Chapter Seven
The next morning, the dining hall was empty except for Twilight, who ate in silence. The noise of the castle hustle and bustle were choked off behind thick marble doors, leaving only a muffled murmur where there should have been a stream of chatter. The crystal room seemed dull and drab.
Twilight ate slowly, letting her mind wander back to a dream she had had in the guest bed of the castle.
She had been in a pit. Above her, she could make out the dark outline of Princess Twilight looking down over the edge of the hole in concern.
"Are you all right?" Princess Twilight called down.
"Fine," Twilight had answered, "how do I get out of here?"
"Just... give me a second," Princess Twilight replied, "I'm going to get some rope. I'll be right back, I promise," then she left without a sound, leaving Twilight at the bottom of a hole in the ground.
"Can't you just use magic?" Twilight called up to the expert magician.
No reply.
And then... nothing happened. She just sat there. At the bottom of a pit. Hoping that Princess Twilight would make good on her word and come back.
In hindsight, it was thoroughly bizarre. Things were supposed to happen in dreams, like going to school and slamming into the glass doors.
Dreams weren't supposed to just... leave her waiting for the next big event. The only reason she even remembered the dream at all was because it made her feel... scared? Depressed? She found herself searching for the exact word to convey her feelings.
And then the dream moved onto something else. She couldn't remember it at all, but what she did remember was the lingering half-image of a woman. It was her vice-principal, Miss Luna, but she had her hair pulled back and tucked underneath a camouflage field cap with a some sort of military pin on it.
In her moment of distraction, she knocked over a carefully arranged fork onto the floor. She quickly scooped it up and set it aside, making sure it could not be confused for a clean fork. Things that dropped onto the floor, no matter how many times she was cited the five second rule, was not clean.
At least the servants were not there to silently whisk it away before going back to pretending they were not silently watching her every move.
They had been here a few minutes before, and hovered over her shoulder until she had politely dismissed them. It was a little unnerving to be silently watched while she ate, especially since she probably looked like a little bit of a slob with her newly acquired mouth. The servants had dutifully nodded and left at her request, although they seemed disappointed.
The servants really did care about their jobs and the ponies they worked for, Twilight realized. The servant that had been checking on Shining Armor last night had been genuinely concerned for him. Prince Shining Armor and Princess Cadence were not merely just their employers; they were ponies who they genuinely wanted to make happy. Even if it was simply to make sure that their invited foreign guest was as comfortable as possible.
Twilight realized what word she had been looking for.
The word was alone.
Even with her reclusive lifestyle, she had never been so alone as she was now. She had always had her parents or her older brother by her side, and that was all the company she had ever needed. She had been alone before, but by her own choice, and in the knowledge there was always someone there if she needed them.
Twilight looked around her. The table she sat at was large enough to feed an army, but the only one here was herself.
Twilight started crying. She couldn't help it. Tears welled up in her eyes and dripped down her face as she wiped them away with limbs that should never have been hers.
She needed to succeed, no matter what the cost.
Twilight quickly polished off her plate and slid off the chair. The first step, as it always was, was to research as much as she could.
The hall doors swung wide open just as Twilight was about to open them herself. Princess Twilight trotted into the hall, smiling and energetic, flooding the room with cheery bright light and the lively sound of ponies going about their day. The floor even started to sparkle as the light caught it.
"There you are!" Princess Twilight said, "we all had breakfast a little earlier this morning, but considering what you've been through yesterday, I thought it'd be better if you slept in a little."
Twilight reached for her pocket where her cell phone was before remembering she no longer had her cell phone. Or pockets. She quickly put her right hoof back on the floor. "What time is it?"
"Not too late in the morning. Are you ready for your lessons?"
"Lessons? I thought you were only teaching me once we got to Ponyville?"
"Well, I don't see any reason why we can't start today. Unless you would rather we wait, of course."
"No! No, that's great. I'd love to start today."
"I guess it's decided, then," Princess Twilight said.
Twilight nodded before inclining her head off to the side. "All right. Just let me freshen up first."
The twins agreed to meet at the castle gates. Just as Twilight was about to leave, her teacher asked her if anything was wrong.
"I'm fine," Twilight breathed before finding herself a mare's lavatory.
As the splash of icy cold water hit her face, she realized something.
She was not alone. Not completely.
She had Princess Twilight Sparkle. She had Shining Armor. She had Cadence. They were there if she needed them.
Twilight had been avoiding looking into the mirror, but now she looked at her reflection in the eye. The first thing she realized is that she had been nervously chewing on a strand of her mane without realizing it. Twilight quickly flicked the hair out her mouth. She hoped nopony had noticed her doing it. But aside from the frazzled mane, she looked determined.
She would make it back. And with the help she had, it might not be such an impossible task as she made it out to be. She would be back in the Empire and headed for home in three months. Then everything could go back to the way it was, with her mom, dad, big brother, and her books on the same planet-slash-universe as she was.
Three months. Just a little past New Year's. Then everything would be back to normal.
She turned off the tap, (and scolded herself for wasting water staring in the mirror,) dried herself off with a towel, put it back on the rack neatly folded, and trotted back outside, feeling better than she had been since she woke up this morning.
Princess Twilight scanned the crowd. She had purposely stood off to one side, not only to stay out of the way of hoof traffic, but to try and not draw too much attention to herself. she breathed a small thanks to a relatively invisible force for being a new princess, so if trumpets were not there to announce her arrival, she could still do normal things like go to the bookstore without being swarmed with ponies asking her for her bold new plans for Equestria. (Her bold plan, which she had meticulously crafted after several nights of worry, was to hope she did not mess up and cause the kingdom to collapse, be taken over by sinister forces, or blown up by Cutie Mark Crusader experiments.)
On cue, she spotted Twilight in the crowd. Her head was held higher, and her strides were more sure, more resolute than before. It was a marked improvement from the red eyes and mane chewing. Princess Twilight needed to talk to her about killing the habit as soon as she could.
Which only made Princess Twilight wonder even more what had her in such a depressed mood. Princess Twilight was hoping after their day out, her student would open up a little more.
"You're in a good mood," Princess Twilight said, her tone nonchalant.
"Guess I was just a little tired earlier."
Princess Twilight decided to change the subject. "We'll start our lessons in the park."
"Why the park? Why not someplace in the castle?" Twilight asked.
"It's a beautiful day, for one. And two, there'll be less-"
"Hi!" Pinkie Pie burst in, "are you going somewhere?"
"-chances of being interrupted," Princess Twilight finished.
"Sorry, didn't catch that. Whadja say?"
"I said that we were going out to the park. So I can start teaching Twilight magic."
"Can I come?" Pinkie Pie asked.
Princess Twilight glanced at her student. Twilight looked like she was trying not to make a face.
"Sorry, Pinkie," Princess Twilight said, "I would rather we do this alone. I don't want anything to distract Twilight."
"I can be really, really, quiet if you want me to! I promise!" Pinkie Pie said earnestly.
"I don't mind if you come and watch, Pinkie Pie," Twilight said.
Pinkie Pie gave Twilight a bear hug. "Omigosh thank you so much, Twilight!"
Pinkie Pie squeezed her, and then let go. Twilight gasped for air.
As they left the main gates, Princess Twilight whispered to her pupil, "I'm surprised you wanted her to come along."
"Just thought it would be nice to have some company," Twilight whispered back.
"And there's something else I need to talk to you about. Something vitally important if you're going to succeed in your lessons."
Twilight swallowed. "And what is that?"
"Don't chew your mane. It's kind of gross."
"Sorry."
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Pfft, Princess Twilight's one to talk. Canonically she had a mane chewing habit as well.
lol Cute update, I've gotta say.^^
And remember everypony: Stone doors might be great for impressing the masses, but their really hard to get open if you need to make a sudden escape.
I was hoping for cadence Apologizing at twilight for the other day.
4412028 And that's why regular Twi has one.
Needs more zoophilia.
4412501 unless you're a really powerful alicorn/unicorn. Or an Earth pony hell bent on getting out. (and Pegasus an just break out the windows)
4412810 I still think this Fic will rely on Narnia Time logic when Human Twilight returns to her world only to find out that she was just gone for a few hours.
4414412
Well in the movie a day was a day, period. We'll see when we get there.
4414714 then again we have to remember this is a AU Fic.
4414714 2 days, maybe 3 but definitely 2.
4415216
What I meant was: A day in Equestria = A day in whatever the mirror realm s called.
4412028
Must be where she learned to beat it.
Now let's see where Princess Twilight's lessons end up going with a being of similar magic power but no experience or control. What could possibly go wrong?
I feel you need a better way to differentiate between the two twilights. It's kind of hard to follow who is talking at times
4412028 Hey, no fair! I want to say that! ...I'm saying it anyway!
Oh, you're one to talk, Twilight!
Oh Twilight, how silly you are. You forget, that no mare goes through life without being changed from it. You're going to exit this place softer, calmer, and more loved than you've ever known before. Not so much that you won't want to leave, but enough that you'll understand just why Princess Twilight was such a big deal back home.
You'll get your magic down, get home, make friends, and before long, you'll be able to go back to the other friends that await you. Just you wait and see.