Fancy Pants stood up straight and huffed jokingly. "That's 'Dad' to you, missy."
Crystal again screamed, "DAD?!"
"Yes, and don't forget it, young mare!" he said stiffly. "Oh, I jest! Now, hurry up before your mother gets mad. She made your favorite meal!" Fancy Pants left as he told his daughter the message.
Crystal on the other hand--hoof was trying to prevent herself from cardiac arrest, followed by a panic attack. Then, realized something, "Wait, a minute ..." she looked around her room to see that everything was the same; nothing was different at all, except for her, of course. "This is all a ploy! A trick to scare me into saying I was wrong and I should have never tried to wish to be a pony! Ha!" she got up and skipped around the room. "I'm not going to give in that easy! Whoever is doing this! Illusion! This better not be one of your tricks, or so, help me I'll--" Everything froze, turning gray.
"You'll do what?" A bright blue Prince Illusion was laid out on the mare's bed, picking at his claws. He looked up at Crystal and smiled that suave smile of.
"I knew you were behind this, you ruffian! Why are you blue? You know what? I don't care! Change me back so, I can mawl you," she stalked him like prey when he floated off the bed.
"Oh, calm down, you silly filly," he bopped her on the nose and giggled when flames shot out of her eyes. "I'm here to show you the consequences of your wish!" he was wrapped around her neck like a scarf.
"My wish?" Memories from her dream resurfaced. "My wish! I-I wished I was born completely pony! And then ...DAD!" she untangled herself and rushed downstairs. "DAD! Da-a-a-d?!?! Are you alright?! Are you okay?! What happened yesterday?! Are you--?" Crystal skidded to a stop. Everything was different.
There were no finished or even unfinished dresses or suits on any pony models. There weren't any pony models! Two cubicles with brown, mundane business desks. Papers were strewn about all over the place in one while the other was the definition of organization.
"Crystal Thread! Why are you shouting for your father like a maniac?!" An almost-posh voice asked.
Crystal looked over to where the voice had come from and took a step back. "FLEUR DIS LEE?!"
Fleur held her head as her face screwed up in a grimace. "Yes, and I'm getting a migraine from you screaming. So, please, if you will?" Fleur walked over to the more organized cubicle. "However, if you are looking for your father, he's heating up the breakfast I made for you." she pointed a hoof towards a room that was probably the kitchen. With her other hoof leafing through some paperwork and stamping some, but leaving others blank.
Now, hurry up before your mother gets mad. She made your favorite meal! "You're my mother?" Crystal asked Fleur, completely disregarding the fact that her name had changed. I'll focus on that later ...
Fleur stopped her labeling and looked at Crystal with an expression holding nothing less than sympathy. "Yes ...of course, Crystal. I am your step-mother and I know that I could never replace your real mother; I appreciate you finally consider me a mother figure," Fleur rose from her silk, seat pillow and her horn lit up.
Crystal couldn't see what Fleur was doing with her magic until she felt something wrap around her neck. She looked down to see an azure and navy blue Winter scarf. "Oh, thank you, Fleur, but you said, 'step-mother'? What happened to my mother? Rarity?"
Fleur gulped and smiled nervously. "I-I think your father wants you!" she held her hoof up and pretended to be listening to an imaginary voice. "Mmhmm! Yes! Crystal! She'll be right there, hon!" Fleur shooed Crystal away and wiped her eyes; quietly sniffling to herself.
---
Okay, so everything down here has changed. That's not so bad! And, I guess my name is Crystal Thread. Why any pony would ever want to name a foal that, I have no idea. But ...what happened to Mom? I must find out! Crystal Thread made her way to the kitchen; the smell of--of. "What did Fleur make for me?" she whispered to herself. There was a clattering of metal on metal and Fancy Pants let out a wail of pain.
"Oh! Haysticks! All these pots and pans and all we make is oats and cereal! I do not understand this at all!"
Crystal rushed into the room to find a scene of an overturned Fancy Pants covered in pots and pans. He levitated a rather large cooking pot off his head and picked himself up. "Ah! Crystal! Your food is on the table!" he pointed toward the small table which had one lonely dish placed neatly next to a tiny glass of water.
She walked over to table and raised a brow when she looked inside the plate. "Ooh, a pile of oats," she picked at it a hoof. "I hope I don't over-indulge!"
"Don't tell your mother, but I put some granola bits in it to make it a bit sweeter," he whispered to her with a wink.
"Oh, you spoil me so!" Crystal said with a roll of her eyes. She caught on to what he said. "Um, Fanc--Da-a-d?"
"Ye-e-e-s? Why are you speaking like that?" Fancy Pants brushed himself off and fluffed up his coiffure.
"I don't mean to be a bother, but ...what happened to mom? My real mom? Not Fleur, although, albeit she would be a great mother; kudos to Cremé." she muttered the last part to herself.
Fancy stopped immediately. He magically pulled out a pillow and sat down. "Crystal ...I know you were but a filly, but I thought you understood what happened to her. You were going to ask for the details sooner or later, but still ...I should have explained." he rubbed his snout and wiped away a few stray tears. "You should sit down ..."
Crystal sat down, but held her tongue for fear of unintentional breakdowns.
Mr. Pants gazed off behind Crystal; his eyes glazing over. "After your mother and I got married we both became dreadfully busy. I had more paperwork and clients. I managed; rushed everything to keep from falling over the schedules, the rules, the contracts, the business and things began to slow a bit. Your mother on the other hoof ...Orders just kept piling in; faster, more than she could count, 'more intricate', 'something unique', they said. I-I should have helped! I should have calmed her down! Split the work, half-and-half! Every time I saw her ...she looked worse and worse. Then ...one night ...on the final order she had before she could finish ...it happened," he looked into Crystal's eyes and slowly blinked.
"What--what happened?" Crystal dared to ask.
As if it were too much, he breathed out in a tiny voice, "She fell."
Crystal gasped as she understood what he--her father ...had said. Mom ...y-your--you "No! She can't be! She couldn't! My mother was a strong mare!" she doubled-over as an onslaught of tears and sobs overwhelmed her. She held herself, trying to comfort the pain of her mother gone. "T!" her ears perked up as she recalled the little brother in which she had not seen all morning. "Where's T?! He'll know what happened if I don't!" she rushed to the main foyer, blowing paperwork all about the place. Crystal zoomed up the spiral steps leading to her and her brother's room. "Turquoise! Are you--?" When she threw open the door to his bedroom she couldn't think. Boxes of signed papers and picture frames; old clothes and tools lingered in stacks that filled the room. A storage room. "No ..." she whispered out. Crystal ran out the room and looked over the banister that separated the floor from her. Fancy Pants and Fleur had trotted over to the bottom of the steps, their expressions that of fear and confusion.
"Crystal? Who is this Turquoise? And a 'he'?" Mr. Pants pressed.
"Are you alright, dear? Why would you go into storage?" Fleur inquisited; she walked up a step and pouted.
This--this--this--this h-has to be done terrible dream ...nightmare's more like it! "T? Turquoise? My brother--my younger brother?!" Crystal shouted, looking more and more frazzled as she heard and saw everything that had become.
The spouses shared a look before Mr. Pants explained, "Dear ...you don't have a brother. After your mother's--well, Fleur and I decided to not have anymore foals. You are the only foal we ever had." he said it so delicately. He and Fleur shared another concerned look when Crystal let out a bout of hysterical laughter.
"Hahahuh--kay!" Without another word she backed up into a wall and felt her way to her room.
The two elder ponies shrugged and continued with their work. But, Fancy Pants couldn't help but be a bit more worried than Fleur.
~~~~
Crystal sighed as her head fell back into the bedroom door she had slammed shut. "T ...I better wake up soon or--" the tick-tock of her clock froze as her purple walls faded to grey.
"'Or I'll go mad from this uncanny nonsense'! Blah, blah, blah ...you just realized you made your brother never born and you are still thinking about yourself? Talk about narcissistic!" a taunting, yet smooth, sauve, yet annoying, cool, yet smug tone of voice echoed throughout the room.
Crystal jumped as the voice vibrated in her head. She gazed down when her scarf began to circle her neck. "Illusion! I almost forgot about you. Now, tell me what is going on or else I'll claw out your pelt," she tried to emphasize by holding up her hoof to shoot out her claws, but whimpered when the appendage just stood there.
"No need to get cat-ty, besides, you can't!" Illusion chuckled. He swam through the air like it was a swimming pool.
"Yes, I can't. But, you can fix that. Illusion, turn everything back to normal ...now," a dark shadow cast upon her face, making her much more menacing than usual.
"Pssh! As if! And 'Illusion'? I am not an illusion. 'Illusion' this and 'Illusion' that! Is he a colt?!" the apparition squeed like a schoolfilly who heard her best friend's crush.
"No-o-o. You are Illusion. And, yes, he--you are my boyfriend. Why are you acting like you've no idea what I'm talking about?" she inspected her 'boyfriend' closely while she spoke, stalking closer and closer.
"Beca-a-u-u-s-s-s-s-e ...I'm. Not. Illusion!" he closed the gap between them by bopping her on the nose again and madly giggling.
"Well, Mr. ...Whoever-you-are," Crystal wi ped her nose for the entity had left a smudge of blue dust upon it. "You look like him," she gestured to not-Illusion's flaccid body. "You speak like him and most obviously, you act like him. So, if you are not him, which I think is not true, who are you and how would you prove it otherwise?" she finally caught the being against a wall, pinning him with her hoof and purring challenging-ly.
"I am called by many names. Guide, ghost, apparition, entity, being ...thing. But, I prefer, mostly, Spirit of Hearth's Warming Eve! You get it? 'Cause I come at Hearth's Warming?" he grinned from his joke.
"Spirit of Hearth's Warming Eve? Believable. But, you still haven't proved it, yet. Call it quits?" Crystal matched his grin as she knew she had caught his bluff.
The Spirit kept his face, but based his teeth as well. He dove forward and caught the mare in a deep kiss. When the two parted he laughed out, "Never." He snapped his fingers, then--
SPOOSH!!!!