“Are you sure this will work?” I asked as Starlight stood in front of me a few days after Cadance’s trial. “I’ve been told that other things will fix me before, and they’ve made me worse off.”
“Trust me,” she assured me. “This’ll work. I know my spells. Now, hold still for me, please,” she instructed as her horn lit up.
I felt my body tingle, and then the next thing I knew, I was standing alone in a familiar-looking room, one that was dark and currently only had one other pony in it.
“This probably won’t end well for me,” I thought fearfully, taking a good look at myself as Twilight Sparkle stood gawking at me.
I was a pony. A pony with a gray coat and black mane, who seemed to be wearing a red cape. One who was stuck in a room with statues that looked a lot like I now did. One who stood nervously in front of the Princess of Friendship, the very pony who defeated Sombra. The pony who I now was.
The princess took a step back, and quickly made her way out of the room, sounding like she was going up a set of stairs. “Cadance!” she yelled. “Call Celestia and Luna!”
“This is bad,” I thought. “This is really, really… wait, what is going on? I’ve been here before, haven’t I?” I turned my head to examine my surroundings as Twilight yelled frantically for her pink companion. “This is the moment it happened, isn’t it?” I thought aloud. “What did Starlight do?”
I heard a set of hoofsteps descending down to meet me as I continued to think to myself. What in Equestria did Starlight do? I’d expected many things, but certainly not this. Not that I was frightened or afraid like before. Now, I had my jaw clenched as I scowled at the stairs, waiting for what I knew was the cause of my problems to descend upon me. A few seconds later, right on cue, Princess Cadance was down in the room with me, an angry and hateful expression painted on her face. If looks could kill, she would have been dead right then and there from the one I was sending her way.
“Well, well, well,” Cadance spat angrily, seeming just a little bit taken aback by my expression. “Look who it is. You again.”
“I know exactly what you’re planning, you witch,” I shot back. “I know exactly what your goal is and what you’re using me for. Fix me this instant!”
“What… what are you going on about?” she asked, trying to keep the tone in her voice, but seeming clearly concerned, the look of nervousness in her eyes.
“You already know what this is about,” I growled lowly, taking a threatening step towards her, watching her take a step back in return. “I already know you’re planning on ruling over Equestria, and I want no part in it! Fix me now!”
“What- why is this happening now?” she asked, dropping the anger, clearly scared, her eyes wide in fear. “Why didn’t you cast the spell? Those three are going to be down here any minute!”
“Well, then I guess you’ll have just a minute to undo whatever you made me do to myself, about thirty seconds if I’m not mistaken. Otherwise, I plan on telling the three of them exactly what you’re planning on doing to Celestia.”
“How am I supposed to know what you did?” she asked me frantically. “Just release whatever spell you cast!”
“I don’t know how!” I yelled at her angrily. “If I did, I wouldn’t be in this position, would I?”
“Sweet Celesita, you’re so stupid!” she yelled at me. "I should've known better than to even try and work with you!" She tapped her hoof aggressively on the stone floor as she hung her head low, trying to think before saying, “Ubiquita cordova! That’s a spell I learned to undo short-term changes in ponies, but it has to be within a few minutes of casting the spell. Use that!”
“I don’t know what that spell is or how to cast it, which is why-”
“Let me write the characters down for you!” she told me quickly, using her magic to quickly find a pen and write in the book on the desk what letters I was supposed to be using. By the time she finished, I could hear more hoofsteps descending back down the stairs.
“Cast it now!” she demanded, whispering aggressively, and just as Celestia entered the room, I did.
“Alex?” someone, a woman, said. “Is that you?” She brushed her hand against his forehead and hair, and he slowly opened his eyes as a result.
“Mom…” he said quietly, his voice, his real voice, hoarse. He turned to see his father standing next to her, as well as a few of his close friends and coworkers, along with some nurses standing next to them. He turned back to his mom and could see the tears in her eyes.
“You were out for almost two months, honey. We were starting to think you’d never wake up.”
“I was starting to think I’d never wake up either, mom,” Alex told her, the tears springing into his eyes. “Oh, I feel awful.”
With that, he closed his eyes again as the woman continued to brush his hair and face and cheek with the back of her hand. It had been a long time since he felt his mother’s hand on his face, or anyone’s hand for that matter, and he almost found himself purring as the happy tears streamed down.
“Alex…” she whispered kindly, her hand feeling nice in his hair. "Oh, Alex..."
“Mmm…” he hummed at the feeling, enjoying the touch.
“Alex,” she said again, a bit louder, indicating that she wanted to be heard.
“Yeah?” he got out blissfully, happy to hear her voice once again.
“Alex, open your eyes please,” Radiant Hope told him as she placed her hoof in his mane. She could see the tears in his eyes and the way his body shivered, watching as he slowly opened his eyes before he cast her an angry glance.
“I’m sorry, you were crying in your sleep…” He sighed at that and curled back up next to her, letting the mare place her cheek on the back of his neck as she pet his fur.
“Why’d you have to wake me up and ruin my dream?” he whispered before drifting back off restlessly, hoping he could pick it up where he left off.