> Feeling Nothing
>  by Ketix Crawler
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> That's a paradox, isn't it?
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sunset Shimmer took a sip of her coffee, staring at the curls of steam wafting from the mug. Another mug sat across from her, awaiting its owner. It was nearly seven, but considering it was Saturday, not many people were in the Sweet Shoppe. Sunset hummed, turning to stare out the window. 

The first Saturday of the month was always especially special. Every time, without fail, Princess Twilight Sparkle would come through the portal for a chat over coffee. Usually they talked about their month, and what crazy shenanigans their friends had gotten up to. But sometimes, the two brightest minds on either side of the portal would debate. Science, magic, people, you name it. They would usually come to a stalemate, though, unable to beat the other on an intellectual level. 

Turning her attention back to her coffee, Sunset checked the time. It was 6:59, meaning Twilight would be there in exactly three, two, one...

The bell above the door jingled as a familiar girl stepped through. Long indigo hair with a pink stripe running through it, blue shirt with a bow, purple skirt with a six-pointed star...yup, that was her.

Sunset half-rose, waving at Twilight from across the room. Twilight saw her and made her way over, smiling all the while.

"Hey, Sunset," Twilight said, taking the seat across from her and pulling her mug close. 

"Hi, Twilight. How are you? Is the princess life treating you well?" Sunset asked, leaning forward and wrapping her hands around her mug. 

Twilight's happy and relaxed expression turned troubled. "I guess so. Spike's adjusted really well to the responsibility of taking care of the castle, and the girls are around nearly every day." she bit her lip, leaning forward and rubbing her temples "But I'm barely keeping up with the paperwork. At this point, it's less 'solving friendship problems' and more 'snobby nobles with horrible ideas for Equestria's money'. I can rarely go to bed before midnight!" she complained. 

Sunset winced. "Ouch, Twilight. Sorry about that; maybe you could come over for a weekend, have a sleepover with the girls?" she suggested, feeling bad for her friend.

"Yeah, that would be nice. I wonder if I could get that long off..." she muttered, looking away. "But enough about me! How are you doing at school, Sunset?" she asked, smiling at Sunset before taking a sip of coffee.

Sunset shrugged. "It's...school, I guess," she said, "I mean, everyone's pretty much forgiven me, you know? A few people do keep reminding me of my shortcomings, though..." 

Twilight smiled sympathetically. "I'm guessing some people still whisper behind your back?" she asked.

Sunset sighed and nodded. "Honestly, it's like they want me to hear them," she muttered, "but it's okay. At this point, I feel...nothing." she said, waving her hand in a noncommittal way.

Twilight hummed and took a drink from her mug. She stared out the window at the cold and wintery world. 

"That's a paradox, isn't it?" she asked, turning back to Sunset.

"What?" Sunset asked, confused. 

"Feeling nothing. That's impossible, right?" Twilight gestured with her hands, "I mean, feelings are something."

Sunset smiled, knowing what was happening. "If so, then what is feeling? Is it merely existing, or is it something more?" 

Twilight swirled her coffee. "We describe everything as a feeling. A feeling of being watched, or of guilt, or of anger, etcetera, etcetera. So, yes, 'feeling' is existing."

Sunset leaned back in her seat, running a hand through her fiery hair. "So then what is nothing?" she asked simply.

"Hmm, that's another question altogether. The answer to your question lies in the answer to my  question: what is something?" Twilight answered, her voice becoming more thoughtful and slow. 

Sunset leaned forward again. "How about this: if you were thrust into a vacuum of time and space, do you exist?"

Twilight smiled slightly, finishing her coffee. "That's a trick question. If I were thrust into a vacuum of time and space, it is no longer a vacuum; I am something, just like you are. Besides, I think I would know if I were in a vacuum, right?" 

Sunset looked out the window. "So to exist, to be something, you must be self-conscious? Then what about dogs? Other than Spike, who isn't actually a dog, dogs don't possess the self-consciousness apparently required to exist." she turned back to Twilight, a slightly smug grin on her face.

Twilight nodded thoughtfully. "You're right, so then self-consciousness doesn't define existence. So would existence be defined by sentience? That can't possibly be the case because plants aren't sentient, but they still qualify as existing."

Sunset grinned properly this time, revealing her white teeth. "Exactly. So would existence qualify as having mass? In that case, water, rocks, plants, humans, ponies, and everything in between exist. Is that the appropriate conclusion?" 

Twilight tilted her head, holding Sunset's gaze. "Maybe."

Sunset waved her hand in the air. "See, Twilight, the way I see it, feeling is part of existing but does not define existing. If feeling is existing, then how does everything without a brain exist, like plants or clouds?"

"Ah. I retract my previous statement, and concede to your point," Twilight proclaimed with exaggerated formality.

Sunset chuckled. "We still haven't reached a conclusion. What is something?"

Twilight didn't respond for a few minutes. "I think something is anything that isn't nothing...which brings us back to our original question. I feel like we haven't gotten anywhere."

Sunset smiled. "I agree. How about we agree on this: everything we know: knowledge, emotions, mass, et cetera - counts as something, because someone, somewhere, knows about it, knows it exists. Agreed?"

Twilight smiled. "Agreed."

The two were silent for a moment before Twilight spoke again. "This is a difficult topic to debate on a philosophical basis, Sunset. Emotions and values are difficult to argue. Everyone feels differently when looking at something." Twilight said, sighing.

"How so?" Sunset asked, tilting her head in perfect mimicry of a confused puppy.

Twilight chuckled. "Let's say we both watched the sunrise. We should feel similarly since we relate in regards to our origins - Equestria. But instead, you feel most likely feel sadness and homesickness, while I feel comfort or fondness. Even though we both watch the same sunrise, and associate it with the same thing - Celestia - we feel completely different emotions." she explained.

Sunset nodded. "We were raised in similar yet different ways, too. We both grew up personal students to Princess Celestia, and social outcasts, but that's where most of our similarities end. I became bitter and eventually left Equestria to later become a she-demon obsessed with power. You stayed humble, eventually making your way through life to become a princess of Equestria. I was jealous and angry towards the Princess, while you were awed and loving."

"So, essentially, because we associate different things with one object, that one object means something different to us - whether positive or negative. See Sunset? Philosophical topics can and will mean different things for everyone, since we aren't all thinking the same way."

Sunset grinned. "So I guess we're both right?" she asked.

"Mmm, not quite. Have you heard of Ockham's Law? The Law of Parsimony?" Twilight responded.

"Yeah, I'm familiar with it. The principle that among competing hypotheses, the one with the fewest assumptions should be selected."

"Exactly. 'The simplest answer is usually the correct one'," Twilight recited. "This means that the most basic idea of nothing should be correct. 'Nothing' is empty space with nothing in it."

Sunset sat back in her seat. "Okay, two points: Point A, that makes no sense whatsoever. You described nothing as having nothing. That doesn't describe 'nothing'. Point B makes more sense. In either of our universes, even a dark, empty void of space, absent of all particles is still something. It has topology,  it has space, it is a physical thing. If the laws of physics still apply, then the laws of physics are not nothing." 

"If we're using physics, then there is a deeper kind of nothing, which consists of no space at all, and no time, no particles, no fields, no laws of nature. That to me is as close to nothing as you can get." Twilight argued.

"But is that really nothing, Twilight? There's no space and there's no time. But what about the physical laws, what about mathematical entities? What about consciousness? We already admitted that they exist. All the things that are non-spatial and non-temporal? Imagine the surface of a ball. It's a finite space, but with no boundary. Then imagine it shrinking down to a point. That would create a closed space-time with zero radii. That's a more persuasive definition." Sunset countered.

Twilight splayed her fingers on the tabletop. "I'm not even convinced that nothing actually exists anymore. Analytical philosophers say nothing is a noun; it seems like the name for an entity, but it's not - it just means 'not anything'."

Sunset frowned. "But just because nothing may be prohibitively difficult to conceptualize, doesn't mean it's not a real thing," she argued. "There are lots of things in science that are impossible to get an intuitive handle on, but that doesn't mean they don't exist," she said. 

Twilight sighed. "Ultimately, the definition of nothing may just be an ever-moving target, shifting with every scientific revolution as new insights show us what we thought was nothing is really something," she responded. After a moment, she grinned. 

Sunset grinned back. "Maybe nothing won't ever be resolved."

Twilight countered immediately, "But that doesn't mean we can't talk about it."

They laughed