Pearl's Travels 1: Hollow Shades

by Makitk

12

With Blaze's revelation that she saw Matron as a mother of sorts, I actually felt a lot better about this whole ordeal.

Sure, there were a lot of differences between my life in the real world as a Human, and this cartoon life where I was apparently destined to live my life as a Changeling; not the least being that I was in a cartoon world as a cartoon being.

But even with those differences, which were many, there were similarities between life as a Human and that of a Changeling.

We all came from somewhere; born or hatched. There was a definite love between siblings, and the way Blaze said she and Oval cared for their middle sister Breeze since she kept getting herself into trouble was much like how Human siblings would stand up for the weaker among them.

Even this whole common room thing; it was a bit like a dormitory of sorts. Little cliques sitting together, sharing stories, sleeping in groups, keeping an eye out for one another.

The heavy push on having us learn everything we could about our new bodies in as short amount of time as possible had done a good job of making me feel like this was truly my body now, rather than a transformation away from my old.

I looked sideways at my brother from the same batch and smiled at him as he looked at me in a puzzled fashion.

"You know, I think I'm going to like this more than I should," I told him.

"What do you mean?" he wondered.

"Well, I was arrested for breaking the law back home, even if it was a stupid law and a stupid charge, really," I started.

"So was I. Loitering, if you can accept that," he sighed.

"Loitering?" I repeated. "I was arrested for copyright infringement myself."

"I guess you're not allowed to hang about a school reading My Little Pony fanfics on your tablet," brother sighed.

I stared at him. "I spread My Little Pony media around the 'net," I trusted to him.

"My Little Pony?" Blaze wondered, and we both gave a nod at her. "That sounds like what Celestia keeps saying."

"Yeah, back where we're from, well..." I started, drawing an imaginary circle on the floor before me with one of my hind hooves.

"Yeah," brother agreed.

"Yeah?" Blaze repeated, slowly narrowing her eyes at us. "Out with it."

"Well, this whole world is fictional where we're from," I blurted out. "Fictional as in non-existent. Like, a figment of someone's imagination. Like, I was sure I was hallucinating this stuff when I passed through those doors."

"You and me both, sister," brother sighed. "There's like hundreds of fanfiction stories about this world. About ponies, changelings, and every other race imaginable."

"I'm sure someone'd get the idea to write a fanstory about this as well, brother," I chuckled.

"If I ever get back home, I'll be sure to write it myself," he decided.

"Fictional?" Blaze queried, shaking her head. "That's about what we thought of Humans before you started trickling in."

"I'm sure," brother mumbled, letting himself fall sideways against the wall of the alcove we were sitting in so he was half laying down.

"When did this all start, anyway?" I wondered out loud. "I mean, don't get me wrong; I was actually trying to say I'm feeling pretty swell here right now. I've got a hurt leg, but other than that I'm kinda okay with where I am now. You and your sisters are nice enough to us, and I think I'd want to learn how to do magic and fly around and such."

Blaze shrugged and rolled on over so she could fall on her four legs in front of the alcove, then motioned to the door. "Think you can walk a bit with me on that leg of yours?"

I let myself fall out of the alcove as well, and took a few steps. There was a noticeable pressure on my sprained limb, but it didn't hurt as much as yesterday. "Sure, if you don't make me run."

"Where are we going?" brother wondered, joining the two of us while Blaze started to the open doorway.

"Top of the mountain. You get a good view of the area from there," Blaze suggested.

Brother hesitated, and Blaze smiled weakly at that. "Don't worry; you're with me and not running off into the distance. The soldiers won't come beating your weak hide up."

"I'm not weak," brother huffed, falling in line next to me as Blaze started off and I moved to follow her.

Blaze led us through the maze of rooms laid out on the floor of the cavern until we came to a doorway, then pushed the boulder aside for us, and shoved it back in place again once we moved into the tunnel beyond.

We followed her as the tunnel sloped upward, with Blaze ignoring side tunnels when they crossed ours.

"It's been a few months now, maybe a year?" she called back, with the tunnel narrowing to the point where brother had to walk behind me instead of to my side.

"That's only a short time to set up something this intricate," I remarked, thinking of all the caverns and tunnels and things I'd seen so far.

"Well... we already had this place from when Queen Chrysalis decided to invade Canterlot," Blaze revealed with an embarrassed cough. "As said; this is one of our outposts. There are others. You may learn of them in time."

I cast a glance back to brother, who was just staring blankly up ahead with his blue Changeling eyes. Whatever he was thinking, he was keeping it to himself.

Blaze paused a moment at a junction, then motioned off down one of the larger tunnels. "Down there's where the soldiers have their quarters."

Brother and I stared down the dark tunnel.

Blaze waited a moment, then pointed up another way. "Flight school's there, I guess. I told you it can't be taught inside, so we have a bit of a clearing up there. We may see a group get trained while we're up where we're going."

"How much farther?" brother wondered.

"Well, we're going to the topmost exit, so a few more minutes of walking," Blaze replied, then stared past me at brother. "Unless you drag your hooves like in our fight yesterday."

Brother huffed at that and put his shoulder up against my rear. "Get moving, sister; Blaze wants to get to the top of the mountain."

I stared back past my flank, then blew air past my lips to make a farting noise. Brother stopped pushing and looked up with a few blinks while I heard Blaze laughing further up ahead.

"Don't push me; I have a bad leg," I threw at brother, then focused on the road ahead again and walked up over to Blaze, giving her a shove with my left forehoof. "And you stop teasing him, will you?"

Blaze chuckled at my admonishment, but gave me a nod. "Sure. Let's continue."

With Blaze leading the way without further interruptions, we made it up to the top of the mountain without too much effort. The bright sunlight hurt my eyes after having been in the dark caves for the past day or so, causing me to have to squint as I followed Blaze out into the open...

Comments

[tsaukpaetra]

And then random encounter?
Good to know brother is a fellow brony, but that pushes into credence another theory... That's not a good thing with what that theory says though.

[dyedquartz]

This, this is so meta.