//------------------------------// // Chapter 3 // Story: Back to WonderLand // by Seascape //------------------------------// The received notion from the two sisters was a mix of confusion and aggression, with the latter emotion being emoted by the one who looked exactly like his sister, but she wasn’t. Everything about her was the exact same, her mannerisms, the irregular usage of words and phrases, and her looks. It was just. She had no idea who he was, and neither did she have any intention of finding out who exactly he was because the first thing that she called him was a changeling. It made his heart twinge with sadness as she refrained from taking any actions against him because of the influence of her sister, Celestia. The other alicorn looked exactly like him, spoke as he did, and would be a complete carbon copy if not for their genetic differences. Also for how stark the differences between the two are now that he isn’t in the healthiest of forms.  She was the one to soothe the Luna look-alike into simply giving him harsh glares from afar, causing even more pain to his internal conflict as an unjust feeling seeped into his mind every time he found his gaze lingering on her form for more than a few moments. She was also the one to give him a chance to actually explain who he was. Her expression was neutral, almost unreadable as she questioned him, but he shared more than enough with her to know what exactly she was thinking. Or maybe he didn’t, his thoughts weren’t all there in recent times.  Celestia... It was weird at how similar yet distinctly different it was from his own name.  But nevertheless, it seemed as if she was something within him that made her make that comment of him giving her a semblance of familiarity. Maybe on a deeper level than himself, he wasn’t sure. What he was sure of was the feeling that he could feel radiating off of her the more that they spoke, he left out major points of where he was from and what exactly happened to it, instead, he gave general answers. Answering the question yet not truly answering them as he used his rusty word knowledge to dance around them.  He didn’t really have a reason to hide his origins, he didn’t know why he was being so lucrative with it. Neither did he have anything to keep safe by lying. It was just a force of habit to do so when speaking to somepony of similar status to himself, well, was at a similar status. He couldn’t really count himself as having a status anymore, even if he tried to convince himself that he did, there was no thought in his mind that actually thought of him as worthy of retaining that title.  The conversation seemed to drag on for a few moments before the latter of the two, Luna, left in a huff and left the two white alicorns staring at each other in silence for a brief few moments before Celestia offered to continue the conversation over lunch. Since that was what the two sisters were going to indulge in before he manifested into this reality, giving him another up-and-down look before offering him the shower to clean himself up. She would send for two guards to guide him to the dining room in a few moments.  He gave her a small nod before she smiled and turned to walk out of the room, letting the door shut with a soft ‘click’.  He found himself at a mental standstill. Staring at himself for what seemed to be hours in the mirror, his mind going through every single instance of him ever being as confused as he was at the moment. Or rather, completely befuddled. There were quite a few moments here and there, mainly when everything made sense and was more light-hearted than in recent times. His later situation didn't give him any more time to be confused over mindless and random things, it only gave him a deeply scarring sense of guilt and sadness.  But that wasn't something he needed to think about at this moment, he was back in Equestria after all! Everything was happy, carefree, and alive. Oh, how the sight of his kingdom burning to the ground in front of his eyes gave him ever deeper care for life, for how short and fickle a concept it is. Even if he himself isn't one to even need to heed its call, he knew how cold and desolate of a feeling it left in its wake.  A small shudder brought him back from his trance. Taking a few steps back in order to regain himself, he shook his head and looked back into the mirror. Taking a few more glances at his being before looking over towards the generously sized bathtub that sat on the far side of the bathroom, his wing lifted up and he sniffed in between them, grimacing at the smell. Though he wasn't surprised. Years without proper tools to care for himself left him smelling rancid. It was a miracle that the plant life didn't wilt at his mere presence.  It was the only bit of humor that registered within his mind as a small smile seeped onto his features. He didn't even recognize the action until the strain of his muzzle stretching outwards caused him to raise a hoof towards it.  He didn't have anything to say about it and turned back to look at the bathtub, its pristine condition made him hesitant to touch it, too afraid that it will break if he were to come in contact with it. Instead of resorting to tentatively staring at the side of the tub for a few moments of contemplation, his mind didn't want him to touch it. His body on the other hoof made it very evident that he needed a bath.  The piercing aroma he emitted wafted into his nostrils once again, causing him to grimace and turn his head away from himself. Grimacing in resignation this time as he looked down at his shoes, his eyes closed and he let out a grunt. His horn sparked for a moment before his aura reached out and grasped around each individual shoe. As they slid off his forehooves, he used them to grab at the chest piece he'd not taken off in recent memory.  The clasps had long since rusted away and he was forced to grip onto either side of the chest piece and pulled at it. The metal scraped at his skin as he slowly but surely was able to Peel the metal from his body and set it down next to his shoes.  A hoof ran along the matted fur on his chest before he stood up and walked to the other side of the tub. Taking one final glance down at it, reaching up and lifting himself onto his hind legs, he grasped the handle and twisted it. There was a small rumble before the water started rushing out from the tub's faucet, he let his grip slack and looked down as the water started pooling against its sides. It was nice to see water after such a long time of not being able to, the sensation was all the more pleasing as he dipped a hoof into the water. A shiver ran along his spine as the chill of the water registered in his senses once more, the only temperature he was really used to was the scorching heat at the beginning and the dry atmosphere that followed. So his reaction wasn't a quick jerk as most would, instead he quickly fumbled to climb over the side of the tub and sat himself down in the waist-deep water.  His immediate reaction was a long and drawn-out sigh as he settled onto his haunches. Letting his eyes close and simply sitting in silence to relish the feeling of the water on his body. As the water continued to rise up past his waist, past his shoulders, and finally he reached up and closed the faucet as it settled right around his shoulders.  This small moment of reprieve was like heaven. Looking at himself bare left him with a weird feeling. One that he couldn’t quite explain as he looked at his body now that he was finished with his long overdue bath, the amount of dirt and grime that stuck to his fur made the clear water turn a murky brown. His mane also seemed to have some of the life it had in its return to it, with the colors being not as faded out as they were. Though it wasn’t much of a difference, he still looked like a complete and utter mess. Albeit cleaner. There were still many things he could and would have to do to make his outward appearance look how it did back when everything still made sense.  Maybe it was just his addled mind trying to play tricks on him. Trying to convince him once again that the current reality he was living in was just a facade of what was truly happening behind it.  Shaking his head once more, he released his grasp on the towel that was wrapped around his mane and let it drape around his shoulders, the bangs drooped over his eyes before he swept them aside with a hoof. He grunted and forced magic from his horn once again, grasping both the ends of his mane and tail before tying them into two separate buns. Otherwise, it would be even more annoying to stumble over and drag them along the floor, his new height didn’t allow them any sort of height advantage. He made sure that they wouldn’t unravel before letting the magic dissipate and did a little spin to make sure that it was secure.  Once it was he went to turn away but paused as his eyes glanced over his cutie mark before immediately turning his eyes away from it, instead choosing to walk away from the mirror and back outside towards the room he was staying in. It felt off.  But he shook his head and turned towards the door, walking over towards it and reaching for the handle. He pulled inwards and peeked his head out, looking from left to right before he spotted two guards' ponies walking around the corner off towards his left. The two seemed to be in quiet conversation before they spotted him looking over at them, returning to their neutral gazes and posture as he stepped further into the hall and closed the door behind him.  He let out a small sigh. This would be weird.