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// Chapter 56 
// Story: Fine Print 
// by Starscribe 
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No matter how hard she tried, Rose could never figure out how time moved so fast once her duties at the flower stand ended for the year. Well, "ended" was subjective, since they still served breakfast, along with opening briefly for Hearth’s Warming when the time came. But without their own greenhouse, even earth pony magic couldn't keep flowers alive when the first winter frost came.

That meant everything they did sell either came from hardier species they could grow outside, sometimes even with snow all around it, or more often, was imported from Canterlot greenhouses. Even when the family was stable, their parents had never rushed to build their own. "Every pony needs time away from work," her father had said. "Even working your talent, sometimes you need some time away to remind you what made you fall in love in the first place."

Now Rose had falling in love to take her away, and take her away it did. Tracy was at once like and unlike the other bats she'd been with over the years. He exuded confidence and danger wherever he went, even more dangerous than the bats she'd previously dated. His home was a world so frightening that some of its residents fled in terror—where their entertainment featured constant death and violence, and every resident had control over vehicles faster and more powerful than a royal carriage.

Only coming into work a few hours a week meant that Rose could drift towards Tracy's schedule, sleeping in late on the other days so that she could join him in his world when his work was over. She explored plenty of exotic food, visited museums and nearby landmarks—and most importantly, she got to drive his car.

After only her third visit to earth, Tracy surprised her with a “phone” of her own, a flat piece of plastic and metal that apparently had access to near-limitless information. Rose still wasn’t quite sure about all the details--but the important part was that she could use it to contact Tracy if there was an emergency. So long as she was in their home, the message would reach him, as reliably as dragonfire.

But the car was much more interesting to her. Where the phone’s uses were esoteric and outside the realm of her experience, a transportation mechanism to replace pony-drawn carts had already been contemplated and even explored in Equestria before. But where the horseless carriage was a clumsy, dirty machine, Tracy’s world had the technology as mature as Equestrian magic.

"How powerful is it?" she asked, the second time he put her behind the wheel. He'd taken them far away from other buildings and cars, which was probably just as well. There was nopony to hurt by accident if she made a mistake, just dirt roads lit by the magical lights on the front of his car.

"How... powerful?" Tracy made his confused, thinking face. It looked almost the same as the one he used in Equestria whenever anything went wrong. She was now entirely convinced that the Worldgate really did just change how ponies looked. "I only have the four cylinder, so I think around... 150 horsepower?"

But he must've seen something from her shocked expression, because he rested one hand on her shoulder. "Wait, that name is a coincidence. It has nothing to do with ponies, just... how many horses from my world would have to pull at the same time to go just as fast. None of them here have magic, don't freak out at the number."

His advice fell on deaf ears, and her spidery hand-things started to sweat. It was so much harder to ignore when there was no fur to disperse it—her fingers slid right off the wheel. "You mean this carriage is as strong as me and every friend I ever had, all pulling at once?"

"No," he said flatly. "Not even close. I've seen some of the stuff you can do, Rose. Like I said, it's a coincidence. Remember, you're sitting in a wagon made out of metal and glass. It needs to be able to travel at seventy or eighty miles an hour, even when it has five passengers, and the back is full of cargo. But you won't go that fast. Let's just focus on going forward, nice and slow."

Once she got past her initial terror at the phenomenal power at her hooves, “driving” was actually not a very complicated skill. The hardest part wasn't even making the car go forward, or stop, or even turn. Using her legs to control speed and stopping was intuitive, and the wheel was at least easy to turn. It was all the little buttons that confused her, particularly the "signals".

"You probably won't have to use those much anyway," Tracy said, at another lesson about a week later. "We can't take you onto the roads in the city, or the highway. You need a license for that—a permission card that says you're able to drive. Unless Discord helps you with his magic, we'll never get one. Out here with no one around, you don't need to worry."

"No," she declared, sticking her tongue out at him. "You said it's the proper way. I'm going to learn." She practiced when she could, but mostly the portal became a way to escape the Ponyville chill, to enjoy exotic sweets, and spend time with Tracy.

She never did have the courage to ask him what he meant when her sisters pressured him about marriage. She'd given them quite the talking-to the next morning, and they'd been good about it since. I'm not losing him because they're tactless.

Of course, she might be losing Tracy through the simple progression of time. February 1st stalked ever closer to her, like a changeling poking its head out from behind every calendar in the house. It felt like she had almost as much time to spend with Tracy as she could've dreamed of. But the more time they were together, the faster their calendar started acquiring marks.

"Have you thought about how you'll ask him yet?" Lily asked the next Saturday, as they reviewed holiday orders at the stand. "Somewhere in Whitetail Woods, maybe? Maybe the same place Mom proposed?"

"Slow down," Rose said, just as she always did whenever they went that direction. "I like Spark Gap, maybe more. But you can't keep talking about committing to one pony after just a few months like it's normal."

"It wasn't just a few months," Lily said. "You've been living together for a year. How much more do you want to know?"

An impossible question. Rose shook her head, even harder when Lily draped one leg around her neck. "I know I shouldn't be the one giving my older sister advice. But I know how much you want foals, sis. Sooner or later you'll either have to make your decision, or give up on that dream forever." 

"I don't know if I have enough time," she said weakly. "If I were with him another year, I'd know for sure, I'd do it. But there's a banishment looming over our heads, worse than any migration. A thestral can always decide not to fly where the clan does, catch up with them later. But when the lease ends, that's it."

"You couldn't ask for an extension?" Lily prompted. "Even if it cost more bits. I bet Spark Gap wouldn't mind paying extra to stay with you."

"We tried," she said despondently. "No luck. Discord doesn't care where we go when the Worldgate closes, but we'll be stuck on one side or the other."

"So it's Equestria or another world," Lily finally said. "We should've known something like this would happen sooner or later. Ponyville makes everypony a little crazy if you live here too long. Did you ask the princess about it?"

Rose hadn't. It seemed a fool's hope—but she was desperate enough at that point to try anything. Otherwise, the two of them might just pull both ways, stretching between two worlds until something snapped, and they never saw each other again.

But Tracy didn't seem to mind living in Equestria, or being a thestral. If there was some way to make a new Worldgate, one without Discord—maybe she wouldn't have to say goodbye! Maybe they had more than a few months to figure out if they were right for each other.

Rose made an appointment the same day. Princess Twilight was easier to see than any of the other royals of Equestria, and the very next Monday she stepped through into the royal throne room.

The Castle of Friendship wasn't nearly as fancy as Canterlot. There weren't thousands of years of history here, recorded in sculpture and tapestry and stained glass. But the strange enchanted table before the throne was far more impressive than a gold fountain. Rose took one look at the glowing map of Equestria on its surface, then looked away as quickly as she could. Such secrets weren't meant for a pony as lowly as herself.

"That's enough bowing, Roseluck," Princess Twilight said, gesturing for her to come closer. "My record says this is our first formal meeting since my elevation. I don't have anything in your file, so I'm going to guess you don't have any problems with my rule over Ponyville. How can I help you?"

Rose shuffled nervously as she approached Twilight's throne. It wasn't elevated over the room like Celestia's in Canterlot, and the Princess of Friendship wore far less regalia. But this was still an Alicorn, one who had saved Equestria herself more than once. 

"I have a... friendship problem," she said lamely. "Technically more than friendship, but I think it still counts. You are the princess of friendship, right?"

The Alicorn nodded, eyes narrowing. "I am. But if you're asking about love, I'm the wrong princess. My sister-in-law is the mare you want to talk to. I can get you a referral, if you want. You'll have to travel, but Ponyville can help subsidize the cost..."

"No!" Rose blurted, raising a hoof. So abruptly that the princess turned to stare.

She stiffened, backing nervously away. "I mean, no. I'm sorry princess, I don't mean to be rude. Honestly, this is more of a magic problem than a friendship problem. I don't think there's anypony in Equestria who knows as much as you do."

Twilight shrugged. "That's probably not true, but ask anyway. I'll help you any way I can."

She explained the problem as simply as she could, staying light on the details. Twilight Sparkle had not been happy with any part of the strange arrangement of Otherworlder and magic hidden in her own domain. But whatever frustration she felt, she didn't take it out on Roseluck.

"You want to make a permanent Worldgate," Twilight finally finished, a few minutes later. "Am I understanding you correctly?"

Rose nodded eagerly. "It's possible?"

Twilight rose suddenly from her throne, walking past her towards an open door. "Come with me."

She followed, growing increasingly eager by the step. The princess led her up through the castle, past the areas open to the public and into her own chambers. "It's not my place to judge your relationship with the Otherworlder," she said. "From what I've learned about his home, I'm amazed you had enough in common. But what you're asking... I don't have good news."

She nudged a door open, leading Roseluck into a magical laboratory of sorts. Most of the enchanted devices there were utterly beyond her understanding. Glowing crystals, strange diagrams that contained liquid suspended in the air, plants that grew in reverse.

Twilight took her past all of it, to a plain chalkboard against the wall. On each side was a drawing—one of Celestia, one of Discord. They'd been connected with various lines and scribbled text. Her own cutie mark was there, and Tracy's, bridging the gap between them. 





"Princess Luna and I have been trying to solve this particular mystery for the last six months. It's not my place to share the details with you, but what matters is this: Discord meant for this to happen, all of it. I think your relationship means he's winning. But we're quite certain that this complex relationship will be forced to collapse within the next two months.

"You're afraid for what happens after your lease ends, you want to keep a friendship intact? I hate to be the one to tell you this—but somepony has to. Discord is the only being with the power to create worldgates on a whim. Other than his magic, we only have the Mirror Portal for an example. That device was the life's work of Clover the Clever."

The princess met her eyes, expression resolved. "I want you to be happy, Roseluck. But a pony would have to labor their entire lives to build what you suggest. By the time they finished, you wouldn't need it anymore, one way or another." 

Roseluck sniffed, wiping the tears from her eyes. Twilight's board was tucked away in the corner of her lab, an afterthought at the scope of a powerful Alicorn. But the magical factors on it were somehow manipulating Rose's entire life, and Tracy's too. Did all this mean Celestia was trying and failing to protect her from Discord's evil influence?

But it isn't all evil. I want to be with Spark Gap. The more she thought about it, the more it hurt. "There's no way, then," Roseluck finally said. "Somepony has to choose to give up their home."

Twilight nodded solemnly. "I'm sorry. All I can tell you is that I will support your decision. If the Otherworlder wants to stay, I'll grant his citizenship. If you want to go, Equestria will respect your wishes."