When Emily Parker is bored, none of her body seems to want to work right. I snorted at that thought. It can really suck to be me sometimes. Like when buying school clothes. . . Forget the thought of school, E.J. It won't make you feel any better.

With my mind completely blank, I closed my piano book and got up from the bench, tucking a lock of blonde hair behind my ear. As I left the large, sunlit family room of my home, I checked my Minnie Mouse watch, which read thirteen minutes after noon. I had practiced for over an hour. No wonder my fingers are sore! I thought.

Being an early riser, I had eaten at nine-thirty, brushed my teeth, made my bed, watched "The Price Is Right," and then practiced to the end of my attention span.

Sighing, I took the stairs to my room two at a time, even though it felt like my legs were made of rubber.

"Must remember to take a stretch after five run-throughs," I muttered to myself.

I flung open my closed door - which I could have sworn I left open - and pulled the window shade up for light. Warm, honey colored rays streamed into my room, so much that I had to squint my blue eyes.

My room had never really been that tidy. Well, if you didn't look in the closet, then my room would appear as relatively nice. Though some shelves were neat and dust-free, half of it looked like somebody had thrown a grenade inside my closet and closed the doors.

My desk was the messiest, which I sat down at. Papers were strewn about, and my diary was left open with a pencil stuck in it for me to enter that day's date, July 20th, 1999.

July 20th. A full year since I had been thrown into the fairy-like world of Ponyland and its troubles. My only proof that I had actually been there, other than my two friends and eyewitnesses, Kyle Morone and Jan Stockman, was stuffed into the farthest corner of the third drawer in my dresser. Just one piece of material evidence that could prove I had been sent into a different world when I crashed my bike at the elementary school track and hit my head, to be turned into a Princess named Crystal Rainbow that would change the little Ponies from humans back into their Pony-selves.

It was a necklace. A gold medallion that hung from a fine gold link chain, and on it a raised silver circle with a crystal leaf embedded in it. A crystal leaf just like the one my grandmother had given me on a gold chain, which I wore that fateful day I had my first adventure. Every time I returned to Ponyland it was with the use of the Rainbow of Light, which had been secretly hidden in the medallion where the raised circle and the gold disk met, creating a locket.

What I did not know, was that July 20th, 1999, would be my last great adventure in Ponyland.

Bored, I began to write:

     July 20th, 1999 Kyle is now somewhere in Montana for a family reunion; he left late yesterday afternoon. I'm home alone. At times like this, with Mom and Dad at work, a brother or a sister sounds really nice. So what if I have Mr. Fribble. Cats don't talk. Practiced piano for over an hour after watching "Price is Right." Until tonight, there's nothing to write. Hey! That rhymes. How cute.
I guess I'll call Jan. See if she'll go somewhere with me, and discuss my problems involving Kyle.
That'll be fun.

I closed the diary with a snap, and sighed. Kyle is one of those really annoying but likable persons. Sometimes, he's more annoying than Jar-Jar Binks, if you agree with my opinion that Disney characters do not belong in Star Wars. And he has the temper of a bull if you bug him enough, bring up a pet peeve or a touchy subject. But, since that day in the summer of '98, Kyle had changed. For worse. So had Jan.

So have I.

Depressed, irritated, and confused, I picked up my cordless phone and punched in the numbers for Jan's house.

"Come on, Jan!" I grumbled after a couple rings.

Ring. . .

Ring. . . Pick up!

Ring. . .

"Uhh, hello?" a dazed voice asked.

"Jan? Were you still asleep?" I asked.

Jan groaned. "Y'know, Em? Not everyone gets up with the sun during summer. In fact, I don't think anybody does other than you."

I roll my eyes. "It's past twelve, Jan. A little out of the question."

"Actually, I normally sleep past one. . . "

I could imagine Jan rubbing her bleary dark eyes and trying to get the tangles out of her brown hair. I said, "That's pathetic, and you know it. Half the day's shot by the time you eat."

"Well, I really did get up, but I guess I fell asleep between bites of my Pop-Tart. . . Ew! Some of it's stuck in my hair!" she squealed, fully awake now. "Bet you think that's even more pathetic, huh? I'm gonna strangle Steven for leaving me here like this. . . Well, what's up?"

"I thought you'd never ask," I said dryly. "Anyway, I wanted to ask you a few questions, don't worry, none that require that much thinking skills, and run by a few options of how to spend the day."

"Sounds okay. As long as these questions don't involve the S-word."

I smiled. Jan likes to almost turn her brain off during the summer, shutting out anything remotely related to school, except when it came to new clothes. Lakeside Junior High, our school, isn't bad. Jan just doesn't like getting up so early.

"Or anything involving the P-words," she said flatly.

My low spirits dropped even further. "Uh, why?"

"Emily!" Jan squealed. "Ever since that day last year - a year ago exactly, checking the post-it calendar on the side of my fridge - everything's just been one argument after another, after another, after another! And I'm gettin' tired of it! Nothing's been right since then! You've changed. You're not the same Emily Parker I knew, or Kyle knew, for that matter. Didn't you two get in another squabble a couple days ago?"

"Yeah," I said after a moment of silence. It was true. Kyle and I seemed to be constantly at each other's throats. Then an odd realization hit me. "Weren't we always getting into squabbles?"

"Yes, but over completely different things!" she exploded, then sighed. "Look, I just remembered that I'm going shopping with my cousin today. She's from out of state and staying with my aunt and all, and dang. I've got fifteen minutes to get ready. See ya, Em." Click.

Thumbing the cordless off with a small beep, I realized that Jan was right. Everything had changed, but it wasn't my friends that had changed the most. It was me.

All alone, with no one around - with the exception of Mr. Fribble, who was probably cat-napping - I found myself with only one option on where to get help.

Ponyland.

Several Ponies were milling around, a few I recognized, relaxing in the sunny meadows, and they'd seen me here so often that they paid little or no attention. Even if it was cloudy at home, there always seemed to be sun in Ponyland, with spring-like weather. Not too hot; only on a few occasions had the water level in the Seapony pond reached dangerous levels, and severe storms were rare.

The temperature seemed to be in the mid-seventies then, a blessed relief from the searing Boise area heat, which would often peak around, oh, maybe ninety degrees by afternoon.

Just my luck - as I approached Dream Castle, my friend Princess Pristina trotted out.

"Hey Pristina!" I yelled. The green Pegasus looked around perplexed, her yellow mane flying madly under her pink tiara.

"Oh! Emily! Good to see you!" she called as hurried toward me. Pristina would be my best friend in Ponyland. We first met at Crystal Castle, where the majority of the Pony Royalty lives. In human form, she had had dark brown hair and bright green eyes. She was the only one that really understood me during that time, and from then on.

"So. What's up?" I asked casually.

She frowned for a second, looked up, then realized I had been using a figure of speech. "Oh! You want to know what brings me to Dream Castle, don't you? Well, I was just here to see Majesty about an upcoming banquet, that's all. Have you explored much of the area around Dream Valley?"

Shaking my head, I replied, "Not really. Just visited with the Ponies here, wandered around DC, seeing how accurate the Paradise Estate playset is. . ."

Pristina was lost.

"Sorry. Remember, you guys are toys back home?"

She arched an eyebrow, bit her lip, and after a while, her face brightened. "Oh yes! Toys. I remember now. It's so confusing sometimes. . . But, you're obviously not here to talk about toys."

"No, I didn't want to talk about toys. Kyle and Jan are both doing other things; Kyle on vacation and Jan shopping. And my parents aren't home either," I began to explain as we walked down to the river.

"And you needed someone to talk to," Pristina finished for me. Pausing for a moment, she said, "Would you like to visit the area around Flutter Valley? It's very pretty."

I said okay, and as we walked down the path into the forest, my story started to spill out like water from a sieve.

"Things aren't too great at home in Idaho. It seems like all we do is just argue anymore. And you know why? Because I got sent here, one year ago today. Why me? Why couldn't you have found Megan, or Molly, or Danny, to make everything right? My friendship since kindergarten with Kyle and Jan is pretty much ruined. Do you know how many times Kyle's threatened to break up with me and never talk to me again?" I exclaimed as we walked through the leafy canopy of green.

"Oh, dear," Pristina mumbled, shaking her head. "I had no idea. What do you plan on doing?"

I also shook my head. "I don't know, Pristina. I really don't know."

We walked in silence, gaping at huge old growth trees and various animals peeking out from behind them. As the trees became less dense, bushes and flowers began to replace them. The array of colors and shapes was mind boggling, and the wonderful smells melded into one sweet scent, just like they had at the Royal Paradise around Crystal Castle.

Flowers. . . Shoot! Didn't take my Claratin!

It was at that moment when I sneezed.

"Bless you, Emily! My, so many flowers. . . They must be wreaking havoc on your allergies."

Pristina took a glance at the vines of blue flowers cascading down the rocky cliff face beside us, and suddenly halted.

"What? What is it?" I asked.

Her eyes had bugged out to their maximum width.

I jumped in front of her, waving my arms in the air. "Earth to Pristina! Earth to Pristina! Pristina, this is Houston, will you explain?"

Her gaze looked past me, through me almost, to the cliff. "Those - those flowers. They're bluecup creepers."

"Yeah? So?" I failed to see her point.

"They've been extinct for five hundred years."

Then it hit me. Pristina had no clue where we were.

Great. . . Lost again, it seems. First in her own backyard at the Paradise, now here. Well, we can always fly away.

Just in case, I started to check my pockets, only finding the medallion shoved far into the bottom.

Pristina broke out of her reverie. "Well, we can just fly back. Come on, get on my - "

She froze, looking at the flowers again.

"Now what?" I sighed, twisting my head to look at the flowers.

They moved, and something jumped out.

It was a fairy.

"Hi!" she said cheerfully in a dainty, childlike voice.  The little fairy was about the size of my hand, had chin length brown hair, and blue eyes. Well, when her iridescent wings stopped fluttering at the rate of a hummingbird, that's what she looked like.

She lighted on Pristina's muzzle. "Don't be afraid of me, Princess!" She turned to face me.

"I'm Aria, the Song Fairy!" she said brightly, crossing her arms behind her back. "Well, there's actually several song fairies, but that doesn't really matter. You're Emily, aren't you?"

I nodded.

"Great!" she laughed. Her voice was like little bells, tinkling in a warm breeze.

Pristina regained part of her senses. "What are you doing all the way out here? Don't the fairies live someplace beyond Grundleland?"

Aria bit her lip. "Well, um, you see, being a Song Fairy, I write music and songs. Let's just say not everyone agreed with my music."

"So they kicked you out?" I asked.

She twisted her hands around her elbows, then flew away to land on a rock nearby. "I guess you could say that."

Pristina shook her head, then looked up at the sky, startled. "Oh, my! I must be going. The banquet I mentioned - it is today, and I must attend. You are invited, of course, to join me, Emily."

I smiled weakly. "Thanks Pristina, but I'll have to head back home by five. I'm sure Aria here could show me the way back."

Taking flight, Pristina called, "All right, then! See you later, Emily!"

After watching her disappear into the warm sunlight, I turned back to Aria, who was hanging upside down from a leaf stem. "So. You live in this area?"

"Oh yes. Right behind these vines, actually. I bet you're wondering how they got here, huh?" she said, scrambling to find a firmer hold.

"Well, yeah."

She righted herself and took a deep breath. "Fairies used to live in your world. Then, when Peter Pan was written, we had to move."

I blinked a few times. "You mean, it's a true story?"

"Oh, no!" she laughed. "It's fiction. But we did live in Kensington Gardens once. I don't know how he knew. . . Anyway, we could no longer stay in your world. So we found this place, then lived all over too. This used to be one of our gardens - our flower orchards - for the Gardener Fairies take care of. Then we had to move again, but we don't really live beyond Grundleland, like Princess Pristina said. We live not too far from here, in a secret hollow that no one can find, because it is hidden from all other creatures."

I pondered over that for a few seconds, then asked, "Why? Why did you have to move? And why are fairies so secretive now?"

Aria sighed. "I'm not so sure myself, but I think it's all silly anyway. I guess they became fed up with being around other creatures, trying to help them out. Maybe nobody would give us gratitude. Maybe it wasn't our place to receive it."

Neither of us spoke. Aria sat on her leaf, legs dangling off the edge, wings twitching every so often. I watched the little fairy rock side to side, humming something.

She eventually halted her rocking and said, "Want to see my house?"

It was behind the vines, all right. Hanging from them, in fact, in a small alcove cut into the cliff. Made of sticks intertwined with grasses and sap to hold it together, was a simple, two level fairy condo, so to speak. There was a dining room complete with a little table and six fairy-sized chairs, and a shelf above in the "ceiling" for placing a tiny tea set, which said of all things, but "Barbie" on it.

I looked at Aria suspiciously. "So we tend to borrow stuff humans don't use or lose!" she retorted. I didn't buy the term "borrow," but by the looks of the decorations on the patio, bedroom, and sitting room, I finally knew where all those earrings, pins, and little trinkets lost outside in piles of leaves, behind the dresser, or just out walking around went. And the socks that became snacks for the washer and dryer. . .

Back to the house, the furnishings of the bedroom included a matchbox bed frame, some feathers for a mattress, and a Hanes sock as a sleeping bag. The sock had a hole in the toe, which was inventively patched with what looked to be fabric from some inflatable carnival toy. A vanity made out of a mirror from a makeup compact sat on a overturned butter dish, and an empty spool for a seat was next to it. In the sitting room there were a few spool-chairs, a table, and a chandelier with one tiny candle in it. On the patio was a wire set of chairs and a bistro-style table.

"Not too shabby," I commented, eyes straining to see the detail.

Arms crossed, she said darkly, "If I didn't know that was a compliment among humans, I'd take that as an insult and leave you here lost in the woods. And there's no Darklighter to help you anymore, either!"

I wondered who Darklighter was, other than a character in Star Wars, but did not bother to ask about him. Instead I changed the subject. "Well, you obviously know your way around this area, and since Pristina had to leave, would you mind showing me around?"

Aria snorted. "There's not much to see. But I guess so. Follow me!"

We walked on and on through the endless mazes of bushes, trees, and flowers. Once we stopped for a quick drink of water at a creek we passed by. Well, I guess that's only half true. I took a drink while Aria went wading.

"It's just as good!" she had explained in a strained voice. Sort of how Jan would sound sometimes. Jan, who was at the time trying to cram down the remains of a Cinnabon and a root beer Icescape with her cousin Mandy at the local Fred Meyer before the two would leave for Boise.

Jan, my friend. But could you really call three kids that bickered back and forth over practically everything friends?

"Aria, hold up. I gotta know one thing. Why were you banished? I know you said it was about your music, but that doesn't seem all that bad for someone who just wanted to be herself," I said, easing myself down onto a log.

She settled on my knee, resting her chin in between hers. "Well, if you really want to know everything. . ."

"Start at the beginning," I instructed.

So she did. "I've always been different from all the other fairies. My friends knew it, fairies who weren't my friends knew it, Ponies knew it. I knew it. So I was myself. But then they tried to change me, and eventually the only way I could be myself was through my music."

"What's so bad about that?" I asked, still not quite understanding the situation.

Aria snorted. "Fairies are supposed to be graceful creatures that dance to lilting, flutey melodies with tinkling bells. But I like bouncy stuff. Happy stuff. Stuff you can really dance to, and not ballet. I wanted to dance the way I wanted to dance: fast. So I did. But they didn't like it, and soon it was 'Fairies don't play music like that!' I had no more friends. Not even my best friend Lacia," she said, downcast. "That hurt most. When Lacia stopped being my friend just because of what other fairies said. Lacia said she even liked my music, and thought that there should be more leniency toward change. Humans don't stay the same forever. Ponies don't stay the same forever. Or Bushwoolies, Furbobs, Grundles, the path of a stream, and the paths you walk down. They twist and bend and change, sometimes like the wind."

I could understand what she meant, and said, "You then start paralleling another person's path, and you think it will be like that forever. Everything seems so perfect."

Aria blinked, her gaze set with mine. "And then you hit a rock. Or suddenly the path veers off. All because of one event."

Nothing had ever seemed right since that day a year ago. Nothing. Sure, there was good times, but. . .

"What is it that has given you the knowledge of this fact about life so early, Emily? Do all human children now know this at such an age, and grow up so quickly in such a short time?" Aria asked.

I didn't feel much like answering. Aria couldn't blame me. As one of my teachers once said, "A child begins to lose their innocence when they learn that there might not really be a Santa Claus."

How horrific a thought like that is. Children being boxed in to the adult life before ten. That's how long Santa lasts anymore. And with daycare, they have to conform to a timeline based by adults of when they can play and when they can explore.

When did I start being such an adult?

I had to answer the impatiently waiting fairy. So, eyes downcast, I carefully started to explain. "If you must know, it was how a year ago I got thrown into this world when I crashed by bike and hit my head. You know the story. I was stuck here as Princess Crystal Rainbow, the one who had the power to stop the witches. The Rainbow of Light. When I came to, back at home in Idaho, I thought it was a dream, until I found the medallion I had been wearing shoved in my pocket. It was only later - several months later - that I had hard evidence, the Rainbow, to prove it all happened. By then, my friends - Kyle and Jan, who saw me crash - had noticed slight differences in me. And it's been downhill from then."

Looking back up at Aria, I said, "Kyle, Jan, and I have been friends since kindergarten. That's almost ten years. Kyle is, or maybe was is the right term, my boyfriend. I guess I sort of liked him from the start. But, I don't know. I just stuck with Jan all the time, and we'd torture him by making him do girlie stuff like play house in my backyard or Jan's tree fort. Or play with dolls or toy horses." I refrained from saying "My Little Ponies;" she'd be too confused. "Anyway, we'd compromise and play with Kyle's old Transformers, MASK toys, or go outside and play a little football with Kyle's brother Mark and Jan's brother Steven."

Aria listened intently. "And the point would be?" She said this for my benefit, not hers. It seemed like she knew, and simply wanted a conclusion.

"The point is, we were always there for each other. Always had the same classes, played together, cried together when pets died, and shared the things friends treasure. Now it's all different, because of me being stupid and racing around the elementary school's track at the speed of heat. I hardly know Jan anymore, and all Kyle and I ever do is fight," I finished woefully.

Rocking back and forth, Aria sat thinking. "Maybe it was a good thing that you came here. Maybe you were supposed to realize that things couldn't stay perfect forever."

I had come to Ponyland seeking answers.

So far, I didn't like the results.

My spirits were dragging even lower. But, since I didn't have any concrete reason for why I had come, I figured I was doing all right.

Attempting to make some conversation, I asked her, "So what do you do all day? I'd be bored out of my mind. No wonder you think there's nothing to do around here."

Aria's face brightened, and she laughed. "The only advantage to being banished: I'm free to do whatever I like! That means I am free to write whatever style of music that pleases me."

I paused, her statement confusing me. "But. . . I didn't see any instruments in your house."

"Oh, they'd never fit! I've made several instruments since my banishment, and I had to make my own music grotto to hold it all!" she chuckles. "Luckily I was able to find a lovely spot with a great view. Would you like to see it? It would take some climbing, though."

I shrugged. "Might as well. Sounds like fun."

"All right! We'll be there in no time!" she laughed, flying over my head and back down the rough trail we'd been following.

"Do we have to go all the way back to where your house is?" I moaned, for my legs were getting quite sore.

"Yes. You're tired already?" she asked incredulously as she looked back. "Oh. I forgot that you had to walk. It's different when you have wings."

"I bet."

She stopped abruptly, turned, and hovered in place. "It's a steep incline to my grotto. Are you sure you're up to it?"

"Positive!"

Continuing back down the trail, I barely heard her say, "Okay. If you collapse due to the heat or exertion, don't say I didn't warn you."

Oh, that's reassuring.

Trudging back into the small, cliff side glen, Aria continued on past where Pristina and I had stopped. From there on, there was no true path, or at least not anymore.

"I take it the Ponies rarely come out this far," I commented as we shifted our course toward the top of the cliff. As our elevation increased, I could see that the terrain of this end of Dream Valley was nearly as steep but not quite as desolate as the mountains around the Volcano of Gloom.

Recalling my curiosity over the one named Darklighter, I decided to ask Aria about it. "Hey Aria. Remember back when you said if I got lost, there wouldn't be a Darklighter to help me?"

Ahead of me, Aria hovered in midair. "Yeah? What about her?"

"Well, who is Darklighter, exactly?"

Aria waited for me to catch up to her, as the land was quite rough and much steeper than I was used to. "Darklighter was a Unicorn who lived deep in the woods, always there to help lost travelers find their way back to the path they had steered off of. Evidently, a few years back she went searching for a few friends that had disappeared without a trace, and she never came back."

The thought a Pony who made a living rescuing people needing to be saved themselves was sobering, and we started out way back up the mountain.

"Okay, just a little farther - here we are!" I heard Aria say. Taking the few last steps, the cliff side flattened out into a wide ledge, before continuing almost straight up for about fifty feet. Turning around, I was dazzled by the sight before me.

"We fairies sure know how to pick the prime real estate spots," Aria joked.

It was no understatement. From that spot I could see all of Dream Valley, a patchwork quilt of greens and bands of blue, light dustings of colors from all ends of the spectrum, and, of course, the pink forms and roofs of Dream Castle, Paradise Estate, and Lullabye Nursery. Farther off in the distance northeast of the mountains containing the Volcano of Gloom, I could see a lush area of green that had to be Flutter Valley.

"Well, Pristina had absolutely no clue as to where we were going. Flutter Valley - ha! We were pretty much heading in the opposite direction!" I quipped, taking a sidelong glance at Aria, who had a somewhat grim expression on her face at this.

"Yes, well, as I was saying, there are an unfortunate number of Ponies just like Pristina that are constantly getting lost, and some have never returned. Including one or two of the Pony Royalty, I hear," she said. "On a lighter note, occurrences where Ponies, Bushwoolies, or Furbobs disappear are down in the past few years. And, back to the reason we're up here, my grotto is literally right over here."

Heading to our right, Aria flew over to a recess in the rocky mountainside. Looking in, I found an array of instruments I would only see in my school band. Shelves upon shelves of miniature drums, a multitude of stringed instruments in varying sizes and styles. A flute no longer than the cap of a pen, an assortment of bells, xylophones, and glockenspiels ranging in size from the length of my pinkie finger to that of a pencil, and more.

"Well, what do you think?" Aria asked me, her face beaming.

Still quite amazed, I answered, "What do I think? It's wonderful. The only thing you're missing is a piano. A saxophone would be nice, too, though."

"We can only do so much, Emily," she admonished, but still smiling. "Would you like to hear something? Emily?"

At this point I had become distracted by a curious alcove in the mountain. Drawing closer, I saw that it was in fact a cave or passageway of some sort.

"Emily? Where are you going?" Aria called after me. Now that I think of it, she actually sounded worried.

"There's - there's a tunnel here in the mountainside! Haven't you ever noticed it?" I asked, venturing into the mouth of the passage. "It goes through the mountain - and it must go all the way through; I can see light at the other end!"

"Emily, wait!"

I went further on, passing through the darkest part of the stone tunnel, heading toward the light.

"Emily!" Aria called again, flying up to me. I paused as the tunnel widened, opening up into the land beyond the mountains.

Turning to look at the frazzled fairy, I hissed, "What?"

She gulped. "You don't know what's back here."

"And you do?"

She wrung her hands behind her back, wings fluttering rapidly. "Well, no. . ."

"Why don't we find out? And what are you hiding?" I asked suspiciously.

"I've never been back there, and like I said - Ponies have a history of 'disappearing' in these neck of the woods," Aria answered.

I glanced back to the land beyond. It seemed harmless, and below, there appeared to be a valley, shrouded in mist. "I want find out what's down there."

I bounded out of the tunnel. "Emily, don't go in there - !" I heard Aria plead, but it was too late.

Aria had actually shouted a complete warning, and she told me later it was this: "It's the Mountains of Forgetfulness."

The realm of the forgotten ones.

I trekked down a gentle hill, eyes wide as I took in the strange surroundings. I saw some foliage, but the first animal I saw was a lone Pony, wandering about as if in a daze.

"Hello!" I called out to the light blue unicorn with a lavender and magenta mane. She didn't seem to notice me, so I called louder, "Hello! Can you hear me?"

The Pony did not answer, and it was then that I saw more of the dazed Ponies roaming through the mists, sometimes colliding into trees or bushes, rocks, or even each other.

"They can't hear you," a deep voice commented behind me. I whirled in surprise to face the largest male Pony I had ever seen, and by the glistening metallic shield on his side, I knew him to be one of the Pony Royalty Aria had spoken of. A Unicorn, the prince was black with white and silver hair, and had a curious dusting of star-shaped diamonds and sapphires embedded in a silver pentagon as his symbol. He seemed to be in a similar state as the other Ponies, but his eyes didn't have the same vacant look as they did.

"My name is Prince Orion," he continued. "I am searching for a friend of mine who disappeared some time ago, and it is in this area she was believed to have gone."

Despite the fact that Orion could speak to me, I could not help but think something was wrong. His voice held no inflection, betrayed no emotion, as if the words coming from his mouth were nothing but a recording.

Confused, I asked him, "How is it that you were aware of my presence? And that you can speak? All of the other - "

"I am using my Unicorn power to stay conscious in this land, and it is difficult to think through your questions and continue focusing on who I am, why I am here. If my concentration breaks, I will become another one of these helpless creatures," the stoic Prince interrupted me, still using that same monotone voice.

"That seemed like quite a thorough answer to me, " I said, slightly irked. Not understanding all of what was happening around me, as I had forgotten my conversation with Aria, let alone her existence, I asked, "What is wrong with all of these Ponies?"

Orion took some time to answer the question. I began to wonder if he had lost his hold on reality until he replied, "We are in a land which is called the Mountains of Forgetfulness. Once Ponies, Furbobs, Bushwoolies, or any creature enter, they lose their state of total consciousness. They see nothing but the mist, and do not find their way out. We only know this is what happens because once, a long, long time ago, one Pony did manage to wander their way out of this valley. She had a distorted memory of it all, and wasn't too sure if it all had just been a dream. Of course, that was before she found out she had been missing for three years."

The thought of roaming about in a vast expanse of nothingness for years on end scared me. The seriousness of it all did not sink in, though, as I myself was losing my grasp on my consciousness.

"I believe the mists are what contributes the cloudiness of the consciousness, the loss of one's sense of reality," Orion said on his own, which startled me out of my daydream. "The effect of them appears to be slower on humans, but I can see you are struggling to fight them. You know who I am, but who are you? The girl named Megan? But you are too young. . . I know I have been here for some time. . ."

His question was disconcerting, and it was at this point that I realized something was missing. I could not remember how I had come to be in such a strange place, nor why I would be here. And where was here? I vaguely remembered something about a rainbow, a walk in the woods, but the memory was distant and elusive, evading my grasp. "I don't know," I finally answered, still trying to reach into my mind and pull out the answers.

"My name is Prince Orion," the Pony said once again, clearing my mind briefly. "I am searching for a friend of mine who disappeared some time ago. . ."

"But who am I?" I questioned him, becoming hysterical. "Who am I? Where am I?"

The Prince shook his head slowly. "All the same. . ." he said forlornly, beginning to trot away.

"Wait! Don't go! Please!" I ran after him, but he disappeared into the mist. I tried to follow him deeper into the mists, finding nothing. Passing by a peach-colored lump I thought to be a rock, I discovered it to be a small baby Earth Pony, sitting down and staring into space. "Hello! Hello, can you help me? I don't know where I am, or who I am, and I need help!" The baby did not respond, and I shook one of her hooves violently. "Can't you hear me?!?"

The Baby still did not answer, and I wandered off crying back toward where I thought I came from for some time, found a rock, and sat down. I shoved my hands down into my pants pockets, and it surprised me that I had clothes, as no one else did. But I wasn't like the others, they walked on - how many legs? I had two, but somehow they were different. I was also startled to find a round, smooth object in one of my pants pockets. Pulling it out, I heard in my mind the word necklace . The necklace had a yellow - no, gold chain, and on it was a gold disk. The disk -  or medallion, my mind said - had on in a raised silver circle with a multi-colored crystal leaf embedded in it. Turning the medallion over, I found an inscription on the back:

And a literal light bulb went off in my head. For a time I went back to my first visit to Ponyland, confused and terrified in a new and strange world.

Just then, I saw a familiar black Unicorn ambling past. "Orion! Orion, I remember! My name's Emily! Emily Parker! I remember it all!"

Orion turned, a look of astonishment and hope on his face. . .

My spirits sagged as his expression dissolved into that of all the other poor creatures in that valley - vacant, uninteresting. Unconscious. I'd lost my only hope of ever getting out of that valley.

I buried my head in my hands, and my drying eyes became wet again. "Aria, why couldn't I have listened to you? Now, I've screwed everything up. . ."

Memories floated up from the back of my mind: happier times when Kyle, Jan, and I had not a care in the world, times where all was right. I heard the voices of friends and myself coming back from my past. . .

"Hey Jan! Remember those toy horses we'd play with in kindergarten and first grade? My Little Ponies? I was in Freddy's with my cousin. . ."

"Man, I can't believe you! First thing you do is ask her about toys when we should be deciding what we're gonna do here! Incredible!"

"I don't want anything to happen to you, Emily. I'd feel somewhat responsible."

"Yrow. Take a chill pill Em. I was just making a joke. . ."

"I still don't believe it. Another two or three months can go by, and I won't believe you then either. Your nuts. Both of you!"

"Hey! I'm proud of being part Cherokee part English part Irish part black! So what? I'm a census representative's nightmare."

"Stop being a hypocrite!"

"Where's your sense of adventure? The exciting thrill of danger that you love?"

"I can't. . . I can't imagine going to school, or celebrating a birthday or Christmas or New Year, or going to the dance, or just doing anything, without you."

"Em, I think you should take some time to think things over while I'm gone. I mean it."

"Ever since that day last year - a year ago exactly, checking the post-it calendar on the side of my fridge - everything's just been one argument after another, after another, after another! And I'm gettin' tired of it! Nothing's been right since then! You've changed. You're not the same Emily Parker I knew, or Kyle knew, for that matter."

"I've always been different from all the other fairies. My friends knew it, fairies who weren't my friends knew it, Ponies knew it. I knew it. So I was myself. But then they tried to change me, and eventually the only way I could be myself was through my music."

"Humans don't stay the same forever. Ponies don't stay the same forever. Or Bushwoolies, Furbobs, Grundles, the path of a stream, and the paths you walk down. They twist and bend and change, sometimes like the wind."

"What is it that has given you the knowledge of this fact of life so early, Emily? Do all human children now know this at such an age, and grow up so quickly?"

"You're not the same Emily Parker. . ."

Jan was right. Aria was right. And Kyle, and Pristina, and Mom - all of them. I had changed. And I wouldn't be able to fix it, because I was stuck in some blasted valley with no way out, and I would never see the people who were my friends again.

Everything seemed to go black around me after that point, and I let myself drift into a misty oblivion.

"Emily, don't go in there! It's the Mountains of Forgetfulness," she had screamed after me. When she realized I wasn't coming back, she flew out of the tunnel, away from her music grotto, and down the mountain.

"Oh no, no no, what am I going to do? I should have warned her. . ." Aria muttered to herself, fluttering into the glen where we met. Flying into her house, she went directly to her vanity. Squeezing herself into the tiny space behind the overturned butter dish, she pulled out her rucksack of belongings she had taken with her after her banishment. Reaching in, she fumed, "Some princess I've made. First, I have to rebel and go into music instead of leadership and proper lady-fairy duties. Then, I get banished for writing and playing inappropriate music. Now I've gone and let the Keeper of the Rainbow of Light get lost in the Mountains of Forgetfulness! There's no way they'll even let me in the door. . ."

No, Aria had not told me she was a Fairy Princess, but this is just what she relayed back to me what happened while I was gone. She had failed to mention it to me earlier as she was somewhat ashamed, which was understandable. Aria dug out her delicate tiara, and placed it on her vanity. "Oh, my hair is such a mess. . ." Picking up a small comb, she eased out the snarls in her brown hair, then neatly placed the tiara on her head. With a hasty look of approval in the mirror. Aria raced out of the vine-shrouded condo, flying up above the trees. Soaring on the wind, she headed directly for her hidden hollow of fairies.

Kyle Morone, tired and cranky, covered his ears as his older brother Mark began to rant about how his girlfriend Ashlie would be so upset to hear she had gone out of town without knowing just as he came back. While this was going on, Kyle's younger brother Jack began to complain about how badly he had to go to the bathroom. But to top it off, Kyle's sister, Angela, decided to pipe up that Jack ripped the head off of her favorite Barbie doll. . .

"I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE!!!" he yelled, jumping out of the van as soon as it came to a full stop.

"And I'm telling you I don't care!" she retorted, arms crossed and wings twitching. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a familiar fairy approaching cautiously. It was Lacia, her best friend.

"Lacia! Will you please tell this insufferable guard to get out of my way and let me in? We've got a crisis situation here!" Aria bellowed.

When she wanted to, Aria could be very un-fairylike. It was her mission in life, she told me, to be as much un-fairylike when she could as a child. "It was fun. And it bugged the heck out of my sister," she had also said to me, grinning evilly as I wrote out her side of the story.

Lacia halted, uncertain of what to do. "Aria. . . what are you doing here? If your sister finds out you were violating your banishment, she'll - "

"Look, Lacia, just like I told the guard here, I don't care. The Keeper of the Rainbow of Light, a human named Emily, is lost in the Mountains of Forgetfulness. Yes, I'll admit it's partially my fault, but we have to get her out of there. I can't alone, and humans are different when compared to Ponies and Furbobs and Grundles and them folk get lost in the mountains. They can live off the land, have a longer life span, won't be missed as much, and are from this world. Emily is a different story. If she doesn't get home in time, people will start to wonder. If her friends suggested where she might be, no one would believe them, and it could possibly destroy their future. We must do something, Lacia. Fairies have the power to resist the effects of the Mountains and rescue Emily, and all the creatures that are in there. We always have, and should have already done something about it," Aria argued.

It was a three-way staredown after Aria's long outburst, which had left her feeling slightly out of breath. Aria stood steadfast with arms still crossed defiantly in front of her, Lacia twiddled her thumbs idly while she pondered over the situation, and the guard? Well, he stood motionless at his post, wondering if he had forgotten to turn the stove off that morning after boiling some water for tea. . .

Trudging in the front door, Jan flopped off her sandals, pulled of her sunglasses, and went into the kitchen. She put the sunglasses and her bag none too gently down on the counter, then  toproceeded the Stockmans' living room, where she plopped herself down on the sofa. Taking hold of the remote control, she sighed and said, "Now I get to surf our boring TV channels, all 181 of them with nothing to watch. . ."

The pathway soon began to ascend into the "lower levels," which contained the reception hall, access to the surface, and the kitchens. Above was the library, the Grand Dining Room, the Throne Room, and the Royal Conference Chamber. The latter was their destination, as it just so happened that there was a meeting of the Fairy Elders from each hollow. There are several hollows like Aria's scattered across Ponyland; hers could be thought of as the capital. Perfect timing.

The five fairies halted outside the doors. Aria turned her head towards Lacia and said, "Since you've come this far, does this mean you agree with me, that we are obligated to help, and that things must change?"

Lacia nodded her head, her expression serious and sincere. "I may have said in the past that I didn't agree with you and didn't accept you, and for that I apologize greatly. I should have supported you three years ago instead of blending in with the majority in order to be spared from shame. My actions cannot be taken back, but I can make up for them by helping you and standing behind you now."

Aria took a deep breath, and allowed the two guards in front of her open the doors to the Royal Conference Chamber.

Replacing her cup with smashing force on the table, Queen Alaine leapt to her feet in rage. "You - you - How dare you bring even more shame to the Royalty by returning here! And in those rags! You disgrace the tiara you so wrongly wear!"

"What you call rags I call comfortable, unlike those abominable dresses and robes you call fashionable and wear now!" Aria retorted darkly. "And as for the tiara, you can keep it. I don't want it. I don't want any part of this society unless there are some drastic changes."

"A disgrace to the Royalty y'are, a blight on all fairies alike!" muttered Artism Agan, an equally ancient male fairy representing the Agan hollow of his namesake. "A disgrace that should be thrown out this instant! Your Highness, you certainly will not accept such behavior?"

Queen Alaine leaned on the great table before her. "No, this one's behavior will not be tolerated. We will, however, give this one the chance to explain her actions before being banished permanently."

Aria glared out of the corner of her eye at her childhood friend, who stood quivering to her right. About to give her a light shove, Lacia took a step forward to speak. "Your Highness, do not banish Aria. She has come here for - "

"I do not remember giving you permission to speak, Gardener. This one will speak on her own," the fairy queen interrupted.

All eyes turned to Aria. "Before I finish I must say that I forgive the Gardener Fairy Lacia, and hope that she will forgive me in turn for holding a slight grudge against her," she began calmly. "I come in peace, I mean no harm. For my outburst I will apologize, but for my barging in I will not, for this is a matter that exceeds that of life and death.

"Earlier today I happened upon a Pony Princess and a human girl in the woods beyond Dream Valley, where I settled after my temporary banishment. The human girl is named Emily Parker, who right now she is trapped in the Mountains of Forgetfulness -"

"And you are perfectly aware that we no longer interact with those who are not fairies. No interaction means no aid will be sent," Queen Alaine argued, wanting to the humiliation some called her sister.

"- and she is the Keeper of the Rainbow of Light."

Silence filled the Chamber, and Queen Alaine sat back down. No one had any comment, any jeer that they could have sent the fallen princess' way. A small beam of hope then shone in Aria's favor, and she continued. "The Keeper of the Rainbow of Light, Alaine. The one who holds the greatest power of good in this world of ours. A world we share with Ponies, Grundles, and other creatures who have all depended on that power sometime in their existence."

She was winning. "We have the power to resist the forgetfulness, to rescue her. But what about the others, the rest of the lost and forgotten ones? I know there are several here that could probably care less."

"We won't accept that," Lacia said quietly. "It is all or none. There will be mass uprisings, if only the Keeper is allowed to be rescued."

Taking up the argument again, Aria said, "We can't do it alone, though."

Shaking her head, Queen Alaine spoke up. "First you want us to violate our vow of no communication by helping this girl - "

"No, Alaine, not any girl, the Keeper of the Rainbow," Aria said, interrupting her sister for once.

"- fine, this Keeper of the Rainbow," Alaine continued, narrowing her eyes. "Then you demand that all be rescued. Now you ask for more outside contact? From whom?"

Aria gulped. What she would ask next had been forbidden for hundreds of years, since the early fifteenth century. "From Emily's two best friends; humans."

Queen Alaine took a sharp breath as the room exploded into a dither. "Silence!" she bellowed at the top of her tiny lungs. As the room regained its order, the fairy queen sat in a state of consternation, deliberating over what her next move would be. Finally she looked up. "For generations it has been more than a law, but a fact of life: fairies do not associate with humans and can not been seen by humans.

"But at this time, we are faced with a conflict that can only be solved by breaking that edict. We have no idea as to the vastness of that mist-filled valley in the mountains, and we will need all the help we can get to first find the Keeper, but then round up all the sentient beings that are also trapped in there.

"So, fairies, I now propose a historic vote that shall undeniably change our way of life forever." Bracing herself, Queen Alaine finished her sentence. "All in favor of Princess Aria's plan to rescue those wandering helplessly in the Mountains of Forgetfulness, including the installment of humans into the mission, now say aye."

Hope blossomed inside Aria as all the Fairy Elders and Royalty, including the Queen Alaine, said in unison, "Aye."

Queen Alaine turned to Aria. "Now, Aria. What is this plan of yours?"

"It has to. Sure, the humans aren't necessary, but somehow I think it will turn out for the better. For Emily's sake, that is," Aria replied.

Lacia nodded. "Then I wish you well, Aria."

Waving a farewell, Aria flew up into the sky, making her way out of Ponyland, and out of that world. Entering mine, she set her destination as a housing development in Lake Sheridan, Idaho.

He was just passing a hedge of roses when he heard a voice call from behind him. Turning, he saw a tall, cute brunette of about high school age running towards him, who was wearing cutoff shorts and a t-shirt that read "THEY DO EXIST" in bold print under a picture of Tinkerbell from Peter Pan.

"Hello! Yoo-hoo!" the brunette called. "Hi, I'm new around here, could you tell me where I could find a kid named Kyle and a kid named Jan? A new friend of mine said I should look them up - "

Not sure what he was getting into, Kyle said, "I'm Kyle. Kyle Morone. And who do I know that would have sent you to me?"

The brunette must have been slightly annoyed, as she was obviously putting on a fake smile. "Oh good, I must have the right Kyle. I was told you could be a pain sometimes. We'll just have to fix that."

As suddenly as the girl had appeared, she vanished in an instant. Dumbstruck at the sight he found when the girl reappeared, Kyle rubbed his eyes, then took a second glance. "Have I gone mad?"

Aria, in fairy-form, fluttered not one foot from his face, her hands on her hips. "Look buster," she began, jabbing a finger in his face, "if you know for a fact that Little Ponies exist, you shouldn't be too surprised once discovering fairies exist also. And don't talk too loud, only you can see me right now. Or people will think you have gone mad."

Turning his back to the fairy, he continued towards Jan's safe haven of sanity. "Well, that answers who sent you."

Aria flew around in front of him to look him in the eye. "Emily didn't send me. I sent myself." After receiving no reply, she cried angrily, "Don't you even care why I'm here?!"

Kyle noisily came to a halt, sighing. "Look Tinkerbell, if you've met Emily then you've probably heard her woes concerning our farce of a relationship. We aren't even exactly friends anymore. So if she put you up to this -"

"I told you, you little jerk, that I sent myself, and my name is not Tinkerbell!" the fairy exploded, startling Kyle. "For your information, right now Emily's stuck in a place that no one comes out of. Your mind clouds, you enter a semi-conscious daze, and never come out!! Only once by accident has anyone ever returned!"

Staring directly at her, Kyle replied, "I won't go there again, Ti- er, whatever your name is, and neither will Jan. You can become human-sized. Lead her out yourself."

"What you saw was a mere illusion. That whole time I wouldn't be able to pick up or kick anything like a normal human would. Depending on her condition, I can't get her out. The illusion would simply pass through, and my name's Aria," she retorted, wishing she had added the former title of "Princess" to her name. "And for your further information, if we don't get Emily out soon, she could die!"

Deliberately waiting so her words to sink into Kyle's sometimes thick head, she added quietly, "I wouldn't think you'd want that to happen, now would you?"

Kyle ran his hands over his face, and sat down on the hot sidewalk. Looking up at the little fairy, he said, "You say she could die. How?"

"All the animals and creatures of Ponyland know how to live off the land. They can do it mechanically. Humans can not," was her answer, lighting on his knee. "So what'll it be, Kyle? This isn't exactly the best time to be sitting down doing nothing."

Gazing down at the nearly weightless creature on his bare knee, he let out a long, labored breath. "Emily's in trouble."

Aria nodded. "Dead trouble."

"Please don't try to make puns at a time like this," he moaned.

Blushing a deep red, she replied shyly, "I'd never purposely say anything like that. It was a poor choice of words on my part, and I apologize."

"It's okay. I was a 'jerk' myself, and to one really hot - "

"You better shut up now, Kyle," Aria interrupted him. "Considering your girlfriend's gonna want to know every little detail she misses."

"Good idea." he agreed, as Aria lifted off from his knee. Oh, once I heard this interesting tidbit, Kyle wanted me to hand him a baseball. So I gave it to him. Hard.

Stretching as he stood up, he said, "Okay, I guess the first order of business would be to convince Jan to join us."

"And the next would be to find some rope. Ten meters should be enough," Aria said, flying far up ahead of Kyle.

Confused, he jogged after her, calling, "Excuse me, but where do you plan on getting rope? And do you know where you're going? No."

"Not so loud, Morone! People will think you're craaazy," she admonished, falling back enough for Kyle to pass her. By this time they were only a few houses down from Jan's. Aria cut across the lawn of the tan rambler as Kyle took the steps up the front porch in one leap. "Are you trying to impress me? Cause if you are, it's not working."

Kyle's reply was a sardonic look as he rang the doorbell, then muttered something indecipherable.

"Excuse me, but what did you say? And was it nice? No," Aria sneered, doing an almost perfect imitation of Kyle.

Before he could make any remark, the door opened to reveal a bored Jan.

"Hi there!" Aria said brightly.

Jan's eyes bulged, her eyebrows furrowed, and her right hand trembled on the inside doorknob. "Kyle. . . what is that?"

"I thought only I could see you!" he cried incredulously.

"Well guess what?" Aria stormed, flittering past Jan and into the foyer. Jan closed the door, still as dumbstruck as Kyle had been at his first sight of the fairy.

Trying to set the awkward situation at ease, he said gently, "Jan, this is Aria. Aria needs us to come with her."

"I won't," was all Jan could manage to utter. She flung herself down on the couch, and stuffed a pillow over her face.

Kyle took a deep breath, and said, "Jan, I'm not kidding when I say - "

"I'm not going and that's final! Emily can get herself out of whatever mess she's in! I don't want to be a part of her delusions anymore!" Jan shouted angrily through the pillow.

"They aren't delusions. Emily could be hurt, she may die even if we don't help Aria," Kyle said. Taking a glance over at Aria, he asked, "There will be other fairies helping us, won't there?"

She nodded, and flew over to Jan's. "I know this is difficult. Emily's told me just about everything that has been going on between the three of you. You don't have to come with us, but if you do, I don't see how you could regret it."

Jan lowered the pillow, revealing only her eyes, which were narrowed into almond slivers. "You say she's in trouble? Again?"

Her reply was a short nod.

Glowering, Jan threw the pillow to the opposite end of the couch. Aria flew off of her knee as Jan got up. Stretching, she said, "All right. What do we do?"

Landing on the arm of the couch, she looked up at her with wide eyes. "Right now Emily is trapped in a valley within the Mountains of Forgetfulness. The valley is shrouded in a mind-clouding mist that prevent any sentient beings that enter from being able to think, or remember. The fairies can concentrate their powers to repel the effects of the mist, but we would not be able to round up everyone, as we would need to concentrate ourselves on not succumbing to the mists.

"Also," she continued, "chances are we would not be able to find the entrance to the valley, once inside."

"So that's where we come in?" Jan asked.

"Precisely. You at one end of the rope, Kyle at the other."

Slumping back onto the couch, Jan heaved a weighty sigh. Kyle sat silently, pondering over her plan. "Aria, you still haven't explained where you plan on getting twenty meters of rope. That's the equivalent of thirty feet."

"What'd you say?" Jan asked abruptly.

Kyle blinked. "What? You got thirty feet of rope lying around?"

She sat up. "Not rope, but phone cables. Dad plans on wiring both mine and Steven's rooms with cable Internet connection by stringing it up through the walls, and he just bought two sets of fifty-foot phone cords to do it with."

Aria thought for a second. "Do you have some duct tape to connect them with?"

Jan snorted. "Do I have duct tape! My dad's got tons of it. He can fix anything - just show him the duct tape."

"Great!" Aria exclaimed, leaping from her perch. "We've no time to lose! Meet us out back!"

While Jan rushed away to find the cables, Kyle and Aria headed outside. Once in Jan's backyard, Kyle asked her, "Aria, how exactly are you gonna get us to where we're going?"

She grinned mischievously. "You know how you loved my size-changing act?"

Uncomfortable with the tone in her voice, Kyle answered warily, "Yes, but - "

Just as Jan bolted out onto the patio with rolls of cable and tape, Aria said sweetly, "Well, you're gonna love this even more!"

"Why don't like the sound of this?" Jan asked hesitantly.

With a wave of her hand, Jan and Kyle gasped as the yard around them became hazy, the colors of the trees and grass melding into an unrecognizable scene.

"Don't you two worry a thing!" they both heard Aria's voice, and she began to sing. it was not a language that the two could understand, but the music came forth, both felt an eerie sensation of weightlessness. After a few lines, the colors morphed from verdant green into a dusty mist. The weight returned to their bodies, and the haze cleared. Once it did, they found themselves standing upon the craggy ledge that led to the valley within the Mountains of Forgetfulness, and they were not alone.

"Holy sacrilege," Jan breathed.

Surrounding them were hundreds of fairies hovering in the air, waiting for them.

All three turned at the sound of a clearly irritated throat clearing. The source was the old curmudgeon, Artism Agan. Next to him, Queen Alaine shot daggers from eyes, silencing the fairy man. She looked back to her sister. "These are the humans?"

"No wisecracks, Jan," Kyle muttered quietly. "I'm thinking she's royalty."

Aria took a deep breathe, trying to remain patient. "In all actuality, Kyle, this is Queen Alaine, my sister."

Smarting, both Kyle and Jan began to utter a string of apologies, until Queen Alaine held up a hand. "Stop. There is no time for diplomacy at the moment. The fairies have agreed to help this one time, but this one time only. Let's be done with this."

Alaine turned to Aria. "Sister, I have explained your plan to the gathering here. As soon as you are ready to proceed, we will."

Aria nodded, and glanced at Kyle and Jan. "Get unrolling."

Jan dropped her rolls to the ground, tearing open the packages, while Kyle ripped off pieces of tape to fasten the strands of cord together. Aria flew down close to them, and asked quietly, "Are you sure this is going to hold?"

Without looking up, Jan said, "It better."

"Jan…" Kyle warned, taping two ends together.

Ripping the last package, she amended, "It will."

Getting up, Jan unwound some slack to the cord, then weaved it through the belt loops in her shorts. "Kyle, you take the other end. I don't wanna go in there."

"Shouldn't the stronger of us two hang onto this end?" Kyle asked, taking the cord.

Jan glared at him, and gave him a hard shove. "I can kick your butt any day in tackle football."

This time, Aria was the one to clear her throat. "Stop messing around. We've got to get in there. This way."

Aria flittered over to the passageway, Kyle close behind, passing the cord between his belt loops as Jan had. Upon reaching the end of the tunnel, he found the Queen waiting.

"Don't go in until all of the fairies are inside," she ordered, then waved the fairies forward. As the multitude swept by, in the dim light they seemed to glow. Kyle could hear more than the beating of their wings; they were also humming. He stole a look back at Jan, who was nervously gnawing at her thumbnail. He whispered, "Wish me luck?"

"I'd be more inclined to say a prayer, though I have to wonder what was going through God's mind when he made this alternative dimension," Jan mumbled almost inaudibly.

He pursed is lips, taking in her words. "Good idea."

The last of the fairies rushed through, and the Queen motioned him forward. "Now."

Holding his breath, Kyle stepped through the passageway into the valley. The mist was still there, but in the distance he could see pockets of clarity forming. And he heard singing.

Trekking down the hill, the fairies became more visible, and their voices swelled into a forte. Looking around, he could see a few Ponies, shaking their heads and blinking in the sunlight as if they were waking from some long sleep.

Finding his voice, he shouted Emily's name. Taking a few steps more, he continued until he felt a hard jolt.

They had ran out of line. Swinging around frantically, he tried to locate Emily in the thinning mist. He tried calling her name again. Ponies, though still confused, were gathering their consciousness, and trotting towards him, questions in their eyes: where am I? what happened? who are you?

Turning around, Kyle followed the line of cable up the hill, finding the spot that it seemed to disappear into the mountainside.

"Aria!" he yelled. "Aria, where are you?"

One of the shining points of light came closer, and the shape materialized into the song fairy. "What is it?"

"Have you seen Emily? I've ran out of line!" he called up to her, and his mind began to feel clouded.

"I can't stop singing, Kyle!" she shouted, then continued the chorus. Immediately his head cleared.

Desperate, Kyle tore off his overshirt, and began untying the cord. Aria looked on in horror, still singing.

"I have to find her!" he yelled. Wrapping the shirt around the end of the cord, he placed it on top of a nearby rock.

"Everybody head up the hill and follow that cord! But whatever you do, don't move it!" he yelled to Ponies going past as he ran into the mist.

When exactly I started to regain consciousness, I'm not sure. Everything seemed like a dream; a bright flash, music, but far away - voices, sunlight, bright, diffused sunlight.

"Emily! Blast it, Emily!"

It took me a moment to understand the words, and recall that Emily was me. I've never known what a hangover feels like, but I knew it couldn't be much different from the sensation of semi-hardened cement being disrupted by a jackhammer.

"Emily, Emily where are you?!"

That voice. I knew it. And that this had happened before. And I knew it. And I knew guilt.

I commanded my body to turn on its side so I could sit up, and try to find that voice that stood out from the others around me, but before I could, I felt something clasp my shoulders from behind, pulling me up. My eyes didn't want to focus, but I knew who it was.

"Come on, Emily, you gotta stand up, we need to get out of here," the blur in front of me that was Kyle said.

My voice didn't want to work, either, so my attempt at an apology was little more than a croak.

Kyle led me on, my feet stumbling as I tried to force them to walk.

"One foot in front of the other, that's it… Aria, just keep on going, keep heading for the cord, I can follow you. Just don't get too far ahead," he was saying.

The voices were still singing, but growing in power behind us. The fairies were leaving the valley, no matter who might still have been in there.

Finally, my eyes adjusted, and I could make out the procession of Ponies and other creatures heading towards the passage out of the mountains. Passing a rock, Kyle grabbed his shirt and the phone cord with his free hand.

Starting up the steep slope, I remembered my encounter with the prince. "Orion!" I gasped. "We can't - leave him - "

"We're leaving, Em! I don't know who Orion is, but you have to leave him behind!" he said harshly.

I looked over my shoulder, to find no more Ponies behind me, only a swarm of fairies. Reaching the mountainside, I flinched, expecting to impact rock, but instead passed right through, stumbling into a world of clear thought and into Jan's outstretched arms. As both Kyle and Jan led me toward the late afternoon sunlight of Ponyland, I could hear another voice counting off fairies as they entered.

Once out on the ledge crowded with Ponies, I was finally able to look Kyle face to face. He was frowning deeply, and I knew that couldn't be good.

"You have to promise me," he started. "You must promise all of us."

"What?" I asked, although knowing what he would say.

"Never come back here."

I looked down at my feet, ashamed. Shoving my hands into my pockets, I pulled the rainbow locket out.

"Emily! Thank the fates!" Aria trilled, landing on Jan's shoulder. "You're all right!"

"Orion," was all I could say.

"Behind you," a deep voice answered.

I turned clumsily. Sure enough there he was, silver mane glinting in the sun. But next to him -

"This is Crystal Rainbow," he said, introducing the graceful white Unicorn with rainbow hair next him.

Realization swelled over me as I noticed the symbol on her side matched the rainbow locket. "You're the true Keeper."

The Unicorn smiled, blue eyes sparkling. "That's right. A little over a year ago, I became lost, searching for Darklighter, rescuer to the lost creatures of Ponyland. Orion came after me."

My mind whirled. "But how did I -"

"Become me? I don't know. Strange things happen where the Rainbow is concerned," she said.

I looked at the medallion resting in my hand. "Then this belongs to you."

"Aye, it does."

I felt Kyle's hands on my shoulders, and heard him whisper, "Let it go, Em. The rainbow is not part of our world. It belongs here, just as you said."

Taking the chain in both hands, I lifted the necklace over the Unicorn's head, and let it fall around her neck. She dipped her head in appreciation. "Thank you, for keeping it safe in my absence."

Swallowing hard, I nodded.

The two happy Pony royalty smiled their thanks, and disappeared.

I turned and faced my friends. "How will we get home now?"

Aria, eyes glinting with tears, spoke up. "We fairies have our ways. Thank you, Emily, for bungling into our lives. You and I have shared much wisdom. May you always remember it, as I will."

She waved her hand, and I got to experience the same melding of colors Kyle and Jan had. When the world returned to normal, we were in Jan's back yard. But there was no Aria.

Though Kyle had been holding fast to my shoulders, he dropped them straight down, breaking away. The summer heat had changed to a heavy blanket of humidity, as the skies had clouded over, and silent tears came to my eyes. 

Beheind me, Kyle said, "We tell no one, Em. You hear me?"

I turned to see Jan acknowledge her agreement, a tangle of phone cords and duct tape wrapped haphazardly around her arms.

I hung my head. "No one."
~*~
~*~

Kyle and I never really did settle our disagreements. He and I drifted apart. Aria did return to me, though, and twice. The first visit was a week after the ordeal, and the second, a year later to the day.

We both sat in the old playhouse in my backyard, me sipping a cold Pepsi, Aria cooling herself with the sweat from the can.

"So how's life treating you, Aria?" I asked.

She shrugged. "Eh, I think I preferred being banished. This princess stuff is not what it's all cracked up to be."

I laughed weakly. "I bet."

"And Kyle, and Jan?" she asked expectantly.

Closing my eyes, I said, "Truth be told, I've seen Kyle maybe five times in the past year - all from afar. Somehow he managed to get a schedule that's the complete backwards of mine, from what I hear. I don't know if I'll see him in any of my classes this year. Jan forgave me; she came around in early October. Figured we'd been friends too long to throw it all away."

Averting eye contact, Aria gazed down at her hands. "I'm sorry, Emily."

Neither of us speak for some time, listening to the sound of lawnmowers in the distance and my neighbor's kids squealing in delight as they splash in their pool. Her wings twitched nervously, and she seemed uncomfortable in her regal finery of a fairy princess.

When she brought her head back up, she sighed, "Well, I'm afraid duty calls, and that I could only get away for a few minutes. I'll come back soon, though."

Meeting at her apologetic eyes, I said, "It's okay, Aria. I've said my good-byes to the past."

Saddened, she looked at me while she transferred to her own world, but before she faded out completely an expression of surprise painted her face. Puzzled, I wrenched my back towards the door, and dropped my jaw in disbelief. "How long have you been standing there?"

Kyle stoops in the doorway of the smallish playhouse. "Long enough." Eyes darting around with uncertainly, he asked, "Can I come in?"

I nodded slowly, and he sat down next to me. I could see he'd grown, and his voice had deepened into a rich baritone. Like Ayren's, of my first adventure.

"It's been a year," he said.

"It has."

Hesitating, he continues warily. "Jan… says you've changed."

"I have." Where is this going? "I'm not the same naive Emily you knew, for sure."

Uncomfortable and cramped, he grimaced as he tried to find a better position, to only knock his head against the roof. I covered my mouth, hiding a small smile.

Rubbing his head, he groaned, "Man, this place isn't as big as I remember."

I didn't reply, but I knew my eyes betrayed my mirth.

He rolled his eyes, and remarked dryly, "It seems I've changed, too. Now I'm the klutz."

"You're not a klutz, you're just - growing," I said, but began laughing. Between bouts of giggles, I sputtered, "Forgive me, I'm sorry."

"I do," he said calmly.

Something in the tone of his voice sounded odd, and I blinked. "What?"

He looked at me straight on. "I do."

Pulling me close, he did the one thing I would never expect: he kissed me, and I found myself kissing him back.

After what had to have been a few moments, but felt like eternity, we pulled away.

"Well. That was… interesting," I said haltingly, still flushed from the kiss.

He smiled broadly. "Forgive me?"

I matched his grin. "Of course. Everything's in the past now. We only have the future to contend with."

Holding me near him again, he replied, "Then that's all the happy ending I need."

Turns out, it's all I needed, too.