Short Stories

by Catalysts Cradle

3. Quantum Leap, feat. Twilight Sparkle, Fluttershy

Prompt: This is the last line of a story: She closed the gate behind her, confident she would never need to open it again. Your prompt is to write the sequel.

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“Wow, so you mean that somewhere out there, there’s a version of me who’s not so timid and shy?” Fluttershy asked. She leaned across the table enthralled by Twilight’s story. Her hooves idly grabbed a carrot from the table, feeding it to the bunny rabbit in her lap.

“Yeah. but...” Twilight paused to take a sip of tea, trying to decide how much to tell Fluttershy, “you were kind of a jerk in that dimension.”

“Oh.” Fluttershy whimpered, dreading what her alternate self may have done. “Was it as bad as after I went to Iron Will’s seminar?”

“It was worse.”

Fluttershy squeaked and hid behind her mane.

“That was one of the sadder dimensions that I visited,” Twilight continued. She sighed, remembering the conversations she had will all of her friends’ alternate selves. “In that reality, the popular fillies and colts in flight school didn’t bully you; you all bullied Rainbow Dash.”

“I was a bully to Rainbow Dash!” Fluttershy cringed, clutching her pet rabbit close to her chest.

“Yeah,” replied Twilight. “It really destroyed her confidence. She was never able to do the sonic rainboom. And without that, Pinkie never left the rock farm, Applejack never worked up the nerve to leave Manehatten, and Rarity gave up designing dresses.”

“That’s horrible,” replied Fluttershy. “If being bullied meant that we all could become friends, I guess I’m sort of glad that everypony picked on me instead of Rainbow Dash.”

Twilight smiled. “That’s why you’re my favorite Fluttershy out of all the ones I’ve met.”

Fluttershy blushed, returning Twilight’s smile. “Were all of the different universes that bad?”

“No, some were just slightly different from our reality, and in some, we were even happier and more successful that we are in this universe.” Twilight paused again, looking out of the window at the setting sun. “But, they just weren’t the same.

“Traveling through all of those dimensions made me realize how lucky we were to find each other. There were so many alternate realities where just some minor change stopped the six of us from coming together. In one, Rainbow Dash didn’t get kicked out of flight school, so instead of moving to Ponyville, she realized her dream of becoming a Wonderbolt. In another, Rarity dedicated herself to her work and earned an internship with Hoity Toity in Canterlot. Then there was the one where Pinkie became the CEO of a rock farming empire.

"Lost out in those alternate realities, jumping from dimension to dimension trying to find my way home, I just," Twilight paused and looked up into Fluttershy's eyes, "I really missed you girls. This reality isn't perfect. If it were, I wouldn't have tried that dimensional travel spell to fix some silly mistake. But for all its flaws, it's my home.

“What I guess I’m saying is that, the events we all look back on and regret – getting bullied, being expelled from flight school, losing out on an opportunity of a lifetime – well, those events are an important part of who we are, and without them, we don’t grow up to become the ponies we were meant to be. It’s not that we should be proud of our failures or anything, just that maybe we shouldn’t dwell on them too much.”

“As one gate closes another one opens?” added Fluttershy.

Twilight laughed. “Yeah, I guess you could put it that way,” she replied. “But I’m done opening any gates to new dimensions. I’m just glad to finally be home.”

The sound of the door being struck loud enough to rattle the hinges interrupted their conversation.. Fluttershy got up from her seat to answer.

“Who’s knocking so loudly?” asked Twilight, following her friend toward the back door.

“Oh, that must be Angel,” replied Fluttershy.

“Angel?” Twilight looked back at the small bunny following them. “But I thought—”

As soon as Fluttershy opened the door, a giant grizzly leapt across the threshold, tackling her to the ground.

Twilight screamed and readied her magic, until she heard the sound of Fluttershy’s laughter.

“Aw, I love you too, Angel Bear,” Fluttershy said as she playfully wrestled with the giant beast. The bear licked her face then sat back on its hind legs, towering over the two ponies.

“Isn’t he so cute when he begs,” Fluttershy said to Twilight. She turned back to the grizzly. “Okay, since you’ve been such a good boy today, you get a snack.”

Fluttershy trotted over to the bunny rabbit, and cradled it in her arms. “I’m sorry, Mr. Bun-Bun,” she whispered softly as she twisted her hooves, snapping the little one’s neck. She carried the limp body over to the bear, who swallowed the carcass in one bite.

Twilight looked at the entire scene aghast. Maybe I need might need to open that gate again after all, she thought.