Click.
The clunking of metallic tumblers echoed in the silent apartment, and a tall door swung open with a creak. Fluorescent lighting and the distant rumble of the highway spilled into a dark living room. A woman stepped through the door. She wore a brown jacket and clutched a large, violet bag in her hand. Tennis shoes tapped softly against the tile in the entryway as she gently closed the door.
It clicked shut and the apartment was smothered in darkness. The woman locked the deadbolt and chain with practiced fluidity. She sighed, kicked off her shoes, and placed them beside several more pairs - including a set of dirt-encrusted work boots and small tennis shoes with velcro straps.
The woman padded across the room in her socks until tile turned into carpet. She placed her keys down with a clatter and moved to take off her jacket, but she stopped when a glint of purple light caught her eye. Her eyes narrowed and her pulse quickened. She clenched her hand, which bore a gold ring mounted by a glittering amethyst, and swung her jacket onto a counter.
The jacket fell away and revealed her hand bathed in purple flames. It condensed into a ball and launched across the apartment. Purple light filled the living room. Sickly, yellow, serpentine eyes glinted in the dark.
The bolt of eldritch energy shot across the room like an arrow, aimed for the man's chest, but he raised his hand and caught the bolt in his palm. He grinned mischievously, revealing a gold tooth, as the stunning spell rolled around in his hand like a marble.
“Hello, Twilight.” The man’s voice was nasally and dripping with amusement. “It's been awhile. Did you dye your hair?”
The woman stood slack-jawed and stared at the man. Her hand was still outstretched with the ring’s light fading - it’s feeble magic depleted.
“... Discord?”
“In the flesh!” Discord grinned in self-satisfaction as he tossed the jellybean-sized ball of magic into his mouth and swallowed. “And what an interesting piece of flesh this is. I'm naturally bipedal and as strange as can be, but this is still odd to me. I can't imagine how you got used to it.”
“But… How…” Twilight stuttered. “Why are you here?”
“I must admit, it did take me a while… You have no idea how many random universes and timelines I had to sift through in order to find you… As for the why, well…”
Discord glanced at the shelf where over a dozen framed pictures sat. They sported a variety of people - many of them contained a purple-haired and violet-eyed woman or one with brown hair and blue eyes - like the one before him.
“I think you have a pretty good idea about why I'm here,” Discord eyed Twilight with his piercing gaze, “but I think you have a story to tell first. Don't you, Princess?”
Twilight stared at Discord for a long time. Her shoulders sagged as she closed her eyes and sighed. She brushed a lock of hair away from her eyes and looked at the pictures with nostalgia and a sad smile. Finally, she turned to Discord and nodded.
-
Discord and Twilight sat across from one another at the dining room table. Two cups of steaming hot tea sat in front of them. Twilight cupped the beverage in her hands and watched Discord. He was dressed in an orange and purple pinstripe suit with white cuff links, a blue undershirt, and a polka dotted tie. His signature goatee survived the transition nicely, and it paired well with the snow white hair that was slicked back and pinched into two horns. He certainly would have gotten a few strange looks walking down the street, but Twilight supposed that was entirely the point.
“Don't worry,” Discord broke the silence. “They won't be able to hear us. I put a stasis charm on this room, so nothing we say or do will leave it.”
Twilight nodded and took a sip of her tea.
“So…” she traced the lines on the table with her eyes. “... How long?”
“About six months or so.” Discord said matter-of-factly.
Twilight snorted with humorless laughter. Her vision blurred and she wiped her eyes with a finger.
“Am I right to assume it's been longer on your end?” he asked. His voice held a trace of sympathy.
Twilight nodded. Her hands quivered.
“How long, Twilight?”
“... Ten years…”
Discord whistled. “That's quite a while to be marooned anywhere, especially in a world like this. I can hardly feel any magic at all! How did a spell swinger like you survive?”
“I almost didn't…” she smiled nostalgically. “Though I eventually learned that there was some magic here. It's an old kind of magic - a dying art, really - that's hard to find… let alone study. That took me a few years, though. I was pretty hopeless at first.
“After it happened, I just wandered the streets for a few days. I was able to scrape by with a little generosity from strangers. They gave me money and sometimes food. Never more than enough to last the day, though.
“If only they knew who you were.” Discord snorted. “They would have been throwing themselves at you left and right.”
“That's just the thing, though,” Twilight continued. “Some of them did know who I was, or at least recognized who I was supposed to look like. I received compliments and strange looks in equal measure. My current hypothesis is that there is some sort of subconscious leakage of information between our universe and this one. They told stories about us… my friends and I… even you! No one really believed who I was, though, since I was still appearing in their stories. I think… I think it was showing what our world would be if I hadn't have left. A different timeline, I suppose. I used it to… keep track of things back in Equestria… and to remember.
“There was only one person who believed me, though. He took me in, gave me shelter, food, clothing… He took me off the streets and taught me about this world. He saved me.”
“I think I can see where this is going…” Discord stroked his goatee.
Twilight laughed. “I know… It certainly wasn't like that at first. There were a lot of… assumptions… on both sides that had to be cleared. He thought he knew me, at first, but in the end, he only knew of me. I was still learning how to not trip over my own feet - let alone study the body language of an alien species. We eventually cleared the air, though, and… gave it a shot.
“I started to give up hope after a few years. I'm not sure exactly when it happened. It might have been when I decided to get a job to help out instead of mooching off of him, or maybe it was when I enrolled at the university to ‘pass the time’, or it might have been something else…” Twilight absently fondled the ring on her finger.
“I see…” Discord tented his fingers. “Well, this puts me in a bit of a bind… Tia has been tearing Equestria, even Equus itself, apart looking for you. It wasn't until she exhausted all her options that she even bothered to ask me for help. She made me promise that I would bring you back…”
Twilight choked back a sob as a tear slide down her cheek. “I-I-I'm sorry… I didn't mean to make anyone worry…”
“No one blamed you, Twilight. You were simply following your nature. There was no way your inquisitive mind would back down from such a challenge.”
“I can't just leave, though…” Twilight met his gaze. Her eyes were red, puffy, and wet.
“Yes…” He looked around the apartment. “It appears you've gone native. Quite the conundrum. I honestly wouldn't have expected you of all ponies to get attached to a delightfully chaotic race like this one.”
“There's a lot more to them than that.” Twilight took another sip of her tea and steadied her breath. “Humans are a complicated species. They're just like ponies in many ways, but very different in others. They feel love, hate, joy, and sadness. They'll kill each other for all the worst reasons, but are willing to die for the all best ones. They don’t give up when things are hard, but instead pick themselves back up and keep going. They conquered this world with just their tenacity and ingenuity.”
“You sound like you greatly admire them.” Discord smiled.
“If Humans and Ponies shared a world together, I think they would have surpassed us - even with our magic. If they put their minds to something, they will eventually overcome any challenge.”
“They are interesting, indeed,” he nodded. “My time here grows short, however. I'm going to need an answer to my unspoken question, Twilight.”
"... Is there any way to bring them with?" Twilight frowned.
"I'm afraid not," he shook his head. "Navigating the space between universes is dangerous on a good day, so I can only safely bring one other person with me. Further, I literally found this universe at random, so while I'm anchored to our version of Equestria… I won't be able to find this universe and timeline again with any accuracy. I'm afraid you'll have to choose, Twilight."
“I see…” Twilight leaned back and sighed. She looked at the glittering ring on her finger and smiled bittersweetly. “Well… I suppose the choice is obvious, isn't it?”
Dear Princess Celestia,
It's been a while. Though, as I understand it, it hasn't been as long on your end. For me, it has been over ten years since I have seen your face, heard your voice, or felt the embrace of your wings. I have smelled your ancient books and tasted your tea in my dreams, but it is not the same. There is so much I want to tell you, but Discord said he doesn't have much time.
I am safe, and I am happy.
Twilight walked down a hallway. Her bare feet slid noiselessly against the soft carpet, and her gaze brushed fondly over several photographs and shelves. The frames were filled with children - smiling, running, laughing, playing, reading silently in a classroom, or building memories on a school bus. She ran her fingers over several textbooks of various subjects.
I have followed your footsteps, in a sense. I am a teacher at a middle school now. The children are wonderful, if not full of spirit. My subjects are math, physics, and English. It is my hope to become a professor at a local university and explore the boundaries of this universe’s laws.
Twilight quietly stepped into a side room. Dozens of stars, glowing a soft green, smiled down at her from the ceiling. She deftly navigated a minefield of toys and looked down upon a small bed. The covers, bearing a grinning Rainbow Dash, concealed the slumbering form of a young girl. Twilight stooped down and brushed a finger against her cheek. The girl stirred but did not wake.
You're also a grandmother now! Her name is Melody, and she enjoys hearing the stories of me and my friends. She's going to be starting school soon. We'll probably have to dye her hair because violet isn't a natural hair color here. It's a shame because it's quite beautiful on her. She has her father's eyes, and she's such a smart girl, but very shy. I'll make sure she understands the value of friendship, though.
Speaking of friendship, I suppose it's been awhile since I wrote a friendship report, hasn't it? I know it's not really required since I earned my wings, but let's try this… For old time's sake.
I have learned many things while living among this peculiar world of humans. First, it is that appearances can be deceiving. We should never let judgments from others keep us from discovering something ourselves. What we might think is true might not necessarily be so, and assumptions can destroy relationships if you let things fester.
Celestia paced relentlessly across the stone floor of her courtroom. Her eyes were bloodshot and puffy, and her ethereal mane twitched erratically. Luna stood beside her, grimacing and scuffing the floor with her hoof. Discord suddenly materialized before them, and Celestia was there in an instant. Her eyes, pleading, looked into Discord’s own, but saw only somberness and a bittersweet smile. A sealed letter floated from his claw to Celestia and she tore it open. Teary pink eyes zoomed across the page. Celestia’s face crumbled with every line until the letter fell from her flickering magic.
Celestia fell to her knees and wept.
Second, there are times when you must learn to let go of the past. Learn from it, cherish the memories that make you who you are, but do not let what could have been - and what was - blind you to opportunities in the present and chain you down in fear. Every great chapter must end so that an amazing one can begin.
Discord cradled the wailing alicorn in his arms even as Luna picked up the discarded letter. Her scowl deepened as she read it, and silent tears graced her cheeks. She sighed, folded the letter, and joined Discord in comforting the mourning Celestia.
Third, even if all the Multiverse stands against you… you should never lose hope. When everything seems lost, it can be the one thing that keeps you afloat. Every valley has a mountain, and every night will have a dawn - no offense to Luna, of course. Give her my best wishes. It is the pain and suffering in life that gives meaning to the joy and happiness therein, and it can be the catalyst of wonderful change. Good things happen to those who persevere and hold onto faith.
Give my regards to all of my friends, my parents, Shining, Cadance, and Spike. I love them all so so dearly. I formally pass the management of Friendship Castle and the public library therein to Spike. He is the heir to all of my possessions to do with as he deems fit. Tell Rarity that I wish she could have designed my wedding gown and Pinkie that I would have loved nothing more than to have had her plan Melody's first birthday and every one since. I miss walking through Sweet Apple Acres (and am disappointed for never asking Big Mac out when I had the chance) and flying around Ponyville with Rainbow Dash on the weekend. I miss hearing Fluttershy's wonderful voice, and I miss the smell of old parchment and ink. I also miss you, Celestia, so very much. You were my mentor, my second mother, and my rock.
Twilight stood in her bedroom wearing a t-shirt and pair of shorts. She cradled a silver medallion in her hand. Images of the sun, moon, and stars surrounded the outer edge of the trinket while a coiled Draconequus sat in the center. The former Unicorn could feel some of the faint energy that lay dormant in the medallion. She knew it would awaken with a simple thought and flex of her own equally faint magic. Instead, Twilight reverently placed it in a drawer and locked it.
I hope to see you all again one day. Perhaps, when this frail body becomes old, weak, and gray, and this chapter of my life comes to a close, and either the Pale Mare or the Grim Reaper stands by my bedside among the rest of my family, I will see you all again. I am not gone, for each of you are with me in my heart, just as I hope I am in yours. I have merely stepped into another room. When we see each other next, I hope to share my stories with all of you just as I share ours with my daughter.
With much love,
Your Friend, Twilight “Tara” Hansen
Twilight slid into bed and slipped underneath the soft blankets. She snuggled up to the warm body next her and felt a strong hairy arm curl around her waist and pull her close. Warm breath tickled her neck as her husband buried his face in her hair. Twilight gripped the larger hand in her own and intertwined their fingers with a smile.
“... Until then, I’m home.”