> Swirl Cake
>  by The Local Rat Queen
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> What Makes A Cake?
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Pumpkin Cake


“Dear Pumpkin,” The letter said in very ornate writing, “I would like to informally invite you to a slumber party! It’s going to be a girls night!!!! You, Dew, Luster, Cozy, and myself are staying the night at my aunt’s old castle tomorrow night, the one Sunburst lives in! (I know there is only one castle, but I miss Sunburst.) I hope to see you there!” 

The letter was signed Flurry Heart at the bottom. I was so pumped for tomorrow night! With permission from mom, I was able to go and was just re-reading the letter again and again. Flurry’s horn writing was perfect, especially compared to my own. Everything about her was perfect. Her long, triple-toned mane was so cute, and her little crown made her so-

“Hello, Sis, What did Flurry write to you?” Pound Cake, my twin brother, asked, setting down his saddle bag loaded with scrolls and tomes. 

Something to know about me and my brother is how different we are, especially being twins. I have a yellow coat with a bright orange mane, and my brother is cream-colored with a milk chocolate brown mane. Pound is shyer than me by a large amount; finally, he is a magically gifted pegasus. While I, the unicorn, struggle with anything more than telekinesis, I would be lying if I said I wasn’t a tad jealous, but he is my brother, so I can cheer him on; moreover, how did he know who sent this?

“What, how did you know?” I said, a bit baffled, as Pound did his barely audible giggle. 

“I recognize the look you give her letters.” He said in his quiet voice, a small smile adorning his face, “You were also tracing the paper with a hoof.” 

My face lit up with heat in my cheeks. I will admit I had a slight crush on her, but who doesn’t? She is an alicorn princess. I shot Pumpkin a glare while concocting my revenge plan: "Yeah, well, at least my reading isn't as boring as your scrolls; like, bro, you are a total nerd.” I said, floating a random scroll over to me and looking at the runes like they made any sense to me, spoilers they didn't. 

“Hey,” he said sheepishly, “my scrolls are cool.” He sounded embarrassed; he was an easy card to fold in that regard. 

"Yeah, right, but it doesn't matter,” I said, flicking the scroll back with my magic as he flew over to catch it. “Flurry invited me to a sleepover with the girls! You can have the room for your nerdtivities.” 

When I said this, I saw a flash of sadness cross Pound’s face before he turned around to organize his desk. His body language said he was upset at that news. I sat up at this, but he spoke before I could.

“Oh, so I’m not invited.” He said, sounding so defeated, that he tried to hide it, but he sounded so crushed by that. 

"Yeah, bro, it's girls night. It’s what Flurry said.” I said I was climbing off the bed and trotting over to him. His face was buried in a book, but you could tell by his eyes not moving that he was not reading. He did not respond, but I could see a slight sadness in his eyes. One that I had seen a lot more recently.

“Hey Pound, it’s just one night. Besides, you can hang with Sail or our other dude friends.” I offered to try to make him feel somewhat better. The offer was met with what seemed like a cringe, but to his credit, he tried to keep himself level and responded this time. 

“That’s not the point, sis.” He was quieter than his usual whisper of a voice.

“Then tell me the point, you idiot; just tell me what's wrong.” I said with a grin, trying to make him smile a bit. It did not work. 

Pound looked over at me and said, “Promise you won’t call my point dumb?” His eyes were begging me to have an open mind. 

“When would I ever call you or your ideas dumb?” I reassured him; he just gave me a look, so I added, "Okay, I called you an idiot, but that does not count.” 

That made him giggle, but he did go back to his grave demeanor and say, “I have this weird feeling.”

“Are you sick?” I asked, concerned but not following his line of thought. 

“No, I mean a feeling in my head,” Pound said before pausing. 

“We call that a headache; are you sure you're okay?” I added worry-growing.

"Pumpkin, please just listen.” I was a bit stunned at the outburst, but I shut up and looked at my brother and said, “I don’t like feeling like...” He paused, took a breath, and said, “I don’t like feeling like a boy.” 

The silence after that was long. Pound was shaking a bit in his chair, and I stood there a little dumbfounded. I really did not know how to process this. My brother was telling me he did not like being a boy. What does that even mean? 

“Explain,” I said, trying to sound calm for him, but it was difficult. I was nervous and had no idea why, but I think I was just worried for Pound. 

He looked surprised but looked at me and continued, “I just don't like being a boy. Anytime I get called sir, he or... Or, brother, I get sick to my stomach. I-I- just I-” Pound started to get nervous and stuttered, He, should I call him he? They were in their own head, and that never ended well. 

"Pound breathe; you're not stupid for having feelings. Just relax and talk with me.” I chose my words very carefully. My first instinct was to call Pound Bro, but that may not have ended well. 

Pound sighed and hung their head. The look on their faces said they probably wanted to talk about this for a while. They didn't say anymore, so I decided to take action. 

I picked Pound up in my magic, a feat that was not easy by any means. I set him on the bed next to me and looked him in the eyes as I stood next to the bed. 

“Pound, I don't care if you want to be called my twin broth-b word.” The censor made them smile a bit as they looked at me in awe. “You are my twin, forever and always. Whether that's Bro, Sis, or something else, now you know I hate being all sappy, so know when I mean it, we are a team.” 

Pound didn't respond for a second, just looking at me. Tears well in the corners of their eyes, and a smile in the corners of their mouth. He then leaned forward and hugged me. I returned the hug.

After a bit of silence and the hug ending, Pound continued, “I learned that because of our friends. With the group being mostly all girls, it gets called such. I was so sad when people would call me one of the guys in the group, and I never understood why.” Pound’s tone was trailing off, thinking about their words. 

“So you want to be a girl?” I asked them a simple question to try to narrow it down. 

Their face said it was a terrible question, but he looked at me, then at the floor, and nodded. 

I smiled a bit. "Well, that's upsetting,” I said, pausing to let her look at me and see my grin before I continued. “I always thought if I had a sister, I'd be cooler than her, but here we are. My sister being the absolute coolest pony.” 

Her face went from horror to slightly sobbing with joy. It was nice to see so much emotion in my sister, as she had never shown much before. 

“Pumpkin?” Pound asked.

“What's up?” 

“I want to change my name.” She said it sheepishly.

“Sounds like you already have one in mind; hit me.” I said it with a grin.

“Swirl Cake,” she said, a little embarrassed.

“Pumpkin and Swirl against the world, sis.” I said now, my eyes are a bit wet. We could figure out the sleepover and tell Mom later. For now, I had a sister to catch up with. Because my new sister, Swirl Cake, is the coolest pony I know.
> Chocolate Milk, Fabric and Gender
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Swirl Cake


“Are you sure about this Pumpkin?” I said it with trepidation in my voice. It was the morning after I told my twin my secret. She took it way better than I could have ever imagined. Pumpkin accepted me as a sister, but in truth, I still had no idea what that really meant. We decided to wait to tell Mom. To be honest, I was deathly scared to tell her. Pumpkin said she had an idea, though; all I needed to do was trust her. I want to trust her; she is my twin; we are sisters after all. However, I was shaking a little bit.

“Hey Po-Swi-Bro- you, I just thought of something.” Pumpkin said she chose her words carefully, a thing she only did to me as usually her blunt nature was her default. “How should I refer to you in public?”

I opened my mouth to respond, but then shut it again. I had no clue how to answer that. I wanted to be called Swirl, but how would people see that? Would they ask questions? Would they figure it out? Would they tell mom? I felt my body heat up with stress, and my hooves tingled slightly. I am so screwed! How can I hide this and be happy at the same time? Maybe I didn’t need to be happy. Maybe I can just be Pound Cake forever.

“P- Swirl look at me;  we are alone in our bedroom, just breathing; remember how to do that? Let’s take it step by step; no talking, just straight to our destination, okay?” Pumpkin said, and it grounded me; she always did. I took some breaths and sighed, nodding to her, and she continued, “Unfortunately, our plan may involve telling someone I know 100% we can trust. So please trust me, Swirl.”

My body wanted to panic, but I looked at her and took a deep breath. I looked Pumpkin in the eyes and nodded my head, saying, “I trust you.”





The regrets set in during the walk. Ponies greeted us in the streets, and I was so scared to respond. I was suddenly hyper-aware of how ponies saw me—a stallion, a male, not a girl. The facial hair was probably not helping. I felt big and lumbering with my wider frame compared to my sister. My hooves felt like machines lumbering and pounding the ground. I tried to ignore it, but it was hard.

Eventually we made our way to our destination, and it filled me with a sinking feeling, like my body would sink through the dirt road. I stared up at the cylindrical, stacked building known as the Carousel Boutique. The building was charming, and one of our friend groups frequented it. The owner, Rarity, was very accommodating for our squad and loved hearing about our escapades and exploits. We all even jokingly call her Aunt Rarity. This made me feel even more dread. I turned to Pumpkin.

“Pumpkin, why are we here?” I whisper yelled at her; the anxiety was shaking my voice.

“Well,” Pumpkin said, sounding proud of her plan, “Rarity is the most feminine pony we know. So if anyone can help you be the, well, you know what you are, but better, does that make sense?” She looked at me with a smirk.

“I have no idea what that meant,” I said, a little dumbfounded. My sister was never the best communicator of her ideas; this was a prime example of her shortcomings.

“Look, S, Trust me. I have a plan. You just need to tell Rarity; she will understand.” My face grew full of shock and horror, but Pumpkin kept calm and explained, “Remember when she did Cozy’s hair? Parts of her backstory are way more unbelievable than you wanting to be a girl.” Pumpkin said, trying to reassure me. She was right; what we knew of Cozy Glow made her backstory sound incomprehensible. So believing and understanding me would not be that hard, right?

I took a deep breath and looked at Pumpkin, nodding my head. We made our way to the door of the boutique, entering with a small chime of the bell. The boutique was large in its interior, with dresses and mirrors all around, the dresses in various stages of completion. I always enjoyed looking through the dresses, and sometimes Rarity or Yona would use me as a test for larger-build clients to make sure they were comfortable and fitting. I always enjoyed this, but others teased me for it.

“Yona see trouble,” the large yak, Yona, said from behind the counter with a laugh. Many shades of fabric lay out over her back and horns. She had been working for Rarity since the cakes were six or so and was a permanent fixture in their hangouts at the boutique. Pumpkin ran up and hugged Yona. Yona had been a good role model to Pumpkin, even to me to a degree, but those two were close.

“Hey Yona, is Rarity in? It’s an emergency.” Pumpkin said, stepping back from Yona. For her part, she looked concerned, looking between us. She probably saw the poorly masked discomfort on my face. Looking me over, then back at Pumpkin, she pointed to the door leading to the residence of the boutique.

“Fancy pony in kitchen, are small ponies okay?” Yona said in her voice that was both rough and filled with concern.

“Never better, Yona. Thank you.” Pumpkin said, grabbing my ear with her magic and dragging me along with her. In the kitchen, we found Rarity pouring a cup of freshly brewed coffee for herself. She saw us out of the side of her vision and turned with a smile.

“Ah, Pound, Pumpkin, darlings, how are you?” Rarity said with delight that she always looked so happy to see our group; it made us feel special that despite the graying in her mane, she was always a relatable pony for us to go to, and her genuine warmness overshadowed the uncomfortability of my old name.

“We are fine, Rarity, but we do need some help with... Well, not a problem but a thing to do with them.” Pumpkin gestured to me as I stammered out gibberish for a second.

“Whatever is it, darling?” Rarity said, turning to face just me and stirring sugar into her coffee.

“Well, um, I just have been talking to Pumpkin, and well, I have this feeling. I, um, want to be a girl.“ I said, looking at the floor. I did not hear a reaction and did not have the confidence to look for one visually.

“Darling, why don’t you explain this more?” Rarity said it in a soft voice. I looked up at her smile and gestured to sit at her table. I gulped and took a seat, and Pumpkin took one next to me. Rarity floated out scones and chocolate milk our friend Dew stored here, then took a seat across from us. I took a breath and a sip of chocolate milk, then built the courage to speak.

“My entire life, I always hated being called a boy; it made me feel like I stubbed my horn every time I heard the name Pound or he or sir or brother. However, when I was lumped in with ‘the girls’ while hanging out with our female friends, it made me feel happy.” I sat looking at Rarity, who followed with her neutral, warm smile. “Two years ago, on our thirteenth birthday, I wished I could be a girl and started coming up with names and mane styles. I even tried to find a gender-changing scroll. I know it’s stupid, but I don’t want to be Pound Cake anymore; I want to be Swirl Cake.” I realized I forgot to take a breath at the end there and inhaled long and slow.

Pumpkin placed a hoof on mine to show support while Rarity took a sip of her coffee. I’ll admit the long sip scared me slightly, but then she spoke, ‘”Darling, there are words for this. I am honestly surprised you didn’t research this, considering your literary literacy.” She said it in such a casual tone. I wanted to do research on this, but I did not think there would be a book about this subject. I thought I was the only one, so nothing would exist.

“Wait, I am not alone?” I asked, the realization hitting me like the Ponyville Passenger Train; even Pumpkin seemed stunned but just as interested.

Rarity laughed like a lady: “Bless you, of course not, darling. The term for the uncomfortability is known as Gender Dysphoria, I am not the most versed in it, so take my information with a grain of salt, but it is the feeling of discomfort when your body does not align with the gender you are at heart and soul,” she said, reaching over to add her hoof to Pumpkin’s on my own. “Everyone is special Swirl Cake; some like you just need time and support to be the most authentic version they can be.”

“Will you help me?” I asked her a bit meekly.

“Of course, darling, anything you need, just say the word. I am Aunty Rarity after all.” She said with a snark, making Pumpkin and I laugh.

“Oh! Maybe you can help her with her hair and beard.” Pumpkin said, shouting a little in excitement.

“Would you want that dear?” Rarity said, looking at me as I looked down at my hooves, a tad embarrassed as I nodded, making Rarity continue, “Wonderful, Pumpkin, why don’t you wait in the lobby and Swirl you meet me in the beauty room?

I was over the moon and jumped up before anyone could say anything. I was going to finally look like a girl. I am grateful Pumpkin pushed me to do this, and over the moon, Rarity would do this. Fears of Mom and my friend faded away as I awaited the makeover.
> Cake Decorating
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Swirl Cake

The beauty room was a large cylindrical room with a tri-mirror in front of a large chair where one could sit and see themselves from many different angles. I sat in the chair, impatient, waiting for Rarity to come and start on my hair. However, my mind wandered while I waited. Rarity seemed to accept this really fast, then wanted alone time with me. What if this was her attempt to talk me out of this? Heck, even if she is onboard, I don’t know the first thing about girl hair. She will think I am faking this for attention and kick me out of the room. “Maybe I should just leave,“ I whispered to myself.

“Why should you? I haven’t even started, darling.” Rarity said from behind me, and I could see in the mirror that she had a small case full of beauty supplies. “Are you alright, dear?”

I stammered out, “Yes, ma’am,” as Rarity took a stand next to me.

“Would you still like to do this? I know Pumpkin was the one who suggested the makeover, so I just want to make sure you are comfortable, dear,” Rarity asked as I sat and thought for a second. I wanted to lie and tell her something easy, but Rarity would see through that.

“I want this; I am just nervous. Not about you mostly, about everything else.” I said with a sigh, “But would you please do the makeover for me still?”

Rarity smiled warmly. “Of course, dear, let me get your beard done away with, and afterwards, how about you tell me what makes you so nervous? How does that sound?” She said it with a straight razor in her magic.

I nodded and then sat still, letting Rarity get to work on my chin hair. My facial hair was not plentiful, but it still bugged me. I just never did anything with it. I was really scared that if I got rid of it, the ponies around me would see me as feminine and ridicule me. I was also scared I would cut my face open with the razor. On the bright side, I made a scroll that stopped facial hair growth, so after this, it would never come back unless I wanted it to, and I didn’t. The only downside was that it did not get rid of pre-existing hair.

“That should do it, my dear Swirl,” Rarity said, turning me to the mirror to see myself. I was astonished to see what I saw. I was clean-faced. I knew that would be the result, but still. Although I still looked distinctly masculine,.

“I still look like a boy,” I said meekly, not wanting to be ungrateful. However, I needed more. “Can you please start on my hair?” I asked, looking at my hooves.

“Of course, darling,” Rarity said, walking behind the chair I sat in. I felt my hair go weightless as she held it with her magic. “Now, how about you tell me why you are nervous?” That question was hard to answer because so many things made me nervous, so I opted to start with a pressing one.

“I am scared ponies will not like Swirl and-” Rarity cut me off.

“Let’s not pretend like you are not Swirl.” She said it calmly as she sprayed some products on my hair.

“Then,” I continued, “I am worried ponies won’t accept me. I don’t want things to change too much, but what if they do? What if I am treated like a whole new pony?” I sighed, and she mused over my words. Her silence was interrupted by her counting softly down from ten.

“What are you counting?” I asked not to follow where she was going, assuming it was a hair thing.

“Well, darling, if a new pony comes to town, Pinkie will throw them a welcome party. I am just seeing if you get one.” Rarity said it casually, really making me think. Pinkie was borderline supernatural. If she wasn’t already bursting through the doors... “Well, that’s just Pinkie, and she already likes me. I don’t think she could hate anyone.” I tried to argue her point, but I just heard a chuckle from Rarity.

“My point, Swirl, is that nothing is going to change drastically, and you said it yourself. Those who truly care will still care; I am sure your mother responded in kind.” Rarity then noticed my face and sighed, “You came out to me before your mother?”

“I am scared to tell her; if mom doesn’t accept, I am so screwed.” I said I was shaking a bit, but Rarity placed a hoof on my shoulder.

“Darling, as long as I have known your mother, I know no matter what, she will love you. No matter what, darling.” Rarity said, and I stayed quiet. I knew she was probably right, but I was still scared. Rarity continued, “What about your friends? You know they will have your back.”

“I know they will; I don’t know why, but I am not scared of them. I am actually excited to show them my new look.” I said, and it was true. My friends were like an extension of myself, and I knew they would love me for this new me. Our group is already so weird. Between alicorn princesses and convicted felons. It was already unbelievable that we worked; what does a pseudogirl have to worry about? I know I’ll never be a real girl, but maybe something close.

“Well, I am happy to say I have finished your makeover, darling.” Rarity said it with excitement. This made me giddy as I looked at the vanity mirror and stopped. I still saw myself, just with poofier, more feminine hair. I loved the new hair, but I just stared at myself. The unchanged tired eyes. With the sharp jawline and large masculine muzzle, I was, for all intents and purposes, still the stallion from this morning.

“Rarity I’m still a boy.” I said it dejectedly. She hugged me and laughed a little.

“Maybe on the outside, dear, and unfortunately for now there is very little we can do on that front, but you are so far from a boy, my dear. You are a smart young lady with a bright future.” Rarity said confidently, leaving me confused.

“How can you say that, looking at that?” I said, pointing at the mirror, and Pound Cake was staring back at me.

“Because what really matters is the mare on the inside. You are not a girl because of your hair or body. You are a mare because you are in your soul.” Rarity said, looking at me in the mirror too.

I was speechless after that. I just sat and looked in the vanity mirror for a long time. Then it all hit me, and I started to cry. It wasn’t a happy cry, but I wasn’t sad. It was a cry for a new beginning. I cried in celebration of the mare I am. I cried for the death of Pound Cake and the birth of Swirl Cake. I cried to take the weight of my tears off my shoulders. Rarity held me while I cried, and I never let go of the pony that taught me what being a mare meant.
> A Flurry on the Dew
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Flurry Heart

I stepped off the train onto Ponyville station platform. Ponyville was a lot warmer than the Crystal Empire, and I mean that in multiple ways. One of which is the climate; not having the eternal winter of the empire is nice. However, the most important warmth comes from the ponies. I am a regular visitor to the small village, and no ponies give me looks despite my alicorn heritage. The majority of them smile and wave, or even ignore me. This was truly the best place on earth.

Currently, the pony I was looking for on the platform was waving her hooves in the air and yelling my name through her squeaky voice. As I rushed over to the thestral, who was roughly my age, her bat-like fangs and dark leathery wings matched her deep gray coat. All of that made her bright, vibrant fire wagon red hair and magenta-slitted eyes pop.

“Dew!” I shouted, hugging the mare who owned that name, Dew returning it, “How are you? I missed you!”

Dew rolled her eyes and said in her normal sarcastic tone, “Bestie, it has been like a fortnight since we last saw each other; you act like I just came back from the war.”

“Sorry, sorry,” I said, letting go and standing beside her. She was one of the few ponies our age who stood at my height, so I looked her in the eyes as I apologized, “It’s just that the empire is so boring; I just love being here.”

“Darn, that’s crazy. It’s almost like nobility sucks.” Dew said in her normal lack of tact, “You should, like, stop being a princess and move here.”

Dew started leading our walk as I floated my bags and followed, responding with, “It’s not that easy, plus my mother and father need me. I can’t just abandon them.”

Dew was obviously losing steam with the subject and rolled her eyes, jumping and flapping her wings backward to stand next to me, saying, “Well anyway, we should pop by Auntie to, like, say hello. Before we go to the castle,

“OOoOOOooOOOOoooOoOOOoOoOo Yeah! I missed Ms. Rarity!” I said, flapping my wings a tad with glee, and Dew just giggled.

“Also,” Dew continued, “if my sources are true, the twins are there, so you can see your special somepony” She said it with a sly look at me, making me blush my head off.

“Dew! You need to keep my secret,” I practically whispered at Dew, causing her to giggle. “Besides, she doesn’t even like girls.”

“Bestie, you are an idiot, a genius idiot. She is off her gourd for you!” Dew said, cackling as the boutique came into view.

“Well, you don’t know Pound likes you.” I started to say before Dew cut me off.

“I know for a fact he likes me; I just use it for comedy and for favors. The difference is that I know that I am amazing and that people adore me.”

”You are devious,” I said with a chuckle. Dew was one of my best friends, and her jokes like this always made me feel so normal. I forgot I was a princess.

“With pride,” Dew said before coming to a stop in the dirt, me following her lead. “Holy macaroni, my source was right; there is Pumpkin in the window.”

“Wait, you had an unreliable source; who was it?” I asked Dew out of curiosity.’

“My source was that I made it up to call you a disaster lesbian.” Dew said with a smirk.

I slapped Dew over the head with my wing, very lightly, I must add. She just laughed and flew over to the door.
> Learning a lot.
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Pumpkin Cake

“Oh no,” I said, looking out the window to see Dew and Flurry Heart approaching. These were two of my very best friends in the world; however, right now I was desperately trying to hide my sibling. As the duo opened the door, laughing, Flurry Heart ran up and hugged me. As I returned her hug, I saw Dew making mocky kissy faces at me from behind Flurry.

“Pumpkin, how are you?” Flurry asked, letting go of the hug, I wish it didn’t end. I really could not answer the question truthfully: how would they believe my brother is a girl now? I just needed to lie. I was lying partly to Dew, who is the fib queen. I just needed to play my cards right.

“Well, I am just here to hang out with Yona, so I can’t complain.” I lied through my teeth; I think Dew saw through me as she raised an eyebrow.

“What does the little orange pony say?” Yona said from the other side of the room, focused on a cloak she was making.

“Nothing, Yona; have fun with your work,” I shouted back, making her shrug and continue.

“So, Spaghetti Squash, where is Pound?” Dew said she was using one of her many colorful nicknames for me, all of which are fruit-related.

“Sh- He is with mom right now. They are working on a new type of cake.” I said, laughing internally at the double meaning of that statement.

“Uh huh,” Dew said, obviously suspicious of me. I just had to play it cool.

“What are you, a cop?” I said. Great job, Pumpkin, keeping it very cool.

“I mean, her mom is captain of the guard.” Flurry said this in observation, making me face hoof.

“Yeah, be straight with me or I’ll have my mom banish you to a prison far away. Where your only company will be slightly misogynistic sailors.” Dew said with a grin.

“What the heck does that even mean, Dew?” I asked, genuinely dumbfounded.

“Butternut, you are a terrible liar,” Dew said, now deadpanning. That was not good. Deadpan dew meant disaster.

“If something is wrong, you can tell us Pumpkin.” Flurry said, wrapping a giant alicorn wing around me in a hug, and I just sighed.

“What’s going on is insane and a little unbelievable.” I finally gave up on hiding this. They now both looked curious, “I just can’t say anything about it, and to be real with you,. I don’t understand what’s going on.”

“Well, when can we see him, so we can ask?” Flurry said, a little worried. Before I could respond, Dew gasped, and we looked where she was looking.

At the base of the staircase was Swirl, no beard and her hair now down and poofy, curling a tad at the ends. Her eyes now spoke of happiness and a newfound confidence.

“You can ask me now,” Swirl said with a stutter but a force to her voice that sounded like she was going to win a fight, and it looked like she won one against her inner self.

“Holy Cannoli,” Dew said, staring at Swirl a little stunned, as did I; she looked surprisingly feminine.

“You look great, Pou-” Flurry started to say before she was cut off by Swirl.

“It’s Swirl Cake, actually,” she said before taking a shaky breath and touching her mane with a wing. “My name is Swirl Cake, Pumpkin’s new sister.”

The room grew silent, even Yona turning in surprise. We all stared at her for a long time. That made her retreat a few steps back before Dew spoke.

“Oh, so you are, like, trans?” Dew said, questioning Swirl with an unusual amount of care in her words.

“Trans?” I asked for Swirl.

“Transgender,” Flurry piped up, “I learned about it at Pride in the Empire. It’s the T in LGBT. It is creatures whose gender from birth does not align with who they truly are.”

“Yeah, that’s the nerd way of explaining it,” Dew said before noticing Swirl and I’s confused faces “What?”

“What is an LGBT?” Swirl asked Dew and Flurry.

“Yeah, we have never heard of that before; what is it?” I asked as well, causing Flurry to look surprised and Dew to double over.

“You mean to tell me neither of you know what the alphabet mafia is?” Dew said, howling with laughter, making me a bit frustrated.

“Sorry, I don’t know everything you know a-!” Flurry cut me off before I could swear.

“It is an acronym for people of different identities who band together to show pride in who they really are. Boys who like boys, girls who feel that way about other girls, ponies who have complicated relationships with gender, all banded together.” Flurry explained this all matter of factly, like it was the most normal thing ever; however, this was like a punch in the face. A whole sect of the world and its creatures I had never known about; however, one part caught my attention.

“Wait,” I asked. “Girls can like girls?”

The silence that filled the room was audible. Before Dew was so red with laughter, her face matched her hair. Swirl was in her own world, not processing any of us, and Flurry was a little red in the face.

“Y-yes Pumpkin, we can,” Flurry said, stuttering. I had no idea why she was embarrassed, but I felt bad for embarrassing her.

“You are telling me the most obvious girl-liker didn’t know she could like girls?”

“Shut up, you jerk!” I shouted.

Dew was rolling with laughter while I glared at her, then noticed Flurry approaching Swirl. I could overhear what they said and started to walk over as well.

“Are you okay, P-Swirl?” Flurry said, using a wing to lift Swirl’s chin up to make eye contact and smiling down at my sister.  I really wish she would look at me like that.

“This is a lot,” Swirl said quietly.

“I bet it is,” Flurry said with a gentle voice. “Swirl, would you like to come to our girls’ night?”

Swirl looked up at the alicorn, and then at me. I smiled at my sister as she nodded vigorously. I was so happy to have my sister come to the sleepover—a sister I never knew I had, a sister I am so proud of. The four of us soon departed for the castle for the sleepover, like nothing had changed. Really, nothing changed; all that changed was that Swirl smiled a lot more.