Faux Pas
The stale air told her everything she needed to know. She did not fall and hit her head. Everything she experienced was real. There was no scent of flowers, dry grass, no birds singing, and no distant clip-clop of hooves as ponies went on their morning stroll. There was only the constant hum of technology. If it weren’t for the comfortable bed, it was a nothing place of a constructed world. There was nothing more antithetical to the idyllic village of Ponyville than this place.
Sweetie sheepishly released her grip on the pillow she was holding against her. She quickly put it back with the others. It was foalish, but she couldn’t help it. She had always been a sleep snuggler.
“Lights, uh, on,” she said through a yawn. “Oh, wait. Um, computer, lights on.” The room lit up like a mid-afternoon day. Sweetie shielded her eyes by pulling the blankets over her head. “I guess I should have told it ‘not too bright.’” Slowly her eyes adjusted to the intense lighting.
She pushed the covers off, rolled off the bed, and stretched. She had been too sleepy the night before to notice the decorations in Jadzia’s room. Most of the items looked like trinkets or devices she couldn’t identify. There was some jewelry on one of the nightstands. But what caught Sweetie’s eye the most was the unusual metal thing hanging on the wall. If Sweetie had to guess it was a sword, but she couldn’t imagine how it would work. It was long with sharp curved points at each end. In front was a shorter blade with two smaller sharp points. The back had three distinct areas for grips. It was something that required hands to use.
Sweetie crossed the room as she looked around. As she passed the door, it slid open on its own volition, causing her to jump. Jadzia was sitting on the couch staring intently at a flat panel-like object similar to the one Julian had yesterday.
“Good morning, Sweetie. Did you sleep alright?”
Sweetie nodded. Jadzia stood up. She wasn’t wearing her uniform, but instead a silky purple dress. This was a much better look for her. The purple accented her skin tone better. And her legs had spots too! Her feet, similar to her hands, had individual digits. Which was very interesting. What purpose could that serve? Especially if they wore shoes all the time?
“I wasn’t sure how long you’d sleep. Would you like something to eat? Maybe a sonic shower?”
“Sonic what?” asked Sweetie as she rubbed her eyes. “Shower?”
“Yeah it uses soundwaves at certain frequencies and UV light to remove dirt, grease, and grime,” Jadzia said in a cheery sing-song tone.
Sweetie nodded with a blank look. Every new thing sounded more preposterous than the last. A shower that uses sound instead of water? Was there a stove that used water instead of fire?
“I’ll show you how it works. It’s easy.” Jadzia motioned for Sweetie to follow her into the room opposite the bedroom.
Nothing looked too extraordinary. It was a bathroom. Even the sonic shower looked like a regular shower except there was no water tap or shower head. The shower was surprisingly large. The back wall had a small shelf with a couple of glass jars filled with what Sweetie assumed were hair products.
“So all you do is stand in here until the blue lights on the wall go out.” Jadzia’s eyes fell on Sweetie’s ears. “I might have to adjust the frequency for you so stand by.
“Computer, activate the sonic shower.”
Sweetie’s ears were assaulted with a high-pitched screech. She folded her ears over as her head split in two. “Ahhhh!”
“Sorry, sorry. One second!”
The sound pierced her ears relentlessly. Sweetie brought a forehoof over her face as she grit her teeth. Then the pitch changed to low vibration. She exhaled as the pain subsided and a new sensation took over her.
“Is that better?” asked Jadzia.
“It feels weird,” said Sweetie. “Like a vibration in my head… in my skull. I don’t like it.”
“One second.” Jadzia pushed some buttons on a small console on the side of the shower. “How’s this?”
A warm soft vibration filled Sweetie’s body. It felt like a massage. It was very soothing compared to what first accosted her ears. “That feels nice.”
“Well, step in,” said Jadzia. “I’ll be out here catching up on some reading. Hollar if you need anything!”
“Oh, um,” said Sweetie, slightly confused. “You aren’t going to take a shower with me?”
Jadzia stared for a second. “Um, Sweetie, that’s… well…” Jadzia cleared her throat. “I already took a shower earlier this morning, but thank you for asking.”
Jadzia’s answer was rushed. Although she tried to maintain a pleasant tone, Sweetie saw she was slightly flustered. “Oh, sorry. Is that not something people do here?”
“It’s not something you ask someone in this situation. Many humanoid species, meaning species similar to most of us here, aren’t comfortable with nudity around strangers or people they just met.”
Sweetie shook her head. This place kept getting stranger and stranger. “In Equestria, showering with your family and friends is normal,” said Sweetie. “And we have public bathhouses.”
“Public bathhouses aren’t uncommon in many cultures. They all do them differently. Well maybe another time,” said Jadzia. “I’m not as opposed to nudity as others here. You caught me by surprise with that question. Enjoy your shower.”
As she stepped into the shower the vibration increased in intensity. It wasn’t like before. It felt like a great massage. All her muscles relaxed as it worked her coat, mane, and tail all at once. Sweetie could get used to this. If she could bring some of these back to Ponyville, she could make a fortune! She could travel from town to town selling the amazing waterless shower that massages you. Or torture someone you don’t like, she thought darkly. No pony would do that though… well most.
It was a fantastical device, Sweetie thought, as she watched the dirt fall off her. Tiny rooms that take you to different floors instead of stairs, sound showers, and doors that slide into the wall. They weren’t too keen on magic, but as far as Sweetie was concerned it was a different type of magic. A type of magic ponies had never seen or honed. She could be the first to learn it. She could teach advanced enchantments at the academy.
Life as a professor sounded fun. Professor Sweetie Belle, Arcane Enchantress of Artifacts had a nice ring to it. But she would have to study and read a lot. That didn’t sound as fun…
There was a beep and the sonic shower went quiet as did the thoughts in Sweetie’s head. She stepped out and looked at herself in the mirror. Her mane and tail were a mess, but she looked clean. She couldn’t be sure if it was the lighting, but her coat appeared brighter than normal. It had the sheen it gets after a spa day.
She stepped back into the main area where Jadzia was staring at her device again. Was there something on that thing to read? Maybe they could read entire stories without pages… but how? A magic book that shows you one page at a time?
“Um, Jadzia,” said Sweetie as she approached. Jadzia looked up at her. “Do you have a brush I can borrow?”
“Sure.” She stood up and walked toward the bedroom, but paused. “You know what? Why don’t I replicate one for you? Then you’ll have your own.”
It was sweet of her to offer. Sweetie agreed, not knowing what she meant by replicate. She watched intently as Jadzia approached a curious cubby along the wall, between the two couches. Until now, Sweetie believed it to be a weird style thing.
“Computer, one hairbrush.”
“Specify parameters,” said an unknown female voice.
Sweetie jumped and looked around her, but no one else was present.
“Recreate the last hairbrush replicated at this station,” said Jadzia.
There was a beep and a loud hum. The cubby in the wall lit up with radiant white light. A swirl of orange sparks danced in a circle. A second later, it went quiet, the light went out, and instead of sparks flying around a hairbrush had materialized in its place.
“Wow. That’s amazing.” She closed her mouth and moved in for a closer look. “Let me guess,” said Sweetie in a playful tone, “not magic?”
Jadzia smiled. “Nope. This is a replicator. It can replicate all sorts of things including food.”
“But surely it’s transporting these items from somewhere else,” Sweetie reasoned. “It’s impossible to make something from nothing. Even with magic.”
Jadzia nodded with a smile. “Yes, very astute of you. This device converts energy into physical matter. The amount of energy required depends on what you’re making.”
“The energy required to do something like that…” Very powerful unicorns and alicorns could conjure items. That was magic well beyond what she was learning. It took an enormous amount of energy, and even the best alicorns could only control a fraction of that energy.
Sweetie used her magic to grab the hairbrush and observe it closely. “This is so nice! Thank you so much!”
“You’re quite welcome.”
“This looks like real wood,” said Sweetie. When she pulled the brush closer, wood grain showed beneath the paint. She was almost certain there were brush strokes too. “It is real wood. How can it make real wood?”
“What’s the difference?” asked Jadzia.
“Real wood is from trees that grow in the ground,” Sweetie replied. “So this is a copy of the real thing?”
Jadzia shrugged. “It’s up to perception, I suppose. Whether a tree is cut down and milled into lumber so a woodworker can craft a brush or a computer uses a pattern to create the brush from energy, the result is the same.”
But it was in the name… replicated. That means it’s a copy.
However, Sweetie countered with herself, if the copy is the same as the original does it matter? No one could tell the difference.
Frustrated with the conundrum she had created over something so mundane, she pulled the brush back to her mane. She used her magic to lift parts of her mane as she brushed it. She tugged on her mane as she rushed through what was normally a lengthy process for her. She closed her eyes as she yanked on a snarling knot.
“It’s amazing how you’re able to do that,” remarked Jadzia.
“It’s nothing—” She forced the brush through the knot, pulling lots of hair out with it. “It’s nothing complicated. You have a thing that can make other things from energy. That’s amazing. This is me quickly fixing my bushy mane.”
“Doesn’t that hurt when you pull your mane like that?” Asked Jadzia as she quickly moved closer. Jadzia cringed as Sweetie gave the brush another aggressive yank.
“Um…” She pulled again and the brush came free revealing a massive clump of pink and purple hair. She pushed her mane back, running her hoof through it. “No. Why would that hurt?”
“That would really hurt me if I brushed my hair like that. Our scalps are very sensitive.” Jadzia ran her fingers through her hair.
“Pony manes are not. Our tails can be since they are part of our spines. You should never try to pick up another pony by their tails,” explained Sweetie. She cringed remembering how Rarity would drag her out of the sewing room by her tail.
“Speaking of…” Sweetie pulled her tail straight up and began brushing through parts of it. There weren’t any knots, but it was still frizzy and wild.
“Um, Sweetie. Maybe you should do that in the bathroom,” said Jadzia with a note of apprehension.
“Do what? My tail? Why?” Sweetie asked in a distracted tone. “If you’re worried about the hair I’m getting everywhere, don’t worry, I have a quick way to clean that up.”
“You really have no sense of modesty?” asked Jadzia with an amused smile.
“I guess not,” said Sweetie, not understanding the question.
“When you bring your tail up like that…”
“Oh…” said Sweetie slowly, finally understanding what Jadzia was getting at. She dropped her magical grip on her tail, letting it fall back into place. “Sorry?”
“Don’t be. Doing something like that might be perfectly reasonable where you’re from,” said Jadzia.
“What? Lifting my tail? We don’t walk around town like that. But catching a glimpse under some pony's tail isn’t uncommon.” Sweetie shrugged. “We don’t make a big deal about it. We all know what a mare looks like and what a stallion looks like.”
“That makes sense for a society that doesn’t wear clothes,” said Jadzia. “So long as you don’t do that out there.” She gestured to the door.
Sweetie nodded. “I wouldn’t do that out there. We have a word for ponies who do that and… it’s not very nice.” Sweetie’s face went red.
“Anyway, we wear clothing sometimes. Usually, it’s for special events. My sister designs dresses for those types of things, but normally we don’t wear anything.
“We have a concept in Equestria called ‘beautiful figure.’” Sweetie hesitated for a second. “It’s difficult to explain… It basically means that ponies have a natural beauty in their figures: their colors, their manes and tails, Cutie Marks are displayed with pride, and how their body is shaped.” Sweetie waved her hoof through the air and took a deep breath.
“Sorry, I’m not making much sense. I’m having trouble putting words to something we all… sort of just know.”
Jadzia nodded. “It’s okay, Sweetie. I think I understand. A core part of your identity is in your natural appearance.”
“Exactly!” Sweetie exclaimed. “We dress up for fun. If you came to Equestria on a normal day, the most you would see were different mane and tail styles with bows or hair ties. Some ponies would have saddlebags on for shopping.”
“That’s very interesting. Like I said, I’m not opposed to nudity. However, the culture here will seem very modest, maybe even prudish. I want to warn you that there are those out there who will try to take advantage of you. So be on your guard. It’s unfortunate, but DS9 is not exactly the safest place.”
Sweetie sighed. “I guess I don’t understand the culture here at all. I’m sorry for asking you to shower with me and showing my—”
Jadzia set her hand on Sweetie’s shoulder. “Don’t worry about it. There’s a term for this called faux pas. It means a false step. You’re not doing anything wrong per se, but your normal customs could be considered rude here. The reverse is likely on your planet.”
Sweetie nodded. “That makes sense. But why is it called foe paw? That sounds like a tiger attacking you or something.”
Jadzi laughed. “Not foe as in an enemy, but faux as in fake or false”
“Oh is it one of those words pronounced the same as another but has a different spelling?” asked Sweetie to which Jadzia nodded. “We have some of those in our language too.”
“I’ll make you a deal,” said Jadzia. “Give me a couple of days to get to know you, and you can show me how you shower with your friends.”
“Really?” Sweetie beamed.
“Sure, I don’t mind exploring other customs,” said Jadzia. “I have studied loads of cultures, and yours sounds fascinating.”
“Okay. It’s not like a special custom or anything. It’s nice to take a shower with your friends and help wash their manes and tails.” Sweetie smiled.
“That sounds rather intimate,” said Jadzia.
“Well, sure. That’s why you only do that with your friends or family,” said Sweetie. She used her magic to gather up all the hair into a tight ball that levitated in front of her.
“Like I said, a few days—oh wow you weren’t kidding about cleaning that up quickly.”
Sweetie smiled with pride. “A little spell I invented to save me time sweeping. Um, where should I put this?”
“Put it in the replicator. We can get a little energy from it,” said Jadzia.
Sweetie set the ball of pink and purple hair in the same cubby the hairbrush had materialized in. With a few quick button taps from Jadzia, it vanished.
“Anyways, now that’s all cleared up, are you hungry?”
“Oh yes.” Sweetie was eager to watch that replicating device make something else.
“I’m guessing you don’t eat meat?” asked Jadzia.
Sweetie’s stomach dropped. She made a face of disgust.
Jadzia nodded. “I didn’t think so. How about eggs?”
“Eggs? Like from birds?” Sweetie’s mouth fell open. Who could eat baby birds? What would the poor mothers think if her eggs were eaten?
“Forget I asked,” said Jadzia. “I guess it’s my turn to make a faux pas,” she muttered under her breath. “What do you eat?”
“Um, not that. I eat salads, grains, fried foods, hayburgers, milkshakes… candy.”
Jadzia raised an eyebrow. “Milkshakes?”
“Yeah,” Sweetie laughed nervously. “We call it that because it looks like milk. We make milk by grinding up a type of nut with water. It’s not like actual milk from a mare. That would be a very weird thing to drink if you weren’t a newborn foal.”
“Oh,” said Jadzia. “I will keep that in mind as we have quite a few things like that.
“How about toast with apple butter and a nice salad of leafy greens?” she asked.
Sweetie nodded. “I love apple butter. My friend’s family makes it from their apple orchard.”
Jadzia repeated that to the replicator thing. A few seconds later a plate heaping with leafy greens and two pieces of toast appeared.
“Do you put dressing on your salads?” asked Jadzia as she sat the plate on the table.
Sweetie cocked her head to the side.
“It’s like a sauce that goes on top of salads. They add different flavors,” said Jadzia.
“Interesting. I’ve never heard of such a thing. We put daisies or other flowers on top when we want to add more flavors to our salads.” Sweetie took a seat in front of the table. “You don’t have to add any,” she said quickly as Jadzia turned back to the replicator. “This looks good.”
“Something to drink?”
“Water,” said Sweetie.
Jadzia placed a tall glass of water next to her plate moments later. Sweetie found the apple butter much sweeter than she was expecting but good otherwise. The leafy greens were all good despite a few of them tasting rather unusual. “Aren’t you going to eat?”
Jadzia sat down next to Sweetie with a mug. Wisps of steam rose from it along with the most intoxicating aroma she had ever smelled. “I already ate,” she said.
“What is that?” Sweetie pointed to the mug. “It smells amazing.”
“This?” Jadzia laughed. “It’s coffee. It’s a fermented fruit that has been roasted and ground up. Then you drip hot water over it and get coffee. Do you want to try it?”
“Yes!” said Sweetie with more enthusiasm than she intended.
“It’s got a strong flavor…” Jadzia returned to the table with another mug. She dumped a little of a very dark liquid into the second mug. “Try it first. Just in case you don’t like it.”
She hastily grabbed the mug with her magic and brought it to her lips. How could anything smell so good and taste bad? She took a sip. Her tongue was bombarded with flavors she couldn’t process. “It’s… wow. It’s…” She took another sip. “It’s bitter?” She took another sip, emptying the cup in her mouth. The flavor was very strong. “It’s bitter, sour, nutty, and somehow slightly sweet.”
Jadzia giggled. “More?”
Sweetie gave an enthusiastic nod. “It’s um… good.”
“There are also sweeteners you can put in it if you don’t like the bitterness,” said Jadzia.
“Oh yes, put a little of that in there too.”
Jadzia laughed again. “One coffee with sugar coming up.”
Sweetie had finished her breakfast when Jadzia set a steaming mug down in front of her. Sweetie quickly took a sip out of the mug. The coffee was perfect with the sugar added. She gulped it down.
There was a two-toned chime that disrupted the mostly silent room as Sweetie finished her coffee. “What’s that?” she asked.
“Doorbell,” said Jadzia. “Come in!”
The door slid open. The strangest creature Sweetie had seen yet walked in. He, she assumed he, had a bald head with large ears. The top of the ears became a ridge across the forehead. His nose had many ridges, and his teeth were sharp and pointy. His beady eyes fixed on Sweetie.
“Jadzia,” he said. “I hope you aren’t planning on eating that.” He pointed at Sweetie.
“Quark,” Jadzia sighed.
Sweetie scowled.
“Hey, hey, I was just checking. I came to see if the rumors were true.” He turned to Sweetie Belle.
“Greetings,” he said swiftly as he stepped in. “I’m Quark, owner of the bar and community leader on this station. I wanted to invite you to my establishment’s new quadruped night! All quadrupeds get free drinks.”
“She’s the only quadruped on the station,” said Jadiza.
“What a coincidence,” he said with a grin.
“She doesn’t have any money, Quark. It’s not going to work,” said Jadzia smoothly. “Whatever you’re planning.”
Quark put a hand on his chest. “Planning? I come here in good faith and you accuse me of plotting something? Jadzia, I would never do such a thing. I only want to make sure our newest guest feels welcome.” He made an unusual gesture holding his wrists together with his palms facing upwards.
“Nice try, Quark, but you still owe me fifteen slips of latinum from last week’s Tongo match.” Jadzia gave Quark a stern look.
“You can’t blame a Ferengi for trying,” Quark said with a smile. He pulled a small velvet bag out of his pocket.
“Give it to her,” said Jadiza while pointing to Sweetie.
“What is it?” asked Sweetie.
Quark howled with laughter. “What is it? This, my primitive friend, is what everyone outside the Federation uses for currency. Sweet, sweet latinum.” He dumped the contents of the bag out. Small golden metal strips fell out on the table making a satisfying clinking sound as they did.
Sweetie scowled.
“And give her a free spin on the Dabo wheel,” insisted Jadzia.
“Fine,” Quark spat. He placed a funny-looking coin with his face stamped on it on the table. “Anything else?”
“No. We’ll see you tonight,” said Jadzia.
Quark left, giving Sweetie one more look before the door slid shut.
“He’s rude,” said Sweetie.
Jadzia shrugged. “He’s mad I beat him at a game of Tongo last week. I usually win, but I took him for more latinum than he had on him.
“Quark is a Ferangi,” said Jadzia, answering Sweetie’s inevitable question. “The Ferengi are capitalists focused on commerce, trade, profit, and sometimes a financial scheme to swindle those unaware.”
“He thought you were going to eat me?” asked Sweetie.
Jadzia laughed. “Quark thinks he’s being charming.”
Sweetie shook her head. “He needs friendship lessons,” she muttered. “A joke about eating another creature… gross.” She shuddered.
“If he thinks there’s profit in it, he’ll be interested,” Jadzia remarked.
“Commerce requires friendship,” Sweetie countered.
“Not necessarily. It requires partnerships, and in the case of the Ferangi, usually lopsided partnerships.”
“That’s unfortunate.” Sweetie grimaced. “So I should watch out for him?”
“It’s important to know that different cultures value life, family, and business differently. The Ferengi might try to swindle you. It’s difficult to gain their respect if you’re an outsider and female. In their society, the females are not allowed to do anything. They can’t leave the house on their own, they cannot go into business, and they are not allowed to wear clothes.”
Sweetie’s mouth fell open in shock. “That’s horrible! What a terrible place their world must be. My whole planet is run by females! We do not believe your sex determines your rights!”
Jadzia put a hand on Sweetie’s shoulder. “I know,” she said softly. “I want you to know what their outlook is. From our perspectives, we can see that as terrible. But they would say the same, and worse, about your society.”
Sweetie took a deep breath. Jadzia’s hand on her shoulder was soothing. “I-I don’t think I could ever understand why they do what they do.” She leaned against Jadzia. “But he, Quark, respects you.”
“The Ferengi, especially Quark, understand other cultures have different beliefs. They might not always like it… but the best way to gain their respect is to meet them on their terms. Understanding business and trade will cut through the negative cultural elements for most of them. Quark hides it, but he isn’t as bad as he might seem at first.”
Sweetie sighed. “Well, I do understand business a little, I guess. Maybe if I become friends with him, I can help him understand that females should be treated equally.”
“I won’t lie to you. You’ll be fighting against decades of cultural norms. It would be like me trying to convince your society to cover up with more clothes and saying showering with our friends is morally wrong.”
“But those things aren’t wrong,” Sweetie said with a definite and final tone.
“Not to anyone on your world. I can tell by your reaction, that saying stuff like that wouldn’t be well received.
“However, I do agree with you that through friendship we can help encourage the Ferengi to see others as equals. They are going to change their ways in their own time. Societal shifts take time. That’s why I’m friends with Quark.”
Sweetie beamed up at Jadzia as realization hit her. “You’re working on a friendship problem!” She sprung out of her seat. “We do this too! Us ponies try to resolve conflicts this way.
“There was a time when we didn’t trust other ponies based on their characteristics. Earth ponies, unicorns, and pegasi all didn’t get along and were often at war with one another. But through friendship, we learned to work together and trust each other. From that, we built Equestria as we all know it today.
“We still have our differences, but we work hard every day to work together because what we have is worth the effort.”
Jadzia smiled. “The Federation has many of the same beliefs. Per Aspera, Ad Astra. It means to the stars despite adversity. We work together for the better of all, for scientific knowledge, and for the defense of our way of life. Sadly, that means the Federation has seen its share of conflicts.”
“Us ponies have seen our share of conflicts too..” Sweetie trailed off. Her eyes fell on the coin with Quark’s face stamped on it. He had a used wagon sale’s pony fake grin. Free spin implied the others cost money. “Is Dabo gambling?”
“Yes. But it’s really easy and you got a free spin and some latinum to try it out.”
Sweetie grinned. “I’d never be allowed to gamble back home. My parents and sister would never let me do that.”
“Your sister gets a say?” asked Jadzia.
Sweetie shrugged. “She’s older than me and I live at her house more than at home since she’s closer to my school and friends.”
“I understand. I was a younger and older sibling before,” said Jadzia.
Sweetie frowned. “How can you be both? Wouldn’t that just make you a middle foal—I mean child?”
Jadzia shook her head. “I’m a Trill. We are a joined species.”
“Joined?” asked Sweetie.
Jadzia exhaled. “I probably should have explained this to you earlier, but I didn’t want to overwhelm you.
“The Trill are a species who get joined with a symbiont. In my case, Dax. Jadzia is the current host of Dax. Dax has had seven lifetimes of experience. Jadzia is only twenty-eight years old. When we joined, I got all of Dax’s memories and experiences from past hosts. I became Jadzia Dax.”
“So you’re, like, really old? But also young?” Sweetie shook her head. The concept was bizarre, but she sort of liked the idea of someone possessing experiences from past lifetimes. “What does the symbiont look like?”
“It sort of looks like a worm,” said Jadzia. “And it lives right here.” She places a hand over her belly.
Sweetie’s eyes went wide. A worm lived in her? And in others before… “So you’re super smart?” asked Sweetie.
“I have a lot of past experiences and knowledge to draw from. But Jadzia had to accomplish a lot before I could join with a symbiont.”
“So…” Sweetie trailed off as she thought about the correct way to ask the question that was in her mind. If these people were prudish with their appearance, then how were they when it came to asking personal questions?
“Yes?” asked Jadzia.
“Um.” Sweetie looked at the ground. “Never mind. It’s not important.”
“It’s okay, you can say it,” Jadzia encouraged.
“Okay,” said Sweetie. “I’m not sure how to say it, but… if you have had several hosts… then were you both female and male?” Sweetie gulped. Was this another one of those faux pas things to ask these kinds of questions?
To Sweetie’s relief, Jadzia laughed. “Yes, Sweetie, Dax has been hosted by males and females. I’ve been a mother and father many times.”
She didn’t even think about that. She couldn’t picture having memories from a stallion who was also a father.
“So that’s the Trill in a nutshell,” said Jadzia. “Not all of us are joined, but the ones who are have their lives changed and enriched in ways one can never imagine.”
Sweetie hesitated again before asking as her thoughts turned to stories of Nightmare Moon and Luna. “So it doesn’t take control of you, right?”
“Well, it can. Only certain Trill can be joined. You have to have a strong sense of self or the symbiont can completely override your identity. You won’t know whose thoughts are yours or a past host’s. I was fully prepared before I was joined. Even then…” Jadzia trailed off. “Nothing truly prepares you. It took some time to fully realize who Jadzia Dax was because I was no longer just Jadzia.”
“Well, I think that’s pretty neat.” Sweetie beamed. She wrapped her forelegs around Jadzia and pulled her into a tight embrace. “I’m glad you're my friend in this place.”
“Aw, well thank you.” Jadzia returned the embrace, wrapping her arms around Sweetie. Her hand massaged her back. “Your fur is so soft. I could hold you forever.”
“I think that would be fine.” Sweetie giggled as she pulled back from Jadzia. “Us ponies also like to hug a lot.”
Jadzia stood up, straightening her uniform. “Ponies are much more intimate with each other on so many levels it seems.”
“Some of us are more physical than others. I, um,” she felt her face heat up, “I like to snuggle with my friends. They… tolerate it. Well, Apple Bloom doesn’t mind.”
“Oh? So is this Apple Bloom a special friend?” asked Jadzia with a wry smile.
Sweetie shook her head, but her eyes didn’t quite meet Jadzia’s as she turned her head to hide her red face. She cursed her white coat for being so revealing.
“Okay,” said Jadzia in a playful tone. “It seems the schoolgirl crush is a universal constant.
“Anyways, we need to get to the science lab. Then maybe I can show you around a little. How does that sound?”
Sweetie agreed as she attempted to imagine what technological and certainly not magical wonder awaited her.
“Should I bring my money?” asked Sweetie as she pushed the latinum slips together in a neat pile.
“No, we can come back for that later.”
Sweetie followed Jadzia into the long corridor. “Quark said that money is for outside the Federation. How does the Federation make money?” asked Sweetie.
“It doesn’t,” Jadzia replied. “Money is obsolete.”
Sweetie shook her head. “How—oh well I guess if you can replicate stuff… Why do you work for this Federation if they don’t pay you? What’s the point if you already have everything you need?”
“I work for Starfleet which is part of the Federation, remember? But I won’t answer that yet. I’m curious if you can figure that one out. Besides, if I gave you all the answers, what would be the point of learning?” Jadzia winked.
Sweetie pursed her lips in thought as she followed Jadzia down the corridor. We go to school to learn the mechanics of the world so we can answer our own—
“We learn to answer our own questions, of course!” Sweetie exclaimed. “So… if you acquire more knowledge and experience you learn more about the world—no, the universe! That's it, isn’t it?”
“Honestly, I’m very impressed. You are exactly right.” Jadzia’s face was of pure admiration. “I wasn’t expecting you to answer that right away. Very well reasoned.”
“It… sort of came to me,” she said bashfully.
“Maybe Julian should run an aptitude test on you. I bet you’d score high on logic and problem-solving.”
“I took one of those,” said Sweetie enthusiastically. “It said something like that. But my magic wasn’t good enough for the gifted unicorn school.” Sweetie shrugged and looked away. “But I got to stay at my normal school with all of my friends.
“I wonder what Equestria would be like without money…What would we do…” Sweetie trailed off in thought as she envisioned ponies bartering their goods for other things.
The Promenade was as busy as the day before. Sweetie noted the circular nature of it. Quark’s bar was in the center. Was this place a giant circle?
Jadzia led her to another one of those tiny rooms that quickly took them to a different location. This one took them to a secluded corridor with several sliding doors and other corridors that branched off in opposite directions. Sweetie figured she could wander these corridors for ages and never know if she was getting anywhere or going in circles.
‘Science Lab Two,” said Jadzia as the second door on the left opened.
The science lab was much smaller than expected. There was a distinct lack of beakers, flasks, burners, and scales. The lab was mostly empty with panels and consoles along the walls. There was a single metal table in the center of the room supporting a massive steel I-beam. Or at least a piece of one. It wasn’t much longer than the table it sat on.
She felt it almost immediately when she walked into the lab. The sight of the room made her shiver. There was an emptiness here, a certain negative energy in the room, that made Sweetie take stiffened movements. The sight of the I-beam was unsettling although Sweetie couldn’t think why.
“Oh, good, you two made it.”
Sweetie yelped and spun around. Out of the corner of the room Miles O’Brien was sitting at one of the workstations.
“Oh, sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you,” said Miles.
“It’s alright. I-I didn’t see you,” said Sweetie feeling like a silly foal.
“It’s my fault, really, being tucked away in a dark corner.” Miles stood up from his workstation and stretched. “Anyway, Sweetie Belle, I trust you slept alright? Lieutenant Dax is treating you well.”
Sweetie nodded with a smile. “I’m learning so much already.”
“Glad to hear it. Maybe sometime you’d like to come by my quarters for a visit. My wife would love to meet you.”
Sweetie smiled. “Yeah, I’d like that. The more friends I can make here the better.”
“You bet,” said Miles. “Anyways, Lieutenant. I finished reconstructing the security footage of the cargo bay just before you two walked in.”
“Excellent. Thank you, Chief.” Jadzia turned to Sweetie. “Now we can see what happened when you arrived.”
“We can?” asked Sweetie, looking from Jadzia to Miles. “How?”
“With this station being what it is, some cargo bays are always under surveillance. I’ve got the footage here at this station.” Miles pointed to a black glass panel on the wall. He tapped the colorful lights to the side of the glass. Each light made a beeping noise when he tapped it.
Light flickered behind the glass. Instead of a black panel a picture of another room was displayed. A room that reminded Sweetie of a warehouse or storage room. Cargo bay. She would have called it a boring picture if it weren’t for the changing text at the bottom of the picture.
Sweetie squinted as she thought she saw the picture move. She couldn’t have seen that right. Only the text was moving in this picture. She stared intently at the ever-changing text on the screen, pondering its meaning.
The picture moved again. This time Sweetie was sure. The picture appeared to vibrate. At first, Sweetie thought something was wrong with the not-magical picture, but the stacks of crates and barrels in the picture moved with the vibration.
The lights flickered as the vibration increased to a violent shimmy. Some of the crates had fallen over. The picture went dark. Sweetie could barely make out more crates toppling over when the cargo bay was illuminated by a pale blue light. It coalesced into a ball of bright light that steadily increased in size. The cargo bay was shaking, sparks were flying, and one of the crates ignited. The light grew so intense that Sweetie shielded her eyes.
“That’s all we got,” said Miles. He tapped the panel again to make another picture come up. “This was a few minutes after.”
Sweetie looked up. On the screen was a picture of utter devastation. The cargo bay was destroyed. The crates were scattered around the room, tons of items tossed about, like a tornado had come through. Fires were coming from some of the barrels along with thick jet-black smoke. A massive hunk of steel, Sweetie recognized as the I-beam sitting on the table behind her, was smoldering on the floor.
“Julain and I found you under this mess at the center,” said Miles. He pointed to a tower of crates stacked haphazardly from floor to ceiling. Some looked fused or a melted mess of goo. “It was lucky none of that crushed you.”
It was a lot to take in. Sweetie didn’t know where to begin.
Miles pushed more of the colorful light buttons. The screen flickered a few times and then displayed the same room but with two figures in the center. They were pushing crates out of the center mass. Sweetie recognized who they were quickly.
“Julian, these things weigh forty kilos at least. If all of this fell on someone, they'd be dead.” Miles wiped the sweat from his forehead.
Julian shook his head. “Someone is definitely alive in this mess.” There was a loud beep. “We have to hurry.”
“This one…” Julian panted. “Here.” He rapped his knuckles against a container standing on its end, leaning against a tall stack of crates.
“Lucky this was here,” said Miles. “If we push it to the side, this other stuff hopefully won’t fall on us all.”
Julian nodded. “Push on three. One. Two. Three!”
The crate toppled over to the side and slammed on the deck with a loud crash.
Julian gasped.
Sweetie’s blood went cold seeing herself unconscious on the floor. She lay there so peaceful and quiet. She appeared asleep.
“Miles,” Julian whispered while pointing.
He stared for a full minute.
“Bloody hell,” he said at long last. “Is that a…”
“Unicorn,” said Julian.
Julian bent down and scanned the creature. “It might look like a unicorn, but this being is not from Earth or anywhere around here. These readings are rather odd. I need my lab equipment.”
“Is it… alive?” asked Miles.
Julian nodded. “Oh yes, very much so. Let’s hope she?” Julian checked his tricorder. “Let’s hope she can tell us who she is when she wakes up.”
“Assuming that a unicorn can even tell us anything, of course,” said Miles slowly. “There’s something I thought I’d never say,” he muttered. “Can you wake her here?”
Julian shook his head. “The usual stimulants work on most species, but I don’t want to inject drugs into a completely unknown species before I have more data. The tricorder isn’t giving me anything useful here.”
The screen went black.
“That’s all of it. Everything else is too badly damaged,” said Miles.
“So…” said Sweetie. She was still trying to get her head around a moving picture with sound. “So an explosion brought me here?”
“Yes. There was a massive build-up of tetryon particles. Where they came from or how they managed to build up like that is still unknown,” said Jadzia.
“And that,” Sweetie turned to gesture at the I-beam on the table, “I broke that?”
Jadzia pursed her lips. “You didn’t break anything. The anomaly that brought you here did. It’s an upper support beam from the cargo bay. You would need a tremendous amount of energy to melt duranium.”
“I wish I could remember what happened in Ponyville—” Sweetie clapped a hoof over her mouth. “Oh no. I hope this thing didn’t explode like that in Ponyville.” She slumped back on her haunches. The destructive force would be devastating in a town where everything was made of wood, clay, and straw.
“I’m not sure it did,” said Jadzia, as she knelt next to Sweetie. “I believe the anomaly pulled you into it from your side. You were pulled into a subspace layer, sort of a dimension outside our normal space and time. How all of that energy coalesced in our cargo bay is a mystery.”
“R-really? How do you know?”
“I don’t know for sure,” said Jadzia. “This is my hypothesis. We know tetryon particles exist in subspace. We also know when they come into normal space they are unstable. Usually, they demolecularize. But… that didn’t happen this time. They concentrated instead, which cannot happen normally.”
“So what did that?” asked Sweetie.
“We don’t know yet. The support beam over there is giving off an unusual resonance. I’m hoping I can use it to figure out what happened and maybe even find your home,” said Jadzia.
“Too bad Princess Twilight didn’t get sent here. She’s good at science and would understand this.” Sweetie sighed and stood up. “So what do we do now?”
“I want to check a few things and then I will have you try something.” Jadzia joined Miles at the workstation. They were conversing quickly using terms Sweetie couldn’t understand. She tuned them out.
There was a level of unease in the lab. Something felt off about the I-beam on the table. Maybe it was the metallic table. Or maybe it was because it seemed out of place. Or maybe it was the size. It was taller than she was. She couldn’t even imagine what that thing must weigh.
Sweetie took a few steps closer to the center. As she approached she heard a rumbling noise, similar to the sound of the wind blowing in her face.
She stopped abruptly a few steps away from the I-beam. The noise in her ears was intense. She couldn’t hear anything else. She felt somewhat sick to her stomach, and there was cold sweat under her forelock.
With each step backward the intensity dropped. When she reached Jadzia and Miles, only a mild case of discomfort remained.
“I think you should get rid of that thing,” said Sweetie, interrupting their conversion.
“The support beam?” asked Miles. “We probably will. It’s useless once we’re done with it here.”
“Why do you think we should get rid of it, Sweetie?” asked Jadzia with a slightly confused expression.
“I don’t like it,” said Sweetie. “It’s not right. It makes me feel sick.”
Miles and Jadzia shared an alarmed look as they both took out their tricorders.
“I’m not reading anything other than the resonance frequency,” said Miles. He frowned as he stared intently at his tricorder. “Hang on…” He looked from his tricorder to his workstation. “The signal now reads as -30 dBm.”
“That’s a drastic increase from the original scan,” said Jadzia. “UHF now. Chief, look at this.” Jadzia pointed to a line graph on her workstation. “Internal sensors indicate this signal peaked at -20 dBm a few minutes ago. And here,” she pointed to the near vertical line on the graph, “at exactly 0910 hours; the moment we walked in the lab.”
“You’re saying we are somehow causing this signal to spike?” asked Miles.
Jadzia pointed to Sweetie. “She is. She was over there moments ago when it was at its strongest. And she reacted to it. Sweetie Belle and this resonance signal are somehow linked.”
“So if I move against the wall, the signal will be weaker?” asked Sweetie as she pressed herself against the wall behind Jadzia and MIles.
Jadzia nodded. “That dropped the strength by 1.5 dBm.”
“So I’m linked to a piece of metal,” said Sweetie flatly. “And it makes me feel sick.”
“It seems so. We’re still missing some pieces to this puzzle, however.
“You know… I wonder…” Jadzia glanced at her tricorder. “Sweetie, do you think your levitation ability can lift that support beam?”
Sweetie stopped herself from correcting Jadzia. They were uncomfortable with the idea of magic despite all of the magical objects they had. This was more than an ability. An ability is like being good at math or something.
“Sweetie?” asked Jadzia. Her voice was soft, but there was a note of insistence in it.
“Huh? Oh, um… probably not. It looks pretty heavy.”
“Give it a try. I want to test a hypothesis,” insisted Jadzia.
Lifting heavy objects was something Sweetie wasn’t particularly good at. It always took her more effort than teleporting, but most unicorns were the other way around. Snips and Snails often won competitions for lifting heavy objects with their magic. Sweetie often stayed out of their lunch-room impromptu competitions unless it involved teleporting the greatest distance or enchanting an item to do simple actions.
“Okay,” said Sweetie as she looked at the support beam. “Here goes nothing—” She felt her magic take a firm grip over the beam. Energy flowed from her and from all around her. She lifted the object as easily as she might lift a twig.
“Blimey,” said Miles. He sounded so far away. His voice echoed in her mind. She couldn’t be certain he was there or in her mind. Or maybe it was all in her mind and nothing was real…
As reality washed away before her, Sweetie kept her grip on the beam. It was so easy to do. A high-pitched rhythmic pulse echoed all around the lab. It was almost musical like tapping the highest key on a piano in 4/4 time.
The tempo never changed, but the longer Sweetie held on with her magic, the louder the pulse got. A warm feeling washed over Sweetie’s body as she held it. Jadzia said something, but she couldn’t make it out over the notes.
A particularly loud pulse surged through Sweetie sending vibrations down her horn. The intensity doubled and a second set of vibrations went down her horn, into her jaw, causing a terrible sensation in her teeth. The next pulse she felt over her whole body, down to her hooves. Sweetie abruptly released her magic with a yep of pain. The steel beam crashed into the table below it which collapsed under the sudden impact.
Sweetie hunched over, panting. Her head was pounding. Pain throbbed from her horn through her whole body.
“Sweetie?” Jadzia’s voice echoed.
As she raised her head to look for Jadzia, the room turned on its side. She spread her legs to steady herself, but everything was spinning too fast. She had a distinct and reminiscent feeling of falling. She cried out in pain as her left side slammed into the floor. As her vision dimmed the last thing she saw were two black boots worn by Jadzia.
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I always thought the no currency thing to be silly and confusing.
No doubt Quark would pay her a small pittance to be a talking pony for a pony show. Or perhaps get her to sing for the patrons. Then crew, especially, Odo, would get involved about child exploitation.
12038248
When you have replicators making free stuff on demand, of course it's easy to have no money. Outside the Federation, you need money.
12037546
Odo would most certainly want to talk to her about that.
I wonder why this is rated 'M?' That severely reduces the number of people who see it. I haven't seen anything even close to that rating and can't think of much that would push it past 'T' generally and even less that couldn't be put in side story chapters in a separate 'M' fic.
12038280
TBH it might be rated too high. There's stuff coming up later that I'm not sure about.
12038285
No harm in having it be T until then... Borderline issues are usually fine to be T, unless you have gratuitous sex scenes or something, and again something like that can be a side chapter elsewhere.
Miles: If he is behind this, I might just slug him.
Jadzia: Do you think you could surprise him like Benjamin did?
Sweetie: Who are you talking about?
*Miles & Jadzia tell her about Q*
Sweetie: He reminds me of Discord. But he's a good guy these days. He wouldn't send me away without telling me.
12038285
) it should be fine to mark this as teen so long as borderline cases are noted somewhere, either in the description or in the chapter notes before the chapter. Of course, this is just my opinion on the matter, so it could very much be wrong.
I figure that so long as this story remains within the bounds of most DS9 episodes, it should be fine. Sure, the show can get quite dark sometimes, but it's usually 'the horrors of war' or 'the horrors of politics'. As long as there isn't any gratuitous depictions of gore (or paperwork
Anyway, thinking of 'the horrors of politics' reminds me of Kai Winn. I wonder how Sweetie would react to her, or worse, what Kai Winn would do.
12038309
There's a horrifying thought.
Yes I think I will rerate it to T. There is stuff much later, but after reading through that again, I think it's fine as Teen. Some of the more... explicit scenes are in the scraps folder anyway.
So far, fantastic read! We have a mystery setup in the works. And of course, you know she federation personel will be dying to understand how pony magic works. Can't wait to see more!
Loving it so far, thank you for writing this! A nice coincidence for me - over the last year-ish I've been watching through DS9 for the first time with my housemates. We just finished season 6.
Nicely done! Interesting about the end and i can understand the akwardness between them.
Also, Pardon about the thought thing
Good flow of the story. The characters feel real, as is the bonding between Jadzia and Sweetie Belle.
This is a good read.
Oh, great, another crossover. I have so very little interest in reading... reading...
...
DS9, you say?
...
*Imagines Sweetie Belle having breakfast with 'plain, simple Garak' or getting caught up in one of Quark's 'get rich quick' schemes*
*Quietly adds to bookshelf for alerts.*
May the Prophets guide her.
EDIT:
Suddenly I want to see Quark try to teach CMC the Rules of Acquisition. You know, for their cutie marks. Also, Sweetie should (unwittingly) take a nap in Odo's bucket. Bonus points if Kira stops him from doing anything about it because it's too cute to ruin.
Well, Sweetie is getting ever more confusing in her interactions with the local reality, unless that mass is acting as a thaumic balancer for Sweeties existancedue to the particles reactions. That was an awful lot of power flowing around there which isnt all that unexpected for an in universe wormhole, and definitely not unexpected for temporal or dimentional transitions, never mind reality transitions. Given the purity of the emmisions, the tiny amount of pure energy released causing the damage would more likely be a replicator teleport equivalent than pushing an unaltered singular mass through a formed passageway?
Next time in the Medical Bay. What seems to be the nature of the Medical emergancy?
If they don't use cow milk or chicken eggs, then why do they keep them? Also don't baked goods use eggs? Not saying that they can't be different or that Sweetie might not know, just saying those are things.
That aside, keep it up!
12038309
No not paperwork! Think of the kids!
An enjoyable story thus far. I've noticed a lack of DS9 stories on the site. A few minor grammatical errors, but nothing too bad. Looking forward to the next chapter!
Why do they seem so nonplus about sweetie bell using magic?
12038467
I am retconning this a little. I decided to write them closer to actual horses as far as things they will eat.
I know in FiM they keep cows and chickens, and some ponies even fish (none of which makes any sense).
Technology vs Equestrian Magic, which will break first?
Since this is Sweetie Belle we're talking about, when she uses the replicator to make a glass of orange juice, it come out as a glass with lumps of charcoal.
As for retconning to match what horses & ponies will eat, you'd be surprised at how many here (basically anyone who are experienced with raising equines) will inform you that horses will indeed eat meat if given the chance. The show hinted at such, so it's better to stick with that. The milk they used in MLP came from the cows and eggs from chickens--since both are essential for baking....
Although... we're STILL talking about Sweetie Belle here, so -- her assumptions might explain a lot about her culinary skills. 
cdn-img.fimfiction.net/story/xi1q-1432569178-194058-full
Ah! Mystery solved!
Sweetie Belle, and other ponies are Kryptonians.
And she just invented kryptonite.
Isn't Sweety Bell to big?
12038630
I have horses. Can they eat meat? Yes. Will they? In some circumstances, yes. Some domestic horses will eat whatever you give them. Horses are herbivores (98% of the time). Horse owners should not give their horses burgers, chicken nuggets, etc. It's not good for them. They can't properly digest it.
Eggs and milk are not essential for baking. It's easy to use alternatives. Even cheese can be made without dairy. See vegan baking for more.
But this is all besides the point. The point is ponies have a different culture. And from that a cultural identity. To do this, I have to retcon and world-build. Hence the AU tag. This is all going somewhere.
As for Sweetie's culinary skills... lol that might come into play. She is older here so maybe she improved...
12038639
She's roughly the size of an actual pony. She's bigger than a miniature horse, but much smaller than a horse. Which is to say she is shorter than 14.2 hands or 58 inches at the withers. She is roughly 9.2 hands or 36.8 inches tall at the withers (this puts her head level with the average adult's mid-torso area) making her a little shorter than the average Shetland pony. She is way less chonky than a Shetland pony though. She doesn't weigh anything close to what they weigh on average.
Very good!!!
Oh Miles O'Brein,,,,
12038661I was going with the shows measurement she would just below his hips
If Sweetie Belle enjoys coffee, just wait until she tries raktajino!
12038728
With the measurements I gave her withers would be right below my hip, and her head would come up to my lower ribcage. If her head is supposed to be below my hip... that would make her the size of a medium-sized dog. That would be in line with her size as a filly. But she's a young mare and fully grown in this story.
12038740
Why did they immedietly believe her to be sapient? She could just be a normal horse with a horn.
12038889
Fixed. Thank you
12038839
Basically this.
Miles O'Brien says right after, "Assuming that a unicron can tell us anything."
Ohhhh dis one's gonna be goooooood.
Tracking!
Logged under, favorites. Proceed...
A great work! Love to read more soon.
This is lovely to read.
Well this is... odd.
Oh. oh no. foreshadowing of some kind maybe? Or maybe I’m reading into this too much.
12038652
Fair enough. World Building is key after all. That said, I am on the opposite side of the Pony Omnivore issue. When I picture a pony fishing, I always remember Hondo Flanks. You know, Sweetie Belle's Father?
I wonder if Discord is going to make his chimeric self present on DS9. And if so, is Space Jesus...I mean Benjamin Sisko going to punch him out?
Discord: *lays on the floor while picks up tooth his and screwing it back into his mouth* Celestia never hit me.
Sisko: *Looms over the downed Discord* I'm not Celestia!