My Little Realities: C32 - Epilogue

My Little Realities: C32 - Epilogue

>day [spoiler]slooowwww[/spoiler] in Equestria
>you wake up from a pretty good night’s sleep
>you missed that a lot
>often, you would wake up from your slumber, expecting to fall into the nightmare again
>but peaceful rest was slowly making its way back into your life
>Rhobunotrialinazepadonineamol is a hell of a drug
>it’s also making your errand thoughts and daydreaming back to what it used to be
>more focused on fun things, like tinkering with computer bits and guns
>mostly guns
>however, you’d cleaned them all back to over-brand-new clean like three times
>all of them
>they would not get any cleaner
>inside and out
>you’d even scrubbed the screw threads clean and gently wiped the finest layer of oil over them
>every last pin, spring and bolt
>every barrel and receiver
>all maximum spotless and coated with a clean layer of fine gun oil
>stocks all wiped down and polished up
>you were bored
>there’s something obvious that you’re missing
>something you know you forgot or haven’t thought about
>what in the world could it be, especially now that you have a fair bit of free time?
>you could always reload a bit, but your ammo stocks weren’t bad
>apartment wasn’t dirty
>didn’t feel like drinking yourself into a coma or anything
>you liked how there was no threat of being turned into meatball lasagna by a fucked up Root
>was nice, not having to worry about that
>however you were used to doing stuff, and apart from that nagging thought that you were forgetting something, you had no stuff to do
>knocking at the door
>who in all of fuck could that be
>you answer the door
“Twilight?”
>FRIENDS!
>yep, that’s what you had forgotten
>what the fuck, how do you even forget that?
“Am I interrupting something?” she asks
>right, you still had that dumbass expression on your face
>the one that comes hand-in-hand with the look you get when you’re at the altar, about to say “I do” and you realize that you had forgotten her middle name or something
>in short, you looked pretty fucking retarded
“Oh, no really, you weren’t interrupting anything at all. In any way” you reply
>oh shit you did that thing where you try to convince someone that they weren’t interrupting you and end up making them more suspicious of your reply
“Ooookay… I was just dropping in to say hi. How are you? We haven’t seen you for a few days” she says
>you look down and to the side
>yeah, the last couple of days have been a little weird
>first, very awkward due to the poor nurse
>she hadn’t really said anything, she’d just pointed at the door
>you’d dropped off a bouquet of flower and a card saying “I’m sorry about the mess” at her door later
>you wondered if that would help
>you took Tan back to the lab
>he looked a little dejected but that might’ve been the Magos costume
>Twilight hadn’t said much
>she looked so confused, and a little scared
>you were dropping her off at her suite and she just blurted out “What is wrong with your species?!”
>you just rubbed your face and shook your head, mumbling “I don’t really know”
>the meds had made you a little woozy so you stayed in and lost track of time
>especially with your sleep being a little more pleasant than a day spa in hell
“Oh, well it’s been a little weird but I’m doing quite well. Thanks for stopping by, I actually wanted to see a friendly face… Come in, come in” you reply
>she canters in, looking at you, expression becoming a little serious and a fair be more sincere
“Did… Did you need to talk about anything?” she asks as the door closes behind her
>you’re a little worried by her earnest expression
“Uhhh… Nothing really serious or anything… Honestly I was getting kinda bored, you showed up at a good time” you reply
>this seems to set her at ease
“I’m happy to hear that, I was afraid the medicine wasn’t working or something…”
“Actually it’s been working well, I’m surprised myself at how quickly it came into effect. I’ve been able to sleep properly for the first time in months” you say with a content smile
>you take a seat near one of your workbenches and offer her the mattress
>you really need to get a goddamn couch
>and a hat
>you make a post-it “to do list” in your left eye vision
“That’s wonderful, Anon! I can’t imagine how horrible this all must have been for you…” says Twilight, hopping on the bed
>Twilight turns a few times on the spot before sitting on her haunches
>like a cat making sure the pillow/router/keyboard/face it wants to sit on is to its liking
>you HNNNNNNNNNNNGGGG internally
>are these p0nies trying to fucking kill you
>the chest pain fades slowly
“Yeah, I haven’t felt this good in quite a while” you reply, relaxed
“Have you been up to anything apart from catching up on some well-deserved rest?” she asks
“Not much, I have to admit I went a little OCD and cleaned all of my guns a few times… I think it’s because I’m finally settling in to my apartment, you know…”
“You cleaned all of them? Why? I’ve been wondering about that, Anon. Why do you still have all of your weapons out like this, even when they aren’t needed?”
>you’d mentioned before how it had been your hobby
>but you’d never really gotten into explaining exactly why you had many, many dozens of these things
>you breathe deeply
“Back in my world, years ago, we thought our society would go from bad to worse. There were riots and wars, both civil and international. It all happened when I was a teenager, and like many of us, we didn’t feel safe. We knew that there might be a time that our police and army might not be there to protect us.”
>as always, whenever anyp0ny started talking about something completely unknown to Twilight, the purple p0ni became all ears
“So at first I only had one gun. I still have it. I had that rifle over there”
>you point towards a worn old Colt 6920
“I practiced whenever I could spare the change for ammo. I shot it and shot it some more. I met up with people and even practiced with them a bit. It felt… Nice somehow. I would smile and feel at peace, I would crave the smell of burning powder. So I got a few more, and a few more…”
>you look around the room, almost every inch of wall surface had a rifle, pistol or shotgun on it
“It grew into a small collection. In the end it wasn’t about how a new gun would kill better than an old one, or how it made me feel safe… It was about how I liked the way it looked, or how it felt to shoot. In the end, I think I just got them because I liked them”
>Twilight is silent, her face is hard to read
“I can’t say I really understand… I mean I don’t even really know how they work...” she says
>you wave her over
>picking her up, you sit her on the workbench
“Hey! What are you doing?”
>she’s more surprised than anything
>you grab the closest firearm in front of you, an AKM-74
“Most are pretty simple and exploit rather basic physics” you start
>some time later you’re sitting in front of five rifles, two shotguns and three pistols, all detail stripped
>ammunition and empty cases all scattered about
“Anon… Anon stop for a bit…” says Twilight, interrupting you
>you had started to cover the basics of rifling twist
>Twilight may be getting tired, you have taken off nonstop for the last…
>four hours
>fuck
“Just gimme a second, I need to find my spare parchment” finishes Twilight
>you notice she has a neat stack of notes and diagrams
“Uhhh… Do you want to take a break?”
“This is so interesting… All this information and I’m gonna study it!”
>she looks a little manic
“Oookay how about we pick this up later…”
>oh no
>not the puppy dog eyes
>no, she already did the little cat-twirl-before-sitting-down thing
“I… I don’t have any parchment here! Why don’t we go out and get some.” You suggest
>her expression changes quickly
“Sure, good idea” she replies
>perhaps you can also get a hat and a sofa at the same time
>you both head to the door
>light assaults your eyes
>fucking hell it’s bright out
“Gaah!” exclaims Twilight
“Anon, you should really consider opening your windows more, I forgot what time it was” she finishes
>no can do, Twi
>your cave will remain sun free
>your eye adjusts
"By the way, Twilight, I was hoping to find a hat and maybe a sofa... I don't think the bed makes great guest seating" you say
"That's not a bad idea, you apartment is kinda... Bare..." she replies
"You know, I can't disagree with livening up the place a little..."

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MLR Miniseries begins here.  If you're interested, please go check them out in my pastebin under the main title "MLR Miniseries"
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ix38fnllF3Y
>it's been many, many years since you've gotten this couch
>unlike the previous one, this couch has followed you across the many rooms, apartments and houses you've lived in
>you can't say you find it very comfortable
>not anymore, anyway
>your physiology kinda didn't fit it now
>it's still a great big sofa, and probably the only piece of furniture you're attached to
>it bears a lot of use, the permanent deformations marking the position of your friends and you
>spots of juice stains and cupcake icing
>to anyone else, this should be condemned, thrown away, burned
>but you can still see them clearly, huddled together in front of a wall-projector
>laughing, crying, nibbling at snacks
>falling asleep, bunched up and warm
>you were different back then
>still mostly organic
>however you still felt like the same Anon that went to Pinkie's parties
>that watched Rainbow's acrobatic flights
>she had finally shown you a Sonic Rainboom, and words did not do it justice
>that would sit and just let Fluttershy's animals perch around and on you
>perfectly calm and at peace
>how Twilight and you would spend hours just geeking it out over the most ridiculous things
>you even had fun with Rarity's fashion lines, inspired by her work with Tan's Warhammer 40k costume
>that was a radical year for fashion
>many jimmies were rustled
>she made a lot of bits
>Applejack had always been there when things needed to get done
>she'd go over to help you as the museum was being built
>she was just too bored, waiting for winter to pass and for most of the apple trees to recover from being transplanted to new P0nyville
>from there on in, things had been a rather rocky ride
>you'd had so many adventures together
>your earth was still trucking along, even with some odd stuff going on
>you still quite didn't get the whole "techno-consciousness exploration" doodads that were the current fad
>Roots were a more or less common sight, Tan had been a good teacher and mentor to his new brothers
>you always went back to the museum, once a year, taking the entire day to pay your respects and apologize to those who had been sacrificed
>time was rather hard on you
>you knew this would happen
>it was the downside of an augmented memory and your abnormally altered biological functions
>you did not know how Celestia and Luna could hold up so well
>you shake your head
>that was folly
>you know full well how they hold up to time and the weight of memories like this
>the older you get
>the bigger your heart becomes
>you really have turned into a teddy bear
>the gentleness in Celestia's voice
>the thoughtfulness in Luna's actions
>they all show you, plain as day, that the loss of old friends and the making of new ones is the answer to the weight of time
>you have your six friends to thank for that
>nop0ny else could have made a plush toy out of you
>the Princesses were always so kind, you enjoyed their company greatly
>they did not have much time to spare, these days
>a kingdom needed them more than you
>they called you once in a while, as an unofficial councilor
>it had been a busy time for them, and a quiet one for you, however
>needing to leave the deafening emptiness of this room, you pick up your ancient bones
>you need to go take care of the museum
>you feel light, lighter than usual
>you know it's time to go out and make new friends
>you're going to see your old ones, though
>you take off your hat, the weathered thing was in tatters
>dried, beaten, sun bleached, wrinkled, falling apart
>you would keep on fixing it when it came apart
>you place the hat against your chest
>remembering the day when you gained a couch and when your friends gave you this hat
>you clutch it tightly, as if to push out the crushing pain in your chest
>you drop flowers under a massive, towering tree
>they were off on an adventure that you would not be a part of
"I'm sorry... I want to thank you for everything, from the bottom of my heart. Sparks, Pinks, Rarity, Jack, Shy and Dash... I love you all so much..."