There was a point in my life where the possible collided with the impossible. A part of me still contemplates the possibility that this whole experience was simply a hallucination brought upon by the illness I suffered from at the time. Still...I believe it's true. I believe I met her. My sister Tanya does too. Tanya's the only other person on the planet who witnessed the impossible alongside me. She's absolutely sure that what we witnessed was real. I hope it was. I believe it was. The memory still hurts me...but it also brings me comfort. I miss her; for she was mine to protect, if only for a short period of time. She was somebody who relied on me. She was somebody who fell in love with me. She was my perfect girl. My perfect, impossible girl.
I had just finished high school when I decided to take the trip deep into the New England countryside. My graduation had taken place a few days earlier and I was still feeling that "beginning of a new era" buzz that all high school graduates tend to feel. The only downside was that I had found myself struck with a terribly annoying cold. My mother told me that spending some time in the country would be a good way to get over the cold. I decided to take her advice.
It had been a surprisingly cool day when I departed from the city and headed into the country. I was headed to a cabin that my family owned on a simple spot of land. A friend of the family maintained the home and kept it in good condition when it wasn't being used. Mom had forced me to take Tanya along so I would have company. Tanya wasn't at all pleased about having to accompany me on this trip and I was equally displeased. I would have preferred to bring along one of my friends, but Mom had this strange paranoia that my friends would bring along some drugs and everything would go to hell (yeah, she's one of those moms).
An unexpected storm appeared as I drove my way through one of the New England forests. Tanya was busy listening to her iPod while I directed the car down the lonely road. We were only a few minutes away from the cabin. Our family friend, Mr. Franco, would be meeting us there to give us the keys and such. Night had fallen and now I could only see a few feet in front of the car. I made sure to drive carefully and slowly through the rainy terrain.
"Are we there yet?" Tanya groaned. I rolled my eyes before giving another cold-induced sneeze.
I wiped my nose with a handkerchief before answering her. "No," I replied with a somewhat bored tone. "We'll be there in a few minutes." Tanya flashed her sharp, blue eyes at me and I found myself slightly disturbed. I had to give my sister credit where credit was due: she could give an awfully good death stare when she wanted to.
"Well, hurry up. I'm tired of sitting in this stupid car of yours."
"It's not my fault that Mother Nature decided to be a bitch and send a storm our way." Tanya gave another groan before returning to her music. I turned the car around another bend when a lightning bolt flashed in the sky and was followed by a massive roar of thunder. I jumped a bit but remained calm for the most part. I had only just regained my nerves when everything went to hell.
There was another flash of lightning...only this one was different. Unlike normal lightning bolts that appeared for only a millisecond, this one lasted for much longer. It was a fat, green lightning bolt that smashed right into the center of the street just a few yards in front of my car. I slammed on the brakes and brought the car to an immediate halt. Tanya yelped as the car unexpectedly stopped.
"What the hell?!" she snapped. I didn't even bother responding to her comment. I simply sat there in my seat and stared at the green lightning bolt. It seemed to be glued to the road by some strange substance and it spun around like a piece of string being spun by a bored child. Tanya realized what I was looking at and became just as mystified as I was. "That...the...hell?!"
Suddenly, powerful winds began pounding against the exterior of the car. The downpour of rain grew even stronger and louder. Through the sounds of the storm, I could swear that I could hear a series of swirling screams. The lightning bolt was spinning so fast that it now looked more like a tornado than anything. I could feel the car rocking back and forth and I grew afraid for myself and for Tanya. My instincts told me to make the car go backwards but I found myself frozen in fear and curiosity. Then there was an explosion of light. There wasn't really a sound but more or less a deafening of sounds. Everything became unbelievably quiet for a few, painful seconds. The explosion of light was so bright that I could barely keep my eyes open. Tanya held her hands in front of her face and let out a scream of terror, though it too sounded muffled. Then...everything returned to normal.
The light vanished and so did the strange wind, screams, and swirling lightning bolt. For a moment or two, Tanya and I just sat in my car and exhaled loudly as we tried to piece together what we had just witnessed. Tanya eventually turned to me and asked, "Aaron...what-"
"I don't know, Tanya," I managed to say. "I simply don't know." After another few moments of silence, I regained the strength to start the car up again and continue our journey to the cabin.
Mr. Franco was waiting for us as we had expected. I was pleased to see that there was a garage connected to the cabin and I happily drove in. Mr. Franco proceeded to greet us, give us the keys, give us details of the surrounding areas and the nearby town, and even helped bring our belongings into the cabin. It was quite a nice cabin. I figured that Mr. Franco must certainly keep himself busy with maintaining the cabin. It was clean and neat and came with a fresh load of food and toiletries. There was even a decent internet connection. As we finished packing, Tanya retreated to her new room to get on the internet and left me alone in the living room with Mr. Franco.
"Thank you very much for your help, Mr. Franco," I said as I shook the middle-aged man's hand.
"It was my pleasure," Mr. Franco replied with a big grin on his face.
For some reason, I found myself implored to ask him about the lightning. "Mr. Franco, tell me, did you see any...weird lightning earlier?"
"Weird lightning? There's been a lot of lightning. I'm not sure what you're talking about."
"Have you seen any...well...green lightning?" A smile appeared on his face as if he had just heard a funny rumor.
"Green lightning? No, I can't say that I've seen anything like that." I wanted to tell him about what Tanya and I had witnessed but I decided to push it off as I didn't want to make myself look anymore sick than I already was.
"Okay then. Have a good night."
"You too, Aaron." Mr. Franco gave one last friendly wave before exiting through the front door and disappearing off into the storm.
I spent the next couple hours watching random shows on the television. Tanya remained in her room and didn't once come out. I figured that she was busy on Facebook or something like that. The storm had begun to let up, which is what allowed me to have a decent television signal, and I was beginning to grow sleepy. I figured that it was time to go to sleep. As I turned off the television, I thought of all the fun I would have the next day with exploring the area and such. Tanya would most likely spend the entire trip on her computer. I rolled my eyes at the thought but if that's what kept her happy and off my back then I was all for it. I was just about to head to my new room when I heard something that I didn't expect to hear: knocking at the front door.
My heart instantly began to pound. I knew that this wasn't Mr. Franco at the door. I found myself frozen in place as the knocking at the door continued. It wasn't loud, banging knocking like the type of knocking one would hear if someone were trying to break into a house, but it was more like just casual knocking. I cursed at the realization that there was no peephole in the door nor were there really any type of defensive weapons in the cabin. I walked over to the fireplace and picked up a fire poker. I then proceeded to quietly sneak my way towards the door. All the while, the casual knocking continued. I felt the urge to call out and ask for the identity of the stranger outside but couldn't find the will to do so.
Suddenly, I found myself in front of the front door. My hands were shaking as I reached for the doorknob. I slowly unlocked the door and grasped the knob. My hold on the fire poker tightened. With a deep breath, I pulled the door open.
My eyes widened with disbelief as I realized what was standing on the porch of the cabin. The fire poker fell from my hand and hit the floor with a loud clang. Standing on the porch was, I'm not kidding, a naked girl. She looked to be around my age. She had a pair of intelligent, purple eyes and long, purple hair that seemed to stretch down to her butt. She had her arms wrapped around her breasts and I used all of my willpower to prevent myself from looking down at her nether regions. She was drenched from head to toe in rainwater and was shivering something fierce.
"Sorry to bother you," said the girl with an innocent look on her face. "I don't know where I am." I was a little suspicious, coming from the city and all, but the girl appeared to be innocent enough. Besides, it's not like she had anywhere to hide any weapons. Unless she hid something in her...I wasn't willing to think of that.
I finally managed to find what words to say. "Well...come on in then. I'll get you a towel and some clean clothes," I said with a slightly awkward tone. I let the girl into the cabin and shut and locked the door behind her. I then quickly ran to the bathroom to grab a towel. As I was rummaging for the bath towels, I heard a familiar scream from the living room. I grabbed a bath towel and ran into the living room to find none other than Tanya standing there and gawking at the naked girl before her.
"Uh...hi," the girl said as she blushed a bit.
"Who the...what the...AARON!" Tanya screamed. I rushed over to the girl and threw the towel over her. The girl gave me a nod of thanks as she began to dry herself off. I then pulled Tanya aside to talk with her. "Who the hell is that, Aaron?!"
"I don't know. She just turned up at the door butt ass naked and I decided to let her in," I replied.
"Are you nuts?! You don't let random girls inside, even if they are naked!" I found myself blushing a bit.
"I promise that I did not look at her-"
"Nevermind your pervy, male nature. Why on earth did you let her in?!"
"Right now, she looks like a girl in need of assistance. I don't know who she is or how she got here but the least we can do is dry her off, give her some clothes, and get some contact information so that we can help her get back to wherever she came from." Tanya rolled her eyes.
"I bet you wouldn't have let her in so fast if she weren't naked."
"Oh shut up!" I turned away from Tanya and back to the girl. The girl had just finished drying herself off. "Let me get you some clothes!"
A few moments later, the girl was sitting comfortably on the couch wearing some of Tanya's clothes, which proved to be a perfect fit for her. I had made her a cup of hot cocoa and she was now sipping it peacefully.
"Thank you," the girl said as I sat down in a chair across from where she was sitting. Tanya was leaning against the wall with the fire poker in her hand. "I'm really grateful for you letting me in."
"No problem. You were in trouble and I helped you. It was the right thing to do," I said. "My name's Aaron and that's my sister Tanya. What's your name?" The girl suddenly clasped her forehead and let out a soft groan. "Are you okay?!" The girl removed her hand from her forehead and nodded.
"Don't worry, I'm fine...for the most part."
"For the most part?"
"You see...I don't...remember who I am."
"You don't?!"
"No." I felt like something had just punched me in the gut.
Great, I thought. I've got an amnesiac on my hands. This should be interesting. "Are you sure that you don't remember anything?" I asked. The girl rubbed her head.
"I remember...things," she said. "But they're mostly blurs. I remember a flash of light, a scream, a pair of green eyes, and...a...a green lightning bolt." My eyes widened and I heard Tanya gasp in the background. Suddenly, without warning, the girl leaned forward and lost consciousness. I ran over to her and balanced her in my arms.
"Are you okay?! Hello?! HELLO?!" I cried.
The girl awoke the following morning. I had placed her in the third bedroom of the cabin and had fallen asleep at her side. I woke up to find her staring through the bedroom window. The morning sun was shining through the glass, surrounding the girl in a fine aura.
"Oh good," I said with a smile. "You're awake." The girl turned to look at me and smiled.
"It's beautiful here," she said. I stood up and approached the window. The window faced a clearing in the forest that held a field of grass as well as a fairly large swimming hole. It was certainly the perfect forest getaway.
"Yeah."
"Do you live here?"
"Nah. My family just owns this cabin for vacation use. I haven't been here since I was like...eight maybe. I'm here now to recover from a cold as well as get some time away from the city." I thought back to the previous night and decided to question her some more. "Would you mind me asking you some more questions?" The girl shook her head and sat down on the edge of the bed. "Are you sure that you don't remember anything?"
The girl sighed. "No," she replied. "I know nothing of who I am, who I know, or where I came from."
"Hmm...do you at least remember any immediate things that happened right before you arrived here at the cabin?" The girl scratched her chin. I noticed a spark in her eyes.
"I...I think I remember some things. I remember walking through the rain. It was cold. Everything was blurry. I think I remember there being a flash of light...and...I think...I think...that's it."
"That's it?"
"Yeah. I just remember walking through the rain until I stumbled upon your cabin. Everything else is either blank or mush."
"Well, you're welcome to stay here with Tanya and me until you're able to get your memories back."
"Thank you, Aaron."
"No problem...er...we've got to make a name for you until you get your memories back. I don't want to call you girl." The girl laughed at my remark. "So, what do you want to be called then?"
"Twi," she quickly responded. I was a bit surprised by her sudden answer.
"That was fast," I said.
"I don't know why I picked it. It just...feels right."
"Maybe that was a nickname for you. You might already be starting to regain your memories!"
"I hope so." I extended a hand to her to help her up.
"Come on, Twi," I said with a chuckle. "You look like you could use some breakfast."
"ARE YOU FREAKING INSANE?!" Tanya snapped once she and I were far enough from the cabin. Twi was currently inside eating her way through some bacon and eggs. I had noticed that Twi had some problem with silverware and I had to quickly teach her how to use them. I figured this was some effect of her amnesia. "We can't look after some strange girl we barely know!"
"Look, Tanya, she's somebody that needs our help. We don't know who she is and I have a feeling that being here is starting to bring back some of her memories. This morning, she selected a name for herself quicker than I could. I think we need to help her," I argued.
"What if she's dangerous?"
"I don't think she's dangerous."
"How can you be so sure?"
"I just...feel it."
"Uh huh. Or maybe you're just falling in love with her."
"Screw off, Tanya. This has nothing to do with crushes or attraction or anything like that. I'm just trying to be a decent human being. Anyone else would kick her out or send her on her way like a piece of trash."
"Most of those people have actual common sense, something you clearly are completely devoid of."
I facepalmed and let out an annoyed sigh. "You don't have to worry yourself about her, Tanya. I'm the one who's willing to help her so I'm going to be in charge of looking after her while we're here."
Tanya rolled her eyes and gave a few sighs before looking at me with a look of agreement. "Fine," she snorted in reply. "She's your problem...but I'm going to keep my eye on her." She then turned around and began heading back to the cabin.
"She seems upset," came a voice from the trees. I jumped as Twi emerged.
"Twi!" I gasped. "How...how long have you been standing there?"
"Long enough to know that your sister isn't very fond of me." An uncomfortably guilty look appeared on her face.
"Don't worry yourself about Tanya. She's not exactly fond of me either, and I'm her brother for Christ's sake." Twi gave a quiet laugh at my quip.
"She's probably not too excited to be here with you in the first place, I imagine."
"Yeah. The only reason she's here is because our mom made her come along to keep me company. I'm not too thrilled about the situation either. Tanya and I have never truly seen eye-to-eye."
"That's sad. Siblings should have a great deal of love and respect for each other. My brother and I are very close." My eyes widened in reaction to what I had just heard.
"What did you just say?!" I gasped. Twi's eyes widened too as she put the pieces together.
"I remember that I have a brother!" she replied with a smile.
"This is good! This is really, really good! Do you remember anything else?"
Twi scratched her chin and gave a slight nod. "Some bits and pieces. I remember having an older brother, we're very close, and...he has blue hair."
"Blue hair? Your brother must have some strange tastes in fashion."
"Maybe. Oh...and I remember that he has a position of authority."
"Position of authority, huh? Is that it?" Twi nodded in response to my question. "It's not a lot to go on but at least it's a sign that you're starting to regain your memories." A look of uncertainty appeared on Twi's face. I stepped closer to her. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing...it's just...I have this uneasy feeling," she replied.
"About what?" I asked.
"I'm not sure. I have this feeling that one of the things I've forgotten is something really important. It's like I've left something behind."
For some reason, I felt the urge to take her hand. She looked straight at me with those big, purple eyes of hers. "Don't worry. I'm sure everything's fine and that you'll remember everything in no time. Until then, I'm going to take care of you."
"You don't have to do this for me, Aaron. You barely know me."
"I know. But it feels right. It feels right for me to help you." A small smile appeared on Twi's face. "But, in the case that you turn out to be some psychopath trying to find some new victims, my sister's got my eye on you and she's hidden the fire poker somewhere in her room." I smiled at her and Twi surprisingly laughed at my somewhat dark comment.
"Don't worry. I have no urge to cut you up or anything like that. However, if it turns out that my memories reveal me to actually be a serial killer than you better keep that fire poker hidden from me." I couldn't help but chuckle at her comment. I looked towards the swimming hole and examined the relaxing aura of the forest around us.
"You want to go for a walk? It's the perfect weather to do so," I offered.
"I would like that," Twi replied.
Twi and I spent the rest of the day walking through the surrounding forest and just talking about random topics. I told her about my family, my graduation from high school, and my hopes and goals for the future. I occasionally complained to her about the cold that I currently had, which I was happy to see was quickly fading away. Twi didn't talk much. She simply listened to my stories with perfect attention. I figured that since she barely had any, if any, memories to tell me about she was willing to listen to my memories. By the time we returned to the cabin, night was beginning to fall. I figured that this would be a good night to have a campfire. So I built a campfire, grilled some hamburgers on the outside stove, and set up some chairs for Tanya, Twi, and me to sit in. Night had completely fallen by the time I had finished making dinner and now the only sources of light were the electric lights shining through the cabin's windows and the fire that Twi, Tanya, and I were sitting around.
"This is really good," Twi exclaimed as she took another bite of her hamburger.
"I don't consider myself that great of a cook but I'm glad that you're enjoying my food," I said.
"You act as if you've never had a hamburger before," Tanya said suspiciously as she eyed Twi.
"Actually, I don't think I have," Twi replied.
"How can you be so sure? I mean with the amnesia and all."
"In the case of amnesia, familiar tastes, smells, items, and such can usually help trigger old memories. I don't recognize the taste of this hamburger, which means that it's safe to assume that I've never had a hamburger before."
"You seem quite well learned on the topic of amnesia for someone who's currently suffering from amnesia."
Twi suddenly fell silent. She quietly placed her hamburger down on her plate. "It's weird, I know. But I'm starting to remember random facts. I guess I must have read a lot before losing my memories," Twi concluded.
"It's still not much but it's a start," I added.
"What other facts do you know of?" Tanya questioned.
"I don't know entire things. Most of the facts are muddled and hardly make sense," Twi replied. "For example, did you know that dragons can grow quickly by greedily hoarding random objects?" Tanya snorted with laughter and I gave her my own death stare, which wasn't nearly as threatening as hers.
"That sounds like something stolen straight out of a kid's show," Tanya laughed. Twi looked down shamefully.
"Tanya, apologize to Twi," I ordered.
"For what?"
"You've hurt her feelings."
"Oh come off it! You've got to admit, that sounds pretty funny."
"No, it doesn't. Twi's trying to regain her memories and these random facts may help her. I don't care how far-fetched they sound."
Tanya rolled her eyes before turning back to Twi. "Fine. I'm sorry, Twi," Tanya groaned.
"Say it like you mean it, Tanya!" I snapped.
"Who do you think you are? Dad?"
"I don't think I'm anyone but myself! You're simply just being rude!" Tanya fell silent before turning her gaze between me and Twi.
"Fine. I see that I'm not wanted here. Granted, I'm not too wild about being here anyway." Tanya stood up and threw what remained of her hamburger as well as her plate into the fire. "It was a crummy hamburger anyway." Tanya then stormed back into the cabin.
Once Tanya was gone, I turned my attention back to Twi. "Twi-"
"I'm sorry for doing this to you. I'm only a burden for you that's creating an even bigger rift between you and your sister," Twi said.
"No. Twi-" Twi stood up and placed her plate in the chair she had been sitting in.
"I'm not hungry anymore. I think I'm going to head to bed." Before I could say anything else, Twi disappeared into the cabin.
I sat outside for a few more moments before taking my plate and Twi's plate and throwing them in the trash. I then put out the fire and retreated into the cabin.
I woke up in the middle of the night to the sound of terrified screaming. I raced out of my room and followed the screaming to Twi's room. I burst into the room to find Twi lying in bed and screaming in her sleep. I ran over to her and began to shake her awake.
"Twi! Wake up! It's just a nightmare! It's just a nightmare! Wake up! WAKE UP!" I cried. Finally, I managed to shake Twi out of her nightmare. Her eyes shot open and she looked straight up at me. Tears began rolling down her face and she proceeded to lean into me and sob frantically.
"It was horrible! I was so scared!" she cried. I heard a yawn and turned to see Tanya appear in the doorway.
"What's going on?" she asked.
"Go and get Twi some water from the kitchen. Everything's fine. She just had a bad dream," I replied. Tanya sighed before turning and heading into the kitchen to get the water. I turned back to Twi and patted her head softly. "Everything's okay, Twi. It was just a bad dream."
"No!" she gasped as she sat up and looked at me. "It felt so real!"
"Was it a memory?"
"No...it didn't feel like a memory. It felt like I was watching something that was happening right now!" Tanya returned with the water and handed it to Twi.
"Here you go," said Tanya.
"Thank you," Twi said as she took the water and practically inhaled it.
"What did you see in this nightmare?" I asked. Twi began to shake as she began recounting the memory.
"I was in a forest," she explained. "It looked kind of like this forest and yet it didn't. It must have been some ways away from here. Anyway, I was walking through this forest. It was the dead of night and it was completely dark. There was no moon out. Then, I saw something moving about in the darkness. I approached it and found myself coming across a boy...a young, naked boy."
"What did the boy look like?"
"He was fair skinned, like us. He looked to be around Tanya's age, maybe a bit younger. He had spiky, green hair and green eyes. He had several cuts and bruises on his body and he was sweating a lot. He looked to be completely lost and afraid. Then, someone came out of the darkness and attacked him."
"Who?"
"I don't know. I couldn't really see them, but I could tell that it was a woman. The woman tackled the boy and tied his hands and legs. She told him...she told him that it was wrong for him to try and get away. She laughed at him. Oh...damn that laugh of hers! Anyway, she told him that it was a bad move for him to try and escape her. She said that she was going to keep him alive until they found her."
"Found who?"
"I don't know. The woman never mentioned this other person's name but rather kept saying her. The woman said that once they found her she would kill him first and her second. Then...then she said that she would have to punish him. She pulled out a long, jagged stick...and...she stuck it straight up his...I can't! I don't want to remember that!" Twi fell back onto her pillow and buried her face into her hands.
"That's one screwed up nightmare," Tanya said.
"That's not helping, Tanya," I sighed.
"Whatever. I'm going back to bed. Sweet dreams." Tanya then yawned as she turned away and left the room.
"Everything's going to be fine, Twi," I said as I turned back to Twi.
"That poor boy," Twi cried from behind her hands. "That poor boy."
Twi eventually managed to fall back to sleep with me by her side. I had then retreated to my own room to get some sleep. I woke up to the smell of bacon and eggs the following morning. After getting dressed, I trudged into the kitchen and living room area to find Tanya sitting at the table and munching on a bacon and egg toast sandwich.
"Morning," she said as she noticed my presence. "There's some leftover food on the counter if you want anything." I nodded as a sign of thanks and grabbed a plate of bacon and eggs. I proceeded to sit down in the chair opposite to the side of the table where Tanya was sitting.
As I ate my breakfast, I noticed that Tanya appeared to be thinking of something. "Something on your mind?" I asked. Tanya simply shook her head before taking another bite out of her sandwich. "Are you sure?"
"I'm fine, Aaron. In case you're wondering, Twi's out at the swimming hole."
"I didn't even know she was awake yet."
"She woke up a little bit after I did. I offered her some breakfast but she said no and walked out to the swimming hole."
I looked out the nearby window and just barely managed to make out the silhouette of Twi moving about in the water of the swimming hole. "Was she all right when you saw her?"
"A bit tired but mostly fine. I figured that nightmare of hers probably took a toll on her."
"Yeah." Tanya suddenly gave a nervous laugh. "What?"
"Oh...it's nothing."
"Tell me."
"It...it's just that a lot of this sounds familiar."
"What does?"
"Things Twi's describing: an older brother with blue hair with a position of authority, a young boy with green hair, and even her own nickname. They all sound familiar; like I've heard something similar to those things somewhere before."
"How can they sound familiar? We only met Twi two nights ago."
"Exactly my point. I think there's something strange about Twi."
"You're just being suspicious again."
"And you aren't? Are you telling me that you don't have one ounce of curiosity about her forgotten life?"
"No. Of course I'm interested in learning more about her. She's quite a mystery to me as well."
"Then how come you're not as suspicious as me? You're so open and welcoming to her."
"It...it's complicated. It just feels right to trust her; and don't you dare say it's love or any of that crap!"
Tanya smiled and raised her hands in defense. "Hey, I'm not making any accusations."
"Yeah you are. I know you."
Tanya gave another laugh and smiled. "Okay, maybe I'm making a few." I smiled at my sister and gave a calm chuckle. "I heard her say something strange last night."
"Twi? When she'd say something strange aside from talking about the nightmare?" I asked.
"I heard her talking in her sleep when I woke up this morning," Tanya replied. "She kept begging somebody to not hurt a certain him. She kept saying, 'Don't hurt him! Please, don't hurt him! Leave him out of this! Go away and never return! Leave them all alone!'"
I scratched my chin with curiosity as I took another bite of bacon. "I wonder what it means."
"I'm not entirely sure; but what I am sure of is that her memories are probably not very good." Tanya and I fell silent and proceeded to eat the remnants of our breakfast without speaking another word.
Tanya retreated to her computer after breakfast and I decided to go out to the swimming hole to talk to Twi. Twi had borrowed one of Tanya's purple swimsuits and was lying on the surface of the water. I approached the edge of the water and sat down. I remained silent for I didn't want to scare her. For a moment, I sat there and watched her lie there on the water's surface. Her long, purple hair spread out around her head and made her look like a humanoid peacock. It was during this moment of silence that I decided to examine her hair. Upon first seeing her, I had assumed that her hair's color was simply the result of her using hair dye in her past. Now, upon taking a closer inspection, I found myself strangely doubting this fact. Her hair didn't look like it had been dyed. I couldn't even see the roots. It was almost as if her hair color was natural. But this was impossible. Humans can't have naturally purple hair...could they?
Eventually, Twi let her lower half sink into the water in order to allow herself to stand up. Her back was facing towards me. I figured this was the time to make my presence known. "Hey," I said with a cheerfully awkward tone.
Twi calmly turned around and smiled at me. "Hi, Aaron," she said as she waded over to me.
"Are you feeling better?"
"A bit."
"Don't worry yourself too much. It was just a nightmare."
"And yet, I'm not entirely sure about that."
I looked around the area and examined the series of trails that led off into the surrounding forest. "Why don't we take a little trip today?" I asked.
"Aren't you already on a trip?" Twi asked with a smirk.
"Ha ha. Very funny. No, I meant get out of the forest for a bit. I think you, Tanya, and I could use some time away from that cabin."
"Where are we going to go?"
"The caretaker of the cabin, Mr. Franco, told me about a quaint old town that's just a half-hour's drive from here. I haven't been to a small town in a while so I think it would be interesting. I could use another change in scenery, you could probably use some time away from the forest after that nightmare, and Tanya desperately needs some time away from the damn computer of hers."
Twi gave a chuckle before pulling herself out of the water. "Sure, I'm up for it," she said happily.
"Good!" I exclaimed. "Just go dry yourself off and change while I get the computer addict." Twi giggled as she made her way back towards the cabin.
It took some convincing but I eventually managed to get Tanya to go with Twi and me. Everybody was silent during the time we spent on the road. Tanya spent the whole trip listening to her iPod while Twi just watched the trees fly by as we drove down the road. We eventually arrived at the town. Twi was instantly enchanted by the sight of the town. It was certainly a cute little place that just reeked of colonial heritage. I parked the car along a street of small shops and diners. Tanya stored her iPod in her pocket and began looking through the windows of the shops.
"I'm honestly surprised," she said with a smirk. "There's actually quite a lot to see here."
"See? Would I lie to you?" I asked.
"Yes."
"Shut up." Twi, Tanya, and I continued down the sidewalk.
There were only a couple hundred people in the town, according to the city sign, so it wasn't an incredibly small town. We occasionally came across locals who turned out to be really nice. We had just passed a small church and cemetery when we came across the local library. Twi's attention was instantly drawn to rustic, red brick building.
"Can we go in there?" she asked.
"Sure," I replied.
"Why not?" Tanya added as she shrugged her shoulders.
The interior of the library smelled of aged paper and tangerines. An elderly librarian stood at the counter while a few locals walked amongst the shelves of books. Twi was instantly drawn to the history section while Tanya wandered off in search of the fantasy section in hopes of finding the next Dresden Files book to read. I quickly found myself alone and decided to explore.
I came across several mixed collections of books amongst the shelves. The books in the library ranged anywhere from modern series like Harry Potter and Percy Jackson to old classics like Frankenstein and Great Expectations. As I walked through the horror section, which contained mostly a collection of R.L. Stine and Stephen King books, I came across one of the local girls looking through a newspaper. She was a black girl around my age with long, curly, black hair. She seemed to be shaking her head in disgust as she examined one of the articles. "Bad news?" I asked.
She turned to look at me. "Yeah," she sighed. "A whole family living on a farm near here was brutally murdered."
"Yikes."
"This is the third series of murders to take place in the past two days! First there was this couple that was driving through the country, their car was stolen and their bodies were dumped on the side of the road, and then this old teacher that I used to know was found in a ditch on the outskirts of town."
"It looks like you've got a serial killer on your hands."
"I hope not. Our town doesn't need any killers walking around." An awkward silence then fell between us. She quickly stashed the newspaper into one of her pockets before extending her hand. "I'm Evelyn, by the way."
I extended my hand and shook hers. "Aaron," I replied.
"I haven't seen you around before. Are you new here?" Evelyn asked.
"I haven't moved here, if that's what you're thinking. My sister and I are from the city and we just came here for a change in scenery."
"Nice. Are you staying in the motel?"
"Nah. We're staying in a cabin that's about a half-hour's drive out of town. My family owns it and a family friend of ours takes care of it when we're not using it. His name's Jerry Franco. Maybe you've heard of him?"
"I know Jerry! I see him all the time at church."
"How about that? I guess I shouldn't be surprised. This looks like a town where everybody knows each other."
Evelyn smiled and let out a cute laugh. "Yeah, our town's kinda like that."
"Aaron!" called a familiar voice. I turned to see Tanya walking towards the door and beckoning me to follow her. A satisfied Twi was walking behind her. I laughed as I turned back to Evelyn.
"I guess I better go before my sister rips my head off," I chuckled.
"Okay," Evelyn giggled. "Is that other girl with you too?" I turned back to Twi and then back to Evelyn.
"Yeah. She's a...friend."
"Well, I hope you and your group enjoys your stay here."
"Thank you."
"Why don't you drop by the church at five o'clock the day after tomorrow? It's game night and there's going to be free food; and, trust me, you have not lived until you've tried my brother's lasagna."
"I do enjoy a good lasagna and I haven't had lasagna in a while. Tempting offer, I must say."
Evelyn gave another giggle. "So, should I expect to see you there?" Evelyn asked.
"Possibly," I replied.
"Come on, Aaron!" Tanya groaned.
"Bye then," I said to Evelyn as I walked over to Tanya and Twi.
"Have a nice day!" Evelyn called to me as I left.
Twi, Tanya, and I stopped at one of the local diners for lunch. Tanya and I shared a large pepperoni pizza while Twi got a cheeseburger.
"These small towns sure know how to make good food, I must say," Tanya admitted as she took a bite of pizza.
"We just got invited to the local game night," I said. I then proceeded to explain my conversation with Evelyn.
"Sounds interesting. I'd like to go," said Twi.
"Good! What about you, Tanya?"
"Maybe," Tanya replied.
"What do you have to do right now?"
"Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, the usual."
"Really? Is getting trolled by Tara Strong more important than socialization?"
"It can be a bit more entertaining."
"You're hopeless."
"I know." I gave Tanya a light shove and she shoved me back. Both of us were laughing and had wide grins on our faces.
"You see? This is how brothers and sisters should be," Twi said with a caring smile. I smiled at Twi and even Tanya smiled. I turned back to Tanya and she quickly got rid of her smile and returned to eating the pizza. I turned back to Twi and we shared a silent laugh.
We returned to the cabin feeling better than we had when we left. I decided to make another campfire and pulled out the marshmallows, Hershey's bars, and graham crackers for s'mores. The sun had begun to set by the time Twi, Tanya, and I had begun making our s'mores.
"It's been a long time since we've made s'mores," I said as I placed a roasted marshmallow in between my chocolate and graham crackers.
"I don't think we've done this since we were kids," Tanya added with a grin.
"Ah, nostalgia." I took a bite out of my s'more and turned to Twi, who had just finished devouring her own. "You must have really enjoyed yours."
Twi blushed as she turned to look at me. "I did. It was really good," Twi replied. Suddenly, Twi gasped and grabbed her forehead.
"Twi?!" I gasped. Twi began groaning with pain and shaking something fierce.
"What's going on?!" asked a surprised Tanya. I ran over to Twi and grabbed onto her shoulders.
"Twi?! Twi?! What's wrong?! Do you feel sick?!" Twi grabbed onto my arms and held them tightly. Twi then opened her eyes and looked up at me. I gasped in response.
Twi's eyes were glowing. I didn't know how to make heads or tails of it. I was certain that it wasn't a trick of the light or some strange reflection. Twi's eyes were definitely...glowing. Suddenly, Twi spoke something in a tone that sounded like a voice recorder playing something back. "S'mores, check! Now the next item of fun we have to do is Truth or Dare!" Twi stated in a nearly robotic voice.
"What the hell?" Tanya asked. Suddenly, Twi shoved me away with such strength that I nearly lost balance and fell into the fire. Twi then stood up and let out an annoyed groan.
"ENOUGH!" she screamed. "It says right here that the number one thing you're supposed to do at a slumber party is have fun! And thanks to you two, I can't check that off!"
"Slumber party?" I asked in confusion.
Tanya and I stared awkwardly as Twi continued on. "I hope you're happy! Both of you! You ruined my very first slumber party! The makeovers, s'mores, Truth or Dare, the pillow fights! I mean is there anything else that could possibly go wrong?!" Then...Twi stopped. She seemed to freeze in place for a moment. A second later, she collapsed onto the ground. I ran to her side and held her in my arms.
"Twi! Twi?! Are you okay?! Twi?!" I asked. Twi opened her eyes and I was relieved to see that they were no longer glowing.
"Aaron," she breathed. I simply sat there and watched as Twi lost consciousness.
I checked on Twi as soon as I woke up the following morning. I peeked through her bedroom door and was happy to see that she was sleeping soundly. I then walked into the kitchen to find Tanya making another round of bacon and eggs.
"More bacon and eggs?" I asked with a chuckle.
"I like bacon and eggs. Screw off if you don't want any," she said as she flipped her egg on the skillet. I sat down at the table and Tanya glanced back at me. "How's she doing?"
"She looked fine when I checked up on her. At least she didn't have any nightmares last night. Did she talk in her sleep?"
"No. She was quiet."
"That's good."
"What was up with what she said last night? What was it again? She was talking about a slumber party and us ruining it or something like that?"
"Yeah. I'm just as confused as you are."
"That's not the weirdest part though."
"What do you mean?" I asked as I raised an eyebrow.
"I swear to Christ that I've heard that dialogue before!" Tanya stated. "What Twi said last night...I can guarantee that I've heard it somewhere before."
"What are you talking about? Where could you have possibly heard it?"
"I have no idea. I just know." Tanya placed her eggs and bacon on two plates before walking over to the table. She placed a plate in front of me before sitting down with her own plate. "She must have had a really screwed up life before this."
"Don't say that!"
"Why not?"
"She may hear you!"
"Whatever. Do you think she remembers anything new?"
"Who knows? At most she might remember a slumber party that went horrible wrong."
Tanya proceeded to laugh at my remark before taking a sip of orange juice.
The rest of the day was pretty uneventful. I was pleased to finally get over my cold so I decided to go for a swim. Tanya went on the computer for a bit before taking a walk through the woods to explore. Twi woke up at around noon but appeared to have no real recollection of the previous night except for what she described as a vision of two arguing friends.
"At least you can find comfort in the fact that you're regaining your memories," I told her. She nodded before wandering off into the forest.
Once I had finished swimming, which was late in the afternoon, both Tanya and Twi returned from walking. It appeared that they had been talking for a while. I was pleased to finally see Tanya and Twi getting along to an extent. I actually didn't know what pleased me more: the fact that Twi was feeling better or Tanya's sudden full acceptance of Twi's presence with us. However, it was pretty clear that Tanya was still suspicious of Twi; and, honestly, I couldn't blame her. I myself was starting to have a few suspicions of the amnesiac girl with purple hair.
That night, Tanya decided to make pasta for dinner. While Tanya cooked the pasta and Twi talked to her, I figured that it was about time to call my mom.
"Hello?" asked my mom after the phone call was made.
"Hey Mom. It's me," I said.
"Aaron! How are you feeling?!"
"Great. The cold has finally gone away."
"See what I told you? I knew the country would help you. How's Tanya doing?"
"Surprisingly, really good. I think she's starting to enjoy it here."
"Well I hope you two don't plan on staying there for too long. Remember, Aaron, you have college to prepare for."
"I know Mom. Tanya and I aren't planning on spending the rest of our lives here."
"How's Jerry doing?"
"Mr. Franco? He was doing fine the last time I saw him. I haven't seen him since the night Tanya and I arrived so I can't say anything further than that."
"Well, don't forget to thank him again when you leave. God knows how much trouble that man goes through to take care of our cabin."
"Yeah. I'll leave him a nice tip."
Mom gave a giddy chuckle. "Have you been to town yet?"
"Yes. Tanya and I went there yesterday. I met a girl there named Evelyn who invited us to the local game night."
"Evelyn, huh? Is she around your age?"
"Yes, as a matter of fact, she is."
"You better behave yourself! I don't want to hear anything about unexpected grandchildren!"
"MOM! I wish you'd stop expecting crap like that to happen!"
"I'm sorry, dear. It's just my motherly instinct."
"Well can you tone that motherly instinct down every now and then?"
"Sorry dear. I can't. That's my job." I let out a loud groan in response.
"Pasta's ready!" Tanya called.
"Gotta go, Mom. Tanya's finished making the pasta," I said.
"Okay then. Tell Tanya that I love her," Mom said.
"I will."
"Love you, honey."
"Love you too." I then hung up the phone and headed into the kitchen to join Twi and Tanya for dinner.
That night, it was my turn to have a strange dream. I was walking through the woods in the middle of the night. I noticed a small house in the distance. I approached it and saw that the door had been kicked in. I walked inside and instantly smelled something terrible. I followed the smell over into a nearby bathroom. When I entered, I nearly threw up. Lying on the floor were three, bloody corpses: two were adults and one was a young boy who must have been at least twelve years old. I became even sicker at the realization that the boy was naked. I backed out of the room and heard the sound of talking. I followed the voices into the kitchen of the house. A fair skinned boy with spiky, green hair was sitting at the table. I noticed that he was wearing a series of bloody and torn clothes and that he was also tied to the chair he was in by thick ropes. A woman was sitting at the table. She was wearing a long, green silk dress. I couldn't make out her face but I could tell that she had tan skin and long, gray-blue hair. She was currently eating her way through what appeared to be a plate of raw meat.
"I know you're hungry but I'll feed you when I'm done eating," the woman stated. The boy with green hair gave the woman a look of pure hatred and disgust.
"You killed them," he said. "You killed them all and made me wear...his clothes!"
"At least you have clothes now. I was getting tired of looking at your ass all day." The woman gave a cold chuckle. "Speaking of that, how is it doing?" The boy seemed to cringe at the sound of the woman's words. "Does it still hurt? Good. That'll teach you. And, remember, the punishment stick will always be waiting for you whenever you try to escape me."
"You'll never win. You don't even know where she is."
"She's in the general area. I can smell her; and I will kill as many of these humans that I need to in order to get to her! Her lovey-dovey brother and sister-in-law aren't here to keep her safe now. There's just me, you, and her. Nothing can protect her from me; and I cannot wait for that moment of satisfaction when I'm finally rid of you and her."
"Then what will you do? Last time I checked, you're stuck here just like her and me."
"I'll find my way back. And when I do, Canterlot will be waiting for me."
I felt a sudden pull and found myself back in my bed in the cabin. I was sweating something fierce. I got up and looked at the clock. It was only a little past four in the morning. "Canterlot...where have I heard that before?" I asked myself as I began heading to the bathroom to wash my face.
I woke up the next morning to find Twi and Tanya outside. Tanya was telling a funny story about one of her ex-boyfriends and all the while trying to comb her sandy brown hair. "Good morning, you two," I said as I made my way over to them.
"Morning!" said Twi cheerfully.
"You seem happy about something."
"No particular reason. I just feel happy."
"That's good. You excited for tonight?"
"For what?" Tanya asked.
"The game night in town," I replied. "Remember?"
"Oh yeah! I remember now! Yeah, I'm looking forward to it, I guess."
Twi stood up and began walking back to the cabin. "I'm thirsty. Does anybody else want anything?" she asked.
"Nah," Tanya and I said simultaneously. Twi giggled as she disappeared into the cabin. I quickly walked up to Tanya and sat down in the chair next to hers.
"I need to talk to you," I said.
"What's up?" asked Tanya.
"I had a nightmare last night."
"And?"
"And it involved the same boy from Twi's nightmare."
"No way!"
"Yes way! It was a boy with spiky, green hair. Just like the boy in Twi's dream."
"It's probably just some coincidence."
"No, it's more than that. This nightmare...it felt so real."
"Whatever. So you're having nightmares like Twi. At least you're not screaming your lungs out in the middle of the night."
"Don't tell Twi about this," I ordered.
"Why?" Tanya asked.
"I don't want to worry her."
"Whatever." A second later, Twi emerged from the cabin with a glass of apple juice in her hand.
"Did I miss anything?" she asked.
"No," I replied. "Nothing at all."
It was around four o'clock in the afternoon when we set out for town. I wanted to get to the church a bit early. I parked my car in the front of the church when we arrived and got out to see that a few people were beginning to show up. We followed the locals behind the church to a secondary building. Inside the building, a series of games had been set up alongside several tables and a dance floor.
"You'd think this were a big event," said Tanya.
"That's because it is," said a familiar voice. Tanya, Twi, and I turned around to see Evelyn standing there with a cute grin on her face. "We love our game nights. It's a great social gathering for us."
"Might I suggest an outlet mall or something?" Evelyn giggled at Tanya's comment.
"Well, I'm glad you were able to come, Aaron. Would you be so kind as to introduce me to your group?"
"Ah, yes," I said. "Evelyn, this is my sister Tanya and our friend Twi."
"Nice to meet you," said Evelyn as she shook Tanya's and Twi's hands.
"Same here," said Twi.
"You too," said Tanya.
"Now I know it's a bit early so why don't you walk around and meet some of the other locals while the games are being set up?" Evelyn suggested. "Oh and don't forget to enjoy yourselves, of course."
"We will," I said as Evelyn walked off to talk to somebody else.
"You might just be going home with a new girlfriend, Aaron," Tanya teased.
"Oh shut up, Tanya," I said as I gave my sister a light shove. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Twi give a strange face.
More locals continued to show up as time progressed and by five o'clock the building was surprisingly packed. Evelyn hadn't been wrong about game nights being a big deal in this town. Tanya found a group of teenage locals to play some games with while I found myself running across many colorful characters that lived in the town. After running into a woman with a strange obsession with lemons, I found myself running into Mr. Franco.
"Aaron! How are you?" he asked as we shook hands.
"Good. Great. Splendid," I replied.
"Enjoying your stay?"
"It's been...interesting, but in a good way."
"Well that's good. Well, I best go and catch up with some of my friends. Give your parents my best the next time you speak with them."
"I will." I watched as Mr. Franco disappeared into the crowd. I walked over to a nearby punch bowl. After grabbing a cup of purple punch, I sat down at a nearby, empty table and examined the scene. I couldn't help but chuckle. With the games, punch, and diverse people I was beginning to feel like I was back at my eighth grade prom.
"Mind if I join you?" asked a familiar voice. I looked to see Twi standing before me.
"Not at all. Sit down," I replied. Twi gave a small smile as she took the seat next to me. "Enjoying yourself?"
"Yes. It's a lot of fun."
I noticed a pinch of sadness in her eyes. "You don't look like you're having fun."
"I just have a lot on my mind, which I guess is strange with the whole lost memories and all."
"It's not strange at all. I'd be wishing to find out who I was if I lost all of my memories."
"It's just...I keep having these strange dreams."
"More nightmares?"
"Not really. They're not really nightmares. They're more like...memories."
"That's good! I've heard that, in the case of memory loss, forgotten memories can sometimes be presented in dreams."
"I know that. Dreams often act as a dumping ground for random thoughts and discarded memories that the brain decides to throw together all at once. Don't ask me how I know that, it's another one of those random facts that I know. However, the dreams I have can't possibly be memories."
"Why not?"
"Because they involve talking ponies."
"Talking ponies?"
"Yes. In my dreams, I'm in this town. I can't remember what the town was called. I'm walking through the town and I'm constantly being greeted by multicolored ponies. Some have wings, some have horns, and some are just regular ponies. But all of them are multicolored and have these tattoos on their rumps."
I began to scratch my chin. Everything she was describing sounded so familiar. Why did it sound familiar?! "That is pretty strange."
"There's also...another thing that I'm thinking about," Twi said.
"And that is?" I asked.
"I...I'm curious."
"About what?"
"I...I'm curious about...you, Aaron."
"Me? What's curious about me?"
"Why did you do it? Why did you let me stay with you this whole time? Why have you taken it upon yourself to help me, somebody you honestly know nothing about, recover? Why?"
I gave a nervous smile as I looked at Twi. "You'll never believe this...but I've found myself asking those exact same questions. Why did I choose to help you? It just felt right."
"That's it?"
"Pretty much."
"Are you sure that it has nothing to do with the fact that I was naked when we first met?"
I rolled my eyes and let out a loud groan. "Please don't start turning into Tanya! I can only handle one of her!" Twi giggled and shook her head.
"Don't worry. I'm not planning on becoming your sister."
"That's good."
"Hey, Aaron!" called a familiar voice. Twi and I looked to see Evelyn running towards us. "You wanna dance?"
As if by instinct, Twi grabbed my hand. I turned to Twi and she, upon realizing what she did, blushed and pulled her hand away. "Sorry," she said. "I was reaching for the...um-" Twi jumped up and ran off towards the punch bowl. After a few awkward seconds of silence, I turned back to Evelyn and stood up.
"Sure...I'm willing to dance," I replied as I took her hand.
Evelyn and I danced for some time. It was a lot of fun but I still couldn't get my mind off Twi. Her strange grabbing of my hand and then running away as soon as Evelyn had extended the offer to dance with me had me thinking. Could...could she possibly be getting a crush on me? It felt strange thinking about the possibility that someone had romantic feelings for me. I had next to no experience with that feeling. I felt bad thinking about it because I wasn't even one hundred percent sure about this. I didn't want to make unfair assumptions. Maybe Twi was just feeling protective of me or something like that. That would make a bit more sense. Maybe she just felt the need to stay close to me as I was the one to help her in a time of need. I hoped for that to be true...but I would be lying if I said that I didn't like the idea of her having a crush on me.
After we finished dancing, Evelyn brought me over to meet her brother Ron. As I walked, I looked to see if I could catch Tanya or Twi anywhere in the crowd of people. I managed to see Tanya for a few seconds as she walked over towards the dessert table, but I was never able to find Twi. It was almost as if she had disappeared. Anyway, Ron was standing at one of the food tables and was serving what I assumed was his famous lasagna that Evelyn had told me about.
"Ron, this is Aaron. He's from the city," said Evelyn as she introduced me to Ron.
"Nice to meet you," Ron said as he extended a hand. I smiled and nodded as I shook his hand. As our hands parted, I took note of his shirt. His shirt was bright pink and in the center of the shirt was a picture of what appeared to be a pink pony with a mane like cotton candy. Around the pony was a phrase that stated It's Time to Par-tay!
"Interesting shirt," I said. Ron chuckled as he looked down at it.
"Yeah."
Suddenly, an old memory popped into my head and I understood what his shirt meant. "That's...Pinkie Pie, right? From that show My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic?"
"That's correct. Do you watch the show too?"
"Yes and no. I've seen bits and pieces of it because one of my friends is a huge fan of it. What do the fans call themselves again?"
"Bronies."
"That's it! He's a huge Brony. Personally, I'm not a giant fan of it but I've enjoyed what I've seen. It's been a long time since I've seen anything about it so that's why it took me a while to realize what your shirt meant."
"Understandable. So, I'm guessing my sister has brought you over here to try my lasagna," said Ron with a smirk.
"Yes. She's definitely got me curious about it," I replied. Evelyn gave a cute giggle as Ron handed me a plate of lasagna. I was about to take a bite when Twi suddenly appeared. It was almost as if she had appeared out of thin air. "Gah! Twi!"
"Oops! Sorry! Did I surprise you?" she asked as her face turned slightly red.
"A bit." An awkward silence fell amongst the four of us. "Well, Twi, you've already met Evelyn; and here's her brother Ron. Ron, this is my friend Twi."
"Twi? That's an interesting name," Ron said as he shook Twi's hand.
"It's my nickname," Twi replied.
"Wait. Wait. Wait! Let me guess your real name." Ron scratched his chin and gave off another smirk while Twi continued to blush.
"Actually-"
"I got it! Your name's Twilight Sparkle, isn't it?" Twi and I froze in silence for a moment before Ron let out a laugh. "I'm just kidding with you! I'm sorry but it was too easy. I mean with the nickname Twi and the long, purple hair you could very well be a human version of Twilight Sparkle."
"Ron, no offense, but I don't think everyone knows exactly who Twilight Sparkle is," Evelyn said politely.
"I know who she is," Twi stated. "She's a unicorn from the land of Equestria; and she lives in Ponyville with her dragon assistant and five pony friends all the while learning the magic of friendship under the instruction of her mentor, Princess Celestia." Evelyn, Ron, and I found ourselves extremely surprised, but I was more shocked than surprised.
"You must watch the show then," Ron said.
"Show? No, I don't watch the show. I just know who Twilight Sparkle is."
I remained frozen as I turned towards Twi. I knew it couldn't be true. It was impossible. Twilight Sparkle was a character from a freaking television show. And yet...what Ron had said, even though it was said as a joke, surprisingly made sense. I wanted to shake the thought from my head because it was simply insane. Twi couldn't be Twilight Sparkle! Twi was real and Twilight Sparkle was fictional! But there were so many similarities: the hair, the eyes, the love for books, the knowledge of random facts, and I just realized that the strange dialogue that Twi had said a couple nights earlier was exactly the same as Twilight's dialogue from the episode Look Before You Sleep. "No. No. No. No. Impossible. No. No way," I found myself saying under my breath. Upon noticing that things were beginning to slip into insane awkwardness, I took a huge bite of Ron's lasagna. "Oh my goodness! This is amazing!"
It took everyone a second to realize what I was talking about. "Told you it was good," Evelyn said with a chuckle.
"I'm glad that you enjoy it," said Ron. I smiled as I took another bite. It really was great lasagna, but it still wasn't enough to wash the strange thoughts out of my head, and it didn't distract me from the fact that Twi was holding tightly onto my free hand.
It was getting late by the time I decided it was time to head back to the cabin. Twi had stayed by my side for the rest of the night. This appeared to slightly annoy Evelyn, who had probably wanted another dance. Tanya had made friends with some of the local teenagers and I took pleasure in the fact that my sister was starting to have fun out here in the country.
"Did you have fun?" I asked Tanya as she, Twi, and I met up in the church parking lot.
"Yeah. It was fun. How about you two?" Tanya asked.
"It was...interesting," Twi replied.
"Hey Aaron, I saw you dancing out there with that Evelyn girl. Look out Twi, you've got some competition for dear Aaron's affections."
"Will you knock it off?!" I snapped.
"No. I'm your little sister. It's my job to make your life a living hell at times."
"What's my job then as your big brother?!"
"To take it in stride."
"Yeah, I'll take it in stride; and you'll happily take the ice water when I pour it on you tomorrow morning."
"Do it and you die." Tanya and I couldn't help but smile and laugh at our own banter. We arrived at my car and hopped in. I had just started the car when I noticed Mr. Franco walking to his own car. I was surprised to see that he wasn't alone. A tall woman was walking alongside him. As I began to back out of the parking spot, I noticed that Twi had become as white as snow.
"Twi? Are you okay?" I asked as I began to slowly drive the car out of the parking lot.
"Oh. My. Celestia," Twi choked. "It's...her."
"Oh my Celestia?" asked a confused Tanya. "Where did that come from?"
I found myself falling silent as I drove the car past the area where Mr. Franco and the woman were walking. As we slowly passed, the light from a nearby street lamp illuminated the area and allowed us to get a clear picture of the woman. "Oh my God," I said. The woman had fair skin, flowing gray-blue hair, and a silky green dress. I didn't want to believe it...but I had no choice but to accept it. The woman with Mr. Franco was the same woman that I had seen in my nightmare the previous night. Suddenly, the woman turned to look at us as we drove by. Her eyes were huge and green. Her eyes seemed to widen as she saw us. For some reason, I had a feeling that she was focused more on Twi than Tanya or I. Acting on instinct, I pressed the gas and sped off down the road. I watched in the rear-view mirror as the woman and Mr. Franco disappeared into the distance.
"What the hell was that about?" Tanya asked. Twi and I refused to speak. I had a feeling that I knew where Twi had seen the woman before. So many questions were flowing through my head as I drove down the road. Who was the woman? What were the nightmares about? Who was the boy in the nightmare? And, the biggest one on my mind, could it be possible that Twi was Twilight Sparkle?
The nightmares returned that night. As I found myself walking through the forest, I expected to come across the woman and the boy again. Instead, I found myself coming across a road in the middle of the forest. I heard the sound of a car coming. I looked down the road and saw that my car was driving down the road towards me. Tanya and I were inside the car. I quickly realized that this was the night that Tanya and I had arrived. Rain was pouring heavily and yet I remained dry. I looked up just in time to see what appeared to be a green portal opening up in one of the storm clouds. A large, fat, green lightning bolt struck the ground and stuck there. As my past self and Tanya sat in the car and watched the lightning bolt, I looked up to see trails of green smoke falling out of the portal.
That's when I woke up. Like the previous night, I was covered in a cold sweat. As I stood up, I heard the sound of the front door closing. I walked into the living room and looked out the window. I could see Twi slowly making her way towards the swimming hole. She appeared to be sleepwalking. I quickly ran out the front door.
"Twi! TWI!" I called. Twi didn't hear me. As I came closer to catching up to her, I felt something weird in the air. The air around Twi felt electrified and alien. The air tasted of ash and there were moments where I felt almost weightless. As I walked, I could swear that I could see pieces of dirt, grass, and rock levitating a few inches above the ground. Eventually I managed to catch up to Twi. I grabbed onto her and instantly felt a shock rush through my body. As the shock passed through my body, I saw a vision before me.
The vision showed a castle. I quickly identified it as Canterlot Castle from My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. The vision shifted to the throne room where several ponies were talking. Even though it had been a while since I had seen the show, for some reason I had no trouble in identifying the characters. Twilight Sparkle and her friends were discussing something with Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. I couldn't hear what they were saying but it must have been important.
The vision changed to showing Twilight approaching the Queen of the Changelings, Chrysalis on the outskirts of Ponyville. Chrysalis had Spike the dragon in one of her forelegs. I still couldn't hear what any of them were saying but I assumed that Chrysalis was threatening to kill Spike. A fight then broke out between Twilight and Chrysalis. Spike was knocked to the side and Twilight's friends were rushing to her aid. Then, without warning, Chrysalis accidentally summoned a green portal underneath her and Twilight. Spike fell into the portal and Chrysalis followed. Twilight's friends grabbed onto Twilight in order to prevent her from falling through. The portal was strong though and the magic of the portal seemed to be pulling the life right out of Twilight.
"We won't let you go!" I heard Rainbow Dash scream.
"No! Twilight!" cried Pinkie Pie.
"Hold on!" screamed Applejack.
"Spike! I can't abandon him!" Twilight cried as tears rolled down her face. Suddenly, there was a flash of light and an orb of purple light exploded out of Twilight's body. Twilight fell limp as the orb of light fell through the portal. There was a flash of green light and the vision ended.
When the vision had gone away, I found myself lying on the ground. I could hear crying from nearby. I sat up to see Twi sitting a few feet from me and crying into her hands.
"Twi?" I asked as I approached her. I placed a hand on her shoulder. She turned to look at me. Her eyes were bloodshot and her hair was strewn. "Twi...are you okay? You were sleepwalking so I followed you out here to try and wake you up."
"Aaron!" Twi cried as she fell into my arms. I wrapped my arms around her and let her cry into my shoulder. "You saw it, didn't you? You saw the vision of Twilight Sparkle! You've seen the woman too, haven't you?" I was shocked from what Twi was saying but I decided to tell her the truth.
"Yes...I saw the vision...and I've had a nightmare with the woman in it."
"Aaron...what am I? Who am I?"
"I...I don't know, Twi."
"Yes you do. You have a theory. You have the same theory that I have...but it's impossible...isn't it?"
I pushed Twilight away a bit so that I was looking straight into her eyes. "Yes, it's impossible. I don't know what to truly think of anymore, Twi. I'm not sure what's real and what's not. But, let me tell you something. I'm going to help you, Twi. I'm not going to let anything happen to you. Even if you are impossible, you're my impossible thing to look after. You're my impossible girl." Twi smiled as she leaned forward into my shoulder again. We didn't say anything else to each other for the rest of the night and we ended up falling asleep under the stars.
"Well, well, well," teased a familiar voice. I awoke to find grass rubbing against my back, Twi lying next to me, and Tanya smirking down at me. "What do we have here?" I stood up to face Tanya while Twi woke up. "Perhaps you can explain to me what you two love birds are doing out here?"
"Come off it, Tanya. Twi was sleepwalking and I followed her out here to stop her. We just ended up falling asleep out here," I replied.
"Likely story."
"It's the truth," said Twi.
"Okay. Whatever you say." Tanya then turned to me. "Aaron, can I talk with you?"
"Uh...sure," I said. I followed Tanya over towards the cabin.
"Aaron," she said as we arrived on the other side of the cabin. "This is our fifth day here. How long are you planning on staying?"
I let out a sigh. "I don't know," I replied.
"Certainly not all summer?"
"No! Of course not! It's just-"
"Twi."
"I can't abandon her now. I made a promise to look after her and help her until she gets her memories back."
"You can't make promises like that! Look, you've been exceptionally nice about looking after her during our time here. But time's running out! What are we going to do? Bring her home with us? Do you realize how much of a fit Mom and Dad would have if they found out about this?!"
"I know but-"
"And don't act like I don't care about Twi, okay! I...I know I've been rough and everything like that...but I've only been trying to look out for us. I don't want anything bad to happen."
"Well what do you want me to do, Tanya?! Just dump her out at some random place?"
"No! This is what hospitals are for!" Tanya let out a loud sigh and placed her hands on her hips. "Look, I'm willing to continue this for a couple more days; but we've got to go home someday. You have college to prepare for. I have a life to live. On our way home we can send her off at a hospital and let them look after her."
"I don't know. A lot of questions are coming up."
"Anything involving My Little Pony?"
My heart stopped for a second. "How did you-"
"I've been kind of putting the pieces together."
"Is it insane to think this?"
"Yes. I think it's completely and utterly insane...but, in my opinion, our insanity has a few things to back it up."
"Are you saying that you really think Twi's-"
"I know as much as you, Aaron. Look, this is starting to get really weird. I don't know if I can handle much more of this."
Tanya and I were silent for a bit. "Fine. A couple more days and we'll send her to a hospital to let them help her." I then walked away from Tanya without another word.
It was almost time for dinner when I set off in my car to talk to Mr. Franco. The day had moved by pretty slowly. Tanya had retreated to her computer while Twi simply walked around the surrounding forest. I don't know what compelled me to visit Mr. Franco. The main reason was probably to ask him about the strange woman he had taken home the previous night.
It wasn't that long of a drive between the cabin and Mr. Franco's house, only around ten to twelve minutes. As I pulled up in the driveway, I noticed another familiar face arriving at the house: Evelyn. I parked my car and got out. "Evelyn?" I asked as I approached her. I noticed a pan of lasagna in her arms.
"Aaron! Hi!" she exclaimed. "This is certainly a surprise!"
"What are you doing at Mr. Franco's house?"
"I'm just dropping off some of Ron's lasagna. Mr. Franco asked me for some last night. What are you doing here?"
"I'm just dropping by to talk with him. I wanted to ask him about something." Evelyn and I walked onto the porch and rang the doorbell. Initially, there was no response. I was about to ring the doorbell again when the door opened. My heart stopped as I saw not Mr. Franco but the mysterious woman standing in the doorway. She was still wearing her silk, green dress.
"Hello," she hissed with a smile. "How can I help you?"
"I'm here to give Mr. Franco some lasagna," Evelyn replied.
"And I came to talk to him," I replied. "Can I speak with him?"
"I'm sorry but Jerry has fallen ill at the moment. I'm currently taking care of him," said the woman. She then extended one of her hands. "I'm Claudia. Claudia Wolfe."
"Aaron," I said as I quickly shook her hand.
"Evelyn," said Evelyn with her usual, cute smile. Claudia stepped towards us and took Evelyn's lasagna.
"Pleasure to meet you two. I'll make sure to let Jerry know that you two stopped by," said Claudia.
"Thank you!" Evelyn then turned to me. "See you later, Aaron."
I watched as Evelyn walked back to her car. I turned back to Claudia to see that she was examining me.
"Forgive me, but have I seen you somewhere before?" she asked.
"I don't believe so," I lied.
"Can I ask you one more thing before you leave?"
"Sure."
"Have you seen a girl with long, purple hair?"
I remained calm even though I was screaming on the inside. "No, ma'am. I don't believe I've seen a girl with purple hair."
"Well, if you do. Can you tell me? She's an...old friend and I'm oh so anxious to see her again."
"No problem. I'll tell you if I see anything. Give Mr. Franco my best."
"Don't worry, dearie. I will." I felt a cold chill run down my spine as I walked back to my car. As I drove back to the cabin, I couldn't shake the feeling of danger from my back.
Another night of nightmares. Nothing specific happened in this particular set of nightmares. All that really happened was that I found myself standing in the middle of a burning cabin with Tanya and Twi at my side. A dark figure was approaching me and somebody was screaming off in the distance.
I woke up the following morning to something I hadn't smelled in a couple days: bacon and eggs. I walked into the living room/kitchen area to find Tanya serving herself and Twi some breakfast.
"Good morning," said Tanya.
"Morning," said Twi. I could tell that they both had something on their minds. I didn't have to guess what they were thinking about because odds were that I was thinking about the same things.
After breakfast, I took Twi outside to talk with her. "Listen, Twi, tomorrow's going to be our seventh day here," I said.
"You're leaving soon, aren't you?" Twi asked.
I gave her a sad look. "Yes."
"And...I can't come home with you."
"No."
"We're going to have to part ways soon, aren't we?"
"Yes." Twi looked down and I had the urge to kick myself. "You have no idea how guilty I feel right now, Twi. I can't believe I'm breaking my promise so early in the game. It's just...I guess time's running out."
"I know it's running out. She's going to find us soon enough."
"Who?"
"You know who. The woman from our nightmares. I'm trying to put all of the pieces together. I'm not sure which memories are false, which are true, or if anything I'm remembering is sane to think. One thing I'm sure of is that woman is responsible for my amnesia. I know it. She did something bad to me right before I lost my memories."
"I wouldn't doubt it."
"I'm going to have to face her, Aaron. I'm going to have to face her and there's nothing that anybody can do. I need to stop her. I need to save that boy. I need to truly find out who I am."
"What are you two talking about?" asked Tanya as she suddenly appeared.
"Nothing," I lied. "Just plans for the day."
"Okay. So what are you two planning?"
"A walk," Twi said suddenly. "A walk around the forest."
"Again? Haven't we already had enough walks around here?" Tanya asked.
"I think everyone could use a good walk," I stated. "To clear the mind and all."
Tanya placed her hands on her hips and sighed. "Fine."
It turned out that I had been right about something: we definitely needed some time to clear our minds. It was quiet in the forest, as always, and everything felt just right. For just a little while, I felt calm and at ease. It was almost as if there was nothing to worry about anymore. It felt as if nothing could spoil my new peaceful mood. That's how I felt...until I got lost.
Twi, Tanya, and I had been walking down a certain path that was a little bit far from the cabin. I don't remember exactly what happened but I do remember getting dizzy for a second, stumbling around for a bit, and suddenly finding myself alone and away from the trail. I was confused and had no idea about what the hell had happened. I looked for any sign of Tanya, Twi, or the trail but saw none of it. I began to panic but I quickly calmed myself down for I knew that panicking would get me nowhere. At first, I didn't know where to go. That's when I heard it: the sound of voices. I began to relax, thinking that the voices were those of Twi and Tanya. I walked in the direction of the voices. I wanted to call out to them but something prevented me from doing so.
As I walked, I noticed how different everything felt. I felt like I was in a dream but I knew I was awake. The air tasted like ash and felt like it was electrified. Everything felt alive: the trees, the dirt, the grass, everything. It was as if I were walking through a crowd of millions. As I came closer and closer to the source of the voices, I quickly realized that the voices did not belong to Tanya or Twi. I hid behind a cluster of bushes as I realized who the voices belonged to: Claudia Wolfe and the boy with spiky, green hair that I had seen in my nightmares. The boy was gagged and was only giving off loud mumbles. Claudia, however, was taunting the boy all the while saying a strange chant.
I could hardly make out what Claudia was saying; but I was able to pick up one sentence. "Now, let's see if this works," she cackled. A cold grin appeared on Claudia's face as a swirling, green portal appeared in the earth before her. She kept it open for a few seconds before closing it. "There. My way home is set." The closing portal sent out a shockwave that smashed into me, and caused me to give out a loud yelp. Claudia turned in my direction. "WHO'S THERE?!" My eyes widened as Claudia began walking in my direction. I got up and began running in the opposite direction. "COME BACK HERE!" I didn't know whether she had identified me or not but I wasn't going to look back to make sure. I just kept running.
The world seemed to spin as I ran. It's hard to describe how I felt during those few moments of running from Claudia. I could hear her running behind me and it seemed that I would never be able to lose her. I focused on getting back to the cabin. I focused on getting back to Tanya and Twi. I never stopped running. Surprisingly, I never grew tired. I was able to keep running and running. Eventually, the sound of Claudia's footsteps died away. I was tempted to look back but I refused. I just kept running.
Suddenly, after what seemed like an eternity of running, a wave of fatigue washed over me. My legs cramped up and I tripped. As I fell, I could hear a voice calling to me from what seemed like a hundred miles away. "Aaron! Aaron!" called the voice. I hit the ground hard and groaned in pain. I looked up to see a dark figure rushing towards me. I placed my hands over my face.
"Aaron!" cried a familiar voice. I opened my eyes and pulled my hands away to see Twi standing over me alongside Tanya.
"Where were you?!" Tanya snapped.
"I...I was in the forest," I breathed.
"Well, no shit, Sherlock!"
"We were so worried!" Twi gasped. "One moment you were there and then...you were gone! We looked all over the place for you. We assumed that you might have come back to the cabin. We came back, saw that you weren't here, and called for you. Then...you just fell out of the forest."
"How long was I gone?" I asked.
"A little over an hour."
As I looked up at Twi and Tanya, I examined my surroundings. I could see the cabin a few feet from where I was. I noticed that the strange ash-tasting, electrified air feeling had gone away. I also realized that I truly felt awake and no longer felt like I was in a dream-like state. "I wish I could explain what happened...but I can't," I stated. "Something strange is going on in these woods."
"You could say that again," said Tanya.
"Come on. Let's get you in the cabin," said Twi as she helped me up. I gave a sigh of relief as Tanya, Twi, and I walked back into the cabin.
I didn't have any nightmares that night. Strangely enough, I didn't have any dreams that night. I just remember being caught in a cold, dark abyss. I was alone and helpless. There was no way for me to escape. I knew I was going to spend the rest of my life in this abyss. However, for some reason, I wasn't afraid during the time that I was trapped in this odd sleep state. I had no worries, no wants, no fears, no anxieties. I was just...peaceful. However, no matter how peaceful I felt, nothing could shake off the distant feeling of danger. Something bad was going to happen extremely soon.
I woke up in the early hours of the morning. It must have been at least an hour or so before sunrise. I don't know why but I was compelled to get out of bed and take a walk. I checked up on Tanya and Twi before heading out of the cabin. Both of them were sleeping soundly. I was happy about that. I figured that we all needed at least one peaceful night in this endless nightmare of questions. I quietly exited the cabin and walked out in the direction of the swimming hole. The Moon was shining brightly tonight and the air was surprisingly cool for a late spring night. I walked out to the shore of the swimming hole and sat down.
I don't know how long I spent staring at my tired reflection in the water. I just remember getting that familiar taste of ash in my mouth. As soon as I started tasting ash, I knew it was time to head back inside. So far, the taste of ash was never followed by anything good. I walked back into the cabin and didn't even bother to return to my room. I just sat down on the couch and drifted back into another stage of peaceful sleep.
"Aaron," I heard Tanya's voice ask as I awoke. Tanya was standing in the doorway between the living room and the hallway and was staring at me strangely. "Why were you sleeping in here?"
"I just felt like it," I said as I stood up and stretched a bit. I looked over at the nearby calendar and sighed. It was hard to believe that Tanya and I had already been there for practically a week. It had gone by so quickly and yet so slowly with all the craziness.
"What do you want for breakfast?" Tanya asked as she trudged into the kitchen.
"Anything but bacon and eggs," I replied with a smirk. Tanya chuckled as she headed over to the fridge to find anything different to eat. Suddenly, the cabin's phone rang. "I'll get it."
I figured that it was probably Mr. Franco as he was the only one who had the number to the cabin. "Hello?" I asked as I brought my mouth to the receiver.
"Hello?! Aaron?!" said the caller in a frightened and nervous tone. "It's Evelyn!"
"Evelyn?" From the way she was talking, I could tell that something was wrong. "How'd you get this number?"
"I found it in Mr. Franco's house! Listen...Aaron...I don't know how to say this...but...Mr. Franco's been murdered."
"WHAT?!" Tanya turned to look at me upon hearing my outburst.
"What's wrong?" she asked. I didn't answer her. I had to know the details from Evelyn.
"How?! When?!" I asked into the phone.
"I don't know. I came over to see if he was doing better and I found the door unlocked. I walked inside and....there he was." I could hear the sound of Evelyn gagging. "I think I'm going to be sick."
"Have you called the police?"
"Yes. Oh! They're arriving right now!"
"I'm coming over too." I hung up the phone and quickly ran to my room to change. When I rushed back into the living room wearing a new change of clothes, Tanya was waiting to play 20 Questions with me.
"What's going on?" she asked.
"I'll tell you when I get back. Stay here and don't go outside! Lock the doors and keep Twi inside!" I ordered.
"Why?" I couldn't bear to give Tanya the full details right then and there. I simply sighed and rushed out the front door. Tanya stood in the doorway and watched as I hopped into my car and drove off.
I got to Mr. Franco's house extremely quickly due to going a little bit over the speed limit. I parked just a little ways down from the house. As I approached the house, I could see Evelyn talking with one of the police officers from town.
"And that's when I found him," I heard her say to the officer as I approached. She turned towards me with a sad expression on her face. "Aaron."
"Evelyn. Officer," I said. "What happened?"
"Excuse me but who are you?" asked the officer.
"My name's Aaron. Aaron Thompson. Mr. Franco is...er...was a friend of my family and he was taking care of the cabin that I'm currently staying in with my sister."
"I see. Well I'm sorry to inform you that-"
"I know. Evelyn called me about it right before you guys arrived. Have you been able to find out anything?"
"Well, from what we can see, Mr. Franco was stabbed to death and then stored away for a couple days."
"Stored away?!" Evelyn and I asked together.
"Yes. Mr. Franco's been dead for a couple days now." Evelyn and I turned to each other. "Do either of you have any idea of who could have possibly done this?"
"Yes. I believe we do," I said. "Her name's Claudia Wolfe, or at least that's what she went by when Evelyn and I met her. We came to visit Mr. Franco around two days ago. We were greeted by a woman with long, gray-blue hair; a green, silk dress; fair skin; and green eyes. She told us that Mr. Franco was sick and that she was taking care of him."
"Thank you. I believe we may have finally gotten a description of the killer who's been terrorizing this town for the past week. We'll take it from here." Evelyn and I watched as the officer headed back into the house with the other cops.
"I can't believe somebody would do something like this to Mr. Franco," said Evelyn.
I had to get out of there. Something told me that I had to get Tanya and Twi far away from this place. "Evelyn, go home and lock your doors," I said.
"What about you?"
"I'm going back to the cabin to get Twi and my sister. We're getting out of here."
"I understand. I wouldn't want to stay out here either with a killer on the loose. You're all welcome at my house."
"Thanks but we're going to head back to the city."
"Why?"
"Something's telling me that we need to get as far away from this area as possible." I extended a hand to Evelyn. "So this is goodbye for now. I'm glad to have met you, Evelyn. You're a really nice person." Evelyn was a little confused but she still shook my hand and smiled happily at me. We then broke the handshake and I ran back to my car.
I raced the car down the road. I had to get Tanya and Twi out of here. I knew that woman was catching up to us. My heart was racing as I drove the car around a bend. Suddenly, I tasted it: the taste of ash. I began to shake my head in vain. The air felt electrified and everything began to feel distant and dreamy. I could hear a familiar voice calling out to me, and it wasn't a kind one. "Liar! Liar! You've had her all along!" hissed the voice. I looked in my rear-view mirror and felt my heart stop. Claudia Wolfe was standing in the center of the road a little ways behind my car. There was a flash of green and there was an explosion in the earth just a few feet from my car. I dodged the new hole in the road and pressed hard on the gas pedal. I looked back into the rear-view mirror. Claudia was following me, but she didn't appear to be running. She appeared to be gliding through the air. Her eyes were glowing bright green, her hair was flowing around her, and I noticed a shadowy figure being pulled along the ground by her. "You'll die for lying to me!"
There was another flash of green followed my an explosion in the earth. I swerved the car and nearly veered off the road. "Shit!" I croaked as I straightened the car out. My logical mind didn't want to accept what was happening but there was no other way to put it: this was magic. The taste of ash was the taste of magic. The electrified air was the feeling of magic. "It's impossible! It's just impossible! But...this means...Twi is-" I swerved the car again as Claudia sent another explosive, green bomb my way. My back window shattered and glass covered the back seat. "Shit! I've got to lose her!" I pressed harder on the gas pedal. My car sped up but so did Claudia. It was impossible for me to lose her. I turned around another bend and saw the cabin in the distance. I had to warn Tanya and Twi. I reached into my pocket, pulled out my cell phone, and dialed Tanya's number.
"Hello?" asked Tanya as she answered.
"Tanya! Get Twi ready! We're going to book it!" I screamed into the phone.
"Aaron?! What's going on?!"
"I'm being chased by a witch!" There was another explosion and the car shook violently.
"What was that?!"
"Just get ready to hop into the car!" The cabin was coming up fast. Another explosion sent my phone falling from my hand. I gripped both hands on the steering wheel as I sped towards the cabin. I could see Tanya and Twi standing at the front door. I could only imagine what Twi was feeling at that moment. I prepared to make a quick stop to allow them to hop in before speeding off. However, I never made it to that point. My ears rang as the back of my car exploded and fell apart. Glass shattered and the car flipped over. Green smoke and dirt flew through the air as the world around me spun like a top. I could hear Tanya and Twi screaming and Claudia laughing.
It must have only taken a few seconds for the car to come to a stop, but it felt like an eternity for me. The car was upside-down and I had been able to escape the crash with only a few cuts and bruises (I still don't know how I managed to do that). I unbuckled my seat belt as fast as I could before kicking the door open and crawling out. The world was still spinning and my mind was so scrambled that I could barely focus on one thing. I saw a pair of feet running towards me. I looked up to see Twi grab onto me and pull me towards the cabin. I heard a familiar laugh. I turned to see that Claudia had landed on her feet and that she was walking towards us. The shadowy figure being dragged my her was none other than the boy with green, spiky hair.
"Well, well, well," Claudia said with a cold smile. "I've finally found you, Sparkle." Twi's eyes widened as she looked at Claudia.
"Who are you?! What are you?! What do you want with me?!" Twi cried.
"You don't remember? Pity. Well, then I guess you won't mind if I rid myself of this annoying child." Claudia presented the boy with green hair.
"NO!" Twi took a step forward. "LEAVE HIM ALONE!"
"Oh? Are you starting to remember?"
"I have a cloudy idea of who I really am and I'm still sketchy on how I ended up here, but I know that I will not let you hurt him!"
The boy looked at Twi with a frightened expression. "T...Twilight," he choked.
"Shut up!" Claudia ordered. I wanted to rush forward and punch her across the face but I was still weakened from my crash. I turned back towards the cabin and noticed the Tanya had disappeared. I turned back to Claudia to see her wrap her hands around the boy. "What are you going to do, little girl? You apparently don't remember anything. I'm more powerful than you. I can do whatever I want in this world. You can't stop me and your little friends can't stop me either!"
"Guess again!" snapped a familiar voice. I watched as Tanya appeared from a nearby cluster of trees and smacked Claudia across the face with a big stick. The boy broke free from Claudia's grasp and ran towards Twi.
"Twilight!" he called. A look of recognition appeared on Twi's face.
"Sp...Spike...SPIKE!" Twi cried as she grabbed the boy and wrapped him in her arms. She untied the rope that was binding him and hugged him tightly. "Spike! Oh, Spike! You're okay!" Tears of joy were rolling down Twi's face. I managed to pick myself off the ground and couldn't help but smile at Twi's reunion with her friend.
"You little BRAT!" screamed Claudia. I turned around, there was a flash of green, and Tanya was sent flying through the air. My heart stopped as Tanya landed at my feet with a giant burn in the center of her chest.
"TANYA!" I cried as I knelt down and helped her up. She was alive but the attack had knocked a lot out of her. I felt a powerful force overcome my body and found myself and Tanya levitating in the air. Claudia's eyes were glowing bright green.
"No! LET THEM GO!" Twi ordered.
"If I can't kill your assistant, then I'll just have to kill these pathetic creatures that you've befriended," Claudia said. All of the air was crushed out of my body and I suddenly found myself unable to breath.
"PUT THEM DOWN!"
"Why do you care? You've only know them for about a week or so. Why does it matter to you if they die?"
"Because...they're my friends!" I noticed a purple aura wrapping itself around Twi's body. Her eyes began to glow pure white and the dirt around her began to spin. "And I'll never turn my back on my friends!" I watched in amazement as a beam of purple energy shot from Twi and smashed right into Claudia. Claudia was flung back into a nearby bush and Tanya and I fell to the ground with a loud thump. I gave several wheezing coughs as Twi ran to my side. "Aaron! Aaron! Are you and Tanya okay?!"
"We've seen better days...but we're alive," I replied weakly.
"Thank Celestia!" Twi gave me a huge hug. She pulled back and our eyes met for a split second. I gasped as Twi leaned forward and pressed her lips onto my own. For a few seconds, we were locked in a moment of terrifying bliss. She pulled back and I noticed that her face was bright red. "I don't know why I just did that. It just...felt right."
"Well, to be honest, it definitely made me feel a bit better."
"SPARKLE!" yelled a familiar voice. Twi helped me up as Claudia emerged from the trees. I turned to Tanya and helped her up. "We're not done!"
"For now, we are!" Twi snapped. I watched as another purple aura appeared around Twi and, a moment later, a giant magical shield appeared around us and the cabin. Claudia tried to force her way through but she couldn't do it.
"You can't hide in there forever, Twilight Sparkle! You and your little friends will have to come out sooner or later!" Twi turned away from Claudia as she helped me, Tanya, and the boy named Spike into the cabin.
By nightfall, Claudia had disappeared into the trees of the surrounding forest. Not one of us dared to venture outside. We knew she was out there waiting for us. Tanya was lying on the couch and recovering from her burns. Meanwhile, Twi and I had come to acknowledge and accept that fact that Twi's true identity was that of Twilight Sparkle. Spike filled us in on what had happened prior to Twi's (I know her real name's Twilight but I'm still going to call her Twi) arrival in our world.
Back in Equestria, Spike had been kidnapped by some changelings under the order of Queen Chrysalis. Twilight had gone to negotiate for Spike's release. Chrysalis, however, had intended on killing Spike before Twilight before killing her. Twilight, on the other hand, had been prepared for this. She and Chrysalis got involved in a huge battle. Chrysalis had obtained some new magic due to some dark practices. One of these new abilities she learned was how to open a portal between realities, which was something that could only be performed a certain number of times. During the battle, a portal had been opened that connected Equestria to our world. Spike, Chrysalis, and Twilight had fallen through the portal in that order. However, something bothered me about this. If the vision I had seen previously was correct, I distinctly remember a purple orb falling out of Twilight and through the portal. I decided not to bring it up just yet.
Spike continued to explain how he, Chrysalis, and Twilight had been separated upon entering our world but Chrysalis eventually caught up to him. For the past week, Chrysalis had been traveling around the area killing random families, draining love, finding new places to spend a night or two, and then continuing on in her search for Twilight under the alias of Claudia Wolfe (which is a name she had stolen from a character in a video game she came across in one of the homes).
"Wow," said Tanya as Spike finished explaining. Spike turned towards Twi.
"Do you remember anything else now?" he asked.
"Bits and pieces. I remember you, of course, and how close we are. I remember a bit about my brother and my friends. I also remember some stuff about Celestia and a lot of stuff about Chrysalis. And, thanks to you, I've been able to put the pieces together as to how I ended up here. But, sadly, most of my memories are still missing," Twi replied. I noticed a wave of green wash over the shield that Twi had put up.
"My guess is that we don't have much time before she breaks through," I said. I looked straight at Twi. "What are you going to do?"
"I'm going to fight her, and make her send us home."
"It's going to be tricky. Only she can cast the portal spell," Tanya said as she stood up.
"How are you feeling?" I asked with concern.
"Better. Hey, Twi. When you fight that bitch, give her a punch for me."
"I'll make sure to do that," said Twi. "And don't worry about the portal spell. Remember, Chrysalis isn't the only one here who can use magic."
"But, Twilight, changeling magic is different from pony magic," said Spike.
"I think I'll be able to manage, Spike. Besides, I've done impossible stuff before...or at least I think I have." It was strange seeing Twi slowly regain her memories. It was as if a different person was trying to break through from within her. Another wave of green washed over the shield and the cabin shook a bit. Twi stood up. "It's almost time."
I stood up as well. "Twi," I said. Twi turned to look at me and Tanya. She stepped forward and hugged both of us.
"I guess this is the only time we can properly say goodbye," she said as she stepped back to look at us. "Thank you. Both of you. I know you two have gone through a lot of trouble for me. You put up with a lot of crap that you should have never had to worry about. And now my dangerous past has pulled you two into the line of fire. I just want to say that I'm sorry...and that I'm eternally grateful for what you've done." A strange smile appeared on Twi's face. "It feels strange remembering my past, you know. Even though I am Twilight Sparkle, my amnesiac persona (Twi) feels like a slightly different person; and now Twi is going away. It feels like a part of me is dying...and I'm sad about that." A lone tear rolled down Twi's face. "When I return to Equestria as Twilight Sparkle, I will never forget you two. I can only hope that you two won't forget me."
"Trust me, I think it would be impossible for us to forget something like this," Tanya chuckled.
"Don't be so sure," Twi said sadly. "This is a time for impossible things." The cabin shook again and I noticed that some green smoke was eating away at the shield. "She's breaking through."
"Be careful. I hope you and Spike are able to get home safely," I said.
"And, don't worry, we'll make sure to take Chrysalis with us. We wouldn't want her causing anymore trouble in your world," said Spike. Twi took a step closer to me and looked straight into my eyes.
"You know...I actually was falling in love with you, Aaron, as Twi. Now that Twilight's starting to awaken, those feelings are starting to go away. It's a strange feeling: being in love with somepony, I mean someone, and yet not being in love with them," Twi said. "Aaron, can I ask you something?"
"Sure."
"Were you...ever attracted to me? Are you...in love with me?"
"God, my life's turning into a Disney movie," Tanya chuckled as she took a few steps back. I took a step towards Twi and grabbed her hand.
"Yes, I was attracted to you and, yes, I might have started to develop feelings for you; but love is something that takes time, Twi. I've only known you for a week," I replied. "But, maybe given enough time, my feelings might have developed into something more."
"And thus begins the worst question of life: what if?" Twi stated as she tightened her grip on my hand. "So...before our feelings disappear permanently...how about one last sign of affection for good luck?"
"Don't worry, I won't look," said Spike as he turned away.
"Me neither," chuckled Tanya. I turned to look at Twi before we brought our lips together for one last time. It felt like a dim spark was passing through my body. A sign of love that could never be. A sign of love that could have been. We pulled our lips apart and hugged one last time. There was a loud rumbling and the shield began to collapse. Chrysalis's laugh echoed from outside. Twi and I stepped away from each other.
"This is goodbye then," said Twi.
"Goodbye," said Tanya as she stepped forward and gave Twi and quick hug.
"You two stay close now," I said as I looked at Twi and Spike.
"Don't worry," said Twi as she took a hold of Spike's hand. "I won't let him go." Tanya and I watched as Twi and Spike disappeared through the back door. I could feel a few tears rolling down my face. I turned towards Tanya to see that she was crying a bit too.
"We have to make sure if they make it," said Tanya.
"I couldn't agree more," I said. Tanya and I then followed Twi and Spike out the back door.
I could see that Twi and Chrysalis had already begun their fight. Beams of purple and green were flying across the field and setting certain patches of grass on fire.
"Run, Spike! Run to the water!" cried Twi. Spike did what he was told and ran towards the swimming hole. Tanya and I disappeared into the nearby trees to watch the fight. Tanya took hold of a nearby big stick that had been lying on the ground.
"I don't think a stick is going to help you this time," I said.
"Hey! Never underestimate the power of a big stick!" Tanya stated. Tanya and I watched as Twi rushed at Chrysalis. They collided and streams of purple and green magic shot off from them.
"You're going to open the portal and return us home!" Twi ordered.
"Not until you're dead and buried!" Chrysalis snapped. Tanya and I snuck through the trees and made our way over towards the swimming hole. Something told me that was where we needed to be and I guess that Tanya had felt the same way. I quickly noticed that Twi was drawing Chrysalis in the same direction. There was a flash of green and Twi was knocked back.
"Twilight!" Spike screamed. Twi hit the ground hard and quickly picked herself up. Suddenly, I noticed a look of amazement flash in her eyes.
"Of course," she gasped.
"Twilight?"
"I know what to do now, Spike. Whatever you do, don't interfere." Tanya and I watched as Twi took a few steps towards Chrysalis. "These stupid quarrels have gone on long enough, Chrysalis. If you want to kill me so badly, then stop joking around and just do it." Twi then spread out her arms and stood absolutely still.
"Aaron, what the hell is she doing?!" Tanya asked.
"I have no idea...but I don't like the look of it," I replied. Chrysalis laughed as she lunged towards Twi. Twi still did nothing. I burst from the trees and ran towards Twi. "TWI!" Twi turned towards me as Chrysalis's magically-enhanced hands reached through her chest and through her back.
"TWILIGHT!" cried Spike.
"OH MY GOD!" I heard Tanya scream. Chrysalis pulled her hands out of Twi's body. Her hands and lower arms were covered in oceans of blood. A trickle of blood fell from Twi's mouth as she collapsed to the ground.
"No!" I gasped. "No, no, no! Twi! Twilight Sparkle! You can't die!" I cried as I ran forward. Chrysalis didn't even bother stopping me. She was too busy celebrating the fact that she had killed her enemy. I balanced Twi's head in my hands. "Twi...what did you do?!"
"Don't...worry," Twi croaked. "I've...got...everything...under...control." A tear of pain rolled town Twi's face as she breathed her last breath.
Tanya stepped out from the trees and slowly approached us. She then turned to Chrysalis and screamed, "YOU MONSTER!"
"I'm no monster. I'm just a woman willing to give punishment to those who deserve it," Chrysalis said coldly.
"Twilight...no," Spike cried as he knelt next to Twi's body. Chrysalis was about to laugh again when, suddenly, her body began to shake violently. It looked like she were having a seizure.
"What...what is this?!" Chrysalis asked as the shaking in her body increased.
"What's going on?!" Tanya asked. Chrysalis let out a shriek of pain before becoming limp for a few seconds. Suddenly, after a few seconds of lifelessness, Chrysalis turned towards us. I noticed something strange about her. Her eyes were no longer green, they were purple.
"No way," I gasped. "It can't be." Chrysalis smiled as she pointed at the swimming hole. A green portal suddenly appeared in the water right next to the shore. Tanya, Spike, and I watched as Chrysalis collapsed to the ground. A misty, transparent figure emerged from Chrysalis's body. The figure was that of a purple unicorn with a long purple mane and sharp, purple eyes.
"Twilight?!" asked a shocked Spike.
"Told you I had everything under control," said Twilight Sparkle.
"How?!" Tanya asked.
"I'm not dead, if that's what you're thinking; and I'm not a ghost."
I looked at Twi's corpse in my arms and then at the ghostly Twilight Sparkle. "But...how...what?!" I stammered.
"That blast that Chrysalis gave me jogged one of my memories. You see, not all of me traveled to this world through the first portal."
"I'm lost," said Tanya and Spike together.
"After Spike and Chrysalis fell through the portal that connected Equestria to this world, my friends tried to stop me from falling through. The portal was strong and my friends were strong. A part of me did end up passing through the portal: my soul. My body remained in Equestria and is probably still there but in a comatose state."
"But...what am I holding?" I asked as I looked at Twi's corpse.
"When my soul passed through the portal and fell into this world, it created a sort of shell to keep itself safe." The ghostly Twilight pointed at Twi. "That was my shell. The amnesia was just a side of effect of passing through the portal in such a disjointed state."
"So...Twi was just a shell?" The ghostly Twilight knelt down in front of me.
"No, Aaron. I am Twi and Twi is me. What you're holding is just a shell of the true Twi. You're holding the chrysalis, I'm the butterfly."
"I think I'm starting to understand," said Tanya. "So, upon learning this, you realized that if Chrysalis quote-unquote killed you then your soul would be free to inhabit her body and thus you'd be able to open the portal!"
"Exactly! Not bad, Tanya."
"Thanks."
I looked from the shell that was Twi to look straight into Twilight Sparkle's eyes. "So, it's really goodbye this time," I sighed.
"Yes," Twilight replied.
"What will happen once you pass through that portal?"
"I'll most likely end up back in my true body, Spike will return to being a dragon, and Chrysalis will be seen to by the Princesses. We're going to find a way to remove these new dark powers of hers so that she doesn't try this dimension hopping business ever again." I felt a cold chill on my shoulder and I looked to see that Twilight had placed her hoof there. "Good luck, Aaron. I hope that we can meet again someday."
"How?"
"I dunno, but I'm sure it'll be by some impossible method."
"And you are the impossible girl...er...mare."
"Right." Twilight removed her hoof and turned towards Spike. "You ready to head back home?"
"Yeah," Spike said as he reached up and took Twilight's ghostly hoof. Twilight's horn glowed and the unconscious Chrysalis levitated over next to her.
Twilight and Spike then turned back to look at Tanya and me. "Goodbye," they said together.
"Goodbye," said Tanya and me. I wrapped an arm around Tanya and Tanya leaned her head into my side. We watched as Twilight, Spike, and the unconscious Chrysalis moved forward and fell through the green portal in the water. Seconds later, the portal disappeared, leaving the two of us alone in the silent forest.
"Do you think anybody would believe us if we told them what happened?" Tanya asked. I let out a chuckle in response.
"Not in a million years," I replied.
Tanya and I buried the shell of Twilight Sparkle on the shore of the swimming hole. There was certainly a lot of explaining to do to my parents when I called them about my car being wrecked. My parents, Tanya, and I attended the funeral of Mr. Franco before heading back to the city. The police eventually gave up on their search for Claudia Wolfe and the town moved on with murders no longer taking place. I went off to college and have been successful in my college career so far. Strangely enough, it turns out that Evelyn is going to the same college that I am. We've been dating for a couple months now. My parents sold the cabin and I've heard that somebody else has bought it. I've also heard that the area around the cabin has become twice as beautiful as it used to be, especially around the swimming hole. Although, the new owners have occasionally complained about the taste of ash and an overabundance of static electricity in the air. Things have become better for Tanya and me and we're a lot closer now as brother and sister than we ever were before our encounter with the creatures from another world. Both of us have begun to check out more of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic and have started to take a liking to it.
I find myself thinking of Twi a lot. I remember that week I spent with her and how much it changed me and Tanya for the better. We haven't told anybody about what truly happened and we never will. I'm sure it happened. I know it happened. The impossible and unthinkable happened and we witnessed it. I think back to Twilight's promise that we'll see each other again someday. Sometimes, I think I'm crazy, I think I see Twilight smiling at me through the reflection of a nearby mirror, window, or other reflective surface. I only see her for a millisecond but I'm sure that she's there. Maybe she's found a way to look in on my world every now and then. I hope we do end up seeing each other again. Until then, I'm fine just remembering her as that strange, impossible girl. I'll never forget her. That's a promise.
