When Worlds Collide 1

>"Da... Da.... Mo, mo, mamama!"
>Today was an important day, not only for you but for Equestria as a whole
>Whatever happened in the next few hours could change the little kingdom that you lived in forever
>No one knew what was going to happen
>Not your sister-in-law, not your lovely wife, not Twilight or any of her friends, and most certainly not any of the scientists and military types that had filled the castle to fit to bust these last couple of days
>You, along with your wife and a small party, were going to enter a totally different reality
>This wasn't that crazy >no hooves world in that weird mirror in the Crystal Empire
>This was something else completely
>A world exactly like your own
>It had the same country, the same cute little marshmallow horses
>There were diamond dogs and greedy dragons and all of that other shit
>To your utter bafflement, there was also a human
>His name was Bellerophon, you had been told, though he preferred to called Lero
>You hadn't believed it at first when Twilight had rushed up to the castle to tell you and Celly what she had found
>How could you?
>Ever since you landed in Equestria you had given up all hope of seeing another person for the rest of your life
>But here one was, just a quick reality hop away
>A human being that had watched TV and typed on a computer and went to school and did human things
>And that was exciting…
>But you know what wasn’t exciting?
>All of this fucking waiting...
>You are Prince Anonymous Solare, husband of the prettiest pony princess in the land, and you would have been over there with the girls doing your very best to hurry things along if not for your youngest daughter Radiance, who was doing her very best to kill every single mare and stallion in the room
>Your little girl was sitting in your arms, wrapped up in her fuzzy ducky blanket
>Her bright blue eyes--your eyes-- were staring up into yours
>She wasn't even a year old and she was as smart as a whip


>She was already saying momma and daddy, and she was working on saying auntie Looney
>And not only was she was smart, she was so beautiful, just like her momma
>Her light pink hair teased the fringes of her eyes
>The white fur around her face was fuzzy
>Through the blanket, you could feel her itty bitty wings twitching against her sides
>She was cute as a button
>Cuter even
>You brushed the hair out of your daughter's face, making sure to mind that little horn jutting out of her forehead
"Who's daddy's little girl?" you asked, tickling her chin with your finger. "Who's daddy's sweet little girl?"
>A giggle Radiance's throat
>Eyes lit up, her little hooves shot out of the blanket and began to paw at your hand
>”Ah… do…. Da… nah!”
>You continued to tickle her, your smile growing
"Come on, say you. Say you," you said
>Grabbing your hand with both of her hooves, your daughter looked up at you and puffed out her cheeks
>"Pfffffffffff!"
>Baby spit hit your face as your little Radiance gave you the most adorable raspberry that you had ever gotten
>You could hear ponies awing all around you, but you ignored them
>You were too focused on figuring out how to restart your heart
"Oh, is that how it's gonna be?" you asked, lifting your daughter up nice and high. "You're gonna give your pappa a raspberry, you little stinker?"
>Radiance's giggles turned into laughter
>All four of her hooves wiggled and you could feel her wings slapping against your hands
>When you had had your first daughter Dawn something like that would have scared the shit out of you, but you were a veteran parent now
>You knew no matter what you'd never let your little girl go except when you meant to
>Tossing Radiance high into the air--much to her delight and much to Shining's, who was sitting next to you, horror-- expertly catching her and bringing the little munchkin close to your chest



"I outta boop you right in the nose!" you cried, leaning down to rub the tip of your nose against her muzzle. "I outta boop you right in the nose until you're scrunching your brains out!"
"Daddy... da... da!" your daughter squealed, her hooves lightly tapping the sides of your face
"Who's daddy's little girl?" you asked again, giving her little nose a kiss. "Who's daddy's pretty little girl?"
>Your daughter babbled, wiggling in your grasp
>”Bam… dal… ah… ah… ma… ohh!”
>You, being an expert in baby talk, most definitely heard a "you" somewhere in there
>That or she said Albuquerque
>And since your daughter had never seen a map of the US, you're pretty confident that it's the former
"And don't you forget it, sister," you said, standing back up to your full height and booping her nose
>Though defeated, your youngest daughter hadn't lost the war
>Still babbling, she grabbed your hand again and forced it toward her mouth
>Somehow, probably using some unknown power that all babies seemed to have, the little stinker managed to latch onto your pointer finger before you could stop her
>Usually for a six month old this wouldn't be an issue, but unlike human babies foals' teeth came in a lot sooner
>That and, since she had a bit of human in her, your little girl had canines
>Sharp ones
>Grimacing, you quickly pulled your finger out of her mouth before she bit holes into it
>You received a barrage of angry babbling and the threat of tears for this transaction, but you didn't panic
>Instead, you reached into the baby bag sitting next to you and grabbed a binky, shoving into your daughter's mouth
>Your little Radiance fussed for a bit, her eyebrows furrowing, but eventually she settled down and started to suck
"There's a good girl," you cooed, rocking her back and forth. "A binky's a lot better than your daddy's fingers huh?"


>You heard an exasperated sigh to your left
>"You know, every time you throw her up like that you almost give me a heart attack, right?"
>You looked over at Shining
>Just like you, he had his little girl in his hooves
>Unlike your little bundle of energy, Flurry was asleep, and had been for a good part of the evening
>While that might have been good now, both of you knew that meant a LONG night for him and Cadence
>And you knew how wild that little girl got when she was fussy
>Screaming, crying, lasers, random teleportation
>Not very fun
"Why do you think I do it?" you asked, leaning over and nudging him with your elbow
>"You're keep saying that until you DO drop her," Shining said, hugging his daughter close
"I'm not gonna drop her."
>"You don't know that."
"I do know that, Mr. Grumpy Hooves. And even if I do drop her a five foot fall isn't going to hurt an alicorn."
>And it wouldn't either
>You've seen your little Dawn fall off ten story buildings and walk away absolutely fine
>It had scared the hell out of you when you had seen it, well past the point of a panic attack, but now you knew your little girls were pretty much indestructable
>Which, if you really thought about it, was really fucking cool
>It made trips to the local playground a lot less stressful at least
>Shining, rolling his eyes, looked over at his little sister
>"Do you think they're about ready with that thing?" he asked
>You shrugged
"How the heck am I supposed to know? I've been sitting here with you," you replied
>Shining's nose scrunched up hard--like you knew it would
>"Hey," he said, poking your side, "Don't you sass me."
"I'll sass you all I want, my EMPEROR,” you said with a grin
>Shining's eyes narrowed
>"As you say, your HIGHNESS," he said, bowing his head


>You grimaced, looking over at Twiggles and everyone else
"They have been messing around with that think for a while huh?"
>"It's a transgate" Shining said. "What they're working on is highly theoretical magic. We wouldn't even know something like this worked if it weren't for Beta-Equus's Twilight managing to come into contact with my little sister."
"Beta-Equus?" you said, raising an eyebrow
>"We had to name their world SOMETHING," Shining said with a shrug
"Beta-Equs though?"
>"Don't blame me for the name, it's what a couple of the scientist called it and everypony was too lazy to change it."
>Puff...
>Scientists and their shit naming skills...
>At that moment, your lovely daughter began to get fussy again, squirming in your arms
>Without a second thought, you started to go down the parent's checklist
>A quick squeeze of her diaper told you it wasn't full
>The blanket wasn't too tight around her
>A quick look around told you that no one was making faces at your kid
>Because that DID happen
>You don’t care what your wife says...
>So that meant one thing
>Your little girl was hungry
>Picking up your baby bag with your foot, you managed to get it on the arm of your chair
>Still rocking your daughter, you reached in and blindly searched for a baby bottle
>You could feel diapers, wipes, the good brand of baby powder that kept your girl's bum nice and dry, but what you did not find was an full baby bottle
>Frowning, you checked some of the other pockets
>Again you didn't find what you needed, only empty bottles
"Shining, do you got any milk I can borrow?" you asked, looking over at your unicorn chum
>"Borrow? Are you going to give it back?" Shining asked
>Your frown deepened
"Hey, don't give me guff about sassing when you’re just as sassy," you said, craning to look at his baby bag. "Now be a good friend and give me some of your wife's tit milk."


>"Breast milk," Shining corrected, levitating his bag into his lap and looking into it. "And it doesn't look like I have any."
>...Shit
"Really?"
>Shining nodded, putting his baby bag back down onto the floor
>"Yep. Our little girls are quite the eaters," he said
>Your daughter began to grow more and more fuzzy
>She spat out her binky, making angry baby horse sounds
>If you didn't think of something quick, that would turn into angry baby horse sounds with Royal Canterlot Voice IMAX
>You looked over at your wife, who was working on her thingamajig
"Honey, your little girl needs her momma!" you called
>Celestia looked up from whatever the hell she was doing
>Your wife looked tired
>You could see dark rings under her eyes
>Her mane and tail were a mess, and even from here you could see just how messy her wings were
>But even so she was still the second prettiest horse in the room by and far
>The two little ladies that tied her first place was the little girl in your arms and your little Dawn, who was on the other side of the room playing with Applejack and Rarity
>Saying a few words to the other princesses and scientist ponies around her, your lovely wife quickly trotted over to you
>Radiance, seeing her momma coming over, calmed down somewhat
>"Ma... ma.... mama!" she said, reaching out to her
>Seeing this, your wife put a little pep in her step, and under the watchful gaze of every pony in the room snatched her up and pulled her into a hug
>"Is my little girl being bad?" she asked, nuzzling her daughter, who giggled. "Is she being a bad little girl?"
>"Mama! Mama!" Radiance babbled, patting her cheeks
"Your little girl is hungry, and I'm all out of milk," you said, getting up and stretching


>A groan escaped your lips as you felt every vertebra in your spine pop
"Oh Lord..." you grunted
>Your wife stopped nuzzling your daughter for a moment to look at you
>"You've been in that chair for hours. Why don't you go and take a walk, dear?" she suggested. "Maybe get something to eat? I'm sure that Dawn is quite famished."
"Both of our little girls are always hungry," you said, stretching. "I swear they eat more than me and I'm five times their size."
>"They just want to grow up to me big and strong like their mother, honey."
>With the grace of a mare who could not give a single fuck, Your wife sat down in your chair and spread her legs, showing god and every single pony in that room her teats
>Giving Radiance one last kiss, she levitated your daughter downward
>Shining harrumphed as your little girl began to suckle in earnest
>"Mares..." he muttered
>Celestia ignored him, a happy sigh escaping her lips as she leaned back
"You look tired, hon," you said
>Your wife sighed
>"I and everypony in this room," she replied, before cracking open an eye and looking over at Cadence
>"Cadence! Come over here and sit with me for a few minutes so that our poor husbands can walk around for a few minutes."
>Cadence, perking up, quickly peeled off from the crowd of ponies gathered in the center of the room
>Luna--who was in the thick of things--looked away from whatever the hell she was doing to eye both her and your wife
>"Sister, get your butt back over here! We need your help with these glyphs!"
>Your wife once again closed her eyes
>"Unfortunately I can't, my dear sister," she said, gesturing toward your daughter. "My little filly needs to eat."
>Frowning gently, your sister-in-law looked over at Cadence, who practically shoved Shining out of his chair as she grabbed Flurry


>"And what about Cadence?" she asked. "I can see that Flurry is asleep from here."
>Cradling her munchkin, Cadence leaned back and closed her eyes
>"I'm sorry auntie, but I'm doing mommy stuff too," she said, exhaustion clear as day in her voice
>"Yes, we're both busy with mommy things," your wife said, before leaning toward you and whispering into your ear, "Please take your time doing whatever you need to do. It feels like my hooves are about to fall off."
>Beside her Cadence groaned
>You couldn't help but crack a smile
"You know, maybe it would be a good idea for everyone to take a break?" you said, giving her cheek a pat. "That new reality isn't going to go anywhere."
>"I already tried suggesting that but Luna and my little ponies wish to open this gateway as soon as possible."
>"They already have everything finished on Beta-Equs, and we already accepted a dinner invitation for later today, so we can’t take a break. Unfortunately," Cadence added
>Your wife extended a wing, the tip of which brushed against your face
>"We're almost done, honey. A little more work and we'll all be able to rest before we make history."
"I still think it's stupid that you’re all are working this hard."
>Shining snorted
>"You know mares, Anon. If they don't hurry up and get something done then they don't know what to do with themselves."
>Cadence groaned again
>"Honnnnnnnneeeeeyyyyy. Could you go and get me something to eat while you're up?"
>Shining, seeing that his wife looked ready to pass out, leaned over and nuzzled her
>"What do you want, honey?" he asked
>"Something greasy," Cadence replied, wiggling her hooves. "A hayburger. Get me a hayburger please. A big one. The biggest one you can find."
>"You know that you can't have a hay burger, dear. You know what the doctor said about eating all of that grease."
>Cadence’s nose scrunched up
>"Buuuuuuuuuck the doctor. I'm huuuuuuuungry!"


"We'll go to that burger place down the street and get you something, Cadence," you said, before Shining could open his mouth
>A smile came to Cadence's face
>Shining, of course, frowned, looking up at you
"Let the girl have a burger, you furry little gestapo," you said, before leaning toward your wife's ear. "Do you want anything while we're down there?"
>Celestia twitched, grimacing
>"Don't bite mommy, Radiance. That hurts," she murmured, patting your daughter's head. "And I'll take a hay burger with extra mustard and those fries with the cheese and bacon on them."
"Bacon? I thought you stopped having the meat cravings?" you asked with a grin
>Your face scrunched up as your wife, eyes still closed, booped your nose with a wingtip
>"It's your fault. If you hadn't given me these two treasures then I wouldn't have gotten the cravings that made me become familiar with the taste of pork," she said
>Not one to take a booping lying down, you booped her back
"I'll ask everyone else if they want anything, and I'll take Dawn off of your hooves so she doesn't get into anything"
>Your wife smiled
>"Thank you, dear."
"The baby bag is on the floor, Radiance already had her diaper changed a little while ago so she should be good, and make sure to burp her after she's finished."
>"I will. Make sure to walk as slowly as possible."
>Chuckling, you gave your pretty princess a kiss on the cheek and turned away, making your way toward Luna and Twiggles with Shining bringing up the rear
>...
>3... 2... 1...
>"We should get Cadence something other than a burger," your chum said
>You rolled your eyes
"One burger isn't going to kill her."
>"Last time we went to the doctor she said that Cadence's blood pressure was way too high."


"So? Our wives are super beings, Shining. High blood pressure isn't going to kill them."
>"Hey, just because you like your mares on the thicker side doesn't mean that I should follow your example," Shining said, nudging you
>You made a show of gasping
"Are you calling my woman fat? Because if you are I think a throwdown is in order."
>Shining gave you a look
>"It'll be a quick throwdown then. All I'll need to do is get a little cut and show you blood and you'll pass right out."
>You stiffened at the jab
"People pass out from looking at blood all of the time," you said defensively
>"Especially big, strong human stallions like yourself," Shining said without missing a beat
>The little shit...
>Grumbling to yourself, you playfully mussed Shining's hair up, enjoying the sounds of his indignant protests
"Dawn, honey!" you called
>Your daughter, who was play-wrestling with Applejack while Rarity looked on in thinly veiled disapproval, lifted her head from the farmer's chest and looked at her
>A smile that would have warmed the heart of a Windigo broke out across her face
>"DADDY!"
>With an awkward flap of her wings, your little Dawn untangled herself from Applejack and raced toward you
>Seeing this, you quickly braced yourself
>Though only five, your daughter was a good deal bigger than fillies her age, and she was strong enough to knock you on your ass if you weren't paying attention
>You had learned that the hard way more than once...
>Quickly closing the gap between the two of you, your oldest leapt into the air
>She flapped her wings, speeding toward you
>You exhaled and gritted your teeth
>BRACE FOR IMPACT!
>With a happy cry, your little Dawn's body slammed into your chest with so much force that it drove you back a foot
>...
>Fuck…
>When she got older you were definitely signing her up for hoofball...


>"Daddy, daddy! Me and Applejack were wrestling!" she said, her sweet little voice cracking as her excitement got the better of her
>Trying to keep the pain that you were feeling off of your face, you wrapped your arms around your little girl
>Thank god she remembered to move her horn out of the way this time...
"Yeah?"
>Dawn nodded, her muzzling rubbing up against your cheek as she climbed up your body
>"Aha! We was playin' and I beat her a bunch of times!"
>You looked over at Applejack to see the mare slowly climbing to her hooves
>Though she didn't look TOO worse for wear you could see that she was covered in sweat, her mane sticking to the sides of her neck
>Poor Appul hoers, you were going to have to remember to buy some apples next time you were in Ponyville...
"It looks like it," you said, giving your little girl's bum a little pat. "Hey, are you hungry?"
>Your daughter nodded as you ran your fingers through her rat's nest of a mane
>She was going to have to get it cut soon...
>Your wife might have liked it when it was long when she wasn't the one that had to comb it every morning before she went to school...
"How about you, me, and uncle Shining go down to that burger place near the Charles Cheddar's you like to go to?"
>Out of the corner of your eye, you could see Twilight's ears perk up from across the room
>"Could you get me something, Anon?" she called
"We're going to get everyone something," you replied, as Applejack and Rarity both made their way over to you
>"Ya need some help carryin' the food back?" Applejack asked
>Shining smiled
>"We wouldn't say no to some help," he told her
>"Then we shall accompany the two of you," Rarity said with a toss of her mane
>Applejack looked at the fashionista out of the corner of her eye
>"They need mares ta help bring back food, not look at the stuff real hard."


>Rarity deflated a bit, looking over at the farmer with a glare
>"Hush," she hissed
>One of Dawn's wings lightly tapped the tip of your nose as your daughter assumed her favorite position, sitting on your shoulders with her hooves resting on the top of your head
>"Can we go to the Charlie Cheddar's for a little bit, daddy?" she asked, wiggling around to get a bit more comfortable
"I'm sorry honey but we can't," you said with a shake of your head. "We're going to meet those ponies later today and we need to come right back home so we can get everything ready."
>Your daughter awed, leaning forward and nuzzling the top of her head
>"Okay daddy," she said, doing her best to hide the disappointment in her voice
>When she was smaller she used to be able to rest her head on top of yours, but now she really had to lean down to just nuzzle you
>Your little girl was growing up so fast...
>Soon she'd be getting her cutiemark and going to middle school...
>And she'd be going to college and dating before you knew it...
>Reaching back, you gave her side a little tickle
>She giggled, batting at your hand with a hoof
"Hey, how about when we get back your mom and I take both you and your sister to Charlie Cheddar's?"
>Your daughter perked up
>"Really?!"
>You nodded
>"Yep. We'll even play as many games of lazer tag as you want!"
>Your daughter squealed in delight, making Rarity, Applejack, and Shining smile
>"Okay! Thank you daddy. I love you!"
>A warmth filled your chest as you leaned down and tried to muss up Rarity's hair
>Unlike Shining, the fashionista was ready for it, and gently, but forcefully, pushed your hand away from her
>The party pooper...


"Come on, let's go before the lunch rush starts."

~_~_~_~_~_~

>"When the heck are they gonna get here?!"
>You found yourself sighing as your wife pressed herself against you
>She was in her favorite position, resting her head on your shoulder with a wing wrapped around you
>One of your hands was stroking her Rainbow mane, while the other was scratching Lyra's ears
>Lyra, who was lying next to you, pushed her head into your hand, a low hum escaping your throat
>Though you couldn't see it, her eyes were no doubt closed
>"Patience is a virtue, Rainbow," she said, nuzzling her cheek against the sofa that you were all lounging on
>Rainbow huffed
>"I mean, our Twilight managed to get the stupid gate thing done YESTERDAY! Why couldn't their Twilight do it too?"
>"They will come when the world wishes them to," your other wife replied
>Rainbow's wings ruffled against her sides as she huffed again
>You knew that this wait was killing her
>It was killing all of you really
>There was another reality just like yours, with magic and ponies and everything else
>Another Twilight, another Rainbow, other princesses, and every pony that you knew
>And, from what your Twilight had told you, there was another human in that world
>Not a copy of you, thank god, but a real, honest to god human
>You wanted to meet him
>You wanted to look at another person, to touch them and make sure that they were real
>After all of these years of resigning yourself in never seeing another man or woman for the rest of your life you knew that a man, this "Anon" was out there, but you couldn't reach him


>And you weren't even going to get into just how excited Twilight was to meet someone from another world
>The mare had been bouncing around like a filly for days when the letter that she had sent into the void had gotten a reply
>Even the princesses, beings that were known for being reserved, seemed to be excited for what was to come
>But the problem was that they needed to have everything ready on their side
>So you had to wait...
>You rubbed your cheek against Rainbow's neck
"There's nothing we can do but wait, hon," you said
>"But waiting SUCKS," she replied
>Lyra yawned hugely, pressing the tip of her horn against your hand before setting her head back down
>"You know, if you're so excited you could go and do a couple of laps around the castle," she said. "I heard that the princess has the Wonderbolts patrolling the city skies. Maybe you could ask Spitfire or Fleetfoot if they wanted to race?"
>Rainbow, her ears perking, up lifted her head from your shoulder
>"The Wonderbolts are here?" she asked
>"Yep.”
>Wiggling out of your grasp, Rainbow hopped off of the couch so that she could look at her herdmate
>"When the HECK did they get here?!"
>"The princess brought them in this morning to keep an eye out on everything."
>"Why didn't anypony tell me?!"
>"The princess told us all about it at breakfast this morning," Lyra said, trapping your hand between your thigh and her cheek, nuzzling it. "You would have heard about it  if you hadn't fallen asleep at the table."
>Rainbow opened her mouth
>A small, adorable little blush came to her cheeks, and after a moment she closed her mouth
>"I, um, well... I was tired okay?!"


>"I could tell. You were snoring loud enough to make the table shake."
>"I don't snore!"
>"Tell that to half of Canterlot."
>You scratched your chin, trying to hide your smile
"Rainbow, if you're tired of sitting here why don't you go and spread your wings a bit?" you suggested
>Rainbow's rosey eyes snapped over to you before, biting her lip, she looked over at the door
>"...I don't know," she said. "What if those ponies from the other universe come over and try to beat the snot out of all of us when I’m gone?"
>You rolled your eyes
>This mare...
"The castle is filled to the brim with guards, Dash. If anything happens I'm sure that they'll buy you enough time to come back and kick their butts."
>Rainbow's chest puffed out, just like you knew it would
>"Yeah, I'd show those cheap knockoffs who's the REAL Rainbow Dash," she said, throwing a few punches
>As she cocked back a hoof though, a bright red punching bag with a frowny face on it appeared out of nowhere
>Before your wife could stop her punch her hoof connected to it, producing whoopie cushion farting sound
>A loud one
>Lyra, the tranquil Still Way grandmaster, must have jumped five feet in the air, squeaking like a rubber duck
>"What the hay?!"
"What?!"
>"SDJFNSJNL!"
>You all stared at the punching bag in confusion as it swung on an unseen chain
>"I've never been a fan of cardio to help cabin fever, but there's something to be said about hitting a punching bag."
>You, Lyra, and Rainbow's head snapped upward
>There, floating near the ceiling as he sipped on a glass of chocolate milk, was Discord

>You leaned back against the couch, placing a hand on your chest
>Of course it was Discord...
>"What was hay is wrong with you?" Dash yelled, hopping away from the punching bag and glaring at him
>Discord just stared back at her with a smirk, his mad eyes dancing with amusement
>"We would be here for quite a while if I had to list everything, Dashie," he said, floating down toward the three of you
>Wrapping his lips around a crazy straw--which had more loops and twists than a modern art piece-- he began to drink
>Instead of drinking the chocolate milk in the glass however, he started to drink up the glass itself
>That general feeling of unease you felt whenever the Chaos God entered the room surfaced as you watched this
>Lyra, as if sensing it, gave your cheek a nuzzle
>"Did something important happen?" she asked the draconequus
>Finishing the glass, Discord grabbed the milk--which was still in the shape of the glass-- and threw it over his shoulder
>It hit the wall on the other side of the room and promptly exploded into a shower of confetti
>"I was asked by my dear friend Fluttershy to tell you, Rainbow, and Larry here that the Beta-Equus has finally finished their transgate."
>"Really?!" Rainbow asked, her anger forgotten
>Discord's smirk transformed into a lopsided grin
>"Yes. Like the rest of you I was tired of waiting, so I decided to speed things along on their end."
>"You did, not the other you?" Lyra asked, cocking her head to the side
>Discord chuckled
>"My dear, there's only one me," he said, opening the door to the room with a snap of his claws. "Now come. From what I've been told some of your copies are going to cross to our side any moment."
>Dash disappeared out of the room in a rainbow streak before Discord could finish his sentence
>Lyra, shaking her head, hopped off the couch
>"Thank you very much for tell us, Discord," she said, bowing her head.


>"I aim to please," Discord replied, his gaze snapping over to you as he summoned up another chocolate milk
>"Come on, Fingers. Let's go and find Twilight," Lyra said, giving you a nudge before making her way toward the door
>Tearing your gaze away from Discord, you got up and made your way toward the door
>You should have gotten there before Lyra, what with your legs being so much longer, but with each step you seemed not to move an inch
>What the heck...?
>As Lyra left the room--just as eager to stretch her legs as Dash was no doubt--you looked down at your feet before looking at Discord, who was staring at you intently
"...Did you need something, Discord?" you asked
>The draconequus took a loud slurp of his drink
>A bout of irritation made itself known within you, but you ignored it
"You DO want something right? Or are you just keeping me here to give Lyra and Dash a scare?"
>Discord said nothing, just continued to stare at you
>You shuffled in place, your irritation turning into discomfort and unease
>What the heck was he doing?
>You knew that he acted differently when the two of you were alone, but he usually talked
>In fact, you couldn't get him to stop even if you wanted him too
>So why the silence...?
>The two of you just stared at each other for what felt like an eternity
>Finally, you could take no more
"Discord!"
>To your surprise, Discord twitched, his snake-like body tensing
>"Hmm? What was that?" he asked, blinking
"Why are you keeping me in this room?" you asked, not quite able to keep the anger out of your voice
>The draconequus frowned
>"Keep you here? Why would I do that my boy? I just thought you were admiring my flawless face and was giving you a chance to take it in all of its glory."


"So I can leave then? You're not going to stop me?"
>Floating over to the couch you had just been sitting on, Discord draped himself over it
>"I have no idea what you're talking about," he said, lazily scratching his chin. "But if you no longer wish to look upon perfection then you should meet the others in the throne room."
>He rolled onto his back, waving you toward the door with the tip of his tail
>"Run along, and tell dear Fluttershy that I won't be able to make it to the big event, my good man. I am quite tuckered out after such an eventful day."
>You just stared at him with a frown
>What was he playing at?
>Why was he acting so weird?
>The unease in your belly grew, but with a shake of your head you made your way toward the door once again
>You didn't have time to think on Discord's nonsense...
>You had to meet with your girls...
>They were probably wondering where you were...
>This time, you made it across the room with no problem
>Stepping out of the room unto the hallway, you looked over your shoulder to see the draconequus staring at you
>"And Leopold, my dear boy? Could you do me a favor and send my regards to the other human when you meet him?"
>He took another sip of his chocolate milk before loudly smacking his lips
>"Him and those two little fillies of his."

~_~_~_~_~_

>"The spells are in place, your highness."
>"We also rechecked those runes around the gate. They seem to be working perfectly, Princess Twilight."
>Be Twilight Sparkle
>You had no idea when the last time you had taken a bath, and you could count the number of hours that you had slept this week
>Your mouth was dry and you were also so hungry that you probably would have been able to eat the burger place down the street out of house and home if you would have gotten your hooves on some bits



>...You were also shaking
>Badly
>But how couldn't you?
>You and everypony in this room were about to make HISTORY!
>You were about to greet ponies from a different reality entirely!
>They'd be writing books about this for the next thousand years!
"Thank you very much," you said to the two mares standing in front of you
>They nodded their heads before quickly making their way out of the room into the safety of the hallway, leaving you, your fellow princesses, your herdmates, and your BBBFF
>You were all standing a safe distance from the transgate
>The other princesses, of course were standing there very calmly, as was your brother and Lyra
>Rainbow looked irritated, and Leo looked...
>Anxious?
>Nervous?
>Maybe a little bit of both with a bit of excitement thrown in?
>"It's taking them quite a while to step through their side of the gate," Luna said, staring at the gate with a hint of suspicion
>"They're probably just double checking everything," Cadence replied
>Princess Celestia nodded
>"Yes, I'm sure that they'll be here in a matter of minutes," she said. "Remember Luna, until a few months ago, tearing holes into reality was nothing more than a far-fetched theory. They have every right to be cautious, of both the travel and of us."
"Which is why we're going to do our best to make them feel welcome!" you said with an excited little hop
>"It is not their discomfort I'm worried about," Luna said, her eyes narrowing. "I'm far more worried about whether or not soldiers are going to be the first ponies through that gate..."
>"That's not going to happen, Luna," Princess Celestia confidently said, placing a hoof on her sister's shoulder. "We're going to have a lovely dinner together with our counterparts. Nothing is going to happen and our meeting will only be beneficial. Just have a little faith."


>"And if they ARE a bunch of evil dozos we'll knock ‘em into next week!" Rainbow said, throwing a few punches at the air
"The princess is right. Nothing's going to happen," you said, looking at the ponies, and human, standing around you with a smile
>Looking back at the gate, that smile diminished somewhat
>...
>Oh sweet Celestia above you hope that you didn't come in contact with a reality full of evil ponies
>Please don't be that...
>Pleasepleasepleaseplease don't be that...
>Feeling panic growing in your stomach, you took a few deep, calming breaths
>...
>The princess was right...
>Nothing was going to happen...
>The you in that other reality was just like you
>She wanted nothing more than to talk and to be friends
>Maybe she had some spells or books for you to look at when she crossed over
>Maybe--
>As you were about to exhale your lungful of air, something darted through the gate and bounced toward your group
>Unlike a normal portal, it seemed like the transgate made no noise when something passed through it, so all of you were taken completely by surprise
>OhsweetCelestia!
>In an instant, Shining's horn glowed, encasing half of the room in a shield
>A second later Luna's magic added to the barrier, then Cadence's, then finally Celestia's
>More than a little concerned, you were about to add your magic to the shield when you noticed what was slowly rolling toward you
>It was a ball...
>A little red ball with a ducks all over it...
>It rolled over toward the shield, touching it
>You all tensed, thinking that it was some kind of bomb or magical ball of doom, but nothing happened


>It looked like it was just a ball...
>...
>Who the HECK was throwing balls?!
>You got your answer a minute later as somepony leapt through the portal
>A filly, as white as virgin snow
>A filly with bright pink hair and some of the bluest eyes that you've ever seen
>But that wasn't all
>You could see a horn on her head...
>...And a pair of wings on her back...
>...
>An alicorn foal?
>Out of the corner of your eye, you could see both Luna and Princess Celestia stiffen at the sight of the filly
>"Dawn Mary Solare!"
>Every single one of you jumped as a voice ran out, the filly included
>You all watched as two figures stepped through the gate
>One of a mare that could have been Celestia's identical twin
>The other was a human just like your Leo
>This human was holding a foal in his arms and had a baby bag slung over his shoulder
>While the mare--probably their world's Celestia-- looked like she was about ready to have a heart attack, the human just looked irritated, walking over and grabbing the filly by the scruff of her neck
>"What did I tell you about playing with that ball so close to the gate?" he demanded.
>The filly's ears flattened against her skull
>"Sorry daddy," she said, looking down at the floor
>The human was wearing a suit, you saw
>Just like the filly, a deep, rich blue
>...
>Wait...
>Does that mean...?
>"You're lucky I don't beat your butt in front of all of these ponies, young miss," the human said, setting the now very sorry looking filly down.

>He then looked over at you with a nervous smile
>"I'm sorry about that," he said, running a hand through his hair, revealing a question mark-shaped scar on his forehead. "You know kids, if you don't watch ‘em they'll do their best to give their poor parents a heart attack..."