Chapter 1, Laf

I am still so amazed the Portal brought Mica and Mrai back with us! We stayed with my Twin and their family in Manehatten(1), but only briefly (cry). The trip from Manehatten back to Canterlot(1) happened only a few days later, still the middle of winter, and was brutal. But after meeting Princess Celestia(1) and Princess Luna(1), including an official welcome to Canterlot, Mica and Mrai were "zoomed up" (Terrabelle's words) to Philadelphi(2) for the rest of the winter anyway. Their dorm was near ours, and Mrai and I, well Mrai, Fira and I spent a lot of time together, talking in soosim, laughing... Ari and Vio were usually in on that too. Mrai was carrying a foal soon after their arrival here. And Fira, well any minute she and Torlock would have their first foal here in Equestria. That was all very exciting; we usually found plenty to talk about. And soon after we came back from Soosim Qeren and were back up in Philadelphi (and warm), Terrabelle (and Ari and Vio) helped us record that SQ trip. Mica and Mrai, and even Torlock and Fira were all a part of that too, and it was so fun! Once it was done, Terrabelle made sure it was available for reading by those that should, wanted to.

We had not been back from our trip to Soosim Qeren for very long, a month maybe, wow. I think we, my family, we were glad to be... home? Maybe we still didn't know exactly where that was. In a dorm (what they call houses) up in Philadelphi was home for our family for right now. Shysage and I stayed in one dorm, and our daughters Ariel and Violet in the next dorm over. At least it wasn't freezing cold up here (warm all year round). And neither Torlock nor Fira, nor Mica and Mrai were fond of the winter cold down below in Equestria(1). I guess none of us are.

So on an otherwise normal day up in Philadelphi, when three pink ponies walked up to the door of our dorm -- it was E3777 (Pinkie from Philadelphi), Equestria Pinkie Pie(1) and Equestria Girls(1) Pinkie Pie. It was mid-morning, and Shysage and I were just relaxing together with Ari and Vio. We got up right away, hugged precious friends.

Then the three of them backed away, stood together, said together officially "You both need to go to Eagle Point right away!" Ok, so this is where the 3 Portals connecting to the three Soosim worlds are located, here in Equestria. And we had just come though there a few weeks ago, and it was freezing cold.

Shysage smiled, quickly thought miles ahead, asked "Is the Equestrium up?" The real words are Ekestree Om, meaning a thousand years, but Shysage admitted he didn't think Pinkie would understand that, so he used what they would be familiar with.

Still smiling, all three Pinkies blinked at the same time, looked out across the oats, then said "No" together, then laughed loudly, also together. Twins do that. Then they turned and walked off, talking together again, laughing...

Shysage sighed, and yes, I easily felt... It was still very cold down below in Equestria. Travelling would be cold too, brutal really; we had just made that trip. And "right away" meant we would probably need to fly some or most of that journey. Air Coaches flew only rarely out of Canterlot when it was this cold. And it wasn't clear to Shysage and I whether or not we would even be going... anywhere anyway. And Vio and Ari both just needed a break which was fine, so they would stay in Philadelphi, and stay warm. Shysage said quietly as we flew while shivering that he didn't want them to have to suffer through the trip there again. And it was awful. As soon as Philadelphi's Transjector planted us on the commons lawn in Canterlot, it was freezing cold. And flying through that... Thankfully it was mostly clear, and the sun kept us from turning into ice-cubes (Shysage said), for the most part. That didn't change until we walked into our Twin's house in Manehatten, spent most of the evening in front of a fireplace there trying to stop shivering.

But even after warming up some with our Twins in Manehatten, and even though the next morning was still sunny, the fly just across the bay and up to that tiny raised island called Eagle Point, directly into a harsh, freezing wind, that still seemed brutal. Well, this trip reminded both Shysage and I of our trip into the future; we both arrived to freezing cold weather that time(3). Still, landing on the huge, white marble circle platform was easy enough, and there were no trees, so the sunlight felt amazing. And it seemed pretty still so far. So we worked first thing on warming back up after freezing air flowing past our bodies for the last 15 minutes or so. Shysage laid on his belly in the middle of that huge First Stallion mark in the center. He was facing the three Portal walls, and I laid down right next to him, downwind he said with a chuckle. The tiles below us were collecting, well some heat from the sun, and felt warm to me. We just relaxed together there for a while, trying to find a little warm anyway.

Well ok... Here we were... We had come to Eagle Point, this tiny, raised platform of an island out in the water near Manehatten, just like Pinkie said we should. I think for both of us, as the freezing slowly faded, we were increasingly wondering... After maybe 30 minutes, Shysage said quietly what I was thinking "What now?" So whatever we needed--

Unannounced, Pinkie Pie bounced out of the center SA (Soosim Aretz) Portal, jumped playfully forward, then stood up straight, said "Yesssss! It worked!"

Shysage and I got slowly up, walked over... Shysage smiled, sort of shook his head side to side, asked what I thought "Pinkie... Why... are you even here?"

Pinkie Pie looked at him like... then quickly said "Well, duh, I am supposed to come with you this time. Guess I didn't tell you that!" Jovial laughter, then Pinkie dove into an extended explanation. "Us three Pinks were just laying together up in the sun in Flying P (think that is her name for Philadelphi), then we all just knew... 'Yay, Pinkie gets to go to Soosim Aretz!' Then we were like... 'What... is that!?' E Pink spoke up right away, 'Well Pinkie, that is the portal thing, well the one to the Earth Pony home somewhere else...' Then EQ Pinky piped in with a really wierd voice 'Someplace across the galaxy and far away...' then she laughed for a while. I think we were all on the same page. Then we all said together 'How... can I even get there?' This stumped us a bit, then it was like... 'Yess!!! The Portal in Princess Twilight's(1) Library!' So we went down there. Boy was it cold. Of course, Princess let me use her Portal. She said I had to not die, and that I had to come quickly back. So I told E Pink and EQ Pinky to not eat all my cup-cakes. Then I walked through her portal, and... well... here I am!"

I think Shysage and I were just beginning to digest Pinkie's explanation. This could be our first trip to Soosim Aretz? And wow, Pinkie Pie... coming with us? How...

Just then, Eagle Point, everything around us began to fade. Last I heard, Pinkie said "Yay, I get to come!" then "Wait..."

-----

Well, a quick look once in our new location; Shysage was still standing right next to me, so I didn't need to be horrified, cry buckets like last time. Pinkie was still standing in front of us too, so I think Shysage and I both again began to work through... how... what... Pinkie's eyes got really big, then she said jubilantly "This is Soosim Aretz! ...And I'm here!"

Well, it was evidently winter here too, and very cold. Their sun was up, but there were clouds scooting across overhead, blocking the sunlight most of the time.

And it wasn't long before we noticed the sound of a soosim mare, crying. Just then Shysage realized... explained slowly "Pinkie, I think I need to remind you that they do not speak our language here. We hope they speak the same language that was spoken on Soosim Kanaphim and Soosim Qeren, but we don't know even that for sure. But you will sound like an alien if you talk to them like this. And this early in the game, we need to try to blend in, I think."

That last made me chuckle. We would surely be quite a bit smaller than the soosim here, and Shysage and I had wings even. Blending in had always been difficult for us, even on Soosim Kanaphim, since they all had wings too.

But it didn't take Pinkie long to digest what Shysage said. She shook her head just a little side to side, said matter-of-factly "I think... you and Summer are supposed to teach me that." Pinkie was in thought briefly, maybe even... sensing, then she added "But we do need to find that crying mare though."

That is what we did next. She was under a distant tree, on the other side of the tree trunk, and we had to walk around to see her. I moved in close, lay down on my belly facing her, said calmly, quietly right away in SQ, er SA here I guess...

"Good mare... no cry... Me help you..."

She was laying on her belly, curled up, with her nose buried in the grass, eyes shut tight, crying softly. But I guess SA was mostly the same, and she understood. Without even opening her eyes, she said through tears

"No... soosim... help... me..."

She cried a while more, then added

"Me... true... all... more... more...

"[Sudden...] Say... me... error..."

In the shade of this tree... I realized at this point, gasped quietly... This crying mare... Her coat was pink... Her mane and tail were pink... She looked exactly like Pinkie Pie, except she was almost twice as big, the same size as a normal soosim.

But Pinkie Pie was absolutely... beside herself... shaking away tears constantly... She wanted to help this mare, be her friend, but she couldn't even communicate...

Still, as we listened to this mare, what she said, I think Shysage and I, the same thing occurred to both of us at the same time. Shysage nodded to me, then he turned, walked slowly away some, out into the sun he said later, and Pinkie followed him. Laying on my belly facing this crying mare, I said quietly, slowly

"Smer... true... friend..."

She stopped crying immediately, picked her head up, looked up at me. I added this.

"True friend... help Smer...

"Smer... true... friend... help..."

She put her head down... said quietly

"True friend..."

Then she looked up some, head still down, said her name quietly

"Laf..."

...

...That was her name...

...And it sounds exactly like that, our word Laugh...

...I also realized instantly...

...that word, Laf, was not just her name...

...it was the Soosim word for the color...

...pink...

"Oh my goodness" I thought to myself...

I don't think Pinkie Pie could stand it any longer. Pinkie walked back over to us, laid on her belly next to me facing this larger pink mare, tears slowly falling...

Laf gasped, realizing right away that Pinkie was just like her... pink...

Pinkie was... a quick learner I guess. Pinkie put her head down too, then Pinkie said her name, trying to carefully mimic what she had just heard...

"Laf..."

Yes... That is Pinkie's name in SA...

Laf quickly reached one of her front hooves over next to Pinkies', looked at Pinkie, said quietly "Friend" in SA. Pinkie said that back, tried to say that back, said it a few times, practiced it a few times, and soon had it right. And I think at that point both realized a kindred spirit in the other, without even talking. They both had the same name even, looked the same... And maybe they both had pinkie sense, and could tell. We knew very little about Laf after all, except that her name was Pink, as was her coat, mane and tail. She was just bigger than our Pinkie.

Without anything more than that, Laf started in... teaching, repeating, guiding, patiently working to help Pinkie Pie from Equestria learn a language Shysage and I had loved from the start. They were both focused on that task.

After maybe 10 minutes it was clear... I got up, bowed, said quietly

"Me... wait... close..."

Then I walked around the tree and out in the sun to Shysage, laid next to him out of the breeze, worked on warming up some...

Shysage could only say what I so deeply felt... "Oh my goodness..." He was shaking away tears, rare for my Stallion, then he quietly mentioned what I had failed to even notice... "The mark on Laf's thigh..." He didn't need to say anything more...

Yes... True friend had sent us to Soosim Aretz, our first trip here. And, he had sent Pinkie Pie along too, and maybe we had questions... True friend, the Portal... We arrived together within ear-shot of Laf, Pinkie Pie's hurting, gloriously pink Twin essentially, here on Soosim Aretz. And Pinkie's twin Laf already carried the First Mare mark on her thigh. And Pinkie and Laf were already deeply immersed in helping Pinkie learn the Soosim language...

Yes...

This... would be... epic...

Author's Note:

-- c2022 by Shysage

1. c/tm Hasbro Inc.

2. The Philadelphi account, here on Fimfic

3. The Future Perfect account, here on Fimfic

4. True friend say... Shysa Smer... write...

Like we mentioned in the very first Summer Rain account, we generally write just a chapter at a time. We don't create or coerce, we mostly just... listen. Then we watch in awe as the account weaves itself together, even over multiple accounts. Yes... True friend is the real story... Master. This mind boggling chapter just underscores that whole process. We couldn't do anything like this on our own...

5. Shysa Smer.... not know... what... after...

I am not sure we would be the best at trying to capture Pinkie Pie accurately. We have no clue if we will continue this account or not. That will be up to... true friend.

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