It was now two days after Tom's experience of being Nightmare Moon and then Luna, an experience that one such as he desired not to repeat in any way, shape, form, or indeed circumstance to be found anywhere in this life of his. Today was to mark another anniversary, a much sadder and more controversial anniversary than last time but an anniversary nontheless, one that he wanted to ensure was marked properly.
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic had run for nine years and two days, which in terms of a television show of its type is a very long time indeed. Although some such as Thomas and Friends had run for longer (which at time of writing has been going for a whopping thirty six years), it is very difficult for a show to maintain a high standard of quality for several years, something that My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic had somewhat managed to do for most of its run, only really falling apart in its final season. But enough of that.
To give the show the epic send off it deserved, Hasbro had created a massive 90 minute special entitled 'The Ending of the End' to end (how many times can we say end in a single sentence?) the entire story, and this had aired on 12th October 2019, or precisely one year ago. Tom intended to watch this again on this very special anniversary, a very symbolic day for My Little Pony fans. But you wouldn't know the show had ended from the show's brony fanbase, which seemed to be just as busy as ever in terms of creating new fan art, publishing fanfiction, and blogging about the show. If anything, during the pandemic, the show had brought more people together than ever before and helped them through the hard times they were all facing. When life brings you down and you need to escape from all the shit the world has given you, dipping into the adventures of pastel coloured ponies would often do the trick, not to mention it kept people at home, allowing to protect the NHS and save lives (though not necessarily in that order). Tom was very happy to still have the connections he made with his friends, as Jimmy and John, as well as Katrina and the others, had helped him through this crisis and helped him retain his sanity. He looked fondly at a photograph taken on their very last night at Universal Studios, which seemed like a million years ago even though it had only been January. There they were, as the characters they had transformed into. Vice Principal Luna, Principal Celestia, Scootaloo, Prickleberry (or Lily Longsocks, depending on who you asked), Princess Twilight Sparkle, and Sci Twi were all there, smiling at the camera. Tom smiled as well. That had been such a fun day, but sadly he'd fallen out of contact with some of them. He hadn't heard from Steph in a long time, and John was still locked down in Cardiff and on furlough. Katrina was still stranded here and hadn't woken up yet. That was unlike her.
"I'll make her some coffee," he thought. "I think she'll appreciate that. Then we can watch the finale together." To pass the time, they'd been marathoning (yes, that is now a word) the entire show from start to finish (including Equestria Girls and the internet shorts), which had been a little bit of a weird experience as there's only so many times you can watch characters you've transformed into.
Tom went into his kitchen, when he suddenly saw what was on the floor. He had opened the door, but was in no mood to do the dinosaur. Instead, he slipped on a piece of rock shaped like the sun, and his skin made the barest of contact as it did so, causing him to crash into a wall as he did so.
"Might as well ride it out," he said, as he began to change. First off, he shrank in size through his clothing at least ensuring it wasn't damaged unlike last time, where the park staff had a few questions to ask about sudden torn articles of clothing all over the place. Inside the now cavernous mass of garments, Tom's rear began to tingle once more, as an orange and yellow tail popped out of his butt and made a bit of a brushing sound as it did so. It was also quite messy, and what happened next was equally messy as his junk was sucked into him, rendering him a her. Moments after that, her feet began to be compressed and changed into hooves, which she pulled out of her shoes and socks as her knees snapped backwards.
"Ouch! That always stings a bit."
Moments after that, two lumps popped out from underneath her as her chest swelled into a horse's barrel and stomach, her shoulders moving inward to more accurately create pony forelegs. Moments after all that was done, her elbow joints inverted, and her hands changed into hooves. Despite how odd this all was, Tom felt no pain. She was used and actually rather acclimatised to it as the process continued, her neck rotating upwards to enable her to look forward.
Shortly after all that had happened, the process resumed as her neck elongated, followed by her mouth and nose sliding together into a muzzle. Her muzzle wasn't the only new thing on her head. Her eyes grew in size, and turned orange, followed by a pink horn popping out of her head. Her hair began to float, turning the same orange yellow colour as the tail, before growing longer, much longer, and then being tied up into a ponytail (haha).
Shortly after, her entire body was covered in pink fur as a symbol of an orange sun surrounded by yellow and gold markings appeared on her flanks.
Luster Dawn shook all the clothing free, and headed for the door. She had so much to learn and explore. As she stepped outside, she saw two familiar faces waiting there.
"I was wondering when you'd come outside!" called Sunburst.
"I think she got a little caught up in her books," Starlight Glimmer joked.
"Hey mom, hey dad," Luster Dawn replied. "Shall we get going?"
"Sure!" Starlight Glimmer said, and the three set off into the glorious Canterlot sunset.