In Reflection, The Same

by Faedelaide

Arrival

Twilight watched the bow of the ship with waning interest. The once stationary slabs of metal that hung from the hull of the galleon were now extended from two long, jointed metal poles, and cycled back and forth. The twin claws easily tore through the thick chunks of ice that floated on the water as easily as a mole might dig through soil.

The ice had begun to thin as the ship got closer to the shore of Griffonstone. The fog was now gone, having dissipated sometime yesterday, but Twilight could still see the towering silhouette of the Wall behind her. She tried to keep herself from looking at it. Something about it just felt wrong to her. It disturbed her to no end.

Fortunately, the cold, icy peaks of the Hyperborean Mountains just up ahead. They would arrive soon, though Twilight felt they couldn't arrive soon enough. The faster she and her friends were off this boat and out of the sea, the better. Spike had already begun bringing up she and Rarity's belongings. She stood up and followed Spike below deck to lend a hoof.

"Are you excited, Twilight?" Spike asked as the two carried a pair of briefcases up top.

"I... I guess..." Twilight sighed.

"What's the matter Twilight? You were more giddy than Pinkie on her birthday when we left Baltimare. Now you're all... mopey," Spike pointed out tactlessly.

"Gee, thanks Spike," Twilight retorted. Not a moment after she spoke however, she sighed again. "I'm sorry. I don't know what's come over me. I just feel so drained for some reason."

"Did you sleep alright? I packed your neck pillows since I know you tend to throw your neck out when you read." Spike asked.

Twilight let out a small chuckle. "Thanks Spike. Maybe I do need a little rest."

"Well you better get some sleep now then, cuz I'm not carrying you and all of your stuff to Griffonstone," Spike joked, though Twilight had the feeling there was definite meaning behind his words.

"Maybe once we're done moving everything." She replied, placing a few small bags carefully atop the stack of luggage.

Gillian and Gerret were stood atop the masts along with Gaine the brown, puffy griffon while Gelgen, a grass green griffon with bright yellow hairfeathers, stood at the wheel. As the three other Griffons worked to adjust the sails, Gelgen pressed a series of buttons on a dashboard that extended out from the base of the wheel, after which a long, compactible telescope popped out. Gelgen alternated between using the telescope to look out towards the shore, and adjusting the ship's course ever so slightly to reach the dock. Thankfully, with the pace the ship was making, they would reach the Griffonstone port in no time.

Rarity, Applejack and Rainbow Dash were all gathering their own belongings. Pinkie Pie stood on top of the crow's nest, staring at the mountain range intently.

"What is she doing up there?" Rainbow asked aloud as she placed her singular saddlebag down next to Rarity's incomparably large luggage pile.

"If I had to guess, I'd say she's still playin' that dang horn," Applejack responded.

"Not anymore!" Gaine yelled out from above.

Without a sound, Gaine landed down next to the group. "I, as captain of this vessel, decided to disallow the use of flugelhorns of any sort after dusk. She'll get her horn back when we dock."

"She was okay with that?" Twilight asked. As much as she was relieved to not her the blaring of that horn, she knew Pinkie well enough that she didn't like not being allowed to do something she enjoyed.

"She seemed pretty alright with it when I talked to her yesterday. But... she has been sitting up there all morning," Gaine noted. after a second of quiet though, he shrugged. "Eh, not my problem," he surmised, flying silently back up to the masts above.

"Well he sure is... eccentric," Rarity muttered, casting a quizzical look towards the small puffy figure above her.

"I'm gonna go check on Pinkie to make sure she's ok," Twilight announced.

She carefully ascended towards the crow's nest. She tried not to interrupt the griffons as they worked, bar a passing wave to Gillian. As she reached the crow's nest. she lightly tapped her hooves on the sturdy wood planks to signify her presence to Pinkie. Twilight felt a pang of anxiety when Pinkie remained completely motionless, like a meticulously carved statue frozen in time.

"Pinkie?" Twilight spoke in a hushed tone.

"Hey Twi," Pinkie responded just as quietly, still not moving.

"Are you alright? I heard Gaine took your flugelhorn, I'm sorry if he hurt your feelings," Twilight spoke. She was starting to feel guilty bringing her friends on this mission with how poorly it was going.

"No... It's not that," Pinkie responded monotonously.

"What is it then?" Twilight worried, walking forward to stand next to her friend.

Pinkie didn't respond, but pointed forward. Twilight stared ahead at the ice laden sea in front of her, but it's oddness caught her attention immediately. In contrast to what she expected, the nearby sea, as well as the very small Griffonstone port were not surrounded by ice. Surprisingly, the ice began to branch off into multiple thin strings that seemed to flow against the current. Some of the strings were traveling north towards the Crystal Empire, other limbs move southward towards the land of the dragons, and some seemed to be turn right around towards Equestria. It almost looked like...

"The ice," Pinkie continued Twilight's thought, "It's moving on it's own."

Twilight turned to look at Pinkie. Her statement hadn't exactly quelled her anxiety. It only worsened when she looked into Pinkie's eyes. She could see the reflection of the cold icy water in her eyes, the thin branching lines of ice like small white cracks in a great blue wall. For a moment, Pinkie Pie's eyes almost looked like the Wall, an endless, unearthly blue void.

Twilight wasn't sure how long she stared at that infinite wall, but all of a sudden, Pinkie let out an excited gasp. In a flash, the void that filled her eyes disappeared, and she jumped up in delight.

"Twilight look! Looklooklook! We're heeeeeere!"

Without a second thought, Pinkie leaped away and bounced down to the deck below as if nothing had happened. Twilight stood still, petrified by what just took place. While she stood, shocked by what had just transpired, Pinkie acted as if everything was fine. What was going on recently?

And what in Celestia's name was wrong with this ice?

Comments

[TheArchive]

There's gotta be some kind of mental mechanic at work here. The ice moving on its own and branching out like that in such a blatant and intelligent manner means that everyone involved would have been aware of it long before now, but seemingly only Pinkie and Twilight noticed. With Twilight only figuring it out after Pinkie basically forced her to acknowledge it. It's like the ice has some sort of SEP (someone else's problem) field lol.