Dusk & Twilight Swap Places

Chapters

01 - Fainting Session
02 - Let's Talk
03 - Morning Grogginess
04 - Hungry? Hungry.
06 - Moment of Truth
07 - Princess Celestia
05 - Bright White Lights

01 - Fainting Session

Today was nothing special.

It was now later in the evening. Celestia’s sun had long since set, leaving a dazzling array of stars on the infinite black backdrop of the night sky. Today had been one of Rarity’s few and quite rare boring days. A few dress orders had to be filled, and a few ponies came into the boutique to shop for or fit a new fitting of an older outfit, usually one of Rarity’s own designs. In terms of customer flow, no more or less than expected had flown through. Not a hair out of place in the grand scheme of running a business. It was, by definition, a totally average day. It was one of those days Rarity would instantly forget by the time next week rolled around.

Today was so utterly boring and so not-special that Rarity decided to visit her good friend, Dusk Shine.

Dusk Shine was a stallion of many talents, as his Cutiemark was the element of magic itself. He was the Magic Element of Harmony, protege of Princess Celestia herself, an advanced scholar, and savior of the world multiple times. (Along with Rarity and friends) He always knew how to create fun, even if it meant reading directly from a book on how to have fun.

Unfortunately, Dusk was the only stallion in a group of mares. As a collective group, as in all six Elements of Harmony, they never had sleepovers. It wasn’t because they collectively thought something would happen if they slept in the same room as Dusk, it was more principal of him being a stallion instead. It wasn’t anything he did, and it wasn’t anything he could help.

As a matter of fact, there was a single exception. Rarity and Applejack had once gotten caught in the middle of a thunderstorm, and due to Dusk being the closest friendly face at the time, decided to spend the night there. He was more than happy to let them stay over. Which was… eye opening to say the least.

Dusk was more than willing to do some activities that were conventionally mare activities. Like doing make overs and playing dress up. It made Rarity… think about the stallion. Not even remotely in a sexual way, not even close, but as a position of sympathetic understanding. Perhaps there was something Dusk was hiding just below the surface.

But that was neither here nor there. If her suspicions were correct, it was an incredibly sensitive subject for everypony involved, and she wouldn’t dare gossip about it, being liable to hurt one of her best friend’s feelings, and potentially, life. She had talked about it to Applejack later, and Applejack had noticed the same thing, and similarly, held her tongue. Applejack had confided her full support with Rarity, but that was a one-pony case study. Who knew how her other friends would react? Honestly, probably also supportive, but there was always the off-chance something would and could go wrong.

Rarity took a deep breath, clearing her thoughts as the Golden Oaks Library came into her view. Now was not the time for closet stereotypes of a potentially fragile stallion. Now, time was worth spending with her friend.

It was a massive structure, being about thrice the height of a conventional one story Ponyville house. It was carved completely out of an old type of tree that grew massively. The lower-half was dedicated towards the local library, and the upper-half was a loft for Dusk and his faithful dragon assistant Spines.

Unlike Dusk, there wasn’t a foggy doubt in Rarity’s mind that Spines was homosexual. Or, at the bare minimum, bisexual. Perhaps it could still be a massive misunderstanding of Spines motives. Perhaps simply Spines just looked up and adored Rarity as a role model. But the way Spines looked at her while helping with dresses, the constant affection, and even sometimes entrances that involved drooling, evidence pointed towards a deeper attraction.

Rarity stopped at the red front door. She took a deep breath and raised her hoof to knock.

Knock Knock Knock.

“Wha?” The unmistakable voice of Dusk spoke through the door. It seemed he wasn’t asleep, and luckily enough, was in the center of the library instead of being somewhere undefined upstairs.

“Dusk? Is it alright if I come in-”

“No!” He shouted. Rarity took a preemptive step back. “I’m casting a highly dangerous spell, and I need you to stand back! This requires full concentration!” He shouted. Rarity, sensing the urgency in his voice, listened. She took a quick few steps back and pointed her ears intently.

It was some kind of faint humming being emitted from inside the library. In a sudden sense of concern, she could feel the magical harmonics being resonated through her horn, a bit like a tuning fork to vibrations. She bit her lip as the humming gained in intensity, feeling her coat standing on edge like a shock of static electricity was going through her.

Finally, she cleared her throat.

“Dusk-?”

Then, in a moment of pure confusion, the library exploded.

Well- not quite. A massive bang erupted from the interior. Simultaneously, every single window on the lower half of the library erupted, spilling out glass from every point of exit. The door was thrown open, and although Rarity was a good few hooves away, was unceremoniously flung from the ground by the shock wave. She landed harshly on the dirt, scraping her back and dirtying up her once tidied mane.

Her hearing was nothing more than a high-pitched whine. She pushed herself back into a sitting position, blinking back the torrent of pink light that had left a mark on her iris. She blinked even harder, shaking her head forcefully.

Rarity had half a mind to begin tidying up her mane. Rarity had half a mind to begin complaining, getting mad at Dusk, and then storming in to give him the yelling of a century.

The other half of her mind, however, was instantly concerned that Dusk had just blown himself up.

“Dusk!” Rarity yelled, forcing herself to her hooves. A few ponies had come out of their homes, apparently curious as to what the loud explosion was. Rarity, after a little galloping, felt the pain in her knees vanish. She burst into the main foyer of the library and rapidly looked around the desolate library.

Books were scattered from all of their shelves, spilling out onto the ground. The entire room still smelled of an intense wood-burning smoke smell, still lingering witth the pink fog thickly in the air. Glass was across the floor, and if Rarity wasn’t extremely concerned for Dusk, would’ve been equally concerned for glass poking a hole in the frog of her hoof.

But she instead let her eyes land on the black spot on the floor.

“Dusk!” She shouted, putting a hoof over her mouth. A little bit to the left of the black spot was four hooves, carved out by presumably the explosion.

Then, her eyes moved to the right.

Right there was another set of hooves.

They were significantly smaller. If Rarity didn’t want to disturb the crime scene, she would’ve put her own hoof on where the imprint lay, and more than likely, it would’ve fit perfectly.

Then, her eyes slowly drifted away from the center.

Black hoofprints. Black hoofprints of definitely not Dusk’s was going up the staircase, towards the loft of the library. Due to how far they were spaced apart, she could safely assume that the pony was galloping. Even by the staircase there was a massive black soot smudge where the pony presumably lost traction and slid into the bookcase.

Rarity trotted towards the bottom of the staircase, looking upwards and into its horrible darkness. The fog was mostly cleared, and the lanterns were lit down here, but up there? It was pitch black. Not a single flame licked.

“What the hay happened in here?” A voice asked. Rarity looked to her left and towards the open door. A pale-yellow Earth-pony was looking at the mess left behind.

“Nothing, Roseluck.” Rarity said. “Just… another failed experiment. Please, be a dear and close the door?” She asked. Roseluck made a sour face, obviously detecting the hesitance in Rarity’s voice, but eventually conceded and gripped the knob with her hoof and latched it shut. Rarity swallowed her spit, turning her gaze back up the terrifying staircase.

With a hollow breath, she began her trek up the black void.

Not a single lantern was lit. Everything was more than black. Everything was vanta black. Dark-dark. Rarity stopped at the top of the staircase, igniting her horn and dowsing the immediate area in a pale blue light of her own aura. She looked up, extending her magic upwards and enveloping a lantern hung from the ceiling. It flickered that same pale blue for a moment, before igniting a bright yellow and extending its tendrils out and into the dark floor.

To her left, a kitchen. Right, the bathroom. But her eyes were firmly on the black soot ridden hooves. They had begun fading ever since the pony got to the top of this staircase, but were still strong enough to see. Once again, the area became an immediate black, and Rarity lit another lantern. It flickered the same blue, and like the last one, ignited into a bright yellow as her magic erupted by the oil.

It was another staircase, this time leading into the main loft area, where Dusk’s bed, personal library, living room, research desk, and sometimes dining room was. It was a massive space, and right about now, as Rarity stared up at the only other logical place that the mystery pony could’ve scampered off to, her heart dropped.

She really wished she asked Roseluck to come with her.

Rarity carefully trotted up the staircase, igniting yet another lantern with her magic. It didn’t help to ease the tension she was feeling, but some light was better than none.

Rarity grasped her magic towards the light switch. She had been manually activating the lanterns before, but with larger spaces, they usually had actual switches for the ponies who happened to not have a horn. She twisted the valve that ran oil to the lanterns and pushed the button that created spark.

Every lantern instantly ignited, much to her relief.

It was a huge loft, just like she was used to seeing whenever she came over. The hoofprints faded halfway into the room, leaving the mystery pony’s location ambiguous. Rarity took a deep breath and entered the loft.

She was not attacked. Instead, she stood in the slightly chilly air for a moment, looking around dumbly. If this was the last place a pony could go, then surely, they would’ve tried to run away by now, right? Or perhaps try and attack Rarity? She didn’t know of many defensive spells, but she knew that pooling magic was never very good for the physiology of other Unicorns.

Rarity began preparing her pooling of magic when she heard the unmistakable sound of shuffling.

Her breath hitched, her eyes going wide. Slowly, she turned around and looked up to the balcony that housed Dusk’s bed. Although she had now identified a sign of a potentially dangerous pony, she still was surprised that she hadn’t been attacked yet. From her angle down on the lower floor, she could distinctly make out a lump on the bed.

Her heart began thumping.

There they were. Dusk had… teleported a pony into his home? Created a pony?

Now that was a heavy thought. What if Dusk had created a new pony, and right now, this pony was terrified of a scary Unicorn pooling her magic around her horn?

Or Dusk simply finally went mad. Honestly, that was more likely the case then Dusk creating a new life form.

Rarity began her trek up the third flight of stairs and entered Dusk’s room. There wasn’t really a dividing barrier, being barely a support beam of the tree itself diving from the third set of stairs and the bedroom itself.

The intimidating hump on the blanket was barely moving. Perhaps it was shivering slightly. Rarity’s heart began jumping into her throat, a thin layer of sweat building on her brow. If she wasn’t already battered by the explosion, she would’ve immediately stopped everything to wipe away the thin layer. But right now, she had to confirm whether or not Dusk had just exploded himself.

She finally stopped walking at the foot of the bed. It was obvious that this wasn’t Dusk. The lump was way too small to properly house the stallion. Where Dusk went and if he was okay was a question to be answered later. Right now, Rarity had to know who was in Dusk’s bed, and what he had summoned.

Rarity took a huge breath, and without a single plan running through her head in case the pony was hostile, yanked the blanket.

“Gah!”

“Aah!” Rarity shouted. She took a few quick steps back, expecting to be attacked, and raised her hooves in front of her face. Instead, there was a surprising amount of silence, and an even more surprising amount of no-movement.

Slowly, Rarity lowered her hooves.

There, on the bed, with her hooves pulled close to her chest, was a mare. It was obviously the mare who had planted the hoofprints on the ground, as her face and coat was an ugly shade of burnt black soot. Luckily, though, it seemed most of it had been rubbed off in some way, leaving a slightly disheveled pony behind. Rarity put both her hooves back on the ground, and asked the only question she could.

“...Dusk?”

Despite the black soot covering her face, it was still painfully apparent that this was Dusk. His purple coat. His dark sapphire mane, and his purple streak. Although, they did look a little bit less than straight, her mane sticking up wildly from the explosion downstairs, Rarity could recognize the pony from a mile away.

“Um… Surprise?” Dusk said, shrugging pitifully. Rarity blinked, shaking her head. She still felt a little lightheaded from all the adrenaline that had been pumped through her system.

“Surprise?” Rarity asked. “Surprise?!” She shrieked. “Dusk, I thought you had died!” She shouted. “And look at my coat! You ruined my coat!” She huffed. “This is going to take all night to wash out!” Dusk shrunk on the bed, like a foal who had been caught with their hoof in the cookie jar. “And my mane! Don’t even get me started on my mane!”

“Are you not-” Dusk swallowed. “Are you not confused at all?” She asked. Dusk made a wild motion at her body.

“Oh, puh-lease.” Rarity waved a hoof. “I knew you were a Trans-mare a long time ago.” She half-lied. She had her suspicions, but now she could play the I knew all along card perfectly.

“Trans-mare?” Dusk asked, full of surprise. She chewed on her lip for a moment, looking to the side.

“Yes, a Trans-mare. Do you not know what a Trans-” Rarity asked.

“What?” Dusk suddenly screeched, as if Rarity’s words caught up to her. “No-no-no!” She jumped off of the bed, landing on all four hooves. If Rainbow was here, she would’ve been impressed. “I-I’m not a Trans-mare! I’m not even Dusk!”

Rarity blinked, putting a hoof to her own chest and leaning away from the crazy mare.

“W-What, darling?” She asked. “Y-You’re not Dusk?”

“No!” She said quite loudly. “My name is Twilight Sparkle, and I come from another universe.”

Rarity stared with wide and crazy eyes for a few moments longer. The silence after her statement was astounding. If the library wasn’t confirmed empty before, the little amount of sound transferring through the walls was sure as hay evidence that it was empty now. Rarity began feeling her head develop a massive migraine as she started at Twilight.

“I-I’m sorry…” Rarity said slowly. “But did you say… another universe?”

“Yes.” Twilight nodded. “And in my universe, you’re a stallion named Elusive.”

“Oh.” Rarity said. “Huh. Interesting.” Rarity put a hoof to her head and promptly fainted onto the ground. Without a proper fainting couch.

02 - Let's Talk

Rarity slowly awoke.

Her eyes fluttered open, blinking back the layers of confusion that clouded her vision. Above her, she could distinctly make out the familiar and warm setting of the Golden Oak Library. Specifically, the loft area. She snuggled deeper into the pillow she was on, rubbing her head back and forth as a yawn forced her jaw open, closing her eyes dreamily. It was still dark out, and she didn’t know why she was on the red sofa of the Golden Oaks, and honestly, she didn’t mind. The red sofa was the comfiest sofa she had ever slept on. Why not resume her little catnap?

But… that was strange, wasn’t it? She couldn’t remember falling asleep. Her brows furrowed in concentration as she tried remembering the series of events leading up to her being here. She was here to visit Dusk… did she fall asleep during one of his lectures? Surely not. Right? All she remembered was…

A big explosion.

Rarity made a faint grumbling sound, pushing herself up into a sitting position, letting the comforter she wasn’t aware she was being covered by fall to her lap. It was obvious Dusk was uninjured. It wasn’t like she watched Dusk explode himself, then decide to make herself a bed and then fall asleep as Dusk’s corpse resided downstairs in a million pieces.

She rubbed a hoof below her horn, looking around. The fireplace was in front of her, flickering politely as a coffee table separated them. She blinked again, looking over the back of the couch and down the staircase. A few lanterns had been manually turned off. Not enough to be creepy, but-

Rarity faintly remembered turning them on. Why? She was… tracing somepony’s hoofprints. That was it. But what did she find?

She took a moment to look around the loft. It was the main living quarters, and boy was it lived in. Rarity’s profession was designing dresses and suits, so it really wasn’t her place to criticize the interior decoration of a Canterlot-native. But… well, the place looked horrendous. The shelves that weren’t full of completely randomly colorized books were instead full of junk. Amenities that Dusk had picked up, like empty flasks signed by a famous scientist, an extra set of her favorite quills, or a random drawing Dusk forgot to put away. If she had her way, the entire place would’ve been picture-perfect for a postcard.

Her eyes flickered back to the dark hole emanating below Dusk’s bedroom balcony. Down the staircase was an empty, all-consuming void. The lights she had turned on had been turned off, leaving a black space where a staircase should’ve been. She listened as hoof steps echoed up the halls and into the room.

Around the corner came a tray of tea supplies being levitated in a pink aura. Rarity almost let out a sigh of relief before noticing the pony who carried it.

Twilight Sparkle.

She remembered now. Throwing off the covers, Twilight Sparkle, and fainting.

Rarity hoped this was a dream. She could only stare dumbly as the mare clumsily dropped a teacup to the ground, thankfully not shattering upon impact. She levitated it back up, rubbing it off on her fur before straightening it on the plate. There was no way Dusk would willingly cast a spell that ripped open the fabric of reality just so he could swap places with his double, right? That wasn’t something Dusk would do, right?

Oh. Rarity thought. That was exactly something Dusk would do.

Twilight seemed to finally notice the pony staring at her from the couch.

“Oh. Hello!” She greeted with a huge smile. “You kinda fainted, so I thought ‘why not make some tea for us when you wake up?’ and then I did! And now we’re here!” Twilight rounded the sofa, depositing the platter onto the coffee table with a clatter. Rarity kept staring blankly. “You’re not gonna faint again, are you?”

“Oh- uh-” Rarity blinked harshly, clearing her throat as politely as possible. “Of course not, darling. I just-” She blinked even harsher, resisting the urge to try and clear her eyes. “Wow.” Twilight blushed a little, distracting herself by sitting on the floor with her back to the open flame, levitating up the teapot. She poured herself a cup.

“I didn’t mean for you to discover me. Not yet, at least.” She moved the teapot over to Rarity’s cup, marked by the three diamonds on the front. She hesitated pouring, looking up. “Oh- uh- would you like some tea?” She tried asking politely.

Dusk wasn’t exactly known for having delicious tea. As a matter of fact, every time Dusk had tried to make his own tea combination, it always, without fail, turns out terrible. Revolting. Salty and sweet at the same time, spicy and minty. It was honestly a scientific miracle how Dusk had managed to make his tea so terrible. Whenever he used store-bought teabags, it was fine. But Dusk was always trying to prove his recipe to whoever would listen, and a lot of the times, it was Rarity.

“Is it your own brew?” Rarity asked.

“Of course! I- er- Dusk didn’t have any teabags, so I whipped this up myself!” She chuckled. “I forgot to buy teabags last time I was in the market, too… Oh, I wonder if the same thing is happening on the other side!”

“I-I guess I would like some, yes.” She nodded. Twilight smiled broadly, letting her tea mixture flow into the cup. Rarity exchanged magical auras with Twilight, lifting the tea to her muzzle and inhaling deeply. It smelled… fine.

But Twilight isn’t Dusk. Rarity thought. Twilight’s a mare. She was raised like a mare. She must know how to make tea! So, without a second thought, Rarity pushed her lips into the rim of the cup, taking a quiet and polite sip-

“Pfft!” Against her will, the tea in her mouth involuntarily left at a high rate of speed. Twilight ducked, letting the barrage of tea fly directly over her head and sizzling in the fire behind her. It was salty, sweet, spicy, and minty! And it tasted identical to Dusk’s!

“Interesting!” Twilight said with a giggle. “You reacted the same way Elusive does whenever I make tea!” Twilight levitated over a tall glass of water into her line of sight. Somewhat forcefully, Rarity quickly exchanged auras, letting the cool liquid flood into her mouth and drain any awful lasting taste out.

“Y-You make tea the same?” Rarity asked, hunching over and wiping her mouth with a hoof. If she wasn’t already filthy from the shock wave of the explosion, she would’ve been revolted at herself for creating a damp spot on her fur. “V-Very interesting indeed…” She said sarcastically.

“I also got you a napkin!” Twilight said, levitating over an embroidered towel. “Just in case!”

“Just in case…” Rarity repeated, shaking her head in disbelief. She would have to spend a good few hours in the shower to recover from the dirt that had now made its home somewhere in her mane. Rarity couldn’t remember feeling this filthy for a long time. “You make tea the same as Dusk…” She let out a sigh. “Because you are Dusk.”

“Yep!” Twilight agreed, nodding. “We should be as close to identical as ponily possible. Our biological sex being the only difference. That means the only real difference should be things like puberty, gender norms, estrous cycles, you know. Sex things. Like-”

“Alrighty! Thank you, Twilight!” Rarity quickly interrupted, fearful of where she was going to go with that line of differences. “This is all just- very confusing for me.” She began playing with her terribly matted mane. “Honestly, I thought Dusk would have a list of questions as tall as himself ready for me to answer, but-” Rarity spotted Twilight slowly levitate something up. “What’s that?”

“A list of questions as tall as myself.” She responded bluntly, letting the scroll’s latch relax and fold down a list as tall as Twilight. Rarity blinked.

The proof was in the pudding.

She wasn’t crazy. Rarity wasn’t dreaming, and Dusk pissed off into another dimension because he was probably bored of this one, honestly. Dusk replaced himself with Twilight, as Twilight did with Dusk. They were the exact same pony.

Which could also explain the reasoning behind the huge explosion. The exact same pony with the same amount of magical potential casting the exact same spell in the exact same spot in different dimensions. Although Rarity was a Unicorn, she wasn’t exactly very well-versed in spells and the like. But, she did know enough to know that she didn’t know anything. But she could safely deduce that that combination of factors was a bad thing.

“A-Are you going to ask me those?” Rarity asked, pointing a chipped hoof at the list.

“Yes.”

“N-Now?”

“Mhm.” Twilight levitated the scroll over, reading the top of the list. “How does the reversed gender ratio of mares to stallions affect the geo-political sphere?”

“Well-”

“Are houses on average smaller over here because the dominant gender is female?”

“I don’t-”

“I don’t mean to be sexist, but it’s unavoidable here. Is Equestria generally more sanitary because-” Suddenly, Twilight let out a sharp short gasp of pain, letting the scroll hit the ground dramatically. Rarity watched with concern as Twilight massaged the spot right below her horn.

“Are you alright, darling?” Rarity asked, raising a concerned hoof. Twilight blinked back the pain for a moment.

“I’m fine.” She said. “Just- jumping through dimensions takes a lot out of a pony.” She let out a nervous laugh. “I was planning on going straight to bed, but- I wasn’t ready to be chased by Elusive’s double.” She let out another giggle, levitating the scroll back up. “So. Where were we?”

“No-no, darling.” Rarity leaned far enough forwards to bat the scroll out of Twilight’s magical aura. “You need rest!”

“I’m fine!” Twilight said, waving a hoof. “I’ve had worse-” She let out a huge yawn. “-magical exhaustion before.” Rarity hadn’t ever really cast any demanding spells before. The closest she had ever gotten to becoming magically exhausted was the day she got her Cutiemark. But she could still remember the dull ache behind her horn that forced her into a nap the moment she was done with the play. And she also knew how uncomfortable it was.

And, in some cases, dangerous. Running a pony’s magic on E for hours on end wasn’t very healthy and could cause permanent damage. Rarity let out a frustrated huff, annoyed at how similar Twilight was to Dusk.

“I insist, you must go to bed!” Rarity stood up, stretching like a cat, and hopping down from the red sofa with a clop of the hooves on the wooden floor. “I simply must invite you to go to the spa!”

“W-What?” Twilight asked, her face full of surprise. “Y-You’re actually inviting me to the spa?”

“Why wouldn’t I, dear?” Rarity laughed. “You seem like a…” She hesitated. “Nice mare.” She decided to deliberately forget the magical explosion and poisoned tea. “Besides, we both desperately require a shower.”

“O-Oh.” Twilight looked down at her hooves, which were still covered in a thin layer of black soot. “I-I guess you’re right. It’s just that whenever I ask Elusive, he always says no because I’m a mare and it would be weird.”

“What a brute!” Rarity shrieked. “Mares like you or I must be properly pampered from time-to-time! I definitely…” Rarity’s words died in her mouth when a question forced itself into her brain. “If you don’t mind me asking, who is this Elusive you speak of?”

“You.” Twilight responded simply. “From my world, you’re a stallion named Elusive.”

Rarity stared in awe for a moment. How many times had Dusk asked her to go to the spa? And how many times had she said no on the principle of being a stallion, her a mare? “O-Oh.” She suddenly felt a red-hot wave of guilt rush over her. She tried to flush it out, instead focusing on the here and now. “But no matter. That’s neither here nor there.” But she still made a mental note to apologize to Dusk whenever he got back, and more importantly, take him to the spa as a sorry.

“I would love to go to the spa!” Twilight said enthusiastically. Rarity smiled. “I’ve always wanted to go, but- every time I try to go, they always ask me these really hard questions about mud baths or whatever.”

“Then let me be your tour guide.” Rarity said. She rounded the coffee table, stopping in front of Twilight. Rarity, without really waiting for permission, plucked Twilight’s mane and looked at it with her hoof. “I can tell you keep good care of your mane, but I’m sure Aloe or Lotus would love for you to-” Rarity’s hoof brushed against Twilight’s head as she let her blackened mane fall back. Rarity let out a gasp, now putting her wrist below her horn. “Dear, you're burning up!”

“Yeah, well-”

“Off to bed!” Rarity exclaimed. Twilight almost made up a retort, but unfortunately, she was being escorted by a demanding unicorn. “You should’ve been sleeping hours ago! Magical exhaustion is dangerous!”

“I’m fine, really!” Twilight complained. She finally got to her hooves, walking away from Rarity’s incessant pushing.

“You, go to bed!” She demanded. “I will go home and get properly cleaned. Tomorrow, we must be off!” She spoke. “No more magic, missy!”

“Fine, fine!” Twilight shook her head, hooves in the air. Rarity nodded contently, turning around and beginning to walk towards the exit.

“I’ll be back around twelve!” She said. “Make sure you shower before hoof.”

“But… we’re going to the spa anyways!” Twilight said. “Why would I need to shower?”

“Because, darling…” Rarity turned around, her eyes glossing up and down the Unicorn. “You’re filthy.” She shrugged. “Ta-ta! Don’t blip out of existence while I’m gone!” She said.

“Wait!” Twilight exclaimed. Rarity stopped just below the arch leading downstairs, turning back to look. “I didn’t even get your name!”

“Oh, dearie me.” She giggled. “How unladylike of me.” Twilight’s eyes flashed for a second in compounded recognition at the sentence. “My name is Rarity.”

“Hello, Rarity.” Twilight waved. “Bye, Rarity.” Rarity giggled, finally descending down the staircase and leaving Twilight alone. Without Spike- or, rather, Spines- the library felt quiet and lonely.

But, despite the absence of any living life, Twilight still felt something swelling in her chest. A feeling she hadn’t felt for a long, long time.

For once in Twilight’s life, she didn’t feel out of place.

03 - Morning Grogginess

Twilight slowly fluttered her eyes open.

It had been… a number of days since she had last gotten a good night’s sleep. Sure, even if this one had been slightly magically endued by accidentally draining most if not all of her magic from the intensive dimension-hopping spell, it was still one of the best sleeps she had ever gotten. Most of her nights in recent memory had been spent rolling over like a rotisserie chicken, but this night- she had been so still that her joints were aching. To say that this bed was over sized would be quite the understatement. As a matter of fact, Twilight was scared she would lose herself in the comforters due to its intensive size.

Unfortunately, Twilight wasn’t exactly able to directly communicate with Dusk. Hopping dimensions was intensive, and it was more akin to two carriage drivers waving at each other, going way too fast to properly take the time to stop and talk. That also meant that she wasn’t able to really get a better look than a kind of purplish violet blur as they jumped the gap between space. But, due to Dusk’s bed size, plus her own experience, evidence pointed towards Dusk being a massive stallion.

Twilight creaked open her right eyelid, forcing her magic exhaustion coma out of her system. She could feel the crust buildup on her eye from how hard she had slept. The sun was blazing through her window violently, almost like Prince Solaris himself was outside her window, demanding her to get up and start her day. Which has happened before. And to be fair, the bright green swaying trees just visible through her position on the bed through the window was a very inviting and compelling reason to get up.

She groaned, rolling over on her side, her back facing the piercing yellow light. In a moment of manic, Twilight let out a girlish giggle at the prospect of actually wanting to sleep longer. This wasn’t like her at all. She usually got up right on time, ready to start the day of lessons with Prince Solaris. But something was telling her to stay firmly planted. It was almost a foreign feeling, actually not wanting to get up.

But unfortunately, nature called. And she had been laying in her own black-soot filth from the previous night. She grunted as she dug her head deeper into the incredibly soft pillow. Perhaps if she ignored it, the pressure would go away?

“Eeegh…” Twilight whined, finally forcing her head inches off the pillow. She blinked, her vision rapidly going in and out of focus. Unfortunately, it looked like she wasn’t going to go home today. Her magic reserves were still low, and that also meant going light on the magic. Only basic levitation spells today. She let out a frustrated groan upon realizing she had also left all of the lanterns on from the night before. She dreaded knowing what the oil bill was going to be this month.

Her bones creaked in protest as her hooves hit the ground, demanding to be rested once more. With a thin-lipped curse barely directed at herself for not relaxing last night, she shook her bed mane, barely catching a glance at herself in the reflection of a photograph. Her mane was an impressive explosion of jungle mess, her eyes hollowed out from the black soot. Her eyes stopped focusing on the reflection, instead focusing on the photograph pinned to the wooden wall.

There was her first real glance at Dusk. A stallion with her exact hair colors, smiling broadly as he gripped an argumentive purple dragon. She let out a sharp laugh as she realized what Spike looked like in this world. She still managed to capture all of Spike’s stubbornness.

She could hardly believe this was happening. She was here, in an alternate universe, just existing. Nothing was rapidly different. It was a universe where every pronoun in every book mentioning everypony who had ever walked Equestria was flipped on its head. And Equestria just… kept moving along like nothing was wrong. There obviously had to be some differences, but from a surface level introspective, everything seemed almost boringly normal.

Twilight let out another laugh. She didn’t know why she was feeling exuberant, even with the little amount of magic in her reserves. All that she knew was that she was feeling happy. Without another thought, she began her descent to the bathroom.

She entered the small hallway that housed the kitchen and bathroom. She stopped just outside the bathroom door. Every photograph was one she recognized, only with a stallion at the front.

She paused, looking at an average than usual picture hung just outside the bathroom.

It was one she knew very well, mainly because every one of her friends had an identical photograph. It was a photo of all five of her friends, plus Spike. She remembered it as the photo that was always oddly proportioned. Rainbow Blitz, Butterscotch, Applejack, Bubble Berry, and Elusive. Then, right in the middle, was Twilight with Spike on her back. Sure, they were all smiling, but Twilight’s looked a little more bashful. All of the other stallions towering over Twilight as she wore it painfully.

Here- well, the photograph seemed to have the exact opposite problem. Instead of being the shortest and most petite by a long margin, he was the largest and most muscular. He was, similarly, in the middle of the photograph, wearing the exact same bashful smile, practically pushing the other mares out of the photo. Twilight couldn’t help but cringe.

Her cringing was instantly replaced by laughing. Gut-wrenching laughing. She actually had to kneel down for a second as the realization hit her.

All of her friends looked ridiculous as mares.

She had already met Elusive’s counterpart from last night, in the form of Rarity. She pulled of the look quite well, despite being absolutely filthy from the explosion. She probably was able to pull it off because of Elusive’s natural feminine energy, being a fashionista. Similarly with Butterscotch, he seemed quite competent as a mare.

And then there was Rainbow Blitz and Applejack.

Twilight looked up, meeting the petrified smile the photograph’d mare gave off. She was smiling so brightly, but she looked ridiculous. It was obvious that Blitz could not pull of the mare look one bit. Same with Applejack. Applejack was the epitome of all sexual energy of stallions into a single body. They could both level fields with a single flex.

And they were both mares in this photo. Ridiculous.

And then there was Bubble Berry. To be honest, despite size-difference being apparent, Bubble Berry was borderline androgynous between worlds. He could be a mare or a stallion, and Twilight would’ve just rolled with it.

She left the photograph behind with a disbelieving shake of her head, entering the bathroom.

She had done her business and was stepping into the shower. She had the pleasure of having an impressive array of soaps to choose from, being the 3-in-1 shampoo and body wash sitting lonely on a shelf. It wasn’t like Twilight used her massive array of soaps anyways. Honestly, she might’ve preferred using a single soap like Dusk. But it was still a little strange how that was the only soap in the entire shower. Honestly-honestly, Twilight hated getting soap as a present. Now, however, as she stared at the 3-in-1, she wondered if her stallion friends gifted her soap because she was a mare and didn’t question whether or not she actually liked them?

Twilight finished her shower and was in the process of washing her hooves when another thought crossed her noggin. She quickly air-dried them, and without using her magic, retched a drawer open. All of the usual suspects were here, of course.

Toothpaste… Brushes… band-aids… But nothing to relieve heat season!

…

Wait. No. Twilight internally cringed. Pills. There aren’t any hormone blockers. It was a medicine she used once a year to stop her estrous cycle temporarily, just long enough for heat season to fly over. And, of course, they were missing here.

Well, that’s annoying. Twilight thought, sliding the drawer shut. I’ll just have to go to the pharmacy and buy some more. It’s not that big of a deal, I guess. Heat season isn’t until next month, anyways. Twilight paused for a moment before exiting the bathroom. But- I’ll be home before then. Surely.

She exited the bathroom. Breakfast did sound good right about now, but… outside of making a bowl of cereal, Twilight probably would, could, and has burnt down the kitchen. In a house made from a tree. Spike had explicitly prohibited her from cooking, and although he wasn’t here right now- or she wasn’t here right now- Twilight still decided to not break her trust. She could probably grab something with Rarity on the way to the spa.

The spa! Twilight grew a smile as she turned away from the kitchen, skipping down the steps and into the public library center. Books lined the ground messily, and a draft of wind blew in from the opened windows. Her smile faded as she realized the mess she had made last night and had yet to clean up. Where was Spike when you needed him? With a sigh, she began levitating every book-

“Gah!” Twilight shouted, all of the books falling again. She rubbed the spot below her horn. That spell had taken more out of her than she realized. If she wasn’t careful, she was going to get an infection. Twilight let out a sigh of frustration, instead opting to manually reorganize the books.

But she couldn’t keep the smile off of her face for long. She was going to go to the spa! Elusi- Rarity was finally taking her to the spa! Finally, after asking for the past year and a half! She was going to experience first-hoof how it felt to have her bones turned to jello!

Metaphorically, of course.

It had taken a good chunk of time to reorganize the shelves without magic. Twilight wiped a thin layer of sweat off of her brow, looking upon her work. She had to give Spike a raise sometime. Not that she paid him in the first place. Perhaps it was finally time for him to earn his own royal stipend. By the time she was done, it was no longer breakfast. She didn’t feel particularly hungry, keeping herself distracted, but the gnawing was definitely beginning to grow within her stomach.

Rarity would be here any minute, and she had just the thing to pass the time. Twilight randomly grabbed a book from the shelf and flipped it over to the front cover. She let out a harsh chuckle as she read the title page. Daring do. Not Derring Do. And- honestly, Derring pulled off the mare look very well. Better than Rainbow or Applejack, that was for sure.

She plopped her flank onto the burnt floor, laying down. She had needed the space yesterday to cast the spell, so the table with the structure of a stallion on it had to be unfortunately moved downstairs for the time being. That meant reading on the floor, which wasn’t a real problem.

“See? Look!” Twilight heard a voice say. She looked up, straightening out as she watched three mares poke their head through a side window and into the library. “I told you that explosion came from here! Look at the glass!”

Twilight blinked. It was the flower brothers, except- well, they weren’t exactly brothers anymore. It was obvious who Rose, Lily, and Daisy were.

“Um- can I help you?” Twilight asked, a little miffed that the three ponies were quite obviously intruding on Twilight’s privacy. Rose, Lily, and Daisy all simultaneously blinked as they stared at Twilight through the window.

“Dusk?” They all said in stereo.

“Twilight.” Twilight corrected. The three mares all shared a look of disbelief.

“Dusk?” They repeated.

“Twilight!” She said louder. “I’m Twilight. That spell I casted made me-”

“Switch sex?” Rose finished.

“Become a mare?” Lily added.

“Live out your fantasy?” Daisy said thoughtfully. Twilight blinked harshly, pulling her head back in shock.

“No! I’m just Dusk from another-”

“You get it, girl!” Rose finished.

“Yeah!” Lily added.

“If we knew you felt like this earlier, Dusk, we would’ve helped you!” Daisy laughed thoughtfully. “I mean- this is pretty big!”

“Uh-oh.” Rose looked up.

“Uh-oh is right.” Lily added.

“Let’s let them fight this out, shall we?” Daisy finished thoughtfully. Without another word, the three flower sisters departed from the window, leaving a particularly flustered Twilight. The most she could do was let out a sigh and look back down at her Daring Do book.

She flattened the book on its spine, beginning the first paragraph. Well- she would’ve finished the first paragraph, if she wasn’t immediately interrupted by the sound of a pony entering the library. Which was strange, considering there was a huge sign on the door that quite clearly read closed that she was pretty sure hadn’t moved from yesterday. Twilight sighed again, looking up and meeting the violet eyes of the pony.

And she was looking back at Twilight.

She was a mare.

She was a Pegasus.

She looked like Rainbow Blitz.

Actually, scratch that. She was Rainbow Blitz.

The mare was paused just after the doorway. One hoof dangled in the air as her eyes were shot wide open, staring at Twilight laying on the ground. If she wasn’t already on the ground, she would’ve dropped from the sky in disbelief. Twilight stared apprehensively, observing the photograph come to life. Compared to the photograph, this mare didn’t look nearly as silly as she did.

Rainbow’s wings poofed open, flying a few loose feathers out.

Then, slowly, in equilibrium, they both started giggling like fillies.

Then laughing like mares.

Then rolling on the ground like foals.

“Ohmygosh! You look so plushy!” Rainbow gasped between breaths, putting her hooves onto her eyes. Twilight kept laughing, not taking offense to her statement. “So- you’re so tiny!”

“Well- you look boxy!” Twilight shouted back. Rainbow let out a few more laughs, rubbing her eyes as she rolled back onto her stomach.

“Boxy, huh?” Rainbow snickered. Twilight stopped laughing, also rolling on her stomach. The two laid on the blackened floor, hooves apart from each other. “Geez, Dusk. What kind of spell did you cast this time?”

“A-ha. I only casted a dimension-hopping spell.” She rolled her hoof. “Surprisingly simple. It just takes a lot of energy. Me and Dusk switched places.” Rainbow’s eyes slowly shot open in surprise.

“Woah-woah, wait!” She said, waving her hooves. “You’re not Dusk? You didn’t cast some sex-switchy spell?”

“Nope!” Twilight said proudly. “I come from a dimension where every gender is flipped!” Rainbow’s eyes went even wider. “The spell took a lot of magic, so I’m not allowed to use magic for the rest of the day.”

“Oh.” Rainbow said, not entirely sure what feeling to be feeling. “Are you- like, okay?”

“Oh, I’m fine.” Twilight waved a hoof. “A little magic exhaustion never hurt anypony!” Rainbow let out a sarcastic laugh, knowing full well that yes, magic exhaustion does hurt ponies. “Why are your wings like that?”

“Like what?”

“Like that.”

“Wh- Huh?” Rainbow cranked her head to the side, looking at both of her wings, which were standing straight up. She quickly turned back to Twilight with a blush spread across her muzzle. “J-Just sore!” She said. Twilight thought for a moment, before nodding her head in satisfaction. Rainbow bit her lip for a second, before scootching forwards on the ground.

“What are you doing?”

“Just-” Rainbow, once close enough, extended a hoof forwards. She planted it firmly on Twilight’s chest, pushing forwards. Twilight raised an eyebrow, looking back up at Rainbow.

“What are you doing?”

“Plushy.” She responded simply. Now, it was Twilight’s turn to blush, her muzzle heating up.

“A-Are you saying I’m fat?” Twilight asked, almost wondering if Rainbow intended for her action to be offensive. Rainbow looked up at Twilight’s eyes with surprise.

“N-No!” She shook her head. “It’s just- I mean, Dusk is like ripped, but doesn’t ever exercise. So I thought- you know- you’re a mare and all, and-” She sucked air between her teeth. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to offend you.”

“No, it’s okay.” Twilight looked down, still noticing Rainbow’s hoof on her chest. She gently guided it down with her own. “Introductions first, okay?” She smiled. Rainbow smiled back. “My name is Twilight Sparkle. And I assume your name isn’t Rainbow Blitz.”

“Close.” Rainbow kept smiling. “My name is Rainbow Dash. Fastest flyer this side of Equestria!”

“You might be even faster than Blitz.” Twilight complimented. Rainbow raised a confused eyebrow at that. “Your double is Blitz. Since he’s a stallion, he relies more on wing power than anything else. Mares glide through air, a little bit like swimming. So, with that in mind, who’s faster?”

“Obviously me!” Rainbow said. “We have to race sometime!” Rainbow made an ooing sound. “Do you think you could teleport Blitz over here? We have to race!” Twilight offered her brightest sympathetic smile.

“Just hopping by myself took a lot out of me.” Twilight explained. “If I tried to do two ponies at once- I’m scared I won’t make the hop.”

“Woah.” Rainbow said. “That can happen?”

“Yeah.” Twilight shrugged. “It was dangerous enough coming over here. But I couldn’t pass up the opportunity.”

“Twilight!” Rainbow said. “You could’ve died?”

“Not die?” She said slowly. “More like- drift in the space between dimensions for the rest of time?”

“Twilight…” Rainbow sighed, putting her hoof back onto Twilight’s chest. “I don’t wanna see you hurt!” Twilight looked back down at her hoof. Why was Rainbow this sympathetic? She usually wasn’t- or, he usually wasn’t.

Wait a minute… Twilight thought. Isn’t Blitz gay? And if Blitz is gay, then that would mean Dash is too…

Oh buck.

“R-Rainbow?” Twilight asked, snapping her head upwards. “Are you coming on to me?”

“What?” Rainbow yanked her hoof back. Then, as if her suspicions were confirmed, she looked away while blushing harder than before. “Nooo… maybe?”

“R-Rainbow!” Twilight quickly stood up.

“No- I’m sorry!” She waved her hooves, also standing up and watching in pain as Twilight backed up. “I just- I think you're really hot!”

“Hot?” She shrieked. Twilight’s heart began to flutter rapidly as her flank hit the bookshelf behind her. Feelings were brewing in her chest that she hadn’t ever really felt before. Not to sound too cliché, but she felt the butterflies gnawing at her stomach.

“I’m sorry!” Rainbow repeated. “I mean- you’re hot as a stallion, but like- I don’t like stallions! So- it’s like Princess Celestia herself just delivered an angel on my doorstep!” Twilight took a heavy breath, trying to steady her hooves, which were suddenly shaking again.

“An angel?” Twilight said. “Do you mean that?”

“Well…” Rainbow rocked her head. “Not like- literally an angel, but-” She sighed. “I’m sorry. I’m just-”

“I’m baack!” A new voice said. Both Twilight and Rainbow jumped in surprise, turning to the side to look at the now opened door. There, in all her glory, stood Rarity. Unlike yesterday, her coat was a finely groomed pure white that radiated the sun off of it. Her mane, instead of being embedded with dirt and black soot, was the most majestical purple Equestria had ever seen. Twilight’s jaw almost opened in surprise.

“Hi!” Twilight said, pretending as if nothing was amiss.

“Nice to see you again, Twilight.” Rarity greeted, walking further into the library. Twilight put on her best ‘nothing to see here’ smile as she could as Rarity gauged the scene. “Hello, Rainbow Dash.” Rarity greeted. Rainbow just kept her mouth closed, eyes darting from Rarity to Twilight.

“Good to see you weren’t a figment of my imagination, darling.” Rarity said to Twilight. “Are you ready to go to the spa?”

“Oh-” Twilight turned to the Pegasus laying on the floor. “Sorry, Rainbow. I made an appointment with Rarity today…” Then, she let out a small smile. “Unless you would want to go, too?” Rainbow kept working her jaw for a moment longer, before suddenly realizing she was being spoken to.

“Oh- no. No thank you.” She said, shaking her head. “I’m too cool for all that frilly stuff.”

“Of course.” Rarity said wistfully. “Rainbow never wants to go to the spa.” She turned on a dime, trotting towards the door. Twilight looked back with a frown. “Come along, Sparkle!” Rarity said, exiting the premises. Twilight also began trotting towards the door, before stopping on its frame. She looked back at the saddened Pegasus, still laying on the ground.

“Rainbow.” Twilight said. She looked up. “Come back later tonight, okay?” She asked quietly. Rainbow let a goofy smile suddenly spread across her muzzle, nodding quickly. Twilight offered a hopeful smile, before walking out of the library and closing the door behind her.

04 - Hungry? Hungry.

The door latched shut. Twilight squeezed her eyes shut, resting her head against the door with a fretful sigh. That was… a strange experience to say the least.

Was that what flirting feels like? Twilight asked herself. Did I like it? I-I don’t know.Twilight sighed, taking a few steps back and reopening her eyes.

This was the first time she’d seen the library from the outside in this universe. And she was disappointed. It looked identical to the one back in her world in every way imaginable. From the color of the windowsills to the distribution of each individual flower in every planter box. She was expecting at least some variation. The gender ratio was no longer one-to-five, it was five-to-one. That must have some kind of bearing on this world, right?

She turned around, looking down the street. Rarity had stopped trotting, turning around and looking at Twilight with a gated curiosity. The street behind her still had the same amount of litter on the ground, somewhat disappointingly, and if her magic wasn’t still, shot, she would’ve levitated a drifting newspaper into the trash can outside her front door.

Twilight redirected her attention to Rarity, who was still standing expectantly. She looked prettier than the model on the front of a postcard. Twilight’s breath hitched.

Do I… like mares that way? She asked herself. Is that even okay? She bit her bottom lip, forcing her eyes away. She had some talking to do, and not with Rarity. Instead, it seemed a certain blue Pegasus was keeping space occupied in her brain. I know for a fact I don’t like Blitz that way. So why do I like Dash that way? Do I even like Dash that way?

“Thought for bits?” Rarity asked. Twilight took a deep breath, looking towards the ground, and instead opting to start trotting ahead. Rarity stared curiously, deciding to walk side-by-side with Twilight down the path towards the center of town, where their destination resided.

Twilight wasn’t stupid. She knew Rarity probably knew something was going on. Rarity’s social smarts might’ve played into the reason she was currently shooting Twilight so many glances out of her side. Twilight decided to distract herself from the stretching silence, looking up and around the town.

So many ponies she recognized, but at the same time, didn’t. So many ponies looked so much smaller. Harpsy, the Unicorn that always sat weirdly, was also sitting weirdly, but as a mare. She witnessed as a lumbering stallion picked up a stack of apples on his back. Surely something as arduous as that still needed stallions, right? So, what was happening in her universe? Was there not a stallion there?

“So…” Rarity finally broke the silence. Twilight forced her head to raise, almost pretending to be non-bothered. “Has a certain mare caught your eye?” She asked forcefully.

“N-No!” She instantly denied. Rarity had caught her so off guard, she tripped over her own hooves. She eventually stabilized, forcing herself back up into a semi-normal walking position. “M-Maybe?” She admitted. “I-I don’t know. Everything’s so- weird right now!” She sighed, removing a hoof from the ground and rubbing it through her mane. “T-This isn’t my world, so I don’t think it’s right to-” She didn’t get to finish her sentence. Suddenly, her hoof was forcefully thrown from her head.

Twilight’s mane was encompassed in a pale blue aura as Rarity began working diligently to straighten out the mess that Twilight had just made. Twilight looked away from her mane, towards Rarity, as her face was scrunched into something only describable as concentration.

Elusive would’ve asked for permission fist. Hay, all of her friends would’ve. It was an uncertain, but also very welcoming feeling. Like for the first time in ever,Twilight was being treated as an equal. Much better from being part of the snobbish Upper-Canterlot folk.

“There.” Rarity said, finally dispersing her magic. “All better. Now- onto the spa?” She suggested, beginning to walk again. It took Twilight less than a moment to catch up. “Perhaps we could discuss your feelings there.”

“A-Actually…” Twilight started. “I skipped breakfast. Would it be alright if we took a detour? I can pay.”

“You can pay?” Rarity asked, putting a hoof against her own chest in shock. “You’ll pay? Absolutely not, darling! You are a guest here! I simply insist, I must pay!” She put her hoof back down.

“But-” Twilight noticed the steeled resolve that flickered through Rarity’s face. A sort of determination that was easily recognizable as Elusive’s own stubbornest. A determination that Twilight had only seen on Elusive’s face. It was a bit strange seeing the expression on a mare, but the message was shouted loud and clear. Twilight simply sighed. “Okay…”

“Splendid!” Rarity giggled. “Come! I know just the brunch-eon!” She began to pick up the pace, as did Twilight, before a single thought crossed her mind. She slowed back down, turning to talk. “-unless your mare friend has a problem with me taking you to breakfast?”

“R-Rarity!”

“Just checking!” She smiled cheekily, actually picking up the pace this time. Twilight grumbled something that sounded distinctly like a swear, before following Rarity to destination unknown.

Rarity’s muzzle was upturned into one of disgust.

Rarity had led Twilight to a fancier lunch restaurant. One with a waiter in a suit, delectable food, and a great outdoor view to the town hall. The restaurant itself was renowned for its soups and vegetables, and even a few tourists had come from out of town to experience the food.

Unfortunately, Twilight was too busy eating nothing other than hay fries to properly indulge in the delectables the restaurant offered... And it made Rarity sick.

Rarity had brought Twilight to the fanciest restaurant this side of Canterlot, and Twilight decided to buy the grimiest, greasiest, cheapest food she could find on the menu.

Meanwhile, the polite and patient mare looked down at her own bowl of cream mushroom soup with a proper spoon and even garnishing. Rarity’s eyes flickered back up, witnessing as Twilight lowered her muzzle into the basket and started to eat. Rarity grimaced.

“D-Dear…” Rarity began slowly, capturing the attention of the purple mare. “Proper ladies use magic. See?” She said in an almost mocking tone. Her spoon levitated off from its napkin, scooping up a properly portioned amount of soup. She politely sipped, making sure to minimize the amount of sound coming from her lips. She swallowed, letting the spoon fall into the bowl for a second sip.

“I would like to…” Twilight began. “But I drained my magic reserves yesterday. Remember? I can’t use magic.”

“Pfft!” Rarity, for the second time in twenty-four hours, let the liquid in her mouth spray across the table. Unlike last time, Twilight was much less fortunate in her positioning, getting a face full of cream soup spray. She squinted her eyes, immediately reaching out to her lap-napkin to pat her coat.

“You’re still not recovered?” Rarity said less than quietly. A few perturbed patrons of the restaurant turned around in their seats, witnessing the scene. Rarity lowered her voice and head. “T-This is preposterous!”

“Wow. Um.” Twilight wiped her face. “It’s fine. Seriously. It’s probably because I skipped breakfast today.” Rarity stared in absolute disbelief at the irrational Unicorn. “I’m prescribing myself absolutely zero magic use. I should be fine by either today or tomorrow morning.” She shrugged.

“Y-You’re still not-” Rarity looked around quickly, noting how everypony had once again went back to eating their lunches. “Twilight, this isn’t good!” She whispered. “You need to go to the hospital!”

“I’m fine!” Twilight spread her hooves. “So- how’s life like over here-”

“You’re not getting off that easily!” She whisper-shouted. “What if you cracked your reserves? What if they heal wrong? What then?” Rarity stood on her chair quickly, leaning over the table and planting her wrist firmly on Twilight’s head. In a fit of surprise, Twilight had next to no time to react, only dodging after Rarity felt her head. “You’re not warm anymore…” She sighed fretfully. “I don’t like this, Twilight!”

“I’m fine!” Twilight responded, watching curiously as a concerned Rarity sat back down. “Worst comes to worst, I’m still not recovered by tomorrow, I’ll go to the hospital!”

“You need to go to the ER!” Rarity fumbled her hooves on the table, straightening out an already straightened spoon. “What if you get an infection? You won’t be using magic for months! Not even counting what could happen if your reserves are cracked!”

Twilight sighed, turning back to her hay fries. They hadn’t given her any Earth and Pegasus adapted utensils. Unicorns usually just got silver silverware, perfect for levitating, while Earth and Pegasus ponies had a sleeve to slide onto their hooves for easier use.

Maybe I should ask for one..?Twilight hummed. Not using magic for a prolonged period of time was difficult, to say the least. She couldn’t imagine not using magic for, as Rarity so eloquently put it, months.But it wouldn’t come to that, right? Bare minimum, she could always ask Prince Solaris, or his equivalent over here, for help getting back home. It wasn’t like she was going to be stranded.

Although… all of the other times she had any form of magical exhaustion was because of constant and prolonged spell use. Like reorganizing the library twenty times in one day, or practicing new spells. It was rare when she had to use a spell that let magic flow from her horn like that. That spell wasn’t like poking a hole in a water bottle and letting the water drain out slowly, it was more like using a machete to slash it in half.

No. No, she couldn’t think like that. She was fine.

“Boy howdy, Big Mac!”

Good. Something to distract her with. And, if that accent was anything to go off of, she had a good idea of who that was.

Rarity let her spoon finally relax, clinking into the bowl as she looked over Twilight’s shoulder. She followed her gaze, watching as a pair of very recognizable ponies trotted around the corner. A very familiar red stallion, and more importantly, a very recognizable orange mare.

“It’s barely noon and we’ve already emptied our entire stock! Now, ain’t that somethin’?” She asked, elbowing the massive, hunking stallion firmly in the chest.

“Eeyup.” He responded simply.

Twilight’s eyes went wide as she stared at the red stallion. It was obviously meant to be Red Gala, Applejack’s sister, but- if it was even possible, he was somehow larger than Applejack back home. Not only that, but he somehow managed to pull off the stallion look incredibly well. And- if it was even possible, better than Applejack could.

“Hey ya’ll!” Applejack’s double greeted. She was an orange mare with a blonde mane, and unlike the photograph Twilight had seen earlier in the day, did also pull off the mare well equally as well as Rainbow. Applejack could’ve had entirely different coat colors, as long as he had his stetson, it was always Applejack. “How’s it-” Her bright green eyes landed on Twilight. “-going…?”

“Hello!” Twilight greeted, waving her hoof. “My name is Twilight Sparkle!” She said, already completely acclimated to the sensation of greeting ponies she probably should know. “What’s your name?”

“Uh- Howdy!” Applejack said after a moment of hesitation. “The name’s Applejack!” Twilight had to hold back a laugh. Well… I guess Applejack is a gender-enough-neutral name.Applejack held out a hoof. Instead of shaking it, Twilight opted for bumping, as memories of having her arm shaken loose resurfaced. Applejack gladly took the bump, setting her hoof back down. “This here is Big Mac-” She said, pointing and turning back to the stallion. “Ya’ll wanna load up another crate of apples?” She asked. Big Mac nodded, trotting away.

“Well…” Applejack turned back to the table. “Anypony ever tell ya’ll look just like our good pal, Dusk?” She asked.

“Dusk?” Rarity laughed, leaning forwards on the table. “Funny you mention that, Applejack!” Rarity turned towards Twilight. Twilight shot a look of pain back at Rarity for being put on the spotlight.

“You see, uhm-” Twilight cleared her throat. “I actually am Dusk!” Applejack’s eyes went wide in confusion. “I’m just from another universe!”

“What?” She asked. “Another universe? Those exist?” Rarity stifled a giggle.

“Yeah!” Twilight said proudly. “I come from a universe where everypony’s gender is flipped!” Twilight leaned forwards on her chair. “Rarity’s name is Elusive, my name is Twilight, and your name is Applejack!”

“Huh?” Applejack blinked in confusion. “I ain’t no scholar, Twilight Sparkle, but- you’re Dusk?”

“I have the exact same memories, experiences, whatever! Just- our gender is flipped!” She let out a little laugh. “You can treat me the same, promise!”

“Huh.” Applejack stopped for a minute, looking at the pebbles in the floor. “Well- this is a might strange… but hay!” Suddenly, Applejack approached Twilight, punching her on the shoulder. Twilight winced, feeling the sudden burst of pain. “If you’re my stallion’s friend, then you’re my friend, too!” She laughed at Twilight’s expression. “How’d you even get over here?”

“By damaging herself.” Rarity responded for Twilight. Applejack turned to Rarity. “Twilight’s experiencing something us Unicorns call magical exhaustion.” Applejack’s face raised in concern. “And she has yet to go to the hospital.”

“And that’s… bad?” She asked. Twilight cringed, knowing that this conversation would end with two of her friends suddenly concerned for her.

“Indeed, it is.” Rarity explained. “Unicorns can drain their magic reserves by doing spells for a prolonged period of time. Twilight here- and Dusk for that matter- both casted an incredibly complex and draining spell.”

“It actually wasn’t that complex-”

“And then, instead of immediately resting, Twilight decided to use her magic to make tea.” Rarity explained angrily. Applejack kept looking confused, so Rarity continued. “Imagine bucking the largest tree in your orchard, Applejack. You bucked it so hard, the bones in your legs shatter.” Applejack blinked, cringing at the description. “What do you do?”

“Err- Ah’ would go to the hospital?” Applejack wagered a guess.

“Indeed, my farmer friend. You would go to the hospital, or Celestia forbid, rest.Instead of resting to heal, or going to the hospital, imaging you keep bucking trees with your shattered legs, pretending it’s not a problem.”

“Ah…” Applejack turned to Twilight. “That don’t sound too healthy, Sugarcube…”

“I’m fine!” Twilight said angrily. “I’ll be using magic in no time!” Applejack bit her lip.

“This is soundin’ a lot like when ah’ had to buck the whole orchard by myself. What happens if ya’ll aren’t okay? Are we gonna ever see Dusk again?”

“Yes!” Twilight exclaimed. “Worst comes to worst, Prince Solaris can cast the spell for me.” She explained. Both Rarity and Applejack exchanged some glances of confusion at the Prince, but bit their tongue none the less, able to take a wild guess at who that was supposed to be.

“If you’re Dusk from another universe, that means our counterparts are havin’ the same conversation.” Applejack guessed. “Ah’m sure Ponyville’ll treat ya’ll with the same hospitality, no matter the universe.” She sighed. “But what’s your backup plan, Dusk? What if ya’ll actually did damage your noggin?”

Twilight let out a huff of frustration, opening her mouth to respond, but instead finding the words die on her tongue. What would happen if her reserves were damaged? No more magic? For how long? Forever?

She bit her tongue.

“Okay…” She sighed. “Fine. I concede. I’ll-” Twilight gulped. “I’ll go to the hospital.”

“Preferably, now.” Rarity demanded.

“B-But our spa-”

“Your health is more important than the spa.” Rarity said with a small frown. Applejack chuckled. Rarity shot a look at Applejack, something that seethed violence. “Of course, you’d think anything is more important than the spa, Applejack.”

“Because anything is!” Applejack retorted. “Ah’ mean- ah’d rather tango with Lucihoof himself than go to the spa!”

“You went to the spa that one time! And you loved it!”

“That was after the poison joke! Ah’ had no dang choice!”

“But you still loved it!”

“Because ah’ wasn’t two inches tall anymore!” Applejack let out a mustang sigh. “Ah’ should leave before this turns into a shoutin’ match. Take it easy, Twi.” Applejack said with a nod, turning around and trotting away. Twilight waved as she walked away.

“Your bill, madams.” A waiter in a nice black suit approached the table, resting a receipt between the two bowls. Rarity placed her bits down, a stallion nodding at her as he whisked away the money.

“I have a few dress orders to fill.” Rarity started talking. “Unfortunately, I won’t accompany you to the hospital.”

“Why not?” Twilight almost shrieked. “I-I’ll have to go alone?”

“It seems so.”

“But- you were willing to go to the spa with me!”

“I’m still going to the spa.” Rarity explained, hopping down from her chair. “Your health is more important than the spa.”

Twilight just let out an angry sigh.

06 - Moment of Truth

Dress.

“Check!”

Cleaned Library.

“Getting there!”

Set table.

“Almost!”

Food.

“Not-so-check!” Rarity sighed.

“Very, super-duper checked!” A pink menace said.

“Check!” Rarity corrected herself.

Time was running thin. Apparently, sewing together an entire dress with enough time to set and clean an entire library was a difficult thing to do, and nopony knew this better than the three currently residing inside. Twilight quickly galloped around the library, dusting any little last dollop of dust that she could reach without the assistance of her magic. Rarity was equally busy, setting the mood with an array of candles and making sure the fireplace was lit in just the right way, in order to douse the library with the optimal amount of light, enough to set the romantic scene.

Pinkie Pie was a new hire. She had just gotten done hosting a Cutecenera and somehow still managed to find the energy to bake a meal for the very impromptu date night. Although Rarity was competent with her cooking skills, (Twilight was out of the question,) she probably wasn’t good enough to cook a meal that would make this night a night to remember. Although Pinkie was more of a confectionery cooker, her Earth-pony magic ways always seemed to apply to everything, no matter the situation.

And, more importantly, she was very adept at not burning down the library.

Twilight spit the feather-duster out of her mouth. “What if she doesn’t show up?” Twilight asked hurriedly, pulling a curtain closed. “What if she misunderstood me? What if she thinks I said ‘come back tomorrow’ instead of ‘tonight?’”

“Then we reschedule!” Rarity raised her voice so Twilight could hear her from across the loft. She had begun straightening the spoons and forks on the dining table, making sure the cloth drooped off of the table just right. The red sofa that Rarity had passed out on the night before had been moved away and out of sight, a dining table with fancy chairs taking it’s place. It was very romantic, and Rarity missed out on it by being somepony else. If this was her, and this was what her date night looked like, she might just pass out. Again.

“But all of the food waste!” Twilight huffed, throwing the curtains back open after deciding they didn’t look right. She noticed that the sun had begun dipping below the horizon. “The sun is dipping!” She shouted, running over to Rarity. Rarity didn’t have any time to react as Twilight grabbed her by her withers, shaking her quite hard. Not Apple family hard, but enough to rattle a few bolts loose up top. “She will be here any minute!”

“Alright!” Rarity put her hoof on Twilight’s chest, pushing her away. “Alright.” She took a calming breath. “The sun is down… she’ll be here any minute… go get on your dress.”

“Oh! Oh, right!” Twilight looked at her naked body sheepishly. She turned around, quickly galloping up the staircase and into her room… for all of the privacy it provided, which was about zero. Rarity tittered, looking up at the clock above the fireplace. Indeed, it was now six.

Twilight found it much more difficult to put on a dress without magic. Putting on clothes were super easy to her, no matter the complexity. Worst comes to worst, and Twilight didn’t mind burning a little magic, she would levitate the clothes to stretch a little wider than they were supposed to, and she would teleport in. Over the past day, she had begun developing a newfound respect for Earth-ponies. Even Pegasi could use their wings like claws in order to assist with the trickier parts.

Eventually, Twilight clipped on the bright star to her mane, just behind the right ear. She quickly trotted in front of her full length mirror by her bed, giving herself a little twirl. The dress was familiar in every aspect, from the way the silk danced on her body, to the way it reflected the candlelight. It was just like the one Elusive had designed for her- only fresh and brand new. Hers had been getting old.

Twilight descended down the staircase, taking care to not trip on her own dress. Rarity turned around, squealing in awe at her own work. It was a beautiful dress, and Rarity practically patted herself on her own back.

“It looks great, Rarity!” Twilight exclaimed.

“Pshaw, it was nothing!” Rarity smiled. “Now, quickly! Go spray on some perfume!”

“O-Okay!” Twilight nodded, turning around and moving her hooves as quickly as they could take her. Her hoof shoes were clinking on the floorboards, and she felt like a princess.

Twilight stopped in front of the bathroom door. There, hung on the wall, was the exact same portrait she had looked at earlier today. It was darker and harder to see, but… right where Dusk was, she couldn’t help but see her own face. And for some reason, she looked a little less out of place.

“Twilight!” Pinkie said, surprising Twilight. She turned around to see Pinkie balancing about four pots and pans on each of her limps. Using her one free hoof, she bounced over to the archway separating the kitchen and hallway. “You look super-duper perfect! I still can’t believe this is happening! Two of my bestest-bestest-best friends are going on a date! Ooh, this is sweeter than a cupcake!”

“I-I can’t believe it’s happening, either!” Twilight said quickly. “Excuse me, she could be here any minute!”

“Of course!” Pinkie returned to the kitchen, bouncing back. Twilight didn’t wait to see how it would turn out, instead slipping into the bathroom and closing the door. Crystal light bulbs lit up the bathroom in a cold white as she opened the medicine cabinet, and almost instantly realized the roadblock ahead of her.

Dusk was a stallion.

She was in Dusk’s library.

There was a single bottle of Hatchet Body Spray.

“That’s… fine.” Twilight said, sliding out the bottle and balancing it on her hoof. It wasn’t like she smelled bad, per say, but rather that dates, especially mares, smelled like flowers! Right? That’s what she read in books, anyways. She sat down on her flank, bringing her other hoof up to tap the spray nozzle. It let out a fine particulate that settled on her neck.

And she almost instantly started gagging.

Hatchet smelled like the combined body sweat of every hoofball player back at her blunder years of Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns. The level of regret she experienced when she took that first inhalation of the body spray was comparable to none. It was quite possibly the most strongest and pungent smell she had ever experienced.

“Ack-ack!” She raised her hoof to cover her mouth. Instead what happened was the Hatchet that had been balancing delicately on her hoof instantly toppled over, falling into the sink with a mighty shatter. Glass shards exploded outwards, leaving an impressive amount of debris in the sink.

“Shit!” The smell that started irradiating from the sink was enough to clear entire armies out. She felt the particulates enter her throat through her nose, and she began letting out awful coughs to try and dislodge the smell from her nostrils. She reached over the fumes, bravely putting her hoof into the danger zone, and turned on the sink.

Instead of washing down the smell, all it did was expiate it, spreading it further around. She instantly turned it off, coughed one last time, and staggered out of the bathroom more lopsided than a drunk stallion.

Pinkie was standing by the stove, completely motionless as she stared at Twilight.

“All good!” Twilight said. Pinkie shrugged, going back to cooking. Twilight took a huge breath in, still smelling the body spray, and started walking back to the loft. Her dress caught on the door, and with one larger tug, it broke free.

“Twilight!” Rarity greeted as her friendly face popped back up and into the loft-turned-dining room. “We’re almost done! She should be here ant-” Rarity stopped talking, her face twisting into a gruesome expression. “E-E-Eww! What in the name of Celestia’s flank is that smell?”

“Hatchet Body Spray.”

“Hatchet Body Sp- What in the ever-loving horsefeathers and flower petals is wrong with you?” Rarity backed up, putting a hoof against her muzzle in an attempt to block the smell. “That smells awful!”

“It’s all Dusk had in his cabinet!”

“Nothing is better than Hatchet! And I mean that quite literally! Nothing is better!” She started coughing, waving her hoof around in order to air out the immediate area. “Quickly! Before Rainbow gets here, go take a shower! You need to get all of that smell off of-”

Twilight’s heart froze. From somewhere downstairs, the echoey sounds of a knocking door reverberated through the library.

“Uh oh. Too late.” Rarity said. Twilight slowly turned around, facing the terrifying staircase. “Pinkie! It’s show time! Places!”

“Show time?” Pinkie poked her head out of the kitchen archway. “Showtime! Who’s going to be the waiter?”

“I’m the waiter!”

“What? I want to be the waiter!”

“I’m- Ugh. Twilight.” Rarity prodded the stunned mare’s shoulder. “It’s not polite to keep a lady waiting…” She teased. Twilight gulped down a newfound lump in her throat, and began trotting slowly.

The bottom of the library was much better lit than the upstairs. It almost felt like a planning room before the big date, which for all intents and purposes, it was. She stopped at the top of the staircase, taking in a huge breath. Her hooves didn’t feel like cooperating. She could even see, through the intact and not shattered glass of the door, the rough and blurry outline of Rainbow. What was going to happen during dinner? What were they even going to talk about? Was Rainbow going to make the same advances towards her? Would she even be ready this time?

Twilight shook her head lightly, making sure her mane was perfect. Then, she had a wicked idea.

“Come in!” She shouted.

There was a moment of fumbling on Rainbow’s part. She eventually twisted the door handle, swinging it inwards. Twilight bit her lip, closed her eyes, and breathed out.

She began walking down the staircase.

Rainbow’s jaw hit the floor as she watched Twilight. There she was, in all her glory. She didn’t look exactly the same as she did a few hours ago. Instead, she was prettied up in the dress she wore to the Gala, much like Twilight. However, it was painfully apparent that Rainbow had done the prettying up herself. The age of the dress was more than apparent by the numerous crease lines uglying up the surface. It looked like the dress wasn’t quite on right, by the shoulder looked like it was almost falling off. But she looked gorgeous.

“Well… at least I know I’m not overdressed!” Rainbow stuttered. Twilight watched as Rainbow kept trying, and failing, to keep her eyes on Twilight’s neck. She reached the bottom of the dress, walking towards Rainbow and giving a little twirl, much like the one she did in front of the mirror. Rainbow took it as a sign that yes, it was okay to look.

“Wow.” Rainbow said. “You look… good. Really good. I mean-”

“It’s okay, Rainbow.” Twilight laughed, stopping her spin. “I think you look… hot.”

“Oh, it’s okay to say that?” Rainbow rolled her eyes dramatically. “Twilight Sparkle, you are smokin’.” Twilight let out a small giggle, much to Rainbow’s amusement. “So… this is like, a date night, or something?”

“You could say that…” Twilight nodded her head back. “Come on. Our waiter is waiting for us.”

“Waiter?” She asked, following Twilight up the staircase, only hovering and letting her half-on dress hang uselessly below her. “We have a waiter?”

“Two, if we’re lucky.” Rainbow shot a questioning gaze, but decided to not question it any further. Twilight ascended closer to her destination, passing by the kitchen. She took a cursory glance, noticing how unlike mere moments before, the kitchen was completely deserted. The only thing left was the slight fragrance of cooked noodles hanging idly in the air. Twilight gulped. She didn’t know why she was suddenly feeling nervous, but she was.

“You smell really good, Twi.”

Actually- she did know. She was on a date with a cute mare.

Yes. Cute. That’s a word that I know. Twilight thought. She is… cute. She let a smile temporarily grace her muzzle.

Twilight was the first to enter the loft area. She took a breath, trying to clear her thoughts as she took in the scene. The smell of lit candles with the distinct aura of strawberries flooded her nose as she closed her eyes, sinking in the scene.

“Woah!” Rainbow said immediately, landing on the ground with a clop. “You- you did all of this?” She asked, stunned. The flames licked across the floorboards, elongating the shadows off of te table. All of the lanterns in this particular room had been turned off, instead being replaced with about fifty or so candles, giving off the smell she had previously noticed. The walls of the library danced with the orange flickering color.

“Of course!” Twilight said, bumping Rainbow on the shoulder. Rainbow seemed taken back for a moment, before giving Twilight a playful smile and bumping her back a little harder. “Okay- let’s calm down, Dashie.” Rainbow’s ears perked at the nickname, only used to hearing it from a select few ponies. “Let’s go sit down.”

“Cool!” Rainbow said, a fluttering feeling in her heart guiding her forwards. She pulled her own seat out, taking the left one, but paused for a moment as she stared at it. Then, without another word, she quickly galloped to the seat on the right, pulling it out. “For you, mad’am!” She said with a fake Fancy accent.

“Why, thank you!” Twilight giggled, sitting down. Rainbow pushed her in, quickly returning to her own chair. Twilight cleared her throat, idly pushing a glass positioned by Rarity around in an attempt to distract herself from Rainbow. “So… um…” She looked up, meeting Rainbow’s eyes. She seemed just happy to be here. “You… think I’m an angel?”

“What?” Rainbow asked. Twilight wasn’t aware the Rainbow’s were blushers, but yet here Dash was, her muzzle slowly turning a darker shade. “When did- did- did I say that?”

“Yeah. Earlier today.” Twilight put her elbows onto the table, getting comfortable. “You said I was an angel.”

“Oh.” Rainbow adjusted her dress on her seat, idly playing with the extra fabric. “I’m sorry. I kinda panicked. I’m sorry about… freaking out like that, I guess? It was just- you know, heat of the moment and all.”

“Oh, don’t worry, Dashie.” Twilight said again. Rainbow leaned into her seat a little more, the blush that had been developing gaining a significant amount of progress. “I’ll forgive you on one condition.” She leaned forwards. “Call me an angel again.”

“Really?” Rainbow asked, pulling at her dress harder. “You are… so cheesy. First, trotting down the stairs like Cinderella, now this? I didn’t know Dusk was this romantic.”

“Says the one who called me an angel…!” She trailed off. “Now, do it again.” Rainbow let out a little giggle that made her heart flutter. Twilight didn’t know why she was acting like this. Was this what flirting was? Was this was flirting felt like? Was she even doing it right?

“Man, I can’t believe Princess Celestia sent me an angel!” Rainbow said, leaning her chin into her hooves and half-lidding her eyes in an attempt to be seductive. Twilight hid her laugh behind a hoof. “And such a pretty angel, too!”

“Oh-” Twilight sighed. “I’m only half as pretty as the mare sitting across from me!” Rainbow, apparently not expecting the return on flirt, had her ears collapse as her muzzle exploded the next shade. It was honestly impressive, the mass amounts of blood flooding to her muzzle.

“Aww!” A familiar voice said from the staircase. Rainbow and Twilight froze. Rainbow wasn’t exactly aware that there were more than Twilight here, and Twilight had been so entranced in her flirting that she had totally forgotten that she had waiters. There, balancing a plate with a silver dome on her back, was Pinkie Pie. “That was adorable!” Rainbow pulled her dress up to her face, hiding it from embarrassment. Twilight just kept staring, feeling blood rush to her own face.

“I’m here, too!” Rarity walked out behind Pinkie, levitating her own plate with a dome on it. Pinkie was Pinkie, but it seemed that Rarity had dressed up for the occasion. Rarity had her hair back in a bun, and from the back, it looked like she had a bob cut. This was perhaps the closest she had ever looked to Elusive. She also wore an immaculate suit, no doubt crafted by herself.

“Hey, Rares…” Rainbow cringed, letting her dress fall a few inches from her face. Rarity nodded politely, approaching the table. Pinkie did the same, only bouncing up and down instead of walking calmly. It was impressive that the silver dome didn’t manage to fall off of her back.

Rarity was about to deposit the food in front of Twilight, when her eyes suddenly went wide.

“Rainbow! You… dressed up!” She said in surprise.

“Yeah… I thought it was-”

“And you did it terribly!”

“What?” Rainbow looked down, suddenly feeling her clothes become enveloped in a blue aura. Against her will, they began being tugged left and right, being straightened out into something a little more presentable.

“There. That’s fixed.” Rarity said, now finally delicately dropping the plate with a dome on it in front of Twilight. Pinkie finally approached the table too, sliding the plate down a little more violently than Rarity’s politeness would allow.

“Thanks… I guess?” Rainbow wagered. Rarity nodded. “Just- can we not tell anypony about this? I… kinda want it to be a secret.”

“Why?” Rarity asked. “I think it’s charming, dear.”

“And cute!” Pinkie charmed in.

“Eh…” Rainbow laughed nervously. “I mean- that’s the thing, right? It’s… cute. Come on. Look at me. Am I cute to you?”

“Absolutely not.” Rarity responded.

“Enope!” Pinkie said.

“Yes.” Said Twilight completely seriously. Rainbow slumped into her seat, her muzzle starting to burn again, even after recovering. Rarity flashed a grin at Pinkie.

“Well, we should give them some privacy, Pinkie!” She turned around, beginning to trot away. “Have fun, you two!” Pinkie stood, staring awe-induced for a few more moments, before snapping out of it and quickly following Rarity out. Although they had left the room, Twilight had a suspicous feeling that they weren’t quite out of ear-shot.

“You want this to be a secret?” Twilight asked. Rainbow lowered her head, looking at her twisted reflection in the silver dome.

“I mean… yeah.” Rainbow played with the gap between the plate and the dome, moving it back and fourth as much as the manufactured give would give. “Ponies don’t exactly play… nice to me.”

“What does that mean?” Twilight asked, genuinely confused. Rainbow looked up, meeting her eyes.

“Well- I’m gay.” Rainbow said, as if it wasn’t obvious. Twilight nodded, egging her to continue. “Back in Cloudsdale- when the kids at Flight Camp figured that out- I mean, I couldn’t escape it. If we started… dating… You don’t want that kind of heat, right?”

“If it means I get to be with you-”

“No-no. No more flirtsy stuff. I’m serious.” Rainbow huffed, aggravated at her flacidness.

“And I’m serious.” Twilight said harder than before. “If I’m with you, I don’t care.” Rainbow looked taken aback, but in a good way. She let a little smile grace her lips.

“Really?”

“Really!” She laughed. “Plus, Cloudsdale is a little different culturally from a lot of places down here. I can think of like- three gay couples off the top of my head.” She looked up, literally trying to see the top of her head. “Babar and Harpsy… Octavius and Vinyl… uhh…” She drummed her hooves on the table. “Okay- only two. But still. You don’t see them getting and flack for being couples.”

“I didn’t recognize any of those names except for Vinyl.” Rainbow said bluntly. “But… okay. I trust you.” She breathed out. “Only you girls- and Dusk- know that I’m… you know. I don’t even think my parents know.”

“We can cross that bridge together.” Twilight said. “Now- time to dig in, right?”

“Oh- I totally forgot!” Rainbow beamed, looking down at her silver dome. Rainbow was the first to take it off, using her wings like a claw. All at once, a huge waft of steam drifted straight up, harassing her senses as she backed up, looking away in order to breathe. Twilight did the same, using both of her hooves to pinch the knob, lifting. Similarly, she wasn’t exactly ready for the assaulting.

“Woah!” Rainbow leaned forwards. “It looked really good!”

“Yeah!” Twilight agreed, looking down at her own plate. It seemed to be a beautiful combination of several different things. Noodles was the main coarse, taking most of the plate, covered in a thin layer of cheese. To the side, a small serving of mashed potatoes, and finally, broccoli. Rainbow’s dish was mostly then same, except for one small change. Instead of broccoli-

“Fish!” Rainbow exclaimed. “Oh, Pinkie knows me so good!”

“F-Fish?” Twilight asked, leaning forwards over her own dish to take a look. Sure enough, there were thin slices of fish in place of where broccoli was on her own plate. “You eat fish?”

“Of course! Only Pegasuses can!” Rainbow slipped on one of the forks with a Velcro strap on it. “Pegasuses love fish. It’s like- totally awesome!”

“Pegasi can? Can I not?”

“Apparently not?” Rainbow shrugged, stabbing the fish with her fork. “I dunno. Some sciency-thingy about evolution and gut bacteria.” She bit into her fish, shredding the meat with her teeth. “Awh so good. Your missing out. It’s a little bit like burnt hay fries, but good!”

“I didn’t know any ponies could eat meat.” Twilight said, watching as Rainbow took another bite.

“My science teacher told me it’s because Pegasuses used to dive for fish. Like- in the ocean, or whatever. I tried it, and- belly flops hurt.” She shuddered. Twilight shrugged, apparently satisfied with the answer, and begun eating her own meal.

It was super creamy. Like somepony- probably Pinkie- had dumped every good-tasting thing in the kitchen into the dish. She was barely halfway done when her food was interrupted by the crackling sound of a gramophone.

Twilight turned around in her seat, Rainbow leaning to the side, to watch as Rarity was in an army-crawling pose, her horn alight as she fought with a record.

“Oh, hello!” She said, standing up as if nothing was wrong. “I forgot to play some mood-music!” She admitted, turning around and giving the gramophone one big buck with her hind legs like Applejack. The stylus clicked into place, a romantic and soothing song playing over the speaker. “There we go! Enjoy!” She said, quickly galloping out of the room. If Twilight didn’t know better, she would’ve assumed Rarity knew how to teleport with how quickly she vanished.

Rainbow was the first done with her meal, chewing as she removed the Velcro strap.

“So.” Rainbow said, wiping her hoof on a napkin. “Why did you… decide to give me a chance? I mean- didn’t I come off creepy?”

“Why not?” Twilight asked. “I’ve- well- you see, the thing is, I’ve never really been attracted to anypony before.” She set her own fork down. “Like- I can gauge if somepony is hot or not, right? But I’ve never felt- like- like- I feel like I’m missing that crucial part of romance. You know?”

“Well…” Rainbow fluffed her wings, making them appear softer. “I could… help with that?” Rainbow suggested. “I-I may not be the best at being all sappy, but…” She flexed her jaw. “I could… if you’d want to, I could be your special somepony?” She shrugged. “It would be like… an experiment.”

“Experiment?” Twilight asked, her ears falling down. “I-I don’t want to see you as an experiment. If we’re going to try this relationship, I want to commit.”

“R-Right. Yeah, of course.” Rainbow tapped her head. “Duh!” She giggled nervously.

Just like before, if Twilight didn’t know any better, she would’ve assumed Rarity knew how to teleport.

“Hello!” She beamed, suddenly appearing at the side of the table. Both of the ponies jumped in surprise. “I can’t help but notice you two are talking about… committing.” She cringed. “That’s sweet and all, but you two need to remember that this can’t last.”

“What?” Rainbow exclaimed. She turned to Twilight, who also had the same expression. “It can’t last? Why not?”

“Well- Twilight has to go home eventually. Right?” She asked. Twilight’s gaze went far for a minute, before she snapped out of her temporary daze.

“Oh. Oh, fuck.” Twilight suddenly put her face into her hooves. “I totally forgot!”

“What’s going on?” Rainbow asked. “Go home? But- she is home!”

“Home as in her dimension, dear.” Rarity clarified. “She’s but a visitor. If all goes well, Princess Celestia will send her home within the week.”

“Oh.” Rainbow said. “No. No, no, no!” She quickly said. Rarity backed up as Rainbow struggled to get out of her seat, flapping her wings and letting her dress return to a normal state of being. She landed, quickly crossing the distance to Twilight, who still had her head buried in her hooves. “That’s not- that’s not right, right Twilight?” She asked, prodding Twilight in the shoulder. “We can make this work, right?”

“Did she tell you she fractured her reserves?” Rarity said. Rainbow looked away from Twilight in surprise, meeting Rarity’s gaze. “In coming over to this universe, she damaged her head. She’s lucky it’s not worse. More than likely, she won’t survive another trip over here if Princess Celestia doesn’t like sending Twilight back and forth all of the time.”

“No!” Rainbow turned back, grabbing Twilight in a hug. “It’s not true. Damn it! Damn it!” Rainbow sighed harshly. “I finally found somepony I love!”

Twilight suddenly looked up, brushing past Rainbow’s hooves. She met her bright, purple eyes as they connected. Rainbow realized their distance, her face suddenly blushing once more.

“L-Love?” Twilight asked. “You love me?” Rainbow swallowed.

“I-I mean, isn’t it obvious?” She asked. “I called you an angel.” She sighed. Rainbow leaned forwards, resting her head on Twilight’s chest. Twilight nuzzled back down, now wrapping both of her hooves on Rainbow. Rarity watched awkwardly. “And now- your gonna have to leave me.”

“I don’t-” Twilight’s breath hitched. She squeezed her eyes, digging her muzzle into Rainbow’s mane. “I don’t…” She took one last, huge breath. “I don’t have to leave.”

“Huh?” Rainbow broke the hugging session, looking up at Twilight in surprise.

“What?” Rarity asked, stepping forwards. “Of course you do. Your home is in your own world.”

“Think about it.” Twilight said, turning to look at Rarity. “My home has the same ponies. My home has the same ponies with the same jobs. My home is Equestria, where two monarchs lower and raise the sun and moon everyday. My home has every memory and experience that had ever been memorie’d or experience’d.”

“What are you-”

“Everything that I had ever done back home. Every book I’ve read, tear I’ve shed, every paper I’ve turned, even every pebble I’ve kicked down the road has happened the exact same over here.” She let a small smile spread across her face. “There’s only one thing that’s different.”

“What’s that?” Rarity asked, concerned.

“I found love here.” Twilight turned back to Rainbow, and in a moment that surprised both of them, locked lips.

This was it. She had found her soul partner. And Rainbow had just admitted that she loved her. This was something that could never work back in her own world. This was something that only could work here- and she was okay with that.

Rainbow’s wings shot open at max velocity. So fast, in fact, that a few feathers managed to find themselves drifting through the air. Her eyes were initially wide open, but taken by the taste of lavender, she slowly closed them, leaning into the kiss harder.

Rarity wasn’t expecting it in the slightest, suddenly backing up with a blush developing on her face. She backed up into Pinkie, who had a bucket of popcorn out and was watching the show on a red sofa. Rarity flopped onto the sofa, watching with awe. Pinkie offered the bucket. Rarity shook her head.

But- perhaps the most surprised of the four ponies in the room had to be Twilight herself.

This past day she hadn’t been acting like herself. Not in the slightest. From not worrying nearly enough about her magic than she should’ve been, to skipping breakfast, to asking Rainbow out- it was all out of her comfort zone.

And maybe that was a good thing.

Finally, after forever, they broke.

“Woah.” Rainbow said. Her entire face was now red, and Twilight found the sight of an extremely flustered Dash amusing. “That was-”

“I’m staying here.” Twilight interrupted. “And you can’t get rid of me.” She whispered. Rainbow grinned. Her wings, which were still at full mast, fluttered a little bit in excitement.

“W-Who are you, and what did you do with Dusk?” Rainbow asked, still smiling goofily.

“I’m Twilight.” She said. “And I feel alive.”

07 - Princess Celestia

Dear Princess Celestia

My name is Twilight Sparkle.

I come from Canterlot, and was elected into your school for gifted Unicorns. Last Summer Sun Celebration, a pony known as Prince Solaris sent me to Ponyville, to learn about friendship, and to oversee the celebration. I found five of my best friends that day, and we later discovered that we were the Elements of Harmony. We grouped together, and with the power of friendship, banished Nightmare Moon, recovering Prince Artemis from his prison.

I hope this sounds familiar.

I am your student, Dusk Shine. A few days ago, I found a book titled ‘Alternate Dimensions and You.’ Against my better knowledge, I cast a spell that made me transport dimensions. I come from a dimension where every gender is flipped. I couldn’t help myself but cast it, against the text’s warnings, and for that, I’m sorry. I had to see what was on the other side, and I apologize.

However, I am not reaching out to you to beg you to send me back.

Instead, I write to you because I hope you can accept me as one of Equestria’s citizens.

I realize that Dusk Shine was your student, as was I Prince Solaris’s student. But I found something here that I can’t get back in my own world. I found love. I found Rainbow.

In the deepest parts of my heart, I ask that you let me stay a citizen of this world. I understand if you wish to send me back.

Your faithful student, Twilight Sparkle.

Dear Twilight Sparkle.

I am… happy and amused that you managed to find a special somepony. I didn’t think that Dusk Shine would ever find a special somepony in a million years! (No offense)

I find it… quite strange that my student is an infinite distance away in another universe. And if what you said is true, I will humbly accept the fact that my own double will be showing the same respect I show you. After discussing it briefly with my sister, we have come to the decision to let you stay in this Equestria.

Me and Princess Luna welcome you with open hooves, and I give your relationship with Ms. Dash my blessing. It would be a crime of romance to split you two up. I have also started the process of changing your legal documents from Dusk Shine to Twilight Sparkle. If you get mail in the next few days saying you are flagged for tax fraud, just ignore it until all the kinks are worked out.

However, with all of that said, the transferring of Dusk and Twilight means your friendship lessons will be sped up significantly. Keep Spines close by, as your next friendship lesson will begin shortly. I believe it has something to do with an unfinished spell of a very important pony.

Signed, Princess Celestia.

Author's Note

Hey ya'll. I hope you enjoyed this story, because I had one of the worst weeks in my entire life.

I could really use a positive comment or two. I was going to just dump everything that happened this week in the author's note box, but I decided not to do that. I've just never felt this depressed in my life before.

Thank you, and I hope I put a smile on your face.

05 - Bright White Lights

Twilight sighed. She kicked her hooves idly off of the hard red bed that she was currently sitting on.

She hated hospitals. And she really didn’t know why. Perhaps it was because somepony had went around putting disinfectant spells on everything, leaving a terribly lingering smell of medical alcohol behind. Perhaps it was because the bright white lights that were flickering in the ceiling made an awful monotonous humming sound. Or, perhaps she was simply scared of the doctor.

Doctor’s were bad news. An apple a day keeps the doctor away? Yeah, right. Ponyville was Equestria’s capital for apple production. And yet, there were at least two or three doctors currently in this hospital, with an entire army worth of nurses. That statement was positively false.

Twilight had been waiting about five minutes now. The nurse had followed her to the room (that didn’t have any windows) and had done an array of preliminary tests. Blood pressure, heart rate, height, weight, all of the fun stuff. Now, Twilight was forced to sit and stare at the pretty white wall, or observe the metallic jars on the desk with Popsicle sticks in them, or quite simply, groan in boredom.

But the boredom that kept her mind occupied eventually fizzled away into a subject she didn’t even really want to think about.

Rainbow Dash. Did she actually like Rainbow Dash back? It was all very confusing, and Rarity was right. This wasn’t Twilight’s homeland. At best, she was just visiting. At worst, she was stuck here until Prince Solaris- or his equivalent- could find time in their schedule to cast the spell in her absence. She didn’t like bothering the prince, but if the situation was dire enough, she would be forced to. It didn’t help that Spike- or Spines- or whoever- was currently out of town helping The Crystal Empire. She would have to calculate in the entire time it took for a letter to get sent to Canterlot, which could be an entire week.

She didn’t want to break Rainbow Dash’s heart. But… maybe it was just unavoidable.

Twilight’s thoughts finally broke away as the door to the room opened.

In walked a pony she recognized as Doctor Horse. He was an orange coated stallion with a spiky, but flat, brown mane. Twilight wasn’t exactly sure, not being in the hospital much since she moved here, but she could’ve sworn that her Doctor Horse, the mare equivalent, was an ER doctor. What was the stallion doing here?

“Dusk Shine…?” He asked, his spectacle brimmed eyes flickering up from the clipboard floating in his magic. Twilight watched as his eyes grew wider upon seeing her. “Well. That answer’s that.” He said, walking into the room fully and letting the door swing closed behind him.

“Answers what?” Twilight asked.

“The tests the nurses took… I was expecting them to be different.” He tapped the clipboard. “Because your gender is written as Male on your medical documents.”

“Oh.” Twilight laughed awkwardly. “Sorry?”

“It’s okay.” Twilight watched in envy as he set down his clipboard on the counter top, using his magic to swivel over a rolling stool. He sat down on it, getting comfortable. “It’s not my place to judge. If you want to be a mare, that’s fine by me.” He swore, putting a hoof on his chest. “But that’s enough. What brings you in today, Ms Shine?”

“Well…” Twilight gulped, using her hoof to fan her head. “Sorry… I don’t like hospitals…”

“Oh, that’s fine.” He said. “Patients tend to feel claustrophobic in these rooms. It’s a shame you didn’t get a window room.”

“Yeah…” Twilight said awkwardly, eyeing the buzzing lights. “Yesterday night, I casted a heavy spell. My friend thought I should have my magic back by now, and made me come to the hospital.”

“Oh?” He said, his attention instantly peaked. He picked up both the clipboard and a fresh piece of paper in his magic, clipping them together as they were levitating mid air. A pencil began scrawling as he held it up to his face, creating a new paper. Twilight couldn’t see what he was writing, much to her dismay. “Your blood tests came back with about a twenty percent raise in ambient magic. What was the energy output of the spell?” He asked.

“Meh…” Twilight waved a hoof. “I think it was about ten-thousand Thames?” She guessed. Doctor Horse looked up from his clip board, the pencil stopping in it’s path.

“You’re joking.” He said simply. Twilight, by looking at his eyes, got the faint impression that he didn’t believe her. He let out a sigh, the clip board dropping by a few hooves. “What did you cast?”

“A dimension-hopping spell.” She said. “Takes a lot out of a pony.”

“You’re telling me…” He clapped his hooves together. “That you casted a spell with ten-thousand Thames to it’s name… and you didn’t instantaneously explode?”

“There was an explosion…” Twilight said slowly. “I was in between universes when it happened, so I was safe.”

“Raising the sun takes about fifty-thousand Thames. Are you telling me that you- an average Unicorn- was able to output a fifth the energy it takes to move the sun?” He laughed, almost mockingly. “If I scan your Magic Reserves, and they aren’t shattered, I won’t believe you.”

“S-S-Shattered?” Twilight stuttered, her pupils shrinking to pin pricks. “You don’t m-mean that, right?”

“I do.” He stood up from his stool, approaching Twilight. “I’m going to run an MRI spell on you, okay? Close your eyes.” Twilight nodded, squeezing them shut. Her head was filled with concern as she began feeling a very strange sensation.

It was like somepony had put an ice pack on her skull. All at once, she could feel the temperature drop, and even the eye sockets in her skull form a hard edge. It was like Doctor Horse had begun trickling ice cold water down her horn, stretching along the surface of her brain and pooling in the cerebellum. Through her eyelids, she watched as her veins began glowing with the same golden aura of Doctor Horse’s.

As quickly as the sensation appeared, it vanished. Twilight opened her eyes.

Doctor Horse shook his head.

“Congratulations, Miss Shine.” He applauded. “Your Magic Reserves are completely shattered.”

“What?” Twilight shrieked. “S-Shattered? B-But that’s not even- I didn’t- am I going to be okay?” Twilight asked hurriedly, not enough breath in her lungs to satisfy her questions.

“You’ll be fine.” He waved his hoof so-so. “It’s a hairline fracture down the subliminal broad head. Magic is leaking out and into your blood. Which explains why the ambient magic concentration in your blood was so high.” He sighed, scrawling down a few last minute notes into his clipboard. “The truth of the matter is- Comminuted fractures rarely ever heal back to one-hundred percent.”

“So…” Twilight hadn’t realized she had begun sweating, only wiping the sweat off of her brow after a dollop had almost rolled into her eye. “A-Am I never going to use magic again?”

“You’ll use magic…” He trailed off, mumbling under his breath. “In three months…”

“Three months?” Twilight repeated with excessive volume. Doctor Horse shrunk a little under the intensive volume, but managed to keep himself together enough to begin writing a prescription on the counter.

“Not the full three months.” He corrected. “Three months for the hairline fractures to fully heal- or, rather, heal as much as they’re going to.” He let out a little chuckle, eyes glued to the piece of paper he was writing on. “About one week for basic levitation spells.” His eyes flickered up, staring a hole into Twilight’s own. “No multi-tasking with your magic. Zero. Nadah. Anything, and I mean anything more intensive than lifting a jug of water with an average weight of twenty pounds will exasperate the fracture, and we will begin discussing emergency surgery. Got it?”

Twilight’s only response was a comically loud gulp.

“Good.” He looked back down. “Okay. One prescription for Dusk Shine.” He flared his quill in his aura with a final flick of his magic, setting it down. He picked up the paper with his magic beginning to hoof it over to Twilight. “This should help with some of the headaches that will develop.”

“Ooh- actually?” Twilight piped up. “Can you change the name to Twilight Sparkle?”

“Name-change?” He asked, setting the paper back down. “Sure. But- I didn’t recall any of your medical information saying Twilight Sparkle on it. Hay, your medical information still says Male under the gender box.”

“That’s because I don’t come from this dimension.” She stated simply. The doctor looked up. “I come from a different dimension.”

The doctor’s only response was more laughing.

By the time she had left the hospital, it was already three in the afternoon. She had to sit there and explain to a laughing stallion that she wasn’t joking, and that she genuinely hopped dimensions. After that, he seemed less argumentative when it came to how powerful of a spell she cast- and her own ability for casting spells. After the whole ordeal, Twilight’s mood had seemed to take a sudden dive through the floor. She had been bantering back and fourth with Rarity and Applejack, trying to convince them nothing was wrong. Yet something was wrong, and she should’ve seen it coming. But she didn’t, and she felt useless for it.

Rarity said she would be at her boutique. Just like her world, it was a circular building that was designed to look like a pitched tent, purple and pink frills adorning the outside. Before walking in, Twilight shot a cursory glance at the sky. The sun had begun it’s descent back down, and sunset was scheduled for six this evening. That meant Twilight had about three hours to get ready for Rainbow to come over.

Rainbow. She had almost forgotten about her. Of course, she didn’t really give a time for when Rainbow should arrive, only giving a ‘later tonight’ for the Pegasus to follow. Rainbow could interpret that as three in the morning, but Twilight decided to err on the side of optimism. She had to sort these feelings out with Rainbow, and more importantly, come to a decision. It was eating her up that she didn’t even really know what that decision was going to be yet.

Twilight opened the door, stepping inside the boutique. It was a spacious area, taking up the majority of the ground floor, mirrors adorning the purple frills that hung off of the ceiling. There were stages, marequins, and dresses packing the walls. Twilight’s eyes glossed over Rarity, almost mistaking her for a marequin for how stationary she was standing.

“Welcome to the Carousel Boutique, where every garment is chic, unique, and magnifique!” She let out a little rehearsed laugh as she turned away from the dress she was perfecting on it’s stand, making sure it was presentable for any passing customers.

“Hey, Rarity.” Twilight greeted. Rarity let out a little gasp, turning to look at the purple Unicorn.

“Oh, Twilight!” She let out an actual laugh, letting the dress fall flat from her magic. “I do apologize for not coming to the hospital with you, darling.”

“Oh, it’s okay.” Twilight waved as Rarity turned her attention to yet another dress. Rarity turned around one more time to glance at Twilight, who kept standing still as the white Unicorn’s gaze traveled over her.

“It’s strange, seeing you.” She said. Twilight simply cocked her head to the side as Rarity looked back to her dress, to which she was currently using a steamer spell on to remove the wrinkles. “My brain does a little flip. It’s strange seeing Dusk on a mare.” She shook her head. “Anyways- enough about psychology- what about you? What did the hospital say?” She asked, raising her voice to be heard. Twilight let out a sigh of defeat, lowering her head to the ground.

“You were right…” She admitted. Rarity raised an eyebrow, turning to look at Twilight’s dejected posture once more. “I can’t use magic for the next week…”

“I was… right?” Rarity asked, once again letting her dress fall from her aura. She trotted towards Twilight, stopping a distance away. “Are you alright, dear?”

“I should be fine.” Twilight said, still looking at the ground. Rarity’s features only creased more with concern. “The doctor said I put a hairline fracture in my reserves. Yeah… I fractured my reserves.”

“Fracture?” Rarity shrieked suddenly. “Reserves?” Twilight’s ears clamped down at the excessive volume, shying away. Unfortunately for her, Rarity had other plans. She quickly crossed the very little remaining distance, gripping Twilight’s cheeks with both of her hooves and pulling her close. “Oh, you poor thing! Will you ever be able to use magic again?”

“Yesh! Lhike I shaid!” Twilight said while squirming out of her grip. She brushed herself off, backing away from the Unicorn. “Three months. If all goes well, and I don’t exert myself too much, my magic will be one-hundred percent in three months.” She looked uncomfortable, looking down. “Well… there’s more than a good chance that I won’t be one-hundred percent, but…”

“Y-You won’t be one-hundred percent?” Rarity asked. Twilight nodded. “B-But how will you get home?”

“I’ll have to ask Prince Solaris-”

“Princess Celestia-”

“-Princess Celestia to cast the spell in my place.” Twilight corrected. “I don’t like asking the Prince or Princess for favors, but- desperate times cause for desperate measures, right?” She chuckled, before becoming serious. “But I didn’t come here to tell you that.”

“Oh?” Rarity asked, tilting her head. “Then why did you come here for?”

“For a favor.” Twilight elaborated. “I… kinda invited Rainbow out to dinner?” She pawed the ground nervously. “Well- not dinner, per say, but-”

“Sex?”

“Not sex!”Twilight shouted. “I mean- just to talk things out.”

“Talk things out?” She let out a little laugh. “Ah. I forgot that you and Rainbow are… what, exactly?”

“I don’t know!” Twilight shouted, suddenly frustrated. The white unicorn, noticing the sudden aggravation, knew perfectly well the frustrations of love. In an attempt to cool down the Unicorn, she moved back over to one of her dresses, fighting with the trim. “She… kind ofcame onto me? And then said I was hot?” Twilight sighed frustratingly. “She seemed… upset?”

“Upset how, darling?” Rarity asked, still poking at a trim.

“Like-” Twilight sighed once more. “She seem nervous? And I didn’t react very well… I was kinda shocked. But I invited her over to talk later tonight, so… I was wondering if I could get come help!”

“Help?” Rarity hummed. “Help how?”

“I mean- what do I do? I’ve never been on a date before! Hay, I’ve never even been attracted to another pony in the world!” She let out a frustrated laugh. “Whether that means I’m Asexual, I don’t know! But-”

“You’re going to have to hurt her feelings.” Rarity said. Twilight shook her head, taken off guard by the bluntness of the fact.

“W-What?”

“You have to go home, correct?” Rarity said, finally letting the trim of the dress drop. She turned back, trotting towards yet another dress. “You can’t exactly take Rainbow with you. And I don’t know if she’s willing to drop her life here in Ponyville to run away with another pony. But that doesn’t mean we can’t make this night perfect, now can we?”

“Perfect? Perfect, how?”

“What were you planning to do for dinner, Twilight?” Rarity asked, stopping short of one of her dresses and instead sitting down on the floor.

“Err- I’m not very good at cooking…” Rarity let out a short laugh at that, the tea incident still fresh in her mind and mouth. “I was probably just going to order take out.”

“Absolutely not!” Rarity recomposed herself. “If you would let me, I would be more than happy to assist you in this date!” Rarity stood up, and suddenly, Twilight watched as the fashionista reignited a very familiar flame in her eye. “I simply cannot let this opportunity go to waste! Will you let me help you, Twilight Sparkle.”

Twilight, honestly, should’ve taken more time to consider who she was talking to. Instead, all she did was immediately nod her head ‘yes.’

“Ohmygosh!” Rarity squealed. Much to Twilight’s relief, she put both of her hooves on her own cheeks instead of hers. She stood up, galloping away so quickly that a nearby dress fell off of it’s stand in a heap. Twilight, a little more cautiously than Rarity, began following the dust trail left behind.

Just like the library, the bottom floor was dedicated towards the business aspect. However, a small staircase in the back led upwards into a similar loft area. Unlike Twilight and Dusk’s library, however, the loft was much simpler in design. The kitchen and living room was connected in one of the larger spaces, the walls curving outwards from the circular design of the building. Unlike Twilight and Dusk’s immediately recognizable library, the interior of this place could be easily mistaken as an apartment in Manehattan.

One of the larger rooms was Rarity’s inspiration studio. A room dedicated to her dress making, and one that Twilight was currently in the door of, looking on in awe as Rarity began levitating what looked like a million different pieces of fabric from every corner of the studio into a center raised platform. Rarity, for all of her credit, was trotting around the center platform like an overexcited school filly, talking to herself like Twilight wasn’t even there.

“Two of my best friends?” She asked herself, summoning a marequin that had been innocently sitting idle by a window. “Going on a date?” Rolls of fabrics unrolled themselves on the ground, seemingly every color of the rainbow was going into whatever she was designing.

“You think I’m your best friend?” Twilight asked. Rarity barely glanced over at Twilight, before continuing her maze of colors.

“Of course, darling.” She said quickly, continuing right on with her magic.

“I mean- I just got here.” Twilight shrugged.

“Purple? No- blue. Night sky blue.” She levitated up a dark blue fabric, draping it over the back of the marequin.

“I know I’m just Dusk from another world, but- I thought it would be harder to connect, you know?”

“Mmm- even lighter blue for the trim? Yes. Yes, perfect!”

“So far, everything is going… really well.” She tittered. “Too well.”

Then, that’s when she saw it.

It was one of the strangest feelings she had ever felt in the world.

About a year ago, Princess Celestia sent Twilight two tickets to the Grand Galloping Gala. After some shenanigans, those two tickets turned into seven, one for each of her friends. Elusive had went to work, slaving over the sewing machine for hours on end to get their suits done. For Twilight, however, Elusive went above and beyond, creating a beautiful dress. Yes, the suits for all of her friends were also very stylish, but nothing could quite compare to the way her dress glowed.

Now, as Twilight stared dumbly, she watched as the exact same dress was being threaded together. Everything from the stars on the hem of her dress, to the excited popped collar that extended to her ears. It made sense, really. In this world, the dress had never existed. Instead, it was the other way around. Dresses made for all of her friends, and a suit for Dusk. There was never a reason to make Dusk a dress like his other friends.

And here it was, being assembled for presumably the first time.

Rarity levitated up a star, placing it on the collar. She tittered, immediately removing it.

“Wait- No!” Twilight shouted. Rarity’s magic temporarily faded in surprise at the shrill shout.

“What is it, dear?” Rarity asked, slightly annoyed.

“That star goes on the chest.” She trotted forwards, pointing. “See? Right here.”

“Oh?” Rarity put the star back on the chest, connecting the two halves of the dress. “Oh, I suppose that does work.” She let out a small laugh. “I didn’t think you had an eye for fashion, Twilight. Perhaps you aren’t as much like Dusk as I thought!”

“Well… you see, Elusive already made this dress.” Twilight explained. Rarity raised an inquisitive eyebrow. “For the Gala. Your just… making it again.”

“Ooh, really?” She made an awwing sound. “That means you know how this dress is going to turn out!”

“I do. I’ve worn it. It was perfect!” Twilight beamed. “And now I get to see how it was made!”

“Well…” Rarity suddenly let the dress go from her magic, the entire thing falling to pieces on the ground. Twilight’s jaw opened wildly at the mess now made of the once perfect dress. “Unfortunately, I don’t have your measurements. Only Dusk’s.”

“What do you-” Suddenly, Twilight was grabbed by Rarity’s magic, her entire vision going a shade of blue. “H-Hey! Rar-ity!”

“Stand still, would you darling?” Twilight was levitated off of the ground, hastily deposited onto the stage, knocking the marequin off of the platform. Twilight flailed helplessly, knowing that breaking Rarity’s aura would require the use of her won magic, which was currently out of the question.

“I didn’t sign up for this!” Twilight yelled.

“But you’ll look so good!” Rarity argued, setting Twilight down. The pieces of fabric flew back up, recompiling into the familiar dress once more, this time only on Twilight’s body. “Trust me, darling. This will only take a-”

“Mom?” A young voice asked. Rarity froze, turning around quickly and seeing a small white Unicorn enter the room. “I was wondering if I could go with Scootaloo-” She stopped her own sentence, seeing Twilight being forceably held in Rarity’s aura.

“It’s not what it-”

“I’m going to just… go.” Sweetie Belle turned around, closing the door, and pretended that she didn’t just see that.