Anon the Dragon, Day XV: What Lies Ahead

>You hear the faint sound of voices in your sleep. You shift and toss yourself in bed, the voices slowly bringing you to a half-awakened state of mind.
>Your semiconscious brain starts to register faint words around you. Some are unintelligible, done in hushed and quieted voices. Others are louder and more normal tone.
>"...scales seem to form a pattern..."
>"...possible age could be..."
>"...amphibious in nature?"
>It appears as though a good deal of voices are speaking around you. You force yourself to open your eyes, your vision unfocused and blurry.
>Small, colorful shapes sit around your bed. You hear the shuffling of hooves as you sit up, the shapes moving backwards from the edge of your bed.
>"Shhh! Everyone, try not to startle the specimen! He's awake!"
>The fuck? Specimen?
>Your vision grows sharper and more focused as you continue to draw yourself into the waking world. As things grow more easily distinguishable, you gain a good grasp of the situation.
>There appears to be a group of ponies, seven in total, all staring at you. Twilight is among them, smiling cheerfully at you as you finally wake up. A few of the ponies are busily taking notes, one using a mounted clipboard apparatus and their mouth, while the others levitated scrolls and quills using magic.
>Twilight steps forward, along with a short looking mare in coke bottle lenses. Twilight gives you a broad grin and gestures at the group of ponies.
>"You're finally awake, Anonymous! It's good to see you're finally coming to. We were all starting to get a bit worried you'd sleep all day."
>The ponies all give small nods of agreement. You stare at them all blankly in response.
"Why are all these ponies in my room in the first place?"
>The short mare beside Twilight gives a small cough, before rearing up and placing her hooves on your bedside, presumably to get a better look at you.
>"Well, you see, we're the research team that has been following your developments, Anonymous!"

>You scan over the ponies. The one with the clipboard still seems preoccupied, but general words and gestures of greeting come from the rest.
>The mare continues, her black mane a mess in front of her glasses. She seems to bounce slightly as she speaks, tufts of her shaggy brown coat bouncing with the vibrations.
>"My name is Doctor Swizzle, and I'm the head of the Canterlot Research Department. Of course, we answer to the Princesses due to funding requirements, but that's really besides the point. What IS important is that we have a good deal of questions to ask you!"
>The mare seems overly enthusiastic about the whole thing. It was most likely a big deal to them, considering it held some sort of scientific value.
>It already seems like it's going to be a hassle as you drag yourself out of your bed, giving a stretch of your wings.
>A few awed gasps and furious scribbling on parchment follow the act. You calmly pace over to Twilight, looking down at the alicorn.
"So, where are we going to take all this questioning to?"
>Twilight beams up at you, then trots around you towards your bedroom door. She speaks as she heads towards the door.
>"We'll be taking the questioning down to the library. The others are there waiting for us and examining the data that I've collected over the course of your time here in Ponyville."
>You nod and follow her, your equine entourage at your heels. Swizzle was speaking to the others as she followed, giving what you could gather was a brief history of dragonkind and their study in Equestrian culture.
>As you all reach the bottom of the stairs, Twilight starts to lead you all to the library. You remember it as the place where you and Twilight took tea.
>Twilight begins to speak to you again as you all head down the hall, Swizzle focusing more on her explanation to the group she had with her.
>"Princess Luna is in the library as well, speaking with a few of the others. She seems very happy to see you!"

>You can't help but grin at the thought of Princess Luna being cheerful. The fact that your presence alone could make a princess happy was quite the ego boost.
>As if you needed more of one anyway. Not that it mattered, you're a flying, fire breathing, gem eating dragon.
>Pretty awesome by most standards.
>The doors to the library are already open as you are led in by Twilight. Positioned around the center are a series of tables and booths, all with different kinds of information, with large signs in front of them saying just what was where. Most likely this was all set up and categorized by Twilight herself just for this occasion.
>It felt a bit like being at a school science fair, only with less baking soda volcanoes and planetary models
>The group around you disperses, conversing with more of their colleagues scattered around the room.
>Princess Luna looks up from one of the tables, glancing away from a paper. The sign on the table reads "Draconic Dietary Habits".
>The princess of night trots towards you, a large smile on her face as she nods her head in greeting.
>"Anonymous! It is delightful that we are able to see you on more civil terms than our past meetings. We were just reading on your peculiar eating habits."
>You chuckle nervously, thinking about doing just that as you look around the room. The morning is usually your only time to sneak in any meat in peace. With all these researchers about, you might not be able to.
>Or they might want to all stare at you while you eat. That would be even weirder, honestly.
"Well, I'm glad you have an interest in me, princess. It seems everypony in this room is the same in that regard."
>Princess Luna takes a moment to look around, gazing at the various researchers as they all look over the tables and various bits of data collected by Ponyville's resident egghead.
>"It appears that you are correct, Anonymous. We do not blame them, however. You are a very interesting creature, as far as we are concerned."

>You'd been told time and again by Twilight just how unique and interesting you are.
>You start to walk with Princess Luna around the room, a few of the researchers giving you eager glances.
>None of them stop you to speak, however. They were most likely readying a load of questions for you to answer when the good ol' Q&A starts up.
>The pair of you stop at a few booths, pointing out what you can concerning the information presented on the notes and papers.
>Luna has to take time to explain what a few of the sentences actually mean, or the importance of some of the research. As expected, the princess is incredibly knowledgeable when it comes to the scientific side of things.
>At least, the ones concerning you. She seems to have looked into your existence thoroughly.
>As you both reach the booth concerning that singular test-gone-wrong a few days ago, Luna looks over it suspiciously, taking a few moments to analyze the findings in the paper and data associated with it.
>"That is rather intriguing to us, how your mind handled magical assault. Most dragons tend to have more resistance, even as mere hatchlings."
>Princess Luna gives you an inquiring look. You weren't sure how to respond, since you weren't able to answer the question yourself.
>Magic was weird when it hit you in the head, and you sure as hell never wanted to experience it again. That's about the extent of your knowledge on the whole issue.
"I can't say I quite know myself. Maybe I'm just an irregularity? I don't think I'd enjoy looking into it again, personally."
>Princess Luna looks over you questioningly, then nods as you both move on. You both run the circuit of the booths, conversing over the findings of each of them before finally reaching the end.
>You notice that some of the ponies are gathering in seats around a podium in the center of the room. Twilight and Swizzle were both standing at the podium, Twilight waving you over.
>You bid Luna a quick goodbye before joining them.

>You join the pair of ponies at the podium. Twilight smiles at you and then gestures at the podium.
>"Swizzle and I are both going to give short speeches, and then the floor will be open to you to answer the researcher's questions. Just try to answer them as honestly as you can. If you don't know the answers to a few of them, just say you don't know, okay?"
>Twilight smiles at you reassuringly as you look down at her. She seems confident that everything is going to go just fine during the small discussion.
>You look back at the small group of researchers, numbering no more than 30. It was a small gathering, but still a crowd as far as you were concerned.
>You can only hope you don't say anything stupid to what you assume are the scientific elite of Equestria.
>Twilght takes the podium as you stand off slightly to the side. She pulls out a small batch of notecards, going through them as she speaks.
>"Hello everypony! I'm happy to welcome my respected colleagues and cohorts in the pursuit of scientific accomplishment and cultural unity. Today, we have a very important series of findings made over the past few days that were previously unattainable..."
>Twilight continues on and you zone out, watching the crowd. They're hanging on every word she says, Princess Luna included. You busy yourself with trying to spot patterns in the books on the shelves, trying to not do anything that would embarrass the alicorn.
>As Twilight finishes, Swizzle takes her place at the podium in turn, beginning a rather short speech.
>"Colleagues, coworkers, and most importantly, friends. That's what I see today as we are gathered here to discuss some of the greatest scientific finds concerning dragonkind. What we discuss today will go down in history books..."
>Swizzle is making her own speech, and you feel yourself starting to calm down, psyching yourself up for the questioning.
>A pit quickly forms in your stomach as you see a familiar apple filly bouncing outside of the window.

>Swizzle finishes her speech and gives you a broad smile. She seems thoroughly satisfied with herself. You step behind the podium, looking at the researchers.
>They are all looking at you expectantly. A good minute of silence passes, with the occasional cough in the crowd. You glance over at the leading ponies, who are making slight gestures for you to speak or say something.
"Err...well, thanks for coming everyone. I'm not sure what to say about all of this. You all find me as a very interesting research topic, that's for sure. I can't say I feel that interesting, but that's just me."
>You let out a nervous chuckle, glancing at the researchers. There isn't any reaction from the audience from your poor attempt at humor.
>Jeez. Tough crowd.
>You can see out of the corner of your eye that Scootaloo is peeking into the window and waving at you. Either no one has noticed her, or they are just too focused on you to care.
"Y-yes, well. I suppose you all want to get to the point and get over the part about speeches, right? I guess I'll just start taking questions.
>Immediately, hooves start shooting up in the crowd, various ponies all brimming with the eagerness to have their questions answered. Some even start bouncing in their seats to get noticed.
>You start answering questions as they come to you, pointing out the researchers in the crowd as they ask eagerly.
>Most of the questions are things that you never thought you'd be answering about. What dragons do in their spare time, what it was like to breathe fire, could you walk on clouds, and even a question on your particular bathroom habits.
>You weren't sure why they had to ask that last one, but as the questions wore on, one in particular finally came up, from none other than Princess Luna herself, standing in the back.
>She solemnly raised her hoof. At doing so, the other researchers immediately put theirs down. You point at the last hoof remaining in the air.
>"Where do you hail from, Anonymous?"
>Shit.

>Luna gives you an expressionless look as she stares at you, her question hanging heavily in the air after she asks it.
>You stay quiet as you look around the crowd and then back over at the ponies leading this meeting.
>Both Twilight and Swizzle are staring at you curiously. They probably hadn't through of asking the question either.
>You try to think about what Twilight has explained to you about dragons so far in Equestria, and what you'd seen on the show.
>Scrabbling a few moments for something in your brain, you finally manage some sort of answer.
"W-well, that's an interesting question, Princess. I figured it would be obvious, but I'm from the southern part of Equestria, in the Badlands."
>You feel as if a bullet is dodged. The researches all start nodding to one another in agreement as they begin to go back to raising their hooves.
>Princess Luna looks at you suspiciously, but says nothing as she keeps herself held at the back of the group.
>You look up as the questions resume, seeing four small, bounding shapes coming down the hallway towards the library.
>You can only guess what they were. You look down at the audience in front of the podium, a few hooves still eagerly raised.
"Okay everypony, I understand that there are still questions to be asked, but I believe we should adjourn the Q&A session."
>A few of the researchers look down and put down their hooves with dour expressions. As you step away from the podium, everypony scatters around the library, chatting to one another.
>You see Princess Luna approaching you, but are distracted as you see four small fillies enter into the library, bobbing and weaving between the legs of researchers to get to you.
>The researchers look shocked as they all step out of the way of the oncoming fillies, the four fillies stopping at your feet and cheering.
>"CUTIE MARK CRUSADER DRAGON FINDERS, YAY!"
>They all start to bounce around you, to the surprise of the ponies standing in the room.

>Luna looks down at the fillies and lets out a sigh, then mouths to you from her position.
>"You. Me. Chat in private."
>The alicorn turns around, going to a group of researchers and speaking with them.
>Twilight, meanwhile, is rushing towards you and the fillies, a look of slight distress on her face as she stops beside you.
>"Girls? What are you doing here? How did you even get in? I made sure the doors were sealed and the windows were firmly locked!"
>The cutie mark crusaders all start to hum and look around, before Babs steps forward, looking up at Twilight.
>"Well, ya see, it's not hard to get in when ya got a unicorn that can flip a latch on a window..."
>Twilight glares at Sweetie Belle and shakes her head firmly. Her wings flap slightly in her irritation as she looks over the rest of the Cutie Mark Crusaders.
>"You should know better than to just break into somepony's home! I will be speaking to all of your parents as soon as all this is over. On top of that, I expect friendship re-"
"Twilight, stop. I'm the one that invited them over. I told you last night, remember?"
>Twilight looks at you and then gives an exasperated sigh, rubbing a hoof on her temple as she apparently tries to think of something to say.
>"I know that, Anonymous. But I told you I took the necessary precautions for a reason. This is a very important day!"
>The girls are all looking down sadly. They seem to be taking the scolding pretty hard. You look back up at Twilight from them and shake your head.
"Twilight, I made plans with them first. Those are your plans, that you made. You of all ponies should know the importance of schedules and meeting with your friends."
>Twilight looks at you, her mouth hanging open before she shakes her head and sighs. She pulls her hoof in, then exhales slowly, letting her hoof out as she finishes.
>"Fine then. I'll call the meeting early, but I hope you know we'll have to hold another one now."

>Twilight doesn't seem very happy about having to speak with those dedicated researchers that the meeting has just been canceled.
>You weren't honestly enjoying it too much in the first place. You glance at Princess Luna, who gives you a small nod but says nothing. You then look down at the Cutie Mark Crusaders, who are looking up at you in awe.
>"Are ya'll sure ya wanna cancel this, Anon?"
>You give a nod at Apple Bloom, leaning down and whispering to the gathered fillies.
>"I wasn't having a great time anyway. I'm happy you all came by."
>You can't even deny it to yourself anymore. The CMC have grown on you, even with your blatant dislike of children. Plus, you were wanting to get to know Babs as well.
>The fillies seem excited as you start to stroll out of the meeting room, a few of the researchers staring as you leave with the trail of cheerful fillies. As you all start down the hall towards the main hall and entrance, you decide to strike up some conversation.
"So, was Babs the one that came up with the idea?"
>Babs looks over at you with a mischievous grin, wiggling her eyebrows as she watches you.
>"Well who else woulda thought that up? It was either that, or we catapulted in through your window on the second floor."
>Scootaloo pouts and looks over at Babs, replying to her tersely.
>"Hey! That was a good idea at the time!"
>You start laughing as the girls start a heated discussion on the legitimacy of catapulting in through a window to gain access to the palace. It was a refreshing break from answering questions about your personal habits to a bunch of overly curious ponies.
>It turns out the entrance opens easily from the inside, despite the fillies swearing up and down that it wouldn't even budge from the outside.
>"So Anon! We all wanna show you what we've done with the clubhouse! You'll really like it, I promise!"
>Sweetie Belle is practically leaping as she talks about it, obviously feeling proud of herself.

>The girls are all getting excited as they hop around you. The cheerfulness is infectious as you start to walk with them towards Sweet Apple Acres.
>All of you chat happily as you head down the dirt path, the girls telling you about the aftermath of the encounter with Diamond Tiara.
>Cheerilee had lectured her during the entirety of recess on how insulting other ponies is wrong and hurtful, and had assigned her a long report to write on the importance of working with fellow ponies despite their differences.
>You're just happy that everything ended well and the girls weren't in trouble for it. You'd honestly expected one of them to leap up and buck Tiara in the face for that kind of behavior. You know you would have if you were a colt of school age.
>You tell Scootaloo about how you hung out with Rainbow Dash (leaving out the parts concerning testing her loyalty, however). She seems sad you didn't race her, but looks up at you with a grin near the end.
>"Well I hope you're ready to lose when the time comes, Anon! Nopony OR dragon can come close to how fast Rainbow Dash is! She's the best flyer in all of Equestria!"
>You admire Scootaloo's dedication to her hero. You all are approaching Sweet Apple Acres as Scootaloo finishes her warning on the race.
>Big Mac doesn't seem to be anywhere outside. You do hear some noises coming from the barn, but you decide to not check on it. The girls were busily leading you towards the clubhouse.
>You look at Babs as the rest of the CMC talk, deciding to go on and question her a bit more.
"So tell me about yourself, Babs. What got you into the Cutie Mark Crusaders?"
>Babs looks down and gives a slight shrug as she trots beside you.
>"I...I did some bad stuff a good while ago. I caused a whole lotta trouble for my cuz, and it was all because I was bein' stupid. I ended up apologizin', though. They let me in to the Cutie Mark Crusaders as the leader of their Manehatten branch."

>You nod as you listen to Babs. She looks up at you with a small smile as she continues.
>"I thought it was kinda lame at first, havin' to be all proud of not havin' a cutie mark. It turns out though, at my school, it's a big hit, and a big help. The ponies who got picked on for not havin' any cutie marks now have a place to go to. Some of the locals even took interest and have a sort of "mentor program", since there's a lotta ponies without cutie marks in my area. We've helped a few of 'em get their marks, and it feels good."
>Babs laughs slightly, looking towards the approaching woods as they loomed closer.
>"I might even think about helpin' somepony someday like that. I kinda wanna be like the mentors that work with the Manehatten Crusaders. It'd be nice to help ponies realize their special talents, and help 'em if they get bullied."
>You weren't expecting anything like that from Babs. You aren't able to find any words as you walk with the group into the forest. Babs finishes telling you about her home life and hobbies as you all reach the Crusaders Clubhouse.
>As you arrive, you can't help but grin as you look at the clubhouse.
>Sure, it's not big enough for you to get in without ducking down, but they'd fixed it up fully. New coat of paint, new windows and door, the whole place was redone. The crusaders wasted no time in running up to the clubhouse, Babs following them happily as they all ran into it and around it.
>You decide to spend some time playing with the girls, acting like a monster that's trying to assault their castle.
>What ensues is an imaginary war of epic proportions. The crusaders use nuts, balls, and sticks as their weapons as they try to "slay" you.
>You even decide to add a bit of fun to it by taking each of them up in the sky for a quick flight around the farm, giving the remaining ones time to "ready their next assault upon the dreaded beast".
>All in all, the day wears down with the girls, and you feel you made the right choice.

>You all bid one another farewell, you deciding to fly back to Twilight's Palace, rather than walk.
>You make a running start down the path from the clubhouse forest, setting off into the darkening sky and soaring among the hues of dusk.
>As you enjoy the feeling of the wind beneath your wings, you spot something coming towards you.
>It doesn't take long for you to distinguish the inky blot of stars and darkness by her coat. Princess Luna holds herself steady as she flies towards you.
>You head towards her, meeting her halfway and flying beside her towards the palace.
>She gestures for you to land behind a row of houses on the outskirts of Ponyville. You turn down in a spiral, her following with you.
>Your landing goes smoother than expected, with Luna landing not far behind you. As you shake yourself, getting the water droplets from your scales, the dark alicorn trots towards you, stopping a few feet away.
>"If it isn't apparent, Anonymous, We need to speak with you about a matter concerning the meeting today with the researchers. We are assuming since you had time to spend with a group of fillies that you also have time for a conversation with a princess?"
>You frown slightly at her wording of the question, but shrug casually.
"I suppose I have some time, Luna. What did you need?"
>Luna looks at you firmly, his eyes hard and scrutinizing as they look into yours.
>"Where do you hail from, Anonymous?"
>You wince slightly at the question, and then sigh. You hope you can play it off as nothing. You'd really hoped you'd never have to mention where you came from in the first place. You're already out of place as it is.
"I told you, I'm from the Badlands to the south."
>"You're lying, Anonymous!"
>Luna takes a step towards you, a deep frown on her face as she looks you over. You step back at the sudden exclamation of your falsehood. Luna continues, her face in a serious, angered expression.

>"We've seen your dreams, Anonymous. We've listened to the voices of your past. We have sampled your memories in our visits with you."
>You bite your lower lip as Luna narrows her eyes. She looks you over and continues, her horn glowing slightly along with her eyes.
>"At first, we simply thought it was a strange mind. That you were overly imaginative, or simply unsound. But the tests that Twilight Sparkle has shown us concerning your magical interactions, as well as your obvious reluctance to answer our question during the meeting has aroused our suspicion."
>You wince as Luna names off the reasons for not believing you. Dammit, you should have covered yourself a little better. Or at least expected something like this to happen.
"L-Luna. Just listen to me before you do anything, alright?"
>"We are listening, Anonymous. But we want the truth. Not only have you lied to us, you have lied to our sister, as well as the innocent ponies of our kingdom."
>You nod at the princess as she looks at you. She was far more intimidating than you expected.
>You hated to admit it, but she was pretty damn justified about it too.
>"So we will ask you again, Anonymous. Where do you hail from?"
>You were cornered. You could lie again, but she's already looked inside your head, at least to a degree. She's powerful, and has a lot of reason to distrust you at this point.
>You decide to tell her what you can about your situation, and about your origins on Earth. You tell her of how you were going to visit your family when you had ended up here.
>Princess Luna nods at you as she listens closely. She pulls away slightly, her muscles visibly relaxing as her horn stops glowing.
>It only takes a few minutes to give the princess a summary of the whole situation.
"Luna, I know it sounds far fetched, but you have to believe me. That is the truth, as far as I know. I don't even know how I got here, or why I'm a dragon and not myself."

>Luna seems to be deep in thought as she looks down. You stand still in front of her, relaxing as you feel that she's not about to blast you on the spot.
>Silent minutes stretch on by before she looks up at you again, a look of slight sorrow on her face.
>"We have heard of such things happening, before. Magic is fickle, and as it weaves it's way through our world, it can touch upon other worlds as well. Starswirl had written a book on the subject, quite long ago. But it is a rare occurrence, an incredibly rare one."
>You nod as you watch Luna. She starts to pace around in thought, the pair of you lurking behind the, as far as you can tell, empty homes on the outskirts.
>"Anonymous, we now understand why you would hide your plight from the other ponies. We apologize for our severity, but our suspicion had the better of us."
>Luna looks at you firmly as she continues.
>"We wish for you to accompany us back to Canterlot tonight. Tomorrow, we shall search the archives for something that may bring you back home."
>You'd never thought too much about that. Going back home. The idea seemed nice. You missed it. You missed your friends and your family. You had a scholarship at university, even.
>But you'd be giving up what you have right now. The ponies you've met. The fact that you're a dragon. A whole new chance on life, compared to the insecurity of what you had before.
>...you'd lose Pinkie Pie too.
"I...I don't really know which I should choose, Luna. But I'll go with you. Just let me tell Twilight first, alright?"
>Luna nods at you firmly.
>"I shall bring my chariot to the palace entrance and wait for you."
>You both take flight, going your separate ways. It only takes moments for you to reach the palace entrance.
>You push open the doors, wasting no time as you make a bee-line for Twilight's study.
>There she is, speaking with Doctor Swizzle. As you enter, they both look over at you. Swizzle is smiling broadly.
>Twilight...not so much.

>"Well, look who finally decided to show up this evening. Me and Doctor Swizzle were just discussing you."
>"Oh, yes! I was just discussing Twilight's journals is all. They're very fascinating! You've had quite the busy life, Anonymous. Quite the busy busy life. A shame at the poor reception, though."
>You frown slightly and walk up to Twilight. You look down at her and sigh, thinking of what to say. What if this is the last time you see her?
>No. If you choose to leave, you'll be damn sure to come back and say goodbye.
"Twilight, I need to actually leave for a while. I need to go to Canterlot."
>Twilight looks at you surprised, cocking her head to the side.
>"What? That's a bit sudden, don't you think? What are you doing up in Canterlot?"
>You gesture towards the window casually as you speak again.
"Princess Luna wants me to accompany her back to the castle for some research. She has a few things she wants to test up there."
>You felt bad for lying. But blurting out that you're looking for a way to travel between different worlds and might be leaving forever doesn't feel like a good idea.
>Twilight looks a crestfallen at your words, a small frown forming on her face.
>"Oh...okay then. Well, I hope you and Luna find some amazing discoveries, Anonymous."
>"...how long will you be gone?"
>You smile, giving Twilight's mane a small ruffle. She jumps a bit in surprise as you touch her.
"I'll be back probably tomorrow evening. Don't worry, Twilight. You're still my favorite tester."
>Twilight smiles at your words and nods.
>"Alright then, Anonymous. But I expect to see your discoveries when you make them, okay? Bring back some results!"
>You laugh and nod as you back out of the study, leaving Twilight chatting to Doctor Swizzle. You lose your cheerfulness as you enter the hallway, sighing as you make your way back towards the entrance.
>You have a lot on your mind as you exit the palace and enter Luna's chariot. The both of you ride in silence to Canterlot.

>You both arrive late into the night. As you disembark from the chariot, Luna stops you.
>"We'll be working in the archives in the afternoon, alright Anonymous? Try to sleep well until then."
>You nod at Luna as you leave, feeling the weight of tiredness and choice upon your shoulders. A guard leads you through the castle, bringing you back to the old room that you stayed in during the banquet.
>You open the door, noting that there was only one large bed this time, rather than a spare bed for Big mac.
>You shuffle into the bed and pull yourself in, thinking hard on what you might do, watching the moonlight filtering into the room.
>If you both find something that can bring you home, will you go?
>What will you do if you stay?
>What will happen to your family and friends? Will you just vanish? Will your body just be found dead somewhere?
>It's hard for you to sleep as you imagine your mother crying over you somewhere.
>They must be worried.
>But could you do the same to the ponies here?
>You sigh as you grip the pillows tightly in the bed, closing your eyes tighter.
>When it comes down to it, you'll have to make a choice.
>That thought stays with you as you fall asleep.