"...I might have miscalculated."

She glanced down again and wriggled her fingers. They were so... wriggly! And so many of them. Her gaze moved on, now to her body.

“Huh.”

Where previously her chest and body was covered by a layer of fur, she now saw an expanse of bare skin. Two particular somethings commaded her attention. Were they... mammaries? They must have been. Her teats were nowhere to be seen, further down her body. She patted her pelvic area, just to be sure. Nope, nothing. They really did move all the way up her body. How... strange. She cupped them in her new hands and applied the slightest pressure.

“Amazing,” she whispered. Soft and supple. These sensations were nothing new to her, but the sheer disparity in tactile touch where hands and hooves were concerned was... well, it could not compare. She turned her hands over. Ten nails. So much smaller and more delicate than her hooves. She brushed the tips of her fingers over them, fascinated.

Next her hair. A considerable amount spilled over her shoulder. She ran her new fingers down between the strands. Soothing. Relaxing. How curious.

She ran her hand along the surface of the unvarnished wooden floor, picking up all kinds of little imperfections, grooves, bumps and indentations that so far had gone unnoticed by her hooves.

“Twilight? Darling?”

Rarity stood a few hoofbeats away from her. A slight, worried frown creased her features. Twilight blinked, fully taking the visage of her friend in.

“Rarity...”

Rarity raised an eyebrow as Twilight got on her hands and knees and advanced, a slight wobble to her gait. Her eyes remained fixed on Rarity, looking her up and down, as though taking her in properly for the first time.

“You look... You’re so...”

Rarity blinked as Twilight reached out and cupped her cheeks in her hands.

“Cute!”

“Wha...” Rarity let out a small, dainty yelp as Twilight pulled her into an embrace.

Twilight hugged her smaller friend to her chest. Cute. It’s not a word she normally associated with Rarity. Glamorous, yes. Beautiful, yes. Refined? Without a doubt. But cute? Twilight couldn’t explain it, but she’d suddenly been overcome by a maddening urge to hug her friend close and... pet her. To run her hands over and over that silky soft coat of hers and never let go.

“T-Twilight?” She felt Rarity’s hoof gingerly tap her on the side.

Her eyes snapped open and, coming now back to her senses, Twilight released her grip.

“Heh... sorry,” she said sheepishly. “I, uh, I’m not sure what came over me.”

“Quite alright,” Rarity said easily. “They’re very... soothing. Those new fingers of yours.” She cleared her throat. “Speaking of, what exactly... how did you... what in the world happened? Why are you... almost human?”

Twilight frowned, examining the lines and creases in the palms of her hands. “I couldn’t say. I’m not sure, not yet. I... might have an idea, but I’ll have to go over our process. Retrace our steps and see where it might have gone wrong.”

“Yes, that,” Rarity cleared her throat again. “That sounds well and good, darling. But, ah...” she leaned in close and whispered. “We are in polite company, dear.”

Twilight cocked her head, not understanding. Rarity glanced down at her new chest, then back again with a pointed look. She then tilted her head back, as if signaling for Twilight to follow. Twilight did so, and her eyes found Anon’s. He stood ramrod stiff, locked on to her. His face had turned a concerning shade of red. Twilight couldn’t blame him, having gone so long without seeing another human. Well, a close approximation. But... his eyes did not meet hers. They were focused downward, down to her...

“Eep!” Twilight’s whole body twisted as she turned her back to him, now on all fours and the regretfully familiar heat of embarrassment flaring in her face. She almost wanted to smack her head onto the nearby bookshelf. Presenting her teats to a stallion, one whom she’d just barely managed to get back on speaking terms with... how rude, nigh presumptuous, of her. She heard the distinct sound of a hoof meeting a face.

“Twilight!” Rarity hissed. “For goodness’ sake, mare. Turn around.”

She cocked her head, wondering what had gotten into Rarity. Upon glancing back, Twilight saw her friend blushing, averting her eyes. Anonymous looked about ready to faint. Twilight followed his line of sight, down to her rump. All color drained from her face. Her tail was... gone. Nowhere to be seen. In this position, on all fours, facing away from him, Twilight’s eyes widened with dawning horror. He could see everything.

Somepony screamed. Twilight realized it was her. With a flash of magic, she teleported out of sight and into her bed. The feathery softness was a welcome change from the rather uncomfortable floor and she immediately buried herself within the covers, cocooning herself in the familiar, cozy darkness. She buried her face in her hoov—er, hands and suppressed another wail of despair.

How could this be? Was Discord plotting against her? Why did she keep embarrassing herself—in front of him, of all ponies? She was a princess now, darn it! She had an image to uphold. Her hand reached backward, grasping for...

She groaned. Of course. Her tail was no longer there. Her mom used to brush it for her as a filly and Twilight herself would periodically curl up and bring it close, running her hoof throughout its long tresses. A comforting habit for when things got to be a bit too... much. Sighing, she contented herself to stroke her hair instead.

It was going to be a long day.

Author's Note

Little side note. While Twilight does share her EqG counterpart's skin tone, her bodily proportions are those of a 'normal' human.