"Wow..." Smolder gaped at the new Barb. "Wow..."
"Ta da." Barb did a slow twirl for her older peer. "Just like you."
Smolder raised a brow. "Not just like me. I won't know what being a guy's like ever, so..."
"Huh..." That memory hadn't vanished. "Still, hello. I'm Barb, short for Barbara. Nice to meet you, again."
Smolder met the offered hand in a firm shake. "Smolder, you know that. So, Barb... Barbara? That's a big name you're borrowing there. She was a total badass!"
Barb grinned, thinking of the source of her name. "Yeah... But she was also between species." She pointed off to a pony in the middle distance and Smolder. "Like me."
"Huh... I guess I can see that." Smolder sank into a crouch, bringing their eyes even. "Now, you did ask about... all this... but I thought you were just being a curious little dragon."
"I was," she defended. "But I was serious too."
"I see that..." She tapped a claw against her chin. "I didn't tell you near enough for an actual dragon to live on. I didn't know you were making it happen!" She threw her hands up. "How did you even?"
"Discord," answered Barb simply.
"Discord..." It was a pretty complete answer. "Figures... Alright... Alright!" She stood up, wobbling forwards and back. "This is at least partially my fault. So... We need to go over, like, a lot... If you're serious, which it looks like you are, there's so much to learn about this." She waved down her female form. "I gave you the quick startup, that ain't enough."
"Is it that complicated?" Being a dragon, and a young one at that, the differences were not as extreme for her as a mammal might experience. "Um, some differences..." She colored. "But I'm... getting over those."
"I bet you're not." Smolder snatched Barb's hand and began leading her away. "Doing it wrong is a good way to end up getting sick."
Barb followed as she was led, smiling despite the embarrassing situation. Smolder was showing she cared, and being fawned over wasn't all that bad. "So... question."
"Yeah?" Smolder slowed, looking over her shoulder at Barb. "What's on your mind?"
"I was just wondering... When do I lay my first egg?"
Smolder went a deep red all across her face. "Barb! Wow... Did... Did nocreature ever talk about how that works?" But Barb looked clueless. "Wow... Okay, so... Wow... You are really knocking me off my feet today." She resumed tugging Barb along. "First step's first. I'm not talking to you about eggs unless Headmare Twilight gives the alright. I am not calling dibs on that talk with her little br--sister."
So Barb learned how a she-dragon handled some private things. "I don't think I need to remind you, but this is private. It's private for guys. It's private for girls. That hasn't changed." Smolder hiked a brow. "Got it?"
"Got it!" Barb fired an emphatic thumbs up. "You are fantastic! Thank you... Gosh, I can imagine this is... a little odd for you... Most dragons woulda figured this out ages ago..."
"Most dragons would have been a guy or a girl the whole time, yeah?" Smolder slowly tilted her head. "Never heard of one changing their mind like that... Still... Cool. I mean, the world said 'do it my way' and you looked it in the eyes and said 'No you.'" She smirked viciously. "I can respect that. Wow... Bro's gonna pitch a fit..."
Barb swallowed audibly, thinking of Smolder's brother, Garble. "Y-yeah... Can you calm him down?"
"Pfft, as if." She poked at Barb's chest. "You know I only can do so much with him. I'll tell him to chill out, but that's about all I can do. You know he's going to tease. I'm already hating it, thinking about it." She folded her arms. "He's going to say something dumb, like 'Oh here's that namby dragon. The ponies made him such a wuss, he turned into a girl.'" Smolder rolled her eyes. "As if our dragonlord isn't a girl! As if I'm not. As if either of us couldn't bend him in half if we bothered."
Barb giggled at the mental image of either she-dragon bending Garble like a fine bit of draconic origami. "I'd like to see that."
Smolder punched at Barb's shoulder lightly. "That requires he's already being a jerk and not taking the hint to shut his big yap. I'd rather we skip that part. Anyway, he's not here, but you are." She pointed at Barb. "So we don't have to worry about that right now. Now... I need to talk to Twilight. I have a thousand questions, most of which involve you."
Barb let her go with a friendly wave, feeling just a little more informed about her situation. "I can handle this!"
"Handle what?" There was Apple Bloom, walking past but slowing at spotting Barb. "Neat! I thought Twilight was kidding around."
Barb blinked owlishly. "Oh, she mentioned me?"
"Sure did." Apple Bloom nodded firmly. "Said not to make a big deal about it." She waved a hoof away. "How do I not make kinda a big deal about it? Look at you." She didn't seem upset at it, just kind of amazed. "How do you feel?"
Barb fired a double thumbs up. "Better by the hour! My friends have been super amazing and helping me figure things out. Oh! I'm Barb now."
"Howdy Barb!" They met, hoof to fist. "Where'd that name come from? That wasn't no nickname before."
"It's a, uh, historical she-dragon." Barb rubbed behind her head. "Kinda awesome."
"Neat!" Apple Bloom had no reservations about the situation. "I bet Twilight has a book about her. I'll ask for--"
She had been about to walk past Barb, but got cut off, a hand in the way. "Hm?"
"Twilight does not have a book on that. Ponies don't have a lot of dragon books... I heard about her from Ember... When she was still thinking about the whole 'become a dragonlord' thing. Those were really big shoes to fill! Barbara was one of a lot of dragons she looked up to." Barb scratched at her cheek. "And she stuck in my head... so..."
"So you went with it." Apple Bloom gave a spirited clop of her hooves. "I love it. I wonder what Big Mac would think of it..."
Barb blinked slowly. "Wait... Why did you think of Big Mac?"
Apple Bloom covered her snout. "Oops! Nothin'!"
"Is this about his other half?" Barb kept her space in Apple Bloom's way. "I already know about that."
Apple Bloom scrunched her face. "His other half? Do you have halves? Ah more meant that he's curious about the whole mare thin' too!" She took an unsure step back. "That's all... Don't tell 'em!"
Barb burst into airy giggles. "Oh, no. No no. Big Mac likes himself as he is, a stallion. And he was there when I... this." She waved over her new form. "So he knows all about it."
"Phew!" gusted out Apple Bloom, confirmed that she didn't mess everything up. "Thank goodness! Ah was scared he'd be real sore with me later or somethin'... Alrighty then. Ah can't say ah get it. Right happy just the way ah am, though I could be a little taller." She reached up to the height her filly body didn't allow. "Maybe as big as mah sister. She's a good height."
Barb half-danced out of Apple Bloom's way. "She's a perfect height. I hope you get as tall as you want to be, though you're great even this tall." He held up a hand at Apple Bloom's head height.
"Aw." She spared a moment to give Barb a friendly hug. "Gotta go!" And she trotted off in a brisk jog to whatever else she had in mind.
Barb decided to not wait for another pony to run into her. She'd go find a pony! She hurried to Twilight's office and knocked lightly before cracking the door open. "Twi?"
"Spike?" She shook her head. "Barbara?"
"That's me." Barb closed the door behind her. "Most of the way through my first day!"
Twilight smiled at her little sibling. "You sound very happy about it."
"Because I am." Barb half-skipped towards the desk Twilight was at. "Ran into some friends, and all of them were understanding. Bon Bon took a little more talking to, but she came around." Barb waved, laughing at the memory. "Smolder is awesome, but we knew that already."
Twilight nodded slowly. "She is a remarkable dragon. Did... she have anything to say?"
"Lots." Barb hopped up with flapping wings up onto the top of Twilight's desk. "She taught me some... stuff... There's more to being a lady dragon than I thought."
Twilight nodded slowly. "Too much? We could probably ask Discord to undo this whole... thing."
Barb frowned, hands at her hips. "It's a lot, but it's what I want, Twi."
"I'm not forcing you, promise!" She raised one hoof up, the other plonking an imaginary cupcake in her eye. "I'm just checking... I care about you. You know that, right?"
"Of course I do." Barb came over to throw her legs off the desk on Twilight's side. "You're my sister. Sorry, by the way... This must be so confusing... I know you don't like sudden new things just... out of nowhere." She made an explosive growth with her hands. "And I didn't give any warning."
"I was gone trying to get information and I come back with you having made up your mind." Twilight sighed softly. "It was quite a surprise..."
"So..." Barb rolled her hands over one another. "Did you learn anything?"
"Oh, actually, yes." With a sparkle, a new book appeared. "Ember had one for me." She set the book down heavily and flipped it open. "There is a tale of a dragon that did much as you did, but there was no magic involved. They simply decided they were a female, and comported themselves appropriately, to the confusion of the dragons around 'her'."
Twilight nudged the book with a push of a hoof towards Spike. "Reading about their adventures may actually be useful. Sure, you used magic to skip over some of it, but many of their struggles will still be yours. Dragons, and ponies, that knew you as a stallion will be confused at the idea of simply accepting the same you, but as a mare."
Barb picked up the book with a grunt of effort. "Wow! A dragon wrote all this?"
"Sure did." Twilight watched Barb with a little smile. "They wanted to share their journey with everycreature else, and now that includes you. I imagine they would be very happy to know they may help a dragon in a similar situation so many years later... Barb, I'm sorry I was so... I'm still a bit confused, I won't lie!"
Barb put a hand on her shoulder. "You're trying. That means a lot."
Twilight smiled and rested the side of her head on Barb's arm. "I want you to be safe and happy."
"Just remember." Barb danced away, almost tipping over from the heavy book. "No going Twilinanas. But if you do, your number one assistant is there to help out."
Twilight put her hooves on her hips. "I do not go Twilynanas! Really... Still... I want you here, as my sibling, and my assistant.. Oh! Shining Armor and Cadance need to know what happened... I wonder how they'll react."
Barb thought of the two. "I bet Cadance will get it first."
"You think?" Twilight reached her desk, drawing out a quill to set on the top of it. "I'll write them both to let them know and see if they want us to stop by. I feel certain they'd want to see what's happened to you. Poor Shining, becoming the odd one out."
"Odd one out?"
"I was the only mare." Twilight pointed to herself. "And now, he's the only stallion."