Strange New World

Roxanne still felt the exhaustion of their Norway expedition, even if it wasn't as bad now as it was out there. Somehow, interestingly enough, it seemed to make her more aware of the emotions around her.

Ponies were listening in on their conversation, but how could they not? Record Keeper wasn't exactly as subtle as he thought as he waved a big flag in announcing humans were among them. They might not have had the same intensity about it as he and Sapphire, but they also weren't stupid. It didn't take a very high IQ to realize that Record Keeper had been almost exclusively talking to them three for some time. Even if it was just a club for most of them, they were still going to be curious.

But Lake was as anxious as always, and she could tell his breathing was picking up a bit. As Tory and Record Keeper followed after Sapphire to get more sandwiches, she shapeshifted into a pegasus mare and used a wing to rub his back.

“It's fine,” she whispered quietly as she stood next to him, feeling his heart rate calm down a bit. “These ponies are all chill. They're curious, but not that interested.”

“Yeah. Yeah…” the stallion breathed, closing his eyes for a moment. She was helping him with anxiety a lot lately, wasn't she? Then again, she could feel his and everyone else's emotions at all times now, every little bit of it. Even now, he was running through insane possibilities like getting kidnapped or something.

“Not gonna happen,” she told him. “That stallion who stabbed you was a piece of shit, and it was kind of my fault. More likely this princess Twilight Sparkle denies us and we have to traverse who knows what to get home.” She moved her wing to carefully massage his still sore side, eliciting a grunt and then an almost silent sigh as he relaxed a little more.

“The best case is that someone on Earth is already working on this,” he told her under his breath, “but the NYT and University of Pennsylvania will probably just think I'm schizophrenic. Cause who the heck would listen to a random email from someone they don’t know?” Lake managed a small smile as he added, “Then again, still can't be sure I'm not.”

“And what, you take your meds and we all disappear?” she grinned. “Or maybe, if I really do keep these powers on Earth, I can sneak into your house and gaslight you and convince you that I'm a demon.”

“Oh god, I shouldn't have even brought it up,” he shook his head. “I bet Tory would encourage you, too. He'd get a kick out of it.”

That made her smile. If she could not only be the first one in an alternate universe, but also have cool shape shifting powers from it permanently, she would take it. So long as it didn't make heading back home a problem down the road.

She did eventually go with Lake to follow Tory, Sapphire, and now Record Keeper out of the club a little while later, back to their temporary home. As they moved, Sapphire talked to them about how as soon as the three of them got finished with their community service they'd be on their way to Canterlot. She also assured them that they wouldn't have to wait two years until her probation ended.

“I mean, if need be, maybe I can get better at my teleportation magic and teleport us all there,” she said. “Or Record could help me if he's good at it! You studied it, right?” she asked the stallion.

“Ha, I wish,” was his unhelpful reply. “I didn't go to Princess Twilight Sparkle’s school like you did.”

“Well, we could always walk as a last resort.”

Or they could just leave for the princess by themselves. There was nothing stopping them from that. Roxanne knew better than to mention it though. And it would be kind of a dick move because the girl had been helping them. Tory certainly wouldn't like it, even if Lake agreed with her.

“So the plan is to just finish community service and then take a train to her?” she asked. “How long does it take by train again? A week? And she can just send us back?”

“Absolutely!” Sapphire smiled widely, “although it'd be even better to head down to the Mysterious South so my mom and I can go to Earth with you. I have a feeling Princess Twilight won't entertain that request of me. And I can station hop along with you, since Canterlot is a long journey and I don't have that much magic.”

“Sounds good to me, so long as it works,” Tory shrugged. “Don't know where you'd live on Earth, but we could work it out.”

Roxanne didn't want to listen to the two flirt, and stood up to head back outside. “Sounds like as good a plan as any,” she decided. “I'm gonna take a walk around the block for a while.” Lake gave her a worried look, but she returned it with a confident grin. There was someone she wanted to see.

It was past eleven o'clock when she went outside again, with the moon hanging high overhead and cool wind blowing against her fur. This time, Roxanne transformed into a unicorn stallion, hoping it would keep away trouble. She didn't need others getting hurt because of a run in she had again. Besides, she was still tired.

But for a worn down neighborhood, it was kind of serene this late when all was quiet. No one was out and about, with only fireflies and crickets and cicadas to produce any noise. How did this world have the same species as Earth? Maybe some sort of intergalactic cross contamination.

What would they do if everything just failed the same way Norway had? Or if they were stuck here because of changing permanently from whatever magic rays were bombarding them? Would they just live with Sapphire and her mother forever? Would their brain chemistry slowly change too? Would they eventually find horses attractive? Tory might have been flirting with Sapphire but Lake seemed like he was closer to that already just by the way he was looking at Record Keeper. Then again, it had been weeks already, and horses were talking back to them. It was… extremely weird, but she wouldn't say it was outright creepy. She could tease Lake more at least.

And her. She was already changing, or maybe just flat out changed. Sapphire said it took decades but she was a changeling pony on Earth, too. What was going to happen with that? This could turn into a mess very easily.

A faint sliver of emotion trickled through the silence and cool wind to break her concentration. It was only for a second, but she instantly recognized it, just from the energy she got from it. Just like when she was last out here, she was suddenly a lot less tired. Roxanne couldn't imagine any other reason for that.

“My friend said you helped him a few days ago,” she called out quietly, taking a fearless few steps forward. “I could smell you on him. Why didn't you step in earlier?”

The answer came immediately. “You should know of our kind,” he said as he crept out from behind a bush and changed from a generic stallion to the black bug she remembered. “Ponies fear us who have remained unchanged.” He blinked as he took a second to pause. Then he continued, “Your friend is different from them though, just as you are. More fearless than the Equestrians around us. Where do you and your friend hail from?”

Lake? Fearless? That almost made her laugh. How timid were the rest of these ponies? Then again, didn't she feel anxiety coming from a stallion who turned out to be a violent criminal before? Maybe Sapphire and Record Keeper were the exceptions.

Roxanne didn't know if she should be honest with him though. Her lack of ability to feel his emotions was throwing him off. Her brain was definitely changing, too, even if not in the same way as Tory’s and Lake’s.

“Some place far from here,” she answered. “A place where there's a lot more people like us. Millions in fact.”

The changeling nodded thoughtfully. “All of us changelings are from far away places. We are scattered across Equus, you know,” he told her. “But you are new, unlike us. Yet you have our powers. It is curious. Other tribes would have interest in the story of your origin. Both those changed and unchanged.”

Finally some emotion showed itself, but not through her sixth sense. The look on his face changed from a neutral expression to one of curiosity. He tilted his head like a puppy and waited for her to speak.

He spoke again before she could. “But you are distrustful, another element you and your friend share. Yet another element that separates you from us.”

“And what are you like?” Roxanne asked back with confidence. “What are your tribe’s origins? Cause I'd say all of Equus is unlike me and my friend. Maybe they're the different ones.”

“Perhaps,” the bug nodded thoughtfully. “One can never know. Even being a changeling. Our senses only tell us of now; not what came before, or what will come after. I believe you've learned of this before we last spoke.”

Should she have been frustrated by the way he was talking to her? She wasn't though. What he said was kind of making sense, in a way. He seemed to infuse small slivers of emotion into his words, so that she could get a clearer picture. What would it have been like if she was born like this?

She hesitated, and he tilted his head further waiting for more from her. She debated in her head for a moment, then replied simply, “Yeah, you can never know, can you?” How could she fully trust him? She barely knew him, and couldn't even get a read like she'd come to expect from every creature else.

He tilted his head—did he look a little sympathetic? “Still mistrusting. I understand. If you do not trust me, I will go. Even changelings do not trust our own kind. But I would like to know of you, as well as your friend. Lend me your scent, so that I may find you again if you should wish to tell of your life.”

“It's a pretty boring story, up until a few weeks ago,” she said in response with a little smirk. Then she did… something. She didn't know exactly what, or how to describe it. Roxanne couldn't explain the feeling in words beyond ‘offering him a piece of her’ like he did before. She didn't even know exactly how it happened or where the feeling came from.

But the emotion flowed from her, a small stream of it, barely a trickle, making its way over to him. Like it was second nature, she lent him her scent. Whatever that meant.

He seemed pleased by it anyway, and his eyes lit up. “More friends you have. I see. Us changelings…friendship is new to us, but perhaps you can show us of it. Or not. Who will know in the end?” What the heck did that mean?

She didn't get an answer, because before she could ask, he was lighting up his crooked horn and disappearing. It was interesting at least, even if neither really said much. Still something to investigate, enough that if she and her friends actually got their own place to stay, she wanted to invite him over and have a sit down conversation with him.

More like when at this rate. Should they prioritize their escape from Equus, or getting jobs? It would be a conversation to have eventually.

She still didn't know exactly how to use magic, and resolved herself to trotting back to Sapphire Glow's house. They were in the middle of a card game, signifying another boring meeting with absolutely nothing to do. Yes, at some point they needed to move past being kind of lazy and work to improve their position, just in case.

“I've been talking to a changeling,” she blurted out, extremely casual. “I think he wants to meet you guys and wants me to visit his tribe. I don't know if I'm going to get into all of that though.” All of their eyes turned her way.

“Was it the changeling pony who took me to the hospital?” Lake asked as he pushed his chips in. “He seemed extremely weird, but I can't say I hate him since he helped me get to the hospital…” He shuddered a little, then shook his head.

“If he doesn't know anything about humans, I'm not really that interested,” Sapphire chimed in. “No offense to you, but changelings kind of creep me out.”

The mare was sitting really close to Tory, almost on top of him in fact. Their coats were definitely rubbing against each other a bit, and interestingly enough, Tory seemed to kind of be warming up to it, versus casual flirting. Roxanne didn't know how they couldn't see each other's cards from that position. Maybe they could. This time their emotions didn't say.

They did say that the tension between them was definitely increasing. It now tasted less like a one sided salty flavor and more like well cooked meat that was both sweet and savory. How did both his and Lake’s views on attraction start to change after only a month here?

“Well, anyway, deal me in,” she told them as she sat next to Lake. “We also need to get jobs so that we don't all have to sleep in the same dang room. Besides, I'm sure Shimmering Diamond is getting tired of us.” The mare wasn't yet, not really, but she would tire eventually.

“Maybe we can even apply for stuff tomorrow, and try to start once community service is finished.”

In a surprise, Tory didn't like that idea. “I'm not going to lie,” he said, “I really don't wanna start looking for employment.” He didn't say why, but he didn't have to. Even Lake was able to quickly piece it together she could tell by his rise in anxiety.

“Honestly,” he continued, “if we just work a couple of twelve hour days tomorrow and the day after, I don't see why we can't be on a train to the princess of Equestria by next week. Assuming we can scrape up some money.”

“I'm sure Princess Twilight will get back to me, and it won't be an issue,” Sapphire said cheerfully, leaning a bit more into Tory. He didn't push her away as she continued, “I bet she's just about to get to all of the messages I've sent her over the last month. Just you wait and see.”

Both Lake and Roxanne sighed for the same reason. Why was Tory humoring her? If they had somepony who could guide them to a direct portal, they shouldn't have been wasting time on what was certainly not gonna happen. But she was sure the pegasus would go along with it just to cover all the bases. She guessed that meant she had to, too.

Surprisingly enough though, Sapphire Glow eventually proved herself right. After a long, exhausting day about community service, she declared that the ruler of this nation finally sent her a message! If she wasn't a changeling, she wouldn't have believed the pony, but in a few minutes, she was passing it around for each of them to read.

I understand that there's been an incident in Manhattan related to what you were discussing with me before, about your interest in humans and finding them here in Equestria. I apologize for taking so long in returning your message, but if they are still with you, I would like to speak to them myself in Canterlot. I've attached train tickets dated for one week from today so you and they can meet me in my court. I should say that it is an official summons on your and their part rather than an invitation.

If what you say is true, I'll do what I can in sending them back to where they came from. It's not a guarantee, but I will put my best scientists to work on it, alongside myself. I understand you've heard tale of the mirrors Princess Celestia used to travel to other worlds, but those have since been sealed long ago, so a more creative solution is in order. I will explain more once you arrive here.

Sapphire Glow, I beg you not to pull the same tricks and stunts you've pulled before. I won't tolerate it any longer. This is your final warning.

Please arrive speedily and safely. I await your presence.

-Twilight Sparkle, Royal Princess of Equestria

“You actually did it!” Tory cheered loudly as Lake read through it with a grin on his face. “You actually fucking did it! This is perfect!”

“I told you she'd reply to me,” Sapphire smiled proudly. “Didn't I? There was never a doubt!”

Roxanne wasn't sure about that, since apparently the ‘Royal Guard of Equestria’ was at Lilac's house for days, but she didn't say anything. She could tell where things would go soon with them, even if the foundation wasn't the deepest. She didn't care to get in the way.

“I just wanna get back to my apartment and wear some clothes for the first time in ages,” Lake said. “How long will it have been? A week until the train ride, a week to get there?”

“Almost two whole months,” Roxanne told him. “We're gonna be all over the news for weeks. You still have video on your phone, right?”

“Oh yeah, I'm actually kind of excited!” Lake replied. “I bet we'll be more famous than Neil Armstrong!”

“You especially man, since you technically went through it first before you called us,” she laughed.

But she would get more than her fair share if she was still a changeling like before. Even if scientists didn't want to believe it, they couldn't deny her if she shapeshifted in front of them. Who could?

But going back home finally. What was Roxanne gonna do if there was no magic on Earth? She had no idea.

As long as there's a way to go back and forth, it'll be fine, she told herself. And even if the portal was somewhere like China, with as famous as they were gonna be, moving there would probably be easy peasy. She still had too many questions about Equus to just stay on Earth forever. It could probably be arranged.

Just as long as Sapphire Glow didn't act like the loose cannon she was in front of the ruler. She was the only real wildcard to Roxanne. But Tory would hopefully keep her in check, or Lake's persuasion would mitigate it. It was almost certainly smooth sailing ahead.

As the day started to wind down and tiredness began to set it, she almost wished she interjected before about Sapphire doing it on her own. She didn't know how she'd forgotten that sensing emotions meant she was going to be attuned to the result of Tory finally accepting Sapphire’s offer of staying in her room, but it was a stupid thing to forget. She lay on a pile of blankets on the floor next to the bed as she used a pillow to try and block out the details. It wasn't very successful, and she couldn't help but groan in frustration.

“What's wrong, Roxie?” Lake asked groggily, from the edge of sleep. He was almost out before she'd woken him back up. Oops.

“Nothing. Just frustrated and having trouble sleeping,” she told him. “Sorry.”

“Okay,” he said as he turned back over. But she sensed his emotion, too, and wasn't shocked when he turned back over again. “Was that letter weird to you?” he asked, a little more awake.

“Not really… but you think something's up with it,” she told him. “What is it?”

“That letter didn't feel friendly. I read about this princess being the princess of friendship or something like that, and this world is all about friendship. But thinking about it more, it kind of read like she thought Sapphire Glow was a nuisance.” He let an unfinished thought hang in the air. Roxanne didn’t jump on it.

“Probably because she is a nuisance,” Roxanne muttered instead, dodging where he was going. She continued, “She admitted to us she stole from Twilight Sparkle before. Of course she's not gonna trust her. I mean, you've seen for yourself that it's not always love and care and understanding. Probably it's mostly like that, even if it is a little better than home.”

She didn't see Lake nod, but felt the savory, slightly sweet flavor of hesitant agreement. “I guess you're right. I'm probably just overthinking it… man I can't wait to have some Zoloft again. And my own room to sleep in.”

“Yeah, you definitely need it,” she chuckled. “Both of those things. Night, Lake.”

“Night.”

She heard Lake turn over back to sleep, and that was that for conversation. But she knew she couldn't just take what her friend said with a grain of salt. As nervous as he was, he was more attuned to things here than she was in some ways. She knew without him, it would've been a complete mess for her and Tory.

Just gotta rest and wait to get back, she told herself as she shuffled around, doing her best to block out the emotions of intimacy around her and sleep. Gonna get to that princess, get back to Pennsylvania, and be a famous shape-shifting human when this is all over. Easy as pie.

Roxanne smiled to herself at that thought and did her best to drift off.