The More Things Change

by The Crane

The Wind

And so begins a new mystery in Equestria. A new unicorn named Bobbi has appeared. She doesn't know how she got here, where here is, or why she has been transformed so. Even worse, she doesn't know WHY she has been sent here.

"The doctor told me to go to the Library here. Someone could help me there. Now, if I can just figure out which building IS the Library...."

Yet, she walks with a bit of a troubled expression on her face. All around her she can feel others staring at her. She can hear them talking and murmuring, which is slowly sinking into her mind as normal. Talking ponies seems awfully foreign to her. And she continues to feel as though she's the subject of conversation.

She looks at herself and inspects her body. While she is a pony herself, she wouldn't stop staring either at such a strange spectacle. But they themselves aren't any different. "Why is everyone staring at me? Do they point at strangers all the time?"

But it eventually dons on her. She continues to wear the hospital gown from her visit. Taking it off for her would be akin to running around naked. Something that also isn't all that strange here. And yet, she has nothing else to wear instead.

"Or do I?" she thinks aloud with a little smile. A ring at the base of her horn glows for a moment as light wraps around her body. The drab green gown vanishes while a golden garment wraps around her body and becomes like a cape flowing off her back. "That'll do," she grins a little.

"I wonder how my friends are doing? I wonder if my friends are even here? Not the first time I've gone off on my own. Unintentionally. At least I have all my limbs this time." She stops and looks at her front hooves for a moment. "Eh. Good enough."

==-==-==

Elsewhere....

A yellow pony with pink mane and tail walks through town while humming to herself. There's a basket on either side of her which she occasionally drops things into. Most of the contents of these are fruit and vegetables. She has butterflies imprinted on her rear flanks and a graceful step as she moves.

There are several food stalls lining the area. She looks from one to another in search of what she needs. As she does, she drops a few bits as payment.

"Excuse me?" a young feminine voice asks.

Fluttershy turns around towards the voice with an everpresent smile on her face. "Yes?" she asks. As she turns, her wings flutter up from her sides. But, her green eyes spy nopony. She looks around the street and finds only other shoppers. With a light shrug, she continues on her errands.

"Pardon me!" the voice asks louder.

Again, Fluttershy looks behind her but with a little fear in her eyes. "Y-Yes?" Again, she finds no owner to the voice that keeps beckoning her. "Hello?"

"I need your help!"

While she can hear the voice, she can see nothing ahead of her. "I-I can't see you..." she mumurs out. "Wh-Who are you? You're not..." She swallows and starts to shrink her stance a little. "a... a...."

"A what?!"

"Ghostpony?" she squeeks out.

"Yeah. Maybe."

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" she screeches, her wings standing on end. She starts running away full of fright. "GHOSTPONY!!!!" she hollers as she gallops away.

"HEY!! WAIT!!!"

The frightened Fluttershy dives into an empty barrel and puts the lid on from the inside. The whole barrel shakes and shivers with an unending rhythm. A nearby vendor turns towards his barrel with a bemused shake of his head.

As the wooden cask shutters and shakes, there comes a tapping. The sound is rather short but effective.

"N-n-no p-pony home!!" she calls from inside.

"I'm not a ghost, okay?! I'm invisible!!"

"G-g-ghosts ARE invisible!!!" Her security compromised, she kicks out one end of the barrel and takes off running again. "Leave me alone!!!"

"WAIT!!!" the voice says as she quickly follows. "I NEED HELP!!!"

"Stop haunting me!!!" she says with a tearfully terrified voice.

A certain golden wrapped pony walks by and witnesses Fluttershy gallop for her life. "Crazy comes in all forms, I guess."

"FLUTTERSHY!!" another voice shouts. A particularly purple pony with a horn and wings drops ahead of her screaming friend and stops her. "What's going on?"

"Twilight!!!" she shouts in a horrified tone. "I'm being haunted by a ghost!!! She just keeps chasing me around!!"

"Fluttershy, there are many strange things in this world. But, ghosts?"

"Sh-she kept asking for my help!!"

"I AM NOT A GHOST!!!"

For a moment, both of them look for a body to go with the voice. But, none seems to be near enough. Both of them have started to have fearful expressions as their unseen chaser starts to speak again. "Th-There's no such thing as... ghosts."

"Well what do you call that?!" Fluttershy shouts while pointing a hoof.

"There are all kinds of magic," she says as she calms herself. "Invisibility is not as difficult as you think." She look down and finds a puddle of mud left over from a recent rainstorm. With a wry eye, she kicks some of it up and towards the voice. As she expected, it splatters all over another pony form. A head, body, front legs, and wings can be vaguely seen due to the dirt. "See? Invisible."

"About time someone took me seriously," she comments. She instinctively shakes off the dirt, returning her to unseen.

"Who are you?" Twilight asks while gently comforting her terrified friend. "And what happened to you?"

"Some people call me Tel. My name is Kat. I woke up in this weird place completely invisible. I don't know where I am. Or why I'm running on four legs. Or WHY I'm here in the first place."

"I'm Twilight Sparkle. My friend here is Fluttershy. We-----I'd be happy to help you. Why don't we go back to my place to talk?"

"I'm sorry, Fluttershy," Kat says quietly. "I didn't want to scare you, but I didn't know what else to do!"

Twilight looks at her petrified friend for a moment. "Why don't you run along? If Kat scares you that much, I'll take care of her."

"N-no..." she replies. "I'll be okay... I'd like to help her, too."

Twilight smiles a little at her bravery. "Alrighty then. Let's see what we can do for you. Where are you from?"

"Not here," she quips.