The next time I woke up, I felt a little better. It was light out, but quiet. I paused, listening; I could hear Spike snoring. I shifted my weight, making the couch creak. I heard the quiet sound of hoof steps on wood, and Twilight entered my field of vision.

She smiled, "Hey. How are you feeling?"

I shifted again, and felt the amount of dried sweat on my skin. I raised a shaking hand to my hair, and realized how sweaty and filthy it was. I winced, "Dirty," I licked my dry lips, "and thirsty."

Twilight nodded, "I'll get you a glass of water, do you think you can have a bath?"

I struggled to sit up a little, using my elbows to prop myself up. I leaned against the arm of the chair, and took the glass Twilight proffered. My hands shook, and I had to hold it in both hands, but I kept it decently steady as I drank. I nodded, and handed her the empty glass, "I'm going to need some help, but yeah."

Twilight nodded, "Tell me when you want to have a bath, and I'll show you how to work everything."

I shifted the blankets off me, "I want a bath now. I feel sweaty, and filthy."

Twilight nodded, "Alright," She stepped forward, and I grasped her mane. I hauled myself to my feet, legs shaking. I concentrated, cursing the fact my legs felt like jelly. The going was slow, but we managed to get to the bathroom unharmed. I was shaking, but pushed through it, seriously wanting to get clean.

Twilight showed me how to work the bathtub, and I climbed in as she shut the door. I sat against the cool porcelain, sighing contentedly. I turned the knobs, finding a hot temperature that couldn't be obtained in nature.

I cleaned the dirt from my body and hair, wincing as the water turned from clear to brown. How did I get that dirty? I drained it, and filled it again, sighing in annoyance. I don't think I can ever get used to this. After a few more minutes, I emerged pruney and waterlogged. I wrapped myself in a towel, and dried my hair.

I feel more like me, and surprisingly stronger, just after a bath. What's going on? I sighed, rubbing my eyes. Why can't things be normal?

I stepped out of the bathroom, and suddenly felt ravenous. Twilight stared at me for a minute, "We need to do something with your hair?"

"Like what?" I asked, tugging at a knotted lock, "It's hopeless."

"No it's not. I'll take you to the salon."

"Salon?" I asked.

"It's a place where you get your coat groomed, mane and tail styled, and get your hooves polished."

I nodded slowly, "Okay.. Hold on, I want to get something else on. This is filthy."

I pulled on a clean tunic, and followed Twilight out into the bright sunlight. I blinked rapidly, trying to clear my vision. Twilight led me, once again, through the winding streets. We stopped in front of a very polished building with blue accents.

Twilight pushed the door open, and I followed. A blue pony with a light pink mane and tail spotted Twilight and smiled. Her smile slipped from her face when she laid eyes on me, and she stared for a minute, "Oh dear."

I swallowed nervously, had I done something wrong? The pony gently grabbed the sleeve of my tunic, and led me forward, she motioned for me to sit in a chair that was far too big for me, even in my pony form. I looked around, and spotted a bunch of odd looking tools resting on the ledge below a mirror. Scissors I recognized, as a brush, and comb. The others I was curious about, but didn't want to make the pony angry.

Twilight smiled at me from behind me, I was facing the mirror, "They're going to do something with your hair."

I nodded, "What?" My voice was squeaky, slightly panicked.

"She's going to brush out your hair, and cut it if you want. Nothing bad."

I nodded shakily, not welcoming the panic building in my chest. I took a few shuddering breaths, and the pony came back. She smiled warmly, "It's alright, dear. Have you had a haircut here before?"

I shook my head, "No," I muttered under my breath.

"Where did you get your last haircut? I can try to fix your hair if I know what's been previously done with it," apparently she didn't hear me.

"I-I haven't had my hair cut before."

The pony's green eyes widened in shock, "Oh. Alright then, I'm going to brush out your hair, and we'll see about a style, alright?"

I nodded, "Okay."

The pony took a long time trying to get all the knots, tangles, and general mess of my hair down to a manageable level. If she tugged at my hair all the time I probably wouldn't have any left. When she finished brushing it out, it was no longer just past my shoulders. It was longer then that, reaching almost to my waist. I whistled softly, touching a long lock with my fingers, "I have a lot of hair."

The pony nodded, "Very thick, but if you want all the dead ends off, and the whole of your hair even, I will need to cut it very short."

I looked in the mirror, and nodded, "If that's okay, do what you need to do."

Twilight smiled at me again, "You're doing good. Most ponies have a hard time the first time they get a haircut."

"I didn't come from a very rich family, we had to take care of our own hair. My mother cut mine..." I trailed off, wondering where the random memory had come from.

Twilight's smile faded, "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," I replied quietly.

The pony continued to cut at my hair, using magic to make sure her cuts were even. After a long time, she had cut it even, pulling apart the different sections of my hair to make her job easier. It barely reached my jawline, and my head felt very light. My neck was cold, and I wondered if I would get used to the change.

The pony smiled at me, "All done! It looks good, do you want me to style it at all?"

"No thank you," I shook my head, watching as the locks of hair waft around my face. I stood up, and walked to where Twilight was paying. She handed a few of the gold coins to the pony who had cut my hair. Bits. They're bits. I reminded myself.

We left the shop, "Thank you, Twilight," I ran a hand through the short locks, "Really.. I don't remember the last time my hair has been this nice."

"Not a problem!" Twilight smiled again, "What do want to do today?"

"Well... I would like to talk to Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, and Apple Bloom again. They forced me to join their club thing."

Twilight stopped and stared at me, shock written over her face. I swallowed, and stopped too. Twilight's face split into a huge smile, and she started laughing. After a moment, she collected herself, still smiling, "They're in school."

"All three of them? That's a lot of money, can Applejack and Rarity afford that?"

Twilight shook her head, "School is free."

"Oh... that's too bad.."

Twilight stared at me, thinking, "You can go, if you want. It hasn't started yet. We can get something to eat, and I can walk you there. I'm sure you can walk back to Sweet Apple Acres after with the girls."

"What would I have to learn?"

"Well, Cheerilee teaches a lot of things. Some about magic, Cutie Marks, history, geography, art, math. Lots of things."

I nodded slowly, "Alright. I assume I'm not aloud to talk during history or geography."

"Well, no. We don't want to alarm anyone."

Twilight suddenly veered to the left, and disappeared into a little shop. She reappeared a moment later, holding a small bag in between her teeth. She gave it to me, "Here's your lunch. This is a bit short notice, but I'm sure Cheerilee won't mind."

I took the bag, and followed Twilight toward a more open area of town. A medium sized, red building rested on the top of a hill, with lots of strange structures surrounding it. Twilight trotted up to the door, and knocked.

A pony with a dark purple coat, with light purple and white in her mane opened the door, "Oh! Hello, Twilight!" She saw me and smiled, "You must be Eternity. I heard about your illness, I'm so happy you feel better."

I felt heat rise in my cheeks, but I smiled, "Thanks."

"I have to ask a favour," Twilight said, "Eternity has been... separated from society for a while. Do you mind including her in your class?"

"Of course I don't, Twilight! I'm always happy to teach more ponies. I don't care how old they are, everypony can learn something."

I smiled, "Thank you... I know you don't have to."

"It's not a problem at all! I hope you can enjoy our class. Though, I might need some help getting one of the extra desks out of the shed out back."

"I can help," I smiled.

"That's good! School doesn't start for another half an hour, so this gives us plenty of time to figure everything out."

Twilight looked at me, "You're in good hands. Have fun!"

I watched as Twilight trotted off, back down the road. I tightened my grip on my lunch, and the bag crinkled. Cheerilee smiled, "You'll do fine. Come on in, you can put your lunch on my desk, and we'll get your desk. I'll see if I can find some supplies for you as well. Do you know any of the fillies or colts that go to school?"

"I know Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo."

Cheerilee led me through the wooden building, and in through a door that led outside. A small shed rested a few feet away. Cheerilee opened the door, and I followed. Cheerilee found a desk, and I helped her get it back into the main building. Cheerilee put my desk at the back, right beside the desk that was Scootaloo's.

She rooted through her desk, and pulled out some pens, pencils, paper, and a few other writing utensils I didn't know about. I swallowed my curiosity, but watched as Cheerilee lifted the top of my desk, and set the supplies inside, "There. You need a few notebooks, but this will tide you over until you can get some. You can put your lunch in your desk as well, if you want."

I got my lunch, and set in in the empty corner of the hollow desk. I organized the supplies, making sure everything was neat and tidy. I swallowed, and sat down. Cheerilee walked to the front of the room, and wrote some symbols on the board. I narrowed my eyes, wondering what she was writing.

Above the symbols, she wrote Math Practise.

What the hell is math? I wondered. Does she mean Calculations? Panic began to build in my chest, I was going to look like an idiot.

"Eternity!" I jumped when three blurs of movement ran over, "You're alive!" Sweetie Belle yelled.

I nodded, "Yeah...it takes more than magic attacking me to do serious damage."

"You had us worried, I thought we were going to lose a Crusader!" Scootaloo said. She looked at my desk, then at the desk to my left, "You're sitting beside me!"

I nodded again, "Yes, I am. Umm," I swallowed my pride. I pointed to the board, "What are those?"

"They're addition questions!" Sweetie Belle beamed, "I've been adding everything I can to practice!"

I blinked, "Huh?"

"You don't know?" Apple Bloom looked stunned, "We have to help you! Do you know numbers?"

"I just learned your letters. I don't know the written form for you numbers."

"Oh no! Ms. Cheerilee!" Apple Bloom called, "Eternity doesn't know numbers!"

I felt tears sting in my eyes and my cheeks heat up, "ugh."

"It's alright. Eternity, ask Scootaloo for some help with these, and if you don't understand, I can help you during lunch."

"Thank you."

A few minutes later, more ponies filtered in. As more entered, I began to feel more and more old. Many of them cast curious glances my way, but none approached. I swallowed my nervousness, but almost jumped out of my skin when a bell sounded from above us.

What have I gotten myself into?

(LINE BREAK)
Author's Note: I'm updating now, because my exams start Tuesday (the 18th), so if I don't update anything at all for the next while, that's why.

I don't own MLP, though I do own Eternity.

You can still PM/review comments, questions, and suggestions to me at any time. No promises I'll answer right away, but I do generally answer to questions and suggestions. Until next time!