"Psst."

Sugar Belle woke with a blinking, looking around the gloom. "Huh?"

"Psst." Blossom knocked on her window. "Is this a bad time?"

Sugar half-fell from her bed. "Oh! You surprised me something fierce." Not that this stopped her from throwing open the window for the alicorn to come in and sit in front of her. "Why are you here? Not that I'm mad to see you."

"Well..." Blossom brought her hooves together. "For one, just wanted to see you, and it's way easier to do that at night, as Blossom, 'less ah'm bringin' a shipment or somethin'."

"True..." She leaned up to smooch Orchard Blossom on the nose. "Well, I'm awake now. What's going on, or are you really just here to say hi?"

Blossom hugged her girlfriend gently. "Ah was just wonderin' if you might wanna visit a real city some time. Done visited one the other day, which means ah can go back whenever ah want, so..."

Sugar began to fidget in place. "So, we can have a little daycation, er, nightcation whenever we want?! That's exciting! Which one? Manehattan?"

"Baltimare," Blossom corrected. "Nice place. Haven't seen too much of it, but ah'll get a chance. Yer lookin' at who'll be their first princess police officer!"

Sugar blinked slowly at that. "Come again?"

"Signed up fer their academy come the spring. If ah pass, then ah become an officer." She curled a hoof at herself. "An'! An'! If I'm an officer in one city, then the other cities'll accept me as somepony they can trust. Won't be so odd if an officer from Baltimare is arresting a bad pony in, say, Manehatten. But it would be if it was just a random pony, even if that random pony is a princess, 'less they were Celestia or somethin'."

"I never thought of that." Sugar Belle was not a crime fighter, or an alicorn, or a police officer. "Makes sense, I guess... We don't have any of that." Her little town was so little, everypony knew everypony else. The idea of needing a police officer was just foreign to their tiny community of under twenty ponies. "Will you be safe?"

"Thanks fer askin'." Blossom leaned in, gently rubbing the side of her snout against Sugar's. "Ah'll handle it, promise. But that offer's still open. Ya wanna go?"

"OOooo, hmmm....." She rubbed at her chin. "Not tonight. I had no warning! Let me get my things in order... Say... two weeks from now?"

"Two weeks." Blossom nodded firmly. "Ah'll be back, so be ready. We'll travel fast."

"Blink and you'll miss it," laughed out Sugar, gently nudging Blossom back towards the door. "I'll look forward to it!"

"Me too. Sleep well." Blossom climbed out the window, flopping with a lack of grace off the other side. "Ah'm alright!" She launched into the sky, vanishing suddenly. Where to, Sugar was helpless to do much but guess.

"Back to bed..." She had not expected a visit. Sleep would be difficult to capture. She flopped onto bed anyway. She needed her sleep!

"You have been nothing short of amazing." Twilight made a note with her floating quill. "I want to thank you, again, for coming back so regularly to discuss things with me. Is this more comfortable for you?"

Blossom nodded at Twilight. "Ah know it's kinda funny... but it's a lot easier to talk, as Blossom. Blossom likes talkin'. Big Mac, not so much... Ah know we're the same pony, but... shoot. Ya ever put on an outfit and felt different?"

"Ah ha! That's a well documented effect." Twilight made a new note. "Like a pony putting on a doctor or scientist outfit and feeling smarter. You 'put on' Orchard Blossom and feel more social. That is entirely valid. And far less likely to result in problems than ponies who think, incorrectly, that their intelligence and knowledge has somehow grown without effort." Twilight waved over Orchard Blossom. "Another part of your change, but not belonging to tribal lines."

"There's a lot of changes..."

"Is he here?" Spike came rushing down the stairs. "There you are!"

Blossom blinked at Spike. "Who do you mean? Jus' us mares here."

Spike waved that off. "You are not that subtle... You switched characters, remember? Wow, you really are playing the role." He glanced between Blossom and Twilight. "But why are you chatting with Twilight? She doesn't even play."

Twilight snorted at that. "I've played Ogres and Obliouettes before, Spike. I'm the one that introduced you to it."

"Yeah yeah." Spike waved it off, way too busy studying his friend. "Wow... You are... When did you get so good at cosplay? Um.... Could you do one for me?" He smiled hopefully. "You know, all wizardy? I'd thank you forever!"

Blossom let out a slow sigh. "Really, Spike, this is what ah am. An' what are you doin' up so late at night? Go to bed, young drake."

"That isn't happening." Instead he advanced to poke at Blossom, feeling her casually. "Huh..."

"Spike," more firmly uttered Twilight. "We're in the middle of talking. You're being rude."

"Oh, uh..." He backed a few steps. "But... Big Mac?"

"Orchard Blossom," corrected Blossom.

"But we aren't playing the game!" Spike threw up his hands in confusion.

Twilight shook her head. "It's not a game. The mare in front of you is Orchard Blossom. She has come at my request. Please stop harassing her."

"But..." Spike rubbed at the side of his head, trying to figure through it. "I know Big Mac... Even if... Dude... I know it's you, and it's still you, mare or not. So if--" He didn't get to finish, suddenly being crushed against Blossom in a great hug. "Mmmf!"

"Ah didn't know how much ah needed to hear that." She gently released Spike. "Sorry."

Spike wobbled, dizzy from the attack. "No... problem! Um, so can I ask what's going on? Can I help!?"

Twilight's featured became a gentle smile on seeing things working out between them. "That is up to Orchard Blossom. I won't speak for her."

"Thank ya." She put a large hoof on Spike's head just next to his fins. "Ah went and became two ponies."

"Two ponies?"

"If you went up to the orchard, ya'd find Big Mac nice and safe an' sleepin'. Don't wake him up." She tapped her chin. "Wonder what would happen... Don't do it! While he's asleep, ah wake up." She pointed at herself emphatically. "But we're the same pony, up here." She tapped at her head gently.

Spike was still a moment, processing that. "So you are Big Mac, but you're also a mare, who's called Orchard Blossom... neat!"

Blossom blinked softly. "Neat? Ah reckon ah expected more of a response than 'neat'."

"But it's pretty neat," argued Spike with a sagacious nod. "You're still my friend, but you got extra stuff." He waved over Blossom's entire form. "So... does it all work?" He pointed up at his own fin. "Can you do magic? Can you fly? Are you a princess?!"

"Yes, yes, and yes," cut in Twilight. "But only while she is a she. As Big Mac, he is comfortable just being an apple farmer."

"Ayup," she let out with her trademark style. "Don't treat me any different when ah'm Big Mac. Ain't not a thing changed."

"Except your character."

"Except that..."

Spike danced back. "Still, thanks. This is obviously, like, a huge huge deal. So thanks, for trusting me. If I can help at all, let me know! That's what friends are for."

He retreated up the stairs and Orchard Blossom was not looking at him. Twilight could see her face though. "Is something wrong?"

"Nope." She wiped her face gently with an arm. "Jus' didn't realize ah had such a good friend." She shook herself out without standing. "Now, as we were?"

"Now, as a fellow transtribal pony, I have found my new parts to be quite useful." She extended her left wing wide. "Useful enough to use any time it would help. I'm curious, since you've been both ways, how do you feel about these new parts when you don't have them?" Twilight glanced to her paper, filling with notes. "Leave out no details."

"Hm." Blossom thought of her Big Mac time, who had none of the extra parts. "Ah miss 'em... Ah know I don't need 'em. Shoot, Big Mac never had 'em! Ah know how to get around, even a long ways. Ah know how to make do, an' ah do! I still get work done..."

"Fascinating, but you do feel some amount of dysphoria?" She made a little note. "This is... interesting. Perhaps if I got my wish and set these wings aside, I'd feel bad about it afterwards. That is a worrying angle to take. I know I'm a unicorn. You know you're an earth pony. Is it a natural inclination that ponies, if provided the option, would all be alicorns?"

Blossom blinked at the heavy idea being presented. "Huh... That ain't somethin' that's easy to show either way." Not like they had any but one example of Orchard Blossom to work with. "Ah don't... think it's that."

"What do you think it is then?" Twilight waved away one paper to grab another and begin scrawling on it. "Please, share your hypothesis."

"Um... Look..." She worried her hooves slowly. "Ah think... Ah think maybe ah always wanted this, a little... Ah... wanted to be a pony that could help, help a lot of ponies." She waved over herself. "And now ah am! Ah wanted to be big an' important, and who's the biggest an' most important pony ya know of?"

It was Twilight's turn to consider that. "Oh! You were jealous of Celestia?"

"Y-yeah, not like hostile or nothin'. She's a good pony." Blossom nodded with certainty at that. "But ah wanted a little... to help ponies... Ah wanted to be mah own little sun..."

"And... you got it," finished Twilight, considering Orchard Blossom. "But more of an evening star. An alicorn ready to help ponies."

"Yeah!" She hopped to her hooves. "An' ah'm doin' good at it!"

"I'm certain you are. I'd be hearing otherwise, which I am glad to say I have not."

Blossom colored at that. "Why would you hear about it?"

Twilight turned both hooves on herself. "They know I know you, both of you. If they wanted to reach you, I would be the easiest point of contact. They could send Spike a letter, and it would reach my hooves almost instantly. When they didn't know who you were, it was a much trickier task, but this is no longer the case." One could almost hear her mental gears clicking. "Speaking of that!"

"Hm?"

"What happens if the two of you interact?" Twilight danced two hooves close together. "Can they?"

"Um, one part of me is sleepin' at the time, all the time. Always some part of me sleepin'. What would I do? Ain't much to do with a sleepin' pony."

"Poke them." Twilight poked at the air. "See if you can wake yourself up. Would that cause your other self to spontaneously lose conciousness, or would there be any time where both are awake, and what would that be like?"

Blossom recoiled at the idea. "Not sure ah'd even want to see that."

"They're both you." Twilight frowned, working through that. "Which would mean you'd be in two places at once... I could see why that might be daunting. I'd do it myself but..." She was one pony, not two. "Up to you. I can't force you." She probably could force Blossom, but she wouldn't. "But, if you do, take notes, or invite me over. I feel sure it would be very interesting!"

"If ah do, ah'll be sure to call you... Um, I'd want somepony around to help, if it went badly." She took a step forwards the exit. "You'd need to be quiet, if we did. Granny still don't know 'bout this. An' still not tellin'her."

Author's Note

Spike is a good pal.

Join the special community of folks who like my stories and/or get your own written here at atreon!

Join my discord to chat!