Bright. Dizzy. Blurred. Spinning. Ringing. Green.
Green?
Ugh… Words. That’s right. Focus. Focus.
Slowly. Slowly, my thoughts started to align. Words made sentences. Sights and sounds stopped filling my head to bursting. I started to think.
What’s happening? I couldn’t remember how I got here. The last thing I remembered was… Cold. Snow. That’s right, there was a blizzard. My power was out, and I went out to get a coat and supplies. I’d put it off for too long. Ugh, story of my life.
But there was no time to chastise myself. I needed to move. Why was I on the ground, anyway? And why… Where was the snow? Everything’s…
Green.
My head finally cleared enough for me to take in my surroundings. I was in some kind of field, like something out of a dream. Acres of bright green grass, just tall enough to flow in the wind and tickle my sides as I layed in it. Patches of flowers filled out the spectrum, red and purple and yellow petals in big, uniform splotches all over. On the horizon, I could see buildings, although I wouldn’t exactly call it a city, hardly even a town. More like a recreation of an old village, from before the industrial age, the kind where actors run shops and put on shows like it’s the old west. To the left of the town was a dense forest, and to the right, a wide dirt road wound between more idyllic fields. Everything was immaculate, from the blue sky to the fluffy clouds to the coarse dirt. It felt like I’d stepped into a painting.
Well, I was still on the ground, so I guess it’s more like I’d fallen into a painting.
With that thought, I tried to get up, but my body felt wrong. I couldn’t get balanced, and I fell right back into the cushiony grass. That’s not good. Did I get injured during… Whatever brought me here? I looked down, intending to check myself for wounds, but what I saw ground my thoughts to a halt.
What I saw wasn’t my body. It was the body I was in, but it wasn’t mine. It wasn’t even a human body. I saw hooves, four legs, a tail. I was… An animal.
But no, that’s not quite right. I wasn’t just any animal.
My fur was a pastel silver-gray. My tail, a light teal. Most apparent, though, was the mark on my side, almost like a tattoo. The image of a shooting star.
I recognized it.
It was the body of a pony.
But that’s insane! That was a tv show! How could I be a pony? For me to be a pony, I’d have to be in the tv show, or at least in Equestria, and I’m definitely not—
Wait.
That town. I thought it seemed strangely… Familiar. I haven’t seen the show in years, so I didn’t recognize it at first, but looking at it again, it’s almost painfully obvious. The bright, colorful buildings, the landmarks, even the nearby forest.
It had to be Ponyville.
But that’s impossible! My mind raced, running wild with the implications. I tried to force myself up onto my feet—hooves?—again, and wobbled for a moment as I instinctually try\ied to stand on my hind legs again, but then I fell forward. When my front hooves hit the ground, I suddenly felt shockingly stable. Maybe I could just naturally do this because of this body?
I took a few slow steps to test it out, but it was easy enough. Nothing to worry about. I tried to speed up a bit, and that worked fine.
Yeah, I can do this.
Before long, I was sprinting full tilt straight towards Ponyville.
Questions flooded my mind. Is it like the Ponyville I know? Do the Mane Six exist? Are they here? How much has happened?
I’d almost made it to town when I got my first hint of an answer. A carriage flew overhead, a rather regal display, headed straight for Ponyville. I strained my eyes, and I think I caught a glimpse of purple.
Is that Twilight? Is this a royal procession? Or… Maybe she isn’t even a princess yet!
I had to find out, so I followed the path the carriage took through the sky. I was a little slower than it, so I didn’t arrive until it’s already taking off again, but sure enough, my suspicions were confirmed. There was Twilight Sparkle, no wings, Spike by her side carrying a bundle of heavy books. She looked… Hesitant. Lost, almost.
Why would she be lost in Ponyville? Unless… Was this her first day here?
The possibility made me reel. Could I be at the start of everything? Before Princesses, before the Elements, before Nightmare Moon? That’s… It’s…
So exciting!
If I really was somehow in Equestria, then this was the best thing to ever happen to me! I mean, I didn’t hate my old life. Not really. But I can’t say I loved it, either. I wasn’t exactly popular—not many people wanted to hang out with the weird girl who was still a huge fan of a show that stopped airing years ago—and what few friends I did have drifted away pretty quickly after I dropped out of high school. Now, at eighteen, I was just barely scraping by.
But still, I wasn’t miserable, and honestly… A lot of that is because of the show. Because of Twilight and her friends. It sounds dumb, I’m sure, but at times… It kind of felt like they were the best friends I had.
And now Twilight was right in front of me! I had to talk to her! I could get a front row seat to everything, and maybe even be real friends. Maybe I could even be part of the group! Things were really looking up!
In fact… If this really was the world from the show, I pretty much knew the future. I’d watched the show so many times, I practically knew it better than my own childhood. With how much I knew, things would be so much smoother if I helped out. No villains would ever get the drop on us. I could stop ponies from doing anything really dangerous. I mean, I’d have to be careful not to get in the way of Twilight’s friendship studies, but if I put my mind to it, I bet I could have her become a princess in under a year, easy! It could all be so incredible!
I pulled myself out of my thoughts just in time to see Twilight finish talking to—er, well, interacting with Pinkie Pie. That was my chance. I knew she’d visit Applejack first, which gave me plenty of time to talk to her on her way there. I just had to—
“TWO!?”
I nearly flew out of my skin at the sudden shout that blasted through me. I whipped around, and there was Pinkie Pie, staring at me with what could almost be described as horror.
Well, crap. I mean, I love Pinkie, but I’d miss my chance to talk to Twilight if I wasn’t quick enough.
“Uh, hey,” I said, trying to be nonchalant. “Nice to meet you, but I really gotta be somewhere, so…”
Pinkie wasn’t hearing a word I say, though. She’d taken a seat in the grass, and was mumbling to herself at a ludicrous pace. “—but I can’t have a regular surprise-welcome-party for two ponies, that needs a double-surprise-welcome-party, and I don’t have a kit for that, at least not yet, but I should really get one, I mean I’m the party pony, and if I—”
I coughed awkwardly. “Uh, Pinkie?” I tried, but she was completely engrossed in her own little world. I didn’t want to be rude, but I figured I might just have to leave. Hopefully Twilight hadn’t—
Nope. Of course. I looked back over to where she’d been standing, and she was nowhere to be seen. Great.
Now what? I didn’t know how to get to Sweet Apple Acres. I guess I could wait and ask Pinkie for directions, but—
Wait, no, never mind. When I looked back, she was gone, too, probably off to prepare her party.
It seemed I was on my own for this one. At a loss, I walked over to where Twilight landed and took a look around. It wasn’t really anywhere special, just an intersection of two paths lined with homes, and no one direction looked any different from another. I couldn’t see any main streets from here, and I was too deep into Ponyville to see the edge of town.
With no real leads, all I could think to do is go to the opposite side of town from where I came in. I mean, I didn’t see the farm when I woke up, so odds were the town was blocking it from view. If I just remembered the way I came in—and I think I did—I could at least move in what was probably the right direction.
Thankfully, I only had to walk a couple blocks before I was saved. I heard wheels rattling down the path up around the next corner. Whoever this was, I could ask them for directions, and then high-tail it towards Sweet Apple Acres. Hopefully I hadn’t wasted too much time.
The mystery cart and I reached the intersection at the same time, and I stopped in my tracks.
A rickety little wagon, pulled along by a little blue pony that I recognized all too well, showed up in front of me. She clearly saw me staring, because she stopped walking and gave me a quizzical look.
My brain must have short circuited, because I automatically blurted out, “Trixie?” I realized my mistake immediately, and clamped my hand—er, hoof—over my mouth, but it was too late to take it back.
Trixie, however, looked absolutely delighted. Her eyes practically shone with exuberance, and a grin plastered itself to her face.
“Oh,” she said, “you know Trixie? I can see my fame precedes me!”
She was completely failing to hide her excitement. I couldn’t help but find it cute, honestly.
“Uh, yeah, of course,” I said, trying frantically to form an excuse. “I, uh, saw your show before, and it really impressed me!”
“Well, of course it did! Tell me, which show did you see? Which of Trixie’s marvelous tricks did you like the most? I would love to know which ones to focus on!”
“Oh, I, uh…” Crap. Of course she wanted details. “I saw you in, um, Canterlot, I think? But, you know, this is a pretty small town. I can’t say I’d have expected to see you here.”
As much as I wanted to meet Twilight, I couldn’t just ignore Trixie’s presence. If I was right about this being Twilight’s first day, there’s no way Trixie should have been in Ponyville! She didn’t show up for… Well, time wasn’t the clearest in the show, but probably months at the least! It was an aberration, and that had to be important. After all, I was an aberration, too. Maybe I could figure out why I was here in the first place.
“Oh, please,” she said with a dismissive wave of her hoof. “The Great and Powerful Trixie would never deny her presence to any town, no matter how small! Everypony deserves a show, after all. That said, I haven’t actually booked anything here yet. This is more of a… Scouting trip. It’s my last day here, in fact.”
“Oh, so… I guess you’d be gone later? I guess that could explain it…” I was a disappointed, despite myself. As exciting as it was to be here, I’d still like to know why.
Trixie raised an eyebrow. “Explain what?”
Crap. I was thinking out loud. “Um, uh…” What could I possibly say here? I was pulling a blank.
Trixie’s gaze started to turn ever-so-slightly suspicious. “What did you say your name was, again?”
Oh no. It’s falling apart.
“My what?”
Why did I say that? Ugh, get it together! I can’t let my nerves get the best of me!
“Your name,” Trixie said. “You know, the thing ponies call you? Like how Trixie’s name is Trixie.”
“Oh, right, of course,” I mumbled. “I guess I’m just, uh, flustered to meet such a big star, is all.”
“Uh-huh.” The flattery didn’t seem to have hit home. “So, do you have a name, or not?”
“I…” Name, name, name. I can’t believe I didn’t think to come up with a name! I couldn’t just be like, Oh, my name’s Amanda! I needed a pony name! But, ugh, what could it be?
“I’m waiting.”
“Um…” I couldn’t keep it together. “I… Guess not?”
“Oh, come on, you must have a name! How can you have seen me in Canterlot and not have a name? That show was three years ago! You can’t go three years without a name!”
“I…”
“And what was all that about ‘I guess that could explain it?’ Trixie is not a fool, and she does not appreciate being treated like one! Now who are you, really?”
Ugh, since when was Trixie so observant? Now what do I do? Tell the truth?
I mean, I guess I was planning to tell Twilight the truth anyway. I don’t really see why I’d need to keep it a secret. And maybe it wouldn’t be completely unbelievable in a world with magic.
“You’ll think I’m lying,” I sputtered.
“I already think you’re lying!”
“Gah…” She was right. “Fine, I’m… I’m from another world!”
Trixie just looked confused. “What?”
With that final crack in the dam, I couldn’t keep it in anymore. “I’m from a world where Equestria is just a story. I don’t know why, but I woke up at the start of the story earlier today. And, since it’s a story I’ve heard a lot, I know pretty much everything that’s going to happen for the next few years, up until the end of the story.”
“So you’re saying you know the future?”
“Pretty much.” I nodded weakly. “I was gonna go talk to Twilight, and see if we couldn’t use my knowledge to change things for the better.”
“Who is Twilight?” Trixie asksed. “Why talk to that pony specifically? Surely you could talk to, say, the Princess.”
“Well, Twilight’s the main character.”
Trixie looked taken aback. “What? How can a whole world have a main character?”
“Like I said, it’s a story,” I told her. “The world is just… Incidental, I guess. You need a setting to tell a story.”
“I… Suppose I could see that,” Trixie admitted. Then she suddenly looked furious. “But if there’s a main character, surely it should be Trixie!”
I winced. “No, you’re more of a… Side character. You’re not even supposed to be here today, that’s why I was confused earlier.”
“I see…” Trixie was disappointed for a moment, but soon perked back up. “But! You knew about Trixie! So, surely, that means she’s at least important!”
I struggled not to show any reaction to her excitement. “Well, I guess you could say that. You’re the focus every now and then, at least.”
“Ah-ha!” Trixie straightened up and thumped a hoof against her chest proudly. “And what does Trixie do? Slay beasts? Save the Princess? Stop a war?”
“Not… Really,” I said. “I, uh… I guess you don’t do much?”
She frowned. “Please. You are, without a doubt, the worst liar I have ever met. Tell the truth!”
I groaned. “Fine. You’re… A villain.”
Trixie gasped. “A supervillain?”
I grimaced. “Er, not exactly. More of a… Bumbling antihero?”
Her eyes went wide as saucers. “B-Bumbling?”
I nodded meekly.
“Absolutely not! I don’t—Trixie refuses to believe it!” She prodded me hard in the chest. “You must be mistaken!”
“I’m really not,” I told her. “Sorry. You’re a fun character, really! But you’re kind of a joke most of the time.”
Trixie’s face flushed pink, either out of anger, embarrassment, or some combination of the two. “No! How? Trixie is a good pony! She would never stoop so low!”
“Well, you lose a magic duel to Twilight—” Trixie gasped. “—and just kind of go overboard trying to get revenge for her humiliating you.”
Trixie was breathing hard now, and the red in her cheeks had spread up to her ears. “Lose? Humiliated? Me? No, no, it can’t… I…” Finally, something in her seemed to snap, and she let out a loud growl. “No! I refuse! I don’t care what your stupid little story says, I am the main character here! I’m the hero, starting today! You said today is the start of the story? Well, good! That means I can stop whatever this Twilight character stops first, and get all the glory!”
I took a step back, shocked by the outburst. “Look, uh… I mean, I’d love to see you be a good guy this time around,” I told her, “but that’s kind of a tall order. Maybe it’d be better to just try and, you know… Be nice? Especially now that I’m here, Twilight will be even faster, and—”
Trixie snorted, a short, cruel-sounding laugh. “Oh, no. I don’t think so.”
Her horn lit up, and suddenly I was off the ground, my legs flailing helplessly underneath me. “H-Hey! Let me go” I shouted at her, but it just made her smirk.
“Sorry, but if I let you go, you’ll go running straight to Twilight, and then my life is as good as ruined!” She started walking around to the back of her wagon, trailing me behind her through the air. “But really, why would you even want her help? Trixie is right here, and she’s clearly the superior choice! With your help, no obstacles can stand in our way. Not a story, not destiny, and certainly not Twilight!”
“Trixie, wait, I—”
It was too late. Before I could get anything more out, she opened the door, threw me into the darkness of her wagon, and slammed it shut behind me. I recovered as soon as I could, clattering plates and magic supplies to the floor all around me as I did, and scrambled towards the door, but it was already locked tight. Outside the tiny window, I just barely saw Trixie laughing to herself.
“So, my little Starfall Sage, where to first?”