Avisus Gaiuni Psychuarere

Avisus Gaiuni Psychuarere

"Ummmm, I dunno. I just like flying."

"Well yeah, I know that, but is there any reason you like flying so much?"

"I dunno, I just... do."

"Well, what about you, Fluttershy? Why don't you like flying?"

"Oh, umm. It's not that I don't like flying, I just like walking more."

Twilight sighed and looked at her notes, or the noticeable lack thereof. "Well thanks anyways, you two. I don't wanna take up any more of your time."

"Oh, it was no problem at-"

"Yeah, no problem. C'mon Fluttershy, let's go."

"Oh, bu- eep!"

The unicorn watched as Rainbow dragged the poor, defenseless mare off to her untimely demise at a nearby lake. She looked once more at the blank paper in front of her, then trotted off to Ponyville to find more pegasi to interview.

So far all she'd figured out were that pegasi liked flying, that they wanted to fly simply because they had wings, and they liked clouds because they were in the sky and they were comfortable. It seemed to be pretty similar to how unicorns were: they liked magic, they wanted to learn magic because they had horns, and they liked mountains because of the gems and minerals inside of them, which could be enchanted much more easily and reliably than anything else.

Her books hadn't helped all that much, either. Turns out very few were written on the subject of race-specific psychology and even fewer on the properties of earth and pegasus magic. Probably because their magic wasn't something that could be enhanced or changed from study or something. Twilight wasn't sure, but that was the only reason she could come up with.

Starswirl said in his journal that a deeper knowledge of pegasi and earth ponies is necessary, but just how deep is deep enough? Twilight had no clue, so she just decided to ask a whole bunch of questions to any pegasus she could find.

Thunderlane was conspicuously ground-bound over in a diner not far away. With quill at the ready and paper in tow, she walked over for her next interview.

Turns out none of the pegasi she questioned were able to explain their love of flying. They all said pretty much the same things as Rainbow when asked about various topics. Flight? We have wings, so we fly. Clouds? Nopony else can touch clouds since they're in the sky, so we do. The sky? Our cities are in the sky and we fly in the sky, we live in the sky and we work in the sky.

Pretty much the same ideals went for unicorns as well, but it still frustrated Twilight to not get any tangible answers. Seemed like she couldn't understand pegasi unless she was one of them, so how did Starswirl do it? There was only one way to find out: Research.

There weren't any books detailing Starswirl's research process or his life and the only journals Twilight knew about were the two in her possession. There wasn't even anything of use in the Starswirl the Bearded wing in Canterlot, if the guard she'd contacted was being truthful. She opened up the journal she'd found and flipped to the two pages covered with drawings and diagrams. If there was one key to unlocking the mind of a pegasus, it was on one of those pages.

Twilight spent the next two hours drawing each and every figure on a new sheet of paper, to the smallest detail. She also decided to rewrite the entirety of the other two pages, detailing Starswirl's logic and the steps to the spell, even copying the crossed-out words and grammatical errors. After that, she read over what she wrote and studied each of the drawings before copying the more important parts on another page. After all, repetition is the greatest teacher.

She had gathered quite a few things from the drawings. The anatomies of pegasi and earth ponies were detailed and drawn to scale, different types of tissues were drawn and there were a few spells that would aid in Twilight's research. One in particular would be extremely useful in her current step: The ability to enter another's mind for a day.

Finding a pony willing to let Twilight in their mind would most likely be a difficult task. Fluttershy would, of course, offer to let Twilight in, but she wasn't exactly a normal pegasus. Rainbow Dash wasn't exactly a normal pegasus either, and Twilight wasn't sure she would even want to help.

The librarian left in search of a pegasus who would want to help, but was also an ordinary, typical specimen. The fastest, most efficient way to do that was to roam Ponyville and ask just about every pegasus she came across, and most of them just turned her down halfway through the question. Granted, "Hey there, can I enter your mind so I can understand how pegasi think?" wasn't exactly the best way to ask, but there was no point in beating around the bush.

Twilight returned to the library late at night, nopony willing to give up a part of themselves for the sake of research. It may have been the whole "pegasus pride" thing Rainbow brought up that one time, maybe. She sighed, walked up to her room, and levitated her checklist over to herself. Item number one on the list was scratched out and moved down, leaving earth ponies as her top priority. Satisfied, she laid her list down and fell asleep.

Twilight only had to ask two earth ponies, the second one finding no problem with letting the unicorn run around in her head for a day. Twilight actually felt the need to ask a few more times just to make sure Carrot Top was sure she wanted to let another pony invade her mind.

It took the mare four "yes"es and an extra nod of approval before Twilight was willing to decide she was sure she could conduct her research. Carrot Top seemed like a great subject: she had her carrot patch, she had flowers on her windowsill, she had a stall at the market, she was healthy without being visibly muscular. She was just a perfectly great, perfectly willing earth pony to study.

Twilight wasn't exactly sure how much of an intrusion she'd be, or exactly how much of Carrot Top's mind was open for her to explore. She swore to herself that she wouldn't dive into memories or secrets or anything that the other mare hadn't knowingly signed up for.

The mind-moving spell, as Twilight liked to call it, was relatively simple. After getting comfortable on her bed, Twilight rested a quick note for Spike on her chest telling him that she wasn't dead, just that she was inside of another pony. After that she withdrew from her body her consciousness and deposited it inside Carrot Top, who was watching nearby. It was a manner similar to magical sedation, only instead of numbing the mind she was moving it. Which actually wasn't at all like sedation since sedation numbed the physical and not the mental, but Twilight couldn't think of a better example.

Twilight didn't know what she expected, just that she didn't think she would see out of Carrot Top's eyes the instant the spell was cast. Seeing herself through the eyes of another was unlike looking in a mirror, somehow. She decided not to focus on minor details such as that, instead focusing on thoughts and emotions.

Is that it? she heard somepony say. Except it wasn't spoken. It was a thought. She could apparently hear whatever Carrot Top thought, which would prove extremely helpful with figuring out how earth ponies think. But what if she thought something? Would Carrot Top hear it? Huh, she isn't moving. Guess that's it, then. Heh, she actually looks kinda cute li-

Carrot Top?

Huh? What? Twilight?!?

Twilight sensed her cheeks getting warm, only she knew they weren't her cheeks, since nothing about her had changed. They were Carrot Top's then, which still didn't make any sense- the temperature in the library was still at its usual, after all- but revealed that senses seemed easy enough to pick up. The thought-speak was pretty useful as well.

It seems like communication isn't a problem. I wonder if I can move you...

Twilight attempted to move Carrot Top's hoof, and it refused to budge. She tried harder to move it, yet still it would not give. Twilight gave up after the fourth try, realizing they could transmit their thoughts and feelings to one another, but anything beyond that was impossible.

Well, I guess I can't.

Yeah, this is gettin' pretty weird...

Oh, sorry. Just... pretend I'm not here. I'll try and focus on remembering stuff so I can write it down when I'm back in my body later, so I shouldn't be thinking too much, probably.

Y'know, I can just write stuff down for you.

Oh, nonononono. I don't wanna be a burden on you. Just go about your day like any other, like I'm not here.

Alright, just don't go diggin' around in my head.

Don't worry, I won't. Cross my hear-

Yeah, that's alright.

Okay then, I'll just be... Wherever I could call this place. I guess. I'll try and think as little as-

Twilight.

Huh?

Stop thinking.

Oh, right. Sorry. It's just so-

Twilight.

Sorry!

Carrot Top waited a few moments before she was certain that Twilight was silent. She turned from the librarian's bed, traversed the steps leading out of the librarian's room, and trotted out of the library. The urge to hum a light tune hit her as she headed off and she had no reason not to, so she hummed as she walked through town, waving and greeting various ponies all the while.

After arriving at her stall in the market and doing a quick inventory check which she knew wasn't necessary- Ponyville wasn't home to many thieves or ne'er-do-wells- she flipped the closed sign around. Almost immediately, a nearby stallion walked up to buy some carrots.

Twilight was bored. Immensely, terribly bored. She figured out a way to think to herself without Carrot Top hearing- after all, they were still two separate ponies- but thinking and watching a pony selling carrots through the salesmare's eyes got dull after a few hours.

It was a rather redundant process: Greet pony, wave hoof at carrots, sell carrots, wait for next customer. The monotony was only broken up when the mare decided to eat some dinner back at her place. It was nothing special, just a regular ol' sandwich with various fruits and vegetables on the side, and it only lasted long enough for Twilight to realize that she wasn't actually eating anything herself.

After dinner, it was back to selling carrots. And selling the carrots on the other side of the stall. And selling some more carrots stashed underneath it. Twilight picked up a few tricks of the trade from watching Carrot Top do her thing. When somepony wants only two carrots, tell them if they buy four they'll get a fifth one free. Chances are they'll jump at the offer of free anything without much thought. The same thing went for when somepony thought the prices were too high. Free samples can go a long way for business.

The sun was beginning to shrink behind the horizon when Twiliight noticed Carrot Top packing up her things with a deft skill that she was instantly jealous of. Her yellow hooves went from carrots to bag to box to bag and back to carrots with speed and accuracy Twilight never thought possible without magic.

She tried to focus on Carrot Top's peripheral vision. From what she could tell, the other earth ponies were packing up just as fast as Carrot Top was, if not faster. The few pegasi shopkeepers, however, were progressing at a much slower pace. Twilight realized the large possibility that it was earth pony magic at play, so perhaps the speed and skill she observed was impossible without magic. Or at least, without years of practice.

Carrot Top's things all packed up, she began to fold up her stall with some kind of hidden strength from within, judging by the way the rusted hinges protested against being used. Twilight decided it was earth pony magic at work once again, and tried her hardest to find any difference in Carrot Top, as there was with unicorns. She could vaguely sense some kind of pull in the mare's chest, but didn't have enough time to pinpoint its exact location.

Twilight at first thought to ask Carrot Top to do some more strength tests so she could find out where the tugging was coming from, but decided against it. She refocused her attention on the world around her and saw, through eyes not her own, parts of the stall resting atop her head. Is she carrying her stall?!?

Instantly, the yellow mare jumped back, the stall on her back falling to the ground. Huh? What? Oh, right. Heh. Forgot you were there, Twilight.

Oh, I'm sorry! I was just thinking about how earth pony magic worked and then you were carrying your stall and it was so-

Wait. You said you were thinking?

Yeah. I figured out a way to think without thinking... out loud, I guess? You just kinda... hmm...

Twilight continued to think of a way to phrase it as Carrot Top picked up her stall once again, walking through the streets towards her home. The ponies walking by seemed accustomed to seeing an ordinary mare carrying a miniature shop around, not gawking or pointing at what Twilight would deem a strange sight.

Ah, I got it! You just think like you would normally think, but like... Wait, that doesn't make sense. Hold on a second... Okay, think like you'd normally think, but think it like you're reading, I guess. Wait. I mean, you know sometimes when you're thinking to yourself and not really- Ugh. This sounded a whole lot better in my head. Did that make any sense to you?

Nope. But I think I know what you mean, kinda. I'll maybe try it later sometime, maybe.

There was silence in her mind as Carrot Top opened the door to her house, placing her stall in a corner before heading into the bathroom. She closed her eyes; she didn't want anypony watching her heed the call of nature. The lack of sight didn't really tune out the sounds, though. After brushing her teeth she walked lazily over to her bed, yawned, stretched, and climbed up, snuggling under the covers for a good night's sleep.

Twilight was at a loss. Carrot Top was asleep. Twilight couldn't do anything except think, but she'd done a whole lot of that already. She didn't want to invade whatever dreams Carrot Top was having; that would be like looking into her memories and secrets, maybe even worse. It totally had nothing to do with Twilight not knowing how to sneak a peek. It just completely went against her morals, not to mention her not even being curious as to what went on in the mare's dreams. Not even a little bit.

That still left Twilight with having to find something to do, so she looked around Carrot Top's room. The only things in it were the bed she was in, an armoire against the wall there, a nightstand to her left, some shelves by the other wall over there, a desk underneath the shelves, a chair, a door, and a couple of curtained windows. She focused her eyes on the shelves, looking for something that might help her pass the time while Carrot Top was asleep. The shelves had nothing on them, save for a few dusty vases and boxes.

There was absolutely nothing to help her pass the time. Twilight looked up at the ceiling and rubbed her chin, humming as she thought. If I could just do something other than think and look at stuff, maybe I- Wait a second... She looked at her yellow hoof and waved it around in front of herself. As if she couldn't believe it, she rubbed her eyes and waved it around one more time.

But this- This doesn't make any sense! I couldn't do anything earlier, so maybe Carrot Top was pushing me away so I couldn't? Or maybe she didn't know she was pushing me away, so she couldn't do anything to let me do anything? She propped Carrot Top up so she could look around the room again. But if I'm using Carrot Top's body, why isn't she awake? Hmmmm, I'm gonna have to look into this some more later. But for now...

Her thoughts were halted when she suddenly yawned and slid back under the covers, wrapping them around herself and smiling at the new comfort. What's going on? I didn't- Oh. Right. She's asleep, so she wants to be comfortable. Of course.

Keeping a blanket wrapped around herself, Twilight slowly slid out of bed. The sound of hoofsteps reverberated through the otherwise silent rooms as she walked through Carrot Top's home, retracing her steps back to the front door. She took off her blanket-cloak and placed it on a nearby table, refocusing her attention on the door. It opened easily enough, the crisp night air causing Carrot Top to huddle close to the ground as though she were still in bed. She turned to her side and wrapped herself in a blanket of dirt and grass, hugging her hooves tightly against herself in a ball for extra warmth.

As Carrot Top struggled against the lack of warmth in her sleep, Twilight found herself unable to do anything to retake control of their shared body. She herself couldn't sleep for whatever reason, so she waited for Carrot Top to get comfortable and warm enough to complete her quest for optimal sleeping conditions. All it took was around ten minutes of tossing and turning and four very thick layers of dirty goodness.

Twilight could finally open her eyes. She looked at Carrot Top's dirt-covered body and immediately stood up to dust herself off. Once she did, however, she fell to the ground once more and spent the next few minutes reapplying her dirt bath. Once that was in order, she found herself curling up under the "covers" and yawning, smacking her lips and scratching her flank as Carrot Top fell asleep. Even though she was already asleep to begin with. Maybe there were layers to sleep, with varying levels of consciousness. Twilight decided to add that to her growing list of research topics.

She knew she couldn't stand up or get out from under the dirt, so Twilight resorted to very slowly crawling towards the library, even after receiving a couple strange looks from the few ponies still out. Fifteen minutes later, she realized there was no pain in her hooves from pushing herself on the ground, nor was there pain anywhere, despite the roughness of the dirt and the various rocks, twigs, and that one screw or whatever it was she'd slid over. Definitely magic at work here...

Another twenty minutes of slithering across the ground and Twilight was finally at the library. She didn't dare get up to open the door the normal way, instead reaching up and pushing it open with one hoof. Her muscles were just barely starting to ache, whereas normally she would've been exhausted after about ten minutes. Which definitely had nothing to do with her being out of shape, since she exercised regularly. At least once a week. If she had time.

After a moment of consideration, Twilight dragged herself in to the library and shut the door behind her. Only then did she dare stand up, certain the library was warm enough to not bring on another comfort-seeking fit from Carrot Top. Her first instinct was to rush upstairs and wash all the dirt off herself, but she decided against it. Water was definitely not a good thing to be covered in while dreaming. Neither was dirt, but it was too late to do anything about that.

She vaguely wondered what she would say to Carrot Top when she woke a complete mess. Hopefully she wouldn't be mad. It was her body, and she didn't say Twilight could use it. But then again, she hadn't said Twilight couldn't use it, even if she thought she couldn't anyways.

Twilight shook the self-argument from her head and went over to the kitchen. She poured herself a glass of water and decided to test the earth pony magic that was now at her disposal. There were plenty of plants on her window sill, most of them wilting slightly for some odd reason that she knew wasn't a lack of water, and they would make perfect test subjects. The test itself was rather easy: Water plant, record results, move on to next plant.

Whenever she watered them, the plants looked slightly less wilted. Ordinary results from watering plants to be sure, except for the fact that when she watered them as herself, they never seemed to get any healthier. Which meant earth pony magic sped up plant growth. It made perfect sense, considering most farmers and gardeners were earth ponies.

But where's the magic stored? Twilight asked herself. If earth pony magic was anything like unicorn magic, there should be a reserve somewhere in the body. She remembered a slight pull at her chest while she was exerting herself earlier and memorized the location of that magical reserve, yet she hadn't felt anything at all while watering her plants. If she could just heighten all of her senses she would be able to, but she didn't have access to her magic.

But I don't wanna have to ask her again tomorrow and... Hmm... Twilight paced across the floor as she thought, wondering how she could locate the agricultural magic inside her. She could ask Rarity, but it was late at night and she was probably asleep. Twilight ultimately decided that her research couldn't wait and Twilight didn't want to have to awkwardly ask Carrot Top again another day. She didn't exactly want to ask anypony else either, considering how awkward being inside somepony else's head was in the first place. Her mind made up, she threw on a coat and headed for Rarity's boutique.

The coat, though it seemed like a good idea at the time, didn't help all that much. Instead of stopping Carrot Top's need for warmth outside, it caused her to want to curl up into a ball and bask in the comfort of the newly-dirty fabric. Which was a bit of a problem while she was walking, because she would trip over herself and land face-first into the dirt, then rub her cheeks all over the groove while she wrapped the coat around herself. Of course, it hadn't taken nearly as long as it would have if Twilight had to push herself the entire way, but it was a hindrance nonetheless.

She didn't bother knocking; Sweetie Belle was a light sleeper. Paired with the Cutie Mark Crusader sleepover that was going on that night, it would have probably woken up Carrot Top and given both she and Twilight a headache, not to mention Rarity. Besides, she knew where the key was. The door creaked slightly as Twilight opened it, the way doors usually do when they're opened slowly. She walked as quietly as she could up the boutique's stairs and walked along in the dark until she reached Rarity's room.

The door to her room, just as the front door did, creaked slightly when Twilight tried to silently open it. She couldn't help but wince and grit her teeth, thinking Rarity would wake prematurely. Rarity didn't move an inch, thankfully, so Twilight began walking over to her bed.

And then she tripped over herself, yawning and rolling on the floor, spreading her limbs every which way as she tried to remove the coat-blanket she had on. The tossing and turning went on for a good minute or so before it finally stopped, Twilight picking herself up off the ground and staring frightfully at Rarity's bed. She seemed to still be asleep, considering nopony was screaming in terror at the random thumping in the middle of the night.

"Hello? Who's there?"

Twilight froze. Rarity's voice wasn't coming from her bed or anywhere in the room, for that matter. The lights turned on and she raised a hoof over her eyes to protect them from the relentless attacks of the sudden brightness.

"Carrot Top? Whatever are you doing here? And just look at your coat! It's filthy! And that's to say nothing about you, dear, you're covered in... in filth!" Rarity looked Carrot Top over and tut-tutted, shaking her head as she walked over. "Now come along, let's get you cleaned up."

"Rarity, wait!"

"Yes, dear? What is it?"

"Look, I know you're gonna think I'm crazy, but just hear me out."

Rarity stood silently, raising her eyebrows and tilting her head as Twilight's sign to continue.

"Alright, good, just hear me out. I'm not Carrot Top."

Rarity's eyebrows shot up in their attempt to escape Rarity's face.

"I'm actually Twilight. I'm just kinda... 'borrowing' Carrot Top's body. For research."

The rebellious eyebrows gave up their struggle and returned to their normal resting place above Rarity's eyes. She stayed silent, however, prompting Twilight to go on.

"And Carrot Top's... mind, I guess, is still kinda asleep, so I can't really get cleaned up right now."

In a full circle from their surrender, her eyebrows shot up once again, this time with a new recruit: her mouth. It seemed to no longer want to live on the planet anymore and attempted to jump off Rarity's head in a sudden suicide attempt. Thankfully Rarity's hoof, ever vigilant, caught up to the wannabe-self-murderer-and-victim, pushing it back up to where it rightfully belonged. Her eyebrows sensed the failure of their comrade and, out of respect, returned to their homes.

"Hmm, yes. I understand. So what did you need, Twilight?"

"Oh, right. I need you to- Wait, you believe me? Just like that?"

Rarity nodded and, turning off the lights, began walking out of her room. After passing the door, she flicked her head as the signal for Twilight to follow. "Yes, Twilight, just like that."

"Oh, well, I need you to cast a spell on me to heighten my senses."

"Which-"

"All of them."

"Oh, of course. And why-"

"I'm kinda not in my body right now, remember?"

"I know that. I meant, why-"

"For research."

"Ahhh, yes. Right. Very well, I'll see what I can do."

Rarity's horn lit up as she called forth her magic. Carrot Top soon glowed a bright blue as the spell began to take hold, every fiber of her body sensitized to new heights. A few moments passed before the glow faded into nothing and Rarity decided it was the perfect time to shout into Carrot Top's ear.

"THERE, IS THAT ALRIGHT?"

Twilight didn't even have time to scream before she covered her ears, shutting her eyes to keep the sounds away. Because shutting her eyes helped, not because her instincts took over and made her do something stupid.

"Oh, right. Heightened senses. Don't worry dear, I'll whisper from now on."

The ringing in her ears was almost gone, so Twilight reopened her eyes and nodded to Rarity in thanks. It was a mystery how Carrot Top didn't wake up from all of that, but Twilight decided to be thankful and not question it.

"Yeah, thanks Rarity. But what are you doing up so late?"

"Oh, just finishing up a little something. Was there anything else?"

"Oh, no, that's it. Thanks again!" Twilight called back as she headed outside.

"You're welcome, dear."

It was time for Twilight to pinpoint where an earth pony's plant-growing magic came from. She had a spring in her step up until about halfway back to the library when, mid-hop, her body curled into itself and she fell face-first into the ground.

Scathing pain from her fall to the ground aside, Twilight's trip to the library was quick and uneventful. The library was dark and desolate, just like she left it. The plants on her sill were already watered and she didn't dare over-water them; not yet known to her were the limits of earth pony magic. Besides, they were doing fine. She didn't want to risk killing them right after they started growing again.

She stuck to watering the bushes and flowers outside the library. Each and every time, she felt a tugging at various places on her body. Her hooves, her tail, her mouth, they all housed the magical pull at some point. The only consistent areas were her chest, slightly below and to the right of her heart, and her head, between her brain and eyes.

It was when she stumbled mid-watering that she realized why the location was changing. She tested her theory. Only when she held her watering can in her mouth was there a magical strain there; likewise, there was a pull at her hooves when she held it with them.

It was clear to her that any contact with nature or an object that was connected to a plant would cause magic to spring forth from the area, which meant the source of an earth pony's magic was either mobile or covered the body entirely. With no way to prove either theory right or wrong, Twilight decided to test them both on something and use the easier of the two when the time came to create her other self.

With earth pony magic thoroughly investigated, Twilight headed back to Carrot Top's house, barely noticing the sun peeking out from beyond the horizon.

Twilight walked into the building and shut the door behind her. The stairs rose up to meet her and she valiantly ascended them. Even the mighty bedroom door was no match for Twilight's new-found earth pony strength. She was nearly to the bed when she fell, raising a hoof to her mouth and yawning into it as Carrot Top woke, ready to begin her morning.