“Hey. Sunset.”
“Hrmmm…” Sunset groaned, “James?”
“Yeah, it’s me.”
Sunset opened her eyes slowly. James stood beside her bed, a few feet back, grinning awkwardly at her, and she smiled back.
“Morning James.” She took notice of his outfit. He was wearing his now cleaned uniform. “Looks like your clothes dried off.”
“Yeah. Thanks for washing them, by the way. Didn’t realize how bad it had gotten until this morning,” the man chuckled. “Turns out that that wasn’t the color it’s supposed to be.”
Sunset laughed and shook her head.
“That’s good.” The girl rolled over, facing James. “So, what’s up? Is everything alright?”
James nodded. “Yeah, everything’s fine. I just… well, I made breakfast for you. As a way of thanking you for last night. It’s not nearly enough, I know, but I hope it’s a good start.”
“It’s more than plenty.” Sunset grinned.
James shook his head. “We’re not doing this again, Sunset. I’m going to pay you back for your kindness, one way or another.”
Sunset rolled her eyes, grinning as she shook her head.
“If you say so.” Sunset sat up, letting her feet touch the floor. “I’ll be down in a minute. Let me change first.”
James nodded and silently made his way down the stairs. From below, Sunset could hear the sounds of the cabinet doors opening and closing, and plates being set out. After a few moments to clear the sleep from her head, she stood and walked over to her dresser. She dug through the drawers and picked out a pair of jeans and a blouse, tossing them on her bed as she undressed.
“Oh, and by the way, one of those electric typewriter things on your desk was making noise earlier. The one that looks like a book,” James called from the kitchenette. “It’s supposed to do that, right?”
Sunset giggled to herself.
Electric typewriter may have been the worst description of a computer I could’ve thought of. She thought. Too late now, though.
“Did it sound like a buzzing noise?” She responded.
“Yeah?”
“That just means someone sent me a message.”
“Ah, right. Like those telegrams you got on your typewriter telephone?”
“Yeah, those.” Sunset slipped her shirt on. “How long ago did it vibrate?”
“Not too long ago. Maybe ten minutes or so.”
“Alright, I’ll check it out. Thanks.”
“You’re welcome.”
After quickly smoothing over her outfit, Sunset walked down the stairs to her desk. Sure enough, her journal sat out on the desktop where she left it last night. As if on cue, the journal glowed purple and vibrated. Sunset sat down and flipped it open to the latest entry.
Hey Sunset. I’ve got everything set up for testing! Just let me know when you’re at the school and we can get started! I’m excited to see you again. I haven’t been able to visit in ages! It’ll be great to catch up in person.
Sunset quickly wrote back her reply.
Hey Twilight. Sorry for the late response. I’m not sure how long you were waiting, I just woke up. I’ll head over soon! I’m just going to get some breakfast first. I’ll tell you when I’m ready for you to test it.
The journal buzzed immediately after with Twilight’s response.
See you then!
With that taken care of, Sunset smiled to herself and stood. As she turned around, she saw James standing in front of the stovetop. The girl noticed he wasn’t wearing his jacket. Instead, he had rolled up the sleeves of his shirt and his jacket was strewn over the back of the couch. She grinned. Already she could tell the difference. The wrinkles in the shirt had smoothed themselves out somewhat and the knees of his pants weren’t nearly as muddy as before. He’d also put on the leggings (Sunset chuckled to herself as she remembered what they were called) over the boots. The boots themselves looked like they needed a good shining, but they were missing a lot of dust and mud from the night before. She wondered if he had cleaned them that morning.
James finished dressing the plate in front of him and turned around, frowning. He seemed to be looking for something.
“What’s wrong?” Sunset asked.
“I forgot you don’t have a table.”
Sunset grinned sheepishly. “Yeah, sorry about that. No real point when you live alone. I usually just eat in front of the TV, like we did last night.”
James shrugged.
“Hey, whatever works.” He handed Sunset a plate of eggs, hashbrowns, and toast. “Here you go. A good old fashioned American breakfast, without the bacon. I couldn’t find any in your fridge. I guess you’re out or something.”
“Actually, I’m vegetarian.”
“You… what?” James asked.
“A vegetarian,” Sunset repeated, “It means I don’t eat meat.”
“W-Well, yeah, I know. I just meant… well, I’ve never met a… vegetarian, before.”
“Well, I’m happy to be your first.” Sunset’s grin faded. “You don’t have a problem with that, do you?”
“N-No, not at all!” James shook his head. “I mean… Folks back home didn’t do it too often, given that we were in the depression and all that. I’ve only heard the word around; I don’t know anyone who’s actually vegetarian,” James shook his head again. “Anyway, um, here is your food.”
“Thanks,” Sunset laughed. She took a fork from James and took a seat on the couch in front of the TV. James dropped down on the couch next to her. Sunset started picking at her food with one hand while grabbing the remote and flipping the TV on with the other. It automatically turned on to the local news. She opened the guide to browse her other options.
“What is this thing anyway? I saw it last night,” James frowned at the screen. “I’m assuming those are all the channels, right?”
“Yep! It can show you the channels and their schedule.”
“Really?” James laughed. “That’s pretty handy. We had to get actual paper guides back home if we wanted to know. I guess it’s pretty helpful with this many channels, though.”
“Very,” Sunset nodded.
“Well, um, could we watch the news for a bit?”
Sunset raised an eyebrow. James shrugged innocently.
“I’ve never been here before. I just want to see what it’s like around here.”
Sunset nodded understandingly, and set the remote down. Disinterested in the local news, she absentmindedly pulled out her phone as the news anchor droned on in the background, scrolling idly through the various apps on her phone as she thought to herself.
If the portal wasn’t affected by the book changing its destination, then we may be able to replicate its effects without the risk of breaking the portal. But what caused it in the first place? She thought to herself. The book was glowing, that much is for sure. But why did it do that in the first place? Was it because of my journal? Or was it something that James did on the other side? Sunset sighed. Twilight might know more about this than me. She’s the one with the library of all recorded magic-related knowledge. If I can talk to her about this today, we might be able to get him home by the end of the weekend, if we’re lucky.
The young woman looked up from her phone, ice filling her stomach as she realized she was going to have to explain Equestria to James. That was not a conversation she was looking forward to. James barely scratched the surface of even having the slightest understanding of computers and cell phones, let alone magic portals and pony society.
“Are you okay?”
Startled from her thoughts, Sunset jumped slightly and when she looked over she found James was staring back, face slightly worried. Sunset hesitated.
“O-Oh. Um. Nothing?” She tried. James frowned.
“That’s not an answer to my question.”
Sunset bit her lip and looked away. Might as well get it over with, she thought.
“James… I don’t really know how to say this, but…” she sighed. “Do you remember when I said I know the feeling of being stuck somewhere alien to you, with nothing?”
“Yeah?”
“Well… that’s because I came through the portal, too.” Sunset shook her head. “I just didn’t know how to tell you. It didn’t seem right at the time, given how freaked out you must have been coming through the portal and seeing all this.”
“...huh.”
Sunset frowned and looked up. She expected him to be more angry with her or offended by her lack of trust. But instead, he just seemed confused. She could see the cogs turning in his head as he tried to work through what she’d said.
“So… you are French?”
Sunset stared, now equally as confused as he was.
“What?”
“You came through the portal right?”
“Yes?”
“So you’re from France? Or somewhere else in Europe? I was just thinking France because that’s closest to where I came in.”
She shook her head. “No, I didn’t come from your world. Normally, that portal leads to my home world. Not yours.”
“...so they’re different?” James asked. Sunset nodded. “How so?”
Sunset smiled nervously. “Can you promise me you won’t freak out when I tell you?”
“...Sure?” James said skeptically.
“Okay.” Sunset took a deep breath to steady herself, and then spoke. “My world is pretty similar to this one, but without most of the technology. We get around on airships and steam engines, not cars and planes. However the major difference is… well…” Sunset hesitated. “Everyone there is… ponies.”
James stared back.
“Uh…” He opened and closed his mouth, trying to form a response. He furrowed his brow, and eventually settled with: “Okay.”
“...What?” Sunset asked.
“W-Well I’m not sure what to say to that, if I’m honest.”
Sunset stared, stunned. To his credit, he wasn’t freaking out. But at this point Sunset would rather he WAS freaking out. At least then there’d be something to talk about. But now? She didn’t know what to say either.
“Well, isn’t that… I don’t know. Weird to you?”
“Oh, well, I mean, yes, it’s extremely weird.” He shook his head, taking a shaky breath. “W-Well… I guess you can… u-um… tell me about it, if you’d like. I don’t really know what to say other than that.”
“So... you believe me?”
“Well, um… not really?”
Sunset frowned. “Well, how can I prove it to you?”
James frowned. “I don’t know,” he said, “Maybe just… tell me about it?”
“Okay, I guess I can do that,” Sunset nodded slowly, “What do you want to know?”
“Well…” he thought for a moment. “Tell me about your house.”
“My… house?”
“Yeah. Where did you live in... ponyland?”
“First of all, it’s called Equestria,” Sunset corrected, “And second, I lived in a castle.”
James crossed his arms.
“...you’re messing with me, aren’t you?”
“No, I swear I’m not,” Sunset reassured him.
“You were a pony princess in a magic castle?”
“No, I was student to a pony princess in a magic castle.”
“...Right,” James nodded skeptically.
“It’s true!”
“Sunset, please… I just…” he held his head in his hands, “Come on, that’s ridiculous.”
“James, I’m telling you the truth!”
“Alright, fine then! What did you learn under the magic pony princess?” he asked. “Actually, wait, no. First, what was her name?” he corrected himself.
“Princess Celestia,” Sunset said, “And I was learning magic under her.”
James gave Sunset a flat stare. She crossed her arms defensively.
“Stop giving me that look, I’m telling you the truth.”
“...did you sleep on clouds and braid your long golden hair for your Prince Charming to come rescue you on?”
“I see you have Rapunzel in your world, too,” Sunset muttered angrily, “No, James, I didn’t. Only pegasi can sleep on clouds, and the only Prince was Prince Blueblood, who was a cocky stuck-up noble who needed a swift kick to his flank.”
James gaped at her.
“They… they can actually sleep on clouds?”
“Yes.”
“No,” James shook his head violently. “No. No. No, Sunset. This is… this is insane! You have to know that, don’t you?”
“James! Please, believe me. I swear to you it’s true!”
He stared at her. Sunset could see fear in his eyes. Whether that was because he was starting to believe her or because he thought she was insane, though, she wasn’t sure. She could see the gears running in his head. Slowly, he started nodding. The fear didn’t subsided completely, but it certainly dulled.
“Okay. Fine. So… you were a pony?” He pointed.
“Yes,” Sunset nodded.
“A unicorn pony?”
Sunset nodded again.
“A little horse with a horn on your forehead?”
“Yes, James,” Sunset said, sighing in exasperation. She massaged her temples. “Is that all you took from that?”
“It’s a big part of it, yeah!” James yelled. He sighed tiredly and rubbed his face. “So... you’re telling me… that you,” He pointed again. “Came through the portal, from a world of ponies, and now you just live here. No problems or anything?”
“Yes,” Sunset said simply.
James stared back. His eyes scanned her face. When he didn’t find anything, he dropped his head into his hands and gave a shuddering sigh.
“I’m being shown how to be a normal human by a goddamn magic unicorn from fairyland.”
Sunset grinned sympathetically. “At least you only have to adjust to technology and culture differences. You didn’t have to learn how to be a human from scratch.”
“I’m just going to pretend that I didn’t hear that.” James sat up. “Okay then. So. You’re a unicorn,” He looked at her again, as if seeing her for the first time. “Well… What happens now?”
“Now? We’re going back to the statue to see if the portal to my world still works. If it does, then we’ll meet with a friend of mine from the other side who should be able to help us get you back home.”
“Is she a unicorn too?”
“No, she’s an Alicorn. She has both a horn and wings. She’s a mix of all three.”
James gave her a blank stare for a few moments before nodding slowly.
“Okay. What’s her name?”
“Twilight Sparkle.”
“‘Twilight Sparkle…?’” James repeated.
“Yes.”
“Right. We’re going to meet… Twilight Sparkle, at the portal.”
“That’s the plan,” Sunset nodded. “Unless you don’t want to do that today...” She corrected.
“...If I went through the portal would I be turned into a horse?”
Sunset was taken aback by the question, but nonetheless answered.
“Honestly? I’m not sure. There have been stories of humans from this world going through the portal and they turned into ponies on the other side. But there were also legends of humans in Equestria that got passed around back home, but that was mostly mythology. For all we know, it may have been completely twisted from stories of ponies going through the portal. But as far as I know, people in this world get turned into ponies over there.”
“But I’m not from this world,” James pointed out.
“True. That’s why I’m not sure. You might be a pony, you might not.”
James leaned his head back against the couch and sighed.
“Alright. I’m fine with meeting your friend at the portal.”
“Good. If all goes well, she’ll be able to help you get home way more than I could by myself.”
He had nothing more to say, and Sunset was fine with that. She leaned back against the couch as well, content with eating her food and watching the news while James processed the information. Understandably so. In less than twenty-four hours, his world had shattered around him. She could only assume what that was doing to him.
“Were you… cute?”
“...What?” Sunset’s head snapped over to James.
“W-When you were a pony,” James clarified quickly. “I-I just meant that… w-well, ponies back home are these tiny little horses that barely come up to my waist. But picturing that they can have wings and horns and stuff?” He shrugged, “I-I just thought they might be cute. Or, uh, you all… uh… might be cute.”
Sunset blushed furiously. James noticed this and reeled back slightly.
“I didn’t mean to offend you…” James shook his head. “Oh shit, that was a really stupid question, wasn’t it?”
Sunset tried to hide her blush but knew it was a losing battle. James was avoiding eye contact as well. Not even the drone of the news anchor from Channel 8 news could break the awkward silence between the two on the couch.
“I-I guess so... “ Sunset stuttered. James looked up. “W-Well… I thought I was good looking, I guess?”
“Oh, I didn’t mean attractive- n-not that I don’t think you weren’t or anything, I was just…” James closed his eyes, holding his head in his hands. “I’m sorry.”
“I-It’s fine,” Sunset reassured him, not quite able to look at him.
James nodded awkwardly, not looking up.
“Alright then.”
Sunset finally started feeling her blush subside. She nodded to herself and stood, taking her plate over to the sink to try and give the two some space. Coming up to the kitchenette, she glanced at the clock on the stove she became aware of a problem.
“Oh, horseapples,” She set her plate onto the counter and ran over to her desk, quickly shoving her books into her bag. “I told Twilight we’d be there soon when I woke up half an hour ago.”
“Do I need to bring anything?”
“No. In fact, don’t bring anything. No gun, no backpack, no bullets. Nothing that might get you arrested.” Sunset snapped her bag shut.
“What about a wallet and a lighter?”
“Sure, you can take that.” Sunset grabbed her boots, slipping them on. “Just hurry so we can get going.”
James shook his head as he grabbed his jacket and walked to the door, having already gotten dressed.
“Yes ma’am.”
“This place is a high school?” James asked as he stepped off the bus. “Seems a little too nice for that. Looks a lot more like those big city universities from back home.”
“This is pretty much how all of the high schools in Canterlot look.” Sunset pulled out her journal. “But this is nothing. Back home, in my world’s Canterlot, the buildings there are hundreds of years old and fancier than these. Maybe you’ll get to see them one day.”
James nodded and stuck his hands into his pockets as he followed after Sunset.
“So… Princess Twilight is going to come through the same portal I came through?”
“She should, unless the portal lost connection to Equestria. If that happens… I don’t know what we’ll do.” Sunset snapped her journal shut as she finished writing her message. “But let’s not think about that. She should be opening the portal any second now.”
James walked around to the front of the statue, and stared at the smooth marble. The two of them watched, waiting for something to happen. Minutes ticked by, and nothing changed.
“Give it a second,” Sunset said, more to herself than James.
James took a few steps back and sat on the steps to the school. He looked back up at the portal. Still nothing. Not even the slightest twitch. James’s eyes rose to the back of Sunset’s head. Sunset shook her head, her smile gone completely as a sense dread overcame her.
“It’s fine,” She muttered. “She’s just taking a bit longer than usual.”
As time dragged on, there was still nothing from the portal. Sunset hadn’t moved from her spot. She glanced at her phone. It had been almost ten minutes since they’d arrived. Nothing from the portal, and nothing from the journal. James tried to distract himself by flicking his lighter, but it wasn’t working very well. After a few more minutes passed, Sunset knew the portal wasn’t opening. She shook her head and backed away from the statue. The young woman fell beside James on the stairs, staring blankly at the ground. He leaned over and pulled her into a hug. Sunset didn’t resist.
She’d forgotten how it felt to be stuck in the human world without Twilight on the other side to open the gateway between the worlds. Now, she was well and truly stuck for another two and a half years, if the portal even opened at all. Sunset knew she couldn’t wait that long. Something had to happen. She looked back up at the portal. When she found nothing but a pristinely polished marble surface, she looked away and buried her head in James’s shoulder. She wanted to cry, but no tears would come out. Just the painful, sobering sense of reality.
“Sunset…” James whispered.
Suddenly, the surface of the marble began to wave and ripple aggressively. A human form stepped through the portal, drawing both Sunset and James’s attention back to the portal.
“Sunset!” Twilight shouted.
“Twilight!” Sunset cried as she ran forward. “Oh thank Celestia, it still works!”
“I’m so sorry, Sunset. I didn’t mean to scare you. I just stepped out of the room for a minute and didn’t see your message.”
Sunset shook her head, smiling.
“You don’t need to apologize. I shouldn’t have gotten all dramatic like that.” She pulled Twilight back into another hug. “I’m so glad to see you.”
Twilight closed her eyes as she smiled and hugged her back.
“Me too.” She laughed and shook her head. She opened her eyes as they let go. Her smile faltered when she opened her eyes and looked over Sunset’s shoulder. “Um, Sunset. Who is that?”
Sunset turned around. James staring blankly, mouth open, pointing at Twilight.
“James?” Sunset asked, walking over. “What are you doing?”
“Sunset…” James whispered to Sunset, eyes never leaving Twilight. “She’s purple.”
“What?”
“That girl… is purple.”
“...Yeah?”
“She’s purple,” James said, turning to face Sunset.
“James, where are you going with this?”
“Why is she purple?!” James whispered loudly.
“Um. My coat in Equestria is purple, so the portal made my skin purple,” Twilight said. James’s eyes snapped back to her. Twilight coughed awkwardly. “I’m assuming. It’s worked that way so far…”
James smiled uncomfortably wide, nodding slowly. He turned to Sunset.
“What. The. Fuck?” He said through a strained smile.
“James, you’re acting like you’ve never seen anyone who was purple.”
“I haven’t!” His smile was gone, instead replaced by the look of a man who had had his whole world turned on its head. Again.
That was when it dawned on her. Humans on his world were more... monochromatic. He was acting like he hadn’t seen someone with purple skin because he hadn’t. Sunset slapped her forehead.
“How did I forget that?” She muttered.
“Weeell, I see the portal works fine.” Twilight smiled awkwardly. “I’ll just... head back home now. It was good seeing you, Sunset!”
“No, wait!” Sunset ran forward, grabbing Twilight’s wrist. “Twilight, I need your help with him.”
“Sunset, it seems like he needs a psychiatrist’s help, not mine,” Twilight whispered. “What in the name of Celestia do you expect me to do?”
“Okay, I know how it looks. But trust me, he’s completely justified. He’s not from this world.”
Twilight looked between Sunset and James.
“Is he Equestrian?”
Sunset shook her head.
“He…” Sunset glanced at James before leaning closer to Twilight. “He’s from a book.”
Twilight’s eyes widened.
“How is that even possible?”
“I don’t know! One day after school, the portal started going crazy and he just... fell out.”
“Things don’t just come through portals for no reason!”
“I know! That’s why you’re here!”
“You told me I was testing the portal!”
“Well I was going to tell you about him only if the portal worked.”
“Portal works! Start talking!”
“I’ve already told you everything I know. The portal started acting… weird, and then he just fell out.”
Twilight sighed and glanced at James, who waved awkwardly. She gave an equally awkward wave back and turned to Sunset, shaking her head as she stared at the ground.
“Okay, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to get mad, I just... wasn’t expecting this.” Twilight looked up at Sunset. “How much do you know so far?”
“How he got here? No idea. But…” Sunset hesitated, and glanced at James. He waved again, and she turned back to Twilight, dropping her voice to a whisper. “But I’ve read some of the book he came out of. It seems like he’s from further into the book than I got. I haven’t even opened it since he came through, but I don’t think him falling through a portal into our world would be in the story.”
“Have you talked to him about what he was doing before he came into the portal?”
Sunset shook her head.
“Not yet. With all that’s happened, I felt that it might be best for him to adjust a bit before we bring it up.”
“Well, it may still be a little early, but the sooner we can get him home, the better for him.”
Sunset nodded slowly.
“I know,” Sunset sighed. “But we can’t do it here. We can do it back at my apartment. We’ll have some more privacy there. I don’t want to risk anyone hearing about this and freaking out. Who knows what’ll happen then.”
“Sounds good to me.” Twilight fidgeted awkwardly. “Um, have you told the rest of the girls? Y’know… in case we can’t get him back right away?”
Sunset shook her head.
“Not yet. I’m hoping I can get him home before school on Monday. I don’t even want to imagine the headache that would cause my friends, or the principals.”
“Fair point.” Twilight nodded. “I promise you, Sunset, I’ll do everything I can to get him home and out of your mane.”
Sunset smiled.
“Thank you, Twilight. Let me just tell James what’s going on and then we can get going.”
Twilight nodded, letting Sunset walk over to James.
“You doing alright?” Sunset asked James as she sat down beside him.
“How many colors can people be here?” James wondered aloud, his voice an odd mix of tiredness and hysterics.
“Just about any color you can think of,” Sunset said gently, “But please, it’s completely normal here, and you might offend someone if you do what you did here again. I promise you, I understand it’s going to be a little weird at first, but I need you to do your best.”
James shook his head.
“You’re right, that was awful of me.” James sighed, rubbing his eyes. “What’s the plan now? Can she help me?”
“She might, be we need to ask you some questions first.”
“Okay.” James stood. “I’ll try my best.”
Sunset shook her head as she stood with him.
“We’re going to do it back at my place to give us some more privacy.” Sunset smiled reassuringly. “Come on. Maybe you can redo your introductions to Twilight on the way.”
She walked over to Twilight, James right behind her. Twilight smiled to Sunset, but accidentally let it falter slightly upon seeing James. She recovered quickly, but it was enough for James. He smiled as politely as he could, doing his best to look like a man meeting the King of England.
“Hi there. My name is Private James Garrett, US Army. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Princess Twilight Sparkle.”
Twilight’s smile became far more genuine then.
“Oh, you don’t need to use my title. It’s more of a formality, really.” Twilight laughed awkwardly. “Um… It’s nice to meet you too, Private Garrett.”
“In that case, James is fine as well.” James dropped his act, and became much more apologetic. “I’m sorry for what I said earlier. About the whole… skin thing. I didn’t mean to be racist or anything, I swear.”
Twilight giggled softly.
“It’s alright. Sunset told me about your situation. I understand completely.”
James nodded his thanks, and stepped back, allowing Sunset to take over. She smiled at the two, happy they were able to reconcile. Twilight wasn’t the princess of friendship for nothing, after all. She nodded.
“Alright. Let’s get going.”
Sunset pushed the door to her apartment open, allowing her two companions to follow her in. Twilight and James took a seat on the couch, and Sunset pulled the chair from her desk over. Once everyone had settled in, the questioning began.
“Alright, James. I’m going to ask you a few questions about how you got here, is that alright?” Twilight asked gently. James nodded apprehensively.
“Yes ma’am. I’ll try my best but… I don’t remember much. And, well, what I do remember doesn’t really make any sense to me.”
“That’s alright, you don’t need to tell us anything you don’t want to,” Sunset reassured him. He nodded again.
“What were you doing before you came through the portal?” Twilight asked.
James dropped his gaze to the floor.
“We were taking the town of Ribeauvillé, France with the French First Army when we started taking heavy artillery fire from the Germans to the East. I ran into a house to get some cover, and I ended up in the house’s basement,” James explained, “I took a few seconds to pull myself together and rest for a bit while waiting out the barrage. After that, there was still artillery dropping on us, so I decided to look around.”
“Isn’t this someone’s house?” Sunset asked skeptically.
James shrugged, looking up.
“No one was there, and I wasn’t gonna take anything. Some of the other guys looted houses but it never sat right with me.” James shook his head, returning his gaze to the floor. “Anyway, I saw this big thing covered in a sheet and I pulled it off. It was this old wooden mirror. I was just looking at myself, and I was about to leave, until I saw that the mirror kind of looked like water for a second. I thought I was just going crazy.
“For some reason, I don’t know why, I reached out and touched the glass. My fingers sunk in, and… I dunno.” James shrugged. “I just decided to go for it and step in, just to poke my head in and see what was on the other side. But instead I fell in and ended up going all the way through. After that… I guess then I was on my face with Ms. Shimmer here standing in front of me.”
Twilight and Sunset glanced at each other. Twilight turned back, and cleared her throat.
“So, you just found this mirror? You didn’t do anything to activate it?”
James shook his head.
“Unless posing in the mirror turns it on, no. I didn’t do anything to my knowledge.”
Twilight leaned over to Sunset, and lowered her voice so James couldn’t hear what they said.
“Did anything happen over here around then?”
Sunset shook her head.
“I was playing soccer with some of the girls, so I didn’t see everything, but when we were done I saw the portal was being weird. That was when James came through.”
“Can you think of anything that might have caused it?”
“I don’t know. I didn’t do anything. I just put my backpack on top of the portal and then I came back and the portal was being… weird,” Sunset trailed off, thinking. “Actually… my books were glowing. I thought it was my journal, so I tried to save it, but I think it was actually just the Their Darkest Hour book.”
“And did the glowing stop?”
A pit grew in Sunset’s stomach as she remembered, and nodded.
“Yeah. And so did the portal.”
“The portal stopped being weird?” Twilight asked. Sunset nodded. “Do you think the book could’ve caused the portal to open to his world?”
“...Oh.” Sunset took several deep breaths, steeling herself. “It was my fault…”
She shook her head, guilt overtaking her. It was her fault the portal connected to his world. It was her fault he was here.
“Is everything alright?” James asked. Sunset shook her head.
“I’m so sorry James.” Sunset avoided eye contact with him. “I am so sorry.”
“What is going on?” James asked, looking to Twilight for an explanation.
“I-I… I have something to show you.” Sunset said, pulling something out of her book bag. James stared at it as Sunset handed it to him.
His heart stopped, and his stomach dropped as he saw the cover. The familiar graphic of a T-Patch painted on the side of a helmet stared back at him.
“Is this… a history book?”
“James…” Sunset choked.
“How long has it been?”
“...It’s not a history book.”
He stared back.
“It’s not a history book, James,” she repeated, “It’s a fiction novel.”
He froze.
“No.” He shook his head. “No, you’re lying.”
“James, please,” Twilight said.
“No!” James shouted. “I’m not some kind of… character… in a story. I’m a person. I have a family. I have friends who have lived and died next to me. Don’t you even try to joke with me that it’s all fake. I’ve trusted you on your crazy insane stories, okay? I trusted you on when you said you were a horse. I trusted you when you tried to take me in. But this is bullshit. This isn’t real, Sunset!”
“Open the book to page 3.” Sunset muttered, her eyes fell to the floor.
“What?”
“It’s when you’re first mentioned.”
James shook his head, grabbing the book and flipping it open. He made no attempt to hide his anger as he read aloud.
“‘The private was laughing with some friends of his within the division as he dealt his deck of cards. His name was James Garrett. He was from Colorado.’” He paused, obviously taken aback. He glanced at the two, reclaiming his angered demeanor as he shook his head. “Doesn’t mean I’m him. Neither of those are exactly uncommon names. Besides. Maybe this actually IS a history book and you’re lying.”
“Keep reading, please,” Sunset muttered. James raised the book, trying to hide his shaking hands.
“‘Garrett was the oldest of seven children. His parents, Martin and Catherine…” His voice hitched. He forced himself to continue. There had to be an error somewhere that would betray it’s illegitimacy. “Martin and Catherine lost their jobs due to the Great Depression, as did many other Americans. Because of this, Garrett dropped out of school at age twelve and, with his father, found work as a caretaker at the local cemetery. However, when the call of duty came, Garrett enlisted at age 17 to fight in the war, receiving permission from his parents… to enlist early in the army. He hoped… he hoped his enlistment would save his brother from being drafted...’” James trailed off, on the verge of tears. “I never… I never told anyone about that…”
He looked back to the pages and dropped the book, staring at his hands like he’d never seen them before. He turned them over, his eyes tracing every line and scar on his skin.
“I’m not real...”
“James…” Sunset said softly.
“I’m just some… ink. Just something out of some sick bastard’s head that he dreamed up,” he said, “All of that violence and death… for fucking nothing!” James shook his head, sobbing. “Just for a little bit of light afternoon reading! I’m nothing!”
“No, you’re not.” Sunset stood and walked over to him. She grabbed his hand, but he didn’t turn to face her. “You’re here with us, you’re just as real as we are.”
Sunset waited for something, anything, but she got nothing. He held his gaze on the floor. His hand was limp, not even registering Sunset’s presence. She looked up at his face. He was crying softly now. He shook his head softly.
“I may be here…” He whispered. “But does that mean my family, and all the people that died next to me… they’re not real? They’re still just ink on paper in that book?”
“W-Well, I have a theory,” Twilight said from James’s side on the couch, “I believe that your world exists, just in a different universe. That book, when used with the portal, somehow opens a gateway from our world to yours. Your world may be a story here, but maybe we’re a story in your world.”
James took a deep, shuddering breath.
“That sounds like a load of bullshit,” he muttered, shaking his head.
James stood up, pacing the room for a moment, shaking his head as he came to grips with what he’d been told. He leaned against the windowsill, staring out into the world. The soldier shook his head again, and raised his head up, staring at the afternoon’s blue sky. His eyes traced the clouds and followed the occasional bird. Tears ran freely down his face now, but he didn’t seem to care.
The two girls tore their eyes from him, staring at the floor. Sunset felt nothing but hot shame and guilt. Her negligence brought a man to their world, ruining his life. And she had to be the one to ruin it for him every time. They heard a muttering from James behind them. Sunset listened, trying her best to make out the words.
“...give me the strength to carry on. Give me the strength to make it home to my family. Dear Lord…”
Twilight heard the words as well, and looked at Sunset, confused. Sunset nodded sadly as she listened. She recognized the words as a prayer. She’d read something similar in the book. An army chaplain gave a service to the men before they boarded the landing craft on their way to Operation Dragoon. She leaned over to Twilight and whispered to her.
“He’s praying to his god.”
Twilight nodded somberly. She’d heard him, and with the extra clarification, it was much more saddening to her.
“...Is it a good story?” James spoke softly from the window. They turned to him. He hadn’t looked away from the window. Sunset looked to Twilight, not sure what to say. She swallowed nervously.
“Yes,” Sunset said, “It’s got a lot of great ratings by some notable reviewers.”
“What do you think of it?”
“It’s… um… I like it. I’ve been reading it a lot recently.”
“...do I get to kick some German ass in Berlin?”
He let a small grin spread across his face. Sunset laughed weakly.
“I never got that far.” Sunset shook her head. “I’ve basically read up to Operation Dragoon, in Chapter 11, and you were talking about stuff in the French mountains.”
James nodded tiredly, his already small grin fading somewhat.
“What’d you think about Dragoon?” He asked.
“We actually went over that yesterday in class.”
“Are you kidding me?” James laughed softly. “A story about me is being taught in schools? I’m so sorry for you all.”
“It’s not that bad. I think it’s great.”
James shook his head, smiling. His expression quickly grew uneasy.
“Your theory… how solid is it?” He finally turned to face Twilight.
“Well… I’m fairly certain it’s true,” Twilight said, “I mean, even between this world and Equestria, we have similar instances of things being stories on either side of the portal. In this world, unicorns and pegasi are just stories. Over there, it’s our entire life.”
James nodded, sighing tiredly.
“Well, I can’t say this isn’t going to be hard, but… I guess I can believe that,” James said. “Do you think I’ll ever be able to go home?”
Twilight shook her head.
“I’m not sure. But I promise you, I will do everything I can to make sure you do.”
James nodded again.
“I suppose that’s all I can ask for.”
He looked between Sunset and Twilight.
“Thank you, both of you.”
Sunset stepped forward, pulling him into a hug.
“Anything you need, we’ll be here for you.”
Twilight followed shortly behind. James accepted them, and grinned weakly.
“You two are acting just like my sisters did when I left for the army.”
“I’m sure they’d love to hear that when you get home,” Sunset said reassuringly.
She didn’t see James’s smile fade as he held them.
“I’m sure they would.”