//------------------------------// // Part III - Chapter 7: Back to Equestria // Story: Return of the Mare // by Victoria //------------------------------// PART III Chapter 7: Back to Equestria After a short moment of feeling myself falling in the weightlessness, I got hit in the face by something solid. It was painful, but I ignored it – Marcus was all that was on my mind. I jumped up on my hooves and looked around for my friend. In the little light I had, I saw him stirring on the floor near me. A weight fell off of my shoulders. Thank God Marcus was still alive. But I shouldn’t let myself relax just yet. “Marcus?” I got closer to him and poked his shoulder. “Are you alright?” “Never better…” he moaned. “What happened? Where are we?” “You got shot by that guy, the hunter–” I started to say before being interrupted. “That asshole…” Marcus cursed. “And you fell into The Boulder, which is some kind of portal, I think,” I finished my short story. Marcus lifted himself up, leaning on the hunter’s rifle and sat on the floor. He explored the room around us. I followed his example, wondering where the portal took us. “It looks like some kind of weird lab,” Marcus shared his observations with me. I agreed. A moonlight coming from the window allowed me to see the various tables with weird instruments on them and a lot of books. There were no computers in sight. In fact, the whole place looked medieval. The strangest object here was the big mirror fixed on the rack behind us. It had the same strange surface as the rock we came through earlier, but it wasn’t as smooth. The cracks could be clearly seen on it. Its glowing dimmed down before stopping completely. My reflection had appeared in the glass, but it was still too dark to see it properly. I carefully touched it with the tip of my hoof, expecting some kind of reaction, but got nothing. It had become just a regular mirror now. Maybe it would react to my magic if I tried to do the same trick as I did with The Boulder, but I didn’t feel up to it. The hunter and his dog were probably waiting us on the other side, so it was a relief the portal had closed. A moan of pain from Marcus distracted me from my thoughts. Turning back, I saw him lay on the floor again. Oh my gosh, he was wounded and I was wasting my time here! “Wait here,” I told him, hurrying to find the way out. “I’m going to find some help.” “You do that, Annie…” he answered in a weak voice. I found the door but it was closed. Wrapping my foreleg around a big, wide handle the door had, I pushed it back and forth in frustration, but it didn’t budge an inch. Turning my backside to the door, I kicked it with all my might. A loud crack made my ears flinch, but the door remained closed. I delivered a few more kicks, until the door finally broke open. I wish I had a flashlight with me – I could barely distinguish a wide corridor outside with the weak moonlight shining from the windows. Stepping out, I looked in both directions, trying to decide where to go next. It was dark all around, but I saw some light source on my right so it became my choice. I carefully trotted forward, not daring to go for a full run in case I stumble over something. Soon the corridor ended and I found myself in a big room. The light source was hiding behind one of the pillars there. A strange brown creature walked out from there, holding a lantern in its mouth. I gasped – it looked just like me! But after a moment I noticed some differences – the creature didn’t have a horn and was bulkier than me. It also wore a collar with a tie on his neck. It started to advance towards me and I backed up, drooping my ears in fright. “What in Tartarus are you doing here?” the creature asked in a low, rough voice. “This building is closed for students.” “I’m not a student,” I said, gathering all my strength to not shiver. “Are you a burglar then?” chuckled the creature who I assumed was a guardian of this strange laboratory. “My friend is hurt and he needs help!” I shot out at him, flicking my tail aggressively back and forth. I was more annoyed than afraid of him now. “Damn students…” complained the guard. “Stick their muzzles where they don’t belong and then run crying to me. Lead the way, missy.” I didn’t have the time to argue, so I just nodded curtly and walked back the way I came. A crazy theory appeared in my head: we weren’t on Earth anymore. There were no talking horses there as far as I knew. Clearly, I had been changed into one of the locals. The guard even took me for a student, not recognizing me for the human I was a few days ago. I was sure these people could give some answers. “That’s a room only a few ponies have access to,” commented the guard when we got to the room with the mirror portal. “You and your hurt friend are in trouble, missy.” The guard was getting on my nerves, but he was the only one able to help Marcus, so I kept my harsh response to myself. I caught one word from his blabbering though – ponies. So that was how they call themselves. I went into the room and the guard followed me, illuminating it with his lantern. Marcus looked up from the floor at the two of us; his face was pale. I couldn’t tear my eyes from his bloody hand that he was keeping on the side where his wound was. “You’ve found a new friend, I see,” murmured Marcus, dropping his head back to the floor. “I hope he’s a doctor, because I feel like crap.” The guard pony froze in place, glaring at Marcus. I guess, I should have expected that. If people saw someone like him in our world, they would have had a similar reaction. I hit my elbow impatiently on the guard’s side. He should help us first and then he could gape for as long as he wanted. “My friends needs help, remember?” I reminded him. “What in Tartarus is this monster?” “He is my friend and you have to help him,” I repeated, writing off his insult as a result of surprise. “I don’t know what you’ve done here, but you will be expelled for sure, missy,” the guard pointed an accusing hoof at me. That was the final straw. “I’m not a student here!” I screamed back at him, batting his hoof away. “We both came from the other side of this portal!” I pointed my own hoof at the mirror. “A portal, huh? That’s what those eggheads were doing here…” the guard appeared intrigued, but I was done wasting my time. “If you won’t help us, then find someone who can,” I shot at him angrily. “My friend is bleeding here.” “I suppose I really should,” the pony changed his attitude when he finally noticed the blood. He nodded in the direction of a locker on the wall with a red cross drawn on it. “There should be afirst-aid kit there. Use it to stop the bleeding while I bring some real help.” Having said that, the guard pony turned around and left in a hurry, leaving me in the darkness again. Cursing inside, I rushed to the locker and opened it. There were bandages and a few bottles with some unreadable inscriptions written on them. Ignoring the bottles – I didn’t want to poison Marcus unwittingly – I grabbed a bandage instead. I wasn’t sure if it was sanitary to hold it in my mouth, but I had no choice here. Bringing the bandage to Marcus, I laid it on the palm that he was reaching out. He muttered a thanks and started to apply the bandage on his wound himself. I helplessly watched as my friend was struggling and grunting in pain while doing this task. I wished to help him with all my heart, but I knew it was impossible in my current pony form. Soon Marcus was done; he leaned back on the floor with a tired sigh. Gently putting my hoof on his shoulder, I tried to reassure him: “Don’t worry. I’m sure you’ll be fine.” “Of course,” Marcus agreed with bravado. “I’ve had worse.” I snickered involuntarily – it was hard to imagine something worse than being shot and getting stuck in an entirely different world at the same time. “Okay, maybe I haven’t,” he shrugged, realizing it too. “But it could be much worse.” “Yeah...” I imagined what would happen if the hunter shot him with a rifle instead of a small pistol and shuddered inside. Good thing Marcus had taken it from him. While waiting for the promised help, I tried to keep Marcus talking. I was afraid that he might lose his consciousness otherwise, so we discussed our current situation. I told Marcus what I’d learned from the guard and he shared my conclusion about us being in a different world. It was the only way to explain the existence of ponies here. Even though we had seen just one so far, there were obviously much more around. Suddenly my ear swiveled in the door’s direction, catching a sound of hooves getting closer. Judging by it, a lot of ponies were coming towards us. Marcus heard it too and we both looked there expectedly. The first one to get into our view was the guard pony from before. Right behind him were a whole bunch of new ponies. Each of them had a different coat color and some of them even owned a horn, just like me. Even if I had some doubts before, they were gone now; I had definitely been transformed into the same species as them. “There they are, Mister Rector,” the guard pointed his hoof on us. A large, green pony with ruffled hair walked forward and studied us with his narrow stare. When the rector’s eyes fell on me though, they swung wide open. “Sundae?” he gasped. *** An hour later I was sitting in a very soft, comfortable chair in in Green Fields’ – the rector’s – luxurious office. That was what the pony was called. It was more of a collocation than a proper name, if if you asked me. Marcus was taken to a local hospital. I was reluctant to let them take my friend away at first, but the pony doctor wearing a white hat with a red cross symbol explained that Marcus could have had a serious injury and they needed to treat him in a special facility. He and his assistant brought a stretcher and put Marcus on it, embracing him with a strange glowing field. Their horns were glowing too in the process, so I understood they were using magic, but for a more refined task than I was in the hotel. After they were gone, that Fields fellow took me to his personal office and told me the most shocking story I’d ever heard. He claimed that I was Sundae, a pony who had apparently disappeared six years ago in this world. The same mirror was involved in the whole mess, but it had been destroyed, so they thought Sundae was gone forever. So I just sat there, dumbfounded, and didn’t know how to react. The story sounded awfully convenient and the timeline checked out, but I still couldn’t fully believe it. Had I really been a pony all along or was he just bamboozling me for some unknown reason? No, that was silly. He certainly wouldn’t have planned for me to appear this night and come up with such a tale on the fly, since even I didn’t know I was going to be here. All I had wanted to do was to look at The Boulder in the forest. I had no idea it was actually a portal leading here. “You really do not remember anything?” Fields asked again. He had repeated the same question a few times already, like he was doubting me. I shook my head in sadness. Everything that was before six years ago was like surrounded by a stone wall inside of my mind. Even his story of my supposed origin didn’t spark any memories inside me. “But you do remember what happened after you got through the portal?” This time I had a story of my own to share. I told him a short version of my life after the loss of my memory. Fields became very curious when I mentioned that I had been a human until recently. “They removed the transformation spell when they restored the mirror, but you’re the proof it actually works!” the pony hit the table in excitement. But then he sobered up. “Maybe it was a good decision though. The spell lost a few important bits of you after it wore off. I noticed your lack of a cutie mark, Sundae.” I cringed, hearing that name. I was Annie, not some ice cream. I raised the issue to Fields and then asked him what a cutie mark was. “Okay, Annie,” he said, emphasizing my name, “So you do not even remember what cutie marks are?” “No,” I answered simply. “What if you’re wrong, Mister Fields? I’m just an ordinary human…I mean, I was one.” “I knew Sundae personally,” said Fields. “She looked exactly like you. She was a bit older though, but that could just be the spell’s side effect.” We sat in silence for a bit, each gathering their thoughts. Deep inside I felt the rector was telling the truth. It was the more logical explanation that I was a pony originally and was temporarily transformed to a human than that half-baked theory of Marcus’ and mine that I was somehow cursed by The Boulder. Marcus! With all those new revelations I had almost forgotten about my friend. Enough time had passed; the doctor should be done already. “I want to see my friend,” I said firmly, not ready to take ‘no’ for an answer. “That is admirable, Sundae,” Fields looked at me apologetically. “But the hospital is closed for visitors at such a late hour.” I was so frustrated that I ignored another slip with my name. My tail began to twitch in response to my feelings and Fields probably noticed something. “I can ask someone to walk you to the hospital tomorrow,” he said. “I would go with you, but I have some business to attend to in the morning.” My ears drooped – I was worried about Marcus. Despite his brave words, he didn’t look so good when the medical ponies took him. I hoped they knew how to take care of a human. “I also need to send a letter to the Princess as soon as possible,” continued Fields. I raised my eyebrows in question. “You have a princess here?” “Four, to be exact,” nodded the pony. “But I am talking about one specific princess. She would be interested to hear about you and your friend. Our magic students wouldn’t be able to restore the mirror without her help.” It wasn’t hard to guess that he was talking about the mirror portal. His title as a rector and all those mentions of students told me that we were in some kind of college for ponies, who apparently were the main species in this world. “What is this place?” I asked to confirm my idea. “The Canterlot College of Advanced Science,” Fields answered proudly. “You graduated from here yourself, Sundae.” “Ah,” I frowned. “I was one of your professors at the time,” continued Fields. “You were a pretty good student.” I disliked his constant reminders of me being Sundae. Even if that was true, I was used to living as the human Annie and wanted to change into her again if that was possible. But based on how surprised he was to find out the transformation spell had actually worked, I didn’t have much hope. With a sigh, Fields stood up from his chair and walked around the table that was separating us and towards me. I noted again how large the pony was. He put a hoof on my shoulder, trying to be reassuring. “Do not worry, Sundae,” he told me in a soothing voice. “Your friend will be fine.” I really wanted to believe in his words, but I couldn’t be sure until I saw Marcus myself. I threw a glance outside – it was still night. A big yawn emerged out of me and I couldn’t stop it. “We have a free room in our dormitory here,” Fields said, noticing my tired state. “Let’s go, Sundae.” I didn’t argue with that. I was pretty exhausted by today’s stressful events and my attempts at using magic, and since I couldn’t go to Marcus right now, I should at least get some sleep. Fields was walking determinedly through the various passages of the College, clearly knowing the place well. I trotted behind him, letting out another yawn from time to time. The passages were brightly lit at night, unlike the corridor near the mirror portal. It was more beautiful as well with its light-brown colored walls and occasional nature painting hanging between the torches. Our hooves were clopping on the wooden floor in unison. Fields opened a door at the end of the corridor and we walked outside. A few buildings stood at a small distance from each other, separated by a green lawn. Fields led me to the closest one; it was built in a gothic style, with a lot of arches decorating the walls and had an impressive look overall. Inside it looked much more modern, like a typical college dormitory. We passed a foyer, which was not so different from the one where I first stumbled into the annoying guard pony. Another guard was sitting by the table here, reading a book in the dim light of his lamp. Fields gave him a greeting nod and waited for him to set the book aside. “Yes, Mister Rector?” “I need you to put this pony,” he pointed a hoof at me, “In one of your free rooms. Is it possible?” “Of course, sir,” answered the guard pony. He took one of the keys from the half-empty rack on the wall behind him and made a gesture for me to follow him. Having said my thanks to Fields, I went with the guard pony. The place we walked through could easily pass for a typical dormitory on Earth itself, if you ignored the torches. The pony stopped by a door, which wasn’t any different from a long row of identical doors along the walls. He opened it with his key and invited me in. “It’s the first time I see a new student being personally escorted by the rector himself in the middle of the night,” the pony said to me. “I’m not a student,” I explained. I didn’t elaborate any further and the guard didn’t press me. He just shrugged nonchalantly and left, leaving me the key. I closed the door behind him, but couldn’t lock it with the key. I recalled how the guard had done it seemingly easily, manipulating it just with his hooves alone. In the end, I decided not to bother at all; it was unlikely someone would try to break in here anyway. The room I got was small, but cozy. It had two beds and a big wooden cabinet along one of its walls. There was also a pair of writing desks. Since it was a dormitory, I guessed it was for students to do their studying. But the bed was interesting me most right now. I dropped on it, finally relaxing my tense body. I didn’t know how much time I had until morning, but I intended to use it fully. Curling up, I fell into a slumber. *** A loud banging on my door woke me up, interrupting a nice dream I was having. My ears went flat against my head. I opened my eyes reluctantly, wishing that it would stop, but the bloody sound had disturbed me again. “I’m coming,” I grumbled loud enough for it to be heard outside. “Give me a damn minute.” I got out of bed and looked for my clothes, before my sleepy brain remembered that I didn’t have anything. But the few ponies I saw hadn’t worn much either, so it was unlikely to cause any problems. The only thing that bothered me was how easy it was to see the parts I would have rather left hidden. My tail helped a little, but it wasn’t good enough. I preferred to keep my rump pointing in the opposite direction from Marcus since the embarrassing incident in the kitchen, when I had wanted him to cut my tail off. But here it would be impossible. I expected to find a lot of ponies outside and I couldn’t hide it from everyone. I should ask someone if they had clothes for ponies in this world, but for now I just took a bedsheet and put it on my back. It was long enough to cover me down to my hooves. “Come in,” I finally shouted to whoever was waiting outside. The door opened and I frowned when I saw the annoying guard pony from yesterday. He wasn’t wearing his collar with a tie, but I recognized him by his coat color and tattoo of a lantern on his rump. “Hello, Sundae, right?” he greeted me politely. “My name is Anne, actually,” I corrected him coldly. “Sorry for my behavior yesterday,” the pony told me, lowering his ears. “I thought you were just another student looking for trouble. But the rector explained the real situation to me, so I offered to guide you to the hospital after my shift as an apology.” “Oh,” I didn’t know what to say at first. “It’s okay, I understand. Thank you.” “My name is Stern Shield, by the way,” he said and looked curiously at the bedsheet covering my back. “Is that what ponies are wearing in your world?” “There are no ponies in my world,” I told him. Although technically there were a lot of ponies, but I wasn’t in the mood to explain it in detail. “Really? But what about you then?” Shield frowned in puzzlement. “It’s a really long story,” I sighed. “I want to see if my friend is okay.” “Sorry for bothering you,” the pony turned around and added: “Follow me.” We trotted side by side along the corridor. A few ponies were going about their own business around us. They all varied in color and each had their own unique tattoo on their flank. Some of them were bigger and had a longer face than the others. I guessed they were males or, to use the more appropriate term, stallions. “Why does everybody have a tattoo?” I asked my guide, making a gesture at his own picture of lantern. “It’s not a tattoo,” he gave me a weird look. “It’s a cutie mark. Everypony gets them eventually.” “I see,” I nodded. So it was a cultural thing. I’d heard of some tribes on Earth making a tattoo as a sign of adulthood; maybe it was something similar. Soon we got outside, where even more ponies were trotting about. A few looked at me strangely and I soon realized the bedsheet I wore was just as eye-catching among the ponies as if I went naked on the streets of London. “Do you ponies wear clothes?” I asked Shield, feeling my cheeks starting to burn red. I hoped it wouldn’t be too obvious because of my coat. “Of course,” he answered, glancing at me and shaking his head in amusement. We walked in silence for a while after that. Although I had a pretty good excuse being from another world, I didn’t want to appear dumb, asking stuff that everybody was supposed to know. I was looking at the ground, trying to ignore the ponies around, and when I finally looked up, I froze in amazement. We were standing on a hill where the College was and the most beautiful city appeared before my eyes. It wasn’t very big by my London standards, but it looked much cleaner and healthier. Most of the houses were built from white stone and it reminded me of some old European town. A large castle with a lot of towers dominated the view, which only added to my impression. When I saw the ground far below behind the castle walls, I realized that he whole city stood on the side of a tall mountain. A river flowed out of the mountain behind us, curved through the city and fell to the ground, creating a waterfall. I knew I was gaping like a clueless hick, but the city was too magnificent. It was straight out of a fairy tale. “Welcome to Canterlot,” chuckled Shield. “That’s breathtaking!” “I know,” the pony nodded. “Follow me, the hospital is nearby.” The mention of the hospital lowered my mood considerably, since I still didn’t know if Marcus was okay. I hoped for the best, but there was no telling until I saw him myself. A paved road went down the hill in the city’s direction and we trotted on it with a fast pace. Noticing my worry, Shield was trying to distract me by talking about Canterlot. From him I learned that it was the capital of Equestria. Mister Fields had already mentioned Equestria, but I didn’t know it was the country’s name. Two princesses ruled from here. He mentioned the existence of two more princesses, but told me they weren’t as important. Shield asked me a few questions about my own world, but my answers were curt and uninformative. I hoped that he wasn’t upset by it; my thoughts were just elsewhere. “Canterlot Central,” he pointed his hoof at the large building before us. A lot of ponies were constantly moving in and out from it. “I’ll show you inside and then I’ll leave. No offense, but I’m pretty tired after my night shift.” I agreed with a nod. I was nervous about being left alone – I still didn’t know much about this world. But I couldn’t ask Shield to stay. He’d already helped me a lot and it would be rude of me to demand even more. We walked into the foyer and I saw a small line formed in front of a counter. A lone unicorn mare was sitting there, looking for something in a big book. “You should ask this mare about your friend,” Shield pointed at her with his hoof. “Good luck, Sundae.” “Anne,” I corrected him once again. “And thank you.” After this we parted ways. I joined the line behind a grey stallion with blue hair. He had a pair of wings, which caught my attention. It looked like I had found another type of pony, in addition to unicorns and “normal” ponies. I wondered if there were even more. Standing behind him wasn’t comfortable for me. I was afraid that he would move his tail and I would see what was hiding underneath. But there was already another pony standing behind me, so I stayed in place to keep the spot. Ten long minutes later it was finally my turn. The receptionist looked at me expectantly and I told her about Marcus, which made her ears perk up. By now I had learned it was a sign of attention or curiosity. She opened the right page in her book at once and gave me Marcus’ whereabouts. As it turned out, he was the only non-pony patient currently in the hospital, so it was pretty easy to find him. I thanked her and was on my way. He was put in the room on the 4th floor, so my first step was to find some stairs. There weren’t any to be seen, so I decided to ask two unicorns, who were chatting while sitting on a bench nearby, since they appeared less busy than everybody else. “Hello, em…gentlemen,” I addressed them, stepping closer. “Do you happen to know how to get to the upper floors?” The ponies stopped their conversation and gave me a look over through their narrowed eyes. I didn’t like it at all. “Why? Did you forget your way to the psych ward?” one of them asked mockingly and they both laughed. “What?” my ears fell flat. “No.” “You’re dressed like you did though,” the other pony added, bursting in a renewed fit of laughter. How mean! I turned around sharply, wishing simply to disappear, but I was stopped by a hoof that was lying on my back. I felt my bedsheet slipping to the floor. “Stop that!” I shot at them angrily, desperately trying to pick it off the floor, but my hooves were too clumsy and I couldn’t get a hold of it. My exclamation brought the attention of ponies in the foyer. One of them, the grey pony with wings, had understood what was going on and advanced in our direction with a frown. The two mean unicorns left as soon as they noticed him. The stallion that saved me picked up the bedsheet with his mouth and covered me with it. I let out a sigh of relief. “Thank you!” “I’m always happy to help a nice filly like you,” he answered with a graceful nod. “Thank you,” I repeated, not knowing what else to say. If I remembered correctly, a filly was a young horse. So that probably was meant as a compliment. “Can you tell me where the stairs are?” I asked with a blush on my face. The stallion explained the path in detail. Thanks to that, I found the stairs pretty quickly and climbed them. My hooves were still shaking slightly after my encounter with the hooligans. First day in this new world and I already was attacked for dressing wrong. If I saw a person wearing a bedsheet in public, I would think they were weird too, but I would never say it out loud and most definitely wouldn’t mock that person. I was slightly out of breath when I reached the top floor. There were no ponies in sight, which wasn’t surprising – according to the receptionist, the 4th floor was reserved for non-pony creatures. I headed to the left like the receptionist had told me, looking for the right room number. When I tried to read one though, I realized that the signs were written in an unknown language for me. That was weird, considering that I had zero trouble understanding the local speech. Seeing no other way, I went from door to door looking for Marcus’ room, but every door I tried was locked. I kept trying until I reached an intersection where the corridor split in three different directions. I saw a white stallion in gray, metal armor standing by the door on my right, so I trotted up to him to ask for help. I stopped a few feet short – after those two unicorns had made fun of me, I was afraid to ask strangers for help. The stallion looked down at me expectantly. “Can I help you, miss?” there was no mocking in his tone, so maybe he wasn’t that bad. “Can you tell me where room 45 is?” I asked timidly. “I’m looking for a friend.” “Sure I can,” nodded the stallion. “I’m the one guarding it after all. So are you friends with the creature inside?” “Marcus? Yes, he’s a good friend,” I told him defensively. “He’s not a monster.” “I’m not saying he is, miss,” he made a pony equivalent of a shrug with one of his forelegs. “But I’m here to watch him just in case. You can enter.” I burst into the room – not able to wait any longer – and finally saw Marcus lying on a large hospital bed. He was awake and looked well enough for a hug, so I gave him one immediately. He returned it with a wide smile. “I’m so glad you’re alright!” I exclaimed, departing from his embrace. “Told you it was just a scratch,” he waved his hand carelessly. “Local doctors are great, by the way. I saw them using real magic, just like you showed me back at the hotel, but way more advanced.” I listened to my friend’s voice and the story he was telling. He didn’t have much to say though. He was made unconscious while pony doctors worked on him and he spent the rest of the time here, getting checked by a nurse a few times. “So, what did that green horse tell you yesterday?” Marcus asked, sitting upright in the bed. “He was more surprised to see you than me, even though you look just like one of them.” “They call themselves ponies,” I corrected him. “And you’re right; I look exactly like one of them. Apparently, a certain pony went missing six years ago…” After having told Marcus about Rector Fields’ theory, he stared at the wall, deep in thought. “It makes perfect sense,” he finally said. “A pony goes missing in this world and you wake up without memories in ours…” “I know, but I don’t feel like a pony,” I told him, feeling my voice shake a little. “I want to be a human again.” “These guys have magic here, Annie,” Marcus put a palm on my muzzle for some reason and rubbed it gently. “If your story is true, that means they can turn you into a human again.” “I thought so too,” I sighed. “But the rector – that green pony you saw yesterday – told me it’s impossible now.” “I’m sorry to hear that,” said Marcus, caressing my ear now. I flinched it involuntarily. “What are you doing?” I asked him cautiously, taking a step back. “It’s just…You’re so soft…Your coat, that is,” he answered with an almost unnoticeable blush. I didn’t know what to say, but there were times when actions spoke louder than words. I moved closer and reached out with a hoof, gently touching his cheek. Our faces slowly leaned closer and closer to each other. I shut my eyes with anticipation… But nothing happened. I looked at Marcus in concern. He looked to the side with a troubled expression on his face. “Sorry, Anne,” he said sharply. “I just can’t do that while you are a pony.” Saying that I was saddened by his rejection would be the understatement of the year; I was heartbroken. All my earlier suspicions were true – I couldn’t be with Marcus as a pony. That was why I hated this new body! Or actually my old one, if I believed Fields’ story. Marcus winced, noticing my reaction. I could see that he was upset too, but I didn’t care at that moment; all my emotions were in turmoil. I batted away his reaching hand and trotted to a window. Heavy silence hung in the room. The view from the window was excellent. I tried to distract myself by studying houses and ponies on the street below, but it was pointless. My thoughts kept going back to the event. We spent the entire following hour in silence. I was lying on the floor by the window and Marcus pretended to be sleeping, but I could see it for the act it was. “Look, I’m sorry,” he finally said. “We can be friends for now, right?” I was about to answer harshly when the door suddenly opened and Mister Fields trotted in with a smile. It faded when he saw our sullen faces though. “Princess Twilight got my letter and has already sent me an answer,” the pony tried to justify his good mood. “Really? That’s great,” I told him with faked excitement. Fields nodded and turned his attention to Marcus, a polite smile appearing on his face again. “Marcus, I presume? I’ve heard a lot about you,” Fields said. “My name is Green Fields.” “Cut the crap, Fields,” Marcus answered angrily. I raised my eyebrows in surprise. “Am I a prisoner here or what?” “Of course not,” Fields was taken aback by the sudden hostility. It was strange for me as well. Usually Marcus was polite even with the most tiresome clients in our store. His mood had to be really bad if he was acting this way. “Don’t be silly, Marcus,” I told him, standing up on my hooves. “It’s easy for you to say, pony,” he snapped right back at me. “I’m sure no one put an armored dude at your door.” My eyes became wet from tears. Marcus’ remark really hurt me. It wasn’t my fault I had been turned into a pony. “I never wanted to be a pony,” I retorted. “But you are a pony,” Fields wedged into the argument. We both stared at him. “It’s true though. You have always been a pony.” My ears drooped after he said it. I knew it was true, but it was still hard to accept it. That was why I decided to dismiss this fact altogether. “I don’t remember it,” I stated. “It may never have happened as far as I’m concerned.” “But your friends do remember you,” frowned Fields disapprovingly. “They took it pretty hard after finding out you were gone.” That took me by surprise. I had never realized before that I could have had friends here, perhaps even a family. My real mum and dad were living somewhere in this world and they were ponies. The very concept of it was hard to grasp. I got quiet and listened in to Fields’ and Marcus’ continuing conversation. My friend calmed down a bit and apologized for his outburst, but he still wanted to get an explanation about the guard. “I’m just the College rector,” explained Fields. “I had to report you to the city and they decided to send a guard just in case. After all, you come from a different world and they have to make sure you’re friendly.” “What if I don’t want to stay in a hospital?” “I can arrange a room for you close to Sundae if you’re good enough to leave,” the pony told him with a shrug. “I’m sure the guard won’t mind.” “Just not in the same room as me,” I put in my own two cents and got an annoyed glance from Marcus, but he made no comments. I felt a brief pang of guilt, but quickly suppressed it. It wasn’t Marcus fault that he didn’t like me as a pony – I didn’t like it myself – but he upset me. The last few days had given me hope that there might still be something between us, but he had crushed it. I needed some time alone to think. Fields left soon saying he had things to do, promising to return in the evening. He asked us to remain here for the time being, since Princess Twilight was going to arrive by a train today and we were going to meet her together on the station. The thought of meeting the local royalty so soon made me nervous, but it was a welcome distraction from my heavy thoughts. Although Shield had said earlier that she had become a princess not long ago and wasn’t as important as the royal sisters. I wondered if there was a queen or king above them, but nobody had mentioned one so far. We spent the rest of the day practically without talking to each other. Marcus tried to make some small talk, but I wasn’t in the mood so he stopped the attempts quickly. I got out and explored the hospital, not able to stay in that room with him anymore. It was a strange mix of medieval and modern technologies with X-rays and candles found in the same place. Not a lot of ponies could be found in the corridors, which was a good thing for me. Seeing them just reminded me that I was a pony too. When I returned back to the room, I saw Marcus outside having a conversation with the guard pony. They were discussing if my friend was allowed to leave the hospital if he wanted to. The guard confirmed that Marcus was free in his movements as long as he stayed by his side. “You can’t leave now,” I told him at once. “We must wait for Fields to return.” “Don’t jump to conclusions, Anne,” he said, giving me a stern look. “I’m not going anywhere right now.” I flicked my tail in annoyance and trotted into the room. I could tell that Marcus was upset by my behavior, but I couldn’t stop myself. I wanted to be more than a friend to him and my pony body was a hindrance that should be dealt with. *** We stood at the platform of Canterlot’s train station and waited. Our group had arrived here to meet the Princess. Marcus got a lot of stares walking through the city and I was glad not to be the center of attention. There were plenty of other ponies around, but they kept their distance. Marcus was towering over everyone. Being the same height as the ponies around me, I understood how intimidating it could be. Only the sight of the guard in his armor along with us put pony minds at ease. He represented authority for them and if he didn’t worry, they shouldn’t be afraid of the strange creature either. “Here it is,” Fields pointed his hoof into the distance. I narrowed my eyes and saw it myself: the train was coming right on schedule. From what Fields had told me about Princess Twilight, I reckoned she was my only hope. The restoration of the Mirror had been possible thanks to her wide knowledge of magic, so if anybody knew how to turn me into a human again, it would be her. I threw a glance at Marcus and suppressed a sigh. Fields had noticed a tension between us while we were in the hospital, but he didn’t know the reason. He warned us not to argue in front of the princess though. I switched my attention to the incoming train. It was a steam locomotive; the type I had only seen in old books. The purple color made it look like some neat toy. The train slowed down gradually and came to a full stop right beside the platform. The door opened and a stream of ponies rushed outside all at once. Some of them shrieked in fright, almost stumbling into Marcus, but most of them were too busy to get away to notice anything past their muzzle. I understood why – it would be a chore to be inside the train for long in such a hot weather. Two mares separated from the general crowd and approached us. They both were unicorns of similar lavender color but I could tell them apart by their different hairstyles. The lighter-shaded one had purple, curly hair with an azure line in it, while her friend possessed simple indigo hair with a purple streak. A lot of ponies had more than one color there, it seemed. I was confused when I noticed wings on the pony. All of the ponies I had seen had either a horn or wings or none of it. I guess I had found another type. Fields’ reaction to their appearance added to my confusion. He bowed to the winged pony and gave a respectful nod to her companion. But she looked like an ordinary pony. Was she the princess we’d been waiting for? “It’s an honor to have you here, Princess Twilight,” Fields said, confirming my guess. “Thank you,” the Princess nodded. “It’s an informal visit, so you don’t have to call me Princess. Just Twilight is fine.” I expected her at least at wear a crown. She didn’t even have Royal Guards around her! Maybe ponies in Equestria had a different concept of royalty than Britain. After a short greeting exchange, Fields introduced us to Twilight. “I’m so glad to see you,” Twilight smiled, addressing Marcus. “We spent months trying to get that portal working!” “Eh, thanks, I guess,” my friend answered, looking at his boots uncertainly. “Oh, how tactless of me,” Twilight lowered her ears slightly. “Fields wrote me that you and your friend got here by accident. You probably want to return home as soon as possible.” “We did,” confirmed Marcus and looked at me. “We were looking for a way to change my friend back to a human, but as Mister Fields here told us she’s been a pony all along.” I decided that it was as good a time as any to ask a question that was burning in my mind. “Can you do it, Princess?” I asked, trying to keep the desperation out of my voice. “Can you cast some spell to make me a human again?” “But you’re a pony, Sundae” Twilight’s companion interjected before she could answer. “Why do you want to be a human?” Twilight elbowed her and gave her a meaningful look. “This is my student Starlight Glimmer,” she introduced her companion with a faint smile. “But to answer your original question, Sundae – it’s not that easy. Every transformation via a spell is temporary. How long it would last depends on its quality and strength, but only a great wizard like Starswirl the Bearded would be able to make a spell that would last for years. You were a human for six years until the spell started to deteriorate, is that correct?” Having said this out loud I realized that I wasn’t being completely honest with them. All my life I had wanted to find out who I used to be before I had lost my memories and now, when I finally did, I wasn’t ready to just throw it away. But me and Marcus would never be together if I stayed a pony. Just one look at his face was enough to steel my resolve. I must become a human again whatever it takes.