Through the Looking Glass

by Shiro Otokonoko

New Beginnings

Through the Looking-Glass

A New Beginning

---

”I have spread the mantle of my nation over the ocean, and I will guard her forever. I am her heritage, and yours.”

-Anonymous

Cadance frowned with worry, as she took in the sight of the strange creature on the hospital bed. “He's not too badly injured, is he?” The nurse bustled around the bedside, taking measurements and adjusting the intravenous drip. The mysterious human had been asleep for most of the day since arriving that morning; It was now almost dinnertime.

“No, milady. Some minor head trauma, possible memory loss, but he should be fine. Even without magical assistance, he's healing at a remarkable rate.” She stopped a moment to shake her head. “I've never seen anything quite like it.” The nurse laid a hoof on the human's forehead. “Why, you wouldn't have thought he was a bruised mess only a few hours ago. He might wake at any moment.”

“Thanks in no small part to your care, I'm sure.” The Princess of Love favored her subject with a heartfelt smile.

The smaller mare flushed beet-red, a contrast to her pale blue coat. “Why thank you, milady. If there's nothing else...?”

Cadance nodded. “You may go. If he's doing as well as you say, I'm certainly capable of watching him myself. My sister-in-law should be here soon, in any case.”

The nurse bowed. “As you wish, milady. I will remain nearby, if there is anything you need - “

Cadance waved her off. “Go. Take some time off, you deserve it.” She smiled bemusedly as the nurse left. It's good to know that my little ponies can care so much, even for a creature as strange to them as this. It warms my heart to see. She glanced back at the creature – no, the 'human', as they were called. He seemed rather dull compared to the colors of most ponies. From what lay uncovered, she could see that he had dark, almost blackish-brown hair, and rather pale skin. She'd seen its – no, his eyes, briefly, and they were a rather brilliant shade of blue. Long, thick eyelashes fluttered every now and then as he dreamed. Cadance's ears perked up, as she heard a slow, rhythmic clopping from the corridor. That must be Twilight.

The door swung slowly open, and Twilight poked her head in. “Is he awake yet?”

Cadance shook her head. “No, though the nurse tells me he could wake soon.” As if in response, the wayward human groaned quietly, shifting in his sleep.

Twilight bit her lip. “I hope he's okay...”

The older alicorn nuzzled her sister affectionately. “It's not your fault, Twilight. You couldn't have known this would happen.”

“I know, but still...” Twilight sighed, looking around the room for something to distract her from her growing sense of awkwardness. I should've known this could happen. I should've been more careful...

Cadance bumped her shoulder gently. “Hey, stop it. I know that look.” She smiled knowingly. Twilight always was so very easy to read. “Did you find out anything about the mirror?” Twilight had gone to check on the mirror shortly after the human had stabilized, hoping to find out what exactly had happened. Judging by her downcast expression, she hadn't quite succeeded.

“No, nothing. It's back to almost exactly the way it was before. There's some residue left over, but not nearly as much as there should be. It's like the mirror is sucking it in – it doesn't make any sense!” The lavender alicorn began to hyperventilate. “And with no idea of what happened, I have no way of sending him back, not that would be safe, anyway, and who knows what could happen if I tried, and now he's stuck here!” Her eyes had gone wide at this point, her nostrils flaring violently.

Cadance laid a hoof on her shoulders. “Twilight. Breathe.”

After a moment,Twilight closed her eyes, taking a deep breath... And letting it out slowly. “Right. Sorry.”

Both of them froze, as they heard a quiet groan from the bed.

“Nngh.”

---

I could feel myself floating again, only this time, it was dark, but a warm sort of darkness. It was the kind that comforts, hiding away the troubles of the world to be dealt with later. Gradually, I realized that it was also rather wet – I appeared to be in a pond of some sort. Softly, slowly, details began to solidify, morphing the inky blackness into a moonlit forest. Milky beams of light filtered through the trees, giving the world an unearthly glow. There was a rather strange lack of wildlife in this forest, but that suited me fine. Gliding easily through the water, I reached for the shore, climbing out with barely a splash. To my great surprise, I wasn't even wet. I was fully clothed, in fact, though I couldn't to save my life tell you what I was wearing.

I padded softly across the forest floor, ducking a branch every now and then as the ground began to slope gently upwards. I could feel something calling me ahead, beckoning me onwards as I went. The trees began to thin as the land sloped ever upward, and I could see patches of moonlight on the undergrowth. Every now and then I caught a flash of something out of the corner of my eye, but it never remained when I turned to look. Eventually, the trees fell away altogether, and I found myself on a cliff, overlooking what looked like the ocean. I could see now that I was not alone – A massive oak tree had rooted itself near the cliff's edge, and I could see an oddly-shaped shadow in one of the branches.

As I neared the tree, the shadow leapt down to join me, and I could see that it was not a shadow, but a horse. Or at least, it resembled one – With the addition of a spiraled horn, and wings that looked rather small in proportion to the rest of her. Her coat was a rich, navy blue, with a patch of black near her hindquarters that bore the mark of a crescent moon. Stranger still, her mane seemed almost alive, stars dancing and swirling in the midst of it. I stood there for a moment, with absolutely no idea of what to say.

She studied me for a moment, seemingly just as curious of my form as I was of hers. At last, she spoke. “Greetings and good tidings, traveler. I am Princess Luna, of Equestria.”

For some inexplicable reason, it didn't surprise me that she could speak. Horses shouldn't be able to speak, I knew this, and yet when she did it seemed like the most natural thing in the world. Strange.

As her smile began to grow thin, I realized that she was waiting for a response. “And I am... Umm...” I frowned. Who am I? I blinked, my memory failing me completely.

Luna frowned, her expression worried. “We feared that this might happen to thee. Thou hast – I mean, you have - lost parts of your memory, no doubt due to flying headfirst into a wall. Our friend, Twilight Sparkle, sent Us a message concerning you.”

I winced. I don't remember doing that, but it sounds painful. Something tells me, though, that that isn't the only cause of my memory loss. “My apologies, Princess.” I sat, leaning against the tree as I struggled to remember. Nothing.

She sat beside me, her wingtip against my arm. “You have nothing to apologize for, traveler. Tell me, can you remember aught of where you were?”

I shook my head. “No, nothing.” I could remember a blinding golden light, and a presence that comforted me in the midst of emptiness. It was rather similar to Luna's actually, though I could tell it wasn't her.

Luna shook her head sadly. “'Tis most unfortunate. Still, thou shalt find thyself in good hooves when you awake.”

Wait, I'm asleep? What? I blinked for a moment, caught completely off-balance.

She seemed to notice my confusion, and laid a comforting wing over my shoulder. “Fear not, traveler. Though this is a dream, I can assure you that I am quite real. I shall speak to thee later – for now, awake.”

As she spoke, the clifftop began to fade away. The last thing I saw was her gentle smile, as I plunged headfirst into the waking world.

---

I awoke to the sound of what seemed to be a panic attack.

“...Sorry.”

I groaned, almost involuntarily. It felt like my body had been asleep for far longer than it was ever meant to be. I cracked my eyes open a bit, and as I did I saw a pink and a purple blur. As my vision began to clear, I sucked in a quick breath, feeling as if I'd been gut-punched.

She was here.

---

Cadance frowned, as the human's gaze locked on to her sister-in-law. It was almost like he recognized her – which, between the trauma of flying face-first into a wall, and the fact that he only could've seen her for a split second before he lost consciousness, shouldn't have been possible.

Twilight bit her lip nervously. “Umm, hello?”

He blinked, apparently still more than a little bit out of it. “Hello.”

---

I could hardly breathe, as I examined Her. She seemed much smaller than She had been before, and younger. I could no longer feel the same force that had drawn me to Her, but I definitely recognized Her form. For a moment, I remained completely unsure of what to say. Finally, a question occurred to me. “...Where am I?” With effort, I wrenched my gaze from Her, focusing on the other one.

“This is the Crystal Palace, though I doubt that means much to you. I am Cadance, the Crystal Princess, and this is my sister-in-law, Princess Twilight Sparkle.” Cadance, as she had named herself, paused for a moment. “Do you have a name?”

I grinned wryly. “I'm sure I have one, but at the moment it seems to have escaped me.” They were both looking at me with concern now, and I could tell that both Twilight and her sister felt guilty, for some reason. I shrank into the covers, a little bit. “...Sorry.”

The pink one – Cadance, that is – smiled at me. “You have nothing to be sorry for. For now, you should probably rest. You hit your head pretty hard, which is probably why you can't remember much.” She looked to Twilight, then back to me. “Sorry, Twilight, but I've got to run – I have a meeting with the Petricultural Committee soon.”

Twilight waved her off. “It's fine. I'll keep our guest company, for now.” As Cadance departed, the younger-looking pony moved closer to my bed, sitting beside me. I felt almost safe with Her presence this near, though logically I knew I had no reason to. I took the opportunity to study Her a little more closely; Her wings and horn were both much smaller than they had been, and Her mane was more... Normal. It certainly lacked the animation that it had had earlier.

She noticed my gaze, and flushed. “Umm, so... How are you feeling?”

I blinked, and took a moment to consider the question. If I had indeed flown face-first into a wall, I was certainly in good shape for it. My head felt fine, and aside from a slight dryness in my mouth, I felt perfectly normal. “I'm fine, though, a little bit confused...”

Twilight sighed. “I'm sorry for that. It's my fault you're here in the first place.”

Interesting. I'm not entirely sure what to make of that. “...Say again?”

Her ears flattened themselves to her head. “I was conducting an experiment with – I guess you would call it a dimensional gateway? I was trying to figure out how it worked, feeding it power to see if I could reopen it, and, well...” She chuckled nervously. “I guess I succeeded.” She looked down, too embarrassed to meet my gaze.

I laid back against my pillow, taking a moment to digest that. A dimensional gateway? It sounded like something from a cheesy sci-fi novel, and yet I couldn't really think of any other way to explain my situation, other than being locked in a mental hospital. I really didn't want to consider that option, so I decided to go with it. “So... What next?”

Twilight frowned. “Well... We try to get you home, I guess. Only problem is, I have no idea of how to do that.” She sighed. “You might be stuck here a while.”

I shrugged. I mean, honestly, what's the alternative? I certainly don't miss home, don't even remember it, in fact. I know that I should probably care, but for some strange reason I can't bring myself to. “I'll survive, I'm sure.” I gave her a wry grin, and she brightened up a little.

“I really am sorry – if there's anything I can get you, anything I can do...?” She bit her lip anxiously. “I feel horrible about all of this.”

She showed it, too. I can almost feel the waves of guilt coming off of her, and I have absolutely no idea of how to respond. How to explain that my sense of loss, the homesickness She seems so upset about, simply doesn't exist? Tell her the truth, I suppose. “I can't remember anything from before you reached out to me – only this, sort of, floating sensation. As far as I know, I don't have a home to miss.”

Twilight frowned. “How is that possible? Language, mannerisms, being able to read basic social cues – Those aren't things that we're born with, they have to be learned. You can't remember anything at all?” She paused for a moment. “And wait, what do you mean by 'reached out to you'? All I did was inject a signal...”

I had to think about that one for a moment. It's kind of difficult to describe something like this with absolutely no frame of reference – like trying to explain advanced electrical theory to someone from ancient Rome. Whatever memories might've stuck in my subconscious, this wasn't one of them. “I can't really explain... I saw you, but at the same time, I felt you. Your presence, your... Being, I guess. I can still feel it now, actually, although it isn't as strong.” I burrowed a little deeper into the covers. “It feels... Warm. Caring, even.”

She blushed. “Umm, thank you. That's probably my aura you're feeling.” She closed her eyes, and a faint glow began to build around her horn. At the same time, I could feel her presence expand somehow, though it still hadn't reached its former glory. “Does this feel different?”

I nodded. “It's stronger now.”

Twilight rubbed her chin thoughtfully. “Hmm. That's strange. Most ponies, even unicorns, can't detect someone's aura without serious concentration, and even then the pony they're tracking has to be casting a spell for it to work. On top of that, none of the other humans I've met were particularly sensitive to magic – It didn't exist naturally, in their world.” She sighed again. “...Which also means that you're probably not from that same world.”

She twitched a little bit, as I tapped her shoulder. “Hey, stop it. There's no need to mope.” I don't know exactly why, but I felt connected to this creature in some way, and it bothered me to see her so depressed. “I'm here, and evidently there's nothing we can do to change that – and honestly, it doesn't bother me. Really.” I gazed into her eyes, trying to show her my sincerity. I guess it must've worked, because she took a deep breath, and nodded.

“Alright, then. So, what do you want to do in the meantime? I can at least find you a place to stay.” She sat back a bit, and judging by her distant expression, I could tell that she was going through a list of places in her mind. “Well... I guess, for the time being, you could stay with me. If we could get Cadance's permission to move the mirror, I have test equipment at home that's much more advanced than what they have here.” She gave me a wry smile. “The Crystal Empire might be beautiful, but their technology is, well... A little bit behind the times.”

I smiled back. “That sounds perfect.”

Twilight covered her mouth with a hoof, as she tried to stifle a laugh. “Alright, then. I'll talk to Cadance. In the meantime, you should probably rest – You're mostly better, but your body still has some recovering to do from that impact you took.”

I sank into the covers a little more as she left, feeling sleep's warm embrace cover me.

---

Twilight frowned, as she meandered through the halls of the Crystal Palace. This human... He's so strange. How can you be sent so far away from your home, and have no desire to return? I mean, he doesn't remember much, but still... She sighed. I can't even imagine what that's like, not even having memories of the place you were born. Twilight stopped, as she came to the throne room's doors. Well, if he can't return to his old home, I can at least help him find a new one here. I owe him that much. Noiselessly, she nudged the doors open, relieved to see that the throne room was mostly empty. Cadance sat in her place, the seat next to her noticeably vacant. A small group of ponies sat before her, though Twilight could see that they were about to leave.

“...Now, if you have no further business to discuss?” Cadance raised an eyebrow, making it rather clear that she preferred they didn't. The lead pony bowed.

“Of course not, milady. We will implement the new harvesting program at once, with your additions, of course.”

She nodded. “Good, see that you do. I expect a progress report by the time of our next meeting.”

He bowed again. “I'll see to it, milady.”

Slowly, the assembled group filed out, and Cadance heaved a sigh of relief. She smiled at Twilight, as the younger alicorn approached her. “Good news, I hope?”

Twilight. “I guess it depends on how you look at it. It's definitely strange news.”

“Hmm?”

The lavender mare sat next to her sister-in-law, closing her eyes briefly. “Well, as it turns out, he doesn't actually want to go home. He says he doesn't remember a thing about what happened before he came out of the mirror, either.”

Cadance frowned. “Huh. That is pretty strange – but you know he's welcome to stay here as long as he needs to, right? The last thing I want to do is turn away a lost traveler.” She turned her gaze earthward for a moment, and a shadow seemed to fall across her face. “Especially one who's lost their memory. It's a horrible thing, to not even be able to remember where you came from, or the people you loved.”

Twilight frowned, her expression worried. “Cadance, are you alright?” She laid a supportive hoof on her sister's shoulder.

The pink alicorn shook her head. “I'm fine. This just hits a little close to home, is all. Still, be sure to let him know that he'll have anything he needs, alright? I can have the servants fix up one of the old rooms in the palace, if he needs somewhere to stay.”

Twilight chuckled weakly. “Actually... I wanted to ask you about that. Would it be alright to temporarily relocate the mirror to Ponyville? I have some more specialized testing equipment at home that might tell us why the mirror did what it did, and maybe even find a way for him to reconnect to his home.”

Cadance bit her lip. “Hmm. If you think it best, I guess. I would worry about something like that falling into the wrong hands, though – I'll allow it, if you allow some of my guards to accompany you.”

Twilight nodded. “Fair enough. Will they be ready by tomorrow morning?”

Cadance nodded. “Of course, although I wish you had more time to stay.” She nuzzled the younger mare affectionately. “We don't get to see each other nearly often enough, you know.”

The lavender mare leaned into her sister. “Maybe you could visit me sometime? We could hang out, just the two of us.”

“You know, I think I like that idea. I've never been to Ponyville before.” Cadance smiled. “I'll scrounge up some time from somewhere. Maybe in a month or two.”

“That sounds perfect.” Twilight smiled, and then yawned. “Well, I should probably get some sleep...”

Cadance nodded. “Go ahead. I'll have one of the guards wake you if you're needed.”

---

For once, I wasn't floating – definitely an improvement. I was in what looked like an old shack, this time, one that had seen better days. Everything was neatly organized, judging by the light outside, it was either early morning or near-dusk. It occurred to me, with no small amount of irony, that it was Twilight. Out of the corner of my eye I caught a smudge of blue, and when I turned, Luna was there, sitting with her back to a wall.

“Greetings again, traveler.” She smiled gently at me, patting the ground beside her.

I sat next to her, again marveling at this pony's ability to infiltrate my dreams so easily. “I must be important indeed, for you to spend so much time in my head.” I grinned wryly.

Luna smirked. “It's not every day that our world gets visitors from another, especially one so lost as yourself.” Her expression fell a bit. “Unless, of course, you wish me to leave you alone?”

I shook my head frantically. “No, no, that's not what I meant. I enjoy your company, as a matter of fact.” I could see that Luna had some self-esteem issues.

She almost beamed at me, though I could tell she was trying to hide it. “It pleases me to hear it.” She leaned against me a bit. “And if you must know, the nature of my duties ensures that I have little to do during the daylight hours. I am just as asleep as you are.”

I nodded. That makes sense, actually, as much as the idea of dream-walking can make sense in the first place. I gave her an appraising glance. “So, forgive me if this is a rude question, but what exactly are you the princess of? It seems like there are quite a few of you.”

She laughed quietly. “It would, wouldn't it? There are only four of us – 'Tis a matter of chance that you've met the three youngest. Aside from Twilight, whose domain is Magic, and Cadance – You have met Cadance, yes?”

I nodded. “She's the pink one, right?”

Luna nodded back. “Quite. Her domain is Love. Mine is, as you've probably guessed, the Night and all the aspects thereof, including the Moon. My elder sister, Celestia, commands the Day, and the Sun.”

Interesting. So many questions, so little time... “What do you mean by 'domain'? Day and Night are pretty straightforward, but how can Love have a ruler?”

She pondered the question for a moment. “To simplify, each of us has certain abilities, abilities that no other ponies possess. These abilities define us at the most basic level, and as such each of us is uniquely suited to rule our Domain. Cadance's ability, for example, is to bring love to the surface, or to calm tempers between ponies. As such, we name her the princess of Love, in addition to her position as ruler of the Crystal Empire.”

“So... Basically, each of you has a different kind of magic?” I scratched my head, trying to come to terms with this. To someone who'd never even heard of magic 'till now, I'd say I was doing fairly well.

Luna nodded. “More or less, yes. There are some spells that any pony with a horn can do, of course, but each of us has a certain type of magic that only we can do. My sister, for example, raises and lowers the sun.”

“Wait, what?”

She frowned. “Is that really so strange?”

I blinked. Granted, I couldn't remember much of my own world, but something in my mind was telling me that there's something fundamentally wrong with that statement. “That... Violates so many of the laws of physics.”

Luna stifled a laugh. “Magic does tend to do that, yes.”

I rubbed the bridge of my nose. “But- but- How? Aughh. My head hurts.” After a moment, I looked up again. “Let me guess, you move the moon, as well?”

She nodded. “'Tis true. I invite you to watch sometime, if you should find yourself in Canterlot.”

This was just too weird. Granted, everything about my situation was weird to begin with, but this was just icing on the cake. On the other hand, I got the feeling that weird didn't really bother me before, so I resolved to not let it bother me now. And if I was being completely honest with myself, I was looking forward to learning more about this strange new world. “You know what? I'll take you up on that offer. This, I have to see.”

Luna grinned. “I look forward to it, traveler.”

Suddenly, the shack began to shake, and Luna began to fade. She sighed in exasperation. “'Tis time for you to wake, it seems.”

I waved absentmindedly, as the shack began to fall away. It looked like she was about to say something else, but she was cut off as a blinding white light overtook me.

---

Twilight nudged the sleeping figure gently. “Hey, wake up.”

“Nrrgh.”

She smiled. Spike had much the same reaction when she woke him up in the morning, most times. “C'mon, sleepyhead. Time to wake up.”

A set of eyes peered over the edge of the blanket, blinking groggily in the morning sunlight. “...Mornin'.”

“Good morning.” Twilight smiled, lighting her horn as the curtains lifted themselves. “I talked to Cadance – she's okay with me moving the mirror, so long as a few of her guards come with us to make sure it gets there safely.” She glanced over at the human as he sat up.

After a long stretch, he looked down at himself. “Umm, Twilight? Problem.”

She raised an eyebrow. “What is it?”

“I'm naked.”

Twilight blinked. “...And?”

---

I opened my mouth to tell her precisely how wrong that was, when I realized something. None of the ponies I'd seen had worn clothes. “...Huh. I guess creatures with fur wouldn't have as much of a need for clothes, would they?”

She shrugged. “Not really, no. Some ponies wear them for aesthetic value, but other than that they're not really necessary.” She facepalmed – well, facehooved. “I should've anticipated this – all the humans in that other world wore clothes, too.”

I smiled sheepishly. “Umm, I don't suppose I was wearing anything when I came through, was I?”

Twilight shook her head. “No, I'm afraid not. All we found on you was this ring.” She concentrated for a moment, and a rather plain silver-and-black ring floated out of her saddlebag.

As it dropped into my outstretched hand, I could see that it had a rather strange symbol engraved on the front. I wasn't quite sure what it was, but it seemed incredibly familiar. It looked like some sort of tower, with a double-ended cylinder on top, and a lightning bolt to either side. I slipped it onto my right middle finger, noting that it fit perfectly. “...Strange. I know this mark, though I have no idea of what it means.”

Twilight shrugged. “Maybe it'll come back to you?”

I nodded. “Maybe so. In the meantime...” I looked down again. “I don't suppose I could take a blanket with me, or something? This is really awkward.”

She smiled. “I'm sure we can work something out.”

---

In the end, I ended up with a robe – It was the only thing the palace staff could come up with in time for us to leave, but I was grateful for it all the same. We got our own special car on the train – one that Twilight was apparently reluctant to use, but agreed to because of the mirror. It looked like a luxury apartment, almost – complete with kitchen, and staff. The observation windows were also quite large, and I found myself staring out at the countryside, as the icy tundra of the Crystal empire began to give way to greener pastures, rolling hills, and even the occasional forest or two. Every now and then we passed a small village or town, and I learned quite a bit from Twilight, as she explained the basics of pony culture to me – the three tribes, and how they interacted, major holidays, that sort of thing. Eventually, the train began to slow, and I could see that we had reached our destination – Ponyville. I could see that a rather large crowd had lined up at the station to meet us, and I swallowed nervously. Well, here goes nothing, I guess...

Author's Note:

Well, there goes the second one. Also, for those who're wondering - this is the symbol on his ring.

---

Symbol

Comments

[Clayton the hunter]

Seems promising so far though there are some capitalization errors that I've found in chapter 2.

[Shiro Otokonoko]

4095503 If you mean the sections where the traveler is thinking about Twilight, those were deliberate, ehehe... It's supposed to convey a sense of wonder. He saw her as a deity - more on that in the next chapter. Also, when Luna capitalized Us, she was using the royal 'we'. If there are any other errors, though, feel free to point them out

[JustSvenThings]

I really enjoyed this story and i wish it was still being updated