A blade of grass lightly grazed her cheek, alerting her that she was slowly returning to the world of the conscious, her mind and senses steadily returning to her as well.

“Tw-Twlight?”

And it was immediately apparent that not all was as it had been.

Instead of skin with a light coat of sleek lilac fur was the familiar yet still incredibly foreign sensation of bare flesh, the night air proving to be merciless against her now defenseless body rendered with no natural outer protection from the elements.

Save for the fabrics that encased her naked form, somewhat alleviating the chill of the midnight breeze.

“S-Spike?” The former Alicorn stammered, her eyes opening and half-expecting to see a purple canine before her with peculiar green markings.

Instead, what met her eyes was that of a small dragon with the same colored scales and green fins and underbelly as she had seen and known in Equestria. Only, his appearance was perhaps a little more reptilian, traits similar to that of lizards present in the small dragon’s design, even a little hint of crocodilian elements as well.

Reaching out instinctively to make sure the small drake was real, Twilight viewed her hand, another anomaly making itself known at that very moment. While it had been some time since she had inhabited the body of a two-legged creature, some further examination made her doubt that her new form was indeed that of a human. While her hooves were gone and her body transformed from a quadruped to a bipedal being, the same as what had occurred when she entered the portal found in the Crystal Empire and encountered a former student of her teacher, yet, unlike before, there were a significant amount of changes.

She could’ve been wrong, yet the recently-transformed young woman found that she recognized some of the articles that rested on her new shape, the clothing in itself similar to fashions from territories outside Equestria, around the southeast, near the land of the Kirin and Saddle Arabia. Although, while perhaps Rarity would’ve recognized such from her own study into such things, Twilight Sparkle found that these garments resembled those of that area from centuries ago.

Upon her was a kurta, a loose-fitting tunic of semi-transparent fabric in a light blue color with a modest high neckline, a choker, and several necklaces composed of a mix of beads and pearls, mostly of the same colors that composed of her equine form, a familiar-looking gemstone resting at the center of the collection of jewelry. It was a little too much in her eyes, yet, given she had quite literally woken up wearing it, it must’ve been given to her. Yet when was that? She couldn’t recall ever receiving these, let alone the clothes on her back.

She couldn’t remember anything.

“Twilight? Are you ok?” Spike questioned, watching as the former pony tried to stand, first rising to all fours, then slowly to her knees, her legs covered in hot pink churidars or trousers that gathered at the ankles worn underneath the kurta. Her back hooves, or, rather, feet, were covered in violet slippers that curled at the ends, giving the ensemble an almost exotic look, if not perhaps a little playful.

“I-I think so,” the transfigured Alicorn answered, holding her head as a sudden pang assaulted her, her mane converted into long, indigo hair tied in a low ponytail, yet the prominent purple and pink streaks present in her mane and tail rested in the fibers atop her head. “But…” she began, gazing out at the vast, seemingly endless sea of grass. She pulled the flowing scarf wrapped around her body, a dupatta of light lilac, closer to better shield her from the night wind. “Where…?”

West

“...am I?”

When she moved for forehoof to try and prop herself up on the sparse amount of grass available, the cyan pegasus came to see something very wrong. Specifically, she no longer possessed hooves.

“What the hay?!” Rainbow Dash shouted aloud, forgetting everything else save for the strange, new body that she now inhabited.

She brought her forehoof, what used to be anyway, to her face, the elongated appendages emerging from the center, the bizarre limb far from anything she had seen, let alone experienced firsthand. A small test showed that the “things” at the end moved. Scrambling to find something of a known comparison to what she saw, this new limb somewhat resembled that of a money’s paw, only far less covered in hair. The same applied to her lower half, only the digits were far shorter and stout, yet were equally as responsive. Only, these lower limbs seemingly rested in a pair of brown, leather sandals.

“What the…?” and as she continued to analyze herself, it became clear that there were more changes than just becoming another creature. Her blue coat was gone entirely, replaced with a near-hairless skin of deep bronze.

While she was no fashionista, let alone concerned with such things as Rarity, Dash couldn’t help but liken the clothing on her new form to garments and styles found in Saddle Arabia, although the conditions of her attire could’ve been better. It would probably make Rarity flip.

While it was somewhat exotic, it was nothing fancy. Rainbow found that the outfit appeared as if it had seen better days. A blue, sleeveless vest rested on her shoulders covering a white top with peculiar red and blue markings in rectangular patterns across the chest. Her midriff was bare and a pair of pants rested on her legs that went to below her knees, the ends torn open and hastily sewn back together. The colors were splotchy and beige, several colorful patches presumably covering holes in the article of clothing.

Wait a moment, the pegasus thought. Twilight…she described something like this once. Yes, when she had gone through the portal at the Crystal Empire.

What did she call this thing, this being? It had a name, but what was it?

South

“A monkian? No, that wasn’t it. Maybe a humanky? No, that’s not it either.”

Pinkie Pie pondered just what Twilight had referred to the creatures she had seen on the other side of the portal that one time, for there was no other explanation as to what had just happened to her. Her pink coat was gone, replaced with peach-colored flesh with barely any hair, save for her eyelashes, brows, and what was on her head. If there were any positives to note at the moment, at least it was that her typical, bouncy locks of hot pink hadn’t been altered.

Although, that was perhaps the only trait she kept from her time as a pony.

Her apricot-colored body was small and short, daresay, childlike in a sense, Pinkie found herself dressed in leaves and green dyed clothing, a pair of boots on her lower half, and a small headband of green atop her head. If she didn’t know any better, she would’ve assumed that she indeed was a child.

Still, a child what? What was the name of those creatures?

“Oooh! I remember!” Pinkie said aloud, her mind finally retrieving the information she wanted. “A human!” she then paused. “But…” she examined herself, tracing her long bendy things (fingers? She couldn’t remember what they were called exactly) over her legs, her…higher legs (arms?), chest, neck, face, and ears…?

Her ears? Where were her ears? Everything else on her face was in place, even if her snout was considerably smaller, yet her ears had moved entirely! Where were…?

Fingers fluttered over flesh, finding the sensation of cartilage meeting her, yet they were not covered in fur. And yet, that wasn’t what she found odd about them.

Twilight

“What is it?” The former Alicorn questioned the small drake, Spike peering up at her inquisitively.

“Your ears,” the dragon answered, gesturing to the portion above of her body. “They’re…” he paused, unsure how to convey what he was seeing.

“They’re what?” Twilight inquired, reaching up to feel her ears, quickly discovering what had caught the baby dragon’s attention.

From the feel of things, they were the same as she had before when she had briefly inhabited a human body. Yet, as she felt higher up, she found that no curve circles back to the head. Rather, it kept rising and rising until it came to a rounded yet still prominent tip.

“Well…I’ll give you this,” Twilight said, still noticing Spike’s eyes locked onto them. “They’re…longer than before.”

By Celestia’s Sun, they wiggled too! Quite easily!

Rainbow Dash

“Ok, don’t panic,” she thought, trying to gain her bearings as it slowly dawned on her that she probably wouldn’t be returning to her original shape any time soon. “This…this is doable,” the transformed pegasus forced herself to breathe, already missing the presence of her wings, let alone hooves. “If Twilight could do it, so can I!”

To prove this to herself, Rainbow Dash made an effort to stand, yet found her legs not cooperating with what she wanted to do, her body only serving to fall forward onto the ground, face planted in the dirt. Spitting the foul contents out, Dash reached up to try and grip at her hair, only for her fingers to brush against her ear, the curved shape significantly smaller than those she bore when she was a pony.

Pinkie Pie

“...I don’t remember Twilight saying stuff about their ears being this long.”

True, there was a possibility she was misremembering things, the incident at the Crystal Empire had occurred years ago (almost six seasons worth, in fact), yet nowhere in her Alicorn friend’s recounting of her time at a place called “Canterlot High” did she mention the “humans” having elongated ears.

Looking up, Pinkie began to survey her surroundings, realizing that she wasn’t exactly in the same place she had been, yet where had she exactly gone? She was somewhere else, looking for someone important.

Or someones?

She couldn’t remember.

Twilight

“So, you can’t remember anything? At all?”

Twilight shook her head, trying to remember how to properly use a bipedal form again after so long of being an equine. “Nothing,” she sighed. “I don’t suppose you remember anything, do you?”

Spike pondered, searching through his most recent memories. “Well…I do know that your idea of a school didn’t exactly go well, and you were kinda letting it all out…”

Oh yeah, that. Not one of her prouder moments, but…wait. “Say that again,” Twilight asked. “The first part.”

“You crying into a pillow and going through hundreds of tissues?”

“No, not that, before.”

“Your idea for a school-”

“Yes! That!” Twilight cried out. “Oh my Celestia, I remember…”

…

Equestria

Canterlot Castle

Throne Room

“Where Yona?! This all pony’s fault!”

“You’re pretty quick to blame them, aren't you? Where are you hiding them, yak?!”

“Look, can’t we focus more on finding our students instead of-”

“Nice try! One of you is probably hiding the whole lot of them!”

“Please, every creature!”

The voice of the ivory, rainbow-haired mare brought the six representatives of the differing races to attention, the darkly colored hippogriff approaching the three members of royalty.

“If I may, Princess Celestia,” the hippogriff began, bringing out a scroll for the mare, the darkly-colored Princess Luna to the left, and the smaller Twilight Sparkle to the right. “When the School of Friendship was closed under the recommendation of Chancellor Neighsay,” the Solar Monarch nodded, all the while trying to comfort Twilight, the memories of her dream falling to pieces still fresh in her mind. It was so close to actually being realized, and now this happened. “We all took our respective students home, yet, not but a few days ago, each of them disappeared!”

The three Princesses gasped. “What do you mean? They’re just gone?!” Twilight exclaimed, clearly in shock.

“Exactly,” the hippogriff, Sky Beak, answered with a confirming nod. “But, before leaving, they left each of us a note,” he explained further. “They claimed that they were unhappy that none of them had the chance to properly say goodbye, and soon it became clear that they didn’t want to stay separated. So,” he finished, clearly his throat. “They seemingly ran away to stay together.”

It was then that the lilac Alicorn’s utmost fear transformed into total elation. “I can’t believe it…”

“I know, I thought Ocean Flow and I taught Silverstream better than to just go off and-”

“They DID learn something about friendship!” it was then that Twilight saw her declaration perhaps wasn’t the best thing to say at that moment. “Oh, uh, sorry.”

“Regardless,” Sky Beak continued. “Silverstream couldn’t have done this on her own, nor could any of the others,” he then turned to the other representatives. “Not without help from someone like one of you!”

“Now, hold on, Sky Beak, let us be rational about this,” Princess Celestia interjected, yet the hippogriff continued, clearly fired up by the prospect of his missing child.

“I respect you greatly, but make no mistake, Rulers of Equestria,” the quadrupedal, bird-like being explained. “If my daughter is not found soon, then I can guarantee that there WILL be retaliation against whoever is responsible!”

“Oh yeah?! And who says YOU’RE not the one responsible?!” a blue dragoness, Ember, quite literally roared. “We dragons are going to burn down every single one of your kingdoms until we find which one of you is hiding Smolder!”

“Tell it to the Griffin Army, you winged little lizard!” the aged griffon, affectionally referred to as “Grandpa Gruff” by his fellow flock, threatened back, his protruding eye staring down the dragoness.

“Yaks fight griffons AND dragons!” The burly, horned dweller of the north, Prince Rutherford, declared, getting in between the two.

Thorax, the only one among them who appeared to have no confrontational bone in his insectoid body, merely winced as he witnessed the infighting between them all. “Not to sound selfish, yet the Changeling Empire won’t be able to handle an international indecent like this,” he nervously said. “If the Changelings get blamed for this-”

“What are you mumbling about over there?”

The green creature sporting impressive horns widened his eyes. “Oh, uh, nothing. I wasn’t-”

“What are you discussing in private, Shapeshifter?” Ember inquired, narrowing her eyes, gesturing an accusing claw in his face.

“Sh-Shapeshifter?” Thorax whimpered. “But…we’re friends…right?”

“ENOUGH!!!”

The argument immediately died down, the room growing dark and foreboding as if a storm had quite literally manifested in the chamber itself. All representatives, as well as Celestia and Twilight, directed their attention to the now-angered Luna, her patience had reached its limit.

“THOUST SHAN’T DO NONE OF THESE THINGS!!! NAY, NO CREATURE SHALL ATTACK ANOTHER THIS DAY, OR ANY DAY!!! CEASE THIS BICKERING AND FOCUS THOUST EFFORTS ON THINE TRUE TASK!!!”

“But Silverstream and the others-” Sky Beak protested, yet the Princess of the Night continued.

“THEY SHALL BE FOUND SAFE AND UNHARMED, I ASSURE YE,” she responded, voice still booming and loud, yet significantly less furious than before. “BUT FIGHTING AMONGST THINESELVES IS FOR NAUGHT. IT WILL DO YOU NO GOOD AND ONLY LEAD TO THOUST OWN DESTRUCTION. OR WORSE.”

Neither Celestia nor Twilight said a word, yet both noticed the darkly-colored mare’s features falter somewhat. Still, it became clear that something had to be done, as Luna’s tone could only go so far.

“We will begin by searching everywhere from Canterlot to Ponyville!” Celestia declared. “But until then, I ask that you reconvince to the Grand Hall!” the Solar Princess then turned to the lilac Alicorn. “Me and Luna will handle things here, you check Ponyville,” she directed the smaller Princess of Friendship. “We must find those six,” she then paused, biting her lip. “Or, I’m afraid that our very nation, our very world might be put into chaos!”

…

Rainbow Dash

“Yeah! That was it! Six of the students had gone missing, and Twilight came to us to help find them!” the rainbow-haired humanoid said aloud, memories flooding back at a rapid rate to where she was having difficulty keeping track of it all at once. “Let’s see, what were their names?”

…

Ponyville

Sugarcube Corner

“Ok, so, let’s review,” Twilight began, Spike’s claw pointed at the piece of paper with each of the missing student’s representation drawn on the left side.

“Smolder, Ocellus, Silverstream, Yona, and Gallus, all disappeared together,” Spike recounted to the other ponies, who were all huddled up around the board. “And…that’s all we know,” he admitted sheepishly.

“I say that they’re probably just hidin’ somewhere,” an orange mare with a blonde mane and tail fashioned into low ponytails with a sporting cowboy hat of brown theorized. “After all, the notes said that they didn’t wanna be separated from each other.”

“True,” a light purple unicorn agreed, although she still had her doubts. “Although, some of them know magic. Maybe they used some sort of spell to make themselves disappear?”

“Oooh! Oooh! I’ve got an idea!” Rainbow Dash declared aloud. “Maybe they’re undercover!”

“Or…” Pinkie Pie interjected. “Maybe they were attacked and viciously devoured by a ferocious shrimp!”

Silence fell over everypony in the building.

“...shrimp?” a palish-yellow pegasus with a light pink mane and tail with turquoise questioned. “I never knew they could attack…”

“They don’t!” the pink earth pony responded. “That’s why nopony expects it.”

…

Pinkie Pie

“And then…” she pondered, slowly piecing together what had happened before she had awoken in this strange shape. At least, what she could recollect and hope was the correct recalling of events. “And then, someone entered the bakery,” she remembered aloud. “But…it wasn’t one of the missing students…”

Sugarcube Corner

The ringing of the bell indicated that somepony else was approaching, a young stallion of soft yellow with seaweed green hair entered, holding a list in his mouth. He appeared casual at first, yet his eyes fell on the list of missing creatures currently being discussed by the ponies and dragon.

“Whoa!” the young pony winced, almost dropping the list before quickly catching it again. He gave an awkward smile before approaching the counter.

“Hi, Sandbar!” Pinkie Pie greeted, going into business mode and producing a few boxes of cupcakes. However, before she handed them to him, she took one last look over. “You having a party or something?”

“Huh? Oh, uh, no!” the other pony shouted. “I mean, no, it’s not that,” he said more calmly. At least, he tried. “I’m just…got a bit of a craving for sugar at the moment.”

Pinkie pondered this for a moment. “Good enough answer for me! Let me get the door!”

Back at the discussion, an ivory unicorn mare with a uniquely styled violet mane and tail decided to put in her two bits about the situation. “We need to think like our students,” she said. “If we were in their position, and couldn’t see each other ever again, what course of action would we take?”

“Oooh, I know!” Pinkie interjected. “I’d find a place we could all hang out and eat lots of cupcakes!”

Silence again.

“What?”

“Wait a moment,” the pale-yellow pegasus, Fluttershy, began. “Wasn’t Sandbar friends with them all at school?” she inquired. “And he did just come in and get all those cupcakes.”

“He was at the farm earlier this morning, asking for a wagon of apples,” the orange earth mare, Applejack, informed the pegasus and the others.

“And I saw him earlier shopping for some pillows and blankets!” the ivory unicorn, Rarity inserted afterward.

It soon dawned on them all just what had happened, let alone what they had just let slip right away in front of them.

“He must be taking all that stuff to the other students!” Rainbow Dash declared with a gasp of realization. “We gotta follow him!”

…

“Although…I don’t remember following them here.” Pinkie Pie mused, the night wing chilling her arms, forcing her to stand and work with her strange but still functioning legs. She then looked ahead, spotting a peculiar landmark nearby.

Twilight Sparkle

“Look!” Spike told the transformed Alicorn, gesturing just ahead of them.

Indeed, before them stood something worthy of investigation. But a short distance away was a towering, white gate of stone with a drawbridge pulled upward and divided from the rest of the land with a dense and deep moat.

Gathering her bearings, Twilight Sparkle stood up on her two feet and took ahold of Spike, placing him on her shoulder as he held onto the scarf wrapped around her form, the two of them approaching the expansive barrier that stood between her and what could be the answer to her current dilemma.

Rainbow Dash

“Ok, I think I got it,” the former pegasus strained, finally managing to stand upright after more time than she would’ve liked to admit. Still, she managed to do it, eventually. “Still…now what?”

Now what indeed, she thought, for where to go seemed like a question that had multiple answers. The region she found herself in was rather rocky and devoid of vegetation, although there were some sparse patches of grass here and there, yet the flora mostly consisted of cacti and other dry plants built for a hotter, more unforgiving climate.

Still, it did her no good just standing around.

Thus, with a small bit of preparation, Rainbow stepped forward, going closer to a split canyon that contained a narrow passage, the sound of rushing water meeting her ears. While she was not exactly into reading as much as Twilight in regards to general history, she had been enough places to know that a water source was almost always a good guarantee a civilization of some kind was nearby.

Pinkie Pie

“Ok, so we followed Sandbar to the Everfree Forest,” the former pink pony said, recounting her steps, pacing back and forth. “And this does indeed look like a forest,” she admitted, gazing at the expansive collection of trees and other flourishing flora before her. “But…something about it doesn’t look the same.”

She wasn’t daft enough to believe she was still in Equestria, goodness no, yet Pinkie herself couldn’t help but find it ironic that she ended up near a location very similar to the one she had just visited not long prior. Still, this was no time to dwell. She had to remember!

“We followed Sandbar to the Everfree Forest,” she repeated. “It took a while to get through, but we did it,” she continued. “And then…” she paused, her expression faltering. “...then nothing.”

As much as she hated it, she couldn’t remember anything afterward. Once she and the rest of her companions had entered the dense woodland, everything was a blur.

Still, the former earth pony couldn’t help but lay eyes on the expansive sea of greenery a short distance away. She didn’t entirely understand why, yet, in the limited range of understanding she had, Pinkie wondered if maybe approaching this particular forest would bring back memories of just how they followed Sandbar.

As well as got here.

Twilight Sparkle

“I don’t understand,” the Princess sighed, Spike riding on her shoulder. “You’re still a dragon, yet I’m the one that’s changed.”

“So, what does that mean?” the baby dragon questioned, not entirely understanding what she was getting at.

“I’m…not entirely sure myself,” Twilight confessed. “Still, the world we previously visited had life forms such as this, I think,” she said, once again grazing her elongated ears. “But this place looks more like Equestria than where we went.”

“How is that?” Spike asked.

“Well, in that world, you certainly weren’t a dragon,” the indigo-haired woman answered. “Yet humans presumably exist here. At least, human enough I think.”

“But, if I’m a dragon, then does that mean creatures such as hippogriffs, changelings, griffons, all of those exist here too?” Spike inquired.

Twilight considered this possibility. “Maybe,” she responded. “But, for now, we need to find some help. Then we can start asking questions.”

“Hey, look! We’re there!”

Turning her head forward, Twilight saw that they had finally reached the gate, the torches blazing in the night, serving as the only source of light besides the moon. If only she had her horn.

“HALT!” a voice shouted, the woman stopping in her tracks. “WHO GOES THERE?!”

Looking upward, Twilight and Spike saw that they weren’t alone, two figures standing atop the gate, dressed in armor, and gazing at them with suspicion. “Oh, uh, begging your pardon, sir, but would you mind letting me see your ruler?”

The two exchanged a baffled glance. “Ruler?”

“Yes, your King, Queen, Princess, whoever is in charge, could I please seek an audience with them? My dragon and I need assistance.”

“Dragon?” one of the soldiers asked. “Did you say, dragon?”

Twilight and Spike glanced at one another. “Um, yes? Why?”

More silence, and then the two began conversing, although they kept their volume low to make sure there was no one else to hear it. Still, if only she could see better! A glow spell would do nicely…?!

“Huh?”

“What the…?”

Just then, from her forehead, a signature purple glow manifested, shining upward in a small beam and lighting the way in front of them, casting everything in its range in a violet hue.

“Oh, so it IS you,” one of the soldiers above stated aloud. “Then that means…?” he paused. “Do we let her in?” he asked his comrade.

“The Princess’ Attendant said that the lady would arrive with a baby dragon.”

“And I’ve never seen a dragon up close, yet that looks like one to me.”

“Excuse me, gentlemen?” Twilight inquired. “Can you hear me?”

The soldiers redirected their attention from each other to the woman below. “What do you call yourself, stranger?” One of them inquired.

“Twilight Sparkle,” she answered. “Oh, of Equestria.”

“I’m Spike.”

The two men turned to face each other. “She’s taught it to speak?” One asked.

“I didn’t think they were capable of such things!”

“Excuse me? Gentlemen?”

“Ah, yes, sorry!” The sound of a mechanism being unlocked. “We’ve received word that the King has been expecting you for some time now.”

“The King?” Twilight was puzzled, yet continued to pry. “The King of this place?”

“Hm, you must be from out of the country, given your attire and complexion,” one of the soldiers remarked. “Although you still seem to have some Hylian lineage.”

The woman curled her brow. “Hylian?”

“Of course!” A soldier answered. “Where do you think you are? You’re in the Kingdom of Hyrule!” He said. “And you’ve come here to educate the King’s daughter!”

Author's Note

Lost interest in the last one I was writing so I decided to try this. This is sort of based on another story of mine related to Ocarina of Time, only it’s more from the perspective of the characters outside of Link. Yet he still is an important figure.

I’m having trouble with putting images in. Any hosting sites that work, because post images is kinda giving me grief.

Update: Nevermind, I found the problem.