//------------------------------// // Reconciliation, and a Second Chance // Story: Broken Family, Healed Family // by Amos Anon //------------------------------// 10... Broad Meadows closed his eyes, dreading the inevitable. 9... The rest of his family pulled in closer, attempting to bring some semblance of comfort to each other. 8... Meadows still couldn’t believe what his mother had revealed to all of them not ten minutes ago. 7... “I didn’t come from Earth.” 6... Her words still rung in his head. If her not being from Earth wasn’t enough of a shock, what she said next certainly floored everyone. 5... “I’m from a place called Equestria.” 4... Does that mean I’m... part pony? 3... He shook his head, his radiation suit rustling at the movement. Either way, they were likely going to die. 2... What did it matter? Death doesn’t care what species you are. 1... No one is immortal, after all... 0... A piercing light filled the bunker, and then darkness. I woke to the light pattering of rain drumming on the roof of my small, one bedroom cottage on the outskirts of Manehatten. I glanced over to my alarm clock. Six-twenty-seven. I silently cursed. My alarm was set for six-thirty. Sighing, I reached over and deactivated the alarm, pausing only slightly when the sight of my hoof entered my vision. Still getting used to that. It had been... I counted the months off in my head, and was startled to realize that a full year had passed since my family had been whisked away to Equestria through a malfunctioning portal. And now there’s a chance that there are other residents of Equestria who were once from Earth. And vice versa. I winced at the thought. Right. Any Equestrian residents of Earth would have been killed when... I shook my head. Now was not the time to dwell on that. I had my final rehearsal today, and then I was to go on tour with Songbird Serenade for the next few months. I was only slightly nervous. ...Right... ...In fact, I was terrified. I had the steps down to my routine, but I just wasn’t... natural at it. The music, however, that I had down pat. I’d even gotten the attention of Songbird, who complimented me. I glanced over at the alarm clock again. Six-Thirty-five. Aaaaaugh, fine. I threw the sheets off, and shivered at the suddenly cold air assaulting my body. I was tempted to pull the warm sheets back over myself and fall back into the sweet, sweet embrace of sleep, but unfortunately, life had other plans for me, and I could not allow myself to be lured into the false promise of happiness that lay between the sheets. I threw my legs over the edge of the bed, and rolled onto all fours, using my wings to stabilize myself. I glanced back at the unmade bed, and pointed a hoof at it. “I shall come back for you, my dear. This I promise thee.” I chuckled to myself as I made my way out of the room, and into the kitchen/ living/ dining area. I had just opened the cupboard doors when a knock at my front door startled me. I yelped as a box of Apple'O’sTM tipped over, dumping the vast majority of its contents right on top of my head, and subsequently onto the floor. I froze, before staring down at the mess on the floor in vague disappointment. So much potential for hunger-quenching wasted. I almost cried. Another series of knocks on my front door broke me out of my self-pitying trance, and I quickly shook whatever cereal remained in my mane out before trotting over to the door. I opened it. Sopping wet Twilight and... Sopping wet Twilight. With glasses. I blinked, and uttered the only thing that came to my mind. “Buh?” Twilight #1 frowned in mild annoyance. “Mind if we come in?” “Uhhh... Twilight? And, uh... Twilight’s long lost twin?” Princess Twilight sighed. “I’ll explain. Let us in. We’re cold and soaking wet.” I jerked out of my confusion. “Oh! Sorry, yes, yeah, come in. I’ll grab some towels for you two.” I quickly stepped out of the doorway and galloped over to the bathroom. I pulled two towels off the shelf with my teeth, and threw them over my back. I trotted back into the living area, and hoofed the towels over to the two magenta mares, one of whom I now noticed was not an alicorn. I took in her hair-bun manestyle, and the thick-rimmed glasses that I’d noticed earlier, and connected the dots in my head. “Wait a second... Twilight? As in Twilight from Canterlot High? Formerly of Crystal Prep?” Both Twilights paused in their towelling off, and looked up at me. “Holy smokes, I wasn’t expecting to see you here!” I smiled, and offered her a hug, to which she happily reciprocated. “Yeah, heh. That’s me.” “Wow, how have you been? I haven’t seen you since... well since Christmas. That was over two months ago now.” EQG Twilight nodded. “Yes, and I would have visited you and the rest of your family sooner, but I’ve been a bit... Preoccupied as of late.” She hid her eyes behind her mane, and looked away. I frowned, and turned my attention to Princess Twilight, who had a slightly annoyed look, which she quickly hid when she noticed I was looking in her direction. My right eyebrow lifted in suspicion, but I made no comment. “Okay, so... Why are you two here?” I glanced outside. “...On such a cruddy day? It must be something important.” Princess Twilight sighed. “Ever since Twilight found out about the cause of the interdimensional rifts, we’ve been collaborating on working out whether or not we could get a working, stable portal open to Earth again using her locket.” I glanced between the two mares. “And?” Princess Twilight sucked in a breath. “... And we succeeded.” My breath hitched. Princess Twilight searched my face while my mind went blank. Oh. My. “Sweet Celestia...” I breathed. “You’re serious?” Both mares nodded. I swore. Out loud. Much to the bemusement of a certain purple pony princess. The other Twilight seemed less surprised, though her eyebrows rose at the filthy language. "What's a mother fu..?" I immediately covered the princess's mouth with a hoof, earning an annoyed glare from her. "Sorry. I shouldn't have said that. But seriously, you guys got it working again? Please tell me this isn't some sick joke." Princess Twilight growled. That's actually kinda cute in a creepy, terrifying way "I never joke about science." Fair enough. "Right. Sorry. I'm just... Wow, you guys actually went ahead and did it. I always assumed you could, but I didn't think you would actually do it for real." I raised a hoof to my chin as a thought occurred to me. "Hey, just out of curiosity, am I the first one you've told?" The Twilights looked at each other. “The Princesses and your parents know. We haven't told anyone else.” I breathed out, and then nodded. “Okay. That’s probably for the best. Did either of you step through the portal when you stabilized it? Did you step hoof onto Earth?” EQG Twilight shook her head. “Nope! After what you told Starswirl about radiation, there was no way we were going to cross over without any protection! We’ll have to design some sort of radiation protection suit before we organize an expedition over there.” An expedition. Right. “We’ll have to make preparations. And those suits will have to be puncture proof...” I raised my hoof to my chin in thought, mulling over the preparations that would be needed. I glanced up to see a grin on both mare’s muzzles. I sighed, and dropped my hoof back to the ground in annoyance. “...And you two have already thought of everything, haven’t you?” Their grins widened, much to my annoyance, and I snorted. “Okay, you’re smart, I get it. So why have you come to tell me about his rather than getting all of us together?” “We need to know if you’d be willing to go on the expedition.” I facehooved. “Seriously? Do you even have to ask? Of course I’ll go!” Princess Twilight’s grin widened. “Excellent. That makes three of us. Ideally we’d have a team of five, so I plan to ask Ixisten to come along as well. If he accepts that leaves us one open spot, and I’m wondering if you could... well...” I raised an eyebrow. “Yes..?” “Well, I know you two haven’t really been on speaking terms recently, but...” “What... Rose?” Princess Twilight nodded. “Could you maybe speak to her and see if she’d like to be the fifth member of the team?” I grunted, unimpressed. “Why not ask her yourself? And why her?” EQG Twilight turned away in shame, and Princess Twilight rested a hoof on her shoulder to console her. “I feel it's only fair that she gets to see the world that she left behind. I also happen to know that Rose is very adaptable to new situations.” She blushed when I gave her a suspicious look. "I kinda looked into her personal file when we were going through candidates." I grunted. "Okay, but that still doesn't answer my question completely. Why should I be the one to speak to her?" EQG Twilight rubbed a forehoof against her other leg. "I... don't think she would want to speak to me right now. You at least have a chance of getting through to her." Fair enough. “I’ll see what I can do, but I can’t make any promises. It can be hard to gain back someone’s trust after you’ve destroyed it as thoroughly as we have.” I paused. “And it’s not like I haven’t been trying, either. She just... doesn’t want to talk to me anymore.” I looked up, directly into EQG Twilight’s eyes. “And at some point, you’ll have to face her, too. If we’re going to be a cohesive team, and trust me, we’ll need to be if we’re going to survive a visit to Earth, then you’re going to have to speak with Rose; You’ll have to apologize in person to her.” EQG Twilight reluctantly nodded, and I pulled her in for a hug. “It’ll be alright. Remember what I told you at Christmas with the story of the prodigal son.” EQG Twilight returned the hug, wrapping her forehooves around my neck and resting her head on my withers. “Yeah. Thanks.” The calming rain on the roof became the primary sound in the house as the two of us hugged, while a slightly uncomfortable alicorn shuffled her wings. I glanced up to see a slightly dejected look on the Princess’s face, and I grinned. “You, too.” Princess Twilight’s head snapped around, and her mouth formed into a silent 'what?' My grin widened. “Get in here. Everyone needs a hug sometimes. Even high and mighty princesses.” She smirked in an exasperation. “I’m not high and mighty. I happen to be very humble.” Despite the protest, Princess Twilight stepped into the group hug. Heh. The least humble person is the one who claims to be the most humble. Of course, I can't say much. I chuckled, and waved off the questioning glances I got from the two mares. “What the..?” Rose frowned as she removed a slightly soggy Apple‘O’TM from my mane, and I sheepishly grinned. “Sorry, I kinda spilled a box of Apple‘O’sTM on my head this morning.” The blue mare sighed, and rolled her eyes. “Go shower.” Rose pointed to a nearby door with a hoof. I frowned at her bluntness, but moved to comply. Halfway across the room, I turned back. "Hey, Rose... um, can we...?" “Shower... NOW.” I immediately snapped a salute, and plodded toward the bathroom, the whole while berating myself for not having the courage to say anything back. Again. I have to find a way to change this cycle. Every time I try to talk to her, she just shuts me down. I sighed as I turned the knobs in the shower, waiting until the temperature was right before stepping in. As the water cascaded down my back, and dripped off my wings, I contemplated my predicament. Twilight needs her for the expedition. The only way I can convince her to come along is if I somehow gain her trust back. I grabbed the shampoo; 'Head and Withers two in one shampoo and wing conditioner, Oats scent'TM, and inspected the label. Whatever. It works. I lathered it into my coat and mane, paying special attention to my wings in the process. But I guess it's more than just wanting her on the expedition. I do really care about her. I paused and considered this until a line of foamy, soapy water ran into my eye. I yelped, and quickly washed it out. I do really want to be her friend, of course. And I would be lying if I said that I've never considered the possibility of something more. I am a young, virile male, after all. As the last of the now completely dissolved Apple 'O's TM washed down the drain, I turned off the taps, and shook myself dry, splattering the curtain and wall with droplets of water. I gave my wings a few experimental flaps, and determined I would need to preen them shortly. I stepped out of the shower, and breathed in deeply. Okay. Time to face the fury. I opened the door to the bathroom, and strode confidently up to Rose. It's now or never. “Rose, look...” I cringed slightly at the murderous look I got in return, but pressed on. “We can’t keep doing this forever, Rose. I get that you hate me for what happened, but can’t we move on from this?” Rose closed her eyes, and sucked a breath in. She held it for a few seconds before letting it out again. She opened her eyes. “You need to preen your wings. Get to it." “Rose, come on, we need to talk about this.” The mare simply turned her back, flicking her tail in annoyance. "Preen. Now." "Seriously?" I whispered through gritted teeth. “Rose, please, I'm begging you, just talk to me already.” I glared at the mare, waiting for any sort of change in her cold, hard eyes. “I have nothing to say to you. If you're not going to preen your wings, then you're wasting my time.” Okay, that’s it. Screw being nice. “You know what? I was going to try to be diplomatic about this, but fine. You wanna do this the hard way? Then I’m going to say my piece, and you’re going to listen whether you like it or not. I’m sick of us tiptoeing around this. I’m sick of you deliberately ignoring me, acting like you don’t care when I know that deep down you do care. I’m sick of having to watch everything I say and do because you can’t accept that I’M SORRY!” I breathed heavily, my brows furrowed, and my stance aggressive. “And you know what? If you hate me so much, then WHY THE HECK ARE YOU STILL HERE?” The moment the words left my mouth, I knew that I'd made a mistake. “Rose, wait, I didn’t mean...” Rose blinked, a look of shock on her face. Her face slowly morphed into rage, though she appeared be attempting to regain her cold composure. “Why am I still here?” Her voice wavered. “Honestly, I don’t know. Maybe...” She stomped a hoof. “Maybe if you don’t like my attitude, then maybe I should leave. Let’s see how well you can do without me eh?” She threw down a comb she was holding, and stomped to the door. Just before she stepped out, she turned around. “Don’t bother looking for me, because I QUIT.” And then she was gone. “Rose, wait...” I weakly called, before slumping down onto the floor. Dang it! Why'd I have to let my emotions get away from me? I slammed my hoof on the floor. “Crap! Moto, you idiot!” “Yes, you ‘screwed that up’ pretty badly, I would say.” I jerked my head up, to see a scowling Ms. Harshwhinny. “Frankly, you're both a couple of idiots.” I wiped a hoof over my nose, and sniffed, trying to regain some composure in front of my employer. “I... What do you want?” Harshwhinny barked a humorless laugh. "I want you to reconcile with Ms. Rose. She's worth too much to my business to lose, and the only way to get her back is for you two to kiss and make up." I sighed. "Yeah, and how am I supposed to do that? She won't even talk to me." "You're an idiot." I could feel the anger rising up again. "You think I don't know that? Yes, I screwed up! I'm an idiot for losing my temper! You don't have to shove it in my face!" Harshwhinny smirked in self-satisfaction. "Watch yourself, Mr. Hillberry. I am still your employer. Words like that could get you fired." I forced my anger down with some reluctance. Anger was what got you in this predicament in the first place, you dunderhead. Cool it! "Alright then, what do I do, then?" Harshwhinny's slight smile twitched. “Isn't it obvious, Mr. Hillberry? You must go after her.” Realization slammed into me. Of course! I smacked my hoof against my muzzle. Even if I failed this time, or a hundred times in the future, that doesn't mean I should stop trying! I stood, resolve written on my features. I made to step out the door, but hesitated. “But... what about the rehearsal?” Harshwhinny smirked. “Let me handle the rehearsal. You have more important things to worry about." I nodded. "Right. Thank you, Ms. Harshwhinny. I needed that." The grumpy mare's facial expression softened slightly, though she waved a hoof dismissively. "I am merely looking after my own interests. Now go after her before I shove my hoof so far up your behind that you taste...” “Okay, I’m going!” I shouted as I quickly darted to the door. I skidded into the hallway, and glanced both ways, opting for the route that Rose had most likely taken. As I sprinted down the hall, I couldn't help but think that maybe Harshwhinny wasn't as bad a mare as I first took her to be. I shook off the thought as I locked the Elevator in my sights. A few calculations in my head revealed that I wouldn't make it in time if I used it, so I pivoted around, trying to find a faster way down to the lobby. I saw the doorway to the stairs next to the elevators, and smirked. That'll work. I slammed through the doors, and stopped at the top of the stairs, glancing down. I can make it. I hopped off the top landing, and dove down the center of the column of spiralling stairs. This gonna hurt. I waited for just the right moment before snapping my wings open, ignoring the sudden jolt of pain. I swooped under the last flight of stairs, and through the doors at the bottom of the staircase. I touched down in the main lobby, sliding across the floor before one of my hooves caught, sending me tumbling end over end. Eventually, I came to a stop, and groaned. Moto don't feel so good. “Moto?” I glanced up, seeing an astonished Rose staring down at me. Heh. My calculations were correct. Made it just... In... Time... And then I fainted. Owowowowowowow. Aaaaaaah, that hurts. I opened one eye, and immediately closed it again when light flooded in. “Mmmmph.” I slowly opened the eye again, and allowed it to adjust to the light before slowly opening my other eye. I attempted to move my head, but waves of pain rolled through my body at the movement, prompting another groan. “Oh, thank Celestia, you’re awake.” I managed to turn my head just enough to see a dishevelled, and very angry Rose. “H-hey. Am I in the hospital?” “You IDIOT!” Well, hello to you, too. I grinned. “Why are you smiling? You almost died! Why the heck would you pull a stunt like that?” “Well it worked, didn’t it?” That seemed to take the wind out of her sails. “What..? What worked?” “Heh. I got to talk to you again.” Silence filled the room. “You dumb... You seriously dislocated a wing, broke the other one, bruised your body all over the place, broke multiple ribs, and sprained a hoof just so you could talk to me again?” “Eeyup." Rose blinked. “You have got to be kidding me. You really are a moron.” “Hey, I never claimed otherwise.” I chuckled, but groaned when a fresh wave of pain coursed its way through my body from the action. “Ow.” Rose sighed. “What am I going to do with you?” “Well, for one thing you can keep being my stylist.” “But... I quit.” I shrugged. “Not technically. You only shouted ‘I quit’, and then walked out. You never gave any official notice, and I don’t think Harshwhinny heard you say it.” Actually, she probably did, but I have the feeling she'll probably ignore it. “I... I’m really sorry about what I said, Rose... and if it makes any difference, I’m also sorry about what happened with Twilight. I never meant to let your secret get out.” Rose shrugged. “Honestly, I don’t think I would have listened had you not done what you did. If anything, I should be the one apologizing. It’s kinda my fault that you ended up in the hospital.” She chuckled. “But seriously... why did you do that? Do you realize that only the best stunt flyers could have successfully pulled that off? You’re lucky to be alive right now.” “Well... I calculated how long it would take the elevator to reach the ground floor, and decided that if I was going to stop you before you left that I would need to take a faster route.” Rose guffawed. “Are you serious? You could’ve jumped out a window or something and gone down the outside of the building. Why did you take the staircase?” I drew a blank. “Huh. You know, in the moment, I didn’t even think about it. I just saw the staircase next to the elevator, and sort of went for it.” We both started chuckling, despite the pain it caused my ribs. “Well, good to see you two getting along again. It only took one of you seriously injuring yourself to do it.” Rose and I glanced over to the doorway, seeing a scowling Harshwhinny. “When I said ‘go after her’ I expected you to do it safely, Mr. Hillberry. And yet, here you are in the hospital.” I grinned sheepishly. “Yeah... sorry about that. I wasn’t really thinking.” “You most certainly were not, and now one of Songbird Serenade’s top background singers is temporarily out of commission.” “Does this mean that I won’t be able to go on tour with her?” Harshwhinny practically glowered at me. “Unless you want to try dancing in a wheelchair, it is impossible.” I winced. “Does Songbird know?” “Songbird gives her sincere regrets that you will not be able to accompany her on her tour, and wishes you a speedy recovery.” “Oh.” Harshwhinny’s expression softened. “She also asked that I look into arranging your debut.” I blinked. “What?” “Let’s be honest, Mr. Hillberry. You are not the best dancer, and your voice is far better suited for a lead role anyways. You would have likely begun a solo career soon after the tour with Songbird had ended, but for now, I suggest you focus on getting well.” Harshwhinny turned, and tossed over her shoulder; “Oh, and if you two lovebirds are going to be like this all the time, then get a helmet or something.” The door swung closed behind her, and I looked back to Rose with a smirk. “You know, that gives me an idea.”