What is a fairytale if not a warning?
Once upon a time, in a beautiful kingdom, lived the Flame Haired Princess. She was wiser than the owls, kinder than the deers and more generous than the cats. All who knew of her loved the Flame-Haired Princess. Save for one, her wicked stepmother. The Queen loathed her step-daughter, whose wit and wisdom outshone her like a sun on a cloudy day. So one day she formed a dark plot, a plan of such cunning it astounded even her!
“I will challenge that meddlesome stepdaughter of mine to a game of riddles, riddles so great even the Bearded Sage could not answer them!” she said, a nasty grin forming on her face. “If the Flame-Haired Princess cannot answer them, then I will have her executed! For surely it must be an imposter? After all, the Flame-Haired Princess truly is the 'wisest' one in all the land. With a great laugh, she returned to her favourite pastime. Eating cake.
“What is it mother?” asked the Queen's step-daughter, returning to the castle many days later. The sky itself favoured the girl, light shining from her fiery tresses as she entered the throne room. “I was helping the poor and needy in the cities, and did not hear your royal proclamation?”
Continuing to fill her fat mouth with abandon, the Queen gave a very nasty smile.
“I have a challenge for you dear step-daughter. There have been many letters as of late with puzzling questions from our beloved citizens, I am but a poor old woman and have my suspicions, but perhaps you can use your great wisdom to answer them?”
The Flame-Haired Princess smiled sadly, a single teardrop running down her face.
“If I can help my countrymen in any way, then I will do my very best mother. For they are the Bedrock of our land. Their hopes and dreams are my very own.” she said earnestly, clasping her hands together.
The Queen scowled, sickened at such an outrageous display. They lived to rule the land and its peasants, not the other way around! With a great flourish, the fat Queen presented a single parchment.
"It is something so magical, it comes to you every night. It takes you places without actually moving you. To see it, you need to close your eyes first. What is it?” she declared, a smirk hidden behind the list.
Closing her eyes and tapping her feet, the Flame-Haired Princess thought deeply. Whatever could it be? Like a flash of lightning though her marvellous mind had grasped the answer.
"It is a dream mother, the poor peasant is thinking of their dreams!” she exclaimed.
Holding back a snarl The Queen congratulated her, even though she wanted to choke on her words.
"Very good step-daughter, very good indeed. The next one looks to be much more difficult though. Perhaps a nobleman's effort?” she cleared her throat “Never resting, never still. Moving silently from hill to hill. It does not walk, run or trot. All is cool where it is not.”
The Queen savoured her step-daughter's look of confusion, the fool rubbing her chin like a dirty farmer. She so rarely saw the girl unsure anymore and it certainly made her feel better about her waistline.
“I-Is it...is it Sunshine?” the Flame-Haired Princess answered demurely.
Oh how mad that girl made the Queen! She so desperately would like to ring her pretty little neck, the cunning upstart. Grinding the royal teeth, she plunged into the final riddle. It had taken the Queen a whole day to come up with it, she was sure it would defeat her stepdaughter.
“Yes, surely it must be! Now for the last. I am hard to find, difficult to leave and impossible to forget. What am I?”
The Princess didn't notice her stepmother's haste, so engrossed in the riddle she was. If she had she might have seen a wicked look on the greedy Queen's face. Alas, the clever Princess was rubbing her chin and tapping her feet, insistent on finding an answer.
“I have it stepmother!” she cried after an age. “Time is the answer. You can never find enough time, you never leave enough for yourself and you can never truly forget it!”
Crushing the parchment, the Queen simmered in rage. Her step-daughter was correct, all this time and plotting had been for nothing. She had been made a fool of once again and there was nothing she could-ah but wait, what if...
“N-no I'm afraid you're wrong 'Step-daughter',” she lied, feeling stronger with every word. “The answer is friendship.” A feeling of victory rose within the Queen, her cunning step-daughter could not see through the lies!
Tiling her head like a confused dog, the Flame-Haired Princess was quite perplexed.
“But stepmother, the answer is clearly time. You must be mistaken?”
No answer was given though as armed guards entered the throne room. They were stiff and smart, with very shiny swords.
“Here ye false one, the most lovely Queen has seen through your tricks! Only an imposter could fail such a test. Under her royal proclamation, you must now be executed!” the Captain growled, pointing his sword at the Flame-Haired Princess.
As kind as her heart was, the Princess was no fool. The Queen had laid a trap which she had walked into.
“I will return one day to free my subjects from your tyranny stepmother!” she announced, fleeing suddenly through the passage.
Several weeks passed, the Flame-Haired Princess's long journey never-ending. The great finery was discarded. The beautiful dress torn. Even her crown, the last gift of a once loving stepmother, was cast away. She was in exile, but little doubt remained in her mind. Even in this far away land, she was sure of her return.
00000
“Oh how I long for home” the Princess sighed, tramping through a bush. She had gone many days and nights without a good meal. The people of this land were rough and ill-mannered, but a few kind souls existed, maybe she would find another?
“Ah a fellow hungry traveller?” said a great voice from above, a snicker in its voice.
Nearly dying from fright, the young princess looked to the sky. Circling above was an enormous crimson dragon!
“Please don't eat me Sir dragon!” she pleaded kneeling on the dirt, “I am a Princess in exile from the land to the west, leave me be and I will grant you any wish when my kingdom is returned.”
The dragon smiled a toothy grin, landing before the Princess with a great thump.
“Do not worry little princess, I have fed greatly on the farmer's livestock. A morsel such as yourself means little to me.” He chuckled, stretching his great claws out in the earth. “Much like yourself I was exiled from the west, a few too many sheep is a luxury that glutton of a queen will not allow.”
“I am sorry for that Sir Dragon,” she said, standing once more and brushing the dirt from her clothes. “My wicked Step-mother has wronged us both.”
The great drake let out an uproarious guffaw, “I am a monster little Princess, no man would see me as wronged.” Even so, with his laughter ending the crimson wyrm became sullen, an awkward silence falling over both.
Pity filled the Flame-Haired Princess's heart. The dragon's nobility could be seen in his golden eyes, he had the form of one, the manner of one, even the smell of one, but he was no monster. She was sure of it.
“W-would you journey with me...Sir Dragon?”
The ground shook as the scaly creature lowered itself to her eyes, “I would be honoured, little princess.”
00000
“You sure you're going to be ok with this kid?”
It's a hesitant question, asked by a hesitant man. He'd been in 'the game' for several years now, working face to face with mortality was blasé to him, mundane almost. They were kids though, barely even old enough to drive if he guessed right. Morgues were no place for the young.
“We'll be fine sir,” it's a cold reply, dry and terse. Her purple companion is silent, eyes downcast.
Shrugging (he'd tried at least) Cold Comfort swung open the home of their latest arrival, one John Doe aka 'Razer'. Pulling the drawer forth he hoped the kids didn't react too poorly, time had been tight these last few days. Clean-up was the best he could do on such short notice, the poor schmuck on the slab wouldn't be due for an actual autopsy till next week the way things were going.
Despite all his experience the gasps still got to him. The human form was sacred in a way, holy. Seeing it violated, yet pristine (or as pristine as he could get with an hour's warning) was always a shock. It had certainly been a shock to him the first time at least. Remembering that (and the wise words of his mentor) he approached the taller girl.
“I'll be down the hall kid, you've got fifteen minutes. I'd give you longer but-”
“No I understand,” she answered, her eyes distant “rules are rules.”
Within moments the duo were alone.
Academically Twilight Sparkle was fully aware of death. She was a polymath with a hunger for knowledge so great she'd almost torn the universe apart (“It wasn't me” she'd tell herself. She was wrong), medical science was one of the many fields the sixteen-year-old had arguably mastered. At least on a theoretical level. Experience (they say) is the best teacher though. Oh, Twilight could tell you how a single centimetre cut could exsanguinate a man in under five minutes or the effects of certain medications on those fatally allergic. Seeing was a different matter altogether.
“Why are we here Sunset?”
The native-born Equestrian tapped her foot, searching for an answer. It was a habit Twilight had noticed, she found it cute in a way. A silly tic she could spot to tell Sunset was wrestling with a question.
“It's...hard to explain Twi. I just needed to be here. To make sure.” She gestured towards the body as if it held all the answers.
He was tall, burly, and had a rogueish sort of handsomeness about him. A face that (in life) would no doubt give a cocky wink and have the girls swooning. In death, it seemed...angry almost. As if it shouldn't be here. The reason for that though was littered across his chest, three large, ragged, holes. The steel of the storage shelf was quite visible through them, the through and throughs leaving a ruinous tunnel in their victim. Aside from that, several scars covered his deep red skin, including a nasty one on his shoulder. His appearance suggested to all the world that he'd gotten into several fights for his life and walked away the victor time and again. All in all, though, this was a young man who'd led a rough and tumble life that had finally caught up to him. Violently.
Twilight's voice was quiet, small. “Who was he Sunset?”
“I just said-” she snapped before collecting herself, “-no, you deserve to know. I called you here, I'm the one putting you through this.” She ran her hand through flame-like hair, a frustrated sigh forming a trail of vapour in the chilly room.
“He's an Equestrian like me-”
“Another pony? I thought-” Twilight interrupted, only to be cut off by her friend's now-glowing touch. Her eyes nervously flicked to the girl's hands grasping her own. This was odd, to say the least. Nice, but very, very, odd.
“You know what, it'll be easier this way.” Sunset muttered, her once glowing pendant erupting into a miniature nova of arcane energy.
“Wait, wha-”
“Little something I've been working on Twi, just relax.” came the soothing response, something in Sunset's voice putting the nervous girl at ease.
She'd experienced her friend's ability in the past, a magical form of psychometry or something akin to it. Normally there was a slight pulling sensation at the start as if the memories were being dragged to the surface for the duo to see. Now it was the reverse, the pull replaced with the feeling of an intrusion. Her chest tightened at the sensation, something rooting in her skull was a feeling she was all too familiar with. Squeezing her eyes tightly shut, she desperately tried to ignore the sound of mocking laughter and crow wings that rang out, it all felt so real but surely it was a trick of her mind?
“Shhh Twilight, it's ok, I'm here.”
Midnight's descent (imagined or otherwise) was shattered by a yellow-skinned girl's soft embrace. The scent of pears and the feel of soft, wavy, hair on her face dispelling the oncoming panic attack. It was just so...
The world blurred.
She was in a park, the clouds were overcast, the weather cold and she was stuck in this bizarre ape body with no magic. Yet she was happy. Truly, truly, happy for the first time in months. It had been nightmarish scraping by after escaping through the portal, learning how these aliens lived, how their society worked, even trading the last of her bits for meagre food and accommodation. She'd even considered returning a few times. Take her punishment like a mare, it wouldn't exactly be Tartarus now, would it? Sunbutt would rather send herself to the moon than see her prize pupil rot away, that'd be bad politics.
Then he appeared.
His explanation seemed legit, and he had no way of knowing she was from Equestria without it being true. Still, it was uniquely weird to see a five-foot twelve dragon in shaved chimp form. His name was Razer (uniquely Dragon in its violent simplicity) and the former drake claimed he'd 'smelled' her out after arriving in this world through a 'shining light in my cave'. Of course, those inter-net movies on that tube thing probably helped.
Her first week here had been rough.
Mutual homesickness had begun their initial association, dragons and unicorns having little in common outside of their realm of origin. Over cheap takeout, they'd discuss equestrian constellations, the purity of the air, and how much better the food was. She opened up to him, about the palace, about Celestia, about being denied what she was owed. He was more cagey, but mentioned being evicted from his home by a group of ponies. That had gotten a good laugh from her, even if he sulked for hours afterwards.
In between school and research about this 'earth' they'd seen each other more and more. He was blunt, crude, and a tad narcissistic, yet she was drawn like a moth to a flame. He was Equestria to her, in all its perfect imperfections. Razer had his plus points too, the dragon's new form was appealing in an odd way, her mind having slowly become acclimatised by sheer biology. Not only that but his loyalty was astounding. She never knew what he did during her school hours (“What does a Dragon need to know? Might is right and we keep what we kill.” He declared once when pushed about his educational needs) but he'd always be there at the press of a button, ready with a snarky comment or vaguely suspicious present.
Revenge had seemed a good idea upon arrival. Use this new world to take back what was rightfully hers. Now though? Well, maybe she could stick it out. After all, they did say there was nothing as powerful as lo-
The world blurs once more.
“What the FUCK Razer!” she screamed, gesturing to a still warm deer carcass sitting on her cheap coffee table, blood running into her slightly less cheap carpet.
The once dragon (nestled comfortably in her chair) shrugged, tongue sticking out as he continued to browse a noticeably higher quality phone than he had this morning. Whilst earth learning hadn't been for him, their toys had a certain attractiveness to a mind focused on all things rare and shiny.
“Please,” she began, circling the cooling animal with a unique discomfort only a former equine could have. “please tell me this is some roadkill. Tell me you haven't been in the forests hunting with-”
“Knife? Yes!” he exclaimed brusquely, shifting the deer slightly to reveal his 'dragon claw' currently lodged in the side of the deceased creature.
“Jesus Christ.” she moaned into her hands, “You know it's illegal to hunt out of season Razer, we've been over this before. We both have no papers, if this goes anywhere we're done for.” She swept a hand towards the deer, an incredulous tone edging into her voice. “What the hell would we even do with it!? I'm a damn vegetarian and you can't eat that much before it spoils!”
“You say 'we've been over this before' little princess,” he growls, large form unfurling as the once dragon stands to his full height, towering over her. “Yet you forget what I tell you? Dragons keep what they kill.” the bowie knife is withdrawn with alarming speed, stray droplets striking her flinching form.
“I-I still don't understand why you need to hunt Razer.” she says, eyes warily following the blade, “We can buy food fro-”
“That is pony way,” he snarls, ramming the blood-drenched knife into his waistband, “you would not understand dragon way, pony mind is too full of Celestia, rainbows and human lessons.” It's a sneer by the end, followed with a dismissive little wave. She's used to it. He'll apologise later.
Probably offer her the damn things hear-
The world blurs, this time faster then ever, almost with a sense of urgency.
Crimson trickles down her neck as the bowie knife edges ever so closer, his grip (strong, so strong) tightening by the second. She thinks he'll break her arm if he pulls it any further back, but it's a better alternative than the keenly honed hunk of metal. Still, if she dies would she go home? Would she see Celestia again? Or would she be stuck in some freakish limbo, not quite Equestria but not quite earth?
It was her fault really, she'd considered hiring a quicker moving company but cheaped out at the last minute. She needed all the money possible from the house sale. In her mind the plan had been sound, Razer would be gone for a week, doing one of his 'jobs for the boys'. The Canterlot Mafia weren't exactly subtle, but neither were they particularly murderous. From what she'd gathered he was more enforcer and intimidation than hit-man. Still, he'd be stuck in Fillydelphia pushing stolen TVs or breaking some shop owners' legs, by the time he got back she'd be out of there. Lay low for a few months, then resurface. She knew how to keep herself masked now, the bastard liked to brag. Telling your enemy all your secrets was never a smart move.
“YOU ARE MINE!” he screams in her ear, the knife cutting deeper. She can feel his rancid breath, it stank of cheap whiskey and god knows what drugs. He'd been bad before, but the black eyes rapidly changed into broken bones when he learnt how delectable human narcotics were. Gold-lust had nothing on crack cocaine.
“N-now h-honey, please there's been a misunderstanding....” she squeaks as best she can, desperately trying to avoid the cold steel with each breath.
“You...you are part of my hoard. You understand?” slurs Razer, the knife loosening for a second. She nods the best she can, trying to stay calm despite her racing heart.
His grip slackens and for a few moments, she thinks it's over, praising whatever deities come to mind. Then he grabs her again, and the terror returns, forcibly spun to face her attacker, her lover, her monster.
“No, you lie.” the accusation was surprisingly calm, something she'd not heard in a very long time. “Little princess is always lying. There's one way I get to keep you though.”
He raises the knife and for a split second her heart stops. The human face has only so many shapes, yet right now she'd swear on her cutie mark that smile wasn't human, the sharpened fangs and slitted eyes of an Equestrian Alpha Predator on proud display.
Her spirit calls out to Celestia. It screams, it cries, it begs. It pledges to return and never again disobey. To be the perfect, utterly obedient student. Anything, anything at all. Just stop this fro-
The police report would later state that former US Marine Quiet Sentry was returning from a grocery trip on foot with his teenage son. Upon hearing the violent commotion he approached the small home, after a few moments of assessing the situation he felt it necessary to draw his concealed firearm. Upon witnessing the suspect holding the victim at knife point through the window he made an immediate decision. Two shots were fired, the first going high whilst the second hit the suspect cleanly in the shoulder. Medical and Police services were called, whilst the suspect was put under citizens arrest and the victim was seen too by both Quiet Sentry and his son.
Hours later it all crystallised for her. Celestia wouldn't save her. She'd never be there for her. She'd let her die in a heartbeat This world though? Oh, she could use this. Equestria would rue the day they left her to rot on earth.
It took a few seconds for Twilight to realise it was her gasping for air and not the disembodied, nebulous 'Sunset' she'd been mere moments ago. Nausea swept over her as the tremors she didn't realise she was suffering from increased in strength.
“Oh...oh my god Sunset, I-I never knew.”
She couldn't see it but Sunset was steely-eyed, her mouth a thin line as the embrace grew stronger. Some may have thought it strange to see two teenagers hugging in a morgue, but they were no ordinary teens.
Her voice is soft, the hush of calm she never thought she'd have again, “It's ok Twilight. I've never told anyone. Never had anyone to tell honestly.”
They disentangle from each other and soak in the silence, this new revelation meaning different things to both women. Secrets form bonds and from those bonds friendships grow stronger. At least that was something she half-remembered her mentor saying all those years ago. It certainly sounded whimsical enough to be from Celestia.
“Do you...do you think Razer ever actually loved you Sunset?” asked Twilight, a contemplative look on her face. There was a brief silence before she rapidly backpedalled, the realisation of her faux-pax hitting like a thunderbolt. “I mean, did he end up like he did because he was a dragon or was it human cultu-
She grabbed the purple girl's hand and slowly led her away from the room, a final look over her shoulder at the corpse to close a chapter she never wanted to reopen.
“...It felt like a fairy tale Twilight and at the end that's all it was, just a Fairy Tale.”
