//------------------------------//
// Bonus Short: Perspective 
// Story: Bros in Equestria 
// by Mandroid 
//------------------------------//


You stare into the bubbling green goop in the cauldron before you, your own face reflected in its contents.
"Dude, is my hairline receding?"
Anon looks up from the tome he was perusing while everypony else trots around the room in preparation. "Really? That's what you're concerned with right now?"
"Should I be nervous about something else?"
Anon gestures around the room in the palace. "You're always jumpy about cross dimensional trips."
You shrug "Guess I've just grown used to it after all this time."
Anon giggles. "Took you long enough."
You flip Anon the bird quickly, but hide it as the doors swing open and three ponies walk in. The small purple one chuckles. "I see you two are still getting along."
Anon smirks and meets them. "As famously as the day we met, Dusk."
Solaris smiles. "Ah, you two remind me of my own brother and me."
You elbow Anon as you meet the others "We've heard that said."
Anon and Dusk lead the rest of you to the arcane circle with the bubbling cauldron in it.
"You sure this'll work how you think, Zecarro?"
The Zebra shaman walks around the circle and the cauldron. "What I have made is my most powerful brew, so for your purposes it will have to do."
You glance over to Anon. "Shall we?"
Anon nods and moves to one side of the cauldron. "We shall."
Dusk walks to the edge of the circle as you join Anon on the other side of the cauldron. "Remember you two, the effects of this spell will only last for about ten hours, so make it quick."
You both nod.
"Thanks Dusk, for everything."
Solaris stands next to his student. "It was the least we could do after the help you gave with King Nymphamos."
The two of you nod.
"Later taters." Anon says.
You both tip the cauldron over and let the brew mix with the arcane circle, engulfing you both in white smoke.

You come back to yourself to the taste of grass and dirt.
"Bleeehh..."
You push yourself up from the ground and find Anon laying on his back a few feet from behind you. He blows leaves out of his face and sits up, examining your surroundings as you are.
Brick and cobble two story apartments, green grass and a familiar yellow sun high in the sky. Cars sit in their spaces under throw together shelters to protect them from the elements.
You and Anon push yourself up off the ground and brush yourselves off.
"We make it?" you ask.
Anon nods. "Looks that wa-"
"DUDE, WOULD YOU HURRY UP!" comes from around the bend.
You and Anon peek around the corner of the nearby building and spot two intimately familiar faces. They were a bit shorter, less muscled, and wore different clothes, but there was no denying who they were.
One of them runs down the stairs and meets the other. "Will you quit your bitching? You always want to get there early."
"Excuse me wanting to avoid the traffic."
"We walk!"
"And we always hit the lights and then Mac hollers at us!"
The two start down the street with bags over backs and you pull Anon back against the wall. Both of you sit with backs against walls and eyes wide open in shock.
"Yep."
"We made it."
"Any idea when?"
Anon runs over and grabs a newspaper off the ground, scanning over it. "Right before we left..."
"How before?"
Anon turns back to you looking like he's seen a ghost. "The day before."
You glance back to the slowly shrinking figures in the distance.
"Well how bout that?"

A few hours had passed as you and Anon tailed your past selves. It was fairly touch and go, you had to watch yourselves to make sure you didn't turn around and see yourselves. You don't REMEMBER seeing an older version of yourself before your life took a crazy left turn, but you can never be too careful.
Anon leans over to your seat. "So now what?"
"We keep sitting in the Ale House and watch ourselves, I guess."
Anon leans back and watches himself in the reflection of the bar.  "You remember this day?"
"I remember the fries I'm eating taste like dirt."
From the corner of your eye, you catch sight of you spitting your fries out back onto your plate.
Anon puts his hands behind his head. "Think about what'd happen if we went over there..."
"A blue box would probably show up and we'd get punched."
Anon chuckles. "I mean it. Think how different EVERYTHING would have been if we weren't at the house for some reason tomorrow."
You sip your soda and think of all the possibilities. Never meeting the girls, never meeting Lo', actually aging, not to mention all the adventures.
You scratch at the table.  "Wouldn't change it, personally."
Anon looks around. "Yeah...too many memories."
You grab your glass and raise it. "To whatever?"
Anon clinks his drink against yours. "To whatever."

It was later at night now, the sun had set and the only light came from the nearby auto dealerships. You and Anon sit on a bench across from the old apartment, both of you staying quiet as you recounted the day's events. The two of you had walked around school and seen everyone you hadn't seen in so long, all just how you remembered them.
You let out a long drawn out sigh. "It's weird looking back..."
"REALLY weird." Anon adds.
You turn your head to Anon "You think Terry had that kid with that waitress after we left?"
"Probably.  What do you think the class looked like when we graduated?"
"Long hair, long bears and little sleep."
"Pffft! I wonder what they thought after we left."
You're both silent for a while.
"...Probably that we died." 
Anon crosses his arms. "Yeah..."
He glances over at a collection of payphones. "Hey..."
You turn your head and look at it as well.
"Should we...call our families?" he asks.
You look at him.
"For like...a final message?"
You think about it for a minute.
A last message to mom and dad... 
"That could be cool..."
Anon smiles and leads you to one of the phones. You grab the receiver and dial the number, you end up only getting the machine.
Words escape you. You just end up talking.
"Uhm...hi Mom, Dad. It's me. I uhm...just called to say I love you all that..." You wipe a not-tear from your eye. "Aaaand just wanted to say that I think about you guys a lot and what you're doing and...to stay safe and happy, you know?"
Everything else just sort of dies in your throat. You'd never been one for this crap.
"So...good-bye."
You hang up the phone and step out of the booth, Anon meeting your shortly afterwards.
"Think this'll help them after...tomorrow?"
Anon sighs. "I hope so..."
White smoke seeps up from the ground around the two of you, similar in nature to the kind you saw when you came.
"Back off to whatever..."
The smoke rises and engulfs the two of you, sending you back to your insane and crazy life that you wouldn't change a moment of.