Twisted Reflections

by Solana

Rating: teen
Tags: Adventure, Human, Alternate Universe
Length: 22291

In a world very much like our own, a chemical has been discovered that is going to test what two sisters know about reality. Are they Lucy and Sophia, or Luna and Celestia?

In a world very much like our own, a chemical has been discovered that is going to test what two sisters know about reality. Are they Lucy and Sophia, or Luna and Celestia?

Why are they bombarded by memories of a world that cannot exist? How are they going to survive living a double life, and what can they do to fix everything?

It's worth noting that this takes place in an alternate human universe where MLP is not a show that exists. So the characters don't have the benefit of that 'reference'.

Published 1970-01-01 00:00:00 UTC
Last updated 2013-04-10 15:59:11 UTC

Caught Red-Handed?

It wasn't the most ideal time to be doing this; in fact, Luna much preferred the gentle thermals of the night, compared to the more oppressive thermals she would encounter during the day. It was unfortunate that she had to get her kicks this way, at least for the time being, but ‘Tia had busted her riding the pastel horse again, and knew that nighttime was when she would use.  Daytime was better than no time Luna decided.

Flapping about in broad daylight wasn't exactly a very good idea for a number of reasons. Her ‘medicine’ wasn't illegal yet, but it certainly wasn't socially acceptable, and the last thing she needed at this point was to be branded a pariah. Although honestly, there was nothing in this world that could keep her from chasing this high. Luna allowed her mind to wander as she felt the brisk wind against her, well, everything!

Her life had been one confusing and depressing twist after another. She remembered how difficult it had been to learn the basics. Her parents got letter after letter complaining about Luna falling behind the class when it came to learning how to read, right up until she decided books held the secret to ‘fixing’ her; after that, she became something of an overnight bookworm. Her mind overflowed with images of trying to write, but being incompetent with the hand motions (she still pretty much was). Her teacher even caught her trying to practice with her mouth on occasion!

One of the more traumatic incidents was undoubtedly the death of her parents, leaving her with nopony but her sister. Somehow they always managed to stick together from home to home, but those never seemed to last, especially not with the disturbing extremes she’d go to in order to get back to their ‘real’ home, the nonsense she’d humor in order to fix herself.

She shook her head to clear it of those dark thoughts. She didn't need magic or religion. She had found exactly what she needed to fix herself. Who would have thought the drug that had been her salvation had been floating around in her body all along! PMT, as it was jokingly called by some, wasn't in plants and animals the way its namesake was, but it did exist in particularly high amounts within certain individuals. It needed to be packed with an enzyme inhibitor to have any effect, and was by default. Such was probably how it got its affectionate nickname. Heck, Luna was such a problem pony off the drug that she was confident she could take just the enzyme inhibitor and still experience the joys of flight, and even ‘real’ magic. The only problem was Tia. She had always been the responsible one, but she had to be if she was going to keep her precious Lucy safe. It tore Luna apart going behind her sister’s back like this. It tore her up even more because she ‘knew’ Tia was hurting the same way she did while growing up. She simply never allowed anypony to see that.

Just as she thought, this trip was going south fast. Stupid sun, it always brought out the worst in these occasions. She frowned softly when a few feathers fell out of her wings, rotting away almost immediately in mid-air. She was losing altitude and started to make way towards her open window, which she managed to dive in expertly. She certainly had practiced enough by now. More feathers fell out as she hit the ground. Thank the moon they didn't leave any discernible evidence. Given enough time, there would not be a trace of them left. She tried not to let that thought get to her too much. It certainly benefited her, right?

She had time to smile and think about all the scientists scrambling to uncover how a drug with these effects could be physically possible, even as her fur fell out in clumps and her wings rotted to nothing.

‘That’s good, Luna. Keep your mind off of it. Turning back the first time is always the worst, but there are exercises you can do to cope through the trauma. Think of happy memories! Ugh... there’s nothing here. Wait! What about that time back in Canterlot when ‘Tia got caught by a school foal eating all that cake in a most uncivilized manner!?’

Luna laughed out loud for a brief moment before covering her mouth with a pair of hooves that, even now, were starting to crack in places.

PMT had a laundry list of ‘nasty’ side-effects, all of which Luna had been fortunate enough to avoid, at least so far. The last thing she wanted was ‘fake’ memories. Of all the side effects, schizophrenia was by far the least desirable, at least as far as she was concerned. She was weird enough as it is!

She curled up under a blanket and hunkered down for the rest of the reversal. It went more smoothly if she couldn't see what was happening to her. Turning into a pony was graceful and majestic. Luna would even describe it as magical. Changing back was never that pleasant. It was like being dragged back to hell, at least that’s how she’d articulate the feeling, plenty of fellow ponies felt she was exaggerating for the sake of making herself depressed. What do idiots on the internet know about the intensity of her feelings, anyway?

It took about ten minutes tops, and she gave it another five until she was confident the phantom limb issue had abated enough for her to flex her fingers and walk on two legs without tripping over herself.

That was another side effect of the drug. Sometimes users found that not all of their body was so eager to revert back to ‘normal’. Sometimes things just stayed behind, like hooves, wings, horns, ears, etc. Often, these would still vanish in a few days, maybe a week, typically overnight while the person slept, but there were a few who had claimed that their features stuck around for months and showed no signs of going away. Lucy hated herself for actually ‘wanting’ that side effect, it’d be like keeping a little part of herself around, a piece of Luna, the real her.

“Ears? check. Eyes? check. Horn is definitely gone, wings are gone, no fur patches or anything...” She scanned her arms, “Looks like I’m fine!” She stated with glee.

A barely noticeable swishing movement responded to the statement from behind her.

A tail of horse-like pale blue hair was flicking sporadically, as if in rhythm with her anxious state of mind. She reached out to touch it, marveling at the realization she had never touched a pony’s tail before, not with her own two hands at least.

“Okay, this could definitely be worse. A tail is easier to hide than my ears or something...” She absently ran her fingers through it while contemplating what to do next. “Think, you've read enough stories to handle this...”

Her mind raced through all of the old fairy tales. She could already hear her sister’s voice, chastising her for her impractical ideas, but she silenced it fairly easily like she always did. She stepped lightly towards the closet and pulled out a long dark blue skirt from the mess inside.

“Perfect, now everything will work out fine,” she blushed with concern at her next thought, “Just so long as I don’t get drunk around any samurai...”

It didn't take much longer for Lucy to get ready. She never cultivated an image the way her sister did, and ever since she started ‘self-medicating’ with a poorly tested street drug, it was hard for her to care a lick about her human appearance anyway. Her timing was impeccable at least, because it wasn't very long after making herself somewhat presentable that the door to her room flew open. Lucy nearly jumped into the air, but settled for a start when she considered the importance of hiding what was under her skirt.

“Tia... You could have knocked,” Lucy’s pout was genuine.

“I wish I could trust you enough to respect your privacy, Lucy, I really do...”

Lucy fought back the urge to correct her sister regarding choice of name, but considered it a losing battle. Sophia strode into the room dressed nicely, as usual. She had to be if she was going to be presentable for her waitressing job. It wasn't a glamorous position, but it was a very fine establishment, and the patrons tipped decently. Her blonde hair was kept relatively short, reaching just down to her shoulders. She had cut it, then, Lucy realized. Her job must have called for it. She’d been growing it out ever since they were kids. She was always a nut about her mane, ‘hair’ Luna corrected herself.

“You have class today, Lucy, you won’t be missing another one. Putting you through college is killing me, and you ‘will’ pass your classes...” Sophia said in a threatening tone dripping with barely contained frustration.

“Yes, of course, Tia. I’m all ready and everything. I just need to grab my bag.” She moved to pick it up before realizing exactly the kind of situation that would put her in.

“Uh... I’ll meet you in the car?” She smiled weakly.

Sophia crossed her arms. “In the last ten years, I've never once seen you wear a skirt, not unless I made you.” Her tone didn't even bother concealing her suspicion. “Don’t act like I haven’t been studying that drug of yours, pick up the bag,”

Lucy paused to consider whether her sister was that smart, or if she really was that bad at lying, at least to her. She noted for the first time that her skirt would shift slightly every so often, although there was no breeze in the room.

‘Okay, so I’m just a bad liar...’

“Tia, please listen to me...”

“Stop,” Sophia raised a hand to her forehead. She squinted her eyes in frustration before looking back up. “Do not call me that again. I’m not a part of your delusions, Lucy.” She lowered her hand and glared at her sister, moving toward her with anger emphasizing each step. “What are you hiding?”

Reluctantly, Lucy lowered her skirt just enough for her azure tail to tumble out. It looked beautiful to her, but Sophia’s face registered only disgust.

“You used again, didn't you?! I told you not to!” Lucy shrunk from her big sister’s words. “Do you want to end up like some kind of lunatic?! Why are you so hell-bent on turning yourself into some kind of animal?!”

Lucy simply nodded her head and took several steps back. Her body was pressed firmly against the wall, and even if she ‘were’ a good liar, her tail was advertising her fear very effectively. Sophia didn't even pay attention, she stormed through the room, flipping out drawers, overturning Lucy’s mattress, the whole nine yards. She was panting from the effort and from her own frustration before spotting something: an old music box their parents had left Lucy after they died.

Sophia reached out and tried to open the small container. Lucy flinched when her sister cracked it open over the side of the night stand, but couldn't help feeling like she should have expected that when she started locking it. Small capsules spilled out onto the floor and Sophia cried out in triumph, and placed the somewhat intact container back on top of her sister’s dresser.

“Stay right there, don’t move a muscle,” Sophia threatened before heading out the doorway.

Lucy almost didn't, until she noticed one of the little capsules had spilled out and rolled far enough across the floor to brush against her feet. She bent over and picked it up, squeezing it in her palm like a lifeline. She was just fast enough to go unnoticed by her sister, who returned with a large empty medicine bottle and began picking them up, one at a time, and placing them into the orange see-through container.

“You and I need to have a talk...” She practically growled. “I expect to see you in the kitchen in thirty minutes, I need time to cool off before I kill you or something.” Lucy had time to see the tears in the corner of her sister’s eyes before Sophia stormed off.

Lucy couldn't remember the last time she felt this guilty.

A Case of Mistaken Identity

Lucy hurried to the kitchen after cleaning up her appearance a bit. Her fist was clenched tightly around the capsule in her hand. The clatter of dishes echoed through the hallway, and only got louder as she rounded the corner. There her sister stood, frantically doing the dishes. She always cleaned things when she was frantic.

        “Hello?” Lucy timidly called from the threshold.

        Sophia turned her head with a kind of imperious scorn and started at her before responding. “We’re running late, I need you to make breakfast while I finish cleaning things up.”

        “But... if I cook while you clean, isn't it just going to make things dirty again?” Luna’s only response was a frantic glare and a twitchy eye. “Okay then... how about omelettes?”

        A large plate crashed from Sophia’s hands into the sink. “Omelettes would be fine, Luna... er... Lucy!” She shook her head, her lips tightening into an expression of pained exasperation.

        Lucy smiled weakly and removed a carton of eggs from the fridge. She loved omelettes, they weren't boring like cereal, and she didn't have to deal with any real meat. Honestly she preferred oatmeal, but her sister had placed an embargo on the substance quite a while ago, no doubt out of spite.

        The two sisters operated in silence. Each of them cast frantic glances between each other, clearly afraid of breaking the tension between the two. Luna started to whistle quietly as she loaded the ingredients into her sister’s omelette. After glancing behind her to check for scrutiny, she pried open the capsule and spilled the white powdery substance into the omelette as well. Her sister would understand, she was sure of it. All Tia needed was a little push. She’d understand why her little sister needed this stuff so badly.

        Lucy placed both plates across from each other and sat down before quietly enjoying her meal. Sophia shut off the water and dried her hands before sitting behind her own plate, she picked at it unhappily.

        “I’m sorry for how I talked to you...” She continued picking apart her omelette methodically, piece by piece, and Luna’s expression began to tense with worry. “And the music box I... Why would you hide something so disgusting inside of something so valuable?” Sophia’s eyes glistened with tears.

        Luna turned her eyes away out of guilt and shrugged her shoulders half-heartedly. “I don’t think it’s disgusting... I just... don’t. You’d understand if you just tried it!”

        Sophia looked away from her sister, and with a shudder, stabbed at the omelette and greedily devoured it. She coughed and choked back a short laugh. “You’re normally such a good cook Lucy, but this omelette tastes like chalk.”

        Lucy blushed, and stood up frantically. “Sorry! I’ll get you some Orange Juice, I must have just... used too much seasoning in one spot! That’s all...”

        “Mhm...” Sophia nodded quietly. When Lucy returned with a glass, she gratefully accepted and continued eating with a savagery that reminded Lucy all too readily of her ‘fake’ memory.

        Lucy picked nervously at her food and kept glancing around the room. How long was it going to take before this stuff kicked in? It’s supposed to be very fast acting, but... she’d never taken it without the casing before. What if the enzyme didn't survive the trip through the body? She began to yield to despair after finishing her meal, and that’s when she noticed something special, something that made her ecstatic.

        “So... Let’s talk.” Sophia wiped at her face with some paper towel and locked eyes with her sister. Lucy had to suppress a grin, her sister’s eyes were definitely bigger, and quite pink.

        “But of course, my dearest sister.” Lucy coughed. “Whatever shall speak about?”

        Sophia groaned, and absently scratched her arms. “Don’t play games with me Lucy! Remember? Drugs? We had a fight? You’re shirking your responsibilities?”

        Lucy rolled her eyes. “I’m not shirking my responsibilities! What about you? I hate being this way! I've never been happy before, and now that I've found something that fixes me you refuse to even try it, you won’t even acknowledge that you’re hurting just like me!” She placed her arm on the table and rested her head in her hand. “You don’t do anything but talk ‘at’ me, and never with me.”

        Sophia stared at her sister, taken off-guard by her sister’s sudden argument. “... Hooves off the table please.” She muttered quietly.

        With a smirk, Lucy lifted her elbow off of the counter and smiled. “Sure thing, just give me my medicine back so I can actually ‘have’ them...”

        “Luna, what are you talking about? Have your what?” Sophia clapped a hand over her mouth and winced. “Luna! Your name is Luna! I mean... Ugh!” It was right about then that she noticed the pristine white fur traveling up her arms with gentle flickering movements, like the flame from a lighter slowly engulfing a sheet of paper.

        Sophia’s chair clattered to the ground on its back as she frantically pushed away from it and fell on her rear. She let out a yelp of pain and looked down at the soft pink tail fighting its way free of her clothing. “Luna! You... You dosed me?!”

        Lucy averted her gaze, unable to stand the fear and accusation filling her sister’s eyes. “It’s for your own good Tia... Once you experience it, everything will be fine! You’ll see! Our lives aren't going to be ruined! This is good for us! Happiness is good for us!” She crawled over to her sister and embraced her comfortingly.

Sophia’s hands were locking up now, and tears were streaming down her eyes. “Why would you think this would make me happy?” She choked back her sobs. “I’m a freak! An animal!” She buried her nearly transformed face into Lucy’s chest and cried. Lucy had to deftly avoid being impaled on her sister’s new horn

What is going on? This isn't right! It’s supposed to be... pretty! It’s supposed to be magic! Why does this look so terrible while happening to her sister? Tia must be fighting it, that has to be it!

The sounds of popping clothing and stifled sobs echoed in Lucy’s mind. She did her best to comfort her sister while helping her out of her clothing. Her formerly shoulder length blonde hair had transformed into a billowing pink mane that should have been her sister’s pride and joy, but it looked pathetic the way her flesh seemed to bubble and hiss. Lucy reached a hand up and stroked her sister’s mane quietly.

“Shhh... Hush, Tia. This is you! Calm down and stop fighting it! I promise this isn’t bad, it’s good! It’s only terrible because you are ‘making’ it terrible!”

Her plan seemed to backfire however, her sister’s horn started to glow with a brilliant golden light, and the changes halted, some of them were even bouncing back and forth. Celestia looked up at her, one eye the appropriate size for a pony, the other struggling to avoid getting there, the colours dancing from green to pink and back.

“And why should I trust you?! You did this to me! You know I hate this! I hate everything about it! It’s improper! It’s indecent!” She looked down at herself and groaned in horror.

Her face set in an expression of grim determination. “Tia, where did you put the pills?”

“What? Why would I tell you that!?”

“Because I want to help you... Now please, tell me where they are!”

Celestia gestured with a hoof toward the bathroom with a hoof and sobbed at her appendage. “They’re on the tank of the toilet, I was going to get rid of them but... but we can sell them! I can’t work anymore days... I just can’t...”

Lucy stood up and dashed to the bathroom. She didn't really have to look, the bottle was sitting right there. She quickly snatched it up and returned to the kitchen, her azure trailing flicking behind her wildly.

“What are you going to do with them?” Celestia looked at her with great concern, her eyes were no longer miss matched, they were both very large and perfectly pink.

“I’m going to show you what this ‘should’ be like!” Lucy popped the top off the bottle and downed one of the capsules. She then began to quickly disrobe in front of her still gruesome sister.

“Luna, no! Please stop this... Please...” Celestia lowered her head and started to hyperventilate.

Lucy rushed over to her sister, now completely nude and keeping her tail close for warmth. She wrapped her fingers around her sister’s changing face and pulled her head back up. “No Tia... You need to look at me, do you understand?”

Celestia bit her lower lip, tears still streaming down her face, but she nodded.

With great care, Lucy removed her hands from her sister and scooted back. She lifted her head and closed her eyes. Her face adopted a serene expression as her own changes began to reveal themselves.

Celestia looked on in wonder. She had never really bothered looking at someone while they transformed. There were videos on the internet, but she never wanted to actually see the process. More than anything she needed it to be distant, she needed it to be cold and gruesome and out of a textbook.

Luna was right, it ‘was’ like magic... In fact, it was like two forces colliding. A brief struggle seemed to make her body twitch. Black cracks began to crawl across her skin as though she were made from delicate fine china, and flakes of skin started to drift up like pale white fire, and not flesh. There was something enchanting about the whole process, and Celestia looked down to see her own body following its example. She... couldn't recall ever learning ‘from’ Luna before. For the first time she could remember, she felt like the younger sister. She crawled forward and rested her head against Luna’s. Tears continued to stream down her face, but now she was smiling.

The soft golden light from her horn ceased being a source of opposition, and Luna smiled at her. It was unsettling... Her sister’s eyes were now much larger, and filled with a blinding white light. But Luna seemed ‘proud’ of her, and that made her feel happier than she had in a very long time.

Celestia closed her eyes and spoke softly. “I’m so sorry Luna. I don’t know what’s wrong with me sometimes...”

A gentle voice hushed her, and she felt the tickle of feathers against her fur. “Don’t be upset sister... I’ve gotten used to it.”

Celestia laughed, and the pair curled up around each other as they bathed in the light cast by each other’s magic.

_________

        Luna held her sister close for a few minutes after the proverbial dust cleared. Her eyes filled with sympathy as she rose to her hooves and stared at her sister’s new form, shivering as it was absent her company. She reached out a hoof and nudged Celestia.

        “Come on then, we need you to get you on your hooves. I don’t want your entire recollection of this experience to be... well, ‘that’.”

        Celestia looked up at her with pleading eyes. “Must I? I’d really rather just stay right here with you...” Her eyes darted around the room, fixating on anything that wasn’t her own body. With a weary sigh her wings stretched ever so slightly. Her eyes widened in panic and her wings snapped back against her sides with a rustle of feathers.

        Luna, seeming to notice the wings for the very first time, bounced around her sister in glee. “Ha ha! I knew it, I knew it! I knew you’d be just like me!” She stopped just in front of her sister and gave her a very enthusiastic hug.

        “I... What?” Celestia’s mouth hung open in shock and confusion.

        Luna reached down and gently seized one of Celestia’s wings between her hooves and pulled them into seeing range. “Wings! You’ve got wings and a horn, just like me!”

        “But... I’m pretty sure I’ve read that everypony gets either one or the other, nopony has both.”

        After returning to a more comfortable sitting position Luna smiled and nodded. “Exactly! As far as I know, we’re the only two who got ‘all of the above’! Isn’t it exciting?!”

        Celestia did her best to raise herself up on four shaking hooves, but collapsed to the floor in a heep. “Very...” she sighed.

        Luna lifted a hoof to her face and tried not to laugh. “This reminds me, I get to teach you how to walk!”

        “Don’t be ridiculous, I’m sure I can walk just fine! I just need to...” Celestia’s words were interrupted as once again her hooves tangled around each other and she slammed into the floor. During her reunion with the floor she had time to appreciate the thick carpeting of their home.

        This time Luna didn’t bother concealing her mirth. She trotted over to her sister and sat down, lifting her troubled sibling to a sitting position with a wing. “For now, we should probably start from a sitting position.” Luna demonstrated by resting on her haunches. Her front legs were kept perfectly straight with her hooves about a foot and a half apart.

        Celestia’s limbs wobbled as she struggled to balance herself, but after a few moments she managed to achieve some kind of equilibrium. She looked to her sister with a worried expression.

        “Okay, now what?”

        “Now you simply extend your rear legs until you’re standing.” Luna stared at her sister intently, and held a wing over her in case she needed to catch her.

        Celestia shook like a leaf as she cautiously tried to stand. Her legs wobbled like she was a newborn foal. She stumbled a few times, but seemed to be getting the hang of things. With a relieved sigh she cried out. “Ha! I did it! That didn’t take long at all!”

        Luna snickered and took a step forward. “Yes, your first time standing up was most graceful! Now we’re going to get you walking.”

        Celestia’s triumphant expression vanished immediately. “But... But I like standing! This is a very enlightening experience, standing. Standing here has taught me that you were right all along! There’s no reason for us to go anywhere!”

        Luna frowned at her sister and took a few steps forward. “Just try to copy me, okay?”

        Celestia bit her lip and nodded. Her left forehoof rose into the air to mimic her sister in mid-step.

        The pair continued like that. Celestia learned quickly, although Luna did take a small measure of pride in the fact that she learned much faster, and on her own, than her sister did. It didn’t take long before Celestia was cantering merrily through out the apartment.

        “Ha! Next we shall teach thee the magic of flight!” Luna raised a hoof triumphantly.

        “W-what? No! We are not flying Luna!” Celestia trembled, fell back on her haunches, and did her best to scoot away from the mad mare.

        Luna rolled her eyes and trotted over, wrapping a wing around her big sister. “Fine, fine, no flying. But we’re definitely going to take you to a mirror so you can get a good look at yourself-”

        Celestia jumped to her hooves with a start. Her wings flew out in a panic, knocking her sister against the wall.

        “Hey! Watch it!”

        “I’m sorry, but I’d really rather not do that either.” Celestia took a few steps backward. Luna was actually a bit impressed, it seemed her sister did just fine when she wasn't over thinking things.

        “And why not? You’re not still worried about your appearance are you? Sister, you look like some kind of amazing horse god!”

        Celestia finally stopped backing up when she hit the wall behind her. “I don’t want to see what I look like. I’m afraid that if I do, I’ll turn into you...”

        Luna tilted her head. “Don’t be absurd Tia, I’m blue.”

        “That is not what I meant!” Celestia was becoming even more frantic than when she had first started changing. “We’re human, Luna! We’re only like this because of some pill!” She brushed at her leg with a hoof nervously. “I don’t want to see myself and find out that this is more real to me than being human...”

        Luna was by her side almost before she was aware of the movement. She stared at her sister with pleading eyes. “Please Tia? I just really want you to know what I’m talking about... How I feel about all of this. I can’t really communicate it, you need to see it yourself!”

        “No! Absolutely not! You’re lucky I forgive you for dosing me in the first place!” Celestia turned her face away and lifted her nose into the air with disdain.

        “Fine, you brought this on yourself sister!” Luna bit her lip and her horn started to glow with a pale blue light.

        “Luna... Luna what are you doing?” Celestia stared at her sister’s horn in abject terror. “Stop that! Do you even know what you’re doing?!”

        They both had read the threads, some ponies could allegedly do magic. Neither of them had any idea of what Luna was attempting, however. Most were content to lift up a sheet of paper, a few could manage a book, but the aura from Luna’s horn grew in size until it engulfed both of them.

        ‘Mirror... I need a mirror... The bedroom! Perfect!’ Luna’s thoughts inspired a wave of emotion in her. A deep longing to be in front of those closet doors that doubled as mirrors filled her, and then in a flash of light, they were there.

        Celestia let out a yelp of surprise as the pair defied the laws of Space itself, or at least took advantage of one they were unaware of. “Luna what did you-” She stopped her rant mid-sentence and stared at the door length mirror with wide pink eyes.

        Luna stared smugly at her sister’s reflection. “So, ‘now’ do you understand?”

        Celestia quietly trotted forward and rested a white hoof against the mirror. Her mouth hung open and shock as she took in her large regal wings and her wavy pink mane.

        “Luna?”

        “Yes Tia?”

        “Where are we going to get enough of those pills to last us a lifetime?”

        Luna’s ears lowered, and she stared at the ground. “I uh... actually, I hadn’t thought about that...”

        “No, I suppose you wouldn’t have...” Celestia continued to be hypnotized by her reflection.

        Luna noticed a pair of feathers fall from her wing and float delicately to the ground before rotting away. She stared at her sister, a trace of nervousness in her voice. “We should really get you away from the mirror now...”

        Celestia stared quietly as her eyes shifted from pink to green. “We are in my room.”

        “Erm... Yes?”

        “I want you to leave.”

        “I don’t really think that’s a good idea...”

        “You are going to leave, ‘now’. You are going to shut the door behind you.” Celestia’s voice carried a dark tone that inspired terrifying fake memories in Luna. She winced as she felt her heart plunged into an unspeakable coldness. For a brief moment she felt more alone and isolated than ever before, as though stolen away somewhere for what felt like an eternity.

        “Alright... I’m going. But you really shouldn't watch-” The door slammed behind Luna with a flash of golden light once she had crossed the threshold. With a dejected sigh she trotted to her room, retrieved a blanket, and curled up in the den.

        She was so despondent, she didn't even notice when her body was back to normal, except for the tail. The first thing to snap her out of her reverie was her sister, naked except for a large blanket wrapped around her body and head like a cloak. Sophia walked into the kitchen and grabbed a capsule from the medicine bottle before swallowing it, her face was still stained with tears.

        Lucy stared at her sister with concern, and trembled in sorrow at what she said next.

        “I hope you know, you ruined me Luna...”

I Told You About Meat

        Lucy spent much of the day curled up in her room. She didn’t go anywhere near the bottle of pills, not when it involved interacting with her sister. She was so ashamed of herself. She had completely forgotten about her class and Tia’s job while putting her plan into action. All she could think about was getting her sister to understand what was wrong with her. Now it seemed as though Celestia understood only too well.

        The first time the phone rang she ignored it, and so did Celestia. The second time it rang she walked timidly into the living room to answer it, and arrived just in time to see her sister yanking the cord out of the wall with her teeth and biting down hard enough to cut clean through the wire. Celestia stared at Lucy for a moment with an exhausted expression, and then beckoned her over.

        “Come on Luna, you should take some medicine too...” She gently slid the bottle of pills toward her with a hoof.

        Lucy shook her head and backed away. “I... I’m not sure I want to right now...”

        With a sigh, Celestia trotted over to their communal computer, and with a flap of her wings she leapt into the chair.

        “What are you doing?” Lucy called to her sister from the safe distance of ‘across-the-room’.

        “I’m doing research, looking for dealers, trying to figure out where this comes from.” Her elder sister replied without turning her head. “Some of the specifics of it are quite fascinating.”

        “Oh?” Lucy’s meek demeanor did not waver as she crossed the distance between them. She rested her chin on Celestia’s shoulder and stared at the screen intently. “Isn’t it hard to use that without hands?”

        Celestia chuckled in the face of Lucy’s concern, and her horn cast a serene yellow light down on her keyboard. “Actually, I think I’m getting the hang of this ‘magic’ thing. In fact it almost seems more intuitive than hands.” She shivered at the very idea of using hands to browse the web. The keys clicked and clacked like they possessed a mind of their own, and Celestia tilted her gaze toward Lucy. “Luna, would you please take some medicine? You’re really starting to make me feel anxious.”

        “Why? Earlier today you never wanted me to touch this stuff again, now it’s almost like you never want to be human again...” Lucy lowered her head and wrapped her hands around her now unkempt tail. She didn’t have any issue with never being human again, she thought, but Celestia was moving so fast. It was like making her drop her mask had changed her completely. Sophia was just... gone without a trace.

        “And what if I don’t want to be human again?” Celestia responded with an inquisitive tone. “Luna, ever since I started taking this... this medicine, I keep remembering things. What if we were never human to begin with?”

        Lucy’s grip around her tail tightened and she yelped in surprise and pain. She took a step back. “I don’t know... what about Mom and Dad? They were human, right?”

        “Think really, really hard. Can you even remember that much about them?” Celestia frowned. “Because I can’t really remember anything, except that they existed. All I remember is the two of us being kicked around from home to home.”

        Lucy’s eyes widened as she struggled to remember anything about her parents. They didn’t even have a picture of them, the closest thing they had to a real connection was the music box Celestia had broken just that morning.

        “I... actually, I don’t remember anything about them, not even their names!”

        Celestia swerved in her chair and focused her attention on the monitor in front of her. “Luna, really, please take your medicine.”

        Lucy paced over to the bottle lying on the floor and carefully removed a capsule. She noticed with some dismay that there was already three less than when she had left Celestia alone.

        “Um... Soph- I mean Tia... How often are you taking these?”

        “That is something that has me concerned as well. Most individuals seem to report the effects lasting for hours, I’ve needed to take one every thirty minutes. At least, they didn’t last as long as the first once, and it seems like the duration is getting shorter and shorter.”

        “Well... I don’t think I’ve ever heard of somepony chaining them like this. I think most use it as a special occasion type thing.” Lucy finally swallowed the tiny capsule and took a seat on the floor. It didn’t take long before the inevitable changes swept through her like a tide. She had never taken two doses in such a short amount of time. Everything about her form felt more real, and there was something else as well. Luna could feel the distant tug of some far off force, like a kind of gravity. Instinctively she turned toward the window and noticed that the sun had begun it’s journey over the horizon. It would be night time soon.

        “Tia, I feel really weird all of a sudden. This is different than before.”

        With a soft rustle of feathers, Celestia left the chair and landed on the ground near Luna. She trotted forward with the skill of somepony who had been walking on hooves their whole life, and gave her sister an affectionate nuzzle. “I know, I can feel it too. The longer we stay like this, the stronger everything feels. That is why I am not so quick to believe that taking this in rapid succession is affecting its potency. Something else is at work here...” She sat beside Luna, and together they watched the sun’s descent over the horizon. “I’ve been thinking about your tail Luna.”

        Luna cocked her head and stammered. “My tail? What about it?”

        Celestia lowered her eyes and frowned, a soft hint of desperation echoed in her voice. “I’m not really sure what to say about it. But, I think it’s hope?” She leaned into her sister and wrapped a wing around her. “To me it is the hope that if we keep taking our medicine, eventually we won't need it anymore. Eventually we’ll be... We’ll be...”

        “Fixed?” Luna offered with a faint smile.

        “Yes! Exactly that!” Celestia hugged Luna tightly. “You always knew how to word things just so...”

        The two sat there for awhile longer, right up until their reverie was interrupted by the growling of empty stomachs. Luna and Celestia stared at each other with a mixture of embarrassment and mirth.

        “So, who’s making dinner?” Luna asked with a laugh.

        “I think you should! I’m a waitress, not a cook. You’ve always been better at it than me, and tonight is a special occasion!”

        Luna huffed and flailed her front hooves in the air above her. “But sissss... I don’t even know how to use magic! How am I supposed to prepare dinner using hooves?!”

        “That didn’t seem to stop you from... from teleporting me in front of that mirror earlier!”

        “Fine...” Luna began operation crocodile-tears in earnest. “But you need to help and give a few pointers!”

        “Of course, I’ll help you!” Celestia ruffled her sister’s mane with a hoof, and together they trotted into the kitchen.

        With a flash of magic, Celestia opened the door to their refrigerator and grimaced. “Ugh, I can’t believe I bought those nice steaks from the store... I guess they’re pretty much useless now.”

        Luna opened her mouth to ask “Hey, what are you talking about?” It didn’t seem like Celestia paid her much attention however. Her elder sister seized the apparently offensive food items in her magical aura and trotted toward the trash receptacle with them. She let out a cry of alarm as a blue blur sped through the air and tackled her, pinning her to the ground.

“What are you doing?! Don’t throw that away!” Luna cried out with a degree of panic that was comical.

        Celestia eyed her sister carefully from her subdued position. “Luna, we are ponies, we do not eat meat.”

        “Yes we do!”

        Celestia cocked her head and frowned. “Is that right?”

        Apparently aware that she had grappled her sibling to the floor, Luna backed off and ran a hoof through her fur, her gaze leveled at the floor. “Sometimes we do?”

        Celestia rose to her haunched and straightened a few feathers in her wings. “Luna, am I to believe these cows did not offer you the appropriate amount of candy this year?”

        “What?”

        “Forget it... So do you want to eat one of these steaks tonight, or are you just goofing around?”

        “Tonight! Tonight! I’d love to have one of them tonight!” Luna practically bounced up and down with glee. She loved the meat group as a human, and her enjoyment of it didn’t seem to change even if she was technically a herd animal.

        Celestia shivered. “You always were the morbid one back home, at least here we know you couldn’t hold a conversation with your steak in advance.”

        Luna tilted her head and fumbled with the handle of a skillet that had been clenched between her teeth. She lowered it gently onto the stove and made a face at the taste. “Nothing you just said made any sense, Tia.”

        “I know!” Celestia placed one of the steaks and an assortment of veggies on the counter before laughing hysterically.

        “So... how are you doing the levitating thing?” Luna gestured in the air with a hoof.

        “I imagine it’s the same thing you did with the teleportation. As far as spells go, it barely even qualifies as such. Just reach out with your ‘soul’ and want it.” Celestia stared at the ceiling more than her sister, and she waved her hoof about like someone who was nervous and unsure of what to do with themselves.

        Luna furrowed her brow and groaned. “Alright, here goes nothing I guess...” She stared at the dial controlling the stove burner, and puffed her cheeks out in concentration. Her horn radiated  a soft blue aura, and the two sisters stared at the knob expectantly.

        “You must be doing it wro-” Celestia was interrupted by a loud pop. The knob flew off of the rod and struck her in the eye. She flinched and cried out in shock more than pain.

        Luna trotted over and reached out to her sister with a hoof. “I must be doing it wrong,” she sighed.

        Celestia rubbed at her eyelid with a hoof before lifting the knob into the air and firmly placing it in its home. “Quite. I think I’ll do all of the finer actions for now...”

        Luna nodded in compliance, but as soon as her sister’s back was turned she began to experiment with the various spices. Some of them had lids that were twisted on, and there was just no way she was going to open them with her teeth. An unseasoned steak was next to heresy, and she was not about to give up after one botched attempt.

        Instead of concentrating, or forcing her magic to do the assigned task, she applied a new method. She thought about the juicy meal that awaited her, and how desperately she wanted it. From there her intuition took hold. It was less a show of mental force, and more a fine act. Gently she encouraged her magic as one might compose a work of fiction, or music. To her, it was as though the lid was being removed because ‘that was what had to happen’. The very activity threatened to overwhelm her with a wellspring of memories. She had never felt so intimately connected to the events surrounding her, and it was with unparalleled joy that she became certain that this feeling would never become a mundane chore for her.

        The soft applause of hooves against tile floor from behind her made her jump. She spun around to see her sister with a wide grin on her face. “Good job Luna! I’m so proud of you!”

        Luna’s heart leapt in her chest, she couldn’t remember the last time Celestia had ever spoken to her in such a way, and with that elated tone of voice. Truly this was shaping up to be the best night ever.

_________

Together the two sisters set their table, and ate in peace for the first time in as long as they could remember. Ordinarily Luna would be eating alone, and her sister would be stuck working until late, but tonight there were no such concerns. Tonight they were themselves again, and nothing could spoil that.

        “So Tia...” Luna levitated a fork and knife and worried away at her steak. “Did you come up with any ideas on how to make sure we have enough medicine to stay this way until...” She dare not complete the hopeful thought, and risk jinxing the possibility.

        Celestia raised a napkin to her face and dabbed at her chin with regal precision. “As a matter of fact, I have!” She beamed at her younger sister and lowered the napkin. “Did you know the girl who discovered the enzyme inhibitor lives in this city? She’s actually a bit younger than you.”

        “Ooooh...” Lune chewed pensively on her food, her teeth seemed a bit sharper than Celestia remembered. “So we’re going to go visit her then?”

        “I am not sure how well received we will be, but I certainly intend to make an honest effort!” Celestia frowned at her ill-mannered sibling. “Luna, please chew with your mouth closed, you’re really creeping me out...”

        “Sorry sis, I’ll try to keep the spectacle to a minimum!” Luna mumbled happily through another gruesome mouthful of seared meat.

If it were at all possible, Celestia would have grown even paler at her sister’s display. She quietly pushed her empty plate away from herself with a hoof and crawled down from her perch on the chair. “I think you’ll be doing the dishes tonight, actually. Come find me when you’re done...”

Luna groaned from the table. “But that’s not fair! I cooked!”

Celestia ignored her sister and headed back to the computer. She stared at the medicine bottle laying on the floor, and then made a cursory inspection of her body. That was most peculiar. It had been hours since her last dose and she appeared to be just fine. When she was upset and Luna was hiding from her, she had needed the capsules every thirty minutes. In that kitchen it was as though some great cosmic justice had come into effect. It had felt so good to be that happy with her sister again. It was always wonderful to see harmony once again descend upon the land.

Harmony...

Celestia quietly began to scan any of her notes for any mention of that word. She was about to give up when she stumbled upon a paper by the young girl who had discovered the the process in the first place. An investigative study on homeostasis. A body that was in-sync with itself. The harmony of natural bodily functions. It would appear as though this chemical’s presence in the body was a bizarre anomaly that only a few could claim. Celestia’s face scrunched up with disdain. The whole affair was very random and, and chaotic! It reeked with deceit. She ‘was’ Celestia, she was sure of it! Something was very very wrong here.

A soft popping sound broke her reverie, and she stared down in bewilderment at one of her white hooves. A large dark crack had started to form in it’s surface, and she could feel the flesh on the bottom spasm with discomfort. Panic seized her heart and she made a dash for the bottle of pills. She really did have no idea what she’d do if they ever ran out.

That would be just terrible, and was better off put out of mind.

Luna trudged her way into the room not long after Celestia finished another dose. Her face was an expression of misery, and she eventually came to a stop in front of her sister. She collapsed onto the floor and rolled onto her side. “Oohhh... My stars... It hurts sooo much...”

Celestia snickered, covering her mouth demurely with a hoof. “We told thee sister, we told thee about meat!”

“But it was so good...” she sighed in defeat.

Celestia trotted over to her sister and lay beside her, shielding her fallen sibling with a wing. “Hush little moon princess, take heed! Thy sister shall avenge thee!”

Luna let out a yelp of laughter, and Celestia could swear that her brilliant white fur was actually glowing. She couldn’t remember ever having felt this good in her entire life as a human. There was a nagging sensation at the back of her mind, a renegade thought passed through her mind and was narrowly defined. Laughter... That is important in times like these.

She shook her head before resting against Luna. “Thank you for being a stubborn foal and slipping me that medicine...”

Luna didn’t even bother responding, she was already drifting off to sleep. Celestia inspected her sister’s form for any imperfections, and couldn’t find a single one. Every aspect of her form was pristine and far from the dull discolourations that signaled what they both now feared more than anything. The erratic duration of the dosages was something that Teresa girl had recorded. Her comments indicated the possibility that stress had a massive impact, but Celestia couldn’t shake the feeling that she wasn’t being entirely honest with the public.

She lowered her head and rested her eyes. Such feelings were a problem for future Celestia to handle. Right now she wanted only to love and be loved by her sister.

A Natural Regression

        Celestia’s ears flicked nervously. There were many ponies who considered her akin to a god, and stifling their interpretation of her nature had been a losing battle. After all, what was a god anyway, except someone or something you could rely on? Throughout the years, Celestia’s power and influence had grown, and there were many who considered her unstoppable. When coupled with her natural agelessness, convincing the world she was anything less than divine was an uphill battle.

        However, it was in places like this that she became all too aware of her own faults and frailties. Were gods supposed to be afraid of the dark? She wandered aimlessly through a dark and tangled wood. Of course she did not fear all darkness, the night belonged to her sister, not to her, but she had come to love it as she did Luna. The absence of light that clung to the trees and winding paths in this place was something primordial and terrifying, outdating even the night.

        A ruined castle? So this forest had not always been in such a state. Surely things had to have been different before, brighter before, for anyone to build such a structure. Such a strange familiar structure...

        Words were etched into stone and metal that danced merrily out of reach of Celestia’s recollections. Every fiber in her body was tense with fear. It cried out with a need to flee, but curiosity was always a weakness that she could never deny.

        Soft rustling sounds echoed through the halls, leading her deeper into the castle.

        The shadows were thick here. They pinched at pulled at Celestia’s coat and feathers. Her ears lowered and her hooves fidgeted nervously in place. ‘I need to see what’s down there, I need to know what happened.’ she thought desperately. With a dramatic flap of her wings, she barreled down the corridor at full speed. Loose feathers danced in her wake and their lustrous white light was vanquished and consumed by the trailing shadows.

        She founds herself in a large courtroom, but the thrones were removed, and in their place stood two gaping black holes. They were frightening to her, and oozed a kind of metaphorical hunger one can only find it dreams, or nightmares.

        ‘So, that is what this is... This is just a nightmare. Luna will be here to fetch me soon.’ Celestia nodded her head and wore a serene smile. Just thinking of her sister elevated her spirits. She was disturbed by the way her wings continued to shed precious white feathers, however.

It’s not your fault, Celestia

Everything is your fault, Celestia...

Celestia yelped in surprise as booming sounds and soft whispers echoed up from the holes at the back of the room.

This is where Luna gave into Despair, not you

This is where you gave into despair

Celestia closed her eyes and took a step back, one of her hooves lifted into the air. She was terrified, and her body was taking measures of its own in case she needed to flee, which it assured her, was very much the best idea right now.

        ‘No, you do not run from nightmares... Luna taught you that, remember? If you run, they are only going to give chase, and you cannot outrun a nightmare.’ She struggled to take a step forward. ‘Stay strong Celestia. Think of your subjects, think of Luna, think of...’ Someone very important was missing, and Celestia’s panic began to overwhelm her in the presence of that empty part of her. Biting her lip, she struggled to focus on the harmony that had once been a part of her, the harmony that was the lifeblood of Equestria, and separated it from the endless chaos beyond.

This is where harmony died

This is where harmony died

        The Everfree Forest, that is what this place had become. For all of her power, her age, and her wisdom, nothing could ever heal the rift between Equestria and the Everfree Forest. Just as nothing could ever heal the rift between Luna and herself. Truly, this is where harmony had died. She no longer held any claim to it.

        Celestia cried out as her coat became a lifeless gray. Clumps of fur began to slip out and tumble to the floor, and her wings became a skeletal mess. She struggled to maintain her composure, her identity, but everything was being ripped from her. Who she was, and what she was no longer seemed relevant. It was that period of shock after being engulfed by icy water stretched out over a long period of time.

        A malevolent chatter echoed through the cold, and Celestia found she had been counting on it gloating at her. What unsettled her was the small detail that this voice did not inspire any memories in her. It was not whom she had expected. Even that awareness was stripped from her as she struggled in the cold, but amidst that sensation was a faint warmth, the image of two sisters curled up on a carpet laughing at each other.

‘At least I’m not entirely alone, as long as I think of her. It is perhaps more than I deserve.’

        The rest of Celestia’s dreams were quite inconsequential, except for one. In this dream she walked on two legs, and struggled to serve a man seated at one of her tables. It was terrifying, though she did not know why. The only thing she’d remember about the individual was his strangely familiar chittering voice.

It’s time to go back to work, Sophia

you’re failing in your responsibilities, Sophia. What would your parents think?

_________

Lucy awoke with a start. She was so close that time! Dreams had become so distant and immaterial to her ever since... Wait, since when? When were dreams ever anything more than dreams to her? She shivered and looked down at her smooth white skin. She must have changed back in the middle of the night. Celest— Sophia, must have let her sleep in. She wrapped a nearby discarded blanket around herself and looked around. She spotted that familiar bottle of medicine and took another dose. Sophia may have scared her with how gung-ho she was about things, but yesterday really had been... well, ‘magic’. The tide of bright indigo fur began to claim her limbs, the old human skin danced in the air like motes of light, like fireflies. Luna sighed and buried her face into the blanket. She never wanted what had happened yesterday to end, and as long as they still had their medicine it didn’t have to.

        The changes had finished. She swore it was taking less and less time, but decided not to question her happy fortune. She gave a mighty yawn and stretched her way out from under the blanket, then she trotted over to the kitchen where Celestia would no doubt be waiting for her, impatient for food as always. The appetite of an alicorn was something to be feared! Luna giggled softly, but her mirth died in her throat when she looked into the kitchen.

        Sophia was sitting at the table. Her hands fidgeted with her blonde hair. She was tying it back, and otherwise dressed for work. Luna’s heart sank, it felt like the day before had been just a dream. This wasn’t her sister. What had happened? Luna’s eyes widened when she got a good luck at Sophia’s. They, at least, were still the most unearthly shade of pink.

        “Um... Tia, you didn’t take your medicine.” Luna levitated the bottle over sheepishly and placed it on the table between them.

        Sophia jumped, it was as though she hadn’t even been aware of Luna’s presence until that very moment. “I can’t take any of that today, Lucy! I’ve got to go to work! Some of us still have to.” She bent down and ran a hand through Luna’s mane. Luna wanted to resist the odd sensation of disgust, but she could help it. She flinched when her sister’s hand touched her.

        “But... but what about yesterday!? We were happy! Weren’t we going to see that girl? You said everything would be fine!”

        “Lucy, I was on drugs when I said all of that. You’re on drugs right now! You’re not thinking rationally. You’re not thinking responsibly, and now yet again I have to take over for the both of us.” Sophia stared at her sister coldly, her pink eyes seemed to lose a bit of their luster.

        Luna felt the laughter in her heart start to flicker and die. The world was becoming familiar in a disconcerting way. ‘Taking over, for the both of us...’ Luna shivered as she contemplated that distant memory of isolation and loneliness that ever taunted her from the back of her mind.

        “If you want to contribute, you can get dressed and be ready for your class by the time it’s time for me to go. I’m sure your professor will understand your absence yesterday, given the circumstances.”

        Luna’s mouth dropped open and practically struck the table. “Tia! But... But I’m a pony!”

        Sophia narrowed her eyes. “If something is interfering with your duties, perhaps you should remove the obstruction?”

        “You’re asking me to... After yesterday? I thought you understood!?”

        Sophia rose from her seat and slammed it back under the table. “I took the time to understand your point of view, but have you considered trying to see things from mine? You are selfish Lucy, utterly selfish!”

        Luna narrowed her eyes and trotted over to Sophia, she stopped a foot away and jabbed at her pelvis with a hoof. “You are ‘not’ my sister! Take your medicine and give her back! I want my sister back!”

        Sophia smacked Luna’s hoof away and scowled at her. “Forget it, I’m leaving now. You can spend the rest of the day locked up here accomplishing nothing for all I care.”

        Luna shivered at the idea of being locked up.

‘She’s right, I ‘am’ selfish... No! I need to stop her, this isn’t right! She knew that last night. She told me so! I just need to have faith in her, and in myself. But what are you going to do, Luna, refuse to lower the moon?’

Sophia stormed toward the door and opened it. She yelped when a deep blue aura engulfed it and slammed it shut before she could put so much as one foot past its threshold. She turned around and stared at the pony responsible.

Luna stood at the entrance to the kitchen, her face was more defiant and fierce than Sophia could ever remember. “You’re right Celestia. I ‘do’ have responsibilities, and apparently they include making sure my sister takes her medicine, because she’s too much of a fussy foal to do it herself!”

        “Lucy, I swear if you don’t let me open this door right now, I will ‘never’ forgive you!”

        “No!” Luna galloped over and wrapped her hooves around her sister’s legs. “Tia, snap out of it! I know you’re in there! I saw it! Remember last night? Remember what you said?”

        “Ugh... Get off of me you damned freak!” Sophia kicked her leg out and knocked Luna to her haunches. She looked around desperately before grabbing a book off of a nearby shelf, and spun around to slam it right into her sister’s horn.

        Luna could not remember ever feeling something as physically painful as that. They both had abusive caretakers in the past, but getting hit with a belt just didn’t compare. It was like the impact shook its way down her horn and into her soul. She could feel some deep metaphysical part of herself crumble, and she had to consider the possibility that her horn wasn’t the only thing injured in that attack. What was it her sister had called her? A freak? She buried her face under her hooves and cried. She didn’t even hear her sister leave.

        When she finally composed herself she was alone. The only company surrounding her was a small pile of blue feathers and clumps of fur on either side of her.

‘Well, that dose didn’t last long.’ Luna thought bitterly before popping another capsule into her mouth.

_________

        Sophia was quite early to arrive at her bus stop. This was a small blessing as it allowed her the time to straighten out her outfit. She fumed as she straightened out wrinkles in her slacks and dress shirt as best she could. She even found a few blue hairs and a stray feather that dissolved in the breeze as soon as she brushed them away.

‘How could I have said that to her? Oh sun, I am making the same mistakes all over again. My precious Luna...’ Sophia shook her head frantically. ‘No! Her name is Lucy! We’re not repeating anything! I can’t afford to let go of my humanity, I have responsibilities. I’m not like her!’

Sophia lowered herself onto the bench and lifted her hands to rub at her temples. She stopped herself when she got a good look at her hands. A feeling of intense revulsion took root in her gut and she shoved both of them under her legs where she wouldn’t have to look at them.

        More than anything she wanted to dash back into that building and go back to being with her sister, but how could she show her face after what she had just done? She didn’t deserve the kind of happiness that had been there just a night prior. She rose from the bench and turned back toward her home, but hesitated. More than anything she wanted a sign of what to do, and the bus rounding the corner made her mind up for her. She would go to work, someone had to keep a roof over her stubborn sister’s head.

‘And what exactly am I being, then, if not stubborn?’

        The bus ride was uneventful as always. On occasion she caught a few people staring at her with thoughtful expressions, but nothing troubling ever came of it. She did her best to keep her eyes out of sight.

        Her manager had more than a few choice words waiting for her when she finally arrived. He wanted to know where she had been the day before, why her phone line had been disconnected mid-call. These were some pretty serious questions Sophia didn’t have a real answer for, and lying had never been her strong suit. She did the only thing she could think of, she blamed Luna.

        “I’m sorry sir, my sister was acting up again. I-”

        “Your sister isn’t my problem, you are.” The tall gaunt man practically stabbed her throat with a pointed finger. “No more excuses, if I have anymore trouble from you you’re gone. You think there’s not plenty of potential servers out there? We’re in the middle of a recession sweetheart. The only thing keeping me from firing you is the bullshit hassle of actually having to do my job, but I’ll do it if you make me, so help me God!”

        Sophia blinked in surprise. At the very least the man was honest, even if he seemed needlessly violent.

        “Well? Get the fuck out there.” Throughout the entire conversation he never once raised his voice. His tone sped up and contained a malice that gave Sophia the impression that he was finding it very difficult to articulate just how much he hated her. She took a step back before turning to leave, and even that intimidated her. She was terrified that in his anger he’d finally lash out at her as soon as an opportunity presented itself.

        Her day wasn’t improving anytime soon. A few of the customers sneered at her once they got a good look at her eyes. Some gave knowing smirks, and one even had the audacity to refer to her as horse girl the entire time she was assigned to that table. None of them tipped her. After all, she was probably just going to spend it on drugs anyway, right? Sophia frequently found herself taking bathroom breaks so she could rinse out her eyes and hide the tears. She stared into those eyes for her entire rest break before slamming her fist into the mirror, but all she accomplished was bruising her wrist and knuckles.

_________

        Luna paced through the house quietly, albeit with the occasional high pitched yell or curse.

        “How could I have let her leave like that?!” She kicked the wall with a rear hoof and narrowly avoided putting a hole in it. With an undignified grunt of anger she slumped over on the floor and stared at the bottle of medicine she’d been carrying around with her.

        An echo of the laughter they had shared the night before drifted up from her memories, and Luna’s expression slipped into a smile. ‘There’s still time, I can still help her. I just need to prove that I’ll always be there for her. I need to show her my devotion!’

        Luna fidgeted and felt a surge of warmth radiate from her back. She turned her head to take a look, half expecting to see more feathers had fallen out, heralding the need for another dose. That would be bad, because the bottle was already running out of pills. What she saw instead shocked her. Her wings were ever so slightly larger, the plumage had to be fuller as well. Not only were they not degrading, they seemed healthier than they had ever been. Her coat had always been a cool indigo that matched her mane and tail quite nicely, but at the tips of her feathers she could see that brighter colour being replaced with a dark royal blue. The overall effect was quite stunning, and Luna felt a surge of pride and purpose.

She trotted towards her dresser and dragged out the bottom drawer. It was filled entirely with odd knick-knacks and assorted junk she’d never bothered to throw away over the years. Among these relics was a digital camera she had gotten from one of their nicer foster parents. The family had identified Luna’s ‘artistic talents’ early on and sought to encourage it. Preferably while spending as little money as possible. The thought was commendable, but she never could bring herself to care about it. The real treasure right now was the pouch and looped drawstring it came with.

Luna lifted the pouch into the air and tugged it open with a sharp pull of magic. The pill bottle floated gracefully into the satchel and another sharp tug sealed it enough to keep it from tumbling out. She bowed her head and moved forward until the loop fell over her neck like a chain. She paused in front of a mirror to admire her work. ‘This is just so much more convenient and intuitive than working with hands.’

Another flash of magic opened her window to the outside world. Luna flared her wings out and gulped. Getting out of the house was always the hardest part. Right now she wished more than anything for a balcony several stories up. She distinctly remembered the first time she tried to fly outside. She had clipped her wings on the walls surrounding her window and tumbled to the grass outside. Happily it had been night time and no one was awake to see her.

Luna steeled herself with a huff and flared out her wings aggressively. She closed her eyes and tried to call on that odd intuitive magic that made flight possible. Considering her size and weight—which were well within acceptable averages despite her appetite, thank you very much—it would take more than wingpower to get her airborn.

Honestly, Luna wouldn’t have had it any other way. She had spent a lot of time in swimming pools in the past, and this was in many ways similar. It’s easy to forget that the air surrounds you and has substance in day to day life. This was not so when she was flying. She could feel the pull and tug of nascent breezes, the gentle rocking of the air moving to accommodate her, and if she were to soar high enough she could feel herself practically float at the top just before it became thin. She still remembered the first time she flew into conspicuously low hanging cloud, and was met with much more resistance than she had anticipated.

Luna spread her hooves apart and took a deep breath. Taking off was—in her opinion—very similar to trying to float at the top of a body of water. With a loud sigh she exhaled and leapt into the air. She struggled briefly to obtain a kind of equilibrium before diving out of the window. Gaining altitude did a great deal to put her mind at ease, and she spared a gracious thought for how different flying was for her compared to every other winged creature she had seen. Finding where her big sister was would be a bit difficult considering she’d never journeyed there except at the street level, but she was confident that her direction sense and general understanding of where Sophia worked would get the job done. The new magical feeling pulsing in her chest and wings wouldn’t hurt either, she thought. Simply put: Luna believed she would reach her sister’s side because that is where she needed to be.

In short order she found the general area where her sister’s restaurant would be, but she soon gave up on trying to find it by air. Besides, Luna was discovering that she took a special pleasure in the amazed expressions of people passing by. Even the vulgar insults and curses were like water sliding off of her pristine coat. She held her head high like she was some kind of nobility, and snickered softly whenever children pointed and looked upon her in wonder. ‘Yes, revel before me little dreamers, for *I AM LUNA!'***

Luna blinked her eyes open after realizing where her over the top inner monologue had gotten her. One of her hooves was thrust triumphantly into the air and she looked around in embarrassment, but no one was there to look at her. Ironically enough she realized, that very hoof was pointed at the sign of the restaurant where her sister worked. With a flap of her wings she sailed over the street, ignored the traffic, and landed uninterrupted on the other side. Everything seemed to be going just fine so far, now all she had to do was step inside.

The host leered at her as soon as the door started to open. He was a short man, Luna thought. His thin face was framed by brown bangs. ‘They must not feed him enough.’ She spared the man a frown of sympathy.

 “Excuse me er... whatever you are, but you’re not allowed in here.” His body language went rigid, and heralded the onset of the fight or flight response.

“This is egregious! We wish to see our sister Celestia! We demand that we be seated at once!” Luna stomped a hoof against the floor for effect.

The host flinched and took a step back. “Look, I don’t care if you want to see my goddamn manager. You’re not allowed in here you stupid druggie!”

“There is nothing illegal about our presence! Stand aside!”

The man smiled at her evilly and stepped forward until even he was towering over her. Without a word he lifted his arm and pointed at a sign taped to the glass.

No Shirt, No Shoes, No Service

Luna stared at the warning with her mouth hanging open. She had been utterly defeated. No, she would never live down this failure. She looked down at her hooves. ‘This arrogant young man does have a point. Where are my shoes anyway?’

Before she could finish her thought, and the man could finish throwing her out, a commotion echoed into the foyer. Luna could hear a man’s insufferable and antagonistic voice echo out of the dining room.

“That’s right, pick it all up pony girl! You like being on all fours, right?!”

Luna narrowed her eyes and dashed around the host’s legs, who attempted to halt her with a feeble cry. The dining room was full of people staring. Most were shocked and appalled, a few were smirking, and one old couple looked sad and sympathetic. Sophia was glaring at a large fat man with a very red face. A tray of food lay on the floor, and Sophia slowly bent over to pick it up.

The patron from hell let out a lecherous laugh. “I’ve got some other needs you can address while you’re down there. You need the money right? Of course you do.”

Sophia was back on her feet in the blink of an eye. Her face was contorted with rage and frustration that Luna had previously thought was only reserved for her when she was being particularly unruly. She balled up her fist, reached way back, and asserted herself against the man’s nose.

His laughter died immediately. Sophia clenched her fist in pain, and stared at the man’s face in fascination. A thin stream of blood trickled its way down from his nose.

“Oh you little bitch!” He fumbled around gracelessly before seizing a thick glass filled with beer and hurling it at Sophia’s face.

“Cease thy hostilities at once!” Luna cried out before leaping in front of her sister and shielding her with a wing. The large glass was suspended in the air by her magic. Most of the liquid had gone wild and splashed into a young man seated behind them, who was now staring daggers at the large man with the bloody nose.

“You will not harm my sister!” She announced with haughty disdain.

“Luna... what are you doing here?!” Sophia hissed while cradling her hand.

Luna turned her head and smiled, allowing her eyes to close and fully emphasize her smugness. “I am helping!” A soft rustle of air caused her some alarm, and her eyes shot open as a steak knife sailed past her ear and struck the ground beneath her wing.

        “Actually, I think you’re making things worse.” Sophia raised her uninjured hand to her face.

        “Oh she definitely did that, but you really didn’t need the help.” A low menacing voice sounded from behind them. Luna and Sophia yelped as the manager grabbed both of them by the back of their necks, seizing them by pressure points they didn’t even know they had. He dragged them over to doors while rambling off a litany of hatred before flinging them at the exit. The sisters tumbled absent grace into the street, and landed in a comical pile on the sidewalk. He poked his red face out after them. “You better get moving, because I’m calling the fucking police!”

        Sophia and Luna hopped to their feet and made a break for it, although Luna did have to slow down to allow her sister to keep up. They put a few blocks between themselves and the restaurant before rounding a corner and leaning against an alley wall.

        “Luna, you big idiot! What were you doing all the way down here?!” Sophia was loud, but she sounded sad more than angry.

        “I came to help you! I wanted to apologize for how we left things this morning...” Luna raised a hoof to her barrel and looked down.

        “You’re apologizing to me? To ME?!” Sophia paced back and forth, her face covered by a nervous hand. “I just... And then you... I don’t... What do you have to say for yourself back there?!”

        Luna stared at her for several beats, a look of puzzlement on her face. She raised her hoof to her chin and mused out loud: “Truly thy ex-manager is a Vulcan...” It was spoken so softly that Sophia had barely heard her.

        Sophia’s mouth dropped open, she didn’t seem to know how to answer that. She collapsed against the wall and slid down before she started to laugh hysterically, and before long Luna joined her. Just two crazy sisters—one of whom was a magic horse—laughing in the middle of an alley.

        “Oh Luna, I am so sorry about this morning. I don’t know what got into me. I just... and the nightmares, and I was so frightened!” Sofia wrapped her arms around Luna and pulled her close. She appeared oblivious to how uncomfortable Luna looked being hugged by her ‘human’ sister.

        “You don’t need to apologize Tia, it was my responsibility!” She smiled and rested a hoof against her sister’s shoulder. “I understand how important your duties are to you, but it’s important for both of us to remember that the responsibility that takes precedence over all others is the one we have to each other!” She lowered her gaze and tugged the medicine bottle out of her pouch. “And to ourselves...”

        Sophia gulped and took the bottle into her hands. She opened it and frowned at the contents. “Luna... There is barely any left.”

        “We’ll get some more soon, Tia. Take it, right now you need this.” Luna’s smile widened and she nodded, urging her sibling on.

        Celestia paused in consideration, then downed a capsule.

Give Until it Hurts

        It was quiet when Alex woke up. The air was laced with a faint humidity that always seems to accompany the rising sun. He yawned and stretched before hopping out of bed. It was incredibly impractical getting up this early, but he couldn’t seem to control his sleep schedule anymore. He did his best to step lightly on his way to the bathroom. Just because he had to wake up this early did not mean his father needed to.

        The hallway to the bathroom was a bit of a minefield as far as his purpose was concerned, every step made the hardwood floor under his feet creak in protest. The walls were a soft comforting white. As a child he used to run his hand along these walls with his eyes closed, and would imagine they were clouds. The paint wasn’t that pure anymore, and he had outgrown such things in any case.

Alex propped himself up over the bathroom sink. The faux black marble counter was cool and pleasant to the touch. He stared into the mirror and a pair of brown bloodshot eyes stared back. For someone who woke up at the crack of dawn every day, he was not a morning person. He ran a hand over his face and sighed. There was more stubble today. He knew he should be proud of it, it should have been a badge of honor to hold over the heads of the other guys, but he wasn’t proud of it. Not even a little bit. He turned the faucet on and wet his hands before running them through his dusty and utterly boring brown hair. Even his hands were starting to get some hair on them. There was just no escaping the changes brought on by puberty, he had learned to avoid making a big fuss over something that was unavoidable. He inspected his precious ‘mane’ of hair carefully. It was starting to get a bit long, his father would probably be pressuring him to cut it soon.

        Alex resolutely fixed his gaze at the wall opposite the mirror and disrobed without looking down. There was a walk in shower cabinet just next to the tub, and with a grumble he stepped inside.

        The water came out freezing cold, but he didn’t bother avoiding it. He cranked it up to as hot as he could stand and fell to his knees, bowing his head beneath the torrent. It burned at first, but that’s what he was counting on. The pain grounded him in the here and now and kept his mind from wandering. Once he adjusted to the temperature he turned the dial back to cold, the temperature change was immediate and if he hadn’t already been on his knees he might have instinctively crashed back against the wall. The cold water had done its job, and he turned the water back to hot. He sarcastically thanked his father for the top-of-the-line water heater when the temperature changed faster than he could even he could tolerate

        Thoroughly shocked out of despondency, Alex lowered the temperature to bearable levels and began to clean up. He didn’t bother shaving because it’d just be back by the end of the day. Why even make the effort with a duration like that? Besides, knowing his girlfriend she’d probably find it ‘sexy’.

        Alex got dressed and headed downstairs to the kitchen, which was honestly bigger than necessary. Alex and his father were the only two people living in the house and it wasn't really occupied the way a house of that size should be.. He opened one of the rosewood cabinets and poured himself a delicious bowl of ‘cardboard’. At least that’s how Alex would describe the taste of the cereal. As long as it had the necessary nutrients he didn’t care how it tasted. He grabbed a spoon and made his way back to his room.

        The computer in his room booted up like lightning. He’d spare no expense when it came to making things run as quickly and smoothly as possible. His father certainly had the money to make it happen, so he had to admit that there was definitely a silver-lining in his life. He opened his chat clients manually and entered in the password. There had been a near miss when his dad had turned on the computer and the client was set to open automatically, complete with history, and Alex had no intention of ever letting that happen again. Almost as soon as he was logged in he got a message.

Butter Twi S Mix: Hey gurl! :p

Butter Twi S Mix: I just wanna c how ur doing today!

Halcyon: Are you practicing Irony or something? Isn’t language sacred to you eggheads?

Butter Twi S Mix: I’m just trying to have a little bit of fun with my good friend and study partner! What are you doing up so early anyway?

Halcyon: It’s not early.

Butter Twi S Mix: Um... Yes it is? You’re going to keep falling asleep in class again. I can sense it. I have the gift.

Halcyon: It’s not early for me, and what room do you have to talk anyway? You’re always awake at this hour too.

Butter Twi S Mix: ... You are exceptionally grouchy today. Did something happen to you?

Butter Twi S Mix: What is it? Come on, you can tell me!

Halcyon: There was more today.

Butter Twi S Mix: Would you care to elaborate?

Halcyon: THERE’S MORE HAIR TODAY, OKAY?!

Butter Twi S Mix: Try to calm down. It’s not the shift key’s fault you were born with a penis.

Halcyon: I hate when you say that word, so much.

Butter Twi S Mix: Yes, but that is because you have psychological trauma stemming from it, of course the word would contain negative connotations for you. It’s just a word though, so it’s not worth getting worked up about.

Butter Twi S Mix: I still don’t understand why you don’t just see a doctor over this. They have medicine for it now, you know?

Halcyon: Drop it.

Butter Twi S Mix: I would if you’d just tell me why.

Halcyon: I’ve already talked to therapists about it.

Halcyon: And they said I didn’t seem very much like a girl to them, end of story. I’m not going to play dress up just so I can get some pills. If I stay like this I’m just weird, if I ‘try to be a girl’ then I have to really try.

Halcyon: It doesn’t seem like much of an improvement to me.

Butter Twi S Mix: I think I understand, actually...

Halcyon: Great. So are you going to Cynthia’s little bonfire thing tonight?

Butter Twi S Mix: Nope! I’ve got more work to do in The Lab.

Halcyon: What are you even up to in that basement of yours?

Butter Twi S Mix: It’s a secret! I can’t tell you right now.

Butter Twi S Mix: But... Maybe later I can? I mean, if you’re still interested. It might be relevant to your interests, I’m not entirely sure yet.

Halcyon: Whatever, I guess I’ll just hassle you about it tomorrow.

        Alex turned his monitor off, flopped into bed, and turned his head towards the open window. The sky was a brilliant light blue, his favorite colour. If he closed his eyes he could hear the wind sometimes, whenever it mustered enough force to shake the leaves. He’d been to the top of a mountain once with his father, and knew that up there the wind was ‘always’ blowing. It was too easy to imagine it wrapping around him and embracing him like the mother he never knew.

        He opened his eyes and rolled over and away from the window, tucking his face into his comforter. It turns out money can’t buy you everything after all. He’d never get to be up there, just him and the sky. Sure he could possibly talk his dad into doing skydiving for his birthday, but the idea terrified him. He wasn’t entirely sure he trusted himself to pull the parachute out instead of just closing his eyes and hitting the ground.

        There was a couple of hours left before school started, so of course Alex spent that time napping. He tried to spend as much time unconscious as possible, actually. He morbidly referred to it as 'being dead without the commitment'.

        The drive to school was short. Mostly because Alex drove like a lunatic. It was also freezing with the roof down, but that was kinda the point as far as he was concerned. He’d gotten into a few close calls due to his behavior, but nothing serious, and as far as his dad was concerned, ‘boys will be boys’. Tierra Del Sol wasn’t really a bad school. If it were, he would not be attending it. He and his father had experimented with private schools in the past, and decided it wasn’t really suitable for either of them. Alex was even more miserable than usual—especially if a uniform was involved—and his father, Andrew, was incredibly protective.

        Of course Alex’s study partner had been right, he spent most of his time napping through class. The day was a whirlwind of being unconscious, humoring his peers, and avoiding his girlfriend. He still wasn’t entirely sure how that happened. Cynthia was just into him for reasons that would no doubt confound him if he were aware of them, and a relationship was something he was supposed to be interested in.

        “Hey Alex.” The object of his ambiguous feelings snuck into his presence from just outside his peripheral vision. “You’re coming to my bonfire tonight, right? It’ll be great! There’ll be booze, music, dancing under the moon!” She grinned wickedly. “I’ve even got a surprise for you!”

        “I’m not sure I like surprises...” Alex’s arms wrapped around her thin waist in a well rehearsed parody of affection. He bent down and kissed her cheek after brushing a lock of black hair back.

        Her gray eyes narrowed and expressed her consternation admirably. “Well, you’ll like this one. Or you better, it was expensive!”

        “Yeah, maybe for you it was...” Alex replied with a smirk. Cynthia pinched the skin on his arm and yanked. “Owww! Hey?! What gives? You know I am just being... Fac, Face...”

        “Facetious, Alex, and you should spend less time with Teresa. She’s an antisocial freak. I don’t even know how you got her to talk to you.”

        He shrugged and responded sarcastically. “Probably because I’m amazing, why wouldn’t anyone want to be friends with me?”

        “So you’re coming to the bonfire tonight?” Cynthia purposefully ignored him and changed the subject.

        Alex placed his class books into his locker and slammed the door with a sigh. “It doesn’t seem like I have much of a choice.”

        Cynthia leaned in and kissed Alex on the lips, apparently oblivious to how he flinched. “I knew you’d see things my way!”

_________

        The bonfire was about an hour’s drive outside of town, but Alex nearly cut that time in half with his reckless driving. Cynthia had long since abandoned riding with him, which was if anything, an added bonus. The air whipped through his hair, the night was dark enough and the road isolated enough that he could almost pretend he was flying. It took a good deal of willpower to keep his eyes open. Moments of bliss were few and far between, and Alex almost drove right by the exit. The path up into the mountains was so winding that even he had to slow down.

        He parked his car by all the others. ‘At least I still have the best ride here.’ He smiled half-heartedly. Being better than others counts for a lot when you can barely tolerate yourself. Socializing had already kicked into motion. Alex was fashionably late enough for most of his peers to be buzzed. No one even seemed to notice him unless they were looking for him, and no one was looking for him.

        Cultivated social anonymity didn't seem to be helping him tonight, however. Julia and her fashion obsessed friends bumped into him as he weaved through the crowd. She must have had something to drink, because she actually bothered apologizing to him. “Sorry! Terribly sorry!” Her pale white complexion was flushed red, she pulled her curled black hair out of her blue eyes. “Wait, don’t I know you?” A pair of cookie cutter blondes lagged behind her and giggled from a place of mindless inebriation.

        Alex frowned and took a step back from her. “No, you don’t know me at all.”

        “Oh but I am quite sure I do! Your name is... It’s Dash, right?” She reached out and grabbed his arm.

        Alex cried out and collapsed back into the crowd. He could have sworn he saw something strange covering her arm. It was soft and white, and caught the light from the bonfire almost like a mirror. Before he could even properly respond, another hand wrapped around his and dragged him away from Julia and the other revelers. Amidst the crowd he could see sparks and flashes of light and colour. He didn’t think his classmates had been stupid enough to bring fireworks to the party, and the occasional animalistic sound echoing through the night air caused him some concern. There was no way pot and booze alone could make people act this way.

        “Come on you big idiot!” Cynthia hissed in a not unkind fashion. She was grinning from ear to ear as she dragged him around a small hill and pulled him close. “I was starting to think you wouldn’t show; you're always so quick to get to where you're going!”

        “Yeah uh... My dad wanted me to...” He trailed off, he hadn’t bothered to come up with a good lie in advance.

        She silenced him by cupping his face with a hand and bringing him in close. She kissed him passionately, and he was far too taken off guard to resist. Her tongue darted between his lips, and there was more than just saliva exchanged. Alex pushed her off of him and took a step back.

“What was that about?” He mumbled with a dazed expression. He reached up into his mouth and removed a tiny object, a capsule. She must have slipped it in when she kissed him.

Cynthia smiled and reassured him. “Just take it, seriously.” She moved in close took his hand in her own, raising it up toward his face. “You’re always miserable, you think we’re all idiots or something? Will it kill you to let go of that for once? Just for one night?”

Alex’s mind was a disturbed hive of conflicted feelings and thoughts. This was wrong. His father had been more than accommodating of him in spite of his faults. As long as, or perhaps because, he did not fool around with drugs. He’d never even smoked any weed or sampled a cigarette. On the other hand... Isn’t this the logical conclusion to his self-destructive behavior? Maybe everyone was just like him, maybe this is why everyone got themselves messed up like this. Is burning yourself in the shower and sleeping all day really any different from popping some pills?

        He stared at the capsule quietly and twisted it open. Cynthia groaned with disgust. “One day! One day you’ll open up!” He lifted both ends to his mouth, lifted his tongue, and poured the powder just under his tongue. Cynthia blinked, “What are you doing?”

        Alex lowered his tongue and shook his head with a grimace. “Trying to take it sublingually, Teresa says most drugs can get into the bloodstream more easily that way.” His girlfriend scowled at him when she heard of her ‘competition’. Alex shivered and sat down, he was already starting to feel a bit light headed. “What did you even give me, Ecstasy? Shouldn’t drugs take longer than this?”

        Cynthia smiled and clasped her hands behind her back. “Oh, just wait and see, my little Alex. It’s going to be ‘awesome’.”

        Alex blinked at her. “You seriously creep me out sometimes, do you know that?” That was weird, was his voice getting higher? It still had a scratchy quality, but it certainly seemed like it was different. He yelped and lurched forward onto his hands and knees. “What the hay?!” He quickly turned his head to see what had clearly just bitten him, his hair swished in the air from the movement.

        “Cynthia, seriously, what did you give me?” Alex was sweating bullets now, his whole body was a hot box, and he couldn’t tell if it was over the drugs or the brilliant rainbow coloured tail that was trailing over the seat of his pants. He bit his lip when his back cracked with an audible snap, and something started to struggle against the inside of his shirt. The faint taste of blood filled his mouth.

        Cynthia leaned down and ran a hand through his rainbow coloured mane. “Just some new thing...” She smiled. “It’s not finished yet, though. Here, let me help you out of your clothes.”

        Alex tripped over his shoes while trying to back away. He noted with some dismay that they’d burst off of his... hooves? He hadn’t even noticed when it happened. He let out a very unmasculine whine.

        “Now now, don’t be so fussy.” She reached down and grabbed his shirt, yanking it off with more force than he might have expected from her. Flakey pieces of skin danced in the air like burnt pieces of paper, and in its place was brilliant blue fur, the colour of the sky. Alex couldn’t help but feel a little bit proud, but any pride he felt for his coat couldn’t begin to match the feeling of joy he experienced when stretching his old familiar wings.

‘Wait, what? Old and familiar?’

        He didn’t even notice Cynthia reaching down for his pants. He winced as his legs came out from under him and his back hit the dirt. His pants floated haphazardly to the dirt covered stone.

        “What the hell?!” Cynthia’s voice was filled with rage and surprise in equal measure.

        “Huh?!” Rainbow Dash’s voice squeaked out. “What’s wrong?! Did something bad happen? Tell m-” She stopped staring at Cynthia’s horrified face and looked down at her legs that were still up in the air, or more accurately, what was between them. “Oh jeez... That wasn’t there before!” She twisted on the ground and hopped onto her hooves like she was born to it. She looked at Cynthia carefully before speaking, unable to keep a telltale tone of hope from entering her voice. “Does that normally happen?”

        Cynthia’s eyes were narrowed and her nails were digging into her knees. “No. ‘Alex’ That is ‘not’ supposed to happen!” She stood up and kicked dirt at her 'boyfriend'. “What are you, some kind of a hermaphrodite or something?!”

        “Um... Twilight says those don’t actually exist.” Rainbow tilted her head and stared at her pissed off girlfriend. “At least, not in the way I think you mean it. I’m definitely a dude.” Her voice dripped with a kind of grim remorse. She winced and shook her head. “Are you sure my name isn’t Rainbow Dash? I swear somepony called me that earlier...”

        “Your name could be huge jerk for all I care! I can’t even believe you! You tricked me!”

        “I... Tricked you? What are you talking about?”

        Rainbow Dash cried out and jumped to the side. Cynthia had attempted to tackle her and was now kicking in the dust to get back to her feet. “You goddamned liar! I’m going to kill you!”

        She hadn’t really been taking Cynthia seriously until then, heck, ordinarily she might not have been entirely opposed to being killed off, but not now. Not when she was finally like this, finally herself. She flapped her wings to straighten them and then darted back around the hill, screaming like she’d just become a banshee instead of a pony. Her ex-girlfriend wasn’t far behind. The crowd which was now comprised of equal parts human and pony laughed at the little rainbow-maned pony fleeing its angry human.

        “Alex come back here! Stand still so I rip those wings off and beat you to death with them!”

        Three muscle-bound guys stepped out just as Dash tried to swerve around, and she slammed right into their legs. She recognized them from when her father had tried to get her to get involved with track. One of them had brown hair that had grown even longer than hers, and partially obscured his eyes. “Hold on a sec, this is Alex?”

        “Yes!” Cynthia shouted. “Don’t just stand there, grab him!”

        Dash may have been running around like a natural, but there were still some obvious kinks. She cried out for help as the biggest in the bunch pinned her wings down and held her in place.

        “Man, look at that mane, are you gay or something man? I mean we always had our suspicions but seriously...”

        Dash kicked out and bucked the jock right in the groin. She tumbled out of his arms and into the dirt, once more on her back for all the world to see.

        Everyone went silent, pony or otherwise.

        “Holy shit, he’s a she!” one of the kids in the front called out the obvious.

        A tear trickled out of one of Dash’s eyes, and she hastily wiped at it with a hoof. She crawled to her feet and lowered her tail between her legs to cover the offending anatomy.

        The crowd started to close in around her when a high but dignified voice cried out. Rainbow Dash gaped at the unicorn that had jumped between her and one wall of the crowd. “Rarity?!”

        Rarity turned around, stumbling slightly. Her face was still very red, even with the fur. She stared at somepony a couple of feet to Rainbow Dash’s left, who didn’t exist. “Ah, Rainbow Dash! I knew I wasn’t imagining things!” She trotted over to her and nuzzled at one of Dash’s wings. Dash draped it over her in an effort to help stabilize her. Rarity whispered to her in a voice far more coherent than she would have believed possible. “This is your first time, isn’t it?”

        Dash let out a low whine quiet enough to avoid being heard by others.

        “Very well, just follow my lead. Oh, and don’t be alarmed if I fling you off of a cliff, alright?”

        Dash’s eyes widened as Rarity continued to babble inanely about places and ponies she could barely remember. The crowd was stunned by this sudden change of tone to the scene, and parted as the pair paced toward the back. They didn’t leave them alone, however. People were following them silently like monsters under some kind of spell. Eventually Dash and Rarity reached a cliff side.

        Once more her new friend whispered.  “I know we don’t ordinarily run in the same circles, but I think it is very important we meet again, somewhere less... Crowded. You understand?”

        Dash nodded dumbly.

        “Good, that settles things then. This next part should come naturally to you.” Rarity’s horn flickered gently against the night sky, and a faint blue light enveloped Rainbow before lifting her slightly into the air. She couldn’t help but panic and flail about. And that’s when she was hurled over the side of the cliff.

‘Oh Celestia I am going to die. I just got killed by some unicorn with purple hair...’  Rainbow Dash wept bitterly. Her wings flared out and caught her before she could come anywhere near hitting the ground. It was like her body had a mind of its own, and for once it wasn’t doing things that upset her on a deep psychological level! She cried out with joy as she shot up into the air, trailing prismatic light. The crowd was still silent, and she was certain she could see Rarity smiling smugly.

        She couldn’t believe it, she was actually flying! Just like she’d always dreamed of! With a gleam in her eye she flew like a jet to the first place she could think of. Home.

_________

        Michael woke up with a start. A crashing sound had echoed through the house, and it sounded like it had come from his son’s room. He needed to think fast. It was probably nothing, but then, the way his son had been acting lately...

        He reached into his closet and grabbed a metal baseball bat, just in case. A torrent of memories rushed through his mind uninvited. Alex had always been a very weird kid, but he loved him to death. His son's love/hate relationship with sports was something he didn't think he'd ever understand.

        He rushed through the hallway to his son’s room; it wasn’t that far away, though in his urgency it certainly felt that way. He could hear a voice from the room, and it was certainly not his son’s voice. There was nothing on the knob of the door. Once Alex got a girlfriend, Michael had gleefully instructed him on the manly etiquette of informing your roommates when you were otherwise indisposed with your lady friends.

        When was the last time they had been anything but roommates, anyway? Michael couldn’t deny that it hurt, but he had always felt Alex needed a friend a lot more than a father. He charged at the door with bat in hand and barreled through it, but what was on the other side made him drop the bat pretty quickly.

        There was a blue horse looking thing laying in a pile of broken glass. It was clearly dazed, but seemed otherwise unhurt, there was no sign of his son. Michael blinked and rubbed his face with a hand. “What the hell am I even...” He took a step back and leaned against the wall. The creature leapt to its hooves and stopped grumbling. It was panicked, the emotion on its face was just so human.

        “Wait, Dad. It’s me!” She cried out and held out a hoof imploringly.

        That just confused Michael further, and he started to slide down the wall he was leaning against, he had to be dreaming.

        The pegasus trotted forward and curled up on his lap. It stared up at him with large pleading magenta eyes. “Dad... This is me, I swear! Cynthia gave me some drug and...” Dash began to trail off, uncertain of how much of the story to relate.

        Now things were starting to sound familiar. He’d been hearing stories lately. Weird impossible stories. He didn’t have many friends himself, but he did watch the news. Broadcasts were haunted by stories of some terrible drug that was ‘stealing the humanity of America’s youth’. Did Alex really hate himself enough to use something like that? Michael shook his head. Some questions were rhetorical by default.

        “But... Alex is a guy...” Not that he’d ever been content with that, Michael thought bitterly. Alex thought he had his old man fooled, but he wasn’t blind, and he certainly knew how to read chat logs when they popped up right in front of him.

        “No... I’m not,” she sighed and turned her head. “And my name is Rainbow Dash.”

        Michael laughed and roughly patted Dash on the head. “Of course it is... Of course...” ‘My poor delusional son, are you going to be a druggy now on top of everything else? If only his mother hadn’t died.’

        Dash rested her head on her father’s knee and let him pet her quietly for a time, but no silence was made to last forever. “Dad?”

        “Yes?” He felt for the small of the pony's back, between her wings, and started to scratch at it comfortingly.

        “I’m pretty sure this is going to wear off soon, but I don’t want it to...”

        Emotions and responsibilities warred in Michael’s mind for supremacy. What the hell is he supposed to do now? His copy of the fatherhood code never included pages on what to do if your son was actually your daughter, and started taking drugs to turn into a winged horse.

        Dash crawled out of Michael’s lap and headed for the bathroom, there weren't any mirrors in her room. Michael followed behind her silently. When she got to the sink she let out a soft huff and pulled herself up by her front hooves. She stared at her own reflection for a while, stretching her wings or inspecting her hooves. Then she did something Michael hadn’t seen Alex do in years. She smiled.

        Michael was too tired to be dealing with these feelings. He turned around and went to bed without any desire for further input, but his daughter denied him that.

        “G’nite Dad!” She called out cheerfully from the bathroom.

        “Good night Dash...” He grumbled in exasperation.

        The sun was starting to come up when Michael made his way back toward Alex’s room to check on ‘her’ status. He paused before knocking on the door, there were sounds coming from the other side. He pressed his ear against the wood, trying to not make a sound.

        Choked sobs were coming from the other side, and that’s when Michael made up his mind on what he’d have to do.

_________

        Alex walked to the kitchen like a corpse ripped from a wonderful dream. He didn’t bother with any pajamas or morning clothes; he had his comforter wrapped around him like a toga. His father was already up and eating breakfast. It was almost disgusting how cliche everything was. He sat at the small round table with a plate of toast, and a glass of orange juice. He didn’t even look up from the newspaper, or take off his glasses. Alex poured himself a bowl of cereal before sitting down across from his father, though he did not eat it. He stared at his father with red eyes he hadn’t quite been able to clean up. He desperately just wanted to apologize and promptly die.

        He started to speak, but his father coughed, which was apparently old man code for shut up. He folded the newspaper in half, and without even looking at Alex, he removed a stack of cash from the pocket of his robe, and pushed it across the table.

        “Do what you have to do.” He said before drinking half of his orange juice in a single gulp.

        “But... What about school? I don’t think I can just show up like... like that.”

        Michael took off his glasses and stared at Alex. “Like I said. If you need to be... like that, all the time, then I guess you’ll have to be home schooled. Otherwise, I guess don’t go to school as a horse you big idiot?”

        Alex couldn’t help but smile, and he started to eat his cereal.

        “So what happened to your window last night anyway?”

        “I sorta tried to fly in through it, and it was closed.” Alex blushed.

        “Huh, you can fly?”

        “Yes?”

        Michael smiled for the first time all morning and shook his head. “Nice.”

_________

        Alex trotted back to his room like the world was his best friend. He had his dad’s support, now he just needed to find out where to get more of that amazing stuff. His heart was sinking by the time his rear hit the chair. How the hay was he supposed to do that? Everyone at school hated him now, if they didn’t already before.

‘Wait, I bet Rarity can help me!’ He powered on his computer with a smile, then frowned again. ‘But who the hell is that, anyway? I’m pretty sure she’s not Rarity 'all the time'.’ Alex furrowed his brow in thought, and tried to recall anything of value from the night before. What about Julia? She’d been the only one to call her ‘Dash’ that whole evening. It shouldn’t be too hard to find her. Julia’s middle name was networking. He could probably find her on facebook just by searching their school. All he'd have to do is follow the friend lists. Sure enough, Julia’s profile popped up on screen in short order, complete with a list of chat handles. Alex spared a smug smile just as a large rock sailed through the broken window, missed his head, and crashed into the hardwood floor. Alex cried out just as his father walked by the doorway.

        “I’m still going to kill you Alex!” Cynthia called out from outside and below. The screeching sound of tires and the roar of an engine signaled her departure.

        “Is that your ex-girlfriend?” Michael asked nonchalantly.

        “...Yeah.”

        “Why does she want to kill you?”

        Alex couldn’t even look his father in the eyes. “Probably because I’m a mare...”

        “Oh, well that’s cool. I’m just going to head downstairs and start suing her father then.” Michael shook his head and turned around.

        “What are you going to sue them for?” Alex asked with concern.

        Michael stopped in the doorway and looked at the glass that had never been cleaned up, and smiled. “Well, obviously because she just broke my window, drugged my daughter, and uh...” He struggled with the next concept. “Did hate crimey things?” He turned and made his way toward his room. “Please don’t clean that up until I take a picture.”

        Alex stared speechlessly after his father, that man really did scare him sometimes, but it takes a clever person to get as much money as his father has, and still hold on to it as well. He opened Skype and prepared to fend off a hoard of messages from people who had somehow gotten his address.

        But there were no messages waiting for him, it seemed. He shrugged and started to add Julia as a contact and stopped. His eyes went up to his display name. He stared at it quietly for a few moments while his dad came in with a camera and took pictures, then Michael turned to exit the room, after leaving a broom and dustpan behind.

        “You broke it, high flyer, you can clean it up.” He said with a smug chuckle.

        “It’s Rainbow Dash, not Highflyer.” Alex replied mechanically, completely missing the detail that his father was teasing him. Michael shook his head and left the room.

        Alex highlighted his display name, erased it, and replaced it with RD. Not too long after that, he did receive a message.

Butter Twi S Mix: So I guess the rumors are true then? You took it?

RD: Huh? Are you trying to ask about last night or something?

Butter Twi S Mix: I guess that I am. Did you take anything... Weird, at that bonfire?

RD: Hell yeah I did, and now I’m going to get more of it.

Butter Twi S Mix: Alex... Is it true what people are saying? Did it really make you a mare?

RD: Yes, it did. Problem solved.

Butter Twi S Mix: But that’s impossible! I mean... everything about it is impossible, but that just doesn’t even make any sense!

Butter Twi S Mix: Alex, please don’t use anymore of that, there’s so much we don’t know about it, and sometimes the effects kind of... linger. It’s not safe yet!

RD: You mean it can become permanent? That’s exactly what I want to hear, sign me up!

Butter Twi S Mix: You don’t know what you’re talking about...

RD: I’m pretty sure that I do, actually.

Butter Twi S Mix: Really? You’ve considered what life would be like if only your hands were hooves, with everything else otherwise normal, for the rest of your life?

RD: ... Has that happened to anyone?

Butter Twi S Mix: Well, not that specifically. Mostly it’s just tails and eyes and well... I guess things most people would consider ‘cool’, but it’s still dangerous!

RD: Gotcha, getting some more stuff now, cya.

Butter Twi S Mix: Dash, no! I forbid you from using this drug! There are other solutions to your problems that are far less drastic!

RD: How did you know my name?

Butter Twi S Mix: The rumors, obviously, and the rumors fit your initials here, so they must be right.

RD Uh huh. And how are you going to ‘forbid me’ from buying drugs?

Butter Twi S Mix: Because, I’m the one making it. I mean, I never meant for it to get out of hand like this! I just needed the money... Being an emancipated minor is rough! I thought maybe I could get some interesting data from the people using it. But they haven’t answered anything! If anything they just leave me with more questions.

Butter Twi S Mix: Dash, I never imagined this would affect anyone I cared about.

RD: I can’t even believe you. Here I’ve finally found a way to fix myself, and it turns out my best friend has been keeping it from me this whole time.

Butter Twi S Mix: It’s not like that! I was going to tell you eventually! Remember yesterday morning? This is that thing! I just... want to make sure I know as much about this as possible before I screw things up anymore than I already have!

RD: Yeah, well whatever. I don’t even care if you support me or not.

RD: I’m warning you Terry, if you don’t stay out of my way I’ll never forgive you.

        Alex stared at the screen and waited for a response, and when none came, he huffed in anger, hovered over Teresa’s name, and blocked her. He’d set things right when they both had time to calm down.

        He added Julia’s contact information, and the reaction was almost immediate.

Rarity: Rainbow? Is that you?

RD: Uhm, I guess so. This is Julia, right?

Rarity: Julia is my slave name.

Rarity: Just as Alex is yours. Though I suspect in your case it’s quite a bit more literal, you poor thing.

RD: So... You’re that unicorn that helped me last night, right? Seemed kinda like you remembered me, but not me. Ugh, this is confusing.

Rarity: Don’t worry, it gets less so once you start having the flashbacks ;)

RD: Do you know where I can get more of it?

Rarity: Why certainly! Just come by my parent’s shop sometime and we’ll get you sorted. You know where that is, right?

RD: That dry cleaning place? Yeah, I know it.

Rarity: ... We are also tailors, dear.

Rarity: I’ll see you soon.

Rarity: Oh, and Rainbow? Bring money, nothing worth having is ever free.

        Alex started getting ready almost immediately. He was dressed and heading down the stairs in ten seconds flat. Just as his father was hanging up the phone.

        “What are you up to this early in the morning?” Michael asked as Alex paused to slip on a pair of sandals.

        “Oh, uh... gonna go get some stuff.” Alex called back as he headed for the door.

        “Really? That was fast.” Michael shook his head and turned on the television.

        Alex poked his head in one last time before heading off. “Fast is my middle name!”

        Michael sighed and began his pointless channel surfing. “We both know it’s Gregory.”

_________

        The building in front of Alex had seen better days, on the outside at least. The inside was nice enough. Julia’s family seemed to be getting by just fine. He stepped inside and looked around for the girl who could help him, but all he could see was some guy in a crazy hat standing behind a counter.

        “You lookin’ for Julia?” He asked with a thick accent.

        “Uh, yeah... She told me to meet her here. We go to school together?”

        He pointed outside. “Just go around the corner and use the stairs. She lives above the place.”

        “Right, thanks!” Alex brushed a few strands of hair out of his eyes and turned to leave.

        He climbed a set metal outdoor stairs that looked brand new. Even the door looked brand new. It seemed like Julia had just come into a lot of money all at once. It didn't take a detective to figure out how. Alex reached up and knocked on the door softly, but even that force was enough to nudge the already open door forward. This place was much nicer than the shop downstairs, and filled with mannequins and dresses. Alex did a double take when he realized that a lot of them weren’t even for humans. This Julia person was absolutely ‘nuts’. But if she could get him more of that drug, she could be as crazy as she liked. A soft voice like the sound of bells knocked him from his reverie, and he turned towards it.

        “Well that was fast, you certainly haven’t let our time here change you much at all, Dash.”

Rarity came out of the nearby bedroom looking far less buzzed on cheap wine and beer.

        “So... Is it normal to just walk around like that?” Alex rocked on his feet, feeling incredibly awkward in this position.

        “Hmm? Not usually, no, and certainly not outside! But I figure we’re among friends, right?” She smiled at Alex. “I’m sure you don’t remember, but we go way back!”

        “I’ll just take your word for it.” Alex replied while fidgeting. “So, I take it you know where I can get some more of that stuff?”

        “Dear, everyone at that party who had it, got it from me.” She smiled before sitting on her haunches and levitating a tray from one of the many tables over. “I am after all, the pony everypony should know.” The tray stopped in the air, and Alex looked down at it in wonder. Sitting on it was a small blue capsule and a paper cup filled with water.

        “Is this what I think it is?” Alex asked, unable to contain his excitement.

        “But of course, what else would it be?” Rarity smiled. “Now drink up, you don’t need to wear that... ‘ghastly’ form anymore. Not while around me at least."

        Alex tossed aside all inhibitions and swallowed the capsule. He drank the water only as an afterthought, to help it on its way down. The odd pair sat in awkward silence for several minutes before anything started to happen. Alex was about to speak up when the first change started happening. That by now familiar peeling of the skin. He had the presence of mind to at least kick his sandals free this time. The rest of her clothing she did not bother removing until after everything was finished. Once everything had sorted itself out, she stretched out her wings triumphantly and then yawned.

        “It’s so ‘weird’ how badly these things can cramp up when they don’t even ‘exist’.”

        Rarity snickered behind a hoof. “Quite. Welcome back Rainbow Dash.”

        Rainbow Dash shook her head frantically when Rarity called her by that name. Her mind raced with half remembered thoughts and knowledge. “R-Rarity? What am I even doing here?!” Her lower lip started to quiver. “Why am I only like this some of the time? Why am I some... guy?”

        Rarity’s ears flicked with interest. “Ah, good. Then you’re starting to remember too. I was worried I was the only one.” Rarity set the tray aside and smiled. “And I am quite sure Twilight remembers more than she’s letting on. But there is no getting Teresa to open up and stop being a recluse."

‘        Dash’s head was spinning at this point. More than from just the disjointed information Rarity was feeding her, each bit of information was lovingly selected to get her thinking. About her friends, about herself. She found those connections leading to places she hadn’t expected. Places that couldn’t exist, but should.

        “I... How do I stay like this?”

        Rarity’s beleaguered smile turned into a frown. “Unfortunately there is no known way to keep things this way. You’re going to have to keep taking those pills if you want to stay like that full time, and that’s going to cost both of us money.” Her eyes darted around like a mouse mapping escape routes. “A lot of it, actually.”

        Rainbow Dash dug through her pockets and yanked out the wad of cash her father had given her with her mouth. She placed it neatly on the nearby tray.

        Rarity’s eyes widened and she summoned the money over to count it. “Oh my... And they call ‘me’ the element of generosity...”

        Dash tilted her head. “Who does?”

        “‘They’ do.”

        “Who the hay is ‘they’?”

        “Why, everypony, of course.” Rarity hummed happily as she trotted over to a cookie tin and placed the money in it lovingly. “Not to worry Rainbow! I shall ensure you receive only the finest!” She stepped back into the bedroom she had entered from before, and returned with a massive orange medicine tube that was practically filled with capsules, and a small brown paper bag. Using her magic, she fluffed the bag open and placed the drugs inside.

        “There you are! Used sparingly that should last you for months!” She tilted her head. “But er... Given your ‘unique’ trials, I suspect it’ll last you closer to a few weeks, maybe ‘a’ month?”

        Dash groaned and pulled the bag in with a hoof like it were her own foal. “I guess that’ll work... I can always come back for more, right?”

        “Rainbow, as long as you keep bringing in money like that, you’ve nothing to worry about. We’ll keep you from being overtaken by that mean ole’ human body.” Rarity ran a hoof through Dash’s mane in an effort to reassure her.

        “I hope so...” Dash replied apprehensively, she paused to pick up the bag of capsules and hesitated. “And thanks. This really means a lot to me.”

        “Certainly dear, and do feel free to stop by for matters other than business, we are friends after all...”

_________

        The next few weeks were a whirlwind of activity. Dash’s father didn’t even need to take Cynthia’s family to court, their family lawyer was more than willing to settle immediately. The school system considered home schooling a given based on the attitude most students had toward Alex, and Rainbow Dash had honestly never been this happy in her entire life. Her studies were actually doing pretty well, now that she had a reason to care. Even her relationship with her father was improving. Michael was able to be her father again, and found that having a daughter wasn’t really the change he was worried it would be. For the most part, Dash was the same as Alex, she was just ‘happy’ while being herself for once. The displays of affection did take some getting used to, however.

        There had been one minor hiccup. There had been a day where Dash was particularly exultant over flying, and in her glee she tried to offer father one of the capsules. It did not go over well. Michael expressed in no uncertain terms that he only supported her because she ‘needed’ this to make her happy. He made her swear that she would never try to pressure him into sharing her ‘medicine’ with him again. As things stand, he was quite content to accept his daughter as somepony with what essentially was a very rare, obscure, and ridiculous medical disorder. To her these pills were medicine, but to him they’d be a base drug, recklessly taken when he didn’t need it to function.

        In all honesty, Dash did not recognize the difference, but she complied all the same.

        Everything was going just swimmingly, right up until she came to  Rarity for a ‘refill’.

        They’d become good friends, even if they didn’t really share the same interests, and Dash’s recovering memories only helped matters, but she had noticed that Rarity was becoming more and more squeamish as time went on. Rarity had started asking her when the last time she had been human was.

        Never, Dash had informed her. She had no intentions of ever being such again.

        This answer silenced her, but she seemed far from satisfied. On the day of the refill she finally come forward with what had been bothering her. Teresa... ‘Twilight’, had spoken with her, and ‘encouraged’ her to stop selling to Dash.

        There had been a lot of crying, a lot of pleading, and finally Rarity had gotten her old friend out the door with three or four capsules she had been pretty sure no one would miss. After all, it was not 'technically' selling if she gave them away.

        Things were only just beginning, however. The public was in an uproar over the the new drug, and there was some mounting pressure to illegalize it, or at the very least restrict it. Especially when unicorns started showing off what they could do with their magic. Dash’s use of it was common knowledge, and pretty soon the school was banging on their door over 'parental negligence'.

        Michael gave his daughter as much money as he could spare, but she couldn’t stay with him. He told her to take off, find some way to stay herself, and do her best to avoid the authorities. “Living by the law is admirable in its own way, but it doesn’t mean a lot if you’re killing yourself to make others happy."

        But her last few pills ran out fast, and for the first time in over a month, Dash was human again.

        She had all the money she could need, but couldn’t get anyone to sell to her. Heck, as far as she was aware, Rarity was the only one with any access to it in the first place. She could have stayed in some nice hotel room. Instead she was curled up and shivering in some alley like an ascetic praying for death.

        That’s when fate intervened, or at least two alicorns filling in for it did.

_________

        Luna beamed down at her restored sister. Now that they were both back to themselves they could finally get around to bouncing back from the debacle with Sophia’s job.

        “Feeling better Tia?” She chirped happily like a songbird at sunrise.

        “Immensely so, thank you Luna.” Celestia lowered her neck and nuzzled her younger sister.

        That’s when they both heard the shallow breathing and a soft scuffling sound. With no small amount of hesitation, they both stepped further into the alley. Curled up on the pavement was a dirty young girl with brown hair and brown eyes. She was practically gasping for air at this point. When she saw them her eyes widened and she started to stammer. “P-Princess Celestia?! What happened?! Why are we here?” She lowered her gaze and started to sob. “You were supposed to protect us... How could you let this happen?”

        Luna quickly started to back away, but her sister stopped her with a swift gesture. “Luna, wait...”

        “Why? She is clearly driven mad and likely to drag us down with her!” Luna sniffed. “Even if she does somehow know your name.”

        “I think... I think she’s like us.” Celestia trotted over and looked at the bag around her sister’s neck. “How many do we have left?”

        “Just the one. Why do you ask?” Luna’s eyes widened as realization dawned on her. “You can’t mean to give this poor urchin some of our medicine!”

        “Luna, it works out. There is only one capsule left, and there are two of us. I would rather give it to her than fight over it ourselves.” She took another step forward. “Please?”

        Luna grumbled and held the satchel out to Celestia, who removed the soon to be empty bottle, and cast it into a garbage can after extracting the last capsule. She moved over to the young girl and nuzzled her. “What’s your name?”

        The girl curled up into a ball and started to recoil at being touched, but stopped after remembering who she was with. “R-Rainbow Dash.” She frowned. “Don’t you remember me?" She turned her head away from the regal creature standing before her. "I suppose you wouldn’t, with me looking like this and stuff...”

        Celestia held the medicine out to Rainbow Dash and smiled serenely. “It’s okay, just take this, everything will be okay, alright?”

        Dash stared at the capsule like a fish staring at a hooked worm. Hesitantly she reached out and snatched it from Celestia’s golden magic. She gobbled it down without hesitation.

        The change was very sudden, and took almost no time at all. Even Luna was impressed by the speed and intensity of the moment. She and Celestia took forever to adapt to the treatment compared to this. What was perhaps even more interesting was that the changes in the girl seemed to be joined by changes in themselves. Luna and Celestia gasped as faint trails of magic sparked from the tips of their horns, and winced as their coats shimmered in the light. Everything about them had become a bit bigger, more regal. It was very similar to the change that had occurred with Luna's wings.

        “Actually, I think I do remember you.” Celestia said with motherly affection and nuzzled Rainbow Dash on to her hooves.

“We’re on our way to see a girl named Teresa. Do you know her at all?”

        Rainbow Dash scowled and bit her lip. “Oh... I know her alright. I can take you to her if you want.”

        “Splendid!” Luna cried out. “Our team has acquired a new member! Truly this is an adventure!”

        She leaned into her sister’s ear and began to whisper. “But what do we do if we start to change back?”

        Celestia leaned a horn that appeared even larger than before, and a much more pristine and unsullied shade of white, against her sister’s. “We wont.”

“How can you be so sure? I admit the effects are lasting longer when we’re together. But that doesn’t mean-”

        Celestia pressed a hoof to her sister’s lips and silenced her. “We won't, because it must not happen. As long as we have faith in each other, it won't.”