The bell rang at the door of the Ponyville Inn as it opened. The hotel manager at the front desk smiled in greeting as somepony stepped inside the lobby.
“Oh, welcome back Mr. Fine Print!” the manager said. Mostly they took in travelers who came, stayed a night, and left. The unicorn in front of her had been there for about a week and didn’t seem to be in a hurry to check out.
“Thank you, it’s good to be back!” he said. The young stallion was a pale blue color and his black mane was styled short and neatly swept over his head. He also had friendly hazel eyes and wore a stylish black shirt and a pair of dark blue denim pants. Around his neck was a camera and there was a notepad in his back pocket.
“Did you find anything interesting for your next story?”
“Nothing just yet, but I’m sure something will come up soon.”
“Oh, yes, me too!” the manager said enthusiastically. “You know, I meet a lot of travelers here, but you’re the first freelancer I’ve met. It must be exciting!”
“It has its days, yes,” he said, stepping through the lobby toward the stairs.
“Are you sure you still don’t want any housekeeping, sir?” the manager called.
“Thank you, but no. Just keep leaving clean towels on my doorstep, if you please,” he said quickly, ascending the stairs and leaving the manager behind, their conversation ending abruptly.
His room was on the top floor and thus far he was the only one up there. He climbed the stairs and entered the simple hallway, adorned with rustic decor and a throw rug on the smooth wooden floor. Unlocking the door, he entered the room and closed the door behind him, locking it once again.
The room was nice enough. Nothing like the luxurious accommodations at a hotel in Manehatten or Baltimare, but it had a bed, a bathroom, a desk, and, most importantly, a window. It was why he wanted a room on the top floor: he needed the view. He went to that window and opened the shades, letting the light in and momentarily hurting his eyes with the sudden brightness. He blinked a few times until his eyes adjusted to it, then took a small telescope from his desk and looked at the structure that dominated the view out the window.
The castle. Twilight Sparkle’s castle. He made a face as he remembered to add Princess Twilight Sparkle’s castle. He didn’t see anypony coming near the castle and there was no sign of activity on the balcony or at the windows.
Fine Print went to his desk and took out his notepad. There were other things on the desk including diagrams, some newspaper clippings, and a few small photographs that he’d been developing in the bathroom. All of the above featured the same central figure: the mechanical pony that had recently been found in the local orchard and which was now under the care of Twilight Sparkle.
He’d been around since they’d found her. He’d been there when Vanderbull had shown up and he’d read the newspaper the morning after they’d reactivated the automaton. And he’d even watched Twilight Sparkle take her shopping. And then there was the incident with that unicorn, Rarity, and the paint job, and then the race against Rainbow Dash and just yesterday they’d again been seen taking off from the castle balcony.
And just that morning, the two of them apparently arrived by train. Twilight Sparkle had been there to greet them.
He peered out the window again, furrowing his brow.
Shopping, playing dress-up, racing… what the heck is she doing? He wrote a few notes down, considering possibilities.
He took out a small device from his pocket and looked it over carefully. It was small, fairly flat, and made of metal. It had a round disc on it and a small vial attached to it with a wire. The liquid inside was thick and moved slowly as he jostled it. He might need these devices soon. Observing wasn’t getting anywhere. He needed more information.
He’d have to try to get closer to her to get any real answers.
***
“Once again, I can’t thank you enough for coming to visit us, Mr. Vanderbull!” The stationmaster of Hoofington Station, an earth pony stallion, eagerly stuck out his hoof which was taken up in a vigorous shake by the minotaur. “I just don’t know what we would have done without you!”
“Not to worry,” Vanderbull said, smiling as he released the stationmaster’s hoof. “I’m just glad the owners accepted my offer of assistance. Now, if you’ll excuse me, my assistant and I must be leaving.”
He turned, expecting to see her just behind him, but there was nothing but empty space. He sighed and began to look around for the girl, annoyed at her wandering off again.
“Gadget?” he called, his voice echoing in the lobby, momentarily startling the patrons at the ticket counter. He frowned, feeling like a fool as the ponies around him all watched him. He hated falling into stereotypes, so he usually kept his temper controlled, lest he prove ponies’ suspicions right about him and the race he represented.
He managed an apologetic smile and walked out to the platform. She wasn’t out there, so he thought she might be on the train. He walked over to Alfredo, who was standing by outside his car.
“Sir? Anything wrong?” Alfredo asked.
“Did you see Gadget come by? Did she already board the train?”
“No sir. I’m afraid I haven’t seen her. Would you like me to locate her?”
He considered that, but he supposed he’d rather do it himself. Alfredo would probably give in to whatever excuse Gadget gave and she’d trot back to the car without a second thought. He wanted to express his displeasure at her not being there.
“No, I’ll find her. Please wait here, Alfredo.”
He made his way back through the station and found her in the small courtyard in front of the station. There was a fountain and in the middle of it was a strange, elaborate device: a rotating globe with a timepiece in the center. Gadget was using her mechanical limbs to raise herself up high enough to look at it more closely, resting the front appendages on the concrete rim of the fountain as she leaned forward to look at it. In using the Point Dexter to walk and elevate herself in this manner, she somewhat resembled some kind of bug or sea creature to Vanderbull. Various travelers and bystanders slowed their pace to watch her.
“So coool,” she breathed. Suspended from her mechanical harness, her natural legs were dangling and kicking excitedly as she looked at the device.
He should have known: she’d gotten distracted again. She didn’t even notice the onlookers.
He clenched his fists. “Gadget!” he snapped.
“Whoa!” she cried, losing her balance. One of her limbs slipped from the rim of the fountain and she pitched forward, landing in the fountain’s pool with a loud splash. She emerged from the shallow pool sputtering and coughing before she looked up to see Vanderbull glowering down at her.
Drenched to the bone, her wet jacket sticking to her and her mane limply lying over her eyes and glasses, she looked up at him, color coming to her cheeks and eyes going wide as she saw the anger in his eyes. “Oh, s-sir, I’m sorry, I just saw the timepiece here and it was so intriguing that I, I just…” She looked down, hugging her wet sleeves around her and lowering her head. “I’m sorry, sir,” she said quietly.
“Gadget, I--” He was about to chastise the girl, but seeing her like this, wet and miserable and embarrassed, made him soften. Try as he might, he couldn’t stay angry at her for long. He sighed, unclenched his fists, and let a smile cross his face.
“It’s all right, my dear. Please get out of the fountain and I’ll have Alfredo get you a towel. I’d like to return to Manehatten immediately.”
He turned to go, but heard her splashing as she struggled to pull herself from the fountain. “W-wait a minute, sir!” she exclaimed. “I actually wanted to ask you something!”
“Can it wait?” he asked, his annoyance coming back.
“Um. N-no sir. Commodore, you know my day off is tomorrow, of course.”
Vanderbull nodded. “Yes. What of it?”
“Well, it’s just that our business is done here, now that you’ve made a deal with the Hoofington Station owners I mean, and I, um, I just thought that maybe I could take the scenic route back to Manehatten. You know, take a public train, make a stop here and there, and then meet you back at the office the day after tomorrow?”
He blinked, then eyed her suspiciously. “The scenic route, you say? And you wish to take the public train rather than our own. Well, the train between here and Manehatten does indeed make several stops, of course.” He leaned forward, a knowing smile on his face. “Including Ponyville.”
She chuckled, steepling her mechanical fingers nervously. “Eheheh… you know me too well, sir.”
The whole time they’d been on this trip, she’d been distracted. She’d been doing research on who might have built the automaton back in Manehatten, which they’d been told was now named “Turing Test,” and also they’d been receiving Twilight’s letters and telegrams. The last one they’d received before traveling to Hoofington was of the results of Turing and Rainbow Dash’s first race, in addition to all the data about her speed, strength, kicking power, etc. Gadget hadn’t been able to stop talking about it on the ride over.
And now, that morning at their hotel in Hoofington, they’d seen the morning edition of the Hoofington Post reporting the airship crash in the Frostmane Mountains involving the famous Canterlot pony Fancy Pants and, to their mutual surprise, apparently he and his passengers had been rescued by none other than Rainbow Dash and Turing Test. She’d been obviously bored during the trip, sighing and yawning during meetings like a child, but the news had reinvigorated her and she had barely been able to sit still all day.
“You do realize that your day off is tomorrow, and not today, don’t you?” he asked slyly.
“Um… yes, sir,” she replied.
“And I do have some things for you to do that I thought you would attend to on the train. You are not technically off the clock yet, young lady.”
She sighed, shoulders and mechanical limbs sagging. “Yes sir.”
“Which is why I expect you to spend every single moment on the public train working on those documents,” he added.
She looked up at him with disbelief. “Y-you mean--?”
“I’ll want to inspect your work the day after tomorrow. In the meantime, enjoy your holiday.” He smiled. “Give my regards to Princess Twilight.”
“Oh thank you, sir!” she cried, launching herself upward and wrapping her forelegs around his neck, causing him to stagger back from the sudden embrace. “Thank you thank you thank you!” she repeated. She let him go and started bouncing around joyfully, her mechanical limbs going wild as she did so.
“Ah, ahem, Gadget… you’re making a scene. Please try to control yourself.”
She stopped and saw several passersby staring at them. It wasn’t every day, after all, that one got to see a minotaur in a waistcoat and a soaking-wet earth pony with mechanical arms bouncing around like a filly.
She blushed, though she still giggled with excitement as Vanderbull motioned for her to follow him. “I’ll get your things and a change of clothes,” he said. “Alfredo will prepare your saddlebags. Oh, and don’t think you’ll be taking advantage of Her Highness’ hospitality by staying at the castle again. I’ll give you a little extra money for a hotel room.”
***
Twilight brushed her hair while looking in the mirror and, once satisfied with how she looked, she trotted out and made her way to her front door. She was riding high on the amazing news Turing had given to her that morning.
Friends! Rainbow Dash and Turing became friends! Oh, this is so wonderful! I was so worried about that bet of theirs, but it looks like it all worked out!
She beamed as Spike passed her in the hallway, a small handful of gems in one claw that he was apparently eating for a midday snack.
“Spike, have you seen Turing Test?” she asked him.
“She’s in her room in the hallway,” he replied. “I got her battery charged while Rainbow Dash was telling me the whole story. I can’t believe Dash got Turing to tell those other ponies to bite--”
“Yes, well, maybe that’s something we shouldn’t encourage,” Twilight said, cutting him off. “If she’s going to make friends with other ponies, maybe insults and taunts aren’t the most helpful things she could be learning.”
Spike rolled his eyes. “I guess,” he said. “It’s not like some of those Canterlot ponies couldn’t take a little back talk now and then…”
Twilight ignored him and continued to Turing Test’s room. The door was open, as it always was. Apparently Turing didn’t have a strong sense of privacy. She was sitting there in the center of the room, totally motionless until Twilight poked her head through the door.
“Um, knock knock?” Twilight said jokingly, tapping the floor with her hoof. “May I come in?”
“As this castle is your possession, you require no permission to enter, Twilight Sparkle,” Turing replied.
“Well, yes and no. I mean, it’s your room. Spike has a room now, too, and I wouldn’t go in there without asking him first either.”
Turing cocked her head to the side. Twilight had seen that enough times to know what it meant.
“What I mean is that I’m trying to respect your privacy,” she explained. “I mean, if you had something you wanted to do in here that you didn’t want anypony else to see.”
Turing was still quiet. Finally, she said, “Understood. However, that will not be necessary in my case. There are no actions I would need to hide from you, Twilight Sparkle. As my end user, you are entitled to full disclosure on any and all activities in which I engage. This includes past, present, and future actions.”
“Well, that’s… okay, sure,” Twilight replied. I swear, she said to herself, sometimes I just can’t read her. The way she talks and interacts with everypony is so different. I’d have thought anypony would want their privacy!
“Did you come to my quarters to discuss that issue?” Turing asked, drawing her out of her thoughts.
“Huh? Oh, no,” Twilight said, remembering why she’d stopped by. “I was going to go buy some apples. We’re out of them and I wanted to go pay a visit with Applejack. She should be selling some today.”
“Shall I accompany you on this outing, Twilight Sparkle?”
“Yes. I’d like you two to meet and maybe get to know each other a little better.” She retrieved her saddlebag and placed it on Turing Test. “Just, um… do me a favor and let me do most of the talking. To be honest, Applejack is a little skeptical about you.”
“Understood. You wish for me to speak less to avoid miscommunication.”
“Yes, exactly. Try to keep the chatter to a minimum.” She was about to walk out the door when she remembered something else. “Oh, and, um… please don’t tell Applejack to bite parts of you.”
***
Fine Print turned the corner as he made his way through Ponyville. He’d decided to get a little lunch and maybe ask around about the automaton when he heard a strange noise and a murmur coming from some bystanders. He knew that mechanical sound in an instant, of course: it was the whirring of gears and servos, the kind made when a certain machine was walking.
He changed course and slipped through an alleyway to get closer to the sound and heard the faint, but distinct sound of Turing Test’s voice. She was walking alongside Twilight Sparkle. For a moment, he merely smiled, seeing the two of them having some sort of conversation as they walked down the street. A few of the Ponyville citizens even smiled and waved as they passed.
She’s integrating so well, he thought to himself. Then he shook his head, putting the thought out of mind. I’ve got other things to do. Let’s see what the Princess is doing with her new toy today.
He began trailing the two of them, camera out, and began taking pictures discreetly.
***
“Apples! Get yer apples here! We got a fresh supply o’ Golden Delicious and Honeycrisps right here!”
Applejack had her cart with her and she was already doing good business as she set up not far from a small neighborhood and her favorite restaurant. The families were good customers and the chef at the restaurant nearby was glad to have fresh apples when they needed more for their Waldorf salad, their most popular menu item. It was slightly cool weather that day, so she didn’t mind just standing by and selling apples. It certainly was preferable to harvesting. Especially since…
“Ouch,” she said, wincing slightly. Her hips were aching again. She’d talked to the doctor about it the morning after they’d found the automaton. He’d acquiesced to her request for a checkup, but told her the same thing he’d said the time before. His prognosis wasn’t what she wanted to hear.
Hmph. What does he know? she thought to herself. I just need to get more sleep or somethin’.
“Applejack!”
She turned and smiled when she saw Twilight walking over. Then she frowned again when she saw who was following her.
“Uh, hey there, Twilight,” she said, trying to ignore Turing Test. “Somethin’ I can do for ya?”
“Well, I needed some apples and I also haven’t seen you for a few days, so I thought I could come buy some and we could catch up for a few minutes!”
“Aw, well that’s nice,” Applejack said. “How many ya want?”
“Uh, six of the yellow ones and six of the red ones, I think.”
“No problem.” She started to pick out the best apples for her friend and then put them into two separate sacks. But then she heard the sound of the machine as it moved up alongside her.
“W-what’s it doin’?” she asked.
“Oh, Turing’s just going to carry my apples for me. Here, let me get that.” She levitated the two sacks and put them into Turing’s saddlebags. “Thank you, Turing,” she added.
Her robotic companion said nothing, but took the apples and resumed standing next to her.
“Ya still haven’t taught it to say ‘Yer welcome’ like a normal pony?” Applejack asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Oh, well, Turing’s just, um… we’ve been teaching her other things.” She smiled, eager to tell Applejack about recent events. “She’s made so much progress! She’s… Applejack?”
Her friend had turned to look at Turing who was standing by like a soldier at attention, not saying anything.
“Applejack?” Twilight asked again, tapping her on the shoulder to get her attention.
“Hm? Oh, yeah, yeah, you were sayin’?”
“I was saying she’s made progress! She’s made friends with me, Spike, Rarity, and now Rainbow Dash! Oh my gosh, have you heard the story about what she and Rainbow did?”
“Heh,” Applejack chuckled, finally relaxing a bit. “You really think Rainbow Dash would save a dozen ponies’ lives and then not tell every mare, stallion, and foal in town about it?”
“Oh, right,” Twilight said, laughing sheepishly. “What was I thinking? So I guess the word is out. But isn’t that great that Rainbow Dash thinks of Turing Test as her friend now?”
“Yeah, I guess,” she replied uncertainly, glancing over at Turing again momentarily. “Rainbow Dash said y’all had some kinda race yesterday. Says Turing Test here got all complimentary and that she wants to protect everypony. Hooboy, I ain’t seen that gal so worked up in a blue moon!”
The two friends laughed as they stood there, but then as the laughter died away, Applejack looked over at Turing again.
“All right, I’m sorry to ask, but is she workin’ okay?”
Twilight gave her a puzzled look. “What do you mean?”
“She’s just standin’ there, not sayin’ a thing!” Applejack exclaimed. “Last time I saw her, she could at least talk.” She turned to Turing and waved a hoof in front of her face. “Hello? Anypony in there?”
When Turing remained silent and motionless, Twilight stepped in. “Turing, you’re being rude. Answer her, please.”
“Understood,” Turing said, finally acknowledging them. “In answer to your inquiries, I am functioning normally and am still capable of verbal communication.”
The suddenness of Turing’s response startled Applejack, but only for a moment. “Any reason you were just standin’ there, not sayin’ anything? You never even said so much as a ‘Hello’ to me!”
“Twilight Sparkle instructed me to keep my communication to a minimum. No speech at all was the minimum,” she replied. Twilight put a hoof to her forehead, but Turing remained oblivious as usual. “Also, since you have indicated displeasure at my lack of greeting: Hello, Applejack.”
“Bit late fer that, but, yeah, hi.” She turned to look at Twilight again, giving her a look that plainly said, “Is this gal fer real or is she really this clueless?”
“W-well, I just thought maybe we should keep things relaxed,” Twilight said. “I know you’re a little… skeptical about Turing making friends.”
“That’s true,” Applejack said. “And, uh, well, if I’m bein’ honest, Twilight, I still don’t think she can.”
“Oh come on, Applejack,” Twilight said, annoyed at her for her continued mistrust. “I already told you she’s made friends with several of us!”
“Correct. The following individuals have directly or indirectly made declarations or performed actions indicative of their friendship with me: Twilight Sparkle, Spike the Dragon, Rarity--”
“Yeah, yeah, I get that, but… look, I’m sorry, but I just don’t know if I buy it.”
“Please clarify: what are you uncertain of purchasing?”
“Oh good gravy, ya dang robot, yer as thick as day-old grits!”
“My density is significantly greater than that of ground corn, if that is the type of grit you refer to.”
“Okay, Twilight,” Applejack said, turning back to her, “this right here is the first reason why I ain’t that keen on spendin’ time with her. Everytime I open my mouth, I feel like I need a translator.”
“It is my understanding that errors in comprehension often occur with ponies that possess nonstandard accents. Could your difficulty in communication be a result of your speech patterns?”
Applejack rolled her eyes. “Right. I’m the one who talks funny,” she grumbled.
“Oh boy,” Twilight said, putting herself between the two of them. “Turing, let me handle this.”
“Understood.”
“Okay, Applejack, I get that it can be frustrating, but what’s this really about? It can’t just be because of how she talks.”
“Yer right. It ain’t,” she replied. “Look, it comes down to two things, mainly. Fer one… well, I don’t trust her. She came here lookin’ fer ya, and even though she says she don’t remember why, she could just be playin’ dumb. She might still be dangerous.”
“Applejack, if she’d wanted to hurt me, she had plenty of opportunity already.”
“Maybe so,” she replied. “But what if she’s just waitin’ fer somethin’. Maybe she’s just bein’ patient. Maybe she needs somethin’ from ya first and then when ya least expect it, she’ll walk right up and bam! You’d never see it comin’.”
“That’s ridiculous! Turing isn’t--”
“And you remember that if ya ever hurt anypony, especially my friend Twilight, ya darn contraption,” she shouted at Turing, “I’ll tear ya apart limb from limb!”
Turing moved her head slightly, ears twitching, but said nothing.
“And here’s the other reason,” Applejack went on. “I think y’all are still just imaginin’ things. She can’t really have emotions; she ain’t a real pony!”
“That’s enough, Applejack!” Twilight shouted. “Turing Test does have emotions! Turing, tell her!”
“Understood. Twilight Sparkle is correct. I have experienced a small number of emotions, including gratification, sadness, and amazement. These responses coincide with significant experiences.”
Applejack still looked doubtful. “An’ yer tellin’ me that ya made friends with ponies, then.”
Turing looked to Twilight, apparently awaiting Twilight’s permission to respond. When she nodded, she continued. “That is true. As stated earlier--”
“Yeah, yeah, they think of you as a friend now. I get that. I really do. I’ve known Rarity and Rainbow Dash a long time and they both talk like y’all are peas in a pod. But that ain’t the problem.” She leaned in close to Turing. “What I really wanna know is, how do you feel about them?”
Turing Test cocked her head. “Please specify.”
“I mean it seems obvious that they like you. But what about you? Do you like them back?”
Twilight expected Turing to say “Yes” immediately. She did not. In fact, she only cocked her head to the side again. And Twilight’s heart sank.
“T-Turing? Will you please answer Applejack’s question?”
Turing didn’t seem to hear her at first, but then said, “Processing inquiry… inconclusive.”
“Heh. Figured,” Applejack said, sighing. She looked back at Twilight. “Look, I’m real sorry, sugarcube, but I think she’s either been lyin’ about any feelings she’s had or maybe she just doesn’t know what they mean. But either way, you an’ I both know that ya can’t be friends if ya don’t like each other.”
Twilight was silent. She struggled to find the right words, but she hadn’t been expecting this.
“Look here, robot,” Applejack said, getting Turing’s attention. “Rarity, Spike, Rainbow Dash… they’re all my friends. My real friends. An’ they all seem to like you, and if they knew that you didn’t like ‘em back, well, it would just tear ‘em up inside. Heck, look at Twilight. Poor gal took you in an’ stood up fer ya an’ treated ya like a member of her own family an’ you… ya cain’t even say ya like her?”
Turing looked over at Twilight, who was looking back at her expectantly.
“Turing… I order you… answer her.”
Turing looked back at Applejack. “Inconclusive.”
The three stood in silence. Applejack saw that Twilight was becoming more upset and went over to her, hugging her gently. “There there, I know,” she whispered. “I’m sorry, Twi. I hoped I was wrong too, but…”
“I-I’m okay,” Twilight said, gently removing herself from Applejack’s embrace. “I’ve… I’ve got some thinking to do.”
“Twilight Sparkle, do you wish to--”
“Not now. Let’s just go home, Turing.” She’d already turned to go, and so Turing simply followed her. The two did not speak on the trip back.
***
Fine Print rushed back to his hotel room, nearly knocking over bystanders as he galloped back the way he came. Normally he would have tried to follow Twilight and Turing back to the castle, but this was important. He wasn’t able to get very close to them, but it was obvious that something had gone wrong. Twilight seemed upset, Applejack was raising her voice, and both of them seemed agitated about something that the automaton had said.
If Twilight had lost her patience with the automaton, then that could be a major development in the situation. He’d have to write this down, consider what to do next.
He entered the front door of his hotel and dashed up the stairs, not stopping to even say hello to the hotel manager at the front desk. He was nearly at his room when the door on the opposite side of the hallway opened and somepony stepped out of it. He froze and tried to stop his momentum, but the carpet under him continued under his momentum and slid to a stop right before the newcomer as she exited the room. She gasped as she turned to see him sitting there.
“Oh!” she cried, and to his amazement, a series of strange mechanical arms rose up to shield her. When she saw that he had stopped short of her, the arms lowered and they both got a look at each other.
She was a mare - though small and fairly young, maybe 5 years younger than himself - with a cream-colored coat. She wore a loose, black jacket with many pockets and had a messy brown mane and a pair of glasses over her eyes. But most surprising was that those mechanical arms he saw were poking through holes in the back of her jacket and apparently coming from something on her back.
“Excuse me, miss,” Fine Print said, smiling nervously. “I was in a hurry and you startled me a little.” He stepped off the carpet and stood to his full height. “My name is Fine Print and I’m in the room across from yours.” He offered his hoof in greeting.
“Oh, I’m--” she reached for his hoof with one of her mechanical hands absentmindedly, then pulled it back and shook it with her own hoof when she realized her mistake. “Er, G-Gadget. My name is Gadget,” she said. “I just checked in a few minutes ago.”
“Nice to meet you. I’m a freelance reporter and I… I’m sorry but these are amazing!” he exclaimed, gesturing at her artificial limbs, and walked over to her side. “Where did you get these?”
“I actually built these myself,” she said. “I’m an engineer.”
“Engineer? Wait…” Then it clicked. “You’re Cornelius Vanderbull’s assistant! I remember seeing you about a week ago! But when I saw you, you didn’t have these on. And you say you built them? Wow, you must be brilliant!”
“Oh, I’m not… I’m not so special,” she said modestly, and she started to blush slightly at the compliment.
“Are you kidding me? Look at how dexterous and flexible these things are! I bet they’re strong, too!” He took hold of one of the mechanical arms and looked at it closely. He then ran a hoof along its smooth, chrome surface. She drew in a breath sharply and her blush deepened.
“Um, Mr. Fine Print, I can… I can feel that. P-please stop touching them.”
“Huh? Oh!” he exclaimed, dropping the limb. And then it was his turn to blush. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t realize!” He took a few steps back, giving her some space.
“It’s okay, you didn’t know,” she said, chuckling nervously. “They’re just powered by my own earth pony magic, so I can feel them like they were my own limbs.”
“Extending your magical essence like that… wow… you really are incredible. Let me guess: you used magic-based neural interface scaffolding to control a biomimetic internal structure?”
Her eyes went wide. “Yes, exactly! How in the world did you guess that?!”
“Ah, well,” he coughed nervously, backing away slightly. “I’m… kind of a geek for technology and stuff like that, I guess. I pick up a lot of things interviewing different engineers for science articles. Um, but anyway, what are you doing back here in Ponyville?”
“I’m here to visit my friend, Princess Twilight Sparkle,” she replied. “I also want to check in on her automa-- oh right, she’s calling her a ‘robot’ now. Anyway, I’m checking in on Princess Twilight and her robot friend, Turing Test.”
Fine Print’s eyes widened with interest. “Well, that is fascinating. I’d be interested in talking to that, um, robot.”
“I’m already stopping by unannounced,” she said sheepishly, “so I can’t speak for them, but… well, maybe I can see if the Princess and Turing would be interested in an interview. I should probably get going, sir.”
“Just Fine Print, please,” he said, flashing a friendly smile.
She turned to go, but then stopped and said, “I’m here until the day after tomorrow. Will… that is, will you be here that long?”
“Oh yes. I’d love to talk more,” he said. He paused a moment, his blush returning, and added, “P-perhaps we could discuss things over lunch tomorrow?”
If he’d never seen her natural cream-colored coat before, he would have sworn that it was naturally pink from how deeply she was blushing. She hesitated and he realized that he’d perhaps gone too far.
“Ah, I’m sorry, I’ve been too forward,” he said, bowing his head. “After all, you just met me, and you’re a young lady...”
“N-now hold on, I’m an adult… m-mostly… and I didn’t say no!” she cried. She paused, swallowing hard before she continued. “I-I’d like that. It’s just lunch after all.” She smiled. “I’d love to talk more later.”
He smiled. “All right. Noon tomorrow. See you then, Gadget.” And with that, he turned and entered his own room.
Once he was gone, Gadget kicked her forelegs into the air gleefully and made her way down the steps.
Back in his room, Fine Print had to take a deep breath to get his heart to slow down. He had a job to do, he told himself, and letting a cute mare distract him at this point would be a disaster.
He went to his desk to take down some notes and begin planning for what to do next.
***
Twilight and Turing Test entered the castle and walked through the main hall. Spike was walking toward them to greet them.
“Hi Twilight, hi Turing! Did you get some apples?”
“Yes,” Twilight said, walking brusquely past Spike while levitating the saddlebags off of Turing over to him. “Please put them in the kitchen.”
He noticed her tone and frowned as he took the bags. “Um, do you want me to start fixing lunch? Oh, and how was Applejack? Did she warm up to Turing at all? Or--”
“Spike, I need to talk to Turing alone. Yes, please go fix lunch. I’ll be there in an hour.”
“Um… all right,” he said, looking worriedly over his shoulder as he made his way to the kitchen.
Twilight and Turing, meanwhile, went to her bedroom. She closed the door behind them just to make sure Spike didn’t hear the conversation.
“You are distressed, Twilight Sparkle,” Turing observed.
“Gee, you think?! What tipped you off?” She rolled her eyes to punctuate her sarcasm.
“Your facial expression, tone of voice, and--”
“Yes, I get it. And yes, I am distressed!” She sat down on the rug near her bed and let out a heavy sigh. “How can you not be able to answer Applejack’s question, Turing?”
“You refer to her inquiry, ‘Do you like them back?’ correct?” she asked.
“I mean the general implied question, yes! Your goal is to make friends, and I thought you were! But then you can’t answer that question?” Twilight stared at her, looking for some kind of reaction.
As always, Turing simply stood there.
“I just want to know if you like us. Do you like Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Spike… me?”
Turing moved her ears slightly and said, “Results are still inconclusive.”
“But why? Why is that question so hard to answer? It should be easy!”
“The word ‘like’ is difficult to qualify. Are you stating a matter of preference, affection, or some other quality?”
Twilight blinked. “I mean affection, yes, of course. Turing, I gave you a directive when we first activated you. I told you to ‘Make friends.’ Do you even know what the word ‘friend’ means?”
“Affirmative. The word was in my default database. ‘Friend (noun): a pony or other being attached to another by feelings of affection or personal regard; a pony or other being who gives assistance; a patron; a supporter...’”
“Yes, okay, let’s focus on the first part there,” Twilight said. “A pony attached to another by feelings of affection. That’s important, don’t you think?”
“By that definition, I do not see any contradiction or problem. All of the previously mentioned subjects have expressed affection for me.”
“That’s only half of it, Turing!” Twilight cried. “Yes, they like you, they feel affection for you. But do you feel the same way about them? Do you… don’t you have affection for them?” She swallowed. “Don’t you feel that way about me?”
“Affection…” Turing tilted her head to the left and to the right. “That emotion seems to be common among organic ponies. I have attempted to qualify it and all results are inconclusive. I have not determined that I have such an emotion or am capable of having it.”
She looked directly at Twilight then, her unblinking violet eyes staring out at her. Twilight recalled the time when she’d found Turing staring at her in her bedroom the night she’d first activated her. And once again she felt like she was staring at something strange, something alien, something…
Something distinctly different from herself.
(“...when ya least expect it, she’ll walk right up and bam! You’d never see it comin’.”)
She shook her head, trying to shake Applejack’s words from her mind as Turing continued:
“If you refer to affection, then I believe with my inconclusive information I must answer negatively,” Turing said. “I do not like you.”
Twilight’s jaw dropped open.
“My answer has displeased you, Twilight Sparkle.” It was not a question.
“Turing… please, just… go to your room.”
“Understood. For what length of time--”
“I don’t know! For a while!” she exploded. “Just stay in there and shut the door! I need to be alone!”
Turing stood there and at first Twilight thought she hadn’t heard. But then, without another word, Turing turned and exited her room, the sound of her metallic hoofsteps slowly fading as she moved down the hallway.
Only when she was sure that Turing was out of earshot did she shut her own door and finally broke down. She pulled one of her pillows over to herself and buried her face in it, the surface dampening with her tears.
I thought I had done it… I thought I was really teaching her to be friends this whole time. But I wasn’t! She stomped her hoof in frustration. She doesn’t care at all! I’ve… I’ve failed…
She took several minutes to compose herself. Eventually, the rumbling in her belly caused her to make her way down to the dining room. She soon heard that Spike already setting the table. Maybe some food would make her feel a little better.
“Huh? Oh, Twilight!” Spike exclaimed happily as she entered the room. “Um, I know it’s a surprise, but we’ve got company!”
“Company?” Twilight asked drearily as she slowly raised her head.
“SURPRISE!” And then Gadget dropped down into view, having hid herself by hanging from the ceiling via her mechanical hands. “Hi Princess Twilight! I just came into town and… oh…” She noticed Twilight’s bloodshot eyes and it was fairly obvious she’d been crying. “Oh no.” She dropped down from the ceiling, her hooves clattering as she did so, and bowed her head. “Is… is this a bad time?”
Twilight opened her mouth and was about to answer, but then paused, considering the situation. “Set an extra place at the table, Spike. I think Gadget and I have a lot to talk about.”
To be continued…