Escape from the Witch's House

She made it. Ellen had been able to escape...

*SLAM*

The sickly child allowed her broken body to collapse behind the door as it slammed shut, leaving her alone in the dark, cold house. She had used up nearly all of her energy to get to this point, and in the end it had been for nothing. She was going to die, and now her father’s life would be put in danger; all because she had failed to kill her 'friend.'

It had all started with a selfless act. A lonely little girl who was near the brink of death had begged Viola to grant her last wish- to let her experience what it was like to be outside. But the little girls dying body would never allow her to enjoy the temporary time she had in the sunlight.
Her eyes had long since ‘lost their sight,’ her legs no longer ‘had the ability to support her’ and all she could smell was the blood and nearing decay of her own body. It was then that she had confessed something to Viola. She could perform a spell that would allow them to temporally exchange bodies.

So in a way, all the stories Viola had been told; stories of an evil witch who lived in the woods, had been true. But Viola had been so naïve and trusting in her friend, that she had allowed herself to be fully convinced that no one, not even her own father and his warnings, could be trusted. She never suspected the danger she was in for a second, nor did she realise the horrible decision she was about to make.

And so with her full love and trust in her friend, Ellen the Witch had cast the spell and had been granted the healthy body she so desperately desired. And just like that Viola was no longer of any use to Ellen, so her beloved 'friend' had left Viola to die alone, unable to even scream for help.
Before Ellen had revealed her true colours, she had tricked Viola into drinking a sweet smelling medicine that she claimed would 'make the pain go away.' Instead it had been an acid-like, throat-burning medicine which quickly feasted on her bodies vocal cords, rendering Viola almost mute. But as it turned out, Ellen's self destruction of her own body hadn't began there as she gleefully confessed to having had amputated her legs and gouging her own eyes out before Viola had come over to ‘play,’ all to ensure that Viola would suffer in despair as she died, while Ellen escaped with her healthy new body and a happy new life, free of pain.

But there had been something that Ellen had not counted on. Ellen’s magic had remained in her body, leaving Viola with full access to her powers as well as her memories. Thus Viola was fully aware of the steps necessary to perform the body switching spell and how futile attempting it would be.
There was no way Ellen would be willing to give up the new healthy body that Viola had foolishly given her; but even if Viola could not save herself, she could still save someone else from Ellen; Her father.

Ellen hadn’t just been an innocent and ill little girl of seven years old. She hadn’t been shunned and hidden away by Viola’s village out of fear of her sickness. She was a dangerous monster; a witch, who had been alive for centuries and had taken the lives of numerous innocent people. And the stories about her, the ones that were told to keep children away from the woods, to keep them safe; they had all been true. Viola couldn’t let such evil near her father. Ellen was unstable; she would surely kill him too.
Viola would never be able to apologise to her father for not trusting him. For going against his word and venturing back into the woods to see Ellen again. So instead of apologising like she so desperately wanted to, she would do what she could to save his life. She had to, or at least die trying.

So with Ellen’s magic, Viola had made the former witch unable to leave, and in turn forced her right back into her own home. With Ellen’s memories Viola formed room after room, each containing their own deadly traps and puzzles that in the end would force Ellen to experience at least one of the many cruel ways her past victims had suffered, were she to fail.
But fail she did not. It was like Ellen knew the solution to every puzzle and trap that Viola had created, which confused her greatly. Ellen’s memories showed no signs of puzzles similar to the ones Viola had conjured up. Yet with every puzzle Ellen completed and every room she passed, a sudden wave of déjà vu would disrupt Violas thoughts; she could have sworn that she had already felt Ellen fall victim to her traps time and time, and time again, each death being more violent than the last. But whenever Viola would check on Ellen’s progress, her former friend would be perfectly fine, with not even a scratch on her. She was doing well to keep Viola's body in pristine condition.

In the end Viola had been left with no other choice but to try and chase Ellen down. Crawling after her own body, Viola moved as fast as she could with a pair of bloody stumps acting as dead weight behind her. But to no one’s surprise it had all been for naught. In the end Ellen had managed to escape with her healthy body and had left Viola crumpled in defeat, trapped inside of a body that was pulling her nearer and nearer towards deaths embrace.

Viola cried a gruesome mixture of blood and tears from ‘her’ missing eyes. She had tried so hard and had failed. There was nothing left to do now but disappear with Ellen’s house, and have her soul devoured by the demon responsible for giving Ellen her powers.

‘NO!’ Viola’s thoughts screamed what she could not.

She would not become a part of this place! Even if she had failed to save herself and her father, even if Ellen had gotten away, Viola would NOT die here. She would NOT be consumed by a demon! She would not stay trapped in this God forsaken house for a moment longer!

It was then that she begun to feel it…

Viola thought that she had used up every last bit of Ellen’s magic in her failed attempt to kill her, and yet somehow, somewhere deep within the depths of Ellen’s body there was something left. It was like a spark, hardly generating the light of a lone star in an endless night sky. But it was enough, it was all Viola needed.
The last speck of Ellen’s magic had merged itself with Viola’s intense desire to not become a part of this cursed place, and despite her burnt vocal cords and the added pain this would cause her, Viola was compelled to scream as the magic inside of her grew and burst forth from Ellen’s body with a mighty force, powerful enough to destroy the entrance of the house. But the forest was not where Viola was headed.

She could feel it; the powerful and warm light that was calling her forward, the powerful light that was forcing away the evil of the Witch’s house. Viola wasn’t sure what the light was or what it would do. But she was sure of one thing. It would keep her safe while she died.
With the last remaining bits of her strength, Viola crawled forward. All she wished for was to be somewhere far away from this place, somewhere the demon could never reach her. She wanted to die somewhere else; somewhere her soul would be free to pass on and reach the afterlife so she may be with her mother.

With that, Viola had vanished into the light.

Meanwhile a little ways away through the glowing yellow eyes of a black cat, the moment had been witnessed by the houses demon as it hid itself away from the vanishing structure and the bright light.
The demon sure was disappointed that he wouldn’t be eating Viola’s pained and betrayed soul, but like hell he would follow her where she was going! Begrudgingly he had to give up on his meal and give the girl props.
Unbeknownst to Viola, she had managed to accomplish a feat that even most experienced witches could not hope to do. She had opened up a doorway to another world; a world known to contain a magic so pure, that even a powerful demon like him would risk the very real threat of being purified.

Ironically enough it was the very magic that, in the end, had saved Ellen from her sickness. Something that his faithful witch would never truly grasp but had used to her full advantage: The magic of friendship.

“What a laugh.”

Viola could no longer feel the warmth of the strange light on ‘her’ skin, but what she could feel was the rough dirt beneath ‘her’ hands, that had been warmed up by the sun.
The sun; slowly too, she began to also feel it. It was pleasant. She could practically almost see the rays of light sparkling against her fingers. Up until she remembered what ‘her’ fingers actually looked like.
She drew them back; her bloody, sore fingers, almost completely red and cracked, attached to a body that was equally as disgusting. Ellen's parents should have just put her out of her misery when they realised their daughter was a lost cause.

Viola balled her fists and clutched the dirt between her fingers, letting it stick deep into her open wounds. Before today she would never have even considered thinking such a terrible thing about anyone! But Ellen wasn’t just anyone. Ellen was disgusting; her body reflected that fact perfectly. Ellen was someone who should never have been born, but instead she had been and despite her diseases she had continued to live. She had lived centuries longer than her illness should have ever let her. And now Viola would be the one to die, she would die because Ellen had been born.

Viola would die because she had loved Ellen despite her diseases. Viola would die because she wanted to prove to Ellen that she really did love her. Viola would die because she wanted to be a good person. Viola….Viola would die…. She would die and there was nothing she could do about it. She would die consumed by hate and the regret of what she could have done but hadn’t. She would not die in piece.

What had she been thinking? This wasn’t her…She had already lost her body, was she really going to lose who she was, too? Could she even really call herself ‘Viola’ anymore? Who was she then?

‘Papa….Mama… I’m so sorry…’

Viola loosened her grip and finally let her head fall. Dirt imminently attached itself to her sticky red skin. But she chose not to focus on it. She instead chose to focus on the warm dirt she let slip from her grasp, her weakening breath, and the sounds of her surroundings.

There were birds chirping in the distance, Viola could just hear them, their soft little tweets intertwined with the gentle breeze. The breeze had caused branches to sway gently back and forth above Viola’s head, the familiar rustling of the leaves soothed her. The occasional small splash seemed to indicate that she was close to a body of water, maybe a lake? The little splashing was most likely being caused by some happy fishes. Overall it was peaceful, at last Viola felt like she could rest.

Pat, pat, pat- trot...

A small, near unnoticeable vibration barely shook the ground with a sudden and consistent rhythm, Viola listened carefully, and she could almost hear it. It sounded like a small herd of animals. She wondered if they were heading towards the nearby lake for a drink. She at least hoped that was the case because she was sure they were getting closer.

Trot, trot, pat, pat, trot, trot… "Angel….back..." Trot, trot, trot….

‘Was that a voice?’ Violas eyelids cracked open in surprise. She regretted the action for a moment as she felt the air hit the inside of her empty eye sockets.

“Slow down!”

“Why they hay is he acting so weird?"

Pat, trot, trot, pat, trot

There were children with the animals. In fact from the sound of the trotting, the children were most likely riding on horseback.
The very first voice, Viola had hardly heard, but it had been slightly higher pitched than the other two voices. The second could have belonged to either a young boy or a girl, while the third voice definitely belong to a young girl whose accent seemed to imply that she’d grown up in the country. Perhaps she even lived on a farm and the horses Viola heard them riding belonged to her family.
How lovely that sounded to Viola. To grow up raising animals on a quiet little farm out in the middle of the country.

A realisation then came to Viola and her stomach dropped. It occurred to her that it would only be a matter of time before the children and their horses stumbled upon her corpse.
Viola felt herself visibly shudder. These children shouldn’t have to see something like her. This was a time where the world was still a magical place for them, they didn’t need to look back on their childhood and recall the day they found a mutilated corpse while taking their horses out for a ride.
Viola tried to move, oh how badly she tried to move and hide herself. But Ellen’s body no longer wished to budge.

With a series of quick taps that Viola hadn’t noticed get closer, something small had suddenly stopped just a few inches in front of her arms with a small thud. Viola flinched and attempted to let out a small ‘eep!’ when she felt a fluffy twitching little nose touch ‘her’ skin. But to Viola’s relief her sudden movement hadn’t scared the animal away and instead it had chosen to stay.

The urge to pet the little animal was something that Viola, even in her suffering, could not resist as she slowly raised her hand. Her heart skipped a beat when the fluffy creature placed its soft little heard against the palm of Viola’s hand. Then after a second or two of petting Viola realised that the friendly little mystery animal was a bunny.

The sight was something Viola wished she could see. She weakly moved her head and gave the bunny a small, bloody smile while it snuggled itself against her hand, compelling her to continue petting it before she quickly moved her hand away, a guilty expression hidden behind Ellen’s bloodied and scarred face.
She wanted so badly to be able to apologise. She could not have known what colour fur the rabbit had, but either way Viola had just stained it with Ellen’s blood; her vile, evil blood.
In the back of her mind Viola hoped and prayed that Ellen’s blood would not have some unforeseen effect on the rabbit. She knew that Ellen’s magic thrived within her body no more, but she couldn’t help but think that the blood of her former friend would hold some evil curse to it. But then…In a way it did, didn’t it?

The far more disturbing realization shattered Viola’s thoughts and turned her insides to ice. Her mouth fell open as it at last occurred to her; what if Ellen’s blood made the rabbit sick? What if the rabbit then spread the illness to others? Sure Viola hadn’t been affected by it… at first. But in hindsight, Ellen wouldn’t have been willing to lose her new body to the very thing that was killing her. For all Viola knew, Ellen could have done something to protect her from it. And in turn, lied about her disease not being infectious.

“Angel! There you a-"

The voice of one of the children Viola had heard before cut through Viola’s thoughts like knife. Without her even noticing, they had gotten so close to her. Viola’s mouth went dry; this had to have been their pet rabbit.

‘No! No! No! No! NO!

After a moment of hesitation the voice of the little girl with the higher pitched voice spoke up; “...Girls….wha….what is that…?”

In a sudden burst of panic, Viola tried and tried with all her might to make Ellen’s body crawl back. If she didn’t get away fast then she would get them sick! She’d kill them! They would experience a slow and painful death as their bodies became frail and unable to move. Their skin would crack open and bleed constantly. And their eyes would eventually lose their sight as they, too, began to bleed and excrete other fluids.

But they were just children! No one deserved to go through such a thing, not even Ellen! It wasn’t fair! All Viola had wanted to do was be somewhere where she could be left to die in piece. So why was she here? It just wasn’t fair! She needed to warn them!

‘Get away! GET AWAY!’

Viola wanted so desperately to scream. She pushed her burnt vocal cords as hard as she could, but still, only a series of high pitched and incomprehensible wheezes left her mouth.

She began to cry. She couldn’t do anything, she had not an ounce of strength left and had hardly even managed to move at all. Her heart- Ellen’s heart- was beating faster and at a heavier pace than it should have been in its final moments and her body couldn’t take it.
Viola felt her already darkened world begin to drag her under, deep into the murky depths of unconsciousness. Every breath she took only made her lungs feel more and more like they were being filled with water. Her chest felt heavy.

What had she done!? She’d doomed these children and who knows how many people with Ellen’s sickness. She would cause so many more people to suffer then Ellen ever did.
Where was Viola?! Why was she here!? She should never have crossed through that light; she should have left Ellen’s body- her sickness- to disappear along with Ellen’s house! Why did Viola even care if soul was devoured? If she hadn’t been so selfish this never would have happened! No one else would be in danger from Ellen.

‘Except for papa…. he would still be in danger.’

That thought was the end of what she could take as Viola attempted to let out one final anguished cry.
Before Ellen’s body at last gave out, a series of violent coughs that quickly turned hoarse and weak, were Viola’s last inclination of being alive before the world no longer existed.

What a strange sight it would have been for Viola, if only she could have seen what stared back at her with fear. It had been only a few seconds since she had stopped moving, but to the three fillies that stood just a few feet away from her, time felt like it had come to a screeching halt.

The fillies could do nothing but stare at the creature before them. They couldn’t tell what it was but from what they could see, it was something that wore a red dress with bloodied white sleeves; strange bloody appendages resembling claws sticking out from them. Its mane was long and purple and had a big red bow tied to the back of it. (In a way it was similar to what Apple Bloom- one of the three fillies- wore in her mane.) Then…Then there was its face. The fillies had only seen it for a few seconds, but what they saw…. All other details of the creatures face had been but a blur of blood and skin with the exception of two things; its eyes, or lack thereof. In place of where its eyes should have been there were only two gaping and freshly bleeding holes.

Where were its eyes?

The fillies’ felt like their legs had been planted into the earth. Even if they had wanted to run away screaming ‘monster’ they couldn’t, and they didn’t. The creature had made no attempt to hurt them and had even seemed terrified of them. It soon dawned on them that what they were seeing probably wasn’t a monster or some kind of living corpse set on eating them for lunch; it was just some kind of creature or an animal they had never seen before that had been badly hurt. Something had to have done this to it. Something had taken its eyes.

The first filly to speak up was Scootaloo, an orange Pegasus filly with small wings.

“Is it….Is it dead? …. W…what do we do!?” She failed to hide the panic in her voice as sweat fell from her brow.

None of them had ever seen so much blood before. They were very close to the entrance of the Everfree forest; what they were looking at must have been the gruesome aftermath of a monster attack.
Apple Bloom backed away closer to Scootaloo’s side with trembling steps. No, she could see it! The motion was slow, almost unnoticeable, but it was there; the rise and fall of its shoulders from beneath its purple mane.

Apple Bloom shook her head. “I-it…it’s not dead, it’s still b-breathing. Sweet Celestia! It’s still alive!”

Apple Bloom was sure she was going to be sick. She was beyond relieved to see that the creature was alive but that realization had quickly brought an added pressure of responsibility on the three children. If it was breathing than it was alive, but for how much longer? If they didn’t do something quick then it would die and it would be all their fault.

Meanwhile, still remaining forgotten about, the rabbit that had lead the three fillies there; Angel Bunny had begun to tap his foot impatiently. He may not have expected them to come across a dying creature when he went to investigate that sudden bright light, or for him to pity it and care about it's wellbeing, let alone let it PET him with his bloodied paws, but did the three fillies really not realise what the best thing to do right now would be? Did they really forget the whole reason why they had been chasing him?!
Angel bounced up and down in front of them while waving his little paws in the air, trying to make himself be seen. Prehaps the blood the creature had left behind on him would be help in getting their attention.

The first one of them to finally notice him was the last of the three, Sweetie Bell; a white unicorn. Today her normally joyful green eyes were wide with horror, her purples as small as pinpricks.
Nothing her friends had said managed to reach her. In fact, all sound with the exception of the wind whistling through her ears seemed to have disappeared once they had stopped. That was up until she noticed Angel Bunny, bloody and looking none too happy, trying to get her attention. Then the sound of his hopping, each 'thud' his little feet made upon hitting the ground became audible too.

When Sweetie Bell’s eyes were torn away from the creatures body, it was like she could think again and the weight of the situation had quickly hit her in full.
If something or somepony had done this then, where were they now? They must have left, but what if they hadn’t gotten very far? What if they planned to come back? Or worse…What if they were still here?
Sweetie Bell opened her mouth to scream, to tell her friends that they should run. But all she could manage was to choke on a sharp gasp as one of her two friends finally screamed the name of the pony Angel Bunny had been trying to remind them of this whole time.

“FLUTTERSHY!!”

To their surprise, Scootaloo, who would usually do all she could to be seen as the bravest of the group, had been the first to break down into a flood of tears.

Viola woke up with a start. A loud and surprisingly painless gasp escaping her throat. She covered her mouth with her hands and looked down at herself. Stretching her arms out she saw that her hands were clean of all blood and instead of Ellen’s blood soaked red dress she wore a clean blue knee length dress with a white apron, a single red stripe went around the base of the skirt and the apron was tied around her waist with a big white bow. Viola imminently recognised the clothing as her own. A pair of cute golden braids hung at her shoulders and most importantly of all were the brown leather boots she wore on her feet; her feet, attached to a pair of strong, healthy, beautiful legs.

“M-my legs… they’re back!” Tears fell from her eyes as the words left her undamaged throat. She pulled her legs closely against her chest and wrapped her arms around them. She began to plant a series of small kisses to her knees. More than happy that there was no one around to see this embarrassing display …

“Oh, my beautiful legs…!” She continued her barrage of small and happy kisses. “I never thought I’d see you again!”

Viola was over the moon with joy, and after a few minutes more of celebrating the return of her lost limbs, she decided to finally stand up. But try as she might, the second she stood tall and proud she immediately found herself being dragged back down with a violent and painfully snap pull at her legs.
She fell forward onto her stomach with a painful thud. just barely catching herself with her hands. After taking a moment to register what had just happened, she pushed herself up by her arms and turned her head around to look back at her legs. To her horror, a group of sharp, thorny vines that were adorned with red roses, had wrapped themselves around her legs and stabbed deeply into them with the clear intent of keeping Viola held down.

The sight made her eyes widened, and before she could even attempt to pry the vines from off of her, she heard the very loud click of a rifle being readied for use. Her father’s hunting rifle to be exact.
Time seemed to play in slow motion as Viola turned her head to look at what was in front of her. Her eyes only managed to somehow grow wider than they already had been. It was Ellen, and she was huddling behind Viola’s father with a cruel smirk painted across her lips and an evil glint in her sharp, golden eyes.

“Get away you monster!”

Viola’s heart stopped as she looked up. But instead of her father’s face, all she saw was the barrel of his rifle pointed towards her.

“Monster…? No! Papa, it’s me, Viola! I’m your daughter! The monster is behind you papa! Please turn around-“

As soon as Viola looked back to where Ellen had been standing, she found herself unable to speak. Ellen stood, huddled behind her father no longer. Instead it was Viola’s own body that stared back at her with cruelty in its emerald eyes. Her body didn’t have to speak for Viola to understand what she was saying; ‘she had won.’

The tears Viola let fall from her eyes suddenly felt heavier as they slid down her cheeks at a faster pace that Viola had no control over. She watched a few of them fall in front of her hands. But they were no longer her hands; they were smaller, paler, and bloodier; the ‘tears’ that fell from her eyes made sure to contribute heavily to that.

Viola raised her head and looked at her father again. She clenched her eyes shut and hoped that when she opened them, her father would see the pleading in her eyes, see who she really was. But her father wouldn’t see that. Because when her eyes opened, they were no longer there.

“No….Papa! It’s not me! That’s not ME! PAPA! HELP ME! SAVE ME! I’M SCARED PAPA! I CAN’T SEE YOU ANYMORE!”

But he didn’t hear her. How could he when Viola couldn’t even hear herself? Instead of words, the only sound that went past her lips where what the remainder of Ellen’s vocal cords would allow her to say; a garbled mess of broken sound.

Then, like a light being turned back on, Viola’s vision came back. Her father along with Ellen dressed in her skin still standing there. But now Viola could hardly recognise the figure that had once been her father. He still held his rifle point blank in front of her, but now she had a clear view of his face. It was rotting. Maggot infested flesh falling in clumps at his feet, and from those rotting clumps of flesh, vines; the same ones that held Viola down, grew from the ground, shooting up to dug themselves into her father’s body. Viola could see the vines worm their way through his skin. They slithered out through every orifice his head provided. His eyes, which were already gone, had quickly been replaced with a series of budding roses and bloody thorns. He could no longer see and yet his rifle remained aimed at Viola’s head. Then, just as he went to pull the trigger and shoot Viola dead, a garbled mockery of her father’s voice spoke to her; “I love you Viola.”

Viola screamed and the next thing she heard was the deafening bang of her father’s rifle. But before the bullet could hit her, it disintegrated before Viola’s eyes until not even its ashes remained. She quickly sat herself up in a panic and frantically looked around. Not only had the bullet disappeared, but the vines, Ellen and the nightmarish form of her father had vanished as well.

Before Viola could question what had happened, a stunning deep blue light temporally blinded her and the powerful voice of a woman she did not recognise spoke up.

“We have seen enough!”

The blue light began to fade and as Viola rubbed her eyes, she felt something weigh itself gently on her shoulder. Viola quickly assumed it was an arm, but was confused when she didn’t feel a hand or any fingers at the end of it. Did this person not have a hand? A chill ran down Viola's spine as she was immidantly reminded of the grisly details behind one of her earlier traps that had been intended to ensnare Ellen. But of corse she would have know not to "lend a hand" to her former chef. Really it was a trap Viola wasn't too surprised Ellen had passed through unscathed. Tho again, that lingering feeling of seeing it play out despite Ellen's survival remained.

Once shaking off the thought and blinking away a few coloured spots from her eyes, Viola followed the ‘arm’ up from her shoulder. Viola was not prepared for what she was met with as she stared face to face with the most breathtaking animal she was sure she would ever lay eyes on. It was like something right out of a fairy tale. A unicorn!

Its eyes were a bright mix of different shades of cyan, while its coat was a deep midnight blue that shone bright against the darkness that surrounded them. It sat in front of her on its back legs, measuring around Viola’s height if not a little taller. On each flank she had the mark of a large white crescent moon atop what looked like a black splotch of ink.
She wore a strange set of silver horseshoes that curved around each hoof, and a black chest-plate with a white crescent moon that matched the mark on her flank sitting in the middle. A simple black tiara sat upon her head, sitting right behind her horn which stood out long from her mane. Her mane and tail had to have been made out of the night sky itself. Little silver stars sparkled brightly through it as it continuously flowed behind her like it was being moved by a constant, unfelt gust of air.
Than at last did she finally notice the two wings that were folded delicately at the unicorn’s sides.

‘Wings,’ Viola thought. She was a unicorn with wings!

Ohhh there had to be a proper name for them! But no story book Viola read as a child would ever refer to a unicorn with wings as anything else but, well, that! But while Viola was left frustrated that she didn’t have an answer, Ellen’s memories did.

One single page from a book about mythical creatures that Viola did not recognise filled her thoughts. Nothing on the page was legible to Viola except for an ancient looking illustration of the majestic creature and the name Viola needed.

“An Alicorn…?”

Viola read the word a loud for the first time and the page disappeared. It admittedly felt strange to finally have a name for a creature that had been a part of so many stories from Viola’s childhood.

The Alicorn smiled at Viola and nodded. “You are correct little one and you need not be frightened any longer, for your nightmares shall be of no burden to you while I am here.”

It could talk! Viola’s mind became imminently muddled with different thoughts and questions once she’d heard the Alicorn speak; questions which ranged from things a small child would ask, like if she could ride on her back. To the vital question of if the Alicorn could send her home to her father. But with everything Viola could have asked or said in that moment, all she managed to do was sniffle and barely let out a soft whisper.

“You…you mean it?”

And when the Alicorn nodded her head once more it was like Viola had been turned from a teenager of thirteen and back to a little girl of six. The kind of little girl that would have looked at a mystical creature never before seen by man and imminently ask for a ride on its back. But she didn’t. Instead Viola could do nothing else as large, hot tears fell from her eyes and a tired, strained cry escaped past her lips. She leaped forward

Burying her face into the Alicorn’s soft blue coat. She wrapped her arms around her and hugged the Alicorn as if she were a large stuffed toy and not a legendary magical creature of myth. Viola sobbed. She sobbed and sobbed and sobbed, as she was able to at last release the fear, the hopelessness, her frustration and pain; all of it was released in a furry of sobs as Viola held onto the Alicorn for dear life. She was scared that if she let go, then it would vanish, leaving Viola alone again, trapped forever in the depths of her nightmares.

The Alicorn understood this and although not immediately expecting the tight, desperate hug from the young and mentally exhausted creature, she was quick to hug her back, wrapping her large blue wings around Viola like a shield. She gently stroked her braided mane in a series of comforting strides until her sobbing slowly but surely died down. And when at last Viola’s sobs were reduced to weak sniffles and soft hiccups the Alicorn spoke again, her horn now glowing a light blue.

“Little one,” She paused and let Viola sit back up, materializing a cloth out of nothing to aid the girl in drying the remainder of her tears. “I am Princess Luna; Guardian of the Night. As Princess It is my duty to watch over the dreams of my subjects; the ponies of Equestria, and ensure that they are able to sleep in piece, free from their nightmares.”

Viola’s eyes were torn away from the Princess as the world around them quickly dissolved from darkness and became a glorious world of shimmering stars that floated in the midst of a vast deep blue sky.
Luna took Viola’s hand in her hoof as the girl stared in awe at the world around them. Thousands, perhaps millions of stars, each a different colour and size, calmly floated around them. And as she and Princess Luna stood up, Viola could not help but reach out to touch one of the stars with her fingertip.
Upon contact with Viola, the star (a small pink one) disappeared. But after a brief moment of panic from Viola and a light chuckle from Luna, the star began to reform itself, but not as a star. Instead, it took on the form of a shimmering, pale, pink bubble, which Viola let fall into her hands upon Princess Luna’s gentle guidance.

Princess Luna raised her hoof above her and then motioned across the vast world of stars. “These stars, Viola, each represent a pony or creature in Equestria.” She looked back down at Viola and the pink bubble resting in her hands. “And these bubbles, those are their dreams.”

Viola gasped and excitedly looked down at the bubble. She waited, hoping that she would get to see what the dreams of another being were like. But to her surprise and slight disappointment, the bubble remained empty. She looked back up at Luna, clearly confused.

“P-Princess Luna….nothing’s happening?” Luna replied to Viola’s concerns with a nod and carefully took the bubble from her hands, holding it in her hoof.

“You are correct. That is because, like with everypony here at this time, the filly this bubble belongs to is awake.”

With a slight raise of her hoof, the bubble rose back into the air where it returned to its original form with a soft glow. Within seconds it had disappeared into the never ending sea of stars.

“Normally I am under no obligation to enter the dream realm at a time where no one else but I are expected to be dreaming. But as you can imagine, Viola, your nightmare was not something I could just ignore. In fact, I dare say it was calling me to you. The pain and anguish I felt resonating from your nightmare was akin to that of which I have not felt my subjects experience in centuries. For that I am sorry Viola, I am so sorry for what you must have gone through to get to this point. But I assure you that the worst of it is over. You are safe.”

Luna’s horn glowed blue once more as she leaned down to rest it momentarily against the top of Viola’s head. Before Viola could begin to question what the Princess was doing, she felt the world slip from under her and she fell. But just as quickly as Viola realized she was falling, she had found herself landing on something soft and comfortable. Her eyes widened and she imminently recognised her new surroundings. No longer were she and Princess Luna surrounded by the stars of her subjects. Instead they were in Viola’s bedroom, and here, Viola sat comfortably atop of her bed, which was already prepared for her to rest in.

‘Rest…’ Viola thought. ‘Rest sounds good….’

It was like she had been hit with a sudden wave of exhaustion, she hadn’t been this tired a few seconds ago. Also, wasn’t she dreaming, or in the dream realm? Could she really fall asleep here? Would she continue to dream from inside her own dream? Or did falling asleep here mean that she would wake up for real?

Viola hadn’t even noticed that she had been enveloped in the same sparkling blue light that lit up Luna’s horn. Nor did she say anything when it assisted her by tucking her into bed, ensuring that she would be comfortable.

“Viola, before you sleep, you must know that right now you’re….The body you possess outside of the dream realm is in good hooves, but it needs time to rest if it ever hopes to recover. And you Viola, your mind needs rest too if you ever hope to be able to recover with it.”

Even in her sleepy state, Viola attempted to keep her eyes open just a little more as she listened to the Princesses voice.

“I will be sending you into a temporary state of dreamlessness. You need not worry, for I will be watching over you until it is time for you to awaken in the real world. However I will warn you that upon awakening, you may believe yourself to have been sent back into your nightmares, but rest assured that you will be safe hooves and in the care of trusted friends. Sleep now dear Viola, I will come to your side when you awaken.”

Viola smiled at Luna, her eyes on the verge of fluttering shut; “Thank you Princess Luna....please…” she yawned “…rest well… also….”

Luna smiled sadly as she stood watch over Viola’s sleeping form, keeping an eye on her calm, gentle breathing.

What a curious situation this was. While Viola’s nightmare had confirmed a thing or two for the Princess, like why Viola’s inner form was so unlike her physical body. It would seem that Luna still had plenty more she needed to learn about this young creature and what had brought her here. And Luna was sure that Princess Twilight Sparkle would be jumping at the chance to get those answers and many more once Viola was in better health.
For now though, Luna was content with what she had learned: That even after all Viola had suffered, after everything she may have been through; she still maintained a kind and considerate heart.

The Strangeness of Reality

View Online

Different kinds of medical equipment could be heard faintly through the walls of Ponyville hospital as Sweetie Bell, Scootaloo and Fluttershy sat silently in the Hospitals waiting room.

They watched the occasional doctor or nurse go back and forth between different patients and different tasks, each stopping every once in a while to talk amongst themselves.

They would discuss the progress of the Hospitals newest patient. Some talked about how they hadn’t seen a patient in such critical condition before, some hoped for the creature’s recovery, and others wondered why it had been taken in at all when it clearly should have been sent to the vet to be put down.

Those ponies were jerks and earned a deep seeded glare from Fluttershy, practically forcing them to bite their own tongues and go back to their jobs without another word.

Sweetie Bell shifted nervously in her seat, and glanced at her friends. Scootaloo was holding onto Fluttershy and had mostly stopped crying once the creature they found had been taken in by the doctors. She now only let out the occasional soft whimper. Fluttershy rubbed her back as she hugged the small orange Pegasus who shuddered whenever she glanced at the patches of blood that still stained the older ponies yellow fur.

Like with Fluttershy’s pet rabbit, Angel Bunny, her light yellow coat had been stained with the injured creature’s blood and although she had been able to clean most of it off, some of the blood required more than a few wet tissues to clean off.

The state of the creature’s injuries had left them all shaken quite badly, Fluttershy especially so upon seeing the creature’s legs, or lack thereof.

Scootaloo sniffled. “It…its eyes…its skin ….Is it…Is it gonna be okay, Fluttershy?”

Sweetie Bell looked at Fluttershy, also wanting to know the answer to her friend’s question.

Fluttershy momentarily looked away from the two fillies. What was she going to say? What could she say? Its injuries had been so awful, it had lost s much blood, she….she could only tell them the truth.

“I…I don’t know girls….I-it’s up to the doctors now to see what can be done for the poor thing….”

She looked back at the girls who stared at her heartbroken at the implication, that hadn’t exactly been what they wanted to hear.

“But….” Climbing down from her chair she placed a hoof on each of their shoulders and made them look her in the eyes. “Don’t give up hope. Those doctors and nurses are the best in all of Ponyville. They’ll do whatever it takes to save that creature and if they don’t know how to, than Twilight will.”

Twilight Sparkle, like many others, had witnessed Fluttershy running through Ponyville carrying something bloody and unmoving on her back, followed closely by three of her friend’s younger siblings. Apple Bloom had been the only one to notice Twilight and had stopped to explain what happened, before she ran off to go find her sister and maybe find Rarity and Rainbow Dash too.

When Twilight met the rest of them at the Hospital and saw the creature that was being rushed onto a stretcher, her eyes widened and shone with recognition. She became demanded to accompany the doctors and nurses into the emergency room and refused to take ‘no’ for an answer.

After a quick moment of debate the doctors agreed, realizing that the Princess of Friendship recognised what the creature was and most likely knew even more about it than they did. They would be mad if they didn’t bring Twilight with them. She would be of great help in assuring that the dying creature received the proper medical treatment it needed.

A very loud and sudden *SLAM* of something hitting the walls, hard, made them jump. The double doors of the waiting room entrance had been thrown open by a sky blue aura that Sweetie Bell knew recognised.

“Sweetie Bell!”

Rarity, Sweetie Bell’s older sister, ran in. Her normally composed self was noticeably more frazzled. Somehow, her purple mane managed to remain in pristine condition, but she was sweating and breathing heavily, she’d clearly run here in a panic.

Rarity levitated the smaller, startled unicorn over to her and scooped her up into a hug about ready to cry. “Oh my poor Sweetie Bell, don’t worry, Rainbow Dash told me everything!”

As if on cue, Rainbow Dash ran past the opened waiting room door seconds later. Spike, a small purple dragon, hopped off of her back, winded and dizzy from the incredibly fast ride there.

Rarity looked Sweetie Bell over frantically for any posable sign of injury, refusing to let her go until she was positive her sister was completely unscathed. “Oh thank Celestia! I’m so glad you’re okay!”

The very clear confusion on Sweetie Bell’s face was lost to her big sister. What was Rarity talking about? Of course she wasn’t hurt. Sweetie Bell tried to question her, but when she looked at her big sister’s eyes, filled with relief at her safety, she realized just how afraid she had actually been and how much danger her and her friends had been in. The fear was suffocating, but now Sweetie Bell could almost breathe. Everything would be okay now; her big sister was here and would protect Sweetie Bell from whatever monster had hurt the creature.

“Everything’s going to be alright.”

Just like that the suffocating cloud of fear and uncertainty cleared like it was being kicked away by a Weather Pony. Sweetie Bell’s small frame shook and her eyes watered, releasing the floodgate of tears from her eyes. She tried to speak, but her voice was just an incomprehensible splutter of sounds.

“Rari….t-hiii-y..*sob*…it…whhhaas……it….*sob* gone…!”

Rainbow Dash and Spike ran over to Fluttershy and Scootaloo, leaving Rarity to comfort her sister. A part of Spike wanted to stay by Rarity’s side, but he knew that it was only right to give her space.

“What are you guys still sitting in the Waiting Room for?” Rainbow asked, annoyance and frustration clear in her voice. “Why aren’t the doctors- Fluttershy! You’re all bloody!”

“Oh no, Rainbow, I’m not-“

Not even aware that she spoke, Dash begun to examine Fluttershy’s wings. There had been plenty of blood that Fluttershy had missed when trying to clean her fur and most of it was located in and around the harder to reach crevasse of her wings.

Rainbow Dash was plenty familiar with the pain of a hurt wing or two, so it was not strange that she had noticed the blood there first instead of the more visible patches of mostly faded blood.

“Oh but Rainbow Dash, I’m fi-“

“How badly do your wings hurt? Ohhhhh! Where is it! Where’s that monster!“

“What monster Rainbow Dash?” Scootaloo asked.

“Uh, the monster that attacked you guys, what other monster?”

“Oh but Dash, we weren’t a-“

“Hey! We have an injured mare here!” Rainbow interrupted. “Geez where is everypony?”

None of the hospital staff were currently present in the Waiting Room. Perhaps Dashes shouting had simultaneously reminded them all that they had other things to do somewhere else? Even the receptionist with her head buried inside of a magazine had gone. Though maybe she was just on break?

Fluttershy jumped as Dash pushed some of her feathers aside.

“Weird, I can’t see any cuts or feel any broken bones...” Rainbow turned the yellow Pegasus back around and went to check on Scootaloo. “Still, stay put, okay Shy? What about you, Scoots? Hey….have you been crying?

Scootaloo turned her head away, wishing to hide her reddened eyes that gave away her moment of weakness. She was ashamed at how much of a foal she must have looked like to her honorary big sister and role model. Rainbow’s magenta eyes softened. “Scootaloo… That’s it! I want you to tell me where you found that monster!”

“Rainbow Dash…” Scootaloo croaked.

“I’ll make sure it can’t hurt anypony else.”

“Rainbow Dash…” Scootaloo said a little louder.

“So you don’t have to be scared anymore.”

“Rainbow Dash!!”

Scootaloo was shaking. Her voice had been louder than she had intended it to be, nearing a scream. A few curious nurses had even returned to see what all the commotion was all about, but that was fine. The important thing was that Rainbow Dash had given Scootaloo a chance to speak.

“W-we…We weren’t attacked by anything…..”

Rainbow was silent for a few seconds. “What? But Apple Bloom said-“

“There ya are!”

Applejack hurried into the waiting room, followed closely by Apple Bloom. Rarity turned to look at her friend and whipped away her mascara fused tears, leaving black smears across her white fur.

“Oh thank goodness, Apple Bloom’s alright darling! I-I thought the worst had happened w-when I…” Rarity embraced Applejack in a tearful hug, proceeding to sob in an overly dramatic, but not any less genuine manner. Applejack rubbed her friends back with a comforting hoof all while rolling her eyes before staring angrily at Rainbow Dash.

“Gosh darn it Rainbow, look what you done! You’ve gone and got Rarity all worked up for nothin’!”

Rarity’s sobs quickly quieted down to a confused sniffle and she wiped her eyes again. “W-what do you mean, darling?”

Applejack sighed and placed a hoof to her forehead, cueing Rarity to step back.

“Dash, if ya had just waited for Applebloom to calm down a bit, ya would’av known that they’re not at the hospital because they got hurt!”

Rainbow Dash hurried over to them. “But…but Fluttershy’s all bloody! And Applebloom said something about a monster with no eyes!”

“That’s right…” Fluttershy got down from her seat and walked over to her friends. Her head hung low, her pale pink mane acting as a curtain, draping over her face. When she was a few inches away from Rainbow Dash her head shot up and she stared at her rainbow-maned friend with sorrowful eyes.

“It did have no eyes, Dash, but it wasn’t a monster! And I’m not all bloody because I was hurt by it. We don’t know what we found, but it was hurt so badly Dashi. It was barely alive! Something….something….” Her voice shook and returned to its normal, meek volume. She couldn’t say it. She was going to start sobbing again.

“Something took its eyes.” Sweetie Bell spoke up. She had managed to calm down, but her voice was a little too calm. Her words didn’t even seem to faze her as she spoke. She felt tired, but her fellow Cutie Mark Crusaders stood by her, keeping her strong as Scootaloo continued for her.

“And it was bleeding everywhere… Fluttershy had to carry it on her back. E-even if it had been awake it wouldn’t have been able to walk… Its legs weren’t there, they weren’t anywhere...”

Sweetie Bell dropped to the floor and her two friends followed suit, never letting go of their friend, making sure she felt safe in their warm hug. The three were all tired; the day had gone on for too long.

With a hoof placed to her mouth, Rarity looked at her little sister, completely speechless. All she could do was try to take in what her sister had said.

Then sitting down, Rarity carefully nudged Sweetie Bell’s chin with a gentle touch of her muzzle, causing her little sister to raise her head and give Rarity a very good look at her exhausted green eyes. Apple Bloom and Scotaloo moved aside so Rarity could continue to comfort their friend. They went to their own respective sisters, but Scootaloo did so with her head hung low.

But to her suprise, Rainbow Dash pulled Scootaloo into a close hug. Her eyes were closed, but she hugged her little sister with a proud smile spread across her muzzle.

“I’m glad you’re not hurt Scoots and I’m sorry for getting ahead of myself like that. You did something really good today and I’m proud of you for being so brave.”

As Dash tightened her hug, Scootaloo just continued to stare down at the tiles. “How was I brave? You said so yourself, I was scared, all I did was cry. I’ll never be as brave as you Dash.”

“Scoots,” Rainbow Dash knelt down to Scootaloo’s level. “You were ten times- no- ten thousand times braver than anypony else I know! Of course you cried and of course you were scared; you all were, and anypony else would have felt the same way. But I know that if anypony else had found that creature, they would have just run away scared with their tails between their legs, or….or worse, thinking it was a monster.”

For a moment, guilt filled Rainbow Dash’s eyes. But within seconds she blinked the guilt away and her eyes retained their determined look. She hoped Scootaloo hadn’t noticed.

“I mean! Unless that pony was Fluttershy, but she might not have even found it in time if it weren’t for you guys. Don’t get me wrong, we don’t know anything about this creature, so I’m not saying I trust it. But I’m proud of you guys for standing your ground and not letting fear stop you from helping somepony in need. Now it has a chance because of how brave you were; how brave you all were. You and your friends Scoots, might just be the bravest ponies I’ve ever known.”

Giving her little sister a loving nudge Rainbow Dash gave a proud grin. “So chin up, okay?”

Scootaloo’s heart filled with pride and her eyes sparkled as she looked up at her hero. Yeah! Rainbow Dash was right! They had been pretty brave, hadn’t they? Way braver than anypony else would have been. She hugged her big sister, smiling.

“Thanks Rainbow Dash…”

“That was well said, Dash.”

Twilight Sparkle walked over to them, followed closely by a tan Earth Pony doctor. Both ponies were noticeably bloody. But while Twilight only had some dried blood caked around her hooves, the doctor’s white coat had been covered in the stuff, making her look more like a mad scientist from a scary story than a kind doctor. But the coat had done its job and had helped keep her caramel fur clean.

“Twilight!” The group exclaimed, hurrying to their newly arrived friend.

“Twilight, Doctor, is the creature going to be okay??” Fluttershy asked with clear concern in her voice.

“Yeah is it? Is it?” Apple Bloom repeated in a mix of excitement, hope and worry.

The Cutie Mark Crusaders all simultaneously began to repeat the same question, ironically making it more difficult for Twilight or the Doctor to answer.

“Children, children calm done!” The Doctor spoke loudly over the three fillies, causing them to quiet.

“Everypony, I am Dr Sweet Tooth-“

“Sweet Tooth?” Rainbow Dash interrupted, her eyebrow raised.

“Yes, my parents wanted me to become a dentist, now if I may continue?”

Rainbow Dash sheepishly rubbed the back of her head. Was the Doctor sure she hadn’t meant to say candy maker or something?

“Right...” Dr Sweet Tooth sighed and pushed her glasses up her muzzle. “As I was saying, I am Dr Sweet Tooth, I am the doctor put in charge of the patient Ms Fluttershy brought in. You’re lucky you brought her in when you did Ms Shy; She was in pretty bad shape but I am happy to say that she is alive and in stable condition.”

The cry that escaped Flutershy’s throat overlapped the immediate sighs of relief from the rest of the group. She hugged the Doctor, who accepted the hug with grace. She was proud to say that she was used to receiving this kind of happy reaction by now.

“Oh thank Celestia!” Rarity cried.

“Wait a minute Doc; how’d you know it’s a girl? …Twilight?”

Dr Sweet Tooth looked over Fluttershy’s shoulder and at the blue Pegasus. “That’s right Ms Dash. Though I do believe it would have only been a matter of time until we inevitably figured out the creature’s gender on our own, it would seem that Princess Twilight was able to help us in identifying both its gender and species earlier than expected. I believe you called it a ‘Human,’ am I correct Princess?”

Twilight nodded. “That’s right Doctor, allow me to explain.” She looked to her friends. “Girls, you all remember when Spike and I had to travel through the Crystal Mirror to get my Element back from Sunset Shimmer, right?”

“Yeah.” Dash answered.

“Sure do.” Applejack followed.

“Mhhmm” Fluttershy nodded.

The Doctor hid her immense confusion behind a straight face.

“Of course.” Rarity replied.

“No?” Spoke Cutie Mark Crusaders in unison.

“Oooo! I do! I do!”

All of them, including the straight faced doctor, just about jumped out of their fur at the unexpected and sudden hyperactive voice. Fluttershy found herself hiding behind Rainbow Dash, having flown over to her at a speed that impressed the blue Pegasus.

Just as suddenly as she had spoken, Pinkie Pie; a pink earth pony, stood in between Twilight and the Doctor with a wide grin plastered across her pink face. Her forelegs were wrapped around both ponies necks but she didn’t even seem to acknowledge the blood covering Dr Sweet Tooth’s coat, which concerned the Doctor quite a bit.

“Pinkie?!” Twilight cried in surprise. “When did you- Never mind. How did you know we were here?”

“It was easy! I saw Rarity race Dashi here which was suuuper weird because not only does Rarity not like racing, but she was winning! And then my Pinkie Sense picked up on a super duber uber big doozy, but I couldn’t figure out what it meant, which in itself is a doozy! So then I thought that maybe everypony was going to do something really fun and forgot to tell me! Soooo??? Are you? Is this a get well soon party for somepony? Is it a get well soon surprise party for me? Is that why I didn’t know about it? Because boooyy am I surprised! I didn’t even know I was sick!”

“Pinkie” Applejack said firmly, getting her friend to stop talking. “That’s not why we’re here. Somethin’ real bad happened, Pinkie, something really, really serious.

Pinkie gasped aloud, her wide grin vanishing. “You mean somepony’s been hurt!?! Hey what’s this red stuff on you, doc? It’s sticky- oh...”

Twilight could only shake her head as she moved her friend’s foreleg off of her with her hoof. Dr Sweet Tooth coughed, indicating that she, too, wanted the Pink pony to move away and to stop touching the blood on her coat. But Pinkie didn’t seem to get the message. No on closer inspection she seemed frozen in place like she had had an unfortunate encounter with a Cockatrice. Sighing, the doctor also resorted to just pushing Pinkie’s foreleg away from her.

“Ms Pie, why don’t you go stand with the rest of your friends and let Princess Twilight continue speaking?”

“O-okay....”

When Fluttershy heard Pinkie’s voice appear right next to her without even a sigh of audible hoofsteps, she squeaked out a small ‘eep!’ and almost flew towards the ceiling in an attempt to hide. She was more than used to her friends random acts of appearing out of thin air but what got her was Pinkie's voice. It had been barely above a whisper.

“To continue,” Twilight began. “The crystal mirror transported us to a parallel version of Equestria...”

Sweetie Bell raised a hoof like she was in class. “Twilight, what’s ‘parallel’ mean?” She asked curiously. Twilight surprisingly wasn’t bothered by this interruption.

”Good question, It means that our worlds were the same in some ways but also completely different in others.
The differences in our worlds were not only its complete lack of magic, but also its lack of Ponies. Yes, ponies existed, but they lacked greatly in intellect and were not the dominate species, acting more as pets than anything else. Instead the world was made up of human’s like the one you found. Spike and I were even transformed to fit in better with their world. So I got to experience what it was like being human, first hoof, or I guess first ‘hand’ in their case” She held up a hoof to show that a hand was the equal equivalent of a ponies front hoof.

“So Spike and you were turned into humans?” Apple Bloom asked, wondering what they would have looked like.

“No, only Twilight was.” Spike answered. “Dragons didn’t exist there, so I was turned into a puppy.”

“Awwwww~” Sweetie Bell cooed which caused Rarity to giggle at the thought. The baby dragon could only blush at the reaction.

“So you’re saying that the creature we found is a human that came here from this other Equestria?” Scootaloo asked with a tilt of her head.

“That’s the theory I’m going with for now Scootaloo. But things still don’t make sense! If a human crossed through The Crystal Mirror then they theoretically should have been turned into a pony upon entering our world so they would better blend in. Not only that, but it shouldn’t even be opened yet. Granted she could have come here at a time when the mirror was still open, but I find it very hard to believe that she would be able to travel from the Crystal Kingdom to Ponyville without a single pony seeing her.”

Twilight sighed.

“However we can focus on how she got here later. For now I believe that there is a much more pressing matter at hoof. But first, Spike, I’d like you to take Scootaloo, Sweetie Bell and Apple Bloom outside.”

“What?!” Scootaloo cried.

“How come?” Apple Bloom asked.

“Twilight…?” Spike questioned.

“Girls...” Twilight knelt down to the fillies’ level. “You shouldn’t have to hear this, at least not right now. Not after everything you’ve seen today. Besides, you kids are smart, you might even already know what it is I’m going to talk about. ”

Sweetie Bell opened her mouth to argue back, but nothing came out, what would she even say? That they weren’t still scared? That they weren’t smart fillies? None of them could argue with the lavender Alicorn. None of them even really wanted to. They all nodded in understanding, trying to guess what it was they might have known.

“And Spike,” Twilight turned to her assistant and stood back up. “I want you to stay with them and keep them company. Think you can do that for me?”

“Piece a cake, Twilight.” Spike gave the lavender unicorn a thumbs-up and walked to the exit, the fillies following him out the door.

Twilight ensured that the double doors closed gently behind them with her magic and waited a few moments after in order to ensure that the children weren’t in earshot of what they were about to discuss.

Twilight looked at the yellow Pegasus with a serious but sad expression. “Fluttershy, you saw the human’s wounds, correct? So…with the exception of their skin, you noticed too that the rest of her wounds were deliberate, right? That somepony must have... cut off their legs…?”

Of course Fluttershy knew that. She had taken care of plenty of animals who had no other choice but to have an injured limb or two be permanently removed. Thankfully the local veterinarian saved her from preforming the occasionally necessary act herself, but she still made sure to know how it was done, just in case the veterinarian was one day not available.

Fluttershy never wanted to admit it to her friends, or anypony, but she had quickly learned how to spot the difference between a deliberately removed limb vs a limb which had been bitten or torn off. She feared the day when she would be forced to perform an amputation on an injured animal herself.

After a moment of hesitation she nodded sombrely at Twilight’s question and upon seeing Fluttershy, the most innocent pony she knew, nod at such a violent question, Rainbow Dash went pale.

Okay, maybe it wasn’t so strange that Fluttershy could tell these things? She did know plenty of first aid, and knowing how a wound was caused was an important part of that, right? Yeah, of course it was. But then, if she really was right, then who had done this and why?

If this had just been caused by some wild animal or mindless monster, maybe a timber wolf or something, she could understand why something like this could have happened. It was a horrible, tragic accident and safety measures would absolutely be enforced to ensure something like this didn’t happen to anypony else. But now she was just meant to accept that another pony or creature would steel another creature’s legs, maybe even its eyes and just leave it for dead? How was she just meant to accept that whoever did this was still out there!? This couldn’t be real…

Despite her dry mouth Rainbow swallowed and laughed nervously.

“Cut off…, Twi, you’re k-k-kidding right? T-that means somepony….”

The Doctor nodded, answering for Twilight.

“I wish she were Ms Dash, but I can confirm that she is correct. The human’s legs were indeed deliberately removed; I believe using a blade of some kind, perhaps a saw.” The Doctor sighed and shook her head again, slowly this time, as if to carefully shake the thought from her mind. “I want to believe that her legs may have needed to be amputated due to the intense skin condition she had when arriving. But not only is her skin slowly healing on its own, making the amputation unnessacary. It also does not explain her missing eyes.”

As if it were the final straw for her, Pinkie Pie's vibrant colours faded to a dull tone and her bright pink mane lost its Cotton Candy-like curls being left to fall flat at her sides, handing limply just inches above the tile floor.

Having had shown up later then everypony else, Pinkie had just pieced together that her friends were here visiting somepony who just needed a bit of cheering up, which was technically still true. But this wasn’t just somepony with a bump on the head or a broken wing. Pinkie could throw the human all the ‘Get Well Soon’ parties in the world and it wouldn’t fix what happened to her.

No wonder she hadn’t been able to understand what her Pinkie Senses was trying to tell her, this wasn’t just any old doozy, this was….was…. Pinkie lowered her head in defeat. She didn’t even know.

“Maybe….maybe somepony did see her…?” Pinkie suggested in a quiet, sombre tone that was far beyond from her usual happy self. Her question and shift in personality caught everyponys attention.

“Pinkie, whatever do you mean?” Rarity asked, concerned by her friends drastic change in demeanour.

“I mean…Maybe somepony saw her after she came through the mirror and…. When they were done hurting her they left her in the Everfree…”

The sudden push of the Waiting Room door made Pinkie pause and look behind her, the light gone from her eyes. A grey unicorn nurse poked her head through the door and upon spotting Dr Sweet Tooth, motioned with her hoof for her to wrap things up quickly.

The Doctor just wanted to roll her eyes but she did suppose they were taking up the waiting room.

“Apologies everypony, but I don’t think I can convince the staff to keep the Waiting Room empty any longer. If you would all follow me, we can go see the human now. She should be all clean up and settled in by now.”

At the mention of being clean, the blood on Fluttershy’s fur began to itch and feel tight. It had completely dried and despite how patient she was, she wanted it off her fur, now. Thankfully, her discomfort did not go unnoticed.

“And we’ll get a nurse to help remove the blood from your fur Ms Shy, you too Princess Twilight, come now.”

“Thank you Dr Sweet Tooth.” Said Alicorn smiled at the Doctor. “You’ve been excellent help. But please, you can just call me Twilight.”

The Doctor gave the Alicorn a nod and returned her own small grin. “Very well then, Ms Sparkle, very well.”

But as they started to walk, Fluttershy paused: Something was off. She looked around. Upon noticing that she had fallen behind, Applejack also stopped and looked to see what was wrong. It was then that she too noticed what it was.

“Girls?” The cowpony caught the attention of the rest of her friends and their heads turning to where Applejack’s voice had come from.

“Did any of you see where Pinkie went?”

In the midst of a vast dark void did she find herself, looking up into the vast soothing emptiness, neither falling nor flying, just being left to exist.

But for how long had she been going on like this? Whenever she tried to remember, her sense of time would seemingly be reset and she was left unsure if everything before then had been a dream. She would have believed this too, had the same consistent beeping not followed her each time she had ‘woken up.’

The sound had been barely audible at first, so quiet that she was sure the sound was just part of her imagination. But as the beeping grew louder and louder, she could no longer just blame it on her own mind and now it was beginning to irritate her to the point where she felt uneasy.

The disturbance of her piece, cause her to twitch. Her hand brushed against something soft that hadn’t been there before and she was now aware of something warm covering her from her chest down to the very top of her legs. Strangely enough from there onward she felt neither warm nor cold.

That’s right! It was a blanket. She had been tucked safely into bed to rest right after she had been saved by-

“eessss….uuun..aaahh…”

She fell from the nothingness and was shaken by the sudden feeling of a mattress under her back; a mattress that was far too firm to be the one she had fallen asleep on. The darkness closed in on Viola, devouring her sight, however limited it had been whist in the void, with gusto. She sat up, her stiff mussels aching in response to the sudden movement but it wasn’t nearly as painful as they could have been.

Pain, so she was alive?

The beeping was still there but it was far less irritating. Instead of having nowhere else to go to but her ears the sound was allowed to travel elsewhere and seemed far more subdued.

With a surge of mixed emotions Viola recognised what exactly the beeping was; a heart monitor. So she had really done it? Despite the feelings of sadness and regret the sound of the heart monitor brought up, Viola took solace in the fact that she had survived, managing to best an all-powerful demon in the process. It was something she never thought she would ever see herself being proud of.

Someone in the room gasped.

“She’s awake! Girls! Girls! She’s awake! She's awake!”

Viola was startled by the voice of a little girl. Her head turned to where the voice had come from as they came closer, their footsteps sounding a little strange.

“Are you okay Miss Human?” A little girl with a voice that was higher in pitch asked.

“Do you need us to get a Doctor?” A girl with a more raspy voice asked.

Viola couldn’t believe it, she knew these voices! They belonged to the little girls who were looking for their rabbit! They were okay! Oh Viola felt so relieved. But at the same time she felt like a fool for not just checking her former friends memories for the information on wether or not her illness had been contagious or not. Instead she had panicked over nothing and had only managed to potentially lower her chances of survival.

“ooorr…iiii…ahh..!...”

Viola covered her mouth with her hand and her head sunk low in embarrassment. She couldn’t even apologise to the little girls who she must have scared so much.

“Can’t you talk…?” The girl with the higher-pitched voice asked.

Viola nodded. If only she had something to write on. She’d never practiced writing blind, but she was sure that if she tried then her handwriting would be somewhat legible. She fidgeted with her fingers, taken aback by the lack of any sores or scabs adorning them. ‘Her’ fingers, ‘her’ hands, they were completely healed and didn’t even need to be bandaged.

‘Wait a minute, my fingers!” She thought confidently. “I can just spell with my fingers!”

Viola held her hand out to the girls excitedly and tapped the palm of her hand with her index finger.

“…Hhaaa…aannd…”

The small bit of pride Viola felt from having almost being able to say the word outweighed by the heat that was beginning to creep its way back up ‘her’ throat.

For a moment the girls were silent, seemingly trying to decipher what Viola meant as she traced letters onto her palm.

“Girls?” She heard the girl with the southern accent whisper.

“I dunno.” Viola could pretty much feel the shrug that accompanied the raspy girl’s voice. Really? How did they not understand what she was asking? Admittedly becoming a tiny bit impatient, Viola tapped the palm of her hand again.

“..hhaaannd…”

An icy chill ran down Viola’s spine. It was faint, but she could hear it amidst the scratchy mess; her voice. No not Viola’s own voice: Ellen’s. She placed a hand to her throat, becoming even more aware of the reigniting burn.

The girls were silent; their inability to understand what Viola meant becoming more and more obvious as seconds passed by. Viola’s outstretched arm fell to her side and her head sunk low. It was all she could do to not sigh. Maybe a doctor or nurse would come soon and provide Viola with a pen and paper?

“Oh! I know!”

Viola’s ears picked up on the bedsprings releasing a small squeak as she felt the girl with the accent rest her upper body on the mattress. “I think I know what you mean now Miss! You wanna hoofshake!” The girl with the accent excitedly exclaimed, positive that this was what Viola must have wanted.

Viola’s previously outstretched hand was pulled forward by a familiar but defiantly not human limb. An image of the Alicorn Princess from her dream filled her mind and Viola instinctively pulled her hand away, mouth agape.

‘It can’t be…’

But it was. What Viola had felt guiding her hand had been a hoof, one far smaller than Princess Luna’s but otherwise just the same.

‘A-amazing.’ Thought a very astonished Viola.

When she had first encountered these girls she had assumed that they had been riding horses, but no, these were the horses! They were ponies! Meeting a Pony Princess in her dreams was one thing, but learning that she may have actually been real and waking up in her world was a whole other experience in of its self.

“Miss Human? What’s wrong?”

A very guilty sounding voice pulled Viola back to reality, however unusual reality had become. Holding up her hands Viola shook her head.

‘No, no, nothing’s wrong, I was just surprised!’

She felt around for the filly’s hoof which thankfully hadn’t moved very far. She was relieved that she hadn’t deterred the filly from being near her and that she allowed Viola to hold her hoof.

Then with the fillies hoof held gently in her hand, Viola begun tracing what she wanted to say onto the filly’s hoof with her finger.

“Oh! You’re spellin’ somethin’! Sorry Miss Human, Can you start again please??”

Viola nodded in understanding as she re-wrote the invisible letters.

“I…M…S…O…R…R…Y….Eh?” The filly clumsily climbed up onto the bed and sat in front of Viola. Viola’s memories imminently went back to the moment she had first found Princess Luna sitting in front of her.

The filly held Viola’s hands over her hooves and pulled them towards her in a concerned manner. “What’s the matter? What are you sayin’ sorry for? I…S….C…A….R….E…D…Y…O…U….? …. Wait, you scared us? Don’t be silly, you didn’t scare us. We were a bit surprised when you sat up so quickly like that, but we weren’t scared.”

“Apple Blooms right, don’t feel bad about that.” The filly with the slightly higher voice said, confirming the name of the filly with the southern accent.

But that hadn’t been what she meant. Viola wanted to apologise for scaring them when they first found her. But then the girl with the raspy voice said something that caught Viola’s full attention.

“Yeah, I mean, the Princess said in her letter that you might wake up today, so it’s not like we weren’t expecting it.”

‘Princess.’ Viola’s ears latched onto the word and she quickly spelled out a name.

“L….U….N….A…. Princess Luna?” Asked Apple Bloom. “No, I’m pretty sure the letter was from Princess Celestia, she’s Princess Luna’s big sister. Did Princess Luna come visit you in your dreams?”

Viola nodded.

“That's perfect! From what Twilight told us the letter said that Princess Celestia and Luna would both be coming here so you'll get to meet her again.” The filly with the higher voice added.

Confirming it again with Apple Bloom, excitement and hope swelled in Viola’s chest. It was a silly thing to hope for but maybe there was a chance that both Princesses would be able to give her back what Ellen had taken away? Even if it was just her voice so she could properly thank Princess Luna for keeping her safe in her dreams, or her eyes so she may whiteness the beauty of another Alicorn Princess and her kingdom. She would be forever grateful to them. Of course having a pair of legs again would too be appreciated, but strangely, the normally active and outgoing girl was not as concerned about her inability to walk or run. No matter how badly she would have liked to she knew in her heart that the ability to walk would just be wasted on her if she could not laugh aloud as she played or see the world around her.

So to pass the time until the Princesses arrival, Viola asked the fillies questions as best as she could while also answering any questions they might have had for her. Through this she found out the names of the other two fillies in the room. The one with the slightly high pitched voice was named Sweetie Bell and the one with the raspy voice was named Scootaloo, both of whom had joined Apple Bloom with sitting on the bed with Viola. In turn she told them her name. and despite her being unable to see them, she somehow knew that their names fit them all perfectly.

“Viola? That’s so pretty! You must really like music, right?” Sweetie Bell asked.

“Or gardening?” Added Apple Bloom.

Viola nodded her head to that. It was true she did enjoy gardening, especially when it came to her vegetable patch at home. A part of her hoped that maybe Ellen would continue to care to it for her? It was a silly thought, Viola knew that, but was it really so bad to hope that Ellen would pick up on some of Viola’s habits and maybe even become a better person? It was farfetched but if she couldn’t go home then it was the best Viola could hope for.

Viola also found out how the three usually spent their time. Turns out they were out to discover what their special talents were in hopes of earning their ‘cutie marks,’ thus dubbing themselves as; The Cutie Mark Crusaders! Which they were more than happy to announce loudly to the whole hospital.

Never hearing the term ‘Cutie Mark’ until now and having Ellen’s memories turn up blank when looking for an answer, Viola’s next question was obvious.

It turns out that a Cutie Mark was a symbol that would appear on a ponies flank when they discovered their true purpose in life and that each Cutie Mark was unique to each pony who earned it. The crescent moon marking Viola had seen on Princess Luna’s body must have been an example of one.

“Wait, so does that mean humans don’t have Cutie Marks? How do you know what your special talents are then?” Asked Scootaloo.

Viola shrugged and spelt something out on Apple Bloom’s hoof. “She says ‘we just know.’” Apple Bloom answered.

Then after a little more pleasant back and forth Viola heard the door to the room open and the three girls gasped.

“The human is right here, Princesses-“

“Twilight! Princess Celestia! Princess Luna!”

The three all spoke in unison as they simultaneously leaped off of the bed.

“Viola, bow!” Scootaloo urged in a rushed whisper.

Realising how rude she must have seemed, Viola grabbed onto the first thing she felt; her blanket, before raising the sides of it like a skirt. She bowered her head, doing her best to imitate a curtsy.

It was then that a regal, yet motherly voice calmed any of Viola’s previous nerves. “You may rise, my little ponies, we are all friends here after all. The same goes for you too, little human, there is no need for such formalities. After all, I believe you have already become acquainted with my little sister, Luna, correct?”

Viola raised her head and nodded, dropping the blanket. “uunn…aaah-aga!”

Viola’s throat might as well have been set ablaze as she pushed it beyond its limits. She covered her mouth and coughed violently, each violent release of sharp air adding more fuel to the flames. The nurse or doctor who had lead the princesses here ran out of the room and Viola could just barely hear her calling for help.

Her empty eyes widened and her hands instinctively moved away as her body arched forward. Something wet and metallic tasting tore its way from out of her throat, dirtying the most likely once clean sheets.

A hoof was placed on Viola’s back and a drinking glass was pressed against her bottom lip. Then amidst the smell of hot blood and tears Viola swore that she could smell something else: The smell of a sweet medicine that would ‘make the pain go away.’

Only a drop of the liquid reached Viola’s tongue before she pushed it away and tried to scream. This only caused her throat to burn and bleed more as she choked on the blood of her former friend. She was being held down as her body thrashed and flailed.

‘No! No! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO MORE!’

She instinctively tried with all her might to claw and kick away at the vines that held her down with their sharp thorns. But with no legs to fight back with and the vines wrapping tighter and tighter around her arms, she could do no more than panic and try to scream.

“VIOLA!”

Choking on her own breath, Viola snapped out of her state of intense fear and panic. Her blanket was torn away from her and was replaced by a warm energy that carried her to the side of the bed, what was left of ‘her’ legs just barely reaching the edge. The ponies who were restraining her collectively moved away, some leaving the room. (Probably at the request of one of the princesses)

Two forelegs pulled Viola close and a familiar pair of soft feathery wings which although seemed a little bigger than they had been in Viola’s dream, shielded her once again from the world. Shaking and breathing heavily Viola sobbed, trying not to hurt her throat any more than she already had as she stayed as close as she could to princess Luna without falling off the bed.

“Viola…I fear that I nor Luna know what you thought would happen if you partook in that drink of water. But you must remember that you are safe here. It was just clean water, nothing more. The doctors wouldn’t do anything to hurt you, they’re here to help. So please, try and calm yourself.” Princess Celestia's voice was closer. She must have been standing right besides her sister.

"My sister is right dear Viola." Said Luna. "Nopony here wishes to cause you any more harm."

“V-Viola?” Stammered a cautiously approaching Scootaloo.

Princess Luna unraveled her wings and sat herself next to Viola atop the hospital bed, being quick to continue comforting her by draping one of her wings around her once more. Viola carefully pulled Luna’s wing a little closer, scared that she would accidentally pluck one of the Princesses feathers. She huddled closer to her, releasing a series of small whimpers and sobs as she hid her face in embarrassment.

‘Viola’s’ face was bright red with shame. The Doctors were just trying to help her and what did she do? She threw a horrible tantrum.

In the most literal sense of the word Viola tried to choke out some resemblance of an apology, but that only triggered another coughing fit. Softly patting Viola’s back, Princess Luna carefully placed something in her hands. It was a paper cup.

“Easy now, a nurse has gone to prepare a healing potion for your throat. Since this is actual medicine we have requested for it to be put into your food to avoid another panic attack. And per the advice Princess Twilight Sparkle has given us on the average human diet, we have made sure that your food contains no grass, flowers or hay, so you won’t have to worry about that. Please, try to drink some water, even just a little bit. I assure you it is untainted and safe to drink.”

Princess Twilight? Viola had heard Scootaloo, Sweetie Bell and Apple Bloom greet someone by that name and had even mentioned it more then once during their conversation, but she hadn’t known she was also a princess. Why hadn’t the three referred to her as such like they had with the other two royals?

Wiping away the tears that hadn’t soaked into her bandages, Viola decided to worry about that later and shakenly placed the cup to her lips. Before she let the liquid pour from the cup, she inhaled as best as she could through her now stuffy nose. There was no trace of a sweet smell coming from the cup or anywhere else in the room at all.

Her cheeks flushed a deeper red. Had one of the hospital staff been wearing a sweet smelling perfume? Or had she just imagined the smell entirely? If it was the former she could only hope that another sweet smell wouldn’t force her back into her memories again.

Before Viola’s mind could register that she had taken a drink, her head was already tilted back and the opposite edge of the cup was covering her nose. Water trickled down the sides of her mouth as she sculled the cool liquid down, providing much needed relief to her scorched throat.

She was sure that she had heard one of the ponies tell her to slow down, but she was too focused on getting as much water to her throat as possible. Not only was the water providing temporary relief to her scorched throat, but it also quelled the intense thirst that she didn’t realize had been plaguing her. It was like she hadn’t had anything to drink in days, which was probably true.

The last gulp of water had come too soon. The cup floated out of her shaking hand and Viola took the opportunity to wipe away the droplets of water from around her mouth, mentally kicking herself over the water she had let go to waste. But her regrets vanished as she was handed another cup of water and then another, and another.

Sighing in bliss at the lessened pain in her throat, Viola contently shook her head when she was offered another cup. She traced a small ‘Thank you’ onto Luna’s hoof and the Princess chuckled, amused at Viola’s chosen way of communicating.

“How interesting, but perhaps we should get you something to write on?”

“Oh! Right here Princess Luna!”

Warmed by magic, a pencil and some paper gently fell onto Viola’s lap. Gleefully Viola took the pencil and carefully wrote eight messy letters that varied in size. The paper was very thick and seemed to be bunched together with different layers of equally thick sheets. She held the written sheet in the direction of where the items had come from.

“Thank you? It was no trouble at all; I’m always prepared! You never know when you’ll need to write something down or make a list or twelve.…Um, right! I should introduce myself! My name is Twilight Sparkle, Princess of Friendship. Your names Viola, right?”

Viola nodded.

‘Princess of Friendship.’ Ellen would have probably found a title like that hilarious. After all how could someone rule over friendship? It sounded equally as made up as the concept of friendship itself.

Viola lowered her head. Why would she think that? It didn’t matter what Ellen would have thought, so why was she thinking about it? Did it have something to do with Ellen’s memories? Maybe they were forming their own thoughts based on what was left of Ellen’s mind? Viola shuddered. She may have accepted Ellen’s memories staying within her body but she would not accept her toxic personality and evil ways of thinking too.

Still, a part of Ellen did have a bit of a point and Viola herself was curious about what exactly a Princess of Friendship was. So she wrote down that very question and the Princess of Friendship happily explained the details of her job. As Princess she was in charge of teaching the importance of friendship to anypony who may need while ensuring peace and harmony between all of Equestria.

“Before this though, I was Princess Celestia’s student. She’s the reason I was able to learn everything I know today!”

‘How interesting!’ Viola thought, amazed.

But is it really that simple? Could a single person- or pony- be capable of doing such a thing as ensuring friendship and harmony to all in her kingdom? Was friendship really treasured so greatly in this world that it needed its own princess to ensure that its value was never lost?

Before her deal with Ellen, Viola may have believed in that, but now? The fact that Princess Luna could enter the dreams of others seemed a little more believable, even if she hadn’t experienced it firsthand.

“Of course being the Princess of Friendship doesn’t mean I face these responsibilities alone. I’d be nothing without my friends who I can always count on to be there for me.”

“Heck yeah you can!”

A pony with a voice that was very similar to Scootaloo’s entered the room, serval more hoofsteps following behind them.

"Rainbow Dash! Whatcha your language!" Scolded a very posh and regal sounding pony.

“o-oh thank goodness!” A pony with a soft voice barely above a whisper exclaimed. “You’re really awake. H-how are you feeling? Your skin’s looking much better. H-how’s your throat? Have you taken the healing medicine yet? I’ll go get it for you!”

Viola heard the pony start her gallop towards the door before Twilight seemed to stop her.

“Fluttershy, calm down, a nurse should be here any moment with the healing potion. She’s going to be fine. Viola, this is Fluttershy, she’s the pony that helped bring you to the hospital after Sweetie Bell, Apple Bloom and Scootaloo found you.”

“Oh thank goodness… I-it’s nice to finally meet you, V-Viola.” Flutetrshy sounded much more relieved after Twilight’s explanation. She held out her hoof for Viola to shake and the only reason Viola knew this was because Princess Luna carefully guided her hand to the gentle ponies hoof.

“It’s like a handshake.” Twilight added. Viola nodded and gently shook Fluttershy’s hoof, realising this must have been what Apple Bloom had called a ‘hoofshake’ earlier.

“It’s good to see ya awake darlin.’ You gave us all quite a scare. Names Applejack, I’m Apple Bloom’s big sister, hope her an her friends were good company. It’s nice to meet ya. Viola, right?”

Viola smiled as she confidently shook Applejacks hoof.

With a sudden gust of wind that tussled Viola’s hair back, another hoof was quickly placed it her hand, pushing Applejack’s hoof away before she even had a chance to move. The new pony gave her hand a fast and confident shake. Viola was more grateful than ever that ‘her’ limbs were no longer weak and aching from the pain of Ellen’s sickness. Otherwise her arm may have been torn off.

“Sup kid, names Rainbow Dash; Fastest flyer in all of Equestria-”

“It’s true! She’s the coolest!” Cheered Scootaloo as she ran up next to the fast pony and bounced in place excitedly.

“and since I’m basically Scoots big sis, I can confirm that! Over here is Rarity, she’s Sweetie Bell’s sister, and this is Spike, Twilight’s assistant”

“Charmed.” Rarity’s greeting was simple and sweet. She continued to speak in a very regal manner as her much softer hoof replaced Rainbow’s, shaking Viola’s hand in a very gentle and ladylike manner. Viola thought that was all she had to say but the regal pony continued.

“Dear, if you don’t mind, when you are better I would simply love to discuss human fashion with you. I run a boutique here in Ponyville and the opportunity to learn about another worlds fashion trends would be absolutely marvelous.”

Admittedly Viola didn’t know much about fashion, or current clothing trends. It was hard not to notice that her usual choice of clothing was rather old fashioned, as were the clothes of many other people who lived in her rural little town. But she would do her best. Even if she wasn’t much help, taking about fashion with somebody who knew a lot more about it than she did sounded fun and reminded her of the more girly talks she would have with her clothes obsessed friends. She happily nodded.

“And I’m Spike.” Viola was genially surprised. Instead of a hoof, a small, scaly claw grasped a hold of her hand. Spike chuckled at Viola’s surprised gasp, understanding that this was probably her fist time meeting something as cool as him. “Heheh, sorry, should have mentioned I’m not a pony. I’m a dragon.”

Viola’s lips formed an ‘o’ as another gasp left her, more amazed this time than shocked. Dragons were real here too? And they weren’t giant or evil creatures that kidnapped princesses? Apparently not, as this dragon, Spike, seemed like any ordinary little boy. Be it much more polite. Viola quickly scrawled on her paper.

| AMAzING. It ‘ S NIcE To MEET YOU. |

“It’s nice to meet you too. Mind if I sit up here?” Viola nodded and helped Spikes onto the bed by pulling him up by his claws as he hopped up to sit next to her. Viola may have been in better condition than before but her strength was lacking greatly. So it was a genuine surprise to her when she was able to pull the small dragon up without much trouble. He had been much lighter than she had expected him to be.

Apple Bloom Sweetie Bell and Scootaloo took that as their cue to hop back on too, each plopping themselves next to her and Spike. But just as the last of them sat next to her, Viola’s ears picked up on a conversation between Twilight and Applejack being spoken in whispers.

“No Twi and I’m really worried. We stopped by Sugar Cube Corner before comin’ here and The Cakes said they still haven’t seen her.”

“She was acting pretty strangely when she was told about Viola’s condition, but I don’t know how that could have caused her to just vanish like that…”

“Viola, the nurse is here with the medicine for your throat.”

Viola jumped at Princess Luna’s whisper and her head shot down. She hadn’t even realised it, but her head was facing in the direction of where the conversation came from, making it obvious that she had been eavesdropping. She quickly nodded and was helped back to where she had originally been sitting on the bed. Spike and the CMC moved to sit and the end of the bed.

A food tray was placed over Viola’s lap and a delicious, warm aroma made its way to her nose. A bowl was placed onto the food tray, weighing it down a little and a spoon was slipped into her hand.

Viola’s mouth was watering as she dipped her spoon into the soft food. It smelt so good and the foods delicious scent hadn’t been even a little bit misleading.

Viola was in bliss the second the porridge hit her tongue and when it met her throat all remaining pain from her previous outburst seemingly melted away. The potion was quick to work and Viola could feel ‘her’ vocal cords being mended back together. It felt warm.

If Viola still had her eyes she was sure they would be sparkling as she popped the empty spoon from her mouth and quickly returned it to the bowl. If anyone was telling her to slow down this time their voice was also lost. Viola had a goal, and that was to eat as much as she could of the warm, delicious porridge… and heal her throat.
She wasn’t sure if it was the healing potion that enhanced the taste or not, but it was hands down the greatest porridge she had ever eaten! She had a thing or two to learn about cooking from this place and she couldn’t wait. Cooking while blind couldn’t be THAT difficult… Okay, maybe she would need some help.

At last her spoon hit the bottom of the bowl with a soft ‘clank.’ Viola let go of her spoon and sighed in content, her head falling softly into her pillow as the tray became warm and was carried away. She smiled contently, her arms stretched out to the sides of the bed.

“Hoowee! I aint’ seen somepoy eat that fast since Pinkie won her last cupcake eating contest.”

‘There was that name again…’

“You were really hungry, huh Viola? I know! Tomorrow I’ll bring you some apples from our family’s farm! They’re the best in Equestria! Trust me, you’ll love em!”

Graciously accepting Apple Bloom’s offer, Viola nodded. She would absloutly love to try some apples that were grown from the fillies’ family farm. A part of her wondered if they would be just as tasty as the porridge had been.

“I’d like that.” The voice that left Viola’s recovering throat was quiet and hoarse and despite hearing Ellen’s voice again Viola’s smile did not fade. After all, there was nothing to feel bad about right now. Sure Viola may not have liked hearing the witch’s voice, but it was something she knew she would have to get used to.

“Hey! Your voice is coming back!” Sweetie Bell exclaimed excitedly.

“That’s perfect!” Twilight cheered. “After we let your throat rest a little more maybe you can tell us what…” Twilight’ voice trailed off. She had something she wished to ask badly, but sounded unsure, doubting if it was the right time to actually ask.

“Viola” Princess Celestia continued for her. ”You are free to wait for as long as you’d like until you are ready to answer this.” The princess sighed, giving Viola time to prepare for what was probably going to be a difficult question.

“Viola, if not now or when you are in better health, then one day, when you are truely ready, can you tell us who or what hurt you? We want to ensure they are rightfully punished for what they have done and insure they can’t hurt anypony else. We’ve had guards patrol the Everfree Forrest nonstop since you were found, but we are afraid that they have not found any evidence relating to who may have done this. ”

“B-but you really don’t need to answer if you’re not ready!” Twilight quickly added as she stopped at the side of Viola's bed to place a hoof on her hand. She was being extra sure to remind Viola that she could take her time if she needed, worried for the girls mental health.

Silently, Viola sat herself back up, adjusting her pillow so she may still rest against it. Her hand grasped the sheet under Twilight's hoof as she thought long and hard about this. Everything that had happened and everything she had done was still fresh in her mind. Each moment replayed again and again in vivid detail. If there was ever a time that she was ready to tell someone what happened, it was now.

"You don't need to worry about her she doesn't have the power to do this to anyone here. Not anymore." Violas teeth clenched. Knowing what she was going to say already made her stomach twist painfully and left a bitter taste in her mouth.

“…Ellen.”

She spoke the name with such a level of contempt that it genuinely took everypony back. Even the children in the room were not exempt from the icy cold chill brought on by the sudden shift in their new friends voice. Perhaps they were just not used to hearing her talk yet but the way Viola had spoken felt wrong, like such coldness was unbefitting of the human. But somehow to their shock, the tone also suited the childlike voice all to well. As if this was how she was meant to sound all along, bringing a sense of unease to the room that was felt by all.

“I thought she was my friend…”

None of them had ever heard the word ‘friend’ spoken with such disgust. But they would quickly find out the reasons behind Viola's cold and disgusted tone as well as why it suddently seemed so well suited for said child and her voice.

Viola told them everything, everything from the circumstances of Ellen’s upbringing, to the deal she had made with her. All the way to Viola’s failed attempts at ending Ellen’s life to save her father from her. She told them everything that she could gather from the combination of her and Ellen’s memories, unable to stop.

Someone else had to know. Someone else had to know what Ellen had been doing for all these centuries and the atrocities she was allowed to get away with. Someone else had to know of the ‘friends’ who’s souls she so senselessly sacrificed to a demon, all so Ellen would be given the chance to take one more life away, this time keeping it as her own.

Somewhere near the end of it all Viola had started crying again and was unable to stop hyperventilating in her state of uncontrolled misery. It was the sudden weight of a weeping pony embracing her into a gentle hug that momentarily snapped Viola out of her despair. Not sure what else to do, Viola hugged them back, feeling their wings. She sobbed with the weeping Pegasus until she had calmed down enough to continue her tale.

“I should have l-listened to my papa….Now I’ll never see him again and Ellen…and Ellen could k-kill him like she did with her parents…How could I have been so s-stupid?!"

“I-it’s okay, it’s all going to be okay now.” The gentle voice of Fluttershy sobbed. “You c-couldn’t have known what she was p-planning. What you did was so selfless and she….she….” Her voice trailed off, steering towards the verge of rage but she managed to hold herself back. Now was not the time for her to get mad.

“V-Viola…..” Sweetie Bell whimpered, verging on the brink of tears.

“No way….How could….How could somepony do something like that…” There was a small ‘thud’ indicating that Rainbow Dash had slid to the floor. “That’s just….evil…”

“Easy there Dash.” Applejack comforted her friend. But if she wasn’t still processing what Viola had just told them all she would have joined her rainbow maned friend on the floor, defeated by the level of cruelty depicted in Viola’s story. The Element of Honesty knew that girl hadn’t been lying. Every word Viola spoke was the truth, right down to the smallest detail. Applejack couldn't remember the last time the truth had made her feel so sick.

“Sister….Did you..?”

Luna shook her head. “No, I did not. I was aware of this not being Viola's true body since the form she took whilst in the dream realm was so different. But…I never could have imagined something like this could have been the cause…”

Viola sniffled before taking in a deep, shaky breath. “A-after that I….I don’t really k-know what happened. S-somehow Ellen’s body s-still had some m-magic left in it that I could use. Then…then there was warmth, like sunlight, but….so different. I…I crawled to it and w-woke up in…..The Everfree Forrest, right? I was ready to die, to be with my mama again, but then I was found by a-” Viola gasped. “The rabbit! Is your rabbit okay?”

Although the question was directed towards the three fillies, Fluttershy was the one who answered her question between quiet sobs. It would seem Viola was incorrect in her assumption that the rabbit had belonged to one of the three fillies.

“A-Angel Bunny? O-oh, don’t you worry, he’s perfectly fine. He did need a bit of a bath though….so did I….But he didn’t seem too mad about it, despite disliking bath-time… I-I’m sure he’d love to see you. He usually doesn’t let anypony pet him. You must have a real way with animals. W-would you maybe l-like to meet more of my animal friends some time? W-when you’re feeling better o-of cores….”

Calmed by Fluttershy’s offer, Viola nodded, happy at the prospect of getting to meet some adorable new animals while also being able to apologise to Angel Bunny for getting his fur dirty. Maybe she could even help feed them or brush them or just play with them for a while. So far this place was doing wonders at calming Viola’s heart.

“Wait a sec, how do we know your sickness won’t infect us or something? Fluttershy, you sure Angel’s been okay? Are you okay?” Rainbow Dash asked, rightfully concerned.

“Rainbow Dash!” Rarity scolded. “Does the poor dear look like she’s still sick? Even if it her sickness was contagious it’s obvious that we have a cure for it….Right Doctor?”

“Yes and no.” A female Doctor who Viola hadn't realised was in the room answered. “Why it is true that Ms Viola’s illness is vanishing at a rapid pace, the hospital specifically had nothing to do with it. When Ms Viola was brought here her skin was already showing signs of healing and with some careful observation and Ms Sparkle’s insight we were able to determine that her recovery was due to the body reacting extremely well to Equestria’s magical field. In other words the magic in Equestria’s atmosphere is being drawn to Ms Viola and is curing her current body for her. Whether or not this will result in anything more like being able to tap into limited magic is yet to be seen. But I trust Ms Sparkle will assist in helping you find out.“

“Oh that’s wonderful!” Fluttershy exclaimed, her soft voice never rising above a whisper. The others expressed their relief at the good news, Twilight trailing off into wonder at the possibilities of what this could entail for the young human.

But Viola was just speechless. She had assumed that maybe Ellen’s illness was treatable here, much like it had been in Ellen’s early life and that’s why she wasn’t dead. But to think that it was actually going away? And that she might even be able to use magic too? It felt unreal. Ellen had to give up her own soul and the souls of so many others just to get a chance at this. But Viola, she just had to open a door. That was the real spell that would have saved Ellen from her sickness, but the demon had lied to her. Of cores he wouldn’t let her get away so easily.

Scootaloo sniffed wiping away her tears. ““W-wait so then… Right now…t-this isn’t really you? This is that….the Witch’s body??”

Nodding her head, Viola placed a hand to ‘her’ face, just barely touching the bandages that were wrapped around ‘her’ empty eyes.

“Yes, it is….This body- Ellen’s body, although being centuries old, hasn’t aged since she was seven. I’m actually thirteen, so I was a lot taller than her. Also Ellen’s hair and eye colour are…were very uncommon for woman in my region. My eyes were green and my hair was blonde. Which were much more common colours.”

Viola paused to smile, remembering something.

“You know, my papa became really good at braiding my hair after my mama…n-never mind…. Papa said I looked like my mama when she was my age. So when I would look in the mirror a part of me felt like she was always there…I miss her….I miss my papa….I miss everyone… I… I wanna go home…. I’m worried about my papa…”

No matter how much Viola might have wanted to experience this new world, no matter how much she wanted to try more of its delicious food and pay with Fluttershy’s animals, the need to return to her father outweighed all of it a hundredfold. She couldn’t stay here forever, not while there was a chance that her father could be in danger and that she could still potentially save him from his ‘daughter’.

With several hidden flutters of her covered eyelids Viola blinked away her tears, determined not to cry again. Crying wouldn’t change anything and she had cried enough as it is. Her heart still weighed heavy but a part of the load was lessened after being allowed to talk out her feelings. She was ready to ask the big question.

“Is…is there any way I can go back?”

The princesses knew that the question was directed towards them but their only reply was silence, making their answer clear.

“I understand…”

“It’s not that it’s impossible!” Princess Twilight quickly interjected. “There is a way to go to the human world it just can’t be used yet! The portal through the Crystal Mirror only opens every thirty moons and you still need time to recover so even if it was open, letting you go right away would be completely irresponsible of us.”

“Um, how long is thirty moons?” Viola was almost afraid of what the answer would be.

“Five months-“

It was like Twilight could feel Viola’s stomach drop because she quickly added on. “But if I’m correct then there should only be three months left until its next due to open! I know that’s not much better, but it gives you time to recover and ready yourself for when you meet Ellen again.”

“And if she decides to kill my papa by then?”

Twilight said nothing, the former student of Princess Celestia truly unsure of how to answer. Fortunately there was somepony who did know. Princess Luna was determined to ensure that Viola kept even just a little hope close to her heart. If her and her sister’s assumption was truly correct, then hope in her father’s safety might be all the human would have left to hold onto. By the moon she swore that she wouldn’t let her lose that.

“I do not think that will happen. If this Ellen is so desperate to be loved as you say, then I doubt that she would be so willing as to just discard her only opportunity at gaining it. Your father has no reason to suspect that ‘his daughter’ isn’t who she says she is so she will have no reason to be provoked into harming him. Have faith in your father, Viola. I’m sure he can handle himself against her.”

Rolling over to the princesses side Viola pulled the pillow from under her head and hugged it close, pressing it to her forehead. She made a promise to herself, swearing that she would one day find a way to properly thank the Princess of The Night.

“I… suppose I will need time to get used to getting around without legs. And …and maybe even learn how to read braille? I won’t really be much help in finding my home if I can’t read directions.”

Twilight clapped her hooves together in excitement. “That’s perfect, I have plenty of books on braille in my library and I’ll be more than happy to teach you. This is going to be so much fun!” Teaching someone how to read braille couldn’t be that exciting, could it?

With a sinking feeling in her stomach, Viola hid her face behind her pillow, not wanting to appear as ungrateful to Twilight's offer of teaching.

What would Viola actually do next? What would she really do if she found her papa? Tell him that the girl he believed was is daughter was actually an imposter and that this strange little blind girl he’d never met before was his real daughter? This time tho instead of Princess Luna quelling her thoughts of worry, another pony came to Viola’s aid.

“Don’t worry Viola, when the time comes for you to go home we- or at the very least, Twilight, will come with ya, so you won’t be facin’ this Ellen alone. In fact I’m sure Twi has a body swapin’ spell tucked away somewhere in that library of hers.”

“You raise a very good point, Applejack.” Princess Celestia agreed. “Unfortunately for reasons similar to what has happened to Viola, body switching spells are something that is rarely taught and in most cases are completely forbidden to learn. However now that a dire need rises for one to be used I will trust in you, Twilight to learn this spell. For if your home truly does lie beyond the Crystal Mirror, Viola, Twilight will be your guide as she is the only pony out of us who has ever actually ventured there in the past, making plenty of friends who I’m sure will aid in assisting you.”

Rarity sighed in wonder. “It’s a shame we haven’t been able to go there too. It would simply be an excellent opportunity to gain more experience with human fashion. But until then, your previous garments have been wonderful reference. Unfortunately they were a bit beyond repair, but I’ve already begun making replacements so you’ll have plenty to wear when you’re discharged. You’ll leave this Hospital looking stunning! Oh I can’t wait for you to try them on.”

Surprised, Viola held herself up by her arms and faced the direction of Rarity’s voice. “You…made clothes for me?”

“Well of cores. It would simply be a crime to force you back into that ruined dress, or worse! Let you remain in that plain hospital gown! You’re new dresses are a joy to make by the way. It’s so rare that I get the chance to design clothing for other species. It’s a challenge that I’m always excited to take on. You’re clothing may or may not need some minor adjustments once you try them on, but other than that they’re absolutely perfect!”

“A-and…and you know what else kid?” Rainbow dash asked pushing down the tremor in her voice. “Whenever you want to go somewhere in Ponyville, just get somepony to find me a-and I’ll give you a left to anywhere you want! I’ll even treat you to some snacks down at Sugar Cube corner after you get out of here. Hopefully by then our friend Pinkie Pie will be back from…wherever she went. No offence to Mr and Ms Cake but you’ve just gotta try Pinkie’s cooking!”

Apple Bloom gasped happily. “You can even visit Sweet Apple Acres!”

“And hang out at our club house!” Added Scootaloo.

“Maybe you can even help us earn our cutie marks?” Sweetie Bell suggested before gasping struck with a brilliant idea. “Or even better! We can help you earn YOUR cutie mark! You could be the first human ever to earn one!” She gasped again. “Maybe we’ll get our cutie marks in helping YOU get your cutie mark!”

“YEAH!” The three fillies cheered and high…hoofed?

“But wait? How will she come on adventures with us?” Sweetie Bell asked sounding slightly disheartened.

“Well obviously we’ll just hook our red wagon up to my scooter and let her ride in that.” Scootaloo answered in a very matter-of-factly way, proud of her idea.

“No need for that, children.” The Doctor interjected quickly. “A wheelchair has already been prepared for her to take home….. Please don’t attempt to attach it to any scooters in the future, okay?”

“Awww, but it would have been fun…” Sighed Scootaloo. “But could we decorate it!?” She asked, her spirits rising.

The doctor thought about it for a moment. “Well…As long as nothing gets in the way of the wheels movement….then that should be fine.”

“YAY! Cutie Mark Crusaders WHEELCHAIR DECORATORS!”

Viola covered her ears, but laughed with the filly’s at their excitement over their potential future talent.

These ponies (and dragon) were all being so kind to her. Which made her wonder... How easy would it have been for Ellen to take advantage of that kindness? Perhaps it had truly been for the best that Viola had switched bodies with Ellen. If she hadn’t and Ellen found a way to open the door to this world then who knows what she could have done?

A shudder ran down Viola’s spine. No, she knew what she would have done. Even after Ellen was healed of her sickness Viola was willing to bet that she would still take lives. If not to feed her demon, then to undoubtable try and harness more power for herself, collecting it straight from the source. All while smiling because like with Viola these ponies would be fooled into becoming her ‘friends’ so she would be free to use them however she pleased because they were her ‘friends.’

Using her hands to catch the sob that threatened to escape her throat, Viola lowered her head and just managed to choke out her words.

“Thank you, thank you all so much.”

Her body was noticeably trembling and in an instant she felt Scootaloo, Sweetie Bell Apple Bloom and Spike embrace her shaking form in a group hug. Viola hugged them all back, a genuinely happy smile spread across ‘her’ face.

For the first time since she had woken up, Viola truly felt it, a feeling that was just as warm and comforting as the magical light that had brought her here. This was real, not what Ellen had tricked her into believing. this was friendship. ...right?

Oh how desperately Viola wanted to hold onto that belief. To let it comfort her like it should have. But she couldn’t, not now. Viola was scared. If she did believe that these ponies (and dragon) were her friends or if she even dared call them that then she was sure she would be dragged back down into the void of betrayal and suffering Ellen had forced her into with no hope for escape. But she refused to go back! She would not drown in despair again! But could she really ever call someone her 'friend' after all that happened?

No, it was alright. Just knowing that she even wanted to unravel that word; that innocent word and its meaning that Ellen had twisted into something vile, and believe in it again was enough. It filled Viola with hope and a warm happiness akin to magic itself.

Or maybe that was just all the magic in the air?

The Witch in Equestria

by Natt

Escape from the Witch's House

The Strangeness of Reality