Chapter 4 - Manehatten Blues
~~~~~Manehatten~~~~~
Rainbow Dash couldn't help but feel a little bit claustrophobic as they slipped out of the car. The massive, towering buildings looming over them were more than a little intimidating. The city itself throbbed with life, the sound of distant sirens echoing through the alleyways as ponies of every shape, size, and tribe wandered the sidewalks. All were immersed in their own lives, their own stories, and Dash couldn’t remember a time when she’d felt so very small.
It didn’t help that the city was absolutely huge. It was easily twice the size of Cloudsdale, and Cloudsdale was already a fair bit larger than Manehatten was. Scooter had offhandedly commented that more than seven million ponies, griffons, and other creatures lived here. Dash didn’t remember most of her Equestrian civics classes from the Academy, but she was pretty sure that number was way too large to be possible. She wasn’t sure there were that many ponies in all of Equestria! And yet…
Yet, staring up at the towering structures of the city, she could almost believe it. Being told that lots of the ponies lived outside of downtown proper helped a little. All pegasi understood the basic concept of the suburbs, since they were kinda the only way Pegasi knew how to keep from getting all up in each others business. Still, that was way too many ponies for Dash to wrap her head around, given that it was still aching pretty bad.
The visions, at least, had stopped. There were no more images swimming before her, depicting a life she’d never lived, and that was definitely a plus. “You okay, Dash?” Twilight’s soft voice was kinda soothing in an odd way, and she replied with a nod. Of all of her friends to have here for this, she was glad Twilight was one of them, and not just for the obvious and pervy reasons.
Twilight, even moreso than AJ, was a kind of pillar in her life. A rock she knew would always be a safe port in a storm. She made Dash feel safe, even with all of this insanity going on around them. “Good,” Twilight said that with her confident little smile, turning back to regard the world before them. They were going to some nightclub, where apparently somepony who looked a lot like Sweetie Belle had been singing and performing for quite some time now.
Rarity had initially dismissed that, but now she just looked worried and anxious. She was fiddling with her hooves way more than normal, and in spite of the fact that not a single strand of her mane or tail was out of place she gave off an air of disheveled concern. It was kind of strange. They’d all been rushing around, and Rarity had always complained about how hard it was to keep herself looking ‘fresh’. Yet she looked… exactly the same as she had when they’d fallen out of the portal. Utterly in control and sexy as all get out.
Of course, she wasn’t quite as sexy as… well...
Twilight sat primly in the seat next to her, wearing a tight fitting white blouse with a cute little black ribbon around the collar. A spell she’d cast had hidden her wings and ethereal mane, but left her long-limbed body, which made her look like a Twilight Sparkle version of Fleur De Lis. A short, black skirt and a pair of thin rimmed glasses, and Dash didn't care what the style was called, Twi looked hot. Dash bit down a little on her lip and turned her eyes away from her, trying to focus instead on the important matters at hoof. “Hey DD. Just who were those guys back there? You said something about Neightzi's?" The word stumbled over her lips, both familiar and unfamiliar at the same time. And why was she reflexively calling Daring ‘DD’?
Daring sighed, rubbing at her chin as she leaned over the back of her seat, bright lights and other vehicles slowly whooshing around them as they pulled down an alleyway. "Well, I'm pretty sure those guys in the warehouse were members of the Apple Mob." Dash felt her heart clench at that name. It had to be some kind of coincidence. "Didn't get a look at their cutie marks, so I can't say for sure. As for the Neightzi's? Ugh. I hate those jerks." She shuddered a little and glared upwards. "You really should know that yourself, but just to keep a long story short, they're Pony Supremacists."
Her lip curled in disgust. "They think that all the other intelligent species are ‘lesser’ to ponies and that we have some kind of ‘divine right’ to rule the world. We don’t really know who the leader is, but they had a lot of folks who agreed with them or just went along out of fear." She waved a hoof in the general direction of the sea. "They've been stirring up trouble all over the world ever since, even after Lady Celestia supposedly spanked most of them out of Equestria."
Dash slowly nodded, biting at her lip. I really don't want to ask this but... What choice did she have? If she had to live with the idea that a certain somepony might be her enemy here, she'd better know now before things got sticky. "What did you mean by the Apple Mob?" she asked cautiously. “We know some Apples back home, you see.”
For a moment Daring went quiet, then spoke in a soft voice. "Gangsters. They run the biggest hard cider distillery in northern Equestria." She shook her head slowly. "But that's just a front for everything else they're into. Gambling, extortion, racketeering, smuggling, and a lot of brute thug work. Unlike most of the other mobs, they're actually pretty damn cohesive. They're a literal family, ya see." She blew a sigh, pensive. “The boss isn’t such a bad pony, but she’d do anything to protect her family.”
Dash had to nod at that one, and glanced over at Twilight. She was deep in conversation with Scooter, for reasons that sounded awful technical to Dash. Rarity, on the other hoof, was still staring at the floor. Daring nodded at her, then turned back around in her seat and giving them the illusion of privacy. Dash scooted over a bit and wrapped a hoof around Rarity’s shoulder. “It’s gonna be okay, Rares.” She quietly whispered to her, making sure that Twilight couldn’t hear them. If she did, she’d start worrying her pretty egghead off about stuff she couldn’t fix right now. “We’ll find Sweetie, I promise.”
Rarity’s head came up with a jerk, but she nodded cautiously. “I am just worried about this news of her singing in some sort of nightclub.” She shivered a little, though the weather was anything but cold. “My dear little Sweetie Belle isn’t ready for such an environment. So many ponies who could take advantage of her…” She trailed off, staring into the city. It was all Rainbow Dash could do not to sigh and hug her, but she did squeeze Rarity’s shoulder firmly to try and lend her some support.
Rarity shook her head and half smiled. “I know. Sweetie is many things, but she does know how to keep safe.” Rarity’s eyes sparkled a bit, and a bubbly laugh came out of her. “Still, isn’t this terribly exciting? It’s like we’re in one of my favorite romances.” Dash stared at Rarity, even as she clapped her hooves together. “It’s like that time we were in that comic book Spike had except… well, more adult.” She fluttered her eyelashes and smiled broadly at Dash. “More opportunities to be ourselves, do things we wouldn’t otherwise do… isn’t that right, Rainbow Dash?”
Dash felt her cheeks heat up really, really quickly as she tried to rally with some kinda snarky comment, but Rarity was rolling right over her already. Her lips split into a wicked smile, and her eyes sparkled. “Come now, Rainbow. I’m hardly blind.” She winked. “Though I fear our dear librarian might be if you don’t step up your game.” Then she turned away, obviously much cheered by the little exchange and went back to gawking at the city around them.
As for herself, Dash just turned back to stare at Twilight Sparkle, and wished she was half as good at putting stuff into words as Rarity was.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Twilight was fascinated. Scooter had been only too willing to talk extensively about the mechanics of her Motorcar. To think! Combustion using refined earth-tar! Professor Maillard is going to flip when I get back home, he’s been saying this for years! Even better, she seemed to know all about why the entire city was covered in the usually expensive spark-lights and other mechanical wonders.
Much to her amusement, it appeared that a slight change in history had turned the Flim Flam brothers from a pair of con-artist frauds into industrial magnates. The ‘for want of a nail’ theory of history verified! All it had taken was somepony giving them a chance with their earliest invention. A single show of faith and now they were not only legitimate businessponies, but considered to be some of the most honest in all of Equestria.
But it was the mechanics of all these marvels that most fascinated Twilight. The possibilities they opened up were nigh on endless, and she fully intended to spirit the knowledge of their creation back home. To think, I could finally bring an end to the clean-water problem in Trotsdale! Or the issues of food shipping from the Unicorn Range! I could improve the Friendship Express Rail system! Twilight was practically giddy with excitement over the possibilities.
She was also more than certain now that she was in some kind of other Equestria, one that had taken dramatically different historical paths. More importantly, one that still sat under a deadly threat. Twilight looked up at the pale moon that hung over Manehatten. One where two equine faces faced one another with mournful looks, etched into the surface. Twilight didn't yet understand why there were two, but the meaning was painfully clear to her.
Worse still, Daring and Scooter had both behaved as though the Sonic Rainboom was still a thing of myth and legend. Even in her own time, the recorded Sonic Rainboom Dash had pulled off as a filly was known long before the pony who’d done it had come out into the light. Yet… They reacted as though it was impossible, and Daring had said Rosetta had proved it was impossible. The implications of that were… not good.
No Rainboom probably meant no Elements of Harmony. Even worse, it might have meant a whole lot of other events not happening that should have, and… Twilight felt a cold shiver go up her spine, and clutched at herself for a moment. It was definitely something she needed to speak to Princess Celestia about, but for now she had to focus on what she could accomplish. Which meant finding Sweetie Belle and then figuring out how to get them all home safely.
The car rolled to a halt in front of a garish facade that Twilight supposed had to be The Blue Note. A massive neon sign of bright blue flickered on and off in a simple animation, showing a musical note dancing with a cocktail. There was quite the sizable line in front of the place, but Daring, Dash and Rarity were all already heading for the door itself. Twilight moved to follow, but Scooter held up a hoof and shook her head. “Wait. Daring can get us in ahead of the line, we just gotta give her time. Your glamorous friend will help, considering she looks like Canterlot nobility.”
Twilight nodded faintly as Daring struck up a conversation with the doorpony, a burly looking earth pony in a three piece suit and sunglasses. Rarity was pouring on the charm too, slipping up close to the doorpony and fluttering her lashes coquettishly. Lacking anything else to pass the time other than watching Rarity flirt her way into the club, she decided to see what information she could wean out of Scooter about everything else that was going on. "So, tell me about this Rosetta mare," she said, sticking extra close to the flame-haired pony so they could be heard over the general din of the crowd. She knew all about Rosetta from the books, of course, but… well, it paid to be thorough.
Scooter nodded, face sober. "Yeah, Rosetta Stone. She's a pretty damn smart unicorn, she's known Daring forever. They had something of a fallin' out a few months ago and things've been kinda strained, but they're still really good friends. Leastwise I think they are." Scooter frowned a bit. "Even if they get a lot grouchier at one another nowadays. Nopony more reliable when it comes to crazy stuff like this. She’s a super genius, ya see." She waved her hooves, her eyes wide. “Like, scary smart. She works at the University of Manehatten as some kinda researcher, and reports directly to the Lord and Lady.”
Twilight frowned a bit at that. Something happened between Rosetta and Daring? But the book didn’t say anything about that… "Falling out? What happened?" she asked off hoofedly, trying to remain casual. “I’d rather not get in the middle of an argument if I can avoid it.” It was hard to keep the emotion out of her tone, but she guessed Scooter had interpreted it as her trying to be courteous and was half smiling at her.
Scooter snorted. “Manehatten Silver is what happened.” She grumbled a little, turning her head away. “I don’t like talking bad about other ponies, but she should never have gotten involved with that grave robbing SOB.” Twilight stared at her for a moment, trying to suppress her surprise. Scooter kept talking though, as though she hadn’t noticed. "Yeah, stay away from the subject of Manehatten Silver. If either of 'em brings it up, try to steer the conversation someplace else or we're gonna have issues, ya dig?"
Scooter seemed a bit grim, and Twilight nodded her acquiesce. Scooter sighed and shook her head. "Good. Sorry about getting overly emotional there but…” She glared into the distance. “Look, it’s nothing you can do anything about. Oh, and one more important warning. You look like a sweet kid, but you've never been in Manehatten before," Scooter said softly, turning to regard the club with a strange emotion on her face. Something between longing and sadness, if Twilight was any guess.
Scooter smiled faintly as Daring motioned for them to follow. She picked up her hooves and started trotting as she spoke. "Just be careful what kinda offers you accept from other ponies, or you might find yourself in hotter water than you can handle.” She turned her head to wink at Twilight, suddenly looking very cheeky. “We wouldn’t want your marefriend to get the wrong idea, you know?”
She hurried towards the club, and it took Twilight a moment to realize what had been said. Her cheeks turned a bright red and she felt the embarrassment burn in her chest. Rainbow Dash? Her Marefriend? Where had that come from?
~~~~~~The Blue Note~~~~~~
The doors to the club were made of old and much polished oak and brass, and swung open at the touch of the suited bouncers. The floor had been richly carpeted beneath their hooves, plush and deep enough to sleep on. The lighting of the entire place was just bright enough to see other ponies, but dim enough that if you were careful and stuck to the shadows you could probably get away with a lot in the secluded little corners. All around them, the air was rich with the smell of fancy cigars and potent liquor and the entire place reeked of sophistication and style. Quite a far cry from the cheap looking exterior of the place.
A pretty pegasus mare with a bright blue coat was waiting for them at the top of the steps into the main room. She spoke in a smooth and silky voice that made Dash’s wings give a little fluff. "Welcome to the Blue Note, my name is Bluebell and I'll be... taking care of you tonight." She winked saucily, which got a grin from Scooter and an eyeroll from Daring... and a very distinct blush from Twilight. "Nice to see you, Miss Do. I see you've brought some new lovelies this evening." Those bedroom eyes drifted over Rainbow Dash, and made her rather acutely aware of just how long it had been since she'd engaged in any... unusual forms of exercise.
Bluebell giggled faintly, her bright eyes sparkling. “Oh, this must be the famous Cloudsdale Dash!” She advanced with a smooth and rolling walk that looked designed to draw attention to the mare’s flanks. Bluebell giggled again, and tilted her head at Dash before speaking. “Just like Daring said, you’re such a cutie.” She grinned brightly, and purred into Dash’s ear. “Don’t be afraid to let me know if there’s anything I can do for you…”
“Lay off her Blue.” Daring Do said in a thoroughly annoyed and amused tone. “She’s been through a lot tonight. Can we get our usual table? We’re waiting for Rosie to join us.” Bluebell slipped back so fast even Dash had a tough time following her. Bluebell winked at Daring and turned around with a flounce of her tail. Dash felt her wings give a little involuntary ruffle at the sight of the blue mare's rolling flank as she walked, and bit her lip firmly to get under control. This was exactly the wrong place and time for that kind of reaction.
“Sure thing, Miss Do. Right this way.” Bluebell winked over her shoulder and descended the stairs into the Blue Note’s main room. The first thing Dash noticed was the tables were spaced just far enough apart to encourage privacy without wasting room. There was a single lit candle at every table, but very little other lighting except for the stage. The air above the tables hung with just a little bit of smoke coming from pipes or cigars being enjoyed by many of the patrons.
It was actually quite the strange and exotic assemblage. Suited business stallions, uniformed soldiers both mares and stallions alike, shifty eyed ne'er-do-wells, this place had it all. There was even a table full of earth pony stallions and mares who looked a lot like the ones they’d fought earlier tonight. Discreet mares wearing... rather risqué outfits slipped in between the tables bearing platters of food, drink and other sinful pleasures. As dash had just been thinking, it was perfect for the nightclub rendezvous scene in any respectable Daring Do book. In fact, that it was so perfect was beginning to send a chill up Dash’s spine even though she couldn’t say exactly why.
They reached a cozy and out of the way booth that still had a good view of the stage, and the pegasus mare cooed in a voice that made Rainbow Dash shiver just a little. “Here you go, sugar. Your favorite spot in the house.” Dash dragged her eyes to the stage where a little white sign sat upon a stool that read 'On break, back in 10 minutes.' Well, damn. She had been hoping for something to distract her, but apparently no dice.
They had all just slipped into their seats when Bluebell gave off a little suggestive sound, grabbing the attention of all five mares at once. “We've got a full bar and Bell Pepper's in the kitchen tonight, so the food's divine. Take a moment..." She slipped a menu deftly into Rainbow Dash's hooves as she sat down. "To see just what we can offer you." She winked. "I'll be back in a minute or two." she said all breathily, before slipping away into the dark room. Dash turned to Twilight and was immensely thankful that she was blushing just as much as Dash was right then.
Daring actually chuckled softly. "Easy there girls. We're here on business, not pleasure." Scooter made a disappointed sound and Daring smacked her across the back of the head with her hoof. "Quiet, Scoots. At least we've got a waitress we can trust, Bluebell is a damn good pony." she observed, gently lifting the slim menu to glance inside for a moment and then shut it with a snap. "How much longer we got, Kid?"
Scoots pulled out - much to Dash's amazement - a brass pocket watch and checked it coolly. "Twenty minutes. Better order something, Daring, we don't want Miss Kitty giving us a hard time again. Especially not with new fillies around. You know how she gets when..." She stopped in mid-sentence as Dash and Twilight stared at her together and then chuckled softly. "Let's just say Miss Kitty's got a healthy kind of appetite... and you two are exactly the sort of dish she enjoys indulging in. Catch my drift?"
Twilight colored up extra prettily, and Dash had to enjoy the sight. To be honest, she probably wouldn't much mind that sort of attention from somepony right now, but Twilight might give her a hard time about it. Besides, the pony she'd rather be getting that attention from was sitting right across the table from her and… and Dash probably shouldn't be thinking that stuff right now. So she slipped open the menu to take a look, wondering if a place as fancy as this had hay fries and fish sticks.
Much to her delight, the thing wasn't packed with overly complex appetizers and too-expensive fancy meals, but with the same kind of working-class faire that Dash was used to seeing back at home in Ponyville. Of course, there were also listings for rather more intimate services right there on the second page, and Dash's jaw had to drop at the sight of it. Sure, she wasn't so naive as to believe this sort of thing never went on in Ponyville, but this was a little much!
Luckily, Twilight hadn't even opened her menu before the soft sounds of applause distracted the whole table of ponies from further discussion over the menu. A pair of elegant looking mares walked out onto the stage and took up positions next to a large standing piano and a huge double-bass. Rainbow Dash wasn't entirely sure but... well, the mare at the piano had a white coat and was a unicorn, and the one on the bass was an earth pony and had a grey coat and dark mane.
Sure, the unicorn's mane was different - but if Dash didn't know better... "Hey Twi, doesn't that look like Vinyl and Octavia?" She whispered to her, and Twilight nodded slowly. Things were getting weirder and weirder, and Dash was beginning to wonder just how much stranger things would get.
Then she got her answer.
The room went silent as the pair of mares began to play soft sort of tune, the kind of thing that tickled at Rainbow Dash's memories in an odd way. For a few moments, she was confused... until a sweet and sexy sort of voice began to project out from the stage, obviously being amplified magically somehow. The sound of it sent a shiver up her spine and set her neck hairs to standing on end at a voice at once familiar and strange.
♪♫ "Now.... You... say you're lonely.
You cried the long night through...
Well you can Cry me a river...
Cry me a river....
I cried a river... over you..."♪♫
A sleek white hoof stepped out onto the stage wearing a glittering back heeled shoe, then was followed by a second hoof wearing the same. Dash's jaw slowly dropped as she watched the elegant mare in a sleek and glittering blue dress slowly pace out onto the stage, her long mane fetchingly done up to emphasize her bare shoulders and beautiful face. The soft red lipstick and blush simply made every movement of her lips enticing, and for a moment Dash tried to force herself to believe that this name was just a coincidence.
But Dash couldn't deny it for very long. The mane color was too perfect, the body shape - while obviously much, much older looked far too familiar. She was the spitting image of Rarity, except somehow all of Rarity's grace and elegance had been transformed into this glamorous and beautiful little starlet of the stage. Every step she took was just a little smoky, and every turn of her head was just a little suggestive. What convinced Dash the fastest though, was that voice. There was no mistaking it, that was Sweetie Belle alright.
♪♫ " Now... you... say you're sorry,
For bein' so... Untrue...
Well you can Cry me a river...
Cry me a River....
I cried a river... over you." ♪♫
"Celestia help me, she can sing." sighed Scooter, looking nothing so much as absolutely in love with the mare on stage. Privately, Dash had to agree with that sentiment. Heck, even Twilight was nodding slowly, her eyes riveted to the stage as Sweetie slowly came back to the stage, slowly perching herself up on the tall wooden stool. She even managed to make that look sexy, the silk of her dress slipping over her body and legs as she moved sinuously, her forehooves keeping her balanced on the chair as she crossed her legs a little.
♪♫ "You drove me,
Nearly drove me... Outta my head.
While you.... never shed... a tear....
You remember, I remember.. all that you said...
Told me love was too plebeian,
Told me that you're through with me... and now...." ♪♫
Dash felt her gaze tugged over to Twilight, and for just a moment their eyes met as the soft sounds of the song wafted around them. Dash didn't entirely know what she was doing, and for once she didn't care. Her hoof slowly stretched out under the table, blindly looking for another to grasp - and for a moment, she found it - Twilight's hoof gripped tightly around hers and the two of them looked at one another as the world moved around them
They’d found Sweetie Belle, alright. They’d found her easily seven years older, and looking totally and completely at home in the bizarre new world they were now in. She fit into the world around her like a hoof into a sock, so perfectly that if Dash hadn’t known better she would have sworn this was where she’d been her entire life.
Rarity’s hooves were up at her mouth and covering all but her wide and astonished eyes. Twilight was biting at her lip and Daring was watching them both pensively. “We’re in big trouble, aren’t we Twilight?” Rarity said softly from behind her hooves. Dash knew the answer to that.
They were in really, really big trouble… and she was beginning to doubt that there was going to be any kind of easy way to get out of it too. So she held on tightly to Twilight’s hoof and tried to keep from hyperventilating. She needed to stay calm, she needed to be cool. She needed to… to come up with some kind of plan.
And just like that, as if the thought had summoned it into being, all of her anxiety vanished in an instant to be replaced by a solid sense of total confidence. What in the buck was she so worried about? DD was right there with her, and Scooter had the wheel. Rarity could get them through the frou frou stuff, of course. And Twilight…. Well, so long as her best girl was right there with her, there wasn’t a single damn thing they couldn’t do.
So she put on a cheeky grin and squeezed Twilight’s hoof soothingly. First thing was first. They had to spring Sweetie Belle from this birdcage, lickety split. Now if she could just find an angle to work...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Twilight was just about to break through the awe that Sweetie’s voice had inspired in her when the song came to an end. The room filled with raucous applause, and the sweet and sensual looking Bluebell appeared by their table with that pretty smile she’d been wearing since they walked in. "Sweetie's sure got pipes on her, doesn't she?" The waitress observed, with a fond look over at the stage before turning back to the table. "So what'll it be, fillies?" She asked in a sweet and brisk sort of voice, suddenly all business. That was a relief for Twilight, who really needed a few moments to collect herself.
"I'll have a double scotch on the rocks, and the dandelion club." Daring Do noted, and then gave Scooter a stern sort of look.
Scooter sighed. "I'll have the usual, Bluebell. No help in the lemonade though." She said with a mournful look at Daring, who seemed to be smiling in patient amusement.
Rarity's arch voice quietly joined in. "A pot of green tea, and..." She shook her head. "That will be all, dear."
Dash looked startled and then bit her lip before responding. "Gimme a tequila sunrise with extra orange juice and uh.." She quickly flipped through the menu for a moment before saying. "The spinach salad with a side of hay fries." She handed over the menu with a slight blush on her cheeks, and Bluebell gave Dash a small and cute smile.
Which for some reason annoyed Twilight, but now wasn't the time to get snippy with the help. "Large spring water." She indicated smoothly, wanting to be at her absolute best tonight. "With the grilled cheese and tomato soup, thank you." She finished, floating the menu back primly. It wouldn’t do for a Princess to show too much overt jealousy.
Bluebell nodded and slipped off into the darkness again, giving Twilight a few moments to indulge herself in self-examination - tuning out the music and the quiet sounds of Scooter giving Dash a ribbing about how she'd reacted to Bluebell. Sweetie Belle looked like a fully grown, if still kind of young mare up there. She hadn't aged eight months - she looked like she'd aged eight years. The rift that had carried them through time and space had been powerful enough to awaken new things in all of them, but for Sweetie it had been even more dramatic.
Twilight was scared. Incredibly, undeniably scared - what if they were changed so dramatically that it'd be impossible to go back home? Worse still... what if there wasn't any way to go back home in the first place? And what if the longer they stayed here, the more a part of this world they became until they didn’t even know there was a world to go back to? Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Applejack… her friends, her dearest friends were all waiting for her back at home. Which didn’t even bring up the problem of Princess Celestia...
Twilight knew the Princess. If that portal was a threat to Equestria, she'd close it in a heartbeat. She would only hesitate a few seconds to mourn the loss of her student, but the Elements of Harmony were no longer a consideration. She might weep and rage at the heavens for the necessity, but she would still close the portal. Twilight didn't know how Dash had known she needed somepony's hoof to hold, but she was glad for it. She'd been a hairs breadth away from completely breaking down when that realization had hit her.
The minutes passed as Twilight silently worried over her problem - before she knew it, the food was hitting the table and the golden brown toasted bread of her sandwich was a welcome sight. No matter how odd this world was, grilled cheese was still grilled cheese and for that she could be thankful. Two bites later though, yet another new thing intruded upon her world... something that she knew, instinctively, was going to change more than just their situation.
Out of the dim lights of the club, a new unicorn mare walked into the little pool of light surrounding their table. Twilight dropped her sandwich onto her plate in mid bite as she sashayed into view, the light gleaming off of her spectacles. She had a dark blue coat that was perhaps just a shade or so off from the color of Twilight's mane, and her mane was streaked with bright pinks and purples. She wore a buttoned up suit and tie that looked very collegial.
Twilight lived and breathed being observant about everything around her - she'd known that Rosie had to refer to Rosetta from the books, but what she hadn't been prepared for was what she looked like in pony. Twilight knew, beyond any shadow of a doubt, that if she were to stand next to Rosetta in the same outfit, the only way a pony would have been able to tell them apart was by coloration. She even looked the same way Twilight did when she was aggravated about something.
It was like looking into an enchanted mirror, and when Rosetta spoke her voice was pitched only a little bit above Twilight's. She was fiddling with some strange looking scientific device, her voice distracted as she spoke. "I do hope this was important, Daring. Our instruments just recorded a physical impossibility right over Manehatten Bay and..." She paused, as her eyes caught the serious and sad look on Daring Do's face. Immediately, Rosetta's whole attitude changed to one of concern. "Is everything alright, Daring?" There was worry in her voice as her eyes traveled over Twilight and Rainbow Dash and she gasped with an almost absurd dramatis. “Cloudsdale! You’re alive!”
Without a second of hesitation, she threw her forelegs around Dash’s neck and hugged her fiercely. Even from where she sat, she could see the glitter of faint tears going down Rosetta’s cheeks. “Oh, thank Solaris you’re safe. We’d thought… I’d thought…” Rosetta sniffled as Dash awkwardly patted her on the shoulder, and turned to give Twilight a pained and desperate look. Dash plead silently for help! when Rosetta began to smack her shoulder. “You stupid, reckless, overblown, egotistical fool of a pegasus! You’re a thousand times worse than Daring!” Rosetta kept smacking Rainbows shoulder for several more moments as her sobs began to subside.
A few minutes later, Rosetta slipped back and gave off a little sniffle as Scooter offered her a hanky and she used it to clean up her tears. “I’m sorry, Rosetta.” Dash said in her quietest voice, and tucked her hooves in her lap in something that looked like shame. “I didn’t mean to make everypony worry, I swear.”
That was worrying. Really, really worrying. Dash hadn’t left these ponies behind, she’d never BEEN to this world before. It was time for direct action, before the magic of this universe got out of hoof. “We ought to get back on topic, I think.” She spoke in a firm voice which grabbed everypony’s attention instantly. “We have a lot of ground to cover and no idea how much time we have before things get completely out of hoof.”
Rosetta looked startled and nodded, hopping up into the booth a moment later and leaning over the table with her hooves folded as she looked at Twilight with appraisal. "Yes, I think there's quite a lot we've all got to talk about. Why don't you go first, Miss..." She trailed off, the look in those bright and intelligent eyes sending a shiver down Twilight's spine.
Well, nothing for it. Better to show confidence than anything else, Twilight. She leaned in herself and folded her hooves in a mirror image of Rosetta's pose - which wasn't hard, considering it was the kind of look she adopted when she was thinking. "Twilight Sparkle." She indicated, and then her eyes traced for just a moment to the stage. "We've probably got some time until she's done anyway." She noted, before staring back into the eyes of... well, herself. "Ask whatever you'd like, Miss Rosetta. I'll answer what I can."
Twilight had a feeling though, that the night's excitement was just getting started. There were more than a few mysteries left to solve, not the least of which was what had happened to Sweetie Belle and the rest of them. Twilight only hoped that the answers could be found in time, and in the case of how to get home... that the answers existed at all.
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fairly itneresting story, albeit kinda off with how Celestia would act. twilight is all but ga daughter to her, and the importance of her and the element bearers are far beyond the elements of harmony. they ber the elements even when they were set back itno the tree.
though it is intersting to note the elements retained their altered shapes. so it may be that they are literally still bonded to the tree of harmony.
4259570
Twilight is making assumptions here, and you know what they say about assumptions...
4259580 very well. most of the time i read fics the writer actively thinks a certain way an writes it that way........
so many writers intentionally write the regal ones as cruel or even incompetent it seems. many really bad, the only one middling was this story where twilight and co were looking for a missing friend, believing some lord or something the writer created for his story is involved, and celestia completely and totally shut twilight down. not even taking into account someone was in peril even. turns out the writer of that story thinks celestia is totally incompetent or lazy. also something about the lord bein gclosely connected to the royal family but anyone can see where celestia holds far higher regard for.
considering what lives in their world and how long equestria has stood, pretty sure a certain sunbutt has to be more than a bit of a badass.
Great chapter, just as I remember the first edition, specialy with Bluebelle, and I think Rarity forgot to order something to eat
.
Twilight seeing Rosetta must have been very off putting...
Through a mirror darkly weird! Good stuff.
Really wondering how Sweetie will react to Rarity being here. She wasn't in the first iteration.
4259570
4259580
I don't think Twilight's assumptions are too far off. Luna became Nightmare Moon and Celestia had to seal her away to protect the kingdom. It wasn't about being cruel but about putting the needs of the many before the needs of the few. If the portal is a threat and that threat could not be contained, then yes, Celestia would seal the portal. Not because she is a cruel ruler. In fact, it is just the opposite. She is such a kind ruler that she would sacrifice that which she holds dear in order to protect as many as possible. Just like with Luna.
4261064
I thought the exact same thing.
I have a feeling this is just slipped through the cracks since the original version didn't have Rarity in it.
Speculation time. I'm beginning to wonder if Cloudsdale Dash is dead and that's why her memories seem to be invading Rainbow's mind. Twilight's double is alive and well and Twilight isn't having any issues as of yet. I look forward to seeing how all this plays out.
4261622 there is a major difference here. luna hd to be stopped and celestia had no other options available to her. with the portal it is more than just ponies she personally cares for, but beings that are importan to her kingdom as well as herself. how many times has twilight and the mane six saved equestria? they are key to ensuring threats are eliminated without more tragic measures being implmented;
4261637
I'm not seeing a difference here. The portal, if it is even still open at this point in time, is a magical creation that is bending reality into another reality. That's even more dangerous than a crazy Alicorn.
I mean, we've already seen that it will suck in things that get close to it and there isn't much you can do about it. If the portal were to say, grow, then all of Equestria would be in peril. In that situation, yes, Celestia will do whatever she can to shut the portal down.
Of course, closing the portal would be the very last resort. However, it is an option that will always be on the table no matter how much Celestia doesn't like it.
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4261622
Well, I've made bigger oversights. *sigh* I thought I'd included the line with Rarity. We're going to get more of her perspective at the start of next chapter too.
Well, this was an extremely hyper-sexualized chapter. Also, Bluebelle winks way too much. In fact, it is literally aggravating to see "And she winked." And blushing was nearly the same way. But I liked the song and how everything is lining up.