Ascending Across Time
Chapter Eight
The next day, Twilight and Starlight went towards the nearby university to recruit a possible scientist for their project. With a decent enough understanding of French, Twilight made it a mission to find someone capable enough of an understanding of quantum physics to offer assistance to their cause.
Arriving on the campus, Twilight and Starlight looked around and noticed that it was mostly empty. They walked along all of it extensively, looking for someone who even attended the school. Unfortunately for them, they couldn't find anybody. They searched for hours and hours but just couldn't seem to find a single soul on the campus.
As the search started to wind down a bit, somebody called out to them, "Rather early for students to be returning. Is everything alright, ladies?"
The two women turned their heads and noticed a gentleman about their size walking over to them. They were both surprised to find out that they spoke the same language as them.
"Not too big on talkin', ey?"
"Honestly," Starlight chuckled, "we're just surprised to find someone who speaks similarly to us. Don't find that too often out here."
"Yeah," the gentleman chuckled, "one could say that. English is just a hard language to master, what with the two, too, to and there, they're, and there; all of which sound the same. Try teaching that to the students here."
"So that would make you a professor of some sort then," Twilight insinuated, "correct?"
"An A+ for you, miss," the gentleman chuckled. "Can't run much by you, now can we? You seem like the type of person who likes to challenge herself, am I right?"
Twilight nodded, "Yeah, but it sometimes can lead me into biting off a bit more than I can chew."
"Tell me about it," smirked the gentleman.
"Anyway," Starlight continued, "do you think you could help us perhaps?"
"What's on your mind?"
"Well, we need some help on a project that we've been working on," Twilight began as she continued, "someone who understands quantum physics."
The gentleman smirked in response, "You ladies are lucky then because I am a physics professor and I'm working on a few projects myself while I study and pursue a Ph.D."
"Thank you so much," Starlight sighed in relief. She then explained what she and Twilight were doing with the other girls, "We're working on a project ourselves and we can't get the main device to work properly."
The gentleman tilted his head curiously, "What project are you doing?" He crossed his arms in the process, "Perhaps I could help."
"Well," Twilight replied bashfully, "it's…a bit complicated. We can show you if you'd like?"
"Oui," the man answered, "Where do you live? I can come over after I am finished with my project for today."
Twilight smiled, "That sounds like a plan...uh...I'm sorry, but we didn't catch your name, Monsieur."
"Je m'appelle Louis Beaumont," he grinned. "And your names are?"
"Twilight Sparkle."
"Starlight Glimmer," added Starlight, continuing. "We're not from here."
Louis nodded, "I will see you, girls, later then."
Smiling politely, Louis went back to his classroom to finish his project, leaving Starlight and Twilight high-fiving each other and walking out of the building.
A few hours later, Louis had arrived at the Mystique Physique shop. Letting Rarity know why he was there, she grabbed Twilight and Starlight. Once they came, the ladies greeted Louis and guided him down to the basement. He was curious as to the project Twilight and Starlight mentioned earlier and wanted to know more about it.
"This project you mentioned," he began, hints of curiosity sounding in his voice, "what exactly is it?"
"Well," Twilight responded, nervous about it, twirling a strand of her hair bashfully, "we don't want anyone to find out that we're not from here." She turned around and faced Louis, "Do you think you can keep a secret?"
"Miss Twilight," Louis replied, holding his arm up solemnly, "I promise that I will not tell a soul. Your secret is…safe…with…umm," Staring at the portal, he began wondering even more what the two ladies were working on, "What is this? I have never seen such work. It is way ahead of our time."
Starlight chuckled, a smile appearing on her face as she began to explain, "You see, we've been working on this project for quite some time. A few years after the war started, to be precise. As Twilight said, we're not from here. We come from a faraway place. I know you probably won't believe us when we tell you that…that, umm…"
"That what?" Louis asked, raising an eyebrow suspiciously.
"That…well…"
Twilight butted in and finished Starlight's thought for her, "That…we're ponies from another world."
Louis blinked, surprised to hear what the two women told him, debating whether or not they were crazy, whether he should believe them, and even whether he should leave at once or not. Something he had noticed since meeting the two women was that they did have uniquely colored hair and skin, as well as abnormal names. He cleared his throat nervously and rubbed the back of his neck slowly.
"So, umm, both of you are ponies?" Louis repeated, beginning to process the information. He shook his head dismissively and asked another question to Twilight and Starlight, "Wai-, where are you two from exactly?"
"You may not believe it," Twilight started to explain, feeling herself blush slightly from how ridiculous her answer would sound, "but we're from a land of magic filled with different creatures called Equestria. There are unicorns, pegasi, and even earth ponies." Hiding behind her hair nervously, Twilight blushed even more, "D-Did you get all that?"
"I thiiink so?" Louis replied, not even sounding sure of himself.
Starlight tapped her chin lightly, trying to find a comparison between some of her kind and some of the animals that were present in this world. The tapping slowly turned into rubbing and, finally, Starlight offered some kind of comparison for Louis.
"I suppose that the closest thing to what we would look like - or at least the earth ponies - would be like the horses you have here," she exclaimed.
"I can see that, I suppose," Louis said, nodding slowly but still doubting the words and claims thus far.
"You don't believe us," Twilight thought, "don't you?"
"To be fair," Louis quickly replied, "it is quite a lot to take in. Plus, it's almost unheard of - interdimensional travel." He took a second look at the portal and rubbed his chin briefly, "Though, this does offer a good explanation and defense for you ladies. We don't have this kind of technology ourselves, but it would make sense if you did, considering our top scientists would even be impressed as well."
"It's nice to get some kind of recognition about this," Starlight admitted. She pointed at the portal, "We've had no idea whether it was up-to-date, lagging-behind, or beyond what this world had to offer."
"Take it from me," Louis continued, approaching the portal and studying it closely, "I've worked with some great scientists across the United States and France while conducting and fulfilling my dissertation and even they would be impressed by what you have here." He turned towards Starlight and eagerly motioned towards the portal, "Do you mind?"
"Not at all," Starlight answered, "I mean, the quicker we get this thing done, the quicker we can get home."
Twilight stepped up as well and explained a bit more of what she and Starlight had achieved thus far to Louis. She pointed towards a few things and explained everything along the way, keeping Louis' attention throughout and gaining even more praise from him.
Once the explanations were done, Louis put on a pair of gloves and smirked, "Now the fun truly begins."
Starlight nodded and smirked as well, "Let's get to work."
Upstairs, Rarity was busy running the Mystique Physique for the evening. It was much busier than usual, especially with the upcoming Fashion Week. Working harder than ever, Rarity put a ton more effort into making sure everything was beyond perfect, especially since she was debuting a new line for the spring season.
The door rustled open, ringing a little bell and prompting Rarity to deliver her trademark greeting to her customer. She looked up from her work and smiled at the person entering, sounding cheerful as ever.
"Welcome to Mystique Physique," she greeted, "where everything is chic, sleek, and Magnifique!"
"Yes, hi," the gentleman responded, "we're looking for a woman by the name of Rarity. Would you happen to know where she may be?"
Rarity stepped out from behind the counter and smiled, "That would be me."
"Ah, Rarity," the gentleman continued, "it is such a pleasure to finally meet you face-to-face." He held out his hand, shaking Rarity's hand gently, "My name is Chester A. Berkshire, and this is my wife, Margaret."
"Ah," Rarity beamed delightfully, "it is such a pleasure to finally meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Berkshire."
"Has our Daniel introduced himself yet?" Margaret asked.
"He has and he does seem like a nice boy, just like you stated in our letters," answered Rarity, "although I do not know where he is at the present moment."
"I see you're busy preparing for the upcoming Fashion Week," Chester noticed, "and that's why we're both here, so I'll keep this brief: we were planning on holding the wedding here since everyone is here. May we meet the future Mrs. Sweetie Belle Berkshire?"
"But of course," smiled Rarity, motioning towards the stairs in the back, "please, right this way. I'm certain she's upstairs at the current moment."
"Right."
Leading Chester and Margaret up the stairs, Rarity approached Sweetie Belle's door to her room and knocked gently on it. She turned back towards the Berkshires and continued to draft small talk with them while waiting for the door to open up. They talked about a couple of the upcoming events, mostly revolving around Fashion Week and the debut of Rarity's newest line, earning the praise of the Berkshires almost immediately. When the door finally opened up, Rarity was surprised to see Apple Bloom instead of Sweetie Belle.
"Apple Bloom?" Rarity stated, "Wh-where is Sweetie Belle?"
"Ah don't know," Apple Bloom responded, "Ah haven't seen her all day."
"Has Scootaloo seen her then?"
"Lemme gets her," Apple Bloom said, turning around and getting Scootaloo.
Rarity started to feel just a little bit anxious. She noticed Scootaloo approaching the door now and felt her anxiety rise just a bit as Scootaloo shook her head slowly.
"I haven't seen Sweetie Belle either, Rarity," Scootaloo answered. "Haven't seen her since yesterday."
"She's missing?" Rarity wondered, her legs beginning to shake slightly.
"Now hold on a second," Apple Bloom replied, "perhaps one of the others knows where she went."
"Yeah, Rare," added Scootaloo, "let's not jump to any wild conclusions just yet. I'm sure one of them has to have seen her today."
"You're probably right," Rarity retorted, though she still had her worries, especially with the Berkshires present behind her at the moment.
After asking nearly everyone about the sudden disappearance of Sweetie Belle, Rarity began to panic just a bit more. Nobody knew where she could have run off to and, to Rarity's discontent, this wasn't like Sweetie Belle to act like this or disappear without proper notice. She grew worried and started to tap her chin nervously. Fluttershy noticed this and went to Rarity to provide a bit of reassurance.
"Calm down, Rarity," Fluttershy whispered, "I'm sure that she'll be back home. She's probably at Mimi's Cafe having one of her performances right now as we speak." She was doing her best to keep her promise with Sweetie Belle and keeping the truth from Rarity but found it becoming just a bit difficult.
"She's a singer?" Margaret wondered, looking at the yellow-skinned woman curiously.
Fluttershy nodded, a smile appearing on her face, "Oh, yes. She's a very talented singer indeed. You should hear her sing some time since you're here."
Chester snorted, "She should be marrying my son instead of doing this ridiculous job."
Fluttershy stared at him in horror, shocked by the comments made, "I mean, she is a talented artist. No need to be so rude about it."
"Well," Rarity muttered, trying to ease the situation, "wherever she is, she'll be in for a scolding when she comes home."
Marget heard Rarity and nodded in agreement, "Quite unlike a lady to be out without a proper gentleman guiding her."
Fluttershy began to feel guilty for not telling Rarity sooner, but she promised that she'd keep the secret and Sweetie Belle safe for as long as possible until Rarity came to her senses, if ever.
"Well, Mademoiselle Belle," Hugo asked with concern, "what is your answer?" He was looking at Sweetie Belle as he hoped that she would say yes to his proposal. He wouldn't admit it out loud that this was crazy and that everything was going too fast, but his heart had decided on it after he'd met her in the first place.
Sweetie Belle stared at him, and pulled her legs close to her chest, "I mean, I would like to run away with you, Hugo, but…" She had a hard time explaining herself.
"But what, Mademoiselle?"
Sweetie Belle gulped, "But…I'm scared. I've never done this with anyone before." She extended her legs out once more and looked away from Hugo.
Hugo knew that asking her now was going to be risky. He didn't think this through like he should have, only thinking for a moment before looking upwards to the ceiling before making his final judgment.
"Sweetie Belle," Hugo said, nervously fiddling with his fingers, "I love you, I respect the decision. After I met you, I planned running away with you." He tried his hardest to make his words sound more clear and easy for Sweetie Belle to understand.
"What are you saying?" Sweetie Belle asked, irking an eyebrow at him in confusion.
"I am saying that…we can go to Equestria," Hugo responded, "together…if you want. I not so sure how your sister would take the news."
Sweetie Belle pondered for a moment, wondering what to think. She did love him, but at the same time, she wanted to keep him safe from Daniel, even though they hadn't met in person yet. She feared that knowing Daniel and his stubbornness, he would do something reckless in an attempt to win her heart over Hugo.
She believed that Daniel would insult and degrade Hugo with petty name-calling, mostly since Hugo came from a lower class than Daniel and, maybe out of pure jealousy and rage, he would possibly go through the trouble of having Hugo killed. The thought of potentially seeing Hugo's lifeless body on the ground made Sweetie Belle shudder, but she had to be brave for him.
"I-I," Sweetie Belle struggled to say what she wanted but forced herself to be strong and explain herself. "I accept your proposal, Hugo. I love you, I do." She then looked away from him, biting her lip in the process.
Hugo looked at her with concern, with an eyebrow irked, "What is the trouble?"
Sweetie Belle swallowed nervously and took a deep breath as she responded, "Daniel."
The name felt like she wanted to scream, but Sweetie Belle's throat was dry to the point of her not having a voice at all. It was hoarse coming out as she forced herself to say the name of the despised one. Hugo noticed the struggle Sweetie Belle had and reached out for her hand, holding it with his.
"Oh," Hugo replied, forgetting about him for a brief moment, "let us get ready for Equestria."
Sweetie Belle nodded, a small smile gracing her features as she removed the covers and climbed out of bed, grabbing the dress she had been wearing and putting it on. After she had finished getting ready, she stared at Hugo for a brief moment, who had gotten ready at the same time she did.
"You is ready, no?" Hugo asked, walking towards her with love-filled eyes. The only thing he had was a bag with a few of his items, a picture of his parents, and the clothes that he needed.
"Yes, I am," Sweetie Belle answered, "Let's go."
Taking her hand once more, Hugo walked out of the apartment and closed the door behind him, taking a definitive first step into this new kind of life.
"Where the hell is she?! She should be back by now!"
Daniel was upset by the tardiness of his fiancé, demanding to know where she had gone off to. He was more upset than usual and was nearing the point of having to be restrained.
"Calm down, Daniel," Margaret said calmly, "I'm sure that wherever she is she should be here by now. There's no need to get impatient or cause a ruckus."
"She's possibly mingling with the commoners," Chester grumbled. His patience was starting to wear thin as well, "Seriously, someone should put some sense into that girl."
"Now, now," Rarity said, trying to ease up the tension, "Take a deep breath and relax. As Margaret said, she should be here."
As if on cue, the bell to the little shop rang, prompting everyone to turn around and notice that two people had entered. Almost instantly, the group recognized the woman being Sweetie Belle, though they couldn't tell who the gentleman was that was with her at first. After a few moments, Daniel recognized the gentleman, as did Rarity.
"You again?" Rarity said sarcastically, "Looks like we're bumping into each other more often now." She noticed that her sister was there with him and paid attention to her now, "Sweetie Belle! I was worried sick about you! Where have you been?"
"I was with him," Sweetie Belle responded, her grip on Hugo's hand becoming tighter. She stood up for herself and approached the others with Hugo, "Why? Do you have a problem with that?"
"That's not how you talk to your sister, Miss Belle," scolded Margaret.
Daniel stood up and faced the young man in questioning, "Who are you anyway and why do you have the nerve to touch my fiancé?" He crossed his arms as he looked at him.
"Well, that is putting nicely," Hugo murmured sarcastically, glaring at him, "je m'appelle Hugo Beaufort."
Daniel rolled his eyes, "At least remove your filthy hands from my fiancé!" He began walking towards Hugo and pushed him away once he got close enough to the two of them, prompting Hugo to forcibly let go of Sweetie Belle's hand.
Hugo staggered back, looking at Daniel angrily. He began to confront the tyrant and prepared to strike Daniel back, but restrained himself for Sweetie Belle's sake. Seeing the ill-mannered behavior Daniel was projecting, she yanked her hand away from Daniel and glared disapprovingly at him.
Daniel noticed Sweetie Belle's defiance and held his hand high in the air, threatening to hit her if she continued stepping out of line. Hugo saw this and scoffed.
"What's with you, Frenchy?" Daniel rudely asked.
"You would hit a girl?" Hugo responded. "Poor man you are."
Daniel scoffed, growling at Hugo, "She needs to be taught a lesson. Something like that just doesn't go unattended, you know."
Hugo shook his head, "Typical American. You think you know all, but can't take when you are wrong, oui."
Daniel approached Hugo and glared at him from close range. He was fuming inside right now and it took all of his power to not unleash his wrath on Hugo. Looking down at him, Daniel shot back a response of his own.
"Pretty unusual talk comin' from you, Frenchy," he said, deciding to mock Hugo's culture, "ain't y'all the same people that needed our help during your revolution?"
Hugo smirked and pressed his finger against Daniel's chest, provoking him, "Your words sound familiar. How is it that you learn? America was helped by ze French, monsieur."
Daniel smacked Hugo's hand off of his chest, "Don't touch me. Who knows where that hand's been?"
"More places than you have," Hugo quickly answered, "that for sure."
"You know," Daniel grunted, "you're getting on my nerves."
"You have thin skin then," Hugo said, rolling his eyes.
"I'd choose my next words carefully if I were you," Daniel threatened, cracking his knuckles in the process.
"You Americans are all the same," Hugo replied, "and fighting gets no place."
"Let's see then," Daniel retorted, swinging his fist and punching Hugo hard in his gut.
Hugo jumped back from the sudden strike and held his stomach lightly. Sweetie Belle let out a small gasp and covered her mouth, afraid that Daniel could and would hurt Hugo. She tried to get Daniel to stop, but he brushed her back and went after Hugo.
"Sweetie Belle," Rarity scolded, "behave yourself. This gentleman is no good and Daniel is simply trying to protect you."
"No, he's not!" Sweetie Belle shrieked, "Why can't you see that?"
Daniel advanced on Hugo and reached out, grabbing him and holding him still with one arm while punching his body with the other arm. Holding Hugo in a headlock, Daniel continued his barrage of punches on the defenseless french man while Sweetie Belle watched on in horror. Hugo tried to break free from Daniel's grasp, but seeing how he was smaller than Daniel was, that was almost an impossibility. Trying his best, Hugo began to swing his leg fast, trying to kick Daniel and retaliate, but none of the kicks were landing on Daniel's body. Daniel tightened his hold around Hugo's head and began to cut off the air supply for Hugo. Sweetie Belle saw this and tried her hardest to come up with an idea that could help Hugo.
Acting swiftly, she ran over towards some of the dresses Rarity sewed together for Fashion Week and rolled them out towards the scuffle. Rarity spotted this and called out to Sweetie Belle, demanding she explains herself at once.
"Tell him to let Hugo go," Sweetie Belle stated, "or I'll cut these dresses!" She took out a pair of scissors and held them up to the first dress.
"Sweetie Belle," Rarity said, holding a finger up towards her younger sister, "stop acting in such a brutish manner at once. This is no way for a lady to act!"
"I'm being brutish?" Sweetie Belle questioned, heavily offended by the remark. She pointed at Daniel and raised her voice, "That's being brutish! I'm simply doing what's right for a friend! Next to Twilight, you of all ponies should know that. Generosity…ring a bell, sis? "
"Put the scissors down, Sweetie Belle," Rarity repeated, "now!"
"Tell him to let Hugo go then!" Sweetie Belle requested again, holding the scissors closer towards the first dress.
"Why?"
Sweetie Belle lost patience and cut the dress in half, "He's going to kill Hugo!"
Rarity shrieked, watching as the bottom half of the dress she worked so hard on fell to the ground slowly. She looked back up towards Sweetie Belle and rushed to her, trying to pry the scissors out of her hands. Sweetie Belle noticed this and proceeded to cut the second dress like the first one. Rarity screamed and picked up the cut-off portion of the dress. She held it up to Sweetie Belle and began to cry. Sweetie Belle didn't take much notice of the crying, demanding once more that Daniel stop attacking Hugo.
"Stop!" Rarity cried, wiping her eyes a bit.
Daniel punched Hugo one more time on top of his head and knocked him out, dropping him to the ground. Watching Hugo's body collapse, Sweetie Belle ran over to check on him, noticing a large amount of blood running down his face. The commotion dragged Twilight, Starlight, and Rainbow Dash out from the basement. They looked at Hugo and wondered what happened, rushing over to help the fallen man.
"He needs medical help!" Sweetie Belle wailed, tears falling from her eyes.
Rainbow Dash bent down and reached out to feel Hugo's neck, "He's still got a pulse." She took him from Sweetie Belle and picked up the limb body, "I'll take him to the hospital. They'll patch him up and take care of him there."
"P-Please hurry, Rainbow Dash," Sweetie Belle glumly replied.
"I will," Rainbow Dash assured, rushing out of the shop at once.
Daniel approached Sweetie Belle and dragged her up onto her feet, pulling her hair. Screaming from the jerked motion and sudden pain, Sweetie Belle told Daniel not to do that.
"I'll do whatever the hell I want!" Daniel boomed. He crept closer to Sweetie Belle and whispered to her, "Act out of line again and you'll end up just like him." He then walked out of the store to cool himself off a bit.
As for Sweetie Belle, she felt her legs tremble slightly, fearing for both her life and Hugo's. She continued to wonder why Rarity would force her to marry such a brute, but the main focus for Sweetie Belle now was hoping that the hospital and doctors could help make Hugo feel better.
I just want this nightmare to end, Sweetie Belle thought, wiping her eyes dry of tears.