There but for the grace of our gods

by Valtyrian

Chapter 3 - Revelations

Twilight looked at Pearl sitting there, looking out the window with a cup of green tea between the pegasus girls hooves. The princess had lowered the sun hours ago. Beside Pearl was a diary, her own diary, and had been reading the same page, same passage, over and over again. For the first time in a very long time, Twilight didn’t know what was behind Pearl’s eyes. And it scared her.

“How did it happen?”

“Huh?” Twilight felt shaken, the question pulling the princess out of her thoughts.

“How did it happen? How did we end up together.” Pearl turned her eyes from the moon over the Everfree Forest and looked at Twilight. “Because I’m trying to figure it out and it makes no sense to me. You're my mentor, my teacher. Hell you’ve always been like a second mother to me.” Finishing her tea, Pearl set the cup down and folded her hooves in her lap.

“I’ll admit, I had fantasies about it. Still do sometimes, but you were the one who helped me understand my feelings for Kohaku. How our friendship had deepened into love. Why I had ran to him when that bitch Lotus cheated on me with that bastard Thunder Thrust. ”

“I remember the day you and Lotus broke up. It was actually the turning point that got us together.” Twilight smiled remembering that day. “But it was a mutual separation, you two had just grown apart. You came to me, we spent the day at the water park. We even shared our first kiss then.”

“Waterpark. Seriously?” Pearl watched Twilight’s head nod slowly.

Smiling Twilight explained the situation and all the events that had taken place. She felt warm and happy recalling such memories but when her eyes settled on Pearl all she saw was utter confusion and disbelief.

“Do I have my own room here or do I…” Pearl looked at Twilight who blushed. “Should have known,” Pearl sighed.

“You did have a separate room, nothing was ever removed from it so it should be as you left it.” Twilight got up and led Pearl to a set of doors next to her own bedroom.

“Heh, funny. I remember a similar layout in your castle, or what I thought was your castle. My room was here to the left, while Kohaku’s was to the right.” Pearl smiled to herself as she opened her bedroom door.

“Wait.” Twilight’s magic lifted something from her horn and handed it off to Pearl. “This might help bring back some memories. It's the engagement ring you gave me. You told me you found this in Kohaku’s room back at the old temple the night we were trapped there. It’s one of a kind.”

Pearl looked at the gemstone and shook slightly. “Thanks.” Was all she said while backing into the room and closing the door.

Twilight felt her heart drop. “Damnit Twilight, you know you shouldn’t be rushing this.” Twilight chastised herself after entering her own room. “The doctor said to take this slowly. Let her memories come back on their own.” Hugging Pearl’s pillow close. A pillow that had been tearstained for weeks now. “I just want my Pearl back.” Pushing her face into the pillow, Twilight started to cry again.

Pearl leaned against the door as she felt herself slip to the ground. Her eyes locked on the gemstone on the ring. An emerald colored diamond, the inside appeared to be made of layers of interlocking leaves. It wasn’t possible, how could Twilight have this gemstone? Even if she had given it to her, why was it on a ring?

Reaching under her shirt she pulled out a pendant. On the platinum wrapped gold chain was an identical gemstone. Set just as Kohaku had created it. Leaning back her head rested against the warm wood of her bedroom door as she held onto both gemstones. And closed her eyes. Tears streaming down her cheek.

“This isn’t my world.” Her voice choked up as her emotions tried to steal away her voice. “Oh Kohaku, what have I done?” She knew messing with old magic was dangerous. But Twilight and Sunset were positive they could have controlled it. Whatever went wrong, she knew she had paid the price for it.

---

Twilight sat at the banquet table. Piles of pancakes, thick waffles, hash browns, eggs and plant based sausages. She looked down at her plate, piled high as usual but she didn’t even have an appetite. With a sigh she pushed the plate aside.

“Can’t blame you, I’m not very hungry myself. Despite what my stomach is saying to me.” Pearl grumbled as she walked into the room, her hair all messy, wearing a nightshirt twice as large as it should be for a mare her size, and her eyes red and puffy. “You need one of those “You are here boards” on every floor of this place. Took me half an hour to find this room.”

“You look like you haven't slept in a year, Pearl. Are you okay?” Twilight started to leap from her chair but held back. Not wanting to make a tense situation worse. “You’ve been crying haven’t you?”

“Brilliant deduction Twilight, what gave it away. The puffy eyes or the sunken cheeks?” Pearl smirked at the princess who almost burst out laughing. “By the way, here's your ring back, it really cleared things up for me.”

Twilight was so caught off guard by the statement that she nearly missed catching the ring with her magic. “It did. You mean?” Placing the ring back on her horn Twilight leaped out and hugged Pearl who gasped from the sudden grip of the princess.

“Can't breathe.” Pearl gasped out as Twilight loosened her grip. Turning to look at Twilight she was about to speak again when a set of lips connected to hers. Putting both her front hooves on Twilight's chest, Pearl kicked off with her back legs and flipped out of Twilight’s grasp and landed on all four hooves, several feet away. “Thank you Kohaku. And here I thought those lessons were pointless. As nice as that kiss was, please refrain from doing it again. Your Pearl might not appreciate it too much.”

Twilight blinked as she picked herself up off the ground. Pearl's sudden backflip had caught her completely off guard. Even more so than her words. “My Pearl? What are you talking about, you are my Pearl. Your body just got a bit younger is all.”

Shaking her head, Pearl sat down at the table and sighed. “No, I’m really not.”

“Okay, if you're not my Pearl then who are you?” Twilight smirked wondering what kind of game she was playing.

“First off I am Pearl Rose. I’m just not, your Pearl Rose.” Reaching out she pulled a glass closer and took a drink of orange juice just to keep her throat from getting dry. “It was the journal you gave me yesterday that got me thinking. I’m sure you noticed how I kept reading one page over and over again?”

“Yes I did notice that. It was a bit odd to say the least. You never linger on a page.” Twilight recomposed herself and sat back up at the table in her own chair.

“Yes well, that page was about something that happened to me before I came here to Ponyville.” Pearl took a long deep breath and steadied herself. “I apparently wrote that I was so reluctant to stay in Baltimare, that I hid out at my friend's home. Refusing to leave.”

“Yes, I remember you telling me that.”

“But that never happened, at least, not to me.” Pearl bowed her head. “Before I came to Ponyville, I had a huge fight with my friends. Over something so stupid. But we all said hurtful words to each other and got into a huge brawl. I may have come out the winner but I lost three friends in the process.”

Twilight blinked, stunned by what she was listening to. “Go on.”

“My parents were at their wits end. They knew I had a habit of getting into fights and ruining friendships. So they came to you for advice.”

“Well, being the Princess of Friendship I’m not surprised at that.” Twilight chuckled.

“Except where I’m from, you're not a Princess of Friendship, you're the Princess of Harmony. You do help with friendship problems, but it’s just a side gig you do. Anyway, you told my parents that they should consider moving here and you would help bring my life back into… well Harmony.”

“I take it you then moved here.” Twilight watched as Pearl nodded her head.

“That’s what tipped me off. That journal entry about me hiding out at my friends place, just to avoid moving here. How could I have done that if I had no friends to do that with?”

Twilight opened her mouth but quickly shut it, realizing the question was rhetorical.

“But what really made me understand that I’m not your Pearl. Is that ring on your horn,” Pearl’s voice became tight and cold.

“I don’t understand. I told you how I got the ring. You found it…”

“In Kohaku’s old temple home. And gave it to you when I proposed. Yes you told me.” Pearl raised her hoof up. Doing her best to keep her anger in check. “But I never found any ring of any kind. Let alone gave it to you. Because,” Pearl reached into her shirt and pulled out the pendant.

Twilight’s eyes widened when she saw the gemstone. It was smaller, but identical to the one on her ring. “That.. That..”

“Kohaku gave me this pendant the day we became a couple officially. Well actually he gave it the morning after.” Pearl muttered and blushed a little. A smile on her lips as she recalled that night. “This gemstone connects me to him, heart and soul. Even now it’s warm to the touch. But when I touched that ring, it was as cold as ice. That gemstone came from a Kohaku I never knew. Even if it was warm to your Pearl, it’s cold to me. That’s how I knew. I am not from this world. I am NOT your Pearl.”

Pushing herself away from the table, Pearl’s chair scooted away a few feet. Sniffling, she leaned back and gripped her pendant as if it was the only real thing in the room.

Twilight watched Pearl carefully as she held onto that pendant for dear life. The words she had spoken were like daggers in her heart. Daggers she didn’t want to admit until they had been spoken aloud. Her Pearl was gone, and this one has taken her place. Blinking she lifted her head up and walked over to the younger Pearl.

“Pearl. If you're here?” Twilight placed her hoof on Pearl’s hooves. “Where is my Pearl now?”

Pearl blinked and looked off to the side. Lifting her eyes up to Twilight, wide as her mouth gaped open and close a few times. “Oh no… no no no.”

“You know, don't you? Where is she? Do you know if she’s safe?”

“OH she’s safe enough, and if i’m not much mistaken. If she hasn’t already she might find herself in a very awkward situation.” With a nervous chuckle Pearl looked at the princess who looked utterly confused.

---

Pearl smiled as she hugged her mare tight. She could never remember when Twilight felt so warm and plush before. And she was positive she had explored her love's coat extensively. Putting out of her mind she smiled when the sound of soft purring hit her ears.

Oh Twilight, I never heard you do that before. Pearl thought to herself before her brain came to a complete stop. Along her back she felt what could only be guessed as very large, and surprisingly soft, paws.

Pearl slowly opened her eyes and blinked, there in front of her was a large green fox. She recognized him. Her old pain in her flank, Forestsong. Meeping she felt him push up closer to her body. His teeth slowly scraped along her neck in playful nibbles.

What the buck. How is he here now? Pearl thought to herself as she wrapped her front legs about his shoulders. How often during those months had she found herself in this situation. It annoyed her but given his situation she was happy to oblige him a bit of comfort. I’m certain he left for home the moment we restored his shrine. We haven't seen him for months now, so why is he in bed with me? And for that matter, where is Twilight?

Looking about the room she saw that she was on a large platform out in the open. Atop a huge circular bed dead center in the room. She was about to open her mouth when she felt him kissing down her neck.

Pushing hard on his chest, Pearl watched as he slowly blinked his eyes open. "Morning. How about we make the most of this day?" Pearl blinked as she watched him move in closer, his face ready for a kiss. But that wasn’t what brought up her alarms.

Under the blankets she had felt his paws start to move lower down her body. They had roamed lower than she would ever allow anyone but Twilight. When they gripped her rump, Pearl stiffened. Even if he was an all powerful spirit, she was not having this. With one swift upward motion of her hind leg she watched in glee as the male fox in front of her yelped in pain before groaning as he curled up whimpering, both paws clutching between his hind legs.

As he rolled back and forth along the bed, Pearl threw off the covers and hastened out the door.

Comments

[Mystic Sunrise]

Under the blankets she had felt his paws start to move lower down her body. They had roamed lower than she would ever allow anyone but Twilight. When they gripped her rump, Pearl stiffened. Even if he was an all powerful spirit, she was not having this. With one swift upward motion of her hind leg she watched in glee as the male fox in front of her yelped in pain before groaning as he curled up whimpering, both paws clutching between his hind legs.

Always works. When in doubt? Aim for a man's most sensitive spot. Fox or not 🦊.