's adorable! Luna thought as she walked over to the door that lead out the room. "Shall I give you a tour of my room?" She asked.

"Sure."

Takumi followed Luna out the door, only for the two to be met with a guard. White Pegasus with golden armor and blue hair.

"Princess Luna! You are needed in the throne room!" He said.

"What's the issue?" Luna asked.

"Our men have intel of Changeling patrol patterns!"

"Oh! Delightful!" She sighed. "Sorry Takumi, duty calls." She motioned for the guard to leave, who promptly saluted and walked off.

Takumi sighed. "I was wondering when you'd be called back to your duties. Should I just sit in my room all day or..?"

Luna looked at him, smiling. "Actually, I was thinking you could tag along."

"Wait... tag along as in following you while you work?"

"Yes. I know you seem to despise the idea of becoming a prince, but perhaps you could learn some things about being part of Royalty. It might be fun."

"I don't see how It's gonna be fun."

"It will be, trust me. Plus we get to talk more."

Takumi looked back at the room. On one hoof, he wanted to just sit in bed all day. But on the other hoof...

"Oh what the heck." Takumi's horn lit up yellow, as did the doorknob to his room. "Why not. Lead the way."

Luna fought the temptation to squee. "Alright! Let's go."

For most of the day, Takumi sat with Luna as she dealt with Night Princessy things. None of the other princesses came to help, so it was just him and Luna in the throne room. Plus two guards. Rather confused guards actually. Who was this random teenager with a sweater, and why was he casually sitting next to Luna and chatting with her? That question flowed through the minds of anyone who walked into the room.

Meanwhile, Itsuki, Rainbow Dash, and even Scootaloo ate together. The food Itsuki was able to eat without having to pay an arm and a leg was amazing. Cadance even decided to eat with them.

Celestia, Mane Six, Starlight, and Trixie all talked about what to do with Takumi and Itsuki. All except for Apple Jack who decided to head back to Ponyville to continue Apple Bucking, and Pinkie Pie who also went back to Ponyville for one reason or another. They were in the dining room, discussing Takumi and Itsuki.

"It's just so... interesting to think about the fact that two beings from a different unknown world, are now two of the most powerful beings in Equestria," Celestia said.

"Potentially powerful." Twilight corrected.

"Yes."

"Here's a question." Rarity began. "How are ponies going to react to this? So far, nopony knows about them except for us."

"Good question Rarity." Celestia complimented. "The announcement of not just one, but TWO new Alicorns, MALE ones I might add, would be rather extreme news for Equestria, and other lands as well. Such as Ponyland. Especially to the um..." She trailed.

"Females." Trixie finished, causing Starlight to giggle.

"Yes. Females."

"Yeah. Cause with us Princesses," Twilight began. "A looot of stallions tend to try and get with us."

Celestia giggled. "Yes, they do. But now, the entire opposite sex has a chance with Alicorns."

"Hey wait a minute, what about Blueblood?" Rarity asked.

"Blueblood isn't an Alicorn."

"...oh."

Celestia sighed. "I'm just so confused. They are in no shape to become princes, though Itsuki seemed very excited at the prospect of becoming one, Takumi... I don't know about Takumi. But anyway, they aren't in shape to become princes, they are teenagers so that'll add another level of interest, It's just so confusing."

"Now here's a real question." Trixie began, making everyone look at her. She leaned forward. "And be honest. Who here is interested in them."

Red streaks appeared on Starlight's, Fluttershy's, Celestia's, and Twilight's faces.

"Ha! I knew a few ponies in this room were interested!"

"Well, what about you?" Rarity asked.

"They're nice and all, but I'm not necessarily into them. What about you?"

"Same as you, only that I'm not into them because they aren't of any decent status."

"You go off of a stallion's status in society?" Starlight asked, totally calling Rarity out.

The white unicorn blushed. "Uh..."

"Smooth Rarity. Smooth." Trixie teased. "Now what about you Starlight?"

"I think a lot of our answers are the same. They are nice, but we're not into them."

"Yes. That's exactly what it is." Celestia said. "I think those who blushed were just surprised at the question. I certainly was."

"Mmmmhm. Totally." Trixie sneered. "What about you, Fluttershy? You seem extra quiet."

Fluttershy said nothing. She just sat there with a cast on her right forehoof, blushing.

Celestia rolled her eyes. Looking at Twilight, she noticed how deep in thought the Lavender Alicorn looked.

"Is there something wrong, Twilight?" She asked.

Twilight gave no answer.

"Twilight?"

"Sorry," Twilight quickly replied. "I'm just... thinking about something."

"Care to share?"

"Well... hm..." She sighed. "Don't take this the wrong way, but It's about Takumi and Itsuki, and the fact that they're Male Alicorns."

"Oh? Do tell." Trixie sneered again.

"No, It's not like that. It's just... one of us Princesses could marry either of them."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Starlight asked.

"They're Alicorns, we're Alicorns, think about it. Before, no matter who we were to marry, we would always outlive them."

After a few seconds, it simultaneously clicked in everyone's mind.

"Eternal Marriage..." Celestia and Trixie slowly said.

"Yeah. That's what I'm thinking about. The thought of being eternally married to one person. Like... how well would that work?"

"Well..." Celestia formulated her words. Eternal Marriage hadn't been something she'd pondered in centuries. "It would be... interesting. Being married to somepony for centuries. Because the main issue is that, to put it simply, love doesn't last forever. It will come back, but there will be times when you begin to not care for, or even despise the one you love. Like with you, Twilight. We may love each other like mother and daughter now, but there will come a time where we despise each other."

"Don't say that!" Twilight defended. "I'll always love you!"

"See, you say that now, but who's to say that in three hundred years, that statement will be revoked?"

"Bu-"

"Anyways, I digress. What about you five?" Celestia looked at the other four mares, and dragon, in the room. Rarity, Fluttershy, Starlight, and Trixie. And Spike. "What are your feelings on the matter?"

There was silence as everyone looked at each other. Eternal Marriage wasn't a simple concept to think about. Spike silently got up and began heading for the door. Either nopony noticed, or they just didn't care.

"Well..." Rarity began, making Spike stop walking through the exit and looking at her. "It would highly depend on the pony. If it was a pony I had been forced to marry because of their status,-"

"Forced to marry, or married on your own accord?" Trixie asked.

"Trixie I SWEAR!" Twilight burst out, making Trixie giggle.

"If that were the case, we likely would fall out within even ten years. Maybe five. But if it was somepony I loved, I'm sure we'd do fine. Sure we'd argue every now and again like the old couple we'd end up as, but..." Rarity sighed as she lost her train of thought.

"See, the thing is," Starlight began, making Spike leave. "The longest marriage I've heard of lasted like ninety years before the husband died. I think when that happened, the wife was 105 years old while the husband died at 110. Which is pretty impressive. But anyways, marriages can last a long time, but past a century? It's bound to become stale. We'd have to ask couples that have been married for a very long time."

"We would." Trixie agreed. "See, if I was an Alicorn, and yes I have used a visual spell on myself to make me look like an Alicorn, and I look really good as one-... anyways, if I were an Alicorn, and I married a male Alicorn, I think after 150 years or so, we'd probably get tired of each other. We'd want to branch out, explore other ponies and such. Sorry to be frank, but that's how it would go. Plain and simple."

"Hm. That's how it would go." Twilight agreed. "Somepony after a long time would want to get with another pony. No matter how strong you love someone, being forced to stay with one person would be grating. And, to turn this conversation a bit more adult, one would probably want to procreate with someone else."

Fluttershy giggled. "True." She quietly said.

"So one would want to become a... slut?" Starlight regretted her choice of words. "No, I mean..." She groaned. "You know what I mean."

"Let's talk about this later. Maybe we can ask some old couples what it's like." Twilight intervened. "Now, has anyone here noticed that Takumi and Itsuki were street racing?"

"Yes! Thank you." Celestia said. "I was wondering about that. Itsuki says that they were circuit racers, but what we just saw says otherwise."

"Uhh... I gotta go to the bathroom. Be back in a few minutes." Trixie quickly got up and walked out the room.

"Maybe they were tricked?" Twilight suggested.

Starlight groaned. "Get real Twilight. They ARE street racers. They raced in their world."

Everyone looked at her.

"And exactly where did you get that?" Celestia asked.

"Itsuki literally talked about it last night. All of us girls know."

"And you didn't say anything?!" Twilight yelled.

"I didn't think it was important since it was in their world! Not ours!"

Celestia sighed. "Well then. I'll have to ask them about their shenanigans. I know Itsuki is with Cadance, Rainbow Dash, and Scootaloo, but where oh where are Takumi and Luna?"

"In Takumi's room," Twilight said.

"I asked where they were. I know they are in Takumi's new room, but where exactly is Takumi's new room?"

"Probably next to Luna's room."

"Speaking of which," Starlight began. "Please tell me I'm not the only one who's noticed how close Luna seems to be getting to Takumi?"

Everyone looked at each other. Except for Fluttershy, who stared down at the table.

"Hmm..." Everyone except Fluttershy said.

Takumi was... surprised at how Luna acted in 'Day Court'. She was professional, sometimes firm, knew what to say, and overall was just... an absolute pleasure to be sitting next to. Though, the way she spoke was odd. But if he was being honest, handling all this stuff didn't seem that hard. Sure, Luna being a thousand years old was most likely why she was so good at this, and he knew he would have a (VERY) long way to go before he earned that level of skill. To be honest, as long as he had someone to help him and give pointers, he wouldn't do bad as a 'temporary leader'. Should the need arise.

"We will pass this news to my sister," Luna said.

Both an Earth Stallion and an Earth Mare in matching suits bowed and walked towards the exit, opening one door. Before leaving, however, they both looked back at Luna and Takumi. Or more specifically, Takumi. They stared for a couple of seconds before leaving.

"Why would Celestia want to know about... whatever the heck that was, in... MANEhatten?" Takumi asked. He was sitting on the floor, next to Luna's throne, per her request. Something about respecting Celestia's throne or something.

"Sometimes she just likes that sort of stuff," Luna replied.

"Hm."

This was more or less what happened with all the ponies that came in. A few seemed to not even notice Takumi at first until they got closer and sat down, likely thinking that their field of vision was way off. As in, they thought they were seeing Celestia as a smaller version of herself, and her hair was going through a small... thing. Fun fact, somepony actually thought they were still talking to both Celestia and Luna the entire time, thinking Takumi was Celestia. You can imagine how hard it was for Luna and Takumi NOT to smile. And the embarrassment on the pony's face when they were told that they weren't talking to Celestia at all.

Of course, after a while, Takumi began to get a bit bored. He just wanted to get this day over with so he could attack the Canterlot Turnpike.

He groaned. "Why can't this day just end... I wanna just get in my 86 and drive."

"Tonight Takumi. Tonight." Luna calmly replied.

Takumi rolled his eyes. I wish the night would last forever. Then I can practice at any time.

He looked down at one of the two guards sitting on either side of the thrones. The right guard. It was a light blue female pegasus with orange eyes and Teal hair, made into a mohawk because of the way the golden armor had been set up. She was holding a phone with her wing, which Takumi had to admit was very smart, and was using a hoof to tap away on it.

Wait... is that... touchscreen? Takumi wondered.

He looked over at the other guard. Another Female Pegasus with Teal Eyes and Turquoise Hair, shaped exactly the same way as basically every other guard. She was doing the same thing.

Leaning over to Luna, he whispered a question. "What are they doing?" He pointed to the two mares.

"They are twins," Luna whispered back. "They tend to use their phones when they think me and my sister are not looking."

Takumi looked between the two. Neither had taken heed of their conversation.

"Hm."

Takumi tried to make out what the light blue mare was doing. She was just tippity tapping away at her phone. Odd considering last he checked, touchscreen stuff was rather basic and not available to the masses. She swiped every now and again. It almost looked like she was looking at car parts.

Suddenly, a thought Inertia Drifted into his mind. "Why are they the only ones?" He whispered.

"Pardon?" Luna whispered back.

"I've seen at least a hundred guards now. Every single one of them has been some white guy with blue hair. Maybe a small variation in color. What's with these two girls?"

Once again, the mares didn't pay any mind to the conversation.

"Well, we usually have stallions, but lately whatever Stallions that happen to be rotated in act a bit... 'unprofessional' towards me and my sister. It was impeding both the court and us. So my sister decided to employ these two. They were super excited to become the first mares in the Royal Guard in however long, and they were ecstatic when my sister personally assigned them to this position until further notice. Oh, and they've only been guards for a week now."

"Hm. So they're the only mares in the guard?"

"Mhm. Don't ask me why, ask my sister."

"Mm."

One more noble came, one more noble went. Takumi yawned. Seriously, why are these two the only girls in the guard? He wondered. Either there's an actual reason, or there's some serious Sexism going on here.

Silently, Takumi got up and walked down next to the light blue mare, silently stopping next to her and sitting down. At first, he was going to ask what she was doing, but when she didn't notice in the slightest that he was there, he waited.

And waited.

He looked back at Luna slack-jawed, pointing at the mare. Luna bit her lower lip before pointing at him and pretending to zip her mouth shut. Takumi smiled and looked back at the mare.

Alright then. If she's too deaf to notice someone sitting down next to her, let's see how long it takes.

And with that, he began counting.

As he counted, he looked at her phone. It wasn't like anything he'd seen before. At least not with his own eyes. It was compact, touchscreen, and looked really simple and easy to use. But to be honest, he'd prefer being able to flip a phone up then to simply click a button to turn it on. That's what it seemed like, anyway.

Oh, and he was right. She was looking up car parts. On a PHONE! Weren't Computers supposed to be able to do that? Well, sure, phones could look things up to a certain extent, but still!

She clicked a white bar up top with her hoof, just barely pressing the screen to actually click it, and typed something.

4G52 Supercharger

Within seconds of her hitting 'enter' on a digital keyboard that had appeared on the screen, a page loaded. Takumi was astonished.

After a couple seconds of scrolling, the pegasus let out an annoyed sigh before pressing the search bar and typing another thing in, whispering as she did so.

"Second Generation Mitsubishi Galant GTO Hardtop 4G52 I4 Supercharger" She whispered.

After the page loaded at what should've been an impossibly fast rate for a phone, she smiled.

"There..." She whispered as she loaded into a site.

She looked at a couple parts and grimaced a little at the prices listed. Things like 800 bits for a Paxton 'Roots' 4G52 Supercharger. After a few seconds, her eyes glanced at Takumi for a split second before looking back at the phone. Her eyes widened.

"Ah!" The pegasus yelped as she looked at Takumi, jumping a little. Takumi just stood there staring, causing her to relax after a few seconds. "Uh... hi?"

"I've been sitting here for five minutes and thirty four seconds," Takumi replied, smirking.

"You... have?"

"Yeah. I'm surprised you didn't notice till now."

She looked up at Luna, who stood there holding in a laugh. She blushed and looked back at Takumi. "Well, what do you want?"

"I was bored and decided to see what you were doing." Takumi plainly replied.

"Oh. Well... uh... I'm looking up replacement parts."

"Replacement parts? A... Supercharger?"

"Yes. A, uh-" Her eyes widened as she looked Takumi up and down. "Y-Y-... You're an Alicorn."

"Mhm."

"A Stallion as well..."

"Yeah." Takumi sighed. "I need a drink."

"Uh- I can get you one if you want!" The pegasus was blushing a lot more all of a sudden.

"That will not be necessary, Mistral Dream," Luna said as a glass of water appeared out of thin air.

"Oh. Thanks." Takumi grabbed it with his magic and took a nice long sip. "Ahh. Anyways, I'll be up here." He walked back up the steps and sat next to Luna again, continuing to drink water.

"My my, you are one thirsty teenager." Luna jested.

"I want to stay hydrated. Shush." Takumi said before taking another sip.

A minute later, after dealing with another pony, Takumi couldn't help but wonder.

"Where the heck is Celestia?"

"Probably talking with Cadance and Twilight about you and Itsuki. I'm fine with it. Allows me to do something else for a bit while I wait for the changing between day and night."

"Mm."

He looked at the two guards again, and noticed them looking at each other. They simultaneously sighed and walked to the center of the room, sitting and staring at him and Luna.

"Luna, can we ask something?" The purple mare asked.

"Of course, Sapphire Dream. What it is?" Luna courteously asked back.

"If you don't mind us asking, uh..." 'Sapphire' trailed off.

"Who is he?" Mistral Dream pointed at Takumi.

"He is an... apprentice of mine," Luna replied.

"He's an Alicorn," Sapphire said.

"That he is. A male one. I am quite surprised not many have commented on that."

"What's his... name?" Mistral asked, blushing a little.

"Fujiwa- Takumi Fujiwara." Takumi said. I really gotta work on saying my first name first.

"Takumi... Fujiwara?" Mistral was visibly confused. "How unique."

"Yes, it is a very unique name." Luna agreed.

"When did we get a male Alicorn?" Sapphire asked. She was also blushing.

"Yesterday. Two male Alicorns actually. His friend, Itsuki Takeuchi, is basically Takumi here except he has a red coat."

"TWO!?" The mare's yelled in surprise.

"Mhm. I would prefer it if you two were to keep this very quiet. While I m sure that by now there are rumors going around of an unknown white Alicorn walking around with me, I want to keep it as quiet to the public as we can."

The guards looked at each other, wide-eyed, before looking back at Luna. "You have our word." They said in unison, saluting before getting back into their respective positions.

Luna nodded before sighing. "So. Takumi, what do you think so far?"

"Of this court stuff? Eh, I guess It's nice. Seems easy to get the hang of."

"General Day Court is easy. The hard bit to get used to is knowing how to manage things such as the economy. Not to mention you have to a run a city."

"Seemed that way. I think I would do fine if I was put in this situation. Get me an advisor and I'm golden."

"Mm. You definitely seem like the adaptive type."

Takumi chuckled and looked away. "I get that a lot..."

Initial D Second Stage Sound Files - Wavering starts playing.

Luna looked forward as yet another noble came in. After they exchanged greetings and the noble began speaking of problems, the words faded out and her vision was enveloped by darkness, only to be replaced by the interior of her Mazda Cosmo.

It was black, and unlike the standard Cosmo, was designed for spirited use rather than a luxury. Gone was the wraparound Digidash that had been a highly luxurious option when they first came out, now the interior resembled that of a Mazda RX-7 FD3S. The gauges even lit up bright blue when the exterior lights were on.

She saw the mountain pass around her fly by as her hooves turned the steering wheel, shifting gears and braking into a left corner. She saw a hoof reach down and pull the parking brake lever in the center console up and down to kick the Cosmo sideways.

We must not use the parking brake. She thought. Takumi said it will slow us down. Our best bet to initiate a drift is to turn the car in the opposite direction of the curve before rocking it sideways into it.

She thought about something else, and her vision turned from the interior of her car to a sky view shot of Takumi drifting his AE86 downhill. It entered a right corner without going to the left in the slightest, easily initiating a drift.

But how is Takumi doing it? She wondered. He is not initiating a drift like that at all!

Takumi's words from earlier echoed through her mind.

On the downhill, when I brake, the weight naturally goes to the front of the car. It's easy to steer into the turn and flick the rear out.

The weight of the car, She began thinking. Shifts off the rear and into the front, pressing the front tires into the ground and lifting the rear off the ground. It becomes easier to steer the rear out without having to waste time swerving left or right to let inertia do Its job... a Braking Drift. Hmm... I'll have to ask Takumi to show me how one efficiently performs such a technique.

"And that's why I think Seaddle should open it." The noble stallion finished, snapping Luna back into reality.

"Oh! Um, yes. Thank you. We shall take it into consideration." She quickly replied.

The noble nodded before walking out of the room, but not before giving Takumi a quick glance. She looked over at Takumi. He was just staring ahead, bored as usual and likely off in his own little world.

I wonder if he is always experiencing what I just experienced. A visualization of what you do when you drive. Perhaps that is his little world. Nothing else. Just him, his car, and the road.

She looked back forward, sighing. What she didn't notice right after was Takumi glancing over at her.

She was definitely distracted through that whole thing. Damn, were my words from earlier really that impactful for her? It's not like I was giving some heartfelt speech. I was just saying what I knew. What the heck's so meaningful about that?

Author's Note

So, fun fact; In terms of this universe's present time, we are still on day TWO!

Act 9: First "Date"

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Tires echoed through the night sky as a Panda Trueno ricocheted through corners. Left, right, left, right, the Trueno flicked between the two directions with almost unmatched efficiency. The engine revved high and hard, and the front tires barely steered left or right except to change the 86's direction.

Takumi shifted gears perfectly, said gears being perfectly tuned to his home course. Mount Akina. He was focused only on driving his hardest, training to become the fastest driver the world has ever seen.

"Takumi." A female voice echoed through the Alicorn's head.

He didn't listen. The engine echoed in his ears, gears locked into place, air was sucked into the engine and compressed, then shot out the exhaust pipe. Takumi was at home here.

"Takumi?" The same voice echoed.

Warmth began to envelop his body, and he felt rather soft and fuzzy. He relaxed, allowing himself to drive even faster through the corners. He always drove at his best when relaxed and content. Well, at his best if you don't count him getting pissed off because a red civic spun him out.

"I am going to take you to my chamber if you don't speak~..." The voice purred, in a playfully lustful tone. This confused Takumi a little.

He felt something breathing on his left ear. As he turned to check, the mountain pass was gone, as was the interior of the 86, and he was met with a certain Dark Blue Alicorn hugging him from behind with her forehooves.

"What are you doing?"

"So he speaks! Finally." Luna stopped hugging. "It has been some time since you last spoke. What have you been doing?"

"Just thinking. You know. About driving down Akina."

"Hm. Well, if this starts becoming a problem, maybe I'll give these two guardsmares another thing to do besides standing around." Luna looked at the Dream Twins. Their cheeks had reddened and they stared at each other before staring at Luna.

"Like what?" The twins and Takumi asked in unison.

"I would have to think about it." The Princess sneered.

Takumi scoffed. "I think I'm gonna take a walk around. To be honest, as nice as Day Court has been, I want to do something to pass the time."

"That is perfect actually. Day Court is over."

Takumi looked at her. "It is?"

"Yes. It is. Why do you think I was so persistent to gain your attention?"

"Makes sense." Takumi looked at a clock on the wall.

7:52PM

"Oh. Huh. Time really flew by me."

"Mm. Would you like to join me as I raise the moon? Perhaps even join my sister as she lowers the sun?"

"I mean... yeah. Why not. Sounds interesti-" Takumi short-circuited.

Luna grew alarmed at Takumi's bewildered face. "Is something wrong?" She asked.

"Did you just say... that Celestia was going to lower the sun... and you were going to raise the moon?"

Luna's sense of alarm disappeared. She smiled and nodded.

"... You two lower and raise the sun and moon?"

"Mhm."

Takumi could not believe what he was hearing. "Don't we orbit the sun?"

Luna just laughed. "No silly. The sun and moon travel around us. They are small. Though because they are so close, they are tidally locked. So we must move them ourselves."

"But... uh..."

"I would not delve too deep into it. Would you like to see my sister lower her sun?"

Takumi was too bewildered to say anything, so he simply nodded.

As the two walked down the steps and towards the doors, Takumi stared at the doors ahead.

"I wonder how Itsuki is taking to that. If he's been told yet."

"WHAAAAT!? YOU CAN DO FREAKING WHAT?!"

Celestia laughed. "I can Raise and Lower the Sun and Moon. My sister can do the same. Of course, I stick to the Sun while she sticks to the Moon."

"That's freaking awesome! Holy crap! I need to see you do it. You HAVE to let me see." Itsuki demanded.

"Well, I'll be doing it in five minutes. If you want to follow me, I can show you."

"I wanna see!" Scootaloo squeed. "So does Rainbow Dash!"

"I never said I wanted to see it!" Rainbow Dash was hovering next to Cadance.

"Who cares! Come on! Let's go!" Itsuki hurriedly began walking down a hallway, getting Celestia, Scootaloo, Rainbow Dash, Twilight, and Cadance to follow.

Celestia sighed. "I never thought I'd find a male Alicorn this adorable." She quietly said.

"Yeah." Twilight agreed. "I always thought a male Alicorn would be all snooty and such. But with Itsuki and Takumi? I'd take them over a pompous prick any day."

"Twilight! There's a filly here!" Cadance said.

"Scootaloo is all the way over there with Itsuki!" Twilight pointed ahead at Scootaloo, who was happily pacing and chatting with Itsuki. "She won't hear me."

"Eh, true. But yeah, I will say that we are lucky we got stuck with a couple of teenagers and not... you know."

"Somepony like Blueblood?"

"Eeyup."

Celestia chuckled. "I wonder what he'll say when he realized that two teenagers got to become the first Male Alicorns Equestria has ever seen and not himself."

"I personally don't think he should know until the public knows," Twilight said. "He'll probably tell all his dumb rich friends."

"Actually, I think him knowing would be a great idea." Cadance disagreed. "As long as he only sees Takumi and Itsuki once, he'll tell all his friends. With no evidence to back up his claim, he'll be laughed at."

Everyone except Itsuki and Scootaloo thought about it for a few seconds before nodding their heads in agreement.

"Itsuki, over here," Celestia called out, stopping in front of two doors that lead to a balcony. Itsuki and Scootaloo stopped and ran back, both super excited. Scootaloo hitched a ride on Itsuki's back just to keep up. They looked pretty cute together.

"Oh this is gonna be awesome," Scootaloo said.

"I wonder where my sister and Takumi could be. Anyways." Celestia opened the doors and walked out onto the balcony, the others following her. "Such a shame they aren't here."

"Why are we even setting it at eight?" Twilight asked. "I thought it was supposed to only set at Eight when It's winter."

"Because I wrote the schedule this way. To give my little ponies some extra sleep for tonight."

Twilight couldn't argue with that.

As Celestia stood next to the railing, she looked at Itsuki and motioned for him to stand next to her. With Scootaloo on his back, he excitedly walked over and stopped. He was shaking a little from excitement.

"Ready?" Celestia asked.

Itsuki and Scootaloo nodded. The excitement that had built up in them was unreal.

Celestia pointed her horn towards the sun and stretched out her wings. "And three, two, one..." Her horn lit up, and the sun began to slowly fall.

Itsuki and Scootaloo were astonished at the sight. To Itsuki, something about seeing someone lower the sun themselves was just... just... it was amazing.

Sun Rays appeared from every nook and cranny, shadows grew longer and longer, it was like a timelapse. Only this time it wasn't in a 720p video. It was real. Itsuki felt his heart rate quickening.

As the sun set below the Horizon, Celestia sighed and looked at Itsuki. Both he and Scootaloo were dumbstruck. Itsuki was totally locked.

"Itsuki?" Celestia asked, furling her wings.

Scootaloo snapped out of her trance and leaned down next to Itsuki's ear. His .exe had stopped working.

"Itsuki?" Scootaloo asked.

"Woah..." Itsuki finally said.

Scootaloo quietly rubbed Itsuki's right ear with her forehoof, causing the Alicorn to blush.

"Alright, alright. Stop." Itsuki pleaded, using a wing to flick Scootaloo's hoof away.

Celestia sighed. "I wonder where Takumi and Luna could be."

As she looked around the nearby balconies, her eyes fell on the two Alicorns she'd just mentioned. Nearby, further below, and at least two hundred feet away. She felt her eyes narrow and her muzzle scrunch up a little.

"Wow..." Takumi let out. "I hope Itsuki got to saw that sunset."

"I am sure he did. Shame we could not make it to my sister and him in time." Luna looked around to see if she could spot her sister. She did see her. A bit higher up, at least two hundred feet away, with Itsuki, Twilight, and Cadance next to her. She smiled and waved.

"What are you-, oh. Look. There they are." Takumi said as he saw Celestia politely waving back.

"Well, that answers that."

"What do we do now?"

"Now I do my part."

Luna unfurled her wings and stretched them wide as her horn lit up. Within seconds, the moon rose over the distant horizon and glowed brightly. It was just as if not more beautiful then when Celestia set the sun.

Something about seeing the moon rise up like that was so... so calming. It was weird to be honest, the fact that Luna's Moon was more than twice the size of Earth's Moon. Though in a way, it felt right. For this world at least.

How did I end up in this world... Takumi wondered as Luna finished, and the Moon began moving at a much more gradual pace. In what's apparently the best form one could end up as...

Luna looked back at him, smiling. "What doth thou think?"

"It was... heh, beautiful. It was like a timelapse."

"Hm. Well, I do it every evening. So you'll get to see it as much as you want."

"Mm..." Takumi yawned. "Man, I need to sleep. This whole day has been just..."

"Shall I escort you to your chamber?"

"... Sure."

Takumi began following Luna, dazed as usual. The Night Princess looked at him, seeing if he was doing anything, and smirked.

Don't worry Takumi. We will let you have plenty of sleep. But do not think I am not going to wake you up after midnight. We are gonna have some fun.

She looked forward as a thought crossed her mind. Would it be bad for me to appear in his dream on the first night?

One Hour Later...

Itsuki stopped in front of a door. He stared at it, examined Its features. He took a breath in and closed his eyes.

"Alright." He whispered. "Come on Itsuki. You can't screw this up. I won't let another girl get away from me. I mean... heh, third time's a charm after all."

He took another breath in and raised his hoof.

Knock Knock Knock

He waited for a few seconds, hearing footsteps, or in this case hoofsteps. Suddenly, the door opened with a tired Electric Blue Pegasus on the other side.

She yawned. "Yeah?" Rainbow Dash's eyes widened upon realizing who was at the door. "Oh! Itsuki! I... hi?"

Itsuki's cheeks became redder than usual. "Hey Rainbow Dash. I was... uh, wondering if you'd want to head out for a drive?"

Rainbow Dash blinked. "What do you mean by a... drive?"

"Just, you know. Hang out. I was thinking we'd head to Akina- er, the Canterlot Turnpike."

"You wanna go to the Canterlot Turnpike?"

"Yeah. You, me, my 86, you know."

Rainbow Dash just stared at him, blinking only once.

"I mean..." Rainbow Dash looked back at her room, hesitant. She realized suddenly that Itsuki didn't want to try and do that with her, but rather, he wanted to take her on the downhill. She looked back, smirking. "Actually, sure. Why not."

"Yes!" Itsuki blurted out, a bit too loudly. "Let's uh, let's go then."

Luna sat on a balcony overlooking Canterlot, her head supported by her hoof. She was in a rather pensive mood.

Takumi Takumi Takumi... She thought. How in Equestria did you, at your age, become the driver you showed me you were last night? The best-seasoned racers I have heard of could only dream about being as good as you seemed at your age. And you are not even used to driving in your body yet! Who knows what you can do once you get used to it!

She sighed and smiled. I cannot wait to take you out on the Turnpike so you can show me what you can do.

"Look at the detail!" She heard a young voice call from far below. Her gaze shot to the parking lot where her Skyline was parked, and could just barely make out a Red Alicorn and Electric Blue Pegasus standing next to a Red and Black AE86 Levin. "Who the heck cleaned my car this well? Holy crap they put brand new tires on!"

"They look pretty high performance too." A female voice called out.

Luna tilted her head as Itsuki opened the right door, and even more as she heard the engine start.

"Let's go," Itsuki said as Rainbow Dash got in.

As the 86 pulled out of the lot, Luna smirked. "I wonder where these two are going..." She unfurled her wings and jumped off the balcony.

vroooooOOOOOm- vrooooo

The AE86 traveled under a white archway and onto a mountain road known as the Canterlot Turnpike. Itsuki was in the driver's seat of the Right Hand Drive Corolla, a smile on his face as he admired the spotless interior. It was perfectly polished and restored to almost factory condition. It was amazing.

Alright Itsuki! He thought. You've gotten this far already! All you need to do is just not blow it. If I can start taking her out here every night, maybe I can actually get with her! I'm not the idiot I was with Saori and Kazumi. I WILL make us work!

"So..." Itsuki began. "You uh, you come out here often?"

Rainbow Dash looked around. "Not much. Last time I came here was with Twilight. She took me up here because my wing was broken and the train tracks were having maintenance. Except I don't remember it being as fun on the drive up. She drove so safe compared to you."

"Yeah, my driving is pretty good."

"Mm. Oh! Hey, pull over here. I never got to see how cool the view looked."

A small parking area had come into view when Rainbow Dash said that. Itsuki nodded and pulled into the lot, without putting his blinker on, and stopped next to the guardrail.

Rainbow Dash unbuckled and got out, then ran over to the guardrail, admiring the view. Itsuki just sat in the car staring at the pegasus, watching her as she stared out.

Her look was perfect. The way her Electric Blue Coat matched her Rainbow Hair, her Magenta Eyes, she was the most beautiful creature he'd ever seen.

Rainbow Dash was in a bit of a pensive state. She was already liking this Street Racing stuff, but the issue was that, well, she was a Wonderbolt. To her knowledge, none of the other Wonderbolts street raced. Heck, most of the recruits such as Silver Lining and Blaze didn't even have their own cars. To her knowledge at least.

Spitfire had by far the best car in terms of performance, at least for mountain racing. An 'LS1 Deep Fuschia' Purple Nissan Silvia S14 Autech Version K's MF-T with the 'Cold Weather' package and SR20VET Engine. Soarin and Thunderlane had good cars too.

So, sure. MAYBE if she showed up in a brand-spankin' new sports car, none of the Wonderbolts would think she was interested in street racing. Spitfire would probably like having a fellow 'bolt with a sports car. But if the Wonderbolts were to find out about her shenanigans... what would they think? Would they cast her out and make fun of her for it? Being nicknamed 'Rainbow Crash' was bad enough. But what would they do if they found out about that? What would Spitfire do?

Rainbow Dash shook her head. Pull yourself together. You're hanging out with Itsuki right now. She let out a sigh. "I'll admit it. Sometimes, admiring a view like this without hovering in the air or sitting on a cloud, is pretty sweet." She looked at Itsuki and was a bit surprised at how the Alicorn was staring at her, who had gotten out of the car.

Itsuki blinked and shook his head. "Uh, yeah. It is."

"Heh. So uh, about that one girl. Kazumi." She blushed. "What was she like?"

Itsuki walked over to the guardrail next to her and stared out, sighing. "Kazumi Akiyama... She was the best. A bit older than me, I think twenty. But we both got along well enough. Sure, the way we met was odd, but I helped her pay for some food. I don't even know why I did it, to be honest. She was such a jerk to me before."

"Hm. How'd ya meet?"

"Well at first I happened to spot her older brother's car. An 86 Levin like mine, just white with no carbon fiber hood and different wheels. She thought I was trying to screw with it since she was from a different prefecture and yelled at me. I stormed off and met her the next day, while she was having trouble with paying for food, so I helped. We kind of hit it off after that."

"Prefecture?"

"Region, Territory, you know."

"Ah."

"But yeah. We both loved 86's, she actually gave me some good pointers on my driving and helped me improve a lot. Seriously, it was really helpful. She was probably the reason I got as good as I am now!"

"Hm. So uh... what happened?"

The way Itsuki's face changed from cheerful to total disappointed sadness was almost heartbreaking.

Itsuki went silent. His eyes fell to the cliff's edge, and his body seemed to grow weaker. Rainbow Dash took a breath in. She wasn't good in these situations. Fluttershy or heck, even Pinkie Pie would do way better with this kind of thing.

"Not something we should talk about?"

Itsuki sniffed. "No, no. It's alright." He took a breath in and sighed. "Four weeks ago, her old boyfriend had shown up. Apparently, she'd been dating this older guy before she broke up with him, and the idiot came back to apologize. Apparently, they'd been out to hotels with each other more than a few times. Well, more than several times actually."

"What do you mean by that?"

"As in, you know..."

Rainbow Dash was a bit confused by his wording. But after thinking about it a little more, she realized what he meant. When a Mare and Stallion went to a hotel together, well...

"Oh..." Dash trailed, shifting uncomfortably.

"I wouldn't have even cared. Well, ok. I would have cared a little as us guys do, but I probably would have forgotten about it. But... yeah. She chose him. Over me. What the... FUCK!"

Itsuki's sudden F-Bomb startled Rainbow Dash. He really hates thinking about that... ugh. Great. I actually feel sorry for him.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, the only light coming from Luna's Moon and a few street lamps that had been placed in the corners of the lot.

Itsuki mentally kicked himself. He was acting like such an idiot in front of Rainbow Dash. How was he supposed to get with her if she thought of him as nothing more than just some idiot overreactive teenager? What was he even supposed to say now? He probably ruined the entire evening with her.

vroooooooOOOOOOm- vrooooooo

The sound of two engines was heard in the distance, both approaching quickly. The sounds of tires sliding along the well-maintained tarmac grew before swiftly disappearing, both engines revving.

Itsuki smiled, knowing this was the way he could distract Rainbow Dash from his deplorable behavior.

"You ever get street racers up here that often?" He tried to act all cool, but the sorrow in his voice was still present.

Two beams of light slowly appeared from down the road, and within seconds, two cars flew into the lot, braking hard and stopping on the other side of the road.

One car was a silver Mazda Miata NB with silver Enkei RPF1 rims with a 326 Power Wing, while the other car was a blue Nissan S14 Silvia Q's with black OZ Superturismo's and APR Performance GTC-300 Adjustable Wing.

Itsuki whistled upon seeing the cars. Their drivers got out, neither seeming to notice either him or Rainbow Dash.

The Mazda's driver was a Royal Blue Earth Pony with black hair. The Nissan's driver was a Turquoise Unicorn with Teal Hair. Both ponies seemed to be in their early 20s.

"See? I told you this turbo would help." The Mazda Driver said, his voice a little high-pitched. "Now I can actually keep up with you going uphill."

"Yeah yeah yeah, it helps." The Unicorn replied, his voice normal for a 20-21 year old. "That BP-4W is pretty good at boost. It actually allows you to keep up with me now."

"Yeah, I'll bet I'm a demon on the downhill too."

"We'll see about that. Check out this wing though." The Unicorn jumped up and put his left forehoof on the trunk of his S14 and his right forehoof on the APR Wing. "This baby will make Pegasi Pussies wet."

"No, it won't..." Rainbow Dash quietly grimaced.

"Mm. Yeah, I saw how much less squirrelly the back end look when going around those hairpins. Maybe I'll get my own."

"Heh, maybe. But this ain't cheap. 500 Bits is a lot."

"Dammit, of course. You think a GTC-200 is good?"

"Mm, 450 Bits. Depends."

The Unicorn looked around his S14, admiring it. As he got to the right side, he looked up at Itsuki and Rainbow Dash. He seemed a bit surprised. "Woah. Dude, looks like we're not the only ones up here."

The Earth Pony looked at them. "Nope. Ha, look at that. An AE86. Who the hell even uses that?"

"I dunno. Let's go talk to them."

Itsuki and Rainbow Dash stood there as the ponies walked over.

Itsuki smiled a little. Well this'll be nice. I get to talk with some other street racers. He thought.

"So. What brings you two up here?" The Unicorn asked.

"We're just out for a drive is all," Itsuki replied. "Admiring the view."

"Yeah, a 'drive'. Totally." The Earth Pony teased. "A Corolla? Really? Where'd you even get the parts for this old clunker?" The pony examined the Corolla, noting the Silver Work Ewing Rims, TRD Carbon Fiber Hood, and TRD N2 Ducktail.

"Come on dude." The Unicorn said. "You know the ponies at Toyota Racing Division are too stubborn to give up on their old outdated models."

Itsuki grimaced. "Who do you guys think you are? This car is the best for the downhill. My friend uses an 86 Trueno and is fricken unbeatable."

The ponies simultaneously rolled their eyes. "Yeah, totally. Sorry buddy, but an AE86 compared to my car is just sad." The Mazda driver sneered.

"No it's not! I've beaten a Lamborghini Miura AND an R33 GT-R with this baby! And it only makes 122HP!"

The Unicorn laughed, the Earth Pony following suit. "122HP? Ha! First off, the Lamborghini Miura is a vintage piece of crap by today's standards. Sure, 350HP is a lot, but on a mountain pass, that thing's body flex is horrendous. And an R33 GT-R is heavy and softly sprung. The drivers were probably pretty crap."

"We did it right on this mountain two nights ago!"

"Oh shut up." The Earth Pony put in. "We were on this road two nights ago. We saw nothing that even looked like your car or a Skyline."

Nearby, a pair of Cyan Eyes narrowed in anger.

"Not in my worl-!"

"Lay off you two." Rainbow Dash inserted herself into the argument. "Me and him are out here trying to spend some time together. We don't need you idiots annoying us."

The ponies looked at Rainbow Dash. Their eyes had narrowed, but suddenly widened as they realized exactly who just insulted him.

"R-R-... Rainbow Dash?" The Earth Pony stammered.

"Yeah. Both of you get the heck outta here." Rainbow Dash was tempted to unfurl her wings but resisted.

"Rainbow Dash of the Wonderbolts." The Unicorn sneered. "I didn't think you'd hang out with a Unicorn like this."

"I'm an Ali-" Itsuki tried to clarify.

"Dude, come on." The Earth Pony cut Itsuki off. "You think Rainbow Dash would seriously hang out with some teenager with a battered old Corolla? Please. She was probably paid to do it."

That almost sent Rainbow Dash flying off the handle.

The Unicorn looked at the Earth Pony, eyes wide, before looking back at Rainbow Dash. His face wore a disappointed look. "So the amazing Rainbow Dash is secretly a whore. Tsk Tsk Tsk. Such a shame it had to happen to such a... such a fine mare." He turned around and began walking back to his car.

The Earth Pony snickered and began to turn around. "Hey, my Mazda may be a little cramped, but I bet I could still show you a good time in it. A really good time." The two stallions, if you could call them that, laughed as they walked back across the road.

Rainbow Dash opened her mouth to respond but sighed instead as the ponies got in their cars and turned around to accelerate downhill. "Those idiots... who in Tartarus do they think they are?!" She looked at Itsuki, who was scowling just as much as her.

"That's enough." Itsuki angrily exclaimed. "I'm gonna make those jerks pay!"

"Wait what?" Rainbow Dash was confused.

"Itsuki?" A female voice said, her Cyan Eyes staring from the shadows.

Itsuki ran to the driverside of the 86. "Jump in the passenger seat!"

Dr. Money - That's All Right starts playing.

"Wha-"

"We don't have time to argue! Hurry up and get in! Come on!"

Rainbow Dash ran to the passenger side. "Wait are we gonna chase them?!"

She got in, sitting on the passenger seat. "We're actually chasing them. Sweet moth of Luna we are going to chase them!" She buckled up as Itsuki keyed the ignition, the 4A-GE roaring to life. "Itsuki, you don't have to- woah!"

Itsuki put the car in reverse gear and accelerated hard. The revs climbed up.

"Itsuki-"

"Here we GO!"

[EUROBEAT INTENSIFIES]

The 86 slammed into a 180 Degree J-Turn as Itsuki steered hard, causing Rainbow Dash to scream. Itsuki put the pedal to the medal, shooting gasoline into the engine and increasing revs.

He shot out of the parking lot, steering onto the road and shifting up a gear. Rainbow Dash felt unphased by the G-Forces considering she'd experienced much harder ones, but the way Itsuki accelerated worried her.

"These jerkwads are going to see what It's like to insult something they don't know jack about!" Itsuki yelled.

"Well holy crap I guess we're doing this!" Rainbow Dash looked over at Itsuki and grew confused as she saw Itsuki's look. He was angry and focused, his hooves pressed against the steering wheel.

"Hey, Itsuki?" Rainbow Dash asked as the first left corner approached. Fast. Really fast!

"Itsuki?! The corner?!"

Still nothing. The speed chime rang as they exceeded 100kmph.

"ITSUKI HIT THE FREAKING BRAAAKES!!!"

EEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Itsuki braked and threw the 86 sideways into the turn, lightly braking through the inside before accelerating hard out. Rainbow Dash held on tight as the car accelerated down a straightaway in the left lane.

Braking and steering, Itsuki guided the 86 through a right corner and accelerated. Rainbow Dash realized she wasn't dead. The initial shock of the sheer speed Itsuki took the corners was mostly gone, now she was just along for the ride.

"Come on! Where are these sorry excuses for street racers? Huh!?" Itsuki yelled. "Here we go! Hairpin in second gear!"

Rainbow Dash bit her lower lip as Itsuki braked hard and steered into the hairpin, using the front tires to slide around the inside before using the back tires to accelerate hard out of the hairpin. As they rounded a left curve, they both saw the taillights of their opponents.

"Oh hell yeah! Already catching up!"

"Wooh! This is actually REALLY fun!" Rainbow Dash laughed.

Ahead, the Miata and S14 entered a left-right chicane, the ponies pulling their handbrakes to initiate their drifts. Their tires spun as they switched right, doing a basic form of parallel drifting. The Miata Driver, who was behind the S14, noticed the headlights in his rearview.

"Hm." Barely believing it, he punched the throttle and listened to the turbo as it whirred, sticking to the S14's bumper.

They drifted at a somewhat wide angle into a left hairpin, both drivers laughing as they missed the apex and fishtailed on the exit. They didn't care. To them, they ruled this pass. What they didn't notice was the red streak of lightning diving into the same three corners they cleared, much faster, and way more efficiently.

The Miata's driver was surprised as the same headlights tore around the corner behind, instantly catching up to him.

"Woah! Hey, isn't that the greaseball Corolla we just met? How'd it catch up to my Miata?!" He yelled.

Itsuki smiled and focused on the Miata. "Here we go! Welcome to street racing Rainbow Dash!"

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Itsuki did a full-blown tandem drift close to the Miata through a quick left corner. It took everything in him to not crash into the slower car. The Miata's technique was that bad. Actually, neither the S14 nor Miata had any technique.

Speeding down a straightaway, the Miata driver grew angry. "Urgh, this guy is really pissing me off! How the hell is a shitbox Corolla keeping up with my Turbo?!" He beeped the horn a couple of times and honked his horn at the S14. The S14 driver looked back and smiled.

"I see it. Must be that Corolla loser." The unicorn calmly stated. "You picked the wrong ponies to mess with tonight!"

The three cars flew into a quick right turn. Itsuki steered for the inside and accelerated as the Miata skidded towards the outside. Itsuki nailed the throttle and accelerated next to the Miata, driving side by side.

"Come the fuck on turbo!" The earth pony pressed hard on the throttle, causing the turbo to kick in. The rear tires couldn't handle the sudden power, causing them to spin.

Itsuki and Rainbow Dash bit their lips as the 86 accelerated next to the Miata. The Miata Driver grunted as he tried to hold his ground.

"God damn you just- FUCK OFF!"

The Miata accelerated away from the 86 down a left curve. Itsuki rolled his eyes as he saw how squarely the car was.

A laggy turbo. Itsuki thought as they approached a right hairpin. The S14 began to drift. Laggy turbo's suck ass on the mountain pass. Natural Aspiration reigns supreme on the downhill!

"NOW GET OUTTA THE WAY YOU TURBOCHARGED PRICK!" Itsuki yelled as he braked and steered into the inside. The Miata braked way too early and allowed Itsuki to swing into the inside line, passing the Miata with superior cornering technique and tires.

"What!?! No way! How?!" The Miata Driver yelled. "I have the newer car with good tires! How was he able to pass me so easily?!"

As they exited and chased after the S14, Rainbow Dash squeed with delight. She was enjoying this. A lot. The feeling of the engine revving up to redline as they shot through the corner was nothing short of exhilarating. She had gotten used to crazy, daring, and manic flying, but this was nothing like it!

"This was awesome!" Rainbow Dash squeed.

"Hell yeah it is! Now let's catch this Silvia!" Itsuki shifted gears and accelerated after the S14, sticking to its bumper.

The S14 driver looked at the rearview, disappointed in his friend's inability to block a pitily old Corolla. "Try whatever you like, kid. Just because you've got a hot chick in the passenger seat and a weird as hell license plate, you ain't passing me!"

"Rainbow Dash, I'm gonna show you a trick I learned from Takumi! It might be a little crazy!" Itsuki said as they approached a left turn.

"I'm okay with crazy!" Rainbow Dash smiled. "What kind of trick?"

"I haven't even shown this to Takumi!"

Rainbow Dash looked ahead and grew horrified at the speed they were approaching the hairpin. It was WAY too fast!

"Woah! Itsuki! Uh, BRAKES?!"

"Here we go! DITCH RUN BABY!"

BANG! BANG!

"What in Tartarus!?!" The S14 driver yelled in surprise as headlights lit up the left of his car.

Before he could attempt anything, the 86 had passed him and rocketed out of the hairpin like a slingshot.

"What in Tartarus just happened!?" The S14 driver yelled. "How did he do that?!"

Rainbow Dash and Itsuki cheered as the 86 accelerated away and down a straight. Itsuki beeped the horn twice.

"Alright, credit where it's due." The S14 driver began. "That isn't your normal AE86. It's a damn well-tuned AE86. To think it can turn like the without a wing for Celestia's sake!" He didn't know that the AE86's suspension was basically stock, only slightly tuned to understeer.

The three cars rocketed past a small viewing deck. Itsuki blocked every one of the S14's overtaking attempts.

"But... this acceleration!" The S14 driver was surprised. "It's so slow! If he wasn't blocking me, I'd obliterate him on the straightaways! So he's only fast in the corners! The hell!?"

They approached a left curve at high speed, three engines echoing through the night. Itsuki smiled.

"Check this out! I'm gonna leave these guys in the dust!" He yelled, pressing on the brake and steering. Rainbow Dash yelped as the car was thrown sideways into the left corner, the rear end kicking out a little while the front tires pulled the 86 around the corner.

"Oh for fu- If a Corolla can do it, I can do it too!" The S14 sped into the turn and drifted into the corner at high speed, catching up to Itsuki.

Suddenly, the 86 disappeared from view. The curve tightened into a corner, horrifying the S14 driver.

"No! It won't turn! SHIIIT!"

BANG!

The car screeched against the guardrail before entering a viewing deck. All the wheels were locked as it came to a sudden stop, mere inches from the guardrail. The right side was scraped through hell and back.

The Miata skidded to a stop as Itsuki guided the AE86 around a corner, Its 4A-GE echoing through the night.

Music Ends.

"So you want some coffee?" Itsuki offered. He had pulled off the road next to a small restroom building, one that had a vending machine outside.

"Sure." Rainbow Dash replied, sitting on the curb.

Itsuki grabbed a coffee cup from the vending machine after paying before walking over and sitting next to Rainbow Dash. She took her cup and put a straw in it.

"So that was fun." Itsuki smiled before sipping his coffee, awkwardly holding it between his hooves.

"Mmm-" Rainbow finished sipping. "Yeah. It was. I take back everything I said about how racing cars couldn't compare very well against racing planes or just other pegasi. It's just as good. Heck, better!"

"Mhm!" Itsuki watched Rainbow Dash continue to drink hers. "Yeah, it is. I can't wait to do more in this world."

Soon, they finished their cups of coffee and got up.

"So do you wanna do some more runs or?" Itsuki offered.

"Mm, well-" Rainbow Dash began.

vroooOOOOOOOM! VROOOOOOOOOOO

Their eyes shot to the road as two cars careened towards the corner at high speed. The car behind was a white Mitsubishi 3000GT-VR4, while the car in front was a modified Competition Yellow 1993 Mazda RX-7 FD3S.

The RX-7's nose dropped as it braked and skidded into the corner at high speed, the 3000GT drifting behind it. Both cars flew by, whipping both ponies' hair around before exiting and driving uphill. They soon disappeared around another corner.

"Woah..." Itsuki was a bit confused. "Why do I feel like I know that FD?" He wondered.

"Itsuki." Rainbow Dash suddenly said. She turned her head around to look at him and stared him dead in the eyes, smiling. Itsuki blushed as they stared, wondering what she wanted.

Nearby, in the air, a pair of eyes stared at the two winged ponies. The creature they belonged to smiled, knowing what Rainbow Dash was going to say.

"Teach me how to be a Street Racer."

(YES I KNOW THAT WAS A SUPRA IN THE GIF! SHUSH!)

Sometime later, Mount Akina Pass.

A modified Competition Yellow 1993 Mazda RX-7 FD3S Spirit R sat parked at the top of the pass in the parking lot. A man sat on the tailgate. He had blond spiky hair, a dark red shirt, and black jeans with white shoes. He held a late 90s flip phone to his ear.

"I'm up here bro. Battled this guy in a Z11A on the way up." The man said. "Wasn't too bad if I'm being honest. It looked rear while drive judging by how it turned and drifted with me."

"What happened?" A man on the phone asked.

"The guy put his hazards on and pulled over. I think he wanted me to stop, but I'm not up here for him."

"Mm. Still no sign of Takumi?"

"Sorry, nothin'. I think I saw a red 86 while on the way up, it was parked, but I was too busy with the race. I still can't believe how well my car handles now. I feel unstoppable."

"Don't get too cocky. The race with Purple Shadow is in a few short days. We're heading to Ibaraki tomorrow."

"Mm. Yeah, about that. What are we gonna do about the downhill? I'll win the uphill, but without Takumi, who the hell's gonna battle Joshima?"

The man on the other end sighed as he sat in a garage. "Takumi being missing will cause issues. However, I have a plan. I won't put it into full effect until the race, just in case Takumi shows, but I'm already preparing."

"Well, what is it?"

The man, one in his mid-twenties with dark blue hair, wore a calm-yet-determined look on his face as he stared at the Crystal White Machine in front of him. "You'll see."

Takumi silently woke up and laid on his side. His room was only illuminated by the moonlight coming through the window.

That was a dream, but it wasn't. Great. They're still doing the race. He thought before sighing. "Why was it me..." He slowly and tiredly asked, noting the time on a digital clock sitting on the nightstand.

1:29AM

"It just had to be me... whisked away from Project D..." A tear welled up in his eye. "I was a legend. I still am in my world, but now I really am just a legend. There will be people in Ibaraki and... all of Japan that will only have heard of me, but they'll question whether or not an 86 really raced for the D..."

knock knock knock

Takumi quickly wiped the tear in his eye as the door opened, revealing the regal Alicorn behind.

"Oh... hey Luna." Takumi greeted, sitting up.

"Takumi. I... did not know you would be awake." Luna slowly walked in and closed the door behind her.

"I just..." Takumi yawned. "I just woke up."

Luna sat down next to the bed. "Oh."

"What do you want?"

Luna's eyes widened as she realized how out of the blue her arrival in Takumi's room must have been for the teen.

"Well... mm..." She sighed. "I want you... to take me on the downhill. Canterlot Turnpike."

Takumi was actually a bit surprised. "You... what?"

"To put it simply, I want to learn from you. How you drive, how you tackle those corners, I want to know how to take on the Canterlo-... I want to learn how to attack the Akina Downhill." She smiled.

Takumi returned the smile, touched by how she said the name of his home course. "Well... sure I guess. I'm pretty awake now."

Luna once again fought the temptation to squee. As Takumi got off the bed, she noticed something peculiar about the pillow his head had been on.

It was wet with some water.

"Takumi? What is with your pillow?" She asked, pointing at it.

Takumi looked at the pillow and blushed, looking away. "I um... spilled water on it. A bit after you left."

Luna looked back at the stains before getting off the bed and following Takumi out, now feeling sorry for the Alicorn.

She knew it wasn't 'just water'. As she lead him in a few hours prior, she could tell he was a bit sad. He was probably thinking about his friends back home, and that put him in a sad mood.

She didn't ask about it then, respecting Takumi's choice to sleep, but now, it was obvious to her. Takumi was depressed. He didn't ask to be taken to his room just so he could sleep. He wanted to be away from ponies, beings, everyone, so that no one saw him cry. Typical shy teenager stuff, but happening to a not-shy teenager.

As she followed Takumi out of his room, her feeling sorry for him drowned out her excitement of him taking her on the downhill. Despite the fact he had become the best thing anyone could become in this world, despite him gaining the ability to fly and use magic and all that, he still wanted to be with his friends back home.

Now that was something Luna liked. A pony who was altruistic and cared about others, not caring about what offers they may get, even if the offers would set them up for a somewhat easy and great life. Someone who wanted to do what they wanted to do, regardless of what offers they got that drove them away from their friends and family.

"You know... Takumi..." She looked at the white Alicorn. His head was low, and he wore a repressed look on his face. She sighed. "If you need somepo- someone to talk to, you can always come to me and your fellow Alicorns."

Takumi raised his head and looked at her. "What do you mean?"

"I am just saying. If you ever feel sad, lonely, me, my sister, Cadance, and Twilight will always be happy to help."

Takumi lowered his head again. "What would you girls want with a teenager who isn't from your world?"

Luna felt a pain in her heart. "Takumi, you and Itsuki are Alicorns. We are very rare. The only beings rarer than us are Golden Zebras. When one of us is feeling down, It's up to the rest to bring them back up."

Takumi said nothing, continuing to keep his head low.

"Takumi, we are here for you. And Itsuki." She nuzzled him gently, causing him to blush.

"Hey, hehe..." Takumi sighed. "I know you are. I just wish I was back with my team..."

"Hm. Each of us are good at helping others out. Cadance, being the Princess of Love, is amazing at relationships. Speaking of which, here's her room right here."

They grinned as they passed a door bearing Cadance's Cutie Mark on it.

"Anyways," Luna continued. "Princess Twilight is good at anything friendship-related and tries her best at whatever is wrong between friends. I will admit, she can be a bit odd and even annoying with how she tries to help ponies, but just know that she is doing her best."

"Hm."

"My sister is over a thousand years old, so she has the experience. I am sure that in my time away, she's talked with many, many ponies who are dealing with grievances."

"Makes sense. I take it the same goes for you? You have experience?"

Luna nodded. "Every night when I dreamwalk, I help fillies and ponies deal with nightmares, fears, and sadness. I indeed have experience."

Takumi didn't even try to wonder what the heck she meant by 'Dreamwalking'.

"And um... if you ever need someone to cuddle with..." Luna blushed. "Both me and my sister will be more than happy to oblige."

Takumi snickered and looked away, also blushing. "Of course. Do you have a national cuddle day or something?"

"Not 'National' per se, but every Tuesday, my sister hugs everypony she meets in the castle."

Takumi rolled his eyes and smirked. "Sounds interesting. And I thought you were the eccentric one."

"She does it to break up the routine a little." Luna smiled.

"Hm. Do you help? With the... cuddling, I mean."

"Mm, rarely. I like doing it alone with just one pony. It makes it more fun. Though, it's extremely rare that I do so." She looked over at Takumi, hopeful, but was disappointed when he didn't so much as blink at what she'd just said. She looked forward as they rounded a bend.

"Hm. Well..." Takumi sighed. "I guess let's head out to Akina. Er, the Turnpike."

"Alright. I already followed Itsuki and Rainbow Dash out there by the way. They've been attacking that course for several hours now."

Takumi looked at her, surprised. "Itsuki and Rainbow Dash?"

Luna happily nodded. "Itsuki has been showing her how to race. These two ponies in an MX-5 and an S14 watched them for a bit before heading home two hours ago. They had raced, but Itsuki beat them. It was fun to watch. It's been even more fun to see Rainbow Dash try to drive. She pales in comparison to Itsuki. But, at least she's still faster than the S14 and Miata."

Takumi looked forward and blinked. "Huh. Rainbow Dash is that blue pegasus, right?"

"Mhm."

"...Wow. I didn't think he'd be into her. I know we already talked about them liking each other and all, but still."

"As I said before, they do have similar personalities."

"Hm."

Ohhhh I feel like a filly! Luna thought, grinning. I am going to learn how to properly attack the mountain pass!

Act 10: The Terrifying Four Wheel Drift

vrooOOOoooommmmmm

The 4A-GE revved a little as Luna buckled her seatbelt. She seemed to have reverted herself to a smaller, younger-looking version of herself. Her coat was now light purple, and the wavy hair was gone, replaced by normal brighter hair. Excitement was bubbling in her as they waited a minute for it to warm up before Takumi pulled out of the lot. Luna used her magic to open the gate, and once through, shut it.

"This feels so odd," Luna admitted. "Normally I'm in the driver's seat. And yes, my Cosmo is Right Hoof Drive like this car."

"Yeah, probably," Takumi replied, bored as usual. She actually looks kind of cute this way. He thought, looking at her juvenile form. "Should I get used to the fact that you can literally change your look?"

Luna giggled. "I can only change to this form. I never ride in cars with anypony else, not even my sister. I came up with this spell all by myself." She grinned with pride.

Takumi smirked and looked ahead. "Alright then."

As they slowly made their way through Canterlot, Luna found herself admiring the interior.

It is so simple! she thought. It has slipped my mind who I asked to clean this, but they did a stupendous job. Everything seems like it just rolled off the dealership!.. Out of the dealership.

Despite having been cleaned to dealership status, the fabric and materials used in this car were far different than what she was used to. She was used to utmost luxury. Even her Skyline's interior was custom built with different luxurious fabrics.

This car, however, didn't use such fabrics. It was for the common folk. Built to get you from point A to point B reliably, while also providing a fun driving experience. This was a car she liked.

"If there's one thing I'll admit, it's that having someone clean your car this well is pretty nice," Takumi admitted as he steered them through an intersection.

"It is, is it not? It looks amazing. I wish I could have one clean my Cosmo, but we know why I cannot allow that."

"Didn't you get your Cosmo like, a week ago?"

"Heh, not even. Which is why it is not dirty. But still. Would be nice."

"Mm."

They continued driving, Takumi steering onto a small two-lane road. Luna looked over at Takumi, who had his head supported by his hoof. She like this. Being able to just sit back, relax, and talk about cars was such a treat. Takumi wasn't too much of a talker, except for when he starts talking about what he does on a mountain pass like earlier, but still. At least he listened.

As she looked at him further, her eyes drifted down to his sweater. She never quite got why he wore it. His reason was 'I like it', but he wore it all the time, even when sleeping. It didn't look very dirty, but you'd think the kid would at least switch to an identical sweater.

Is there a unicorn around here that likes to wear a black sweater all the time? she wondered. Moondancer, was it?

She perished the thought, preferring instead to look out the window. Closed Shops and Businesses slowly rolled past, a small park even showing.

Something felt... off.

Nothing like 'they were being watched' or 'something bad was about to happen'. Something to Luna just felt... off. Missing. Her horn felt like it experiencing a subtle kind of Paresthesia.

"Do you sense something in your horn?" Luna asked.

Takumi looked at her as he slowed to a stop at a stop sign. "No. Why?"

"Do you feel Paresthesia?"

Takumi tilted his head, unsure of what she meant.

"Like how you lay on a hoof for a while and you compress a nerve," Luna explained.

"Oh. No, I don't. Why?"

"Because my horn feels like it is experiencing it. A subtle version."

"Hey, I don't know magic. You're the expert."

Luna sighed, knowing he was right.

A moment later, they finally exited Canterlot and headed onto the Turnpike.

"So, you want me to go at it now or should I pull over?" Takumi asked.

"Mm... I guess you could do it now. Just... show me how you normally drive."

After thinking for a moment, Takumi nodded and began to speed up, downshifting gears. The engine revved up to a staggering 11K RPM before dropping as Takumi shifted.

It was hard for Luna not to smile as the engine revved and the car accelerated, much faster than you'd expect a non-turbo 1.6 Liter to accelerate. The most surprising thing began happening as they exceeded 100KMPH.

Ding-Ding... Ding-Ding... Ding-Ding...

A speed chime! she thought. Why, those haven't been used in years!

She took a breath in, calming herself and looking over at Takumi. I must keep calm and study his driving. His technique. Then I can take from it and improve my own driving! She took another deep breath in, looking forward. Her eyes widened in horror.

The first corner was approaching! And Takumi hadn't begun braking! He was still accelerating!

Initial D First Stage Sound Files vol.2 - Stupid starts playing.

"Woa-woah, hey, Takumi?" Luna whimpered, fear growing quickly. "Takumi! TAKUMI! THE BRAKES! AHHHHHHH!"

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Takumi braked hard and broke into a slide, guiding the Panda Trueno through the inside of the corner far faster than a car of this nature had any right to turn. Luna watched the inside curb come and go before they flew to the outside, Takumi pressing on the throttle and accelerating down the next straightaway.

All sense of calm had flown well out the windshield as Takumi shifted gears. The speed chime was already ringing again.

That chime is ringing again!? she thought. How can it be ringing so early in the course?!

Before she could fully compose herself, she found herself screaming in fear as Takumi slid the car through the inside of a right corner, all four tires sliding as he came less than an inch from the inner guardrail. She stared at the outer guardrail, which came closer and closer before Takumi stopped the side and continued driving right next to it.

She looked over at him. Why does he seem so calm?! I know I asked him to drive like he normally does, but this is insane! How can one remain so calm in these conditions?!!

"Alright! Takumi! Could we please tone it down a little-AHHHHHHH!" She screamed as Takumi braked a little and steered into a right hairpin, sliding through the inside and guiding the inner wheel centimeters from the curb before exiting at high speed. He took the inside line through a left corner before accelerating down a straight.

Luna looked back over. Takumi's gaze was calm, laid back. In fact, he looked like he was stuck in traffic! AT 60 PLUS!

Even my sister could not remain this calm in a situation like this! Luna couldn't take this. She readied a teleportation spell, wanting to leave.

Wait, why can I not teleport? WHERE IS MY MAGIC?! Her horn didn't do anything. Even her most powerful spell refused to so much as fizzle out of the tip.

Now she was really panicking. She was well out of her comfort zone. In the dream realm, she was in total control. Here, she was stuck in a Sprinter Trueno that felt totally out of control, with her life placed in the hooves of a laid-back teenager who barely even acknowledged her presence!

Takumi steered the car into a left-right chicane, applying little countersteer. He flicked the car right, screeching through the inside before coming inches from the guardrail. He was at home here. Here, he could think about stuff and drive, remaining calm unless he was really thinking about a topic.

He sighed as he braked and steered into a left hairpin. The tail of the 86 began to slide, but Takumi's control was so well that the 86 maintained grip through the entire hairpin. He caught the car from grazing the outer guardrail as he exited, nearly flooring it down the next straightaway.

Leaves and Grass flew in the direction of the car as it gripped through a quick left corner, barely losing any speed as Takumi kept the throttle wide open, shifting gears.

His entry speed into the next right corner was especially high because of how well his Naturally Aspirated engine could respond. The car barely lost a hair of speed as it exited the corner, the engine and gearbox responding instantly.

Takumi smirked. Even though I'm in a different body, It still feels like any other night of me racing in my Project D Tuned 86.

As he drove around a gentle left curve, he saw taillights ahead. He recognized them. They were the taillights of an AE86. He quickly caught up to the car just as they entered the hairpin. The AE86 turned out to be Itsuki's Levin as it tried going into the turn at speed.

Takumi steered for the inside when he saw Itsuki's 86 skidding outwards. Its tires were considerably worn.

"Woah!" Rainbow Dash yelled as she gripped the steering wheel with her hooves, seeing Takumi take the inside from her and exit before she could even blink. "Was that Takumi?"

"Yeah!" Itsuki replied cheerfully. "I knew he'd be out here!"

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

The 86 suddenly spun out as Rainbow Dash applied too much throttle, and came to a stop sideways in the road. The two ponies laughed.

"Let's head back up and get some new tires, alright?" Itsuki said, getting out.

"Alright."

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEe!

Takumi entered the next left hairpin and sent the car through the inside. Nothing was in his mind except the road.

That is until he remembered that Luna was in the car with him. He looked over and was about to ask what she thought, but was surprised to see Luna... crying.

Music Ends.

He immediately pressed on the brakes, bringing the 86 to a gentle stop on the side of the road. He looked at the crying princess, uncertain.

"Um... Luna? You alright?"

Luna had her face buried in her hooves. She had never experienced the sheer terror that was Takumi's terrifying four-wheel-drift run. Even in the darkest of times, one example being TIrek, she had never once felt this scared. Other factors were always at play, ones that kept her calm. Twilight was out there when Tirek burst in, with an unreal amount of Alicorn magic within her. That factor was what kept her calm. Simply knowing that help was to arrive.

And when she bought her R33 three years ago and got held up trying to get back to Canterlot the second she heard of the changelings, she knew that her sister and Cadance were there. They would stop them. Of course, that's not what happened, but still. Those theoretical factors kept her mostly calm.

But here, there were no other factors. Nopony knew they were out here, nopony knew Luna wasn't in her chamber, it was only a matter between her, a reserved but deranged teenager, and a Toyota Corolla. And magic wasn't able to save her.

"Luna, sorry if I scared you. I usually forget when I have passengers and I tend to go all out when practicing."

Luna felt pathetic. Like a scared little filly again, afraid of the rain and thunder and wanting to hug her big sister. Celestia would probably be disappointed that she had cried because of a bit of hairy driving.

No, Luna thought. Tia has never experienced something like this. That was a Rollercoaster on steroids. Put her in this seat next to Takumi, and I'm sure she'll succumb just as I did... What is wrong with me? I knew he was fast. I just never thought being in the passenger seat would scare me. How foolish...

"Hey, if you want, I can tone it down. I was running at about seventy percent." Takumi suggested, uncertain as to how to calm the crying princess.

Luna looked at him. "T-That was... seventy percent?"

"I'm still getting used to not being able to grip the wheel as easily." The thought that Luna hated him crossed his mind.

"Oh... ohhh... If you were running at a hundred..." She took a deep, shaky breath in. If he ran at a hundred, I would have passed out...

"Want me to run at fifty percent?" Why do I feel like I'm being such a buzzkill? he wondered.

"N-No... no... forty? Th-Thirty?"

"Thirty... it'll be slow, but alright. Hey, sorry that I drove like that."

"It is... alright Takumi. I asked you to show me your driving. I knew full well how fast you were. Are. I... I was foolish to think I could handle this..."

"All... Alright. You want me to go back and start from the top, or keep going to the bottom."

Luna wiped the tears off her face and neck. "Let us... keep going."

Takumi nodded and put the car in gear, smoothly accelerating down the second-longest straightaway Akina had. He forced himself to never let the speed chime sound.

"Alright, ahead is a left curve that tightens a bit," Takumi warned.

"I have d-driven this road dozens of times. I... I know what to expect. I think." Luna felt super unsure of herself. She still couldn't fathom how in Equestria she had lost her magic, but that was something for after this run.

She winced as Takumi smoothly steered into the corner, using only the front tires to help him through it. The curve tightened, as did Takumi's line, and he glided through the inside like a feather before exiting.

"How was that? Better?" Takumi asked.

"Y-Yeah, much better," Luna replied.

As Takumi glided through the curves, Luna felt more comfortable with him. One thing she noticed was how smooth Takumi really was. He was driving as smooth if not smoother than how Celestia acted at a ball or wedding. That was really saying something. And Luna couldn't believe she was feeling this, but she began to feel safe.

Takumi knew this course. He knew it so well, he could probably drive with his headlights off. His car was perfectly tuned for the course, and it responded instantly to his every smooth movement.

And his steering. Takumi barely had to steer to get the car to do what both it and he wanted. And that wasn't due to quick ratio steering. The steering felt stock. Was stock.

"How in Equestria are you able to do this..." She slowly asked.

"Five, maybe six years of practice," Takumi replied. "Should I start going faster?"

"S-Sure. A bit. Fifty percent."

Takumi nodded as he steered through a left curve, accelerating towards the hairpin. He braked and slid around the inside, barely steering to keep the drift stable before exiting, stabilizing a couple of inches from the guardrail.

Luna watched Takumi. His hooves seemed to move on a subconscious level. His level of control over the car was immaculate. Once again, it was something many professionals dreamed of. That wasn't interpretation, that was fact.

A thought pressed into her mind. "Takumi, have you ever been to a circuit?" She asked as they lightly accelerated down a long straightaway, around gentle curves.

"No, I haven't." Was his reply.

"You haven't?"

"My whole life has been spent on Akina. Sure I've branched out to other courses, but I've always stuck with Akina."

Luna continued to stare at Takumi. He sat there, staring ahead, blinking every now and again. He wasn't giddy, he wasn't having fun, he seemed bored. Or perhaps he was thinking about stuff.

"I... hope I am not being a nuisance. Holding you back like this."

"You're fine." Takumi shifted gears as a left corner approached. He braked gently and steered through the inside, causing Luna to yelp. The car felt stabilized even as he shifted the other way into a right curve. He waited until a left hairpin approached before braking and steering through, perfectly arcing around the inside mere centimeters from the inner guardrail before accelerating out.

"Are you sure? You seem rather pensive." Good. We are no longer stammering. Luna thought.

"And that means?" Takumi let off the gas as they cruised down a straight.

"You seem to be in deep thought," Luna explained.

Takumi sighed. "You could say that." He held a disinterested tone. "Remember that I am some teenager in a different world, in a different body, apparently being one the quote-unquote 'most powerful beings in the world'. That's kinda a lot to take in, don't you think?"

Luna couldn't help but roll her eyes. Though, he was right. Being stuck in a different world at his age, and in a different body, would be terrifying to most. She had to admit, both Takumi and Itsuki were taking to their new bodies very well. Itsuki was taking to it overall, showing little care of his past life. Takumi was quite the opposite, dwelling on what would happen.

I wonder... Luna thought as they gripped around a right curve. What kind of a life did Itsuki live before? Did he live in poverty? Was he abused? What happened to make him seem so disinterested in anything about his past life? Perhaps the reason he was so emotional over that one girl, Kazumi, was because she was the only one to love him.

She looked over at Takumi, who was still staring ahead. And you, Takumi, are quite the contrast to him. You're focused on why you are here, how you are meant to get back, and if you'll ever see your friends and family again. Two similar Alicorns, two very different personalities.

"Here come the hairpins," Takumi said suddenly, snapping Luna's attention to a fast approaching right hairpin.

She braced herself as Takumi approached the hairpin. He braked and steered through the inside, barely using any countersteer before exiting swiftly. He had gone through it as quick as the first hairpin of the course when he was going full throttle, but now she felt fine with him.

The next hairpin was no different. Brake, downshift, steer, clip the apex, exit smoothly.

On the third hairpin, however, she noticed that Takumi wasn't spending any time on the gas. Even through the straightaway to the next left hairpin, Takumi wasn't on the throttle. She could feel the car slowing down. It held speed through a hairpin before exiting. She looked at Takumi and saw he was paying no attention to their speed.

She suddenly noticed something very off about Takumi. His iris' were no longer brown. Instead, they were a blood-stained red, with fiery mist easing out of each iris. His hair was no different, Black Mist now emitting from each strand like a shadow. And the edges of his wings were blood red. He was a... a nightmare.

Luna shook her and blinked before looking back at Takumi. He was back to normal, resuming his familiar dazed look. By now, they had stopped, Takumi having instinctively shifted into neutral.

"Takumi?" Luna felt tense. As if Takumi was about to jump out at her. Without magic, that would be a huge issue.

There was no response. She could feel her heart quake.

"Takumi, is everything alright?" What did we just see? Was it real? Was he doing that on purpose? To our knowledge, he only knows basic magic. Even with his level of adaptability, there is no way he could perform a visual spell like that.

"What if this is still my world?" He suddenly asked.

Luna blinked. "Pardon?"

"What if this is still my world?"

"...what do you mean?"

"As in..." Takumi sighed, continuing to stare ahead and not move the car. "Is time travel a thing around here?"

It was obvious what Takumi was thinking. "Yes, Time Travel is a very real thing. Though it is very taxing and only allows one to stay wherever in time they travel to for a few moments."

"..."

"Art thou imply- are you implying that you have been sent to a distant future, or past?"

"Maybe..."

"If there were remnants of your kind's life, we would know."

"Things decay, Luna. What if we're so far into the future, what if I'M so far into the future, remnants are gone?"

Luna sighed. "There would be a few things left. Archeological digs would have unearthed findings."

"Ponykind or whatever you call them seems pretty similar to us. How would archeologists know what is Pony tech and what is Human tech? How could they tell?"

Luna couldn't respond to that. Takumi was right. Even if she was the one digging, she didn't know what his kind had that theirs didn't. They were similar, just... different.

Why does he have to be right? she asked herself.

"It just terrifies me is all. I can't-" Takumi cut himself off.

"Is something the matter?"

Takumi shook his head. "I just realized. I've been dreaming about what's been happening back home. I don't even know if you could even call it dreaming, to be honest. But whenever it happens, I can feel that it's actually happening. So..." He sighed. "Nevermind. Maybe this really isn't my world..."

"Takumi, how about we just try and focus on practicing? I think I am ready for you to do what you were doing earlier. I am much more prepared now."

Takumi sat there, looking at the steering wheel. "Yeah, yeah... alright. I'll just turn around and we can start another run."

As Takumi made a three-point turn, Luna couldn't stop thinking about what she had seen. Takumi's form. What was that? A visual effect meant to scare her? His evil counterpart?

Her eyes narrowed slightly as she looked at Takumi. She tilted her head as he accelerated. Was that an evil counterpart?

Over the next few hours, Luna go more and more used to Takumi's driving. She took the time to examine it closely, grasping the fine details.

His 'drifting' was interesting to her. To others, the minimal angle wouldn't look as good as some of the angles she'd seen ponies pull off at drifting events she'd watched online in secret. But to her, it was downright satisfying when watching outside. The sheer calculation that went into clearing a corner like this would keep Twilight up for days.

Takumi was quickly changing her view on racing. it wasn't just a fun hobby. It was a fine art. The work that goes into driving fast on a mountain pass was far more than she could have ever imagined. It was far beyond 'Brake accordingly, take the racing line, and accelerate out of a turn'. It was far beyond that. Again, Twilight could be kept up for days, possibly weeks even, studying this.

And for the first time in a millennia, Luna had something to properly work for to achieve. Something she cared about with passion. Something that involved real work and learning, and not something she did because she was bored or because Celestia told her to do it.

She had a dream.

A dream to become the World's Fastest Princess on the Mountain Pass.

Itsuki yawned and sat up from the driver's seat of his Levin. One quick check to make sure he was still a pony. He still was.

He beamed as he looked over at the Cerulean Pegasus laying in the passenger seat. He snickered at her cuteness and keyed the ignition, waiting for the engine to warm up.

Last night was probably the best night ever, even better than his night with Kazumi weeks and weeks ago. He got to hang out with Rainbow Dash ALL NIGHT, to the point where they were so tired they decided to just sleep in the car together. It was awkward, sleeping with the girl he had a massive crush on, but still.

"Mmmm..." Rainbow Dash groaned a little as she stretched, blinking.

Itsuki stared straight ahead as she pulled out onto the Canterlot Turnpike. He made sure to drive as smoothly as he could to allow his crush to wake up easier.

Rainbow Dash leaned the seat forward to prop herself up. She looked over at Itsuki and smiled.

"Morning."

"Morning." Itsuki checked the digital clock on the dashboard, which read 12:17PM. "Well, afternoon."

"Oh wow, we really were out for a while, weren't we?"

"Well, we did stay up till three in the morning. Hey, at least we got nine hours of sleep."

"Oh yeah, that's good. I'll be running at full notch at practice."

"...practice?"

Dash's eyes widened. "Oh shoot, I just remembered. Practice is at one! Hey, mind driving me there?"

"To where?"

"To the Wonderbolts Training Academy. Oh yeah, you don't know where it is. Here, stop for a second."

Itsuki pulled off to the side of the road, a clear view of the distant fields being shown to them.

"See that mountain right there? Near Ponyville?" Dash pointed.

"Um... Yeah. Yeah, I see it. I also see the airstrip on top."

"That's the Academy. That's where we're going."

"Oh. Alright. Wait, what about the princesses? Aren't they gonna wonder where we are?"

"If we hurry and get to the Academy so I can make a call, Twilight MIGHT not freak out."

"MIGHT NOT?"

Dash sheepishly laughed, rubbing the back of her head. "Eheh, uh... yeah. Let's just get going."

Later...

"Ok wow, this road is pretty sweet to drive," Itsuki commented as he drove around a hairpin uphill. "Are you sure none of them race? If I had this road next to my work, I'd drive up and down it all night."

"Well... a few of the other members do have some nice cars. But... actually, now that I think about it, I've never thought to ask."

"Well, you only just got interested in the sport last night."

Dash smiled. "Yeah."

"Hey, I don't know if I've told you this, but you did pretty well last night. Driving my car."

"Heheh, yeah. Once I got the hang of it, I was pretty quick."

"When grip racing. When you learn proper weight transfer and learn to use slip angle, you'll be almost as fast as me."

"Almost?"

"Mhm."

Dash chuckled. "Sure. Hey uh, what's Slip Angle?"

"The trick you use when you use the front tires to pull yourself through a corner."

Dash blinked. "...What?"

Itsuki sighed. "It's hard to explain. But one thing Slip Angle isn't is that it ISN'T the way Takumi takes corners."

"How does Takumi take corners?"

"The four wheel drift."

"Ooooo. Nice."

"Basically, instead of just using the front tires to take a corner, he uses ALL the tires to take it. I won't go into specifics but just know that it takes some serious throttle control and is scary fast. Like, SCARY fast. Put anyone in the passenger seat of his car with him at the wheel, well anyone except me anyway, and they will freak."

"Hm. Maybe we can ask him to show us."

"Maybe."

The red AE86 Levin topped the mountain, the Academy coming into view.

Itsuki whistled. "This is where you work?"

"Yeah, pretty much. Except I do still work part-time as a Weather Pony."

"Sweet."

Itsuki entered a small-ish parking lot and parked next to a purple Nissan S14 Silvia Kouki. An Autech version.

Both of them got out, Itsuki immediately staring at the S14 and smiling. "Who owns this baby?"

"Spitfire." Rainbow cooly replied. "Leader of the Wonderbolts."

"Any other kickass cars any of them own?"

"Thunderlane owns a BMW E30 M3. But uh..." She scanned the parking lot. "Either he's not here, or he didn't bring it."

"I'm surprised ANY of you pegasuses own cars. Being able to fly and all has gotta be faster than driving."

They began walking towards the front office. A small building closest to the parking lot.

"Some of us own cars to do other things. Maybe we wanna save our flying strength, and cars can carry a lot more stuff than us, even on our best days."

Itsuki snickered as they entered the office. "You've got a point there."

As she checked in at the front desk, the pegasus working it curiously eyed Itsuki.

"He's with me." Dash clarified. The pegasus nodded as she walked over to a nearby phone, dialing a number.

After a quick chat with Twilight, Dash lead Itsuki back outside and towards one of the buildings.

Itsuki looked around, seeing some pegasi fly around at high speed while a propeller-driven plane came in for a landing. It was surprisingly nice to be in what was probably the equivalent of boot camp.

"INCOMIIIING!" A pegasus suddenly yelled.

Itsuki looked to his right and saw a pegasus in a bright blue and yellow flightsuit and dark blue hair flying straight at him. He screamed as he quickly jumped out of the way, accidentally slamming into Dash just as the Pegasus flew by. He could feel their tails brushing past each other.

Itsuki stared at the Cerulean Pegasus he had accidentally pinned down, and she looked at her. Blushing, they both sheepishly laughed before Itsuki got off of Dash and allowed her to right herself.

"Sorry." Itsuki apologized.

"For Celestia's sake, Soarin!" a female voice called out. Itsuki watched a yellow pegasus with orange hair, who was wearing a sergeant-like outfit, plus some sunglasses, land next to them. "Work on your high-speed dives!"

"Hey Spitfire." Dash greeted.

Spitfire looked at her. "Oh. Hey Rainbow Dash. Sorry about him almost hitting you. Supposedly, he didn't get much sleep last night." She scoffed as she looked at a clipboard being held with her wing. "Hardly any reason to be performing worse..."

"Of course. Except it wasn't me he nearly hit."

Spitfire looked up. "Who did he-" She noticed Itsuki. "Oh. Hello. Never seen you around here before." She smirked. "Heh, hey Dash, who's the coltfriend?"

Both Itsuki's and Dash's faces heated up.

"Just a friend," Dash replied. "He drove me up here and we've been hanging out a lot lately, so I thought I'd let him watch the practices. If that's ok with you of course."

"Hi," Itsuki greeted.

"He drove you up here? Huh. That actually surprises me. And yes, he can be here as long as he doesn't get in the way." Spitfire eyed Itsuki, noting his horn. "I kind of didn't think you would let a Unicorn DRIVE you up here. No offense. Oh, by the way, I heard you went to Canterlot yesterday."

"Mhm. Itsuki here drove me both to there, and to here. He even took Scootaloo and- ohsweetCelestiaIforgotScootaloocamealong..."

Itsuki burst out laughing. "Was that even English?" He realized what she freaked about. "Oh. Crap. That... could be a problem."

Spitfire sighed. "It's Canterlot. Just call your friend Twilight or something."

Dash groaned. "Anyways... ugh. So. I know it may be a bit far-fetched, but do you think I or maybe some of the others could help teach Itsuki here how to fly?"

Spitfire eyed Dash, then Itsuki, then leaned over to get a look at Itsuki's barrel. Her eyes widened.

"Uh..." She glanced at Itsuki's horn, then back at his wings, then at Dash. "Ok, I know you are the Element of Loyalty and all, and that you talk to at least one Alicorn on a daily basis, but when did you become friends with a male Alicorn- better question, when did we get a MALE Alicorn?!" She looked at Itsuki. "Who is the same height as most mares and looks a little like a mare."

"Two days ago. He's the reason why me and Scootaloo went to Canterlo- ok BE RIGHT BACK!"

With a flap of her wings, Rainbow Dash took off like a bullet towards the barracks, leaving Itsuki and Spitfire together.

Itsuki just stood there, staring at where Dash had disappeared. She just left me here with a drill sergeant. That's just great, he thought as Spitfire barked an order to somepony in the sky. Well, I am an Alicorn. And as long as I don't make her mad I guess I'll be fine.

He took a breath in. "So uh... you own that S14?"

Spitfire, feeling the need to stick by Itsuki in case something happens, looked at her checklist. "Yeah. I do. Why?"

"I just think it looks nice is all. Does anyone else own any sweet rides?"

"What do you mean by sweet rides?"

"Just... you know. Fast cars and such."

Spitfire smirked. "Well, Thunderlane owns an E30 M3 Evo Three. I helped him restore it after he found it abandoned in a shed. And Soarin owns a Mustang."

"A Mustang?"

"A Shelby GT350 with a Paxton Supercharger. It's like fifty years old but It still holds its own against some of the newer models."

"Oh. A muscle car. I guess I didn't see it in the lot. I've never really been around Muscle Cars, to be honest. I'm used to sports cars like your Silvia and such."

"Are you now? What are you from out of Equestri- HEY! THUNDERLANE! STOP STANDING ON THAT CLOUD AND GET FLYING!"

Itsuki winced at Spitfire's sudden outburst. Sheesh. Welcome to being near a Drill Sergeant in an Airbase.

"Anyways. You from out of Equestria?"

"Uhhh... you could say that."

"Mm. There's a couple more of us with decent cars, but now I've gotta ask, what car do YOU own?"

"An 86."

Spitfire tilted her head. "An Eight-Six?"

"Yeah. An AE86 Levin Liftback."

"Which brand?"

"Toyota."

"Corolla?"

"Yep."

"Ah. I know what you're talking about."

"I parked next to your car if you want to see it."

"Hm. Maybe I'll head over to take a look."

They sat in silence for a bit. Well, silence if you didn't count Spitfire quietly reading her notes while barking orders at the other pegasi every now and again.

God dangit Rainbow Dash. When are you gonna get back here? Itsuki wondered. Why did you have to leave me with the Drill Sergeant?! A really fricken hot Drill Sergeant as well?! FUCK!

"So have you modified your Eight-Six or whatever you call it?" Spitfire calmly asked.

Itsuki took a quick breath. "Yeah. I got it kitted out with a TRD Carbon Fiber Hood, some nice rims, a TRD Ducktail Fiberglass Trunk, and that's kind of it. Now that I'm an Alicorn, I'll be able to get some pretty sweet parts."

"Ah, so you like racing?"

"Yeah I like racing. Everything about it is awesome."

Spitfire couldn't help but smirk at the young stallion's enthusiasm. "Well, a word of advice, your Corolla already has good suspension. I would focus on making your engine run as efficiently as possible before working on the suspension."

Itsuki was surprised. "W-Whuh-do you mean?"

"I mean, you should work on the engine and make sure it makes the power you want, when you want it."

"Uh..."

"Ignition System, Fuel System, the ECU, I would either tinker with or replace all of those parts to make sure any upgrades you add in the future aren't bottlenecked. Same goes for the gearbox as well. If the gearbox can't handle the way you drive, you're going to be slower. Oh yeah! Please oh please do not get any knockoffs. Since you probably have a bunch of money now, get the highest quality parts. And make sure it's from reputable companies. Time and Time again I've seen ponies who drive with big wings that look good, but once they hit 80 miles an hour, those same wings break right off. So please get the good parts."

Woah. She kinda sounds like Ryosuke, Itsuki thought. "Do... you do this? Race?"

Spitfire simply smirked before looking back down at her clipboard. Itsuki didn't say anything else.

Soon, Rainbow Dash flew back and landed between both him and Spitfire.

"Alright," she began. "I just got off the phone with Twilight. APPARENTLY, she's on her way back to Ponyville to grab some books with Starlight. Takumi agreed to follow so that Rarity, Trixie, Scootaloo, and Fluttershy could come back too.

"Oh sweet, Takumi's coming over?" Itsuki was surprised. "That's convenient."

"Not here specifically, but to Ponyville."

"Can somepony explain who this Takumi is?" Spitfire looked at Itsuki. "Judging by your names, I take it you're brothers?"

"Nah, just best friends," Itsuki replied.

"They uh..." Dash struggled to come up with a good excuse. "They come from a place where names are like that."

Spitfire eyed Dash suspiciously before shaking her head. "Alright."

"Oh hey, did you ask?" Dash asked.

"Ask what?" Itsuki asked back.

"Well, can we teach him to fly?"

"Uh..." Itsuki trailed off.

Spitfire sighed. "Normally I'd say no, but because you're an Alicorn Itsuki, sure. I take it you were a Unicorn before becoming an Alicorn?"

"Yep."

Dash was surprised at how quick Itsuki's response was. You weren't a Unicorn? You were a human, weren't you?

"Alright then. Rainbow Dash, you can help him learn. I might even have somepony else help."

"Will do," Dash replied, saluting with her wing.

With a quick flap of her wings, Spitfire took off, leaving Dash and Itsuki with each other.

The latter looked at the former. "Well, this should be fun."

"It will be. You are about to be trained by the best flier in Equestria." Dash looked around, remembering something. "After I give you a good tour of the place."

"Ha, alright."

Takumi boredly held the steering wheel as he followed an SUV on the highway, Ponyville less than a couple of miles away.

Sitting in the passenger seat was Trixie. Fluttershy, Rarity, and Scootaloo sat in the rear, Rarity in the middle with the other two on the sides.

"This still feels so weird," Trixie said. "Normally I'm the one driving if I'm in this seat. Not having a steering wheel feels just so... odd."

Takumi said nothing.

"Welcome to an Alicorn's car," Scootaloo cheerfully replied.

"Ok, just because I'm an Alicorn does not mean I'm-..." Takumi trailed. He sighed after a second. "Just because my car is right-hand drive doesn't mean all Alicorn's have right-hand drive cars."

There was silence. Takumi curiously looked over and noticed everypony looking at him.

"What?"

"Right Hand Drive?" Trixie asked.

Takumi scoffed and look back at the road. "You know what I mean."

"So. Takumi darling," Rarity began. "I've been meaning to ask, what are you going to do with your newfound status?"

"What status? You mean with me being an Alicorn? Not much probably. It's not like I want to be a prince or anything."

The 86 pulled off the highway and soon slowed down to not bust the suspension on the dirt road.

"Are you sure?" Rarity continued. "You're sure that you have nothing you want to do as an Alicorn?"

Takumi sighed. "While it's convenient to be the best being I could be, with me having a bunch of money probably and... whatever, I just don't know what I would do."

"You really can't name one thing?" Trixie asked.

"To me, like, sure. Not having to work as hard as I would need to to get something I want is nice and all, but having everything handed to me? It just takes the fun out of life for me. Yay. I paid for someone to find me a super rare artifact I'm interested in or paid someone to manage a team. Sure it's less work but it takes all the fun out of life."

"But, Takumi," Rarity began. "You are an Alicorn. You are going to live the equivalent of several lifetimes! You'll be able to learn more things than anypony else!"

"So what? What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Takumi's tone became noticeably more aggressive. "I get to do things others can't in a single lifetime. I'm immortal. I'm going to outlive anyone I love. How is that fun? It just feels unfair."

Everyone was a bit surprised at Takumi's humility. Rarity especially.

Trixie sighed. "Sometimes I wonder what I'd do if I was an Alicorn. I have drawn myself as one, and I would look pretty good. But truth be told, I don't know what I'd do either. What am I supposed to be the princess of? Humility?"

"Are all Alicorns meant to be... something- ok, are we each supposed to represent something?"

"Sorta. Before you two, each Alicorn had a purpose. Celestia was- is the Princess of the Sun, Luna is the Princess of the Night, you know the other two."

"Yeah, that's another thing, what is the point of me and Itsuki being Alicorns? Is it just given to a couple of ponies each... whenever? If so why would it choose two teenagers from a different world?"

"I..."

"You see darling," Rarity began. "The way one becomes an Alicorn is that they must do something nopony else can do."

"Sounds pretty simple. What did me and Itsuki do exactly?"

"Maybe it's something to do with how you and Itsuki battled Nightmare Moon?"

"Here's the issue with that," Trixie interjected. "BOTH of them battled her and Heartbreaker and won. So two ponies were able to do something-"

"We weren't ponies," Takumi clarified.

"...Right. But you were both the victors in that battle. So why would it choose both of you? I'd expect Takumi to be the one to become an Alicorn."

Takumi blushed a little.

"Maybe... maybe it couldn't choose between them and chose both?" Fluttershy quietly suggested.

Takumi scoffed. "Some system."

"Oh! Stop right here, darling." Rarity piped as they passed in front of the Boutique.

Takumi did so. Trixie momentarily got out so that Rarity could squeeze in between the bucket seats. It was hard, but after many remarks of how this would undo her coat and main, she was out. And Trixie got back in.

"Thank you, Takumi!" Rarity called out as Takumi slowly accelerated away.

"Is it bad that I'm surprised she came along?" Trixie asked.

"What do you mean?" Takumi asked back.

"I'd assume that somepony like her would prefer riding in a Limo or some seventy-year-old luxury car than what she would call a rusted junker."

Takumi glared at the Unicorn.

"I said what SHE would call a rusted junker."

"..."

"Oh! Oh! There's the Cutie Mark Crusaders!" Scootaloo squeed.

Takumi's eyes widened as he brought the 86 to a stop. "The what?"

"The Cutie Mark Crusaders! My friends are in it. It's a group of ours."

Takumi looked at Trixie, wanting some context.

"Just roll with it," she whispered.

Takumi unlocked the doors. But before he or Trixie could move, Scootaloo had quickly squeezed in between the seats and over Takumi's lap, before opening the door and jumping out.

"Thanks Takumi for bringing me back!" she called out before greeting her friends. "You guys are NOT going to believe what happened yesterday!"

"Oookay then." Takumi shut his door, using his magic, before putting the 86 back in gear and slowly accelerating once again.

"I take it you're not used to fillies?" Trixie asked.

"If I'm being honest, no. Not really. You don't see many kids outside in Shibukawa unless you're near the schools. And the shop never got many kids coming in, even with their parents. These kids- fillies, are adorable though."

"Heh. Fujiwara Tofu Shop you mean? Is that the shop?"

"Yeah."

"Mm. Who's your favorite out of those three?"

"If you mean between Scootaloo, the yellow pony, and that white Unicorn that looks like Rarity's daughter or little sister or something, I'd... honestly pick Scootaloo."

"Little sister. And yeah, Scootaloo's my favorite out of those three too."

"Mm."

After driving around Ponyville for a few, Takumi realized that he had no clue where Fluttershy or Trixie lived.

"My wagon is just next to Twilight's castle," Trixie replied after Takumi asked.

"I, um, live on the other side of Ponyville."

Takumi sighed as he pulled up next to the castle, noting the ancient-looking wagon, not a station wagon but an actual horse-drawn wagon, sitting behind some shrubbery next to the castle. Cozy.

"Thanks. Anyways, see you later," she said as she got out of the 86 and walked to her wagon.

Takumi eyed the yellow Pegasus sitting in the rear seat, staring out the window. The same Pegasus looked at him.

"W-What?"

"Do you wanna get in front?" Takumi asked.

"Oh. Um... sure."

Instead of having her climb in between the seats and risk hitting her cast, Takumi got out and opened the liftgate. Fluttershy slowly climbed over the rear seat and across the trunk before lowering herself on the ground.

"You need help?" Takumi offered as Fluttershy walked to the left door.

"No. I'm f-fine," she replied.

Takumi silently walked around the side and got in the driver's seat. He saw Fluttershy use a wing to open the left door. After she got in, she used the same wing to close the door.

He curiously looked at his still-open door and unfurled his right wing. He slowly grabbed the door handle and slowly pulled it shut, nearly slamming his wing between the door and the car. Considering he didn't know how sensitive wings could be, that would have been one very pleasant surprise.

After about five minutes of slowly driving and Takumi about wanting to kill himself with how many times he had to ride the clutch because of stopping and starting, they made it to Fluttershy's neat little cottage.

Takumi smirked as he brought the 86 to a stop. "Nice house."

"Uh, thanks. Do I owe you anything?" She asked, unbuckling and opening her door.

"No. I just wanted to get away from Canterlot for a few."

"Oh. Um, alright."

Takumi watched the pegasus slowly get out before looking back forward. He suddenly heard a hushed yelp, making him quickly look over to see Fluttershy holding her cast.

"Oh crap." He quickly got out and shut his door before running around to her. "You alright?"

"I-I'm... fine," Fluttershy replied, clearly in pain.

Takumi looked at his 86 and back at Fluttershy. "Alright, let me help you up there."

"N-No! I'm fine, really."

Takumi sighed. "At least let me walk next to you."

"..."

Is she acting this way on purpose or is it actually- Takumi cut his thoughts off. Oh come on dude, she literally has the word 'Shy' in her name.

"A-Alright," Fluttershy finally said.

As Takumi slowly walked next to her, he looked around the area surrounding the cottage. It was extremely cozy and animal-friendly, with a tree dedicated to dozens of birdhouses to one side and a bridge going over a stream. Takumi loved the little bridge the most.

A cute little white bunny, though not the kind Takumi was used to, quickly hopped over, a distressed look in its eyes as Fluttershy stopped and smiled.

"Oh hello Angel!" Fluttershy cheerfully greeted as the bunny hugged her non-broken forehoof. "Don't worry, mommy's fine. Just a broken leg is all. And Takumi brought me back here!"

Angel looked at a now-smiling-because-of-cuteness Takumi, showing surprise upon noticing that he was an Alicorn.

"Angel, this is Takumi! Takumi, Angel."

"Uh... hi." Takumi greeted.

Angel looked between Fluttershy and Takumi before walking over to the latter, putting its arms around his left forehoof and snuggling into it.

"I... I am being hugged by a bunny," Takumi slowly said. "I never thought I would ever in my life be hugged by a bunny."

Fluttershy giggled. "I think he likes you!"

"Well uh, you're welcome." Takumi gently patted Angel's head.

Soon, Angel backed off.

"Is Discord home?" Fluttershy asked.

Angel shook his head before hopping on her back.

"Oh. Alright." Fluttershy resumed walking.

Takumi did the same. Do I even want to know who Discord is?

Soon, they were inside. There were somehow no animals besides a few birds, who showed the same worried looks that Angel had shown.

"Oh. It looks like I missed a couple of calls." Fluttershy immediately crabbed a telephone and redialed whoever had tried to call her. Takumi, not knowing what to do, just stood around and watched as the birds stared at him curiously.

Sitting down on a small green couch, Takumi thought back to something that had happened a while ago. And him being him, it turned into a flashback.

He was in his 86, chasing down a black Nissan Skyline R32 GT-R V-Spec II. He skillfully drifted his car around a hairpin, taking an outside line, before accelerating out. A white Mazda RX-7 FC3S sped behind him.

As the next left hairpin approached, the R32 went slightly for the outside to attempt a better line. Takumi braked and steered towards the inside, putting his left tires on the inside grass and the right tires on the gutter, flying around the inside and passing the R32, which suffered sudden oversteer and smacked into the guardrail.

Why did I take those outside lines? he wondered.

"Takumi?" A small voice asked. The flashback ended, morphing from the inside of his 86 to the inside of a cottage, him staring at a yellow pegasus.

"Oh. What?"

"I know this might sound a bit much to ask, I know you just got here and all, but I just got off the phone with Thunderlane. A friend of mine."

"Okay."

"But, um, he asked me to foalsit his little brother. Rumble. But I don't think I'll be able to. So, um, do you think you could foalsit Rumble for me?"

There was silence as Takumi processed what exactly she just asked him to do.

...

"I'm sorry what?"

Author's Note

WE'VE SURPASSED 8000 WORDS BOIS!

Act 11: Learn to Fly

"Alright, wow. This is nice." Itsuki commented as he and Dash walked through the locker rooms. "Warm, but nice."

"Welcome to the Wonderbolts' locker rooms," Dash replied, walking up to her locker and grabbing what Itsuki assumed was a flight suit.

"What's that?" He still asked as Dash put it on.

"My Wonderbolt suit."

Holy hell she looks good in that. "Hm. Nice." Itsuki looked around, seeing a couple of the pegasi staring at him in wonder.

"Hey." A female voice said next to him.

Itsuki looked over to find a light blue pegasus with white hair staring at him. She was wearing a suit similar to the one Dash was putting on.

"Oh. Hey."

"I take it you're new around here?"

"Uh... what?"

"New Recruit?"

"Oh! Uh, no. I'm not a recruit or whatever. Just uh, just visiting." Itsuki rubbed the back of his head. Real freaking smooth ya moron.

The pegasus tilted her head. "Then uh... why are you in here?"

"He's with me," Dash clarified, having finished putting on her suit. "Itsuki, this is Fleetfoot. Fleetfoot, Itsuki."

"Hello," Itsuki greeted.

"Hi. So what, are you just giving him a tour of the place?" Fleetfoot asked.

"Originally yeah. But Spitfire said I can teach him how to fly since, well." Dash pointed to Itsuki's horn, causing Fleetfoot's jaw to drop.

"Oh sweet Celestia..." the bewildered pegasus said.

"Yeah, I'm an Alicorn," Itsuki boasted.

"That..." Fleetfoot tilted her head. "Wait, you're an Alicorn, a male Alicorn, and you don't know how to fly?"

"I was a Unicorn before this."

"Oh. Makes sense."

"I'm surprised you aren't more surprised," Dash commented.

"I'm surprised. But we're kinda on duty here."

"Eh, true. Anyways, Itsuki? Wanna head outside to fly?"

"Yes!" The Alicorn exclaimed.

"Can I help?"

Dash was surprised. "Would Spitfire be alright with it?"

"Yeah, she'd be fine with it. I have a thing to do first, but then I can help."

"Alright. Tell ya what. Me and Itsuki will go out next to the runway, and you can join us whenever."

"Sounds like a plan. See you two lovebirds later!" Fleetfoot trotted off.

"Well she's nice," Itsuki remarked. "Wait... did she just call us?"

Dash sighed. "Welcome to the Wonderbolts. You start hanging out with anypony else that isn't a mare and they'll instantly jump to the jokes. Now let's go."

Outside, Itsuki couldn't help but watch in awe as he watched a bright yellow honest-to-god Supermarine Spitfire take off from the runway, along with a P-51 Mustang sporting a blue and yellow livery.

"Now," Rainbow Dash began. "Just to be sure, I'm gonna run some checks on you."

"Uh... checks?" Itsuki wondered.

"Just to make sure you aren't going to kill yourself when you try to fly."

Well damn, that got dark, he thought as Dash felt his wings, unfurling them.

"Ow!" he yelped as she tried to unfurl them.

"Sorry! Mind stretching the wings out?"

Itsuki blushed and did that, allowing Dash to feel out his wings. It tickled. It really tickled. So much that it took everything in him to not fidget or make dumb noises.

"How much does this hurt?" she asked, moving his wing up and down.

"Ow. Ow-owowOWOWOWOOWW!"

Rainbow Dash stopped doing what she was doing and laughed. "I wasn't even doing it that hard!"

"That doesn't- you were- I was-" Itsuki groaned after failing thrice at English. He grew more embarrassed as he noticed some of the other pegasi giggling at him.

Dash couldn't help but cringe. "This is gonna be fun..." she mumbled. "Can you at least flap?"

Itsuki focused on his wings, moving them up and down. It felt odd considering he was moving muscles that simply didn't exist on the human body.

"Keep going. Get yourself a rhythm."

Itsuki kept at it, taking a quick break before going at it again.

"Damn this is tiring..." he mumbled.

After about fifteen minutes, he was able to manage flapping without a weird feeling in his bones, and without taking a break every ten seconds.

"Think you're ready to lift yourself off the ground?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Um... maybe?"

By this point, several of the Wonderbolts had begun watching from a distance. It wasn't every day you saw a grown mare or stallion learning to fly for the very first time. It reminded them of their youth, which in turn planted smiles on their faces.

"Alright. Don't try to go too high. Just go, say, a foot off the ground."

Itsuki nodded. He got his wings into a rhythm, going a little faster. He could feel the weight going off his hooves. It was by far the weirdest feeling ever. Because as a human, when you jump, your feet come off the ground immediately. You don't get the chance to register the feeling of the weight coming off of them.

Itsuki flapped a little harder. Without warning, he felt all the weight come off his hooves. With a quick yelp, he stopped flapping and landed back on the ground.

Everyone watching, including Dash, couldn't help but laugh a bit. Itsuki's heart was racing. God dammit you idiot. Look at all these girls laughing at you! I can do better!

"If there's one thing none of us did, it was that we didn't instantly stop flapping the moment we got off the ground," Dash commented.

His face heating up, Itsuki grew more determined. He raised his wings and flapped hard, wanting to get the hell off the ground.

What he didn't expect was him rocketing upwards. His whole body ached as internals were forced upwards, slamming against his skin. He instinctively screamed, but somehow kept a rhythm going.

His eyes squeezed shut, he could hear everypony below and even some in the air, laughing at his sudden predicament. His body was shaking, his heart was quaking, this whole day had just gone to hell. He didn't want to open his eyes, afraid of what he might see screwing over whatever delicate balance held him in the air.

He could hear planes somewhere nearby, the engine noise getting closer and closer before he finally heard two sets of tires squelch.

"How the heck are you still up here?" he heard Rainbow Dash ask, her voice sounding closer and closer.

"I don't know, but I want down. How high up am I?" Please don't say I'm like three feet up...

"A hundred and three feet."'

Itsuki yelped and nearly threw himself off balance. He felt something grab the forward part of his barrel.

"Calm down! Just slow down your rhythm, and I'll get ya down," Dash slowed her rhythm and slowly began bringing the Alicorn down with her.

Soon, they both touched the ground. Itsuki's heart was pounding, his face was a little redder than usual, it sucked. It REALLY sucked what just happened.

"Holy... crap..." Itsuki opened his eyes and stared at the tarmac, his breathing heavy and shaky. You messed up hard. He thought. Now everyone here is laughing at you because you can't keep yourself in the air without panicking for even three seconds.

He could feel tears welling up in his eyes. He shut them. Your nothing but just some sore loser who can't fly even though you have wings. What kind of a winged creature am I if I can't fly? They might as well just exile me. I'm useless to them...

Itsuki felt a hoof begin to caress his hair. It felt nice.

"Are you alright?" he faintly heard Rainbow Dash ask.

"Yeah! Yeah, I'm fine." You messed that up. They know. SHOOT.

He felt a hoof touch his jaw and bring his head up. He slowly opened his eyes to find, not Rainbow Dash, but Fleetfoot holding his head up. Dash was off to the side, looking both relieved and slightly annoyed at the same time.

"Are you sure you're alright?" Fleetfoot asked, giving a caring smile.

"..."

"No..." he finally conceded.

"Ok, well, this-" Fleetfoot paused to take a breath in. There was something so weirdly funny about a fully grown stallion being this scared to fly. "This... is something you'll get used to. All pegasi, and Alicorns, get used to it at some point."

"Still. I just... shoot... how does Takumi get used to it immediately, when I can barely get myself off the ground?"

Fleetfoot looked at Dash.

"Friend of his," Dash clarified.

Fleetfoot nodded and looked back. "First off, you got yourself pretty far off the ground with that one flap. Even Spitfire talked over the radio about how impressive it was."

"Th-... Thanks..." Itsuki just stared at Fleetfoot. The mare was definitely older than him, but she still looked amazing. Why do all of the members have to be so damn hot... he wondered. Even better, why the hell am I super into ponies?

"All of us have gone through issues learning to fly. Take me for example," Fleetfoot began. "I was so excited when I started flying, that I ended up tiring myself out and rolling down a hill. Smacked my jaw into the hood of an R32 Skyline."

"Oh is that where your little lisp came from?" Dash asked.

"Yeah. Hehe, it's kinda embarrassing. At least it wasn't moving. And- hey, you barely notice my lisp."

Itsuki lightly smiled. "At least it wasn't."

"Soarin also had a hard time," Fleetfoot continued. "He couldn't control where he was flying and broke his wing on the back of a Mustang Shelby GT350."

Itsuki blinked. "With... an optional Paxton Supercharger?" He smirked.

"Yep." Soarin hovered above. "I ended up buying the exact car that broke my wing."

Everypony shared a laugh.

Itsuki noticed Spitfire standing nearby, looking very amused. "What? Did you slam into an S14 when you began flying?"

"No. I was smart when I started flying unlike all of you guys," Spitfire replied, glancing around at the recruits in the area. "I mostly practiced in a field, away from roads."

It was now that Itsuki realized how much of a burden he was probably being to the Wonderbolts. He was distracting them from their practices. "I uh... hope I'm not being annoying." He blushed.

"Oh please." Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "I doubt we'll forget any of our skills because we hung around for ten minutes. Now. Let's try this again. I got a good feelin' about this."

Celestia, Luna, and Cadance all sat down at a table in a small room. There were no windows and only four lights. The only pieces of furniture were the table and the four chairs around it. With the six-inch wooden door being the only way in or out, aside from two small vents in the corner for air circulation, It was very private.

"Now," Celestia began. "I hope the three of us know why we're here?"

"To talk about Takumi Fujiwara and Itsuki Takeuchi," Luna replied.

"It's all anypony who's seen them can think about," Cadance deadpanned.

Celestia nodded. "True. Now, to start things off, I have a plan for them. It's a little work in progress, but it should make for a good baseline."

"Let's hear it," the younger princesses said in unison.

"So." Celestia took a breath in, then let it out. "They are both Alicorns. And like it or not, an Alicorn is considered royalty. So they'll both become princes at one point or another."

Luna and Cadance nodded.

"So what I'm thinking... Well, first off, let's remember how they both act."

"Sudden change of thought is sudden," Luna jested.

Celestia rolled her eyes. "Anyway. From what I learned about Itsuki during our meeting yesterday, and simply spending a little time with him, is that he is a rather rambunctious pony. He is very cheerful, always excited about cars, and is extremely optimistic. He seems to be the kind of pony that will look at a dire situation and think it will still work. Now Cadance, you've spent a little more time with him than me. What can you say about him?"

"Well..." Cadance collected her thoughts. "He's what you said. But there are a few negatives."

"Negatives?" Celestia was intrigued. "Do tell."

"While he is pretty keen on becoming a prince, he doesn't grasp things in a very big picture. He simplifies things. Which, while it is better than a meticulous pony that takes forever to do one thing without going through a thousand-page book."

The three cringed.

"But he oversimplifies things. And he thinks when he becomes a prince, he'll be able to get everything for free. Specifically car parts. No seriously, he wants to use him being a prince as a way to get parts for his car. Not gonna lie, that's much different than many ponies I've talked to. Kinda cute. But he literally has the mindset of a colt or filly. But, he seems eager to learn. if we can just get him to start grasping the bigger picture..."

"Mhm... well, for him," Celestia began. "We should work on that. Get him out of that mindset. It's that kind of thing that will get him hated. Anything else?"

"Well, that being said, he seems like the generous type. I'm sure he could find a pony that's having issues paying for something, and happily offer some of his own money."

"Really? Maybe that would even things out. As long as he doesn't give away hundreds of bits each day, that would work very well in his favor."

"One last thing is that he's very boastful. And a bit of a motormouth if you ask me. So that would need to be sorted." Cadance rubbed her eyes. "And then there's Takumi, who none of us have spent much time with."

"No. Luna here has spent time with him." Celestia eyed the dark Alicorn suspiciously, raising a brow. "An awful lot of time with him..."

Luna suddenly said something in what sounded like a completely different language, ending with 'Fujiwara'.

"The ONLY word I understood of that was Fujiwara," Cadance commented as Celestia rolled her eyes.

"That is because Fujiwara is not a word in old Ponish."

Celestia sighed. "Anyways. Sister. Do you have anything to say about Takumi?"

Luna nodded. "Takumi is very different from Itsuki. While Itsuki is unphased by the thought of spending the rest of his life here, Takumi is more focused on getting back to his old life. He has friends and a father he cares about."

"No mother?"

"He never mentioned anything about his mother, and I never inquired. Anyways, he is not completely against becoming a prince. During our time together in day court, he showed some interest in the prospect. And last night, he did mention something about being alright with it, so long as he has an advisor. But that is where the issue lies."

Cadance tilted her head in wonder.

"He does not know how our world works. He personally told me, and I quote, 'You know what? I'm just going to assume that everything that happens is normal'. The issue with that mindset is how there are some things that are not normal in our world. He could be easily manipulated if the manipulator knows what they are doing."

"Yes, that does pose an issue." Celestia agreed. "He would need one of our most trusted advisors, should the need arise for him to become a temporary ruler."

"However, he is a very logically thinking individual. He knows what common sense is, and seems to easily sense when something is off, or when somepony is using him. And he is by no means very submissive. That may be why he trusts me the most."

"He trusts you the most?"

Luna nodded. "I, so far, have shown the most 'down to earth' as he would put it, to him. I have shown him most of what our world can be like, and have generally been a very good friend to him. I may need to ask who he considers a friend and who he doesn't, but I digress."

"Hm..." Celestia drew out a plan, creating and eliminating different factors and choices. "What I think... We should take this slow for Takumi. Work him up to being a prince."

"Like the way you did it with me?" Cadance asked.

"In a way, yes, but slower. We should give them a tour of the most prominent places of Equestria. Familiarize them with the land and its residents. Maybe even fill him in on some recent events."

"But the question is, where would be the best place to start?" Luna asked. "Starlight did mention in our meeting yesterday that he had explored much of Ponyville. In fact, he is already down there again on account of taking Trixie, Rarity, and Scootaloo home."

"Yeah, he is. And it somewhat terrifies me that we don't know what he's doing."

Luna rolled her eyes. "What could he be doing? He is only nineteen in a now-familiar town."

"Ponies will see him? Rumors will spread all over Ponyville of a new Alicorn?"

Luna's eyes widened. "Well, when you put it like that... wait, no? Hold on, Twilight is there. He went there because Twilight was going. Twilight and the rest of the Elements will make sure that he is not found out."

"Oh... true. So, to recap," Celestia began. "Itsuki is a cheerful, optimistic but slightly boastful stallion who wants to be a prince... to get free car parts."

"And also to eat good food," Cadance added.

"Hm. And then Takumi is a laid-back, drowsy pony who wants to get back to his world. He thinks logically, probably would go by way of common sense if he were to become a prince or ruler, and..."

"Possesses hoof-eye coordination way off the charts," Luna blurted out.

Celestia looked at Luna, tilting her head in wonder. "Really?"

"He has catlike reflexes and a photographic memory," Luna remembered last night when she inquired about some of the things he could do. Though he tended to say 'at least that's what my friends would tell me' after each listing. "He does not seem to be the fondest of magic, aside from opening and closing his car door which is understandable. But, his reflexes are razor sharp. Not to mention how smooth and graceful his movements are. Even rivalling you, sister."

That last bit made Celestia scrunch up her muzzle a little.

"Jesting aside, he is very different from any of us. Despite being an Alicorn even when first coming into this world, through dreams I might add, he is more Earth Pony than anything. While he doesn't seem to know quite how to use his hooves, if we could get him to know his hooves better, I do not know about you, but I personally think having an Alicorn who doesn't rely almost entirely on magic and can really handle themselves in serious combat could prove invaluable."

"That's one heck of a contrast to Twilight," Cadance commented. "The 'not relying on magic' part."

"Indeed," Luna agreed. "But who is going to teach them?"

"Well," Celestia instantly began. "I'd rather we not have just one of us mentoring them. Itsuki I believe should be tutored by both Twilight and Cadance."

"And Rainbow Dash," Cadance abruptly added.

"Pardon?"

"I've noticed how Itsuki and Rainbow Dash act around each other. It's actually pretty cute if I'm being honest. I never thought Rainbow Dash would find her match."

Celestia couldn't help but smirk. "Rainbow Dash is in love with Itsuki?"

"And not because he's an Alicorn. Surprisingly. But I wouldn't call it official. Itsuki on the other hoof is definitely showing feelings towards Dash."

"Hm. Well then. I guess it would make sense to let her in on it."

"And then there is Takumi Fujiwara," Luna reminded. She resisted the urge to smile, knowing that Celestia was going to say that they would be the ones to mentor the young white Alicorn.

Celestia nodded. "Yes. With Takumi, you and I will tutor him. Having already teached two students, both from fillyhood, I'm sure tutoring him won't be too much of a problem. Of course, the different gender does pose different factors."

Luna tilted her head as she realized something. "What exactly will we be teaching him?"

Celestia tapped her chin. "Well... hm... I haven't thought of that yet. I only say me and you will tutor him because of his calm personality. In fact, for you sister, this will be a good learning experience. You have wanted a student of your own for some time. Seems that wish will come true."

Luna giggled. "True." Only difference between Celestia tutoring Twilight and me tutoring Takumi, is that Takumi will be tutoring us as well. On the art of the mountain pass.

She quickly remembered something. "Sister?"

"Yes?"

"With us tutoring Takumi, we must remember his well-being. Both physically and mentally. We must take this slow and when I say slow, I mean slow. He will not like needing to learn things when he does not want to, and may grow agitated. I would hate for him to..." Luna trailed off as she remembered the terrifying form of Takumi she had seen last night. She gulped. "...snap."

"You look frightened, sister."

Luna took a breath in, then exhaled. "It is nothing."

Celestia eyed her. "Hm..." She sighed. "Well, we've been away from our duties for long enough. We should get back to them. Cadance, are you heading back to the Crystal Empire anytime soon?"

"Maybe tomorrow. Or the day after that. I rarely get away from the Empire so I try to savor these little vacations as much as I can." Cadance cheerfully replied.

"Very well. Cadance, if you want to, feel free to travel down to Ponyville and let Twilight know of the plan. You two should work out your own plan of how to approach Itsuki. Find out his learning pattern."

"Will do."

Celestia stood up. "Thank you two for coming. This should prove quite fun if you ask me."

Luna only cringed and rolled her eyes. Though, Celestia was right. It probably was going to be a lot of fun.

"Ok, here we go." Rainbow Dash began. "Ready to fly?"

"After being forced through like an hour of these exercises? I think so," Itsuki replied, his wings unfurled as he stood beside the runway.

"Alright. Ready?"

"Yep. Ready and raring."

"Pfff. In that case, have at it."

Itsuki and took a deep breath in, something Dash said was a great way to calm yourself, before letting it out. He slowly began to flap his wings up and down, getting into a rhythm, faster and faster. He felt the weight begin to lift off his hooves. It felt normal now, considering Dash made him stand in place and flap his wings so that he had barely any weight on his hooves.

After a second, he flapped hard and shot himself up. He instinctively shut his eyes as he steadiesdhimself, slowing his flapping. He slowly opened his eyes and found himself ten feet off the ground. He smiled.

His smile broadened. "Ok, holy crap."

"Come on! Fly forward ya dolt!" Dash encouraged.

Changed his wing pitch, Itsuki allowed himself to fly forward. The class he took about aerodynamics proved to be helpful as he began cruising through the air at ten miles an hour.

"Holy shit... I'm flying. I'm flying! I'M FLYING! WOOOOH!"

Dash laughed. "Yes you are! Go Itsuki!"

Feeling invigorated, Itsuki permitted himself to go faster, exceeding thirty, then forty. He suddenly angled his wings upwards, pulling up and doing a full loop before righting himself. "I DID A LOOP! YES!"

Every pegasus in the area could help but smile and reminisce about their maiden flights, some even bringing tears to their eyes. Even Spitfire smiled.

"I bet I could fly straight to Canterlot and back! It feels like I've rediscovered street racing!"

"I doubt you could fly to Canterlot AND back in one go, but if Spitfire would let me, maybe we could fly there for an hour." Dash flew alongside Itsuki around the Academy, making sure to not cross the flight path of anypony else, or a plane. "I take it you haven't sat on a cloud before?"

Itsuki looked at her with wide eyes. "Bullcrap. No way in hell we can do that."

"Yes way in hell we can do it!"

Itsuki eyed a small cloud a little ways above, smiling and shooting up towards it. He could feel his insides press against each other, which caused him to instinctively slow. Within seconds, he slowed and descended upon the cloud, ready to start flapping quickly again. Surprisingly, he landed on it.

"Woah..." The feeling was odd. It was like standing on a damp pillow. A very soft, damp pillow. As he laid down, he couldn't but feel all warm and fuzzy.

Dash landed next to him. "Well, whaddya think?"

"I... I like it. I could sleep on this. Itsuki almost settled into laying down before realizing who was staring at him. He quickly stood back up.

"I do it all the time," Dash laid down on the cloud, rolling over once. "It's nice."

Itsuki's face reddened more than usual. Rainbow Dash looked reeallly good. And adorable. "Uh... you do?"

"Yeah. Gotta keep my sleep in check if I wanna stay the fastest in Equestria!"

Itsuki gave her a stare.

"Uh... fastest in the air," she corrected.

"Hm. So uh, wanna go for a fly? If that's what you call it?"

"To where?"

"Just um... around. You know. Maybe around Ponyville. Maybe we could meet up with Twilight and Starlight?"

"Well, here's the thing, uh..." Dash looked down towards the Academy, seeing the other pegasi practicing. "How about you go to Twilight, and I'll catch up later?"

"Oh." Itsuki let out a disappointed sigh. "In that case, I'll just drive my 86 there." He unfurled his wings and looked down at the ground below, shuddering a bit.

"Why?"

"Because I want it nearby." He jumped off the cloud suddenly, yelping as he quickly stabilized himself. Dash giggled as she did the same, smoothly following him.

"Well, see you later then?"

"Buh... bye."

Knock Knock Knock

"I'll get it."

Spike walked down a hall to the front doors, bored as ever. He reached up at the handle and opened the left door, and was quickly surprised at the pony he found standing there. "Itsuki!"

"Oh hey! Spike! How's it going?" Itsuki greeted.

"Uh- Just fine! What brings you here?"

"Oh well, I just kind of uh... just sort of decided to come over because Rainbow Dash is working. Practicing."

"Nice. Means we can hang out some more!"

"Who's at the door?" They heard Twilight call out.

"It's just Itsuki!" Spike called back.

Within two seconds, Twilight landed right in front of Itsuki, surprising the Alicorn.

"Itsuki! Uh, hi!" Twilight greeted. "Why are you here?"

"Rainbow Dash was busy working so I thought I'd drop by. Plus I wanted to check out Spike's indoor go-kart track again. That thing is sick."

"Ah yes, that. The one thing that keeps him from sleeping all the time. And from doing his chores..."

"What was that?" Spike asked.

"Nothing."

"So uh... can I come in?" Itsuki asked.

"Uh- Of course! Of course you can! Come on in!" Twilight stepped aside. Itsuki bit his lip as he walked past the excited princess. She is such a cutie...

A minute later, the three plus Starlight were in the Cutie Map Room. Itsuki just so happened to be sitting in Rainbow Dash's chair.

"So this thing is a map?" Itsuki asked, rubbing the table in the center.

"Yep," Twilight cheerfully replied.

"Doesn't look like one."

"You wanna see it turned on?"

"I mean... Sure. Why not?"

With a quick flash of purple magic, the table lit up and suddenly turned into a 3-Dimensional holographic plane.

"Wow..." Itsuki waved his hoof around a holographic mountain. It passed through easily. "This is... huh. Color me impressed. This is actually pretty cool."

"Mhm. This is the Cutie Map." Twilight went into exposition mode. "It allows us to see parts of Equestria and sends ponies off to different locations to solve Friendship Problems."

"Friendship Problems?"

"You know. An argument between ponies that matter to the map. It doesn't happen as often as you think."

"Hm. Sounds fun."

"It is when you aren't being sent to a rural village to be captured and stripped of your cutie mark." Twilight nonchalantly joked. Itsuki bit hard on his lip when he saw the pissed-off look on Starlight's face.

"So uh, heh, how does it send them there?"

"When a problem arises, a pony, usually me or one of my friends, Cutie Mark will show up on here. Sitting over a location. It's always been two, but on the first Friendship Problem, me and the other elements were sent to a rural town. And then we met Starlight. We usually just take a train or drive there."

"Oh nice. How'd that go?"

"Well-"

"AH BABABAP!" Starlight suddenly interrupted. "We are NOT talking about that and you KNOW IT."

Twilight leaned away from Starlight. "Okay. Sheesh."

WHY IS EVERYONE HERE SO FREAKING ADORABLE!??! Itsuki internally screamed.

"So. What is uh, what was it, Japan like?" Twilight asked. "It was Japan, right?"

"Yeah. It's... well, I don't know what to tell you."

"How about the landscape? Let's start with that."

"Oh that's easy. There are sweet mountains everywhere, everything is COVERED in forests, oh and there are mountains passes everywhere. You should see for yourself."

Twilight scribbled notes down on a notebook. "Alright. Towns? County's?"

Oh god dangit I'm gonna be here for a while, aren't I? "Well, me and Takumi come from a place called Shibukawa."

Twilight attempted to write a note down. "Shi- Shibu-... How do I spell that? Shibukawa?"

"S H I B U K A W A."

Without missing a beat, Twilight wrote the word down. "Alright. Anything else? Counties? Territory's?"

"Tokyo. Massive city in Saitama."

"Toh-kee..."

"T O K Y O."

"Tokyo. What's Saitama?"

"A Prefecture. I guess you could call them counties, but we call them Prefectures."

"Prefecture... That's actually a really nice term. I like it. I might start calling Equestrian counties that from now on. Ooooo maybe I could get Celestia to officially rename them to that! Just think! Ponyville Prefecture, Canterlot Prefecture, Crystal Prefecture- Ooo that's a good one. Manehattan Prefecture-"

"Twilight?" Spike interrupted.

"-Cloudsdale Prefecture- would that even work?"

Spike sighed and held a message in front of Twilight's face, snapping her back into reality.

"Oh. Thanks Spike." Her horn lit up and the scroll started magically floating. After unrolling it, she silently read it.

Dear Twilight,

Me, Celestia, and Luna have been talking, and we've come up with a plan to 'tutor' Takumi and Itsuki and slowly warm them up to becoming princes. It may sound a little sudden, not to mention how early it is to start doing this, but we've decided to give them a few months, maybe a year, to get situated in our world. During that time we'll be giving them a few tidbits of information here and there, and also take them for trips around Equestria to various places. With their consent of course.

The current plan to teach them, is that we'll be taking things slow. Me, you, and Rainbow Dash will be tutoring Itsuki about this world. (Don't ask why Rainbow Dash is helping, just roll with it.) Celestia and Luna will be doing the same with Takumi. That doesn't mean you and I can't be with him though. Likewise for them with Itsuki. We need to find a good learning style for Itsuki, so Luna says, and they will do the same for Takumi. They said to take things slow. So do not unload information onto Itsuki, and if you happen to be with Takumi, don't do it to him under any circumstances.

This should be fun though. I've always wondered what it would be like to have a student. Sunburst did somewhat fill that, but Itsuki will be a true taste of it. And hopefully this means you and I can see each other more! When Equestria or the Crystal Empire isn't on the verge of death and destruction!

Your favorite foalsitter, Cadance.

Twilight bit her lip as she smiled. "I think that's the first time she's written to me."

"Who?" Starlight asked.

"Cadance. This is- oh hello. Missed this little bit." Twilight narrowed her eyes.

P.S, Seriously, take things super slow with Takumi. Just let him know about certain things when it's both suitable and alright with him. Aunty Luna was extremely adamant about that. I don't know what's gotten her so paranoid, but considering she's way older than either of us, I'd just take her word for it.

"All...right then."

"What?"

Twilight sighed. "I really should have just read it out loud the first time..."

That night, Dream Realm.

Luna idly floated through the realm, watching orb after orb float by. All of the ponies were doing what ponies did. Surfing, Juggling, becoming a princess, all trivial things that didn't garner her attention.

Her mind was on racing, thinking about how she was going to improve her driving once the clock struck midnight. Her job was no longer number one on her to-do list, having been reduced to her only doing it an hour after the sunset to midnight. That didn't mean she abandoned ponies when it struck midnight, nor did she rush to finish helping whoever she was with when it struck midnight. But once she was done, she would leave the Dream Realm and go to drive.

Sure, it was a little selfish, but most ponies tended to have nightmares right after they go to sleep. And she usually missed other nightmares when dealing with one, so it wasn't like she kept everypony from having nightmares. And ponies these nights didn't seem to have many nightmares anyways.

She thought about how she was going to take the corners. How to tackle the four wheel drift. Takumi showed her that both the Four Wheel Drift and Slip Angle were the fastest ways to take a corner, the former of the two being the outright fastest.

Oh, and if there was one thing she hated about Takumi, it was how flippin' good he was. He made such an advanced technique look so simple. He knew how to do it whenever he wanted. He used the correct speed, gear, revs, engine control, and steering, all while continuing to drive with the smoothest ride she'd ever ridden in.

BANG!

A quiet sound echoed through the realm, causing Luna to look around. Her eyes quickly fixed themselves on a dark orb, one slightly pulsating.

What the? She wondered as she stared at the orb. This is intriguing. I've never seen such a dark orb. And where is the host? Shouldn't it show me?

She could just barely make out the features. A mountain road, the night sky, a forest, but she couldn't see anypony in the dream.

Is this some kind of... dormant dream? She wondered. A dream without a host?

braaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaAAAAp- KSH! -braaaaaaaaaaa

Is that... an engine we art hearing?

BANG!

The orb lit up in a bright fiery yellow. Without missing a beat, Luna jumped into the dream, both frightened and intrigued at what it had to offer.

Once inside, she found herself standing in the middle of a mountain road. A forest surrounded the tall mountains that sat everywhere. On one side of the road, a small cliff face. on the other side, a near-sheer drop leading to a valley below, a river flowing through said valley.

She could feel the cool breeze blowing against her coat, feathers lightly ruffling. She didn't know where she was, and assumed this was a fictional place.

"All dreams have hosts, right?" She asked herself. "If there is such thing as a host-less dream, then this could be an interesting find."

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

She could hear tires squealing in the distance, along with revving engines. The sound made her a little giddy.

Until she could feel it.

It was a feeling he knew well from her experience in the Dream Realm. It was the host's fear. Something they were either running from or chasing, but it drove them crazy when they couldn't grasp it. She could sense the speed the fear was traveling at. It was fast. Much faster than anything she'd ever encountered before.

And as the tire squeals and revving came closer, she could feel the fear coming closer as well.

"Very well." She whispered. "Let's see where the host is. If there is any, this should allow me to sense them."

Once her horn lit up, she pinpointed exactly where the host of this dream was. The host was moving just as fast as the fear, but said fear was right behind the host.

Initial D Fourth Stage Sound Files vol.1 - Pinch! starts playing.

"Is this the dream... of a street racer?" She wondered. "Intriguing. We shall connect with the host and see what they are-"

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Before she could even begin to cast the spell, two sets of headlights flew from around a corner of the road, speeding straight towards her. A horn blared, and the Competition Yellow-colored car swerved out of the way. She yelped as she quickly lunged forward, feeling the car graze her tail.

Stabilizing herself, she looked behind to identify the cars. One was a modified Mazda RX-7 FD3S, while the other was interestingly enough a black Ferrari 365 GT4 BB Koenig Special with golden wheels. Both car's engines revved high as they accelerated around a bend, disappearing from sight.

Without missing a beat, Luna launched herself into the air and took off after the two speed machines. She smiled as both cars braked and sped around a hairpin. The RX-7's 13B-REW Rotary revved loudly with the Ferrari's F102A Flat-12as they exited, both shifting gears.

Luna couldn't help but squee and smile in delight at the sight. These cars were both very fast, and their drivers were skilled. Her horn lit up as she connected herself with the host, who happened to be driving the RX-7.

Dammit! She suddenly heard the host say. It sounded like a male in his mid-twenties. No matter what I do, no matter how fast I'm on the throttle, I can't out-accelerate him!

Luna's excitement quickly faded as the RX-7 and 308 tore around a left hairpin.

Shit! The RX-7 driver thought. Why can't I beat you goddammit!? You've been messing with my dreams ever since you beat me in real life!

It suddenly dawned on Luna that the fear wasn't anything like she'd ever encountered before.

Fear was the Ferrari.

"Oh my..." She quietly said.

Despite how much the driver of the RX-7 accelerated, the Ferrari continued sticking to his bumper. The Ferrari sounded naturally aspirated, while turbochargers whirred from the RX-7's engine bay. Luna had to admit, the Ferrari sounded amazing.

But the feeling was quickly lost as they exited another right hairpin. The RX-7 went to the outside of the road while the Ferrari stayed inside, suddenly revving the Flat 12 high and loud as it accelerated next to the RX-7.

No! The driver mentally yelled. How?! I thought I covered that line! You shouldn't be able to accelerate that fast! Damn natural aspiration! Alright, calm down. I'll be on the inside of this next corner. If I can just keep him on the outside, I'll pass!

Luna was genuinely surprised. Whoever this RX-7 driver was, they feared the Ferrari. They were desperately trying to get away. She wanted to intervene, but having never been in a dream like this before, she chose to let it continue.

BANG!

The RX-7's exhaust spit flames as it went into a long sweeping left corner, quickly followed by the Ferrari. By the sound of, both cars had their throttles wide open through the whole thing. The RX-7 understandably got ahead, forcing the Ferrari to swerve in behind and begin tailgating. It was tailgating so close to the RX-7, Luna couldn't believe it wasn't hitting the bumper.

They braked suddenly and swerved into a hard left corner. The RX-7 skidded towards the outside while the Ferrari stuck inside, swiping the inside right out from under the RX-7.

Fuck! I can't turn for shit! The driver yelled in his mind.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Tires squealed as both cars exited the corner. The RX-7 swerved in behind the Ferrari, sticking to its bumper for only a second before the Ferrari accelerated away and around a right corner. Luna flew in close to see if she could make out what the driver of the RX-7 looked like as they exited.

She was most surprised to feel that the fear was gone. Looking up and ahead of a straightaway, she saw nothing. The driver clearly saw the same.

"FUCK!" The driver yelled out loud. He pressed the brake and pulled to the left side of the road, putting the RX-7 in neutral.

Music ends.

Luna hovered above as she watched the right door open, and the driver get out.

To say she was surprised at the driver's appearance was... very accurate.

Author's Note

Nani?! Two parts released within a week of each other?!

Also, for those who want a look at Spitfire's S14, here's an advertisement I found. Look at that beauty!

Act 12: Learn to Drive

Luna watched as a Thestral the same color as the RX-7, Competition Yellow Mica, stamped his hoof. The Thestral had Brown Eyes and Crimson Red Hair. He looked to be in his early-to-mid-twenties.

"Goddammit. No matter what I do, I just can't beat him. What the hell is WRONG WITH ME?!" The Thestral angrily kicked a rock across the road, sending it off the cliff.

Luna watched the Thestral turn and stare at the RX-7. She was very intrigued by his appearance, as Thestral's generally tended to have a darker and intimidating color pallet. This Thestral could easily be mistaken for a pony if it weren't for his wings and ears.

"Even with these upgrades, I still can't beat a twenty-year-old Ferrari. What will my brother say? How would he react when I tell him I can't beat a godforsaken INTRODUCTORY Ferrari?" The Thestral sat down and leaned back against his car. "I guess this is a dream... It's not like it's real. Maybe I can't beat Isekai here because It's some sick lucid nightmare that physically will not let me beat him."

Luna sighed and gently landed behind the RX-7. "Ahem."

The Thestral looked over, eyes widening. "What the-? Who the hell are you?"

"Fear not, for I am Princess Luna. I watched your battle with that Ferrari."

The Thestral scoffed. "Great. Are you some kind of spirit or something? Here to 'eviscerate my nightmares'? Cause you did a pretty bad job of that just now."

Luna slowly walked over and sat next to the Thestral, who grew a little uncomfortable. "I apologize. I have never been in a dream like this, and your fear was unlike anything I have seen before. I was ready to eviscerate should something bad have happened."

"Yeah. Sure. So, Princess Luna? Was it? Who are you and what are you doing here?"

Luna was surprised. What Thestral didn't know about her? "I was floating through the dream realm and happened upon your dream. It intrigued me, as I thought the dream was without a host."

"Hm. So what, you just go through this 'dream realm' and help people?"

Luna nodded.

The Thestral grew silent. Luna, before she spoke again, looked at the RX-7 behind her.

It was very modified, sporting an RE Amemiya GT-AD aero kit with carbon fiber canards, an RE Amemiya GT II Wing, and bronze SSR type C rims, to name a few. It didn't even have Retractable Headlights. It was by far the most modified car she had ever had the pleasure of being this close to.

"Do you street race?" she curiously asked.

"Yeah. I do," the Thestral arrogantly replied.

"Hm. What is thy name?"

The Thestral looked at her. "Thy name? What's with that kind of talk?"

Luna chuckled. "A mere slip of the tongue."

"Hm." He looked back at the ground.

Luna tilted her head, wondering what was wrong with this Thestral. After a moment, she sighed and looked around at the night sky, admiring the stars and listening to the idle of the RX-7. She had to admit, this Thestral had crafted quite the detailed landscape. Usually, the dreams would 'cut off' after a mile or so. Faded into fog or mist. While there was some fog, she could still see very far into the distance. It felt like she was still in the real world.

"Keisuke."

She looked at the Thestral. "Pardon?"

"My name is Keisuke Takahashi."

"Oh. How unique." She easily drew a comparison between this Thestral's name and Takumi and Itsuki's names. "May I ask, is this how you look? All... yellow?"

Keisuke looked at her. "This is... how I look I guess."

"How interesting. I have never met a Thestral with your... exotic appearance."

Keisuke deadpanned. "I don't know if that's a compliment or an insult."

"A compliment." Luna sighed. "Why do you fear the Ferrari?"

"Oh great, you're a therapist now."

Luna scowled. There is a reason why I don't tend to adults as much as I do foals. "I am trying to help you. Why do you fear the Ferrari?"

Keisuke sighed. "Because it beat me in a race half a month ago. That's why. It's the second racer to ever beat me in a race besides my brother. Even with my FD, even with all the upgrades Ryosuke has given my car, even with Competition-Spec Turbos, I still can't accelerate faster than the Ferrari. I guess that's just Natural Aspiration for you, but for fucks sakes you'd think a sequential twin-turbo system would be somewhat on par."

"So, this Ferrari. How long have you known them? Are they a friend?"

Keisuke scoffed. "I wouldn't say friends. We're racers, so we're on common ground there. But I wouldn't say we're friends."

"Is the driver good?"

"Skill-wise? Yeah. Throttle Control is stupid good, he has TWELVE GODDAMN CYLINDERS, and his car is lighter than mine with a mid-engined layout. My FD is the best cornering car on the domestic market yet it can't beat a damn import."

"You keep mentioning throttle control."

Keisuke scoffed. "Because that's what I'm good at. Ryosuke always says that Throttle Control is key. When you drive a 450HP car like I do, yeah. It's pretty important. What car do you drive?"

"Mazda Cosmo," Luna accidentally blurted out. NO! I was not meant to say that!

Keisuke looked at her, seeming surprised. "A Mazda Cosmo? A Luxury Car? I mean, I respect the rotary but why a Cosmo?"

Luna sighed. Considering this particular Thestral seemed to not know her, it couldn't hurt to tell him. "It is designed to attack corners as fast as equinely possible. I believe it weighs as much as your FD."

"Really? Never heard of a Mazda Cosmo. I thought it was only Eunos that made it."

"It is a rather rare car. One of a mere 600 built."

"Hm. Sounds like my brother's car. How much power does it make?"

"300 horsepower. Now, how important exactly is Throttle Control?" She tilted her head in curiosity. "You seem to mention it a lot."

"300? Well, you've got it easy then." He sighed. "Throttle Control dictates how fast you can exit a corner. Superior control can mean the difference between a win and a loss. In my opinion, Throttle Control and the ability to exit corners perfectly is the best thing to master on the mountain pass."

Luna smirked. "Intriguing. Perhaps I should learn it."

"You should focus on it if you haven't mastered it already."

"Hm, yes. I have driven an all wheel drive car, an R33 Skyline, for most of my driving career, so I am lacking in that area of expertise. Truth be told, I only became interested in racing two weeks ago."

Realizing she was digressing from the problem at hand, she took a quick breath. "Sorry for the quick change of subject, but we seem to have digressed. Let us continue with the Ferrari."

Keisuke rolled his eyes. "Racing curiosity got the best of you?"

Luna smirked and nodded. "Now. Have you tried to overcome your fear of the Ferrari?"

Keisuke sighed. "This is stupid. You don't have my racing experience. How can you help me?"

"I may not have racing experience, but I am sure there are some practices you can use with racing."

Keisuke looked at her with a confused look. "Ugh. Fine." He looked at the road. "I've tried everything I can think of. I've switched my lines, tried different throttle techniques, hell I've even tried different tire compounds. Nothing I do gets me faster than that godforsaken Ferrari. I can keep ahead further and further, but god help me if I try to stay ahead the whole time. It's just a sick nightmare."

"You keep mentioning a god. Is this a Thestral custom I am not aware of?"

"Uh... sure? Sorry, I'm just not doing well these past few days. I've got a big race in two days and It's just... damn."

Luna looked at the Thestral. He seems to be hiding something from us. Should we inquire we do not know, but we should calm him first. A thought suddenly crossed her mind. "Wait, why are you sleeping at this time?"

"I don't know to be honest. I should be practicing and I TRY to get myself awake, but I just can't. Big Brother is gonna be pissed."

"You talk a lot about your brother."

"He's the one who got me into racing."

"Hm. Well, perhaps you should talk to him about it. Talking to others can relieve a lot of stress."

Keisuke scoffed. "I know, I just don't want him to think low of me. I don't want him to think I'm not ready to race."

This was something Luna had dealt with many times before. It was usually a filly or colt not wanting to tell their parents of a fear they had, or something along those lines. But a fully grown stallion or mare feeling the same was rare.

"Well, you should tell him. I am sure he will understand your troubles."

"But what if he postpones the race?" Keisuke sounded more flustered. "I don't want to screw over the team because I can't keep my head straight."

"Are you racing the Ferrari?"

Keisuke sighed. "No. I'm racing this old geezer in an R34 in a few days. A GT-R V-Spec no less. He's literally called 'God Foot' with how fast he is."

"Then you should stop thinking about the Ferrari. Think about the R34. I have heard many a tale about that car, and if it is the V-Spec, you will need a clear mind. Normally I would say an FD couldn't outperform an R34 GT-R, but judging by how modified yours seems-" Luna smiled as she noticed the roll cage sitting inside the FD. "-you have taken the necessary precautions to make sure you have a fighting chance."

"Hm. More like my brother has taken the precautions. He's the one who goes through the modifications. I don't know how he knows exactly which part to use, but it works. My car is running faster than it's ever ran."

"Your brother sounds like a knowledgable person."

"Hm."

Luna winced as she felt something happen around them. It was a feeling she knew well.

"It feels like somepony is trying to wake you up." She said calmly.

"How the hell do you know that?" Keisuke asked.

"I just do. Remember, clear your mind of the Ferrari. Think about the R34. It will help you tremendously."

Keisuke sighed. "Alright. If you say so. So what, am I about to wake up?"

Luna nodded before lighting up her horn. With a flash of light, she allowed the dream to end, and was sent back to her room.

"I hope Keisuke wins that race."

Later, a Midnight Blue Mazda Cosmo JC slowly pulled out onto the Canterlot Turnpike, its 20B-REW Rotary humming as it slowly accelerated. Luna, once again in her juvenile form so she could fit in the seat, used her forehoof to shift gears.

"In my opinion, Throttle Control and the ability to exit corners perfectly is the best thing to master on the mountain pass."

Keisuke's words echoed through her mind. She had read online that good throttle control was, well, good, but depending on the car, could it really be important enough to decide a race?

She sighed. "Takumi was right the other day. When I exit a corner, I am not very good at it. Such a shame that I bought an all wheel drive car back then. It has spoiled my throttle control." She smiled and rubbed the steering wheel. "But with this car, it should hone our skills over time. No traction control, no stability control, and no all wheel drive. Unlike our Skyline, this is a proper racers car."

The JC passed through the parking lot. Before long, the first left corner approached. Luna, feeling confident, accelerated and steered right, then flicked left to throw the car into a drift. She bit her lip as she steered and pressed on the gas, sliding the rear tires before letting off and exiting the corner. As she pressed on the gas, the rear skidded left and right, forcing her to countersteer.

Luna stabilized the JC, letting off the throttle again. "Just like that, my control is not the best. I rely too heavily on the tires' ability to grip the road. Though, at least I can enter a corner without the parking brake. I already feel much faster."

Accelerating towards the next right corner, Luna shifted gears and swerved from the outside to the inside line, pressing on the throttle and countersteering. The tires squealed as she skidded outwards. This time, she let off the throttle completely and focused on getting straightened out as soon as possible.

The difference was instantly noticeable. She was able to immediately stabilize the Cosmo, and despite not accelerating, she knew she was faster than her runs the other night. The runs she had performed early in the morning right after Takumi had gone.

The 20B hummed smoothly as it revved up to 9000RPM down a straightaway, the pitch lowering as Luna shifted into third gear. She braked and steered right, trying to kick the rear out, but had to nail the throttle to kick the rear out. She knew it cost her time.

Ignoring it, she guided the car through the inside a few feet from the inner curb before applying light amounts of throttle on exit. Her eyes widened.

I can go faster by applying less throttle? she thought as the JC stabilized. Wow... Keisuke was right!

She smiled as she increased throttle. Tonight was going to be fun.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

The JC screeched around a hairpin. Luna applied minimal throttle and countersteered, and easily stabilized the JC as it exited the corner. A grin was spread across her face as she eyed the small digital clock that sat on the dashboard. 3:22AM.

We have never practiced this hard for this long. She happily thought. Our muscle memory is improving, as is our times. Thank you Keisuke. You have already helped us to become a much better driver. We are not as fast as Takumi, but we are much faster than Rainbow Dash or those two ponies from the other night. And it feels amazing.

The 20B pierced through her night as she powerslid around a right corner going uphill, decreasing in pitch as the JC stabilized. It grew louder as Luna pressed harder on the throttle.

The brakes squealed a little as she pressed on the brake, steering into the parking lot and turning around. The JC stopped short of the road.

"I wonder where Takumi is. I want him to see that I have improved. Wait..." She stopped herself and narrowed her eyes a little. "Why am I so attached to Takumi? Why am I so eager to impress him all of a sudden? He is just a teenager. He is just... he does not seem to be interested in anything I do. What is wrong with me? Am I simply excited?"

vroooooooOOOOm- vroooooooo

She could dwell on the matter no longer as she heard an engine to her left, coming from Canterlot.

All the princess could do was sigh. "Well, sounds like Takumi is coming. Though I wonder how he got up here without me seeing him. Perhaps he took the main highway?"

Ace - Drivin' Crazy starts playing.

She could hear an Inline 4 in the distance and noted the headlights slowly approaching. Though it sounded off. It wasn't quite as loud, and she could hear the unmistakable sound of a supercharger.

Still confused, Luna pulled out into the road and accelerated, letting the car behind catch up. The headlights did not look retractable. They looked fixed. They were small and rectangular.

She immediately ruled out the notion that it was Itsuki. The headlights looked too different from a Levin.

The mystery car slowed and began tailgating her, sticking several feet from her rear bumper.

Suddenly, it flashed Its lights.

Luna could only smile. "Alright. If thou would like to battle downhill with us, then battle downhill we shall!"

The 20B hummed loudly as she pressed hard on the throttle, easily accelerating away from the hatchback. She heard the supercharger begin to whir as she shifted gears, quickly approaching the left corner ahead.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

She steered right, then swerved left into the corner. The JC shook and shuddered as she guided it through the inside, countersteering before letting off the throttle to stabilize it on exit. She continued to smile as she accelerated, eyeing the rearview.

"Exactly how fast are you?" she wondered.

Headlights flashed around the corner, accelerating towards her. Luna smiled.

She pressed hard on the throttle, the 20B-REW whirring loudly as the JC accelerated down the straight and towards the next right corner. The JC once again shook as she guided it through the inside. The hatchback caught up as she exited the corner and applied throttle, fishtailing a little.

The Alicorn was nothing short of impressed that the hatchback could catch up so quickly. She understood that whoever the driver was, they likely had more experience than her. She refused to let the pressure get to her so soon in the race.

Instinctively steering into the left lane to use the racing line, Luna braked and readied herself to steer in. She focused on maintaining her line through the inside, wanting to put down the fastest time.

That same focus was instantly shattered as the hatchback appeared on the inside of the turn.

"AH!" She yelped as she steered for the outside, barely managing to keep the JC stable and not smack the wall on the outside.

Letting off the throttle as they exited the corner, Luna saw the red hatchback that had taken her position. It was a Third Generation Honda Civic Si.

She shook her head as she accelerated. We do not know who thou are, but we must admit that thou hast more experience.

Despite her attempts to overtake around the left curve and subsequent straightaway, the supercharger whirring and allowing the Civic to instantly accelerate after each shift.

Luna found herself at the top of second gear before she slowed for the left-right chicane. The Civic braked much sooner, swerving into the left corner.

"What the-!?" Luna yelped as the Civic's rear end skidded outwards, coming inches from the outer guardrail of the right turn.

The Civic's supercharger whirred as the rear was brought back into line due to FWD acceleration. Luna took a quick breath in as she watched it brake and swerved into a left hairpin, doing her best to follow through.

Despite her best efforts, the Civic tremendously outclassed her in the turn. She lightly pressed on the throttle upon exiting the corner before planting the throttle, releasing the 20B's power to the wheels to instantly catch back up to the Civic. She dare not tailgate it, fearing a brake check.

Through a quick left corner they went, speeds increasing down a small straightaway. A quick right corner approached. Normally, Luna would have slowed down. But seeing as the Civic didn't do that, she kept the throttle planted and followed the Civic through the corner.

"Yes!" she shouted with glee. "That felt amazing! I have never gone through such a corner so fast!"

Luna once again tried to pass the Civic but failed. The Civic's maneuverability was too great for her to make a move. Nevertheless, she kept her hoof level on the throttle and tailed the Civic through a right corner, only braking a little. She was moving much faster than any previous run in her Cosmo. It felt great.

Speeds increased through a gentle left curve towards a right hairpin. Luna found herself hitting the top of third gear again before braking and shifting into second gear, this time swerving only a little to try and get the rear to skid. This time, it actually worked! The rear end slid outwards, forcing Luna to countersteer and guide the JC through the inside of the hairpin.

She squeed as both cars exited the hairpin. The sense of accomplishment felt amazing. She was becoming a faster driver, both in the corners and the straightaways.

Calming herself, Luna shifted gears and tailed the Civic. The driver was good, and the choice of a Supercharger was perfect. It didn't slip its front tires, something Luna always expected would happen with any FWD, and its lines were good. But something felt off.

Her Battle Instincts kicked in as she watched it, trying to find a weakness in the driving. It lacked power in the straightaways but was excellent in the corners.

All ponies have a weakness, she thought. Whether it be a real battle or a race, they have weaknesses. And in this sort of battle, the choice of the car presents extra weaknesses.

As they braked for a left hairpin, Luna saw something about the Civic's braking and line.

The Civic braked and stuck to the inside, sure, but it wasn't going nearly as far inside as Takumi. And it was holding back. Not because it was toying with Luna, but because of another factor.

You are hesitating. Her eyes widened as she drifted behind the Civic. You are hesitating! You do not know the course as well as I! That is your weakness!

Knowing there was a long straightaway after this, Luna let off and let the Civic gain some distance. Once she was two seconds or so behind, she floored it.

After this straightaway is a set of curves that will undoubtedly allow you to break away. But if I come at you at this speed, no way you would try to block, right? Let us see just how brave you are!

Approaching the Civic at high speed, adrenaline rushed through her as she instantly caught up. The Civic sat in the middle of the road, seeming ready to block again, until it suddenly moved into the right lane.

Luna smiled. Huzzah! I knew you would break off!

The JC zoomed past the Civic in the left lane, totally dusting it down the straightaway. She let off the throttle and braked well before a left curve, steering and trying to get the rear out. It didn't work, so she once again nailed the throttle to break the rear tires' grip.

The resulting corner was decent, but it left much to be desired in terms of her line. She ballooned heavily towards the outside, coming inches from the guardrail before the corner ended.

Music Ends.

Her eyes glanced at the rearview, finding that the Civic was pulling off to park in a viewing deck. She smirked.

Not even a skilled Civic can surpass me now! This feels amazing! I want to do more! Thank you Keisuke Takahashi! You have improved my driving drastically!

VRROOOOOOooooooommmmmmm

The JC flew down the road and into the night, the 20B humming and tires squealing. Tonight was an amazing night.

Ponyville, 2:40PM.

Itsuki, Twilight, and Rainbow Dash walked through Ponyville, watching the autumn leaves flow through the air. The other ponies went about their day, paying none of them any heed as they walked.

"You know, sometimes it's nice to just walk through town." Rainbow Dash admitted. "It's so peaceful. I like it."

"Mhm. It is." Itsuki agreed. "I second the peaceful part. Hey, thanks for coming with me. I've been wanting to explore this place since Takumi did."

"It's nothin'. Anything for the guy that got me into-... you know."

Twilight silently rolled her eyes.

They continued walking, admiring the architecture and surrounding scenery. Itsuki smiled as he saw a cute candy red schoolhouse on a hill, surrounded by a white fence with a slight yellow tint.

"That's cute."

Dash looked at him. "What?"

"That building. Looks like a school."

"Oh that? Yeah. It is."

"It's the Ponyville Schoolhouse," Twilight clarified. "The first and only school in Ponyville."

"You don't have highschool around here?" Itsuki asked.

"Nope."

Itsuki tilted his head in confusion. "Huh."

"Hey wait a minute..." Dash trailed as she stared at the school.

"What?" Twilight asked.

"Look over at the school. Is that who I think it is?"

They all looked at the school, noticing a certain Black and White Liftback sitting out front.

"Wait a se- Is that Takumi's car?" Twilight asked. "What's he doing at the school?"

"Well, let's go see!" Itsuki unfurled his wings and flapped to get himself in the air.

Only to flip forward and fall flat on his face not two seconds afterwards.

"Hey, you're still learning!" Dash playfully sneered as she and Twilight helped Itsuki up.

"Oh shut up. Let's just walk there." Itsuki pouted.

Twilight giggled. "You remind me of when I first got my wings."

Itsuki blushed.

After half a minute, the three trotted up to Takumi's 86. They found the white Alicorn resting in front of the 86, eyes closed.

Twilight cleared her throat. "Ahem."

Takumi opened his eyes and looked over at them. "Oh. Hey."

"Hey dude. Whatcha doin'?" Itsuki asked.

"Yeah. What are you doing in front of the school?"

Takumi sighed. "Fluttershy Shanghaied me into babysitting Rumble."

Dash and Twilight tilted their heads.

"Say what now?"

"Shanghaied?"

"Ugh. Nevermind. Long story short, I've been babysitting- or I guess FOALsitting Rumble since yesterday. Now I'm waiting for school to get out so I can take him home."

"Huh. Odd. I didn't think Fluttershy would ever skip out on foalsitting Rumble." Twilight remembered the number of times Fluttershy had foalsitted the bluish-gray pegasus.

"She has a broken leg. What do you want from her?"

"Fair enough. How has it been going?"

"It's been alright. Rumble's nice. He showed me his computer. Showed me this game called Team Fortress 2. Technology here is pretty insane if I'm being honest."

"I didn't know Rumble played TF2!" Dash cheerfully said. "I might need to ask him if he'd like to play with me sometime."

"What's Team Fortress 2?" Itsuki asked.

"First Person Shooter. Graphics are great and its easy to learn." Takumi boredly replied.

RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIiIIIIIIING!

Takumi looked over at the school as over a dozen fillies and colts began to pile out the front door, happily running for the playground or leaving the school grounds. Takumi noticed how there was absolutely nopony else waiting to pick their kids up. They just walked by and paid no mind to him or his car, or Twilight.

"So uh, how have you been?" Itsuki asked.

"Fine." Takumi replied. "I've been thinking about some things. Theres this one place I wanna head out to tonight. Last night I went to it with Rumble."

"Oh nice. Where?"

Takumi looked at Itsuki for a split second before eyeing Twilight. He preferred to not say where, or why he and Rumble went out to it last night, in front of Twilight.

He looked away. "Nowhere special."

A now-confused Twilight tilted her head.

"Now where the hell is Rumble?" Takumi stood up and looked over the picket fence, scanning for the elusive bluish-gray colt.

Twilight stood next to Takumi, looking him up and down. "I just noticed, you look a lot like Rumble."

"Tell me about it."

"Heh, yeah. You even have the same muzzles as fillies. Well, mares in your case."

Takumi rolled his eyes. "So. Itsuki. How have you been?"

"Fine. I learned how to fly yesterday."

"Cool."

"Plus I took Rainbow Dash down the-" Itsuki was cut off by Dash putting a hoof over his mouth.

"He drove me to the Academy!" Dash quickly said. "Then I taught him how to fly. Fleetfoot also helped."

"Cool."

"Oh, Takumi, I should probably let you know. Celestia, Luna, and Cadance put together a plan for you two," Twilight said.

"Cool."

"Um..." Twilight took a breath. "Basically, they're gonna give you two a few months or maybe a year to get used to our world. After that, me and Cadance will teach Itsuki about being princes while Celestia and Luna will do the same for you."

"Cool."

"Are you even listening?"

"Cool. I mean- yeah. Of course I am. Me and Itsuki are gonna get some time to get used to this world."

"And after that, we're going to teach you how to be princes."

Takumi shot Twilight a cold look.

Twilight took an involuntary step back. "Uh, what?"

Takumi just sighed and walked to the pathway that lead to the front door. "I'm gonna head in and look for him. I'm getting sick of standing here."

Without saying anything else, he walked down the path and towards the schoolhouse.

Twilight sighed. "He'll be fun for Celestia and Luna to teach. Same for me and Cadance to you, Itsuki."

She looked back at Itsuki, who said nothing for a moment.

"So uh, should we keep walking or wait here for Takumi?" Itsuki asked.

"Let's keep walking," Dash replied.

"Well alright then." Itsuki and Dash began walking away, back towards town.

"You two go ahead. I'll wait for Takumi."

"Alright. See ya Twilight!"

"Bye you two!"

Twilight sat down next to the 86, watching Takumi walk into the school. She sighed.

"To think I'm gonna be teaching an Alicorn. Right alongside-" She stopped, slightly narrowing her eyes. "Wait... I already have a student! Starlight! Hold on second- how does Celestia expect me to teach both Starlight AND Itsuki at the same time? And better yet, how are both me and Cadance supposed to teach Itsuki when we live however many miles away from each other?"

"Hm..." A paper and quill popped out of thin air next to her. "Dear Princess Celestia..."

Takumi was right to not expect anything much out of the schoolhouse's interior. It was one classroom, two bathrooms, and what he assumed was the teacher's office. Whoever the teacher was.

"Oh hello! May I help you?" A female voice cheerfully asked.

Takumi looked at the teachers desk to find a magenta earth pony mare with light pink hair sitting down at it. She had lime green eyes and three flowers for a cutie mark.

"Oh. Hi. I'm looking for someone called Rumble." Takumi boredly replied.

"He's just outside in the playground. He tends to do that after school. Why? Are you a friend?"

"I was Shanghaied into foalsitting him by Fluttershy. I'm here to pick him up."

The pony tilted her head. "Shanghaied?"

"UGH. Nevermind. You said he's in the playground?"

The pony nodded.

"Alright. Thanks."

With that, he turned around and began walking out.

"Uh- hold on!"

He glanced behind him to find the pony trotting up next to him.

"Because I prefer to know the names of whoever is foalsitting one of my students, mind telling me your name?"

Takumi rolled his eyes in slight annoyance. But, she was a teacher. It was understandable she'd want her students safe.

"Takumi." He deadpanned.

"Takumi?"

Takumi nodded. "What about your name?"

"You can call me Cheerilee."

He smirked at the name. "Hm. Alright then."

He turned back around and walked out the front door, turning left and walking to the playground. He noticed Twilight sitting next to his 86, looking at it.

I wonder what she's doing.

Looking back at the playground, he remained mostly emotionless as he watched all the fillies and colts playing. They were on swings, playing with some weird pole that had two red balls on it. They were punching the balls around.

And of course there was a slide, a merry-go-round, typical stuff.

"I'm not kidding! He is STUPID fast!"

Takumi looked to the large playset and saw the small bluish-gray pegasus glaring at two earth pony fillies. One was light pink with light purple hair, who wore a small crown and had the cutie mark of a... crown. That was in the exact same design as the one the filly was wearing.

The other filly had a gray coat with lighter gray hair, with cyan glasses and a spoon for a cutie mark.

Takumi sighed and walked over to the three, both fillies taking notice of him while Rumble was facing away.

"Rumble, I've been waiting outside for fifteen minutes. I'm not waiting longer."

Rumble turned around and smiled. "Ha! See? Told you he's an Alicorn!" He cheerfully said, pointing at Takumi.

"You weren't kidding..." Both fillies said in unison.

"Hi." Takumi plainly greeted. "So, Rumble. What are you doing?"

"Just uh, you know. Talking." Rumble replied.

"Rumble you are... you are lucky." The bewildered pink filly slowly said. "I think you're the luckiest colt in school. How did you get an ALICORN as your foalsitter?"

"Because Fluttershy asked me to foalsit him. Her arm was broken yesterday so I felt sorry for her. Plus It's just something for me to do."

"Oh, how sad. OH! Uh, I'm Diamond Tiara. And this is my friend Silver Spoon, uh, your highness." The pink filly or 'Diamond Tiara' bowed, along with Silver Spoon.

"Uh, no. I'm not a prince. Just call me Takumi."

Diamond looked up. "Your not?"

"No."

Diamond and Silver looked at each other before standing up straight.

"So... you've been foalsitting Rumble since yesterday?" Diamond asked.

"Yeah."

"Can... you foalsit me maybe?"

Takumi groaned. "No. I'm not gonna foalsit anyone else."

Diamond and Silver looked both saddened and jealous. Rumble simply beamed.

"So. Rumble. Are we going? Or are we just gonna stand around?"

"Uh, well, um, hm... I don't know..."

"Are you able to kill anything you want? Like Timberwolves?" Silver Spoon asked.

"What the heck are Timberwolves?" Takumi asked back.

"A wolf, but big and scary and mean and made out of wood. They live in the Everfree Forest."

"That... so are they wooden robots or something?"

"Robots? No. They are big wooden creatures."

"Wait so they are living beings, made of wood?"

The two fillies and colt nodded.

"That... doesn't sound physically possible." How much magic is in this world? He wondered.

"That's the Everfree Forest for you. They only come from there." Diamond clarified.

"Everfree Forest?"

"The Forest south of here. Right over there." Rumble turned and pointed at the forest that sat to the south.

Takumi shrugged. "Hm. Well, are we gonna go? I think Twilight's waiting."

"Wait, Twilight?" Diamond's eyes widened. "As in PRINCESS Twilight?"

"Yeah."

Diamond and Silver looked at each other, grinning like a couple of cute idiots. The biggest smile appeared on Rumble's face.

"Why didn't you say so?! Let's go!" Rumble yelled before suddenly taking off and flying towards his car.

Takumi was surprised at how fast Rumble flew. "Jesus!" Despite being tempted to fly after the colt, Takumi quickly trotted to his car.

He watched Rumble land next to Twilight and saw the Lavender Alicorn cheerfully greet him. Takumi continued to trot, not noticing Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon running after him.

"So how has being foalsitted by Takumi been?" Twilight asked as Takumi trotted over.

"Awesome! As much as I like Fluttershy, he's way cooler. He actually likes playing the games I like playing. Like TF2." Rumble cheerfully replied.

"He told me. Oh! Hey Takumi!"

Takumi stopped next to the 86. "Hi. What were you doing earlier? With my 86?"

"Oh nothing. It looks pretty modified so I decided to check out what parts you had."

"Hm. I didn't buy any of them. Well, I did help with buying them, but Ryosuke picked them out."

"Who's Ryosuke?" Rumble asked.

"A friend of mine."

"Hm."

"Anyways. Rumble, are we gonna head back to your place or what?"

"Well, were you gonna do anything with Twilight?"

"Not really. She just happened to show up. Actually-yeah why did you stay here?"

"Because I wanted to talk to you. About things. Mainly where you come from," was Twilight's reply.

"Hm."

"Wait, THIS is his car?" Diamond Tiara asked as she and Silver Spoon stopped and stared. "What kind of an Alicorn owns an almost thirty-year-old econobox?"

Takumi said nothing.

"Don't say that." Twilight defended. "It's his car, he likes it. It's his decision to drive it."

"But... why this?"

"I'm sure if Princess Celestia was into even a fifty-year-old econobox, she wouldn't have a problem being seen in one. Like the E10 Corolla."

"How would she even fit in a car?" Takumi asked.

"She knows a spell to fix that."

Takumi proceeded to make the mistake of imagining Celestia but the same size as Twilight. He quickly looked away to hide his redness as the wave of cuteness washed over him.

"What?" He heard Twilight ask.

"Nothing. I'm just... I'm gonna get in the car. Come on Rumble."

Without another word, Takumi walked around the back of the 86 to the right side, opening the door via magic and getting in.

Twilight and Rumble looked at each other.

"Has he always been like this?" Rumble asked. "I've been meaning to ask somepony that."

"Uh... yeah. He has been. Sort of." Twilight sheepishly replied.

krrrrr-chunka-chunka-vrroooooOOOOOOOOOOoooommmmmmmm

The 4A-GE slowly started as if the 86 was as bored as Takumi was. Twilight just sighed.

"Well, I guess let's get in."

Rumble, Diamond Tiara, and Silver Spoon were very surprised. "Wait, you're going too?" Rumble asked.

"I've been wanting to talk with Takumi for a while. Since last night actually, so yeah. As long as he's alright with it."

Rumble couldn't contain his excitement as he and Twilight walked to the left side, more so as he noticed the jealous looks on Diamond and Silver's faces. Twilight opened the door and was ready to flip the passenger seat forward to let Rumble in back.

"Hm..." Twilight put a hoof to her chin as she realized that because of both seats being racing bucket seats, she couldn't flip the seat forward.

"I'm sure I could just squeeze in between the seats," Rumble suggested. He climbed up into the 86 and easily squeezed between the bucket seats.

Twilight shrugged as she got in herself, closing the door with a wing and buckling up.

"So. I was wondering, Takumi," Twilight began as Takumi accelerated. "Would you be alright with taking a trip somewhere? Maybe to the Crystal Empire?"

"The Crystal Empire?" Takumi asked.

"Yeah. Ancient City up north. Cadance rules over it."

Takumi said nothing for a moment, continuing to very slowly drive through Ponyville.

"Maybe." Was his answer.

"So are you two gonna just talk while I listen or what?" Rumble asked from the rear as he quickly remembered to buckle his seatbelt.

"Well... kinda?"

Takumi just sighed. "I'm just thinking about stuff is all. Actually, hey Twilight, what is the Everfree Forest?"

Twilight would be lying if she said she wasn't surprised. "Who told you about the Everfree Forest?"

"Me and Diamond Tiara mentioned it." Rumble clarified.

"Oh. Well um, what do you want to know about it?"

"Why do ponies fear it?" Takumi steered around a bend, patiently avoiding a parked pickup truck.

"Because it's one, creepy. Two, it has a variety of animals that can rip a pony to shreds, and the worst part- here's the worst part. Plants grow on their own, animals take care of themselves, and clouds move without pony intervention!"

Takumi suddenly stopped the 86 and stared at Twilight. "There is no way you just said that those three things are the worst parts about the forest."

Twilight nodded grimly.

"Wha-? Those are the most normal things ever. What, does Equestria's weather system physically require pegasuses to help?"

"Yes! Also, it's pegasi. Not pegasuses. Or pegasides if you prefer the classic definition like Luna."

Takumi groaned as he began driving again. "That is literally nature." he mumbled.

"You mean to tell me that in your world, the weather moves on its own?"

"In my world, yeah. We can't do much to change it. Whatever the weather does, it just does it."

"Wait, you're from a different WORLD!?" Rumble exclaimed. "Is that why you keep saying weird phrases and things like that?"

Takumi groaned. "Shush." He finally brought the 86 to a stop in front of a house. "Alright, Rumble, you head inside and I'll catch up. Alright?"

"What? But-... alright fine. Twilight, mind moving?" He asked as he unbuckled.

Twilight opened her door with a wing. "Just climb over my lap."

Rumble hesitated for a split second before shrugging and squeezing in between the seats and climbing over Twilight's lap, exiting the 86 and walking towards the house.

Twilight shut her door with a wing. "Anyways." She looked over at Takumi to find him resting his head on the steering wheel. He wore a downcast look. "Is... something wrong?"

There was silence for a few moments. Twilight grew worried.

"Takumi? What's wrong?"

"..."

"Do you even care about me?" Takumi asked.

Author's Note

I'm gonna say it right now, I was not expecting to focus on Luna like this. Races between Takumi, Itsuki, and other teams were meant to start a WHILE ago. I don't know when or why I went for the slower buildup with a bit of racing instead of that, but It's probably better this way.

Also I HAD TO REWRITE HALF THIS CHAPTER BECAUSE APPARENTLY ME HITTING CTRL+S OBSESSIVEY ISN'T ENOUGH FOR WHEN MY COMPUTER FREEZES. YOU ARE WELCOME.

Act 13: Impromptu

Twilight stared at Takumi, confused. "Wha... what do you mean?"

"Do you even care about me?" Takumi asked again.

"Um, of course. Of course I do. Why?"

"Do you care about me, or where I come from?" Takumi glared at Twilight.

"Tuh... Takumi I..." Twilight trailed off as Takumi's gaze pierced through her very soul. She could see hatred and distrust.

"Because to me, it seems like you don't care about me that much." His voice was cold and aggressive. "Or Itsuki. You care about where we come from. You want to know about our world, instead of us. Sure, you wanted to know about us, how we became Alicorns, but after that, you just want to know about where we come from."

"B-But... o-of course I care about you. I care about all ponies, you and Itsuki especially. You, me, Itsuki, the princesses, we're all Alicorns. We need to look out for each other. What kind of an Alicorn would I be if I didn't look out for what might as well be my family?"

"Who said we were family?"

"Um, I did?"

"Well, we're not 'family'. MY family is my father, and Project D. Not you. You just care about what will happen when YOU research a world that isn't yours."

"Takumi, what is wrong with you?"

Takumi sighed and looked forward, leaning back in the bucket seat. There was silence.

"Takumi, I... I don't know what to say. Really, what's wrong?"

"...Get out."

"Wh-What?" Twilight grew frightened as she noticed a tiny amount of black mist emanate from his hair. "W-Why?"

"I said get out." Takumi's voice remained flat and cold.

Is his hair... burning? Twilight wondered. "Takumi, what is wrong with your-"

"OUT. NOW."

Twilight stared at Takumi before using her magic to unbuckle herself. Or at least, attempt to use her magic. She found that she couldn't. Though confused, she silently fumbled with the harness before opening the door and exiting.

She turned and looked at Takumi. His gaze hadn't shifted. "Takumi, really, what's wrong?"

"..."

The door handle lit up yellow, as did Takumi's horn. The door suddenly shut as he put the 86 into first gear, smoothly yet aggressively accelerating.

Twilight worriedly watched the 86 slowly drive down the road before disappearing around a building.

"Why does he hate me?" she quietly asked before looking at Rumble's house. Knowing Takumi likely wasn't coming back, and not knowing when Thunderlane was going to be back, she made the decision to foalsit Rumble herself. Or at the very least stay in the house until Thunderlane or Takumi came back.

"Hey, guess what? I nearly busted my knee walking to the kitchen," Rumble angrily said as Twilight walked into the house.

Twilight said nothing as she slowly sat down on a couch.

"Wait, what happened? Where's Takumi?" Rumble asked, seeing Twilight's worried look.

"Takumi... needs some time to himself. And I need to write a message."

"Oh... should I... just head upstairs then?"

"You don't have to. I'll be down here if you need anything."

"Um, alright." Rumble turned to walk towards the kitchen. Well holy crap I have ANOTHER Alicorn foalsitting me, he thought. One that's an actual princess too. So why am I not excited right now?

Twilight used her magic to bring a paper and quill, and ink, into existence, setting the three objects on the coffee table. She dipped the quill into the ink and began writing.

"Dear Princess Cele..." She trailed off before shaking her head and continuing to write. "Dear Princess Luna..."

Takumi drove aimlessly onto a highway. He relaxed.

"What is wrong with me?" he asked no one in particular. "They're just trying to help. I'm just being a damn idiot brushing them away. I just can't do anything. I just... Twilight's a nice person. So why am I accusing her of things she doesn't do? Just... Why?"

Soon, Takumi found himself driving up a mountain road, Ponyville not very far in the distance.

He gently steered around a left curve before entering a parking lot. Cars were parked all around, propeller planes flying overhead. He pulled around and parked next to the entrance of the parking lot, killing the engine and slumping back in the bucket seat.

I'm not feeling well, he thought. I just can't talk to anyone right, I'm overwhelmed, I can barely even think straight. What is wrong with me...

He looked around the parking lot, looking up at the sky to see a propeller-driven plane fly overhead.

He sighed and closed his eyes. I just need to drive. Driving calms me down. Plus I want to practice this course. This course I took Rumble down in an impromptu race. It's fun and should be a way for me to get some normality back in my life. Practicing other courses like Ryosuke said I should do. Only this time it won't be with the D. I'll just be by myself, probably with a couple of other racers.

He looked towards the sunlit sky, a tear appearing in his eye.

"It's what Ryosuke would've wanted..."

"So I've been thinking-" Rainbow Dash began as she and Itsuki slowly flew above town. "-about which car I should buy."

"Really?" Itsuki was getting good at flying at a decent pace.

"Yep. Normally I'd go with something new. Like an R35 or maybe an S2000. But now I REALLY want something like your car ."

"Ah, so you want an 86?"

"Mmm, maybe. I feel like it'll be a little tacky that I get your model. Plus the rear end slides out WAY too easily for my taste."

"Yeah, that is an issue."

"Mm. It's just that I don't know which is good. There are too many options. Obviously I want something rear wheel drive, but what exactly should I get?"

"What have you considered?"

"Well," Dash thought to the cars she had looked at that morning. "The AW11 MR2, the early Foxbody Mustang, Mitsubishi Starion, even the Mark Three Supra."

"Foxbody Mustang? I've heard of those. They look nice but we never got them in Japan."

"Why's that?"

"Oh, you know. Regulations and stuff. We drive on the left side in Japan, so all the cars have to be right hand drive. Er, right hoof drive. You don't see many American makes popping up because of that."

"American?"

"Oh right. America. I never looked much into it but it's a place across my planet from Japan. See, they drive on the right side of the road. So all of their cars are left ha-HOOF drive."

Dash giggled. "Sounds interesting. Over in Ponyland, most of it except for the western parts drive on the right. And some cars were only built for Ponyland, so we still have right hoof drive cars come in every now and again."

"Oh nice. Hey, maybe you could get an S13? Iketani owns one. It's a really solid car."

"Hm, I did look at that one. Looks good. Didn't see if any were for sale, but some articles I read did say that it's a popular choice for drifting in competitions."

"Mm. It's a pretty sweet platform. I was dying to have one last year actually. That is until Takumi inspired me to get my own 86. Of course, I didn't get an 86 at first, I got an 85, but NOW I have an 86."

Dash looked at Itsuki. "What's an Eight-Five?"

Itsuki decided to land on a small cloud and sit down. Dash did the same.

"Well," he began. "An 85 is a 1.5 SR. It's got an 86 body but with less chassis bracing and a 1.5 liter 3A-U as opposed to the 1.6 4A-GE. You think the 86 is an economy car not built for performance? Check out the 85. 88 horsepower with the worst bodyroll ever. The only fun bit about mine was that it was a manual."

"88 horsepower ay? Can it reach 88 miles per hour?"

"Um... I dunno what that is in kilometers but yeah probably. Maybe. It would take forever but it could probably do 88."

Dash sat slack-jawed. "You-... that flew right over your head, didn't it?"

"What did?"

Dash sighed. "Nevermind. The movie probably doesn't exist in your world. Anyways, how'd you end up with an 85?"

"I-I just-" Itsuki struggled for the correct words. "I don't know to be honest. Literally said 1.5 SR on the back and it had plastic bumpers so I really don't know. Maybe I just saw that it was a Levin and thought 'Oh hell yeah I'm buying this' so... yeah." He sighed as his ears drooped. "Back then I should have known the price was way too good to be true. I went all the way to Fujimi to buy it. At least I was smart enough to not act like the car meant the world to me when buying it. I actually dropped the price by a couple thousand yen, so that was good but... dammit."

Dash took a breath in. "Well." She let out her breath. "At least you have an 86 now, right?"

"Yeah. At least. Thank god for the gold coins."

"Wait wait wait what? What do you mean?"

"What? Oh. So, long story short, while me and Takumi were hanging out in our dreams, of being ponies, some guys came by and one accidentally dropped a duffel bag in a pond. They ran off after seeing us, so we decided to see what was in the bag. It was FULL of gold coins and a couple cool books about this pony named Daring Do."

Dash smiled. "Ah. I know those. I'm friends with the author actually."

"Mm. But yeah it was amazing. So, me and Takumi decided to try something. Our cars were with us, this was before I bought my 86, we were in the middle of a field by the way. But anyway, we decided to try and split the coins 50/50 and put them in the backseat of our cars. Takumi took all the Daring Do books and put them in his trunk. We wake up, head outside, and they were there! It was awesome!"

"So you stole bits?"

"Bits?"

"Equestrian currency."

"Oh. Well, I guess? Hey, the guys ran off alright. Come on if you had a whole dufflebag of GOLD COINS sitting right there, what would you do?"

"Ehhhhh... I would actually take it to the police..."

"...Oh. But yeah. Went out, used my share of money to buy my dream 86 which is the Red and Black Levin, then to match Takumi's car I bought a carbon fiber hood. I still have the leftover money in the glovebox."

"Neat. How much?"

"Um, I would say... two hundred coins? Or bits?"

"That's not bad."

"Mm."

They fell into awkward silence after that, neither knowing what to talk about.

Itsuki looked up at what looked like a massive floating city. That was surprising. He thought those things only appeared in fantasies. Well, this pretty much was a fantasy world, so that would explain it.

"Hey, what's that place?" he asked, pointing at the city.

"Oh that? That's just Cloudsdale."

"Oh. Neat."

"...So. Um, wanna pull some pranks on some ponies?"

Itsuki tilted his head at Dash. "What do you mean?"

"Like, do things to my friends. Like-"

"No no, I know what a prank is. But what kinds do you mean?"

"Oh you know. The usual. Whoopee cushions, maybe put a sleeping pony in a pen, the usual good stuff. Except I have some cool pranks I've been cooking up recently. Actually, I would have done the pranks days ago if you hadn't shown up."

"Oh. Well um... sure I guess. It's not like we're doing much anyways."

"Yes! Alright, let's go then. Then tonight we can head out on the mountain pass again."

They both stood up and took off. Dash rocketed ahead while Itsuki barely managed to stabilize himself. Dash looked back and chuckled as she quickly flew back. "Sorry. Forgot you're still learning."

"Thanks."

Esso Gas Station, Shibukawa, Japan.

The night sky settled over Shibukawa, the normal-sized moon in a crescent shape dimly lighting up the bits of the city that weren't already lit up.

Takumi found himself laying on a couch inside the Esso Gas Station. He nearly jumped when he saw Yuichi Tachibana sitting on a chair next to the couch.

Oh shit... he thought, seeing the sad look on the older man's face.

He jumped off the couch and resisted the urge to run. That was until Iketani and Kenji walked in.

"Anything?" Iketani asked as he and Kenji sat on the couch.

Yuichi sighed. "No. Nothing."

"Fuck..." Iketani put a hand on his forehead. "We've looked all around, called everyone we can, Project D has been put on hold because not even they can find him, shit."

"They're just... gone," Kenji slowly said.

Takumi sat still on the floor. They knew. They knew he and Itsuki were both truly gone, disappeared without a trace.

"They wouldn't leave for some other country, right?" Iketani suddenly asked.

"What makes you say that?" Yuichi asked back.

"Well, It's only Takumi's 86 and Itsuki's 86 that are gone. Itsuki's 85 is still at his parent's house..." Iketani sighed. "Nevermind. That's stupid."

"I will never understand how the hell Itsuki was able to make payments on both his 86 AND his 85," Kenji interjected. "Or how he even got the money for his 86."

"He's only had the 86 for a few days or so. Well, a few days before he... you know."

"Yeah," Yuichi agreed. "Itsuki hasn't had to pay for the 86's engine tax yet. How he got the money for an 86 I don't know either."

"Probably took out another loan and sold the turbo for his 85." Iketani leaned back. "I just don't see why they would disappear. Why would they leave us?"

"It's not like we were horrible to them. A few jokes here and there, but that's it." Kenji's head sat low, his eyes fixed to the ground. "The worst we ever were to either one of them was the time when Itsuki screwed up and bought an 85."

"Itsuki did run away crying his eyes out though," Yuichi reminded. "Maybe, this is a big maybe, but maybe he was going through some things we didn't know about. Maybe he snapped and ran away."

Initial D First Stage Sound Files vol.1 - Admiration starts playing.

"Would he really do that?"

Takumi could do nothing but watch and listen.

Yuichi sighed. "I don't want to say he'd be moronic enough to actually run away, but you never know. Maybe Takumi followed to try and get him out of it."

"So what, they both went to someplace like, I dunno. China? Hell, maybe the states?"

"I don't know. I wish I had some buddies over in the states, but I don't."

They each fell into silence, thinking intently about Takumi and Itsuki.

Takumi couldn't believe it. By being in Equestria, he was hurting his friends. Mentally. Their daily lives were being affected by him just... not being there.

"FUCK!" Iketani slammed his fist on the coffee table. "Why did they leave us? What the FUCK!?"

"Iketani?!" Kenji called out as Iketani stormed out of the gas station.

"No..." Takumi slowly said, on the verge of tears.

Takumi woke up in the backseat of his 86. As he sat up, he saw that the day had carried over into night.

"At least I..." He yawned. "At least I didn't sleep in the front seat."

He crawled in between the front seats and maneuvered himself over the gear shift and parking lever to sit down in the right seat. He wasted no time using telekinesis to bring the keys out from his sweater and start the 86.

Listening to the engine rev up to idle, he laid his head on the steering wheel.

I might as well not be alive to them. Disappeared without a trace, just... gone... he thought. In this world, in this... form, I'm supposed to have a purpose. Celestia raises and lowers the sun, Luna raises and lowers the moon, Cadance is... deals with love stuff? And Twilight deals with friendship stuff. However the heck that works.

He barely acknowledged the plane flying in overhead.

But me? I don't have a purpose. I'm just here. I don't have a proper mark, no purpose, no meaningful talent. I should just end myself. What's the point of living if you have no purpose in life? There is no point. So why do I keep living? Can you even call this living?

He looked at the 86's tachometer.

"And then you..." He rubbed the dashboard. "What would even happen to you after I'm gone? Would you just get sold to somebody and they wouldn't even think of what you've done? I guess that in this world, chances are that Luna would keep you. As a... memory of me... Luna..."

He glanced up at the moon. "What would Luna think if I ended it all? How much does she care about me? She's a racer, like me. A new racer who just wants to learn how to be fast. Why does she even want to race? She's over a thousand years old, yet it's like she's only ever driven for a couple of years. Cars had to have been around for a while, right?"

"But she really wants to learn. From me. Oh god..." Tears formed in his eyes. "She'd be heartbroken. I don't know what to do. Should I end it? I don't even deserve to be an Alicorn. W-Why did I become one if I don't deserve it?"

He hugged the steering wheel as tears dripped down his face. "86... please... what do I do..."

vrooOOooommmrrrrr

His eyes glanced outside to spot a purple S14 Silvia Kouki roll by, along with a silver BMW M3 Evolution III and a Greyish Blue Pearl Nissan Skyline R32 GT-R V-Spec I.

"Drive..."

Music ends.

"Who the heck owns that jalopy?" Spitfire wondered as she, Fleetfoot, and Thunderlane exited the building.

"Where?" Fleetfoot asked.

"Over there. The hatchback near the entrance." Spitfire pointed at an old white and black hatchback parked next to the entrance of the Wonderbolts Training Academy staff parking lot.

"Oh. Hm. I dunno."

"Anyways." Spitfire eyed Thunderlane as they walked. "Thunderlane. Care to teach us about how the hay you managed to beat me last night with your M3?"

"I just... want to practice is all," Thunderlane replied. Last night, Takumi foalsitted Rumble. Last night, my M3 supposedly beat Spitfire, he thought. Could Takumi have been the driver? Crap. If only I had gotten his number. Rumble is the only one to know where I put my car keys when I'm gone. Takumi has been the only one other than me, him, and Fluttershy in the past month. He's the only one who could have possibly driven it.

"If you say so. You two ready for a couple of sparring runs? Fleetfoot, you ready for your first sparring run?"

"Yeah," Fleetfoot replied. "I can't wait to put my new Three-Two through its paces."

"That's the spirit."

The three got in their cars. Spitfire sat in the left driver's seat of her purple Nissan S14 Silvia Autech, starting its SR20VET 2.0 Liter Inline 4.

Thunderlane got in a silver BMW M3 Evolution III, starting its BMW S14 2.5 Liter Inline 4.

Fleetfoot got in a Greyish Blue Pearl Nissan Skyline R32 GT-R V-Spec, starting its venerable RB26DETT 2.6 Liter Straight Six.

After waiting a minute or so, Spitfire picked up a transceiver. "You two ready?"

"Pretty much," Thunderlane replied.

"I'm gonna wait until it's fully warmed up," Fleetfoot said. "I don't want to damage it on accident."

"Oh come on Fleetfoot. It's an R32."

"One that hasn't been driven very much! Or hard! And it's only recently been restored! It's my new car. I don't want to break it."

"Didn't think you were a coward. You are the second-best flyer on the Wonderbolts. How can you be scared of breaking an R32?" Spitfire put her S14 into reverse and pulled out of her spot.

"It's not a Toyota."

"Nissan is RIGHT BEHIND TOYOTA in terms of reliability if that's what you're thinking."

"No it isn't. It's right behind Honda."

"Which is right behind Toyota."

"I don't care."

Spitfire groaned as Fleetfoot and Thunderlane pulled out of their spots, slowly following her through the parking lot.

"You three want somepony taping you?" a new male voice asked over the radio.

"Oh hey Soarin," Spitfire replied. "Sure. Why not?"

"Alright. I'll follow you in the air."

Spitfire smirked as they passed the white and black hatchback, eyeing the M3 in the rearview mirror. Time for a sparring run.

vrrrrOOOOOoooommmm-EEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Spitfire's S14 tore around a corner, accelerating out like a rocket.

The fiery pegasus looked in the mirror as she flew down a straightaway, seeing two headlights shrink in the distance. She smirked.

"If I keep this up I'll be ready for the airshow in no time."

She let off the throttle and let the S14 decelerate a little as she went down a straight. She preferred not to completely trash her brakes unless she was on a serious time attack run.

Edo Boys - No One Sleep In Tokyo starts playing.

EEEE!

A set of headlights flew around a curve behind.

"Finally catchin' up ay?" Spitfire remarked.

vroooooooOOOoooooommmmm

The headlights caught up quickly. Two white boxes with two slightly smaller yellow boxes several inches below.

"Wait, that's not one of ours," she said, not recognizing the car. "Is that an MR2 or a 180?"

The car tailed her, sticking close to her bumper. She looked forward. "Alright. Let's see what this guy's got to give."

She pressed hard on the accelerator, speeding down the straightaway with the car behind sticking to her bumper.

They entered a right corner, braking and drifting through the inside with slip angle in a parallel drift before exiting. They barely had time to accelerate before having to slow down and drift into a left corner. But even as she exited, the headlights stayed right behind her.

"Nice drivin' chief but after three corners you won't even be a speck in my rearview mirror!" Spitfire exclaimed as she pressed on the accelerator.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Spitfire went hard on the brakes as she approached a left hairpin, performing a braking drift to slide into the inside easily. She glanced behind and saw a white and black liftback drifting mere centimeters from her S14.

"Woah is that a Corolla!? You're kiddin' me!"

She put the pedal to the metal as they exited, trying to speed away from the mysterious Corolla Hatchback.

Her efforts were in vain as the Corolla stuck right behind her down a straightaway. Any closer and it would be rubbing her bumper.

"How is it sticking to my bumper!? It's a Corolla! A modified Corolla sure but I don't hear a Turbo!"

Tires squealed as they flew around a right curve. Brake rotors lit up red, gears locked into place, and engines revved as she and the Corolla entered a left corner. Both cars turned quickly, drifting through the inside before Spitfire exited a couple of inches from the guardrail, while the Corolla exited centimeters from it.

The veteran flyer bit her lip as she watched the Corolla switch into the left lane and slowly bring its front right wheel next to her rear left.

Crap. I'm gonna need to pick up the pace here if I want to stay ahead! were her thoughts as a left curve approached.

She tried moving towards the inside, crowding the Corolla to try and make it back off. As she used an advanced grip run technique through the inside of the corner, the left side of her car darken.

Good. Stay back there.

As the left corner ended and took her into the following right corner, she saw the right side of the S14 brighten. Her eyes widened as she saw the Corolla diving for the inside.

"Oh no you don't!" she yelled. "I'm not giving you the inside that easily!"

She pressed on the accelerator and steered inward, trying to force the Corolla to once again back off. To her tremendous surprise, the Corolla went even further to the inside and began passing her!

"What in Tartarus!? How are you doing that?!"

The Corolla drifted on the inside, pulling itself parallel to the S14.

There shouldn't be any ground where you're driving! she internally yelled, remembering the lidless drainage gutters on either side of the road for this particular part of the course. How are you driving there!?

As they both exited, Spitfire heard a quick thunk as the Corolla sped side by side with her. She looked at the Corolla to spot its driver, but couldn't get a good look.

She looked forward. I'll be on the inside through this next corner. But after that, there's a right hairpin. I gotta pull ahead if I want to STAY ahead.

Without missing a beat, she let off the accelerator and steered to the inside of a left curve to maximize stability, barely letting the tires squeal.

But the Corolla's tires were squealing.

Spitfire would have smiled if she didn't see the Corolla on her right, nearly matching her pace!

"WHAT!? How are you turning?! I have the inside line!"

Though she was pulling ahead, the rate at which she did so was too slow. The Corolla sat half a car length behind her as they accelerated down a small straight before braking and drifting into a right hairpin, Corolla on the inside with Spitfire on the outside.

Spitfire growled as the Corolla Liftback sped through the inside and exited right in front of her, pulling away.

How can he pull away so easily? she wondered. I have the turbo! He doesn't!

The Corolla braked and drifted through a left corner, pulling away from Spitfire.

That turn! How can he use slip angle so effortlessly? I've never seen that car on this pass before!

She followed the car the best she could, noting how the pace had shifted. It felt more cautious. It looked like the Corolla was feeling out the road. But something about it felt familiar.

Left curve followed by a long right hairpin. Spitfire followed the Corolla, further recognizing the way it drove.

Suddenly, it turned into a silver BMW E30 M3 Evolution III, drifting through each corner. Spitfire couldn't believe it.

"I know that driving! I KNEW it wasn't Thunderlane driving last night!" she yelled as the E30 Evo turned back into the Corolla. "It was somepony else! Somepony who want to-"

Music ends.

BANG!

Spitfire felt the front left tire drop into the lidless gutter, creating a horrific screeching noise. The S14 slid around sideways as she instinctively pressed the clutch and brakes, coming to a stop sideways in the middle of the road.

She looked towards the Corolla just as it disappeared around a corner, taillights stalling and tires squealing as it disappeared into the night.

She looked at the steering wheel.

"Holy crap..." she slowly said. "How was I just beaten by a... Corolla? A Trueno? Me, captain of the Wonderbolts, beaten by a Trueno?"

She opened her door and got out just as Soarin landed next to her S14.

"Spitfire! What the heck was that?" he asked.

"I... don't know," she quietly replied.

The quiet sound of brakes squealing was heard behind them. looking over, they saw Fleetfoot's R32 and Thunderlane's E30 Evo come to a stop on the side of the road. The respective drivers got out.

"Oh sweet Celestia, he passed you too?" Fleetfoot asked as she and Thunderlane walked over.

"Yeah." Spitfire scowled as she looked to where the Corolla had disappeared. "And my pride doesn't like it one bit."

She looked at her S14. "I've been driving this road for years. No Autech Tuned S14 should get dusted by a Corolla of any kind. Much less one from the distant past."

"Wait, are you thinking what I think you're thinking?" Fleetfoot asked.

"I can't let the pride of the Wonderbolts be tarnished like that. We race up and down this road to sharpen our reflexes to a tee. That's why the top Wonderbolts are as good as flying as they are, except Fleetfoot. To have somepony casually waltz over here and beat us? We can't let that happen."

Spitfire looked back to where the Corolla had disappeared. "I don't care who that person is. I'm going to battle him down this mountain if it's the last thing I-"

vroooooOOOOOOm- vroooooooooo

Headlights suddenly appeared from around the corner. Within seconds, the same Corolla passed them doing about 30MPH, barely flinching at the presence of the four pegasi and three cars.

"Wait, why is he heading back up?" Thunderlane wondered.

"Because he's practicing," Spitfire coldly replied. "He's attacking our home turf."

"Oh! Uh, Princess Luna!" Twilight exclaimed as she saw the midnight Alicorn standing at the front door. "I-I didn't know you'd be here!"

"After reading your message, I had to come," Luna calmly replied. "May I come in?"

"Um- Of course!" Twilight stepped aside.

Luna nodded and walked in, quietly closing the door behind her via magic. "Do you know where Takumi is?"

"Um... no."

"No?" Luna stopped and stared at Twilight.

"Last I remember, he said something about going to a place he and Rumble went to last night. I tried getting Rumble to tell me where, but he never cracked."

Luna thought of the places he could have gone last night. It had to have been a mountain road. Where else would Takumi go?

The question was, which mountain road? It could not have been the Canterlot Turnpike. She was on that road until just minutes before she had to lower the moon. If he had been anywhere near the road, she would have known.

"Takumi should not be out here in Ponyville. Neither he nor Itsuki should be. Somepony could easily see and take them."

"But, Luna, weren't they normal pon- people back in their world?"

Luna sighed. "That is exactly why me and my sister have been lax on them. Itsuki is in Rainbow Dash's company, who is a very capable mare should something happen, but Takumi..."

"Takumi... is by himself?"

Luna nodded. "Takumi does not trust many. He seems to only trust me."

"Why?"

"Because I have spent the most time with him."

They fell into silence for a moment. Luna continued to figure out where Takumi could be. She would be lying if she said she was not worried.

"Twilight, do you know where a mountain road is?"

Twilight was surprised. "Yeah. I know plenty. Why?"

"Where is the closest road?"

"Wonderbolt Training Acadamy access highway is the most notable I can think of. I don't car enough to memorize the others."

"Perfect. And one last thing, where is Itsuki Takeuchi and Rainbow Dash?"

"They are... somewhere around Ponyville. Probably pulling another prank somewhere."

"Why?"

"Because Rainbow likes to pull pranks."

"Fair enough. Anyways, I shall fly out to the Academy and find Takumi."

"You-... um, ok then."

"Sorry for leaving on short notice. I just want to find Takumi. I would hate for something to happen to him."

"Same here. In that case, uh, bye."

Luna simply nodded before walking past Twilight and back out the front door. She eyed Ponyville for a split second before unfurling her wings and taking to the sky, eyes locked on Mount Bolt. The two-third mile tall mountain with the WTA sitting on top. She smirked.

Takumi, are you doing what I think you are doing?

Author's Note

I feel like this chapter is a little all over the place. I don't know why. Reading through it, it feels both fine and not fine at the same time. Specifically with Luna talking to Twilight. I couldn't decide between leaving it in or not. As you can tell, I left it in. MAYBE I'll take it out at a later date. Maybe.

Act 14: Practice

"He's just... practicing. Over and over. Run after run," Spitfire said, watching the Corolla travel back uphill from the air.

"How is he still going?" Soarin asked. "Look at those speeds he's been running at. How in Equestria have his tires not blown out? And how is he maintaining that speed?"

"I don't know..." Spitfire rubbed her chin. "I really don't know..."

"Hm, I'm gonna see if I can talk to the guy," Fleetfoot said. "He's been doing back-to-back runs for a while now. Surely he's gotta be a little tired."

Without another word, Fleetfoot flew down to the entrance of the Academy Parking Lot, landing next to her R32.

As the sound of the Corolla's engine grew closer, Fleetfoot looked at her R32.

Upgrading from a Galant VR-4 to you has been... awesome. She thought with a smirk. Even though I've only driven you for a day now, you are leagues better. Sorry Mistubishi. But a VR-4 just cannot compare to a GT-R.

She put a hoof on the fender. "300 Horsepower, all wheel steering, all wheel drive, Advanced Total Traction Engineering System for All-Terrain system with the Electronic Torque System, when I let you loose on both the uphill and downhill, Spitfire is going to beg for mercy with how fast I'll be."

squeee

Fleetfoot turned to spot the Corolla coming to a stop in front of her Skyline. She watched the right door to allow a white unicorn with black hair and brown eyes to get out.

"Do you know where a bathroom is?" The stallion asked, holding the door open.

Fleetfoot just stared, blinking twice.

"Hello? Bathroom?"

Fleetfoot shook her head and pointed. "Uh, yeah! Th-That building over there."

"Thanks."

Without another word, the stallion turned off the Corolla's engine and shut the door, and unfurled a pair of wings, taking off and quickly flying to the building Fleetfoot had pointed to.

The pegasus just stared wide-eyed as the Corolla's driver landed and walked inside. Her jaw slowly opened as Spitfire, Soarin, and Thunderlane landed behind her.

"Fleetfoot, did you see the driver?" Spitfire quickly asked, seeing that the Corolla had nopony in it.

"Fuck." Fleetfoot said.

"What?"

"FUCK! Fuck fuck fuck FUCK. We're fucked. We are actually fucked."

"Woah, Fleetfoot, pull back on the F-Bombs. What's wrong?"

Fleetfoot turned around to face her teammates. "It's a kid. He's a kid. He's a fucking kid."

Spitfire's eyes widened. "Wait, the driver?"

"YES! He couldn't be more than twenty!"

"WHAT!?" The three yelled in surprise.

"Not even kidding."

"Ha... how can a KID keep up with me?" Spitfire stared at the Corolla. "Granted, my tires aren't the best. But he's only driven this course a few times now. Not to mention he's using a Corolla! Plus he drove Thunderlane's car!"

"He drove what?" Thunderlane asked.

"Please, I had a suspicion that it wasn't you last night driving your E30 downhill."

"Then why did you bump my pay rate?"

Spitfire ignored the question. "How did he even get his hooves on your car?"

Thunderlane scowled. "Takumi."

Everypony looked at him.

"Takumi?" Spitfire asked.

"Somepony named Takumi foalsitted my little brother yesterday." His eyes widened as he looked at the Corolla. "Wait, oh SHOOT! I'm an idiot. I'm an actual idiot. This is the exact car that Takumi got out of yesterday!"

"You unobservant moron." Spitfire facehoofed before looking at the Corolla.

How? How are you so fast? She wondered. You're just a Corolla. How can you be as fast as an S14 Autech?

"Spitfire? You alright?" Fleetfoot asked.

"It's just a Corolla. Obviously, it's been modified. The carbon hood and headlights bring out a totally different look." She walked to the side, peering at the interior. "Oh dang it's an import. Let's see. Bucket seats and harnesses, plus an aftermarket wheel. And... WAIT."

"What?"

Spitfire's eyes locked to the tachometer sitting just in front of the stock tachometer. Most tachometers went up to 9K RPM like her Silvia. If the engine were to rev higher, the needle would just stop at 9K or a little past it.

So why did this car have a 12K RPM tachometer!?

"It can't rev up that high, right?" She asked herself. "It's just a Corolla."

"Hm?"

"Look at the tachometer." Spitfire pointed. "It goes up to 12K!"

The three were surprised.

"Uh... maybe he has that to know where he is in the rev range at all times?" Fleetfoot suggested. "Even if he's overrevving? I head the stock motors on these could go up to 8K."

"That is pretty far under 12K."

"I'm confused..." Soarin trailed, rubbing his forehead.

"Yeah." Spitfire walked to the rear, leaning down towards the rear right wheel. "Live axle suspension. This car has live axle rear suspension. HOW. HOW is it staying straight? How does this car stay straight when It's moving like lightning through the turns!"

Takumi finished washing his face in what had to be the cleanest public bathroom he'd ever been in.

"Drive." He said to himself as he stared at his reflection, a few bits of water running down.

"That's what I need to do." He continued. "Racing has become the most normal thing about my life. It calms me down. To practice a different course besides Akina, at 80%, it feels like I'm racing for the D again. Chances are, these people that have been watching me want an actual race."

He turned and walked out of the bathroom, unfurling his wings and taking off.

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little excited," he continued talking to himself, letting off a smile. "It's been a while since I went up against good racers. Like, actually good racers. Not ones that-" He scowled. "-use cheap and dirty tricks to screw over the team."

He silently landed a dozen feet from the Skyline R32, noticing the four pegasi standing and talking between it and his 86.

Really. He internally thought. The only real battle I had that actually pushed me in Saitama was with Sakamoto. Other than that, the races were easy. He eyed the pegasi. Maybe I can start having good battles here. In Equestria. Maybe I could... could I go and do what I did back on earth? Go from mountain to mountain, beating racers and course records?

He sighed as he walked towards the pegasi, listening in on their conversation. Would Ryosuke want that?

"Really. He's been running at ludicrous pace for the whole night." One of them said. "How in Equestria are his tires still this good?" The yellow pegasus wondered, rubbing the front right tire of the 86.

Takumi sat a little behind the light blue pegasus, waiting for someone to notice him.

"I'd like to remind you guys that he's a teenager." The pegasus he sat next to said. "Younger than any of the Wonderbolts."

"Yeah. How. He's had like, what? Two years at most? He'd have to train nonstop to be as good as me. I have five years under my belt. There is no way he could be as good."

Takumi rolled his eyes before clearing his throat. "Ahem."

Everyone looked at him.

"Oh! Hey! Uh, you're back!" Fleetfoot greeted.

Takumi said nothing.

"Ah. So, you're the driver of this Corolla?" Spitfire asked.

"Yeah," Takumi replied. "It's mine."

Spitfire stood still, examining Takumi. He was of average build for a stallion his age, with the exception of a mare-like muzzle.

That's when she noticed his wings.

"Wait..." Her eyes slowly widened. "Are you... an Alicorn?"

"Yes."

Everypony was understandably surprised. Not just at the fact that they were staring at an Alicorn, but how nonchalantly he had confirmed that he was.

"You..." Fleetfoot shook her head as she processed words. "You wouldn't happen to know somepony named Itsuki, would you?"

"Yeah. He's my best friend."

The pegasi stared at him for a couple of moments. Takumi tilted his head.

"So, do you want to... race or something?"

Spitfire quickly shook her head. "Uh, yeah, about that. How. In Equestria. Are you able to keep up with me? In Corolla of all things?"

Nearby, a dark blue shape landed and quietly eavesdropped.

"It's not hard. I've been driving for a while."

"Yet you can keep up with me?"

"I just copy your driving is all," Takumi deadpanned.

"You copy my driving. Great. How?"

Takumi sighed. "You're in a car, I'm in a car. Both have four wheels, neither are going to fly. Since you can turn a corner, I can turn at the same speed."

Everypony stared.

"Um, alright. So..." Spitfire took a deep breath. "Do you... want to race?"

"On new tires. Yeah."

"Fair enough. When?"

"Tomorrow maybe."

"Why not tonight?"

"Oh, so you have tires up here?"

"Um... not really."

"Exactly."

Spitfire sighed. "Well, tomorrow then. How does ten sound?"

"Fine by me."

There was visible excitement on the pegasi's faces.

Takumi walked around them and to the 86, opening the door. "I'm gonna keep practicing if that's alright with you."

"Of course. Take as much time as you like. We won't stop you."

"You won't try and spill oil on the road?" Takumi asked, shooting them all a look of hatred.

Soarin took a step back. "Why would we do that?"

Takumi sighed. "Sorry, I'm just a little paranoid is all. In the last race I had, these idiots in Lancer Evo's spilled oil on the road and made my friend crash."

The pegasi were surprised.

Spitfire was the first to speak. "Oh... well, as captain of the Wonderbolts I can assure you that we won't do that. And if anypony does, they'll be immediately discharged."

Takumi smirked. "Discharged? What are you a military officer or something?"

"Actually yes. The Wonderbolts double as both an Air Racing Team and the Air Force."

Takumi was surprised. "You..." He shook his head. "What is it with people of authority street racing in this world?"

"What? Hey, we do this because it helps our reflexes. Flying only does so much."

Takumi rolled his eyes. "Of course. Anyways, see you."

With that, the Alicorn closed the door and started the engine, waiting a moment before turning around and accelerating down the hill.

The four Wonderbolt Members looked at each other.

"Not gonna lie, he was a pretty nice kid," Spitfire remarked.

"Yeah. He was." Fleetfoot agreed. "Didn't even care that we were Wonderbolts. Nice change from all the fancolts."

Spitfire noticed Thunderlane's annoyed look. "Something wrong?"

"I'm just annoyed that he stole my car is all," Thunderlane replied.

"Hey, at least we know how fast your car can truly be."

"I... guess...?"

Spitfire looked at her S14 that was parked just across the road. "I honestly can't wait to race him. Having an actual challenge is gonna be awesome."

The dark blue shape that had been eavesdropping nodded in agreement. "Indeed it will be, Spitfire Mariner."

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

After his tires finished screeching through the corner as the 86 finished its slide angle and exited the corner, Takumi shot out of the turn throttling heavily.

He upshifted quickly with instant and clean use of the clutch and throttle. The 86's linear acceleration on the downhill was excellent, and he quickly cleared the straightaway to enter a sharp right and nearly let the rear slide out from how quickly he cornered.

Takumi recovered his slip angle at the last second with a bit of countersteering on the exit to regain traction and instantly used the gas, slowly pressing the pedal down until he was flooring it.

The 4A-GEU Silvertop revved louder as Takumi accelerated, shifting early at 9K RPM to clear the next straightaway. His speed decreased sharply as he entered a right hairpin, letting the 86 slide well before the hairpin even began to take the absolute best line through the inside.

"I've never seen anypony let their car drift before a hairpin," Spitfire remarked as she, Fleetfoot, Soarin, and Thunderlane flew in the air, watching the 86 exit the hairpin.

"Same here." Fleetfoot concurred. "Everypony I've seen in a car like that only drifts when they're in the corner. Or switchback. I've never seen somepony drift before a hairpin. At least, not that far before one."

"Spitfire, he's running as fast as you," Thunderlane noted. "Sorry to be the naysayer of the group, but I don't think you're gonna win this."

"Come on Thunderlane. I'll win. I can drive faster than that."

"Think we should set up a strategy?" Fleetfoot asked.

"Yeah. Might as well. I'm thinking a classic time attack. I'll go tune my S14 a little and think of something. You three can think of something too."

"I'll come with you then."

"Alright. Thunderlane, Soarin, you two watch him."

"Copy that captain."

With a salute, the four parted. Spitfire and Fleetfoot flew back up the mountain, while Soarin and Thunderlane continued to watch the 86.

As Takumi slowed down and got ready to turn around, he noticed a certain somepony standing on the side of the road, waving at him.

Luna. In her juvenile form.

Takumi felt his face reddening as he cringed. What the actual hell is with her? He wondered.

He rolled the window down as he stopped. "Luna I swe-hare to god why are you following me?" He laughed.

Luna smiled. "After Twilight sent me a letter about what happened between you and her earlier, I had to come to check on you."

Takumi's smile faded. He looked forward, remembering how he snapped at Twilight.

Luna looked up and quickly noticed the two pegasi staring at her. "May I get in?"

"Sure..."

Without missing a beat, Luna trotted around the front and got in via the left door, quickly buckling her harness.

She looks so cute... Takumi thought as he turned around.

"So. About earlier, what happened?"

Takumi sighed. "I just... I don't know. I guess I was just thinking about some stuff that put me in a bad mood. How did you find me?"

"Twilight said you were going to a place you and Rumble went to before. It had to be a mountain pass, and I knew you couldn't have gone to the Turnpike. Twilight proceeded to tell me about this road, and, well, here I am."

"Hm. Fair enough."

Luna watched Takumi intently as he shifted into second gear, looking for any sign of that... thing she had seen the other night. That nightmarish form of Takumi.

Seeing nothing, she looked ahead. "What have you been thinking about?"

"Nothing."

"Takumi, please."

"...I wanna go home."

Luna felt her heart deflate a little. She didn't know why. She knew Takumi wanted to go home, and she had dealt with this a few times before, so why she felt extra sad about Takumi saying it, she didn't know. Maybe it was because he was from an entirely different world and that she was powerless to do anything about it.

She let out a sigh. "I know you do. And I truly wish to help in that regard, but nopony knows a single spell to transfer between dimensions."

"I know, but I just... I... why me? Why me and Itsuki? We don't deserve to be Alicorns. Itsuki especially. We don't deserve to live a thousand years or to be princes. We don't deserve this world. This world doesn't-... need us..."

Luna quickly reached over and rubbed Takumi's shoulder. "Takumi, how could you say that?"

"I mean, we're Alicorns. This world doesn't need any more Alicorns. This world is amazing and all, but I just..."

Luna noticed that the ride had changed. It was smooth, and Takumi did keep them in the correct lane, but it also felt uncertain. It was like the ride changed depending on his mood. Not like how it would with some, like somepony driving aggressively because they were in a bad mood, it truly felt like the ride would reflect his emotion.

"Takumi, I do not know if you or Itsuki deserve to be Alicorns, but you are both here now. We cannot change that. Or at least, we do not know any spells that could send you back to your world."

Silence.

"What are the odds that even if we did find a way back to your world, we would know how to turn you back into your human self?"

Takumi looked at her with a look of disgust. "Says the one that can change into a younger version of herself."

"This is different. I can only perform this on myself, and I have an extremely limited number of forms I could change to."

Takumi scoffed and looked ahead. "Of freaking course."

A moment passed. Seeing as Takumi wasn't saying anything, she decided to try something. Try and answer a question that had been on her mind since she first sat in this car.

Why could she not use magic?

First, she tried a basic levitation spell on one of her harness straps. Nothing. She couldn't feel a single bit of magic going through her head or horn. She tried a more powerful spell. Same result.

She rolled down her window and pointed outward, testing multiple spells of different types. Teleportation spells, Magic Bolts, Blasting spells, etcetera. All of them yielded the same results. Absolutely zero feeling.

Takumi watched Luna as she tried doing... whatever she was doing. It sucked. No, not what she was doing, but the fact that Celestia and Luna were both a thousand years old, yet they had never found an interdimensional spell, just sucked. If freaking TIME TRAVEL existed, how does interdimensional travel not exist?

"So..." Takumi trailed as he tried to find the words. Luna looked at him. "Just a thought. Are Alicorns... immortal?"

"Hm..." Luna tapped her chin. "In a sense, maybe. Though only in age. We do feel pain, and we can die to physical harm."

"So we can live forever?"

"As of now, that is true. There are no recordings of an Alicorn dying of age, or even showing signs of old age."

"Oh, so where did the other Alicorns go? Besides you and Celestia?"

"We... do not know. We do not know if there were ever any other Alicorns."

Takumi just stared ahead as he rounded a corner.

"Are there any other questions you have?"

Takumi had several questions.

"Why do you keep following me?"

Luna was a bit surprised considering he had already asked that. "Why?"

"It's just..." He sighed. "I don't know. I've just never had someone follow me like you do. Well, I have actually, but you're a princess. Not a highschooler."

"I am a highschooler."

Takumi looked at her, eyes wide and jaw nearly dropping.

Luna could only contain herself for two seconds before bursting out laughing. Takumi thought he was staring at a filly with the way she acted. It was honestly pretty cute. But that didn't change the fact that she had just said she was a highschooler.

"Whaaa?"

"I'm kidding! That fa-hace... oh... your face was priceless."

Takumi felt heat rush to his face as he looked forward. "Great."

"Hehe, oh that was... mmmm."

Takumi found himself smiling a little. Hearing Luna laugh like that was, as with many things in this world, CUUUUTE. Why were ponies so freaking cute? Fluttershy was of course the physical embodiment of the word, Starlight was nice, Luna is now being cute, everyone- EVERYONE (except Pinkie) IS CUTE!

"What are you thinking about?" Luna asked, stopping his cutesy train of thought. "I see you grinning over there."

"Uht... shush. Nothing."

Ohhhh I love messing with ponies like Takumi. Luna thought. "Anyways," She began as the WTA parking lot came into view. "How many times are we going to drive downhill?"

"Until my tires are shot I guess. You know where a good place for tires my size are? I've been wanting to run at 80% but I've had to cut my speed to preserve the tires for as long as possible."

"Hmm... I think I know a place. But I think we should keep going for as long as possible on this set. I want to see if those forums saying you MUST have good tires to be fast is true."

Takumi rolled his eyes. "Alright then."

Twenty minutes later.

"Wait, he's leaving. Wow! He's actually leaving!" Soarin exclaimed as the Corolla zipped away from the mountain.

"Finally! Hey, wanna see how Spitfire and Fleetfoot are doing?" Thunderlane asked.

"Sure. Let's go."

The two shot up the mountain, quickly making their way to the Academy. As they flew, Soarin had a thought.

"Any idea who that other mare was that got in a couple runs ago?"

Thunderlane shook his head. "Nope. No idea. All I got was that she was purple and that was it."

"Mm. Too light of a shade to be Twilight."

"Why in Equestria would TWILIGHT hang out with a street racer? I've seen the mare a few times. Sure she owns a freaking Bolide but she wouldn't street race."

Soarin shrugged. "Fair. Except Takumi or, whatever his name was, is an Alicorn."

"Yeah. Also Itsuki. What's up with that? Two new Alicorns, both of them stallions, who street race."

"Mm. Still. I wonder who that pony was that got in with him."

"I wanna know how the fuck he went four full runs without changing his tires ONCE."

Soarin wholeheartedly agreed with Thunderlane on that. Sure, the road was just repaved last week, but how could someone drive at that pace for so long without shredding their tires? Sure, Stock Cars use tires that last up to 100 miles at a constant 200MPH, but those were used on prepped tarmac and mostly sustained forward friction. If that made sense. The way Takumi was driving included sideways friction. PLUS, while Stock Car Tires were legal for road use, they were stupidly expensive.

Soon, they landed in front of a half open garage door of a mechanic shop. The lights were on inside, and they could hear Spitfire and Fleetfoot talking. Soarin and Thunderlane agreed to stand around the corner to see what they were talking about.

"A Sprinter Trueno," Spitfire slowly said. "That's what it is. 124HP for the Ponyland models, the best model weighs- oh dang only a bit over 2000 pounds."

"Holy crap check this out. The Black Limited weighs only 1700 pounds!" Fleetfoot exclaimed.

"The Black Limited?"

"Yeah. Hm... the first and only car ever to be made of Chitin."

There was a pause.

"Chitin?" Spitfire asked.

"Changeling skin."

"Wait what the fu-" Soarin walked in without hesitation. "Who in their right mind would make a car out of CHANGELING SKIN?"

"Oh. Hello Soarin." Fleetfoot greeted as Thunderlane followed. "You too Thunderlane. And I don't know why somepony would make a car out of Chitin. Not much is known about the Black Limited's origins other than specs and such."

Spitfire tapped at her laptop. "Says here that the Black Limited was rumored to be an attempt to see the viability of Chitin. I guess it was a success since 400 models were made. Along with one hundred... prototypes?"

"One Hundred Prototypes?" The other three asked.

"It says it in quotation marks. I dunno."

"Damn. The Black Limited must... really be something." Thunderlane could only imagine how fast a Black Limited must be, if Takumi was able to bring a normal AE86 to Spitfire's speeds, the thought of him using a black limited was terrifying.

"Wait, you think Takumi uses a Black Limited?"

"No." Spitfire quickly replied. "His car is a GT-APEX. A 16 Valve."

Thunderlane grew angry. "Buh- there is no fucking way that was a 16 Valve engine I saw accelerating up and down the mountain."

"Yeah. I'm pissed too." Spitfire resisted the urge to slam her hoof on the floor. "That thing is modified. Extremely modified. It ain't a regular Sprinter. I've been around my fair share of professionally tuned cars. That Sprinter is one of them."

"Wait really? Professionally tuned?"

Spitfire nodded.

"Well... damn. What are we gonna do about that?"

"I'm gonna tune my car for more power. Octane rating is gonna go through the roof but whatever. I can pay for it."

"Why's that?"

"Turbo boost. Duh. More boost equals way more compression."

Fleetfoot rolled her eyes and looked at the engine bay of Spitifre's S14, the hood currently supported by a bar. "Say, what horsepower ratings do you think you're gonna try for?"

"Well right now I'm running the bone stock 316. I think I'll shoot for 350." Spitfire replied. "I'll have to spend the whole morning testing and making sure the engine can take the extra boost. I know these SR20's are almost bulletproof but I gotta make sure."

"Wait how much boost are you running?"

"About uh... 8? 9 PSI?"

"Oh."

Fleetfoot looked back at the engine bay and smirked. Who am I kidding? This is Spitfire. She's never lost a race on this mountain. No way she can lose to a Sprinter.

"Should we let the team know?" Soarin asked. "This'll be one heck of a race."

"Absolutely," Spitfire replied with a smile. "To be honest, I've been itching for a good race for a while now. It's been getting stale with the recruits."

"Mm. It'll be fun."

Fleetfoot nearly rolled her eyes. If Takumi didn't show up, I'd have given you the race of a lifetime.

"Anyways." Spitfire stood up and used a wing to place her laptop on a table. "Time to get to work. Gonna need to replace the progressive springs if I want the car to be responsive. When I'm done, she'll be as nimble as a training jet."

"Wait, you use progressive springs too?" Thunderlane asked.

Spitfire nodded. "It's my daily. You think I'd drive around in a car with rock-hard suspension?"

Thunderlane glanced at Soarin before looking back. "Yeah?"

"Well, I use progressive springs for the same reason you do on your E30." She picked up a wrench. "Now enough chit-chat. Time to get to work."

Ponyville.

TSSSSS!

Takumi and Luna aired up the last of the four tires before lowering the 86 back on the ground.

"There. Now we can continue practicing." Luna said, still in her juvenile form.

"Yeah, we can," Takumi replied. He looked at the dirt road. "Seriously, what is with these haybales?"

Lining the dirt road and several other roads throughout Ponyville were haybales. Ones that marked out a circuit that crossed in the middle.

Luna rubbed her chin. "Hmm... I do not know. They must have a purpose. Perhaps an event is taking place in the day. Rural towns always have their own odd events. It is hard to keep track of them all."

"So, events tied to just the town?"

Luna nodded.

"Hm."

Soon, the two were back on the highway, driving towards the WTA's mountain. Or 'Mount Bolt', as Luna said it was called.

Luna watched Takumi again. After seeing that form of him, she made a habit out of watching for it. She wanted to see it again, spot the fine details. Then she could tell Celestia about it. She didn't want to tell Celestia now. The reason was she wanted to get a better idea about the form, and she wanted more then one sighting of it. If that made sense.

Sadly, nothing. Takumi was in his default state. AKA the dazed and inattentive posture and expression.

Why did it feel both normal and abnormal to call that his default state?

Soon, the 86 tilted upwards. Luna looked forward at the twists and turns, watching them go by. The ride felt smooth and controlled as always. Far different than the four times she had tried riding in a limousine. Even with the most luxurious of fabrics under her and most comfortable of suspension supporting the limo, the way the driver would drive was abysmal.

86.

86...

"Takumi?"

"Hm?"

Luna chose her words. "I... I do not know much about your world, but since you have the same cars as us, I must ask you something."

"Shoot."

"Well, it may not be my place to ask, but what is somepony your age doing with an-..." She looked at Takumi. "86?"

Takumi glanced at her for a split second before refocusing on the road. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, most teenagers your age would rather have a car of a higher spec than yours. Something newer and well-known. Why did you choose an 86?"

"Well, It wasn't my decision in the first place. It was my father's."

This perked Luna's interest.

"He bought it new, and it's been our only car so it ended up being the one I drove. We never needed a new one. I've been driving her for so long, I guess I've grown attached to her."

"Hm. How interesting."

"I mean, why get a new car when the one you already have works fine?"

"Heh, very true. I have noticed that you referred to your car as she."

"Yeah. What about that?"

Luna sighed. "It has always intrigued me why ponies treat their vehicles like living beings. To my knowledge, cars do not have souls. They never have."

"Well... when you spend enough time with someone, or something, you develop a connection with them."

"Hmm, yes. I do know of this. Even if you were to force sworn enemies into a room together, and keep them there, they will subconsciously grow towards each other as time passes. Sometimes I wonder if that is a good way to reform villains. To force them into a room with somepony and see what happens."

"This 86..." Takumi rubbed the steering wheel. "...has been more then just a car. I don't mean that as it's more than a contraption that gets me from A to B or anything. It's... it's my companion."

Initial D Fourth Stage Sound Files vol.2 - Natsuki's Theme starts playing.

"Your companion?"

Images of the 86 driving flowed through as Takumi spoke.

"Throughout the time I've driven it, this 86 has never let me down. I know that's probably due to my dad maintaining it, but on the mountain pass? I get to spend a lot of time with it. Feeling it out, getting to know it better, I even talk to it and share my feelings with it if you can believe it."

Luna smiled. "I do believe it."

Takumi returned the smile as he thought about his early days of street racing.

"Throughout my racing career, it's always there with me. It loves me as much as I love it. FD, R32, SilEighty, S14, FC, It's always fighting alongside me, and I'm always fighting alongside it. When you drive a car for as long as I have, you feel a real connection. People who treat their cars as living beings and listen to what they want are the ones that succeed the most."

His ears drooped. "That's why when I blew the engine, I... I let it down."

Luna gasped. "You... blew the engine?"

Takumi nodded, remembering a black Lancer Evo III. "I was racing a black CE9A. Akagi Pass. That night, I found out that the only person I had felt feelings for was a prostitute. She was being paid for sexual favors by an older man. When I saw it, I got angry. I went out to Akagi and fought a losing battle."

Her ears dropped. "Oh no..."

"I pushed it too hard. I... The moment that engine blew, I knew I had let the 86 down. I failed her. It wasn't her fault the engine blew. It was mine. I let my anger get the best of me with a dying engine."

"Did you... overrev it?"

"No. It was old. 200000 kilometers. I know it had it coming but... I feel responsible. I caused the 86's death..." A tear slowly formed in his eye.

Had they been outside, Luna would have wrapped her hooves and wings around Takumi to comfort him. She hated seeing him this sad. She hated seeing anypony this sad.

"But, you got a new engine?" She didn't know if it was a question or not.

"Yeah." Takumi wiped the tear from his eye. "Even after that, the 86... the 86 forgave me. After blowing that engine, I realized just how important it is to me. How important racing is to me." He paused. "It never gives up. No matter the situation, it fights to the last drop of fuel and tread. I'll never hurt my 86 again. I don't care what happens to me. If I can never go back to my world, then the 86 is my world. And I will protect it."

Luna smiled as she wiped a tear. "Street racing is your life."

Takumi nodded. "Nobody can take it from me."

"Hm. You are a great pony, Takumi Fujiwara." She rubbed the dashboard. "I am sure you will make an amazing ruler given the time. Even if you never make it back to your world, you will always have the 86."

"Not only that, I'll always have you."

Luna was surprised. She looked over at Takumi who just stared ahead, feeling heat rush to her face. Takumi remained in his default state, but with a warm smile.

She smiled and looked back forward. No further words were said.

Author's Note

Incoming buzzkill A/N. Sorry.

So, this story has a problem. It has to do with the 86 Duo themselves. Takumi and Itsuki. I'm sure most if not all readers have taken note of it, but It is now an actual problem.

Takumi is a WAY more interesting character than Itsuki.

This is because in the show they are from, Initial D, Takumi is the main protagonist. Itsuki does play a good part in the show, enough to give a solid basis for his character, but the issue with Itsuki is that he was created as comic relief.

His character is generally a happy, easygoing extrovert, that knows his mistakes though has his sad moments like any other person. Human or Equine. And in this story, he is THRILLED at becoming an Alicorn! While I know it is possible to make a happy-go-lucky character interesting, alongside Takumi it's easy to know which one is better/more interesting than the other.

Takumi on the other hand is a reserved, mature individual who is focused on what will actually happen to him and his friends in the coming future. Of course, this isn't something that happens in the anime (which I HIGHLY recommend you go watch. PLEASE start with First Stage.) so I did take the liberty of that.

He has true history and a deep relationship with his old friends, so much to the point where he doesn't want to be an Alicorn. He'd rather be with his friends instead of being a literal god. To someone that hasn't seen the anime or manga, (likely half of this story's readers) this is super interesting.

The issue is that I have a main character alongside what was originally a frequent side character. Think Twilight Sparkle alongside Princess Luna. One is featured in nearly every episode, while the other is featured not too often, but often enough. This, in the context of characters from a totally different show, is just... not that great.

When I first started this story out, I loved the title of 'The Eight-Six Duo'. I still do. It started after I created the cover. It was meant as a simple edit I would post to Reddit. Then I turned it into a story because I love auto racing and MLP, and what better way to combine the two and properly introduce the MLP fandom to the sport than writing a crossover with the best racing show and movies as of 2021? I was 'caught in the moment' as one might say.

I simply don't know what to do with Itsuki now. At this point in the story, he's just hanging out with Rainbow Dash and showing her how to race cars. That's it. I did try to balance the amount of 'storytime' he's gotten by dedicating almost an entire act to him, but even then I simply love writing Takumi more.

Why did I pick Itsuki in the first place? One, there is a scene in First Stage of the anime (Instead of seasons, they are called stages.) where he literally says "We'll be known as the Eight-Six Duo!". Two, he is Takumi's best friend in the anime.

Anyways. As of this part, I could completely remove Itsuki from the equation and the story wouldn't change. He's not contributing much to the 'Duo'. He's there for filler. Ah' really wish ah' couldn't say that, but it's the gosh-darned truth.

I fear that I may force scenes with him. That I'll break away from the main story just to include him a little, possibly offsetting immersion. He is pointless. How am I supposed to write a secondary main character who doesn't have as much amazing history as the primary main character?

I'm considering going for a rewrite that removes Itsuki. He just isn't needed. I can think of some scenes, maybe some extra exposition, and of course the whole 'Twilight and Cadance are going to be teaching him about things'. I could even write him like what readers are. Someone interested in cars who wants to know more about how to work on and tune them. But other than that, I. DO NOT. KNOW. WHAT. TO DO!

So I am faced with a dilemma. Do I rewrite the story to remove Itsuki and allow more time to be spent with Takumi, or do I keep him in and pray to Celestia it works? I would like some answers, please. Help a writer out.

Act 16: Renshū

I don't deserve this. Takumi thought. Even if I do deserve it, I don't like it. What the hell did I do to deserve it?

"Takumi?" Luna quietly asked.

Takumi didn't do or say anything.

"I know this is a touchy subject, but we have to know. And please, answer truthfully."

"..."

"Have you... had suicidal thoughts?"

Takumi could feel both sisters shudder at the question. He never thought anyone who had lived a millennium would have such emotion. Much less towards him.

"Well... I can't say I haven't had them," he answered. He felt the sisters wince. "I've had them a couple times so far. Except I don't know if I'd ever be able to actually do it."

"Takumi... please, if you need anything, somepony to talk to, perhaps somepony you can keep secrets with,"

"Or if you simply need a hug," Celestia added.

"We are both here for you. We care about you."

"I know you do. But... I just... hm..." Takumi didn't know what to say.

They once again sat in silence. It was terrifying in a way. Anything could happen.

"Where's Cadance?" Takumi asked.

"I believe she is in her room." Celestia replied.

"Mm..."

EEEEEEEE!

A yellow Mazda FD3S flashed in front of his eyes, drifting as if it were going around a hairpin before disappearing.

Screw it. Might as well ask. He thought. "Do we have Elysiums?"

The sisters were surprised at the sudden question.

"Yes. Alicorns do. Why?" Celestia asked.

"What can we do with them?"

"Well, we can do about whatever we want," Luna explained. "We could create an entire fantasy world, all without affecting the real world. Mostly."

Takumi sat silent, taking in the information. "Hm."

"Any particular reason why you asked?"

"I mean... hmm..." He sighed. "It's gotten so boring. I don't like sitting around. I wanna do something."

"What would you like to do?"

"Well, at night I would run Tofu Deliveries. During the day I moved packages around. At least, I did back in-" He paused for a second. "...m-my world..."

"Ah. So you are solely a delivery boy."

"Used to be. Now I don't run anything. Sore wa totemo taikutsudesu..."

"Um..." The sisters looked at each other, wondering what the hay Takumi just said.

"What was that?" Luna asked.

"What was what?"-

"That language. Is that from your world?"

"Oh. Sorry. That was Japanese. I said 'It's so boring'."

"Huh. How interesting."

Takumi settled further into the pillow. It felt nice.

Elysium... He thought. I'm not religious by any means, but I know that people of immortality chosen by gods were sent there. Supposedly. Is this Elysium? I mean, I'm immortal, and this place does seem to be some sort of paradise. But... I just... no. It can't be Elysium. It can't be...

He could barely think straight. Too many things were going on. He was some kind of god, in a different world, he was immortal, all of which he did not want. Or deserve.

He didn't know when, but his vision went dark after some time.

"WOOOHOOOO! GO RAINBOW DASH AND SCOOTALOO!"

Itsuki watched the 60s Open Wheeler rocket by at 30MPH, stupid fast for a homemade go-kart powered by electricity, and cheered as Scootaloo flew through the central intersection.

He also watched as Rarity and Sweetie Belle rolled by in a swan-kart, Rarity rather rudely blocking the ENTIRE ROAD with a pair of swan wings. Also Rarity was driving for some reason. Last he checked, the kids were meant to drive. Not the adults.

The same was happening with AppleJack and Apple Bloom. They were in an 'Old Fashioned' kart that had wooden wheels, a shoddy design, and was horrendously slow. He could have pushed his 86 as fast as it even as a human. Judging by the look on both Apple Bloom's and Sweetie Belle's faces, neither were having a good time.

The derby had been going on for a little while now, ten to fifteen minutes maybe, with Scootaloo and Rainbow Dash leading the race by a full two laps. It was expected considering the latter of the two had built a kart specifically designed with speed in mind. The other racers had built theirs to be generalist cars. Like they were trying to win multiple medals.

Scootaloo steered the kart through a chicane while Rainbow Dash watched the wheels. She was impressed at how the wheels were effectively riveted to the kart, with zero amount of play in them.

"Hey Scoots, try drifting through this next corner!" Dash yelled.

"Drift?!"

"Steer right, then hard left! Get ready to countersteer! DON'T BRAKE!"

"Oh! Alright! If you say so!"

Scootaloo put the accelerator to the floor as they approached a hard left corner. Ponies cheered but grew alarmed at her speed, some even began running out of the way.

Dirt flew high as Scootaloo swerved right. She then threw the steering wheel left which offset the Kart's balance and caused the rear to lose traction and kick out. Scootaloo and Rainbow Dash screamed as they skidded towards the outside. A pony sitting on one of the haybales fell over backward as the rear of the kart came inches from the haybales. The kart regained traction and flew out of the corner at speed.

"Holy crap did you see that!?" One pony asked.

"I think they were trying to kill me!" The pony who fell over exclaimed.

"Wooohooo! Great job Scootaloo!" Dash yelled.

"That was awesome!" Scootaloo yelled back.

"LAST LAP FOR SCOOTALOO AND RAINBOW DASH!" Cheerilee yelled through a megaphone. "LAST LAP FOR SCOOTALOO AND RAINBOW DASH!"

"Oh shoot seriously!?" Dash yelled.

Itsuki was surprised. They were leading by a full THREE laps now! "Good god they're really bookin' it!"

Scootaloo, feeling confident, drifted through another corner. Both she and Dash laughed and the crowd cheered as the kart slid sideways and exited the corner with speed, passing another racer. The crowd loved the way Scootaloo handled the kart through the corners, loving how she specifically cost her time to have fun. It was great.

"GO GO GO! YOU CAN DO IT!" Itsuki yelled as the pegasi rocketed past him.

Scootaloo and Dash grinned as they flew through the central intersection, other racers zooming by in other directions.

"AND SCOOTALOO AND RAINBOW DASH TAKE FIRST PLACE!" Cheerilee yelled as they flew across the finish line.

"WOOOHOOO!" Itsuki yelled as he unfurled his wings and flew across the makeshift track, he'd been practicing flying and was able to keep stable in the air, over towards the pegasi as they pulled off the road and jumped out.

"Nice job you two!" He congratulated as he landed.

"That felt GOOD!" Scootaloo exclaimed. "Drifting around those corners like a maniac felt WAY better than getting Most Creative! Ohhhh I wanna do it again!"

"I'm sure it did! Nice driving." Dash said.

"Thanks!"

"Hey, maybe next year I could join in," Itsuki suggested.

"Maybe you could. Except you'd need a-"

CRASH!!!

Everything stopped as the thunderous sound of splintering wood and crackling electricity filled the air. Everypony's attention shot to the intersection to find a large cloud of dust that slowly dissipated to reveal a MASSIVE wreck between every other racer on the field.

"Holy shit!" Itsuki yelled in surprise, earning several glares from nearby ponies.

Within seconds, an American-styled Ambulance pulled in next to the wreckage and a few paramedics began helping the racers out.

"Sweet Celestia..." Dash slowly said. "A few seconds earlier and we would have been in that crash... N-Not that it would have damaged us or anything. We're pretty resilient to pain. But our kart would have gotten destroyed..."

Itsuki stared off at the crash, taking a step back as the racers climbed out of their karts. "I'm gonna need a phone..."

"Mm..."

Takumi rubbed his eyes and sat upon his bed, looking around.

"Wait a minute."

He looked and saw that he was still an Alicorn, but now in his room. His room. The one on the second floor of Fujiwara Tofu Shop.

His eyes darted around. Everything was exactly as he left it when he went to challenge Nightmare Moon to a battle.

"Holy shit..."

He noticed his phone on the nightstand, a silver Nokia 2110, and experimentally grabbed it with magic. It surprisingly levitated into the air. Seeing this, he hovered it in front of him and turned it on.

86 Missed Calls

"Damn..."

BANG!

The clattering of dishes came from downstairs. Takumi decided to put the phone in his pocket and climb off the bed, making sure not to disturb anything that would suggest someone had been there as he exited the room and walked down the stairs.

He glanced at the living room. It was your typical Japanese 90s middle-class living room. A short coffee table with a Television in the corner, with a few shelves containing various items. Suddenly, the phone began ringing. Not his. A white phone on the wall.

He just about screamed when an old Japanese man walked into the room. The man wore everyday attire and was in his 40s, with his eyelids so closed it was an enigma as to how he could see.

The man picked up the phone. "Fujiwara Tofu Shop. ... Oh, it's you. No, I still haven't seen him."

Takumi felt his heart instantly begin to ache. "Bunta..." He mumbled.

"No. Nothing. I haven't seen the car anywhere."

Bunta waited for a reply from whoever he was talking to.

"Every lot?"

Takumi got closer, straining himself to hear whoever was on the other end.

"Every lot." A man on the other end replied. He sounded like he was in his forties. "Me and my colleagues have checked every AE86 in Japan and even China. None of them is yours."

"Masashi Suzuki..." Takumi slowly said.

Bunta sighed. "That boy..."

"Bunta, you and I have been hoping beyond hope that he's ok. That he's just run off and hid somewhere." Masashi began. "But I'm sorry, I think It's time we start considering the possibility that he's-"

"It's not like him to run off." Bunta interrupted. "I've been in contact with everyone he and I know. We and the police have scanned every last bit of Kanto and Nagano and haven't found a single sign of him. Not a single record of him leaving by rail, air, or water has been documented. Something's wrong. Something else has to be happening."

"What are you suggesting? The supernatural?"

Bunta let out an angry sigh. "I don't know. It's a little early for that. Just like It's a little early for you to be giving up on the search."

"How? We have the best investigators in Japan on this. And with not a single sign? Not even Sherlock Holmes could find Takumi with this lack of a lead."

"It hasn't even been a week. I won't let all those years of training him to be the fastest driver in the world go to waste. If he really is gone, then damn it if I don't try to do something about it."

A glimmer of hope rose in Takumi but fell when he remembered his situation. No amount of technology Japan or his entire world had would help find him.

A sigh came from Masashi. "Alright, fine. I wasn't going to give up you know. I was just saying that we should consider the possibility."

"Yeah yeah, sure. Listen, I gotta get back to work, alright?"

"Alright. See you later."

Bunta hung the phone back on the wall. He put his hands to his sides, looking at the ground.

"That boy... something's wrong. He couldn't have disappeared like this without something else being at play. Another factor." He shook his head. "Maybe I am suggesting the supernatural. Except I-" he paused before quietly mumbling the following words, breathing shaky. "If he is gone..." He balled his fists. "Hmph. No. He's alive. I know he is. Just gotta find out where."

Takumi watched as his father walked through a curtain and into the shop, hearing him greet a customer.

He smiled.

A juvenile Luna lay in front of Takumi, watching him sleep. A piece of paper with some writing sat on the bed next to her.

"Takumiii..." she cooed when she saw him stir.

"Mmm..."

She gently booped the white Alicorn on the nose as his eyes slowly fluttered open.

"Oh... hey Luna."

"Hewwo."

Takumi's tilted his head. "Wait what did you just say?"

Luna giggled. "Hello, sleepyhead."

"Oh." Takumi yawned. "Hi. H-How long was I out?"

"Thirty-Two minutes."

"Really?"

"Mhm. After eleven minutes, my sister left to attend to her duties. After sixteen, you started mumbling."

Takumi smirked and sat up. "Did I?"

Luna did the same and nodded. "I began writing your mumbles down, but I do not think I got the wording right. You were speaking in your language. The only thing I understood was 'Suzuki Tahda-... tah...da..."

"Tadashi. I said Masashi Suzuki. Sorry."

"Hm." She tilted her head in wonder. "What were you dreaming about?"

Takumi smiled. "I was dreaming about my father."

"Your father? Bunta, right?"

"Mhm. It was one of those weird... dreams where I'm some invisible being looking at my world. Happening in real-time."

"Hm. How interesting. I sensed that you were in a dream, but I refrained from entering because it felt... odd."

"Wha-do-you mean?"

"It felt... unstable, but stable at the same time. I cannot quite explain it. I have never seen or felt it before."

"That's... hm."

"So, what happened? What was your father doing?"

Takumi sighed. "He was on a call with Masashi. A friend of his. Apparently they've got the best investigators in Japan looking for me."

Luna quietly gasped. "Oh no..."

Takumi's ears drooped. "They've searched every bit of both Kanto and Nagano, and they've looked at every single 86 in all of Japan and even China to try and locate mine." He sighed. "I wish I could just... tell them."

"So do I."

"Mm... but..." He smiled. "My father still believes he'll find me. And I don't know why, but I have this weird feeling that he will."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Really. My former boss, Yuichi, always said that I was just like my father. Stubborn. And with the kind of BS my father has been able to pull sometimes, he just might find me."

Luna laughed. "Stubborn. An interesting trait. Did anything else happen?"

"No. My room was the same, exactly how I left it when I went to battle Nightmare Moon, so... yeah."

"Hm."

There was silence. Takumi stared at the bedsheets while Luna stared at Takumi.

Her eyes drifted down to the clipboard, written with mostly jumbles of letters she had solely written based on what she had heard. It felt weird to write such near-deplorable inscriptions.

Knowing this, she had an idea.

"Takumi?"

Their eyes met each other. "Hm?"

"You said you wanted something to do, right?"

"Yeah. I did."

"Well... could you please teach me your language?"

Takumi was surprised. "Teach you... my language?"

"Yes. Teach me how to speak in Japanese. It might prove interesting and possibly a little fun to speak to each other in a language unknown to Ponykind."

"So... well, the thing is, I don't think I'm the greatest teacher."

"I am sure you will do well. You do know your language and its Equish counterparts, after all."

"I... guess I do."

Luna nodded. "Now, the first thing I want to know is, how would I say... 'I will be unavailable for tonight'?"

"... Kon'ya wa go riyō itadakemasen."

Luna sat more dumbfounded than she had ever been in her life. What in Equestria did she just hear?

"Oh my gosh..." She slowly said.

"Yeahhh... you haven't learned a new language before, have you?"

"I have. I had to learn new Ponish. Thankfully it was not very different from old Equestrian."

"Ok, is it Ponish or Equestrian?"

"Both."

"...oh."

"It confused me too. Anyways, you are... alright with teaching me, right? I do not want to be a burden on you."

Takumi sighed. "It is not like I have anything better to do. And as you said, it may be fun."

Luna giggled. "It seems my speech may be rubbing off on you."

"Hehe, yeah, I guess it is." I can't believe I am going to be teaching someone, especially a freaking Princess, the Japanese Language. He thought. "Anyways, let us begin."

6:56PM, Circuit Of Equestria

20 Corners, 3.426 Miles in Length, 30 Minutes from Seaddle, the Circuit of Equestria sat in a field near the gorgeous Rocky Mountains. Though it wasn't the most popular circuit around despite its name, it still gained top ten in the most visited circuits of Equestria.

Tires squealed as cars hammered around corners, all of different makes and models. It mostly consisted of Honda CIvics ranging from the EG to EK series, though other cars such as a fifth-generation Corvette and a Lancer Evo VI were there.

Among this small fleet of amateurs, one car rocketed around the track faster than any of them. A purple Nissan S14 Silvia Autech.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

The car gripped around a right curve, its engine revving loudly as it passed a Lancer Evo and braked, swerving into a left corner. The Evo followed it through, even catching up on the exit. However, the S14 was focused on the track and not the Evo.

The S14 braked and easily lost the Evo through the corner, using advanced slip angle technique to carry speed through the corner before exiting. The Evo, try as it might, could not follow the S14 through and ended up spinning out.

A minute later, the S14 pulled into the pit lane, stopping. Spitfire, who was wearing her Wonderbolt outfit and goggles, got out.

"So THIS is where you've been all day." A male voice said.

Spitfire looked up to see Soarin and Thunderlane flying overhead.

"Spitfire, this is why you gave the Wonderbolts a day off?" Thunderlane asked as he and Soarin landed.

"Yep." Spitfire grabbed some jackstands and lifted the S14 off the ground.

"I think you're taking this race a bit too seriously."

"I'm just leveling the playing field is all." She began changing out a tire.

Soarin was surprised. "Leveling the playing field? You're practicing professional techniques. The kid may be fast but he's still a kid."

"Well excuse me for wanting to practice without screwing over my reputation as the Captain of the Wonderbolts. Where else could I practice?"

"..."

"Exactly."

"So uh, what time did you say it was gonna be at? The race?"

"Twenty-Two Hundred tonight."

"Oh."

"Anyways." Spitfire lowered the S14 onto the asphalt. "I gotta get training."

With that, she got back the S14 and sped back out onto the track.

Thunderlane was the first to speak as they watched the S14 rocket around the first turn. "Well then."

"Maybe I should have brought my Mustang," Soarin said.

"Same for my E30. I can't believe Spitfire is taking this as seriously as she is."

"Well, he was pretty fast. To be honest, I wonder if... if... wait..."

"What?"

"Remember Itsuki?"

"Yeah? Wait... holy crap- wait a minute!"

"Two? TWO!? I just now clocked that we have TWO new Alicorns. Both of em' Stallions, both of em' stupid young! One of which is into freaking STREET RACING! How could Celestia allow this?!"

"How come two TEENAGERS get to be Alicorns? Not US!?"

"We're gonna need to tell Spitfire next time she changes her tires."

Spitfire shifted gears as fast as she could through Turn 2, a right sweeping curve, instantly passing a Civic.

What is it with ponies using Civic's? She wondered. I get that they're cheap and the engines are indestructible but there are plenty of RWD cars that you could get for almost as cheap. Can they really not shell out an extra hundred bits?

She guided the car through turns 3,4, and 5, which went left, right, then left respectively. She then followed the Evo from before into Turn Six, a hard left turn that diverted from the rest of the track, sticking half a car's length behind as they exited.

"Come on! I'm in an Evo!" The driver of the Evo yelled. "How can I be getting served by some dumpy S14?!"

Spitfire said nothing as she steered towards the inside of turns 7 and 8, a left-right chicane. The Evo braked too late and understeered, allowing her to pass it through the chicane with minimal effort.

"Hmmm..."

She steered through Turn 9, a left corner, accelerating out.

"I wonder if Takumi and Itsuki are related..."

Her speed increased past 100MPH down a straightaway.

"I mean, both are Alicorns."

The brake rotors lit up as she entered Turn 10, a hard left.

"Both own Sprinters."

EEEEEEEEEEEEE!

"It would make sense. Especially considering their names."

She instantly passed a Corvette on the outside and began accelerating again.

"And they share pretty similar designs too... Huh. I'll need to ask Takumi at tonight's race."

She accelerated hard towards Turn 13, narrowing her eyes.

"Whether they're related or not, Takumi is my opponent tonight. And I ain't gonna go easy on him."

The S14 lurched as it was thrown into a hard right corner, breaking into a full-blown powerslide.

Hours later, the same S14 powerslid around a hairpin on a mountain, accelerating out like a rocket.

Soarin watched as Spitfire passed by, stopping a stopwatch in hoof. His jaw dropped as he read the time.

He picked up a radio. "Spitfire's going INSANE on the downhill!" He yelled, taking off. "It's only her first run and look at her!"

"I see her!" A fellow Wonderbolt replied. "Sweet Celestia! What kind of car is she going up against tonight?"

Soarin chuckled. "Even if I was allowed to tell you, you would NOT believe me."

"Well, that concludes it."

Itsuki watched as Twilight put a few pieces of paper in a bag.

"Thanks Itsuki. For telling me about your world."

"No problem." He replied. "You have no idea how hard it was to not talk about cars."

"Hey, I'm still interested about the fact that our worlds have the same cars. The companies, individual models, even trim levels. So the next time we talk, feel free to talk about the cars of your world."

"Well you still have a few manufacturers I've never heard of. Like Ibishu and Civetta."

"True."

Itsuki stared at the friendship map in silence. For the past couple of hours, he had been giving Twilight as much information as he could. He didn't mind. Rainbow Dash was hanging out with Scootaloo so it wasn't like he was doing anything.

Suddenly, he felt something ricochet throughout his body. "Woah..."

"What?"

Itsuki looked up at a window. "I just got this weird feeling. This weird... nerveracking feeling."

"About what?"

"Like a big race is about to happen."

Twilight quickly sat next to him. "A race? What do you mean?" Don't tell me ITSUKI has some kind of Pinkie Sense! She thought.

"Every time a big race happened back in my world, I always somehow knew. Even when it was in a completely different prefecture. I don't mean with just anyone. I mean Project D."

"Project D?"

"Really awesome racing team that Takumi was in."

"Oh. Wait... so Project D is here?"

"No. Just Takumi I think."

There was silence as Twilight stared at him. Mometns later, a paper and quill magically appeared next to her.

"Dear Princess Luna," Luna began reading aloud. "Where is Takumi right now?" She smiled as she began writing back.

"Dear Princess Twilight Sparkle. Takumi Fujiwara is currently taking a shower. He has been for the past hour now." She swiftly replied.

Once she sent it, she laid back in the soft and fluffy bed, letting out a sigh of happiness.

I shant believe it. She thought. Tonight, I am going to watch Takumi go all out in a real street race. A REAL street race. With Captain Spitfire of all ponies! I had a sneaking suspicion she would be the kind to race, especially after seeing she had an S14, but I never thought half of the Wonderbolts would race! And her saying they raced because it improved their reflexes, that is genius!

She looked at the bathroom door, barely holding in her smile. "One of these night-... One of these nights-"

Knock Knock Knock

Luna sat up and looked at the door. "Yes?"

"Sister? Can we talk for a moment?" Celestia's voice rang out from the other side.

"Of course."

Luna got off the bed and trotted to the door, opening and walking out of the room to find Celestia standing there.

"What is it?"

Celestia sighed. "I was just wondering what you two have been doing. I never saw you anywhere around the castle since I left you with him several hours ago."

Luna bit her lip as she smiled.

"What?"

Here we go. Luna thought. "Takumi wa watashi ni nihongo o oshiete kuremashita." NAILED IT!

Celestia's eyes widened and her jaw dropped as she tried to process what she had just heard come out of her sister's mouth.

"Uh-... uh... W-What in Equestria did you just say?"

Luna giggled. "Takumi wa watashi ni nihongo o oshiete kuremashita."

Celestia was one the verge of short circuiting. "Wh-... whaa?"

Luna laughed. Seeing Celestia so dumbfounded was adorable!

"Luna, what in Equestria are you saying? It certainly isn't Old Ponish."

"That is none of your concern, sister." She playfully replied. She sighed. "We have been talking with each other. I have been comforting him."

"... Well, where is he now?"

"In the shower. He has been for the past hour now."

"Oh. Why?"

"That I do not know. But I do know what happened after he fell asleep."

"Oh?"

"He was in his world. As a pony. He watched his father talk with someone named Masashi Suzuki."

"Interesting name."

Luna nodded. "They have all the best investigators in Japan searching for both him and his car."

A sense of worry crossed Celestia's face.

"Yeah... I understood the futility in the investigation as well. Though, his father is still holding onto the possibility that he will find Takumi. Even when Masashi said he was not. Takumi said he had a feeling Bunta was going to find him, somehow, so there is something to note."

"Hm. Anything else?"

"Well... there is one other thing about Takumi I feel you should know..."

"And what is that?"

Luna glanced around before beckoning Celestia to lean in closer. The elder sister happily obliged, and within a moment they were inches from each other. Celestia was confused. She thought Luna was going to whisper into her ear.

"He. Is. Sooo-" She closed her eyes and began tapping her hooves rapidly. "-oooooo SAHFT!" Her eyes shot open as she stopped tapping.

Celestia was momentarily surprised before smiling. "How soft are we talking?" She whispered.

"You would not believe me."

Celestia leaned in a little closer. "Try me."

"Softer than you and I."

Celestia leaned back in surprise. "You're right. I do not believe you. And how do you know this?"

"The other day when we covered Day Court, I hugged him from behind to snap him out of his trance. And when he was asleep earlier, I rubbed his fur a little. I really am not kidding when I say he is softer than both of us."

Celestia looked around, biting her lip. She looked back at Luna. "Then perhaps tonight we should invite him for a little... Royal Meeting?"

Luna giggled. "Just between the three of us?"

"Just between the three of us~"

Luna let out a small mewl.

"Now." Celestia leaned back. "When shall we do it?"

"I wish we could do it right now. However, me and Takumi are going somewhere. We must be somewhere at Ten."

"Ten? Where are you going?"

"I was going to show him a little thing in Manehattan. A small event."

"Just the two of you?"

"He wanted it that way."

Celestia stared at Luna before lightly nodding. "Very well. Though if you are going to Manehattan, I would leave..." She eyed a nearby clock. "Now actually."

Luna eyed the same clock, putting on a concerned face. "Yes. Once he gets out we will have to 'book it' as some ponies would say."

"Hm. So. Once you get back..."

Luna locked eyes with Celestia. "Then we can invite him to the Royal Meeting." She playfully cooed.

The sisters giggled at that.

"Well. In that case, I hope you two have fun at Manehattan."

"Thank you, sister. I am sure we will have fun."

With that, Celestia left with a smile on her face. Luna reentered Takumi's room and jumped onto the bed, also with a smile.

I cannot believe it! She internally yelled. My sister is going to help me with getting Takumi to participate in a bit of... of... Her thoughts trailed off as she looked at the time. "Oh... now that I think about it, we really are going to need to book it there. And the tires are not going to like that... Hm. 'Book it'. I wonder when that popped up in speech."

"Why do I have to be such a towel..." Takumi asked nobody as he tried to dry himself off. "I never thought I would ever say something like that. Then again, I never thought I would become a god either, so there's that."

It was about ten minutes before he said 'Screw It' and threw in the towel and put his sweater on. It took a moment, but he got it on.

Walking out of the bathroom, he immediately saw Luna... hugging a pillow?

He wanted to say something, but seeing Luna hugging the pillow in the way she was. She was sitting upright and was gently caressing it. Petting it. Eyes closed with a warm smile on her face. She looked so beautiful. Not to mention adorable.

A warm smile crept up his own face as he stepped closer to the bed. Both because of Luna, and a lingering thought he had.

Why is it that nobody seems to notice me?

After sitting next to the bed, watching Luna caress the white pillow and admittedly wanting her to do the same to him, he decided to see how far he could push his luck. He gently put his forehooves on the bed, then got his hind hooves on it, and scooted over to her.

He wanted her to hug him. He really did. The way she gently moved her hooves over the pillow was enticing. He wanted it. Badly.

He was no more than a foot away when he reached out and touched her hoof.

"EEP!"

Luna's eyes shot open and instantly locked onto his own.

She had squeaked.

She. SQUEAKED.

LIKE A TOY.

IT WAS FREAKING ADORABLE.

Takumi sat stunned for a second before biting his lower lip and cringing. The look of sheer shock and embarrassment was adorable. He never thought he would ever see someone with as high of a stature as her be so surprised.

They sat for the better part of half a minute before Takumi opened his mouth. Even with the time that elapsed, Luna's blush was turning redder than 255 0 0 on the RGB meter.

"Hello."

Luna stared for another few seconds before quickly shaking her head. "Um... hi."

"Did I scare you?"

"Um... uh..." She looked at the pillow and back. "I was just so... into this..."

"How can you be into a pillow?"

"Um... I just... like things that are soft... and fluffy..."

"You like things... that are soft and fluffy... ohhhhkayyy then."

He looked at the clock and saw something that made his ears drop faster than a gearshift.

9:35PM

"I was not in there for an hour and a half."

Luna regained her composure. "You were"

"I was not..."

"You were though."

Takumi took a long deep breath in, holding for a split second before letting it out. "In my defense... the water felt really good..."

"Did it now?"

Takumi sighed, closing his eyes. "I cannot believe I spent an hour and a half in there... And I was supposed to be-"

His eyes flew open and his pupils shrunk, ears threatening to snap off.

Ace - Turn Me On starts playing.

"We gotta go."

"What?"

Takumi jumped off the bed. "We gotta go! Come on!"

He ran towards the window and pushed it open. Without missing a beat, he unfurled his wings and took off outside and down towards his 86.

Luna looked up at the time and remembered what they were supposed to be doing tonight. They were supposed to be at a race! AT TEN! AND MOUNT BOLT WAS HALF AN HOUR AWAY!

"Oh shoot- we really do need to go!"

She quickly used her magic to teleport herself out of the room and next to Takumi's 86 just as the teen got in and started the engine. She turned into her juvenile form and got in and slammed the door shut just as Takumi put the 86 into reverse and slowly rolled out of the lot, keeping the revs under 2K RPM. The gate automatically opened to let them out.

"Woah," Takumi said as they sped through Canterlot. He noticed how well the tires gripped the road. "Did you put new tires on?"

"Yes. I did." Luna replied, scared of the fact that they were in the city, speeding. "Well, I did not, but I requested that somepony did so."

"Huh. What kinds?"

"Um... softs I think. But I am sure we could stop by Ponyville and quickly pick up a set."

"Softs... perfect. I can do softs."

Suddenly, he hit the accelerator hard, throwing Luna back into her seat.

"Luna, close your eyes. I'm gonna go down Akina at 90%."

Luna saw the approaching corner and immediately did so, doing her best to block out the G-Forces.

EEEEEEEEEEE!

A lime green two-tone 1988 Nissan S13 Silvia K's drifted slowly around a left corner, fishtailing a little as it accelerated down a straightaway. At the wheel sat a Japanese man in his early 20s. In the passenger seat, another man in his early 20s.

"Hmmhmmhmhm..." The driver hummed as he approached a right corner. The corner suddenly began lighting up. The men was surprised.

"Huh. That's odd." The driver said. "I didn't know any of the other members were up here."

"Maybe someone wanted to get some extra practice in?" The passenger suggested. "I mean, we're up here already."

"Yeah, but I'm the leader of the SpeedStar's and you're my-"

EEEEEEEEE!

"WHAT THE HELL!!?" They both screamed as a car with retractable headlights FLEW around the corner ahead, inside to outside and heading straight towards them.

"IT'S AN EIGHT-SIX!!" The driver yelled as he slammed on the brakes, the AE86 Trueno swerving into the left lane and passing them with mere centimeters to spare. On its right door, they could both clearly make out the Japanese Kanji.

Fujiwara Tofu Shop (Private Use)

The S13 slid to a stop sideways in the middle of the road, both looking off at the AE86 as it sped away, taillights stalling as it disappeared around a corner.

"Takumi?" They both asked in unison.

The AE86 entered a right hairpin, slowing and performing an elegant slip-angle drift around the inside, shooting out like a rocket.

RingRIngRing! RingRingRing!

Yuichi Tachibana lit a cigarette as he answered the corded phone. "Hello?"

A second later, he nearly choked on the cigarette. "YOU WHAT!?"

Koichiro Iketani drove at the highest speed he dared on the Mount Akina Downhill, head tilted to push his phone into his shoulder. "We just saw him! Carbon Hood, the side lettering, Watanabe Wheels, the freaking LICENSE PLATE?! WE FOUND HIM! HE'S ON THE AKINA DOWNHILL!"

"Holy shi-! Uh- Be right there! I'll call Bunta!"

Without wasting a beat, Yuichi hung up and turned off the Gas Station's lights. He ran out front and jumped into his black 1994 Toyota Camry V40 and started the engine, quickly pulling out of the gas station parking lot.

The AE86 continued flying down the Akina Downhill, passing a few members of the Akina SpeedStars who promptly stopped in surprise of seeing the missing White Ghost.

With no cars ahead of him, Takumi braked and drifted into a left hairpin, cherishing how well the tires gripped the road.

"Was this road just paved or something?" He asked.

"Y-Yes. It was. A little less than a week ago as requested by me." Luna replied, eyes shut. She really did not want to be in the 86 when Takumi was trying to drive almost as fast as equinely possible. Inequinely possible would be the better term.

"Hm."

The AE86 rocketed down the mountain, slowing down and steering through another hairpin. It passed a black Honda Civic EG6 which promptly slammed on its brakes and did a 180-degree turn, speeding off after it.

On Mount Bolt, Spitfire looked at the time.

"Where the hay is Takumi?" She asked. "At this rate he won't have time for a prior run by the time he gets here."

Takumi was on the Turnpike, driving down as fast as he could. He wasn't going to miss this race if he had anything to say about it. Not a chance in the world.

Luna opened her eyes to find them speeding at a blistering 100MPH down a straightaway, a corner quickly approaching.

Oh my gosh. She thought. Her eyes widened. Wait! WE ARE GOING TO CRASH! THIS IS TOO FAST!

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!

Author's Note

My day is going GREAT! I'm getting a bunch of assignments turned in, AND I got this part out! Woohoo!

Act 17: Dogfight against Spitfire!

Grab some popcorn everyone! This is gonna be a long one!

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Luna braced herself as the 86 slid around the left curve, wincing as the curve tightened.

Why did I let Takumi drive at 90%!? She wondered. Now we are going to crash!

The tires continued squealing as she felt the car rotate faster. The G-Forces also increased. She waited for the bang that was to be heard once they smacked the guardrail.

...

The tires stopped squealing. She could feel the car accelerating.

She slowly opened her eyes to find that they had not crashed. They had in fact cleared the corner faster than ever and were continuing downhill. She slumped back in her seat, closing her eyes and exhaling.

I do not think I will ever get entirely used to his driving.

EEEEEEEEEE!

Yuichi Tachibana was pushing his Camry faster than he ever had. Having dabbled in street racing years ago, he knew generally what lines to take. While he wasn't fast, he was still moving faster than anyone had ever seen a Camry move.

Why didn't I get the XV40 with the V6!? Yuichi wondered. This 2 Liter Four Banger isn't helping me at all!

RingRingRing! RingRi-

Yuichi picked up his phone. "What?"

"You seem em'?" Iketani asked.

"Not yet I don't. I haven't gone this fast in years. I'm gonna blow a gasket or something. Wait, is that him?"

Yuichi watched the hairpin ahead light up and gasped when the AE86 flew around it, coming right at him.

"I SEE HIM!"

BEEE-BEEEEEEP!

Yuichi blared his horn and flashed his headlights, doing everything he could to get the 86's attention. Things seemed to move in slow motion as the 86 zipped by, brilliant mystical fire emitting from the entire car. Yuichi's eyes widened as he looked at the interior. Or at least, tried to look at the interior. The windows were totally black.

vrOOoommm!

The 86 accelerated in the opposite direction as Yuichi brought his car to a quick stop, staring at the 86 in his rearview mirror.

"That's not natural... Those flames..."

EEEE!

Luna watched the Camry rocket by as it blared its horn and flashed its headlights.

"Was that a friend of yours?" She asked.

"What?"

"Back there. The car we just passed."

"What car? Only car I saw up here was that S13 towards the top."

"Huh? How? We have been passing several cars. You have come excruciatingly close to several. There is no way you have not seen one."

"Are you playing headgames with me? Luna, I only saw that S13. That's it. I haven't seen any other car."

Luna stared at him for a moment before closing her eyes again. Could I be so unsure of his driving that my eyes are deceiving me? She wondered.

Soon, they were off the mountain and speeding off towards the highway. Takumi watched as the speed climbed and climbed, hearing the speed chime ding to tell him he was doing over 60MPH.

He braked suddenly and swerved onto an onramp, smoothly, then accelerated again onto the highway. Well past 100 miles per hour.

Back on Mount Akina, Yuichi stood next to his car with a cigarette in hand, looking at where the 86 had gone. Soon, he heard a Mint-Green S13 approach and stop close by. Iketani and Kenji emerged.

"Boss! I thought you saw him?" Iketani asked.

"I... don't know. Boys, did you see anything weird about the 86?"

The younger men looked at each other.

"No," Iketani replied, looking back. "Looked like Takumi's 86."

"Nothing like a bunch of white fire coming off the back?"

"What th- no? Absolutely not."

"Though..." Kenji trailed.

"What?"

"It did kinda seem to flicker."

"Flicker?" Yuichi asked.

"Like an aberration in a photo. I thought it was my eyes screwing with me."

"Hmmm..." Iketani rubbed his chin. "Yeah actually. I saw the same thing."

The men stared at each other in silence for several moments.

"I hate to say it," Yuichi began. "but I think Takumi might've actually become the White Ghost of Akina."

9:49PM, Wonderbolt Training Academy.

"That kid better not have backed down." She growled, eyeing the time. "I didn't blow a hundred bits on track day for nothing."

"Maybe he's just stuck in traffic?" Thunderlane suggested.

"At night?" Fleetfoot shook her head. "Get real. Almost nopony drives at night."

Spitfire groaned. "I told him it was at ten. TEN."

"Well. I mean, Spitfire, if you want to just race me instead, that'll satisfy the members."

Spitfire considered the option. Fleetfoot did have an R32 GT-R. One with working rear steering at that, something that was actually pretty hard to come by these days.

"Sure. If he isn't on this mountain in ten minutes, we'll do that."

vroooOOOOooommm

"I'd be lying if I said I had hit this thing's top speed before," Takumi admitted as he eyed the speedometer, which said they were doing a little over 200KPH, or 124MPH. Though the RPM stayed at around 7000.

"Why is your car tuned like this?" Luna asked, secretly loving the high speed. "The car should easily be able to go faster, right?"

"I think my dad tuned fifth gear like this because he didn't like how the engine sounded on the highway. Something about not liking how high it would rev."

"Understandable."

Ponyville and Mount Bolt came into view. Upon seeing this, Takumi gently turned left and right. He grew concerned.

"We need to stop by Ponyville."

Luna looked at him. "What?"

"These tires. They're fine for now but I can't use them for the race."

"We are going to be cutting it very close."

"Well then we're gonna have to change them out like a professional team. I am NOT kidding, I cannot race on these tires."

Luna stared at him, unsure if they would be able to make that kind of a pit stop. So she did the one thing she could do. Stare ahead, close her eyes, and mentally prepare.

"Well I'm not going."

"Oh come on Dash!" Itsuki exclaimed. "What's wrong with going up to Mount Bolt?"

"I don't want to be spotted. Alright?" Dash defended. "I don't want to get kicked out."

Itsuki sighed. "Fiiiine. How about this. I'll go check it out and tell you how it goes, alright?"

"Yeah... yeah. Sure. You can do that. Just check if nopony is up there."

"Will do."

Itsuki sat in his idling 86 Levin and put it into first gear, easily taking off on the dirt with Mount Bolt in his sights. He checked the rearview mirror to see Dash fly into Twilight's castle.

If I just get along with her, she'll like me more. He thought. Except I really wish she would come with me. Driving with her is just the best.

Soon, he made his way onto tarmac and approached the mountain road. Though something was off. There were lights scattered in seemingly random places on the mountain. It was a sight he knew quite well, actually.

"Street Race!"

He punched the throttle, knowing he had brand new tires. If there were street racers up here, then that meant he could show off what he could do.

"And Dash said she might get caught racing. No way she'd get caught out with other racers!"

The 4A-GEU revved high into the 7000's as he approached the first corner. He braked and swerved hard into the turn, not breaking any more traction than he needed to to obtain optimal cornering.

vroooOOOooommm!

"Woah!" A Wonderbolt exclaimed as he watched the Levin pass by. "Anypony know who owns the red AE86?"

Spitfire, up top, was confused. "Wait, RED AE86?"

"Yeah. Red and Black Levin. Carbon Fiber hood and silver rims by the looks of it." The member replied.

"Nah, none of us own an AE86." Another member said.

"Then how the heck did an outsider find out!?"

"I don't know!"

Another member radioed through. "I see him now. Not gonna lie, whoever this guy is is pretty good at drifting."

Spitfire activated her radio again. "I think I may know who that is."

"Do you?"

"Maybe."

Luna tightened the bolts on a rim as fast as she could. The millisecond she was done, she grabbed the stands with her magic and dropped the car onto the ground.

"Hey! Watch it!" Takumi snapped as he tightened the last of his bolts.

"Sorry! I forgot about the suspension."

"This suspension has been through a lot worse than a small drop," Takumi explained as he opened the door and got in. "I was worried about getting my hoof pinched between the tire and fender."

THUNK!

He wasted no time thrusting the stick shift into first gear and pressing hard on the gas. This caused a plume of smoke to shoot out the back as he accelerated away through Ponyville at high speed.

Luna, having stepped aside to avoid the dirt, facehoofed. "We really should have gotten new tires on the outskirts of town."

Within a split second, excitement overcame her as she remembered the pending race. She quickly unfurled her wings and took to the sky, shooting off after the Panda Trueno.

A moment later, on Mount Bolt, Itsuki was giving everypony a real show. He showed off his use of slip angle and weight-shift knowledge, and by now was halfway up the mountain.

"Wow! This guy can drive!" A member remarked through a radio as he watched the Levin zip by.

"HOLY SHIT!!!" A voice exclaimed through the radio.

Initial D 3rd Stage The Movie Original Sound Tracks - Kessenmae! starts playing. (Nani!? THIRD STAGE sound files?!)

Spitfire picked up her radio. "What? What is it?"

"If you think that Levin can- SWEET CELESTIA! If you think that LEVIN can drive? Check out this Panda Trueno!"

"Panda Trueno?" A member asked.

"Panda Tru-" Spitfire gasped with realization. She turned to face Fleetfoot, Thunderlane, and Soarin.

She chuckled. "The kid actually showed up."

Fleetfoot returned the smile. "Great. You should probably get uh..." She eyed the stallions next to her. "You know."

"Huh?" Thunderlane asked.

Spitfire nodded. "Be right back. Tonight is going to be one Helluva night after all."

Fleetfoot watched Spitfire take off towards her office. "Yes. Yes, it will be."

A little down the mountain, Takumi rounded a bend, trying to conserve his tires as much as possible. Up ahead he spotted taillights. He curiously tilted his head. Far above, Luna flew, also eyeing the car.

"Is that another 86?" They both asked.

As he quickly approached the car's bumper, it became clear that it was indeed another 86. And, to Takumi, all he needed to see was the license plate to know who it was.

"God dammit Itsuki. You're up here too?"

Up ahead, Itsuki instantly recognized his friend coming up the rear.

"Woah! Oh HELL yeah Takumi! I should have known the only reason this many people would be on a mountain was because YOU were gonna show up!"

Without hesitation, he beeped twice and nailed the throttle, quickly shifting gears as he gripped through a left corner with his friend right on his bumper.

VROOOM!

"Woah!" A member yelled in surprise. "It's a pair! A pair of 86's!"

The 86's braked and steered hard into a right hairpin, drifting at speed through the inside and exiting.

"It's not a pair of 86's!" Another exclaimed. "It's an EIGHT-SIX DUO!"

Spitfire's voice rang out over the radio. "I FREAKING KNEW IT! I KNEW THEY WERE RELATED!"

EEEEEEEEEEE!

Takumi smiled as he followed Itsuki. Itsuki had been using his slip angle technique, though Takumi continued to grip, preferring to save as much tire strength as he could. After a moment, Itsuki took the hint and started gripping as well.

"Oh I freaking LOVE this!" Itsuki exclaimed. "Driving uphill with my best friend in a couple-a 86's towards a big race! WOO!"

Both cars gripped in tandem, both speeding uphill. Takumi had no idea why he continued to follow Itsuki when he could blow by him and make it to the race. He supposed he just felt like it. Eyeing the time, he was pleasantly surprised to find he had a full four minutes before ten.

Members cheered as they watched the high-speed show the cars were giving them. Even with the slow acceleration, the way they maintained speed going uphill was amazing to watch. The way they turned, the way they used the tires' grip without causing too much wear, those who were observant couldn't help but feel most intrigued in how these two Econoboxes did it.

Soarin and Thunderlane leaned on their respective cars on one side of the road, while Fleetfoot sat on the ground next to hers on the other side. They could hear the engines in the distance.

"Ahem."

A voice cleared her throat next to Soarin, causing him to look over at the newcomer. He chuckled at the sight he saw.

"Oh-hohohohohhh... Spitfire... You can't be serious..."

"Hell yeah I am."

EEEEEEEEEEEE!

Takumi and Itsuki rounded the final bend. Upon exiting, Takumi swung inside and instantly passed Itsuki, swerving in front and letting off the gas. Itsuki took the hint and did the same, and the two slowed down as they approached the starting line.

"Wow. They really know how to make an entrance, don't they?" Soarin remarked, seeing the 86's cruise towards them and pull off to the side of the road.

Takumi and Itsuki slowed to a stop, taking their 86's out of gear and opening the doors to get out. Takumi was the first to open his, with Itsuki close behind.

The former began walking over, eyeing the purple S14.

"Thought you'd never show up." A voice rang out.

Takumi's eyes focused on a mare in what looked like a full-fledged racing suit.

She reminds me of Tomoyuki. He mused. "Spitfire, right?"

Spitfire nodded.

"I'm not late, am I?"

"Not at all. Though, how do you expect to race properly without a prior run?"

"I'll be fine. I've done this sort of thing before."

Spitfire smirked before eyeing Itsuki. "I see you brought your friend."

Takumi eyed Itsuki, who now stood next to him.

"This is Itsuki. Itsuki Takeuchi," He explained, looking back at her.

"I know. We met yesterday... man, I can't believe it. Two new Alicorns, both of em' stallions, who street race."

"Yep!" Itsuki boasted. "Me and Takumi are best friends. Our friends back home called us the Eight-Six Duo. That's what we're gonna be known as from now on. Also, I should've freaking known you were a street racer!"

Takumi rolled his eyes.

"The Eight-Six Duo huh? One of the members called you that when you came up. So. Itsuki, I take it you're also up here for a race?"

"Well since I'm up here, hell yeah I am! I'm gonna need a few runs though. I'm not a oneshot god like Takumi."

"In that case, hey, Thunderlane?"

Thunderlane stepped forward. "What?"

"How about you and your E30 Evo race Itsuki? Say, 11? That should give him enough time to practice."

Thunderlane eyed Itsuki and his 86. "Why not. I haven't raced anyone in a hot minute."

"YES!" Itsuki exclaimed.

"Perfect. Anyways." Spitfire eyed Takumi. "Here are the rules. This'll be a classic time attack. First to the bottom winds. Have you done that before?"

Takumi nodded.

Spitfire blinked in surprise. "Really? I thought ponies mostly did cat and mouse races."

"Back home I went through a lot of Time Attacks." He explained. "To be honest, I'm surprised you're going with one."

"I just want to make this a race of speed instead of endurance is all. Anyways, I take it you know Racer's Etiquette?"

"Racer's Etiquette?"

"As in, no intentional bumps and stuff like that."

"Oh. Of course."

"Alright then. So yeah. No bumping, and since you're an Alicorn, no using magic on your car to gain an advantage. I know when ponies are using magic."

"I wasn't going to use magic anyways."

Spitfire was surprised. She could sense the sincerity. "Really? Wow. Anyways, with that being said, are you ready to start this?"

Takumi nodded.

"Then let's get lined up."

Takumi and Spitfire walked over to their cars. Spitfire watched Takumi slowly turn around. She gasped.

"Wait... those are polyurethane windows!" She exclaimed. "Those weren't there last night!" She glanced down at the tires. Her eyes widened. "Those are soft tires... Damn. This kid ain't playing around."

Nearby, hidden behind some bushes, Luna watched the situation unfold with a spell of hearing. She let out a mewl as Takumi and Spitfire lined up.

"Come on Takumi. You can do this." She quietly encouraged.

Takumi sat at the starting line, watching Soarin walk in front to stand in the middle of the road.

"Go Takumi!" He heard Itsuki yell. He couldn't help but smile as Itsuki ran over. He rolled the window down.

"What?" He asked.

"You aren't going to believe this, but I heard of the radio that you've got some people betting on you," Itsuki explained.

Takumi was confused. "Why? From what I can gather, the people around here look down on our 86's more than back home."

"Who cares? Oh! By the way, I'm gonna be following you guys from behind. If I'm racing Thunderlane, I'm gonna need all the practice I can get."

"Hm. Alright. There are spare tires in Ponyville if you need them."

"Really? Alright, got it. Now come on! You've beaten an S14 before! You can beat another!"

Takumi smiled. "Thanks."

"See ya!"

Itsuki ran back to his 86 and jumped in, quickly turning around.

Takumi looked over at Spitfire, who stared back with a smile. He stared ahead, taking in a breath.

I am about to race the leader of this world's Wonderbolts, who is a Military Officer in an S14. Really, what the heck is it with people of high authority street racing? I wouldn't be surprised if Twilight raced.

He took a quick glance at Spitfire. Feels like I'm about to race Tomoyuki. He thought, eyeing Spitfire's uniform. She's a bit more playful than him but... He sighed. I wonder how it feels. To drive a Left Hand Drive Car.

Spitfire took a deep breath in, closing her eyes. This isn't good. The kid isn't phased at all by me wearing my uniform. And judging by his clear lack of fear on the mountain pass, simply driving as fast as possible isn't going to cut it. I'll need to drive defensively. With how fast he was last night, he'll be taking any opening he can get. My reflexes are gonna need to be sharp to keep him at bay.

Soarin spoke into a radio. "Is the road clear?"

"Finish line. We're good." One member stated.

"Middle. Nopony here." Another said.

"Perfect." Soarin placed the radio down and raised his wings high in the sky. "Alright! I'm gonna start the countdown!"

Manuel - Feel The Night starts playing. (HERE WE FREAKING GO!)

Nearby, Luna quietly squeed with delight.

"10! 9!"

Itsuki sat parked behind Takumi's 86. The goofiest smile appeared on his face as he lightly revved his engine.

"8! 7!

Spitfire revved her S14. Its SR20VET rumbled with power.

"6! 5!"

By far the most aggressive engine that revved, was none other than Takumi's Formula Atlantic 4A-GEU. The exposed Individual Throttle Bodies helped to amplify the sound, and the custom exhaust let it rev smoothly and efficiently. Every Wonderbolt in the area knew that the car their captain was racing was not the average hatchback they thought it was.

"4!"

Takumi pressed his hooves against the wheel. Everything else in his life was gone. The thoughts of being Forever Young, being in a different world, or being a super important being. It was him against the road.

"3! 2! 1"

Soarin paused for a second as he saw the determined looks on both racers' faces.

"GO!"

He swept his wings down. The cars launched hard off the line, passing by Soarin so fast he barely had time to think. A second later, Itsuki followed the two racers but was quickly left behind.

Takumi was surprisingly able to accelerate ahead of Spitfire. This lead quickly vanished however as Spitfire's superior power and torque shot her ahead.

"Here we go!" Luna exclaimed as she unfurled her wings and took to the skies. She was ecstatic! THIS was what truely happened during her night! Ponies participated in one of the best sports she had ever laid eyes on! She was going to look upon the sport with unparalleled pride!

Spitfire shifted gears as fast as she could as they traveled through a slight left bend. She let off the throttle as she approached a slight right, followed by a left corner. She was back on the throttle the moment the corner ended but was quickly on the brakes as she swerved through a hard right corner.

Using advanced grip technique, Spitfire carried good speed through the corner and gained great acceleration out of it. Though she wasn't able to stay on the throttle for long, as another quick but hard right corner followed.

Trailbraking. Use trailbraking. That should give me a good edge. She thought as she steered.

Takumi followed behind, quickly gaining his lost ground back with use of his incredible slip-angle technique. He cleared both corners and was closing in on Spitfire's bumper.

Even from those two corners, I can tell she's fast. He noted.

Both cars flew around a left corner. Takumi was now right on Spitfire's bumper. They both sped through a soft left-right-left chicane at full throttle before braking for a quick right corner. At least, Spitfire braked, forcing Takumi to do the same.

They accelerated down a straightaway before braking and steering into a right corner. Takumi copied Spitfire's technique to a tee, following mere centimeters behind.

Acceleration through a right corner, the fiery mare looked back to spot Takumi's 86 right behind him.

As expected, he's right behind me. That's his car's specialty. Outright maneuverability. Even with my Super HICAS rear steering, his agility has him at an advantage.

She looked ahead, eyes narrowing. All I need to do is cover as many inside lines as I can, and he'll never pass.

Around a left turn they sped. They braked hard and steered into a right corner, neither dropping a hair more speed than they needed to. They pulled some serious G's coming out of the corner as they accelerated, the 86 continuing to stick to the S14's bumper.

Up above, Luna watched both cars speed at full throttle through a series of left and right curves. She was astonished at how close Takumi was following Spitfire.

It is like he has no fear of her suddenly braking! She thought. Even with Spitfire's Rear Wheel Steering, Takumi is following her like a ghost! How is he able to adapt so quickly to follow a mare who has been racing for five years?!

EEEEEEEEEEEE!

Tires squealed as Takumi and Spitfire braked and did a full parallel drift through the inside of a HARD left turn. They countersteered and snapped the other direction into a hard right turn, continuing the tandem.

"These two are insane!" A member shouted through a radio. "That Sprinter Trueno is one aggressive piece on the road! I NEVER thought it could do this well!"

Both cars switched directions again into a left hairpin, both using slip angle through the inside. Spitfire grunted as she struggled to countersteer.

The problem with drifting something that has rear wheel steering is that the rear wheels want to straighten you out.

They exited the hairpin and accelerated.

But in order to keep him from passing me, I have to do it. It's a tradeoff of tire strength, but it's worth it.

Their speeds increased dramatically down a straightaway. Though Takumi was right on Spitfire's bumper, the S14 easily began to pull away with its increased power and torque.

She's fast. He thought.

He heard the speed chime sound as Spitfire braked ahead. He braked later than her and cleared the corner faster, easily narrowing the gap.

Nonetheless, he continued throttling hard, catching up slowly but surely. Both he and Spitfire braked and entered a left corner, Spitfire gripping while Takumi used slip angle. He caught right back up to her bumper as they exited.

Spitfire once again pulled away in the straightaway, gaining half a second's lead on Takumi. She braked and steered into the corner, expertly using her Super HICAS Rear Wheel Steering to gain a tighter line. Following quickly behind, Takumi steered through the corner faster than her.

Spitfire looked back, seeing the 86 catching up again. I gotta say, I'm impressed. That thing has outdated solid axle rear suspension that normally makes the rear end kick out. Yet this kid is handling it like it doesn't have that quirk.

She braked and steered into a left corner with Takumi hot on her tail.

"Nopony has EVER stuck to Spitfire for this long!" A member yelled as he watched the cars fly by. "That Sprinter's driving is unreal!"

They gripped around the inside of a left curve. Takumi was back on Spitfire's bumper. Any closer and he would bump her.

Speaking of the mare, she looked back. Damn. He's still there!

Takumi turned slightly to the outside of the turn. Spitfire winced as she blocked.

Unknown to her was that Takumi had duped her. He nailed the throttle and took the inside from her.

"Shoot!" Spitfire yelled the second she noticed. She quickly shook her head and regained composure. "No. There's a straightaway after this. I'll pull ahead."

As the corner ended, Takumi saw the S14 begin to speed ahead again. His expression didn't change.

I cost her some tire strength. That'll come in handy later.

Far Far Behind, Itsuki raced downhill with a radio duct-taped to the dashboard.

"The Sprinter went for an inside attack but Spitfire pulled ahead! A member said through the radio.

"Yeah! Come on Takumi!" He exclaimed. "You'll catch her in the corners! I know you will!"

Takumi's hoof pressed the pedal against the floor as he bumpdrafted Spitfire. He forced himself to get as close as possible so he encountered as minimal air resistance as possible to make up for his power disadvantage. It worked, and he stuck mere centimeters behind.

Spitfire looked at the mirror and was surprised at how close the AE86 was.

What!? He's gotta be less than an inch to my bumper! He must be insane to tailgate me that closely!

Takumi watched his speed increase dramatically. The greatly reduced air resistance gained from drafting the S14 was helping him tremendously.

DingDing.. DingDing.. DingDing..

The speed chime rang as he went into third gear.

Up above, making sure to stay hidden, Luna watched both cars increase their speeds. Despite not being in the race itself, she found immense joy from watching Takumi race the way he did.

He could be put into Professional Racing and nopony would bat an eye. She mused. Well, that is if he were using a brand new car like a Toyota Supra or an S15. They would undoubtedly be interested in how he is able to handle an 86 as well as he does.

A Wonderbolt watched both cars zip by. He held up the radio. "They're setting records at this pace! How the heck is a Sprinter able to keep up with an S14?!"

"Who cares!" Another member yelled. "This is awesome!"

Spitfire counted down the seconds as they approached a left corner at incredible speed.

"Three... Two... One..." She paused. "NOW!"

Music Ends.

EEEEEEEEEEE!

She braked hard, causing her Anti-Lock-Braking System to kick in. The brakes heated up as she and Takumi came into the corner, Spitfire gripping and steering into the corner as hard as she could.

Right behind her came Takumi, who went into a full Four-Wheel-Drift to maintain speed. He went far inside, guiding the 86 so it was less than an inch from the guardrail. With a flick of the steering wheel, he smoothly transitioned into a sudden right corner to get within an inch from Spitfire's bumper and the mountain's wall.

The moment the corner ended, Takumi was back withing centimeters of Spitfire's bumper. It was another long straightaway, so he had to have as little air resistance as possible in order to keep up.

"They're heading down the second straightaway! Spitfire's pulling away!!" A member said through the radio. Itsuki, who was way back in his 86 Levin, heard it.

"Come on Takumi!" He cheered.

Takumi noticed something about his body. Or rather, lack of something.

I'm not sweating at all. I don't even feel tired. Luna wasn't kidding about Alicorns having resistance to things. This feels great!

Soarin and Thunderlane followed the two cars in the air. Soarin had a radar gun in hoof, while Thunderlane had a stopwatch.

"Look at them!" Thunderlane yelled. "Spitfire's pulling away but Takumi ain't backing down!"

"They're doing-" Soarin gasped. "THEY JUST HIT A HUNDRED MILES AN HOUR!"

Dave Rodgers - 100 starts playing.

"WHAT!?"

Soarin showed the radar gun to Thunderlane, who subsequently gasped. "No way!"

Luna, who had been nearby in the air, heard this. She was very surprised. "The level of tenacity needed to exceed that speed on a mountain pass is nothing short of incredible..."

EEEEEEEEEEEE!

Spitfire braked harder than ever as they approached a left-right chicane. Their tires squealed in unison as the drives steered through, both taking perfect lines. Left Curve, Right Curve, Takumi made sure to get as close to the inside of both as he could, which was mere inches.

Jesus Christ she's fast. He thought. Everything about her technique is so similar to Tomoyuki's it's terrifying. Only difference is she's in an FR instead of an FF. I just hope she doesn't know about the trick I'm about to pull.

[EUROBEAT INTENSIFIES]

Through a series of left and right turns they went. Nopony could believe the speeds they were achieving in the turns, and some wondered how fast they would be if they had more extreme aero. Particularly what would happen if Takumi's 86 had a wing.

Luna was quick to notice Takumi's efficient use of his 86's lightweight chassis through the high-speed turns. Her thoughts rang out as Takumi tailgated Spitfire through several turns, using slip angle.

While weight matters less and less at high speed in a straight line, when in a turn, having a lightweight chassis means you have far less inertia. Despite Spitfire's aerodynamic and downforce advantages, Takumi's near-700 pound advantage nullifies that. Even with the added Four Wheel Steering. How could my sister not be interested in this?

Spitfire looked back at the 86, wincing as she saw how close it was. I don't hear a turbo, yet he was on my tail for that entire high speed section which should've favored my car. After this race, I'll need to ask what kind of engine he has. Because that isn't a normal engine.

She looked back ahead and saw a right corner approaching. Up ahead is probably the hardest corner on the course. It's a quick right corner, but it straightens out for a moment before going into another right. It may not sound too hard, but that little straightaway is just enough to throw someone's game off. It makes you think you can take a smooth line, but at the same time, it looks like you can't take a smooth line. The correct line is very precise.

She glanced back at Takumi. Let's see if you can find that line.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Spitfire braked and steered into the right corner, lightly drifting and letting the car slide towards the guardrail. She then guided the car back into the inside, wincing as she avoided a lidless drainage gutter that lay on the inside of the turn. Feeling good about herself as she exited, her eyes darted back to the corner.

Takumi took a breath in as the corner approached. "Alright. Here we go!"

Luna gasped as Takumi went full throttle into the corner, going so far inside she could have sworn he had hit the inner drainage gutter. The 86 slid outwards, coming mere centimeters from the guardrail before Takumi brought it back in line.

"Wait, WHAT!?" Spitfire yelled, seeing the AE86 rocket out of the corner behind her and press up against her bumper. Her gaze snapped ahead as she fought to keep the S14 straight.

It can't be! She internally panicked as she accelerated through a left corner, Takumi right on her tail. I've driven that corner countless times. He didn't just clear it perfectly. He IMPROVED the damn thing! How did he take that line?! It looked like went right over the damn gutter!

They approached a left hairpin and braked accordingly. Takumi noticed Spitfire brake a little bit later than usual, which caused the S14 to slide a little outwards. Not enough to allow him to attack, but noticeable to the trained eye.

Must be surprised at what I did back there. He thought.

Spitfire was in fact surprised. As Takumi followed her through the left hairpin, she found herself sweating.

Celestia help me. She prayed as they exited the hairpin. This kid is more of a monster than I thought. How the hay did he improve the line on the hardest corner of the course? How long has he been driving?!

Takumi took the best line he could through a right curve, better than even Spitfire's, keeping up easily. He left the right side of the road and switched to the left as they entered a left curve, coming as close as he possibly could to a lidless drainage gutter on the inside. In the sky above, Thunderlane noticed this.

"Does he has some kind of deathwish? Look at how close he is to the gutter!"

"I know! That's insane!" Soarin yelled.

Luna was especially alarmed at how close Takumi was getting to the gutter. If the tires were to fall in, he would scrape the bottom of his car and likely be ground to a halt.

She shook her head. No. Takumi must know exactly what he is doing. He has likely dealt with these types of gutters before.

The cars went around a right curve, increasing speed, before braking and swerving into a left corner. Spitfire made sure to dart as far inside as she dared, refusing to let Takumi attempt to take the inside. Takumi remained calm and collected behind, patiently waiting for a good place to pass.

Spitfire hated this. She hated how unbelievably calm Takumi was. His driving was smooth, his shifting was fast, and he was always right on her bumper. Unlike him, she was beginning to turn into a nervous wreck. This had a slight effect on her driving.

This feels great. Takumi thought. I'm not sweating, I'm not cold or warm, and my focus is better. I could put the heater on full blast and barely feel a thing.

Spitfire looked back for a split second and yelped when he saw Takumi still on her tail. She looked ahead. "That's it! I'm not looking in my mirror anymore!"

They flew by a few ponies, one of whom clicked a button on a stopwatch. The ponies gasped when they saw the posted time.

Both cars entered a left curve at high speed. Spitfire took the inside, while Takumi took the... outside!?

"Woah!" Soarin yelled, watching from above. "The Trueno is heading for the outside!"

Using a sudden four-wheel-drift with zero braking, Takumi began passing Spitfire's S14 on the outside of the curve! At high speed!

Spitfire, despite forcing herself not to check the rearview mirror, was surprised to hear the AE86 next to her. She looked over in horror to see it passing her at high speed.

What do you think you're doing kid!? She internally yelled. There's a right hairpin after this! You're gonna crash!

She hit the brakes as Takumi passed her completely, fearing a crash. She watched Takumi swing the rear end of the 86 outwards.

"I knew it! You're going in way too fast!"

"Takumi!" Luna yelled from above, almost using the Royal Canterlot Voice.

Takumi suddenly threw the steering wheel right, let off the throttle and lightly hit the brakes. The 86 snapped the other direction into the hairpin. A pony that happened to be standing next to the hairpin ran for their life as the 86 skidded outwards towards the guardrail.

Takumi quickly manipulated his hooves and used the brakes, throttle, and steering to their full potential, guiding the 86 around the very outside of the hairpin mere centimeters from the guardrail.

A split second later, Takumi nailed the throttle and accelerated out of the hairpin, leaving Spitfire in smoke. He let out a sudden breath.

"Gah! Ok, that was NOT the plan, but now I'm in front. I can't believe I actually did that."

Spitfire exited the hairpin and accelerated, jaw gaping from the sight she had just seen.

An Inertia Drift... how the fuck did just pull that off in that corner? What kind of a monster are you? You've only driven this course for a night- "AND YOU DIDN'T EVEN HAVE A PRACTICE RUN BEFORE THIS!

She slammed the throttle wide open in anger. "No! I'm not letting some kid beat me like that. You may be in front, but I can still catch up. This is my course! I can catch up!"

Music Ends.

Takumi swerved into a left corner, using slip angle again. He exited the corner and steered around a left curve.

EEEEEEEEEEEE!

The 86's tires squealed as he entered a right hairpin fast and hard, manipulating the steering and throttle to gain the best line. His eyes darted to the mirror. He was surprised to find that Spitfire's S14 was catching up to him!

Already? He thought. How?

Exiting the hairpin, both cars accelerated down a straightaway. Despite Spitfire's turbo, the perfect and efficient responsiveness of the Naturally Aspirated 4A-GE allowed him superior acceleration out of the corner.

They braked suddenly, Takumi braking as late as he could to take the optimal line through a right corner. Behind, Spitfire watched Takumi's line closely. She shifted gears as quickly as she could as they exited the corner, focusing hard on her driving. She again watched Takumi's line as they braked and drifted into a left corner. Takumi drifted, she gripped.

As he drifted through the inside of the corner, Takumi thought about the changed handling characteristics of his car. The lightweight windows help quite a bit. I can go through corners faster than usual. Thanks, Luna.

Behind, Spitfire pushed the accelerator all the way down to catch up. She was annoyed at how Takumi was able to pull off such an advanced move right in front of her. Though as they braked and steered around a quick right curve, she smiled.

We've still got a ways to go before reaching the bottom. Spitfire thought. I can pass you before then.

They accelerated hard down a straightaway. Above, Luna was having trouble remembering what she had just seen. Takumi had somehow managed to change the direction of his 86 and simultaneously slow down within a single second, then drift around the outside of the hairpin and somehow not smack into the guardrail, all at blistering speeds.

To pull that off must require the most incredible reflexes ever... She thought.

vrooOOOommm!

"Woah!" A member yelped, seeing the cars fly by. "That Sprinter is putting up a good fight but Spitfire's chewing on his bumper!"

"That's our captain!" another member yelled.

They were approaching a left curve quickly. Takumi slowed and steered toward the inside, coming mere centimeters from the inside gutter. Both he and Spitfire slingshotted around the curve at high speed and exited inches from the outside guardrail. They braked again and steered into another left corner. Takumi looked behind him and, to his surprise, saw Spitfire right behind him.

Quickly brushing it off as they exited the corner, he shifted gears and accelerated away. He gained some ground, but Spitfire's turbo kicked in and brought her back against his bumper.

"That's it kid." Spitfire growled. "I'm done playing. Time to show you the true power of the S14 Autech!"

Dr. Love - Don't Stand So Close starts playing.

Takumi heard Spitfire's engine roar with power as they flew through a right curve and entered a left corner. He saw the right side of the 86 lighting up, causing him to check the mirror.

In the mirror, Spitfire was accelerating on the outside! At high speed! Using slip angle!

His eyes widened. Oh no.

Before he could do anything, Spitfire had pulled her S14 several inches past Takumi's rear bumper. They entered a sudden right corner. Spitfire took the inside from Takumi and forced him to the outside. Takumi, not willing to give up, pressed harder on the throttle.

Spitfire was surprised. What are you doing? Do you not see the gutter?! She internally yelled as she saw Takumi's 86 getting closer and closer to the outside lidless gutter. You're gonna fall in!

In his mind, Takumi quickly drew the line his rear left tire would take as he drifted around the corner. He held the steering where it was and used only throttle control to guide the car around, bringing the tire centimeters from the gutter.

He would have fallen in had the corner not ended and turned into a quick left. He smoothly changed the direction of his drift and drifted around the corner, exiting and pressing on the throttle. He and Spitfire sped down a straightaway neck and neck for a split second before Spitfire began pulling ahead.

Spitfire growled as she watched the 86 slowly fall behind in her mirror. He wasn't using magic. That wasn't even blind luck. He knew exactly which line to take. If I can just get ahead of him coming into this turn, I can take the inside and get past! Come on Turbo!

The turbocharger whirred and provided the S14 with extra torque, allowing it to accelerate past Takumi's 86. She happily yelped as she steered towards the inside of a left corner

He entered the corner as fast as he could. To his horror, he wasn't gaining much ground. As they exited, he accelerated.

Takumi's eyes widened. "Not good. There's a straightaway after this."

Spitfire's S14 gained ground on him. Fast. In the S14, Spitfire smiled.

"This straightaway should give me the leeway I need to beat him. He won't be able to catch up in time."

Above, Luna watched as Spitfire pulled away. "Come on Takumi. You are running out of road. What is your plan?"

Very soon, Spitfire enjoyed a very comfortable lead on Takumi as she drifted the corners.

EEEEEEE!

She winced as the S14 suddenly became unstable. She easily stabilized it.

I haven't been very nice to the tires. She thought, knowing it was the tires that destabilized her. By the end of the race, they'll be done. It won't matter though. I've got about two seconds of a lead on him. I've won this race.

She watched the AE86 fly around the bend far behind. Mhm. Way too far behind.

Takumi watched Spitfire's S14 disappear around the left corner ahead. "I've gotta catch up."

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!-THUNK!!

"Huh? What was that?" Luna wondered as she watched Takumi exit a corner.

Spitfire pressed on the throttle, guiding her S14 around a right curve. She braked and gripped as the curve tightened into a hard corner.

We had a good run, Takumi. She began. Never before did I think a Sprinter Trueno could ever compare to the likes of an S14. Now it's crystal clear. It isn't a fun enthusiast's car. It's a weapon. A true fighting machine. I'm almost sad the race wasn't as close as I hoped it would be.

She looked behind, seeing the corner she had just cleared light up. At least the beginning was... good- what the?

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!-THUNK!

"WHAT!?" She yelled in surprise as Takumi's 86 flew around the corner behind, already catching up. She looked ahead. "I must be seeing things!"

She entered a left corner, coming close to the inside gutter.

Up above, Soarin and Thunderlane watched as Takumi entered the same corner as Spitfire just as the mare exited it. "Is it just me or is he going over the gutters?" Thunderlane asked.

"Nonsense. You can go over those. They're way too deep."

Entering a right corner, Spitfire eyed her rearview mirror while Soarin and Thunderlane watched from above. "No way you can be catching up already, right?" Spitfire asked.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Suddenly, Takumi's 86 FLEW around the corner. Except something was wrong. His front right tire was over the gutter!

"WHAT THE-!?" the three pegasi and Luna yelled.

THUNK!

The wheel was pulled out of the gutter suddenly. The 4A-GE roared with fury as it revved up to 11000RPM, allowing the 86 to very quickly close the gap between it and the S14.

"WHAT WAS THAT!?" Spitfire yelled. "YOU WERE OVER THE GUTTER! BULLSHIT! HOW DID YOU NOT FALL IN?!"

In her fit of rage, Spitfire momentarily lost control. She quickly regained traction as they entered a right corner, Takumi right behind her, heading for the inside.

"Oh no you don't!" She yelled. "I'm not giving you the inside that easily!"

A loud thunk was heard as Takumi, using all the focus he had, dove for the inside. Once again, his front right wheel was hovering OVER THE GUTTER, SOMEHOW not falling in.

"THAT ISN'T POSSIBLE!" Spitfire yelled. "There shouldn't be any ground where you're driving! HOW ARE YOU DOING THAT?!"

She was forced to the outside as Takumi continued his line. The Alicorn pressed the accelerator as far as it would go, determined to pass Spitfire. Due to the responsiveness of his engine, he accelerated past Spitfire. However, as the mare's turbocharger kicked in, she was able to accelerate faster.

Come on 86! Takumi internally yelled.

As they entered a left curve side by side, Soarin spoke through the radio. "Spitfire and Takumi are all over each other! You're not gonna believe this, but Takumi driving OVER the gutters like they aren't even there! And he's going WAY faster than he should be able to go! I don't know about you guys but I don't think Spitfire's gonna be able to hold her lead!"

"No! Come on Spitfire!" A member replied.

"You can do it!" Another encouraged.

Despite being on the inside of the curve, Spitfire couldn't find the grip to go faster than Takumi. Though she kept them side by side, the next right corner would put Takumi on the inside.

"What the FUCK!?" She yelled. "This is bullshit! My tires are SHOT! Yours aren't!"

Coming in side by side into the right corner, Takumi drifted and steered over the gutter again, lifting his right tire over it, cementing his overtake.

"DAMMIT!"

Spitfire watched helplessly as Takumi accelerated ahead on the inside. One the corner ended, he was in front, with her on his bumper.

"How are you doing that?! It looks like magic, but at the same time it isn't! HOW?!"

Takumi didn't look behind him. He focused on the road and the road only, using his ears to make sure Spitfire wasn't about to pass him.

Entering a left curve, he gripped and continued to accelerate. As the curve tightened, he began drifting. Behind, Spitfire focused on the gutter.

Show me! How in Tartarus are you doing that? She internally pleaded. I need to know!

She saw Takumi dive into the corner at full speed, once again driving his front left tire over the gutter. Her eyes widened.

How? How are you doing that? How is your tire not falling in?!

Before she knew it, they had exited the corner with Takumi gaining a considerable lead on her. She pressed on the throttle as they went through a quick left corner, then a quick right corner, then another left. Takumi drifting and using his 86's cornering ability to widen the gap more and more.

"No! Come on!" She yelled.

(Music begins to slowly decrease in volume)

She watched Takumi brake and use slip-angle around the approaching right hairpin. She entered the same hairpin a second later and tried carrying as much speed as she could, but her tires weren't having any of it. She exited the corner and accelerated, but Takumi was ahead, quickly closing in on the finish line.

Her jaw open as the gravity of the situation came down on her. She had lost. Though instead of angrily banging on the dashboard, she instead smiled.

"That kid..." She chuckled.

Music Ends.

Takumi let out a sigh of relief as he passed over the finish line. Up above, Thunderlane clicked his stopwatch. He gasped as he showed Soarin the time.

"Holy shit..." Soarin slowly said. "Eight seconds..." He held up the radio. "Takumi beat the record by EIGHT SECONDS!"

The radio was filled with a resounding "WHAT?!" from every member who had been listening.

"WOOOHOOOOO!" Itsuki cheered as he accelerated down a straightaway. "THAT'S MY BEST FRIEND RIGHT THERE! NICE GOIN' TAKUMI!"

Above, it took everything in Luna to not squeal and cheer for Takumi. She wanted to fly down, congratulate him, and hug him. Especially hug him.

Takumi pulled off to the side of the road as Spitfire passed over the line far behind. He slumped back in his seat, taking in what he had just done.

Spitfire pulled in a few car lengths behind Takumi, stopping and getting out just to stare at the 86. The 86 that had beaten her, the fastest downhiller the Wonderbolts had, by somehow lifting its tires over the gutters to gain a better, and somehow faster, racing line. That was the kind of thing no racing school would dare teach.

She felt the air next to her be quickly displaced as Soarin and Thunderlane landed.

"Spitfire, what the heck happened?" Soarin asked.

"How did you lose to an 86?"

Spitfire only smiled. "Guys, that kid is on a whole other level. He pulled off moves I never would have been able to pull off. Moves that tell me he has no fear of the road whatsoever. Plus, he conserved his tires way better then I did."

"What? But you've been in professional racing on and off for five years!" Thunderlane exclaimed.

"Yeah. That's the problem."

"Huh?!" The stallions were confused.

Initial D Fourth Stage Soundtrack - Loser starts playing.

Spitfire looked at them. "I've been spoiled in the tire department. I would just waste the tires away without thinking about it. Why conserve them when you have a dozen spare sets?"

"That... does make sense. I guess we all suck at tire conservation." Thunderlane admitted.

"Takumi has never seen the track." Spitfire continued. "He probably never had many spare tires when practicing, so he developed a technique that best conserved the ones he had for as long as possible to minimize costs. It's what allowed him to pass me. I made the mistake of wasting my tire strength too early. Bit me in the tail towards the end."

"But, hold on, he was going OVER the gutters." Soarin interjected. "His wheel was hovering over it. Surely that's the stuff of magic, right?"

Spitfire looked back at the 86 to see Takumi slowly getting out. "I'm gonna find out right now."

Takumi closed the door, keeping a hoof on the handle. After a split second, he smiled.

That felt great. Too... too great... His smile faltered.

"Hey, Takumi!" He heard Spitfire say.

He looked over to spot the mare. Up above, Luna listened in.

Spitfire wore a smile. "Nice racing back there. That was the best I've ever had."

"Oh. Thanks. Can't say the same about it being my best."

"Now, quick question. That move back there, with the gutter? What was that?"

"What do you mean?"

"How the hay were you doing it?" She was internally praying to Celestia that the move wasn't magic and that she could replicate it herself.

"It's not hard. There isn't any magic. Anyone can do it."

"How?"

"When going into a turn that has a gutter too deep to drive into, you drift to get your front tire over it. Then you need to shift the weight of the car to the rear. Take as much weight off of whatever tire is over the gutter. With less weight on the tire, it won't be able to fall in."

Spitfire, Soarin, and Thunderlane were all wide-eyed with wonder.

"Do that, and you turn the gutter into a shortcut. At maximum speed too. That's what a friend of mine said."

Spitfire looked at the 86, envisioning it travelling over the gutter at high speed. She remembered seeing the rear end droop down as Takumi pressed on the throttle.

"Wow. Kid. You are..." She chuckled. "You are really something else, you know that?"

Takumi said nothing.

"So uhh... what happens now?" Thunderlane asked. "I know I'm racing Itsuki in a few, but still."

There was a moment of silence before Spitfire perked up. "Takumi, how about you and me go somewhere?"

Takumi was surprised at the sudden question. "Why?"

"Because I want to see what the hay you have installed in your Sprinter." She explained. "And I... also want to talk to you about some things."

"Like what?" Takumi asked, growing slightly uncomfortable as he noticed the way Soarin and Thunderlane looked at each other.

"Just... some things. Is all."

"Well, I can't tonight. I've gotta head back to Canterlot I think."

Spitfire was surprised. "So Princess Celestia and Princess Luna DO know of your existence?"

"Yeah. Why wouldn't they?" Takumi sighed. "And don't even think about calling me prince." He added with a rather cold tone.

"Um... ok. Well, how about tomorrow? We can meet near the Academy. The recruits won't mind me being gone for a few."

"Well... I dunno..."

"Noon. How does noon sound?"

Takumi sighed. "I guess."

"It's not a date, if that's what you're thinking. Just a little meeting."

"Ok. I guess I'll... let Celestia and-, Luna know."

"What's with the pause?"

"Nothing. Anyways, there's one more thing I need to do." Takumi turned and walked to the driverside of his 86.

"What's that?"

"I'll be back in a few. Hey, tell Itsuki to meet me at the top of the course."

Before anypony could object, Takumi silently got back in the 86 and slowly drove off.

JUST as Itsuki finally made it to the bottom.

Itsuki stopped behind Spitfire's S14 and quickly got out. "What happened? Where's Takumi?"

Spitfire looked at him. "Heading somewhere. He said he'd be back and told me to tell you to meet him at the top of the course."

"Why?"

Spitfire shrugged. "Is he always like this?"

"Always like what? Oh, you mean how he likes walking off for no reason? Yeah. He tends to do that."

"Hm. Well, in that case, I wonder what he's doing."

There was a pause.

"...Set a record." Itsuki suddenly said.

Spitfire, Thunderlane, and Soarin looked at him.

"Set a record?" The mare asked.

"He used to be in a team. Project D. After they beat their opponents, they would set a course record for both the uphill AND downhill. Obviously Takumi isn't going to go for uphill, but he's absolutely going to SMASH the downhill record."

"Oh. That's sounds fun to watch."

"Ohhhohoh, you should see when he goes for a record attempt on Mount Akina! Those are awesome."

"Mount Akina?"

"The mountain he's from. Shares the same road layout as the Canterlot Turnpike."

"Oh does it?"

"Mhm. Now, let's head back up top." Itsuki trotted back to his 86. "This is going to be AWESOME!"

The Panda Trueno's liftgate open, Takumi loaded four tires into the trunk. He paused as he looked at a small crate sat in the corner of the trunk. One he knew contained three books. The three were the original trilogy of a series he had somewhat recently found out about. Daring Do.

He remembered how he got them. It was over a week ago. He was with Itsuki, back before his friend had gotten the AE86 Levin. He was still an Alicorn, while Itsuki was a Unicorn. They were in a field, with their cars, near a pond.

They had been talking for a bit before hearing noises nearby. Someone with a... he wanted to say it was a spanish-like accent, shouting at a few underlings. He and Itsuki decided to walk over to the pond to investigate, finding three, no, four stallions each carrying duffel bags. One was carrying three, and had accidentally dropped one in the pond.

The mystery crew, who Takumi remembered to have looked like jungle explorers, would have picked the bag up had they not noticed him and Itsuki. They quickly ran off into the darkness.

After some bickering, they had lifted the surprisingly heavy duffel bag out of the pond and opened it. Inside was hundreds, HUNDREDS, of full, pure, immaculate gold coins inside. Also inside were the three Daring Do books.

He had to admit, they were actually pretty interesting. They were well illustrated and told a rather intriguing story. Not to mention they felt realistic. The main character, Daring Do, tended to think to herself a lot. Something he tended to do. And though he didn't read much, he kind of wanted to read more of the books.

"That was... amazing." A familiar voice said, bringing Takumi back to the present.

"Thanks." Takumi replied, gripping the liftgate with his magic and gently closing it.

Luna walked up and looked into the trunk, seeing the tires. She was surprised to see that they were had supersoft tire compound. They would allow some insane grip, though would wear out in a single run. "What are you doing?"

"I'm gonna head back there. Set a record on that pass. One nobody will beat for a while." Takumi replied.

"Really?"

"It's what Project D would have wanted. They did the same after we beat our opponents. I'm gonna do the same here."

"..."

"I'm gonna go down that road unrestricted, at 100 percent. It's not the ride you would want to be in."

Luna chuckled. "I have to agree. I can barely survive you driving at 80 percent, let alone 100."

Takumi smiled. "I also have to tell Itsuki something. Something I realized while talking with Spitfire."

"What is that?"

Takumi opened the door and looked at her with neutral look.

"That race with Thunderlane? Itsuki isn't going to win."

Author's Note

WE'VE HIT NINE THOUSAND!

And FINALLY! Some ACTUAL RACING! And hopefully, more to come! I've recently got some ideas on how to better work Itsuki into the story, some of which involve him simply being with Takumi more.

Speaking of which, what do you think Takumi means by "Itsuki isn't going to win"? Any ideas?

Act 18: The Effects of Immortality

Itsuki impatiently waited in the Academy Parking Lot with his 86. He heard over the radio that Takumi was on his way up, but he shouldn't be wasting time up here! He should be attacking the downhill in preparation for his race with Thunderlane!

"Dangit Takumi. Why are you doing this to me?" he angrily asked the air. "How do you expect me to win against Thunderlane if I don't practice a bit first?"

Within a few minutes, he saw Takumi's 86 pulling in, parking a space away from his 86 Levin. A second later, the alicorn got out.

"About freaking time."

Takumi ignored him. "Could you give me a hand over here? Tires?"

"Wait- That's why you wanted me to be up here? To help you with TIRES?"

Takumi opened the liftgate and lifted the tires and jackstands out. "No."

"Then what?"

Takumi, impressing Itsuki, lifted the back end of the 86 off the ground with his magic. He quickly used his magic to prop it up with jackstands before setting it down on said jackstands.

"Itsuki, just help me. I'll tell you in a second."

Itsuki reluctantly began work on the rear left tire while Takumi did the right.

"You aren't going to win." Takumi stated after a moment.

Itsuki was surprised. "What do you mean?"

"Itsuki, I've driven Thunderlane's E30."

Itsuki was even MORE surprised. "You did?! Er- You have?!"

Takumi used his magic to raise the front of the 86 up and put more jackstands under it, getting to work on the front right tire. "Yeah. I have. And I'm telling you now, you aren't going to beat him."

"But I'm in an 86, right?"

Takumi sighed. "A STOCK 86, Itsuki. With 124HP."

"Hey! I have a carbon fiber hood and a Fiberglass Liftgate with a Ducktail! And what's wrong with 124HP? You beat Keisuke with your 86. And Takeshi! Who was in a 340HP R32 GT-R V-Spec Two!"

"You mean my FATHER'S 86. Dude, you need to remember that the car wasn't completely stock. It had a rally transmission and my father personally tuned the suspension. Plus it had TRD High Tension racing wires and good brakes. That's why I could shift so fast."

"But... Isn't my car lighter?"

"Yeah. But-" Takumi stood up. "Dude, Thunderlane is driving a RALLY CAR. He makes as much horsepower as my car and more torque. While the suspension isn't very responsive, the car handles as good as my 86."

Itsuki's ears fell. "It handles... just as good?"

"I mean It's easier to control. My car has better agility, but the E30's chassis feels stiffer. It's better suited to mountain roads than the 86 is."

"..."

"I'm not a car expert by any means, but having driven the car myself..." He sighed. "Listen, the fact is, you aren't going to win against him. He knows the course and is in a better car than you. You're just going to push yourself too hard and crash. Remember back when I raced Kyoichi on Akagi?"

Itsuki winced. "Yeah..."

"You're thinking about my races on Akina too much. Remember, I know that course inside out. Every turn, every line, every shift point, better than anyone. If you were on Akina or the Canterlot Turnpike, and he had an hour of practice, then maybe you'd win. But here? It's a losing battle."

Itsuki's ears were flat. He said nothing as he took in what Takumi said.

"Just postpone it till tomorrow. You can run it the same time as I did. Maybe run it later for some extra practice."

Itsuki finished putting on the wheel. "What do you want me to do? Upgrade my 86?"

Takumi paused. "Yes actually. Since you're so crazy about being a prince, go ask Celestia if she can give you some bits. Act like you want to try out some circuit racing."

Using his magic, Takumi lift the front end into the air, removed the jackstands, then set it back down. "You done with that tire?"

"Yeah. I... I am."

Takumi lifted the rear end up, removed the jackstands, then set it down. "Now. I guess it's time to go for the Record Run."

"Yeah, right."

"Do me a favor, mind taking the jackstands in your car?"

"I can do that." A new voice suggested.

The alicorns looked over to see Spitfire walking up to them with a smile. Fleetfoot was next to her.

"Oh. You can? Ok then." Takumi set the jackstands and tires down next to each other.

"I overheard you two. Talking about how you should postpone the race with Thunderlane, right?" Spitfire and Fleetfoot stopped a few feet away from them. "Smart choice."

"It's not smart. It's just common sense." Itsuki stated.

"Hm. Well, Takumi, I take it you need somepony to time you?" She held up a stopwatch.

Takumi sighed. "I guess. It's just, normally I'd have one of my teammates time me. Unless," He looked at Itsuki. "Itsuki, do you want to time me?"

"Well, sure. Of course I do. But I don't think I'd be fast enough to get to the bottom in time."

"It's a straight line vs a tight, technical, and wavy line. You can make it to the bottom." Spitfire reassured. "Fleetfoot and I will be flying overhead while he drives."

"Oh. Well, alright then." Takumi walked to the driverside of his 86 and opened the door. "If you're gonna time me, I'll be at the starting line.

krrr-chunka-chunka-vroooOOOOOoooooommmmmmm

Spitfire, Fleetfoot, and Itsuki simply watched as Takumi reversed out of the parking spot and drove towards the starting line.

"Huh." Spitfire looked at Itsuki. "So. Itsuki, you want me to tell Thunderlane that you want to reschedule the race for tomorrow?"

"Yeah. Sounds perfect. Hey, can I have a stopwatch?"

Fleetfoot chucked one over. Itsuki, being Itsuki, failed to catch it, causing it to fall on the ground. He quickly picked it up with his mouth.

"Now." Spitfire unfurled her wings. "Let's go watch a record-breaking run."

"This is gonna be fun," Fleetfoot said.

Takumi slowed to a stop at the starting line. He simply stared ahead, waiting for someone to count him down.

I beat Spitfire. He thought. I beat Spitfire Mariner, captain of the Wonderbolts. It felt... good. No, great. It felt amazing to beat someone in this world, in a different body. But that... that's why it's horrible... it felt amazing...

"Ready?!"

He looked up to spot Itsuki waving and Soarin standing on the side of the road, wing in the air. He shook his head and vacated the thoughts.

Get your head in the game. He thought. Ryosuke would have wanted me to smash every course record I could. That's exactly what I'm here to do tonight.

He shoved the gear shift into first.

Fastway - Overdrive (Extended Version) starts playing.

vrooomroooOOOOOoommmmm

Soarin smiled as he listened to the 4A-GE rumble.

"Here we go! Stopwatches at the ready!" He yelled.

The Sprinter Trueno revved, slightly tilting with each opening of the throttle bodies.

"Ten!"

"Nine!"

"Eight!"

Above, Luna got ready to see how fast Takumi truly was.

"Seven!"

"Six!"

Spitfire looked at Fleetfoot and Thunderlane. "Buckle up you two. We're about to get a front row seat to the greatest Sprinter Trueno Driver in Equestrian History."

"Five!"

"Four!"

"Three!"

"Two!"

"One!"

Soarin shot his wing down. "GO!"

[EUROBEAT INTENSIFIES]

The 86 took off like a rocket. Spitfire and Itsuki started their stopwatches, Itsuki flying as fast as he dared while Spitfire and Fleetfoot followed the 86 as it attacked the mountain road.

EEEEEEEEEEE!

Takumi barely braked as he went into a full four wheel drift into the first corner. He cleared it instantly and swerved into a right corner, clearing it and the very next corner and accelerating.

Spitfire, Fleetfoot, Thunderlane, and Soarin all flew overhead, watching the 86 take corners faster than what they thought was possible.

"It's like art, in a way." Spitfire began as the 86 rocketed around corners. "The way he paints his racing line along the course."

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!

"An amateur painter is jagged and hard on the parchment." Spitfire continued. "They try hard to make the painting look good on the first try."

The 86 slowed down and steered into a corner, getting mere centimeters from the inside before exiting centimeters from the guardrail.

Spitfire chuckled. "A professional, no. A natural painter lets the brush flow across the surface smoothly and tastefully, taking hours aside to perfect it. That's what Takumi is doing."

"This isn't taking hours, Spitfire." Thunderlane corrected.

"Oh, but it has taken hours, Thunderlane." Spitfire calmly retorted. "What we're looking at is days upon days, months upon months of practice. Oh my go-hosh..."

They watched Takumi clear a corner by lifting a tire over the inside gutter. He once again exited centimeters from the guardrail.

"I just realized actually. By doing that gutter trick, you aren't wearing the front tires down as much." Spitfire acknowledged.

"Heh. How could the tires wear down if they aren't even touching anything?" Fleetfoot asked.

"Exactly."

Members freaked out when they saw the 86 barreling towards them, some even jumping out of the way in fear of the 86 slamming into the guardrail, only to be proven wrong as it rocketed around the corners.

Princess Luna flew above. her eyes could not believe what she was seeing. The sheer speed Takumi was tackling the corners made her wonder if she could attain that semblance of speed. The fact that Takumi wasn't overloading the tires grip, nor was he missing any shift points, was nothing short of incredible.

"That is his gift." She quietly said. "His natural ability to drive. I want a gift like that."

Fleetfoot and the others continued following the 86 as it sped down a straight, easily exceeding 100 Miles Per Hour. Fleetfoot was simply amazed at the sight. The way Takumi chose his lines smoothly with zero hesitation, how close he came to a guardrail, and the distance he was to the corners before braking all invigorated her to no end.

"I want to race him."

The other three looked at her. "Seriously?" Spitfire asked.

Fleetfoot smiled. "I want to race him in my R32. Even if I don't win, I just want to see that kind of driving from behind. See if I could emulate it."

Takumi entered a corner, braking at the last split second to smoothly lift his wheel over the inside gutter to clear the corner as fast as possible.

Spitfire returned the smile. "Since I'm meeting him tomorrow, you could ask him then." She looked at the stopwatch. "Damn. Look at the time he's putting down."

"Just the way he takes those. If I could put that into my driving... wow..."

"Hey Spitfire, maybe you should bring him onto the Wonderbolts." Soarin joked.

Spitfire laughed. "Considering he's an Alicorn, I doubt he'd join even if I offered the highest position."

"But do you want him on the Wonderbolts?"

Spitfire said nothing as she looked back at the 86.

Soon, farther down the mountain, Itsuki was EXHAUSTED. Even flying at the speed he was, despite having to simply glide down the mountain, he didn't know that. He kept flapping. Which made it hard to get down the mountain.

"I... Jesus... I... hate this... HOH!"

He heard the tires squealing far up the course as he landed next to the finish line.

Suddenly, he smiled. "And Rainbow Dash... doesn't want... to get caught by Spitfire... she says..." he panted.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Soon, Takumi rounded a corner at high speed, using the gutter-lift trick to gain a quicker line. He exited the corner so fast ponies wondered if he was using magic. He wasn't, of course.

He approached a hairpin quickly, faster than any hairpins before. Luna gasped as Takumi braked at the last millisecond, steering in and lifting his front tire over the gutter and over to the other side of it, touching the inner concrete with an impressive four wheel drift, all within the span of a couple tenths of a second. Nopony thought such a move was physically possible.

Physically possible or not, Takumi slingshotted around the hairpin and exited so fast he came not just a few centimeters, but a single. centimeter. from the guardrail. Thought the ponies watching were impressed, Princess Luna being the most impressed, none were prepared for what happened next.

The moment Takumi left the hairpin, the 86 was engulfed in a brilliant bright blue fire. It whipped off of the paintwork the way fire would at over 60MPH, though the paint remained unsigned. The taillights stalled and created lines along the road of where Takumi had driven, the headlights doing a bit of the same thing.

Everypony was speechless. Their eyes were wide, and their jaws were fully open. Nopony could believe their eyes. Even Luna had to rub her eyes to make sure they weren't failing her. They weren't.

"What in the universe?"

Takumi soon rounded another hairpin, fire disappearing as he approached the finish line, shifting as fast as equinely possible.

Itsuki shot up, ready to click the stopwatch. Up above, Spitfire readied hers. "HERE WE GO!"

BEEP!

Music Ends.

Luna let out a breath she had been holding as Takumi braked and slowed to a stop on the side of the road.

Spitfire held up her timer, surprised at the time Takumi had put down. The other pegasi were surprised too.

Itsuki cheered as he saw the time he had gotten, happy for his friend. Spitfire swooped down and landed next to him.

"What time did you get?"

Itsuki looked down at the stopwatch on the ground. "Uh..."

Spitfire rolled her eyes as she used a hoof to pick the stopwatch up. Using a wing to hold the other one next to it. She smiled. "We got within a few tenths of a second. Let's meet in the middle, ok?"

"Sounds fine to me," Itsuki said.

"Sweet Celestia Spitfire..." Soarin began as he looked at the time Spitfire had written down. "I don't think anypony is gonna beat that time. At least not for a while."

Spitfire chuckled looked at Takumi's 86. "You know, I'm glad it was him that beat the course record."

"Why's that?"

"Most-, no, ALL ponies his age would brag and brag and brag about how they beat it. He's different. He doesn't do that. He's... honorable. Yeah. That's what he is. Honorable. He's braver than so many ponies his age. Not because he's overconfident, but because he can actually do the things he wants to do. He has actual skill. That's something that's hard to come by in youth these days."

"What about me?" Itsuki piped up. "I've got skill!"

Spitfire giggled. "Yeah, you both do. Takumi is way better than you, but you are better than a lot of racers I've seen around here."

"Ha!"

"Itsuki." A voice asked.

"AH!" Everyone yelped as they looked at the newcomer, which happened to be Takumi.

"Jesus Takumi! Say something next time!" Itsuki exclaimed.

"I did." Takumi plainly replied. "Now come on. I need to talk to you about something."

"What is it?" Itsuki asked.

Takumi turned and gestured for Itsuki to follow him. "Just follow me."

Itsuki looked at Spitfire and the others before following Takumi to his 86. Nearby, Luna settled behind a bush to listen in. Takumi and Itsuki walked over to the driverside of Takumi's 86, sitting down out of view from the others.

"Ok. What?" Itsuki asked.

There was a pause.

Takumi sighed. "I've been meaning to ask. I... I was wondering if you've thought about what's actually gonna happen to you."

"What do you mean?"

"Like, you know. What's going to happen to us in the future."

"Well, heh." Itsuki smiled. "We'll be princes. We'll be rich, people will respect us and racing, AND 86's! It'll be great. Sure beats working at the gas station or delivering boxes, doesn't it?"

Takumi stared. "Dude. Do you remember your previous life at all? What about Iketani? What about Kenji? What about your parents?"

"What about-..." Itsuki's ears dropped. "What... well... I guess they would be worried..."

"The guys at the Gas Station are worried sick! What do you think happens when you disappear without a trace?"

"But-... hmph... Wait- how do you know they're worried sick?"

Takumi sighed. "Lately, I've been having... dreams, I guess, that involve me being back in Japan. Still as a pony, and nobody can see me. I don't know if they can hear me. Usually I've appeared at the gas station, and really, they're all worried. Iketani's in outright denial."

"... But..." Itsuki sighed. "What if, like, you know. You did try and talk to them? Tell them that we're ok? The next time you appear in those dreams I mean."

"Do you have any idea what that could do? They would think they're going insane!"

"It's Iketani and Kenji. They wouldn't go crazy hearing your voice."

"Yeah. MY voice. If they hear one of the voices that is GONE, they'll think they're going insane."

"... But... Well, that life is behind us, isn't it? We can't go back so why worry? This world-"

Takumi jumped up. "So you want to just forget about your friends?" He snapped. "The people that helped you when you were depressed over Kazumi?"

"We aren't going back!" Itsuki stood up. "We CAN'T go back! If we could go back, I'm sure we would have by now!"

Takumi took an aggressive step forward, causing Itsuki to take a step backward. Unknown to Takumi, his demonic form was showing. And Itsuki could see it. As could Luna, who was about ready to bolt out from her spot and stop the exchange.

After a moment of staring, Takumi scoffed and turned to his 86. "You make me sick. I can't believe I still call you my best friend."

THUNK!

Itsuki watched as the 86 thundered off. He felt his heartache from fright. That stare... that cold, deathly stare Takumi had given him. It made him turn pale with fright.

How could he do that? He wondered. I mean he's yelled at me before but this really takes the cake...

"Itsuki, you alright?" A voice called out.

Itsuki looked over to spot Soarin walking over. "Yeah. I'm... f-fine. I just got into a little argument with Takumi is all."

"Mm. I heard the whole thing." Soarin stopped. "Takumi doesn't seem to be firing on all four cylinders."

Itsuki chuckled. "No, no, he is." He sighed. "I think he's just a bit out of it after the race is all."

"Ha. Maybe. So. Spitfire tells me you aren't racing Thunderlane tonight."

"No. I'm..." Itsuki shook any thoughts of Takumi out of his head. "I'm not. I'm gonna practice and race him tomorrow."

"Hm. Smart. I was wondering why you thought you could even attempt to beat him with less than an hour of practice."

"Yeah. Hehe, I know. It's dumb. I'm gonna install some new parts on my 86. Takumi says there's no way I'm gonna beat Thunderlane's E30 with it. Considering Takumi drove Thunderlane's car, I'll have to take his word."

"Oh yeah! Hey, next time you see Takumi, ask him about that. Thunderlane doesn't know if he should be mad or not considering Spitfire bumped up his pay rate."

"Uh... alright. I'll try." Itsuki sighed. "I guess I'll get back in my 86, go pick up some tires, and get practicing."

"You do that. Watch out for the other members though."

"How many others are there? I don't remember seeing many sports cars."

"Uh... not too many actually. At most ten are up here. Also, you really think they take their racing cars up here? They have their normal cars and then cars that actually race. Well, most of them."

"They have... two cars?"

"Yeah. Why wouldn't they?" Soarin turned. "Anyways, see you. I can't wait to see you practice."

"Uh, yeah. See ya."

Itsuki trotted back to his 86, getting in and closing the door.

"Wow. Everyone here has two cars. I know I have my 86 and 85, but still. They have cars with massive engine displacement. The engine tax must be through the roof... that must mean they're rich as hell."

He started the engine and put it into gear. "Unless they don't have engine tax. In which case, this place is freaking awesome."

Takumi drove on the highway, alone, intending on getting back to Canterlot and simply laying down. The tires felt worn out, but he didn't want to stop by Ponyville. For he knew a certain somepony was going to want to ride back with him.

She's an Alicorn. She resists fatigue. She can fly back to Canterlot herself. He thought before sighing. "This place... this world... this... body... everything about it is amazing. And that's... it sucks..."

He suddenly pulled off to the side of the road. "I need to talk to Luna about this..." He stopped and waited a bit, making a bet with himself that she would show up within a minute.

After ten seconds, he beeped the horn twice. That seemed to prompt her to come down, as she landed next to the car not ten seconds later.

She tentatively opened the door. "Takumi?"

"Just... get in. Please."

Without a word, Luna slowly got in and closed the door.

"Sorry for leaving you." Takumi apologized.

"No, no, it is alright. I thought you needed the time by yourself anyways after you got mad at Itsuki."

Takumi accelerated to highway speeds. "So you saw that."

"Indeed I did. You are not... mad at me, are you?"

Takumi sighed. "No. I'm not. I know why you'd eavesdrop... ugh. I just can't believe Itsuki, you know? How can he think so... what's the word... LOW of his previous life? Of his parents?"

Luna returned the sigh. "That I do not know. I only spend time with you."

"Well, spend time with him. Ask him-... no, no. Ask Cadance to spend time with him."

"You say that like you want me to spend more time with you."

"No. I'm saying that because Cadance has spent a little time with him. Plus, Itsuki's the one with a love relationship already. Cadance is the Princess of Love." He scoffed. "Probably why he doesn't want to leave..."

"One of the reasons why. He is looking at the positives of Alicorn life and this world."

"Yeah. He's not realizing what's actually going to happen to us. Now, there's something I want to talk to you about."

"What is it?"

"It's about my race. Against Spitfire."

"Oh yes." Luna smiled. "That was one of the best things I have ever seen. I am sure it must have felt amazing to beat her."

"Yeah. It did. It felt amazing. But... that's the problem."

"How is that the problem?"

"Everything about this world and my form is amazing. Being able to fly and perform magic is way better than just... doing things without those I guess. And this whole world. Everything is so vibrant, expansive, way different from Japan, that's for sure."

"Is Japan a very tightly packed place?"

"Well... a little. Things are designed to be close and easily accessed. So... kind of? Not anything Dystopian or anything."

"Dystopian?!"

"Er! No! I mean-" Takumi sighed. "Nevermind. Point is, this world is just... amazing. And I actually want to stay here."

Luna said nothing.

"I really do. It's just, my friends... father... It's either, be selfish and stay in this amazing world, or be selfless and go home.'

"Well, Takumi, none of us know how to get back to your world."

"I know. I probably don't have a choice. But still... what if... I did go back? Knowing that this place exists? I don't know if I could live properly, knowing there's a whole other... o-other... oh... oh fuck..."

"What is it?"

"I don't know... I just..." He shook his head. "don't know."

They drove in silence for a while. Takumi looked up at the moon, which was hard because of how high it was positioned.

To think I am sitting next to a being that can literally move the moon. He thought. I guess It's probably because she's an Alicorn so... huh. I wonder if I could move the moon.

He looked back ahead for a moment before looking back at the moon. "Wasn't the moon full last night? And... wait..."

"Was the moon... full?"

"Nevermind."

"No no, what do you mean by that?"

"I meant, why isn't it a crescent?"

"A crescent? Why would it be a crescent?"

Takumi sighed. "Because the light would've been obscured. I just remembered that your moon is different from Earth's moon."

"Light would have been..."

"The light would have been obscured. Right now it should be a shallow crescent. Here, when we get back I can draw one for you."

Luna said nothing as she processed what Takumi said. She looked up at her moon and tapped her chin. "Hmm..."

Takumi sighed. "I don't even-"

"Like that?" Luna interrupted.

Takumi looked at her. "What?"

Luna pointed up at her moon. "Is that what you meant? By it being a shallow crescent?"

Takumi's eyes widened. He leaned forward to look up at the moon through the windshield. Up above, the moon was a shallow crescent. It would've been exactly like back on earth if it wasn't stupid close.

"Yep." He leaned back, speaking through gritted teeth. "That's exactly what I meant- ok what exactly are you able to do with that moon? YOUR moon?"

"Well, I can move it, and change its lighting."

"Oh, so you could make it red?"

"Yes."

"... Ok then. What about Celestia? Can she do the same? Make the sun red?"

"...Possibly."

"Hm"

"So does the moon slowly turn into a deeper and deeper crescent before going dark entirely, then it turns into a shallower and shallower crescent before becoming full and repeating the process?"

"Over the course of a month, yeah. So that means uhh... what day is it?"

"The 21st."

"Oh. So it should be... Half and Half."

"Half and Half?"

"Half Dark, Half Light. Er- Bright."

"Intriguing."

...

"You just made it half and half, didn't you?"

"Of course."

"Luna, this whole moon cycle thing is supposed to be an Earth thing. Not a... an Equestrian thing. If you've been keeping it full the whole time, don't change it because-"

"Takumi, it will be fine. This adds variation in the night."

Takumi stayed silent before sighing. "It's your night I guess. Never thought I'd say something like that."

"Hm."

More silence. Soon, they were off the highway and traveling up the Turnpike. This gave Luna an idea.

"So. Takumi. After our meeting, would you like to come back out to the Turnpike?"

"Meeting? What meeting?"

"The meeting you, me, and- Oh! You were not meant to- urrrgh." She sighed. "My sister and I planned a royal meeting between the three of us."

"Ok? About what?"

"Just to talk."

Takumi eyed her. "Just to talk?"

"Yes."

"JUST to talk?"

"Yes? What is so confusing about that?"

Takumi sighed. "I don't know. I just feel like it isn't 'just to talk' is all."

Luna giggled. "Of course it is just to talk. I do not know what could be making you think it is anything else."

Takumi simply stared ahead, saying nothing as they went up the Turnpike.

"Well?"

Takumi looked at her. "Well what?"

"Would you like to come back out to the Turnpike with me?"

"..Sure. Not like I have anything better to do."

Later, Takumi slowed to a stop within the Royal Parking Lot. Luna got out and instantly changed into her mature form upon noticing Celestia waiting on the steps.

"Ah! Takumi! It seems my sister has been waiting for us!"

"Cool."

Celestia walked over with a smile. "Did you two have fun in Manehattan?"

"We had a splendid time, sister."

"Well, that's good. We have a meeting to get to."

Luna bit her lip. "Of course. Takumi, shall we head in?"

"...no."

The sisters were surprised. "No?"

Takumi sighed. "The fuel is low. I'm gonna head out real quick and get some."

"But, Takumi, we could simply ask somepony to fill the car up with the fuel of your choosing," Luna stated.

"I want to do SOMETHING normal, ok? Now, do either of you know where the nearest gas station with High Octane is?"

Luna sighed. "There is one just down the road."

"Thanks. I'll be back in a few."

With that, Takumi put the 86 into reverse and pulled out of the spot, then accelerated out of the gate and out of the lot.

Celestia eyed Luna. "Sister, we could've tried to get him to stay. Why did you give up so soon?"

Luna sighed. "Because he is stubborn. We would have wasted time. But, that being said, this does give us time to prepare for the um... royal meeting."

Celestia giggled. "Oh yes, I suppose it does."

The sisters began walking up the steps, only for the eldest to stop short.

"By the way, Luna?"

"Yes?"

Celestia looked up and pointed. "What is that?"

Luna looked up at her half-dark moon. "My moon. What about it?"

"Just... why?"

"Ohhh just a little thing Takumi told me about. I have decided to start employing it. It will give a much-needed variation in the night."

They began walking again, into the castle. "Are the stars not enough?" Celestia asked.

"Tell me, how many ponies actually notice how the stars change?"

"... You have a point."

"Hm."

Soon, the sisters made their way into Takumi's room and sat down at a table. Celestia looked around, wondering what to do.

"What should we do?" Celestia asked.

"Nothing," Luna replied.

Celestia was surprised. "Nothing?"

"Besides lowering the room temperature to around fifty-five degrees Fahrenheit, nothing. You do not need to prepare the room for it. All you need is a nice soft and comfortable bed, a dark setting, and that is it. Oh! Hang on," Luna stood up and walked over to the bed. "Is this bed one of the fancyyyy-yes! It is!"

"What?"

Luna walked back and sat down. "It is one of those amazing beds that can change its temperature."

"Ah. Of course."

"Second best invention of the modern world."

"What's the first?"

Luna paused. She was going to say cars since those had taken first place due to her sudden street racing addiction, but if Celestia were to know that...

"That is something only for me to know," she stated with a sly tone.

"Hm. Now. Luna-..." Celestia sighed. "What is with this relationship of yours?"

"Relationship?"

"With Takumi. Don't think I haven't noticed the amount of time I've spe- wait, I've spent? YOU'VE spent with him. Tell me, why are you doing it?"

"Because I want to make sure nothing happens to him."

Celestia eyed Luna. "No. If you were an advisor to him, that statement makes sense. But you are the secondary ruler of Equestria. He is, as he states, just some teenager. You have never 'followed' somepony as intently as much as you do to him."

"..."

"I'm not accusing you of a love relationship. At this time, it seems that you two are merely close friends."

"Y-Yes. That is exactly what we are. Just very close friends."

"Oh? What is it like?"

"...Well... how could I put this... He does not talk a lot."

"I've noticed."

"But when he does get talking, he gets talking. Some of the mini-speeches he has given, especially if they are about his 86, are incredible. What is even more incredible is how they seem to come out of nowhere. Out of instinct. It seems natural."

"Ah. So you are jealous of him because he can perform a speech off the top of his head while you take days to write one yourself?"

Luna blushed. "A little. Point is, when he starts talking, he starts talking."

"Hm. What was that about his mini-speeches being incredible if they were about his Trueno?"

"Because of his connection with the liftback."

As Luna spoke, somewhere in Canterlot sat Takumi as he filled up the 86 with high-octane.

"He really has developed a connection to his 86. He drives it as if it were an extension of his body. If he is angry, the ride feels slightly unstable but still smooth. If he is sad or confused, the ride feels slow, unsure. It is almost as if the car itself shares his feelings."

Takumi pulled the nozzle into the fuel pump. He got in the 86 and started its engine.

"He drove that car for five full years on Mount Akina Pass," Luna continued. "He learned every single one of its strengths and weaknesses, how it acted under various conditions. He drove it nonstop for five years, every single night, rain or snow, just to deliver tofu for his father's shop."

Takumi stared at the road ahead as he drove through Canterlot, rubbing the steering wheel.

"When he ran those deliveries, the 86 was the only other thing with him. My assumption is he would talk to the 86 like a close friend because of that. And over the course of five years of nonstop training, albeit only one run a night, his close bond strengthened with how much he talked to it. And now that he is an Alicorn, that bond is forever inseparable."

Takumi flicked on the turn signal and steered into the royal parking lot, waiting for the gate to open before proceeding to park.

"I doubt you will ever find somepony closer to a Toyota AE86 than him. His relationship with it is in fact one of the reasons I spend so much time with him. He intrigues me. Plus, what kind of a mentor will I be if I wasn't very close with him?"

Celestia smiled. "I take back what I said about you not being good at speeches."

Luna gasped. "Wait, what?"

"Did you not just hear yourself? I believe Takumi's natural way of speaking has rubbed off on you."

Luna looked away sheepishly, blushing.

"And yes, I guess it would be better for one to get close with their mentor. But, Luna, can I ask you something?"

"What?"

"Have you thought about your relationship, long-term?"

Luna looked at her. "Do you mean what will happen in the coming years?"

"I mean in the coming centuries."

Luna looked down and sighed. "I..."

"My natural way of speaking huh?" a new voice asked.

The sisters looked to the door to find Takumi there just as he was closing it.

"I just say what's on my mind. That's all," Takumi stated.

"Oh. Hello Tahh... kumi?" Luna trailed off as she noticed the downcast look on his face. "Is... something wrong? Takumi?"

"I don't know." Takumi jumped up on the bed and sat down. "I was just... thinking about something."

"What is it?" Celestia asked.

"If I'm never going to die... I could keep practicing in my 86. Night after Night, Month after Month, Year after Year..."

"Okayyy..."

"What would a thousand years of driving experience look like?"

The sisters were surprised.

"Really," he continued. "What would one thousand years of driving- no, racing experience look like? What would even a hundred years look like? One hundred years of experience, without being screwed over by your own body?"

Celestia spoke after a few seconds. "Well, it would likely be-... it would likely just be a fast moving car."

"No. It wouldn't be like that," Takumi stated. "Celestia, I know you don't race. But there is a lot more to taking corners than just going from the outside to the inside, then back to outside."

He waited for a response. After getting none, he continued.

"In a corner, there aren't only a few ways to take it. There's an almost infinite number of ways to take them. Tiny variations in the steering, throttle, the smallest details, each of them is a way to take the corner."

Both sisters were greatly intrigued. Luna especially.

"Sure, on the outside it would look like the car is just going faster than you'd think would be possible. But on the inside... what would that look like? Er, feel like?"

"Well, I doubt you would feel anything at all," Celestia stated. "After a thousand years, your muscle memory would be so accustomed to it that you would do it without ever thinking. You would likely be able to sleep as you drive if you know the road so well."

"Hm... You know, my father trained me to become the fastest street racer the world has ever seen. Now I will literally become that. The literal fastest racer ever, more in sync with my car than anything else."

"Takumi, you do realize that at some point, you may grow to dislike racing?"

Takumi stared at her, wearing a downcast poker face. He looked down.

"That's what I'm scared about..." he said, barely a whisper. "I don't want to dislike racing..."

"You will not dislike racing," Luna stated. "There are veteran racers who have been in motorsport for decades."

"Decades? Try CENTURIES," Takumi snapped, showing his demonic form for a split second. "CENTURIES, LUNA. You are over a thousand years old. You mean to tell me you haven't stopped loving something over the course of a thousand years? Same goes for you, Celestia."

Luna's ears dropped as she looked away.

"What?" Takumi asked.

Celestia looked at Takumi, then Luna. She sighed.

Leaning in next to Luna, she whispered. "I think it's time you tell him a little more about yourself. At this point, I don't think we're going to get to what this meeting was supposed to be about."

"I just... I do not know why I am afraid to tell him..." Luna whispered back.

"Sister, it's just us in this room. I can fill in any details. With both of us here, I'm sure he will understand."

Luna silently looked back at Takumi, who just stared with a small frown.

"Tell me a little more about yourself?" he asked.

Celestia looked at him. "How did you hear that?'

"I'm right here."

Luna sighed. "Fine..."

"Fine, what?"

"Takumi... There is something you should know about me. Something that... I should have told you sooner."

Takumi tilted his head. "What is it?"

Luna took in a deep breath. "It is about... Nightmare Moon."

Takumi's eyes widened in instant realization. "No. Oh dear god no."

"It-... do you... know what I'm about to say?"

"I'm not stupid, Luna. You drive an R33. Nightmare Moon drives an R33. Nightmare MOON, LUNA. LUNAR. I knew there had to be some kind of connection."

"So... you know?" Luna's ears were now flat on her head.

"There's no way that could have been you attacking me on Akina, especially with Heartbreaker. Or in my nightmares. So either Nightmare Moon is some kind of demon that used an R33 because she wanted to be like you, or she's a twin sister."

Celestia's ears flattened.

"That, or maybe she was born a-" Takumi stopped, seeing the looks on the sisters' faces. "None... of those are right... are they?"

"Well, it was not me attacking you on Akina. It was indeed Nightmare Moon. But... I was Nightmare Moon."

"...It was Nightmare Moon attacking me... but you were her?"

"Not-, the Nightmare Moon that attacked you. Before that. I have not been on this planet for a thousand years."

Takumi said nothing, looking more confused than anything.

"Before you storm out in rage, hear us out," Celestia pleaded. "Nightmare Moon is in fact a dark counterpart to my sister. One we- I think separated from Luna at some point."

"..."

"Nightmare Moon is NOT Luna. Their different personalities reflect that. Nightmare Moon is simply a dark counterpart that may have escaped Luna's grasp."

"So... Nightmare Moon was created... because of Luna?"

"Inadvertently," Luna quickly stated. "Likely out of my control."

"So you... AREN'T a thousand years old?"

"Technically, no. I was not on this planet for a thousand years. A thousand years ago, I let anger overtake me. I foolishly allowed her to overtake me."

"So, just to make sure... You were Nightmare Moon, but... Ok- So Nightmare Moon is a separate... Entity? Being?"

"Yes. One that has somehow separated herself from me."

"Every Alicorn has some kind of dark- SEPARATE counterpart. Is that what you're saying?"

"It's only a theory," Celestia stated. "but at this moment, yes."

Takumi took in the information for a moment before sighing. "So... do they all play on their... light forms? Their names, I mean."

"I would assume so. We have theorized what their names would be." Luna decided to try and make the conversation more lighthearted. "Nightmare Moon is mine, Celestia thinks hers would be Solar Flare, and Twilight's may be-"

"Hold on, how the heck are these dark counterparts created?" Takumi interrupted.

"That we do not know," Celestia replied. "We've never asked."

"...Ok. Well, continue on the names."

Luna forced a small smile. "Twilight may be Midnight Eclipse, and Cadance may be... hmm... have we ever theorized Cadance's?"

"No, I don't think we have," Celestia said. "If we did, I certainly can't remember the name."

"Heartbreaker," Takumi stated.

The sisters looked at him. "Heartbreaker?" Luna asked. "As in the one that attacked you on Akina? How can you be so sure?"

Takumi scoffed as he got off the bed. "Because Cadance drives a pink Miura. Heartbreaker drove a Miura. Put two and two together."

He walked towards the door. "I'm gonna go to the Turnpike for a few. I... need some time to think about this." He put his hoof on the doorknob and stopped, not turning it.

"Is... something the matter, Takumi?" Luna asked.

"How... Celestia..." he slowly began. "How did you cope with losing all your friends and family the first time?"

Celestia sighed. "Takumi..." She mustered up the courage. If Takumi wanted to know, than he might as well know. "It was hard. Very hard. The ponies that had brought me into this world, and everypony else I knew from childhood, gone. With barely anything for me to do about it."

"But you understood it because you were an Alicorn, didn't you? These things are bound to happen no matter what, aren't they?"

"You think I wanted them to die?" Celestia asked, standing up from the table and fighting tears. "You think that made it any less hurtful? They taught me and Luna to be the way we are. Kind, caring rulers willing to protect their subjects. I cried, Takumi. I shut myself in my room for weeks."

Takumi said nothing, keeping his hoof on the doorknob and staring at said door.

"And you want to know the worst part about it? Luna didn't even get to say goodbye. She was on the moon by the time they passed. Knowing she would never get to see them again, knowing she would never get to say goodbye..." She took in a breath. "It hurt."

"And you think I don't feel the same?" Takumi asked, turning around. "I was ripped from my world. My friends, my father. I didn't get to say goodbye either. And me, knowing that they're gonna go on to live their lives makes me... I just..." He looked at the ground as he took a deep breath in. "I want... to go home..."

"Takumi..." Celestia sighed. "You should at least try to look at the upsides of being an Alicorn."

"...When you say upsides..."

"Not just the money and fame. I'm talking about what you could truly do for Equestria."

She waited as Takumi sat on the carpet. Seeing as he continued to stare at the floor, she took a quick glance at Luna before sitting down and continuing.

"Normally, Alicorns are elevated to their position by way of great achievement. But you, and Itsuki, have been somehow elevated without anypony choosing it. And to my knowledge, you were always an Alicorn in our world, while Itsuki was a Unicorn."

Takumi winced.

"Though that can be a burden, it is also a gift, not only to you but to Equestria as a whole, because of the great good an Alicorn can do. It is your duty to use your powers, and the knowledge and wisdom you'll acquire over centuries, to make Equestria a better place. You must accept the fate chosen for you and make the most of it."

"But what if I don't WANT to do that?" Takumi snapped, looking up and staring at the sisters. His demonic form was showing. Not just for a second, but it was continuously showing, allowing the sisters a full detailed view of it.

Initial D First Stage Sound Files vol.1 - Admiration starts playing. (Put it on loop!)

"How do you expect me to go on, knowing my world is advancing right next to this one? Knowing my friends, father, family, are all going without me? I get little snippets here and there of what they're doing, but you think I can deal with life knowing all my friends are dying without me even knowing? Equestria was doing just fine before me and Itsuki came along, right? What good can me and him do? What good could Itsuki do?"

"Yes, Itsuki needs some education," Celestia agreed. "He's in no condition to rule properly."

"What makes you think I'M in a condition to rule? How? HOW am I supposed to go on knowing about my world? I can't! The guys at the Gas Station will probably die alone, my f-father will be devasted about the YEARS he wasted on me to make me the fastest driver ever-"

"It could not have been a waste," Luna blurted.

"To HIM, he might as well have wasted it. He doesn't know where I am. I've disappeared. And then-... Itsuki... why... why the hell did ITSUKI get chosen? He's a monster. He doesn't care about his old life. His friends and family. Why did I become friends with such a jerk..."

"Takumi, I'm sure there's a reason for Itsuki's actions," Celestia soothed.

Takumi sighed as he looked down. The form still showed. "I just don't get it. Why. I've lost them. I've... I've lost them all... Every single one of them..."

Tears welled up in his eyes. This caused the form to slowly flicker.

"Every one of them, gone. They'll think I killed myself or something."

"I'm sure it won't come to that," Celestia tried to reassure. Though she could feel small tears approaching her eyes. "Takumi, if you have questions about what to do when your parents are gone..."

"I am nineteen years old. When did you lose your parents? When you were sixty? Seventy? I am NINETEEN. I DIDN'T ASK FOR ANY OF THIS!"

He took in a shaky breath.

"How can you sit there and talk so calmly about your parents? I'm not you. I can't deal with this. I don't want to be immortal. I want to live a normal life and stay with my friends. Not outlive them."

Luna felt her heart ache as tears welled. "How do you think I felt when I realized my parents were gone? When I came back?"

"At least you didn't lose them because you were put in a different world! I just lost ALL OF THEM AGAINST MY WILL! I DON'T WANT... want... I want... I want... to go home..."

"Takumi..." Celestia raised a hoof.

"I want... to go home... why is that too much to ask? I want to say goodbye... to my friends... to my... mah-hie... frie-he-hendss..."

The dark form dissipated as Takumi finally broke. Tears streamed down and off his face, each drop touching the floor below. He tried to wipe the tears away, but couldn't.

Luna couldn't take the sight as she herself burst into tears. She ran over to Takumi and sat down, hugging him tightly. Takumi wrapped his hooves around Luna and held her, crying deep into her fur.

Celestia felt the dam begin to break as she stared at the sight. Luna had changed into her juvenile form. Her smaller, more vulnerable form.

Silently, she stood up and slowly stepped towards the Alicorns. She sat next to them and wrapped her wings and arms around them, gently petting them.

"T-There there you two..." she tried to console. But as she held her young, crying sister, and a devastated teenager who just wanted to say goodbye, she thought about the sheer gravity of what Takumi was going through. He just wanted to go home. Even when offered a chance at the best life one could want, he wanted his friends and family more.

The dam broke. And it broke badly. She held them tighter as old memories of her parents resurfaced. Memories of how they would read books to them, play with them, fly with them, all of them ones she greatly cherished. Now they brought only sorrow. She wanted them back. To see them and hug them one more time.

She hugged Takumi and Luna tighter.

The sisters knew of the devastating effects of immortality for a long time. They had learned to accept it and had never gave it much thought, yet this teenager had fully revealed the true effects of what happens to an immortal being. Not everyone wants immortality. Not everyone wants to live, knowing their friends and family will die old while they remain Forever Young. Some people just want to stick with their friends, and that's good enough.

Takumi nestled himself into Luna's fur, Celestia's soft feathers clinging to his back. He felt cold, as if all heat had left his body, but the warmth of Celestia and Luna clung to him. He didn't want them to leave him. Ever. They were so warm... and soft...

"I love you both..." he slowly said.

"We love you too, Takumi..." Celestia replied.

"We will always be here for you," Luna shakily added.

Takumi nestled deeper into Luna's tear-soaked fur. He didn't care that Luna used to be a demon. He cared about her the way she was now. She helped him get through the world so far, and would likely continue to do it for the rest of time. All the while wanting to learn from him on how to drive fast on the mountain pass. And now, they were hugging. He didn't want it to end.

The ends of his mouth rose. I love you, Luna...

Author's Note

How would YOU write your OC reacting to immortality?

Act 19: Why We Race

Warmth.

Love.

Happiness.

Respect.

Super Soft Alicorn Fur.

That was all Takumi felt. Even with part of him against Luna's Regalia, he didn't care. He couldn't think. With Celestia's feathers against his own, and Luna's breathing on his shoulder, he couldn't care less about anything else.

How would he put the feeling? Well, it felt like being out in 0-degree weather, then getting into his 86 that was already completely heated up, with the heater barely blowing. Just a bunch of heat consuming him from all sides.

They sat there, hugging each other, for what felt like hours. None of them moved. They didn't want to move. Takumi especially didn't want to move.

Not even my father was able to hug me like this. He finally managed to think. He took in a small breath. Do I really love Luna? No... no... I couldn't. I've barely met her. I've only known her for a few days.

Celesta raised a hoof and wiped the tears off her face as best she could. Afterward, she looked down at the two, wrapping her hoof around them again. Her little sister, Luna, who she had banished to the moon for a thousand years ago, forcing her to come back to an unfamiliar world with many new technologies, and Takumi Fujiwara. A normal teenager who was suddenly ripped from his world and placed into her own as an Alicorn, greatly elevating his position in life, who didn't want such a position.

Yet here they were, hugging each other. Hugging as if they'd never see each other again.

What am I to do with him? she wondered. I can't just let him roam free throughout Equestria. He needs somepony with him. To make sure nothing bad happens.

She looked at Luna, who had her eyes closed and wore a small smile.

Could my sister really be in love with Takumi? She's been spending so much time with him, especially at night. And for her to take him to Manehattan of all places...

She lightly shook her head. No. Surely she couldn't be in love. They've only known each other for a few days. But they've already spent many hours together, so... could two ponies fall in love in that time? Takumi doesn't seem to make any advancements towards her, while she...

She paused.

"Are you two alright?" she softly asked.

Neither said anything.

She sighed. "I need to go attend to something."

Takumi and Luna hugged each other tighter when she took her wings off of them. Her heart ached. What made this situation worse was how Luna had instinctively changed into her smaller, more vulnerable, juvenile form, instead of staying as her mature self. Celestia couldn't help but wonder why Luna had done it. Had she done it just to be the same size as Takumi? To let Takumi know she wasn't afraid to bring herself down from her position to care for him?

She hugged the two with her forearms before letting off. Pain shot through her heart again. She didn't want to leave them, but looking at the time, they had been sitting like that for well over half an hour. By far the longest hug she had ever been a part of.

"I will... leave you two here, ok?" she said, making sure to speak slowly and softly.

No response.

She bent down. "Hello?"

Both Takumi and Luna were just sitting there, hugging each other, eyes closed. Celestia was surprised.

They can't be... they cannot actually be... yes. Yes, they are. They are actually sleeping.

Taking in a deep breath as she looked at the bed, she smiled. Using a wing, she slid it under them and lifted them up onto her back, making sure to not break their hug. As she stepped over to the bed, a tear fell.

Is this what my mother felt like when putting Luna and I to bed? She wondered as she gently used her wings to push Luna and Takumi off her back and onto the bed. She considered taking Luna's regalia off, along with Takumi's sweater, but decided against it.

After tucking them in like she used to with Twilight Sparkle many years ago, quietly 'awwing' at the sight, she made sure to set the bed temperature to a comfortable setting that would give them their sleep. She then proceeded to walk to the door, opening it. She looked back at the sleeping couple, who were still hugging each other.

"Sleep tight, my little ponies~"

Click

She closed the door and leaned her head against it. "What am I to do with him?" She asked nopony in particular.

"That was..." a new voice began to say. Celestia turned around to find Cadance staring at her. "...the hardest thing I've ever had to listen to."

"Oh. Cadance. How... much did you hear?" Celestia asked.

"As early as when he connected me and Heartbreaker together," Cadance replied. "Do you have any idea how hard it was- IS for me to not cry?"

Celestia sighed, noticing a few tears had fallen down Cadance's face. "May I teleport us to someplace more private? Please?"

Cadance nodded.

With a flash, the two were not standing within Celestia's bedroom. Celestia immediately sat down on her bed.

"That colt..." she slowly said. "The more time I spend with him, the more he makes me question Alicorns."

"You, me, and the rest of us," Cadance replied, sitting at the other end of the bed. Her voice was very slightly shaky. "I thought I was going to have a nice time here in Canterlot, and after our big meeting together I thought I could spend some time with Itsuki. But now I'm just sitting in my room, thinking about Alicorns, questioning my whole body and place in life."

Celestia said nothing.

"And yes, I've started thinking about what would happen when Shining Armor dies. I know he isn't an Alicorn. I know I'm gonna outlive him. It's just a way of life."

"And that does not make it any less painful, does it?"

"Not even a little." Cadance sighed. "I just can't believe that somepony being an Alicorn, but not actually wanting to be one, would throw me or you into this kind of slump."

Celestia looked at her suspiciously.

"You mean to tell me you haven't been affected by this?"

Celestia sighed. "Yes. I've been thrown into a slump about this. I can't believe somepony could ever be so distraught about being an Alicorn."

"Well, I was a little... slumped when I ascended. Not like Takumi, obviously."

"Admittedly, I've begun to wonder what Twilight thought when she became an Alicorn. Particularly when she realized that, against her will, she would outlive her friends. Her family. She hasn't said anything to me about not wanting to be an Alicorn, at least for that reason. It has mostly been griping about how much work she has to do sometimes." Celestia sighed. "Now, what am I supposed to do with Takumi?"

Cadance sighed. "I don't know. Maybe... maybe we could let him see another city. Something to take his mind off of being an Alicorn."

"Are you suggesting what I think you're suggesting?"

"I'm heading back to the Crystal Empire tomorrow. Maybe he could tag along."

Celestia thought about it for a moment. "That does sound like it would take Takumi's mind off of his predicament... Perhaps. What time are you leaving?"

"I'm thinking four in the afternoon. Maybe five."

Celestia nodded. "I'll ask him in the morning."

"Why not now?"

"Wellll..." Celestia smiled. "My little sister and Takumi are asleep."

"... Together?"

"Hugging each other. In bed. Yes, the scene is as cute as it sounds. I never thought I would ever see my little sister sleeping with somepony, much less a stallion."

"Much less an Alicorn Stallion you mean?"

Celestia chuckled. "Yes, yes, of course." She sighed. "At least now I'm not on the verge of crying."

"Same here."

There was silence for a moment. Both Alicorns were whirled up in their own thoughts, thinking about what to do or say.

"Cadance..." Celestia trailed.

"Yes?"

"How would you feel about my sister falling in love with somepony?"

Cadance was taken aback by the question. "I'll skip the obvious question, which is who she might be in love with, and just ask, how?"

"I'm not assuming they are actually in love with each other, it's just the amount of time they've already spent together in the few days Takumi has been here is... concerning."

"Even then. HOW would Luna be falling in love with Takumi? Last I checked, she was against falling in love. That nopony suits her taste, whatever her taste is."

"Well, something about Takumi seems to have piqued her taste."

"Are we sure Luna isn't just attracted to him because he's an Alicorn? I'm a married mare and even I like him. Don't tell me you haven't at least thought about a relationship together."

Celestia chuckled. "Of course I have. Picturing myself with a quiet teenager like him has certainly been interesting. And I'm sure Twilight has had similar thoughts."

"Mm. I'm sure we've also thought about Itsuki."

"I'm... sure..."

"Something wrong?"

"It's just..." Celestia sighed. "I just don't know what to think. About my sister actually falling for somepony."

"You say that like she's never fallen in love with somepony."

"Because she hasn't."

"...Oh."

"And the most surprising part is that, between Luna and Takumi, Luna is the one that makes the advances. Takumi doesn't make any. He just seems glad to have her around. Like he sees her as just another pony. Knowing this, I wonder if I should let the relationship run its course, or intervene. I don't know if my sister being in what would quite literally be a permanent relationship, where she would be spared any grief of her lover, would be healthy."

"I... honestly don't know what to say."

"I want to be happy for my little sister. I really do. But for her to be with somepony such as Takumi? Never having to deal with losing him?"

Cadance raised a brow. "Do I sense a bit of jealousy?"

"A bit, yes. Having been through a few relationships till my lovers impending end, the thought that my little sister would never have to deal with that..."

The two sat in silence, both thinking.

"I think you should let it run its course," Cadance stated. "Maybe in the morning, you can spend a little bit of time with him. Wake him up before Luna wakes up if you can. Have some breakfast with him and talk."

Celestia tapped her chin, sorting through the what might happen if she were to do such a thing.

"That does sound like an idea..."

I don't love Luna.

I can't love Luna.

I can't love Luna.

Takumi chanted those words in his head. Over and over. Finally, he let normal thoughts take his mind.

I can't love her. I've only known her for a few days.

He opened his eyes to see Luna right in front of him, hugging him. Her head was snuggled into his sweater. This caused heat to rush to his face.

But in these few days... she been nicer to me than anyone in my life. Well, not everyone, but... still. I just... I can't be in love with a pony. I just can't... But...

Whether out of instinct or his own accord, he began moving a hoof over her hair.

She cried for me. A Princess, a Goddess, really, one who can literally move the freaking moon, cried for me. She cares about me so much she's willing to break from her position and cry for me. And then there's our racing. She wants to learn from me. Instead of going to a professional, she comes to me to learn about racing. Is it because of me being an Alicorn? Is that why she's been getting so close to me? Because I'm an Alicorn?

He paused his thoughts, taking a second to look at Luna. She remained still, breathing softly in and out with a small smile. He remained emotionless on the outside as he began caressing right behind her ear. An experiment more than anything.

Caressing her ear seemed to make her stir, but in a sense of pleasure. Her smile broadened as she snuggled deeper into Takumi's sweater. Takumi wore a poker face as he slightly increased the pressure on her ear.

She even told me about her past. About her technically being Nightmare Moon. Here I was, thinking she was a perfect being, yet she told me she isn't one.

Luna made a small squeak as Takumi continued petting her.

I can't lie. Her not only being into cars and racing, but actually wanting to learn to drive fast? Actually Drive Fast? That's more than what Natsuki wanted to do. And that's pretty cool if I'm being honest.

He stopped caressing her ear.

Everything about Luna is just... great. She looks good, her voice is amazing, her personality is...

He looked up at the ceiling.

Do I love her?

...

Wait.

That ceiling was not the ceiling of his room in Canterlot.

Slowly, Takumi raised his head to look around. His eyes slightly widened.

It's my room.

His eyes widened even more as he looked at Luna.

I'm in my room, in my world, with-

"Luna."

Luna didn't move.

Takumi nudged her. "Luna, wake up."

"Mmm... what?" Luna tiredly asked.

"Luna I'm not kidding. Wake up."

Luna's eyelids slowly opened. She looked at him through narrow slits. "Mm?"

"Luna, look around."

Luna was slightly confused as she slowly raised her own head, taking in the room. She gasped. Her eyes fluttered open and she shot up from the bed.

"Where are we?" she instantly asked. "Have we been foalnapped?"

"No," Takumi replied, sitting up. "This is my room."

"This is not your room."

"Yes, it is. MY room."

Luna gasped. "You mean we are in your world?"

"I... guess so."

Takumi stepped off the bed and over to the lightswitch, flicking the lights on. Both Alicorns shielded there eyes for a second to let them adjust.

"Well, it is certainly modest." Luna remarked as she stepped off the bed.

Takumi said nothing. He merely walked through the doorway, beckoning for her to follow.

He walked downstairs, glancing into the small lit living room. In the room sat one Japanese man. Bunta Fujiwara.

He felt Luna stop next to him, making him glance at her for a split second before looking back at Bunta. Slightly confused, he looked back to confirm that, yes, she had changed into her mature self. He didn't say anything as he looked at Bunta.

"Is that your father?" Luna whispered.

"Yeah..."

Bunta sat criss-cross on the floor, next to a low coffee table. He sipped on a drink while looking at a magazine.

"Is he asleep?" Luna whispered again, noting Bunta's closed eyes.

Takumi shook his head. "That's how he normally is."

BeeBeeBeeBeeBeeBeeBeeBeeBee!

The shrill note of the corded phone rang out through the shop.

BeeBeeBeeBeeBeeBeeBeeBeeBee!

Bunta grunted as he stood up and walked over to the phone, picking it up.

"Fujiwara Tofu Shop... Oh, it's you."

Luna was quite intrigued at Bunta's appearance. She had never looked into humans much. Sure, she did look into them a small bit back when Twilight Sparkle first went into the human world, but other than that, nothing.

"Still nothing, huh?" Bunta asked.

There was a pause.

"You tell me. I'm as much surprised as you are. An Eight-Six disappearing without a trace? That doesn't just happen."

...

"You've even checked the lakes?"

...

"With that new sonar, huh? Only a couple of old wrecks from decades ago?"

Luna leaned in close to Takumi. "What is he saying? I only understand a few of the words."

"Talking with a friend," Takumi whispered back. "They're using a sonar system to check lakes and stuff."

...

"Well, at least you're finding those wrecks," Bunta continued. "You might find answers to some other crimes."

...

"Yeah, yeah. I know." Bunta yawned. "Anyways, I'm gonna go to bed. See you tomorrow."

Click

Bunta shook his head. "Come on Takumi. Where on Earth are you?"

"Nowhere..." both Takumi and Luna whispered.

Bunta made his way through a doorway and out of sight, shutting off the lights. Luna took the time to look around.

"You never mentioned how poor you were," Luna said, noting the old 90s television in the corner. "Or is this a custom I am not aware of?"

"Poor? We weren't- er, aren't poor or anything. We've lived just fine this way. If you're talking about there being no chairs, we never needed them."

"Hm."

Takumi pushed a curtain out of a doorway and stepped into a shop area. Typical late 60s interior with a few 90s additions. Particularly in the technology present.

"Is this the Tofu Shop?" Luna asked as she followed Takumi.

"Mhm."

"You never said you lived in the shop."

"I never thought I'd need to mention it." Takumi sighed. "Now that I've walked around a literal castle, this place feels so... I don't even know."

"Inadequate?" Luna suggested.

"Sure I guess... what am I supposed to do? Normally I just watch my friends or maybe my father doing something, but now you're here, so..."

Luna smiled. "How about you show me your homeland? Particularly Mount Akina?"

Takumi looked at the front door and smiled. "Ok, ok. Fine. But, how are we supposed to get out? We can't just walk through the front door. There's a bell."

Luna's horn lit up. Suddenly, the two were outside. "Would this suffice?" she playfully sneered.

Takumi was slightly startled, but quickly regained himself. "Yeah. This works," he calmly replied.

Luna slightly frowned. She was hoping for a better reaction. Though, if Takumi was normally this quiet when startled, that could prove invaluable for situations that could arise in the future.

Her eyes suddenly fell on a blue shape in the Tofu Shop's Driveway. A Sonic Blue Mica 1998 Subaru Impreza WRX STi Type R Coupe. Or, for short, a GC8F. It had bronze rims and a WRC front bumper. A classic color combination Subaru was best known for.

"Is this your father's?" Luna asked, stepping towards the Impreza.

"Yeah, it is." Takumi replied, following. "Brand new too."

Luna nodded. Not a single modification, she mused. Even looking at the interior, aside from the STi accessories, there is not a single modification. One would be hard pressed to find such a car this unmolested.

A thought came to her mind as she circled the Impreza. "Takumi?"

"Mm?"

"How many cars have you driven in your life? Has it just been your 86?"

"Well, I've driven my 86 the most. But I've driven others."

"Like what?"

"Well, I've driven my buddy Iketani's S13. And Itsuki's 85. I also drove a 180 owned by a guy named Tsukamoto a few months back, plus when my dad bought this Impreza, he made me switch between delivering in it and my 86."

Luna stopped to look at him. "Itsuki's 85?"

"Yeah. A 1.5 SR."

"What is the difference?"

"From what Iketani told me, It's an 86 body but without the extra chassis bracing and a 1.5 Single Overhead Camshaft engine. Makes about... 88 Horsepower."

Luna grimaced. "That sounds... horrible."

"It's not, really. Sucks on the straightaways but I could still do fine on the corners. Even on the old 70s tires."

"Hm... wait... does that mean any car can be fast with sheer skill? Articles I have read state you need to simply put money into the car to make it fast."

"Well, yeah, sure. You could make a car faster that way. But skill can also help."

"Did you race anypony- er, anyone in Itsuki's 85?"

"Yeah. I raced a few guys in a 180 and an S13 on the Akina downhill. I beat them. Then I raced two friends in an S15 sometime after Itsuki put a Turbo on it. The turbo helped a lot, that's for sure."

"Hm. Interesting... hmm... now that you mention it, why have you not installed a turbo on your 86?"

Takumi shrugged. "I don't need one. A turbo feels nice and all, but there's something about them that just... I dunno."

"Mayhaps you want to circumvent the stigma that only turbocharged cars can be fast?"

"Mayhaps? That's a new one."

Luna giggled. "A mere slip of the tongue."

She walked into the street, looking up and down it. She was surprised.

Buildings were packed together on both sides. Small driveways were dotted here and there between the buildings, each having various compact cars she had never seen before. The street itself was so narrow that two cars would be unable to pass unless they themselves very narrow.

The sidewalks were well-worn, small amounts of litter scattered here and there. The edges were especially worn for years upon years of cars likely jumping up on the sidewalks to pass other cars, or simply parking. A power line with wooden poles ran on one side of the road, opposite the Tofu Shop.

"What?" Takumi asked after a moment.

"It is all so... compact," Luna noted.

"That's how a lot of things here are, I guess. How come you're surprised? There are compact cities in Equestria, aren't there?"

"If there are, I have not been to them..." She looked up at the moon, gasping. "Your moon. It is so... small."

"Well, yeah, It's hundreds of thousands of miles away. What'd you expect?"

"I was expecting your moon to be closer. Or bigger."

"Well, the moon is pretty big. It's just far away."

Takumi stared as Luna looked at him, unfurling her wings and smiling.

"Shall we go for a flight over Shibukawa?"

"... Sure, I guess."

Takumi unfurled his wings, and the two took to the skies. Luna looked down at Takumi and was surprised at how well he was able to fly.

"It seems you have taken to flying quite well," she remarked.

"I had time to practice you know."

"Hm. We-"

She stopped short, gasping.

The city of Shibukawa, was nothing like she expected. It looked like a large modern town, sure, but everything seemed so compact. Narrow streets not dissimilar to the one the Tofu Shop was on populated many parts of the city, while even smaller walkways populated the parts next to those.

And the architecture! Such architecture had been known to the legendary Kirin's of old and had since then been lost to time. To see so much of it, albeit very modernized, all in near-pristine condition was eyegasm-inducing for the princess of old!

She was so surprised and focused on examining the city that she had begun to drift downwards. Takumi noticed this and grabbed her waist to hold her up.

"Ah!" Luna yelped, looking down at him. "What are you doing?"

"You started drifting down, so, I grabbed you to hold you up."

Luna blushed. "Oh. Right... Thank you."

Takumi let go. "So, do you like it? The city, I mean."

"Of course. It is amazing. Though it is very modernized, the architecture around here is something I never thought I would see in this large of capacity ever again."

"Oh. Right. The whole not being on the planet for a thousand years, huh?"

Luna sadly nodded as she slowly flew forward. Takumi followed suit, and the two began exploring the city via flight.

"What was that like?" Takumi asked. "Coming back after a literal thousand years to your home?"

Luna sighed. "Scary, more than anything. I was scared that I would never fit in, that ponies would hate me because of Nightmare Moon, that the world simply did not need me."

"Huh. I wonder if that's what's gonna happen to me. I won't be able to come back to my world until a thousand years have passed."

Luna shook her head. "I highly doubt that. The circumstances to me being banished to the moon and you being in Equestria are very different."

"Wait- you were outright BANISHED to the moon?"

Luna nodded.

"Huh. Well, still. Maybe I won't be back for... I don't know."

They continued flying around the city, admiring the architecture and layout of the city. More so Luna, but Takumi was glad to finally explore the city from this angle.

"You know, if you're surprised at Shibukawa, you should see Tokyo."

"Tokyo?"

"This huge city down in Saitama. South of here. I've only been there once but it's pretty cool."

"Is it now? Perhaps we should take a trip down there."

"We could if we have the time. It's over an hour's drive there. If this is happening while we're sleeping, we might wake up on the way there. It'd be pointless. Also- how the heck did we even fall asleep?"

"Well, perhaps..." Luna's cheeks turned pink. "Perhaps it was because of my sisters... warm... loving embrace..." Oh how I wish I could feel that again...

Now Takumi's cheeks were turning pink. Now that she mentions it, I want that to happen to me again. That was the softest hug I've ever... He shook his head. "Hey, wanna head up to Akina?"

Luna looked at him. "Your home course?" she excitedly asked.

"Yeah."

"Of course! Where is it?"

Takumi pointed. "It's that mountain right there."

Luna looked over, eyes widening.

Rising nearly a mile into the air, Mount Akina stood proudly next to Shibukawa. A couple of lights raced up and down the one visible road snaking its way up the mountain. I was a striking image of the Canterlot Turnpike. Every turn, every elevation change were built exactly the same way as the Turnpike. It was haunting. Uncanny, in a way.

She glanced around the surrounding landscape, now realizing how Shibukawa sat within a valley. Luscious green mountains rose up in nearly every direction. She had never quite seen so many mountains that weren't snowcapped.

"Welcome to Japan..." she slowly said.

"Are you coming?" Takumi asked.

"Of course."

The two flew over to Akina, watching a car make its way up the highway.

"Is that a street racer?" Luna asked, pointing at the car.

"Yeah, it is. If you want to see where everyone meets up, I can take you to it."

"Please."

Takumi bit his lip as he led Luna further up the mountain.

"Wait, that is the parking lot?" Luna asked.

"Looks pretty similar to the Turnpike, huh?"

"Besides the additional guardrails, yes. It is exactly like the Turnpike."

Luna's voice and body grew more and more excited as they closed in on the lot. Said lot had a group of cars parked in it, ranging from mid-to-late 80s to early-90s model low-end sports cars.

"Can they see us?" Luna asked.

"Well, nobody's been able to see me so far, so no."

"Hm."

With that, the two landed on an old watchtower, overlooking the parking lot below.

Takumi watched as Luna looked around at the cars and people. She seemed confused.

"What?"

"These cars... they are unlike what I was expecting."

"What do you mean? What were you expecting?"

"Well, photo's I have seen depicted street racing to be more... upbeat. They depicted Nissan Skyline GT-R's, Integra's, Civic's, and some muscle cars, a lot of which were usually radically modified. There would always be music emitting from somepony's speakers, not to mention how much it seemed like a party. This feels like a meet between a group of friends."

"That's... because it is," Takumi replied flatly.

"But what of the cars? None of them seem at all modified for hardcore racing."

"Well, It's not like they have a bunch of money to blow. Plus, those are their only cars. Wha-do-you want from them?"

Luna seemed surprised. "Those are their only cars?"

"Yeah. You need to remember that a lot of these people are highschool graduates and such. Just a group of friends with a passion to drive. They don't have very good jobs, and a lot of them had to save up a bunch to get their cars. My friend Iketani had to save up since highschool to get his S13."

"But why do they not buy a second car?"

"Because of engine tax. That's why."

"What if they crash? Or destroy the engine? If they daily drive the same cars they raced, is that not a bad practice? Articles I have read state that you should not race the same car you daily drive, or else you risk overworking the engine."

"Well, my 86's original engine lasted over 200000 kilometers. Then again, my dad did work on that engine a lot. Well, actually, these guys probably do the same. But again, most of them don't have a choice but to daily their racing car. And most just do this as a hobby. They don't race nearly as fast as I do."

Luna smiled and bit her lip,

"Most of these people treat street racing as a hobby. Something they do at night after a long day's work to have some fun or to just blow off steam. They're usually single and don't have much money for tires and stuff, so they drive as safely as they can. They don't race specifically to be fast or anything. They just want to feel the engine rumbling as they open the throttle wide open and hear the tires squeal as they powerslide around a corner."

Luna could relate. That was exactly why she had started racing.

"These kinds of racers are the types that stick around for two or three years. After that, they get a better job, a wife, and drop street racing altogether. Some might still do it every now and again, maybe even keep driving their cars for nostalgic reasons, but other than that, they're usually done with street racing. Though, a couple might go to professional racing and make a living that way. But that's pretty rare."

"They race just to have fun. Some might try to be fast, but in the end, as a friend of mine once put it, they're just racing fans. They don't take racing as seriously as others."

"And what of those racers?" Luna asked. "The ones that are truly fast?"

"The ones that are a level above these guys actually put effort into racing. They learn some techniques, put them into practice, and even tune their cars here and there. They treat it as a passion instead of a hobby. They are able to put real times down, some even able to hold a record depending on the course. Probably not an outright time-attack record, but maybe they hold the fastest in an FF or something like that."

"Those guys become professionals more often than the racing fans. Those that go to the circuits might even win a lot of races, all because of their experience in the mountains, which a lot of people tell me is the most dangerous type of street racing."

"For good reason," Luna stated. "There is a chance you could fall off the mountain to your very death. But that is what makes it fun, correct?"

Takumi smiled. "Heh, yeah, yeah. That does add a lot to the fun factor." He sighed. "Anyways. Then there are the really fast people. The ones that are truly fast. People like them treat it as more than just a passion. They treat it as a way of life. They put money into their cars and spend time tuning them, some tuning them for specific courses. As soon as the sun sets, they're out on the pass, training as hard as they can until the sun comes up."

"They stick to street racing for a lot longer than most. Some actually have professional experience too, which makes them even deadlier. Having raced against a professional before, two professionals actually, counting Spitfire, when you find them street racing, you know you're going to have a hard time beating them."

There was a pause.

"Then... there are the fastest. The literal fastest you can find."

Luna shifted her wings excitedly.

"Street Racing is in their blood. They think about it all the time. They have the fastest cars and usually treat street racing as seriously as professional racing. They have training times, specific goals to complete each time they practice, and they almost always have the latest and greatest cars. Think Skyline GT-R's and Lan Evo's. They drive to improve and become the fastest in Kanto, maybe even the world."

"Project D is a small team of racers like me. It was formed with the express purpose to establish a legend. To take the best drivers in Gunma and go to other prefectures, set records on every single course in Kanto. We don't operate like other teams. We have technicians for each car, scouts for scouting out courses, we eat, sleep, and live by racing. You won't find another team like Project D, that's for sure. Our team was created to establish a legend. That's what we raced for. To do just that."

There was a pause.

Luna glanced at Takumi. He would be amazing at writing speeches. He rivals my sister in being able to just say this off the top of his head without prior preparation!

Takumi sighed. "So there's another reason why I want to go home so badly." He looked at the team known as the Akina SpeedStars, seeing them chat together. Bantering, talking about which car and engine is better, or just recounting the day's events. "I don't want to leave all this behind."

Luna returned the sigh. "Yes. I can see why."

"Mm... But, even with the different racers, no matter how fast they are, no matter how serious they take it, at our cores-"

"-We are all just people who love to drive," Luna finished.

Takumi chuckled. "More or Less, I guess."

Luna smiled. "Hm. Now, if I may, were you always in Project D?"

Takumi looked at her. "What?"

"Were you always in Project D?"

Takumi looked back at the SpeedStars, shaking his head. "No. I originally thought of racing- no. Driving, as a chore. It honestly was. I drove for five years just to deliver Tofu for my father's shop. Then, when I got into racing, I just... wanted to be the fastest. So I kept going. I want to be the fastest."

"Why did you join Project D?"

"Because I wanted to be the fastest, as I just said. I think of Project D as a way to get better. Faster. It's a way for me to learn new techniques and overall be a faster driver. A way for me to become the fastest driver. We all knew each other closely and helped each other out. When I first joined, I honestly felt like I didn't belong. Heck, I still feel like I don't-... didn't belong. Everyone except Kenta is over twenty. Here I am, some teenager who drives a car way older than anyone else's."

"Everything was so serious. Schedules to keep, goals to be met, I could do all of them just fine. It's just that I never felt like I belonged. Or that I should have so many people helping me to achieve what I want, giving away a part of their lives for me. I thought I was using the team while also being a liability. Some of my races I've won out of sheer luck. I've even talked to the team about quitting."

"Call me ungrateful, but I barely felt like I deserved Project D. I definitely don't deserve to be an Alicorn. Sure, wings, horn, literal magic? That's amazing. That kind of thing is the stuff of myth and legend. Some people would give a lot to have that. But me? I don't deserve it. I'm just some teenager..."

There was a pause.

"...Luna?"

"Yes, Takumi?"

"If I wasn't an Alicorn, would you spend as much time with me as you do?"

Luna winced. That was a hard question to answer. One reason being she didn't want to answer it.

"That is a question that is not easily answered, Takumi. It involves a lot of factors," she stated, hoping to steer the conversation clear of the subject.

"Then don't answer it easily. With how we met, and how we ended up knowing more about each other, if I was, say, a pony without wings and a horn, would you spend this time with me? Or any time at all?"

...

Luna didn't say anything. She didn't want to say anything. She didn't know what to say. She didn't want to imagine what it would be like if she had never met Takumi or, worse yet, met him, but didn't grow extremely interested in the fact that he was an Alicorn.

Takumi sighed after a few moments of waiting. "Nevermind..."

Luna let out a breath she didn't know she was holding.

"Now that I think about it, what about you?"

Luna looked at Takumi, who continued staring at the group of racers. "What about me?" she asked.

"Why does a princess, no, a freaking goddess like you, race?"

Luna looked back at the group of racers.

"Well, when I first started out, I tried it because I had only heard of snippets here and there. When I raced that FD I told you about, it was simply that feeling of being thrust into the seat under hard acceleration, the G-Forces that threw me about to the point I had to spread my hind legs into the door and center console and brace myself, and hearing the engine and turbochargers sing as I opened the throttle? All of that culminated into one of the best feelings I had ever felt."

"Mm."

"I did it because it gave me something to do at night. But since I met you, I have begun to see racing as a whole in a far deeper way. There are so many things about racing I never thought I would associate it with. Particularly how much The Art of War applies to it."

"The Art of War, huh?"

Luna nodded. "Having practically written it, the number of things you could take from The Art of War and apply it to racing, especially street racing, is incredible. I have had great amounts of fun seeing what I can apply and cannot apply to different situations. Not as much fun as the racing itself, of course."

Takumi just smiled. "Hm."

"You, Takumi, have shown me that street racing is something so much more than an illegal hobby. There is so much to it, so many other factors that some you quite honestly do not see in true war. Tuning the car, learning the road, learning your opponent, learning yourself, one could have the ability to plan a race down to every minute detail. I am sure somepony could even learn who will win a race before the race is even conceived by just by analyzing the details of the road, cars, opponent, and even the weather."

"I race because, for one, it is an incredible hobby that makes my job as a princess much more bearable. Not to mention it takes place at night. For two, I also race because of the details and planning one could put into it. The calculations you can do for a street race are akin to that of real battle. And, truth be told, I love doing battle with other ponies and threats. Street Racing is like a video game, just far, far better."

"You think Street Racing is like a real war?" Takumi asked.

"Yes. I do. Just, not as deadly. Of course, the fear of death is there, since you are racing down a Mountain Road at well over twice the speed limit, but... When I watched you do battle with Spitfire and her S14, it felt like I was really watching a battle between two foes. A close one at that. Both of you striking at each other in the form of blocking each other from passing, driving alongside each other, or overtaking each other. During that, I was analyzing your strengths and weaknesses in both Equine and Machine."

She sighed. "I guess I just love Street Racing because of how invigorating it is, both in the racing itself and what you can apply to it. The satisfaction of perfecting a corner, taking the correct line, even things I would normally find trivial like simply nailing a gear shift."

"Yeah. That's what racing can be about. The small things."

There was a pause.

"You know, Ryosuke did that," Takumi stated.

"Excuse me?"

Takumi looked at the city of Shibukawa. "Ryosuke. Leader of Project D. He liked to plan things down to the smallest details. While we were out practicing, Ryosuke would spend his time researching the course and the drivers we're up against. He even knew when something unexpected would happen if you can believe it."

"Well. Ryosuke sounds like a good pony."

"Man," Takumi corrected.

Luna chuckled. "Yes, yes. A good man."

"Mm. He always accepted any challenge too, never backing down even when he thinks we'll lose. That part of him is just amazing to me."

"Well, like I always say, 'If Fighting is sure to result in Victory, then you must Fight'."

"Sun Tzu said that."

Luna looked at Takumi, smirking. "And I'd say he knows a li-ttle more about fighting than you do pal because he invented it!"

Takumi stood cross-eyed as a hoof with Regalia was put right on his nose. He glanced at Luna. "Am I missing something here?"

Luna bit her lip but to no avail as she burst out laughing, removing her hoof from Takumi's nose. "Oh, oh... you really are incredible to talk to, you know that?"

Takumi began to contagiously chuckle. "Hey, same goes for you. You're different from almost everyone I've talked to in my life."

"Hehe, well, I am glad you have had a great time with me as much as I have had with you."

Takumi put his head on the old railing and stared down at the ground beneath the watchtower. He knew Luna was still looking at him, but he didn't want to look at her.

His smile disappeared. I don't want to love her. I don't want to love her. I really don't want to love her. She's amazing, but I do not want to love her.

He glanced up a little at the parking lot, seeing it empty. I don't love her. I don't... "Wait."

He raised his head. "Where'd they go?"

Luna looked at the parking lot, seeing the parking lot now devoid of any car or person. Even the guardrails were gone.

"Huh?"

The two looked to the right to spot the magnificent city of Canterlot looming in the distance.

"Wait, so that wasn't a dream?"

"How is this possible?" Luna asked.

Takumi groaned. "I don't know. You're the expert on dreams." He sighed. "Well, you wanted to come to the Turnpike, now we're here I guess."

Luna laughed. "Yes, yes. This is one way to get to the Turnpike. but really, how could we have been dreaming, but suddenly been taken here so seamlessly?"

"I don't know."

"Well... there is no point in focusing on that. We are safe and sound, and... heh, we do not need to sneak out of your room. So how about we go get in my Cosmo?"

Takumi looked at her. "Wait, your car? I thought we were taking mine."

"Well, I want you to tell me what I do right and wrong with my driving."

"...Oh. Ok. I... can do that."

Luna put her forehooves on the railing. "Then, ignoring what just happened to the both of us, let me show you where I store my Cosmo."

"Oh. Alright."

Takumi was just about to stand up and unfurl his wings when Luna suddenly put her forehooves on his shoulders, staring into his eyes.

"But Takumi," she stated. "I need to know I can trust you with this knowledge. The location of my Mazda Cosmo is a secret to everypony I have ever known. If somepony were to find out about my racing, I fear the consequences."

Takumi, slightly startled, stared at her. "Ok..."

"You are to never tell a soul about the location without my permission. Can I please trust you with this?"

"I don't know why you're being all stern about this but yeah. You can trust me. I won't tell anyone."

Luna loosened her grip. "Sorry, sorry. I am just... I guess I just really do not want anypony to take away my passion."

"Okay..."

Instead of letting go of Takumi, the two simply stared at each other.

Were his eyes always so... green? Luna wondered after a moment.

Takumi stared into Luna's eyes, cheeks starting to turn red. "Um... Luna?"

Luna blinked. "What?"

"The Cosmo?"

"Oh! Uh, right."

Luna stopped holding Takumi and unfurled her wings. Takumi slowly did the same, and the two took off from the old watchtower.

As they followed the road, Takumi glanced at the ground below. That look... That look in her eyes. I've only seen that look in one other person, and that was Natsuki Mogi.

He looked up at Luna, who stared ahead at their flight path.

She can't really be... into me, can she? She's a Princess. I'm a teenager. There's no way she'd actually be into me. But then again... that would explain why she wants to spend so much time with me... could... do I even want her to be into me?

The two banked to the right and flew down an old and decrepit road. The tarmac was aged and well-worn, though no potholes were present.

Takumi was confused. "Why would you hide it down this road?"

"What better place to hide it then on a road nopony travels on anymore?" Luna asked.

"...Oh."

They soon lowered their altitude and came across an old building next to the road. Specifically an old three-car garage. Takumi said nothing as they landed in front of it, only silently noting the separate garage doors.

"Yes, it is unbefitting of a princess to park their car in such a building," Luna stated as she opened the normal door. She smiled. "But that is what makes it all the more deceiving, right?"

Takumi smiled. "Yeah."

The two entered the garage, Luna turning on the lights. Takumi expected them to just barely manage to flicker on, but was surprised to see them instantaneously light up the whole room. Brightly, too.

"Did you restore this place or something?" he asked.

"Electrically? Yes. I even did the plumbing."

"Huh."

The room was about what you'd expect from an old garage. Old workbenches lined the walls with old tools lining those. Dirt, Dust, and Grime sat atop almost every square inch of anything that wasn't the floor or electrical outlets.

And there, in the middle vehicle bay, way Princess Luna's Mazda Cosmo JC Mountain Spec. Painted in the very fitting color of Midnight Blue.

He said nothing as he walked over to the Cosmo, putting a hoof on it.

"Is something the matter?" Luna asked as she grabbed the keys with her magic.

"It's just... this color... this car sort of reminds me of a friend's car. An S30Z. It has the same color as this."

"Hm. Interesting. This color is rather popular among enthusiasts." Luna opened the door and got in the RHD Cosmo's driver seat. "Though, I am thinking about asking Nissan to repaint this car into Midnight Purple." She closed the door.

THUNK!

Takumi got in the passenger seat, noting how similar the interior was to a Mazda RX-7 FD. "Why?"

THUNK!

He looked at Luna to see her in her juvenile form.

"Because, when I drive, I am forced to be in this form," she stated as she and Takumi buckled up. "My mature form is Midnight Blue, but the form I am forced to use when I drive is Violet. Midnight Purple would suit my car better."

"Not Violet?"

"Imagine my Cosmo in Violet, then imagine it in Midnight Purple. Which one looks better?"

She gave Takumi the keys, who used them to start the Cosmo.

"Midnight Purple," he said.

"Exactly."

Griffinilla - Stay Calm Instrumental starts playing.

Within five minutes, they were pulling out onto the Turnpike. The headlights shone brightly through the night, illuminating the road ahead.

"Alright so what do you want me to do?" Takumi asked.

"Just watch me. Tell me about my driving. What I am doing right and wrong."

"...Alright."

brraaaAAAAAP!

Luna pressed on the throttle, pushing the two back in their seats. The first corner came quick and easy. Luna steered right, then left to offset the cars weight, oversteering into a drift. She used light amounts of throttle and countersteered accordingly, guiding the car around the corner with moderate speed. She mewled as she exited and accelerated with minimal fishtailing.

"How was that?" she asked.

"You've... improved," Takumi noted, surprised. "Compared to a few nights ago, you're way better."

Luna beamed. "Yes. I have been taking some advice from you."

"Well, yeah. Not touching the handbrake- er, hoofbrake helps. But the way you actually take the corner is different."

"Is there anything I am doing wrong?"

"Mm... just keep going."

Luna nodded.

The second corner was no different from the first in terms of the way Luna took it. She went to the outside, braked, swerved left and right to steer into a drift, then used the Throttle and Steering to drift through at moderate speed. Exiting the corner, the car fishtailed.

"That looked good," Takumi noted.

"Thank you."

The next turn, a right hairpin, approached. Luna did the technique, but her cornering was far slower due to this being such a tight turn. Nonetheless, they made it through without a hitch at slow speed, drifting out and fishtailing upon acceleration.

"Have you tried a braking drift?" Takumi idly asked as they accelerated around a left curve.

"No, I have not. How do I do that?"

"In the next turn, brake and turn towards the inside. The rear should slide out. The whole swerving opposite the turn then turning in works, but the wear on the tire is worse than if you just braked and steered."

"...Ok."

They exited the curve and accelerated down a straight.

Even with her driving style, the car feels pretty good, Takumi noted.

The next turn came. A left-right chicane. Luna did what Takumi asked after clearing the left curve. She braked and steered into the right corner, breaking into a drift. She squeed as she managed the throttle and steering, coming several inches from the guardrail before accelerating into the next left hairpin.

Performing the same technique, Luna found that her entry speed was much higher than usual. This made her smile as she guided the Cosmo around the hairpin, exiting towards the outside of the road.

"Wow. Even with those few corners, your entry speed is higher."

Luna was already brimming with pride. "Yes, thank you. These techniques are greatly improving my driving."

They accelerated around a quick left corner, then a small straightaway, then a right corner. Takumi noted how much Luna's speed had increased from the last time he saw her driving. Sure, she was still an amateur, but a good amateur.

Takumi sighed. "Can I tell you something?"

"What is it?" Luna asked, letting off the pedal.

"Earlier, when you said you were seeing other cars and I said I wasn't seeing any, I..." He sighed again. "I did see them. I just didn't want to believe it."

Luna glanced at him. "So you did... why did you not tell me before?"

"We weren't best friends before..."

Luna gasped. "We are... best friends?"

Takumi's eyes widened. "No! Er, kind of. It's just that Itsuki is being such an idiot that I don't like him being my best friend anymore. Just... the way he says 'screw you' to his old life just... It just gets under my skin, you know?"

"Well..."

"Luna, be honest with me. How much do you wish Itsuki wasn't here at all? That he just stayed back in my world?"

"Well, Takumi, that is hardly kind of you."

"That doesn't answer my question. Does it really not piss you off- sorry, does it really not make you mad that someone like freaking ITSUKI is an Alicorn? I'm sure you all worked your flanks off to become Alicorns, while he just became one just like that."

Takumi's eyes widened as he put a hoof to his his head. "I just said worked your flanks off..."

Luna giggled. "Yes, yes you did." She sighed. "Ok fine. If you really must know, it does in fact anger me that somepony like Itsuki is an Alicorn. He sees it exactly how a colt would. A way to be rich and famous."

"Mmmhm." Takumi took in a breath, then exhaled. "Man. After this run I think we should get something to eat. It's been a while."

"Oh yes, we should. Though... if I may... do you think you could drive my car afterwards?"

Takumi looked at her. "You want me to drive your Cosmo?"

"I am tired of being scared to find the limit of my Cosmo. I want you to show me the true potential of this car. That way I can drive without the fear of overexceeding its limits."

Takumi lightly shook his head and looked out the windshield.

"As a bonus, you would get to see how a Rotary handles," Luna added.

Takumi smiled. "Alright fine. We can do that. Anyway, let's keep going."

EEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Takumi looked at Luna as she drifted around a corner, watching her movements. His eyes fell on the way she shifted gears. She would push and pull the stick to go into each gear as quickly as she could. A good practice. But her shift points were off. Usually too early.

Wait, Takumi thought. How is she pulling the gear stick?

With her hoof, Luna upshifted, pulling the gear stick into the right place.

There is physically now ay she should be able to do that, he thought, seeing the end of her hoofshoe seemingly latch on to the shift knob. It's a smooth surface! How is she able to do that? I'm not able to do that!

He raised a hoof, staring at it. There wasn't any way he could move it to grip things.

Could I do that?

Author's Note

I have four words to say.

Procrastination is a Bitch.

LAST PART OF 2021 LET'S GOOOOOOO!

But seriously, procrastination is a BITCH. Earlier, this part had about 2000 words. Within a few hours, I raised it to OVER NINE THOUSAAAND!!! JEEBUS CRUST I COULD PUMP OUT THREE PARTS A DAY WITH THAT PACE! PROCRASTINATION COMPLETELY SCREWS ONE OVER IN ALL ASPECTS OF LIFE!

So, last question of 2021. If I were to tell you that the original ship in this story was supposed to be Takumi and TWILIGHT, how would you react?

Act 20: To control the Sun and Moon

Later...

Takumi and Luna sat at a table outside the castle, both eating a three-foot Sub Sandwich. One each.

Takumi watched as Luna very politely ate a piece of her sandwich, holding it with her magic. He proceeded to look around at the surrounding garden. It was... surprising. Every single flower was in bloom despite the time of year, everything was extraordinarily lush, it was perfect. A perfect garden. It greatly surpassed the gardens back home.

"My sister tends to these gardens herself, you know," Luna stated.

"...I guess that would explain why everything is so..."

"Perfect?"

Takumi nodded before taking a bite out of his sandwich.

He swallowed. "You know, It's kind of weird. Not seeing any pink trees anywhere."

"Do you mean those trees we encountered in Shibukawa?"

"Yeah. Those. Just..." Takumi snickered. "The fact that we- no, you brushed us just appearing back in Equestria off like it was nothing is just... I just... wow."

Luna chuckled. "Well, it is not like we were in any danger. It was a simple anomaly."

"Simple?"

"Yes. Simple."

Takumi put a hoof on his forehead. "If anomaly's like that are simple..."

"Ok, ok. It is not exactly simple. In fact, it is confusing. Because when I watched you sleep the last time you went to your house in Japan, you stayed in your spot on the bed. Never having disappeared."

"Well... I dunno."

Luna sighed. "I will have to talk with my sister about it."

Takumi said nothing as he continued to eat his sandwich. Having never eaten a Sub Sandwich before, it was quite tasty.

Sub Sandwich-... "Pfft," Takumi chuckled as he ate his piece.

"What is it?"

Takumi swallowed. "Nothing. Just something I thought of is all."

"Oh come on Takumi. What is it?"

Takumi took in a breath. "Sub Sandwich Shotgun."

That got a laugh out of Luna. A short laugh, but a laugh nonetheless.

Takumi continued to eat, balancing his piece on a hoof and moving it to his mouth.

Luna noticed this but decided to not say anything. She simply finished her food and patiently waited for Takumi to do the same.

Soon, Takumi finished eating his sandwich and looked up at Luna. He was surprised to see her staring right at him.

He didn't say anything. He just looked at Luna, remaining neutral as her cheeks slowly reddened.

"Ahem."

Luna yelped at the sudden sound. "Um, what?"

"What is it with you staring at me?"

Luna looked away. "I am just... I do not know."

Takumi sighed as he stood up. "Well, I'm done. Wanna head back out to the Turnpike?"

"Yes. Of course I do."

Takumi said nothing as he unfurled his wings, giving them a quick stretch before taking off.

krrr-chunka-chunka-chunka-chunka-brooooOOOOOooooommmmmm-br-br-br-br-br-br

"It definitely... sounds different," Takumi noted.

"Of course. It is not a piston engine," a Juvenile Luna replied.

"No, I don't mean that. I've heard what a Rotary sounds like. It's just that this one sounds... just... different is all."

"Have you ever heard a Three Rotor?"

Takumi looked at Luna. "A Three Rotor?"

"My car has a Mazda 20B engine. You may be used to hearing the 13B."

"...Yeah. I guess I am. I have-... had two friends with rotaries. I'm pretty sure they were 13B's."

"Takumi, do not say that. They are still your friends."

Takumi sighed. "Still..."

broooommmmmm-broooOOOOOmmmmmmm

"Huh... it revs differently too."

"How so?"

"It just revs... faster. Is all."

"...Interesting."

Takumi put the Mazda Cosmo into gear and pulled out onto the road. He slowly accelerated.

"So, is there any special move you want me to show you first?" Takumi asked as they cruised past the parking lot.

"Um..." Luna tapped her chin. She smiled. "How about a braking drift?"

"...Ok."

brooOOOOOM!

Za-Za - Love and Money starts playing. (LUNA YOU IDIOT!)

Luna was surprised at the sudden acceleration. Her smile quickly disappeared. "Uhh... what are you doing?"

The JC continued to accelerate. Faster and Faster.

"W-Wait, now? On the first corner?!"

Takumi remained silent.

Luna's pupils began to shrink as she saw the speedometer quickly rising.

"Mm. Um, think we are going a little too fast? Y-You could slow down!"

The corner came closer and closer. Luna braced herself. Takumi had never driven her car! How was HE supposed to know when to brake?!

She grew especially frightened as he missed her braking point, going at a much higher speed.

"TAKUMI!"

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEe

The JC slowed and broke into a drift. Takumi skillfully managed the steering and throttle inputs to guide the JC through the inside of the first left corner, taking an impressive line before exiting and speeding down the next straightaway.

"Tah... Takumi?" Luna whimpered as the next right corner approached. "Uh... ah! Ahhh-AHHHHHH!"

[EUROBEAT INTENSIFIES]

She yelled in terror as they took yet another impressive line through the corner, clearing it as quickly as the first.

"Takumi! Come on! Slow down! AH!"

EEEEEEEEEEEEE!

The Cosmo smoothly slowed and drifted into a right hairpin, Takumi using only the accelerator to turn while holding the steering in place. They ballooned to the outside towards the guardrail, but before they could hit it, Takumi brought the Cosmo out of the drift and accelerated.

Is this really my Mazda Cosmo? Luna wondered as they accelerated around a left curve. Takumi has never even driven this car before yet he is drifting so effortlessly!

"It feels heavier than my 86, that's for sure. But I think I've worked out all the kinks."

Luna looked at him as they accelerated down a straightaway. "Wha... did I pass out or have we only gone through three corners?"

"Ok, I think I'm ready to try for a drift. Hold on."

NOW Luna was confused! Drift? What were we doing before?!!

A left-right chicane quickly approached. Takumi went into them faster than before, using precise use of the throttle and steering. His pace remained the same as he exited that and went into a left hairpin, clearing that faster than the previous hairpin.

A small straightaway and quick left corner followed, Takumi never letting off the accelerator through either of them. He continued to not let off even through a quick right corner and down another straightaway.

Luna began to relax as the run went on. Is this really my Mazda Cosmo? I never thought it could attain this speed! If he is able to drive a car this fast, with this little practice, who knows what other cars he can find the limit of!

She looked over at Takumi, expecting his calm and neutral face. To ask him about how the car felt.

She did not see that look.

Instead, Takumi looked shocked.

Luna's curiosity about the kid was at an all-time high. "Takumi? Is something the matter?"

Takumi said nothing. Luna grew slightly frightened as Takumi continued to drive, gently bending the car to his will and making it his own. Soon, they were on a long straightaway.

This is wild, Takumi thought. Everything about this car is so much different from my 86. The way the engine, the suspension, the transmission, even the freaking steering. Everything responds so much differently from my 86.

"Takumi?" Luna asked. "AH!"

She yelped as they braked and entered a high-speed left curve. Takumi skillfully tightened the line as the curve tightened into a corner, clearing it quickly and easily.

The car rocked from side to side as they made it through a series of curves and corner, finally braking when a HARD left corner approached. Luna bit her lip and smiled as Takumi drifted through the inside of the corner, braking and switching directions to drift towards the inside of a right hairpin.

As they exited, Luna looked over at Takumi's bewildered face.

"Do you like how it drives?" she asked. "Is that why you are surprised?"

BROOOOM! kr-brooOOOOOOOM!

She looked back forward, slowly shaking her head with a smile.

"I love it..."

Luna looked at him. "What was that?"

"I... I love it. This car. It's amazing."

"How... really?"

"Yeah. The suspension, the way the gearbox is set up, even the body's rigidity, my only problem is how heavy it feels."

The JC accelerated down the Turnpike's longest straightaway.

EEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Takumi braked and steered into a left-right chicane, taking the most impressive line Luna had ever seen her Cosmo take.

"These tires... the way they grip..." Takumi slowly said.

The JC slowed and drifted into a left hairpin, taking an inside line the led it less than an inch from the guardrail.

Is this why Ryosuke and Keisuke used Rotaries? Takumi wondered. Because I can see the appeal. The way the entire drivetrain responds because of the Rotary is amazing. This might actually be better than my 86.

"Luna?"

"Yes?"

"Mind if we switch sides every time we go for a run in your Cosmo?"

"What? Why?"

The JC drifted through a right 90-degree curve, then a left 90-degree curve.

"Because I... because I actually love driving this. And I don't want to mess with you and your practicing."

"Um... sure. Of course we can switch sides." Luna chuckled. "I am sure we will have to pay for plenty of gasoline and tires."

"We will."

EEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Music Ends.

Celestia smacked her forehead as she and Cadance walked down a hallway. "Takumi is a street racer."

Cadance was surprised. "Yeah? And? What's wrong with that? I've done my fair share of having fun in the twisties or on the highways."

Celestia looked at Cadance.

"Oh come on. You know this!" Cadance defended. "You gave me a LAMBORGHINI MIURA as my FIRST CAR. What did you expect me to do?"

"It's not that. You were younger, and yes, it was a small mistake on my part in giving you a Miura. But you need to remember, Takumi has genuine skill in street racing. He isn't somepony who goes out and drifts on the weekends. He is a real street racer with real skill."

"...Ok?"

"What if my sister gets into street racing because of him? Real street racing where she practices every single night?"

"You sound like you know what you're talking about."

"I am speaking off of what I know about racing." Celestia sighed. "My sister... a street racer..."

Cadance returned the sigh. "Well, what do you want to do? I doubt Takumi would purposefully get Luna into street racing."

"Yes, yes. I know that. Which is why I'm not going to accuse him of it. It's just that if my sister were to get into street racing, and ponies were to find out, what would they think of it? Street Racing would likely skyrocket. What's worse it that she already owns a Skyline R33 GTR. A car already belonging to a lineage of famous racecars."

"A-About that, why did Luna GET an R33 of all things? I don't think I've ever asked."

"Because it was 'Practical and Easy to Drive'. I shouldn't have let her keep it. It is NOT that."

Cadance's jaw dropped. "What about an R33 GTR is unpractical? It's got all wheel drive, traction control, good power. a rigid chassis and body for protection against a crash, a spacious trunk, sure it's a coupe but what about that doesn't say practicality?"

Celestia sighed. "Fair. I know there are likely ponies that actually use even R33 GTR's as family cars. But you cannot ignore its racing lineage. Illegal and Sanctioned."

"Yeah. So? I doubt Luna would be THAT much of an idiot. She wouldn't use her daily as a racecar."

"And there is no way she would be able to buy and own a second car without me knowing. So..."

The two paused, staring at each other.

"Did paranoia suddenly hit you like a truck?" Cadance asked.

"Paranoia in which Luna might have actually gotten a second car without me knowing? Yes..." Celestia shook her head. "No. I shouldn't accuse her so soon. Maybe... maybe she isn't into it... yet..."

Cadance shook her head. Suddenly, she had a thought.

"How... soft, was Takumi?"

Celestia chuckled. "Believe it or not, softer than my sister and I."

Cadance stopped and stared with wide eyes. "Ok. Where is he. I HAVE to see this for myself."

"Cadance, no! He is sleeping right now. Let him rest."

Cadance groaned as she continued walking alongside Celestia. "Of course..."

Celestia opened a set of doors that lead outside. Right into the Royal Parking Lot.

Cadance was confused. "Wait, why are we here? I thought we were just walking together through the castle."

"Because I wanted to... look at something," Celestia stated, eyes trained on a certain White and Black Liftback with Retractable Headlights.

Cadance watched as Celestia stepped forward towards Takumi's 86. It was a slow, gentle pace, as if she were approaching a lost and scared filly.

Celestia stopped in front of the 86 Trueno, slowly sitting down to simply gaze at it. Cadance stopped next to Celestia, looking between her and the 86.

"Is something wrong?" Cadance asked.

Celestia said nothing.

Cadance silently sat down next to Celestia, looking at the 86, seeing if there was something Celestia was seeing that she couldn't.

"Everything has a limit."

Cadance looked at Celestia. "Huh?"

Celestia kept her eyes on the 86. "I was thinking of what Takumi brought up during our conversation. His question of what would happen if somepony had one thousand years of driving experience."

"He asked that?"

"Yes, he did. While somepony, if they had that experience, would be the most experienced driver ever, and therefore be able to push a car faster than anypony, there is a limit. Not in their driving, but in their car."

"...I'm... not following."

"All cars, performance or not, have a Physical Limitation to how fast they can possibly go. While this limit is usually very high in the case of performance cars, it is there."

"Like how you can divide a number in half forever, and it will never reach zero?"

"An interesting comparison, but yes. In the case of Takumi's Sprinter Trueno, despite its rather outdated suspension, its lightweight chassis and 50/50 weight distribution extends even its stock limit to great heights. And Takumi seems to have modified it greatly, further extending the limit."

When did she become a car guru? Cadance was confused. "How? All I see are the stock wheels, a carbon hood, custom suspen...sion... oh. Internal modifications."

"It doesn't matter how much your car is modified on the outside. It will not be truly fast unless you have skill, or internal modifications."

"Oh yeah! All Show, No Go! I freaking hate that, you know? Ponies that modify everything on the outside but don't touch the inside. I HATE that."

Celestia nodded in agreement. "We digress."

"Yeah, we do. So... what about the Physical Limit of cars is interesting?"

Celestia sighed. "Something to think about is all. Something that doesn't make me sad or annoyed."

"Oh. Yeah, I guess. So... what do you think this Trueno's limit is?"

"...I don't know... Takumi himself would have to figure that out. He is the only one more in sync with his Sprinter than anypony else."

"Okayyy..."

Celestia smiled at Cadance. "Why don't you head inside and get some rest for your journey back to the Empire?"

"Heh, you say that like I'd have to walk or fly." Cadance sighed as she stood up. "Yeah, alright. What are you gonna do?"

"I'm going to stay out here. Take in the fresh air. Perhaps I'll take a flight around Canterlot."

"Alright. Well." she yawned. "Good night."

"Good night, Cadance."

Celestia watched Cadance reenter the castle. She silently looked back at the Trueno, staring at it intently. She peered around the side to look at the Japanese Kanji.

Fujiwara Tofu Shop (Private Use)

She tilted her head. The license plates, the carbon hood, the polyurethane windows... are you really the same one?

Two engines echoed through her mind. A 1.6 Liter Formula Atlantic 4A-GE Silvertop resonating with an Air-Cooled 3.0 Liter Flat Six Turbo.

The engines revved high and loud, decreasing in pitch when they shifted gears. The sounds of screeching tires appeared, sounding in tune with the engines.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

The engine sounds melded into a different engine entirely, a Mazda 20B-REW 3 Rotor, just as a Mazda Cosmo JC drifted around a high-speed curve, accelerating.

"How was that?" Luna excitedly asked as she accelerated down a straightaway.

"Not bad at all. Faster than your last run. Were you watching me or something?"

"After I got over my initial shock, how could I not?"

"I'm just surprised you're being so fearless all of a sudden."

"Takumi, you have revealed the true potential of my Mazda Cosmo. Now I no longer have to live in fear of exceeding its limits."

"Hm."

Luna braked and steered into a corner, drifting through the middle of the road before exiting with minimal fishtailing.

"That was pretty good," Takumi noted. This made Luna beam with pride.

Over the next few hours, Takumi and Luna did downhill run after downhill run, alternating between driving every run. At first, Takumi used his time to learn the Mazda Cosmo more and more, but after several runs, he found himself instead slowing down, showing Luna how she could improve her cornering.

Impressing Luna more than ever, Takumi copied her driving lines to a T, showing her how the line she took was disadvantageous. In the next corner, he showed her how she could improve it.

"See, if you decrease throttle here, then increase it," he explained as he drifted through a corner. "you can save a half a second."

On her next run, Luna did just that, saving half a second just like Takumi said. "Yes!"

Throughout the night, Luna and Takumi practiced. Takumi learned the JC more and more, working out even the so-called "trivial" details, while Luna learned the course more and more, with Takumi guiding her along the way.

The two had fun together. So much so they completely forgot the passage of time despite there being a digital clock situated on the Dashboard.

Takumi had fun learning the car, but also had fun teaching Luna how to drive. Teaching her how to properly shift the weight of the car was especially fun. To see Luna smile and beam with pride brought a sense of warmness to his heart. That being said, there was something Takumi found rather surprising about Luna.

Luna was very adaptable.

No, really. The way she was able to easily do what Takumi told her to do was nothing short of amazing. If he told her to let off the accelerator a small bit to exit a corner faster, she would do it exactly how he did it. Instinctively. It was kind of frightening how easily she was able to adapt to new techniques.

Reason being that he was able to do the same.

They were both Natural Drivers. She was unskilled, while he was skilled, but they were still Natural Drivers.

EEEEEEEE!

Much later, Luna drifted around a corner uphill, planting the throttle and accelerating down a straightaway. She stopped in the parking lot, unbuckling and getting out. Takumi did the same. They switched seats, closing the doors and buckling up.

Takumi looked at the digital clock on the dashboard.

7:07AM

He frowned. "The sun's gonna come up soon."

Luna chuckled. "My sister is the one who dictates when the sun rises. Her schedule says it was rise at 7:30, which gives us time for one more run."

Takumi stared at the steering wheel. "I mean... I have been wanting to see how fast this car could go..."

"You want to run at 100%?"

"Well, yeah. This car is amazing."

"Would you like me to time you?"

Takumi looked at Luna, seeing a stopwatch in her magical grasp.

"Really?"

Luna tilted her head. "What? Do you not want to be timed?"

"I just..." He looked forward. "I don't know..."

Dejo and Bon - Wheelpower and Go! starts playing. (I spent half an hour picking the track for this bit)

broooooooOOOOOOM- KSHH! brooooooooo-

Both Alicorns looked left as the undeniable sound of a Rotary sounded off in the distance. Beams of light came closer and closer before a car rocketed out from behind a guardrail, racing past the parking lot as a bright blue blur.

Despite thinking it was going to continue on without paying them any mind, the blur of blue slowed down and stopped in the road, revealing that it was an Innocent Blue Mica Mazda RX-7 FD3S Spirit R. It looked stock aside from a set of chrome ADV5 Track Function CS Rims.

Luna tilted her head. "Wait, is that..? it is!"

"What?" Takumi asked.

"That is the same car whose driver recommended me this Mazda Cosmo!"

Takumi smiled. "Really?"

broooommmmmm-brooOOOoooommmm

The FD revved its 13B-REW engine, turbochargers fluttering every time it did so. Like it was egging the two on.

Luna smiled. "I believe he would like to race you."

"You want me to race someone in your car?"

"It is not like you are going to crash."

"...Okay. So you really wanted me to go after him?"

brooOOOoommmm-broOOOooommmmmm

Takumi's hooves pressed harder against the steering wheel. Dammit. The way he revs his engine, now I actually want to race him!

"Ahem?" Luna cleared her throat. "Takumi?"

"We're going."

[EUROBEAT INTENSIFIES]

ker-CHUNK! EEEEEEEEEEEE!

Luna yelped at the sudden acceleration as Takumi floored it in first gear.

broOOOOOOM- KSHH! BROOOOOO-

The FD accelerated just as the JC entered the road. Two Rotary-Powered Machines sped down the mountain pass, one formerly a luxury car while the other was a thoroughbred sports car.

Takumi quickly caught up to the FD, accelerator flat on the floor as they quickly approached the first corner.

Luna took in a deep breath, then let it out. I will not allow myself to fear Takumi's driving.

The corner came closer and closer. Takumi braked, but was surprised to see the FD not brake until much later.

"What is he doing?!" Luna yelled.

The FD suddenly dropped its left tires into a drainage gutter situated on the inside of the corner. The tires pressed into the concrete, canceling the outward inertia and allowing it to corner faster than ever.

Takumi took an impressive line through the inside of the corner, exiting less than a second after the FD.

If that's how he's gonna play, I'm all for it! Takumi internally yelled.

The JC accelerated towards the rear of the FD, getting within a few feet before both cars braked and drifted into the next right corner, performing a perfect Parallel Drift mere inches from the inside guardrail, centimeters in the case of the JC.

The FD was visibly surprised at the JC's impressive driving coming out of the corner, even more so as they braked and drifted through the inside of the first right hairpin, nearly touching doors.

Luna excitedly squeed as she herself was brought inches from the FD before both cars exited the hairpin and sped around a left curve. The speedometer went up and up and up before suddenly dropping as both cars entered a left-right chicane.

Takumi was done holding back. Following the FD, he dropped the inner tires of the JC into the gutter on the inside. Luna yelped in surprise as the G-Forces thrashed her against the door despite her attempts at bracing herself.

"I really need to get bucket seats..." she mumbled.

"Yeah, you should," Takumi unexpectedly replied.

Before Luna could react, both cars did full parallel drifts through a left hairpin, Takumi cutting so far inward that the front left tire was riding on the dirt, decreasing grip.

He used this to his advantage, increasing throttle and shifting weight to the rear to decrease the wear on the tire while also increasing speed.

Upon exiting the corner, the JC pressed up against the FD's bumper, leaving less than an inch between the two even when they rocketed around a quick lift corner, down a straightaway, then a quick right corner. Their speeds increased exponentially down a decently long straightaway.

Luna bit her lip as they braked hard into a right corner, seatbelt straining to hold her and Takumi in place as the JC drifted centimeters behind the FD around the inside of the hairpin. Surprisingly, the FD pulled away from them on the exit of the corner. This didn't phase Takumi in the slightest as he quickly shifted gears to accelerate after the FD.

Down a straightaway they went, followed by a left hairpin. Takumi went in at a higher rate of speed than the FD to catch up, drifting and guiding the front left tire over the dirt, forcing the weight onto the outside tires. He nailed the accelerator using the newfound grip to his advantage, accelerating around the hairpin.

The moment the hairpin ended, a combined 600 Turbocharged Horses were put into the tarmac as the Rotary-Powered Monsters opened their throttles as wide as they could go.

Speeds increased to over 100-OMPH (Outrageous Miles Per Hour) down the second-longest straightaway the Canterlot Turnpike had. The JC didn't let up. Even as a small and quick right curve came and went, causing the JC and FD to balloon outwards towards the wall. Both cars recovered at the same time, coming inches from the wall, centimeters for the JC. Both sped towards an approaching curve.

Up ahead, two cars sat in the parking lot next to the curve. One was a black Ferrari 365 GT4 BB while the other was, interestingly enough, an Azure Blue Mark 1 Ford Capri GT 2.0.

Between the two sat two men. Both in their early twenties.

"Sounds like the SpeedStars are duking it out," the man next to the Ferrari noted. "Pretty early, don't you think?"

"Can't be them. None of them have an RX-7," the other stated.

Two sets of headlights approached from around the curve.

"Looks like they're moving pretty fast," the Ferrari driver said.

"... Too fast to be normal racers," the Capri driver stated.

The cars came closer. The one in front was a blue FD, while the car behind looked like an S13.

"TOO FAST!" the Ferrari driver yelled. "RUN!"

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Both men ducked behind their cars as the two cars tore around the curve at high speed, slowing down mid-drift and sticking to the inside before disappearing around another right corner.

Both men got out from behind their cars, staring at each other with wide eyes.

"Was that a Eunos Cosmo?!"

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Luna looked over at Takumi, watching as he braced himself against the door and center console much harder than herself.

"Does that not hurt?" she asked.

"No."

They entered a left curve. The FD drifted while the JC dropped into a gutter mostly hidden by bushes, threatening to pass the FD as they exited.

He's fast, Takumi thought.

Right corner. The JC moved so fast and so close to the inside it cut outstretched bushes. It skillfully changed directions into a left curve, once again using the inner gutter to gain a faster line and stay superglued to the FD's bumper.

Exiting the curve and gutter, the JC followed the FD into another right curve, coming centimeters from the guardrail.

Without breaking, the JC switched directions once again and dropped into the inside gutter of a long left sweeping curve. The FD easily blocked the attack, but the JC kept inside the gutter.

"Takumi? What are you doing?!" Luna asked.

Takumi didn't reply.

The JC continued within the gutter as the FD instinctively turned outwards for the best racing line. What neither it nor Luna were expecting, was for Takumi to suddenly accelerate and stick within the gutter for longer than normal, practically jumping out of the gutter and bringing both cars side by side.

"Takumi?! We cannot pass here! There is a hairpin!"

The JC quickly outpaced the FD, bringing itself half a car length ahead of the FD as a right hairpin quickly approached.

Luna gave up on trying to understand Takumi's way of driving as both cars dove into the hairpin, braking and drifting at speed. Takumi gave the corner his all, trying to hold the lead.

Even with this, the FD's superior line brought it and the JC neck and neck towards the middle of the hairpin. Luna watched the outer guardrail come closer and closer.

The FD was now pulling ahead, but forced to slow because of the JC blocking its line. The hairpin ended, and the two cars floored it.

BANG!

All three of the participating ponies were startled as the JC smacked into the guardrail, momentarily offsetting it.

"Dammit! I am so sorry!" Takumi yelled as he instantly stabilized the car, pushing harder on the accelerator to keep the cars neck and neck down the Turnpike's longest straightaway.

The Rotary Racers sped down the straightaway, neck-and-neck, tires lightly squealing as they raced around gentle ultra-high-speed curves. The JC began to pull ahead, getting half a car length in front.

Suddenly, the FD let off, slowing down and flicking on its hazard lights.

Both Alicorns were confused at the sudden motion, especially when the FD began flashing its headlights.

"Oh. I know what he's doing," Takumi stated, letting off the throttle.

Music Ends.

Both cars slowed down and stopped on the right side of the road, directly in the lane with their hazards on.

"Are you going to speak with him?" Luna asked.

"I might as well see what he wants."

Takumi unbuckled and got out, looking at the FD to see an Innocent Blue Mica pony getting out. He looked like a pegasus.

"You know Luna, when I told you to get a Mazda Cosmo, I didn't say become the fastest thing on the-"

The pony stopped short when he made he made eye contact with Takumi.

"Oh," he said with a disappointed tone.

"Did you want something?" Takumi asked.

The pegasus-lookalike shook his head. "No, sorry. I thought you were someone else. Nice racing, but still."

Without another word, the pegasus got back in the FD and closed its door, shifting into gear and accelerating away, down the mountain.

Luna stepped out of the JC.

"What was that about?" Takumi asked before she could say anything.

"That I do not know. Perhaps I should have stepped out with you."

Takumi just shook his head and sat down in the drivers seat and buckled his seatbelt, closing his door just as Luna did the same. The former put the JC into first gear and turned around to accelerate uphill.

Takumi shifted gears. "So who was he?"

"Kansai Dorifto."

"Inertia Drift?"

"No. Kansai Dorifto. Where did you get Inertia Drift?"

"Kansai Dorifto is Japanese for Inertia Drift."

"Really? I did not know that."

"Hm."

Takumi picked up the pace as the JC rounded a hairpin.

"So is he a friend? Kansai?"

"Not quite. From what I gather, he is a Thestral. One that supposedly saved Princess Cadance and Prince Shining Armor's wedding three years ago."

"Hm. So did you two happen to meet up two weeks ago?'

"Yes. He was in that same FD. The same one he used even three years ago at the wedding."

"Mm. Oh, hey, sorry about hitting the guardrail back there. Guess I misjudged the line a little."

"Oh it is nothing, really. I am sure it is a simple paint scratch. I am changing the paint soon, remember?"

"I guess. Wait- how are you gonna change the paint without anyone knowing it's you?"

"Takumi, look at me."

Takumi only glanced. "What?"

"Only my sister knows of this form. Nopony else knows of it. I would need to drape a simple cloak over my wings so that ponies do not see my cutie mark or wings."

"Oh. Okay. Makes sense I guess. But can't you just, I dunno. Make your wings invisible? Actually nevermind. Ponies would see your mark."

"Hmm... make my wings invisible... now that is an idea."

Soon, the two were walking through the castle. Luna was back in her mature form.

"I cannot say it enough how much fun it was to ride with you while you raced," Luna happily stated.

"Mm."

Luna glanced at Takumi. "Is something the matter?"

"No. Just thinking about some stuff."

"Hm."

They made their way past Takumi's room. It was at this moment that Takumi began to wonder where they were going.

"I must raise the moon," Luna replied after Takumi inquired.

Takumi said nothing as he followed Luna into her room, continuing to say nothing. He barely registered Luna's room and its contents.

The two stepped out onto the balcony and stopped.

"Now, we wait," Luna stated.

Takumi stared ahead at the moon. The gigantic, somewhat-creepy moon. Creepy in the sense that it was not supposed to be that big.

As Luna got ready to begin lowering the Moon, he had a thought.

"Hey, you think I could lower the moon?"

Luna looked at him, surprised. "You would like to lower the moon?"

"No. I mean, if I tried, could I lower the moon?"

Luna looked at her moon. For the past three years, since a week after her arrival, she had been the one to raise and lower the moon. Always her. It never crossed her mind whether or not Cadance and Twilight could do it.

And now, here was another Alicorn, one who might as well have been a colt in the magic world, wondering if he could do.

"Well... there would not be any harm if you tried now."

Takumi's eyes slightly widened. "Wait, really?"

"I am next to you. If anything goes awry, I can fix it."

Takumi looked at the moon. "You... actually want me to try and move the moon... the moon..."

"Come on. Try it. Now that it is in my head, I must see if you can do it."

Takumi felt his heart flutter. "But..." He took in a deep breath. "How do I do it?"

Luna bit her lip. "Focus your magic on the moon like you would a fork, then gently pull it below the horizon."

Takumi took in another breath. "Okay."

His horn lit up emerald green as he tried to grasp the moon.

"You must point your horn at the moon and keep it pointed as you lower it," Luna explained.

"Oh."

Takumi focused entirely on the moon, pushing away the shock of actually doing such a thing and focusing on actually doing it.

Nearby, Celestia stood out on her own balcony, patiently waiting for Luna to lower the moon so she could raise the sun.

What she did not expect was for the aura of light around the moon to turn a shade of emerald green as it was very slowly lowered. She quickly looked down at Luna's balcony, spying both her and Takumi, the former of which wore the same look of surprise while the latter seemed to be focusing down on the-...

"He couldn't be doing what I think he's doing... is he?" Celestia asked.

Luna was astonished. Though his body looked like it was straining, Takumi himself didn't seem to take notice of it. She looked back at the moon, seeing it slowly being lowered with the emerald green aura stuck around it.

"Oh my gosh," she silently mouthed.

Within the better part of a minute, the moon had disappeared from view, behind the landscape in the distance. Takumi looked up, seeing the sky and surrounding area completely dark.

"Did I really just..."

"Takumi," a regal voice suddenly said.

Luna and Takumi looked up to see Celestia flying in, landing in front of them. "Was that really you?"

"If you mean the sun- er, moon, then... yeah, I guess."

Celestia looked at Takumi's near-speechless face. She glanced at Luna. "And, sister, you did not help him?"

"N-Not in the slightest," Luna replied. "He did that all by himself."

"Holy shit..." Takumi mumbled. "I just lowered the moon..."

"Takumi... do you feel any pain?" Celestia asked.

"No. I don't."

Celestia looked towards the west where her sun normally rose. "Do you think you could raise the sun?"

"You want me to do what?"

"You want him to do what?!" Luna shouted.

"We might as well," Celestia calmly replied.

Takumi took in a breath. "Okay... so how do I do it?"

Both princesses took in a breath, surprised that Takumi was willing to do it. Celestia bent down. "Do you see those hills over there?" she asked, pointing to a mountain range in the west.

"Yeah."

"Reach out your magic to behind those hills, find the sun."

Takumi stood still, pointing his horn at the mountain range, doing as Celestia said.

"Ok, I got it."

"Are you sure?" Luna asked.

"Yeah."

"Now slowly do what you did with Luna's moon, but this time raise it," Celestia said.

"Mm."

To the sisters' astonishment, slowly but surely, the sun began to rise over the mountains. Neither were able to hold their regal statures or expressions as this teenager did the very thing Celestia had done for over a millennia. And the most insane part was that the same thing that happened to the moon, with its aura turning a dim shade of emerald green.

Within twenty seconds, the sun was up. Takumi stopped his magic and looked up, a look of absolute shock and wonder on his face.

None of the three Alicorns could take their eyes off the sun. Its aura turned back to normal after a few seconds, prompting the sisters to let out a breath.

"Takumi, what is wrong with your horn?" a new voice asked.

Luna and Celestia looked over to see Cadance there.

"Cadance?! What is it with you popping up out of nowhere?" Celestia asked.

"Considering the first thing I see when waking up is the moon glowing GREEN, I had a pretty good reason to come up here especially after seeing TAKUMI do it. But seriously, what is wrong with his horn?"

The three looked at Takumi's horn, the sisters drawing in a breath. Though it was cooling down, Takumi's horn was RED HOT and producing as much smoke as a steam locomotive under full load.

The teen himself was looking down at the balcony floor, slowly breathing. He didn't pay any mind to his horn.

"Takumi? Are you alright?" Luna asked, stepping forward and putting a hoof in the teen's wing.

"I just moved the sun and moon..." Takumi mumbled.

"Yes, that you did." Luna took off her hoof shoe and gently caressed Takumi's wing. So soft... she thought.

"I actually moved... the sun and moon..."

"But, Takumi, have you paid any mind to your horn?" Celestia asked.

Takumi looked at Celestia. "No. Is something wrong with it?"

"You mean you haven't felt how hot it is?"

Takumi tried to look up at his horn. "No, I guess not. I felt it warm up a little but I thought that was normal."

"Uh..." Celestia used her magic to grab Luna's hoofheld mirror, bringing it over and letting Takumi see his horn.

Takumi's eyes slightly widened. "Oh. That's... hm."

"Takumi, this is serious," Cadance stated. "The fact that you were able to raise and lower the sun and moon is amazing and all, but your horn was frying itself."

Takumi took in a breath. "Well, I'm fine. Listen, I'm gonna head to my room. I need to process this."

"No, Takumi. One cannot simply not feel their horn burn out like that," Celestia sternly told him. "You need to be checked over."

Luna decided to stop caressing Takumi's oh so soft wing.

Takumi looked down. "Well..." He took in a breath. "Fine. I feel alright, but if you say it's bad then... hm. Wait, who's gonna be up at this time? The sun just rose."

Celestia tapped her chin. "True... Well, I can find somepony. It will take time. I estimate fifteen minutes."

"Can I sit in my room until then?"

Celestia sighed. "Fine. You can until then. If I may, why do you want to be in your room?"

"Because... I... I just lowered and raised the moon and sun. I need to take some time off to think. This is just..."

Takumi, without warning, walked past the princesses. "Let me know when the doctor is ready."

Cadance tilted her head. "Um, ok?"

thunk

The princesses looked at each other, confused about what just happened in the past five minutes.

"Is he always like this?" Cadance asked.

click

Takumi firmly locked the door to his room. He walked over to the window and firmly shuddered it, pulling a curtain over it to shield the room.

Grabbing a small mirror, he sat down on his bed, staring at the horn through the mirror. By now, it had cooled down into a charred black.

Did it really carry over? He wondered. I never even thought about it till now. If it really carried over...

He set the mirror down, releasing it from his magical grasp. He magically grabbed a knife from a table, nice and sharp for cutting things. He stared at it for a moment before placing the business end on his right foreleg, making sure to stay away from the joint. He began moving it back and forth, breaking the skin and going deeper and deeper, drawing more and more blood.

It did, He thought. It did carry over. It even feels amplified.

Author's Note

https://www.google.com/maps/dir/36.4830691,138.896559/36.4981929,138.9151093/@36.4920239,138.8972916,15z/data=!4m2!4m1!3e0

Here is what I use as reference for Mount Akina/Canterlot Turnpike for those wondering.

Another quick note, on 1/13/2020, WE REACHED 666 VIEWS! I feel so accomplished!

Act 21: Painless

6:17AM, Ponyville.

Itsuki dozed in the backseat of his Levin, snugly tucked as far into said seat as he get himself. Outside, a Cerulean-coated pony with Rainbow Hair looked in with a smirk.

Knock Knock Knock

Itsuki stirred, but didn't wake.

Knock Knock Knock

"Mmmm..." Itsuki mumbled.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK

Itsuki groaned as he opened his eyes. "Whaaat?"

His eyes met that of Rainbow Dash's. He yawned.

Click

"You seriously left your car unlocked all night?" Dash asked as she opened a door.

Itsuki groaned. "I was tired, alright? I stayed up until like one in the morning. I could barely drive."

He yawned as he snuck between the seats, nearly losing his balance as he got out of the car. "So uh..." Another yawn. "What do you want?"

Dash stretched her wings. "I-eeee just wanted to show you something. A little thing for us to have fun together in."

"Oh? What's that?" Itsuki asked, also stretching.

Dash unfurled her wings. "Follow me."

Itsuki unfurled his wings and the two took off, flying in the direction of the giant floating city known as Cloudsdale. Within five minutes, they were under it, heading for a small village beneath the city. It consisted of mostly small houses with garages galore. Only a few actual businesses were situated.

"What's this place?" Itsuki asked.

"It doesn't actually have a name, but most ponies call it Fieldsdale. Long story short, it allows Pegasi to actually own cars."

Itsuki looked up at Cloudsdale. "Makes sense. I doubt anyone could actually go up there with their car. They would just fall through."

"Ehhh, some cars can be up there. Usually Pegasi-Built ones."

Itsuki blinked. "Say what now?"

"I said some pegasi-built cars can go on clouds. I haven't driven one on a cloud myself, but going off of my old Cloudsdale Karting Days, it's probably like driving on snow."

"...Huh. Now I want to try it."

"Have fun getting a car up there."

"Shush."

Soon, the two landed in front of a small house. More specifically, a two car garage behind the house. When Itsuki asked why they were there, Dash only smirked and grabbed a handle on the bottom of the garage door. With a mighty pull, the door opened.

Itsuki's eyes widened. "Ohhhhohohkay Rainbow. What the heck is this?"

In the garage was a big, burly, beast of Equestrian Muscle. It was White in color, with a set of four headlights situated on either side of its chrome grille. Black stripes with red outlines ran across the sides and onto a spoiler on the trunk. Two similar but very wide twin stripes ran tastefully up the length of the hood, with two intake scoops on said hood. On the grille sat three letters.

G SX

"Rainbow Dash, holy crap. What is this."

"THIS... is an Apollo White Buick GSX 455. Equipped with the Stage 1 Performance Package,"

Itsuki had the dumbest smile on his face. "I have never heard of that but the way you said it makes it sound awesome... it LOOKS awesome!"

"Wait till you hear the sound." Dash opened the right door and got in. Itsuki just smiled as he walked over to the left side, opening the door. He took a moment to admire the wood-finish interior, and Rainbow Dash, before getting in.

It was at that moment that he realized he had just sat in the driver's seat.

"Wait... oh." Itsuki facehoofed. "You guys drive on the right side. I should probably-"

"Ohhh no you don't!" Dash yelled, reaching over and grabbing the belt buckle with a wing, bringing it over him. "YOU'RE gonna be drivin'."

Itsuki stared at her, dumbstruck. He looked forward, eyeing the key that had appeared in the ignition. A key that was currently being turned by Dash. The electricals came on, and the muffled sound of the fuel pump was heard.

"So..." Itsuki chuckled. "Is this yours?"

"Nope," Dash replied with a sly tone. "It's my dad's."

krrrunkarunkarunka-grrrrROOOOOOooooooooooogromgromgromgromgromgromgrom

"Ohhhhohohohhhhhh... Now THAT is an engine..."

grrrOOOoowllllroOOOOwllllllll

"Wait... Where's the rev gauge?"

Dash nervously chuckled. "Look outside. On the hood."

Itsuki looked on the hood, eyes widening when he saw what he had assumed was just an intake scoop. He revved the engine again, seeing a needle go up and down.

The tachometer was, for whatever reason, outside, on the hood.

"WHY."

Dash laughed. "I don't know! But hey, at least you can see how high you're revving easier."

"Hmph... Oh wow. Wait- 5000RPM?! Why does this thing rev so low?"

"Itsuki, we're in a thirty-something-year-old muscle car with a thirty-something-year-old 455 V8. Er, 7.5 Liter V8. What the heck do you expect from it?"

"SEVEN POINT FIVE LITERS?"

"Yeah. It's pretty big, isn't it?"

"How much power does it make?"

"Ohh... a little over four hundred. With 520 foot-pounds of torque."

"Hoh!" Itsuki revved the engine a few times. "Without a turbo?"

"Yep. All-natural."

"Damn... We never got giant engines like these back in Japan. I think the biggest we got was three liters, and that was from the Supra. The new Toyota Century has a Five Liter V12, but that's a full-on luxury car."

"Waitwaitwait hold on, a TOYOTA CENTURY has a V12?"

"Yep! 1GZ-FE!"

"Dang. I'll need to look that up. Anyways, you're driving. Let's go."

Itsuki looked forward, taking in a breath. "Ok."

He put the clutch in, then shifted into first gear, pressing on the throttle. However, he pressed the throttle and let off the clutch too fast, causing the Buick to jolt forward out of the garage.

"Dangit!" Itsuki yelped as the garage door closed behind them.

"It's fine! As long as you don't crash, we're good."

Itsuki brought the car around the house and onto the road. He tentatively accelerated down the road, listening to the V8 rumble. The speedometer slowly went up, though Itsuki seemed annoyed.

Why does this thing only go up to 120? he wondered.

He accelerated more and more, watching the speedometer increase, unaware of how fast they were going.

"Itsuki what are you doing?!" Dash yelled as the speedometer went up 60.

"Trying to get to a good- wait what this isn't sixty!"

"The speedometer is in MILES PER HOUR! Not kilometers!"

"OH! THAT'S WHY! Sorry!"

They were soon cruising at a brisk pace down a rural road. Itsuki, having gotten used to using Miles Per Hour, piped up.

"So where'd your dad get this thing?"

"Oh, a couple decades ago. Before I was even born," Dash explained. "My dad apparently got during some fuel crisis for SUPER cheap, knowing how rare it was. Oh by the way, less then two hundred of these were built in this color."

"So don't crash?" Itsuki suggested.

"Took the words right outta my mouth." Dash grunted as she stretched. "Eeeeyup. This car is a rare one. Which means it's a fun one."

"Heh. Yeah. Sounds good and holy CRAP the acceleration is amazing. My problem with it is how heavy it feels. And this STEERING! Holy crap how shaky can a steering wheel be?"

"It's from nearly forty years ago! Cars were just like this back then. Just be lucky it has power steering."

"Hm. So, did your dad say we could drive his car?"

Dash tittered. "Ehhh... yes and no. I didn't ask if I could drive it this morning, but he did say to look after it. I doubt he'd mind me driving around in it a little."

"Ohhh so we're taking it for a Joyride?"

"Not Joyride! It's my dads. I just went to his room, grabbed the keys, and... and..." Dash sighed. "Ok, yes, we're taking it for a little Joyride. Nothing crazy, just having some fun."

"So, we're NOT gonna be running from the cops?"

"HA! No! I hope not! There's a side of me that wants to see how well this baby would do against the cops, but uhhh... yeah."

Itsuki smirked. "Hm. Hey, maybe I should meet your parents. Are they in town?"

"They'll be back sometime around noon actually. Except, I dunno if you wanna meet em'..."

"Why?"

"They can be a little... 'oversupportive' of me. Is all. It's pretty embarrassing."

"Oh I don't think that's bad. What's a couple hours with them?"

Dash sighed. "I dunno..."

grooOOOOOOOOMMrrr- chunk- GROOOOOO-

The two yelped at the hard acceleration, Itsuki especially. He let of the gas and laughed.

"Ok, tha-hat acceleration is freaking AWESOME!"

Dash returned the laugh. "Yeah! It really is, isn't it?"

"WAY more than my Eight-Six! Man, I'm gonna HAVE to ask Celestia for some money so I can upgrade it. Holy CRAP it's just... wow."

Pretty soon, they came to a stop at a stop sign near Ponyville. Another car came up next to them. A red SN95 II Mustang GT. Though it was a muscle car, it sure didn't look like one. It looked like a typical sports car.

"Helloooo..." Itsuki trailed, eyeing the Mustang as it's window rolled down. He rolled his down, which was hard considering he had hooves and it was a manual window.

"You guys up for a race?" the stallion in the Mustang asked. "To the next stop sign?"

"Uhh..." Itsuki glanced at Dash, who gave an approving nod. He looked back. "Yeah, sure. Why not?"

"Alright! I'll start. Ready?"

Itsuki would have responded had Dash not pushed his right leg, the leg on the accelerator, down a little to rev the engine.

The other pony laughed. "I'll ta-hake that as a yes! Alright! Here we go!"

Itsuki bit his lip, ready to shift.

"THREE! TWO! ONE! GO!"

Itsuki, momentarily shocked by the fast countdown, watched the Mustang accelerate ahead. He quickly put the accelerator to the floor, causing the GSX to launch from it's spot, spinning the tires. Itsuki yelped as he let off the accelerator to resume grip, then pressed on the accelerator as hard as he could.

Despite the Mustang's quick start, the GSX powered ahead, unleashing its 420HP and 510 ft-lb's of torque into the tarmac.

"HOLY CRAP!" Itsuki yelled as he shifted gears, reaching 60 in just under six seconds.

Before anypony knew it, they had reached the next stop sign, prompting Itsuki to hit the brakes and stop just a little past it. Soon, the Mustang came up beside, it's driver practically howling in laughter.

"Now THAT is some classic Equestrian Muscle!"

Itsuki and Dash returned the laugh. "Yeah! It's freaking amazing!" the former stated.

"It sure is! How much power does it make?"

"Over 400," Dash said. "With over 500 foot pounds of torque."

"Daaang. Nice. Well, good luck with that. Get a supercharger and you'll be pushing 600 easily. Anyways, see you later!"

"Bye!"

The Mustang took a left turn, it's V8 quietly rumbling as it accelerated away. Itsuki smiled as he accelerated.

"Ok. This thing is way faster than my 86. I need to upgrade my 86's engine and I need to do it NOW. Once the sun comes up, I'm gonna take a nap, then ask Celestia for... you know. Wait- whaaat the heck hello forest."

Trees began surrounding them on either side of the road, with said road becoming extremely bumpy.

"Welcome to Whitetail Woods. I think," Dash said.

"Whitetail Woods huh? Cool name."

"Mm. Oh hello. I wonder who- oh wait, HA! I know who this is."

Itsuki stared at a white 1960s SUV pulling an animal trailer ahead.

"Who?"

Dash pointed at the SUV. "Pull up beside it. It's Fluttershy."

Itsuki was very surprised as he switched lanes and pulled up alongside the SUV. At the wheel was the mare herself, along with a few animals sitting in the seats. The SUV was really a Sixth Generation GMC Suburban. Nothing fancy. A 4WD model with a 305CUI V6 Engine.

Dash waved.

Itsuki waved.

Fluttershy waved back.

"Hey, speed up. I've got an idea," Dash said.

Itsuki obliged, slowly speeding up and pulling back into the correct lane.

"No, like, REALLY speed up. Let's get some distance on her."

Itsuki pressed harder on the throttle, going faster and faster.

"STOP!"

They slowed down, and with instruction from Rainbow Dash, pulled off to the side of the road and stopped next to some bushes, turning the lights off.

"And now, we wait," Dash said.

"What are we doing?"

"When Fluttershy is about to pass us, stick in first and NAIL the throttle, okay?"

Itsuki chuckled. "Ohhh. Okay."

"This is gonna be fun."

Video above starts playing.

The sun hung low over the mountains of Japan, signifying sunset. In a highschool locker room, several boys ranging from sophomores to seniors sat around chatting.

Takumi Fujiwara, a sophomore, was checking his locker when he overheard a conversation between a senior named Miki and his buddies.

"No way!" a senior exclaimed. "With Natsuki Mogi?"

"Aw man, that is one fine piece of tail," another said. "Everybody I know wants to hit that."

Miki, typical Japanese teen with long hair, smiled. "Like I was sayin', she does whatever I tell her to. And like a good dog, I think it's time to break her in."

Takumi remained emotionless.

"Wait, what do you mean break her in?" the second senior asked.

"What do you think he means, huh?" the first senior chuckled.

"Chicks are the same all over, my brother's," Miki sneered. "They all act like they don't want it, but believe me, they do. The other day I called her up to the roof and I got her to uhh..."

BANG!

A large metallic rattle shot through the locker room, putting all eyes on Takumi who had slammed his locker shut, angrily staring at Miki.

"If you don't shut your mouths right now, I'll do it for you," he growled.

Miki and his two buddies stared dumbfounded for a second. Suddenly, they scowled.

"And just who the HELL are you?" the first senior asked.

"This beanpole doesn't know who he's mouthing off to!" the second one stated.

"Dude, Takumi, shut up," Itsuki Takeuchi whispered next to Takumi, grabbing his arm.

Takumi effortlessly forced it off, continuing his death stare. "I've had enough of listening to you assholes!"

Miki jumped up. "You'll regret that!" he yelled, running at Takumi.

Miki through out a punch, but Takumi easily dodged and retaliated with a hard punch of his own. Miki stumbled back.

"I'LL-, KILL YOU!" Takumi yelled, laying into Miki with the force of the sun and moon. Try as the other students might, they were unable to get Takumi off of Miki.

By the time they were able to pry him off, Takumi's fist was dripping with blood. Miki was out on the floor, sprawled out with Takumi standing over him.

Takumi stared at his fist, seeing the blood dripping. Suddenly, it morphed into a hoof. A white, heavily bloodstained hoof. Not Miki's Blood. His own.

"Takumi?"

Takumi snapped out of his daze at the sound of Cadance's muffled voice. He took in a deep breath as he stared at the part of his leg he had cut into. He had gotten a full inch into it. One. Full. Inch. Yet he still didn't feel a single bit of pain.

"Takumi? Are you in there?" Cadance asked. "It's me, Cadance."

Takumi sighed. "Yeah, yeah. I'm here."

"Celestia wants to see you. Believe it or no-"

Her words fizzled from Takumi's mind as he stared at the blood leaking out of his foreleg.

"I'll be out in a second," he said.

"Okay. I'll wait."

Takumi did not reply as he stared at the laceration he had made. He then looked at the knife he had used to do it. By now, it was covered in blood. Stainless Steel could only go so far.

I can't feel pain... Even with a whole new body, I can't feel pain... Takumi felt his heart flutter as he held the knife out. He aimed the business end towards him. By now, enough blood had dripped off that it was no longer dripping. He slightly pushed it away.

It shot into him.

The knife went straight into his chest, piercing through everything in its wake. A few centimeters punctured his heart, spilling out more blood than ever before. The knife turned, tearing skin and flesh apart. Blood poured from the wound, coating his once-pristine coat in crimson. He could almost feel his life slipping away from him as he pressed the knife deeper and deeper in.

"You said you'd only be a few seconds."

Takumi just about screamed when Cadance spoke. He quickly looked towards the door to make sure she wasn't there. She wasn't, thankfully.

His eyes darted back to the knife. He winced as he quickly set it down on the table where he got it from. He proceeded to look down at where he had stabbed himself. There was no wound. No signs of him doing so. He looked at his arm. The laceration was still there, only trace amounts of blood leaving it.

"I uh... I'm coming," he said.

Before getting up, Takumi saw that some blood had dripped onto his rear starboard leg and even onto his lower torso. He shook his head as he got up, walking over and unlocking the door. Opening it revealed Cadance.

"Hey."

Cadance nodded. "Hello. Are you alright?"

Takumi winced. "Just... take me to wherever we're going."

Cadance sighed, saying nothing as she and Takumi silently walked through the halls. She idly glanced back at the stallion, seeing his neutral face again. Her eyes glanced at his cutie mark, scrutinizing the symbol that lay there.

Then, she noticed the crimson on his rear starboard leg. For a split second, she thought it was blood. That was until she went to look at Takumi's face again. Her eyes caught the cut in his leg.

"Takumi?" she asked, stopping. Takumi did the same.

"What?"

"Takumi what..." Cadance noticed how freaking deep the wound was. "TAKUMI WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU-" She stopped, performing a quick breathing exercise. "What did you do to your leg?"

Takumi looked down at his leg, wincing. "I cut it..."

"No duh. Takumi- what did you DO!?"

"I cut it. With a knife."

Cadance was dumbstruck. "And- what, you can't feel it? Do you have any idea-"

"NO! I CAN'T FEEL IT!"

Cadance jumped back from Takumi as that form of his broke out. It was only for a second, but she still saw the details.

"What do you mean... you can't feel it?" she quietly asked.

Takumi sighed. "I just can't."

"You can't feel... pain?"

Takumi shook his head. "Never have."

Cadance's heart sank. Slowly but surely, she stepped towards Takumi, eyes locked. She sat down, and suddenly pulled Takumi into a hug. A tightly knit hug that forced him to sit.

Takumi, not exactly prepared for the hug, just sat there, not hugging back. Not like he could. Cadance had inadvertently pinned his upper arms to his sides. He didn't exactly want the hug, but he tolerated it. It was only a hug.

Though he had to admit, Cadance was pretty soft. And warm... like a blanket...

After a moment, Cadance let off and gently grabbed Takumi's cut leg, staring at the cut. The way Cadance's hoof somehow magnetically grabbed his leg felt... weird.

"You... really can't feel this?" she asked.

Takumi shook his head. "No. I can't."

"Did you do this?"

"Yeah. I did that. I guess I got a little carried away with trying to feel pain. I wanted to convince myself that I could feel pain, "

"You... really can't... oh sweet Celestia..."

Takumi sighed as he pulled his hoof away. "Let's just go. Where's Celestia?"

Cadance slowly got up. "I'll..." She took in a breath. "I'll show you."

Though reluctant to do so, Cadance led Takumi through the halls of Canterlot Castle. Takumi and anypony they passed noticed the Princess's downcast posture. Almost nopony seemed to notice his cut leg or the blood.

Meanwhile, the royal sisters were waiting for Takumi and Cadance. Luna seemed concerned.

"Are you absolutely certain you can do this?" Luna asked. "From what you have told me thus far, you have not performed medical work in centuries."

Celestia nodded in reply. "Correct. However, I was the top doctor for several decades. I may be rusty, but I should easily grasp it."

Luna sighed. "Of course, of course. I truly hope you know what you are doing."

"I do. All I must do is find why his horn was the way it was. Simple as that."

"No need. I've already found out," a new voice called.

The sisters glanced over to find Cadance and Takumi approaching.

"Ah. Hello Cadance, Takumi," Celestia happily greeted as the two stopped. "What do you mean you already found out?"

Cadance glanced at Takumi, who stood idly by. She took in a deep breath as she looked back at Celestia.

"Takumi has C I P A."

One could feel every emotion in the hall ram themselves out the window. The only ones that remained were that of shock, disbelief, and sorrow. At least, for the princesses. Takumi was still mostly neutral.

Takumi and Luna locked eyes.

"Takumi..." the latter began. "Please tell us it is not true..."

"Is there a cure?" Takumi asked.

Celestia shook her head. "No."

Takumi winced. Dammit. Even in a world of magic, they can't cure it.

Luna stepped forward till she was inches from Takumi. "You truly suffer from C I P A?"

Takumi glanced down at his starboard foreleg before holding it up. He nodded.

Both Luna and Celestia gasped at the laceration. A totally bloodstained hoof, most of the blood situated around the incision Takumi had made on himself. Most of the blood by this time had clotted, but that didn't make the sight any less gruesome.

The fact that Takumi didn't feel any of it made it astronomically worse.

Luna sat and wrapped her forehooves around Takumi. "Why is it you never told us this?" she asked.

Takumi sighed. This was the second hug in ten minutes. "I only remembered it after I saw what my horn was doing. It's something you get used to."

"How long have you had it?" Celestia asked.

Takumi pulled himself away from Luna. "As long as I can remember."

"And why did you do... this to yourself?" Luna asked, stepping back.

"Because I wanted to see if I could feel pain, that's all. I'm not stupid. I cut in a spot that wouldn't matter."

"Would not matter?! Takumi, you nearly cut to the bone!"

Takumi sighed. "And I can't feel any of it."

Celestia took in a deep breath. "Okay... Okay. It seems I will be doing much more work than I expected."

Takumi looked at Celestia. "Huh?"

"Celestia is-, er, was going to figure out why you didn't feel your horn overheating," Cadance explained. "Didn't I tell you?"

Takumi shook his head. "No. I must have missed that. This is news to me."

Celestia sighed. "Well, that is what is happening. I hope you don't mind."

"Mm-mm."

"Takumi?" Luna asked, suddenly locking eyes with him.

"What?"

"Please do not hurt yourself like this... without at the very least telling me. Or any of us."

"I didn't mean to cut so deep, you know. I got carried away."

Luna sighed, looking away. "Still...." She took in a breath. "Sister? Are you sure you do not want me with you two? In light of this, I feel I should be here."

"We will be fine," Celestia replied. "Luna, he is in my care. Please, go eat something with Cadance."

A saddened Luna looked back at Takumi. Without a word, she stepped forward. Before leaving, however, she nuzzled Takumi. Takumi and Celestia watched Luna and Cadance walk away.

Takumi felt the heat rushing to his cheeks.

"Well, Takumi, allow me to lead you to where I will be mending you," Celestia said.

Takumi just nodded and followed her into what seemed like a freshly cleaned doctors office.

It certainly was different from any doctor's office he'd ever seen.

Warm, tasteful art lined the walls. Freshly-Watered plants were in the corners and on the counters, and the small amount of furniture was extremely luxurious. Though there were doctors supplies neatly arranged where needed, there was no sign of a surgeon table or whatever one is meant to sit on. Though, the closet in the corner labeled "EXTRA SUPPLIES" was probably a good indicator of where it was.

"This is different."

"Well, I like to make sure my little ponies feel safe," Celestia replied as she sat on a couch. "Atmosphere is a large part of how well Medical Practice goes."

"Hm."

"The art in this room is a few centuries old, believe it or not. Hoof-Painted by me to provide a better atmosphere. I hope you like it."

"By you?"

Celestia glanced at him. "Did I stutter?"

Takumi smirked. "Hm. Whatever you say, Dr. Atmosphere."

Celestia chuckled. "Yes, I suppose one could call me that. If only that name wasn't tied to somepony who ran a..." She cleared her throat. "Now please, sit down."

Takumi obliged, sitting down on the couch, next to the princess, who actually got off the couch and front of him, on the floor.

"This will only take a few moments," Celestia reassured. Takumi nodded.

Celestia gently raised his damaged hoof. "I apologize if I'm a little rusty."

Takumi watched as Celestia's magic went to work on his cut. She first removed the blood from the wound and the rest of his body, bunching all the cells into a small ball and putting it into a medical bag. He noticed a lack of any feeling whatsoever in his leg.

She then went to work repairing the laceration. It was quite simple. Takumi had thankfully used a very refined knife, so the damage was minimal. Most of it was simply reconnecting the proper bits together.

It was quite mesmerizing.

"Takumi, when did this come up? Your lack of pain?"

Takumi shrugged. "I don't know. I guess I've always had it. I was hoping that, with me being in a different body and everything, that I'd feel it again."

Celestia nodded. "Well, I must say, you are incredibly lucky. While I do not know much about the Human Species, foals with this condition are very unlikely to survive to adulthood."

"Hm. I guess the same goes for me. Er, humans." God I hate saying that word.

She shuddered. "To think even after half a century since this disease's inception, there is no cure for this. Every time I hear of one of my little ponies dying because of this..."

"You know, there was a show that used that phrase."

Celestia glanced at him. "Excuse me?"

"There was this old show back in my world named My Little Pony. I didn't watch many episodes since they barely aired in Japan, but from what I remember it was just your typical 80s kids show. Just thought that was interesting."

Celestia smiled as she continued her work with ease. "That is interesting, that one of my favorite phrases happens to be the same as a TV Show from your world. Did it happen to have any correlation with our world?"

Takumi shook his head. "Not that I remember except for the ponies. I think I remember there being humans too, but... I dunno."

"Hm."

Celestia continued weaving her magic. Each millimeter of flesh was put exactly where they belonged, as were the strands of fur.

If she's able to do this, I wonder what else she could do, Takumi wondered.

"Takumi?"

"Hm?"

"Out of curiosity... have you ever raced a white and yellow Porsche 911? Particularly the older Carrera RS?"

Takumi shook his head. "No. I haven't raced any Porsche. I don't think I've ever even seen a Porsche."

"...Hm."

"Why?"

"Just curious, is all."

Celestia continued. Within moments, as she said, Takumi's foreleg was mended. Takumi gave it a nice twist and turn.

"Is it just me or does my whole arm feel better than before? Er, leg?"

"Well, I did have to give you extra blood."

Takumi looked at Celestia, then his arm, then shrugged. "Hm."

"Now, back to your disorder..."

Takumi stood up. "What about it?"

Celestia sighed. "I'm thinking of what could happen now that we have an Alicorn with C I P A."

"Well I'm-" Takumi winced. "...immortal... so..."

"Takumi, do you really believe that you are immortal?"

"Yeah. I do. Why wouldn't I?"

"And why is that?"

Takumi walked over to a sink and began washing his hooves. "Because you're a thousand years old. It doesn't make sense to me that nobody has at least tried to kill you."

"So you don't believe we are immortal? You only think we cannot die to age?"

"I think we..." Takumi sighed. "No. I think we're immortal."

There was a pause.

"What do you think?" he asked as he washed his face.

Celestia tilted her head. "What do I think?"

"Can we die?"

Celestia only stared. Takumi stared back, not allowing her to get out of this. He had to know.

Finally, Celestia sighed. "I don't. There are a few things me and my sister have been through in the far past that should have killed us. Even with our natural Alicorn resistances. Yet we're still here."

Takumi stood still, taking in her answer. He took in a deep breath as he shut off the sink.

"Immortality does not mean we don't feel pain. This is why you are an interesting case. You can't feel pain, even if you wanted to."

Takumi took in another breath. "I need to stop asking these things. I'm just... I'm just hurting myself."

Celestia nodded. "I agree."

"I'm still not even sure if I'm stuck here forever. I could be going back home in a week for all I know."

Celestia stood up. "Would you like to change the subject?"

Takumi sighed. "Sure. At this point I just... yeah."

Celestia walked to the door and beckoned for him to follow. "Let's get breakfast."

"Yeah... Yeah, that sounds good."

Princess Luna and Princess Cadance sat at a table, both eating tuna sandwiches.

"Can I ask you something?" Cadance asked.

Luna nodded.

"Why have you spent so much time with Takumi?"

"Because I would like to protect him."

Cadance frowned. "There's a difference between wanting to protect somepony and outright wanting to be with somepony."

"How so?"

Cadance sighed. "Can we go to my room? I have a personal question to ask."

Luna nodded as her horn lit up. They were instantaneously in Cadance's room, sitting at a different table. Their food had made it with them. Luna stared at Cadance, waiting for the question as she took a bite.

"What is your relationship with Takumi?" Cadance asked.

Luna swallowed before speaking. "Elaborate."

"I mean..." Cadance sighed. "I'm just gonna say it. How much do you two love each other?"

"We treat each other as good friends."

"Luna, please. I really want to know. I won't tell anypony."

"Except for my sister and Twilight?"

Cadance winced.

Luna frowned. "I know what you are trying to do. I understand how important a close relationship involving one of us is."

"This is different. Far different from, say, my relationship with my husband. It's a special kind of relationship. A permanent one. Neither of you will die, which means the relationship could never end. You would never part."

"If a relationship like that happens, you mean."

Cadance nodded.

Luna sighed. "Well, if you truly wish to know... I do not know if I want to be with him. He wants to go back to his world, and I do not want to impede him in his strife to do so. And the permanent relationship..."

"..."

"I want to make him feel safe," Luna stated. "Feel as normal as possible. To think he belongs here."

"Considering you've wanted that for yourself since your return, I can see why you'd want to do that for him."

"You mean to say you have not noticed the fact that he, a normal teenager, is an Alicorn?"

"Yes! I've noticed! It has to be insane for him. Being put into this world against his will."

"And he wants to go home. I want to help him. I really do. But there are zero interuniversal travel spells, which means the best I can do is be with him. Be an emotional shoulder."

Cadance stared.

Luna stared.

Cadance sighed. "Luna, if you need any help with your relationship, anything at all, ask me."

Luna said nothing.

"I'm not saying you two are in a love relationship. But... please?"

"..."

Luna scowled, got up, and made her way towards the door.

"I do not need yours, or anypony else's help in a relationship," she growled.

"Takumi?"

"..."

"Takumi!"

Takumi snapped out of his daze and looked up at Celestia. "What?"

"What are you thinking about?"

"My condition. Me just... not being able to feel any pain."

Celestia gave an understanding nod before continuing to eat. Takumi did the same. They were currently in the medical room Celestia had treated him in. Celestia had brought in a table and chair. Takumi sat on the chair, while she sat across from him on the floor.

"So," Celestia began as she stirred a cup of tea. "It seems you have struck quite the chord with my sister."

Takumi glanced at her. "What do you mean?"

"My sister has never spent so much time with anypony before. There must be something about you she likes."

Takumi swallowed his food. "Ok. and?"

"It's just that she has never once been this into somepony before in her entire. Even I don't know what she likes in a stallion. So her wanting to spend this much time with you means there is something about you she loves."

"..."

"Any idea what that may be?"

"No." Racing... Takumi thought. She likes me because of how good I am at racing...

"I'm not accusing you of anything, Takumi. I'm only speaking from what I've observed."

Takumi sighed.

"But I have to ask. If you don't want to answer, that's okay. Do you love my sister?"

Takumi stared at his food, shaking his head. "I don't want to."

Voice of S30Z - Wangan Midnight OST starts playing.

Ok, Celestia thought. That is not the answer I was expecting. "What do you mean?"

"I don't want to love her."

"Why don't you want to love her?"

"Because..."

"..."

"This world is amazing. I can't say it isn't. But I still want to go home."

"And if you can't?"

"If I start loving Luna for whatever reason, that's just another reason for me to not go home. In fact, I don't want to love anybody."

"Why?"

"Because of something that happened a while back. But I don't want to love her. If I started to love someone here, I won't want to go home. And... yeah.."

"..."

Neither spoke as they continued eating. Soon, they finished. Celestia was the first to speak.

"How do you know you will ever go home?"

"Are you saying I'm not going home?" Takumi growled.

"Takumi, wait, I'm sorry. If that is something you don't want me to speak of, tell me."

Takumi sighed. "Why am I even trying..."

"Trying what?"

"Trying... Try- I DON'T KNOW! Okay! I don't know! Too many things are happening at once! I can barely think straight! This is just... ugh..."

Takumi stared at his now-empty plate, immobile.

Why did I have to hallucinate me stabbing myself in the heart? he wondered. Why couldn't I have just actually done it? At least I would have... have... what would I have done? No. What I should have done was jump out the window and

His thought process was interrupted by a warm, soft, feathery wing caressing his hair.

"It's okay..." Celestia cooed.

Takumi sighed. "I just don't know what to say."

"Perhaps you should go somewhere. A place where you can relax and take in the sights."

"Like where?"

Celestia smiled. "Cadance suggested that she could take you to the Crystal Empire when she leaves later today. She says it will be a great way to clear your head. I have to agree."

Takumi looked up at Celestia, but quickly looked down because of how uncomfortable it felt. Just how big she was compared to him.

"Where's that? Crystal Empire?"

"Northwest of here. A few hours drive."

"..."

"Is there something wrong with looking at me?"

"Sorry, it's just how big you are. It doesn't feel natural."

Celestia smiled as she lifted her wing off of Takumi.

"I mean... it wouldn't hurt to go, I guess. Except... hm..."

"What?"

"It's just that I'm meeting with Spitfire at noon. Sure I could go afterward, but there's something I've wanted to talk to Itsuki about. Something personal."

Celestia nodded as she sat down opposite the table. "Spitfire, you say? From the Wonderbolts?"

"Yeah."

"Why are you meeting with her?"

"We met yesterday. She wanted to meet again today."

"Hm. Well, Cadance is leaving at four, so I am sure you'll have plenty of time to chat with Spitfire."

"But... again, Itsuki."

Celestia sighed. "Well, you have a car. You could always go to the Empire some other time. Though I would recommend soon. Just to clear your head."

"Yeah, yeah..."

They were once again silent. That tended to happen a lot. But this time it was an eerie silence. No outside sounds crept in, nothing even moved. It was as if they were in a vacuum. Absolute silence.

After a few seconds, Celestia remembered something she was meant to tell Takumi.

"So Takumi, myself and-"

"Why do you keep saying my name?"

Celestia was surprised by the interruption, but could understand the question. "It's a habit I have developed. If you don't want me to say it, please, say so."

"Hm."

"Anyways, myself, my sister, and Cadance have talked about what to do with you and Itsuki."

"..."

"We have decided that we should teach you two. About our world and about being princes."

The teen looked up at her, silently taking in the information.

"Myself and Luna shall teach you, while Cadance will teach Itsuki. Originally it was meant to be both Cadance and Twilight, but we had forgotten about the fact that the two live nowhere near each other. Twilight was sure to remind us of that. So, it is only Cadance."

Takumi continued to stare. His brow ever so slightly furrowed.

"Is something the matter?"

"..." Takumi continued his stare as he shook his head. "No."

"No?"

"No. I've already told you that I don't want to be a prince. I don't want anyone... teaching me or whatever."

Celestia was very surprised. "Takumi-"

"I don't want anyone teaching me. I'm alright with getting to know a few things here and there about the world, but no. I'm not being a prince."

Celestia waited, just in case Takumi said anything else.

"Teach Itsuki all you like. I'm sure he'll be all for it." He growled the word 'Itsuki' like he was saying the name of a sworn enemy. "Maybe a few years down the line I'll give it a go. But right now? No."

He stood up. "I'm gonna go take a drive, alright? I need to tell Itsuki something."

Celestia watched as Takumi stormed out of the room. She sighed. What is wrong with him?

Music Ends

Takumi walked towards the doors leading outside to where his 86 was parked, barely acknowledging the pony walking through the same doors. Said pony seemed very occupied with making sure her mane was nice and tidy. Too occupied to notice him. Though Takumi stepped out of the way, the mare caught his rear left hoof and fell right onto the carpet.

He stopped and looked back as the mare scrambled to stand up. It was only now that he decided to take in what she looked like. She was taller, about the height of Cadance or Luna, and had a coat similar to Celestia's. She also had a pink mane. Her Cutie Mark was... he honestly didn't know. It looked like three crowns. Two purple ones above a yellow one.

"You alright?" he asked.

The mare looked back at him, revealing a pare of violet eyes. "What was that for?!" she asked, holding up a mirror. "Oh I hope this didn't ruin my mane too-"

"Takumi! Wait!" a voice called from down the hall. "Before you- wait, Fleur?"

Takumi and the mare looked down the hall to see Luna running towards them.

"AH! Luna! You are RIGHT THERE! Crap!" the mare yelped.

Luna actually skidded to a stop. "Ok, first, Takumi, where are you going?"

"To meet Spitfire," Takumi replied.

"Why? You cannot go! What if you get hurt and you do not realize it?"

"Luna, I've been doing fine so far. Don't worry about me."

"I-..." Luna took in a breath, then let it out. "Sorry, Fleur, you have caught me at a bad time."

"Uh... likewise? I think?" the mare replied. "This pony here tripped me!"

"You were looking at your mirror," Luna replied. "It is not Takumi's fault."

The mare's eyes widened as she looked between Takumi and Luna. "Wait I'm sorry, do you two know each other?"

Takumi sighed, knowing he had just missed an opportunity to get the heck outta there.

Luna cleared her throat. "Fleur, this is Takumi Fujiwara. Takumi, this is Fluer. Fleur De Lis."

Fleur looked at Takumi, surprised. "Oh. Well uh.. hello Takumi."

"Hello."

"Now, Fleur? What exactly are you doing here?" Luna asked.

Fleur looked at Luna. "It's the 20th. We were supposed to meet today, remember?"

Luna stared for a split second before the memory clicked. "Oh! We were meant to meet today?"

"Yeah. It's been nearly a month since we've been able to meet. Well, outside of noble meetings at least."

Luna nodded. "That it has. Well, much has happened since our last proper meeting. Particularly, Takumi."

"What about him?"

"Look at him. Do you notice anything odd about him?"

Fleur looked at Takumi.

Takumi looked at Fleur.

"Mm... I... don't know." Fleur said.

Takumi sighed as he unfurled his wings. This caused Fleur to short circuit.

"He... He... You're... Y-You're an Alicorn!"

Takumi nodded.

"And your a stallion?!"

Another nod.

Fleur looked at Luna, pointing at Takumi. "Explain please!"

"You do that. I'm leaving," Takumi half-growled as he turned to exit. "See you later."

Fleur looked at the door, then locked eyes with Luna, who chuckled.

"Takumi... he's a record you don't gotta flip."

Takumi walked down the steps towards his 86. Immediately, two things about the Parking Lot caught his eye. The first was that Luna's R33 GT-R was missing. The second was a rather peculiar light pink sports car nestled next to Cadance's Miura. Probably for a good reason. The two cars' styles were similar despite their different intents.

While the Miura was a luxury supercar built for top speed, the other car was clearly for the track. A fully stripped-down interior, racing bucket seats, combined with the FR layout, the car was likely a monster. Whatever it was.

Isn't that a Ferrari? That early 60s one? Takumi wondered as he stopped next to his 86. Looks nice, I guess.

click

thunk

krrrr-chunka-chunka-chunka-vroooOOOOoooommmmmmmmmm

The 4A-GE started with ease. After it warmed up a little, Takumi reversed and drove out of the lot.

After nearly a thirty-minute drive, Takumi pulled into a gas station near Ponyville. He got out and began silently filling up the tank. A few other cars were parked at the other pumps, with a few ponies standing and talking. Though Takumi could care less about the cars, he couldn't help but listen in on their conversation.

"Can you believe it?" one pony asked. "A Buick GSX got caught in a huge Police Chase earlier this morning."

"Yeah! The skills of that thing were insane!" another chimed in. "When that GSX hit the mountain pass, the speed it took through the corners was actually insane. Ponies say that Classic Equestrian Muscle can never corner well, but that GSX definitely showed that up!"

A third one chuckled. "Obviously any sports car even remotely tuned for cornering, or hell even a modern muscle car, could dust the thing with the right skill. But still, the fact the GSX was as fast as it was through the corners is insane."

Buick GSX? What's that? Takumi wondered.

"Did anypony get a plate?" one asked. "Maybe a glimpse of the driver?"

"Mm-mm. Nothing. I mean, it's a Buick GSX, a white one, so it couldn't have gone far. Just goes to show how lacking Ponyville County is in their pursuit cars."

"Ponyville is just waiting for a street racing explosion. Las Pegasus has a lot of racers, sure, but they at least have fast police cars. Ponyville is stuck with old Crown Vic's and Grand Marshall's."

"Don't forget the Roamer's and D-Series trucks."

"What roamers? Are those pegasi or something?"

"The SUV you idiot."

"Oh. But seriously, this chase might've been the ignition. We might start seeing a lot of street racers around here soon."

Takumi sighed as he got back in the 86, turning on the engine. The three ponies were quick to notice the aggressiveness of the 4A-GE Silvertop.

"Damn. I wonder what he has," Takumi faintly heard as he put the 86 in gear and pulled out of the gas station.

A police chase, huh? I think I've only ever seen one or two police cars around here. Actually, I don't think I've ever seen a police car in my life. At least not many.

Three cars suddenly raced by. An R32 Skyline, some old muscle car, and he assumed was a Chevrolet Corvette. Maybe an 80s model. The Corvette was in front.

I wonder how Akio is doing. I wonder if he stayed in Tokyo when he heard about me going missing. I mean, it's that or he just kept going out to the Wangan-sen every night.

His eyes narrowed.

The Wangan-sen... damn... I'm never gonna be able to go on that now, am I? Dammit. There's another reason I want to go home. Another reason why I want to leave this place...

Soon, he came to a slow stop next to Itsuki's Levin parked in front of Twilight's Castle. He killed the engine, got out, and made his way to the front doors. He knocked.

He waited.

After a moment, he knocked again. This time harder.

He waited.

After a few seconds, the door opened to reveal Spike.

"Oh. Hey Takumi!" the dragon greeted. "What's up?"

Takumi remained neutral. "I need to talk to Itsuki."

"Oh. Alright." Spike stepped aside to let Takumi in. "You might need to wait though. He and Rainbow Dash are talking with the others. Something about them scaring the crap out of Fluttershy or something. I dunno."

Takumi didn't reply. He just followed Spike through the castle, staring straight ahead.

"I mean, how could you not appreciate THAT?" a tomboyish voice asked from beyond the doors.

"Because I don't think getting scared or having my car spun into a ditch is very funny," a small, clearly annoyed voice replied as Spike opened the door, reentering the room.

Takumi entered the room and closed the door behind him, watching the scene at the table unfold. All of Twilight's friends, or "The Element Bearers" as Luna said they were, were there. Itsuki was sitting next to Rainbow Dash on the floor.

"I do!" Pinkie interjected, bouncing into the air. "Your heart gets all racey, your hooves get all TIIIN-GULLYYY, your mouth gets all scraggily..." Pinkie snapped a suddenly-dry maw upwards. "Actually I don't like that part. But the rest is GREAT!"

Takumi grimaced. Is it just me or was her heart literally beating out of her chest?

"That does not look right," Itsuki said.

Ok. So that actually happened. How? Takumi asked.

"See? EVERYpony likes a good prank!" Dash stated. "They're just jokes!"

"Now Rainbow Dash," Rarity began. "I don't think Fluttershy would have called us all here to talk about this if she thought it was funny. Everypony has things they like and things they don't."

"And scarin' Fluttershy is just lazy." Apple Jack added.

"Lazy?" Dash and Itsuki asked in unison.

"A prank isn't very good if you're the only pony laughing," Twilight calmly stated.

"But what if it's really really really really REALLLY funny?" Pinkie asked.

"And I can do funny." Dash cooly replied.

"I know you can. Ohp- 'scuse me Itsuki." Twilight said as she narrowly avoided hitting Itsuki. "I guess the trick is making sure your idea of funny matches the pony you're pranking."

Rainbow Dash snickered.

Twilight went to sit on her chair. "That way-"

THPPTPHTPHPHHPH

Rainbow Dash could barely hold herself in as Twilight levitated a whoopee cushion out from under her.

"HA! Hahahaaa..." Itsuki burst out laughing. "Ah-HA! HAhahahaha..."

Rainbow Dash erupted with laughter. Both she and Itsuki laughed for a good while, Pinkie joining in a little later. Twilight just glared.

"Good one Rainbow!" Pinkie said she and Rainbow bumped hooves. "You have to admit. That was FUNNY!"

Twilight was unamused. "Not really," she deadpanned, throwing the cushion away.

"Yeah," AJ agreed. "A whoopee cushion is like a joke shortcut."

"Oh come on you guys!" Itsuki exclaimed. "It may be a shortcut but it's a freaking classic."

"Yeah!" Dash agreed.

Takumi couldn't help but smirk.

"Honestly Rainbow Dash," Rarity began, putting her hoof on the table. "If you are not willing to put forth the effort required to pull a prank that everypony can enjoy, you may as well not pull one at all."

Rainbow Dash looked around at them, staring daggers.

"Fine!" she finally yelled. "If you ponies want effort, then that's what you'll get!"

Everypony watched Dash as she flew up and out of the castle via a window.

"I'm not sure she understood what we meant..." Twilight slowly said. She sighed. "Well, girls, you should probably keep your eyes peeled for the next couple of days."

"Keep your Peepers Peepered People," Itsuki joked.

That, Twilight laughed at. Even Takumi snickered.

"Great. Now, girls, if you'll excuse me- OH! Takumi! I didn't see you there!"

All eyes were suddenly on Takumi.

"Oh hey Takumi!" Itsuki greeted. "What are you doing here?"

"I need to talk to you about something."

Itsuki rolled his eyes. "You always want to talk to me about something." He got up and walked over.

Takumi was quick to notice Twilight getting up. "No, this is personal. Between me and Itsuki. DO NOT follow us."

"Sheesh Takumi, why do you have to be so rude about it?" Itsuki asked. "Excee-uuuse me ladies."

Everypony rolled their eyes. Takumi scoffed as he and Itsuki walked out of the room and back through the castle.

"So what is it you wanna talk about?"

"Well first, I've been thinking about you upgrading your 86..."

"And giving it a boatload of power?"

Takumi glanced at him, arching a brow. "Huh?"

"Specifically as much power as a Buick GSX? OH! By the way, don't tell anyone, but me and Rainbow Dash took her dad's Buick GSX out earlier and raced some people in it."

Takumi stopped. "You did what?"

"Took Rainbow Dash's dad's car out for a drive. A Buick GSX. White."

Takumi stared, brow furrowing. "So you ran from the police?"

"Uhh..." Itsuki looked around. "Kinda? Look- don't tell anyone, okay? And it wasn't my fault! I swear!"

Takumi was staring daggers into the red Alicorn. He couldn't believe it. Less than a week in and his best friend was running from the cops.

"So what was it you wanted to talk about?" Itsuki asked.

Takumi growled. "You know what? Nevermind." He turned around and began walking away. "You're a real pain in the ass, you know that?"

Itsuki's jaw dropped as Takumi forced his way out the front door. He heard the clattering of hooves behind him.

"What was that about?" asked Twilight.

Itsuki looked at Twilight, then back at where Takumi had disappeared. "I... I think Takumi hates me..."

Author's Note

700 VIEWS! YES!

Also, good god it is GRUELING to write Itsuki. I spent a few days procrastinating over the little joyride scene, and when I got past it, I was a writing MACHINE. Just goes to show how much I hate writing Itsuki.

Also Also, I have been WAITING to do another bit where I take a clip from the Anime and incorporate it into the story. They are so satisfying to hear. Hopefully it gave you a refresher on what Takumi sounds like.

Act 22: Learn to Modify

Dear Itsuki Takeuchi,

Though I have a hard time believing you want to upgrade your "Eight-Six" for sanctioned circuit racing, because you were honest with me about what you are going to use them on, I have decided to grant you these funds. Seeing as you do not have an online account, the funds should appear in a few bags along with this envelope. I hope that by doing this, you feel better to be here in Equestria. Better than Takumi, at least.

I should also mention-

Twilight Sparkle wasn't able to read the rest of the letter as Itsuki SCREAMED with happiness.

"Celestia actually gave me money to upgrade my 86! YES! Holy crap this life is AWESOME!" Itsuki grabbed on of the five large bags of bits. Or at least he tried to. He could barely get a magical grip on it. "I don't care what the heck Takumi says. Compared to the life I had before? I mean, FREE MONEY from a freaking PRINCESS?! YES!"

Wait, ITSUKI!" Twilight called out as she watched Itsuki take the top of a bag in his mouth and ran out with it. Her jaw dropped. "WHY DO THOSE TWO JUST LEAVE WHENEVER THEY FEEL LIKE IT?!"

"I dunno," Spike replied. "Hey, he just got the money to upgrade his car. He has a reason to be excited."

"I... ugh. Still." Twilight internally read the rest of the message. "It's about Cadance leaving for the Crystal Empire."

"Oh he doesn't need to know that."

"Yeah, I guess..." Twilight sighed. "Might as well let him have his fun."

Not ten minutes later, Itsuki had the gold bits in his Levin and was driving around Ponyville, looking for an aftermarket parts shop.

Looking for an Aftermarket Parts Shop... in Ponyville.

Judging by the fact that there wasn't a single modern building except for the Carousel Boutique and town hall, that was impossible. Because there literally wasn't an aftermarket shop of any kind around Ponyville.

"Where's a racing shop when you need one?" he asked as he cruised at an abysmally slow speed. 6 Miles Per Hour. Just barely above the engine's idle.

He was about to say screw it, hit the highway, and drive to Fieldsdale since he knew he saw at least ONE racing shop there, when something knocked on his window. He looked to his right to spot, to his surprise, Scootaloo.

Itsuki yelped and pressed on the brake, bringing the Levin to a quick stop. Scootaloo skidded to a stop a few feet ahead, apparently on a scooter. She reversed back as Itsuki rolled down the window.

"Scootaloo, were you just using your WINGS to move forward?" Itsuki asked.

"Yep! It's a thing I learned," Scootaloo replied.

"Huh. Nice. So what do you want?"

Scootaloo stretched her wings. "I-eee was wondering if you were doing anything today."

"Well I'm about to go find some engine parts for my Levin. Celestia just gave me some money so I'll be spending the rest of the day getting some parts installed."

Scootaloo blinked. "Can... Can I come?"

Itsuki was surprised. "Why?"

Scootaloo sighed. "Well, my friends are doing their own thing, Rainbow Dash has barely been hanging out with me lately because she's been hanging out with you, and I don't know what to do. So... yeah. Can I come with you?"

Itsuki stared for a second. "Well... I mean... I guess it wouldn't hurt. Maybe you could help me install some parts."

Scootaloo's face lit up like a Christmas Tree as she jumped off her scooter, grabbed it, and ran around the front of the Levin to get in on the left side. She threw her scooter into the backseat, shut the door, and buckled up as quickly as possible.

"Alright, let's go," she said.

Itsuki laughed. "Ok then." I officially love fillies. They are the cutest living things ever.

He put the Levin back into gear and slowly accelerated.

"You know any racing shops around here?"

Scootaloo shook her head. "Not in Ponyville. But I remember a Toyota Racing Division building being over in that town beneath Cloudsdale."

"Fieldsdale? Awesome! They'll have the perfect parts for my 86!"

Itsuki guided the Levin through the town. The satisfaction he felt when he got on a tarmac road to drive to Fieldsdale was immeasurable.

"You know... I've actually kinda been getting into cars."

Itsuki smirked. "Oh really?"

"Mhm. Ever since you took me and Rainbow Dash to Canterlot, I've been looking up some stuff about street racing. Cars, where ponies like to race, you know."

"Nice. Any cars you like so far?"

"Umm... there's a few. I like the R34 Skyline. And the Toyota Supra is a good one."

Itsuki smiled and happily nodded. "Yeah. Those are some pretty good cars. Dang, I could actually get those now that I think about it."

Scootaloo returned the smile. "Yeahhh. Except there's this other car I really like. A Mazda RX-7. The newest one."

"Ooooo the FD? Now that's a great one. One of Takumi's friend drives one of those. Keisuke Takahashi."

"Yeah, you told me and Rainbow Dash about him."

"Mhm. That guy's insane. A real asshole sometimes but his skills are great. Not as good as Takumi's, obviously."

"Hey!"

"OH! Crap! Sorry. Language. I'm not around kids very often."

Scootaloo smiled as she peered out the window.

"CLOSED?! OH COME ON!" Itsuki yelled as he stared at the CLOSED sign hanging in the front door. "It's like the middle of the day!"

"8:57," Scootaloo corrected.

Itsuki scoffed. "Still." He eyed a stack of magazines next to the door and sighed. "Well, I guess we could read these while we wait."

He picked one of the magazines up in his weak magical grasp and laid down. "Man this is hard."

"Want me to hold it?" Scootaloo asked as she sat next to him.

"Sure."

Scootaloo took the magazine and held it up. Itsuki was surprised at the cover car.

"Oh dang! A Nine-Two model!"

Scootaloo's jaw dropped. "A Nine-Two?"

"Yeah. AE92. Successor to my Eight-Six. Sounds great in every way except for the fact it's an FF."

"FF?"

"Front Engined, Front Wheel Drive. You know."

"Uhh... Itsuki?"

"Hm?"

"This car is rear wheel drive."

Itsuki looked at the car. Indeed. As stated by the "163HP of RWD Fun!" message, the AE92 was Rear Wheel Drive.

"Huh. That's pretty cool. Wait, Toyota E90 Sprinter Trueno aftermarket parts..?"

"What about it?"

Itsuki's face lit up. "If this still uses the 4A-GE, I might be able to use it for my 86! Open it up. Let's see what there is."

Scootaloo smiled as she did what was asked of her, flipping to the first page which held the Table of Contents.

"Alright let's see. Engine, Suspension, Transmission, Exterior Parts..." Itsuki read the ToC. He sighed. "Let's go to the stuff about the Engine."

For the next few minutes, the pair flipped through the catalog. Itsuki, having read through countless magazines and aftermarket parts catalogs, filled Scootaloo in on what each part did. Intakes, Exhausts, you name it. Whatever Scootaloo wanted to know about, Itsuki would tell. She was a good listener. Itsuki was a good talker.

They blended well together.

"What- that's just a bar. That is literally a bar. What is this?" Scootaloo asked.

"That's a strut bar," Itsuki replied. "Makes the car more rigid... Honestly, I should probably get one."

"Why does the car need to be rigid?"

"Well, in general it won't outright improve the car's cornering, but it does make it more predictable. That's good."

"Hm..."

The two spent another minute reading through, each commenting about what parts they liked or disliked, be it for looks or function. They were so drawn into the catalog that they didn't notice another car pulling in. A silver sedan.

"That's a carbon fiber mirror," Itsuki said. "Another thing I might get."

THUNK

The two looked up to see an older stallion, maybe thirty, staring at them from behind his car. A silver Lexus IS300 with zero modifications. The earth pony was mostly bronze in color save for his bluish-green eyes and red hair. He wore a white clerk's outfit and some saddlebags.

"What are you two doing?" the stallion asked.

"Oh, we're just reading this till the place opens. That's all," Itsuki replied.

"Hm. You're in luck then because I'm here to open it up."

"You are? Sweet!" Itsuki stepped up on all fours. "Should we put the magazine back or..?"

"Nah, keep it. We have plenty." The stallion glanced over at Itsuki's Levin. "Hm. Don't think I've seen one of these in a while. AE86 Levin, huh?"

"Yeah, it's mine."

"Hm. How much did it cost?"

"Weeellll I think it was around uh... hm... somewhere around 950,000 to a million yen. I know it was under a million, so..."

The stallion tilted his head. "Yen?"

"Heeee's not exactly from here," Scootaloo stated.

The stallion shrugged. "Should have guessed considering your license plate and the fact that this thing is right hoof drive." He cleared his throat. "I'm Polara, by the way."

"Itsuki Takuechi," Itsuki replied.

"And I'm Scootaloo!"

Polara blinked. "Itsuki... Tak-eh-yoo-ee-chi." He smiled as he gently shook his head. "If that isn't the coolest name I've ever heard, I don't what is."

Itsuki chuckled. "Takeuchi. Not Takeuichi. Except, to be honest, yeah. That does sound pretty sweet."

"Mm." Polara grabbed a pair of keys from his outfit's pocket then inserted them in the front door. He pushed it open and led the two inside, taking down the CLOSED sign.

"Nice Altezza by the way," Itsuki remarked as he and Scootaloo followed Polara inside.

"Altezza? Nah, that's an IS300. The models in Ponyland are the Altezza's," Polara replied.

"Oh. But they're the same thing, aren't they?"

"Yeah, they are. But still." Polara stopped suddenly, staring right at Itsuki.

"What?" Itsuki asked, stopping.

"Are... are you an Alicorn?"

Itsuki smiled. "Heck yeah I am! I look pretty good, don't I?"

Polara's jaw dropped. "I am staring at a male Alicorn... holy shit I'm staring at an Alicorn! At my work!"

"Yeah! You sure are! So! What parts do you guys have?"

Polara shook his head. "Uh- Plenty! Plenty! What are you looking for?"

"Well, I'm really just looking for things to make my car run better. And I don't just mean the engine."

"I-Is there any specific power output you want?"

"At least two hundred. I've got a race tonight so I need it quick. Honestly, the only things I want is 200HP and better brakes. Maybe even limited slip differential. Maybe if we have time, I can buy a strut bar and some other things."

"Yeah! Of course! Here, have a look around, see what you like. I need to make a call."

"Sure thing!"

As Polara trotted away, Itsuki grabbed a parts catalog and began flipping through as best as he could. "Hey, Scootaloo, you can look around if you want. See if there's anything you like."

"Okay!"

Polara grabbed a phone and dialed a number.

"Comeon comeon comeon comeoooon," the stallion said as he listened to it ring.

"Hello?" asked a tired voice.

"Lenovo? Lenovo! You are NOT going to believe this! You need to get your rump down here right now!"

The voice yawned. "Dude, you know I don't show up for another hour."

"No no! Listen, there is a freaking ALICORN here! Right now!"

"PTOOIE! THERE'S A WHAT?!"

"YEAH! His name's Itsuki. Dude, he is here, RIGHT NOW, looking for parts for his AE86."

"His AE86? Who the hell uses that!?"

"HE DOES apparently! Listen, you know your way around SR20's and 4A-GE's better than anyone I know. He's looking for at least 200HP and I mean an EFFICIENT 200HP. Reputation will SKYROCKET if he gives a good statement about us!"

"Ok, I'm heading downstairs and getting in my car RIGHT NOW. Help him with anything he needs and give him one of our bays, alright?"

"Gotcha. See you when you get here."

"You too."

Click

Polara took a deep breath in. "Ok. There is an Alicorn in my work. There is an Alicorn in my work, there is an Alicorn in my work. All I need to do is make sure he's happy and provide him with whatever he needs... Would allowing him to have whatever parts he wants for free be overkill? I mean, he's an Alicorn..."

He eyed the phone again. "Might as well call the boss."

Itsuki followed Scootaloo into an isle.

"Riiight... here!" Scootaloo stopped and pointed at a box.

Itsuki whistled as he read the title. "Carbon Ceramic Brakes, 6 Piston Calipers?! Holy crap I thought this stuff was only used on full-blown racecars!"

"You'd be surprised," Polara said as he stopped next to them. "Being made by Brembo, they're expensive as heck but they last a stupidly long time. Since this one has six pistons, you could be fully underwater and they'd still stop you on a dime."

Itsuki smiled. "Yeah... yeah, this is perfect. How much for it?"

"Free."

Itsuki's jaw dropped. "I'm sorry?"

"You're an Alicorn. No Alicorn should have to pay for things, right?"

The dumbest smiles appeared on both Itsuki's and Scootaloo's faces.

"Heck. Yes," they both said.

"I've got a buddy coming down here," Polara stated. "He owns an AE92 and knows all about the 4AGE."

Itsuki continued his smile. "Sweet. But man, this is great! I'm actually gonna get some competent mods on my 86!"

"And I get to Learn how to Modify cars, right?" Scootaloo asked.

"Of course you can! I'll show you."

Scootaloo squeed. Itsuki thought it was the most adorable thing ever.

Polara smiled. "By the way, how would you feel if we gave you one of the bays to work on your car in?"

Itsuki was ecstatic. "I would give you the best five star review ever."

"YES! So! What are ya buyin'?"

Itsuki bit his lip. Ohhhh scrr-REW Takumi and him wanting to go home! Come on! We get free parts, a free place to work on our cars, I didn't even HAVE to ask Celestia for money! I LOVE BEING AN ALICORN!!!

Polara cleared his throat.

"Oh! Right. So, these brakes, first of all. And then... hm... maybe some ignition wiring... oh yeah! An ECU. The best one you've got."

"Standalone ECU? Got it. Anything else?"

"A strut bar would be nice. I wanna keep things small since I've only got the rest of the day to modify the thing. Here, lemme get my car in a bay. Which one should I park in?"

"The one furthest on the left."

"Sounds good. I'll go do that. Scootaloo, you comin?"

Scootaloo nodded.

"Alright, let's go."

Pretty soon, Itsuki's 86 was on a car lift, hoisted only half a foot in the air. Itsuki was showing Scootaloo how to change a wheel. To say the filly was having fun was very accurate.

When they got to draining the brake lines and replacing them, also replacing the brakes with the Carbon Ceramic ones, you'd think she was discovering the power of flight with the way she smiled.

Itsuki had a thought as he reconnected a brake line. "Hey, Scootaloo?"

"Yeah?"

"How come I've never seen you flying?"

"...Because I can't."

Itsuki was surprised. "Why not?"

Scootaloo shrugged.

"Hm... That explains That I guess."

EEEEE!

Itsuki looked at the open garage door. "I wonder what that was."

He got up and walked outside. His eyes fell on a red car that had parked next to the IS300. A Silver Toyota AE92 Trueno. Nothing fancy. An SR5 with some light modifications.

"Oh dang, look at that. A Nine-Two," Itsuki said as he walked back into the shop. To his surprise, Scootaloo had put the rear right rim back on. "What the... how did you do that?"

Scootaloo shrugged.

Itsuki rolled his eyes. "Great. Well, time to get working on the engine. It's not just the brakes I want done."

"NO! HOLD ON!" a new voice yelled as another stallion came barreling through the door. A maroon one with a similar work outfit to Polara. "Hoolllllyyyyyyy SHIII-THERE'S A FILLY HERE why is there a filly here-" He took in a breath. "WOW you are an actual Alicorn."

Itsuki smiled. "Yep. I sure am."

The stallion bowed. "I'm uh- I'm Lenovo."

"Itsuki Takeuchi."

"Well. Uhh... eheh... umm..."

"Are you the friend Polara said knew all about 4A-GE's?" Itsuki asked.

"He is," Polara replied, walking in.

"So um..." Lenovo cleared his throat and straightened his posture. "You said you wanted to upgrade your car?"

"Yep," Itsuki said before pointing at his Levin. "Here she is. My AE86 Levin."

"...Dang... Uh, alright. Is it the stock engine?"

"Yep. With 162,000 kilometers."

"Can I see it?"

"The engine? Sure thing. One sec."

Itsuki opened the starboard door and reached under the steering wheel, clumsily pulling the hood latch. Lenovo when to the front and opened the hood.

Lenovo whistled. "Bone Stock. Perfect for modifying. Uh, you said you wanted how much power?"

"At least 200."

Lenovo nodded. "Ok. That's easy to get to. You just need a turbo."

"Nope! Mm-mm." Itsuki shook his head. "I don't want a Turbo. I've driven a turbo car before and the lag on it was insane."

Lenovo was surprised. "What kind of teenager doesn't..." He shrugged. "Ok, well, do you want a supercharger?"

"Mm... Maybe." He sighed. "I just need 200HP by 9:00 tonight."

"Nine tonight?! What's the hurry?"

"I've got a race. Mountain Race."

Lenovo pursed his lips and nodded in approval. "Okay. Nice. What car are you racing?"

"A uh... BMW. An E30 Evo Three."

Both Lenovo and Polara were surprised. "An E30 Evo?!" they exclaimed in unison.

"Yeah. I uh... can't say who the driver is, though."

"Hm. Well, damn. Er, dang! Sorry, language," Lenovo glanced at Scootaloo, who was sitting next to a wheel. The filly rolled her eyes.

Lenovo looked back at Itsuki. "An E30 Evo, though? That's one heck of a car. A rally car for the road."

Itsuki chuckled. "Yeah, I know, right?"

"You're gonna need a bit more than power to beat an E30 Evo in an AE86."

"Like what?"

"Transmission, Suspension, all that. Well- I guess it depends a lot on how good you are at driving, so..."

Polara rolled his eyes. "So let me get this straight. You are a driver of an AE86 Levin, who wants to beat a BMW E30 Evolution Three, on a mountain road?"

Itsuki nodded. "Yeah, pretty much."

"And you need 200HP before tonight."

"Mhm."

Polara took in a deep breath, held it for a few seconds, then let it out. He looked at Scootaloo. "Hey, uh... who are you, again?"

"Scootaloo," the filly replied.

"How well can you twist wrenches?"

"Pretty well. Why?"

Itsuki stepped forward. "I wanna teach her how to modify a car. Could be fun."

"Hm... well, Scootaloo, you're gonna be doing a bunch of work. We're gonna need all the hooves we can get if we want to get this car ready within a day."

"Okay," Scootaloo replied. "I can help. I don't do much anyways."

Itsuki smiled. "Hey, even if we don't get to 200HP, I'm sure I can pull out a win. Now!" He grabbed a wrench with his mouth. "Eht's oo iss!"

"I'm not gonna pull this off."

Fleetfoot tilted her head. "What do you mean you're not gonna pull this off?"

Thunderlane looked at the mare. "Did you SEE the kind of speed Itsuki was doing before he clocked off? Sure, the guy was tired, but he was moving as fast as I usually go. AND he's DRIFTING."

Fleetfoot scoffed. "You say that like you don't drift."

"Yeah, but that's me having fun. Not me on an actual time attack."

The mare smirked as she and Thunderlane walked towards Spitfire's office. "I'm surprised you're this nervous, Thunderlane. It's not like you to be afraid of something as pitiful as an AE86, you having a Rally Car that you rebuilt yourself."

"Shut up. Also, how many times do I have to admit that Spitfire helped me restore the thing?"

"Until the day you get some actual skill."

"What's this about Thunderlane getting some actual skill?" a new voice asked.

The two looked ahead to see Spitfire peering from the doorway of her office.

"Morning, Spitfire," Fleetfoot greeted.

"Morning." Spitfire turned and walked back into her office, Fleetfoot and Thunderlane in tow. "So. Thunderlane. What's wrong with Itsuki? He's only a teenage Alicorn."

"That isn't funny," Thunderlane growled. "Also, what happened to you wanting to defend our pride?"

Spitfire sat down at her desk, opening a tab on her computer. "I was mad because I couldn't understand how an AE86 of all things beat me. Then... I found out who and what Takumi was. Is. He's... unique."

"Unique, huh?" Fleetfoot smiled as she sat in front of Spitfire's desk. Thunderlane also sat down.

"Yeah. Every pony his age I've met, that's in the automotive community, is either snarky and over-confident in their abilities, or they're super quiet introverts who don't do much. You can guess which one I prefer. But Takumi..." Spitfire smiled. "He's different. He's quiet, but he isn't an introvert. Not to mention he's a natural driver true skill."

"Natural Driver with True Skill?" Thunderlane asked.

Spitfire nodded. "If I'm being honest, I'm actually really excited to talk with Takumi. There are just so many things I want to ask him."

Fleetfoot rubbed her eyes. "Like what?"

"Come on. A nineteen year old ALICORN as good as he is? He's as good as a lot of professionals my age, his car is tuned better than any other street racer's car I've ever seen..." She chuckled. "His car... ohhh now that is a car I want to get under the hood of for a VERY long time..."

"Ahh, so you're interested in both him and his car."

"Mmmhm."

"So, why did you two want me here?" Thunderlane asked.

"We wanted to know if you had a plan. That's all," Spitfire replied.

"Well... I don't really know. I mean, his in an AE86 and I have him on the straightaways. But the corners..."

"So, you'll just speed ahead of him on the straightaways?"

"What else am I supposed to do? My only advantage is my car. I haven't been driving for as long as you two."

Spitfire smirked. "Well, at least you're not an idiot. You at least know that it's not gonna be an easy battle."

Thunderlane sighed. "I just... to think Takumi was as fast you in MY car, and I'm not even half as quick in the thing, I'm just... ugh."

"Hey, I'm meeting Takumi, remember? We could ask him if he could drive your car downhill. Maybe you can get some pointers from him."

"In broad daylight? Seriously?"

"Being Captain of the Wonderbolts, I literally own this mountain. I can shut down the road."

Thunderlane was surprised. "I... never knew that."

"Well, you do now."

"So," Fleetfoot began. "What've you been doing?"

"Researching that move of his. With the gutter." Spitfire turned the monitor to show the two. "Look. I've look everywhere, and that move is NOWHERE. Lifting your tire over a gutter is something nopony else has done. Or at least put on the internet. The only gutter-related thing I've found is just jumping the gutter to put your tires on a better inside line. Never lifting a tire over it for the whole turn."

The screen showed a Nissan R34 GT-R jumping a gutter, easily gaining an inside line on the turn. Once the turn ended, it jumped back over the gutter, coming a few feet from the guardrail before speeding away.

"So he came up with it by himself?" Fleetfoot asked.

"Maybe," Spitfire replied. " But... there is a lot of practicality for it."

"Practicality?"

"Er, racing. You know." Spitfire sighed. "That move? It's not just a way to gain a better line. It's a GENIUS way to gain more grip."

Thunderlane was confused. "Wait, huh? How do you gain grip by lifting a whole tire off the ground? That doesn't make any sense."

"I'm confused too," a new voice said. The three looked to the door to spot Soarin peeking in.

"You're removing tire contact with the ground, to gain more grip?" he asked.

Spitfire buried her face in her hooves. "Why do I have to be the only Professional Racer on this team?" she mumbled before raising her head.

"Lifting a tire," she began as Soarin stepped next to Thunderlane, "is something professional racecars do when they're set up with stiff suspensions. It goes back decades, back when they still used Bias Ply Tires. See, when a car goes into a turn, it practically wedges itself into the corner. Weight goes to the outside, which makes the outside tires put in a lot more work than the inside."

"However, the car will want to distribute grip equally to all four tires. As a result, you actually waste grip on the insides, simply because it isn't needed there.

Initial D Fourth Stage Sound Files vol.1 - Impreza starts playing.

Very recent memories of the battle between Takumi and herself flowed through her mind.

"By lifting a tire, you force weight to the tires that need it. On a rear wheel drive car, the inner front tires have the least grip in a turn. So if you lift the inner front tire, you put more weight on the rear, allowing you to accelerate harder out of a turn."

The AE86 did just that, lifting its inner tires and simultaneously accelerating out of a turn.

"You ever see front wheel drive cars lifting a rear tire when coming into a turn? Well, when they do that, ALL the weight is sent to the front tires. Since they're the ones doing the turning, they pull the whole car through the turn. And they do it way faster than any rear or all wheel drive car."

Soarin snickered. "Ah, so there's a reason so many ponies resort to Honda Civic's."

Spitfire rolled her eyes. "Pshh. Nope. I doubt half of them even know the trick."

"Hm. So, how does him doing this trick with the gutter work?"

"It's pretty simple, actually." Spitfire turned her monitor back towards herself. "You can't really get as stiff a ride in the streets as you can on the track. Street Cars just don't have the right suspension for it. Lifting your inner tire on street suspension is next to impossible."

"With the gutter," she continued, "You are lifting the wheel while maintaining the characteristics of a softer suspension. Plus, you do it in a way that doesn't reduce stability too much."

"There is, of course, a downside," Fleetfoot interrupted.

Spitfire was surprised. "Oh really?"

Fleetfoot nodded with a smirk. "You aren't the only one that researched Inner Wheel Lifting."

Spitfire smirked. "Well why don't you tell us, then?"

"It. Is. HARD. You need to be right on the limit of grip if you want to pull it off. It requires you to be perfect with the accelerator to make full use of the extra grip without going overboard, while at the same time making sure you keep enough weight off the inner tire so you don't fall in."

"Which is why I'm so interested in him," Spitfire said. "Somepony his age would have no way of being able to do tricks like that so well without YEARS of prior practice. I want to know how he has so much skill."

"Maybe he raced karts a lot," Fleetfoot suggested. "Plenty of good racers emerged from kart racing."

Spitfire tapped her chin. "Maybe. But he would've had to practice nonstop for years. The only pony I know that raced karts like CRAZY is Rainbow Dash. That mare was unbeatable in every race she entered. I'm sure we would've heard about Takumi."

Spitfire paused. "Rainbow Dash... hm... does anypony know if Rainbow Dash even owns a car?"

Fleetfoot cleared her throat. "Ahem, Takumi?"

"Right, right." Spitfire let out a happy sigh. "Us talking about cars and techniques like this- ohhh I cannot WAIT to meet with him. What time is it?"

"Almost ten."

"Darnit! Two hours. Ugh. Well, Thunderlane, Soarin, you two are dismissed. Fleetfoot, feel free to do whatever."

The aforementioned stallions looked at each other, shrugged, then took their leave. Fleetfoot looked at Spitfire once the two were far away, door closed.

"Two hours. What do you think he'll be doing?"

Spitfire shrugged. "Probably talking with the princesses. Anyways." She got up from her chair. "Two Hours. Might as well make myself presentable."

Fleetfoot raised an eyebrow. "Oh? And why would a Fiery Mare like yourself need to make yourself 'presentable' for a lowly teenager like him?"

Spitfire shot her a look. "Fleetfoot, do you seriously think I'd fall for a kid like him that easily? Even if he's an Alicorn?"

"Considering he's an Alicorn that beat you in a downhill streetrace with an econobox, I do."

Spitfire glared at Fleetfoot, who stared back with a slug look on her face.

After several seconds, Spitfire smiled. "I hate you."

"Are you sure about that?" Fleetfoot asked.

"No, not really."

Music Ends.

Cadance was just finishing up tidying her room when Celestia walked in.

"Oh. Hello, Celestia," the Love Princess greeted.

"Hello, Cadance," Celestia greeted back. "I came to see you off."

"Mm..."

Celestia sat next to the bed. "Is something wrong?"

Cadance shook her head. "No..."

Celestia stopped Cadance with a hoof. "Cadance..."

Cadance sighed as she met Celestia's eyes. "Celestia, can I-... can I hug you?"

Celestia, though surprised, smiled. "Why?"

"Because... uh, can I?"

Celestia held her forelegs out. "Of course."

Cadance stepped forward and wrapped her forehooves around Celestia, who wrapped her forelegs and wings around Cadance.

The two sat like that for a few minutes, just hugging each other. Cadance was actually rubbing Celestia the whole time, giving the Princess of the Sun a gentle massage.

"Is this about Takumi?" Celestia whispered.

Cadance nodded. "He was just so... soft..."

"So you did get a chance to hug him."

"Mhm. Only for a moment, but... yeah..."

"Hm."

"I'm also just... concerned about the fact that he has C I P A. That has to be the worst thing anypony could have. And he's an Alicorn. How is he supposed to know if he's exerting his magic?"

"He won't. He will need to find a balance. An area of magic he knows he won't exert himself in."

Cadance shuddered. "How can somepony like him have something so... so crippling?"

"Cadance..." Celestia caressed the Love Princess' ear. "There are many things Takumi could have had that are much worse."

"Like what? What could be-... okay, there's a lot of things that are worse than not being able to feel pain... especially when applying it to an Alicorn..."

"Many things, Cadance."

The pair continued to hug each other for another moment before Cadance finally broke away. Her body shuddered from the sudden lack of warmth.

"Well, see you later," she said, standing up and putting some saddlebags on.

Celestia nodded. "You too. It was nice seeing you again, Cadance."

"You too. It was nice to uh... meet Takumi and Itsuki." Cadance opened the door, stepping out into the hall with Celestia behind her.

"So, to be clear," Cadance began. "I'm NOT stopping by Ponyville to take Itsuki to the Crystal Empire?"

"No," Celestia replied. "You are not."

"Then when should I expect Takumi to come to the Empire? You said you wanted him to go there."

"Hopefully within the week. I really want him to explore. Get a better grasp on Equestria."

"Hm. Okay. Well, bye."

"Goodbye, Cadance."

Cadance waved goodbye before walking down the hallway. She ignored any and all guards who bowed for her all the way until she exited into the parking lot.

The first thing she noticed was that Luna's Skyline was gone. The second thing she noticed was a new sports car parked next to her Miura P400 SVJ Spider. Said sports car made her take in a sharp breath. It also made her break into a sprint as she fully processed what the car was.

She skidded to a stop in front of the car. It was a classic sports car not much older than her Miura. It had a long front end, a somewhat low-slung design, with classic bespoke rims paired with modern high-performance tires. Its color was a light shade of Cherry Blossom Pink, and it had two white circles painted on its small doors. Within them sat the number 86. Cadance was speechless.

"A Series 1 Ferrari 250 GTO..." she mumbled.

She peered at the black left-hoof-drive interior the best she could. It was hard, as the windows were tinted, but she could tell that the car had some modern enhancements. Bucket Seats, modernized electricals, all of which made the car something of a restomod.

Cadance smiled as she stepped back from the two cars. Using her magic, she pulled a camera out from one of her saddlebags, turning it on and pointing it at the cars.

She chuckled. "Now there's a sight for sore eyes," she said as she snapped a picture. "Two legendary supercars from decades past." She looked around as she stuffed the camera into her saddlebag. "I wonder who owns this. They must be RICH if they prefer to actually drive the thing."

She opened the portside door of her Miura, threw the saddlebags in the passenger seat, then with a quick spell, shrunk herself.

Well, not shrunk. She really just turned into a juvenile form of herself, thus allowing her to actually fit in the Miura. She looked incredibly cute this way.

Getting in the Miura, Cadance levitated the key into the ignition and turned it, firing up the its Carbureted 3.9 Liter V12 Engine. She spent about a minute letting it warm up a little before putting it into gear and exiting the parking lot. She made her way through the city of Canterlot, following any and all traffic laws like a good pony. She came to an intersection and was just about to drive through before she stopped.

On the right was the road that would lead to the Canterlot Turnpike. Straight ahead was the road that lead to the main underground highway that spiraled down the inside of the mountain and out the bottom.

She tapped her chin as she thought back to a few days ago, when Celestia accidentally forced her to watch Takumi and Itsuki battle Nightmare Moon and Heartbreaker. She shuddered. Heartbreaker. To think she had a dark form like that...

Then, she smiled. She flicked the blinker on, then turned right to accelerate down the road. She stuck to the speed limit as she exited the city. She drove past the Turnpike Parking Lot, eyeing a few cars parked in it. She looked forward.

Suddenly, she accelerated.

She accelerated hard.

360 Carbureted Horses were transferred through the tires and into the tarmac, launching the Miura forward. Cadance bit her lip as she shifted gears, keeping the throttle wide open. Her speed exceeded 100MPH as the first corner came into view. She put the clutch in and braked hard, nearly locking up the wheels as she wedged the Miura into the turn.

Maintaining full grip, Cadance shot around the inside before rocketing out of the turn, shifting gears as fast as she could. The Miura took the the spirited driving well as it hammered through the next corner at moderate speeds, engine working to ensure smooth power delivery with all 12 Cylinders Firing. It sang at 8500RPM as the Miura sped down a straightaway.

Brakelights lit up as the Miura tore into the first hairpin, gripping around it and exiting at speed. Cadance pushed the accelerator all the way to the floor as she went through a left curve.

This proved too much for the tires, as the the Miura suddenly oversteered. Cadance grunted as she ripped the steering wheel in the opposite direction, trying to stop the skid. This only made things worse as the Miura snapped the other way. She just held the clutch and brakes and braced herself as the the Miura spun into the dirt, coming to a stop.

After a second, Cadance chuckled. "Ohhh I haven't driven this road in a while. It feels good to let loose every once in a while." She sighed. "Well, I've got the rest of the road to go. Let's have some fun, Mi Amore Miura!"

She shifted back into first gear and accelerated, kicking up dirt before getting back on the road and speeding down the mountain.

vroooooooooooooOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

Itsuki screamed with glee as he watched his 86 do a run on the dynamometer.

"TWO HUNDRED HORSEPOWER BABY! WOO!"

Polara stopped the run and shut off the engine. "Heck yeah!" he exclaimed as he got out. "It is... six twenty. Great."

"We'll have PLENTY of time to sort out the suspension before you need to go!" Lenovo said.

"Heck yeah!" Itsuki yelled. "I can't thank you two enough for helping me with this. You have no idea how much I've wanted to just get a bunch of parts and stick them onto my 86."

"Hey, don't forget about Cassidy Creek," Polara said. "She's the one running out to pick up the suspension."

Itsuki chuckled. "Right, right. I swear, her name sounds like the name of an actual creek somewhere."

"That's because it is. It's a creek in a canyon near uh... near the Rocky Mountains out west. Raton Canyon I think is the name."

"Ah yeah. Raton Canyon. Forgot about that one," Lenovo said.

"Mm. Well, now we just wait for her to get here." Itsuki looked at Scootaloo. "So, Scootaloo, how have you been doing so far?"

"Freaking..." Scootaloo chuckled. "Awesome. It feels like I'm discovering flight!"

"Ha! Yeah, it's pretty sweet, huh? Learning to Modify Cars?"

"Yeah. And don't worry, I've been sticking by your advice on keeping everything FIRMLY bolted down."

Itsuki smiled. "Yep. Great job on that. I don't wanna see you get hurt because you didn't bolt a part down properly."

Scootaloo smiled. "Hm... hey, Itsuki?"

"Yeah?"

"Why is it you want everything bolted down properly? I mean, I know why, but what made you start uh... prioritizing it? Is that the right word?"

Itsuki's smile faded. "Why do I prioritize it?"

"Yeah."

Itsuki looked at Lenovo and Polara, who were now sitting down and looking at him.

"I mean..." He looked down. "Do you really want to hear it?"

"Yeah," Scootaloo cheerfully replied.

"Is it somethin' bad?" Lenovo asked.

Itsuki's ears flattened. "It... yeah."

Scootaloo's ears flattened. "What happened?"

"I..." Itsuki sighed. "Alright, fine, no point in sugarcoating it." Itsuki chuckled a bit. "Sugarcoating... hey, if you want me to stop, just tell me, alright?"

Scootaloo nodded. "Don't worry. I've heard a lot of scary stories."

"Not anything like this."

November 15th, 1987. Shibukawa, Japan.

It was a clear day in the city of Shibukawa. People milled about, working to sell product and moving boxes. Down an expressway came a relatively new 1985 Toyota Corolla GT-APEX 3 Door Levin. It was silver in color and had no special additions. No modifications whatsoever. It was an all-original Levin.

In the front seats sat an old couple. Atsushi Takeuchi and Sayori Yuuki, who were 72 and 68 respectively. They quietly talked as Yuichi drove, coaxing the AE86 along. In the backseat sat 8 year old Itsuki Takeuchi. He looked out the window with a smile on his face, admiring the buildings going by.

"Hey grandpa, you think mom and dad have a big surprise waiting for me?" Itsuki asked.

Atsushi chuckled. "I'm sure they have something, kiddo."

Itsuki let out a happy sigh. "To think after all this time, we're finally going to live in Shibukawa!"

"YOU'RE gonna live in Shibukawa. Itsuki, you know you were only living with us because your parents had to get the new house set up."

"Hm. It's gonna be weird, not living with you guys anymore."

"We're only a short drive away," Sayori said.

"Short?! We've been driving for hours!"

"Half an hour, Itsuki. Barely that."

Itsuki folded his arms. "Feels like a lot longer."

"That's what happens when you're excited," Atsushi said.

Itsuki pursed his lips as the expressway began

"Hey, we were thinking of heading out to a restaurant tomorrow. How does that sound?"

"Yes! Which one?"

"How about the Fujiwara Tofu Shop?"

"The what?"

"The-"

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Before anyone could do or say anything, a semi truck and trailer came smashing through the center barriers, doing well over 80KMPH.

Itsuki had only noticed the truck when his grandparents started screaming. Tires squealed as Atsushi locked up all four wheels, trying to slow down and turn.

Lock up all four tires, steer.

Those did not go together.

The 86 suffered immense understeer as the front tires found zero grip.

"ITSUKI, GET DOWN!"

CRASH!!

The 86 and Cab-Over Semi SLAMMED into each other head-on at a combined speed of over 100KMPH. The 86's lightweight chassis was zero match for the Cab-Over's Heavy, Rigid, Utilitarian Frame. The entire front half of the 86 was crushed in, and the 4A-GEU engine was ejected backwards into the cabin along with the suspension and front end.

Itsuki's seatbelt worked serious overtime keeping him in the backseat. The front seats slammed backwards into the aforementioned backseat. The bolts also worked overtime to keep it in place, however, the front seats had slammed into Itsuki, knocking him out cold.w

Several minutes later, Itsuki woke to find himself sitting next to an ambulance.

"You okay, kid?" a paramedic asked, bending down.

"I... yeah... what happened?"

The paramedic sighed. "A semi slammed into your grandparent's car. We got you out a minute ago."

"Oh."

Battered, Bruised, Dazed and Confused, Itsuki stood up. He was alive.

"The same could... not be said about my grandparents," Itsuki stated, now holding Scootaloo. "There was no chance. The second the engine came back, they were... yeah."

"Dang..." Lenovo trailed.

"It took my parents not even five minutes to get there after that. They had- well, still have, a blue-ish 1983 Corolla. This piece of crap Automatic FF that my dad's been driving into the ground for a decade plus." Itsuki scoffed. "Not to mention it's diesel."

"Anyways," he continued. "When they told me that the reason the Semi had jumped the barriers was because the bolts on the steering rack weren't fastened properly. They fell out a mile or so before the crash even happened. The semi hit a bump, which launched the steering rack upwards and somehow hit the brake servo and master cylinder."

"Then, they told me that the reason I was alive was because the bolts holding the backseat in were perfectly fastened. Had the seat come lose, I would've been launched forward into where everything was being... crushed..."

Scootaloo wrapped her fuzzy hooves around Itsuki. The Alicorn smiled and hugged her back.

"After they told me those, I guess it just imprinted on me. Ever since then, I've always made sure to screw any bolts down to the perfect amount. Heck, when I first got my 85, I spent the entire afternoon checking and screwing every single bolt I could find."

"That's good..." Scootaloo mumbled, loving how soft Itsuki was.

After a few seconds, Itsuki chuckled. "Heh, you know, my grandparents owning an 86 is actually what got me into 86's. They're the ones who even made me know about the thing. Sure I probably would've found out about 86's one way or another, but still."

Scootaloo shuddered.

"Hey, don't worry. I'm alive," Itsuki reassured. "And the two lived pretty long."

Scootaloo pulled herself away. "I just... wow... to think not securing a single bolt down can kill..."

"Yeah, that's why I think everyone should always check and re-check every single bolt that belongs to their ride."

"Mm... Well, I Pinkie Promise I'll always check and recheck all the bolts I come across, when I get a car."

"Hm. Well then." Itsuki looked at Lenova and Polara. "Shall we get to tuning my suspension?"

"Considering I've been here for a while now, absolutely," a new female voice said.

The four looked to the garage entrance to spot Cassidy Creek. A Yellow Mare with White Hair.

"Ah. Hey Cassidy," Polara greeted.

"Hey. So uh, wow. Never thought somepony like you would have something like that happen to them."

Itsuki shrugged.

"Hey, where the heck is... what was it... Japan?" Lenovo asked. "I've never heard of a place called that."

Itsuki chuckled. "It's... It's a LONG way from here. I can tell you that much."

Lenovo chuckled. "I'll need to look it up. Anyways! Cassidy! You got those suspension parts?"

"A freaking truckload," Cassidy replied. "So to lighten things up a bit, who wants to get this Levin set up? Because I sure do!"

Itsuki smiled. "Yes! Scootaloo, mind getting off of me?"

Scootaloo obliged. "I'm gonna help, right?"

"Yep! Of course you can!"

The filly squeed.

"We're gonna test this at the Fieldsdale Circuit, right?" Cassidy asked.

Robert Patton - Top of The Pop starts playing.

Itsuki looked at her. "The Fieldsdale Circuit?"

"Ha! You don't know? It's less than a mile away. We can test it there. PLUS there's a track day event going on, so there's a bunch of racers you can practice against."

The biggest smile appeared on Itsuki's face. "Oh. HELL. YES!"

Minutes later, the five were working on Itsuki's Levin. Lenovo and Polara worked on the engine and electricals while Itsuki, Cassidy, and Scootaloo worked on the Suspension.

Only one of them rivaled Itsuki's excitement, and that was Scootaloo. You'd think she had just discovered her ability to fly with how giddy she was. The filly had never thought she'd gain so much satisfaction from screwing in a few bolts. Building a car was fun, but modifying one? There wasn't a feeling like it.

By now, what was once a bone-stock engine bay with original parts had turned into an amazing mix of the best TRD and HKS parts money could buy. The same went for the suspension.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!

Tires squealed as Itsuki's 86 Levin shot around a corner. The 4A-GE roared with newfound power, allowing the 86 to easily keep up with a Civic EK. Itsuki bit his lip as he stuck to the EK's bumper like glue. A stupendously excited Scootaloo sat in the passenger seat, squeeing as Itsuki snagged the inside line away from the EK, passing it instantly.

Not ten minutes later, Itsuki, Scootaloo, Cassidy and Co. were installing a brand new Differential with Carbon Fiber Clutch Plates.

The second they were done with the installation, Itsuki and Scootaloo were back out on the track, passing racer after racer.. Though Itsuki was mostly getting used to his new power, he was also half-teaching Scootaloo on how to drive fast.

Half-Teaching.

"I FREAKING LOVE THIS!" Itsuki yelled as he shifted gears faster than ever before.

As the sun set, his race against Thunderlane and his E30 Evo was on the horizon. His speed had doubled, and his 86's racing efficiency was better than ever.

He was ready for battle.

Author's Note

Perfect way to write a character you dislike writing: Dedicate almost an entire chapter to them.

Great. Yeah, I decided that I might as well give you all another part in which I don't focus on Takumi at ALL. And hey! You got some cute lil' development between Itsuki and Scootaloo! Yay!

Also, you might be wondering about why the hay I keep using the ship terms "Port" and "Starboard".

Blame Ace TheOcarinaMaker and his Sea Of Thieves series. He showed me that Port and Starboard are INCREDIBLY helpful for gauging directions, especially in battle, so now I'm using them. You should too!

Going on Hiatus. (Will delete when out of Hiatus)

I love this story. I have been working on it since summer of 2021, and I wish to continue working on it.

But I just can't keep working on this. There are too many other ideas I want to put to digital paper. Ideas in which I haven't been able to do so because of this story. Why? Because I am a slow writer. I tend to procrastinate a lot. If I were to write another story, particularly an ongoing story, that would completely screw over this story's schedule. (I say that like I have one lmao)

So there's one reason. I want to work on other things. It is NOT a lack of motivation. I just want to work on other stories more than this one. That's all.

Another reason is that I seem to do a lot better when writing about stuff that isn't just a bunch of car jargon. I used to be in this mindset that almost everyone knows the cars I write about, such as Spitfire's Nissan S14 Silvia Autech or Thunderlane's BMW E30 Evolution Three. Like, how many people actually know of the latter of the two? A decent number of people will likely have some idea of the S14, but who actually knew of the E30 Evo before reading this story?

One of the rules states that people should not have to go off-site to know what is going on. Yet here I am effectively forcing non-car people to go off-site to Wikipedia or some other thing to see what car I mean. And that is... not good.

Not everyone is a Car Whisperer. How ironic that Takumi also isn't a Car Whisperer.

So there's another reason.

So. To bullet-point my reasons:

I want to work on other things. Particularly things with G5. Seriously, I have 53 Unpublished stories as of writing this, half of which don't even have chapters written.

2: This story is for a bit of a niche market and, at the moment, is really meant for people who understand the car jargon. It is in fact frustrating to those who don't understand it, and you don't want readers to be frustrated while reading your story. Frustrated because they don't understand parts of it. Not because of what a character is doing.

3: ... It's simply becoming more of a burden than anything. I don't want to write it right now. Plain and Simple.

Wow I suck at explaining this.

BUT!

This story is NOT going to turn into one where it is forever on hiatus. I want to come back to it at some point and continue writing. I love this story, and I want to finish it. I already have the ending written, I just need to get there.

I may or may not write a chapter every now and again whenever I'm bored, that way when I do come back, I have a backlog of chapters I can publish to make up for lost time. I may also go back and edit parts of the story, particularly in cutting down the car jargon and also explaining said car jargon. Those with a keen eye may notice.

The beginning ten parts are likely what kills the story's chances of getting many views, which is to be expected as they are several months old and I've barely touched them since publishing. Almost everything from Part 10 Forwards is considerably better. I will probably be editing those.

So.

To those that have stuck around and put up with the Bullshit that was my (Surprisingly Consistent?) Publishing "Schedule", I thank you. For those that have stumbled upon this story while it is in Hiatus, Welcome, and feel free to read and give feedback. And feel free to check out my other stories. A few a good, a couple are bad, but uh... yeah.

Here's hoping I can get this story back up and running. In the meantime, I'll be writing other things.

BYE!

Act 1: The Duo Appears

EEEEEEEEEE!

Tires squealed as four cars tore around a corner on a dimly lit mountain road.

In the front, two 1980s Japanese Liftbacks. One White with a Carbon Fiber Hood and Retractable Headlights, the other Red with a Carbon Fiber Hood and Fixed Headlights.

Behind the Hatchbacks was a Black 1990s Japanese Sports Car. A midnight blue flame erupting from the body panels as it tailed the two hatchbacks. Behind the sports car was a classic dark purple Italian Supercar, nipping at the car's rear bumper.

The four cars approached a hairpin turn. Both liftbacks braked and began drifting through the inside while the car went into the hairpin at speed, straight for the White liftback.

BANG!

"Ah!"

A white unicorn with black hair sat up straight in his bucket seat, instantly checking the rearview mirrors of the car. All his dark emerald-green eyes saw was a red car parked behind him.

The unicorn slumped back in his seat. "Damn... that battle was intense... wait..." He held up a hoof, staring at it intently. He looked around through the windows, seeing that he was at the bottom of a large mountain, with vast rolling fields stretching out.

"This dream? Again?" he asked.

His horn lit up with an emerald light. He magically grasped the keys already in the ignition and turned them enough to just turn the battery and electronics on. His eyes fell on the dashboard's digital clock.

7:57AM

"Huh. Weird. Normally It's around midnight whenever I'm in this dream."

He looked in the rearview at the car parked behind him, noting the red Unicorn with Black Hair slumped over the steering wheel.

He sighed. "Well, might as well talk to Itsuki about last night's battle."

Grasping the door handle with his magic and using his hooves to push the right door open. He got out and immediately began stretching his hooves and neck. He then unfurled a pair of wings and stretched those out, remaining silent as he did so.

He glanced at his car with a small frown. The car was a white and black JDM-Spec 1983 Toyota Sprinter Trueno Three Door Liftback. One equipped with a black Carbon Fiber Hood along with Gunmetal Grey RS Watanabe Eight Spoke Rims. On the right door was a set of Japanese Kanji.

The car, to most people, was nothing special. It was a small 1980s Japanese Hatchback built to be an Econobox you can have a bunch of fun in due to it's lightweight body and Rear-Wheel-Drive-ness. It had Pop-Up Headlights, headlights that would emerge from the bodywork when turned on, that were also made of Carbon Fiber.

The pony looked at the car parked behind him. A very similar JDM Toyota, but instead of a white and black Trueno, it was a Red and Black Levin. There wasn't much difference other than the Fixed Headlights in front instead of the Pop-Up Headlights. It was similarly modified to the Trueno, only differing in the Rims and rear Tailgate Ducktail Spoiler.

The winged unicorn walked over to the car and knocked on the window. The red and black unicorn inside barely stirred. The winged unicorn grasped the door handle with his magic and pulled on it, opening it.

"Itsuki, you would leave it unlocked," the winged unicorn mumbled. "Itsuki, get up."

The red unicorn, Itsuki, grumbled.

The winged unicorn's eyes slightly widened as he noticed a pair of red wings at Itsuki's sides.

"Dude."

"Mm... huh? What?" Itsuki slowly sat upright, looking at the winged unicorn with brown eyes. "Oh." He yawned. "Hey, Takumi."

"Hey. Look at your sides."

"Huh? Why? What about them-" Itsuki looked at the side of his barrel, eyes widening when he saw the wings. "Woah!"

The winged unicorn, Takumi, stepped back as his friend scrambled out of the Levin.

"Check me OUT!" Itsuki yelped as he looked at his wings, flexing them a little. "Oh this feels weird, you know, moving these. But look! Now I have wings AND a horn! Like you!"

"Mm. I'm happy for you."

"Yeah, now you can stop gloating about the fact that you've ALWAYS had a horn and wings during these dreams while I only had the horn!"

"I never gloated."

"Well... still. Point is, I have wings! I'm a winged unicorn! Er, horned... pegasus? Pegacorn?"

Takumi said nothing.

Itsuki looked around. "Wait, why is it morning? Normally it's night."

"I dunno."

"Hm. Well, mind showing me how to work these wings?"

Takumi sighed. "I honestly just wanted to talk about the battle last night. With Nightmare Moon and Heartbreaker?"

"Oh yeah. That." Itsuki sighed as the memories came back. "Yeah. That was insane, wasn't it?"

"Mm. Wasn't exactly the hardest battle I've had, not by a long shot, but still."

'It was the hardest battle I had! Dude, do have any idea how terrifying it was to be PUSHED by Nightmare Moon? Almost off the freaking MOUNTAIN?"

"A bit, yeah."

"Yeah, thank god that Mazda Cosmo came and saved my butt."

"Right, right..." Takumi walked back to his Sprinter Trueno, looking around.

"What's wrong?" Itsuki asked.

"It's just... something doesn't feel right. About us being here."

Itsuki looked at the road they were parked next to. A typical two-lane road with yellow lines in the middle. "Doesn't seem too off to me. Other than the fact that we're in a different place than usual."

"I mean... this feels... different. It doesn't feel like an actual dream."

"Every time we've dreamt of being ponies, it's always felt real."

"But this just... hm..."

"Dude, come on. We'll be up as our normal selves back in Japan soon enough. Your dad is probably gonna wake you up soon and drag you back to your house so you can run your deliveries."

Takumi sighed. "Maybe. But... I dunno. I guess we can wait."

So, they waited.

And waited.

Takumi decided to teach Itsuki a bit of very basic magic.

Two hours later, Takumi's paranoia was unbearably high.

"Itsuki, I don't think this is a dream."

"What makes you say that?" Itsuki asked as he used his magic to, rather poorly, throw a rock.

"Because we should've woken up by now. We parked right on the side of the road, right where my dad would've seen us."

"What, you think we're stuck in this world or something? Get real."

Takumi's eyes focused on a castle far in the distance. More than a dozen miles at least. It wasn't the average castle. It looked like a tree more than anything. A crystal castle perched on top of a crystal tree.

Takumi remained neutral. "Itsuki, I'm being serious. This might not be a dream anymore."

October 16th, 10:47 AM. Twilight's Crystal Castle.

It was an Overcasted morning in Ponyville with the clouds obscuring much of the sky. It was the perfect day for relaxing inside with the windows open.

That's exactly what Starlight Glimmer and Trixie Lulamoon were doing in Twilight's Castle. Just sitting in Starlight's room on the bed, chatting. Twilight was out at Canterlot, Spike was... well, somewhere in the castle, so it was just them.

"So what do you think, Las Pegasus or Seaddle?" Trixie asked.

"Well, I can't really say. I've never been to either city." Starlight replied. "I guess It just boils down to what kind of Architecture you want to see more."

Trixie sighed. "I know, It's just that I want to get out and see places that aren't these small towns. No offense to Ponyville, but it just gets a little boring sometimes."

"True."

vrrOOOoommmm

The sound of an engine was heard outside along with the light scrch of dirt. Starlight grew confused.

"Is that Twilight?" Starlight asked.

Trixie scoffed. "How does an Inline 4 sound ANYTHING like a Flat Plane V8?"

"... I don't know. The window made it sound weird." Starlight got off the bed and walked over to the window, parting the curtains and looking out front. Trixie did the same.

Outside in the dirt lot were two cars. They were a little small, boxy, and had long sloping rear roofs. Liftbacks. They each wore a similar paintjob, one black and white with the other black and red, and looked pretty good next to each other. The white car had a wedge-like front end with retractable headlights, while the red one had a less sloped front with fixed headlights. Both also had black Carbon Fiber hoods.

"Oh look, some old Corolla's," Trixie said. "I already like their taste."

Starlight walked towards the door and opened it, walking out into the hallway. "I wonder what the drivers want."

"Oh probably just looking to talk to some royalty about solving a little kerfuffle," Trixie said as she followed Starlight down a hall towards the front door.

Starlight giggled. "Kerfuffle. That's a new one."

The two made their way to the front door and opened it, looking at the two AE86's. There were now two ponies in front of each. Both of them Pegasi. The one in front of the Corolla with Retractable Headlights had a crystal white coat and black hair and was wearing what seemed like a white sweater. The in front of the Corolla with fixed headlights had a red coat and black hair. They both looked quite good next to their cars. They matched.

"They must be brothers or something," Starlight assumed as she and Trixie walked towards the two Pegasi, who didn't seem to notice them.

"-so we're just supposed to walk in there and say 'Hey! We're not from here! Mind helping us?' to some forms of royalty we don't even know?" the red Pegasus asked the white one with a male voice. He sounded a little young.

"Well, what else are we supposed to do?" The white one calmly asked, also male. "Just wait around, probably starve? No. We're going to ask whoever lives here where we are, and how we're supposed to get back."

The red Pegasus groaned in response.

"Can we help you?" Starlight asked once she and Starlight were about six feet away, making the two Pegasi look at her and Trixie. They just sort of... stared. The red one backed up next to the white one, still staring.

"Is something wrong?" Trixie asked, growing a little uncomfortable.

"Sorry! We don't mean to stare," the white one quickly replied. "It's just that we're not really from here."

"Oh. Well if you want to know where you are, you're in Ponyville," Starlight replied.

The white Pegasus blinked. It had dark emerald green eyes. "Ponyville?" he asked, tilting his head."

"Yeah. Have you never heard of it?"

"No. I just, what kind of a name is Ponyville?"

"Don't ask me, ask the founders. Anyways, where are you two from?"

"Um..." The white Pegasus looked at the red one, who just stared back at him. He had brown eyes. The white one looked back. "Would you believe me... If I said that we're not supposed to be uh ponies?" he asked.

Starlight and Trixie grew confused. "What do you mean?" Starlight asked back.

"Well... I don't know if you know, but have you ever heard of... creatures called humans?"

Starlight blinked twice. "Uh... yes? Why?" Having been to the human world herself, Starlight knew all about them.

The pony sighed. "Long story short, we're not from here, and we're not supposed to be ponies. We are from a place called Japan. Last night we battled two beings, I assume ponies, on a mountain called Mount Akina. We won, but passed out, and woke up this morning in our cars on the side of the road. We just drove here and well, here we are."

Starlight was totally confused. "Uh-... I don't know what to say."

"Well, let's start with this. Do you know where we can find someone who can help us? And also who are you two? I'd rather get the formalities out of the way first."

"Oh. Well, I'm Starlight, and this is my friend Trixie."

"Hi," Trixie greeted.

"And no, I don't really know anypony who can help since, well, I don't know many details, but uh... we do know the princesses."

"Ok, what about kings or queens?" the white one asked. "I'd rather talk to them. Just to... you know. Find out how to get the heck back to my world."

"Those are the highest forms of royalty around here. Well, technically the term King and Queen are higher, but the Princesses refer to themselves as such as to not act like they own ponies." Starlight explained. She suddenly noticed some strange markings on the right side of the Panda Trueno, the name of the White Corolla's trim level. They were some language of sorts, but she couldn't recognize what the symbols said. "Hey, uh, what do those mean?" She asked. "On the side of your Trueno?"

The white Pegasus looked at the Trueno. "Oh, that? That's the name of my father's shop. Fujiwara Tofu Shop. The end says Private Use in parenthesis."

"Oh... why do you have it with those symbols?"

"Because It's the Japanese Language. The language I SHOULD be speaking right now, but somehow I know the English language so, here we are."

Starlight blinked. "Who... what are your names?"

"Takumi. Fujiwara Takumi. This is my friend, Takeuchi Itsuki."

"Hi..." the red Pegasus said nervously.

"Takeuchi?" Starlight asked.

"No, Itsuki," Itsuki replied.

"Those are... unique," Trixie admitted. "Trixie has never heard anything like them before, but they do sound neat."

"And I've never heard the names Starlight or Trixie before," Takumi said. "Actually, maybe I heard the name Trixie somewhere, but not for a pony or human. Now could we please talk to those princesses you were just talking about? We don't know what else to do."

"Oh! Uh, right! You can follow us inside. There aren't any princesses here at the moment, most of them are at Canterlot, but we can send them a message." Starlight turned around and motioned for everyone to follow her.

"Alright. Well, Itsuki, let's turn our cars off." Takumi opened the right door of the Trueno and reached in, biting down on the keys and twisting his head to turn the Trueno off. He leaned back out and shut the door. "Nobody is gonna steal these, right?"

"Nope. Nopony would dare steal cars from right in front of Twilight's castle." Starlight replied as Itsuki turned what she assumed was his Levin off. 'Levin' being the name of the Red Corolla's trim.

"Who's Twilight?" Itsuki asked as he shut the Levin's door. He began to walk next to Takumi.

"Just one of the princesses," Starlight replied as the four began walking towards the front door of the castle.

"Oh. Mind telling us the others?"

"Why not," Starlight said as the four walked through the front door, letting it shut behind them. "There's Twilight, Princess of Friendship. Cadance, Princess of Love. Luna, Princess of the Night. and Celestia, Princess of the Day. They're all Alicorns."

"Oh. Neat I guess. So you don't have any Kings or Queens? You don't have Princes?"

"We have Prince's. Just not Alicorn ones. And no, we don't have Kings or Queens. We have had them, but they were always power-hungry morons who didn't know any better."

Trixie snickered.

"What... what's an Alicorn?" Takumi asked as he looked around the hall.

"A pony with both the Wings of a Pegasus and a horn of a Unicorn. You could also call them Winged Unicorns and Horned Pegasi."

Starlight used her magic to open a set of double doors, and they walked into the map room.

"Whoa..." Itsuki mumbled as he took in the room.

"So is that what we are?" Takumi asked suddenly, making Starlight stop and turn around.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, me and Itsuki have both the wings of Pegasi and horns of Unicorns. They appeared on Itsuki after we battled the two cars and changed into ponies. I'm still trying to figure out why since Itsuki was a Unicorn originally. I've always been an... Alicorn. I guess."

Starlight and Trixie were confused, and the two looked at the Stallions. They both suddenly noticed that they did have Wings and Horns. They were Alicorns!

"You-... you're both Alicorns!" Starlight yelled in surprise, making the two wince.

"You make it sound like a massive deal," Takumi said.

"Because it IS a massive deal! And your both Stallions! How is this possible?!"

"Do you mind not yelling?" Itsuki asked. "I have a bit of a headache."

"Sorry." Starlight apologized. "But how the hay are you two Alicorns?"

"I don't know," Takumi replied. "We don't even know why we're ponies. It started with dreams, but now It seems like we're here for real. And we have no idea how to get back."

"Dreams?" Starlight was more confused than ever.

"Yeah."

"Well-... alright. I'd rather not have you tell what is probably a long story more than twice, so let's just sit down, and message the princesses."

"How?" Itsuki asked.

"There is a certain little dragon I know that could reach Twilight or Celestia instantly with a message, so uh... let me go get him."

Starlight jumped off her chair and walked back through the double doors, leaving Takumi, Itsuki, and Trixie with each other.

"So..." Trixie trailed off for a second as she thought about her words. "What exactly did you battle Nightmare Moon on this mountain called... Mount Akina, was it?"

"Yeah," Takumi answered. "Mount Akina. And the beings we battled were... one of them was named Nightmare Moon. She was in an R33 Skyline GT-R. The other was... Itsuki, what was the other one?"

"I think it was... something... breaker or something like that," Itsuki replied.

"Heartbreaker. That's the name. She was in a Lamborghini Miura Jota. Dark purple. For a car It's age, it really wasn't that bad," Takumi explained.

"Heartbreaker?" Trixie asked.

"Yeah. Heartbreaker and Nightmare Moon are the two... things we fought. Both were just... ugh."

"What do you mean?"

"The bastards tapped into our brains and tried to fill us with doubt. Make us crash," Itsuki said. "But luckily me and Takumi here pushed through and CRUSHED them! Made the Skyline crash with the help of a Mazda Cosmo!"

The double doors leading into the room opened, and through them walked Starlight and a little purple dragon holding a paper and quill.

"Hey, we're back," Starlight greeted.

Itsuki turned around to see Starlight but was horrified at the sight of a dragon.

"AH! DRAGON!" Itsuki yelled, jumping off the seat and onto the map table.

Takumi's eyes widened a bit as he looked behind, seeing the same dragon that now seemed very confused.

"Uh... Starlight? Who is that?" Takumi asked.

"This is Spike?" Starlight and 'Spike' looked at each other, then back.

"I don't know why you two are scared of me. I may be a dragon but It's not like I could hurt you that much," Spike said, hopping onto a little seat next to a bigger seat.

"I wasn't scared. Just surprised," Takumi clarified.

"So... your not gonna hurt us?" Itsuki asked.

"No? Why would I do that?"

"I... don't know." Itsuki looked down before slowly getting off the table and back into the seat next to Takumi.

"So you two are seriously Alicorns?" Spike asked.

Takumi unfurled his wings and glanced at his horn. "I guess so."

Spike's eyes widened in surprise. "Dang. Well, in that case, I guess I'll send a message."

"Why do you sound so disinterested?" Starlight asked.

"I just don't know what to say," Spike replied plainly as he wrote on the paper.

"Oh."

Trixie stared at the table, thinking about stuff. Starlight noticed this. "You ok Trixie?"

"Sorry, I just can't believe that we are standing-, no, sitting in the presence of the two male Alicorns is all," she explained.

"We are-" Itsuki began before groaning. "Ok. How fricken important are Alicorns?" He asked.

Trixie looked at him. "To put it simply, here in Equestria, Alicorns are considered royalty since they are the most powerful beings in the world. Well, maybe not the MOST powerful, but they are much more powerful than any Unicorn, Pegasus, Earth Pony, and a whole bunch of other beings."

"Define 'powerful'," Itsuki demanded.

"Magic. They can harness much more magic than any of the three main equines. Without the help of artifacts and... amulets." Trixie shuddered a little when she said the word 'Amulet'. Takumi was quick to notice.

"What's wrong with amulets?" Takumi asked.

Trixie sighed. "A few years ago, I foolishly bought up an Alicorn Amulet. Something that gives the wearer great power, with the side effect of becoming rather evil. And before you ask, no. I didn't become an Alicorn."

"And how did that go?"

"Long story short, I trapped this whole town under a glass dome and enslaved the ponies to do my bidding." She shrunk back into her chair.

Itsuki winced. "Wow. That's pretty horrible."

"Itsuki!" Takumi snapped.

"Don't worry, It's fine." Trixie quickly assured. "I regret what I did, but at the end of the day, It was the Amulet that made me evil. All I wanted to do was be more powerful than Twilight, and it backfired."

"Well, a few years is a long time to come to terms with things," Takumi said.

"It is."

"There!" Spike piped suddenly, putting all eyes on him.

"There what?" Itsuki asked.

"I'm done writing this message," Spike replied, manipulating it into a scroll.

"Oh. Alright. What does it say?" Itsuki asked again...

...just as Spike blew on it, disintegrating it. Starlight grew annoyed.

"Spike!" she exclaimed, making Spike wince.

"What?" he asked.

"You're not gonna read it out to us?!"

Spike looked at where the scroll just was. "Oh... oops." He shrugged and put his claws up with a very forced smile. Starlight and Trixie groaned.

"Uh, question? What did he do?" Itsuki asked.

"He disintegrated it," Takumi deadpanned.

"No, he didn't." Starlight looked at them. "That's his way of sending messages to either Celestia or Twilight. Mostly Celestia."

"Well, I sent that one to Twilight," Spike clarified.

"Greeaat..." Starlight looked down,

There was a moment of awkward silence. Nobody really knew what to say. At least, nobody except Itsuki knew what to say.

"So uh... are you guys able to do magic?" he asked.

"Yeah," Starlight replied. "We are. Why?"

"Mind showing us how?"

"You don't know how?"

"I've only been a unicorn for a week and a half. Takumi here... I dunno. I guess he's had a horn for a little more than that."

Takumi facehoofed. "I JUST showed you a bit of magic..." he mumbled.

Wait wait wait, exactly how long have you two been here?" Trixie asked.

"As ponies? Since we woke up at eight. We passed out after the battle," Takumi explained. "But we've been having dreams of being ponies, so we're used to it. I even know how to fly and perform... magic."

"And I don't know how to fly because I was a Unicorn before being turned into an... Alicorn," Itsuki loudly mumbled, sounding annoyed.

"Oh. So, random question, but if you two have one, been here for a couple of hours, where did you get those cars? You didn't steal them, did you?" Trixie asked.

"No! Of course not," Takumi quickly replied. "We battled Nightmare Moon and Heartbreaker with them, passed out after the battle, and woke up in them. Then we kind of just got on a highway, stopped at a gas station to refuel, then noticed this castle and, well, here we are."

"Wait..." Spike grew confused. "You battled Nightmare Moon and whoever the heck Heartbreaker is... with cars?"

"Yeah," was Takumi's answer. "We battled them on the downhill."

Now Starlight and Trixie were confused.

"Now-... Hold on," Starlight began. "I don't think we're following. What do you mean by battle? Because I feel like we have different definitions."

"We raced them. Duh," Itsuki said. "What else would we mean?"

Takumi sighed and facehoofed. "For street racers, we call races 'battles'. I think It's because It's a 'battle' between two racer's pride and reputation. And also for the fastest time on the course."

"Yep," Itsuki agreed.

"Oh. Huh. Neat. Wait... you raced Nightmare Moon and Heartbreaker... were they in cars?" Trixie asked.

"Yeah." Takumi leaned forward a little. "Nightmare Moon was in a Nissan R33 Skyline that was as black as the night sky, and it had blue mist coming off it. Heartbreaker was in the purple Miura P400 Jota. This old supercar from the sixties."

"Didn't know Nightmare Moon was such a car gal," Spike mumbled as he read a car magazine. "An R33 Skyline is a pretty quick machine."

Takumi looked at the back of the magazine and saw a car he had never seen before.

"Hey Spike, can I see that magazine?" Takumi asked, hopping off his chair and trotting over to Spike.

"Sure. What do you wanna look at?" Spike asked, laying the magazine flat on the map table.

Takumi leaned over the magazine. "Could I see the cover?" He asked.

"Sure," Spike said, closing the magazine to the cover. Takumi's eyes widened slightly as he saw the cover car. It was big, sleek, not to mention it looked pretty fast.

"Woah. That's... actually kind of nice. What is it?"

"It's an R35 Skyline. Duh," Spike clarified as the two stared at the cover car. A bright orange Nissan R35 GTR.

"A what?" Itsuki asked.

Spike flipped to the front page, showing a spreadsheet of a Nissan R35 GT-R. "It's the new R35 Skyline that came out last year. It's meant to be a successor to the R34 Skyline. I've been wanting one since I first saw it, but I don't have my license yet. And it sucks."

"Oh, I know that feeling," Itsuki said. "In the last year before I turned 18, I couldn't WAIT to get my license. I kept wanting to get it right then and there, but I was forced to not get one till 18."

"I know right? It sucks. I'll get my permit when I turn 16, and my full license at 17."

"You get a FULL license at 17? Lucky!"

"It still sucks. But hey, at least I've got go-karts I can use on my indoor soundproofed racetrack. It's great."

"Indoor racetrack!? Where?!" Itsuki asked, getting up.

"Oh, you wanna see? Come on!" Spike jumped out of his seat and began running past the table before he was suddenly engulfed in a light purple glow.

"Oh no you don't!" Starlight exclaimed, lifting him up. "You two are gonna wait right here," she said as she put him right back in his seat.

"Oh come on!" both Spike and Itsuki complained in unison.

"I want to check out the racetrack!" Itsuki exclaimed.

"You can once we get a reply from Twilight."

They both groaned as Takumi began walking towards the double doors.

"Where are you going?" Starlight asked.

"I think I'm gonna check the place out," Takumi replied nonchalantly, pushing the left door open. "Just yell when Twilight or whatever messages back."

"Wait!" Starlight jumped out of her seat and began running to the doors just as Takumi let the left one close behind him. "Hold on! I don't want you to-" Starlight had opened the same door during that sentence and stopped when she suddenly came face-to-face with Takumi, who had an annoyed look on his face. Wrapped around his horn was a scroll that was sagging since only the bottom half was supported by the horn.

"I think she messaged us," Takumi stated with an annoyed tone.

"Oh, ha," Starlight giggled as she levitated the scroll off his head. They walked back into the room.

"What the-? how did that happen?" Spike asked.

"I don't know," Takumi said as he and Starlight sat back where they had been sitting.

"Anyways, I'll read it," Starlight said as she opened the message and hovered it in front of her. She cleared her throat.

Dear Spike,

That is rather interesting, but since you pulled this trick the last time I was in Canterlot and made me, Celestia and Luna come all the way down there, thinking there really was a male Alicorn, when you were really just trying to be funny, (P.S; You weren't. You caused a heap of confusion and delay) I have serious doubts. Especially since you say there are two. If you're being serious, which you're not, send them up here. I'm not going back down there for four days.

- Twilight

Starlight shot Spike a dirty look, who sheepishly sagged into his chair.

"You've gotta be kidding me..." Trixie mumbled, putting her hoof to her face.

"That's it, I'm writing her a letter," Starlight stated as a piece of paper appeared in front of her. She picked up the quill that Spike had used with her magic and began saying what she was writing.

"Dear Twilight, it's Starlight. Spike is being serious. Their names are Takumi Fujiwara and Itsuki..." She trailed off and looked at Itsuki.

"Takeuchi. T A K E U C H I," Itsuki replied.

"Takeuchi., Starlight continued. "They showed up in two old Toyota AE86 Corolla's, at a little after ten. We are being serious. They claim to be from a place called Japan. Come on Twilight, why would your student lie to you about something like this? Your student, Starlight Glimmer."

She bundled it up into a scroll and hovered it in front of Spike. "Send that," she demanded, making Spike blow hard on it, disintegrating it with green fire.

She sighed. "Hopefully she replies soon."

"In the meantime, care to tell us how to magic?" Itsuki asked.

She sighed again. "Wouldn't hurt I guess. First, you need to-"

BURP

Spike suddenly belched, and out of his green fiery mouth came another scroll. Everyone rolled their eyes as Starlight opened it.

Ha ha, nice try you two. But right now I'm pretty busy. And your prank Isn't working. There are no male Alicorns. Now stop sending me these dumb messages. And no Alicorns would ever use an AE86. They are Junker's from a distant past.

"What!? Are you serious?!" Starlight yelled. Trixie just groaned.

Both Takumi and Itsuki were rather offended by that last sentence.

"Who the hell does she think she is?!" Itsuki exclaimed. "I bet my Levin could leave whatever car she drives in the dust!"

"No, it wouldn't." Starlight said flatly, facehoofing. "She drives a Civetta Bolide Twiline. It has a Twin Turbo 3.2 Liter V8 that makes like 500 Horsepower. It is a cornering monster. No way an AE86 of any kind could keep up with it. I know your Corolla's looked a little modified, but there is no way either of them makes nearly enough power to keep up with it."

"Civetta Bolide... Twiline?" Takumi asked.

"Yeah, what the heck even is that?" Itsuki asked.

"It's a mid-engined Supercar. Boxy, Straight Lines, a design from thirty years ago, you know. No way your cars could keep up with it," Starlight said.

"Not on a straightaway," Itsuki said. He suddenly leaned forward, putting his front hooves on the table. "But on the Akina downhill, we'd destroy a Civetta Bolide or whatever it was called! Especially Takumi! He'd lose her after the first three corners!" He exclaimed enthusiastically.

Starlight rolled her eyes. "I've seen those Bolide's take corners on the circuit faster than you've ever seen. You would never keep up, much less lose her. That is if she actually wanted to race."

"And how many races have you seen them compete in?" Itsuki asked.

"Like, one. I don't watch races. I've only seen three, and that was usually because I got stuck in a rouge storm and had nothing better to do."

"Well, you need to see more. Also, how much do Bolide's weigh?"

"A little over twenty-nine hundred pounds."

"HA! A skilled driver could DUST a Bolide on a circuit with corners with an Eight Six! It weighs 2000 pounds!"

"No, it couldn't? Have you ever seen a Bolide? Comparing that to an 'Eight Six' or whatever you call your cars is stupid. A full-on supercar vs an econobox like yours is just... not even a contest."

"UGH! You are impossible to talk to."

"So, quick question," Trixie interrupted before the argument escalated. "Are we gonna head to Canterlot, or are we gonna wait till Twilight gets back?"

Starlight looked down. "I... don't know. A minute ago I would have been demanding you two to drive us to Canterlot. But now I don't know."

"Well if you're ok with it, I'd like to learn magic. And also check out the racetrack." Itsuki said.

Takumi facehoofed again. "I just taught you some magic," he mumbled.

Starlight sighed. "Sure, I just don't want to lose track of where you two are. Just stay in the castle for me, please?"

"Absolutely. Hey Spike, care to lead me to the racetrack?"

"Sure!" Spike jumped off his chair. "This is gonna be awesome!" he giddily said as the two ran through the doors and disappeared down the hall.

Starlight looked back at Takumi and saw that he seemed... spaced out. He just stared blankly at the table, blinking once or twice every few seconds.

"Um... Takumi? Is everything alright?" she asked.

No response.

"Takumi?" Trixie asked.

In Takumi's mind, he was having a flashback.

It was the night before. He was on the Akina Pass, a nickname given to a road called the 'Jomo-Sanzan Panorama Highway', a mountain road on Mount Akina, Japan. He was on it with his best friend Itsuki who had his red and black Levin that had just gotten a carbon fiber hood. Takumi was trying to bait Nightmare Moon to come out, wanting to face his fear of the nightmares he had been having for the past week or so by racing her properly, on fair terms. He was a human. Average cream-ish skin tone, brown hair, basically his non-ponified counterpart aside from the black hair.

He was wearing his favorite outfit. Blue jeans with a white sweater and white shoes. Itsuki was with him in his own outfit, a green T-Shirt, and dark jeans. He was a little shorter, had black hair and average skin tone, and was your average high school graduate.

"Forget it Takumi. She's not coming," Itsuki stated.

Takumi sighed. "I guess your right. Let's head home."

They got in their cars, starting their engines and pulling out onto the road.

"It's so dumb. The one night I dare her to come out, she doesn't," Takumi complained over a radio transceiver as they slowly accelerated.

"Like a video game that involves Random Chance. You can get screwed twenty times in a row when you don't want to, then when you try to get screwed on purpose, it never happens," Itsuki agreed.

"Looking for me?" a female voice asked suddenly, sounding right in his head. His gaze shot behind and saw an R33 Skyline GT-R approaching quickly.

"TAKUMI!" Starlight yelled, snapping him out of the hallucination.

"Uh-... what?" he asked calmly, seeing Starlight directly to his right.

"You spaced out there. I thought we were losing you."

"Oh. Sorry about that. I was thinking about last night is all."

"Well, good. Is there anything you want to do? I guess you're both stuck in this castle until Twilight gets back."

"Um..." Takumi thought for a second. "What do you have to eat?"

"Plenty of things. Here, I'll show you where the kitchen is." Starlight offered, slowly walking towards the door. Takumi got off the chair and followed her out with Trixie quickly following suit.

Act 15: Undeserving

12:56AM, Rainbow Dash's house.

"I really wish I had arrived here sooner." Itsuki wished as he scrolled through pages on Rainbow Dash's computer.

"Why?" the Cerulean pegasus asked, standing next to Itsuki, who was sitting in a gaming chair.

"Because look at these 86 prices. I don't know how Bits would translate to Yen but these prices are stupid low!" Itsuki pointed at a red AE86 Levin Coupe. "Look at this one. 58000 kilometers, manual transmission, great paint, this thing would have gone for so much more back in Japan."

"Uh, that's in miles. Not kilometers.

"Oh. Right. Still gotta get used to that. But seriously, this should be going for way more than it is."

"It's not that popular of a car. No offense but the car really is just an old econobox. A fun econobox, but still an econobox."

"Well, ponies around here are missing out. The AE86 is the best car for the mountain pass hands down."

"You mean hooves down? Also not many ponies race in the mountains. They stick to the circuits."

"That doesn't mean anything- here, look."

Itsuki pressed the keyboard with his hooves, searching something. He felt extremely satisfied with how fast the page loaded.

"I freaking love this internet speed."

"Best of the best!" Dash boasted.

"Best internet for the best pegasus." Itsuki flirted.

Dash rolled her eyes.

"Anyways, look." Itsuki pointed as he scrolled past images of AE86's adorned with racing liveries and competition enhancements. "Tell me you wouldn't look at these and think 'damn this car must be awesome'. Look at this! A rally car!"

"Yeah, these look pretty good."

Itsuki's mouth watered from how insane some of AE86's were. Super Silhouettes, rally cars, circuit racers, a time attack car, they all made him want to get out there and buy up all the modifications he could.

"I really need to upgrade my Levin..."

"Why haven't you?"

"Because I've been hanging out with you. That's why."

"Hey, I'm alright with tuning your car with you. I could learn how to do it before going to my car."

"Mm. Plus I need to ask Celestia if I have access to money or anything."

"Uh..." Dash was skeptical. "You think Celestia would let you just... have money? I'm the element of Loyalty yet It's not like she gives me money."

"Does she? Uh... mayyybe since I'm an Alicorn she'll do it?"

Dash sighed. "We'll have to check tomorrow. Hey, how about we look at some S13's? I saw a picture of a cyan one earlier and WOW they look good."

Itsuki happily typed up 'nissan s13 for sale' and made his way onto a site. They scrolled past plenty of used S13 Silvia's, some modified while others weren't.

"Wow look at this one. Low mileage." Dash commented.

"Nice color too. Price seems alright."

"Well I did some research during my lunch break and found that they made over 350000 S13's. That's why the prices are the way they are. I could honestly buy one of these if I saved up for a month."

"Since you're on the freaking AIR FORCE then yeah I'm sure you could,"

Dash laughed. "Ha! Yeah! That's why I don't know if I should tell Spitfire or anything. About the, you know. Street racing."

"I already told her about me street racing. She's cool with it."

"Yeah but you aren't on the Wonderbolts, are you?"

"...no."

"Yeah. What if she... kicks me out or something? I've worked my whole LIFE to become a Wonderbolt! If I were to lose that..."

"Oh come on. I'm sure Spitfire will be fine with it. She seems like a cool girl. She owns an S14 for flying out loud. Surely she's had her fair share of racing with it."

Dash stared at him, tilting her head, jaw slightly open.

Itsuki looked at her. "What?"

"Flying out loud?"

Itsuki looked back at the screen. "Sounded good in my head."

Dash slowly formed a smile before shaking her head. "Nice. Anyways. Oh look at that- I'm sorry who thinks a 160000 mile modified show car is worth that much?"

"Yeah what the hell?" Itsuki agreed as they looked at a heavily modified S13, one modified to be lowered with excessively cambered wheels. "This looks horrible."

"I'll say." Dash yawned. "Man I'm tired."

Itsuki contagiously yawned. "So am I. Wanna head to bed?"

"Sure."

Itsuki shut the PC off and turned around in time to see Dash stretching her wings. He felt the heat rushing to his face as he took in her pose.

Holy hell she's hot...

He quickly began stretching when Dash turned around. It felt weird to do it as a pony.

"Anyways...uhn. Should I sleep on your bed or just stay on the couch?"

"Uhhh..." Dash looked at her bed, face reddening. The bed wasn't exactly meant for two ponies. It would work, but they would have to be nearly against each other. "I mean... it would be a bit cramped."

Pull back, you idiot. Itsuki thought. "Right, you're right. I'll be on the couch. Hey, you know where a blanket is?"

"It's uh- yeah here, one second." Dash quickly ducked into a closet. Within seconds, she brought out a silver silk blanket and pillow. "Here."

Itsuki levitated the pillow and blanket onto his back in the most jank way possible. "Thanks..." He slowly turned. "Good night."

"Night."

Luna felt the G-Forces diagonally behind her as Takumi drifted around a corner. The feeling was nothing short of exhilarating.

We have been out for so long. The way Takumi is taking to this course is amazing. She thought.

As they slowed down at the bottom of the course, Luna had a thought.

"Takumi?"

"Mm?"

"How have you adapted to driving as a pony so well?"

"I'm used to it," was his simple reply.

"...pardon?"

"I mean, I'm so used to Akina that I can take any handicap. Any condition. I just drove on there and adapted to the handicap of, well, not being able to grip the wheel like normal. It was easy to put that into driving anywhere else."

"Really?"

Takumi nodded as he continued. They had agreed that the run they just did was the last before changing out the tires for the eight time. Also they needed gas. He eyed the digital clock on the dashboard which read 4:27AM.

"You know, I'm surprised I'm not tired."

Luna said nothing.

"No seriously, I've been up since, what? Nine in the morning? So that's what, twelve... nineteen-almost twenty hours?"

"That is normal."

That was a little surprising. "It is?"

"Yes. Alicorns possess multiple resistances compared to all beings. One of which is a resistance to fatigue."

Takumi took a few seconds to process this. "Wha..? Seriously?"

Luna nodded with a smile. "Would you like to know the other resistances?"

"Yes, yes I do." Takumi put the blinker on as they got back on the highway.

"Well, let me see. Resistances resistances... there is Fatigue, we are able to focus at 100% for an extended period of time, our bodies are resistant to cold, heat, general damage, so somepony must be very powerful to significantly affect us. Our immune systems are heavily fortified, then there is... hm... I believe that is it. There may be more, but those are the ones off the top of my head."

She looked over at Takumi, who just stared at her wide-eyed with a slightly open jaw.

"What?"

"That..." Takumi formulated the words. "That is... perfect."

"What do you mean?"

"Those are perfect for a race!" Takumi exclaimed, looking back ahead.

Luna smiled, instantly wanting to know how they were perfect. "How so?"

"Fatigue Resistance is good for practicing." He began. "You can practice all night long and never get tired, so your performance is never screwed over. Not to mention how great it would be for endurance racing. Then, being able to focus at 100% is literally the most perfect thing for endurance racing on a mountain road."

"Is it now?"

"Yeah. You have to focus entirely on driving when on a mountain road. It's just turn after turn after turn after turn out there. It may not seem like much for a time attack, but when It's an endurance battle, you really feel it after a few runs. You start getting tired. You make mistakes and screw up."

Luna was confused. "Wait, if you lose focus after a few runs, runs that only last a mere five minutes depending on the course and pace, so after maybe twenty minutes, then how do drivers in the 24 Hours of Manehattan stay going for so long?"

"You mean the 24 Hours of Le-... oh. Nevermind. Also, there is a big difference between the Circuit and the Mountain Pass."

"I know. But what about those circuits that are nearly all corners? Like the Manehattan Circuit?"

Takumi sighed. "You know how nearly all the circuits have that one long straightaway?"

"Yes, yes I do."

"That straightaway is there so people can get their focus back. So they can just relax and press on the accelerator."

Luna thought it through. That did make sense. A place where you could take a break from constantly managing your acceleration, braking, and cornering, and just roll through the gears till you hit top speed, did sound refreshing.

"Hm. I see your point. How intriguing."

Takumi nodded. "Remember, on a mountain pass, you don't have that sort of thing. Maybe there's one long straightaway or a huge curve, but those are never long enough to relax. You literally cannot stop focusing on driving or else you'll screw up. That's just the way it is on the Mountain Pass."

"Hm."

"Then, heat resistance is good for endurance as well. You sweat less so you don't lose focus as easily. Plus you can focus more on driving instead of wiping your head."

Luna said nothing as they pulled into a gas station for the second time that night, not feeling the need to. Takumi stopped the 86 and got out, walking over to a pump and filling the 86 up with high octane.

She relaxed in her chair as she stared at the night sky. Her moon hung high in the air, gently glowing and illuminating all of Equestria. To think Takumi's favorite thing to do was race at night. She didn't know if he loved the night or not, but his favorite hobby was only done at night. So that was that.

"Hmm..."

Takumi finished refueling the 86 and got back in, keying the ignition.

"Takumi?"

"Yeah?" Takumi looked at Luna, who looked at him.

"What is your opinion on the night?"

Takumi tilted his head. "What do you mean?"

"What do you think of it?"

"Oh. Um..." Takumi looked around. "In general? I think it's alright. Back home it's always so dark normally. Around here it's... pretty bright."

"Is it dark in your world? At night?"

"Yeah. Darkest when the moon isn't out. But even our 'night' was never as bright as this. God it feels so weird to say that..."

"But do you like it?"

"I like it. But with how bright it is, I feel like one-... crap."

"What?"

Takumi put the 86 into gear and got back on the highway. "Nothing. I just realized there's a racing move I might not be able to pull off."

"What racing move?"

Takumi thought about telling Luna, remembering a racing move he took pride in doing. He remembered being behind a yellow Honda Civic Type R EK9, following it through a series of corners. His hand reached right behind the steering wheel, grabbing a small lever. Suddenly, the back of the EK9 went completely dark save for the taillights.

"You would hate me if I told you." Takumi slowly said.

Luna nearly pressed further but decided against it. If he had a personal move, then it was his to know. Maybe it would be better to leave it a surprise.

Soon, they were back in town grabbing another set of tires. Luna was happy to learn how to change out a set of tires, knowing she could use this knowledge to change the tires on her Cosmo. It was fun to learn how to actually work on cars. She had spent plenty of time putting research into how to work on cars and make them her own. To actually do it? The feeling was fulfilling.

A thought, as usual, crossed her mind as she looked over one of the Watanabe rims. "Have you ever considered carbon fiber rims?"

Takumi shook his head. "Not really. I prefer the look of these rims."

"Well, I mean these same rims, same color, but made of carbon fiber. I have heard about the material and honestly, the qualities it has makes me wonder why every car isn't using it."

"Mm... I dunno. These rims are sort of part of the car. If they get screwed up, sure. I might consider it."

"What if you could change their material?"

Takumi looked at her, curious. "Can I do that?"

"Yes. Yes, you can. It is a borderline-alicorn level spell, but with practice, I am sure you could do it."

Takumi rolled his eyes. "I guess I'm technically a step above that level."

Luna giggled. "That is sadly not the case. You must learn the spell and the properties of the material first. Anyway, It would only change the material. The paint would stay on. It would be like it was never touched or changed. Well, aside from the performance gains."

Takumi smirked. "That does sound nice. Any other car researches you want to tell me about? Ways I can upgrade my car?"

"...Polycarbonate windows?"

"Uh... what's that?"

"The carbon fiber of windows."

Alright, this was cute. Luna was actively wanting to learn more about cars. She probably learned about this not too long ago, hence why she brought it up.

"I don't see why not. How much weight would it remove?"

"Well, a polycarbonate sheet is 50% lighter than a sheet of glass that has the same dimensions."

Takumi was impressed. "That sounds... pretty good actually. Less weight towards the top does mean a lower center of gravity. My dad liked to say that."

"Mm, yes. If you want, I can pay for the conversion." She noticed a slightly pained look on Takumi's face. "I-I know it is your car and all! It is just, neither of us has the experience to perform such a task."

Takumi was stuck between deadpanning and confusion. "We... have magic?"

"It has been proven time and time again that manual labor is far better than magical labor. And not just in the automotive industry."

"Hmm..." Takumi was silent as he put the last wheel on. "Makes sense I guess."

Luna nodded as they gently lowered the 86 off the jack stands and back onto the ground. They wasted no time getting back in and starting the engine. Fortunately, the engine was still somewhat warm, so they were able to get moving quickly.

As they slowly rolled through town, avoiding the hay blocks that lined and sometimes sat in the middle of the road, Luna sat in silence.

It was kind of invigorating, to be honest. The feeling of being a sneaky little mare and avoiding other ponies, especially when doing something so scandalous, something Celestia would freak out about if she were found out, there was something about it that really made her heart flutter.

"I can't believe... I am going be racing the leader of the Wonderbolts..."

Luna smiled. "I would be lying if I said I did not feel the same."

"It's not like that. Well, not entirely. I mean..." He sighed. "Back in my world- I will NEVER get used to saying that. But back in my world, there's another team called the Wonderbolts."

Luna was intrigued. "Really?"

"Yeah. It's weird because I am racing the leader of this world's Wonderbolts, who is a girl and drive an S14. MY world's Wonderbolts' leader is a man named Satoru, I think twenty or twenty one, who drives an EPC."

"A what?"

"An EPC."

"Um..."

Takumi sighed again. "He drives a 1975 Ford Capri."

"He drives a..."

"1975 Ford Capri. It's about the same color as you with golden accents."

"I have... never heard of such a car."

"It's older then my 86. It is by far the oldest car anyone in JAPAN uses for mountain racing."

"And... how old is your- this 86?"

"Fifteen years old."

"...and that makes the Capri?"

"Twenty-Three."

"That does not seem so bad."

"Mm."

"..."

"You think we should head up to Canterlot?"

Luna eyed the time. 4:58AM.

"Why? It is still early."

"I just... I've been wanting to talk to you and Celestia about something."

"What is it?"

"Both of you. At the same time."

"...oh. Well, I am sure my sister can make time during the day. You are a male Alicorn after all."

That was... uncomfortable to hear. "And..." Takumi slowly began as they hit the highway. "...you are emphasizing that I'm male because..?"

Luna giggled. "I am referencing when she first met you. She was extremely interested that you were a male. A bit too interested."

"Oh. Well... I don't know if I should feel uncomfortable or not."

"Heh. I am sure she does not really want to be with you in that way."

"She wants to be with me-... you know what? No. I am not going to talk about that."

Luna just smiled. "How about we burn two more sets of tires, and then go back to Canterlot?"

Takumi sighed. "Yeah, yeah. Alright."

"Mm."

"Are you kidding? Of COURSE I'll help!"

Itsuki slowly woke up from his slumber upon hearing Rainbow Dash's voice. He quickly covered his eyes as the sun hit them.

After a moment, he sat up and saw Rainbow Dash hovering in the air, looking down at Scootaloo.

"Of course! Practically every town in Equestria has one! I still remember racing my cloud cart..."

"What are we talking about?" Itsuki asked.

Scootaloo was surprised. "Woah! Hey Itsuki!"

"Hey Scootaloo."

"I didn't know you were here!"

"He is. We hanged out last night, looking at cars." Dash explained.

"Oh nice. Wait... you... only looked at cars, right?" Her cheeks began to turn pink. "You didn't... um..."

Itsuki could feel the bridge of his nose getting redder with each passing heartbeat. "S-So what were you talking about?"

"I'm gonna pretend I didn't hear that out of you." Dash scolded. "Anyways, Scootaloo just asked if I wanted to help her build a kart for the Applewood Derby. Of COURSE I will."

"The Applewood Derby?"

"Yeah!" Scootaloo beamed. "It's this awesome annual kart race in Ponyville. You get to build your own kart and race the other ponies."

"Sounds fun!"

"Yeah! Wanna help out?"

"Uh, Scoots?" Dash asked. "I don't think two adults are supposed to be helping one filly. Or colt."

"Oh. Right..."

"I'm alright with watching," Itsuki said.

"Oh perfect!" Scootaloo took off out of the house. "Let's get going!"

Itsuki and Dash looked at each other.

"She is one energetic Filly."

"Yeah, she is. That's why she's the best."

"Mm. Anyways, let's get going. This Applewood Derby sounds great."

1:11PM, Canterlot Castle. Takumi's room.

Takumi sat in his room next to the window, eating some Tofu.

EEEEE!

His vision flickered.

vroooOOOOOm- vrooooooOOOOOOOOm-

His vision went from him eating Tofu, to the interior of his 86.

Directly ahead was an orange Nissan S14 Zenki. It was pouring. Water flew through the air as he followed the S14 through several corners, noting the change of sound and pitch his engine had. It was quieter and much less aggressive.

"AHHHHH!"

He heard Itsuki screaming from the back seat as he was thrown around. He didn't flinch. He only focused on the S14 harder as it braked in front, skidding to the outside of the road.

Seeing his chance, Takumi swerved to the inside of the road and immediately passed the S14, seeing the words REDSUNS on its rear quarter panel.

"Wow..." Takumi murmured as the flashback dissipated. "That was... that was only a year ago, but it feels like it's been several..."

He peered out the window, down to where the 86 was parked. It was currently being worked on by some ponies, with all windows being removed.

"I wonder what that feels like... Getting new windows. Is that like getting new glasses?.." He sighed, shaking his head. "I just... to think you and I started our racing career the other summer. We went through all that. We raced an FD, R32, EG6, SilEighty, S14, an FC, the list goes on..."

His heart began to ache. "All for nothing. Now we're in this world where I'm no longer some teen. I'm practically a god. I'm an Alicorn. I'm meant to be some flawless, perfect being, who got here by being worthy of being an Alicorn. That's what I'm meant to be."

A tear formed in his eye. "Yet... I'm not. I don't deserve this. I'm not a perfect being. I'm just some kid who loves racing. I didn't earn being an Alicorn, I just happened to turn into one. Itsuki doesn't deserve to be an Alicorn because HE doesn't even CARE about his family. His friends. Why did I ever become friends with him?"

He finished the tofu and put his paper plate and plastic utensils in a garage can. "Why did we become Alicorns? Why did I become an Alicorn? Itsuki didn't have a legend. He wasn't in Project D. He was on the SpeedStars. I was in Project D, actually going around beating racer after racer on different courses. He just stayed on Akina..."

Piff

He sat down next to his bed. "I don't deserve this. I just don't. I'm a teenager. I had friends, family. People I cared about. What sick bastard thinks I want to be some god? I don't. I... don't... help me..."

"Luna, may I ask you something?"

Luna looked at Celestia as they walked down a hall. "Of course. What is it, sister?"

Celestia sighed. "Don't take this wrongly, I am just curious is all. With all the time you and him have spent together..." She paused. "...Does he know?"

"Know... what?"

"About what you did. About... that."

A bit of pain shot through Luna's heart. "No... no, he does not. I have been thinking about when I should tell him."

"Why have you not done so yet?"

"Because I do not want to earn distrust. You do understand how apprehensive he is about his encounter with Nightmare Moon, correct?"

Celestia nodded.

"I have this feeling that if I tell him, he may... hate me. That he will think I was Nightmare Moon."

"But you were?"

"I mean, the Nightmare Moon that attacked him. On Akina."

"...Oh. Well, maybe it will be best if we break it to him slowly. Perhaps during the pending conversation."

Luna looked at the ground. "Perhaps..."

Celestia sighed. "Slight change of subject, what did you two do last night? I noticed you two did not come back until minutes before you had to lower the moon."

"We drove," Luna answered calmly.

"You drove?"

"He is at his calmest when with his 86."

"Oh. Is he?"

Luna nodded.

"Where did you drive?"

Luna had been expecting this mini-conversation. "Around Equestria, really. We mostly stuck to highways." She wasn't lying about the second bit. They had been on the WTA Access Highway after all.

"So where did you go?"

"If you mean what cities did we pass through, I am sorry to disappoint you. We did not pass through many. We stuck around Ponyville, Sierra Mountain, but did drive east and catch a glimpse of Manehatten."

"You went all the way out to Manehatten?"

Luna nodded.

"Hm."

"We were out for the better part of seven hours."

"Yes, yes you were."

They walked in silence up a flight of stairs and down a moderately lit hallway.

"So this is his room?" Celestia asked as they walked past Luna's room and stopped in front of Takumi's room. Luna nodded.

Knock Knock Knock

No answer.

The sisters looked at each other.

"Takumi is here, right?" Celestia asked.

Luna looked back at the door. "Takumi?" She quietly called out. "It is Luna and Celestia."

After no answer, Luna turned the doorknob, slowly pushing the door open.

"Takumi?"

"Oh! Uh, Luna!" Takumi yelped, turning to look at the sisters who were now peering inside. He quickly rubbed his face. "Uh, hi. You too Princess Celestia."

"You don't have to be so formal," Celestia said as she and Luna walked in, closing the door.

Takumi climbed onto the bed. "So um, what brings you two in here?"

"Luna informed me that you wanted to speak with me."

Takumi looked away. "I did tell her that, didn't I..."

Since the bed was a king, it could fit all three. Luna sat on the bed with Takumi, with Celestia-... almost following suit.

"Something wrong, sister?" Luna asked.

Takumi and Celestia looked at each other. Takumi, feeling nervous, looked away.

Celestia grew worried. The look on Takumi's face was something she had seen countless times before. It was the look of somepony who had just spent several minutes... crying. He had hidden it very well, but she could still see the marks.

"Takumi..." she gently said, sitting next to the bed. "What is wrong?"

"Nothing."

Luna was confused.

"Takumi, I have seen that face countless times before. What is wrong?"

"I'm fine."

"Takumi, please-"

"I said I'm fine."

"Takumi?" Luna asked. "...Is there something wrong?"

"Why are you two getting on my case about stuff that doesn't matter?" Takumi tentatively snapped. "I'm fine."

The sisters looked at each other, unsure of who should say something first.

Luna reached a hoof over and place it on Takumi's shoulder. "Takumi? Is it... about your world?"

She felt Takumi shudder. "I'm f-fine... alright... I don't want to talk about that..."

"Are you sure?"

Takumi nodded. "So... to s-start off... I have a question for both of you."

"Of course. Anything." Celestia gently reassured.

Takumi took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. "What is it like... to live a thousand years?"

They knew this question would be asked eventually.

Celestia paused for a moment, choosing her words. "It is certainly an... interesting experience," she began. "It is not something that can so easily be put into words."

She paused, waiting for Takumi to say something.

"I mean... how do you cope with losing everyone you love?" He asked. "Your friends, family, everyone you love dies old, while you remain-... eternally young. Immortality is literally the worst curse you could ever have."

"It is not true immortality we have, Takumi. We do feel pain. I am sure one could kill us if they had the power and means to do so."

"So there have been other Alicorns?"

"Um-... what do you mean?"

"So other Alicorns have existed? They just died because someone killed them?"

There was silence as Celestia thought about it. "At this moment, besides one other known only through ancient paintings, um... no."

"So what you mean to tell me, is that Alicorns have only ever existed for a little over a thousand years? Period?"

"In terms of documented Alicorns, then... yes."

"Great. So you think you can die, even though there hasn't been any- ok, both of you, stop it. Alicorns are Immortal. I don't need you lying to me."

Both Celestia and Luna grew frightened. At that moment in time, there were no documented cases of other Alicorns besides them, Cadance and Twilight and Flurry Heart, and one other known only through ancient depictions and not by name, which by extension meant there was no documentation of an Alicorn dying. Whether it be Age or Injury, or anything else.

There was no evidence pointing towards Alicorns being entirely immortal even to injury, but at the same time, there was no evidence against it either. An Alicorn would have to die to test that, and who in their right mind would kill themselves to prove it, giving up Immortality?

Celestia and Luna shuddered.

Luna broke the silence after a few moments. "I think we are getting off track..."

Takumi sighed. "Why am I even asking about this... you two are a thousand years old yet even you don't know what happens..."

"Because you want to know." Celestia quickly said. "With time, Takumi, you will learn to accept it."

"I'm not a perfect being." Takumi snapped. "I'm not like you. I was forced into this world. You're overestimating me on-..."

"Do you think we did not grieve over our losses?" Luna asked.

Celestia quickly intervened. "Back to the original question..." She eyed Takumi, who stared at the bedsheet, silent.

"Continue..." he mumbled.

Celestia gently nodded. "To live a thousand years is, again, not something that can so easily be put into words. The mortal mind cannot fully grasp it. I have lived through more than several eras and witnessed several events unfold. An industrial revolution, the invention of the automobile, and to keep it close to home for a car pony like you, every era of car up to this point."

"Era of cars?" Takumi asked. He still didn't move.

"Yes. From the early three-wheeled carts to back when ponies were trying to squeeze as much power out of tiny engines as possible. But anyways, to lose somepony to me is like... like... It's like losing a cat. A cat you have spent many years with. One you perhaps inherited from your grandmother who had too many. You often let it sit on your lap or your back as you did something, and took care of it. Since you have owned a few cats before, while you loved your current cat, you cannot help but feel sad when it inevitably passes."

"Do not take our silence after somepony's death as a lack of sorrow." Luna quietly added.

"Hm..." Takumi laid down on his stomach and rested his head on a soft pillow. Wow. Didn't even answer my damn question.

"Anything else?" Celestia asked.

Takumi laid silent for a moment before speaking.

"What's going to happen to my 86?"

"What was that?"

"What is going to happen to my 86?"

"Oh... Well, that depends on a number of factors. To keep driving it, you would simply have to care for it. Maintain it."

"But, the thing is, if I'm really going to live forever, my 86 is just... My 86 is made of metal. Metal degrades."

"Takumi, I do not know if you know this," Luna began. "-but things in Equestria tend to degrade slower than you may think. I am sure your car will live an extremely long life when given the right maintenance."

"My 86 isn't Equestrian." Takumi snapped.

The sisters recoiled. Not because they were surprised, but because that form, that nightmarish form, appeared. It was only for a second, but they could see all the features. The black mist burning off his hair along with red mist burning off his wings, those fiery, spiteful eyes, they could taste the sudden hatred and rancor that had engulfed the young Alicorn for only a second before it disappeared faster than one could flap their wings.

"No... n-no, it isn't... is it..." Luna trailed as she tried to find the words.

"What... was that?" Celestia quietly asked.

"What was what?"

Luna shot Celestia a look, trying to convey that she wanted the Sun Princess to not say anything. Fortunately, Celestia got the hint and stayed quiet.

Takumi sighed when neither answered him. "Not... Equestrian..."

They all stayed silent for what felt like hours, none knowing what to do or say. No birds chirped outside, no clattering of distant dishes being cleaned, no guards walking by the door, it was just them. Total silence.

Itsuki watched Rainbow Dash as she built a kart resembling 1960s Open-Wheel Racers. It was satisfying in a way to see it happen. The way she sawed the block to create the body and installed the 'engine' looked nice.

The 'engine' was actually a battery filled with little 'lightnings'. Those lightnings would electrify the rear axle in a way that made them turn either forward or backward depending on which side the lightnings were directed at. So it was basically an electric engine.

The interesting part was that the 'fuel' would last a very long time, which would make it perfect for commuting for days on end. This would be perfect for commuting long distances over and over, day after day, all that. For frequent commuters. This WOULD BE perfect if this setup didn't severely corrode whatever the axle was after mere hours of use.

So it was relegated to events like the Applewood Derby. The Karts were only used for at most ten minutes, so it was fine.

"Hmph," came a sound next to him.

Itsuki looked next to him to see Scootaloo sitting down on the ground.

"Oh. Hey Scootaloo. How come you haven't been working on your kart?"

Scootaloo sighed. "I've been wanting to work on it, yeah, but Rainbow Dash wants to build it to be the fastest kart in the race."

Itsuki was confused. "Isn't that the point of the race?"

"Well, yeah. For the Fastest Kart Medal. But the medal I want is for Most Creative kart."

"Oh. Huh. Didn't know that. But if it's your kart, why aren't you telling her you don't want to be the fastest?"

"Because-... ugh. Because she knows best I guess."

"What the- hey that doesn't make sense. It's your kart. You should have the final say about it."

Scootaloo looked up at him. "Well how about YOU tell her to stop?"

"I will!"

With that, Itsuki stood up on all fours and walked over to Dash, who was currently installing a wheel on the kart.

"Hey, Rainbow Dash?"

"Hey Itsuki," Dash greeted. "What's up?"

"Scootaloo wants to build the most creative kart. Not the fastest," he bluntly stated.

"Why?" Dash looked at Scootaloo who stood behind Itsuki. "The fastest kart gets the fastest medal!"

"I... want to be the most creative," Scootaloo sheepishly replied.

"Why!? If we build the most creative kart, we won't be the fastest!"

"It's not your kart?" Itsuki reminded.

Dash opened her mouth to say something, but no words came out. After a moment, she began nodding. "You know... you're right..." Her cheeks went red as she looked at Scootaloo. "Uh... sorry kid. I guess I got lost in nostalgia."

"You... kinda did."

Dash looked at the kart, still embarrassed. "But I've already finished this. How the hay are we supposed to finish a kart given we have like ten minutes left?"

"Um..." Scootaloo sighed. "We don't. It's alright. I'll just wait for next year."

"In that case-" Itsuki walked over to the kart. "I'm gonna tighten the bolts on everything. Dash you barely tightened them. Look at the wheel!" He pushed his hooves against a wheel and shook it vigorously.

"Oh sweet Celestia! THAT would have made for a nasty accident!" Dash exclaimed.

"Ya think!?" Itsuki yelled angrily. "If the wheel were to break off, you could overcorrect and flip over! You'd wrap yourself around a truck and get killed INSTANTLY!"

Both pegasi recoiled at Itsuki's anger.

"You... sound like you're speaking from experience..." Dash slowly said.

"Yeah! I hate it when people forget to check something as simple as a SCREW! PEOPLE DIE THAT WAY!!!"

He grabbed a wrench and began torquing down as many bolts as he could find. Dash and Scootaloo silently grabbed their own wrenches and did the same to the other wheels.

Itsuki sighed as he moved to the other wheel on his side. "Sorry. I just... I just hate it when people don't maintain their stuff."

"It's alright," Dash reassured. "Good vehicle maintenance is probably just as important as a Pegasus keeping their wings in shape."

"Probably?" Itsuki asked, eyeing her.

"Just as important! Just as important." She sighed. "Well, Scoots, sorry for not listening to you."

"It's fine. At least you straight-up never acknowledged it," the filly replied.

"Tell you what, I'll let you drive. Alright?"

"The kids are supposed to drive, aren't they?" Itsuki asked.

"Oh yeah." Dash rubbed the back of her head. "Uh, sorry."

"All racers to the starting line!" an upbeat and cheery voice called out via megaphone. "All racers to the starting line!"

"Oh. Huh. Time flew by quick." Itsuki remarked.

"It sure did. Everything looks tight over her, so come on Scootaloo. Let's win first place!" Dash jumped in the backseat of the kart, patting the seat in front of her. Scootaloo smiled and got in, starting the lightning-powered engine.

"Fine. let's go."

"Sorry..." Takumi slowly apologized.

"It is... alright," Luna replied.

"I'm just... dealing with so many things at once is all. I'm apparently some flawless being now, I'm learning to live in a... well I can't say completely different world, but... you know what I mean."

"Takumi, we aren't flawless. Ponies may think that, but we're as much as ponies as anypony else." Celestia reassured.

"Mm... It's just that I don't feel like I deserve to be an Alicorn."

"Whatever do you mean?"

"I mean, from what I know, to be an Alicorn means you did something amazing. Something phenomenal for a certain skill... thing. Considering your roles as Princesses, my guess is that you became the first ponies to raise and lower the sun and moon. Cadance is... I don't even know, and Twilight probably did something like befriending a world-threatening monster."

Images of his battle with Nightmare Moon flowed back into his mind, causing him to scowl.

"What did I do? All I did was race and beat Nightmare Moon in a race. Anyone could have done that! AnyPONY from THIS WORLD! It wasn't even my hardest battle on Akina. It's just so... mmmm."

Celestia sighed. "While I don't know if we will ever find out why you and Itsuki became Alicorns, we should accept it. It's not like we have a choice in the matter."

"Mm... Itsuki... you know, Itsuki pisses me off the most. He doesn't even care about his old life. His friends, family, he sure doesn't feel like a best friend."

Neither sister said anything.

Celestia let her eyes wander for a bit before noticing a plate of tofu on it. She used her magic to levitate a piece over to her and began quietly eating it. She was a little surprised. Tofu, normally, wasn't bad, but to her, it wasn't good either. This Tofu was actually kind of nice.

"What was that just earlier... about another Alicorn? Known through ancient depictions I think is what you said?"

"It's just that," Celestia said after swallowing. "Only known through ancient depictions have we seen it. All we know is that the Alicorn was female, was white, and had red hair."

"Ok well, what went wrong with her?"

"We do not know whether or not she was real," Luna explained. "We do not even know her name."

"Greeeaat..."

More silence. The conversation was dragging on, with nopony knowing what to say.

"At least I'll get to own my 86 for all eternity..."

The sisters looked at him with wonder.

"What do you mean?" Luna asked.

"I mean..." He sighed. "I've always wondered what would happen to my 86 after I'm gone. I mean, I am going to keep it till the day I die, so that would be like fifty-sixty years. Longer if I'm lucky. When I die, who would want anything to do with what would then be a 60-year-old hatchback? Would it go to some collection? Would it just sit somewhere for years on end before being crushed?"

Luna nodded. "I see where you are getting at. I have always found that to be a rather dark and morbid part of car culture, or cars in general. You could only care about a car for at most eighty years or, if you are lucky, even ninety years. You thoroughly maintain it, even keep it in pristine and stock condition. But when you pass, you never get to see what happens to the car afterward. Who is to say the next owner doesn't destroy it or heavily modify it?"

"Yeah. That is the problem." Takumi agreed. "You never know what will happen. But yeah, I've always wondered what would happen to my car after I was gone."

Celestia opened her mouth to say something.

"Of course, that was BEFORE I suddenly became immortal," Takumi added.

Everypony giggled a little.

"Yes, now you can forever maintain ownership of your 'Eight-Six'." Celestia agreed.

"Yeah. I know... that's good... You know, for peop- ponies like you, you're a lot different from what I imagined."

"How so?"

"From the shows and movies I've seen in my world, we call them anime's, old rulers were always super serious and usually demanded utmost respect from everyone that talked to them. For you two being over a thousand years old, you are... heh, pretty playful."

The sisters blushed. "Well, just because I am a thousand years old, cannot mean I can't have some fun." Celestia cheerfully said. "Plus, It's always nice when something unexpected happens."

"Hm. I guess... that's another thing. After a thousand years, you've probably done everything you'd ever want to do. It'll get so boring."

"Mm... well, in recent years, plenty of interesting things have happened. In fact, if you had shown up one year ago, you would have had quite a more interesting time."

"Ok, I would prefer this kind of 'introduction' to this world to anything else."

"Hm... Well, this doesn't seem to be going anywhere. Is it alright if I ask you a few questions?"

Takumi thought about it for a few seconds before shrugging. "Shoot."

Celestia sighed. "It's about your... street racing."

Takumi didn't need to look to know that Luna had just been consumed by dread. He felt nothing. "What about it?"

"I have nothing against you street racing in your world. But in this world, it's just that... I don't want you doing it is all."

"Why?"

"I am concerned for your well-being is all. If you were to crash, well..."

"Sister, you, me, and the others have seen Takumi's skills behind the wheel." Luna defended. "I can tell you from experience that he is a very good, and very smooth driver."

Celestia eyed Luna. "Do you support his actions?"

"I do not support nor oppose his actions."

Wow, that is one helluva lie. Takumi thought.

"Hm. But you do understand where I am getting at, right?"

"Of course."

"Celestia, I'll be fine," Takumi reassured. "I've never had a crash in my life."

"I know. It's just..."

Takumi sat up and looked at her. "I know where you're getting at. You don't know me and I'm, again, some super important being, but trust me. I'll be fine."

"I'm sure you will be. But what if ponies find out that an Alicorn, a being they hold on the highest pedestal of any other being, doing something as deplorable as Street Racing?"

"DEPLORABLE!?"

Takumi nearly jumped off the bed the moment Luna yelled. The night princess gasped. "Um, I mean, deplorable?" She quietly asked. "What about organized Street Racing is deplorable?"

Takumi put a hoof to his chest. "My freaking nerves are shot..."

"S-Sorry..." Luna apologized.

"Not... 'deplorable'. It's just, no offense Takumi, but ponies don't see Street Racing in the best light."

"Same for my world." Takumi laid back down, feeling sad.

"Takumi... is..." Celestia moved closer to the bed. "I just don't want to see you hurt. Mountain racing is especially dangerous."

"I don't see the problem... listen, just... actually, just go away, alright? I don't even know why we're talking about this. You two probably have Royal Duties or something."

"Wait, what?"

"Just don't worry about me." His tone grew aggressive. "I'm apparently just some ungrateful brat that lacks the ability to accept the fact t-that I'm a f-freaking god."

Pain once again wrought its way through the sisters' veins. Takumi was hurting himself, mentally. He was letting dark thoughts into his mind. Whether he knew it or not they didn't know, but they were leaning towards him not knowing.

They looked at each other, wondering what to do. What in the world was wrong with this kid?