Arc Two: Mirror, Mirror

Part One

Death was every bit painful as she thought it would be. She felt herself run cold as her lungs desperately tried to breathe and her blood ceased to flow. She remembered her vision slowly fading until it finally went black.

There was no denying it. Weiss Schnee was dead.

So why did she not feel dead?

Weiss was no stranger to the feeling of expensive sheets and blankets. With her eyes closed she felt her hands twitching and her chest rising and falling. Apparently she could breathe. The blankets weren't too light or too heavy, they felt just right. But she was supposed to be dead. Dead people shouldn't be able to feel. How was she even here — wherever 'here' was? Maybe this place was the afterlife. It was really the only logical answer, considering her deceased status.

It would have been nice to move — or to at least open her own eyes — but Weiss couldn't bring her own body to follow her orders. Her eyes refused to open and her limbs would not move. It was as if she were trapped in her own body.

Suddenly Weiss's thoughts turned to her family. She was dead. How would they react? Father was placing much faith into his plan to make her the heiress to the Schnee Dust Company. Without her, who would that responsibility fall to?

Perhaps Whitley would be up to the task. But her brother had never known the meaning of the word 'responsibility'. Weiss couldn't even predict if he'd mourn her. She didn't let herself be saddened, though

She took comfort in knowing that Winter, Father and Mother would all be deeply saddened. Her sister was always the most caring of the family. And despite their distant nature, her parents still cared. When they learned that she had been murdered-

Weiss suddenly forced those thoughts away. Her family would be devastated, why would she want to think about that? But really there was nothing else for a dead person to think about.

If she could have groaned, she would have.

Her mouth refused to open and her limbs refused to move. Her arms,as if pinned by an invisible force, remained stuck at her sides. Weiss chalked that up to the fact that she was recovering from death.

At the sound of a door opening and closing, Weiss would have jumped if she could have. She heard what sounded like many pairs of footsteps as they clicked against the floor. They were heading towards her.

Immediately Weiss's mind jumped to the worst possible scenario — White Fang members here to kill her. But then again she was already dead. So who else could it be? If she truly was dead, then was this the afterlife?

She heard whispered voices, at least one woman and two men but possibly more. Weiss couldn't detect their Auras, but then again she couldn't feel her own either. Her heart began beating faster. In her state she was helpless.

Whoever was here with her must have somehow sensed Weiss's distress. "Calm yourself," The woman said in a deep tone and slightly louder than necessary. "We are not here to harm you." The woman's voice came from Weiss's right.

Weiss's beating heart suddenly skipped a beat as another voice spoke from her left. She hadn't even heard anyone walk to that side! "The storm must have done a number on her if she still can't open her eyes." The new voice was male, with an authoritative edge to his voice that reminded Weiss of the Atlesian general, James Ironwood.

Weiss heard the woman hum in thought. "I'll need some time alone with her, if you please." At those words Weiss felt an instinctive chill run down her spine. Distant but still fresh memories of her father ran through her mind...

But all of the sudden the chills in her spine were replaced by a warmth throughout her entire body. Weiss's heartbeat slowed to normal speed and her limbs turned numb before suddenly regaining feeling. Her eyes opened.

And almost immediately closed again. Weiss let out a grunt as her eyes burned with pain. The light was too bright. The woman spoke again. "Slowly. Take time to gather yourself."

Weiss wanted to respond but could only manage a quiet hum. She took a long, shaky breath and slowly slid her eyelids open. Though the light burned yet again she found it bearable in a slight way. Weiss blinked rapidly as her pupils adjusted.

"Well," the woman began. "That is surprising. I would have guessed It would take you another day at the least to open your eyes."

Weiss chose not to respond and focused on moving her limbs. With her eyes open she could see the ceiling above her. It was a stark white with a smooth surface, not a slight imperfection anywhere. It reminded Weiss of her home.

She let out a whine as a stabbing pain made its way through her side. Weiss heard the woman to her right shift slightly but she made no movements towards the heiress. Weiss squeezed her eyes shut. The pain was just too much.

"Allow me," the woman said softly. The hairs on Weiss's neck stood stiff as the air suddenly felt like it was full of electricity. A coolness gradually made its way down her body starting at her head and slowly moving to her feet.

As the cool feeling touched her, Weiss felt the pain begin to dim until it was gone, replaced by a sense of relief. She opened her icy blue eyes again and took in a deep breath. Her body no longer felt stiff or heavy. She felt rejuvenated, and slowly lifted her hand.

She brought it in front of her eyes and spent a few seconds just staring at it. Her pale skin and white sleeves were still there. Weiss sighed yet again and lowered her hand as she sat up.

Just as she managed to completely lift her torso, Weiss felt a hand rest on her shoulder. Her head snapped to the side and she saw an unfamiliar woman standing before her. She had long, wavy, almost hip-length dark blue hair with eyes to match. Her face was rounded And nearly devoid of imperfections save for a single scar just above her eyebrow.

The woman flashed Weiss a warm smile. "Hello." She greeted softly. "My name is Luna." The woman — 'Luna', apparently — had a figure similar to Professor Goodwitch but her face reminded Weiss of her sister...

Weiss looked away from Luna and shook her head to clear her thoughts. "My name is Weiss." She responded while taking a look around the barren room. There was nothing here except for the bed and a small stand at the left side of the bed. "Weiss Schnee."

She couldn't see the small smile that found its way onto Luna's face but Weiss could practically feel it. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Weiss. I'm sure you must have questions..."

Weiss looked at Luna, and then around the room, and then Luna again. "Maybe one or two..." Luna let out a small laugh at Weiss's words, causing the heiress to shoot her a glare.

"That is understandable." Luna said as her laughter died off. "I would be lying if I said I did not have questions of my own, Weiss Schnee."

Weiss raised a hand at the use of her full name and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Just 'Weiss', please."

Luna nodded. "As you wish, Weiss. Let us begin, then." The woman waved a hand towards Weiss, week took the gesture as a sign to ask a question.

Weiss did not miss a beat with her question. "Where am I?"

The answer, however, did not come as swiftly. Luna opened her mouth but then closed it with a barely noticeable frown. "You're in my home. This is our guest bedroom." Luna used her arms to gesture around the barren room.

Weiss was not impressed. She knew how to tell when someone was avoiding a question. True, Luna had technically answered truthfully, it was obvious that something was being hidden. Weiss crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes as she spoke. "I would like to know what kingdom I'm in."

The room reminded her of Atlas's furnishing techniques. Minimalist approach for every room not meant for someone important or wealthy. A white color palette, accentuated with cold colors. Everything pointed to Atlas.

Weiss brought a hand to her pounding head just as Luna answered. "We are in Atlas — its outskirts, to be precise." Weiss acknowledged Luna with a nod.

Weiss did not want to speak with her head suddenly hurting again and she assumed Luna was waiting for her to speak first, so the two found themselves in a stalemate. The heiress rubbed her temple with her thumb as she groaned in pain.

"Oh?" Luna piped up, leaning forward and reaching out towards Weiss. "I should have known... You have just awoken. Your body is still healing." Before Weiss could ask for an explanation, the woman stepped back and looked towards the door.

Weiss suddenly felt herself grow tired. Her head dipped down as her eyelids slowly closed. She heard footsteps behind her just before something pulled her shoulders, forcing her into lying down. She wanted to struggle but her limbs refused to move.

From the edge of her vision Weiss saw Luna walking to the exit. The woman turned towards the bed and flashed a sorry look. "We will continue this conversation once you're well rested. We have much to discuss."

Weiss wanted to protest but whatever words she tried to say came out as unintelligible mumbling instead. Her vision darkened and her head swam. Weiss's eyes closed completely, and just like that the heiress was asleep yet again.

The door clicked shut behind her. The blue alicorn kept a calm face but on the inside she was anything but. Countless feelings raced through Princess Luna's mind, from confusion and annoyance to pity, and even excitement.

It had been eons since Equis had seen a new species. This creature, a 'human' named Weiss Schnee, was certainly interesting. Everything about her was strange, from her looks to the way she had suddenly appeared in the middle of the night. Luna blinked her thoughts away. She could ponder them later, after she talked with her sister.

The princess began walking, the guard at her side falling behind with a stoic look on his face. Their hoofsteps echoed off the walls of the empty hallway. Nopony — aside from Celestia and herself, and a few select guards and servants — were allowed in this area of the castle. This hallway was near the very top of the castle, just below the princesses' rooms.

The two turned a corner and stopped in place. "Go down four floors and ask for Windy Gear," Luna told the guard without turning to face him. "Ask her how much progress she has made on the creature's weapon. I expect you to return with the answer within two hours."

Though she could not see it Luna heard the guard's armor clink as he saluted. With a declaration of "Yes, Princess!" he walked ahead of her. Luna stood still as she watched him disappear behind yet another corner, leaving her alone in the hallway.

She waited for a few seconds. Luna closed her eyes and listened closely — listened to how the air moved ever so slightly around her and listened to the sounds of her own breathing. Other than those sounds she heard nothing. She was well and truly alone.

There was a pop.

Luna opened her eyes and nearly let out a sigh, but withheld it. In front of her was the form of Discord, floating in the air in a way that looked as if he were lying on nothing. His serpent-like body trailed down the hallway, ending with his feet kicking back and forth and his tail wagging like a dog. He had decided to make himself longer, apparently.

And his smirky grin that seemed to always be plastered on his face whenever he saw either Luna or her sister was there. As if noticing her less than pleased reaction to seeing him, Discord's smile only grew larger. "Aww, what's wrong, Luna? Not happy to see me?" He stuck out his lion's hand towards her. Luna didn't react.

"I'm not happy about anything right now, Discord." She said in a flat tone. Luna felt something caressing the side of her face and flicked her eyes to the side to see a smaller version of the draconequus standing on thin air, rubbing her cheek.

The smaller Discord noticed the well-hidden glare in her eyes and backed away slightly. "Come on, Lulu, lighten up! I just want to chat." There was a quick flash of light and the small Discord was gone. Luna's attention was grabbed by the real Discord talking. "Or is it wrong for a friend wanting to help out another?"

Of course. Luna's horn sparked to life and encased Discord's head in a blue aura. He found himself pushed to the side, apparently hard enough to send him crashing into the wall at his side. Though Luna knew she didn't put thatmuch power into her magic.

"Stop fooling around, Discord." She ordered with annoyance. When she tried to step forward, she found her path blocked by his limp body sprawled about on the floor. "And pick yourself up, this instant!"

His head perked up and he rolled his eyes. "As you wish, princess." He lifted a hand and found it grasped by a perfect copy of himself. The copy pulled his double up with a groan and placed a hand on the original's shoulder. Discord dusted himself off and with a snap of his fingers the clone vanished. "Happy?"

Luna looked at the chaos god. He had shrunk himself down to his regular size, his head just barely shorter than the roof of the hall. She looked down at her hooves to find that she was now free to walk. "No." She replied and stepped forward.

She barely made it five steps before Discord appeared at her side yet again. "You know, Luna, I find this whole situation to be quite fascinating. Yes, quite fascinating indeed. You ponies just don't know how boring it can get around here. There may be the tradition of a new threat at the start of every season but even sticking to that formula gets stale every once in awhile. This alien creature should shake things up around here!"

Luna cast a glance at him and stopped walking. Discord didn't seem to notice though and kept floating through the air. When he did notice he looked back at her and saw Luna's disapproving glare. He tilted his head. "What? What did I say?"

The princess simply sighed, though with a small trace of a smile on her lips. "I should not be surprised that you know of the alien. How did you find out?"

Discord laughed and zoomed over to Luna, wrapping his arm around her. "Oh, how could I not?" He asked gleefully. "She made such a big boomwhen she appeared! And forgive me for saying so but I do believe that she'll cause some delicious chaos around here. Tell me, when are you planning to let the public know? I'm sure we'll get some great reactions out of them!"

Luna shook his arm off of her and glared. "Celestia and I will decide if the populace will know of her, after she is healed enough for questioning." She took a harsh tone with him — she needed to let him know that interference on his part would not be tolerated.

Discord simply scoffed, waving a hand at her. "Oh, please. I've already spoken to her. A bit moody, honestly. Even so, that attitude of hers would no doubt come in handy!"

"You what?!"

"Hm?" Discord stared at Luna's furious face. "Did you wish to speak with her as well? I could always arrange that. Though in her current state, further use of magic on her would most likely agitate her-"

"Stop, Discord." Luna interrupted with a tired voice. "I'm appreciative for your wish to help, but no. My sister and I will handle everything from here. So please, just stay away from her. I don't want you anywhere near her for the foreseeable future."

Discord pouted. "That'll be difficult."

Luna shook her head. "I don't care."

With that, the princess walked off, leaving Discord alone. He stared at her as she walked further down the hallway and stopped a few doors down. She walked in without so much a glance in his direction.

Discord shook his head and crossed his mismatched arms together. "Sigh. When will these ponies just let me have my fun? I'm not going to turn her against them! I was just gonna mess with her a little..." In exaggerated sadness Discord lay on his back in the air and began floating in the opposite direction of the room Luna had entered.

"Oh well. I suppose I'll just have to wait..."

Arc Two: Mirror, Mirror

Part One End