//------------------------------// // Twilight Sparkle - LSD // Story: Pinkie Pie the Trip Sitter // by oblivion2k //------------------------------// “Hiya, Twilight! Are you home? I got your message! Spike?” Pinkie Pie looked around the vast entryway of the crystal castle, trying to spot the purple princess or her number one assistant. Finding nothing but books and bookshelves, she craned her ears just in time to hear a thump from the hall ahead. “Ack! Hello Pinkie, I’m back in the lounge, come on in!” Pinkie smiled and navigated the halls and stairways until she came to a cozy nook where Twilight Sparkle was clearly engrossed on a new study project. Several books were stacked on one corner of the desk, with another larger pile stacked on the floor behind. Twilight was laser-focused on an open book in front of her, mumbling too softly for Pinkie to understand. Pinkie looked at the cover out of curiosity, but she only got as far as “Opening the Mind” before Twilight heard her and looked up. “Oh, Pinkie! Thanks for coming. I hope I didn’t pull you away from anything important.” Twilight stood up and trotted around the desk to greet her friend with a nuzzle, which Pinkie happily returned. “C’mon Twilight! My friends are what’s important to me! And your letter from Owlowiscious said you needed my help. Are you planning a party?” A gasp. “Is it Princess Celestia’s birthday? I’ve tried asking her but she just laughs her princess laugh and says…” Pinkie stood as tall as she could on four limbs, tilting her head as if to look down on a shorter pony. “‘My little pony, I’ve had enough birthday parties for 10 lifetimes.’ Enough birthday parties‽ How could she-” “Pinkie!” Twilight stood and placed both forehooves on the hyperventilating pony’s shoulders. “Pinkie, calm down. Even I don’t know when Princess Celestia’s birthday is.” Pinkie calmed slightly, and Twilight returned to all four hooves. “I’m not planning a party, but I am doing some research I’m hoping you can help with. Are you busy tonight?” “Busy hanging out with my favorite purple alicorn!” “I’m the only purple alicorn, Pinkie.” Pinkie shrugged. “Other than that, my schedule is wide open. How can I help?” Twilight looked over her shoulder back to the desk. Her horn flaring, the book she had previously been reading floated over to hover in front of Pinkie, who caught it and read the title: ‘Opening the Mind: An Exploration of Hallucinogenic Substances by Dr. Hoofmann’. Pinkie raised her eyebrows in surprise. She hadn’t expected that Twilight would be curious about such things. “According to Doctor Hoofmann, well before the three tribes unified, some Earth pony tribes discovered a fungus growing in their wheat fields that, when ingested, would cause hallucinations, convulsions, and vomiting. Hoofmann synthesized a chemical from this fungus called,” Twilight glanced back at the book. “lysergic acid diethylamide-25. The chemical retained the hallucinogenic properties while stripping out the..less pleasant parts.” Twilight cringed and looked off to the side before returning to face Pinkie. “At doses as low as 1 microgram per kilogram, a pony can experience hallucinations in all senses, euphoria, and even out-of-body experiences. All that from such a small dose!” Pinkie nodded along. “Yep! Hoofmann sure was surprised when he took it for the first time!” Twilight smiled. “He sure was! His report…” Twilight paused. “Wait, Pinkie, you knew about this?” Pinkie grinned and rolled her eyes. “Well yeah Twilight, I’m not gonna take something if I don’t know everything about it, where it came from, what it does, making sure it’s safe…” Twilight’s eyes bulged so wide Pinkie was worried they would fall out. “Pinkie, you’ve ingested it‽ Why? Where did you even find it? It’s been illegal for almost 50 years!” “Cuz it’s fun!” Pinkie winked and adopted a sly smirk. “And I have my sources.” “It…you…” Twilight sputtered. “Fun?” Pinkie nodded. “Yup! You can see sounds and smell colors. It’s like a party that’s inside your head, and the whole universe is invited. There’s nothing else like it! Twilight cocked her head to the side in thought. A unique experience? Something brand new to learn about? She had to admit to at least an idle curiosity; it’s what drew her to today’s research in the first place. But her upbringing had instilled her with morals and societal norms that were warring for control against her natural curiosity. Maybe Pinkie Pie can teach me a bit more. Then I can make a decision considering all the facts. Right, that sounds logical. Twilight looked back to Pinkie. “But what about when it’s not fun? I’ve read about ponies who had bad trips. They sound like somepony’s worst nightmare! Psychosis, delusions, PTSD? Even if that doesn’t happen to everypony, that’s risky.” Pinkie nodded, a more serious look on her face than Twilight was used to seeing from the bubbly party pony. “I’m not gonna lie to you, Twilight. That does happen sometimes. Some ponies have a really hard time with it. Sometimes they take it in a place they aren’t comfortable in, with ponies they aren’t comfortable or familiar with. Sometimes they aren’t in a good place ‘up here’-” She pointed to her head. “and they try to fix that with drugs. Occasionally a pony will have underlying mental health disorders, like a family history, and LSD will trigger it. I’m not going to say that it’s all sunshine and rainbows, but in the right environment, with ponies you trust to steer you back on track if you start having a bad time?” She put a hoof on Twilight’s shoulder. “It can be an eye-opening experience. I think almost everypony should try it. At least once, just to experience what it’s like.” Twilight’s caution was rapidly losing the war against her curiosity and eagerness for new experiences, new knowledge. However, she still had concerns. “What about contaminants? I’ve read about ponies getting what they thought was LSD and it ending up being something more dangerous.” “There are testing kits now, and I test everything I buy, even when I trust the pony I’m buying from. It doesn’t hurt to be safe.” Twilight nodded, brows creased in thought. “No…it never hurts to take precautions. Pinkie? “Yeah Twilight?” “If I…if I was curious about it, could you get LSD for me?” “I don’t know, Twilight. Are you curious?” Pinkie wiggled her brows teasingly. Twilight sighed. “I am. I can’t deny that it sounds very interesting. A new and completely unique perspective on the world around me? I really can’t pass up that learning opportunity.” Pinkie’s smile morphed into a grin stretching from ear-to-ear. “Great! You won’t regret it, Twilight. I’ll do everything I can to make sure you have the Best. Time. EVER!” Twilight chuckled. “I know you will Pinkie, you’re a great friend.” They shared a nuzzle. “Alright Twi-Twi, I’ll go pick up some blotters from a friend. I’ll be back this evening. In the meantime-” Pinkie swung Twilight around and deposited her into a couch against the wall amongst the bookshelves. “You should relax. Read a book for fun, not research. Maybe have some tea? Just enjoy yourself until I get back, ‘kay?” Twilight smiled. “Thanks, Pinkie. No more research today, I promise. I’ll see you when you get back.” *** Twilight sat in the crystal castle’s tea room and nursed a cup of cinnamon chai tea. The strong clove scent put her at ease, despite the lingering nerves surrounding what she was about to do. This was illegal, after all. What would her mentor say? Before she could dwell on the thought any further, she heard the ringing of the bell above the castle’s front door. “Hey Twilight, I’m back!” “Hello Pinkie, I’m upstairs in the tea room, come on up!” “On my way!” Moment’s later, the door opened and Pinkie Pie stepped through the doorway, her head on a swivel as she took in her surroundings. “Oh wow, you redecorated!” Purple curtains had been pulled over the room’s only window, filtering the light from the setting sun and bathing the room in a color reminiscent of Twilight’s coat. Pictures of her friends lined the walls: Rainbow Dash receiving her Wonderbolts uniform, Fluttershy surrounded by her animals in a grove, Applejack watching the sunset from amongst a row of apple trees, and so many more. A projector was set up behind a pink loveseat facing a blank section of the wall. In front of the loveseat was a small square table holding a lava lamp, the orange blobs inside slowly moving through their motions. “A lava lamp, Twi? Let me guess, you bought that from Treehugger?” Twilight’s cheeks flushed. “Hey, it seemed appropriate!” Pinkie snorted. “Yeah, maybe when your parents were our age.” She stepped over and ruffled Twilight’s mane. “I’m just messing with ya, it’s actually really cool. I’m kinda bummed that I won’t be tripping too.” At this, Twilight replaced her embarrassment with mild confusion. She tilted her head to the side. “You won’t? I figured we would both be, um, tripping.” “Not this time Twi-Twi. Since it’s your first time, it’s my job to make sure you stay safe and have a good experience.” Twilight nodded, satisfied. “I suppose that makes sense.” Pinkie joined Twilight in the loveseat, folding her legs underneath her. “So, are you ready to get started?” Twilight hesitated for a moment, then nodded. “Ready as I’ll ever be. I’m still kind of nervous.” Twilight glanced off to the side before a pink hoof touched her chin and guided her back to look at Pinkie. “Twilight, you don’t have to do anything you’re uncomfortable with. Please don’t feel like I’m forcing you into this, okay?” Twilight smiled, and the doubt left her eyes. “You’re such a good friend, Pinkie. Don’t worry, it’s just jitters. I still want to do this, and I know you’ll be looking out for me.” Pinkie returned the smile. “You know I will, Twi.” She pulled a brown paper bag seemingly out of thin air and overturned it, dumping the contents onto the coffee table in front of them. A sheet of thin, white cardboard fell onto the table. On it were small printed illustrations: one was a collage of yellow stars surrounding the moon. Another, a magic wand with silver sparks shooting from one end. It reminded Twilight of Trixie’s cutie mark. The sheet was perforated into squares for easy tearing. “These are blotters. You tear off a square, place it on your tongue and wait for it to dissolve. You should start feeling it in about 15 or 20 minutes, and the peak comes at about one hour. You’ll start coming back down in 4 to 5 hours and you’ll feel completely normal when you wake up in the morning.” The sheet glowed in a purple haze as Twilight lifted it for closer examination. Seemingly satisfied, she tore off a square from the corner. “Well, here goes nothing.” She opened her mouth slightly, placed the square onto her tongue and closed her mouth. She settled back into the sofa and relaxed; all that was left to do now was wait. *** Half an hour later, Twilight was beginning to notice visual phenomena she had never seen before. As she turned her head from one side to the other, she noticed trails of light seemingly emitting from the corners of the portraits on the walls, like visual traces of what her eyes had previously focused on. She wished, for not the first time that night, that Pinkie would let her take notes. Pinkie noticed her friend rotating her head from side to side and giggled. “How ya feeling, Twilight?” Twilight jumped at her friend's voice, snapping out of her trance, and turned to address her. “I feel fine, I guess. Something’s different about my vision, like it’s taking my brain a moment to catch up when I shift my focus somewhere else. Is that normal?” “Totally! I know exactly what you’re talking about. Nothing to worry about. Remember, you’re safe here; I won’t let anything bad happen to you.” They hugged briefly, before Pinkie stood up and moved to the projector, browsing through Twilight’s collection of film reels hoping to find something they could enjoy together. “Oh hey! I didn’t know you liked Sapphire Shores. That’s perfect!” She pulled out the music video reel and connected the film to the projector. Pressing play, she maneuvered back around the loveseat and sat down with Twilight. Twilight watched with rapt attention as the video started. It was a recording of a concert from Sapphire Shores’ latest tour. The crowd cheered loudly at the beginning and end of every song. Spotlights shot a mix of blue and yellow throughout the state and the crowd, seeming to pulse in intensity to the beat of the music. Camera angles shifted wildly as the pegasi film crew darted through the air. The scene was almost overwhelming for Twilight, but she was too mesmerized to let it concern her. She felt like she was right there in the crowd. She felt the music physically pulsing through her body; the bass thumping into her chest, Sapphire’s voice whispering into her mind. As the spotlight colors changed, Twilight saw everything in her room change with it. The globs of oil in the lava lamp shifted and morphed; where once there were only orange lumps in water there was now a pony. A miniature orange Sapphire Shores danced and sang directly to Twilight, illuminated from above by orange spotlights. Twilight started with wide, dilated eyes, cheering when Sapphire finished her latest song. Twilight felt honored that Sapphire would host a private concert just for her. As another song began to play, Twilight stood up and began lazily dancing to the beat. Pinkie reacted, standing up and scooting the loveseat and coffee table away from them to make sure that Twilight wouldn’t bang her shins on any nearby furniture.. “Hey Twilight, can I dance with you?” Twilight turned out to face Pinkie, both wearing a matching pair of wide grins. “Of course!” In all honesty, Twilight had forgotten that Pinkie was even there at all, so captivated was she by the sights and sounds she was experiencing. As she resumed dancing, the walls around her began to lose focus, replaced by shadowy figures mimicking her awkward dance moves. The silhouettes stretched into the void, as if Twilight had been teleported into a hall of mirrors and was seeing her reflection repeated infinitely in every direction. She began to feel herself falling away, losing herself to become another shadow in the dancing, cheering crowd. Instead of fighting the oncoming assimilation, she leaned into it, and let herself drift away. *** Back in the real world, Pinkie Pie noticed that Twilight had stopped dancing and was instead standing as still as a rock, staring at the projected concert with blank, unseeing eyes. “Oops, maybe that was a higher dose than I thought it was.” She shrugged to herself. “Or maybe Twilight is just sensitive to it, who knows.” She carefully guided Twilight back to the loveseat and sat down with her. Twilight didn’t react to her surroundings at all, an occasional blink of the eyes and her chest rising and falling with each breath were all that set her apart from one of the many statues in the Canterlot Gardens. “Wow, ego death from a single tab, Twilight? Sheesh, I hope you’re doing okay in there.” Pinkie leaned against Twilight and held a hoof with her own, hoping that Twilight could feel her and draw some comfort from the touch. *** In the nothing, there was suddenly a thought. An eternity passed, or perhaps no time at all, and that thought became a collection of thoughts. Slowly, very slowly, that collection of thoughts turned into a question. “What is this?” The question did not have the answer. Maybe the answer didn’t exist. Maybe it hadn’t been discovered yet. Maybe it never would. So the question continued to float in the void, searching for the answer. … A new question appeared, and the old question was discarded. Cast into the void. “Who am I?” This question spawned something new, something previously unfamiliar. An emotion was born. The emotion was named Curiosity. The question decided that it liked Curiosity, and they linked together. Joined as one in a bond strong enough to fight back the void of non-existence. Joined as friends. This realization prompted another question to spawn from the void, superseding the old. “What is friendship?” As if hearing its cue, the void exploded. Pictures, words, colors, sounds, smells. Names. Rainbow Dash splashing her with mud on the day she visited Ponyville for the first time. Fluttershy staring down a dragon. Applejack selling cider at the town square. Rarity giving Spike a large, heart-shaped gem. Pinkie Pie… A new feeling emerged from the kaleidoscopic deluge of memories. This feeling was called Touch. The idea in the void, now calling itself Twilight Sparkle, slowly came into focus. She drew inward from her existence as a scattered collection of ideas, questions, and feelings, and began to condense into the form of a pony, like galactic dust compressing to form a star. That pony felt warmth in her right forehoof, and the right side of her body. Discovering that she had Sight, she saw a pink hoof wrapped around her own, and this brought her joy. An idea formed, not in the void of nonexistence this time, but in her own mind. “This is okay.” Twilight Sparkle discovered that she could Hear, and she heard a soft lullaby, floating within and throughout her. “When I was a little filly and the sun was going down…” The song brought a new feeling, comfort. Twilight Sparkle felt protected, and knew that everything would be all right in the end, as long as she had her friends by her side. Two new feelings emerged, one after another. Taste was born, and Twilight Sparkle tasted the remnants of clove from the chai tea she had drank earlier that day. Smell came soon after, and Twilight Sparkle smelled the shampoo that Pinkie Pie had used that morning. Unsurprisingly, it smelled like bubblegum. With her senses recollected, Twilight began trying to understand her surroundings. Slowly, the montage of experiences began to unravel and refocus. The first thing she saw was a large white square, her projector displaying a blank screen against the wall, the concert recording having finished playing hours ago. The surrounding walls began to coalesce next, covered in framed portraits of herself and her friends. Twilight shifted her gaze downward, and the walls disappeared, replaced by a purple hoof, her own hoof, and the pink hoof that was wrapped around it. She stared at the hoof, confused at first, but then so, so impossibly happy. *** “You’ll see that they can’t hurt you, just laugh to make them disappear…” Pinkie gently sang to Twilight, hoping that her words would bring the purple pony some peace. It was late, and Pinkie was tired. But sleep could come later. First, she needed to be there for her friend. Pinkie had only ever experienced ego death on a couple of occasions. She wouldn’t describe either experience as a ‘fun’ time. But not necessarily a bad time either. Intense, certainly. Mystical, eye-opening, revelatory? Maybe. She felt Twilight starting to squirm, her hoof twitching as Pinkie held on. Twilight’s breath began to quicken, before it relaxed again, and Twilight opened her eyes. Twilight looked first at the projector screen, then down at Pinkie’s hoof clasped around her own. And then she started to giggle. The giggles evolved into outright laughter, and Pinkie’s worried frown became a smile of relief. The laughter died down, and Pinkie took the chance to speak. “Hey Twilight. Welcome back.” She leaned in and gently hugged the purple princess. “Pinkie…what…what in Equestria was that?” “I think you had a trip that was much, much stronger than I planned. I’m so, so, so sorry. I hope you weren’t scared.” Pinkie’s ears folded back and a single tear formed, dripping down her cheek. “No, Pinkie…Pinkie, it’s fine. Really. It was…how do I even begin to describe it? I was floating…except it wasn’t me, I didn’t exist. Nothing existed. I was just an idea floating in nothing. And eventually, something changed, I became a question, and then lots of questions, and I saw all of you, all of my favorite memories of you and the other girls, and I was so happy…” Twilight tried to continue, but her emotions began cascading down her face as tears, and she jumped forward, gripping Pinkie in a fierce hug as she sobbed joyfully. Pinkie felt an overwhelming weight lifted from her shoulders, and she sighed in relief, returning the hug. “There, there Twilight. Let it all out. I know that was intense. You can tell me all about it in the morning. C’mon, let’s get you into bed, okay?” Pinkie helped Twilight stand on four wobbly legs, and slowly, carefully guided her to her bedroom. She tucked Twilight into bed, then walked around to the other side and climbed in beside her. Both ponies slowly drifted off to sleep, connected by a pink hoof wrapped around purple.