A Kindred Spirit

As a certain adolescent human slept in Ponyville Hospital, the Princess of Night lounged in her old throne room, embraced by her wreath of shadows. Her mind was elsewhere, and senses not truly attuned to the world around her. Not asleep, though not awake, the royal mare was muddling about in her head--or someone else's, as it could be. The long hall was lined with archaic decor from ages past, all of it well kept, though the castle staff was still trying to banish the dust from it all. Shadows hung in much of the hall, heavy old curtains warding off the majority of the pale moonlight making its way to the ground.

The static scene was facing a disruption, now. Thin tendrils of smoky gold appeared in the center of the hall, growing more opaque by the moment. The currents of magic in the room shifted, and this did not go unnoticed by Luna. The cloud about her formed into a translucent shroud as she opened her eyes slowly and began to rise to her feet, creating a chilly ambiance. The strands of smoke began to gradually coalesce into a glimmering gold mass of gentle light. Now, a voice echoed around the room, despite the stone hall being laden with cloth.

"What you desire has been done. I return to my slumber."

The light flashed bright before snuffing itself out with the sound of tearing paper, and a whiff of ozone.

Luna was left to contemplate this happening.

That was the spell I cast... it is done..."

She could feel her heart flutter, the calm, cold princess. Emotions stirred underneath the skin, but reason still had the helm.

Good news, good news, but where, and who, is this...kindred spirit, as it is? How do I find them?

She couldn't help but groan in irritation, even as the shadows retreated and fell away from her form.

I woke again to the now-familiar hospital wing, and well-rested this time, albeit with the always-present grogginess of the morning drag. Despite such consistent events, I was actually quite happy to rise from sleep today. I felt well, and maybe even a little better than usual, and actually couldn't wait to get out of bed. Today was the day I could start exploring. Today was the day where it would begin...

Except, I knew very little of how this land actually functioned. I'd seen a caricatured representation of it, but I got the sense that everything in this new land was much deeper and more complex than could be represented in a children's show...

I yawned, stretching out and preparing to get out of what had been my bed for several days. Despite my initial excitement, the lack of information and sheer number of potential courses of action sank that ship into a sea of uncertainty. Things such as housing, money, work, and the thirst for adventure all milled around in my head, along with the reaction of ponies to such an unusual creature in their lands. How would this play out? I wonder--?

"Ow," I said reflexively. My head had impacted the curtain rail around my bed during my reverie. Good to see that's back to normal. I snickered at my wit, sharp as ever, mercilessly cutting any statement or situation containing potentially humorous material into a snarky interjection.

I picked up my bag, proceeding to duck under the rail. I opened the door to the hallway which revealed a somewhat startled Nurse Redheart, who quickly relaxed.

"Oh, it's you. You're up bright and early today. Do you want your breakfast before you head downstairs?"

I blinked. "Oh, umm... you were going to do a final checkup, right?"

Redheart responded, "No, I was going to send you downstairs to one of the unicorn physicians to have you looked at. I can make sure you don't have any trauma wounds, but you'd have better luck with our resident minotaur doctor, I think." She smiled brightly, one of her best skills, it seemed.

"If it's alright with you, I'm a bit antsy to leave. Thanks for all your help." I flashed a quick smile.

"No problem. Just doing my job." I easily lost the impromptu smile contest.

Exchanging goodbyes, we each went our separate ways. A stiff walk down the stairs and through a heavy door brought me to the front desk and waiting room. Ponies all around looked up. The want to feel small presented itself again. I'm not even fully grown yet... I think.

I walked up to the desk as casually as possible--which is to say, in a completely ostentatious manner, for aforementioned reasons. The receptionist looked a little intimidated. I got the feeling I would quickly come to thoroughly dislike this expression. I wasn't exactly sure of the procedure, so I tried to sound as friendly as possible.

"Hi... Nurse Redheart said I should see your minotaur physician before I check out?"

The receptionist pony blinked rapidly. "Oh, umm, sure... he's sure to be around here somewhere..."

After a bit of trouble and fading distress on the part of the receptionist, the proper physician was found and a somewhat awkward checkup ensued. The doctor's familiarity with the more human torso was sufficient to ensure my vitals were stable, and with some difficulty and flustering, magic was used to confirm the preliminary findings. He made an odd comment on the difficulty of disrupting the natural magical flow, which I ignored but stored away. Something odd is going on...

I pushed the thought away as the doors to the outside world approached, promising an adventure, whatever lay ahead...

I was in the middle of town, now, and was less than pleased with my very disruptive effects on the behavior of the townsfolk. Although there was no sense of ill will, whispers, stares, and the slowing of foot--or hoof, I suppose--traffic was the trail I left in my wake. I couldn't blame them, as it isn't every day an unusual creature strolls through your town, even with the many different inhabitants of this country. However, this justification did anything but negate my wish to be invisible. Despite my interest in the architecture and sights of Ponyville, I desperately wanted out of the public eye, and I figured I had one place that I could go to both keep me away from prying eyes and not present the problem of an awkward conversation--the library.

Every second I spent outside, however fair and calm the weather may have been, brought more and more ponies to look with curiosity. I hastened towards the tall tree, plainly visible from across town. I neared the crossroads that stood beneath the limbs of the giant oak now, the ripples of interest and gawking ponies now at a climax.

As the tree came into full view, I was presented with its magnificence. The tree must have been nearly a millennium old--probably older than this town. The weathered but strong limbs obstinately stuck out from the trunk at their own gnarled angles, defying any attempt at direction and orderliness, and even the laws of nature itself--how this tree clung to life, hollow, perforated by windows, doors, and balconies, was something I truly could not understand.

In my haste, I likely lost the full impact of carefully viewing the tree, but as I approached the door, I was to acquire my first few experiences with unicorn magic.

When I turned my head to see just how interesting I apparently was, a translucent sphere seemed to weave itself into existence in the shortest of moments. I turned back to the door as I heard the creaking of wood to see the face of Twilight through the cracked door, a magnificent magenta hue shimmered about her horn, and distorting the air around its edges. She lightly tossed her head in a "come on" motion as the hairs on my body stood on end, the energy in the air seeming to make my limbs resonate somehow. I accepted her invitation inside, and I felt my skin come alive as another figure was quickly weaved out of blotches of color on the doorstep. It was like I was electric.

As I leaned on the door that had shut behind me, Twilight spoke up with a conversational tone. "Too many pairs of eyes?"

"Yeah," I replied quickly. The energy was still racing across my skin, nerves tingling. "What's this feeling?"

"Oh, look outside," she said. I looked through the small round window next to the door. A duplicate of me was walking away from the building, and the ponies outside were watching it. After passing out of view, it vanished, and the feeling playing across my extremities died away. I determined what had happened and appreciated the diversion of attention.

Twilight made an exaggerated flourish. "Thanks," I said appreciatively.

"No problem. So what brings you here to my humble abode?" She was being remarkably congenial for the first time we'd ever really talked, almost like we knew each other already.

"Just came here to get away from all the eyes and to keep my mind occupied..." It was a bit of a strange statement, but a true one nonetheless. I was quite good about those.

She seemed to accept it well. "Yeah, I know how that goes. Kinda like when I first got here. Anyway, just make yourself comfortable..."

"...and so here we are."

"Yep," I confirmed. Twilight had to use some powerful magic to rifle through my mind on the early steps of my journey, and had continued through to now in a reverie. I could feel her combing along my memory chronologically, and it created a bit of a strange effect. She just went about recording more things in her journal until she had hit where we are now, which broke her from the daze.

Twilight and I had talked a bit and decided it may be a good idea if we could break the amnesia I had unfortunately been afflicted with, and if not, record what she could get out with magic.

"I, uh, kinda just kept going there, didn't I?" Twilight said sheepishly, in a clearly tired voice, putting up her writing materials. She picked up a handy dish towel that had been lying about for some reason, wiping the small droplets of sweat away from her forehead. I simply nodded without any inflection of disapproval in my features."Ugh, getting into those pre-Equestrian memories was exhausting. It's like I was holding open the castle portcullis."

"Was there really that much resistance?" I asked, now intrigued. It truly must have been a difficult block for Twilight to nearly fail in breaching it. "Yes, a lot. Your own magical flow is a bit combative of any outside influences right now and the magic keeping those memories sealed away is some of the most powerful I've ever experienced. Somepony--or something--really doesn't want you knowing your past. Even I don't remember what I've written in the pre-Equestrian part. I think we have a memetic book on our hands, which made all that work for the most important part useless." She groaned.

Talking about the technical, the abstract, made the gears in my mind turn, and I was enthralled in the discussion, but needed to address something first. "Fascinating, but disturbing. Also, I'm not a magical being, why is everyone mentioning something about my supposed magic today?"

Twilight gave a sarcastic little laugh and replied with absolute confidence. "No, I'm sorry, there's absolutely no way there isn't magic in your blood. The blood part is metaphorical. Kind of. We aren't quite sure of the mechanism by which magical energy is created, but we do know it happens in the blood."

I appreciated her technical accuracy, but was slightly inflamed by the incorrect confirmation of my magic, and really needed to address her earlier point before I forgot about it.

"I think you're right about the book. Every bit of data relevant to my history on this--"

I realized what had happened. Twilight had a self-satisfied smirk on her face as I held the phone in my hand, screen on. "Yep, alien tech. I knew you weren't from Terra. But let's move on, shall we?"

I tried to recover. "What do you mean, "alien"? Just because we haven't had contact with you before doesn't mean we don't have advanced technology."

Twilight laughed again, actually amused this time, and just as certain. "Oh, please, I can feel the low-frequency waves coming off that thing. If I'm right in saying you use it for communication, you would have interference all over the EM bands. Not to say magic is electromagnetic energy, because it isn't. We actually don't know what it is."

Oh, this one is just as smart as she's supposed to be, I noted. But that didn't change that she had learned something monumental that I would rather have kept quiet. However, I couldn't convince her otherwise--she was far too sharp for that--and she seemed anything but apprehensive. I supposed she had concocted the theory yesterday, mulled it over with its potential implications, and already decided how that would affect her and the big picture. It apparently really wasn't important, as she smoothed over it like a sort of trifle.

I heaved a tired sigh. "Yeah, yeah, I'm not from around here... and did you call this planet Terra?"

The little smirk came again. "Ha, ha," she said in a silly gloating tone. I couldn't help but laugh. "And yes, that's what we call our planet."

"Hmm. That's the Latin name for ours." The parallels here were staggering.

"About that. I really would enjoy learning more about your home and culture. It's almost disturbing similar they seem to be to ours. But now, I have to head down to see Rarity. Spike's been helping her out this morning, and I need him back. Want to come? You can get whatever it is you need done down there,  and it'll probably be easier for the ponies around town to relax a little bit knowing you're with me."

I considered it momentarily. "Sure, I'll go."

It truly was remarkable how quickly Twilight and I had became so friendly, especially with all of our outward differences. We clicked like two cogs of the same design.  It was almost like there was no real "getting to know you" phase, and it was both what I would consider something that made my life easier, but also a little off-putting and made ambiguous where we stood on a spectrum between "acquaintance" and "friend". I had vague recollections of similar friends in my past, of wit and intellect always birthing clever jokes from any suitable material, and of the logical, but quirky nature of their behavior. A lot like myself...

Birds of a feather, I suppose.

I warmed internally at the familiarity and the fun that was sure to come with someone as knowledgeable and interesting as Twilight, and a smile lit on my face. This should be an interesting friendship.

Several hours before our human left Ponyville Hospital, the princesses had performed their duties of raising the sun and moon in Canterlot. This was the one time of day they were guaranteed to see one another. However, Celestia could have told her sister's lightened spirits from across the castle, never mind at her side. After their deeds were done, Celestia's curiosity got the better of her. With all the grace and warm, inviting airs she always presented, the solar princess asked her sororal counterpart what it was that had lifted her from her gloomy attitude.

"You seem to be of higher spirits this morning, sister. I'm glad you've started feeling better."

Luna knew her sister's mannerisms. Although her statements were always sincere, her propensity for small talking was not a trait she particularly enjoyed. After the events earlier today, there simply was not a way to keep 'Tia out of the loop--not that she really wanted to, but she truly feared a lecture. She had not the fortitude at present to simply grin and bear the maternal spiels she was prone to giving, despite all her good intentions. She berated herself once more for her crumbling internal state before bracing for the next few words Celestia would offer.

"Pardon my nosiness, dear sister, but might I ask what it is that has brought you back to such spirits?"

Luna's mouth went dry a moment, and the first few words she issued sounded parched and forced. Here we go. "One of the old tomes, sister. The oldest in the library."

Celestia outwardly displayed her minor surprise, but the waters ran deeper than that, and Luna knew she was wondering and worrying over what dangerous tome her sister had discovered in the catalog of the most ancient magical texts in Equestria.

"It was all I had left. The old scroll of the kindred spirit..."

Celestia had pored over some of those old texts herself, and this was one that was almost disturbing in its nature. It seemed like a prophetic failsafe, a last resort.

"And what was it that was presented to you?"

The answer truly was painful. Luna replied softly. "Nothing, sister. Nothing yet. I don't know what the next few days will bring. I am simply aware that it functioned as intended, but nothing else. And so I must wait. I can wait. I have done so for a thousand years, I can do so for a while longer."

Luna regretted her statement. It shot pain through her; it was a logical statement, but it blatantly betrayed her emotions. However, the real regret came from the tear that must have riven her sister's warm and comforting feelings. Of all her past actions, the one that produced the most pain and suffering of all was the necessary banishment to the moon of her only little sister. Though Luna could not say that she harbored no bitterness for her elder sister's actions, she knew the reasons and that it was the only option. Her actions told of spite, not of love for Celestia.

She had to rectify this. "I'm sorry," she said, the emotion bleeding into her words.

Celestia replied in a soft manner that only deepened the wound. "It's alright." A wistful expression lay on her timeless, soft features. Why do I keep hurting her...

"I'll see to it that we find this individual, and arrange for word to come to you when we do."

The blade was thrust into the self-inflicted wound yet again. Her generosity was truly continuing the annihilation of Luna's already sundered citadel of internal strength, reducing all to ash in due time.

"No, sister, please...you already shoulder many of the duties I should be performing. I must locate this... entity myself. I started this, and I must end it."

The air was taut with anticipation of Celestia's response for a few long seconds.

"Very well, my sister. I will take my leave." She left, in an uncharacteristically pensive mood. Luna let go of the composure she had maintained, sighing in relief. She avoided it all--the motherly lecture, the self-directed feelings of injustice towards Celestia's pain, and the relinquishment of the self-sufficiency in the solution of her problem. However, the brush with all these things formed a warning--she had only little fortitude remaining in what was once the impregnable wall of her self-control...

Twilight and I left the huge gnarled oak for our mutual errands to Rarity's boutique promptly. Since neither of us had to carry anything to her shop, "promptly" could more accurately be replaced by "immediately". Despite semantics, the two of us were bound for the boutique, with what I hoped would be a lot less fascination at our doing so.

The purple pony had so many questions, and I was replete with both more of those and answers. She seemed to be looking me over, observing something. I raised an eyebrow, quizzical. She caught this momentarily and responded. "You walk in a much more fluid motion than the minotaurs. I guess small surface area in contact with the ground, especially hooves, for their weight makes them stiffer. I have to ask, though--how do you manage not having a tail? Especially on two legs like that. It seems really hard to do... and tails are just so comforting."

I obliged her question. "I really don't know, honestly. We spend about the first year or so of our lives on our hands and knees, though. What's it like, having a tail?"

Twilight responded with some thought. "Well, I guess it's kinda like an extension of your spine? A little bit of weight, but nothing the muscle can't handle. Helps you balance. And comforting. I don't know why or how, but it is."

Her answer, while still not quite unambiguous, was still better than mine. I chuckled a little. "So helpful for both of us."

She giggled, almost mischievously, before offering a rejoinder. "Well, magic is useful for a lot of things..." Her horn lit up, magic dancing along its length.

I backed off. "No, no, not now. Maybe sometime later though. Sounds like it could be an interesting experiment." Initial fear was subsequently replaced by curiosity.

"Yes, yes," she answered, letting go of the magic she'd mustered before turning away for awhile.

Being so curious, she broke the silence again not long after.

"So... don't you find it appalling that our languages are identical? I would have thought Equestrian to be so convoluted and muddled in linguistic origins to have another language develop to have the exact same words."

This astute observation sparked the fires of my interest. "And I of modern English. There's so many influences that the word pool is an etymological nightmare."

Twilight laughed. "There's just so many similarities. I don't know how this could have developed without some sort of planetary magic link that induces mental suggestions... but how... how would that work...?"

I knew how this went. Her sentence trailed off as her mind became so focused on the concept she was so passionate and knowledgeable about, leaving no resources for conversation or such things as mundane as the surrounding world. I adapted, becoming the sensory portion of the brain for our two-creature superorganism, whilst staving off the urge to do the same thing as her, although with less difficulty due to my lack of knowledge on the subject of magic.

The easy walk through the streets with one of the most important ponies in all of Equestria had my mind drift to other things. Although I appreciated the friendliness of the ponies I had met, I was truly bothered by it. Twilight here walked by my side, head in the clouds, and spoke freely with me. Why did she place trust in me after such a short period of knowing each other, and why was she so open?  If I had the intuitive understanding of her personality that I thought I did, then Twilight would be behaving in a far more private manner than she was right now.  To build substantial trust, if that's what this was, I had done nothing for her but afford a few glimpses into a topic she was thoroughly interested in. Perhaps that was why--she was simply so enthralled in her theories and ideas that she didn't notice how uncharacteristically indiscreet she was behaving, and after she slumped off the euphoric high of achieving a greater understanding, the self-awareness would return. Perhaps, however, I was overanalyzing, and there was a simpler answer here.

A fast-moving object caught my eye. I looked up into the sky. Bird?

Another fleck of color glanced across the clouds What...?

I returned my eyes to ground level, returning to the trust issue. I was following Twilight on autopilot, but where was she going? She seemed to be deeper than I in a train of thought. However, her knowledge of this town likely meant she could walk from place to place fairly easily, so I kept moving along with her.

Now, however, the streak caught my eye again, as it came down the street towards the two of us at high speed.

"Twilight," I warned urgently, "Pegasus."

As she looked up, the cyan lightning passed us at huge speed, having reached the end of a dive, and a blast of air hit, making me stumble and nearly knocking Twilight onto her rump. I turned to look at Rainbow Dash, pulling up into a steep climb sure to make her stall, wings extended. After bleeding off that velocity, the stuntmare came down near us, wings slowing her and throwing dirt up all around. The townsfolk either ignored her stunt, rolled their eyes amusedly, or looked on in disgust.

"Hey Twilight," she greeted in her trademark raspy voice, approaching us whilst folding her wings. She nodded in recognition to me as well.

I'm going to take a moment to describe pegasus wings--or, as it were, just Rainbow's.

Rainbow's wings were radically different from the flimsy, flappy-looking cartoon images we were presented with. Now, I could easily tell you they all vary a bit from pony to pony, just like hands; Rainbow's in particular were like those of an enormous falcon: about 7 or 8 feet in span fully extended (the mare being about four and a half feet long, muzzle to tail) and very powerful. You could definitely tell she worked herself raw to get a pair of wings with as much muscle as hers, and the wing muscles on her back were the only thick part of her body, the rest being quite lithe. Despite this, I still found it rather amazing that a creature as heavy as a pony could be lifted by these wings, but Rainbow's frame was a fair bit smaller than the earth pony Nurse Redheart, and I estimated she weighed about seventy or eighty pounds. Some very rough figuring in my head made the wing surface to weight ratio not seem too awful, so it was probably doable.

Twilight looked a mess, mane all blown out of order and bits of dirt clinging to her fur. "Hi, Rainbow," she said, passive-aggression and annoyance plain in her voice. She used some magic of sorts to extract and expel the dirt from her fur, as well as straighten her mane; an interesting process to watch.

"So I saw you and the big guy here and decided to drop by to say hi. What's got you out of the hole in the tree?"

The group began moving again at Twilight's behest, consequently heading towards Rarity's. Twilight apparently recognized Dash's teasing and responded in similar means.

"Going to go get my helpful assistant from my civilized, productive friend. What have you done today?"

"Oh, you know, slept in, ate, stamped on rainclouds over foals, terrorized a purple unicorn and her tall alien friend."

I froze at "alien". Was it really that obvious? Did Twilight tell all her friends? Did everyone know? Its that why the townsfolk were gawking and staring so much?

An echoey, strange thought that "sounded" like Twilight's reverberated inside my head "She doesn't know, she meant a legal alien..."

Despite a quick surge of relief, I wanted to throw something. I thought I was done with mind reading and telepathy. "By the way, I can't read your mind, I'm just sending messages and hoping you're getting them." The tension that had quickly built up started to ease some as Twilight continued on the conversation with Rainbow simply by laughing at her statement.

Rainbow took the chance to brag. She turned her attention to me, adopting a cocky posture. "So, how was getting dusted by the fastest flying pegasus in Equestria?"

A horribly smug smile was barely restrained from being displayed on my face, but I didn't resist the urge to shoot her down this time. I replied swiftly. "Meh. Where I come from, the lightest powered aircraft can produce more wash than that."

"Ha!" she ejected, before turning completely quite flat and quick in her speech, surprisingly hungry for information. "Wait, you have machines that can fly where you're from?"

I debated the wisdom of my previous statement now, but continued on. "Yep."

"Really? That. Is. Awesome!" I was surprised at her reaction. I didn't expect her to respond so enthusiastically or roll past a shot at her ego like that. Even Twilight looked a little perturbed, but she quickly recovered and asked me all about how they worked.

"Well, I'm not exactly sure in the specifics department, and it depends on the vehicle..."

I spent the rest of the walk explaining my meager knowledge of aeronautical realm.

Rainbow tagged along all the way to the boutique, and by the time we were inside, I was getting a little tired of being grilled by two inquisitive minds on the specifics of one subject, despite how gratifying it felt to teach something new to willing... ponies.

The boutique was, inside and out, quite gaudy for my tastes; a giant, brightly colored carousel, muted softly in tone, complete with literal clotheshorses on the upper balcony functioning as mannequins for her work. However unfavorable for me, the building and her pieces on display were not gaudy in a cheesy or non-genuine manner. It was simply not to my liking. However, I knew Rarity to be a versatile tailor, so I'm sure not all of her work would be too flamboyant in my eyes, if I so pleased to look through her designs.

When we entered, the bell above the door had rung, and the fashion designer's voice sounded from across the shop. "Ah, just a minute dear! I'll be right there."

The small lobby we were in was well-furnished and decorated with some nice paintings. I could imagine some wealthy clients lounging in this room, and it led me to wonder about how much money Rarity really made in her line of work.

I took an opportunity to ask about Rainbow's continued presence. Our discussions had quickly broken down formalities into an easy, casual speech. "Rainbow, we're just here on errands, if you were just tagging along."

"Yeah, I dropped off my flight goggles a while back for some work. The leather was getting a little worn out. Figured I'd just pick 'em up with you guys." Leather? So apparently there's some interesting ethical elements to the relationship between ponies and livestock...

The white-and-purple pony rounded the corner after a short time, with a small purple and green creature in tow.

So here was Spike, fellow biped standing about three feet tall on stubby legs. The scaled texture of his skin was apparent, smooth and vaguely reflective. The spikes on his head looked bone-like, but their green hue was somewhat mystifying. His eyes, large for his face, scanned our small party. His features easily betrayed his youth, and I felt somewhat bad for the only male member of the group--it was highly likely he was fawned upon very often when he wanted to be a more masculine figure. He caught my eye, and waved his small claws. I smiled shortly before turning my attention to Rarity.

"Oh, hello, friends!" Rarity, ever the social one, greeted her friends warmly.

"And hello to you too, gentlecolt. My, do you stand tall. How are you today?"

Her charm was quite potent and easily moved to me comfortable conversation. "I'm well, thanks."

Spike spoke up, his youthful voice high in pitch. "Hey, dude! I'm Spike, Twilight's assistant. Good to meet you!" He stuck out his hand.

I could, unfortunately, see why the girls treated him so. He tried so hard to be an adult, and really was fairly mature, but it only ended up being rather adorable. Shaking his hand was a rather awkward maneuver, and I had to almost kneel, which elicited giggles from the group of mares. Spike didn't appreciate it.

Rarity quickly decided to change the subject. "Right, darling, come with me..."

I didn't understand why, but I followed her into her studio. I assumed she was ready to begin repairing my simple garments. Unfortunately I couldn't very well take them off without staying in a booth waiting for her to finish sewing them.

Near the center of the studio, Rarity produced a measuring tape and her small orange glasses, which served to give her look an interesting dynamic. Her aura was distinct from that of Twilight's, an icy-blue color and with a different sort of "resonance". I could feel the difference, although I didn't understand it. "Alright, if you wouldn't mind disrobing, dear..."

Yep.

"I'm afraid I can't do that..." I was already embarrassed. Not even my undergarments remained intact during the encounter with the timber wolf, and I was having to be quite careful to make sure that my dignity stayed intact. They needed to be repaired along with every other slashed piece of clothing I was wearing.

Rarity looked genuinely confused. "Why not, darling? Are they stuck to you?"

"No, it's a very strong social moor of ours. The only time we are unclothed is when we are bathing, or possibly in bed, be it alone..." I left it open ended.

Now it was her turn to be embarrassed. "Oh," she said simply, mouth forming a tight line for a moment while a hint of a blush crossed her face. "Well then. Follow me, follow me."

I did so again, now more worried than before. I desperately wanted to avoid an embarrassing situation, especially now that the classy pony knew the cultural significance of such a situation. She led me to a mannequin in the corner that was covered with a bolt of canvas, and strangely upright.

"I was planning on waiting until later, but..."

The ice-blue aura flickered along her horn again, and a shimmering point of the canvas was pulled off the stand, fluttering to the ground.

"Ta-da!" Rarity grinned, a flourish directing me to what hung on the stand.

A dark, hooded robe, likely of tightly spun wool, was presented on a reconfigured mannequin that roughly modeled the human torso and head. It appeared full-length, intended to go to my ankles. A simple silver clasp was pinned at the neck, holding it in the two portions of the garment in the positions where they were desired, and a light grey rope hung about the waist to provide a more secure connection. It truly was an interesting piece, and had much old-fashioned charm. I was, however, concerned about the material. Although the material appeared finely spun, wool was a bit scratchy by nature and I really didn't want my whole body to be swathed in it. The generosity of the alabaster mare was something I was truly very appreciative of, however, and there would be absolutely no way I would turn it down, but I needed some clothes to wear under it first...

Rarity interrupted my analysis to present some information. My expression was appreciative by this point, which I was glad of.

"Not my best work, but I didn't have any measurements to make sure my sizes were correct for anything more fitted. Go on, go on, try it!" She removed the pin from the neckline and withdrew the robe from the stand, spreading the garment open to allow me to put it on. My eye caught glimpses of a lighter material inside, which meant that it must be lined with a softer material. I was truly grateful and even more impressed. She truly was very thoughtful and had a keen eye for detail. As I moved to put the article of clothing on, she spoke again.

"Now, dear, seeing as you don't have the fine fur that ponies have, I took the measure of lining the interior with--"

My left arm had entered the sleeve, and I interrupted her as I became even more grateful for her thoughtfulness and generosity.

"Oh, Rarity, you shouldn't have..."

"...silk." She finished her sentence, continuing on in a teasing response as I enthusiastically wrapped myself in the extremely soft and smooth clothing. "Now dear, don't tell me what I should and shouldn't do. You're not my mother, you know." Her cheeky smile and graceful response just made me even more sure of how she would respond to the big question, and the less I would allow her to have her way.

As Rarity pinned the clasp and tied the rope in a loose knot, I asked the real question. "Okay, now how much do I owe you for it?"

Here she goes. She carried on to her next statement with as much fluidity as I envisioned. "Oh, no dear, it's free of--"

"Absolutely not," I cut her off.

Playfully indignant, Rarity would not take no for an answer. "Excuse me? Do not interrupt, that is rude and inconsiderate, and as I've said before it is not for you to decide what I should do with my time and resources." There was absolutely no way I would overcome this phalanx of charisma, and I could do nothing but surrender--but there would be terms. I let go another earth-shaking sigh. "Rarity, please. At least let me help you out for a few days to allow me to repay you."

She pondered this, hoof on chin and looking to the skies, an audible "hmm" being released. She turned and faced me, hoof now in a gesture resembling a hand, palm up. "Okay, darling, but don't you lecture me on generosity. I am an independent young mare and I can think for myself." The act was still running strong and it was complete with accusatory pointing motions and narrowed eyebrows. I couldn't help but smile at her pantomime. "Alright, alright..."

She warmed, a bright smile now in full display. "Thank you, darling, it was my pleasure. I truly am the only pony in Equestria who was ever tailored for a human. Now, let's see about getting those other clothes of yours into an acceptable state, and take some measurements for reference..."

After the purple-maned pony had taken a few measurements, the reason for doing so unclear, she proceeded to repair my raiment as I left for the lobby, new clothes on and snugly fastened. As I reached the lobby, a small commotion was occurring. Murmurs of plans for tomorrow morning met my ears as I rounded the corner. Twilight briefed me on the situation.

"Oh, hello. Spike just received a letter from the Sun Princess Celestia. Here, see for yourself." The letter, on ornate stationary, was levitated to my hands.

Twilight,

I thank you for notifying me of the appearance of a new race of sapient creature in Equestria. I wish to meet with this human; please prepare to depart tomorrow on the 10:00 a.m. train. Bring your friends!

Best Regards,

Princess Celestia

P.S.; If you are reading this, human, I bid you a warm welcome to Equestria. Safe travels tomorrow.

I looked up from the letter, nervous. I knew that this would end up happening. Despite my knowledge of Celestia's aura of warmth and maternal tendencies, I still was anxious over tomorrow's events. She was the more active ruling princess in this country and the power of that title made me uncomfortable.

Dash, Twilight, and Spike were all over this, as apparently it had shown through my face.

"Ahh, don't worry about Celestia, she's cool." The only pony that would said that lounged back on one of the sofas, one hind leg over the other, front hooves behind her head, just like a person. Twilight was apparently tripped up by Rainbow making the most casual response physically possible, but Spike tacked on, "Yeah, she's really nice. Don't worry too much about it."

The purple mare spoke up now, floundering a bit. "Ah, so... where do you plan on staying tonight?"

I blinked. "I haven't thought about it, really."

For the long term, I would need employment and a willing landlord, but for now, I didn't have any place.

Rainbow entered the conversation. "I've got an extra room at my place but unless you can walk on clouds and have wings it's not quite accessible."

Twilight gave her input now. "The library doesn't have another bedroom, but for a temporary solution I suppose you can stay on the couch... that even is a little small, but it's better than staying out in the cold."

"What's this about sleeping arrangements, now?" Rarity was suddenly in the room, and if she had been listening in, it was fairly clear what she would say. Don't you do it, don't you do it...

"We're trying to figure out where our friend here will stay for the night. Oh, and we're going to Canterlot tomorrow, the princesses want to meet him." Twilight answered Rarity's question flatly and tacked on the short notice business-interrupting news on the end. Something flashed in Rarity's eyes, and I wasn't sure what it was.

"Oh, really? Alright, I didn't have any clients scheduled for tomorrow..." Her tone dropped flat. "...or for a few days after." The accented voice returned to its usual pitch and livelihood. Again, an odd look passed through the tailor's expressive eyes, and she looked at Twilight when she spoke the first half of her sentence. "But unfortunately, dear, Sweetie Belle is staying over tonight, and I don't have any extra room, and I'd like to finish a few of my pieces before going off to bed this evening, and that's liable to take awhile." I was actually rather pleased she had other plans, but the unusual behavior she exhibited was somewhat off-putting. Perhaps she simply doesn't want me over this evening. I would really be fine if she just told me that.

"That's alright, Rarity, you've already done a lot for me. I'm okay with staying at the library. I've slept in worse places." I wasn't sure where those places were, but vague impulses told me so.  The white pony still seemed to feel that she had, in fact, not.

"My pleasure, dear. Sorry I don't have room for you here. I'll see you all tomorrow. Oh, and Rainbow, I'll be right back with your goggles."

The cyan mare's voice sounded drowsy now as she fought a yawn to speak. "Alright Rares, whenever you get to it..."

With some goodbyes, Rarity returned to her work.

On that note, our business here was concluded. Twilight evidently sensed the completion of the objectives of our journey as well. "Spike, you ready?"

"All set," he said. "Looks like you're outnumbered two to one tonight, Twilight." What--? "Three if you count Owlicious." Oh...

Twilight giggled. "I'm surrounded by colts!" Sobering, she turned to speak to me. "Okay, we don't need to walk back to the library... how about teleporting?"

This was an exciting prospect indeed. "Sure, I'm up for it." The promise of instant travel was one I was quite alright with, so long as it didn't have the effects of my previous, similar encounter with such magic. Twilight was glad for a small chance to show off, horn igniting with the soft flames of magic. "Okay, when I say go!" I nodded.

"One,"

The air began to resonate with the feeling of Twilight's magic, the raw energy flowing out of her horn and into the world around her, like a soup of energy.

"Two,"

That resonance became more intense and focused around my person, and shimmers of purple mist began to show around the three of us. The "soup" was becoming more focused now, like a woven cocoon, streams of energy criss-crossing throughout its whole center. My whole body began to pulse with this delightfully infectious energy.

"Three,"

I felt like the intensity of the energy was reaching a point where my tissues were liquifying, the very fibers of my being loosening and becoming saturated with the waves of Twilight's magic. It was somewhat invasive, and the feeling of looseness all around was disconcerting, but that was the only uncomfortable part about it. Suddenly, another massive spike of energy was dumped into my frame, and all the bonds were rent as the magical clutch was dropped, the last thing I heard being "go!" before the world around me disintegrated. It felt like I was an ethereal being in a sea of weakly associated matter, a core exposed to the environment of pure magic around me. It flowed through, and I could feel its current filling me with vigour and bountiful energy, but changing in its resonance and identity as it rested there; an unusual but pleasing sensation. I also was aware of a great speed, hurtling towards another place; whether we still inhabited the same realm I was in before was a question I could not answer.

Then, it all started to reverse; the energy began to withdraw, the tide of glorious magic that had flowed through my very spirit receding, and my body's molecules tightening and returning to their normal, proper states, interlocked and all layered in the correct fashion. I was rapidly decelerating, and streaks of color began to return with greater frequency. The world was reappearing and my limbs were all back, still resonating softly as I returned to the physical realm. With a snap, Twilight's power withdrew and my body ceased to hum with its resonance.

An earth-shattering pain ripped through my chest, radiating out towards my limbs with its horrific intensity. Standing was a physical impossibility as I sank to my knees in agony. To my abounding relief, it began to subside as I lay on the floor in a crumpled mass, and dissipated completely in the longest few seconds of my life. My ears had quit ringing so badly to where I could hear the terrified voice of Twilight.

"Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, are you alright? I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you! Please be alright!"

"Yeah, I'm alright, I'm alright," I said, sitting up, my voice weak and hoarse, but strength quickly returning. "That was amazing... but sweet Jesus did that hurt."

"I'm sorry, I had no idea that would happen. What did it feel like?"

I struggled to find the best words for my exhilarating experience. "It was like my very being was soaked in a field of magic. Energy flowed through it and it changed, turned to something more... assuring, fortifying, and it pooled around me. The pool grew quickly, and when your magic left it stayed. I came back together here on the other side and it felt like my whole body was going to tear in half."

Twilight, fascinated by this information, absorbed, processed, interpreted it. Her expression of wonder melted and reformed into a smirk.

"What?" I needed to know what this was that she was so amused by.

Twilight began her long theoretical rant, which I was entranced by.

"Magic isn't stored in the body, it's stored in the ethereal consciousness, or soul, to simplify. Each pony's magical aura is unique and special to their consciousness, and it's an extension of their being. It's the body's job to produce, to allow the channeling of the magic--we unicorns have the most active, direct, and versatile magic; the other races channel it passively in different ways. It's usually produced from the food we eat,which has a certain magic-potential inside of it, something we don't understand--it's either from the universe around us or the planet itself. What you've done is taken that magical energy, in its pure form during the teleportation--when you were fully exposed to it--and it's changed to your own aura. Instead of dissipating into the universe, when I took you along in my aura during the teleport, the "magical pressure"--I'm metaphorically using fluid dynamics to help describe--was so low around your being that it flowed there and was changed by it. Now it's your own magic. But, for whatever reason, it didn't stop at whatever level your body is usually comfortable with, and the expansion and saturation of your consciousness' magical energy was hard for it to accommodate. So, it really freaking hurt trying to expand that capacity. In short, you are indeed a magical creature. However, there's something odd going on; your body isn't producing or using the magic, it's just stuck in your core. Perhaps the lack of production was due to different environmental stimuli in your home star system, but what I could easily tell you is that it is not healthy and it results in that internal turbulence and disharmony. Many adolescent unicorns go through this in their stage of development as their magical flow adapts and matures, but to get stuck in this phase is not good for your development. It would be best if we could find a way to release the magic and let it start flowing correctly through the metaphysical pathways in the body."

I was fascinated, scared, and overwhelmed all at the same time. I couldn't muster any words, but my eyes must have spoken of this.

"What?" Spike said, utterly confused. We couldn't help but laugh, dispelling the intense mood, but leaving behind the profound discoveries and drive to understand.

"That's... truly fascinating," I said. "This is a lot to take in..."

"And it may not even be right," Twilight finished, giggling a bit. "But I'm sure it is. Celestia will know for sure, and then we can get you on your way to better health."

Twilight turned to her assistant. "Hey, Spike, make us some lunch, would you? I'm starving."

On that humorous note, the most profound experience of the day was concluded, and a lot of research and theorymongering began.