I Wasn't Prepared For This

Chapters

Chapter 2: Here There be Dragons
Chapter 3: A Goddess in Student's Clothing
Chapter 1: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to my Bedroom...

Chapter 2: Here There be Dragons

“Catch her! Catch her!”

“Nnnngh – gah! Got her, Captain!”

“Excellent! Does anypony have a cloak? What was that? Well of course I’m not going to use mine, are you insane?! Do you know how many hooves have trodden upon this ground? Eugh! There we go, set her on that. Gently now… gently… there! Good work, Stalwart Vigil!”

“Thank you, sir.”

“Hmmph, we’ll need to carry her the rest of the way. Well, what are the rest of you louts doing just standing there?! Go fetch a stretcher for your Princess! Go! Go! If you riff-raff took any longer we’d be here ‘till the Festival of the Autumnal Equinox!”

Spike watched as the group of guards which had gathered around the Princess scrambled out of the hall. The Captain’s voice was biting, any guard caught under his gaze withered like a flower in the winter’s frost. Within seconds the massive room was completely empty, still echoing with the sound of galloping hooves. In the ensuing moment of peace, the elder dragon thought back to the unexpected turn of events that had conspired to disrupt his entire day.

Something seemed off about Eos... Something strange. The Delirium does odd things to her, but this… this felt different. She was too lucid, too comprehending. Spike shifted his body from where he had lain upon the marble floor, tracing a starburst engraved upon the tile with his claw. She saw me, she actually saw me, but… that look of simultaneous recognition and shock. She had known me, but I was not who she had been expecting.

“Excuse me, Sir Spike?” The sound of Blueblood’s voice broke Spike from his reverie. The Captain had approached him while his mind was deep in musing.

“I have told you before, I do not wish to be called by that or any other title. I am Spike, and always will be Spike.” His voice reverberated through the throne room, a bass so deep it pulsed through the soul. Any normal pony would not dare resist his command. However, Blueblood had never been that kind of pony.

“I’m just trying to use polite and proper etiquette, Spike. But tell you what, I’ll make sure to call you Spikey-Wikey from now on. Any better?” If his smirk was any wider, the Captain would need a larger face to hold it all. Spike had always been impressed by the way Blueblood wielded a facial expression like a sword.

“Grrrrrrrrrrr.” Despite a growl that would leave the mightiest of Manticores cowering in fear, Blueblood held fast, never letting his smile waver. Perhaps it was the ghost of a grin tugging at the dagger-toothed corners of Spike’s mouth that gave him confidence. Perhaps Blueblood was simply insane. “I wonder how blue your blood really is, oh ‘Captain of the Royal Marching band’.”

“Bah-ha-ha! Oh Spikey, I wish! A marching band might be more coherent!” Blueblood descended into barely-contained snickers. After taking a moment to regain his composure, the Captain looked back to where Stalwart Vigil was dutifully standing near the unconscious Princess. “Of course I don’t mean you, Vigil.”

The stallion looked up from where he had been adjusting the straps to his armor. He seemed surprised to hear the Captain speaking to him once again. “Sir?”

“There’s a reason Eos appointed you and that mare Imbrium to be her personal guards.” Stalwart Vigil seemed troubled by Blueblood’s compliment. He looked down to the Princess, where she lay upon another guard’s cloak.

“I hardly understand her choice, sir. I think I was just in the right place at the right time. Or the right place at the wrong time, as it were.” That one is uncomfortable with Eos’ choice; perhaps someday I should ask him why, Spike thought. Just another thing for me to do, this week is going to be a long one. All I ever wanted to do was sleep after all, and now this.

“Nonsense! You’ve always been well worth your salt! And besides, Eos can see things in others we can’t see in ourselves. After all, I’m still trying to figure out why she keeps this ancient pile of scales around!” Blueblood turned his head back towards Spike, another smirk just for him. It’s the gift that keeps on giving, too bad it’s not something I can eat. Actually…

“Hmmm, was that the bell for breakfast I just heard? You know, I’ve been told that toasted runt goes great with a side of eggs and sapphires.” Spike chose this moment to yawn, opening his maw wide enough to reveal teeth as large as Blueblood’s legs. To his credit, the Captain only flinched a little.

Before Blueblood could retort, the throne room guards returned with a stretcher, already suspended above the floor by a hover spell.

“About time you returned, Spike was getting hungry.” The stretcher was brought to where Eos lay, tossing and turning on the blanket in fitful motions. With quick but gentle telekinesis she was lifted onto the device, where she seemed to settle in more peacefully. The Captain took hold of the stretcher with his magic, tethering it to his horn and powering the internal spell which gave it lift. “Thank you for your help, Gentlecolts. Back to your posts now, we’ll take the Princess to the Infirmary ourselves.

The trio left the throne room from Spike’s entrance, proceeding at a gentle pace. They walked in silence for a while, Stalwart Vigil and the Captain walking in front, with the Princess floating between them and Spike taking up the rear. His thundering steps echoed throughout the winding hallways like the beating of a massive drum. It was Blueblood who first spoke, addressing Spike as they turned a corner.

“You know she can’t be allowed to keep doing this, Spike.” The unicorn’s tone was serious, all traces of his previous jesting gone. “She’s not doing anyone any favors constantly working over the edge of exhaustion, least of all herself. I don’t care if she’s immortal, she’s still a pony and it is not healthy!”

“I’m sorry Blueblood. I truly am. But there is nothing I can do that I have not already tried.” Spike let out a dejected sigh. “She is determined to continue her work, regardless of the personal harm involved.”

Blueblood would not be deterred. “But there must be something, can’t you at least speak to her?”

“I wish it was that easy. But you must understand, this is more than just another experiment or little project. She will not stop until she has achieved a breakthrough, and in this, she deserves our support and understanding.” If things were only as simple as just lending our support, there wouldn’t be a problem in the first place. “I only hope that one is reached before her research consumes her.”

~~~~~~

The rest of the walk was fairly quiet and uneventful. They moved through several halls of the castle on the way to their destination, grand tapestries of unparalleled beauty paying silent witness to their passing. There were paintings in every medium, across centuries of history. There were even a few of the dragon himself. His favorite was one in the west wing of the castle, a depiction of him curled around an emerald as big as Eos.

As they rounded yet another corner, Spike caught the first glimpse of the Infirmary, a specialized medical station that attended to any injuries occurring within the castle. Usually, it was for the mages working within the palace and for occasional training accidents between guards. Every once in a while, though, it became the impromptu recharge station for a certain overworked goddess, whenever she was driven to temporary insanity by hyper mana drain. Castle life has always been so very fun.

“This is the last straw, Spike! This is the third time in as many years that she’s done this to herself! It’s not healthy, I won’t stand for it!” The voice came from an elderly unicorn, where he stood shaking his hoof near the entrance to the Infirmary.

“Ah, Chief Medical Mage Keen Tonic, Imbrium has already filled you in on the situation I take it?” Blueblood took the lead, pulling the magical stretcher behind him as he approached the aging doctor. Professor Keen Tonic wore a white coat with purple borders over his faint green fur. His messy grey mane betrayed that he had recently been sleeping.

“Yes, she arrived a while ago and explained the situation. Not to mention pulled me out of bed and had me running around at this dreadfully early hour!”

Canterlot Clock Tower chose that moment to chime, announcing the time. Everyone took a moment to pause and listen to the deep tolling of the bell, counting as they did. When the final note had rung, Spike was the first to speak.

“It is nine o’clock.”

“Exactly!” The doctor seemed satisfied with his perceived victory, turning from Spike to the Captain and saying, “I’ve already prepared the attunement crystals. She is unconscious, I take it?”

“Indeed, she fainted earlier in the Throne Room, after being brought there from her chambers.” Spike noted Blueblood’s omission of the reason for her fainting. Trying to spare me from the doctor, is he?

Keen Tonic’s horn glowed for a moment as he adjusted his bifocals, moving beside the stretcher and looking at the Princess. As he did so, he muttered quietly to himself, “ohhh dear, what a mess. Mane completely disheveled, a few dried tears, several feathers missing, appears they were even removed forcefully. Suggests unhealthy levels of stress at the least. Not to mention a fresh chip in her right forehoof. May have been caused by a bad fall, suggests unbalanced motor skills, perhaps? Definitely congruent with previous cases of advanced Delirium Induced by Magical Exhaustion.” After a few more seconds of observing his Goddess, the professor looked at the trio and pointed towards the Infirmary door. “Bring her inside, we can discuss the details while I finish setting up the equipment.”

The group moved forward into the specialized magical trauma room. Due to his massive size, Spike settled for sitting in the grand hallway outside and laying his head within, neck weaving through multiple rooms to reach them. Once again he found himself grumbling about the lack of a proper Infirmary section set aside for dragons. Filing a mental note on the subject, Spike shifted his weight into a more comfortable position and eyed the stallions through the open door as they unloaded Eos from the stretcher.

After a moment, Eos had been placed on the patient bed and surrounded by glowing crystals and runic spell-lines. While fiddling with his instruments, Keen Tonic prompted, “Imbrium told me she had awoken in this state?”

At that question, Vigil stepped forward and addressed the doctor, “as far as we can tell, yes. Imbrium and I were at our posts this morning not long after sunrise when we heard her screaming.” Keen Tonic turned to look at the young guard, squinting to keep his glasses in focus. “When we entered her bedchambers, she was sitting in front of the mirror, muttering to herself about dreams and someone named ‘Celestia’. We assume she had been asleep not long before.”

“Hmmm, very odd.” The doctor thought out loud, “how could she have depleted her magic while sleeping? Spike, do you know if she had been up late experimenting, perhaps in the field of sustained thaumic channeling?”

“To my knowledge, she was not. As unlikely as it seems, she retired to her chambers at a decent time. Do you suspect there is an unknown factor in this, Doctor Keen?”

With a slight frown upon his face, Keen Tonic moved over to a medical apparatus at the bed’s side. It was a device used to scan inner ley fields and diagnose magical ailments. Made of a single hoof-sized, white crystal, it worked on a principle similar to the stretcher’s tethering, by linking itself to the patient and synchronizing to their magic field. Spike had become well-acquainted with the ‘Attunement Crystal’ as it was called, thanks to Eos’ frequent incidents.

Activating it with his magic, Keen Tonic stepped back and watched as the crystal began to glow and create a light humming noise. Bringing it close to the Princess’ horn caused it to spark, arcs of purple magic streaking between them. Each magical arc from Eos’ horn caused the crystal to spin and its shade to darken, gaining a purple coloration.

While they waited for the crystal’s work to be done, Blueblood took Stalwart Vigil aside and spoke to him quietly. The doctor seemed quiet intent on his work, but Spike could hear them well from his position.

“Listen, Vigil… Imbrium mentioned to me that this was not your first time bearing witness to one of Eos’ episodes. I want you to know, I truly admire the poise with which you have handled the situation. I know it isn’t easy, seeing her like this.”

Vigil nodded, the Captain’s words seemed to fill him with new life. The boy had been silently dwelling on this since the incident, Spike was surprised Blueblood had noticed. “Thank you, Captain. I… I’m just glad it wasn’t as bad this time.”

“Just remember, we are Royal Guards. It is our duty to be as strong for Eos as she has always been for us.” After this short exchange, they returned to watching the attunement crystal where it floated above their princess, crackling with energy.

After half a minute, Keen Tonic grabbed it with telekinesis and brought the crystal to a nearby table, still spinning so fast that it was little more than a diamond-shaped blur. The rest of the group watched as he probed the crystal with tendrils of his own magic, gleaning its secrets with the expert precision only a high level unicorn could achieve.

With everypony else’s view focused on the crystal, Spike was the only one in a position to notice Eos as she shifted on the bed. It was the twitch of a dreamer, someone deep in the land of their own subconscious. Among the agitated movements, she uttered just a single word, nothing more than a whisper on the breath:

“Celestia.”

I never asked for this. Today was supposed to be sleeping day…

“Strange” Keen Tonic uttered, after a long breath of silence. “I’m… not really sure what to make of this.” He removed his glasses for a moment, polishing them on a rag he kept in his coat pocket. “Blasted crystal must be on the fritz.”

Blueblood let out an exaggerated sigh of frustration. “What is it this time, Doctor?”

Placing the bifocal glasses back upon his muzzle, Tonic said, “Well this is just peculiar. In all honesty, she appears quite healthy. I see virtually no signs of rapid thaumic depletion, nor hypertension of her ley lines beyond previously established limits.”

“In Equestrian, Doctor Keen.”

In the unintelligible string of nickers and neighs that followed, Spike saw Blueblood’s eye twitch no less than three times. Apparently, those rumors about the doctor knowing Olde Whinny were true. Hmmmm. Note to self: research ancient dialects for use as weapons against Blueblood’s sanity.

“Aargh, Modern Equestrian, if you would be so kind!”

“It means that the Princess of Dawn has no reason to be afflicted with Delirium.”

What?! Oh Eos, what have you done this time?

“What do you mean, 'she is not under the effects of the Delirium'?” Spike questioned, eye swiveling to gaze deep into the doctor’s own. Keen Tonic seemed just as confused as everyone else.

“By all means, it doesn’t make any sense. I’m sure it’s just a problem with the crystal.” Doctor Keen was clearly nervous, but did his best to keep control of the situation. “I’ll perform a second analysis; see if a mistake has been made. If need be, I’ll refocus the crystal and try again, no problem!”

Spike’s head lay upon the polished marble floor as he contemplated this latest turn of events. For some reason, I doubt the Doctor’s words of comfort. Something is going on here, something clearly beyond mere magical exhaustion. But regardless of what is wrong, she’ll talk to me. She always talks to me.

For several minutes, the group stood (or laid, in Spike’s case) in silence, each occupied with their own thoughts. The only exception was the Doctor, who was busy once again with his analysis.

“Well then, Doctor, I think I’ll be leaving.” Spike said, lifting his massive head and neck in an exaggerated act of movement. Blueblood was the one to respond, Doctor Keen too engrossed in his work to take notice of the gigantic dragon.

“Wait, Spike! You can’t leave now; when she wakes up she’ll want to see you!”

Spike chuckled. “Oh I have little doubt of that. I just have a feeling that Eos will not be in the mood for medical advice when she does so.” He was already withdrawing his head from the Infirmary, pulling his neck back through the rooms and out into the main hallway. “In the meantime, I think I’ll be taking a nap. I’m sure you two can handle things while I’m gone.”

~~~~~~

She dreamt of sunlight. Dew-covered grass rustling gently in a wind she couldn’t feel. Everything was bright light and green fields; as far as her eyes could see, the green blades stretched out endlessly across gentle rolling hills, like the undulating waves of an infinite ocean. In the distance, great mountains pierced the heavens with impossibly tall peaks, all topped with white snow. The sun hung directly overhead, covering everything within sight in its warm embrace.

But in this timeless realm of perfection, a place so pure she felt herself washed clean just by the act of witnessing its glory, there was a blemish. There was a spectre.

She knew this being. It was the creature from before that stood in front of her now, the silhouette of sharp lines and sharper whiteness. Though it stood upon the grass, it did not seem to join this world of substance. Its dimensions were unreadable; no judgment of size or distance could be made by her, though she felt that it was close. It seemed to draw the sunlight away, darkening the area around it without casting a shadow.

It did not belong here. It was wrong.

“What are you? Please, what is this place?!” She asked. Her voice carried across the fields, a call of happening through a land of inaction.

The thing looked at her, shifting lines never pausing. For an eternity they stood there, lone companions in an endless land. Finally, the being opened its maw, and spoke.

“We are Echoes.”

“That doesn’t tell me anything! I want an answer!”

The Wrongness opened its wings, and launched into the air. With a single flap of snow-white lines, it soared higher than her imagination would believe. It continued to rise, higher and higher, yet it always remained clearly visible. It flew to the sun, and once there, took the flaming orb within itself.

And the sun was no more.

~~~~~~

“-very clear where you stand on the subject. I hold a similar sentiment myself.”

Twilight’s eyes shot open, even as her body lay still. With her heart pounding quickly, she fought hard to keep her breathing steady. Silently gasping for breath, she listened to the voices near her.

“At the very least, we’re fortunate that she activated those failsafe spells to sustain her enchantments, in case of incapacitation such as this. You were just a foal back then, but I still well remember the Day of Darkness. Now, at least, the sun and moon will rise on reserve energy until she’s back.”

“It just doesn’t feel right, seeing Princess Eos like this. Why can’t Spike say something, why won’t she listen?”

Three voices, all male. Two she recognized, one she didn’t.

“You have to understand, Vigil, he has. Spike has always done all he can for her, which is far more than I think he lets on. She relies on him.”

Her head was facing away from them, towards a closed door. Taking a moment to collect her fractured thoughts, she looked around the limited range of vision in front of her. She appeared to be in some clean, white room. Counters lined most of the wall where the door wasn’t in the way, which were covered in objects of varying shape and complexity.

“Indeed, Blueblood is right. In this, the Princess simply will not stop. She seems convinced that her goal is close at hoof. All any of us can do right now is pick her up when she falls. Spike knows this.”

Spike… Twilight was too tired to move, but she listened intently to the stallions as they spoke. There was a moment of silence before the conversation resumed.

An elderly voice said, “You know, Blueblood, the attunement crystal showed me something else during the scan. I didn't realize it at first, but while checking error margins I noticed a very strange thing.”

He paused for moment, as if waiting for a response. When none was given, he continued, “Her magical signature. Normally, it’s not something you pay attention to, since it’s always the same for a pony. At least… it’s supposed to be.”

“What?!” Blueblood, she recognized that voice. It was surprised, but hushed, like he was trying to stay quiet by speaking through clenched teeth.

“It was still very similar, which is why I didn't notice at first, but you heard me right. Princess Eos’ magic signature is slightly different; still close, but just barely off. I won’t even pretend to know what it means, a pony’s magical signature comes from their soul! There’s no conceivable reason for it to have changed.”

“I’m sure it’s just a problem with the crystal. Once you've finished preparing another one, we’ll get a proper diagnosis.”

“You had best hope so.”

This dialogue has gone on long enough!

“Where is… where is Spike?” That was definitely her voice. Twilight tried to sit up, realizing only then that her limbs felt like lead.

“Princess? Princess! Doctor, she’s awake!” The young one again.

“Blast, I’m not done working on the attunement crystal yet!”

“I have to talk to Spike!” She rolled off the hard surface where she had been laying with a painful tumble, landing in a flurry of feathers upon the equally hard floor. Before Twilight even had the time to wonder where her sudden burst of strength had come from, she was already making an attempt to stand.

“Please Princess, stay calm.” Blueblood. He was speaking quietly, slowly moving towards her with his hoof outstretched. “Just a little bit longer now, and we’ll have you all better.”

“No! Get away from me!” She panicked, launching the Captain back with a burst of telekinesis. Twilight had only meant to push him away, but instead he slammed into the far wall with a grunt of pain. He sat there for a moment, head spinning, before shaking his muzzle to clear the daze from his mind. A younger guard had moved to Blueblood’s side, making sure the Captain was alright.

“I… I-I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to hurt you!” I have to get out of here, I need to find Spike!

“It’s… ouch! Quite alright, your Highness. Wait, what are you doing?!”

Twilight summoned her magic, feeling it burning within herself like an eternal furnace. Except, it no longer felt like a simple spark, but rather a bolt of lightning arcing through her system, filling every cell to the brim with unfathomable strength. This spell wouldn’t even require a fraction of the wellspring she suddenly had available.

“Princess Eos, wai-!”

The rest of Blueblood’s exclamation was cut off as the unicorn-turned-Alicorn teleported away.

With a shimmering pop, Twilight found herself standing in a large hallway, with no windows or other landmarks with which to judge her position and direction. The vaulted architecture of the castle gave the walls an illusion akin to looming trees, branches hanging high above and hemming her in. The glowing purple crystals spaced evenly down the hall, clearly meant to provide light and comfort in this place, only served to accentuate that this was not the palace of her childhood.

After a moment of indecision, she chose a random direction and began to walk. Or trip and faceplant painfully, as it were.

“Ouch! Ugh, that hurt…” Here we go with the tripping again! Faust above, it’s like I’m on stilts!

After several minutes of painful meetings with the marble floor, Twilight felt like she was finally beginning to make progress. Maybe I’ll get the hang of this after all. Maybe this is why Celestia hardly ever walks anywhere…

The lavender mare’s ears pricked at the sound of casual voices drifting towards her from farther down the hall, echoing around a nearby corner. Looking around in a slight panic, she couldn’t see any real cover; it was just one long hallway, nothing that could possibly… there!

She let out one quick “eep!” that would have made Fluttershy proud, before enacting her master plan of stealthy evasion. With as much haste as her clumsy legs would allow, Twilight half-trotted, half-tripped towards a large potted plant sitting against a wall. She did her best to huddle behind it, despite being several hoof lengths bigger than it was.

After a few seconds, she could hear the voices gradually getting closer, accompanied by the soft clip-clop of hooves on marble and the occasional clank of what must have been armor. Judging by the rhythm of the steps, she judged there to be only two, clearly a patrol of guards.

They continued to get closer, stopping right about where the corner must have been, before…

Uh oh…

“Shhh. Hey, is that…” One whispered, apparently directing his words toward where she huddled in a ball of purple fur.

No no no! It was foolproof! Just stay still, maybe they can’t see you if you just-

“Yeah, I think that’s her.” Shoot! “c’mon, let’s go get – agh!”

The sound of clanking metal sounded as a brief struggle seemed to break out. “Are you insane?! Spike just told us to leave her alone!”

“Yeah, but Blueblood said-“

“Forget what Blueblood said! Who are you gonna listen to? The Captain, or a Dragon that could gobble you whole and still have room left over for seconds?”

There was a brief pause in which Twilight remained as still as possible, curled in her fetal position of stealth.

“… yeah, you’re right. Let’s get out of here.”

“Well alright then, fellow guard! Let us be off down this hallway, away from this place. Yep, I sure hope nopony is hiding right now, because with us walking away, this would be a perfect opportunity for her, I-I mean… THEM to get out of here!” Twilight could hear the two guards trotting away. “Definitely no Princess here! Nothing to report at all!”

After a few minutes of waiting, the sound of their steps and exaggerated voices faded to nothing. She got unsteadily to her hooves and continued her arduous walk down the hall without further ado. It did not take long, before the cold walls gave way to glass windows, and Twilight could see by natural sunlight once again. Based upon the view outside, Twilight must have been very close to the castle garden. She even thought she could hear more birdsong, reaching her ears from far down another twist in the hallway.

Quickening her pace, she finally reached the entrance to the palace garden, warm grass replacing marble floors beneath her hooves. Feeling the soreness in her legs melt away as she walked on top of the soft earth, Twilight was taken back to her fillyhood for a moment, to her time as a student studying in the castle. Celestia would often take their lessons out into the garden, where her sun could shine down on them both.

The purple ~~unicorn~~ Alicorn took a moment to sit down, being particularly careful to tend to her new wings. They were still very prone to random acts of movement, but at least they weren’t flapping all over the place anymore.

“I figured that you would come here.” With a gasp, Twilight looked up to see a massive dragon head resting upon the hedge in front of her. His voice was like the rumbling of a volcano, a reverberating bass so deep that she felt it coursing through her entire body. “You’ve always loved these gardens, after all. I guess being so close to nature helps to deal with the stress.” A claw rose above the hedge, scratching his chin. He gazed into the distance as if in deep thought.

It can’t be… it just can’t be!

“S-Spike…. I… I-I just can’t, it can’t b-”

“Shhhhh. It’s alright.” Coming from the dragon, the shhh sound was like the hissing of a bellows. He moved around the hedge to come face to face with Twilight, each thundering step reminding her of a great heartbeat. “Don’t worry about anything right now. Just sit with me and relax…. Or at least, try not to faint again.”

The entire ground shook as he laughed. Given a relatively calm moment to examine the dragon, Twilight could see that he truly was enormous, with glimmering purple scales that shimmered and refracted the sunlight in all different directions. Where he had stepped, a clawprint was left behind easily as large as Twilight in her current body. His head sat upon a long, sinuous neck, roughly a third of his total length. The other two thirds were taken up by his body and tail. The upright spines that ran from his head down the neck were long, green, and curved back toward his midsection. Folded across his sides were a pair of immense draconic wings.

Twilight had seen a dragon of similar body composition just a year ago, when it had chosen a mountain near Ponyville as its next place of hibernation. This Spike could easily look that dragon in the eye.

“So you really are Spike?” Twilight reached out a hoof and touched his scales, noting the distinct difference between the diamond-like hardness of these ones and the far softer texture of Spike’s back home. As a young dragon that was constantly growing, Spike was frequently molting sections of his scaly armor and getting fresh layers, which took a while to harden. It was one of the more… gross, features of the dragon species which Twilight had become accustomed to.

The expression on his face was that of genuine love. “The one and only, sis.”

~~~~~~

Spike lay next to Eos in the Castle Gardens, where he had been awaiting her arrival for the past couple hours. She had come here, just as he had known she would. She always came here when she was stressed. I knew the Doctor wouldn’t be able to hold onto her, Spike thought. Delirium or not, no one likes to wake up in a hospital bed, and Eos isn’t exactly in an agreeable mood. I just hope she didn’t accidentally hurt the poor stallion, that old coot would probably shatter like glass if a crazed Eos so much as looked at him funny.

“Are you going to quiz me on my favorite gemstones too?” Spike let a jovial smile play across his face, noting how strange Eos looked without her regalia on. She seemed so vulnerable now, very much different from her normal air of persistence and fortitude. He gave Eos the closest thing to a whisper he could manage, “you know I’ve always been partial to emeralds.”

He gave the Alicorn of Dawn a moment to collect her thoughts as he bellowed another hearty laugh. She seemed genuinely stunned by his off-claw jest, to his mild surprise. She spoke with little more than a whisper, “so it truly is you, Spike. I just… don’t know what to say.” Good one, Eos. As if the ‘Goddess of Dawn’ will ever run out of things to say. I can see the cogs in your brain turning right now; the factory of the mind never stops. Humph, not my best analogy, but whatever. She’s is the one who usually bothers with this stuff… As Spike lapsed into more rumination, Eos’ face lit up as an idea floated to the surface. With sudden excitement, she said, “Princess Celestia! Oh, how could I have forgotten Princess Celestia all this time! Spike, you’ve got to tell me, where is she? What does she know about all of this?”

You’re not making this easy for me, sister. “Eos… this isn’t the first time today that you’ve uttered that name, but this is where I am the one who lacks understanding.” It certainly wouldn’t be the first time, Spike thought. “I’ve never heard of a pony named Celestia, and there are certainly no Princesses by that title in the known world.”

Eos seemed to visibly blanch at this statement. It took her a few moments of opening and closing her jaw before she became capable of speech once again. “What?! No, no no no no NO! This isn’t fair! How could you not know of Princess Celestia? What have I done?”

He should not have been so perturbed by these utterances. They were the ravings of a madmare, still dealing with the severe effects of magical exhaustion-induced Delirium. But as much as Spike had wanted to ignore his better judgment, the fact of the matter was that Eos was clearly not delirious. Not anymore, and perhaps not even earlier today. I can see it in her eyes. He thought. That look of true confusion, of fear and amazement all mixed together. Why, Eos? What did you do?

Eos continued in the face of Spike’s silence, “how can you say that you don’t know who Princess Celestia is?! The elder Eternal Sister, raiser of the sun, and sovereign Diarch of Equestria! She’s my teacher, my mentor, the wisest pony in the world! And I’m her-”

Suddenly, a wisp of sparkling smoke snaked down from the sky, curling to form a ball in front of Eos before bursting into a curled scroll. Spike extended a single massive claw to catch the tiny message, unfurling the scroll in an impressive display of dexterity. He read the first couple lines before looking down at Eos where she lay watching the scroll with an unusual level of fascination. He gave her a confident smile, far more confident than he felt. Here goes nothing, sister.

“It seems, Eos, that your brightest and most faithful student has sent you a letter.”

~~~~~~

Twilight sat upon the grass of the garden, looking at Spike with an expression of apprehension which barely concealed the rising panic quickly growing within her.

My… what?

“My… what?” Way to go, Twilight. Your linguistic abilities are without match. “Did you say… s-student?”

“Both of them, actually. Sunny wrote the letter, of course, you can tell just from the wingwriting.” Spike continued to hold his smile, in spite of Twilight’s nearly complete mental shutdown. “Would you like me to read?”

Twilight managed a barely perceptible nod. With a sound not unlike an avalanche, Spike cleared his throat and began to read:

Dear Princess Eos,

Midnight Star and I have had another great week here in Ponyville. We spent much of the weekend continuing our work on the dragonfire mail system you were so interested in during our last correspondence. This message was sent as our first field test. Midnight has certainly outdone herself this time, neither of us can wait to begin full-scale implementation. Once again, we’d like to extend our heartfelt thanks to Sir Spike for his generous gift of dragonfire; it has made this entire project possible.

Our friends have been doing well, I’m happy to report. Rarity has been very busy, working on this year’s dresses for the Grand Galloping Gala. Despite last year being less than stellar, I think we’re all very excited to see what we can make of the party this year. You always said we did a great job of livening things up, after all (and don’t worry, Fluttershy is bringing Angel Bunny this time so that she’ll have someone to hang out with if things don’t work out with the garden fauna). Perhaps I can come early so we can catch up together, there’s just so much to talk about!

Midnight is getting really impatient now, waiting for me to finish this letter so we can get on with the test, so I guess now would be a good time to conclude. Next chance I get, I’d really love to show you my progress on the photovoltaic energy experiment I mentioned last month. Until then, farewell for now!

Your Faithful Students,
Sunny Skies and Midnight Star

Once Spike was done reading, he gave the scroll to Twilight. She took it in her hooves and held it there with as little motion as possible, not daring herself to move lest the act cause the last of her sanity to shatter like glass. The… wingwriting?

Spike held something else in his claws now, and was currently looking at it with great interest. “Ahhhh, it seems that Sunny provided a picture in her letter. Quite a nice one, in fact. Here.” Once again, Twilight found her hooves grasping something, this time a small picture. With barely concealed trembling, she held it to her face and gazed upon the colorful sight it captured.

There were two ponies in the picture, standing in front of what looked like the Golden Oaks Library. One was a light blue, silver-haired unicorn mare, who stood slightly in the recess of the doorway where the shadows were thicker. The other was a white, pink-maned pegasus, who held a huge smile on her face as she stood next to her friend. The Pegasus’ personality seemed to hold an innocent radiance all its own.

By the stars above….Celestia? Luna?

Twilight looked back at Spike, who was carefully reading her expression. She began to shake her head, and continued to shake it as she spoke with a waver in her voice, “Spike, this isn’t right. I don’t think I belong here at all…”

“What?! Nonsense! What gave you that idea, Eos?” Oh, I don’t know. I’m in some kind of alternate reality where my mentor has become my student and is sending study reports to me, my little brother is now a really huge dragon, I’VE GOT WINGS…

Also, one other thing… “Please, stop calling me that! I’m not your Princess, and my name isn’t Eos! My name is Twilight Sparkle!”

Spike was taken aback by Twilight’s sudden outburst, especially considering the slight hint of insanity which had crept back into her tone. “Eos, you know I can’t just accept that-”

“You see these two ponies?!” The crazed Alicorn held the picture up to Spike, as close to his eyes as she could reach, magic forgotten long ago. “They’re supposed to be the princesses! That one there is Princess Luna, and that one… that one is Princess Celestia, my mentor! I’m her student, not the other way around!” The spilled marbles had given way to actual anger now. “This is some kind of reverse world, everything is flipped!”

“…” He doesn’t even know how to respond. Would I know how?

Twilight couldn’t hold it in any longer. She buried her head in her forehooves, letting her burst of mania give way to distress. “Oh Celestia, what have I done? I never even said ‘I wish’…” as she lay trembling, Spike’s long tail coiled around her, pulling the distraught mare closer to her dragonish companion. His scales felt warm to the touch, comforting like a hearth fire.

“Eos, or Twilight, whatever you want me to call you… don’t worry. Just explain things from the top, and we’ll figure this out, I promise.”

Twilight took a few moments to calm herself. After taking a long, deep breath, she said, “My-name-is-Twilight-Sparkle-and-I’m-a-unicorn-librarian-who-helped-Princess-Celestia-save-her-long-lost-sister-with-the-power-of-friendship-and-because-of-that-I-got-to-stay-in-Ponyville-and-study-the-magic-of-friendship-with-my-really-good-friends-but-now-in-this-universe-Celestia-is-the-one-who’s-just-a-normal-pony-and-somehow-I’m-the Princess-and-oh-Faust-what-am-I-going-to-do-now?!”

Spike blinked a few times before continuing. “Sorry but… I’m not sure I caught that last bit.”

“Ugh!” Twilight pointed at the picture. “I’m supposed to be her!”

“You’re supposed to be… Sunny Skies?” Spike scratched his head with a claw, turning his entire neck slightly sideways in concert with his quizzical expression.

“No! I’m supposed to be the student, she’s supposed to be the Princess!” Eureka! He finally got it! Twilight thought as the realization seemed to hit home.

“But Eos…” Darn, not Eureka! “What you’re proposing stretches the limits of believability…”

Twilight’s gaze locked with Spike’s, seeing her own lavender reflection in the slit pupils of his massive eyes. “Please, Spike, look into my eyes. I promise you I'm telling the truth, I'm not just being crazy." She tried to give him a reassuring look. At that, he hummed and tweaked a scaly eyebrow. "Ok, I know it looks really bad, but you just have to trust me."

After a moment longer of deliberation, Spike finally relented and Twilight sighed in relief. He seemed resigned to follow the tale Twilight had given him. “Alright 'Twilight'. For now I'll believe this tale you've spun, that yesterday you were a unicorn and now you've awoken as a Princess. I made a promise long time ago to always support you. We'll work together to find out what has happened so that you can get your Celestia back and I can get my Eos back.”

They sat in silence for a while, listening to the sounds of birds as they flitted between trees. A gentle wind blew through the garden, and the plant life sung a beautiful chorus of bent stalks and rustled leaves as it passed. The immediate section around them was covered in strange half-shadows and dancing colors, as Spike’s scales reflected the sunlight and left it splashing across the wavy hedges. It truly was a beautiful location, the only place so far that seemed unchanged from how she remembered it. Even as Twilight lay there, coiled in a giant Spike’s tail while her own wings itched with inaction, she could imagine her times here as a little filly long ago.

Spike finally broke the silence with a question. “I’m curious, Twilight. If you’re from some kind of alternate universe, where you live down in Ponyville, what about me? How do I fit into all of this?”

Twilight gave him the first genuine, playful smile since she arrived here. He’ll love this.“Well, you’re my assistant at the Library, just a widdle baby dragon. You turned twelve years old last month.”

“Wha… but… A baby dragon?! I’m over a thousand years old!” The indignation in his voice was so thick that Twilight could very nearly taste it. “I’m as old as the stones this castle is built with, how can I be nothing more than a whelpling?!”

Twilight was laughing so hard she doubled over, rolling along the ground as she attempted (and failed) to contain her mirth. “Baby or not, you’re still the same old Spike!”

At first, it seemed that he would have a retort to give, but thought better of it and stopped. The thought seemed to fascinate him. Finally, with a shrug he said, “Mmhm, and you’re still Eos.”

Twilight had finally stopped rolling, laying on her side within the ring made by Spike’s coiled tail. Feeling secure and at least partially content for the first time during that morning, she immediately began to feel drowsy. She had one last request to make before the sleep took her, though.

“Describe her to me, please.”

“You mean, Princess Eos?" Spike seemed rather surprised by the request. It certainly wasn’t what he had been expecting. Twilight, too far gone to say anything, simply nodded her head in confirmation. With a quick shrug, Spike said, “Well, I must admit it’s not something I actively think about how to describe. In a word, I suppose, she’s inquisitive. Always curious about everything, always pursuing the answers to questions and the solutions to problems. She’s beautiful and brilliant, with intelligence beyond peer.” He was really on a role now, even as Twilight was barely processing the words being said. “Though, if there’s one thing that tends to be a recurring problem, it’s that she becomes very obsessive about her projects. Eos often gets kind of… manic, when an answer eludes her. Also, I – uh, ah, you’re sleeping. I see. That’s… that’s alright, I guess I was done. I guess.”

The lavender Alicorn had indeed heard what Spike had said, even as her drowsy body was pulling her into a deep, contented sleep. As she felt her consciousness leave her, she thought about what Spike had said about the Princess. “Sounds familiar, hehe.” She faintly remembered the question that had started this, the query so piercing, the multi-verse itself must have been obligated to answer it. Perhaps she would get an answer to her question after all. “I guess I do get to be just… like…... her………”

~~~~~~

Spike lay upon the grass, watching as Eos, no, Twilight, slept soundly. He had his tail wrapped around his sister, and one of her wings had unfurled itself to drape across her head, shielding her from the sun above. Considering how taxing the Alicorn’s morning had been, he didn’t doubt that she would sleep very well.

What am I supposed to think, Eos? Even in a life as long as ours, such a situation is beyond my experience. The most likely explanation is that you are simply suffering from amnesia and delusions. And yet the possibility remains, what if this 'Twilight' has been transplanted here from another world? Or could our own reality have been altered somehow? If there is even a small possibility of this being true, it must be investigated and verified. Until then, I will simply have to trust Twilight on her word.

Just then, Spike saw a couple guards walking through the garden in his peripheral vision, and turned his head to face them just as they rounded the nearest hedge corner. The two quickly spotted Twilight as she slept soundly within his coiled tail, and were looking at each other with surprise on their faces. Before they could do anything more than stare, however, he gave them a long, low growl. In any case, the doctor and the Guard can wait; Twilight needs a decent moment of rest. He did not need to vocalize these words to them, his growl did the talking for him. To Spike’s mild disappointment, they turned tail and ran before he even had a chance to properly display his teeth for them.

The elder dragon looked back down at Twilight. It felt so strange to see her acting like this, like an entirely different person. As much as Twilight matched Eos’ mannerisms, the two carried themselves so much differently. Beyond the most immediate factor, of little Sparkle simply being out of her element, confused and bewildered by circumstances outside her control, there was something about her… this little one was strange. I will do everything in my power to get you back to your proper world, Twilight; I promise, on my word as a dragon, you will return.

Spike gazed far into the sky, past the clouds, past the sun and the stars, farther than everything. I wonder what you’re doing right now, Eos. He chuckled quietly to himself. How could you survive a day without me?

******

Earlier that day, very far away from the elder dragon, a purple unicorn slept on her bed in a library carved from a tree. She woke with an abnormal crick in her neck and a strange soreness in her body. All at once, she seemed to notice herself and her surroundings for the first time, studying each closely before saying, quite simply:

“So this is what I get for taking an early night’s rest.”

Author's Note

Well, here we go! Finally, Chapter Two: The Even Moar Dialogue Chapter!

Yep, so as I mentioned during a previous blog, this chapter goes through a lot of exposition, setting up characters, and stuff like that. What I didn't expect, was for the thing's size to explode like a dinosaur from Dig-Dug. This chapter got huge! 'IWPFT' has already blown away my previous record for longest single piece of writing, published or not. In fact, this chapter alone is the largest thing i've ever written in my life, as far as I can remember. I got really carried away, and this was a large contributor to my severe lateness in getting the chapter published. As I was writing, I kept remembering things I had forgotten to include, or kept having brand new ideas that deserved to be added. The chapter kept getting bigger, but didn't seem to be getting any closer to actually being done. Hopefully, it was Worth the Weight.

Now, on to tonight's topic of discussion: moar dialogue! I kinda feel bad about asking for feedback on the same aspect of my writing twice in a row, but since this chapter was mostly dialogue... idk. The dialogue was a bit more complex this time around, more characters in need of attention all at once, with things to be doing and thoughts to be having.

Also, transitions! I played around with switching perspectives several times, a few particular instances in quick succession. Did it work? Was it too disorienting? Don't be shy (unless, umm, you want to... that is), tell me what you think!

And of course, it goes without saying that if you notice an error, be it grammatical, spelleramical, or continuityamical, please let me know! I'll be doing minor revisions to Chapter One and (almost certainly) Chapter Two as soon as I have the chance.

As a closing note, i'm actually on vacation right now, so there's the likelihood that I won't be able to keep up with comments. To help with this, i'll be putting up a blog in a couple days to answer some questions, explain the thought process that went behind this chapter (because I love to ramble), and crack a bunch of jokes in a thinly vieled attempt to trick people into thinking that i'm actually funny.

I hope you all enjoyed the newest chapter, and i'll see y'all later!

12-24-2012 EDIT: Added hyperlink to the Chapter Two update blog.

Chapter 3: A Goddess in Student's Clothing

Floating.

The thought, just a single word, a simple concept, seemed to float towards her as if from a great distance. It felt slippery, almost sliding away from her as quickly and suddenly as it had come. With great desperation she wrapped herself around the thought, holding on with all the effort she could muster. She made it her anchor. Everything felt so fluid, but that thought... it was a tangible sensation. Truth.

She reached out into the void, and found other thoughts there. Whispered words, ghostly memories, all of them were random and fragmented. With considerable effort, she pulled these phantom images towards her, attaching them to the floating anchor she had created. What was once a single point of consciousness had become a small island, and continued to grow outward.

As the island collected more mass, she became stronger. Each successive fragment she pulled into herself added to the ease with which she grabbed the next one.

The island of thought began to organize itself. It felt natural, as if all the different fragments had once been whole. Moving around and fitting together, memories, emotions, and thoughts were taking shape.

With a sudden burst of clarity, a complete consciousness finally emerged from the scattered pieces. The island was a bright star, its light cutting through the ocean of oblivion.

Eos. Yes, her name was Eos! Princess Eos of Equestria, guardian of knowledge and Goddess of the dawn sky. Her last memory had been of peaceful sleep, then... a tearing feeling, followed by fear and cold. As if her very soul had been torn from her body and flung into the depths of the immaterial to be lost. She had heard laughter. Cruel, evil laughter. If she still had a body, she would shudder at the memory.

That felt like it had happened months ago. Or, perhaps only a few minutes. There was no measure of time in this void.

Time! She was running out of time! She could feel herself fading again, falling apart and becoming lost in the roiling sea of oblivion. She needed to find land, she had to find safety before the void took her once again!

Searching with renewed desperation, Eos reached out into the darkness, feeling for something to take hold of.

Eternities later, she found a... crack. Yes, that was the best way to describe it. Some kind of open seam in the void, closing even as she beheld it. As soon as her mind touched the opening, she felt herself wrenched forward.

Eos did not fight the pull. She could feel so much warmth there; it was the shelter she had been looking for.

Light! So much light! It was blinding, coming at her from everywhere, every direction. It was as if she'd been pulled into the very center of the sun itself. It was more than the difference between Night and Day. It was rather, the difference between life and death itself.

Now she was rushing towards a specific spot in this nova. A little empty place, a black spot on the otherwise perfect expanse of blinding light. She felt herself filling this place, her light making the universe complete. A home, empty before, now hers.

All at once Eos had lungs. She took a gasping, shuddering breath, feeling a crushing weight lifting from her pained body. Even now, after so much, she felt the inevitable rush of unconsciousness surround her mind. She had no strength left to fight it, and so the Princess let the weightlessness of sleep take her.

Alive. She was alive.

But so very, very tired.

~~~~~~

“Thaumic fields are built upon the principle of fractal recursion,” the princess repeated with confidence. Fractal theory was, of course, one of her favorite fields of magic study. “A proper magical aura is built through the stacking of successively more microscopic layers of arcane power. The delicate harmonics of this system are integral to high-energy spell casting, and no substance has proven more effective at aligning such fractal systems as crystalline structures.” She hovered a deep purple crystal in her magical grasp, spinning it gently. Rays of light played across its surface with dazzling beauty. At last she placed the crystal on a table in front of her, and continued. “The development of more flawless spell crystals will soon become the most significant source of future advancement in magic and technology. Finalizing our trade agreements with the Crystal Empire and establishing a commodity chain should be our top priority over the next decade. The University’s researchers are already reporting some very interesting findings, we could very well have a new scientific golden age on our hooves.”

Eos stood at the end of an almost infinitely long table, its far side too distant to see. Along the entire length of the table were gathered ponies of varied tribe, gender, and age, each one listening to her with rapt attention. The Princess gazed into each attentive pair of eyes in turn as she looked across the ancient table. She tried her best to recall a name for each and every one of their many faces. Any good teacher should be able to remember all of their students, she told herself. Each important soul deserved to be remembered. It was the very least she could do for them.

As the Princess considered this, an aching pain in her neck began to grow in intensity. She shrugged her regalia in an attempt to dispel the feeling, scowling in frustration as she did so. This was important; there was no time for idle distractions! Eos continued onward. “The dragons are also very interested in any potential commodities that the Crystal Empire will have to offer them. I…” There was that accursed pain again! Eos tried to shake her head and continue with the matter at hand, but found herself having a harder time finding the words. “Spike has told me of their desire to establish a lasting trade partnership between the Empire and the territories, with requests to us for assistance on the matter. I propose a project to expand our railroad systems, to support the increased volume of trade goods. Now from there, if we can… if only…”

Eos tried to shake her head and continue with the matter at hoof, but the words slid away from her. They danced at the edge of her mind, just out of reach. Now she could see the assembled ponies looking at her with faces of worry and concern. They needed her to continue, wanted to see that she was alright. She owed it to them to know what to say. Why wouldn't the words come to her?

"If only..." Something stung her eyes. The sun itself seemed to stare into her, from somewhere up above. It felt unfamiliar, warm and motherly but alien. The table faded, the ponies decaying into nothing but dust in the radiance of the sun. The dust swept across her vision until only desolate sand remained.

“If only I just had a little more time.”

Princess Eos groaned in her half-conscious state, feeling the discomfort of a fitful night’s sleep forcing its way to the forefront of her mind. Her spine and neck felt terrible, like she’d been sleeping on an old spring mattress all night.

She struggled to sit up, eyelids shut tight against the invasive sunlight. I cannot believe that the bed already needs more clouds, Eos thought. She would need to request a fresh order of Cumulus from the Cloudsdale Weather Factory. Strange that a new shipment would be required so soon, though, given that she replenished the bed just last month. Magically-enhanced cloudstuff was supposed to last much longer than this.

Stars above, my neck is killing me! Once the Princess had pulled herself into a sitting position against the back of the bed, she rolled her neck in a satisfyingly painful circle. Listening to the crack-crack-cracking of her bones, she sighed in cathartic relief.

Satisfied, Eos gazed with dreary eyes around her bedchamber, only for her jaw to drop right onto her lap in a most un-princess-like display of incredulity.

Before Eos’ eyes were not the familiar walls of her bedchambers. The smooth stone, the many tapestries and paintings, the oak wardrobes and desk were all gone. In their place was some kind of reading nook, though a very odd one. All across the walls were rows of meticulously cleaned and orderly books. Beyond that, yet more tomes were scattered in piles all across the floor.

That wasn’t the odd part, however. What really caught her attention was that the entire room was made out of... carved wood?

This is most certainly not my room.

A resigned sigh escaped her lips. It must be a cruel joke, she thought. “This is what I get for taking an early night’s rest for once,” she muttered. Looking down, she realized that she really had been sleeping on a physical mattress, with a blue constellation blanket tucked around her.

Eos heard a noise from somewhere down below. There was the sound of a closing cupboard door, and then the clatter of something upon a wooden table. Others, Eos thought.

Without a second thought, she moved to get off the bed. Throwing the covers away from her, Eos tried to roll over and land in a low crouch, only to misjudge the distance and land painfully on her side with a loud thud. Hissing under her breath from the pain, the Princess picked herself up. While waiting for the hurt to subside, she considered the current state of affairs.

There was something wrong here, something big. She felt strange, like her body didn’t quite fit the way it was supposed to. Before anything else, she had to get a look at herself.

Gathering her magic with a grimace, the Princess began to cast a mirror spell. A personal invention of hers, it was designed to turn a flat plane of air into a flawless reflector of light, perfect for use as a portable mirror. Pointing her horn at a spot just in front of her, Eos listened to the familiar sound of magic as the air before her shimmered and realigned itself.

The conjured mirror coalesced for a moment, its glossy surface giving a view of a confused lavender unicorn. Before Eos could make more than a cursory glance at the image in front of her however, her horn gave a painful twinge. The mirror began to flicker before breaking apart, the view fading into nothingness.

Eos collapsed, her clumsy hooves rubbing her temples as a throbbing headache pounded her horn. That spell seemed to have taken far more out of her than it should have. Could there have been a spell-limiter on her horn? She couldn’t feel one, but perception-altering spells were possible.

Eos scanned the room more carefully. Need a mirror, a real mirror… there! Against the far wall, her eyes found a homely dresser and mirror. Without the aid of her magic, it would have to suffice.

The Princess picked herself up, wobbling slightly before finding her center of gravity. She took a single tentative step, before running into her first obstacle.

Scattered across the floor of this place were many rolls of parchment and heavy books, apparently heaped wherever there had been space at the time. Some of the stacks towered dangerously high, where they tottered on the edge of falling down. Just looking at them made Eos reflexively hold her breath, not wanting a gentle breeze to send the towers tumbling to the floor. She’d have to take extra care not to knock anything over. When this is all over, the pony that left these books just sitting here will be getting some choice words from me, that’s for sure.

As the mare took her first tentative steps, Eos noted how unwieldy her legs felt. They seemed too short; the unfamiliar length of her stride made each step a stumble. She noted with dismay that her clumsy hoofs made an uncomfortable amount of noise on the hard wooden floor. No doubt the others down below could hear Eos’ fumbling. What if they came up and found her?

And for that matter, what could possibly be going on in the first place? She had retired to the calm and comfort of her personal bedchambers last night, only to awaken in an entirely unfamiliar location this morning. Even more distressing, her body felt as if it was several sizes too small, and she couldn’t seem to find her wings at all. The only logical possibility, Eos surmised, was that she was under the influence of some sort of disorientation spell. Those sorts of malicious mind-altering spells were strictly outlawed of course, but what would a kidnapper care?

Then again, she thought, I could be dreaming. Yes, some kind of extremely vivid lucid dream. so focused was she on the stacks of books, a small gemstone on the floor went unnoticed right up until the moment she stepped on it. Struggling to hold back a hiss of pain from the sharp sensation, Eos rescinded her earlier consideration. Lucid dreaming would have to be taken off the list, at least for the time being.

But if I’m not simply dreaming, who could be responsible for this? The question held distressing implications. A royal foalnapping? Her mind immediately jumped to the possibility of a griffon plot, but no, they wouldn’t dare.Still, she filed the thought away for later just in case. Better not to eliminate any possible culprits quite yet. But if not the Griffons, who else? The Dragons?

That can’t be it either. Diplomatic relations with the Dragon clans have been stellar this last century. Spike reports no ill will from any of the other Elders. With vital trade agreements involving the Crystal Empire on the line, rash aggression against Equestria would be laughably foalish. Even the most aggressive of the Elders would have to be suicidal to draw Spike’s ire at such a critical time.

Eos also had to consider why she had been left unguarded and unrestrained. If somepony had gone to the lengths of capturing and incapacitating her, certainly they wouldn’t simply leave her alone like this! The logical conclusion, then, would be that she hadn’t been abducted at all. But if so, the question of why all this was happening remained frustratingly unanswered.

She allowed a quiet grunt to escape her mouth. It just makes no sense! There’s no logical scenario that fits this picture!

Occupied as she was with her thoughts, eyes all but glued to the ground as she watched for more pesky obstacles, Eos did not notice the approaching dresser until her horn found it for her. The Princess of Equestria raised her head with a groan of pain, only to gaze with confusion at the face in front of her.

A frazzled head of lavender hair hung down across the face in the mirror. Her face. From beneath the chaotic mane stared a pair of purple eyes. Poking out of her bedmane was a horn several times too short to be her own. At first she feared it had been broken off, which would certainly have explained her apparent lack of magic from earlier, but upon closer inspection it was rounded and perfectly healthy looking.

What took her longer to pin down was the altered curvature of her snout. It was rounded, like a young mare’s, not pointed as was normal for alicorns such as herself.

She took a step back and turned herself a little to the side, the better to get a look at her wings. Or her lack of wings, as the case was. From that angle, even more distinct changes were easy to spot. She realized now why she’d had such trouble walking.

She had shrunk. Yes, that was the only word for it. Her legs were short and stubby things, a fraction of their normal length just like her horn. She looked just like a regular unicorn now. She looked… mortal. Even her mane was short, cropped straight above her brow. It did not wave behind her, or reflect the sky.

“My ethereal mane, gone. But this means-” Eos’ eyes widened. “This means I am no longer in control of the sky!”

The princess’ head snapped to the room’s single window, from which golden sunlight seeped through soft yellow curtains. Grasping wildly with her erratic magic, she tore them open with a forceful grunt. Though it burned her eyes to gaze towards the sun, she was relieved to see that it was rising just fine. Her failsafes must have activated properly.

She let a sigh of relief escape from her mouth. Well, at least I won’t have to deal with a civilian panic, Eos mused. Now, it was just a simple matter of taking back control.

Extending her magical consciousness, Princess Eos reached out and attempted to reestablish her connection with the glowing sun. With nothing but her old failsafes guiding it, it should have been easy. But instead of welcoming her magic like an old friend, the sun seemed slippery and uncaring. Alarmed, she pushed harder, but it shirked her link a second time just the same. Eos gasped as her connection was abruptly severed.

What trickery is this?! In the physical world, her hopeful countenance turned to that of a worried frown. It feels as if the sun belongs to another!

If somepony (or dragon, or gryphon…) had managed to break her failsafes and take control of the sky, this situation was dire indeed. But how? To do such a thing, they would have had to overpower her magic…

Now the princess of dawn turned away from the sun to her inner magic. As she felt inside for her power, Eos was immediately disturbed by what she found. Where there should have been the sun and moon and stars, there was nothing. Where there should have been the ocean of her magic, there was nothing. All of a sudden, the immense emptiness seemed to drown her, her heart falling into a dark place where only despair remained.

Gone… all gone. Somewhere in the distance she felt the hard wooden floor as she fell back on her rump, eyes gazing out the window into the sky but seeing naught but a sea of starless void. Even without the sun and sky, there should have been something there. But to have nothing left? She hadn’t felt this powerless in… in a long time.

Eos heard more sounds from down below, louder this time. She shook her head and took a few calming breaths. It wouldn’t do to let fear get in the way of action in this situation. The most important thing was calm prioritization of goals. To that end, Eos drew up a mental checklist. Time to take stock.

Okay, first, my current status. I’m in an unknown location, surrounded by unknown ponies or other beings. Also, it would seem that I’m missing both my alicorn magic and body. I’m very likely to be mortal, which restricts me to an eighty-year time limit, give or take. Whatever was going on could probably be resolved in that amount of time, but it was always a good habit to be thorough. Any memories of how I got here are missing-in-action as well, which is very unfortunate. Best case scenario, I’m just delirious after one too many nights spent awake working. I felt pain earlier, so this can’t be a normal dream, but… maybe I hit my head, and I’m in a coma until the wound heals?

Eos almost laughed at the absurdity of the idea. Spike would be livid! She could just imagine his scolding tone when she woke up.

“Eos, do you realize what I had to go through while you were taking an extended vacation? Hosting court for a week! Half a dozen diplomatic meetings! Not even enough time for a single afternoon nap!”

The poor dragon. Well, he could handle himself. She just hoped he didn’t fret too much about her. Or, if she wasn’t dreaming, the princess hoped he didn’t tear the kingdom apart too much looking for her. The collateral damage might get expensive.

… right. Enough daydreaming.

Her newly minted mental checklist once again rose up in her mind. Best to go by the assumption that everything I’m experiencing is real. So, first order of business is answering the ‘W’s: Who, what, and where.

Everything else, even the sun and moon, would have to wait until after.

The princess took one last glance at the image in the mirror. She wished she hadn’t. Instead of the calm countenance of a being that had seen the turning of ages and the fall of tyrants, Eos saw the uncertain expression of a mare consumed by fear of the unknown. This was not her. This was not the Princess of the Dawn.

She hardened her nerves and looked on with renewed determination. Whatever strange situation she was in, she’d approach it as a Princess, not a frightened little filly. She turned away from the mirror; it did not reflect her any more.

~~~~~~

A few moments later found Eos carefully walking across another room, after having made it down a flight of stairs from the bedroom she’d awoken in. She stuck to the walls, where the darkness was thicker. A few weak shafts of morning sunlight pierced the middle of the room, illuminating little motes of dust curling through the air. The walls Eos clung to were covered in book-laden shelves.

It all felt so serene. There was no tension in the air, nor the electric charge of adrenaline. None except for her own jumbled emotions, at least. If anything, the place breathed with life and gentle comfort.

All at once, the smell of this place entered her lungs, and Eos immediately recognized the familiar aroma: books and worn parchment, with a hint of dust. The smell of Elysium itself, as far as Eos was concerned. Such a beautiful scent could only be found in one place.

A library.

Well, at least there may be time to do some reading after all of this, the Princess thought as her hooves carried her forward. Across the room was another doorway from which morning light poured forth. Leaning against the shadows, Eos peeked around the edge to spy into this new place, ears swiveling at the sounds of movement from somewhere beyond. After a quick glance in search of other ponies, she brought her head back into the shadows. She blinked.

Then peeked again. And again after that. Each time, Eos held her stare longer, attempting to puzzle out what her eyes insisted they were seeing. One last time she looked, but this time she didn’t look away.

She knew this room. This wasn’t just any old library; this was a very specific library located in a very specific place, lived in by a very particular pair of students.

This is the Golden Oaks public library, in Ponyville! How did I not recognize the architecture before? It all seemed so obvious in retrospect. The carved wooden interior, the living spaces on the upper level… where else could it be?

The princess stepped slowly into the main study room and foyer, gazing this way and that as her eyes were drawn to different bookshelves. Tomes of knowledge for just about every subject sat upon these walls, teasing her with their enticing titles. Advanced Spells for the Advanced Spellcaster, The Night Sky: Beauty Transcendent, A Brief History of Equestria; on and on the books read.

Where her eyes roamed, her hooves carried her. Gently tracing her hoof across an encyclopedia’s binding, the princess let out a long sigh. She’d been so busy these last few years, wouldn’t it be nice to just take a day off and sit down with a fun little story? Some light reading sounded like just the thing to help absolve all that stress.

Eos was just beginning to look through a cluster of fiction novels when she spotted it. A desk sat by one of the windows, upon which she idly noted there was an inkwell and ample parchment. However, it wasn’t the desk that caught her attention. No, it was the picture frame on top. A picture, she saw as she came closer, of six happy mares.

No, it can’t be…

She’d seen this picture many times before: Eos’ two students, Sunny Skies and Midnight Star, sitting among the new friends they had made in Ponyville. A copy of this very picture sat on Eos’ own desk back in Canterlot.

Except this picture did not have Sunny or Midnight in it. Instead, the five Ponyvillian mares were gathered around… Princess Eos. But not herself, really. This mare looked as Eos appeared now, standing in the library where Sunny and Midnight were unusually absent.

I… what? She stood motionless, trying to take it all in. The picture, her body, the out-of-her-control sun. What else could it be but a crazed hallucination?

From across the room a cheery voice suddenly spoke, “Oh, hey Twilight!”

“Bwah!” Eos nearly jumped out of her skin at the voice, turning to face the intruder with her horn already glowing. Even in that split second, the Princess of Dawn was already berating herself. How long had she just been standing there staring, mouth agape? The best paralysis spell she could muster was moments away from completion when Eos got a look at the source of the voice, and for the umpteenth time that day she found herself at a loss.

A baby dragon? Standing inside another doorway was a dragon wearing a pink apron. Despite his upright bipedal stance, his head still only came up to her chest. So young, she thought. This one can’t be more than fifteen years old!

The young dragonling held up his hands in a placating gesture, chuckling as he did so. “Woah there, Twi! Sorry to startle you. Just wanted to let you know I’ve got some hash browns ready for you in the kitchen.” His scales were a similar purple to the princess’ own fur, with green spines and eyes to match. But that little pink apron! He had to have been just about the least threatening thing that the princess had expected to greet her. And what was this about breakfast?

Eos leveled her horn at the newcomer. “Explain yourself, dragon!” She could feel the phantom limbs where her wings ought to be, trying to flare out in a threatening stance. To her confusion, he seemed entirely nonplussed at her aggressive reaction.

Tiny claw scratching the back of his head, he said, “Well, I was going to make mashed potatoes, but, uhh… well I sorta sneezed and they caught on fire. Heh.”

“Wha- bu-, no! I wasn’t talking about the food!” Eos huffed. She took a step closer, and gave him a stare that could melt scales. “I woke up this morning, uncomfortable, confused, and in a strange bed in a strange room in a library many miles away from where I went to sleep. Then, I discover that not only am I in an unfamiliar place, but also in an unfamiliar mortal body. Then, after all of that, the first other soul I stumble upon is a juvenile dragon. Who offers me breakfast, of all things! No threats, no questions, no answers. Breakfast!” By now she had approached close enough for even her diminished form to tower above him.

“Uhh, Twilight, are you okay? You’re talking sort of funny.” The dragon cocked his head to the side. “Were you up all night reading or something? Fall out of bed and rattle your brain? I heard some banging upstairs a little while ago.”

The Princess halted at the unknown name. ‘Twilight’? Did the dragon mistake her for somepony else? Was that why his reaction to her had been so odd? Eos realized how close she had come to him in her fit, and took a step back. Her new companion seemed content to stand there and watch, folding his little arms and waiting for a response.

With a more calm voice, she responded, “No, dragon. If I’m being honest, I don’t think I’m alright.” The young drake had been nothing but nice so far, maybe he could help her. She took a deep breath, and winced at her behavior.“I should apologize for before. As I said, I believe my mental faculties are well intact. Memory notwithstanding, ahem.” Eos cleared her throat, giving the dragon a slight grin. “However, I seem to be a minor bit lost.”

“Lost? You really don’t know where you are?”

“Actually, I do know where I am. The circumstances of my arrival are the part I’m puzzling out.” She stroked her chin with a hoof. “Before that though, something else has occured to me that I’d like to know, if you are able. Where is Sunny Skies?”

~~~~~~

Spike felt confused. He’d seen a lot of epic breakdowns from his big sister, but this had to take the cake. “Sunny Skies? I don’t think I’ve ever heard that name before, Twilight.”

She became visibly distraught at this. “What do you mean? She lives here, along with her sister Midnight Star. This has been their residence for the better part of two years while they carry out their studies.” Something seemed to occur to her. “And why do you keep calling me by that name?”

Has she finally lost it? “Uhh, Twilight, last time I checked it was us who lived here. Y’know, you must have jostled your brain pretty hard to forget your own name.”

Twilight scoffed at him. “I most certainly did not hit my head, and I definitely do not live here! Nor is my name Twilight! I am Princess Eos of Equestria!” She tossed her frazzled hair back and held her head high in what appeared to be an entirely subconscious pose. Spike couldn’t help but laugh at the image of his bed-headed sister trying to emulate royalty.

Chuckling, he said, “Just because Shining’s marriage into royalty made you a noble by law, doesn’t mean you get to change your name. I still think we should stop by Ponyville Medical later today, just in case.” Grabbing a quill from the nearest desk, he scribbled a little note for himself.

Twilight looked unamused, but seemed to give up and let the matter slide. “In any case, back to the issue. If you don’t know who Sunny is, what are you doing here? Libraries are of course a public place of knowledge, but I highly doubt that my students would appreciate you going through their food! Are you a friend of theirs?”

This was getting ridiculous, Spike thought. “Umm, Equestria to Twilight, I’m Spike. Y’know, your assistant? I get that you hit your head and can’t remember us moving here or something, but I would have figured you’d at least be able to recognize me.”

“What?!” His sister exclaimed, as something seemed to finally click inside her clearly deranged mind. “No, no no no no. There is only one Spike, and he is not a child!”

Spike crossed his arms and said, “Well, a second ago you said you were some kind of Princess, so I guess we both must be crazy.”

“I… you…” Looking for something to say, her eyes wandered over to a picture sitting on the writing desk. What is so entrancing about this picture? Spike wondered, as an expression of deep concentration appeared on Twilight’s face. Finally her eyes widened with recognition, the kind she always got after realizing the solution to a difficult problem. But this eureka was mixed with a sort of fear, too. With apprehension, Eos spoke slowly, “This place. This is Ponyville’s Golden Oaks library, correct?”

“Yeah?”

“And the date, this is the year 1503 after the founding of Equestria?”

“Of course.”

Twilight began to pace, speaking as much to herself as to him anymore, “And the name, ‘Twilight’; a word for the bridge between night and day. It’s the natural counterpart to dawn, beginning of day following night. What else could such perfect symmetry mean?” She muttered something about ‘hyperspherical leylines’ and other such nonsense which the young dragon had learned by now to simply tune out. “Spike, I think I know what’s going on. It’s crazy, radical to even believe something like this is possible. But if I’m right, it’ll mean brand new discoveries of how we understand reality itself!”

"Twilight? Care to share with the class?” Spike quipped, snapping his sister out of her pacing. She turned to him with those eyes of hers, rich pools of emotion deeper than he ever remember them looking.

"I don't know whether to be giddy or terrified. I believe that somehow, this is not my home universe. You and I live different lives, this world has a different history.

“I always wondered about the possibility of alternate realities, but the ability to explore such hypotheses has forever been beyond us. The forces required to peer beyond the veil of reality are impossible to fathom; to actually have been transported across this divide? I never could have prepared myself for something like this…”

At this point Spike really wasn’t sure what to think. The crazed visage he thought he’d seen before had now been replaced by something much more calm and calculating. Alternate universe Twilight Sparkle huh? Who knows? He shrugged mentally, it’s not that much wilder than some of the other stuff we’ve dealt with. In any case, this craziness could wait until after breakfast. Spike said, “Look, I know you’re kinda dealing with some world-shattering revelations here, but…” he motioned towards the kitchen, “maybe you’d like to puzzle it out over a plate of hash browns? Y’know, before they get cold?”

“But alternate reality! I need to-” Her stomach rumbled. Twilight seemed to look at her belly as if it had betrayed her. It may have been his imagination, but there seemed to be the briefest of internal wars play out across her face, before she seemed to deflate just a little. Defeated, the hungry mare cleared her throat and addressed Spike in a more even tone. “I would love to share a meal. Thank you. Perhaps some good food and time to think is exactly what I need.”

~~~~~~

Eos pondered everything that she had witnessed so far during this momentous morning. Since meeting the dragon boy who called himself Spike, the Princess had mostly come to terms with the explanation. It made sense, at least given what information she had so far. Sure, there was still the possibility that she was under some kind of elaborate illusion or hallucination spell designed to keep her incapacitated, but there really didn’t seem to be any options besides to just go with it for now.

They had moved to the dining room. As much as Eos hated to sit around doing something so mundane as eating while an entire parallel reality surrounded her, she couldn’t help but enjoy sampling the food Spike had prepared. It was a simple meal, far less elaborate than what the royal chefs always made for her. The hash browns and scrambled eggs were made with love, she could easily tell.

Eos had mostly gotten the hang of her magic now, too. It was still very unnerving to dip into her inner power and not find the vast well of energy she was accustomed to. Especially distressing was the lack of a connection to the celestial bodies. For almost as long as she could remember, the sky had been a part of her, a little presence in the back of her mind that reassured her of her control. Now, that presence was gone. She felt empty and isolated without it.

Then there was the matter of Spike. He was just a baby, not even in his main growth phase yet. It was… odd, trying to project the image of Spike she knew onto this child. It actually brought back memories of long ago, the years after the end of Discord’s reign when she had hatched Spike from an egg rejected from its clan.

Eos wondered briefly if this Spike had been a rejected egg as well, perhaps even hatched by this world’s analogue of herself? An even wilder thought crossed her mind. What if this Spike was from the very same egg, laying unhatched for over a thousand years until Twilight hatched it? Now that would truly be something interesting.

She realized that she had been staring at him intensely for the last couple minutes now. He was sitting at the opposite side of the table, eating his own plate of gemstones in uncomfortable silence while his eyes looked anywhere except at her.

She let out a slight cough, then looked back down at her plate.

And of course, there was also ‘herself’ to think about. Or rather, her other self. Twilight Sparkle was apparently her name in this world. It seemed pretty obvious from the pictures Eos had seen that Twilight occupied Sunny’s role here. That would most likely make Sunny the Princess, and her sister Midnight… Eos paused and exhaled slowly. So much is already shared between our worlds, must my mistakes be as well? She would need to find a history book at some point. There were still many things to discover. I am so sorry, Sunny. I can only hope you have suffered less than I have this past millennia.

Spike gave a slight ahem, carefully striking up a conversation in much the same way a pony creeps across a field of sleeping Timberwolves. “So, you’re not giving up on the Princess thing?”

With a sigh, Eos answered, “No. I’m sorry Spike, but it seems that you’ll be stuck with me for a few days while I devise a way home. I have some ideas, but I’ll have to find the materials and research to explore my hypotheses. I take it you still use your dragonfire to communicate across long distances?”

“Monsters and invasions and crazy magic, why not alternate universes?” The dragon shrugged in acceptance, and that was that. “My dragonfire is at your service! Umm, Princess.” He added with a snicker.

Some things just never change. He’s definitely Spike. “Excellent. I’ll defer to your experience regarding who to contact for acquiring the materials I need. It strikes me as laughably improbable that I’d be able to find the same scholarly texts in this world, but perhaps with some searching hopefully there will be analogues to the works I want. I’ll write you a list, then we can get started.”

The two companions finished eating, and moved back into the main library room. Eos began by writing a list of authors and textbooks which she wanted to look into. Her young but eager assistant then went through the library, grabbing what matching books he could find and keeping a tally of the ones he couldn’t. After just half an hour, the Princess had a modest stack of books ready for reading. It was actually rather peculiar just how many the dragon had been able to find.

I assumed I would get lucky with a few, she thought, but this is bizarre! Same authors, almost identical titles, it’s almost as if nothing is different at all! How could this be? She supposed that out of an infinite number of worlds, she had simply found herself in one that was remarkably similar. Still, the real question was why? There had to be a reason for something like this. She had to see the extent of what had changed, and then maybe she’d find a pattern.

This gave her an idea. Extending her magic, the Princess opened the library’s window. With blinds pulled apart, rays of golden sunlight flowed into the room. Eos once again took a look at the sun which had eluded her magic so well earlier that day.

Peering at the sun was surreal. She could feel the heat gently warming her fur, and even in this body her mental senses were trained on the sun's heart.

It was not her sun. That much was absolutely certain. It felt different. Warmer, like her older student's smile. It felt less adventurous though, a little less driven. It was simply content to... be. This was not a sun that drove analytical minds to study the intricacies of magic. It was a sun that inspired poets and artists to create beauty.

It was carefree. It was… Sunny.

Spike returned from grabbing the latest tome for her. Setting it down on the growing stack, he said, “I think that’s the last of what we have in the library. I’ll put in a request with the Canterlot Archives for the rest. In the meantime, I think you should start thinking about what to tell your friends.”

“My… friends?”

A shockingly pink pony with a poofy mane shoved her head in through the open window with a broad smile etched on her face. "Good morning, Twilight!"

Author's Note

2 years, 5 months, 14 days. Never too late, right guys?
Still finished the update before Half-Life 3.

Alright, so, yeah! Here we get to see a glimpse into how the other side is handling things. Establish Eos' character a bit. Don't worry, we'll be back to Twilight in Chapter Four! Which won't take two years to write, promise! For more info, check out the Update Follow-Up Blog Post.

I'd like to extend a sincere thank-you to jtfroh and Daemon of Decay, both of whom have given me many words of encouragement over these past two years to pick up this story again. Daemon also helped with proofreading, so that the chapter isn't quite as messy as it used to be!

Next, this story now has an awesome piece of fanart! This is by 1110Soulite:

Thank you all for reading, and please leave a comment! I love reading them, and all feedback/criticism is appreciated.

Twilight became an alicorn Princess in the show before my story was updated.
Discord was brought back and reformed before my story was updated.
Twilight traveled to an alternate universe before my story was updated.

Chapter 1: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to my Bedroom...

A peaceful silence filled the air in Ponyville. From the far fields of Sweet Apple Acres, to the streets and alleys of the inner town, hardly a single sound could be heard. The sun had long since set, and the townsfolk's candles put out, leaving only the pale crescent moon to illuminate the darkness.

Perhaps the only exception was a single sputtering candle casting its gentle light across the interior of the Golden Oaks library, and the lavender glow from the horn of the unicorn writing by its light. Twilight Sparkle was standing in front of her desk beside the window, admiring the peaceful stillness of the night as she wrote a letter.

Beside her, sitting on one of the Library’s couches, was Spike, looking bored and half-asleep as he dozed off to the scritch scratch of Twilight’s quill. It was a rhythmic sort of sound, one Spike had become well accustomed to in his time as her assistant. It paused for a second, and the momentary silence caused him to open his tired eyes and gaze at his older sister.

She was looking out at the star-filled sky, brow furrowed as she contemplated something or other. Considering Twilight, it was probably an academic quandary that'd be dreadfully boring to the young dragon. But if there was one thing Spike knew about Twilight, it was that she loved to discuss her thoughts.

Preparing himself for whatever mental exercise that was sure to come next, he let out a quiet, “Something up, Twilight?” When she didn’t immediately respond he spoke a little louder. “You’ve normally got your muzzle buried in a book right about now. I thought Celestia’s next report wasn't due until Tuesday.”

“I was just thinking.” She continued to stare out the window, eyes glued to the night sky, watching the stars as they twinkled overhead. Or maybe she wasn't looking at the stars at all, but rather through them.

“Twilight, you’re always thinking. I’ve never seen you not think about something.”

The thoughtful librarian turned her head and looked at her assistant, a bemused half-smile on her face. “Oh, you know what I mean, Spike. I’m thinking about some bigger questions.” She shifted her gaze back to the stars.

There will never be a question too big for Twilight Sparkle. Spike thought.

“Well, uh, like what? Fate? Life and death? What it would be like if you were cursed and no one could remember that you existed?” That last one was from a book he had read. Easily the longest novel Twilight had ever insisted he check out. Who was the author again? Spike wondered, I always thought it was funny how obsessed the author was with fictional Princesses. I’ll have ask Twilight about it some time.

“I’ve always wondered what it’s like…"

She's pausing for dramatic effect, I'm doomed.

"To be like her.”

“…huh?” That certainly wasn't the response he had been expecting. “Be like who, Twilight?”

“Princess Celestia”

Oh… Spike let himself sink back into the couch. He should have known she was thinking about Celestia after the Crystal Empire fiasco. All that worrying she did about being a failure had left her acting pretty skittish ever since. The dragon pondered the question as he counted the knots of wood on the ceiling of the library.

“I’d imagine it’s a lot of hard work and long hours, with not nearly enough sleep for my taste. C’mon Twilight, we both know how this ends; everyone is impressed and awestruck by her royal bearing, the pomp and circumstance, but then you learn that behind it all is just another difficult job like all the rest, except with a little more glorification. It’s classic as classic can be. We’ve all seen it a million times.” Socratic exercises like this could go on for hours with someone like Twilight. Spike had learned from experience to nip things in the bud fast, before Twilight got into another one of those frenzied moods. Cerberus was still dealing with the results of her last 'raise the dead' experiment. “You’ve been around the Princess enough to know it’s true. “

“I know that, Spike, but I wasn't thinking about the Princess' job or anything else. I’m just wondering what it’s like to be her. To have lived for eons; to have so much time to see the world and learn from it, and to have the chance to pass that knowledge and wisdom down to others.” At this, she turned to look at him. Spike could see a spark of fervor in Twilight’s eyes, that look she always had when looking at a fresh stack of blank parchment. “To not only have the power to change the world, but to live long enough to see the long-reaching fruits of your labor. I know I probably wouldn’t like to be an alicorn, the disadvantages of immortality and all that, but… I don’t know. It’s just interesting to think about.”

“I guess, Twilight.” It certainly was interesting to think about. If he was immortal, what would he do with all that time? I’d probably sleep a lot, that’s for sure. “Maybe you could ask her the next time she visits. I’m sure she’d be willing to talk about it.”

“You’re right, Spike,” Twilight said with a smile. “I’ll write a letter to her tomorrow, ask her a couple of questions. Nothing big.”

Spike chuckled. For Twilight, there wasn’t anything related to Princess Celestia that was ‘nothing big’. With Twilight content to look out the window once again, Spike looked around the inside of the Library, thinking. Something had been bothering him for a while, something that this conversation had reminded him of.

“Hey, Twilight?” This wasn’t something he normally liked to talk about, but… might as well. He took a deep breath. “Since I’m a… a dragon, and dragons are really long lived… does that mean I’ll…?” He didn't want to finish that sentence.

“Oh, Spike.” Twilight gave him a gentle smile before reaching over with her foreleg and wrapping him in a warm hug. “It doesn’t matter. What matters is that we’re together now. The future is for future Twilight and Spike, right?” she said with a giggle.

Spike laughed with her. It was hard to forget that crazy week several months ago - especially after the tummy ache that followed after. His stomach still hated him for it; he hadn't been able to eat ice cream for a week! “I guess so.”

“Besides, even if I’m not always around out here.” Twilight promptly held Spike with her magic while she used her foreleg to gesture around the Library. “I’ll always be right here.” She poked him softly in his chest, and then on his forehead. With a yelp he was wrapped up in another tight hug. “I love you, Spike.”

“Alright, alright! That's enough of that for one night.” The lavender aura faded as Spike came to a rest on Twilight's back. “What’s that you’re writing?”

Twilight followed his gaze to the parchment on her desk. “Oh, my letter! I almost forgot I need to finish this tonight!” She grabbed a quill with her magic, dipped it in ink, and began to scribble along the parchment once again. “It’s to Shining Armor and Cadence.”

“Oh, did you already get a response from them for your last letter? Are they gonna be able to visit?” Spike pushed up onto his clawed toes, but couldn't see past her hair to read what she was writing. “I know how excited you were about having Cadence over during, as you said it, ‘sometime when the fate of the world doesn’t hang in the balance’. I was kinda getting excited too. Cadence said she’d bring me some malachite gemstones!” The Crystal Empire was heaven for a gemstone-eating dragon.

“Well, from their last letter I received earlier today, it seems like they won’t have a chance to visit for several months, as busy as they are right now.” Twilight let out a short sigh, which Spike mirrored a heartbeat later. “It’s completely understandable, of course, what with them being tasked with leading a nation that just spontaneously sprung out of the ground a few weeks ago. They’re probably up to their horns in work!” She finished writing the letter, signing her signature with a flourish and rolling up the scroll. “Still, I wish there was something we could do. Perhaps we should arrange a visit some time, see if there’s anything we can help with. If Winter Wrap Up is anything to go by, I’m pretty good at organization!”

“Yeah, don’t remind me.” Spike said as he glanced at the gigantic ‘checklist of checklists’ hanging up beside the window, only half of which was visible within the sputtering candle’s range. He yawned and hopped off of Twilight’s back. “Hey, Twilight, I think I’m gonna hit the hay. I got a long day tomorrow. Rarity is gonna take me gem hunting; we might even find some emeralds!”

Twilight yawned as well. “I guess I’ll get an early night’s sleep too.”

Spike glanced out the window, taking note of the deep sea of stars and the moon hanging directly overhead. “If this is your version of an early night’s sleep, I don’t want to know what ‘late’ is.”

~~~~~~

Moments later, Twilight reached the top of the library stairs with Spike on her back and a candle in her magical grip. As she entered their room on the balcony, the purple unicorn could already hear her Number One Assistant snoring gently.

Stepping over to the basket where he preferred to sleep, Twilight lifted him off her back with telekinesis, laying him down and covering him with blankets. Sometimes she felt bad about having him up so late to help her. Of course, that was usually before remembering that he tended to sleep most of the day anyways. She always joked that he was more like a cat than a dragon.

With the gem-eating cat tucked in, Twilight snuffed out her candle and used a soft glow spell to light the rest of the way to her bed. Once under the covers, she shifted around before finding a spot that felt comfortable. That old mattress had seen better days.

I should really look into adapting the cloud-walking spell for sustained use. I bet a cloud-bed would be wonderful on my back.

Thoughts filled with the theoretical applications of cloud-themed spellcraft, she drifted off to sleep within minutes.

******

That night, she dreamed of specters. Everything was ghosts and spirits, swirling around her in some kind of endless void. No matter where she turned or where she looked, all there was to see was darkness, and the gray shapes of those strange beings flitting across her vision. She felt a sense of urgency, like there was something she needed from them. Something important. Something essential.

“What are you?!” she called, her voice unceremoniously swallowed by the void (Was there even sound here at all?). It felt like there wasn’t a single noise anywhere.

No sound existed here; no sound had ever existed here. Yet she could feel a deep howling noise, coming from… somewhere. From the void, or within herself? She could not say.

Eventually, after what seemed like an eternity (or was it just a few seconds?), the spirits responded with a single word:

“Echoes.” There seemed to be no single source, it came from all directions.

“What do you mean? Echoes of what?!” No response.

She tried to move and found herself falling, down, down, farther into the void. All at once, the whirling void snapped into clarity once again, with the tornado of spirits still swirling above her like circling crows.

What caught her attention was the creature in front of her. It was made from sharp, ever shifting lines, like an artist’s stencil sketch come to life. The lines were pure white, like snow, forming the border of the strange being. The thing seemed to have no substance; it formed the silhouette of a pony, but she could see right through it.

It was large - larger than her. It was hard to scale anything in this place of nothing, but the thing dominated most of her line of sight.

She wanted to feel comforted by the pure-white being before her, but instead it terrified her. There was something horribly... wrong about this thing - there was just no other word for it. It was not necessarily evil, nor was it chaotic or disorderly. It was simply wrong.

The lines began to move in a new pattern, revealing a slowly opening mouth. A single word emanated from its maw, deeply powerful and horrifyingly but unidentifiably familiar.

“Echoes.”

She couldn’t speak, she couldn’t even breathe (did she ever breathe in this place?). She began falling down, farther and faster than before. The darkness was becoming suffocating now, closing in around her. Looking up, she could see that the silhouette was still facing her as if she had never moved, and now it had a pair of gigantic wings spread out behind it. The horn upon its head glowed, releasing tiny tendrils of the whiteness out into the void, before being swallowed whole by the same darkness that was covering herself.

She could feel her mind falling too, into deeper sleep. Just before she finally lost consciousness, she thought she heard another voice, laughing. It, too, was familiar, but she was too far gone to know why. The darkness took her, finally, into bliss.

Darkness was all she knew.

~~~~~~

Early morning sunlight filtered through Twilight Sparkle’s closed eyelids as she slept soundly, tired despite her ‘early night’ of rest. As the insistent light began to burn her eyes, she shifted and turned her head the other way, sighing with peaceful bliss as she became comfortable once again. Her ears twitched gently as the sound of angelic birdsong drifted inside. The familiar tweets and trills were a beautiful melody to wake to, and she found herself smiling contentedly.

Twilight's bed felt more comfortable than she had ever remembered it feeling. Almost as if she was sleeping on a cloud, rather than her old mattress. It was the best night of sleep she'd had in ages.

As she drunk in the bliss of utter contentment, the sun’s glare continued to creep across her, until its insistent call could wait no longer. Groggily, and with a slight frown upon her face, she turned to face the offending window, eyes shut tight against the sun as she extended her magic. After a moment of confused searching, she gripped the curtains in a field of telekinetic energy and attempted to pull them shut.

Instead of comforting darkness, however, her eyes were assaulted by even more blinding sunlight, accompanied by the sound of ripping fabric and the clatter of the curtain rod being torn from the wall. Startled into an upright position by the sudden attack on her senses, Twilight had to raise a forelimb to protect her vision from the glare until her poor eyes could adjust. Wincing from the pain, she slowly lowered her hoof and opened her eyes, taking in the sight before her.

“What the…”

Instead of being met by the wooden walls and bookshelves of her balcony room on the upper level of the library, magnificently adorned stone walls surrounded her. She was in some kind of bedchamber, almost as spacious as the entire main level of the Golden Oaks Library. However, what caught her eye were the colors and uncanny design scheme. The sides were covered in rich purple and lavender tapestries, and across the ceiling a massive star chart could be seen. Several beautiful oak dressers and cabinets sat along the walls, each covered in strange crystals of every hue and shape, pulsing with magical energy.

Just stay calm, girl, Twilight thought to herself. There has to be a logical explanation for this. It must be some kind of prank! Yeah that’s it, Rainbow Dash’s newest prank.

Before she could investigate the room further, her ears once again pricked up at the sound of familiar birdsong coming from outside. But something was off about the trilling, she realized. Twilight had always loved listening to birds since she was a child, and she had come to recognize the distinct sound of the local flocks in every place she had lived. Fluttershy's bird choir had certainly helped with that.

I know I’ve heard those birds before, but not in Ponyville. They sound like…

“Canterlot!” Twilight exclaimed, jumping from the bed and moving towards the window. She tripped over her own legs, however, and fell on her face, tangled up in the blankets of her bed. After a moment of struggling, she freed herself from the offending covers and bounded towards the window, gazing out upon the breathtaking sight before her.

Canterlot, in all its regal glory; the shining city was laid out before her in every direction, huge and beautiful and awe-inspiring. She could make out the tiny specks of ponies moving across bustling streets below, and spot the large crowds where the merchant districts must be. Everything was the same.

And yet… different.

There were crystals she had never seen before fixed upon towers she didn’t recall existed. Transport routes and train stations in different positions than the last time she had visited. Where had these things come from? What was going on?

Her wings fluttered subconsciously from the agitation; there was certainly something strange going on- HEY WAIT A MINUTE.

No… no… no no no no.

The wings were shifting quickly now. She could feel them, squirming and quivering like they had a mind of their own.

NO NO NO NO NO NO NO.

As she turned her head and looked at the foreign, unwelcome appendages that had attached themselves to her spine, she caught a fleeting look through the mirror propped against the far wall behind her. Within the reflective glass stood an Alicorn as large and powerful as Celestia, staring at Twilight with a look of complete, unmitigated horror.

No.

“AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!”

“Princess Eos, what’s wrong?!” two guards burst through the oak doors at the end of the room opposite the bed, wearing glimmering purple and gold armor on their backs and resolute expressions on their faces. They saw Twilight huddling in front of the mirror, holding a lavender primary feather in her trembling hooves as she looked deep into her own eyes.

“Wh-wha?! But I, I-I what?! Who are, who is, whabuthat’s-” don’t panic don’t panic TOO LATE ALREADY PANICKING.

“Your Highness, please, what is the matter?” they had already surrounded her on both sides, poised for danger.

“I’m not a princess, why do I have wings?! Who are you?!”

They exchanged worried glances. After a moment of silent discussion, one of them, a unicorn stallion, kneeled down before her and gently grabbed the feather with his magic. Her gaze followed the thing as it gently floated next to the guard’s face. His fur color was a very light brown, almost tan.

“Princess Eos, you know me. My name is Stalwart Vigil, and I am one of your guards here at the palace.” He removed his golden helmet, setting it on the marble floor with a soft thunk. He gave her a look of calm, and while they looked at each other Twilight could see through the enchantment designed to make all royal guards visually identical. He had a light green coat and blue hair, but what caught her attention was the scar across his muzzle. It seemed he expected her to recognize the feature, as if it bore significance to her.

In all her years living in the palace as a student, she had never seen nor known of this guard.

Shaking her head, Twilight backed away from the stallion, bumping into the mirror and startling her wings into action again. They began to flutter and flap out of instinct, completely out of her control. It was unsettling, to say the least. She could feel them there, assaulting her mind with sensations she had never felt before, yet she had no idea how to move them. Yelping in distress, she rolled away from the mirror and tried to pin the wings down with her hooves, magic temporarily forgotten.

“C’mon you stupid things! Stop moving!" with her wings pinned down for the moment, she looked up at the ponies with fear in her eyes. “Where is Princess Celestia, is she in the castle? She must know what’s going on, please!”

Their only response was confusion. After a moment, the stallion spoke again, “Princess… Celestia? Your Majesty, who is this Celestia?”

“No… no you can’t be serious! This doesn’t make any sense!” Twilight no longer cared about the wings. None of that mattered, not compared to this.

“I don't believe she's in her right mind. Should we take her to the Infirmary?” the other guard had spoken up, helmet still on. By the sound of the voice, she was a mare. By her wings, a Pegasus.

“Yes, and quickly.” He stood, leaving his helmet upon the ground where he had placed it. After a moment of silent motions to his companion, he began to approach Twilight once again, speaking softly so as not to startle her. “Princess, please, we’re not going to harm you. We have to take you somewhere where we can help you. Please, it won’t take long.”

“Why do you keep calling me that? Nothing is making any sense.” Twilight had curled into a ball, gently trembling.

“It’s okay, Eos. We’ll take you home.” The unicorn extended his hoof to her. After a moment of hesitation, she grasped it, and allowed him to pull her unsteadily to her hooves. With a slight nod, she motioned for him to lead the way. Her wings had decided to rest, at least for now.

As they began to gently hold her and pull her towards the door, Twilight looked towards the mirror once again. Her mane and tail were a disheveled mess, and her eyes were glistening from fresh tears. She looked absolutely insane.

I probably am.

~~~~~~

Once outside the bedchamber, they moved through several secondary rooms and antechambers before entering a larger hallway. Twilight began to feel slightly calmer as she exited the confines of those royal living quarters. The guards moved briskly, their speed only dictated by Twilight’s unstable feet.

Aagh, these darn legs! They’re too long, I feel like a newborn foal! She was tired of tripping, tired of having no idea what was going on. Twilight took a deep breath to calm herself. Just calm down, I’m sure there’s a logical explanation for this. It’s still entirely possible I’m dreaming. Yes, that’d be nice. All just a dream.

A dream, a dream! Ha! All of a sudden, the prospect felt so funny that she burst out laughing, and had to stop for a moment to catch her breath. The guards, meanwhile, exchanged more worried looks.

“Your Majesty? Is… is everything alright?”

“M-Me? Oh, hehe, oh yes. Everything’s fine, it’ll all be fine!” her voice drifted off from there, giggling in a not entirely sane-sounding way. They could still hear her muttering under her breath in between giggles, something about dreams.

“Please Princess Eos, we have to get moving again.” The unicorn gently pulled her forward by her hoof. They moved around several corners again before the guards began to speak to each other. Twilight, at the time, was still chuckling to herself as she looked at the beautiful palace tapestries.

“Imbrium, do you recognize her affliction?” the stallion spoke to the other guard, apparently named Imbrium. The question was not one born of ignorance; it was a quiz.

“Yes, sir, I think so.” The mare looked back towards Twilight, watching her. “Though I’ve never seen it this close before. ‘Delirium Induced by Magical Exhaustion’, right?”

“Apparently in its advanced stages, yes, and I’ve only seen her like this once before. I had hoped I’d never be in this position again.” The stallion shook his head. Now was not the time for such thoughts, Eos was vulnerable. “We’ll be passing through the Throne Room. I want you to fetch Spike and the Captain. They’ll meet us there.”

“Spike? Spike is here?! Where is he, I want to see him!” at the mention of her assistant’s name, Twilight had suddenly jumped back to where the guards stood in quiet council, tripping over her forelegs and nearly rolling the entire distance to where they were. Imbrium was already galloping down a side passage.

“Don’t worry, your Majesty. We’ll be meeting him in the Throne Room, just a little distance away.” With that, Twilight immediately jumped to her feet and took off in the direction of the Throne Room. She knew the way through the castle; she had spent much of her life within these walls. Even in this strange dream world, the hallways were much the way they had always been, with only the occasional alteration.

In what seemed like no time at all, Twilight was standing in front of the grand double-doors of the Throne Room. Her unicorn escort was already speaking to the four guards in front of the door. Each guard was wearing matching purple and gold armor, just like the first two ponies to have met her during this nightmare. These guards, however, were bearing strange spears inlaid with runes of power, which glowed with faint lavender light. Twilight took a moment to admire the craftsmanship of the weapons. Even without a proper scan, she could tell that each held impressive amounts of magical energy, even though the guards did not seem to be powering them. Apparently the devices were self-sufficient.

Whatever her escort was saying to them, the guards nodded with grave understanding. Striking their spears upon the ground, the mighty doors swung inward, opening into the room. She rushed forward, passing between the doors before they had even opened all the way.

The Throne Room was even larger than she remembered it. It was veritably cavernous now, with giant purple standards hanging from the vaulted ceiling. Beautiful morning sunlight was shining through the stained glass windows, creating splashes of color all across the floor. The most conspicuous difference, however, was the massive doorway to the side of the throne, as large as the main entrance itself. That certainly hadn’t been there before.

Stepping forward with her escort beside her, Twilight came steadily closer to the grand Throne, observing the guards flanking each side of the room. Approaching a random group as hastily as her new legs would allow, she said, “Excuse me, sirs? Is Spike here yet? Where is he?”

Before any of them could respond with more than confused bows, the large secondary doorway she had noticed earlier began to open. From its mouth dashed another guardstallion, this one clothed in the garb traditional of high authority. Before she could ponder this new pony further, he had already approached her and given a sweeping bow. He was a unicorn with a pure white coat and short blonde hair. His cutie mark was covered by the armor he wore, but she knew she had seen this pony before.

“I am so sorry Princess. Spike is coming, he’ll be here momenta-”

“Wait, wait,” manners forgotten for a moment, Twilight couldn’t help but interrupt. “Are you… Prince Blueblood?!”

“-rily and wh- I beg your pardon?” that voice! It was definitely that good-for-nothing Prince from the gala! Before Twilight could respond, her escort had stepped forth and given the prince a solute.

“Captain Blueblood, sir, I take it Imbrium filled you in on the situation?”

“Yes, I came here as soon as I heard. Thank you for staying in control of the situation, Stalwart Vigil. Your actions in this debacle have been commendable.”

“I don’t know what’s going on, and I don’t care anymore, where is Spike?!” Twilight could practically feel the hairs on her mane springing up. ‘Captain’ Blueblood began to say something, but just as quickly stopped and paused for a moment, looking back towards where he had entered while holding his hoof up in a sign of requested silence. He smiled.

“Well, there he is now!”

Twilight could feel something. Something deep, a rhythmic bass that reverberated through her entire body. It was slow, but steady, like a heartbeat.

Thump thump, thump thump.

It was getting closer, she knew it. She could feel the vibrations moving through the floor.

Thump thump, thump thump.

Her teeth chattered from the raw, earth-shaking power. She could practically see the vibrations now.

Thump thump, thump thump.

She could remember very few times in her life that she had ever felt something like this, and they weren’t the most peaceful of memories to contemplate.

Thump thump, thump thump THUMP. After a final, heart-throbbingly loud beat, there was no more. It took several seconds for the reverberations to finally come to an end.

A giant purple dragon head, larger than her entire body, poked around the corner of the entrance. It peered about the throne room with huge green eyes, taking everything in. After a moment of searching, his eyes fell upon the trio, staring directly into Twilight’s own. His face brightened upon seeing her, and he immediately began moving more of his massive body through the door. The entire room shook with his movements.

“Eos, it’s good to see that you’re okay. Relatively speaking of course.” He chuckled, a sound akin to an avalanche.

“S-Spike?” why do I get the sinking feeling that this isn’t a dream…

His face showed only the briefest flicker of concern before the warm smile returned. “Well, of course.”

“Oh. Good.” With that statement, Twilight let the last of her sanity fade. “Then I have nothing to worry about. Nothing at all.”

She fainted.