Sunlight. To say that Riven was surprised to see sunlight — or anything for that matter — would have been a great understatement. But that was really all she could see, for her vision was blurry and her eyelids felt heavy. After a bit of experimentation, she found her entire body unresponsive, and her face contorted with worry.
“Relax Riven, you’re safe.”
She knew that voice. Hearing it again gave her a modicum of peace, for last she recalled, its owner was in poor shape. “Twilight… Sparkle?” Riven’s mouth was no more cooperative and each word was slurred and whispered.
“Yes, it’s me. How are you feeling?” Riven heard hoof steps approach and a soft, slightly coarse sensation on her cheek. She was being nuzzled, a gesture she was initially quite apprehensive about. Now, any sensation that affirmed that she was truly alive brought happiness to her heart.
“I… don’t. Everything feels so distant.”
“You’re not yet used to your body. You will be. Cream said it would be rough for the first few weeks.”
Riven sighed in relief. She was alive. She had won the day and surely if she persevered, she would one day see Noxus again.
Your body…
“Twilight… what do you mean ‘not yet used to my body’?”
Silence. Riven could not see her guest, but she heard breathing and nervous shuffling.
“Twilight? What’s wrong? Why won’t you answer me?”
“R-Riven… promise you won’t be mad.”
Those words brought about a cold sweat. She had heard it before when that small town doctor she visited after her defection mentioned the scar tissue. Still, she wanted to know, and was willing to lie to hear what Twilight meant. “I promise.”
A soft hum alerted Riven that Twilight was using her magic to levitate something. After a moment, she spoke: “Can you open your eyes?”
Riven grunted and struggled to do so. Such a simple act was giving her a headache and making her extremely frustrated, but after several tense seconds, she managed to open her eyes wide...
... And saw a pony. A reflection in a mirror, to be precise. This pony had mocha-colored fur, off-white hair in a style very similar to her own, large red eyes, and rectangular marks under each. Commonly held belief was that this was make-up Riven applied, but in actuality they were two of several burns that marred her body following Singed’s chemical attack. Now, they appeared to be patterns in her fur.
Her fur. Riven was a pony, and suddenly she found the strength to operate her mouth, which released a scream so gut-wrenching and primal that Twilight couldn’t even cover her ears to shut it out.