LEGEND OF THE GODDESSES

So… you saw their story, the nondescript male voice says once again, and as you've seen, it's kind of my story too. I hope you like it, honey. I made it through every moment knowing I'd be coming back to you with something extraordinary.

It's not about you and me, of course. It's about the goddesses and the moments they made it through, long ago. But me? I was there. And I did it all for you.

So, on the off-chance that it shows you how much you meant to me when I was young and stupid and how much you mean to me still, here's a little clip that I didn't put in the documentary. This was the last scene I shot, but the first place I went. And it's just for you.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

someplace, sometime in the future

The young and short-haired Fork made an effort to straighten things up in his cluttered office, which did nothing but make the clutter in inappropriate places slightly neater.

Finally, he made absolutely sure the door was closed, and spoke to the sapphire charm bracelet perched atop a pile of papers on his desk.

"Okay," he said. He went silent for a long time, then took a deep breath in and out. "I'm not ready for this. But I guess I'm as ready as I'm ever gonna be."

He scooped up the bracelet, and his magic began to activate. Something seemed to occur to him at the moment he vanished, leaving the office in ruins.

In the time tunnel, he reversed the direction that momentum had taken him—traveling forward instead of back as he had planned.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

He emerged in a huge stone fountain courtyard—or at least it was huge from his six-inch-tall perspective. The courtyard floated in the sky, and other such disks were everywhere, higher and lower, and as far as the eye could see in every horizontal direction, each holding numerous buildings, grassy parks, statues, and more. Dozens of pixie ponies fluttered from one floating disk to another, going about their business. Fork merely waited by the fountain.

"Come on…" he muttered. "Where are you? You wouldn't leave me hanging… I know you wouldn't…" He shut his eyes. "If you lived, please, please, be here at this moment."

"Relax. I'm here."

Fork opened his eyes, and there he was—himself, eighteen years older or more.

"It's you," the young Fork said in awe. "I… I had to come here. Before I went off into the time stream and did the thing, I had to come here, to a week in the future, just to see if I survived. But you know that…"

"Well, you will," the older Fork assured him.

Young Fork looked him over. "You must have been at it for a long, long time," he muttered.

"Yes."

He shifted on his hooves uneasily. "Was it worth it?"

"Every moment," his older self said sincerely. "When you come back home, when you're me, you won't be the same. You'll have seen things, things nopony else possessed of only a single lifetime could ever hope to see. It'll change you."

The younger one frowned. "I didn't want to change. I just wanted to watch."

"Everything we perceive changes us," said the older one. "The world is funny that way. I couldn't tell you exactly how or why it changed me. After all, it happened a long time ago."

"Right," he said uncomfortably. "Do… do you have any advice for me? Before I start?"

"Not many ponies are able to receive advice from their future selves," the elder replied wryly. "Any advice I can offer you is something you're better off discovering for yourself." He considered for a moment. "Well, there is one thing. When you're getting the final testimonial from Celestia, lurk around a bit after she's done. Don't let her see you, but keep recording it. It'll be worth your while, trust me."

"Testimonials?" the young one demanded. "Dude, I thought…"

"Yeah, I was seen," the elder admitted, "and it snowballed, but who knows, maybe you'll do better."

"Huh, yeah, maybe," he said nervously. "I… thanks. Um… does she… appreciate what you've done?"

"I shouldn't say. Nopony should know his future. That's no kind of life."

He nodded. "Okay." His horn began glowing.

"Godspeed, Fork," said his older self. "I hope you have as eye-opening an experience as I did."

The young one vanished, scuffing the cobblestones.

"Heh, he's nervous that his path might be different from mine," said the older one, looking toward a statue at the edge of the courtyard. "He's never realized that time is stable and unchanging."

"He will soon enough," a voice replied. Another Fork, identical to the older one, emerged from behind the statue. "Just like how when I'm done editing the story together, a week later I'll be saying the exact things you just said. It really raises questions of free will in time travel, doesn't it?"

"It'll slip your mind, don't worry," the other said. "You'll say exactly what I did, but you'll be making it up as you go."

The one who had emerged from behind the statue lowered his arm, the arm that still bore the charm bracelet—the charm bracelet which the present-day Fork did not wear.

"So… all done with this thing," said the one with the bracelet. "Now on to editing. Any editing tips?"

"Why don't you figure it out yourself, like a normal person," said the other in amusement.

"All right," he laughed. He paused. "You seem to be in a good mood. Does it go well?"

The present-day Fork responded with a perfect poker face.

"Right," his past self said, nodding. "I'll… find out. Well… be you next week!"

"Farewell."

The past Fork vanished, causing no ill effects to his surroundings.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

And that was it. Now it's all completely over. I don't know yet if it was worth it, 'cause he didn't tell me. But this, my second lifetime, a life lived completely for you, is at its end. I only hope that you can still love what it's turned me into, and be there with me for whatever my third life holds. You… are my goddess.