Chapter 24 : Tea and Hot Cocoa
Stan and Bobby traded confused looks. "Twilight?" they asked aloud.
The older man's rougher features were scrunched up in deep thought. Alright, which one was that? Twilight was the one with the gems on her butt, right?
Bobby stood by, slightly hunched as usual, and rather than begin thinking on the revelation along with his mother, began frowning at his sister, who was busy lapsing into a giggling tirade in front of the two taller family members.
"Twilight! Yeah! Princess Twilight! From the show." Anna had begun running on and off while jumping excitedly around the room. Her dad tried to calm her down, but she couldn't; the situation called for celebration. "She's real she's real she- Oh my gosh, I have to tell everybody at school!"
Mary was still busy trying to punch the call back button with a hoof, eyebrows drawn down in concentration, when she nearly dropped the phone upon hearing her daughter. "No!" she all but shouted, eyes wide, and in the midst of her family all chattering at once.
Stan and Bobby looked over from trying to calm down and ignore Anna respectively.
Mary went on now that she'd gained everyone's attention. "Anna, you can do no such thing. You treat this exactly like the secret about me. Just because she's a different pony does not mean you get to tell the world about her- Oh, goodness-" Other thoughts were already parading in her head.
Mary blinked and her jaw slackened. She did drop the phone then, letting it fall on the kitchen counter unceremoniously. "Stan," she took a few two legged steps towards him. "What if she's been discovered? How are we going to help her? She's a bright purple magical unicorn! Those aren't easy to hide-"
The room had been filled with escalated emotions from all of the developments.
Stan met Mary mid-way and wrapped her up in a hug. "Now, Mar, I'm sure if she was able to track you down you're the one we need to worry about. I'm also sure that Twilight's fine. She seemed pretty smart on that... show, after all-" He was cut off before he could continue reassuring his wife.
Mary began again. "This means Luna wasn't a hallucination after all. I mean, I really have been having weird dreams, too, but lucid dreaming is a thing still and-" Her eyes bulged after something else clicked. "Oh God. I was tracked down! There's physical evidence that I'm- I'm-! A little pony! No-!" She looked up and shook Stan's shoulders. Her teeth clenched themselves as she spoke, eyes widening in a half crazed fashion. "Stan! It's on the internet! Once something's on the internet, it never goes away!"
Anna and Bobby traded slightly worried looks while it seemed like Mom was going crazy.
Stan inhaled quietly while he raced for some words to calm down Mary. He hoped there were a few to actually be had and sprung into action. "Mar, it's obvious she's been looking for you, though." His voice was calm, and he kept one hand resting on her shoulder while the other made a settling motion. "I'm sure no one but... Twilight, thinks it was anything but a Halloween party stunt, alright? Leeloo probably got a hold of her and that's how she knew to look for you. Shoot, this is a good sign that we're only just now hearing about this thing, too. Let's calm down and think this through."
Mary's worried look didn't settle, but she broke her gaze with him and rested her head against his chest, which Stan took as a good sign, for now.
Anna piped up. "It's Luna, dad, Luna. Geez..."
Bobby scowled, rolling his eyes. "Nobody cares..."
Stan shot a look over at his children, still holding Mary securely. "Kids, go back to the dinner table and eat. We need peace and quiet for this, okay?"
Anna gave an immensely disappointed look to both of her parents. "What? But-! This is so important! And Cool! I don't want to miss anything..."
"Anna..." Stan started to say.
Bobby, for his part, shrugged, but gave his father a nod. "Come on squirt, you're in the way again." He attempted to corner and motion her back towards the other room.
Anna backed herself up into a corner and glared her brother's way. "Well you're in here, too, so you're just as in the way."
Mary had let herself be held still long enough, and backed up from her husband. "Y-you're probably right, Stan..." she managed in between deep, calming breaths, then looked over to her kids. "Kids, sit down and eat your dinner, alright? Your father and I will take care of this." Her legs had begun to shake slightly, whether that was from standing in a way her body wasn't meant to or because she was scared, she wasn't sure. "Stan, please go hit the call back on the phone? I was... having trouble."
Stan nodded, watching his two children bicker in equal amounts at one another. "Mar," he spoke flatly, then turned to face his wife. "Should we be calling that number back right away? I think I should investigate from the station. If we call back now and they aren't who we hope they are, that will look suspicious." He had thought of the concerns almost immediately, but with a hectic family like his it was difficult to keep even the staunchest ideas in order.
Mary replaced the phone on the hook; it had gone on to the dial tone from sitting too long. She stared into space briefly after hearing what her husband had said. "Stan, if she saw this video already, and knows about me and where to call... I'd rather call now and just know. It's been months, I can't wait any longer." Rather than look over, she rested her eyes on her right hoof; her other picked up the phone again.
Mary continued speaking while again trying to press the call back button. "I'm sure whoever this is has been watching us if they're not Twilight and that means there's no point in being cautious anyway. I also don't think that's the case though... Maybe I'm just desperate, but..." Her hoof accidentally squashed two others as well.
"Darnit," Mary cursed, then hung up and began to try again; something dangled just in front of her stubby muzzle made her stop and look up. "Is that a tablet?" she blinked at the over-sized device, then looked at Stan.
Stan shrugged, still holding onto the device. "It's a phone, actually, with an extra-large pony sized screen." He smirked, turning the device over in front of his wife. "There's a stencil for the screen on the side, too." He held the phone out, hesitating from letting go even after Mary touched her hoof to its side. There was something about magic ponies that you never really got used to. He briefly remembered the unicorn variety and was happy that he hadn't had to adjust to Mary floating things around like a poltergeist. Though, he did consider that it would have made decorating the Christmas tree a bit easier.
"Anyway," Stan started to say. "Call using that. At the very least we can talk to them first without being immediately traceable."
Mary smiled at her gift; she hadn't seen her other phone for quite some time. "Thank you, Stan, for the phone and especially for going along with this."
Stan chuckled, rubbing the back of his head with one hand. "Well, I suppose the only way to get to the bottom of this is to keep going, after all. The sooner the better. I'm going to go grill Bobby for more details about that phone call."
Mary nodded. "Alright. I'm not going to mention myself, just ask about a missing pony named Twilight. I want to know what the reaction of the person that says she's from Equestria will be. If this is just a stunt... or Marge being crazy..." she trailed off, letting that sudden thought hang there. Sure, Marge was obsessive and out there, but she doubted she'd pull a prank like this, all things considered.
Stan paused at the doorway and nodded. In his head, he visibly pictured what his wife had briefed back to him. "Sounds believable enough to me. I think I should be the one to call, though."
Mary frowned and tilted her head, one ear raised and one lowered; not because she meant to, they just did that. "Why?" she asked.
Stan was half out the door. "Just wait until I get back. Bobby might know something important." After a split second he added, "Can you handle dialing or should I?"
Mary rolled her eyes and turned, flicking her tail in his direction as she did so. "Just hurry up," she sighed, and ignored her husband's chuckling. Her ears listened to his fading footsteps and claim to return quickly while she dialed the number anyway.
Better to ask forgiveness than permission, as Herbert says. Mary felt sure that she could handle the call. She wasn't sure why she proceeded, despite what Stan had requested, but she briefly mused it was probably that quip about dialing the phone for her.
Oh, well that's interesting. After transferring the number from phone to brick sized cell phone, Mary noted that the number wasn't from in her state. That rules out Margery, then. Or anyone else from town...
Full of hopeful confidence, she paid close attention to the ringing. Surprisingly quickly, the phone call was answered, and by a rather surly voice. That came as a surprise to her; she had almost expected an overly acted Tara Strong to pick up despite her optimism.
"Yeah, hello? Who is it?" the stranger was being short, and was probably in a foul mood, it seemed. Mary became a little worried, and withheld from cutting to the chase as she had planned.
"Uhm, hello. I may have the wrong number... whose phone is this?" Mary asked, then almost face-hoofed from how stupid she thought she must sound. "Sorry," she added as a last minute apology, alongside a weak laugh. Only the memory of how painful striking one's own face with a hoof kept her from going through with it.
"Who's asking?" the voice responded gruffly, then continued, but quieter. "Gah, Twilight, warn me if you're going to walk around like that! Come on, Twilight- No, just- get dressed in the bathroom, the bathroom. Not out here..." Mary almost dropped her new phone-brick. The stranger returned to talking directly into the phone. "I'm sorry about that, who was this?"
Mary swallowed. She looked up, searching for Stan and his advice. Oh... I should have waited.
"Hello?" the voice called from the phone.
Mary held it back up to her face with both hooves. "I'm here! I'm here, heh," she responded quickly. "You called my house earl- er, that is to say... I'm looking for a... pony, named Twilight Sparkle. I might have heard from a friend that someone was looking for another pony." After stumbling slightly and realizing she hadn't yet thought of what to say very well, she found her footing, so to speak. Her voice was calm while she delegated the information she wanted the stranger to react to. "So, is she there? If so, I would like to speak with her." I should have anticipated someone other than Twilight to pick up... she thought guiltily.
The voice came back slowly after a too long pause of quiet. "Uh, I see." After that, another long pause began.
Smooth, Mary, real smooth... Mary squirmed where she stood leaning against the doorway. A finger poking her side made her jump. "Eee- Stan, don't do that!" she hissed.
"Sorry, sorry," Stan apologized, then held his head down at her level as if to listen along. "I see you called already. Bobby didn't have much to add, anyway." He frowned briefly and heaved a breath, but made no other moves against her. "So, did they say anything?"
Mary was interrupted before she could respond to her husband. She had begun to worry if perhaps they had been found out, or that it was something else entirely, but the excited voice that replaced the first was something completely out of left field for her.
"Hello!? Who is it?" The other voice was still there, now slightly quieter than the new one. "Twilight, tell them your name. Also, calm down..." The first voice returned. "Oh, uhm, this is Twilight Sparkle! Is this the pony? Hello?"
Stan and Mary both stared at one another, slightly wide eyed.
"Excuse me." Mary said into the phone. She held it down to her front with one hoof and stared at the wall a moment.
"Mar?" Stan moved in front of her and gave her a concerned look.
Mary responded tightly. "I recognize her voice. This is the girl from earlier, the one that asked for Bobby. She sounds just like the show."
Stan's features were serious. "Alright," he responded simply. "You took the lead, keep going. Try and find out everything you can."
Mary blinked, then nodded to her husband. "Right... Okay." Once she had regained her bearings somewhat, she raised the phone again. Her hoof tapped against the wall in front of her while she thought. Mostly, she just considered the likelihood of this being a trick. After all, the first girl on the phone had been a bit stand offish.
"Hello? Are you there still?" Twilight's voice asked with a decidedly desperate edge.
Mary addressed the speaker once again, but more casually. "Sorry about that." She knew what the person on the other end of the line had said, but still couldn't believe it was actually the truth, not yet. However, the voice's sound, which had been ingrained in her memory thanks to the likes of Marge, still rang in her ears like a bell. "I was just curious," she paused a little.
Twilight's voice spoke in the given pause. "Yes?" she asked in an eager sounding voice.
Mary took a shallow breath before continuing. "Is this really Twilight Sparkle? As in, actually from Equestria?"
The question felt so poorly thought out and terrible Mary felt like crying as a result. Worse, there was a pause that felt enormous thanks to its awkwardness. Stan saw the upset look on her face and patted her back.
The voice that was supposedly Twilight, returned, and with a question. "Is that you, Mrs. Morris?" it asked.
Mary's jaw locked and she thumped her head against the doorway. She recognized your voice! Stupidstupidstupid. "Oh, uhm, no I'm sorry. I don't know anyone by that name."
Stan buried his face in his hands right in front of her.
Mary spotted the ashamed move and turned away from him angrily, but managed to speak through her nervousness. "I have heard that you were looking for a... pony, though, Twilight. I might be able to help you with that." She looked over at Stan, who looked up and nodded after a moment's hesitation, though his face was expressionless.
Twilight replied immediately, and very loudly. "Oh my gosh! Can you take me to her? Could we meet? Are there others!? Please, anything that can help at all would be-" The voice cut off for a moment. It sounded as though the other were speaking to the strange girl again.
Stan took the pause in the phone chatter to voice a suggestion. "If you want I can finish the call, Mar." His tone held more than a bit of concern.
Mary frowned and gestured with a hoof in a shooing motion. "I already convinced them I'm not me... I think. Everything's fine."
Stan frowned back. "If this were a military operation we'd both be hearing about how badly we executed this..."
Before Mary could argue back at him, or better yet, bite him, Twilight returned, cheerful and contrasting.
"Sorry about that," Twilight apologized quickly and with a chuckle. "My friend is just concerned for my safety. Uhm, how about you just tell me where the pony is? I imagine that she's lost just like I am and needs help! If not, I'm hoping that she has a way to get home- Jo? What is it?"
Mary raised an eyebrow over at Stan, then whispered to him. "If this is an actress, she sounds very convincing. Do you think this could really be staged?"
Stan hummed, but shrugged. "Seems unlikely. I mean, we're acting suspicious like Herbert would. I think that means we're thinking too hard about this."
Mary guffawed, then bit her lip and put on a sheepish look.
Stan smirked, but went on. "What do you want to do?"
"Invite her over," Mary declared, while pressing the phone back up to her ear. The two on the other end seemed to be continuing their argument.
Stan took a step and stared at her, mouth slightly agape. "Mar?" he questioned, but didn't say anymore.
Mary turned slightly away, and found purchase with her explanation of what she had decided. "Just hear me out. They already knew about Bobby, somehow, so that means they know where we live. Thus, the house is a good meeting place. They don't know about... me, though. We invite them over, and after we see a unicorn, then we'll know for sure. If not, well, I'll be out of sight and safe. How does all that sound?"
Stan grunted as his only response other than folding his arms. He stared at the phone as if it were dangerous itself. He began to speak, but Mary shushed him when the phone came back.
Mary sighed and rolled her eyes. "Stan, I've been a tiny little pony for months now. I want to be me again." when she didn't get a change in the big man's expression, she tried a different approach. "How about this. I'll be at Mom's place when they get here? Hm? That way I won't even be near them. The house here is the best place though, it's our property and we have to stay discreet."
Stan's eyes narrowed somewhat, but he nodded.
Mary stared longer, her face a wall of seriousness. "Stan, we have to stay discreet," she repeated.
Stan held up his hands in defeat and nodded. "I know, I know," he muttered.
Mary smirked back at him, just in time for the first voice to return on the line. "Hi, it's me again," they started simply enough. "Listen, Twilight's not from around here. So, sorry about the super straight forward and completely trusting thing. Look, we came looking for you guys and you're guarding that Equestrian, so I'm going to assume you don't trust us at all. I can promise you that we're the real deal. I get it, that probably doesn't mean a whole lot. So, here's my idea."
Mary and Stan looked at one another again, but listened intently. "Go on," Mary prompted politely.
Jo spoke again. "You may pick the location. Where ever you want, and as a gesture of good faith, we took a room at the motel just off the highway. Some place called... Bart's bed and breakfast." The gruff sounding girl added a twist to her words which were heavily indicative of distaste; she obviously didn't care for the name of the old three story country motel.
"You—" Mary struggled to speak, surprised. She immediately recognized the name of the place. "You're in town?" she managed to say, then looked over at Stan.
Jo quickly responded to her obvious concern. "Uuuh." Suffice to say, she seemed a little thrown off balance. "Oh, well, yeah," she went on. "See, we only just found out where your house was. By the way we know where your house is... sorry."
Mary had to make settling motions to keep Stan from leaving, but he also looked as though he wanted to keep listening along with her.
The stranger, Jo, went on with her explanation, which, Mary considered, had thus far been about as awkward as everything else. "Maybe I should put Twilight on? She can explain better than me."
Mary looked again at her own phone, double checking the number. They are definitely using a cellphone, then, she concluded. Stan looked as though he'd calmed down now, mostly "It's alright. I understand now, and that seems reasonable..." she replied tentatively, then proceeded in a more confident manner. "I still would like to proceed and find out if that really is Twilight with you. Meeting sounds like the idea... but I actually would like to propose that Twilight and yourself come to see us here if you do know where my family lives already." One issue with the Jo's proposal, was that the motel was right next door to the house that Stan's parents owned.
Mary continued. "I appreciate you being so upfront, though. I think maybe we're both being overly cautious, a little. As you can imagine this entire situation has been incredibly stressful for us; beyond belief, really." She gave Stan's worried look, no doubt from the approach she was now taking, a wan smile to calm him.
Jo spoke again. "Yeah, you can say that again..."
Mary coughed and rubbed a hoof behind her head. She was quite certain that she wanted the situation to be true, but it still seemed too good. "I just have one last question, Jo, and I need to ask Twilight. I've had it in mind for some time, and if she's the real thing then she'll know the answer..." The question she had in mind might not be something Twilight would know, but she decided at the very least the person's response might help. "Could you put her back on?"
There was a brief second of muffled noise in the background talking before Jo responded. "A question? Oh, something only ponies would know. Alright, sure, here she is." The phone traded hands with some thunking sounds and then the voice claiming to be Twilight reappeared.
"Hello again, Mrs. Morris," Twilight greeted politely. Mary resisted face palming, it seemed whoever was on the line was quite sure of who she was, which ruined any chance at secrecy.
Mary sighed aloud. "I guess there's no point in hiding it, yes, I'm Bobby's mother."
Twilight ah hahed aloud, to which Mary put on a slightly indignant look. Then again, it seemed in good humor, though given the circumstances that didn't strike her as very appropriate.
Twilight spoke soon after her outburst. "Ahem, I mean, sorry, I meant no offense. I was quite sure of it, though... Uhm ahheh, moving on..." Mary rolled her eyes briefly, but listened carefully. "I just wanted to start off by saying thank you very much for protecting one of my fellow Equestrians like this. I forgot to before. She and I were both very lucky mares it seems to have made such great friends after coming to be here."
Mary blinked in surprise. She hurriedly looked over at Stan and mouthed a few words quietly. "She thinks I'm, er, that is, that the pony is an actual Equestrian and not a human turned pony." She didn't know exactly what that meant yet, but noted it. On top of that, she noted just how earnest and well meaning both of the girls sounded, even if the one named Jo did seem a bit rough around the edges.
Stan quirked an eyebrow. "I thought she thought you were you."
Mary looked at Stan angrily. "Honey, if you're not going to help go eat dinner with the kids."
Stan put on a look as though he weren't at some sort of fault, but stayed quiet on the matter.
In the background, Twilight continued. "So, with that said, please ask your question, Mrs. Morris."
Stan raised an eyebrow at Mary, unsure of what his wife had in mind exactly. There were several things she could ask, he supposed.
Mary returned his questioning look with a smirk, knowing full well what sort of curiosity was going on in his head; she saw it often enough, after all. "Alright, if you're Twilight Sparkle, then you should know this." She took in a deep breath and straightened up. Her throat was a little a tight, and briefly she considered just why she felt so nervous. Then again, she thought, it wasn't nervousness, it was suspense, and a bit of excitement. This would be something tangible other than herself, and an ally, if things worked out.
Everything came down to this one... solitary question, she realized.
"Twilight," Mary began. "What is Princess Luna's favorite sort of tea?" She waited. After meeting Luna, that's the one thing I know for certain about Equestria...
The line was quiet, and Mary furrowed her brow in confusion. There was a bit of muffled talking in the background... and her hopes quickly began to seem as though they would be dashed. Her thoughts searched aimlessly for direction.
"Uhm," Twilight returned finally, and Mary perked up, ears and all. "Could I have another question? I don't actually know the answer to that one." She laughed a little sheepishly before speaking again. "I am curious how you know the princess' preferred brew of tea though. Do you know Rarity or Princess Celestia's, too? I know theirs, at least."
Mary clenched her eyes shut. I thought for sure Twilight would know that! She groaned quietly while Stan stood up and leaned away from the phone long enough to crack his neck. "What now?" he asked.
Mary waved a hoof at him quickly and shushed, to which he frowned briefly before leaning in again. "No, that's alright. I don't know those... I mean, the pony doesn't know them. I have another question, then."
Twilight laughed on the other end of the line. "Okay, ask away Mrs. Morris."
Mary scowled, purely at herself. She could practically feel a nervous sweat building from pure stress. "Okay, here's one. Are pony hooves magnetic?" she asked simply, then waited patiently. She didn't have to wait long, as a response to the question came immediately.
"No!" Twilight pronounced.
Mary took on a look of sadness quickly. It's not her, she thought defeatedly. "Oh?" Mary's voice was almost a croak. The surrender was interrupted by a quickly proceeding Twilight from the other end of the line.
"They're not magnetic at all. Magnetism is a completely different force in Equestria altogether, as are many other forces that either lightly or even directly correspond to those here in the human world." Twilight's voice had taken on a very scholarly tone by the end of the statements. "As for the hooves themselves, the forces they use are, in fact, magical, not magnetic."
Mary traded a bewildered look with Stan, and both of them huddled beside the phone again. Truly, she had been taken off guard by the explanation, but it wasn't enough, she realized. Anyone could say things, and she needed something that dealt with what she herself knew was fact.
Mary's tail was flicking from two parts confusion one part renewed hope. "And?" she asked through the phone.
Twilight responded with a hint of surprise. "And?"
Mary groaned and held the phone out at leg length. "Can ponies pick up things with their hooves just by thinking about it or not!?" She shouted into the phone, and enough to make her husband wince away with a hurt look. She huffed and held the phone back up to her ear, then put on a worried look. "Uhm, sorry..." she apologized, feeling it was a little bit too late.
Twilight came back after a second, a very consoling tone evident in her voice. "It's quite alright, Mrs. Morris," she said calmly.
Mary had to resist shaking from the nervousness running throughout her body. "S-so, can ponies pick things up with their hooves? Just by thinking about it?" she repeated, but with her inside voice.
Twilight responded quickly, with just a hint of surprise in her voice. "Oh, well, of course. That was even in the show, however, so isn't that question sort of an obvious answer?"
"Well," Mary started quietly. "I don't know how right about things the show really is... and what I do know is very little."
Mary sighed and realized her own folly in asking her authenticity test so directly. What else do I know about ponies that I could ask? It seemed to her as though things were going badly now. She heard more talking in the background while she herself reached for something else.
"Mrs. Morris?" Twilight asked, sounding very patient all considering. Mary felt a bit of guilt for being so frantic. "I don't mean to put more undue pressure on you or the Equestrian, but Jo over here is- What?" Twilight's voice became quieter briefly, sounding as though she were talking into the room rather than into the phone. "Why shouldn't I say your name? Are you embarrassed? Oh, sorry, Jo. Oh, sorry again. Right."
Mary watched while Stan left long enough to drag a chair of to the office's doorway. He placed it quietly behind her.
Mary looked up at him, accidentally lowering one ear in a questioning way.
Stan spoke plainly. "You looked like you needed a seat," he admitted. His eyes shifted over her in a studying fashion.
"Oh." Mary blinked at looked at the chair, then made to sit up on it by scooting backwards somewhat. "Thank you, Stan." She was used to the method of taking a seat, though feeling her tail get dragged along under her butt had gotten old months ago.
Stan nodded and helped her into the seat a little. There was an odd look in his eyes, but Mary couldn't place it. She focused back on the call when it seemed Twilight was back.
"So, as Jo most certainly didn't tell me to ask you, could the Equestrian answer some questions for me? That would prove to us that she's actually there!" Twilight sounded happy as a clam as she asked the request, but it filled Mary with a measure of dread.
"Uhm," Mary began, eyes shifting. "She's not actually here right now...?" The excuse sounded lame, even to her, but it would have to do. Without having anything else left to fire, she resorted to plan B: exasperation. "Actually, this is getting a tad ridiculous, Twilight... Are you sure you don't know Princess Luna's favorite tea? It's literally the only thing we know right now about Equestria for sure..."
Mary listened to Twilight hum along, obviously interested. She continued. "Unless Luna spoke to you recently, Twilight? Then maybe we could ask something else."
Twilight's voice became curious. "Spoke to her?" She laughed for a brief second. "Well, I would if I could, but I don't think the princess is here for me to do that. If she is, that would be rather great, though. She isn't here, is she?"
Mary had a thought, and decided to pursue it, brushing past the barely heard question. It was clear Luna wasn't, after all. "What about dream walking? Or... well, I don't want to give too much away to ask a good question," she stated honestly.
There was a bit of random chatter in the background. A long pause ensued, leaving Mary to wonder if something was wrong for a moment. The chatter resumed, however, and then Twilight returned. "What did you mean by dream, Mrs. Morris?" Twilight asked after the pause.
Mary frowned. "Never mind... What about... Cutie marks... no wait... Pony magic. You're an expert with magic, right?"
There was a quiet slapping sound, which was followed immediately by an excited outcry.
"Am I!?" Twilight exclaimed quickly. If there had been misgivings from the deteriorating investigation they were clearly forgotten. "Well, not that I'm at all bragging, but my entire life I've been studying magic in all of its forms! Magic is my special talent, and it's just the greatest thing there is! Though, I guess I am biased towards thinking that. Though, I must admit I pride myself on spellcraft and to nearly the same degree, the history of magic. So little is known from before the age of Discord's rule, but I—"
Mary had begun to hold her breath after the alleged unicorn exploded into her lecture-like rant. She could almost picture the little pony from the show standing up behind a podium and getting down to her life's story in front of an audience.Finally, though, she interrupted.
"Twilight, that's great, uhm, really," Mary began, laughed a bit uneasily. She gave Stan a sideways look; he had begun to appear grimmer as things went on. "I meant something specific. Say, growing plants very quickly, perhaps? See, the pony here is very good at growing them and-"
Twilight broke in quickly. "What's her cutie mark like? I noticed she was an earth pony from the video. It may be presumptuous of me, but if she excels at growing plants I am willing to bet that she's a gardener of some kind."
Mary and Stan shared a brief frown. "Yes, she's very good at growing plants quickly—" Before she could get to the topic of the cutie mark, which she assumed she would have to lie about seeing as she didn't have one, Twilight gasped loudly.
"This has to do with those vines? Doesn't it?" Twilight marched on with her excitement through the phone. "I read those police reports and the news coverage extensively. That sort of magic is incredible! The Equestrian— Oh, what's her name, by the way? I can't just keep referring to her like this." She let out a cheerful, almost exaggerated sort of laugh.
Mary groaned again, if quietly. Things kept moving towards the more and more specific because of her fumbling. Things she both did and didn't want to get too specific on... Why can't this just work out without road bumps? They always do in movies. This conversation is a nightmare! She felt Stan's hand rub her shoulder consoling and she leaned into it somewhat.
"When— If we meet then I'll tell you her name, Twilight, no offense... sorry," she apologized.
"Oh," Twilight responded cheerfully and without a hint of impatience in her voice. "That's okay! I understand completely." There was a brief pause, likely Twilight gathering her thoughts, then she spoke again. "So, you were asking about the vines, Mrs. Morris?"
Mary took in a shuddering breath. "Yes, it seems you've read about them, then... But once again it also seems I can't come up with a good question..." She looked to Stan for help, but he shook his head. "I think we should just meet, then."
Mary was loudly interrupted by an exclamation of pure, unadulterated excitement from beside her left ear.
"Is Twilight coming here!?" Anna cried.
Stan whirled about quickly and hoisted the little girl skyward. "Pumpkin, stay at the dinner table."
Anna pawed a hand towards Mary and the phone absently. "Aawww..."
Mary gave her daughter an indignant look, with only a hint of sympathy. "Sorry," she laughed to Twilight. "That was my daughter."
Twilight laughed back in return. "That's quite alright. She sounds like a hoofull."
Mary blinked at the phone for a brief moment, then rolled her eyes a little and readdressed the matter at hand. "As I was saying, I apologize for not being better prepared." After a brief second of consideration, and curiosity, she asked, "You have my address already, don't you? Jo said you did."
"Yes! Sixty-two hundred Harmony Avenue if I remember the phone registry correctly." Twilight chirped, and Mary thought she heard a distant, slapping sound in the background of the call again. A bit of chatter went on again in the background and Mary waited. She wasn't upset that her address was known by this person. If they had identified her son in a video through the internet, it was reasonable to assume that it had been easy for them to find her after that. Stan even used the tactic quite a bit in his profession, though, for him it was his job.
Twilight then continued. "Jo suggested that we should apologize for hunting your address down the way we did. I of course, agree, and would like to offer our apology for that. We have an explanation for invading your privacy, also. I can certainly see how we were in the wrong... but we were desperate. So, I hope you can forgive us." she paused briefly, before then launching into a very succinct explanation, all considering. "You see, Jo and I came out here because, well, as we haven't found news about the pony in the video for ages, and we were getting really worried. Rather than let the trail go cold we... sorta drove all of the way out here to start going door to door."
Mary quirked an eyebrow, then looked at Stan, who shrugged.
"Sounds about as fine as anything else they've said so far, Mar." Stan seemed to be as confused as he was wary by this point.
Mary exhaled a breath and shrugged back. "Fair enough," she muttered, then readdressed the phone. "That's more than understandable under the circumstances, I guess." Mary continued. "We don't mind. Uhm, please continue, Twilight."
Twilight coughed from her side of the line. "Right... it's just, not to sound vindictive or anything, but Bobby had told us in so many words that there was no pony whatsoever at your residence, and he knew nothing about it. Well, we knew that wasn't true because of how he worded it, though I don't blame him for lying! We found several cracks in his explanation which basically confirmed for us that he knew about Equestrians and the video was correct. It was a very noble lie, really."
Mary smirked and chuckled while nodding, despite being on a phone. "I see... I'm sorry if he acted untoward either one of you. He's still young and has some growing up to do yet... but he's getting better. Still, it's no trouble at all, really."
"Thank you!" Twilight responded back promptly.
In the brief window, Mary continued, feeling rather impatient over the whole dialogue and trying her best to hide it. Her furry condition was, of course, solely responsible for that impatience. "Should we discuss how we should meet now? I mean, I did think asking what Luna's favorite tea was pretty clever, but realistically there isn't anyway around us doing this..."
Twilight chuckled in return. "It's alright, really! Although, Princess Celestia's favorite tea was a delightful cinnamon blend. Maybe her sister enjoyed the same thing?"
Mary paused for a second, her jaw set and forehead protruding slightly.
Stan leaned in front of her worriedly. "Mar?" he asked.
Mary deadpanned over at him, then decided to slap a hoof to her forehead whether it hurt or not; she felt like she deserved it. The fact that she could have just easily asked what Celestia's favorite tea was, which just so happened to be exactly what she had hoped to hear about Luna, made her feel like a complete fool. Maybe I'm not thinking this through enough, she considered... then shook her head.
"Twilight," Mary started, rebuilding her confidence.
"Yes" The voice asked, none the wiser.
Mary took in a pleasant breath, and suddenly became aware of just how adrenaline filled she was over everything. "I know it's Christmas Eve tomorrow, but, well I'm guessing you're able to, so, how about you, and Jo, both just come and meet us tomorrow?"
There was a bit of chatter in the background, mostly from Jo it sort of sounded like.
"Yes! That sounds perfect, Mrs. Morris!" Twilight finally exclaimed and in a perhaps too loud voice for a phone. The sound of Jo voicing her complaints as well were heard.
Mary smiled weakly and laughed. "That's... great. By the way, you can call me by my first name, if you prefer, Twilight."
"Oh, sure. No offense, but human names are so confusing..." Twilight paused a moment before continuing slowly. "So, is that all then? We're to meet, and after you are completely convinced that I am who I say I am I can meet the pony? And we'll discuss everything? Because... you have no idea how incredibly anxious I am to consolidate my information!"
Mary couldn't help but laugh at that, though she hard pressed to make it not sound terribly worried; she did have a lot on her mind though. "Of course, yes. Please show up tomorrow around noon," she replied as nicely as she could to Twilight, then turned to Stan at the last second. "Noon?" she repeated to her husband, just checking that the time was alright; when he nodded she spoke back to her soon to be pony-guest. "Noon, yes. We'll see you then."
Twilight answered her, but, surprisingly, not to merely make her final goodbyes as Mary had expected. "Oh, Mary, I'm not done yet, actually," she said in a serious tone. "I have something to say, uhm, about Bobby... if that's alright."
Mary blinked looking at Stan with a wary expression. "Oh?" she acknowledged, trying her best to sound inconspicuous. Why is Bobby involved, now? She did her best not to jump to any worrisome conclusions about her son.
Twilight coughed, then spoke politely. "Yes, you see, the way he went about talking to us was a little rude... He did call me a prostitute at one point, but I guess it's alright since that lead to his unknowing admission of what he knew."
The line and room Mary were in stayed quiet for a moment until Twilight slowly continued. "It is not my place to comment, but I thought you should know," she finished curtly.
Mary had begun to blink and gape like a fish out of water after hearing Twilight's admission about her son, and what he'd done. She quietly shut her mouth, then looked over at Stan; Stan, for his part, had overheard the information. They held each other's attention for a moment, before both leaned over slightly at the waist, looking out into the dining room.
Mary spotted Bobby, sitting quietly while ignoring Anna. Her eyes narrowed, and she snorted; she wasn't even overly upset that she had done so without meaning to. Her back turned itself to the dining room for a quick moment, while Stan had already stood up to make his way over. "I see, please hold, Ms. Sparkle. I'll be right back..." she murmured absently into the phone.
Twilight came back quickly with, "Oh, please, just call me Twilight."
"Mmhm," Mary responded, only half hearing, then leaned backwards, turning her long neck around completely at a one-hundred and eighty degree angle. Her eyes locked onto Bobby, each one holding a murderous, perhaps even mad, glint. "Bobby," she called out simply, just loud enough to be heard over in the next room.
From where he sat, Bobby looked up through his long hair, and spotted his dad coming back to the table. "Yeah?" he replied back to his mom, then froze after spotting the look he was getting from across the house. The slightly larger size of his mom's new pony eyes gave the angry expression she had on an even more menacing shadow than he could recall in recent memory.
"Uhm, Mom? What's up?" Bobby asked; he swallowed, and pulled back from where he sat beneath his curtain of scraggly hair. He was really familiar with his parents being upset with him, but this... reaction, he wasn't overly familiar with.
"Bobby," Mary repeated. A lock of her hair slid off the top off her head, while the rest of her remained completely still. "Did you call a girl... a name?" She set the phone down on Stan's desk and hopped off her chair, the one Stan had fetched, then trotted towards the other room.
Bobby looked to his Dad, who gave him a flat look that made him feel as though there were no escape. "A name? Oh," he stuttered. He could feel a sweat building up all around him underneath his clothes, as well as the eyes from the rest of his family all bearing down on him.
"Specifically," Mary went on after reaching the dining table. "Did you call her," she paused, inhaling, before shouting the thing she could hardly believe she'd heard; though, she did believe it. "A prostitute!?"
Anna snickered and elbowed her brother's side. "Busted," she whispered.
Mary was curled up in front of the fireplace, laying still beneath a blanket. One of her legs was thrown over the edge of the couch, while the rest of her was sprawled lazily. She had stayed that way for a couple of hours, considering among other things how best she would introduce herself to Twilight the next day. One of the 'other' things included the words she had repeated from Bobby around Anna; that had been an oversight on her part, certainly.
All in all though, excepting Bobby's punishment of hard labor sentenced to shoveling the driveway without use of the snow blower for the rest of the winter, the day had been a rather unexpected, and welcomed surprise. In fact, Mary was tempted to call it a Christmas miracle; the only reason she resisted saying it aloud was to keep from jinxing herself.
Twilight was apparently showing up the very next day, along with one guest. The Twilight Sparkle, a princess from another world; at least, Mary hoped it was really her. Other than hope, she really didn't know what to think. Twilight, on the phone, had sounded just like the television show, and now that she thought about it, had behaved just like in the television show, too. The facts all put her thoughts in a jumble.
Though, despite her rampant glee and excitement that she had succeeded in the mission-like request Luna had given her, she was still hesitant to let herself become too giddy. Things weren't exactly all sunshine and rainbows just yet.
After all, Dan was now attending her family's Christmas get together to provide security, something Stan had arranged. Dan ever coming near her house was typically bound to be a sign for doom. Still, other than Herbert and Stan, he was the only sort of protection she had.
Mary sighed and prodded a mug of cocoa sitting before her with a hoof, one she had made for herself earlier and not even touched. I don't like needing to be protected... she reminisced. The fact was though, that in her condition, she did need to stay hidden. Becoming a public sight was not something she ever wanted to be even remotely a possibility. For that matter, it seemed she would still needed to confess to Twilight that she was a human herself, and not another pony. She hoped it would not be a big deal, but wasn't sure how much the hope was needed.
After all, Mary considered, though she may not understand what the entire situation was, if the primary dilemma was Twilight's misplacement from Equestria, it was bound to be likely that her own condition may just be a side effect of that. Luna had professed to have never heard of anything or anyone simply becoming a pony through any random means at all, but Mary couldn't think of any better explanation than Twilight being directly responsible.
Even if that was the case, though, Mary had told herself she would not accuse or be angry with the mare; after a little talk and convincing from Stan, that is.
The next day was Christmas Eve, and her family would be gathered for the holiday. At the same time, a veritable fantasy alien from another world was paying her a visit, simply because she refused to wait a second longer than she had to at a chance to become normal again.
The situation had weighed heavily on her thoughts for hours, and her thoughts were anything but helpful.
Mary ran two hooves up the side of her head in a vice, then back over her mane, trying to relax and pretend she knew that everything would just work out. When it didn't work quite the way she wanted, she looked over to her side for something that might.
Beside Mary was Stan, asleep in his recliner. After a quick glance, she noticed her husband was still, in fact, snoring to himself beneath a blanket of his own. She wanted to discuss more on the day’s events, but had managed to talk him to sleep earlier, instead, much to her chagrin. Briefly, she entertained the thought of waking him up to go over her thoughts on what to tell Twilight, should the princess be offended for the deception.
There was a lot to consider, but she honestly thought she could handle things. After all, it was just Twilight that she had to deal with. At least, she hoped. God, if all six of them are here... I shouldn't have read that stupid story Marge gave me. Now I'm going to have nightmares... She shuddered, regretting Marge ever finding out about her being a pony at all. In fact, she had already sworn to keep Twilight a secret from the crazy old bird.
Mary reflected, briefly, on just how secretive her life had become; her whole world was essentially just her own house. She hoped things changed soon, and for the better. I shouldn't dwell on things. Her thoughts were tired, like the rest of her, and she considered going to bed finally.
Instead, Mary's eyes rested on her husband again.
Mary lifted herself off the couch, her blanket held over her back with one hoof, and proceeded towards Stan's unmoving form. She stopped in front of the chair and listened to a snore escape his from underneath his scruffy red beard. Aw, well isn't that just adorable. Smiling, she began to carefully climb up the front of the chair and into his lap, careful not to wake him up.
A grumble escaped from underneath her hooves, despite how careful she had tried to be.
Stan cracked one eye open. “...Mar…?” he mumbled groggily.
Mary leaned her head down onto Stan’s chest before responding. “Go back to sleep, you.” The blanket now settled over the both of them, she snuggled in against Stan's chest.
“Oh… s'alright.” Stan slurred in reply.
Still alone with her thoughts, but now comfortably in her husband's embrace, Mary attempted to drift optimistically, for a change. I might actually get my body back soon. A smile creeped over her features and she did nothing to stop it. It had been months since any solid leads to a solution had come up, and now that she was going to see Twilight, the idea that things would go back to normal was finally looking to be more than a dream.
Mary closed her eyes and imagined holding Anna and Bobby as a human again, and being held by Stan. All the little things that had been lost to her since the unfortunate turn of events drifted through her head. She would no longer be a prisoner in her own home. Walking normally, going in public, it would all be possible again, and she relished the thought of it.
Mary drifted off with the image of herself tightly embracing Stan.
“Anna! Please, stop running!” Mary yelled. Completely ignoring that plea, her giddy daughter continued her charge through the house. She was too busy leaping, jumping and running to her heart's content around the living room.
The morning had started off so well, too, Mary thought remorsefully, wrinkling her furred face in anger while galloping after Anna. She had woken up to Stan stirring beneath her just as his parents had arrived, with plenty of time to ensure everything would be in order. Food, cleaning the house, Dan proofing the kitchen, everything was ready. It seemed, though, that things were determined to go horribly wrong no matter what she did.
Herbert had insisted on waking up the kids right away, of course. From there, things had been undeniably going in a downward spiral of chaos. Dan had shown up just an hour ago, late, but Twilight was going on an hour late herself, as well. As a result, Anna had become more and more out of control as time went on.
Mary slid around a corner and into the living room. “Anna, please behave!" she called out, half spinning across the wood floors in hot pursuit. "This is no time for rough housing!”
The sound of beeping interrupted Mary's chase, and her ears swiveled towards the kitchen. She gasped. "Dah! The food! Anna, you-" She groaned, defeated for now, and trotted towards the kitchen. "Stan! Knock some sense into the kids!" she called out in desperation.
Stan, in his office, leaned out the doorway. "What?" he called back. When no answer came he shrugged, then stood up to investigate.
Anna spun around, leaving her mother in the dust. “But Twilight’s coming, Twilight's coming!” she chanted as she made an obstacle course of the living room furniture. Her own course shifted slightly mid-stride, spotting a target. “Bobby, think fast!” Anna shouted, just before she pummeled her brother with her large Rainbow Dash plushie while running past him.
Bobby took the over-sized doll to the face, and glared angrily straight ahead after Anna nimbly cartwheeled away, doll still in hand. “That’s it, I’m going up to my room," he remarked aloud. "Call me when the circus is done with,” he groaned, and stood up off the couch, making a bee-line for the stairs.
Anna giggled as her brother left without retaliating; the giggling increased as her father bumped into Bobby at the doorway and stopped him.
Stan was looking for Mary, but immediately recalled that his son still had a punishment in store for him. “Oh no, you've got a mission already you still have to do. Since you're so intent on leaving, you might as well get out there and start." He ignored the grumbles of complaint Bobby was already giving. "Go out front and shovel the snow from the sidewalk and driveway,” he suggested. "I think our guests will appreciate it."
Bobby dejectedly looked around himself, but didn’t argue. “...Alright, fine.” He grabbed his coat off of the rack and made his way for the front door.
The door opened before Bobby could reach it, letting in a frigid Agnes. “I’m back! Dan says thank you for the hot chocolate, Mary.” Agnes gave Bobby a smile and ruffled his hair as he slipped thru the door behind her. “Now, Mary, are you sure you want to be here when ‘Twilight’ gets here?”
Herbert shouted from over where he was seated in the next room over. “Yeah, it’s not like she wouldn’t notice the pink elephant in the room! Eh?” he let out an exaggerated laugh, making sure everyone heard him. “Oh, sorry, I meant to say the orange pony!” He chuckled softly at his own joke, and was taken by surprise as Agnes slapped across the back of his head from behind. "Hey-!"
"Would you behave?" Agnes implored him. She got a grin in a return and a promise that he already was.
Mary trotted into the room, spotting the trade Agnes and Herbert, the latter seemed to be trying too hard to look innocent of something. “Yes Mom, I’ve made up my mind," she finally replied. "If the girl on the phone really was Twilight, there's no point in hiding this from her. I really get the feeling it was her... but I'll be inside in any case.” Her words were just barely not convincing enough for herself, which resulted in her standing still a moment while she controlled her breathing.
Nearby, Anna glided into the room, then used Mary as a sort of obstacle which she jumped clear over.
Mary caught sight of her daughter gliding overhead and stomped a hoof. “Anna, settle down!” she shouted.
Anna let out a sad sound, then stepped down from the top of the couch where she had ended up rather than leap from the top. “Yes, Mom…” she murmured.
Herbert blew out his mustache, deep in thought and heavy contemplation of his own current situation. “Mary, not to be a bother, but do you have any rum? This eggnog would be great with a bit more of a kick.”
Mary turned slowly to face him. “Dad, it’s only mid afternoon, can’t you wait until later?” she asked dourly, face deadpanned.
Herbert harrumphed back at her. "Probably, but I figure if I'm going to start seeing pink elephants, or in this case, purple unicorns, I might as well be drunk, too."
Agnes heaved a sigh. "You already said that, dear."
Herbert looked up at his wife. "Hm? Oh, no I said orange ponies before-"
Mary groaned and stormed past her father-in-law, hooves stomping loudly on the floor. "Dad! Come on, we have a real Princess coming here. You are not allowed to misbehave while she's around, alright?"
Herbert bobbed his head, shrugging. "Alright, alright... but I'm still using the 'She blinded me with science' line if I get the chance."
Mary regretted ever letting Marge tell her family about the show that reflected the existence of Twilight. "F- Fine, that's fine, just promise you'll behave and do nothing but!" Her voice as she spoke was full of exasperation. She sighed, stopping at a doorway, then nearly jumped out of her skin when Stan's hand came down to rest on her shoulder.
Stan settled her quickly. “Whoa, it's just me." He smiled calmly. "Mar, I was thinking still, Mom is right. You don’t have to be here.” Stan looked as wary as she did, but not at all panicked.
Mary shook her head once. "Nope, my mind's made up. I'm staying. I have too much to worry about just with getting everything ready, in any case!"
Stan watched Mary speak back, trotting in a circle as she did. He resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "Well, if you're staying, then at least stay calm, too. I'm sure everything will be fine, Mar. You've thought of everything."
Mary looked up and tried to smile back, but it quickly turned into a frown, then a scowl which she directed at the floor. "Oh yes, Stan, I've thought of everything. Give me a moment and I'll just wheel out the red carpet as the finishing touch." She turned about to start pacing again and spoke even louder. "You blow the trumpet! Meanwhile, I'll just finish cooking the ham I have in the oven! For the royalty of sentient herbivores! And more importantly, a pony, Stan! We're eating meat! Oh God, this is going to be a bigger train wreck than our wedding..." Mary made to rub her temple with her hoof, but ended up smacking her head on accident when a light knocking started on the front door.
Everyone in the room fell silent as they turned their attention to the door. Stan was the first one to act, and peered out the window. He couldn’t make out whoever was at the door directly, but he could make out two young women standing and talking with Dan. Further out was Bobby, still just getting started on the driveway and the walk.
Stan looked over to his wife. “Mar, I think they’re here."
Mary was looking out the same window from where she had slid up under Stan. She gulped, but continued to stand up on her hind legs to look out the window for herself. "Where's Twilight, though?"
All she could see were the dark haired short girl, and another girl, obviously human, with bright purple hair...
Dan thumped his boots noisily by the front door's entrance. "Stan!" he yelled out, despite the fact the recipient of the call was already fast approaching him. "They're here. It's her, too. I think, anyway. She did some crazy magic stuff in front of me with some kind of rock. It's the girl with the crazy hair."
Stan approached him and eyed the shut door. "You're sure?" he asked simply.
Dan began nodding. "Oh yeah. Never thought I'd see anything that would make me believe in aliens and that stuff, but when I get home I'm making myself a tin foil hat I can tell you that much."
The look Stan turned towards the other man was disparaging. "Ah huh," he muttered. "How did she act? Suspicious or anything?"
Dan blew out his cheeks and shrugged. "They're both weird and totally into this pony thing, Stan. I asked them everything you both asked me too, and then some I think. Overall they at least didn't seem up to anything. I don't know, the short one's a fire-cat, though." He paused a moment, then smirked at the other man. "I think I might be in love. Girl's got spunk."
Stan blinked, then wiped a hand down his face, not believing what he just heard. "Just hang around a bit longer and try not to start a war or something. I'll let you know when you can leave." Once he'd finished speaking, he pulled open the front door and stepped outside, blocking the entrance with his body.
The sounds of a young woman greeting him, that sounded positively thrilled about something, leaked into the house.
Dan chuckled to himself, walking further into the warm of his boss' home. "I'm not sure if I want to if those girls are sticking around... I don't even care if they are normally horses-"
"Dan," Mary interrupted, trotting up to the policeman. "Tell me everything, right now." She sat in front of him, staring up with a deadly serious look.
Dan swallowed what he was going to say and regarded Mary. "Oh, uhm, well I think it's really her. She is fine, by the way-" he cut off when Mary gave him a disgusted look and recoiled slightly. "No no no! You don't get it, she's a girl right now, like, human, with long legs and a face like-"
Mary rolled her eyes, face-hoofed, and shouted to interrupt him from saying anything else. "Okay, okay! I get it. She's human right now? Really?" She peeked around Dan into the next room. She could just barely make out the door cracked open. I don't believe it. Why didn't she mention that on the phone? "And you're sure?" she asked Dan, a bit of a frantic tone working its way into her voice.
Dan nodded. "As sure as I am of anything. She used magic right in front of me, and then went on about how she had disguised herself or something." Next, he rolled his eyes up at the ceiling, then chuckled. "This is really something, huh? Just wow..." His voice was either appreciative, or mocking; it was hard to tell even for him.
Mary listened to the conversation outside just a moment longer. Once she heard what she thought was her husband introducing himself, she couldn't take it anymore. She swallowed hard, then galloped full speed up to the door.
"Twilight—!?" Mary called out, then proceeded to squeeze her way out through the opened door and around Stan, who half barred her way. Move over you big oaf-! She froze once outside.
Standing in the doorway to her Idahoan home, was a tall girl, perhaps five foot ten judging by the way she towered over her. The girl wore very thick winter clothing. Pouring out from either side of her fuzzy, poof-topped wool hat, was a wave of purple hair. A streak of rosy pink, or perhaps violet hung on her bangs and peaked out from the front of the cap. The girl's face was pale, but very cheerful, almost comically so.
An infectious, bright smile appeared on her snow sprinkled face.
Mary felt her own mood lift itself up, and she began to speak, letting every thought she'd had over the last couple of days, and last few months, jumble out at once. Unfortunately, everyone else present had the same idea, it seemed, and likely as not she was to blame for that.
Chaos ensued. All at once, Stan began chastising her as near as Mary could tell, while the short girl looked ready to faint and began talking as though she were seeing things, while 'Twilight' began exclaiming about Equestria from the sound of it.
"Alright quiet! Quiet! Quiet!" Stan shouted the words until finally the other two women quieted down. Still, it was clear to Mary, excited as she was, that everyone was on the edge of their seat with things to say. Regardless of this, her husband turned angrily to her first. "Why did you come out already? I was two seconds from making sure everything was safe, not that it matters no-"
Mary cut him off, her voice sounding a good deal more gruff than she meant it to. "Oh, stop, I've been losing my marbles all day about Princess Twilight," she gave the purple haired girl a smile, "showing up, she's here now, you're out here interrogating her, and Dan just got finished telling me about how he already interrogated her; I'm taking over the situation, dear!"
Stan put on a defeated look and replied to her in a very familiar, pleading way. "Honey, please, I was trying to make sure you were safe-"
Interrupting Stan, however, was the shorter girl, whose eyes bugged out as if by remote control. "Dear? Honey?" she balked, still looking down at her as if she were a leprechaun.
"Is that really Twilight out there!?" It was Anna, of that Mary had no doubt. Worse, she sounded as though she were trying desperately to come outside. "Hi Twilight!" she shouted.
Mary smirked for a split second. I'm not sure exactly how she would react to see Twilight while not a pony.
From inside her house, Mary could also make out Herbert and Agnes working in a fruitless effort to corral Anna. It seemed she had caught wind of Twilight's arrival finally.
Mary turned around, unable to keep her tail from swishing. "Anna, behave," she called back inside. Uggh, this is horrible. Now what did Twilight's friend say? She turned to face the shorter girl present. "Huh? Yes, yes, he's my husband. Now, I've heard that magic has been confirmed, Twilight's here, though in disguise, that's good enough for me and-"
Before Mary could continue, the two girls exclaimed together, "Husband!?" Both of them stared openly at her and Stan, their eyes shifting from him, then back to her. She felt vulnerable all of a sudden, even with her baggy clothes on, hiding the majority of herself.
Mary fought to not shrink to the ground and to regain her composure quickly. A nervous laugh on her part almost undid that work, though. Gah, there's so much to catch them up on. She began slowly and with a quick apology. "Oh, hah, sorry. There's a lot I have to come clean about." Might as well confess everything now, I guess, she thought to herself. "Maybe I was abrupt to come out already... Oh well, now we can get it out of the way! You see—"
The shorter girl interrupted Mary before she could continue further. "Yeah, apparently." Her jaw was slack and she had been forced to support herself with the railing by the looks of it. She definitely seemed to be a little worse for wear.
Mary briefly considered asking her if she would like to sit down inside, until more speaking continued the confrontation.
Twilight, meanwhile, had been the one to speak up next. Her voice was a little shaky, but the excitement in it almost seemed to make up for that. "I'm just so relieved you are actually real!" the girl exclaimed, and she was definitely a girl, not a unicorn. In her hands, not hooves, was a lumpy looking purple rock which she seemed to be fidgeting with.
Mary wondered what the object was, but stayed focused on speaking and grinned up at Twilight. "Ah heh... Yup, I'm certainly real all right." Her own voice shook a little. She wanted to do her best not to show too much reaction to the idea of a fictional character proclaiming something's realness, especially if it was her own that was in question.
Twilight returned the grin, but in obvious earnest. "I've been so stressed without any sign of home and... I mean, I knew you were real from that video, I just knew it." She cleared her throat gently and smoothed one hand down the front of her coat. When she spoke again, her voice was measured and calm. Mary considered that she very well did sound quite royal. "I, am Twilight Sparkle, the Element of Magic, and-"
Without warning, the same speaker interrupted herself with a gasp, then spoke again quickly. Without warning, she asked, "What's your name?" Kneeling down brought her to eye level for ponies.
Mary reeled somewhat from things, but forced a smile onto her face. Alright, I guess she didn't figure out who I was before... I wonder how she'll react to the truth. She smiled at Twilight calmly, though it felt rather deflated as she spoke. "I'm Mary," she replied quietly. Let's see what she—
Twilight clapped her hands without so much as a pause at the confession.
Mary raised an eyebrow, incredulous of that, and listened as the girl began to ramble on.
"Oh my goodness!" Twilight Sparkle exclaimed. "Did you hear that Jo? Her name is Mary! Huh, what an interesting name..." She looked over at the other girl accompanying her, who still seemed to be fading into shock.
Mary felt her expression begin to thin as the apparently air headed unicorn princess failed to connect the dots. Oh dear... Well, I'll get to it soon, I'm sure. No need to rush things. Hm, so that other one's Jo after all, she thought to herself.
Laughing a little, Twilight gave her friend a nudge with one arm and continued. "Hey, come on, Jo, everything's fine now! We can talk, go in, and I'm sure Mary has some hot chocolate we can all enjoy-"
Mary, decided to butt in, and interrupted as cheerfully as she could. "Yes! I do! And let me just say that for the unicorn that can help me out, I have all the hot chocolate she could ever want." She followed her offer up with a hearty laugh, hoping to urge them all inside. Even if other distractions were inside, she was eager to talk about everything, literally everything.
Twilight, grinned, and turned to face the doorway again. "Oh, I meant the other Mary. As in, Mrs. Morris..." she trailed off, then, and Mary smirked, thinking that maybe Twilight was finally 'getting' it.
"Uhm," Twilight began to say slowly, holding a hand up to her cheek in thought. "There are two of you, right?" she asked. "A human Mary and you?" She was staring openly, an sounded understandably curious about what she had noticed.
Mary struggled to put it out plainly. "Well," she began to say, and paused. She sat down and rubbed a hoof behind her head timidly, drumming up some confidence. Wow, this is the first time in a while that I've even spoken to anyone other than my family. "Not... Not so much, no," she started with. "I'm Mary Morris, and I used to be human." She met Twilight's gaze, which was filled with confusion, while she filled her own with determination. "I need your help to make me human again, Twilight."
Twilight stared back down at her blankly, stretching a tense silence for nearly a minute. When she spoke, her throat croaked twice, but finally made coherent words. "I- I didn't plan for this... Let me check my notes." Oddly enough, she began rummaging through the bag she held off to her side, searching through ringed notebooks.
Jo, Twilight's friend, now completely leaned on the porches' railing. Her eyes were glued to Mary, and she muttered, "Great Scott..."
Stan surveyed the two girls briefly, but had calmed down along with everyone else. He heaved a sigh from where he still stood in the door. "Can I get anyone a drink, then?" he offered.
Immediately after, Mary burst out again. She couldn't help herself as a bit of panic welled itself up inside of her. "W-wait, you can, right? Dan said he saw you use magic. Surely if you're human right now it's easy for you to turn me into one, too. That's what he said. That you turned yourself human as a disguise!" She stepped towards Twilight, desperation growing. "Please! I mean- I don't want to sound... I mean... I've been stuck like this and-" she reached Twilight, and touched her hand with a hoof, trying to get the girl's attention.
Twilight, who had set her bag down, had also begun rifling through her notebooks. She was desperately trying to get her references for the wilder speculations she had thought up during her free time. She was having difficulty doing that and balance on the icy ground, though. "Mary, just a moment, I-" she began to say, but was cut off.
Mary had reached her hoof out, and it came into contact with Twilight, just as she was speaking back to her.
A brilliant purple flash bloomed out across the front porch to the home, washing out over the snow and surrounding fields.
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I'm not sure, but I don't think the bolded sentence belongs there?
I absolutely love both Mary and Twilight telling each other not to be so formal, and neither of them listening.
Whelp, just finished reading this chapter too.
Perhaps I should've left it of a while, so I could read it while I wait for the next chapter?
Oh well, too late. XD
Oh, and I forgot to say in my comment on Twilight landing; I'm enjoying your writing style and I wouldn't say it's too wordy. But that's just me :P
Anyway, please keep being awesome!
Your faithful reader, Cyberunit1
The part were she yells at Booby is the best
, I imagine it to look something like this...
i1280.photobucket.com/albums/a489/Lilyfied/anime_girl_rage_gif_zps2ade6029.gif
WHY MUST YOU TOURTURE US WITH THESE CLIFFHANGERS?!?!
And so the plot thickens yet again. Nice to see Bobby get some punishment for his rudeness.
and here i was hoping for less cliff hanger on this story.... should have known....
Wuuut happened!!!
And yes even when she is getting so stressed out about the information she's getting she still sets aside time to rightfully chew out her son! Kudos to her!
I have to read this story again, I rifled through the whole thing too quickly to take in all the events because I was sooo excited about the event. Even if it did end in a cliffhanger!
This is the last time I read two chapters simultaneously. lol
sounds of an excitement young
excited.
There's also a few strange PoV's like Twilight talking to Jo when Mary clearly should'nt have been able to see.
In other news
YAY update!
PS: Hmm, maybe it was good Stan didn't shake her hand. Might've triggered the FLASH earlier.
Oy,
you're killing me here. Sooo... what now? They all get turned into ponies... 
that would be so awesome.
I do appear to have exploded in excitement. Oh dear.
My Guess as to what the purple flash is: -
They both get transformed back to their origional forms
anyone got any other ideas?
I have this gut feeling that shit just hit the fan and now ALL of them are ponies. Including Bobby despite the sheer rage I'm sure he'd feel about it.
Okay— Whoa— Is this—
... Are we finally going to get somewhere!? :D
I really can't help but wonder what ever DID happen to her old phone. If that was addressed at some point, I've completely forgotten. ._.
Proooogreeeesssssssssssssssssssss.
God this chapter feels SO GOOD, despite the inevitable misunderstandings.
Looks like you got your narrative focus mixed up, here. This line belongs in the other fic, unless Mary could somehow see this? :P
Er... except two paragraphs later, Twilight's dialogue is no longer italicized, and Mary's is being italicized? Is the perspective actually shifting around, now? This is confusing. And Twilight said "It is not my place to comment, but I thought you should know" twice. It actually feels like multiple authors were involved at this point in the story; it would explain the inconsistencies, as well as why Twilight would spontaneously bring this up so curtly when she was just acting very excited to finally be making her own progress. Though I'm pretty sure you're penning Twilight's separate story too, so I don't know why another author would be involved... an editor got to rewrite a section themselves, maybe? Do you even have any editors?
And Anna knows what a prostitute is? What kind of a town do they live in? D:
I totally expected the chapter to end after the phone scene. But it didn't. It kept going.
You're bringing Dan back in. I don't know whether I'm looking forward to it or dreading it. xD
Was Twilight a princess when these stories started up, or is that a retcon? I can't remember. I guess it doesn't really matter, I like Twilicorn, it just occurred to me that I don't know is all. Though now that I've typed this, if they know she's an alicorn princess, why are they expecting a unicorn? Oversight, or terminology misunderstanding on Mary's and Stan's behalf? I guess the latter can be claimed in either case. :P
I know you meant 'life', but the thought of her lamenting her secretive laughter made me laugh. "Oh, woe is me, woe is life, how unlucky is it, that I, of all, would befall such a fate, as having hidden giggles?" And then she'd throw herself off the parapet.
It keeps going after THIS scene, too! Happy days! Anna, stahp acrobatting around, you're going to break your neck and having a dead or dying child in the room will just make Twilight feel awkward. :I
"Herbert blew out his mustache"
There is nothing wrong with this sentence, but it still made me imagine hilarious things. Also omg eggnog. It's getting close to eggnog season! I really want some now.
Is "Idahoan" a real word? It looks so weird. Good thing Mary being adorably excited distracted me from it.
This first contact scene was everything I'd hoped it would be.
What's gonna' happen!? Did they accidentally just trade species' back to their rightful owners?! Was Twilight not actually only disguised!? Were they transported to the Land of Oz!? Did they both just die horrendously agonizing deaths!? Inquiring minds want to know! But are happy to wait. :3
3485453 that would kinda kill the story, wouldn't it? At least Mary's part.
3485620
For some reason, this Twilight is year or so behind the show, from our perspective. She's roughly Season 2
3485415 Pony Jo, now that would be hilarious.
Don't worry, I can't blame you for any form of wordiness, considering the whole situation that Mary and Twilight is in. So, don't worry about it. I do have a question: didn't Twilight's hair changed to black (or more-or-less near it)? Did she dyed her hair back to purple or something?
3485734
... Then why is everyone thinking she's a princess? I am confuz.
3485962
They haven't met her yet.
"Do you even have any editors?"
I'm sure my editors won't be offended by that. (No, they won't. They're terrible.)
Ahhh, I'm definitely looking forward to more at this point. Nicely done :)
Be-HOLD! The Marilight! Or the Twiliry! Half housewife, half magical pony princess, alllllll awesome!
This whole block is in italics and I do not think it was meant to be.
Is Twilight repeating herself?
YOU'RE RIGHT! We don't know what Mary's laugh is like.
I think something is missing from a word here.
The hyphen should be an em dash. Alt + 0151 on Windows and Shift +alt/option+ - on Mac. —
You ass...
3486398
I just realized. If I didn't click on the link, I would've never seen the update. MlM is borking on me, for some reason. Didn't see the other update, either, #24.
3486483
It's my entire account. I'm not sure why, really. I've messaged Knighty but I havn't received a response ever. Also, despite heavy, incredible traffic, my stories never re enter the feature box. I'm really unsure what's wrong.
3486409
With that cliffhanger, it is almost assured. ARGH, now I have to read all the other ones too! You truly are mad.
3486498
Strangely, Twilight Landing works perfectly fine.
3486520 That's strange. This story showed up fine for me -- I thought it was borked for everyone or no one.
3486695
I am le cursed.
3486695
Could it be that Fimfiction, for some illogical reason, has reached critical mass and losing stability?
STOP IT WITH THE CLIFFHANGERS ALREADY, YOU ACCURSEDLY TALENTED AUTHOR YOU
Some cliffhanger ya got there, but I don't mind because for a little while I thought Mary would be away and they wouldn't believe Twilight, thus dragging the story out with several more chapters of agonizing suspense. So really, this is nothing.
3486934
Yeah there's no way
I was going to give myself a bigger workloadI was going to leave you all hanging for something like that.I never thought I'd say this, but this is glorious chaos.
That cliffhanger, I saw one coming, but I never knew when.
3487427
Truly? Well, sire, I must profess I'm doing my best to do anything but. If you can find the time or effort to do so could you give me specific examples so that I can endeavor to fix those flaws in my stratagem and style?
I would be most grateful of you.
Well at the very least everyone will believe that they are who they say they are just from that magical burst even if it does nothing else but look flashy.
I'm quite convinced it's some kind of metaphysical balance issue - Twilight became human so Mary became a Pony. The alternative was that it was a disguise spell.
That said, the purple flash? My call is that whatever spell brought Twilight to Earth has likely been broken. Welcome to Equestria, Mary.
i am convinced, no matter where you are or the species, finding twilight is trouble.
Mostly the same reaction as the other chapter, so I'll just leave it mostly at "Argh the cliffhanger!"
One reaction though, this bit right here. I just adore the relationship that Stan and Mary, the love between them is almost palpable.
Also, I am shipping Jo and Dan so hard at the moment. Not sure why.
MOAR!
3487868
MOAR!
3485453
Suddenly, pony! Pony everywhere!
3487442 It is hard to explain, when I need to divide my attention between reading and my surroundings, I can get lost from time to time. It rarely happens in other stories I read, and it is mostly in some battle scenes or something like that.
Like with this phone conversation in this chapter, It was really hard to follow who said what, And what could be heard by other side. (was she muting mic in phone when she was talking with Stan?) Especially that phone can mess with text formatting, And italics or bold text can sometimes not show properly. And as your story is heavily packed with conversations, It is not much of your fault.
Ps. the way you wrote that comment... I am really tired, and It took some time for me to realize what you meant.
Pps. There is something wrong with comments, I accidentally answered to my own comment, and when I deleted it, It also deleted that previous one.
It seems that both stores have totally merged together now
"he visibly pictured what his wife had back briefed to him" - "back briefed"?
"Are there other!?" No, but there could be others.
I think your current writing style works fine. The balance of narrative and descriptions to parts with people talking is good.