//------------------------------//
// Revival 
// Story: Awakening 
// by Little_Draco 
//------------------------------//

Awakening Revival


What goes through many ponies and their minds do when they wake up after they think they died? What do they think goes through their minds as their unconsciousness tells them that they are slowly waking up?
Do they wish to remain dead so they can escape the pain? Do they want to wake up thinking that they just fell asleep? Would they want to even wake up or come back from the dead?


Darkness is a blessing that many do not take for granted. It brings sleep to the unrested; brings dreams and happiness to those who seek. Darkness may bring nightmarish creatures but in reality, they are just in their own domain and enjoying it.

Darkness, for Twilight, felt more as if she was waking up. In fact, she slowly opened her eyes and found herself yawning. As she opened her eyes, she found them blurry. Everything was surrounded in brownish hue.
She reached over, slowly rubbing her eyes from the sleepiness, making her vision clear. She then paused, mid rubbing when she realized that she just touched herself on her face.
How could that be? She jumped off a cliff and died. How can she even be waking up? How can she even be breathing? Or not feel any pain?
She felt like she just woke up from a night’s sleep. She remembered falling off the cliff; she remembered her friends and family watching as she fell off. She even remembered Rainbow Dash jumping off to save her. 

How is it she still alive here and now? She looked around and found herself in a cave of some sort, judging by the rock formations. It was not a huge cave but big enough for a pegasus hover in. From where she was laying, on a bed of some sort, the cave had an outside view of the morning sky. 
Well… it looked like morning, since there were many trees surrounding the cave. The sky seemed a bit bright but lacked the brightly colored  that usually Princess Celestia would bring. It seemed like she was the Everfree forest.

She then looked around from her laying position to see that there was a pony… or in this case, two ponies living here. There were two beds of the same yet one was a bit bigger than the other. The big one, which Twilight was currently laying on, felt comfortable and had blankets of Zebraian culture.
Now that she saw it, she looked around and saw the rest of the cave. It reminded Twilight of the home of her friend, Zecora had. In fact, it contained many of her Zebra friend’s items. Much of it was on shelves or on wooden counters. Potions, bottles, herbs, exotic flowers, cantinas and even a giant rounded pot, which currently was placed over a fire. A wonderful smell emitted from it.
The rest of the cave carried masks, Zebra paintings and even… spears? Twilight never remembered Zecora having spears in her home.
Then again, she did not even know that she lived here. It probably was not even a Zebra. Probably a collector or a pony with some odd tastes.

Her eyes then followed to the counter top where a mirror lied. She must’ve looked like a mess. She looked down at herself only to find a blanket. However, something from her body felt off. Slowly she pushed the blankets away and revealed her body.
What she saw shocked her beyond anything to say at least. Her body had grown, quite drastically. She felt almost as big as Princess Luna. Her mane was so much longer; it ran all the way down to past her cutie mark. Her tail was even longer than before, almost five feet longer.
She had the body of a full grown mare, if not more. She slowly pushed herself off the bed and with shaky legs, slowly stood up. Yeah… she definitely felt taller. She moved her front right hoof first then the next one then the next. 
She quickly adjusted to her height and walked over to the mirror. From where she stood, she could already tell a lot has changed. She reached the mirror with her magic.
It was instantly engulfed with a purple aura but not even a few seconds after holding, did the mirror crack. Twilight flinched but quickly looked over it. The cracked was a huge one but more where beginning to appear the more she held. She quickly set back down. Without her magic, she approached the mirror and what she saw made gasp.
Her horn! It was… bigger than before! It was almost like alicorn-big! It was at least a half a hoof taller than her horn was before. Next thing she expected was wings to be an alicorn. Turning her head, she didn’t see any wings on her back.
Darn! A small smile had crept to her. So… she was alive in some sort of cave, she was taller, her magic was a bit untamed and she could probably pass for an alicorn if given wings.
But that still left the question on where she was. Turning towards the exit of the cave, she walked out to the small lit world.
She had the right to stay by that statement for the instant everything came to view, her eyes went wide.
The first thing that came to her view was…
“The Castle of the Sisters!” she exclaimed. She blinked. Wow, even her voice had changed. But she quickly forgot about that. Her eyes focused on the castle. If was high up on top of the hill not too far away from her current position. 
She was at the bottom by where a river ran by not twenty feet away. She was in the Everfree! But how had she end up here. The Canterlot falls didn’t pass by here did they? She couldn’t be sure but maybe they did.

A noise behind her caused her to quickly turn around. What she turned to see was a pony. However, when the pony walked out more into the light from the bushes, it wasn’t just any pony. It was a Zebra and not just any Zebra, it almost looked like Zecora!
She almost passed for Zecora but a few details were a bit off. For one thing, she was a bit shorter, even at this height, Twilight could tell she was a bit smaller than Zecora. Her stripes were almost the same and her earing matched like Zecora’s. Her ‘cutie mark’ if Zebras called them that, was a black swirling flower with six pointed petals.
She could have passed for Zecora. The zebra saw Twilight out and looking straight at her.
“Ah… your awake.” She spoke. She did not carry the rhyming accent but she did sound like young version of her.   
Twilight blinked and gave a small smile.
“Uh yes… I am.”
The young filly zebra approached Twilight till she was a few feet away.
Twilight really looked her over and the zebra did the same. The zebra looked remarkably like Zecora. Maybe she was kin.
The filly in the meantime looked over Twilight. She seemed familiar, not the looks but by the features. The purple mane, fur and her Star Cutie Mark. She seemed very familiar.
Twilight was the one to break the silence.
“Um… do you mind telling me where I am?” she asked.
The zebra looked her over once more before responding.
“You are in the Everfree forest by the old castle of the sisters. I found you washed up ashore a few hours ago. I carried you… as best as I could to my home.”
Twilight turned to the cave before looking back at her. She gave a small smile.
“I uh… thank you.” She extended a hoof. “My name is Twilight Sparkle.” The zebra was about to shake it but the name suddenly made her stop. Twilight saw her hoof in the air but no shaking. Awkwardly she slowly lowered it.   
The zebra had a look over her face that Twilight couldn’t place. The zebra then lowered her voice.
“Are you jesting with me? Are you messing with my mind?” Her voice then grew a bit agitated. “I don’t like jokes.”
Twilight slightly recoiled from her but spoke.
“I am not messing with you and this is no joke. My name is Twilight Sparkle.” She then realized why the filly sounded like this. Maybe she heard of her apparent death.
The zebra remained unsure but nodded.
“I am Layla. Welcome to my home.” She waved her hoof to the cave and the rest of the Everfree.
Twilight looked at her. She was a filly. There was no way she lived her by herself. But she did say she had a mother and there were to beds.
That reminded her.
“I don’t suppose you know of a zebra named ‘Zecora,’ do you?”
The zebra blinked and did that over-looking again. She didn’t know what to make of Twilight but she sure was… unusual.
“How do you know of that name?” she asked.
Twilight gave a small smile.
“Zecora was a friend of mine who lived in the Everfree. She lives in a hut and is the town’s shaman and herbalist. She was also a zebra like you.” Twilight paused. “In fact you sort of… I don’t want to be rude here but you sort of look like her.”
The zebra remained silent before giving a small nod.
“I should look much like her; she is my mother after all.”
Mother…. Mother…. MOTHER!?
“Mother?” she said loudly. The zebra nodded somewhat confused.
How could Zecora have a foal? She had known her for years and not once did she mention a daughter. Over the years she had spent with Zecora, not once did she mention a daughter. She didn’t mention of even any potential males in her life or even a consort.
Twilight did an overtake at the filly and sighed.
“Sorry,” she apologized, rubbing her head. “I never… excuse me, I had no idea that Zecora had a… daughter, nor that she had a…” she was about to say ‘male’. Mares can have foals without males they just needed magic. “I just…” She tried to speak but couldn’t form any words.
Layla saw her struggle but it did implore the question, how could this ‘Twilight Sparkle’ not know that Zecora had a foal. Everypony in Ponyville and if not more, knew of her existence.

“Your not from around here… are you?” questioned Layla with an arched eyebrow that questioned Twilight all over.
Twilight looked at the filly with her own confused eyes.
“Of course I am… I mean not from the Everfree forest but I live in Ponyville.”

Something clicked in Layla.
“I only know of one Twilight Sparkle from Ponyville. She was one of the Barres of the Elements of Harmony.”
Twilight smiled and nodded.
“Yes, I am her!”

The filly gave a short snort. 
“I highly doubt that, you are Twilight Sparkle.”
Twilight’s expression changed.
“What do mean? How can you doubt I am Twilight Sparkle.”
The filly stared at her with her deep brown eyes, almost staring into her soul and the next few words are what cause fear to suddenly shot into her heart.

“You cannot be Twilight Sparkle. She has been dead for a long time.”  
The breath escaped Twilight and she almost light sight of her vision. However, she quickly shook her head. Her fear was undoubtedly still there.
“How…How long? Ho… How long have I been dead? She’s been… dead?” Her body was shaking, her heart was pounding and her head was heavy with sweat. 

Layla responded.
“I was born a year after your… ‘her’ death. I am to be twelve years in this upcoming summer.”
Twilight remained speechless. Her voice literally drained from her throat. Layla known of Twilight’s state, spoke her next words carefully.
“If you are truly Twilight Sparkle, then…  you have been considered dead for almost thirteen years.”