Twilight hummed to herself as she stood in front of the Buckball Museum, her sunglasses hung low on her muzzle as her eyes studied the tourist's map she held aloft in her sparkling magenta aura. She glanced at her watch she'd brought along for just the purpose of making sure she'd be seated in the stadium on time, and then turned her eyes back to the map.
She was here to support her friends Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie by attending the Buckball Tournament and watching the latter two ponies' team-play at the big game. Initially, Twilight hadn't realized she'd have the time, as some very important Princess-y duties had come up. Fortunately for her however, she'd finished things a lot quicker than she'd thought she would with Spike helping, and now she had the opportunity to really surprise them! It was a shame Spike couldn't make it though. She'd offered, but he'd wanted to hang out with Big Mac instead; hoofball was more his thing anyway.
Twilight wore a long Haywaiian shirt to cover up her wings and partially obscure her cutie mark, hoping that fewer ponies would be able to recognize her that way, thus not garnering any unwanted attention at an event she'd come to in order to appreciate her friends' time to shine - and it had been shockingly effective. She supposed she shouldn't have been so surprised though; it's not as if she were anywhere near as tall as Princess Celestia or Princess Luna. By all appearances, she just seemed like any other ordinary unicorn mare, save a few inches difference in height. And anyways, the area she currently was seemed fairly deserted, with the exception of several ponies here and there, scattered about.
"Um, hello? Excuse me?" came a male voice, drawing Twilight's attention away from her map.
She looked up to see an Earth Pony stallion with black hair, blue eyes, and a medium-dark tan coat. His expression looked somewhat nervous and apologetic, which was never a good sign.
Twilight lifted her map a tad higher and hurriedly pushed her sunglasses a bit further up atop her muzzle, attempting to better obscure her face."...May I help you?" she asked, her voice instinctively lowering in pitch to disguise her voice.
"Uh. I'm so sorry to bother you, but I really need to use the facilities. Would you mind watching her for a minute?" He gestured to a little Pegasus filly sat in a fold-out chair next to a tent (that was set up by the vacant museum steps for some reason), the little pony's colors indistinct through the dark-tinted glass of Twilight's shades.
"Uh..." Twilight remembered she still had a few hours before the tournament started. "Sure!" she said normally, then suddenly remembering she was in disguise, she repeated more deeply, "Uh, I mean... sure."
"Thank you so much!" the stallion said, grinning brightly. He turned back to the filly briefly. "I'll be right back, Wind Sprint! Be good!" But the little Pegasus just kept her eyes on her hooves and said nothing. Then the stallion galloped off.
A few moments passed in silence before Twilight took a couple steps closer to the seated filly, who appeared to be fully occupied with staying still and refusing to acknowledge the mare's presence. The Alicorn folded up her map, placing it in her shirt pocket. She just continued to stand there for a while, not sure where to look half the time and sometimes awkwardly shifting her weight or bouncing on the balls of her hooves. Deciding it might be less uncomfortable if they were to have a casual conversation, she turned her head to look at the Pegasus and cleared her throat, which the young pony also did not react to.
"So," Twilight said, putting on her friendliest smile, "Wind Sprint, huh?"
The filly stared up at Twilight, her expression emotionless. "...Uh huh."
"That's a nice name"
"...Thanks," she remarked, her tone invariable.
Silence.
After a few long moments, Twilight decided to try again. "Do you like to read?" she asked hopefully.
Wind Sprint rolled her eyes.
"Ah heh. Guess that answer's that question," Twilight said, more to herself than anyone.
The filly raised an eyebrow. "Why are you wearing sunglasses?"
"W-why?" Twilight balked, unsure how to reply.
"Yeah, it's been overcast for the last little while. Haven't you noticed?"
The Alicorn coughed, beads of sweat appearing on her forehead. "W-Well, it's a little hard to tell with these things already on! Makes everything look darker, you know."
"Aren't you going to take them off?"
"Uhh..."
"Is there something wrong with your face?"
"N-no! No! Not at all!"
The filly continued to watch her.
With a sigh, Twilight enveloped the glasses in her magic and lifted them from her face, folding them, and placing them in her shirt pocket with the map. "Happy?" she asked, a hint of irritation audible in her tone.
Wind Sprint gave her a funny look.
Twilight heaved a sigh. "Look, I'm sorry. I just—" Twilight suddenly stopped, having realized something. Now that she had a better look at the filly, something about her appearance really stood out to the Alicorn. "Hey, you and I look a lot alike," Twilight exclaimed.
"What?" Wind Sprint deadpanned.
"You don't see it?" Twilight's face took on a puzzled expression. "You look exactly like me when I was a filly! Except with more muted tones, and wings."
Wind Sprint's eyes narrowed at the mare critically. "We have different manes and eyes and your cutie mark is hot pink," she replied evenly.
Twilight rolled her eyes. "Okay, yes. We don't look exactly the same, but surely you see the similarities!"
The filly's expression remained impassive.
"Oh come on! Look, I can prove it!" Twilight produced a small compact from her pocket with her magic - honestly she needed to wear shirts more often, pockets were so useful - and opened it to reveal a small mirror. She brought her face down beside the filly's and held the mirror aloft at their eye-level. "See!"
Wind Sprint reluctantly turned her eyes to the mirror, comparing their appearances, then she turned her head to look Twilight in the eyes again. "I don't see it."
The Alicorn was utterly aghast. "Don't see it?!" She turned the filly's chin toward the mirror again with a foreleg. "You're basically a mini-me!"
Wind Sprint groaned tiredly. Only Quibble would choose to leave her with a mare who was this delusional.
Twilight huffed. "Fine then." The purple mare rose to her full height and scanned the area, fixing her eyes on a passerby who had stopped to clean his binocular lenses. "You there!" she called, grabbing his attention away from his device.
The Earth Pony raised an eyebrow and held a hoof to his chest, as if to ask, 'Me?'
Twilight nodded. "C'mere a second!"
He seemed a little wary, but he walked up to the stranger as requested. "Um... yes?"
"What's your name?" Twilight asked impatiently.
"C-Caramel."
"Alright, Caramel," Twilight said, guiding him closer with a foreleg around his shoulders, walking up to where the filly was seated. "Do we look alike?" she asked, releasing her hold on him and gesturing to Wind Sprint.
The yellow-tan stallion looked to the frowning filly appraisingly, then to Twilight, then back to the filly, then to Twilight... He shrugged. "Not really," he stated flatly.
The Alicorn's mouth fell open. "What!?!"
Caramel recoiled slightly at the volume. "W-Well, you asked me for my opinion!"
"B-But!—" Twilight fumbled. "Look!" She gestured again. "Our manes! Our colors! Do you really not see it!?"
Caramel darted his gaze between the two again, then shook his head. "Sorry, I really don't. Your mane and tail stripes aren't even in the same places, and yours are magenta and purple while hers are powder pink. Your eyes aren't even the same color."
"Told you," Wind Sprint mumbled.
Twilight paused for a moment, considering the fact that if two ponies had agreed she was wrong, then perhaps she really was. She held the compact mirror up to herself and then looked over it at the filly and back again to her own reflection a few times, comparing the two. Then she clapped the mirror shut with a pointed click and declared, "Nope! You guys are still wrong! I need another second-second opinion."
Wind Sprint let her head drop forwards and groaned loudly into her forehooves.
Caramel was just about to excuse himself when Quibble returned. "Hi, Wind Sprint! Told ya I wouldn't be long." The filly cast him a glare he didn't seem to notice. Next he turned to meet Twilight's frustrated features. "Thank you so much for watching her, I—Oh my word! You're Princess Twilight, aren't you?!"
Suddenly the Alicorn remembered why she was here and wearing a disguise in the first place. "Uhhh..."
"Y-Yeah! Yeah! You're the Princess Twilight! Well—I've seen you in the paper at least a hundred—no, a thousand times! Oh—Well it's an honor! Say, I've actually met another one of the elements - Rainbow Dash. Did she happen to mention me to you?" He looked over his should at Wind Sprint before Twilight could form a coherent answer. "Hey, hey it's the Princess! Isn't that neat!?"
The filly's eyes narrowed, apparently annoyed and clearly unimpressed.
Suddenly a female voice was heard from behind the group. "Did somepony say Princess Twilight?" All three adult ponies turned to see a blue mare wearing a laminated press ID around her neck and holding a camera. She gasped at the sight of the purple Alicorn and removed her lens cap.
"Uh oh," Twilight said.
Flash. Flash. Flash.
"Gahhh!" The Alicorn blinked away the spots in her eyes from the camera flashes and took off at a full gallop, attempting to fly but finding her wings pressed too tightly to her sides because of the shirt she was wearing. She tore it off and took to the air, leaving the apparel and the pocket contents forgotten in a heap on the ground.
"Wait! Princess! Come back!" The press pony gave chase.
The two stallions and little filly stared after the retreating figures for a long moment.
"Well!" Caramel said suddenly. "Gotta go checkout the hall of fame!" He darted away, leaving the other stallion and Wind Sprint alone in his wake.
Quibble sighed privately before turning back to the Pegasus filly, grinning widely. "So? You got to meet Princess Twilight! That's certainly starting the day off with a bang!"
Wind Sprint glared up at him, unblinking. "I'm hungry."
Quibble coughed. "Well, of course you are! I saw an ice cream stand while I was gone. I think we have time before your mom gets back with those tickets. Like some vanilla?"
"Strawberry," she replied flatly, though she finished with a small smile creasing her lips.
"Okay then!" Quibble said happily.
Wind Sprint hopped off the chair and followed alongside him as he walked, the pair heading for the ice cream stand.
"Quibble?" the filly spoke suddenly.
"Yeah, Wind Sprint?"
"Don't ever leave me with a stranger again. Also, if that's Equestria's future ruler... we're in a lot of trouble."