> Humans Are Awesome
>  by NightwatchTheRogue
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> (Renewed) Act 1 Prologue: ... and I want to live in their world. The world filled with Humans
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Okay, here goes nothing...


Log Journal Entry 1 

(Second Month of Autumn, Day 08, Year 5 of Luna's Return Era)

Journal Topic: My Existence Dream

I wished...

No, I STILL wish that I was born a human.

I wish to be a creature that was born with no magical powers that make unicorns lazy and arrogant towards the magicless and, in exchange, gain abilities that easily prove that I worked hard and can get along with any creature.

I want to be an adventurous creature who can do anything with only their natural born skills and opposable thumbs.

I'm talking about Humans.

To be a Human is my only wish.

There! 

I finally said those embarrassing words.

I said what I have wanted to shout on top of a cliff for all the residents of Equestria and beyond to hear... in a literate form since Bon-bon said that calling on top of a cliff near Ponyville would ensure that I lose (if I had any) good reputation I have towards the town ponies.

Just saying what I wanted in a somewhat poetic speech in the first entry of this journal now, instead of wasting two or four chapters of being obscure at telling you (the journal) about my (boring as f-ing Tartarus) daily life before finally saying it at the very last page.

(Where was I going with this?

Oh right...)


Humans. 

Humans! 

HUMANS!


(Oops, I drooled a lot after thinking about Humans again. Sorry, newly purchased journal)

(And sorry, sorry for writing only HUMANS! in really, really large letters on the entire page)

I have been (way) into humans since I was a little filly. 

But I swear this isn't an obsession. 

It's my wish. 

Innocent.

(But I do want to know what my Human version's body looks like underneath their clothes)

(Nope, nope and nope. Evil thoughts, Lyra Heartstrings)

(Not gonna write that in the journal)

Okay, enough silliness.

It's time to write something profound.

I will record my first encounter with the creature I desire to be.

I met a genuine human here in Equestria, but nopony, even my friends, believed me, and some even made fun of or bullied me for that discovery. 

When Father discovered this, he...

... 

However, their doubtful (and, instead, tear-inducing) jeers won't stop me from remembering that day like it was just eight years ago.

It was during Hearth's Warming Day in Canterlot; My friends & I were playing snowball fights outside the Canterlot walls.

Twilight Sparkle was too busy reading her books instead of playing with us like always, and Moon Dancer got sick for a whole week, and the snow completely melted when she got better. We felt terrible that Moondancer didn't get to play, so we gave her a "we're happy you're better now" party that my penpal (who I later knew is the 2nd most beautiful Earth Pony mare that I met in Ponyville) and showered her with lots of presents. That's all that mattered.

We were playing near a small frozen lake, building our own snow castle and snow ponies, and skating at the frozen lake.

It was a typical fillyhood moment except more amazing as that day was when I had a fantastic encounter with fate… or whatever an event of meeting an actual, breathing human for the first time is called.

I met my first human after my friends decided to go home early, leaving me behind at the lake. I was too occupied even to notice that everyone left me alone. I didn't want to go home so soon.

I was making an army of snow ponies for my snow castle until I discovered I was alone; I decided to keep building the army to distract myself from the cold and the very next day.

I was thrilled to be playing in the snow. I thought that day would be a regular carefree day. However, I didn't realise then that my life was about to change forever.

...

Dear Luna, that was incredibly lame to write down. Thank goodness, BonBon can't hear my writing.

Oops, but she can hear me speak my thoughts out loud. I should've written this at my workshop. Sorry, Sweetie. 

Anyway, this massive ball of flashing white light suddenly appeared out of nowhere, and then this weird bipedal creature came out from the light.

I thought at first she was some Diamond Dog or hornless Minotaur species, but she had no tail; her muzzle was small & flat, her ears were… weird looking and basically, everything about her looked wrong at first. She had a bizarre fur coat with pouches on her stomach, which I thought was a kangaroo-like creature, and the pouches were used to carry her offspring and food.

If I meet a human in my current timeline and mentality, I would be jumping over the moon with ecstasy, but back then...

I was petrified and speechless when I first saw that human. I almost puked when she tried to approach me. I thought she would hurt me, but instead, she hugged me and stroked my mane a little rough.

She giggled with amusement and said things like "Oh my gosh, you are so cute" and "I want you to be my pony" to me as if I were her pet.

"Oh my gosh, I want you to come home with me", She happily said. She was beginning to stroke my mane a little too rough, irritating me.

"... Ouch!" I yelled in annoyance, "Knock it off; you're gonna tear off my mane."

She stopped stroking my mane after I finally said something. I looked at her face to properly speak to her, but as soon as I did that, she had a shocked expression.

She started to shriek at me in fear as if she saw a monster or something scary. She pushed me down and ran behind a rock.

I tried to get up from the snow-covered ground but heard a cracking noise. Unfortunately, I got shoved towards the lake with a thin layer of ice.

I wanted to jump away from the lake, but it was too late; the frozen lake floor gave in, shattered open a large hole, and collapsed into the freezing water.

I was crying for help, but there was nopony around to assist me except for the creature who pushed me into the lake. I was flailing my hooves all over the place. It was too cold to swim appropriately, and there was no solid ground to hold on to.

I shouted at the strange creature for help; she looked hesitant to escape her rock. I yelled louder as I desperately struggled to stay afloat on the lake.

It took about a third time of screaming at her for help that she finally took action. I don't blame her for hesitating now, but I blamed her for a bit that time. She tried to reach out to me, and she grabbed my hooves with her… fingers? I think they're called fingers.

After leaving the icy lake, I was shivering because of the weather and the chilling water, which meant I got hypothermia. I was beginning to pass out from the cold, but the creature suddenly opened her fur, which freaked me out, and she placed me in her stomach.

I panicked from that situation, but my cold distracted me even to care. I fell unconscious, however, not before feeling a strange but comforting warmth from her stomach.

When I regained consciousness, I was in a dark, damp hollow cave, and the creature was huddling alone in the centre of the cave, trying to do something with a bundle of sticks and… hay?

It appeared that she was trying to light up a fire, but all I saw was her bashing a bunch of rocks against each other. I thought that the cold was getting to her, but then I saw sparks coming out of the stones, which landed on the hay, there was smoke coming out, and she proceeded to blow on it.

To my surprise, she started a fire; I was amazed to see her make fire without magic. I thought what she did was impossible for anypony who's not a unicorn or a creature capable of performing magic.

It took me a few years to see and know that anypony can start fires with a flint and steel or that there were many methods to ignite a fire. I live in a city filled with snobby magic-using unicorns. 

Leave me alone on that, okay?

"Wow," I said quietly, as I didn't want the creature to notice. I woke up and scared her.

But it was pointless; my soft voice echoed throughout the cave. The creature approached me and touched my forehead.

I cringed as I thought she would eat me, just like the dragons used to do in Equestria before the princesses came into power. However, she was checking my temperature.

She was reaching for something from her… stomach pouch, I thought at the time. She pulled out a carrot.

"Here you go," she politely said. She placed the carrot on the ground before me. "You must be hungry, huh?"

"Yes," I weakly replied as the cold affected my throat.

"I saved this for my snowman, but you can have it."

Snow... man? Does she mean a "snowpony"? What's a man? I had so many questions about that statement, but I was famished then, and I needed food for energy to fight off the cold.

My horn started to glow, used my magic to clumsy levitate the carrot into my mouth. Before I could bite, I heard the creature gasp again, and I dropped my carrot.

"What was that?" she gleefully asked me. Her face was getting closer to mine, which made me uncomfortable. "Was that magic?"

"Yes?" I replied casually as if she never saw magic before. She did come out from a mysterious light, so why would she be impressed with simple levitation magic if she can start fires with a bunch of rocks and sticks (again, leave me alone)? Doesn't she have magic where she came from?

"Oh man, you can use magic. I wish I could use magic… wait, are you a unicorn?"

"Yes? I am a unicorn, and I can use magic."

Without skipping a beat, she replied with so much glee. "Oh my gosh. Well, I'm a human, and I want to learn how to use magic just like you" Her eyes were sparkling with delight that outshines the cave's darkness.

"What's a human?" is the typical question that anypony would ask. I didn't realise at the time that question would open a whole new world to me.

"Well, a human is what I am. Two legs, arms, hands, ten fingers, and toes." She responded while wiggling her "fingers" close to my face. They looked like pale carrot sticks. "And also, I'm a girl."

"Well then, I'm a unicorn pony. Four legs and hooves, one horn, fluffy tail, and no fingers or toes," I replied jokingly and waved her back with my left forehoof. "I'm a filly."

Our introduction exchange made both of us laugh out loud. Our booming chuckling echoed throughout the cave, which calmed us down and warmed up the area.

After that icebreaker (no pun intended), the human and I began to talk more about what we were, where we came from and what our worlds offer.

She told me she came from Manehattan, but she said that her family was moving to the suburbs called Ponyville Street in a few days. These locations she mentioned sounded familiar to me; I realised later that I'd seen those names on the maps of Equestria.

I visited a similar-sounding city called Manehattan as my first location for my journey as I thought that area might be related to that human's location... and I have to say I did not care for that place. 

Terrible city noises that might be the cause of me still hearing ringing noises inside my ear, disgusting overpriced food, rude ponies, and the hotel that I stayed in scammed me out of thirty bits for "special room service", which I never got, by the way. I should've gone to Ponyville first, and I could have saved a lot of time and  Father's  "borrowed" bits.

Wait, where was I going with this?

I told her I lived in a capital city called Canterlot and studied magic and music with my friends/classmates at The School for Gifted Young Unicorns. 

The human then asked me what my Cutie Mark in my flanks was for. Well, in actuality, she called it "my tattoos on my butt". I told her it was a mark that told me my destiny and identity.

She called it out as "stupid, "it made me furious at first for insulting my mark, but she explained that a mark or symbol doesn't tell me what I can do with my life; it's my actions that she thinks determines my future.

She both amazed me by telling me that I can be anypony I want to be without Father or others ordering me around. And annoyed me because now I think my Cutie Mark is useless as a destiny symbol; I only see it now as my brand to tell everyone what I own. Which is cool, I guess?

We exchange every piece of information that we can think of about our world. Her world is called Earth, while mine is Equestria. The main inhabitants of her homeworld are humans like she is, and mine are magical ponies (except for other creatures. I should not discriminate against others like a typical Canterlot unicorn). She says their world's magic is rare, and I told her Equestria provides infinite amounts of magic to everyone.

There were some weird ones that the human mentioned, like when she said that wearing clothes was mandatory and they had no fur, apart from the tiny strands of hair in their skin. My reply was that most of the ponies walk around naked because we have thick coats covering our... inner private layer or whatever perverted things you want to describe.

Okay, stop thinking about it, you pervert.

...

Wait, did I call myself a pervert?

Ah, whatever. I'm the only one reading this journal anyway... I hope so.

Another was the internet; she described it as "tiny invisible numbers in the air that fly around everywhere and carry information such as messages... and cat videos?" And they go inside big metal boxes called a monitor to see these cat videos.

I got lost when she said  "tiny invisible numbers" . But I now realise that every morning I wake up and breathe the air, I think of math, and I suck at math.

Breathing tiny invisible numbers made me bad at math. Yeah, I don't get the logic either.

Okay, back to the point. 

I returned that confusion to the girl when I gave her a specific description of what kinds of magic we have in Equestria. I told her that there are three Pony tribes, each one with its own unique abilities and physical features. She was most interested in this one as she stared at me with unblinking eyes.

"Taking mental notes," She told me; I picked up on that habit whenever I got new information on humans. It creeped everypony out, especially Bon-Bon, but she tells me that's one of the reasons why she loves me.

First was my tribe, the Unicorns. They have horns like mine but come in different shapes and sizes. I once met a unicorn that had a crazy curly horn. They were weird and too close for comfort but friendly, unlike your typical unicorn, pretentious and have a bundle of carrots up their asses. 

All Unicorns focus their entire lives on studying and learning many spells. The majority left their studies after learning the regulated elemental attacks. In contrast, the rest continued and became scholars, hoping they could construct new ones independently and cast powerful spells that historic Unicorn mages crafted to see how beneficial they were. Most who left their studies took on prestigious careers such as fashion design, jewel crafting and stage performances. The rest were already rich due to their ancestors' history in business and nobility; basically, they could do whatever they wanted in life and follow their dreams without struggle or hardship, unlike me in my family.

Next was the fast and headstrong Pegasi. 

They have wings and laid-back manes and can manipulate the weather anytime they want. They can make any section of Equestria have any temperature as long as they schedule ahead of time and notify the populace. Yeah, I never knew and cared much about Pegasi, for my thoughts on them are that they are all arrogant and attention-seeking show-offs. Henceforth, I describe them as headstrong because they make the most overbearing unicorn seem tamed.

And lastly, the Earth Ponies, my favourite pony tribe. 

What they lack in horns and wings, Earth ponies' magic makes up for it with their strength and intuition to perform everyday tasks such as gardening, construction, solving problems with efficiency & convenience, and any other manual labours. They were innovators in non-magic technology, agriculture, culinary and knowledge. Most of their career roles are teachers, chefs, farmers, and some exceptional cases, party ponies such as Pinkie Pie, whom I had the pleasure of meeting during her visit to Canterlot, but truly knew about her and became somewhat close friends with after I moved to Ponyville.

She's a great instant best friend when we first met. She was the one who suggested I come to Ponyville and stay there as a permanent resident. She's also the one who introduced me to Bon Bon, my marefriend. I always come to her parties whenever I have free time from my job as a musical instruments shop owner and human researcher.

She is charming.

I liked Earth ponies the most as they come with prominent families who are close and rely on each other all the time. I was always jealous of Earth ponies because they get to go home, see their families & relatives smiling at them and help them with their homework or other things. 

All I have is Father.

Anyway, that night in the cave was the best day of our lives as we continued telling stories about ourselves and our world. As we hugged each other near the fire inside the cave that night, we felt like we could've been best friends who could visit each other's worlds and try new things together.

Too bad it was the only night we got to hang out with each other as the next day, the human disappeared, and everypony was searching for me that night.

Father was outraged when I got back home. He called me a disgrace to the "Heartstrings" title, and I should be---

You know what, forget about it. I don't want to write any more of "that next day". It's not like anypony is going to see this journal anyway.

Goodbye and Goodnight for now, Journal and sorry for ruining a good page with my... issues.

Oh, by the way, this is Lyra Heartstrings writing to you for the first time. Sorry again; I forgot to tell you my name. Goodbye again.
> Act 1 Ch 1- ... and I feel like Destiny is coming
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------






The Conclusion of the Battle Between Midnight Sparkle and the Daydream Shinobi

Two Weeks Before Lyra's First Journal Entry

Sunset's Perspective






It's over. 

It's finally over.

That awful magic is gone.

The remaining magical residue from my Daydream Shinobi form and of that dark alter ego, Midnight, dispersed into the unknown. I can see that my shurikens, daggers and other magically-manifested weapons scattered throughout the battlefield have also disappeared. Man, I wished I had taken a pic of my Daydream form. To hell with anonymity; I must have looked badass; I felt like one. I get the feeling I can summon that power again. I-

GAH! UGH!

Who am I kidding? It's not over.

I panted in exhaustion. My shoulders drooped. I can feel my entire body sweating like crazy. I was dehydrated, as if I just walked through a desert.

Gah! Oh, sweet Celestia, I'm physically, mentally and spiritually drained. Although my Daydream Shinobi form felt so amazing and liberating at first, the backlash of my first complete transformation immediately took a toll on me. At least it will never compare to when I turned into a literal demon. 

ACK! 

How does Twilight do this? I'm supposed to be her senior when it comes to magic and being Princess Celestia's student, but jeez... I hope nobody saw my glistening shinobi attire. I can't just reveal my second Human World secret identity to everyone, especially my friends. Sensei would be mad-

Hmmm? It looks like everyone is still frozen in time from Midnight's spell, and my smokescreen spell bomb hasn't left yet, concealing the battlefield from prying eyes. 

I should use this opportunity. 

Quickly, I got into a crouching position on the ruined ground and instinctively drew my knife concealed on my right boot but immediately withdrew it.

What the hell was I thinking? She's not like the others. She doesn't deserve it.

It's not her fault... but what am I supposed to do?

I quickly surveyed the area and saw the shattered fragments of Twilight's magic-absorbing gadget around us. She created that device with just this World's materials and technology. How is that possible? I've been here for at least a decade and learned everything this World has to offer, but I have never gotten close to creating something like that.

That idea never crossed my mind since I spent most of my time here with those pathetic and petty schoolyard-level bullying towards... everyone, including my friends... This girl...

Instead of me on that crater, it's my best friend's Human doppelganger. 

I stood up and slowly approached the sobbing little girl. This moment feels ironic and should bring some bad memories, yet my heartbeat is steady, and my body isn't shaking as if I am ready for this. 

This World's Twilight Sparkle... This girl has a unique yet horrifying talent and intelligence, just like the Princess... Yet she has no proper guidance on using those talents for a good purpose or a good friend who can attempt to stop her from this. Instead, her classmates and teacher push her into releasing wild magic without understanding its properties and how it will affect the fabric of reality. And for what? To win a competition. Those ignorant bastards. 

My thoughts are in shambles as I don't understand why Indy Senp- No, Indigo took part. Didn't I tell her that the magic in this World is unstable? She's not the type to participate in group mentality or peer pressure. Even if she is... no, forget it. Sensei will punish her thoroughly. 

I clenched my hands to suppress my burning rage. Calm down, Sunny. Just let those dark feelings quell for now. I will deal with that Cinch woman later.

With every step I take, the overbearing weight of the guilt of my past sins and self-pity is slowly disappearing from my heart and mind. So this is what it feels like. Is this what it feels like to take the first steps on my path to redemption finally? 

Princess Celestia... Princess Twilight... Lady Luna... Sensei... If only you guys were here to see me now. You guys would have been so proud of your stupid student for doing the right thing on her own... with some help from her friends.

I momentarily stopped and turned to look at the people I used to torment and forced me to separate for a short time. They're my friends now. Pinkie. Applejack. Rainbow. Rarity. Fluttershy. I don't deserve those girls. I need to treat them to some free sushi after this is over.

...

The Fall Formal... 

My Recruitment... 

The Battle of the Bands... 

The Assassination... 

Anon-A-Miss... 

The Friendship Games...

It has only been a few months, yet so much has happened. I have done so much for my new home, sound... and evil, like amending my past misdeeds to all who I have crossed and doing some remote jobs on the side in hopes that I will grow into a better person that I want my new family and friends to see and be with. 

I looked at this poor girl. After that intense Battle, her clothes are messy, and her body is covered with burn marks and cuts from my magic shurikens and weapons. She's crying a river of tears and looking at me with fear. I truly understand how you feel, Twilight. I truly do. I'm sorry for hurting you and venting so much self-hatred for my past failures and inferiority complex towards your counterpart. 

I won't ever let you be alone again.

I bent over and reached my right hand out towards her. 

This lost girl needs the magic of Friendship to help her grow, release her true potential, and feel the love of others just like I did... No, I still need the magic of Friendship.

...

But what about this World? 

What does this World need?

I felt a sharp pain in my heart, as if millions of knives from around the World stabbed me when I made that revelation.

This ominous and painful feeling tells me that this World has yet to scratch this magic-filled powderkeg's surface. Equestrian Magic that I released has become this World's magic. It is primordial and easily obtainable. Poor souls might accidentally get corrupted by this magic, just like what happened to this Twilight... and me. 

And I know that secret organisations and even the Government will create unnecessary weapons and conduct countless dangerous experiments without understanding the fundamentals and care of magic, just like how they treat everything they encounter. Many innocent lives will be caught in the fray.

I have to make things right before it is too late. Even though my idiotic and selfish mistake caused this, and I should take responsibility for it, I can't do this alone. I still need to train to get stronger, and I will never toss my friends into that mess. 

But what do I do?

Magic will destroy the fabric of reality and the existence of this World... my new home if I leave it be. 

I need an expert. This World needs an expert.

I need your help, Princess Twilight.





A Week after the Friendship Games incident

After the quick clean-up of the aftermath of the Friendship Games incident, it was business as usual for the CHS students, even though they should have been making an appointment with the school counsellor or a professional therapist for they had just witnessed such a mind-blowing and reality-breaking catastrophe a few days ago. 

However, this isn't their first time witnessing an interdimensional magical battle between good and corruption. Although that couldn't be said, the same thing for the students from Crystal Prep might need their coping skills. 

The teens in both schools can thank Sunset Shimmer for their additional trauma to magic and existential crisis.

Speaking of Sunset, she and her friends are chilling on a picnic blanket during their lunch break. They are beside the destroyed marble statue where the portal to another world is located. There is not a single dark cloud or stray portal wormhole in sight... at the moment.

Twilight, Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy were preoccupied with the recently magical talking dog, Spike, by giving him soft petting and delicious treats. Rainbow Dash is taking a light nap with her jacket covering her eyes. Applejack and Rarity are in a polite yet heated discussion about the farmer girl's fashion sense. 

And Sunset Shimmer is leaning beside the statue's marble pedestal, close to the portal. She is repeatedly tapping her fingers on her journal as she waits for any response from Princess Twilight. She wanted to come to the Princess but could not get there as the portal can only be activated on the Equestrian side. She would be informed if the Princess would come to the Human world through a message in her magic journal first before arrival. 

She expected the Princess might be busy with her duties as the Princess of Friendship or on some bizarre adventure.

"I hope the portal didn't malfunction during the fight." Sunset pondered. "I know I need her, but she must be busy with her duties as a Princess. Take a deep breath, Sunny. Remember, patience is a virtue. Be patient, or you get a shuriken in your eye."

The fiery-haired girl grabbed a lettuce and tomato sandwich from the picnic basket and scarfed it like a vicious beast.

"Woah there, missy. No need to gobble up yer meal and stress away in one go. It ain't goin' anywhere." Applejack said as she grabbed an apple cake from the basket. "Are ya nervous about Twilight not responding to yer messages for a whole week?"

The fiery-haired girl nodded. "Yeah, I-"

"Ah!" Twilight shouted, interrupting the conversation and startling her puppy. She searched her pockets for her phone in a panic. "B-but there must be a mistake. I haven't even gotten your contact details yet. Speak of which, I've been meaning to ask-" 

"Oh, there's no need to be worried, Ms. Sparkle. We're not talking about you." Rarity reassured the new girl. 

"Yup, yup." Pinkie joined in. She took out a juice box from the basket and sprang on top of the marble platform of the broken statue to lie down. "We're just discussing your magic princess clone from a different dimension."

"Oh, that's a re-. Wait, what?" Twilight said with a puzzled expression as the gears in her mind made multiple attempts to comprehend what the girl was trying to say. "Wait, is this a part of some hazing ritual for the new girl in the group? "

Rainbow Dash quickly rose from her nap. She stretched her arms to put on her jacket and said. "Oh no, that's not happening until next week. The parts still haven't arrived yet."

"Oh, your hair's a mess, Rainbow Dash." Rarity gasped as she saw the girl's mangled hair. "Here, let me take care of that."

"Oh, sure." The rainbow-haired tomboy didn't make a fuss and gladly took the girl's offer as she scooched closer. 

"You mean there is-" Twilight was about to ask something when suddenly...

A shimmering sound started to appear somewhere. It sounded like a gentle wind blowing past a wind chime. Everyone, except Twilight, knew the source of the noise as they turned their collective heads towards the front base of the marble platform, emitting a wonderful radiant light and sparks glimmering in a rainbow hue.

And from that rainbow hue, a figure burst out and dug in her heels to halt her speedy arrival. This mysterious figure had long purple straight hair with pink and fushia highlights, a light blue blouse with a lovely pink bow, black boots, and a dark sapphire skirt with three white and purple stars on the bottom left. Her arms were curved and close to her chest. She had an anxious expression.

"I'm so sorry. I didn't get here any sooner. I didn't get your messages until now because I got caught in this time travelling." She put her right palm on her forehead with a sheepish expression. "And honestly, it was just the strangest thing that has ever happened to me-"

There was a few seconds of uncomfortable ambience. The sound of Pinkie loudly sipping on her juice box did not help lighten the mood.

Both girls, one with glasses and the other without one, stared at each other with their mouths agape.

The girl without the glasses slowly blinked her eyes. "Make that the second strangest." She awkwardly said while pointing at her counterpart.

The one with glasses started to blink rapidly and hyperventilating.

"Wha-Wha-Wha-" Twilight, with glasses, stuttered as she looked at the strange spectacle distressedly. She took small steps back. "Wh-what's going on? What the hell is this? This is highly illogical. It should be illogical, but I'm looking at it... or me right now. Who or what are you? Are you an evil clone from another dimension or my evil twin that got separated from our birth, or has my alter ego, Midnight Sparkle, constructed a physical form-"

This moment is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, but the girls, excluding the Twilights, couldn't help but quietly chuckle. Not every day, they witness two twins from two different worlds encountering each other for the first time. Too bad nobody came up with the idea to film this historical and scientific discovery.

Sunset approached the babbling girl and gently grabbed her trembling hands. "Tara, it's okay. Just calm down."

"Calm? I am calm. See? I look calm." When she says the last sentence, the girl is staring and pointing at her composed counterpart, only to intensify her panicked demeanour. Her hyperventilation grew uncontrollable with every attempted breath. Her purple eye irises were contracting and expanding. Her face was beginning to sweat a lot, as if she had a fever. "I-I-I have no reason to be... not calm."

Everyone stopped grinning as soon as they realised this was no laughing matter. They had forgotten that the poor girl developed PTSD from the incident and should not be messed around.

Sunset cleared her throat and placed her right hand on the bespectacled Twilight's shoulder. "Remember what I taught you on our first sleepover. Close your eyes and deep, slow breaths. From nose to mouth. Water, please?" She looked at her friends with a pleading look.

Applejack took an unopened water bottle from the basket and passed it over. Rarity and Sunset gently lowered the girl to take a sit. Spike got on his owner's lap and nuzzled close to her chest to ease her heart. Fluttershy and Pinkie gave her a warm, comforting embrace. Rainbow Dash looked around and saw three groups of teens and a few strays gawking and discussing collectively at the spectacle.

"Hey, is that a second Twilight?"

"Woah? Let me see."

"I'm pretty sure that's the Princess one."

"A week too late, don't you think?"

"Well, she is a Princess. She has important royal stuff to do in her World, right?"

Feeling annoyed, Rainbow started angrily clapping to get the crowd's attention.

"Okay, guys. Move along. Nothing to see or film here. You guys have classes or whatever to go to. Scram." She made a shooing gesture. "GET OUTTA HERE!"

And with that, the whole school courtyard has been emptied of unnecessary eyes. 

Only the seven girls, the recently magical talking puppy, the picnic blanket, the picnic basket filled with treats and also... oh right, the Princess of Friendship remained in place.

Princess Twilight scratched her head, slowly backed towards the portal and looked at Sunset, who was giving her counterpart sips of water. "I feel like I'm intruding on something sensitive. I'm guessing that it is school hours right now. Maybe I should have given-"

"No, there's no need to do that," Sunset exclaimed as she grabbed the princess' right hand. "I need some of your assistance with something important, and I can't wait any longer."

"Yes." The bespectacled Twilight joined in. "No, I need some proper briefing on who this is... Twilight is, and why did she just magically come out of that statue? Ouch, my brain hurts." She massages the temples of her head.

"Of course. I will tell you everything, Twilight." The Princess gently dropped to the picnic blanket and rested on her arms, legs and stomach like a four-legged creature. "For starters, my name is Twilight Sparkle... well, you already know that. As you might not know, I come from a different reality and live in a marvellous place called Equestria. I am the Princess-"

"Ummm, I'm sorry for interrupting your explanation. But can you please not sit like that, Princess." The bespectacled girl pleaded, a little embarrassed to see someone sit like that in her form.

"You can just call me, Twilight."

"I can't. I just can't." The flustered girl shook her head in disbelief. "I seriously can't since I'm Twilight. I mean, my real name is Tara. But I want my friends to call-" something snapped inside her head. "Ahhhh! Sarah, help?!"

"It's alright. I'm here." The fiery-haired girl held onto the anxious girl's right hand. "Remember when I told you that I came from a different world, the same place where the magic you discovered in CHS came from."

"I have some recollection of that moment." Twilight with glasses answered. "I just thought you were joking about that."

"I would never make such jokes to you or my friends." Sunset shook her head. "Princess Twilight is proof that our worlds are a reflection of one another, with a slight variation, which is what physical forms we take place. I will explain to you what I meant by that last statement later. You need to rest."

"Yeah, I do." Twilight, with glasses, sighed and massaged her forehead. She looked at her glasses-less counterpart. "Before I pass out from shock, proper introductions should be conducted. Forgive my rudeness just now. I am Tara Sparkle, but I go by Twilight... or used to be." She reaches out her right hand.

Twilight bows her head in a regal manner. "As I've said before, my name is Twilight Sparkle, and I am the Princess of Friendship. It is a pleasure to meet you, Miss Twilight." She extended her curved hand and clumsily shook her counterpart's hand as if it was her first time. The exhausted girl looked at her hand and was perplexed about how to react to that gesture. "Or would you like me to call you Tara?"

"You know what. We might as well take care of this one issue," Sunset responded. She looked at Twilight with glasses. "If Twilight bothers you so much, then to avoid further confusion, your new nickname for this group will be Sci-Twi since you are a pro in Science and a fan of the Sci-fi genre." 

Sci-Twi's eyes twitched, but then she sighed and slumped her shoulders as a sign of defeat. She removed her glasses and placed them in her right pocket. "Haaa... you know what, fine. I'm Sci-Twi. I've depleted all of my social energy from my battery to cause another panic attack or listen today." She took out her phone and started tapping as if her life depended on it. "I'm texting my therapist for an appointment tomorrow. Just tell me why she's here when she leaves. You guys do your thing while I knock myself out. Sci-Twi out." She then passed out on Sunset's chest.

Everyone looked at Sunset, who seemed unfazed by this development and at Twilight, who looked uncomfortable and just wanted a normal conversation. They just agreed to let the poor girl sleep and begin the meeting.

"So, where were we?" Twilight said.

"Ahem. I'm sorry for interrupting, but how are you calm about this, Princess Twilight?" Rarity pried at her curiosity, feeling a little guilty. "Meeting your counterpart, I mean." 

"Oh, I've seen my fair share of clone high-jinks." The Princess nonchalantly replied and shrugged. "I've taken part of that novel trope before."

"Really?" Fluttershy said.

"Of course." She exhaustively sighed. "I won't go into details since we have important topics to discuss, but I'll just give you three words: PINKIE. CLONE. PARADE."

Excluding oblivious Pinkie, everyone synchronously shuddered from the thought. Even the slumbering Sci-Twi cringed, and she still hadn't gotten well acquainted with the party-for-brains girl.

"I would love to have random conversations with my friends, but I think it's time to be serious and not go on tangents. But first..." Twilight said. She looked around the courtyard and saw no visible threat or severe damage. "From the looks of it, your problem has been solved, and everything is okay on this end, aside from my encounter with my counterpart."

Sunset nodded. "Yes, my friends and I took care of the problem. No more magical threats..." Her grin turned to a frown. "For now."

Twilight let out an exhausted sigh. "From what I read in your messages, my counterpart discovered a way to trace magic by creating a device that had an unintentional function of siphoning and containing the magic. I am impressed and incredibly concerned by how you described the during effects and aftereffects of this device's abilities towards others. It's a compacted version of Tirek-"

"Wait, Tirek?" Rainbow asked, feeling confused when she heard the name of a video game character being mentioned.

"Just a horrifying magic-consuming monster that I re-imprisoned to Tartarus-" Twilight explained., not noticing Rainbow's shocked expression.

"Eeep." Fluttershy gasped... or more like eeped in surprise. "Tartarus? As in the Greek underworld for the eternally damned Tartarus?" 

"Hell is real in your world?" Pinkie exclaimed. 

"If you mean by Hell as in a highly secured prison for the worst creatures in all of existence, then yes," Twilight answered. "Hell is real." She just straight-up said it like it wasn't a big deal.

"I hope I don't have a reservation for that place or this world's Hell?" Sunset reflected with a blank expression. "Oh, who am I kidding? I killed and sinned too much to not get the VIP treatment."

Twilight continued, ignoring the horrified expressions of the other girls. "I thought Sci-Twi... am I saying it right?..." She got a thumbs-up from everyone. "Oh, okay... Sci-Twi would have my logical common sense and caution to not tamper with unknown powers. Still, I guess she also had my lack of a symbolic backbone and weakness towards peer pressure because I read that, In Sunset's writing, her schoolmates and this Cinch creature pushed her into unleashing the unstable concentrated magic... for a friendly competition."

"It only says they're friendly on paper." Rainbow snarled with her arms crossed and a bitter scowl on her face. "But for years, it has just been an ego boost for those spoiled preppy brats and a way to rub their victory on our faces. We worked super hard this year, and they had to fucking cheat-"

"Ruth, Language!" Applejack exclaimed while Fluttershy covered Spike's ears.

"I'm sorry, but it's true." The rainbow-haired girl grumbled. 

"Poor competitive principles and malicious cheating can be found worldwide." Twilight shook her head disapprovingly. "I guess at the end of that ordeal is that nopony- I mean, no one got seriously injured... or snatched by a random portal, right?" She looked at everyone, expecting good news.

"Nope." Pinkie Pie shook her head and pulled out her phone, quickly scrolling up and down. "I asked everyone online all week about it, and nobody seems to be on any missing notices or in the hospital. Although, I asked a best friend of a friend who knows the janitor in Crystal Prep, and apparently, only Principal Cinch is absent for the whole week. Guess someone lost her screen time."

A sly grin appeared on Sunset's face for a few seconds when she heard about the principal's disappearance.

"Hmmm..." Twilight hummed while rubbing her chin with her left hand. "Although this Cinch took part in the cause of the incident, I'm worried for her. She might be stranded-"

"There's no need to be worried." Sunset interrupted, waving her right hand. "I'll ask Vice Principal Luna about it. We shouldn't spare a thought on that woman. We should focus on why I called you here for."

The Princess gave the girl a suspicious glare which was returned with an "I'll tell you in private" response stare. She sighed.

The fiery-haired girl continued. "Princess Twilight, we need a magic expert from our World to search and handle all of the magic problems in this World. I'm too preoccupied with my... other duties to concentrate on this manner fully." She looked at Twilight with a concerned look. "And I can't just expect your help whenever we need you since you have your duties to attend to, right?"

"No need to worry, Sunset. I've anticipated this problem ahead of time," Twilight replied with a confident grin. "I've been pondering what should be done after the Battle of the Bands incident. We'll need to make a plan for this. For starters, instead of you or I, It should be a unicorn pony who has great knowledge of magic and is just as capable as I am to take my stead and handle the magic problems in this World. I already have the perfect mare for this mission."

"Wait, you do? Already?" Sunset said with a befuddled grin on her face.

"Indeed, I do." Twilight nodded. "I just didn't realise it then, but she has been a candidate even before you came back to Equestria and stole my crown." Sunset cringed at the statement but didn't say anything, or she might hear another "no offence" apology.

Twilight continued. "She is a great friend who has been eager to come to this World and meet Humans since... Well, forever. She's friendly to all creatures and adaptable in dangerous situations like some ponies in Ponyville. But she also possesses a bountiful knowledge of this World's inhabitants from years of research. I promise you that she won't disappoint you." 

"Woah there, Twilight. I'm already sold on this friend of yours. Thank you. You have no idea how grateful I am for this." Sunset smiled, sighed in relief and shook the princess' hands. Her friends also smiled as they saw their friend so grateful and happy. 

However, her smile is quickly replaced with an uneased scowl. "I believe that you can easily convince your friend to do this mission, but I'm getting a gut feeling that she has to stay here close to this World for a long time. She can't just hop here and go home whenever I call you for help. The previous magical problems in this World have appeared more frequently and stronger."

"Now that you mentioned it." Rarity joined in the conversation. "It has been only two months and a half since the Battle of the Bands ended."

"And the Fall Formal was four months ago," Applejack added. 

"Oh my. The incidents are happening too quickly." Fluttershy said in a concerned tone.

"I've been in this world for almost a decade but could never find any magic here, not even a pinky finger's worth," Sunset said. "But after what I did at the Fall Formal, it seems like the crown created some sort of magic fountain with CHS as the source and flowing magic in large concentrated amounts all over this city."

"I wish I could use my magic here to use a magic sensitivity and detection spell to see if that theory is true." Twilight moped. "I've been in this World for a few minutes, but I still can't seem to use my magic here freely. So, magic detection is out of the question. When I return, I might have to construct a stable, non-magic-absorbing detection device to help my friend with this problem."

"If that will help with the search, please make it." Sunset rubbed the back of her head, feeling unease when she heard that Twilight plans to make a magic detection device. Fingers crossed that it will not blow up in their faces. "So, can you convince your friend to live here temporarily?

"As I said, she's wanted to come to this since she was a tiny foal. But I will need your help in return," Twilight said. "If she's going to live here for the long term, she can't just roam around as an illegal immigrant and jeopardise Equestria's existence from being discovered. She will need proof of residency and only obtain it through... unconventional means. You know what to do, good Sunset?"

"I know the drill," Sunset said, stroking her chin. "I have an acquaintance from my part-time job who can prepare the necessary documents to make her a legit temporary resident. I can convince my landlord to rent an apartment beside mine since my place doesn't have much space for two people. But I'll need some bits to exchange for this World's currency to pay for everything. Don't worry; I'll ensure she won't be placed in a dangerous situation or meet the wrong people."

"Of course. You have my utmost trust and belief. Thank you, Sunset." The Princess said. She looked at her counterpart with concern. "Should we do something about Sci-Twi?"

Sunset checked on her sleeping friend. "Hey, Tara. You awake?" She lightly slaps Sci-Twi's face, not getting any response except light breathing and moaning. "Looks like she's knocked out cold but breathing. Hey AJ, let's get her home."

"Sure thing, Sugarcube." Applejack got up and tipped her hat. She took out her keys and started to walk to her truck. "You come too, Dash."

"Yeah, yeah." The rainbow-haired girl said. "But I'm not coming. Gotta tell the school nurse that Sci-Twi had an episode, and she's going home."

Rarity got up and lightly patted her skirt. "I'll inform Vice Principal Luna about this."

Fluttershy got up. "I'll go tell Ms Cheerilee as well. She might be worried about why we are late for class."

Pinkie hopped down from the statue stand's surface. "And I'll check our classmates and ensure nobody is making bad rumours about what just happened."

"Ummm, Princess Twilight?" Sunset asked, looking at the girl with a concerned and guilty expression. "Is it okay if we leave you alone for a bit? We need to bring you- I mean, Sci-Twi home."

"Oh, it's fine, Sunset," Twilight said, waving her curved right hand. "We can discuss further on this situation. Besides, I want to relax after an exhausting time-travelling week."

"Wow, time travelling, huh? I want to ask, but I guess you do deserve some rest. I want to hear the details later." Sunset chuckled at the odd comment. "Well, if you're hungry, some vegan sandwiches, fruits and juice boxes are in the picnic basket. The juice boxes have straws, so you don't have to use your hand-"

"I'll be fine." Twilight made a shooing motion with her curved hands. "Just go."

With one quick dismissal from the Princess, Rainbow Dash and Sunset immediately got up and headed towards AJ's truck while carrying Sci-Twi's unconscious body—the rest of the girls ran inside the school.

The skies were clear, the cool breeze gently flowing, the sun shined a warm, pleasant light, and no visible bystanders were wandering near the school courtyard—a truly perfect day for a picnic and relaxing under the sun.

Twilight collapsed on the picnic blanket, stretched her human body, and let out a sigh of relief as the heavy weight of stress and fear slowly removed themselves from her mind and body.

There is never a quiet time for this Princess of Friendship. 

She was suddenly caught in time travelling shenanigans against a former cult leader and witnessing awful alternate timelines that would make any average pony crazy and fall into absolute despair. Turning said former cult leader into her new friend and student of Friendship. She spent almost a whole week helping her new student amend (some of) their mistakes and showing the magic of Friendship by hanging around with her friends (and doing a big singing session to solidify her promise). 

And when she thinks she could take a small break, she discovers Sunset's urgent messages for help and immediately jumps into the Human World, not reading the rest of the news telling her everything has been taken care of and is back to normal. 

Don't forget that disastrous first encounter with her Human World counterpart resulted in the poor girl having an anxiety attack and passing out from emotional exhaustion. She felt incredibly guilty for just arriving without warning, letting her counterpart prepare herself, and forcing her to be sent home even though school hours hadn't finished yet. She hopes her friend will be alright with their encounter with their Human World counterpart.

What a week. 

It wasn't as hectic as when Tirek escaped from Tartarus and went on a magic-sucking spree throughout Equestria. Or when Discord escaped his stone prison and tormented her friends with his Chaos Magic. Or when Chrysalis and the Changeling swarm infiltrated her brother's wedding and tried to conquer Ponykind. Or when the Crystal Empire reemerged-

Nope, stop. No more stressful trips to memory lane. Just relax.

Twilight looked at the clear blue sky and then closed her eyes to contemplate. 

"I'm sorry for making you wait so long, but soon I will fulfil your wish... Lyra. I promise."
> Act 1 Ch 2: ... and I hate my life as a pony
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


*BOOM*


ACK! 

I screamed in pain as I get unceremoniously launched out of the window and, in my perspective, flew into the air as my lovely home for many years got blown up into smithereens by an item I wished I shouldn't have given to an unstable partner... that she held on to when we had that fight a few seconds ago.

GAH!

Welp, I messed up big time.

My marefriend got me killed... by aggressively flinging an ingredient that was going to use on my own research. My whole life's work blew up in my face... and my entire body.

Speaking of blowing up in my face, I can see the violent explosion of electricity and booming thunder ruining my entire living room. Haaa, there goes two hundred bits worth of furniture and priceless memorabilia. Just my-

GAH! ACK!

I can feel my body growing numb by the millisecond yet I can still feel the burns and shocks coursing through my veins and nerves. The sensation of my fur, flesh, and muscles tearing apart is not a pleasant feeling, that's for sure. Is this what it feels like to be directly struck by lightning without magic protection? 

If so, it is incredibly painful.

As my mind slow down my perception of time even further, I started to contemplate what circumstances caused this to happen.

Let's see...

I thought I hit the jackpot when Twilight gave me that life-changing proposition at my store today. 

But when I told Bon Bon, my now ex-mare friend, traitor, and murderer, about the good news... and also about selling my store to Twilight for a meagre sum... and also told her that we should take a break from our relationship... 

Yeah, I'm not really showing myself in a great colour here.

Well, whatever.

All I know is...

I have no reason to live in this world anymore.

...

Oh, I can feel my back hit the grou-OOF!






A Week after Twilight came back from her trip to the Human World



A Few Hours before the BOOM






It was a few hours ago.

Morning everypony! 

It is going to be another wonderfully mundane day in Ponyville. 

The sun is shining, and the birds were-

Yeah, buck this. 

Let's skip to the boring description of my boring morning, Brain. I only have a few seconds of consciousness for memory recollection. That's like a few hours in here-

Wait, where was I- oh right...

Okay, here's me in bed with a messy bed mane, Celestia's sunlight blinding my vision, a grossed-out expression after taking a whiff of bad morning breath and a parched throat. I really should have grabbed a glass of water before going to bed. I am currently cuddling my marefriend in an innocently non-sensual manner, I swear.

Wow, no matter how many times I thought about this, I'm still in awe that what's beside me is real. This most beautiful mare sleeping beside me is my marefriend. I will always marvel at her long, swirly cobalt blue mane & tail with light Fuschia stripes that make me think of her sweet hoof-made candies. Her smooth light grey fur coat feels like what I presume the clouds that Pegasi sleep on feel like. And the piece of resistance was her eyes, those sweet and mesmerizing arctic blue eyes that bind me to her control like the mythical Sirens-

Okay, hold on... Yeah yeah, I'm having very conflicting feelings here. That's enough daily yakking and gawking about my ex's appearance for today. 

My marefriend had a busy time and came home exhausted yesterday, so I decided to prepare breakfast for her.

So, I got out of bed first and headed towards the bathroom. I looked in the mirror.

Ugh! I still remembered looking incredibly awful this morning. 

I don't even want to bother describing it-

ACK! Okay, now I'm more scared. I can feel my brain having an aneurysm.

Okay, I get it. No more present-time comments. 

I'm just gonna play out today's memory before I kill myself from thinking too much.





After that short ordeal with fixing my sloppy bed mane, it's time for breakfast. Today will be oatmeal with low-fat milk and sliced apples for a quick kick of energy boost. Orange juice and coffee complement the meal.

Oh? I hear Bon Bon coming down. I magically set up the table as soon as my Sweetie sat down.

"Morning" I sweetly greet my dear mare.

"Yeah. Morn." Bon Bon muttered. Looks like yesterday was incredibly tiring for her. Who would have known that six or so wagons filled with Apple family relatives could empty her whole candy supply? Earth Pony family reunions are no joke when it comes to numbers.

But enough exposition in the mind. Gotta focus on my sleepy baby.

"Are you sure you want to go to work today?" I asked as I pour hot coffee on her mug. Black with no sugar or cream. Even after all these years, it is still strange for a pony, who owns a Candy emporium, to not want any sweets on her drinks.

"Well, I have to." She grumbled while she sipped on her coffee. "I have to finish making all the candy before the afternoon. Applejack's going to help me since she felt bad that her relatives took all of the candy, even though I just earned six months' worth of profit in one day and get rid of some excess candies. But I'm not going to refuse free help."

"Is the candy for the relatives again?" I said as I eat my apple slices.

"Nope. Just Pinkie's daily party candy re-supply. Applejack's family had to leave last night since it was their last day and they had to leave as soon as possible. I was just lucky she didn't need me that day or I would have a conundrum between opportunity and friendship."

That last sentence sounds ominous and came out of nowhere... 

But that must be nothing. 

Silly Lyra. You can't just go around thinking that every menacing-sounding sentence will lead to anything bad as if my life is a novel or stageplay. 

I'm not that interesting of a character. 

Twilight and her best friends are usually the ones who are in the middle of drama, comedy, and monster invasion in Ponyville... hay, the entire Equestria region every week. Applejack and Pinkie might have the stamina and endurance to do those physically exhausting ordeals but how can the rest of those mares have the energy to go through those ordeals? 

Just being in the background of their shenanigans was already tiring enough.

But there is one crazy event that I just wished I was there for. That time when Twilight went to the Human World for the first time. I can't believe she just told me after her return to her first visit and didn't offer me a chance to go and visit the Humans, especially since I'm an expert in all things Human.

I can still remember that stupid excuse.

"Lyra, you can't visit that World. The portal in the Crystal Mirror only emerges once every thirty full moons and stays open for a total of three days. I can't just leave you stranded in an alien world when we have no stable means to return to Equestria, the portal might cease to function, and you have no permanent residency for you to inhabit without raising any suspicion from that world's government and your marefriend is here. She might not be able to adapt to that World as you would if she came along."

Although the first few reasons were agreeable and made sense, I can't believe she used Bon Bon as a reason to not let me enter the Human World. My Sweetie would totally understand that I really need to go there, no matter what. I just don't get why she doesn't want to come along with me.

I think I can handle the permanent residency situation. Our Bits are made of pure gold and can be exchanged for a lot of currency or so I read in those old Human books that mysteriously appeared on Twilight's bookshelves. I've saved up to three thou-

"Ummm, Lyra?" Bon Bon's voice awakened me from my trance. It looks like she already finished her meal.

Huh?

"What is it? You need a refill?" I asked, levitating the coffee pot.

"No... well, actually yes but also, you have eaten all of your oatmeal yet you're still shovelling on your empty bowl." Bon Bon explained. I looked down and yup, sure enough. I've got to stop doing my soliloquy while I eat. "Is something on your mind? Are thinking about the Human World again?"

"It's just so unfair," I exclaimed while I levitated all the empty dishes to the sink and refill her mug. "Twilight just discovered a way to enter the Human World but she refuses to let me visit for even one day."

"Here, let me wash them." She offered as she approached the sink. She sighed that sounds all too familiar. Oh great, here we go again. "You know how dangerous to go there and that the portal, or whatever it is, will only open thirty full moons, even then we're not certain if the portal will stay open for three days."

Ugh, this again.

She continued. "Maybe it will close right after you enter that foreign world. You shouldn't risk your life on a magical artefact that even the Princesses had forgotten its existence until recently... when a rogue unicorn stole Twilight's crown and almost jeopardised our and that world for her selfish desires."

I wiped the dining table. "Hey, Twilight defeated her and she is currently on the path of redemption and friendship... or so I heard. The Princess of Friendship told me that she is currently participating in a special competition for her school called the Friendship Games."

Jeez, ever since Twilight earned the title, the Princess of Friendship, everypony has been saying the word friendship in conversations a lot more than a regular creature should say in their entire lifetime.

"Besides, I can handle myself for I've trained myself on how to avoid danger for years," I informed my concerned marefriend of my determined feat for the hundredth time. "Living in Ponyville is an ordeal on its own, what with the weekly invasion of Monsters from the Everfree Forest and those bizarre big events that usually happen in the Summer season. I'm pretty I can overcome anything that the Human World will throw at me."

"Well, aren't you a brave little pony?" Bon Bon rolled her eyes and shrugged. "Well, for now, you should overcome the difficulties of your daily life in Equestria by actually opening your store on time and going to work."

Oh great, she's reminding me that I actually work for a living.

I sighed as I dread working as an instrument "shop owner", I mean it's been a month since a pony has even visited the shop to buy something and that was just Octavia purchasing a new cello after her "argument" with her roommate, Vinyl Scratch. I don't know how they could argue when one of them is a literal mute and especially don't know how it resulted in Vinyl receiving a Cello Smash to the head.

"Do I have to?" I whined at her like a spoiled foal. Great job, genius, telling myself sarcastically. Can't go for the sophisticated way.

"Well, we have to find some way to pay the bills AND your research." She lectured me as usual. "A job is the most reasonable solution for all of them."

I don't know what she's talking about. She's the one who pays the bills while I fund my research and development with the little bits I can earn. 

I don't deserve her.

Right now, I'm making my own portal gate or any form of transportation to the human world with my knowledge of magic and... my body is just shuddering from that word... ugh, Math. Twilight was kind enough to lend me books on advanced magic theories, written by the great Star Swirl the Bearded, the only unicorn who has ever made a working portal to another alternative world. My current project is replicating the mirror portal that is similar to Twilight's, in theory as I have never actually seen how the mirror works. 

That jerk won't even let me take a peek at how it works, let alone enter it.

Welp, enough bellyaching and time for the daily grind, I guess. I grabbed my saddlebags and head out to my store.

"See ya, tonight."

"Bye, Lyra."

And with a neutral farewell, I'm out the door of my lovely sanctuary that I call home and into the mundane outside world where I realise life can be unfair for a background pony like me.

At least there isn't a single dark cloud today. 

As I slowly trot down the path of the food produce district, I glanced at the food stalls getting ready to open by prepping their shelves and cooking their speciality. Fresh fruits and vegetables lined up so neatly on the table racks. The wafting delicious grainy scent of bread and other baked goods from the local bakery won't stop flowing into my nose.

I bit my lower lip to stop my hunger. I know I just ate but I really want to grab something for lunch later... But I can't because I'm saving every bit I can. I can barely afford to keep my store open and the instruments well-maintained.

We wouldn't be in such a tough spot if somepony didn't spread awful rumours about my Human obsession and how I'm mooching off on my marefriend. I mean, I wasn't subtle about my interest and I would never do that to Bon Bon but I expected a large percentage of ponies in Ponyville to actually believe the slanders and give such a hostile response to it.

"Oh great, the Hooman expert is here."

"She really needs to get her head in straight. Does she not know that they are called monkeys, not Hoomans?"

"She thinks monkeys are unique creatures that can't be found in Equestria. There's a place called a zoo. Maybe she should see those monkeys and get over that obsession."

Haa, speaking of hostile response, I'm getting my daily mocking behind my back by one of the random background ponies that never bother to learn their name and glad I never did.

When I first received these jeers, I would look at them with a death glare which only made them laugh in my face... and get spit on. So I just let them speak their mean things at me. It doesn't bother me. I've had years of experience from- 

Ugh! Don't think about that. Just focus on your walk to work, Lyra. Just be grateful that you still have some friends left who are okay at best in my interest in Humans. Twilight knows they existed since she visited their world and even had photos of her and her friend's counterparts in human form. 

Just focus on your research and I will soon reap the fruits of my hard labor.

I looked at the display window of the local electronics store. I see some neat speakers and radios that I could never afford for a gift to my marefriend, as if I need any of those electricity-gobbling devices increasing our already high electricity bill.

Oh, right. I have to grab more bottles of lightning potions. Even if that stuff is volatile as an angry dragon covered in dynamite. I know it is extremely dangerous but I need more natural magic electricity if I'm going to ever make my own portal to the human world... and also, decrease the electricity bill or Bon Bon might have a fit. I even invented a special magic power generator to contain the uncontrollable energy of those potions and convert it into safe electricity.

I think I have one bottle at my store. Thank goodness, I remembered that one. 

Oh, speak of remembering. I also recently bought a new journal, that is customised with my own cutie mark on the front cover and fur colour, just to keep notes on my findings. I keep forgetting my old ideas and findings but thankfully, Bon Bon suggested the journal to keep them in writing if don't want to lose them.

I heard Twilight has a special journal that is linked to another journal, the one some mare named Sunshine Glitter possesses in the Human world. A magical artefact that helps you communicate between worlds. I wish I could have that specific journal but I don't have anypony... I mean, anyone in the Human World I want to talk to. 

Well, there is one Human but I'm not sure if she remembers me. Maybe if I go to that world, she might remember me and who knows, maybe we can be multi-dimensional pen pals.

Welp, that's enough serious thinking for now. While having an uneventful trotting my way to-

"Well, well, look *hic* who we have *hic* here."

Huh? Who interrupted my inner monologue? I turned around to the source of that familiar and incredibly annoying voice.

Ugh, the local town drunk is out in the morning and leaning on her tavern's saloon doors with a bottle on her hoof.

"Are you seriously getting drunk this early in the morning, Berry Punch?" I said with as much ridicule I can put in my tone as possible. I hate this mare. 

Berry freakin' Punch, Ponyville's infamous and irresponsible local drunkard, tavern owner and awful single mother to a cute little filly that she doesn't deserve. I can't believe somepony allowed her to open a tavern, keep her daughter Ruby Pinch, and worse of all, be my next-door neighbour.

"Can't you stop drinking for at least a day and focus on something more productive?"

"Oh, buck right off, you crazy *hic* freak." She slurred as she slowly approached me, stumbling her steps and swinging one of her bottles with little care or caution around her surroundings. Can't she speak properly? Every sentence she had to hiccup. "I'm a free *hic* pony. I can do whatever *hic* buck I want. I pay taxes."

We've had this same freakin' argument every time we encounter. Always with the taxes. What does she even mean by that?

"As if paying taxes doesn't make you less of a screw-up." I retorted. "I'm pretty sure most of the taxes you pay come from every time you pick up the bottle-"

Brrr...

I felt a cold feeling around me. I inspected my surroundings and yup... everypony is giving me an apathetic gaze. Their stares were reserved for me, not for the local drunk who truly deserves it. How did my social status stoop lower than this local town drunkard? I thought I left that stigma behind Canterlot.

Oh, buck this. I gritted my teeth, stopped talking, looked away from Berry Punch and resumed my walk to work. 

"Pfft!" That jerk Berry chortled. "Yeah, just keep *hic* trotting, you freak. Maybe you'll find those ridic-*hic*-lous Hoomans you love so much if *hic* run away enough."

I could hear a few muffled chortles from the crowd.

Grrr, I hate her so much. I want to stomp this lousy mare into tomato paste. 

I'm pretty sure she's the one who spread those slanderous rumours of my Human obsession, even though I would never talk to degenerate ponies like her. Must have eavesdropped near my house. I just don't have any physical proof to justify my inner dark desire for violence.

I should give that mare a piece of my mind but calm down Lyra. I've already lost another small piece of my dignity by bothering to talk to that drunken mess and attracting the attention of those faceless crowd. 

I don't want to bring more shame towards Bon Bon.

...

Did the route to my shop get longer or something? Or have I reached the level of shame where the universe slowed down time because it felt sadistic to my failed attempt at giving that drunk mare a good reality check comeback and wanted me to wallow in the disappointed and disgusted stares from my pony brethren? 

...

I hate being a pony in this stupid pony world.

Before the slander happened, I accepted my fate that I'll live in this world for the rest of my life, as long as I have Bon Bon by my side to keep me sane and not filled with hatred towards this world.

But now, I just want to run away from everything. 

Magic. 

So-called friends who ignore me in public. 

Even Bon Bon.

No no, you don't mean that last one, Lyra. You love her. LOVE. HER.

While I slowly walked, I closed my eyes, took a deep breath and reopened my eyes.

I looked straight ahead... okay, I can finally see my store-Huh?

What the-? 

Is that Twilight near my store's front door? 

Can't be anypony else. 

She has pegasi wings, a longhorn and a magical aura that sounds like a harmonious sympathy. I'm pretty sure there is only one purple alicorn in this plane of existence unless Discord is pulling a fast one on me for some goofy non-reason or those foul Changelings are planning to take over Equestria by secretly kidnapping store owners and planting their- yeah, that last thought sounds too farfetched to finish.

From what I recall, there has only been one short alicorn in the entire world unless Princess Celestia or Princess Luna or Princess Cadence had a shrinking spell mishap and made a surprise visit to my store, even though we are not well-acquainted.

Hmmm. It looks like she's been waiting there for a while. 

Why's she here? Everypony knows fully well that she is super musically inept and forbidden to be near anything related to an instrument after Pinkie's Musical Instrument Chairs Party incident a month ago. I still have some hearing loss from that disaster. 

Amazing singer but an incredibly awful musical instrument performer.

"Oh heeey, Twilight. What are doing here?" I said with a forced grin on my face. "You know you are banned from purchasing an instrument for exactly a year. You'll have to get Mayor Mare's and one of the Princesses' seals of approval if you plan on delivering an instrument to your friends as a gift."

I pulled out my keys out of my saddlebags to signal the mare that I want to enter my store immediately. She stepped aside so I can unlock the door.

I guess she's coming in with me.

"Oh, I am aware. I will never directly look at any instrument for the rest of my life." The Princess of Friendship agreed, rolling her eyes. " But I am here as I just got back from my last adventure... from the Human World and I want to have a private discussion with you about it."

Oh, here we go. Bragging about your adventures in the Human world right away. Didn't even have the chance for me to offer tea or coffee first? Instead, she gave me the salt.

"I had to do some personal inspections and damage control after Canterlot High was struck by another magic-related disaster. Unfortunately, my Human World counterpart was the main culprit. I can't believe she was forced to release concentrated unknown magic for a simple school competition. What was the actual plan for that? It's supposed to be a friendly competition. It's called the Friendship Games, for Celestia's sake! I'm proud of my counterpart for creating a device to detect magic that had an unintentional function to absorb it but I can't..."

Oh good grief, she's rambling again. I guess she is still the same nosy brainiac mare even after becoming a Princess.

"Ahem!" I indiscreetly coughed to return her sense. "As much as I would love to hear your adventures from the Human World,  where is this conversation going exactly?" I said through gritted teeth.

Try to hide your anger and jealousy, Lyra. She must want to tell me since she knows that I'm a Human fanatic and not because she wants to taunt me.

"Oh, right. Ahem."She said. "After having a serious discussion with Sunset Shimmer on the current situation of the Human World and I created a stable pathway to travel that world freely, I just thought that maybe... if you will assist me in a little project?"

"Is it a friendship-related project?" I asked.

"Well, sort of." She said in a vague tone. 

Oh dear Luna, have I been selected for one of her crazy friendship experiments?

I backed away slowly and looked at the crazy mare with an anxious look. "Are you going to use a new spell to Hypno-"

"NO!" She exclaimed. Her bulging eyes looked like they will pop out of her eye sockets. "I just need your help with a big problem that only you can handle. I need you to go to the Human World and help the Humans."

...

...

...

Wa-What?

My brain went blank just now.

"E-e-excuse me?" I asked as I need to reassure myself that I didn't go deaf from that news. Those two words were the only ones I could speak clearly before I felt a large lump choking my throat. My heart feels like it is going to burst out and attack Twilight any moment if she showed any signs that she is joking about that news.

This has to be a prank. This has got to be, right?

I swallowed the lump in my throat and started to speak clearly. "This has to be a foalish prank, isn't it?"

Twilight looked at me in disbelief and shook her head. "I would never do such as thing. You know it's not in my nature."

I squinted my eyes. "... Discord?"

"No, I'm Twilight." Oh, I can hear the frustration in her voice, which would mean...

I carefully levitated my broom from the back of my store counter. "Then are you a Changeling disguised as Twilight aiming to steal my store and replace me with another Changeling to prepare for a mass sneak attack on Equestria?"

"What? No! Lyra, take this seriously." She magically grabbed my broom and toss it to the side. Oh good, none of my instruments got hit.

I gave the purple mare an angry scowl. "Why should I? This just came out of nowhere."

Twilight took a deep breath and magically closed my store's windows, leaving a tiny sliver of opening for the morning sunlight to enter. The light perfectly shined behind her as if the Celestial Deities from the Great Beyond have sent her to send me a divine message that will change my fate for the best. 

"If you still think that I'm not serious then-"

She then proceeded to bow her head towards me with a serious and regal expression that I've only ever seen from Princesses. 

This is the first time that I'm perceiving this old foalhood friend of mine who would shove her head straight into the books instead of playing with her friends as an actual Princess with great authority and dignity.

Why would somepony of royalty bow to a commoner like me? I'm getting a little scared.

"Lyra Heartstrings of Equestria, I, Princess Twilight Sparkle, humbly and formally request thee for assistance in the investigation and prevention of the magical phenomena and, as well as, obtaining magical artefacts that are mysteriously appearing in the Human World."

Okay. my metaphorical heart attack is becoming a literal one.

Why? Why now? I just woke up. This is just so sudden.

"After begging beneath your hooves to let me enter your portal for months, you finally conceded to my request. Why? Why now of all times?" I asked, not in an angry tone but in a confused and scared tone.

I should be angry and humiliated when I said begging but I don't want to screw up this chance. I will toss away whatever remains of my pride if it meant I get the opportunity to enter the Human World. And to top it all off, I might get an official job from an actual Princess is just the bonus, which reaffirms my resolve by a million times.

She opened her mouth and said.

"Because the Human World needs your help."
> Act 1 Ch 3: ... and I finally have a purpose and a way out
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Human World needs my help.

I'm dreaming, right?

Yeah, that's it. This isn't happening right now. Twilight would not just come to my store and drop the most important good news. I must have been so depressed from all the failures of my Human World portal experiment that my mind is developing this dream to help me cope with pain and suffering.

Yet, why do my rapid heartbeat, dry mouth, stomach pit, eyes constantly dilating, and shaken nerves feel too real? Did I eat something terrible last night? Can you get a nervous breakdown in your sleep? Am I going to die before I see this dream end?

Twilight looked at me with concerned eyes. She slowly approached me. Her hoof steps sounded light and calm. "I know what I just said to you seems unrealistic and came out of nowhere, but I can assure you that this is real, and you are fully awake." Oh, I can feel her right wing gently patting my back. I instinctively leaned my head towards the Princess as if I wanted to feel the full effect of the nurturing. Wait, I suddenly realised something...

She's real. This is real.

THIS IS REAL!

I got out of the comforting embrace, looked at Twilight, and rapidly nodded my head. "I-I-I accept your request, Princess."

You're a moron! Why did you stutter? This is supposed to be the most important day of your life, Lyra Heartstrings. Be more formal with your approval of the Princess' request.

I knelt on the ground to tell Twilight of my seriousness. "I, Lyra Heartstrings of Equestria, humbly and fully accept the request of Twilight Sparkle, the Princess of Friend. I promise I will not fail this mission and obey every order you have issued."

"There's no need to be formal or prostrate, Lyra." The purple mare told. "We can just have a proper discussion as friends. I just made that ceremonial request speech to show my seriousness. I would have brought some of |Princess Celestia's Royal Guards, but, understandably, it might cause some... misunderstandings." 

Thank you. Seeing Royal Guards in front of my store would make the neighbours think that I'm finally arrested for conducting multiple unregulated magical experiments and causing damage to the surrounding areas of my home.

I'm pretty sure Twilight has her fair share of committing some unethical activities. I'm not saying that to her, though, or she might have a panic attack that she will be sent to magic kindergarten and cause mass chaos throughout Ponyville. She went full-on cuckoo crazy when she forgot to send one... ONE friendship report to Princess Celestia on time. I still have nightmares of the doll. Oookay, I'm a little scared of this little alicorn now.

I looked at this crazy mare with a sheepish grin and chuckled. "Yeah, I don't want my neighbours to think I sold you a guitar." I looked at the rack of guitars behind me to hide my nervous expression from Twilight.

"Pfft! Ha ha ha." 

Oh, thank Luna, she's laughing. Now calm your face, Lyra.

I took a deep breath, and words started coming from my mouth. "If I'm not being too impolite in asking, why is my title the Inquisitor of Magical Artefacts and Phenomena and what exactly is this job supposed to be?"

"Well, to answer your first question, Sunset personally picked the title because, in her words, it sounds more badass than my title."

Okay, I'll bite. "What was yours?"

"It is the Searcher of Magic Anomalies and Relic Tracking or SMART as an acronym."

"That's a... unique acronym." I politely said, forcing a toothy grin to hide the cringe at that title. "But I think we should stick with what your friends came up with. Your title sounds like it should be reserved for your future students. I mean, if you ever plan on establishing a magic school or a private academy for the arcane studies."

That reminds me. Doesn't she have a student already? I think her name is... Starbright something. Oh, I hope I get a student of my own... wait, even better, an apprentice. Yeah, an apprentice who helps me fight crime while making up rhymes. I hope I find a Human who will be my apprentice. Maybe someone who is a Human version of the Zebra Tribe.

Hee hee. Just the thought alone makes me giddy with delight.

"I thought you would say something like that. Sunset and everyone vetoed my idea for... exactly what you said." She pouted and rubbed the back of her head. "Despite the fact it took me an entire week of brainstorming for the right words for the title. I still don't know why they picked Inquisitor, except they told me they got this title from a fictional story called Star Wars. Sorry, but this title sounds aggressive and might leave a wrong impression on others. What even is Star Wars? "

Star Wars, huh? A piece of human culture and history that I have no idea what it is, but I can feel that this piece possesses some great importance if I research it. 

Is it an era when Humans fought against the stars above with their technology? Did Human technology improve so rapidly that they took flight above the sky and enacted warfare against the celestial bodies?

I am both impressed and frightened by that development...

Hmmm, this gives me a good idea...

*CRACK*

I cracked my neck, which startled the Princess but not for long.

"Rather than being a fictional story, I speculate that this Star Wars is a small piece of Human World history. Human technology must have greatly advanced that they discovered the methods to interstellar travel, and they are at war with the stars themselves." I informed the confused mare. "I have no evidence or recorded documents relating to that subject that make this statement true, but..."

Okay, time to impress an egghead and show her why I'm the best and only candidate for this job.

I magically opened my backroom door, levitated some tattered books from my office bookshelf, and placed them on my wooden store counter.

"Human history has many unique, impactful events that defy pony logic." 

I lifted an old book that illustrated a human king with long golden hair and a beard standing valiantly on a mountaintop with his shining sword raised to the sun. 

"After years of scouring every corner of this World, I've acquired these ancient Human World history books. One of these books depicts a benevolent and incorruptible ruler, the legendary King Arthur Pendragon."

Ooh, I can see Twilight's eyes light up. Oh, she is super interested in this.

Twilight tried to reach her right hoof up, but I pulled the book back. "Oh no. You'll have to be careful as the books have degraded to the point that even the slightest physical touch will make them disintegrate."

"Interesting." Twilight gave me a bright, optimistic smile that gave Pinkie's smile a run for her bits. "You seem to have a full grasp on-"

"Please refrain from asking questions or commenting until I finish my lecture." I sternly said, like a strict teacher. I grabbed a thick and heavy notebook behind the counter. It had the King's name written on the front cover. "Don't worry; I've written notes and personal reports on this book a hundred times." I gave it to her. 

She looked happy and impressed—more brownie points for Lyra.

"As I was saying... King Arthur is a hard-working AND intelligent peasant who became a legendary king without an equal. A single creature who rules an entire kingdom called Camelot oversees an entire country called England and is devoted to an omnipotent and omniscient divine deity named God, whose presence can be seen in other Human World literature. He has many trustworthy and strong companions who follow him as they participate in epic quests with dangerous obstacles and shifty adversaries that lead to precious rewards and valuable life-changing lessons. An ancient ruler that I wish I could meet."

I looked at the stunned mare. 

"Apart from the God part, doesn't he sound familiar... Princess?" I slyly grinned at Twilight.

"Wow, just wow. That was impressive. Astonishing. Amazing. Spectacular." She exclaimed her praises towards me. "I already decided to pick you as a primary candidate, yet you went above and beyond to prove your capabilities. Your calm, adaptive behaviour after living in Ponyville for years and your absolute devotion to your research on Humans are one of the reasons why you are perfect for this mission." 

*POOF*

Suddenly, she summoned a few rolled-up scrolls, blank papyrus paper, quills and an inkwell out of thin air. One of the unopened scrolls floated towards me. I grabbed it and opened it to see what she just gave me.

"Wait, is this-"

"Indeed, it is." Twilight nodded. "An Equestrian Royal Decree document that is written proof that your new career is official and personally approved by the highest authority in the Equestrian government, which is me. It has specific duties you will follow during your stay in the Human world. It also has a list of friendly ponies... I mean, Humans who will help with your temporary immigration."

I wish she didn't say temporary. I want to live in that World as long as physically possible.

"Immigration, huh?" I said, tilting my head. "So, I guess my new job's going to be long-term. Can't just casually jump to and from that World willy-nilly with the portal as I please, huh? I guess I'll need to wait for thirty moons-"

"Oh no." Twilight shook her head. "There's no need to worry about that anymore. I've developed a safe and artificial way to temporarily allow the portal to be opened without the chronological catalyst of the moon cycles."

...

...

"Shhh..." I inhaled through my nostrils so strongly that it might vacuum all the dust bunnies in my store. 

"HAAA!" I loudly exhaled the accumulated air and dust from my mouth. 

"AHEM! Tsk!" I coughed and clicked my tongue. 

Twilight realised why I was acting like this as her eyes bulged like dinner plates, and she slowly backed away. 

I should be mad.

I should be mad by that sudden news flash.

I should lunge my entire body and bottled rage at this important and influential political figure and give her a beating that would make her magical death battle against Tirek look like foals having a little harmless scuffle in kindergarten.

But I won't.

Because she is the only way I can get to the Human world.

...

Plus, I might be sent to Tartarus if I do.

Twilight looked down at the floor and sheepishly said. "... I'm sorry." Like a little foal who just got caught after they lied to their parents.

"It's fine," I replied, trying my hardest not to sound angry. "Let's just not mention this. EVER again."

Twilight just nodded her head. 

"Anyway..." I said to continue the conversation and remove the tension in the air. "What is exactly my duties?"

I saw her lips quivering as if she wanted to cry, tell me something important or both. She regained her composure and opened her mouth.

"As you might have heard, I just returned from my trip to the Human world and did some damage-control-and-repair on the latest magic incident, unfortunately, caused by my human counterpart after being pressured by her supposed academic peers. I would have done something similar if I didn't have my friends beside me. "

Twilight had a sombre expression when she mentioned her counterpart.

She gulped and continued. "Haaa, I wish I could find all these magic anomalies at once, but my duties as the Princess of Friendship prevent me from doing so. This is where you come into the picture. We need a representative who possesses knowledge of Equestrian magic... and Human-related studies, which perfectly describe you."

Aww, shucks, you're making me blush... is what I should say out loud, but this is a profound moment.

"... Your official duties are searching for any magical items or phenomena before they have the chance to activate or unfortunately stumbled upon by the natives, and discreetly return them to my custody where I will either keep them safe in a highly secured vault or if the item or phenomenon is deemed completely hazardous or the leak can't be sealed, demolish them."

"Demolish?" I asked.

"It is to prevent more future magic incidents from happening again. We can't let innocent bystanders, especially ignorant and power-hungry individuals or organisations, abuse magic and destroy that World. We can't siphon them back into our World. Trust me, I tried." 

Emphasis on the word "tried" had me worried. She sounded frustrated and exhausted as if the burden of handling the magic situation was overbearingly heavy.

"Okay, okay, I understand how important this is to you. I'll take care of the magic stuff," I said reassuringly. "I will carry the burden for you, Twilight," I said with a smile.

Twilight let out what sounded like a long, withheld, exhausted breath. I get the feeling the weight on her back lightened significantly.

"Yo-you have no idea how grateful I am for your acceptance." She let out a single tear from her right eye, which she immediately wiped. She gave me a determined gaze. "But this doesn't mean you will do all the work."

"Hey, I didn't expect to do so." I returned the gaze with my own. "I don't even know how to fulfil my duties... well, except-"

"Except what?"

"I guess I'll have to let the cat out of the bag." I anxiously said. The purple mare tilted her head in confusion at my statement.

I don't want to reveal a dark secret that I've never admitted to anypony, especially Bon Bon; however, I don't want to hide anything from Twilight to not sour our newly formed employee-employer relationship.

I produced a magic soundproof barrier that enclosed Twilight and me. "But before I tell you this, you must never tell a single soul or inanimate object about what I'm going to tell you."

"I-"

"Just nod your head if you fully agree."

She nodded her head.

I took a deep breath and said. "I can hear the rhythm of the magical frequency on... everything."

Twilight raised her eyebrow. "Don't all of us unicorns-"

"Mine is completely different." I interrupted, raising my right hoof in front of her. "My ability doesn't require using a spell or even having magic inside my body to sense magic."

"Wait, are you implying that..."

"It's a unique unicorn bloodline that only my family from my mother's side possesses," I informed her. "I've had this since... well, forever."

"Wha- That's incredible." She exclaimed. "I have never met a fellow unicorn who harbours a hereditary trait to sense magic naturally. It takes years of meditation and studying to get a slight tinge at best. Why have you not informed any scholars, especially me, about this? And how can you be certain you don't need magic to sense magic?"

I sighed. "The only reason I even bothered to tell you this is that nopony needs my ability. It's pretty much useless in this modern Equestrian era since some unicorn from way back then created a spell that helps them sense the frequency. I've suppressed it for years since I get constant migraines, and I start to... physically feel the magic around me, which is by far the weirdest and slimy sensation ever."

I sighed again as I hated talking about this trait of mine.

"To answer the second question, remember when Tirek sucked all of the ponies' magic in Equestria?" I saw Twilight cringed. "Well, that was the hard way on how I discovered that I don't need magic to sense magic. In my magically drained state, I felt every moment as I sensed everyone's magic drained from their bodies by that freak against nature. It was pure torture." 

"I'm so sorry that you had to experience that." Twilight apologised as if it was her fault that I was in that situation, which wasn't.

"It's f-fine," I said, half-reassuringly. "I just want to tell you that I fully trust you, and I want to earn yours."

"I already trust you with all my heart, and you already have my trust, Lyra." She said. "You don't need to earn it."

I chuckled at how cheesy this moment was. I dispelled the barrier and let my own withheld, exhausted breath.

"Well, even if you have that amazing ability, I have invented some devices that will assist you with locating the anomalies if your abilities hinder your body." She informed. I can see a glint in her eyes that I've only ever seen when she's about to unveil her work to the public.

"Ugh, I appreciate that," I said. I opened the curtains of my shop to have better lighting. "Okay, let's see the gizmos you've produced out of that egghead brain of yours."

"Please don't call them gizmos, Lyra." Twilight grimaced. "You make them sound like toys, which aren't."

"Okay, geez. I struck a nerve there." I rolled my eyes. I just wanted to say gizmo since I could never say it.

*POOF*

Twilight magically summoned a large, heavy-looking black metal box and gently lowered it into the middle of my store. She opened the top lid and pulled out the first item, a thick black rubber rod the size of one of my forelegs.

If I have to speculate, this is made for at least two Human hands to handle, like with the carrot that my Human friend held or an Equestrian mouth sword but for human hands. It has a giant orb on the bottom hilt, a few arrow-tip-like bumps along the shaft and a bulging semisphere on the tip. 

It seems a little long and thick for my taste. 

Twilight levitated the rod thing in front of me. "Even if you have that special ability, you should always carry this detection device. As you can see by the handle, I've designed it for Human hands to get a good grip on it. The design of this tool was inspired by Sunset and our Human World friends when they gave me some items such as toy extendable swords and some advance-looking stringless crossbow called a Nerf gun."

She lowered the tool to let me physically inspect it thoroughly.

"For now, the earliest prototype closely resembles a thick rubber rod sword as a way to use it as a detection tool and a self-defence weapon. As for the shaft, I chose the colour black, made the material rubber silicon-based, and has an additional function of instantly collapsing inside the hilt to enhance its appearance as a toy sword. It would be best to carry it inconspicuously from normal humans, or they might assume you carry a deadly weapon. Do you see that orb on the bottom hilt?"

"Yeah," I answered. I looked closer at the orb and saw a small red arrow with a string attached to its middle. "What is it exactly?"

"The orb acts as a universal direction compass. You see the little arrow inside. It is to help you accurately direct where the magic anomalies are. These arrow-tip bumps that line up on the shaft are a way to indicate if you are hot or cold on the magic trail. It will light up to notify you that you are getting closer. And it has a vibrating function that signals you that you have discovered the source of the magic anomaly. I would be careful with the vibrations; it is a little... strong."

"I see, I see." I chimed, impressed by Twilight's ingenuity with this detection device. "How do you activate this thing?"

"Oh, it's straightforward," Twilight replied. "You just give the bottom orb a good clockwise twist."

I tried to do what she just instructed but-

"No, not right now!" Twilight screamed in surprise and fear. I instantly lowered the tool. "Please don't ever activate the device in this World. I've increased the magic detection sensitivity to the max, and it might explode if you even use it for a second while in this World. Trust me; I already made that mistake, so you don't have to."

"That mishap better had happened when you were alone, Twilight?" I said with a suspicious look.

"I wish I did, but.." She sheepishly muttered. "let's just say Spike will have to stay in a hospital bed for a week."

"Ugh, Twilight." I smacked my right forehoof on my forehead. I guess she still has that bad habit of not being careful with her experiments and not doing them where nopony or nobody will be near the assumed disaster.

"Spike's mostly fine... I think."

Tomorrow, I'm bringing flowers and a sack of gems for that underappreciated little dragon.

"Okay, duly noted," I said. "Don't turn on the magic rubbery dynamite stick detector in Equestria." I carefully returned the tool to the black box and pulled out the following item: a colourful ball with a circular button and black trim in the middle.

"I see you have grabbed the capsule ball, another Human World-inspired item." She informed me of the item. "I've created this unique capturing capsule to contain any magical anomaly that isn't an inanimate physical artefact. I designed the top component to have your aquamarine fur colour to help identify who captured the anomaly."

"Wait, who? There are others." I asked. I thought I was the only candidate she had chosen.

"Of course. Didn't I tell you about Sunset Shimmer?"

I stared up for a few seconds before a memory popped up. "The renegade unicorn who is the ex-student of Princess Celestia and the one who stole your Element of Magic crown that accidentally released our magic into the Human World."

"The very same, yes." She nodded. I saw her lip wince. I guess that event is still a sore subject to bring up. "Even though she is preoccupied with her new life, Sunset Shimmer still wants to assist with the security, containment and protection of the Human world's magic anomaly problems. She would be..."

"Well, isn't that necessarily sweet of her to do?" I sarcastically interrupted. "Are you sure she is reformed and not just pulling a scheme-"

"Lyra, please calm down," Twilight said. "I understand that it is hard to believe that she has redeemed herself after all the stories you heard about her, but-"

I rolled my eyes. "Look, I'll give you the benefit of the doubt on whether she is truly redeemed, but I will not jeopardise my well-being on a stranger with a rough background..." 

You know what? Uh oh, I think I'm revealing my true intentions. There's no time to hide it. 

"...is what I would say if I were a typical pony afraid of her own shadow, monsters, and betrayals, but in all seriousness, I just don't care." I shrugged.

Twilight tilted her head in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"As I said, I don't care that she is dangerous or might backstab me. I only brought it up to see how you would react. You truly care about that mare, even when she screwed over you and the Human World." I calmly replied. "As for me, what I truly care about is that I have a golden opportunity to enter the Human World without being denied or given excuses as to why I can't anymore." I slowly approached Twilight with a severe gaze. 

She looks scared. She should be.

"As long as I fulfil my personal goals in the Human World, then I'll obey every little order you give me, and your friend, Sunset, can do whatever evil nonsense she wants as long as she doesn't get in my way," I hissed the last part. I can tell that Twilight's spine shivered, and her fur rose from the fear.

Using my magic, I returned the capsule ball to its rightful place, closed the black box, and returned it to Twilight. "You should keep these safe. I don't want to carry these to my house. I don't want anypony to know that I'll be leaving this dung pile town soon, or they might do something stupid like burn my house to burn down before I finalise the sale."

Twilight gulped. "Is that how you truly feel, Lyra?"

Oookay, I scared her. I think I went a little too far with my confession there. I should play this off as a prank before it's too late, and she might rescind the offer.

I took a deep breath and let out a false grin.

"So, how's my acting?"

"E-excuse me." Twilight stuttered.

"My tough mare act. Do you think it will intimidate the Humans and show that I'm not a pushover?" I said, attempting to sound convincing and... jokey. Is that even a word?

I looked at Twilight, trying not to twitch my facial muscles or look away. She squints her eyes as she scans any signs of me lying or looking a little suspicious... is what I think she's doing, or maybe she has some dust in her eyes. 

Jeez, I need to clean this place.

Twilight shrugged her shoulders and sighed after a few agonising seconds of her examining me. "You got me there. That speech came out of nowhere."

Thank Celestia for her poor social skills. If anypony other than her had witnessed my little outbursts, I would have been in big trouble.

"Yeah, sorry for scaring you like that." I meekly apologised. "I heard this Sunset Shimmer has a bad personality and tends to intimidate others. I wanted to maintain this tough mare persona to not look weak in front of her."

Twilight shook her head. "I don't know where you heard those rumours from, but trust me, Sunset Shimmer is the polar opposite of what you just said. I-hmmm..." Suddenly, she examined my store with a critical gaze. What is she-

"Putting Sunset and your acting skills aside for now, what are your plans for your store, Lyra?" She asked.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Do you plan on keeping your business open while working for me?" I answered.

*POOF*

She magically teleported the black box away, and a new item appeared; a small pouch. There must be bits inside from the cling and clang sounds from the bag.

"I was planning to clear the inventory and sell the property in a few months," I said. The idea just came out of my mouth before I realised it. 

Twilight smiled at the news. "Well, you're just in luck. I plan on purchasing your store and business for a considerable amount to help fund your new career."

I looked at the mare with a disgruntled look. "But that would mean you have to purchase an instrument."

She rolled her eyes. "I'm only buying the business and the building. The Town Hall will take care of the inventory." She levitated the pouch towards me. "Here is an advance payment for the rights to your business."

I squinted my eyes at the size of the pouch. "This is the advance payment? I know I should be grateful even to get anything and shouldn't be greedy, but..." I shook the bag, only to hear single digits of bits tinkling inside. "Are you going to teleport more bags like this, or is this..."

"Yeah, sorry. That's all that's left." Twilight sheepishly grinned and rubbed the back of her head. "I had to give ninety per cent of the advance payment to City Hall since they have informed me that you haven't adequately filed for your property, income, and home tariffs for the past few years. "

"Excuse me?!" I exclaimed with a stunned expression. This is news to me. "What do you mean? Bon Bon does all of the finances. I do the bookkeeping for my store." I shook my head. "Maybe she got fed up with doing all the work and told me to do my taxes, but I wasn't listening, or she wrote it on the fridge or something."

"Well, maybe there must be some accounting issues on your side." Twilight anxiously shivered. "I was only there to get the proper paperwork for the estate and business ownership transfer, but instead, I got reamed by the desk clerk who assumed that I was you and threateningly demanded on the spot to pay for your financial issues." 

"I've faced and defeated many horrifying adversaries, but that mean desk clerk is a terrifying force to be reckoned with. I teleported away before asking for the paperwork." She sniffed. She looked like she was ready to cry any moment now. "I-I'll have Spike-"

"Didn't you say he's in the hospital?" I corrected her.

"I'll have Pinkie get the documents for me." She rephrased, her shoulders slumped in defeat. "Everypony loves and knows Pinkie. She can-"

Uh oh. She's getting too mopey.

To find something distracting enough to stop Twilight from getting depressed, I looked at my clock and saw that we had been conversing for a few hours.

"Ouch, look at the time. We've been talking for so long that it is almost dinnertime." I pointed at my clock in an obvious manner and looked at the front door. "And yet nopony has even knocked on the door." I sighed that I didn't have any customers. 

"Oh," Twilight said, her face cringed. "I was only meant to brief you on the important details for a few minutes, but it looks like we've overextended our chat a bit." She shook her head. "This is going to disrupt my schedule."

"Sorry, I didn't offer some tea and treats." I sincerely apologised to Twilight and myself since we had to have that long conversation with parched mouths and empty stomachs. "Maybe I can-"

Twilight dismissively waved her right hoof. "No, I have to go. I'm supposed to visit Spike at the hospital." She glanced at the clock and made an annoyed expression. "Now I have to teleport there before visiting hours are over." Her horn began to flare a shimmering purple magic. "Sorry for disrupting your business hours and the meagre advance payment. I promise I'll ..."

"Just go." I dismissed the purple mare, who nodded. "Oh, tell Spike I said hi and hope he gets well soon."

"I will." with those final words, Twilight instantly disappeared with a burst of magic sparks, bringing the black box of her devices with her.

I looked around at my customerless musical instruments shop, then at my meagre profits and groaned. 

You know what? I'm just going home right now since staying one more hour in this place is fruitless. The only profit I've earned today is the small sack of bits that Twilight gave me after... ugh, I forgot to sign the documents she told me that she painstakingly obtained from Town Hall. Should I go to the hospital now or...

Eh, oh well, maybe later. Firstly, I should tell Bon Bon the excellent news, then go to Twilight's crystal castle and sign those papers. Oh, I should grab my lightning-in-a-bottle potion from my office. I'll give it to Bon Bon. The generator needs some more juice anyway.

Hmmm... While at it, I should get some boxes from the Post Office to put the instruments and other stuff in my store. I hope Derpy's still open at this hour.

*Grumble*

I heard my stomach grumbling. I forgot it's almost time for dinner. I'll do the grunt work tomorrow. Gonna pack some stuff for the trip tonight.

I grab some crates from the backroom and put all of my books related to the Human World. I will bring these with me since I might need a quick restudy on Human culture and history. I don't want to leave a wrong first impression on the Humans and this Sunset character. She's going to be my senior and guide to the Human World.

Okay, now that I've packed everything I need, it's time to say farewell to this failing store. 

I walked towards the door, opened it, walked through it and glanced back at my store. I never had any good memories in this place, even at times when I sold or repaired some of my so-called 'friends' instruments. It was just business to fund my Human World research.

"Well, I guess this is goodbye," I muttered to the store. Only my echo saying 'goodbye' could be heard.

Time to go home.

I can't wait to tell Bon Bon the good news. She won't believe-

What the?! My left forehoof felt something leafy and squishy. Smells like a salad. I looked down...

Did somepony throw their food on my door?