CCC-Back Home Again

by Fresnor

Returning what belongs

I’m really not sure what to think with how this world’s Pinkie Pie Parties being so much like what I remember from the Equestrian version. In the end I just chalked it up to one more thing that links these two worlds together which is probably for the best. Of course there was still the issue of her bugging me to do the most inane things, especially after showing the others a little trick I could do. “Come on Flarie, do me please!”

I just sigh and roll my eyes before explaining to her yet again why I couldn’t do that. “Pinkie I’ve already told you that my shapeshifting doesn’t work like that. While I can change into a different species I have little control over how the form looks, it’ll always look like me in that shape.” Pinkie looked a little deflated about it but she was soon distracted by something causing her to bounce away.

I had forgotten how annoyingly persistent she could get at times, but I really can’t blame her much. I remember how long I spent just changing into different things when I first learned how to do so so many years ago. I look over at one of the nearby gymnasium mirrors and admired what I looked like as a human of this world. It was surprisingly much like the pony form I could take with the orange and brown hair, at least that color considering the season. I felt that my looks were rather average when compared to the others and I could see a more mature quality similar to the Celestia and Luna of this world. The big things to catch my eyes though, were the foxish ears poking up out of my hair as well as the seven tails waving behind me.

It was probably a good thing that I had first tried the transformation before we left the forest as the transformation was only for my body, so that meant that I was naked after I made the change. With the combination of the chill weather as well as the fact that clothes were pretty much mandatory in this world it was a rather embarrassing event for all involved. Things were soon rectified after switching places with Rainbow Dash as I used my magic to wrap myself up in illusionary clothes with advice from the other girls, but mostly from Rarity. What we finally decided on was what she called a kimono of a sapphire blue color with silver designs across all of it. Around my waist was a belt of silver with the clasp for it on my side in the shape of a fox head inside a wreath of seven tails.

I pull myself away from the mirror and turn back to the person I was talking to before Pinkie distracted me. I wasn’t sure how to deal with meeting Trixie Lulamoon again, even if she wasn’t the one I remembered, but I could see that she had the same potential as the one I knew. “Now where were we before we were interrupted by the pink prankster? Oh right, you were asking for tips on how to improve your magic show.”

I smirk as I watch Trixie’s mouth drop open before she recovers and pulls a haughty pose. “The Great and Powerful Trixie would never stoop so low as to ask for tips from an amateur magician. Trixie was challenging you to a dual to settle once and for all that Trixie is the most talented being in the entire world.”

After years of dealing with one Trixie I knew pretty well how to handle this version of her. “Trixie, I have seven centuries of experience which easily trumps the handful of years you’ve had with magic. Not only that but I lived with someone exactly like you for most of the first hundred so I know pretty well what you are capable of. That’s not to say you don’t have potential, you have plenty of that, but you would be better off dropping the stage presence when you are off the stage. Driving others away actually can make you worse at your magic since you can learn things from friends more easily than from enemies.”

She was about to say something but I get another idea and cut her off. “In fact you could actually learn a lot by helping the Twilight of this world study magic since you can use certain types better than her, especially illusions.” I create a small illusion of Trixie’s caravan back in Equestria as an example and hand it to her. “You can both help each other improve and learn how magic works here but if you ever can create something like this then I’ll give you something that will help you greatly with your shows.”

I leave Trixie behind as she pokes at the lifelike replica I had given her and wondered how long it would take her to make illusions that were nearly impossible to tell apart from the real thing. Equestria’s Trixie was actually at that point before she passed on but she didn’t really have another to push her to exceed that point. I did help her get to that point, but it was only years later that I found out how much further she could have gone and I was going to help this one get further if she was willing to accept the help.

I look around the room and spot Twilight talking with her friends and I think back to the versions of them that I knew. I find myself wanting to get over and join them but it just wouldn’t be fair to treat them like the ones I knew. Sunset Shimmer seemed to be a bit distracted for some reason even though she was still participating in the conversation. I made a note to talk to her before we left when I spotted another figure of interest that I was curious about.

Sonata Dusk was still off by herself in a corner behind the bleachers and she really didn’t look as if her mood had improved. I was curious about her as I had heard a bit about her but my knowledge of sirens was nearly non-existent. The little bit of her story that I had heard did strike a chord with me so I knew what she was going through. Making a decision I silently made my way across the room until I was right next to her before sitting down.

She was really out of it as it was only when I was fully seated did she react by flinching away before looking up at me with red rimmed eyes. Her eyes widened after a moment when she saw me, but the look of hopelessness soon returned as she buried her head in her arms again. I sit there waiting to see if she is going to say anything but after a while I realize she is too far gone so I consider what to say myself.

“It never does get any easier; losing a family member I mean.” Sonata doesn’t respond but I can tell she is listening as she slightly tilts her head. “Even after all these years it still hurts and it’s even worse when they are taken from you before their time. All you can do is push on and find some way to honor their memory and remember the times with them that were the happiest.”

I waited for her to respond in some way but it seemed like she was more out of it than I had thought. I was actually debating on moving elsewhere for now when she finally decided to speak up. “Who did you lose?” It was muffled but with my ears it wasn’t that hard to hear her. I only took a moment to gather my thoughts before I opened myself up to the pain again.

“It was my mother that I lost. She lost her life saving me from a town that was working for a necromancer but I was able to find my way to her again. Unfortunately she was gone by the time I found her; the monster had skinned her for some dark ritual which I found out when I reached his inner sanctum. I was alone for many years after that until I finally was able to find a place to call home.” I wiped a tear away as the pain of that even rose up once again.

I looked over at Sonata to see that she had raised her head to look over at me. Suddenly she lunged at me and grabbed me in a hug as her tears started to flow freely from her eyes. I brought my own arms up around her to return the hug and patted her on the back while making soothing sounds. I could tell that she was in need of this as her grip was impossible to break, not that I wanted to do so. I noticed Pinkie watching us and see her just nod to me with a sad look on her face before she turns back to her friends.

Eventually Sonata’s crying lessened to the point of her only releasing an occasional sniffle. I knew that if she was going to say something that now would be the time if she didn’t pull away first as I was soon proven correct about. “We had been together so long that we might as well have been sisters. Sure we may not have gotten along all the time but we always stuck together no matter what. I may not have been all that smart, but I knew that they always cared about me like I did them.”

She choked up a bit before she continued again. “I know that they never blamed me for what happened even though they said mean things to me. When those things attacked us I thought we were going to go out together like we always were. When they tossed me up to that pegasus before the swarmed us I didn’t know what to think as I would never have expected them to sacrifice themselves for me.”

She started to cry again at this point as the memories came rushing back yet again. “I wish we never listened to that stupid octopus all those years ago then we would never have been sent here. Without those stupid gems he gave us I wouldn’t have had to lose not only them but everything else I cared about. I just want to go home!” She completely loses it again as she breaks down crying into my shoulder.

I start comforting her again as I make a decision that might anger some of the other princesses but was going to stick by no matter what. “That’s something I can actually do something about. You never really belonged here and you have been punished enough over some bad choices. It’s about time that you return to Equestria and actually live your life how it should be lived.” At this point she is full on wailing as she is overwhelmed by everything that has happened as well as my promise.

I see that some of the room had finally noticed what had been going on in this corner, including Twilight’s little group. Pinkie was keeping them from coming over but I noticed that Twilight was smiling sadly before she nodded to me before getting the attention of the others. Seeing that the others are occupied I focus all my attention back to Sonata and try to keep her reassured. Eventually I hear snoring and I realize that it’s from her as she had fallen asleep in my arms.

I sigh as I notice where this is going as I use my magic help me lift her up and carry her in my arms towards Twilight. Joining her I see the others grinning at me for some reason and I just shake my head at them. “She’s really a mess right now and she probably won’t be getting any better here. I’m taking her back with us through the portal to where she belongs. It’s about time Equestria and Sionnach start solving their own problems instead of running from them, dumping them on others, or just delaying them until someone else can solve them.”

Most of them look confused but Twilight looks thoughtful, if a bit annoyed, before she nods to me. “While I would like to argue with you I do see your point. Ugh, if I was younger I’d probably still be defending Celestia over this but I’ve known her too long to just blindly do that now. At least she admitted to not knowing about any other problems she just locked away to deal with later.”

I raise an eyebrow at her as I’m impressed with her since it’s the first time I’ve seen her say anything against Celestia. She wasn’t quite finished speaking just yet though. “I think bringing Sonata back with us is a good idea, especially as she isn’t a threat anymore without that necklace. The little I remember of her was too carefree to be truly evil like some of the things we faced, just misguided.”

I’m glad that Twilight agreed with me on this decision as it made things much easier to not have to argue. I noticed that Sunset Shimmer was looking a bit down about something so I raise a questioning eyebrow at her. She sees this and looks as if she is about to say something but instead shakes her head and turns away. I’m starting to get an idea of what be bothering her and I decide to confront her before we leave.

As thoughts of the portal come to mind I realize that we might need to head out sooner than I thought. “Twilight, we really should check on the portal home. I didn’t think of it until now but we have no idea when it’s supposed to close. We can’t go by what used to work as it might not be fully stable yet.”

Twilight’s eyes widen drastically as I say this and she is soon running out to the statue. Everyone else is soon following her and I follow behind at a slower pace with Sonata. I was a bit worried about the portal myself, but I figured that between the two of us we could force it open if we had to. My worries were proven true as I got outside and found Twilight pounding away at the front of the statue frantically.

I sigh as I levitate Sonata out of my arms fully so I can shift back into my true form so I’m more comfortable when I examine the portal. “Frig, I was hoping that I was wrong about it but I guess things can’t always be simple. Can someone hold Sonata while I take a closer look at this thing?” Sunset holds her arms out so I set her down in them before Twilight rounds on me.

“How can you be so calm!? With this thing closed we are stuck here for at least thirty moons until it opens again. That’s two and a half years and we don’t even know how much time would have passed in Equestria by then.” I look over at Twilight and wonder what she is talking about as she gave me two different periods of time. I do a deep scan of the portal just to verify things before turning back to her again.

“Twilight, thirty moons is only a month. Not that I’m going to stay here even that long with my daughters waiting for me. I just need to figure out the best way to reopen the portal without causing any unforeseen problems.” Twilight looks at me as if I’m crazy before shaking her head.

“What do you mean by only a month? It’s never opened that fast before so why would it do so now?” I try to remember if she ever said who created the mirror but unfortunately nothing comes to mind. I decide to take a chance anyways of insulting someone she may respect.

“Well whoever made the mirror screwed something up so it was never fully stable. From what I can tell it supposed to open with the rising of every thirtieth moon. I knew something was wrong when I first stepped through the mirror as portals are supposed to feel something like teleporting, not whatever that thing did. From what I can tell it’s also supposed to only be open for twenty-four hours when it opens as well.” Twilight is a bit stunned at my analysis of the portal but can’t come up with anything to refute what I’ve said.

“This would be so much easier on the other side since then I could see exactly what they did to this thing. It’s hard enough to drag two worlds together without something else interfering with the process. Do you happen to know anything about that spell your Starswirl used to toss the sirens over to this world?” Twilight stops for a second before she shakes her head at me causing me to sigh and turn back to the statue again.

While I was looking over the statue again I feel the presence of someone being a little too close behind me, and I was about to snap at them a little before she speaks up. “Couldn’t you just make a bridge or path or maybe rope bridge between here and there? Then you could just walk across without having to deal with trying to pull the together.” I look up at Pinkie Pie as my mouth drops open at what she just said. The surprises don’t end there though when Sunset joins in on the conversation.

“Pinkie, do you know how hard something like that would be? It would be easier to just create an entirely new world than to create something like that.” I stare at the two for a moment before I start chuckling which soon breaks out into full blown laughter.

“Oh Pinkie, I sometimes forget how wise you are beneath that bubbly exterior. It’s just too bad that much of it is lost behind your randomness. Both of you are actually right in a way but who says the world that is created can’t also be a bridge? It’s not like it has to be a permanent world either, just something stable enough to get us across.” Pinkie preens a bit at the praise while Sunset and the others look between her and me in shock.

What I don’t say is that creating such a world would probably take most of my energy but as a precaution I decide to get some help. “Hey Twilight, mind helping me out with this? I’m pretty sure that I could do it alone, but I’d rather not risk running out of magic too early in case I underestimated what I need.”

Twilight opens her mouth to say something but closes it a moment later before she moves forwards to join me. It took Twilight a moment of concentration but she soon was releasing a flow of magic towards me which took me a moment to get a handle on. It took a bit of effort to gather the power for my use but it would have taken more if I was calling on my own. Once I had a firm grasp on the energies I directed the flow through the portal towards Equestria.

Trying to match up both sides of the portal was rather difficult to do but with a bit of finesse I was able to lightly ling both sides together so I could start the next step. I kept the entrance and exit relatively small, just enough to pass through, while the rest of it I made a bit larger. Seeing as the worlds were flowing apart I needed the extra space so that as they move apart the path will stretch while the diameter of the path will contract. I kept the boundary of this new ‘world path’ in a weave to more easily allow this to happen as well as keep the strength of it up with less effort.

Once I was sure that everything was secure and that we would have plenty of time to cross I finished binding everything together and opened the portal. I took a moment to look over the portal one last time and other than a constant drain of energy to keep the world alive it all looked to be in good condition. “Well I think everything is properly in place, but without going through it I can’t be completely sure. It’s probably best that you take Sonata through first while I keep it stable on this end just as a precaution, Twilight.”

Twilight perked up and began saying her goodbyes to the others starting with Sunset Shimmer. I kept an eye on the former unicorn as she stepped back from Twilight and I knew that something needed to be said before I left. Soon enough Twilight was carrying Sonata in her magic giving a final wave before stepping through.

The others looked saddened by Twilight leaving but I suspected that Sunset was sad for a different reason as I walked over towards her. “You look a bit more disappointed about us going than the others. Do you want to talk about why Sunset?” She jumps in surprise at when I start speaking and she looks down at my guiltily.

“There’s nothing wrong with me, why would you thing that something is wrong with me?” I roll my eyes before leveling a look at her and I’m not alone as I notice Rarity looking at her sadly as well.

“Darling, I know you don’t want others to think badly of you but I’ve seen how you’ve looked at the statue throughout the years that we’ve been friends. You want to go home, don’t you?” The others looked over at us when Rarity spoke up which looked to be making her a bit nervous. Eventually she just sighed before nodding her head before she was caught up in the middle of a group hug.

“Now Sugarcube you know you could have talked to us about anything. We’re your friends and you could have come to us about anything and being homesick is nothing to be ashamed of.” The others nod along with her while Pinkie throws in her own bit of rare wisdom.

“Besides, you could always come and visit us again and we could have a big welcome back party for you. It doesn’t have to be goodbye forever.” I can see tears in Pinkie’s eyes as she says this but she keeps a smile up the whole time. She isn’t the only one as the others are in the same state with Sunset being the worst until she looks towards me.

“Is it really okay? Can I really come home this time?” I nod to her before throwing something else in to ease her worries.

“It’s been over six centuries on that side since you had left. While most of the ponies that you would have known are gone I’m sure Princess Celestia would be overjoyed to see you again. She lost her sister for a thousand years and welcomed her back but this would be the greatest gift to her as she probably lost all hope of seeing you again.” Sunset Shimmer looked a bit unsure for a moment but she finally nodded before hugging her friends even harder.

“I can hold this thing open for a few hours so I’ll go on ahead while you finish up with what you need here. Just try not to take too long as it takes a good amount of energy to keep the path open and I’m not sure how long it’ll be until I can’t hold it without any problems.” She nods as she turns back to her friends while I look at the portal and prepare for my own journey. Before I can step through I feel something being pressed into my bags and looks to see Pinkie slipping a note into them.

Shaking my head I step through the portal and find myself on a bridge of solid flames connecting two lights in a sea of darkness. “Hmm, maybe I should have focused on what I wanted this place to look like while I was creating it. Twilight must have been unnerved by being forced to walk on something that looks as if it should be burning her.”

The trip through didn’t take that long as I set a brisk pace towards the other end. The brief period of being threatened with separation from my daughters was enough to motivate me to pass through quickly. I made note that it actually took less energy while I was in the miniature to sustain it than from the other end. I wasn’t sure if I needed the information but any new information could be useful in the future.

Passing through the other end into Equestria I find the three princesses waiting for me but I ignore them in favor of something more important. “Hey you two, Mommy’s home.” With a quick bound I snatched Dawn and Dusk up from next to Surprise and curl up with them with my tail surrounding them and my head. I nuzzle the two as they lick at my face before they bury themselves into my fur and lie down for a nap.

I look up to see the others looking at me strangely about something. “What? Can’t a mother say hello to her children after being threatened with not seeing them for years?” They just shake their heads at me before Luna speaks up.

“Well it’s good to see you back again. Twilight already told me about what happened over there but she had yet to tell me about this young mare that you brought back. She said that you would explain everything when you returned.” I look over at the mare she indicated to see what I was assuming to be Sonata Dusk.

Her mane and tail were of the same color and style as her hair was in the other world while her coat retained the bluish white color as well. Her cutie mark was a heart with a somewhat jagged musical note over it which made me guess that she had some musical skill even before becoming a siren. What I found interesting was that she looked like a unicorn with four hooves and a horn instead of a sea creature like what sirens were described as.

“Huh, she doesn’t look like I was expecting her to. But let’s just say that she’s an old problem Equestria had that was already solved and her punishment has more than been served. Only the princesses would even remember her crimes and she deserves a chance at a normal life after what happened to her over there.” Luna looks me in the eye for a moment before turning towards Twilight who also nods at her.

“Well if you think that is what is best for her then that is fine. I still expect a more thorough explanation later once everything is settled.” I nod to her as well when I remember that note that was given me and I pull it out of my bags to look it over. Seeing that it was addressed to Surprise I debated with myself for a moment before I gave in and passed it over to the pegasus.

She looked at it curiously before she opened and read it to herself. A moment later she looks at the portal and nods before she actually swallows the letter and moves to stand over Sonata. I look at the other princesses as they watch her and Twilight glances at me in confusion. “Flarenza, just what was in that letter you gave her?”

I just shrug before pointing a tail back to the portal. “No idea. Pinkie snuck it into my bags before I left and I’m wondering if it was a good idea to give it to her or not still. From how she’s acting I’m guessing that she asked Surprise to watch over Sonata which actually might be a good idea.” The others glance at the pegasus warily and I wonder how things will turn out when I feel something enter the world between the portals.

I turn my attention back to the portal once again and wait for them to arrive. Twilight notices that my attention is focused on it and walks over to it questioningly before sticking her hoof through it. When she finds that it is still open she looks back at me. “Flarenza, why is the portal still active? Shouldn’t you have let it close by now?”

I smile as I feel the being reach this end and step through and I nod towards it once again. What crosses through is nothing like I expected and the shock causes me to lose my grip on the portal causing it to close. The figure is stumbling a bit as she tries to get used to her hooves yet again and she looks up to see Twilight. “Twilight? Are you supposed to be that tall? And why are you looking at me like that?”

Sunset Shimmer looks around to see the other two princesses and stumbles a bit when she sees that they are also much larger than she expected. I can’t hold it back anymore as I break out laughing at her. When she looks over at me I point a paw towards the mirror behind her since I can’t speak right now.

She looks confused until she turns around to see her reflection in the mirror and her mouth drops open in shock. Whatever she was expecting I highly doubt it was seeing herself at a reduced age of what I estimated to be about five years old now. Suddenly her next surprise popped up out of nowhere as her wings sprung out from her sides due to her shock which snapped her out of it enough to respond. “What?! Oh come on!”

Author's Note:

Well this looks like a good place for a year-long hiatus don't you all think? I'll be over there doing something else, maybe starting a new story or something. Just be sure to let me know of any rabid typos that I may have missed.

Comments

[Crescent Glaive]

Sunset is an alicorn foal now?!?

That was unexpected but kinda funny

[DerpTape]

I know Flarenza has experience with raising alicorn foals, but maybe Cellestia should be given a shot this time?

[Asolem2]

What I found interesting was that she looked like a unicorn with four hooves and a horn instead of a sea creature like what sirens were described as.

She could be one of those shape-shifting seaponies

She looks confused until she turns around to see her reflection in the mirror and her mouth drops open in shock. Whatever she was expecting I highly doubt it was seeing herself at a reduced age of what I estimated to be about five years old now. Suddenly her next surprise popped up out of nowhere as her wings sprung out from her sides due to her shock which snapped her out of it enough to respond. “What?! Oh come on!”

Oh this is gonna be amazing