"Emily Jo Parker! Where are you going?!"

"I'm riding down to the school with Kyle and Jan, Mom! I'll be back by seven-thirty!"

It was just your average hot summer's day near Boise, Idaho, in the town of Lake Cheridan. The temperature had finally cooled down after dinner, but it was still in the mid-seventies. Being an active thirteen year old, I had to get out and move around. So I had proposed to my friends, Kyle Morone and Jan Stockman, that we ride down to our old school, Lake Cheridan Elementary. Slipping on my bike shorts and the rainbow-colored crystal leaf necklace I wore practically everywhere, I left.

Turning into the street, Kyle joined me on his flashy dark blue mountain bike. Of course, it had to be the top-of-the-line, tweaked out in all the little gadgets you could get, and was a 21 speed. Mine was just your standard old 18 speed bike with the only special thing being a water bottle holder and a bike bag salvaged from my little kiddie bike.

"Hey Em! What's up?" he called over the noise of the air resistance. Em is one of my nicknames. I'm also called E.J., which stands for "Emily Jo."

"The sky, trees, birds, atmosphere. . ." I replied sarcastically.

Kyle is one of those annoying but likable people. To make sure he didn't know that I actually liked him, which I had denied several times, I'd tend to stick closer to Jan. The three of us were the ones left over in kindergarten who didn't know anyone, so we immediately became friends, and was then famous trio among the halls of Lakeside Junior High. But I had to have a crush on him, didn't I?

"Funny!" he chuckled. "You're starting to learn sarcasm!"

Like I said, annoying but likable. For that, I shot a Look at him, and he immediately shut up.

We rode in silence the rest of the way to the school, where we found Jan on the parallel bars, hanging upside down.

Leaning my bike against a pole, I took my helmet off. "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 looking at the toys and they had them there. Not the ones we'd play with, but new ones! They brought them back!"

"Oh yeah?" she asked, and swung around on the bars to face me. "Hmm. I liked those toys. Especially those princess ones with the metal symbols and tinsel in their hair. They were cool!"

"Yeah, they were my favorites too," I agreed, ducking as Jan twirled again. Her ponytail nearly smacked me in the face.

I heard a groan from Kyle, who was still on his bike. "Man, I can't believe you! First thing you do is ask her about toys when we should decide what we're gonna do here! Incredible!"

I crossed my arms and gave him the Look. Again.

"Okay," I began, smiling evilly, "I know. Race you around the track!"

I strapped my helmet back on and headed for the field. Behind me, I heard Kyle say, "I think I'll stay here. You could break your neck going over the cement divider at that speed!"

At the time I ignored him, and I got over the divider like a pro. Laughing, I raced around the track once, then came to the spot I had gotten on at. That part of the divider was lower, and anyone could get over that cement going fast safely.

I was wrong. Going too fast, I attempted to rocket over the divider at the wrong spot. My tire curved, hitting the divider at an angle.

Almost instantly, I was airborne. The impact threw me over the handle bars, and I hit the ground at on angle - hard - with a jolt to my head.

I faintly heard Jan cry out, and before I blacked out I saw her jump down, running toward me. . .
~*~
~*~

I looked up, and now saw two women in the room, and felt my eyes bug out.

They looked like supermodels! Both wore richly adorned medieval clothing. The one on the left was a pure blonde, medium height, and wore a damsel hat. The one on the right had strawberry blonde hair, was very tall, and wore a tiara.

The strawberry blonde noticed I was awake, and came over to my bedside. "Hello. I am Princess Moondust, and this is Princess Primrose. You were found unconscious in the desert. Luckily, you still had your medallion, so they knew to bring you here, to Crystal Castle. Everything will be all right, Crystal Rainbow," she said in a gentle, slightly accented voice.

I sat up quickly. Too quickly, in fact, for I felt lightheaded, not to mention confused. What is going on here? Where's "here?" Who are these people, these supermodels with funky names, calling themselves princesses? And where the heck is "Crystal Castle?" And why are they calling me "Crystal Rainbow?" My name's Emily. What do they mean by "your medallion?" My necklace, maybe?

I took another look at the supermodel "princesses." The hat, the tiara, the clothes, the names. . .

My mind drifted back to what we were talking about before the crash. I was stuck in a - a dream? A dream about. . .

Ponyland? But how could that be? That was a TV show and some toys. Okay, so there were many episodes of the show and a million more of the toys. Their names. . . The same names of two of the Princess Ponies. Crystal Castle had been in the TV show, in the Royal Paradise, in the Jewel Desert. But why can I sense everything? The silkiness of the sheets, the gentle breeze from the window, the smell of. . . What is that incredible smell?

Just then I felt my nose twitch. Great. I'm allergic to something in a dream.

"We know you must be confused, Crystal Rainbow. So was Prince Ayren, when we found him. The amnesia effects of the desert is usually permanent if you get lost there," the blonde - Primrose - remarked.

But I have a memory! I can remember everything!

"Can you speak?"

I opened my mouth to speak, lips cracking in the process, and regretting it. "Y-yes, I c-can. How long was I out?"

I knew they'd never believe me if I said I was some kid from a different world. I looked down at my clothes. I was no longer wearing my street clothes. I was dressed in the same type of medieval clothing, and I was, well, different. No longer was I the size of a teen. My body was now one of a twenty-year-old!

Fingering where my necklace should be, I found that it was still there. But taking a look, I found that it wasn't. My necklace had been replaced with a gold medallion. On the front was a raised silver circle, with my crystal leaf embedded in it. Flipping it over, I found an inscription on the back.
~*~

Real friendly. No "will you be all right?" - or - "I'm sorry you're feeling bad" - or kiss a mongoose. Nothing.

So I got up out of the enormous feather bed and stretched. Okay, this is going to be fun. How to get out of a dream world.

I stopped.

What if this isn't a dream?

In an attempt to ignore that thought, I took a closer look at my surroundings. The room that Moondust and Primrose had exited from was actually a small sitting room, with a large, plush chair, and a small table with a candle resting on it.

Venturing back into the bedroom, I made an inspection of the walls and its tapestries. Thick velvet covered most of the dark purple crystal walls, which were slightly curved, suggesting I was in a tower room. Sheer blue and pink silk drapes fluttered on the balcony doors, which had tassel handles. Probably to make opening them easier. On the right of the doors was the bureau, yet there was nothing on the left.

Cocking my head at an angle, I saw a door, slightly hidden behind the silk tapestries covering the thick crystal walls in that section.

Turning back to the other room, I quickly discovered it to be a small, private bathroom with open shelves, a large crystal mirror, and two drawers below the black marble wash basin set in the counter.

Returning to the bedroom, I found on the night stand to the right of the bed was a turquoise wand and a small mirror. To see if my face was any different, I peered in. Looking back at me was the face of a white Unicorn with rainbow hair.

I freaked, almost dropping the mirror, then calmed down. My eyes were still blue. The same bright blue. Something is still me!

This has to be a dream. But to check. . . I smashed the crystal mirror. Intense pain swelled over my left hand.

"Ow. . ." I whimpered, holding my hand tightly until the tiny cuts stopped bleeding. Stupid idea, E.J. Real stupid.

Opening the door to the closet, I found a turquoise silk cape which complimented my dress, which was a bright fuchsia, that just happened to be one of my favorite colors, and a turquoise tiara studded with silver and small rubies. Man, how much could this one room be worth alone?

Pulling on the cape, I heard a small bell ring.

I looked over to the heavy wooden door. "Yes?"

"Are you ready, Princess Crystal Rainbow?" called Primrose's muffled voice.

Setting the tiara on my head, I found that I also still had my golden hair, judging by the stray tendrils. "Yes! I'll be right out!"

Picking up the wand and stuffing my injured hand into my pocket, I walked to the door and pushed it open with a hard shove, and fast.

"Ow!" I heard as wood connected with a head. Peeking around the door, I discovered I had hit Primrose.

"Oh! I'm so sorry!" I cried, covering my mouth in shock with the wand.

She rubbed her forehead, wincing. "Quite all right. Don't worry, I'm fine. I forgot that you don't know where the Throne Room is," she muttered through clenched teeth.

I closed the door behind me, and I noticed that she was wearing a gold medallion too, but she moved too quickly for me to catch her symbol.

"So, Princess Primrose. I never did find out, but why are we all in human form instead of our normal Pony form?" I asked her as we started down a stone stairway.

She stopped. "You don't know?" she asked with wide amber eyes. "Well, we don't exactly know either, but we have a guess. The witches! Those pesky witches from the Volcano of Gloom! You must have came from somewhere far, far away from to not know of them! I'm thankful that all of the Pegasi and Unicorns haven't lost their abilities to fly and all. You look so young, I bet you've never seen your Pony self!"

Interesting. I had Unicorn abilities, like disappearing. But how to use them?

"Well, I did in the hand mirror. It broke when I dropped it."

We started down the wide stairs again. "Well, that's the shock the Baby Ponies have when they see themselves for the first time. . ." Primrose grumbled.
~*~
~*~

"Her Majesty, High Queen Tiffany, awaits," Primrose said. She obviously wasn't going to escort me down the long, red velvet carpet.

Peering out, I started down the ominously quiet hall. The walls and floor were a beautiful white and gray marble. At the very end of the carpet was a large marble throne, where High Queen Tiffany sat patiently.

I remembered the Pony Tiffany as a pure white Pegasus, with a silver teardrop medallion. Primrose had been a pink and blue Earth Pony, with a butterfly-like medallion, I recalled. Moondust had been an Earth Pony, too, but yellow and pink with a shield-like medallion. All of them had been studded with jewels, too.

The human-form Tiffany, however, was a tall, regal woman with bleached blonde hair. She wore a gold crown studded with diamonds, pearls, sapphires, rubies, and emeralds. Around her shoulders was a very heavy looking scarlet velvet cape trimmed in white fur. I also noted that she didn't have any wings. Scratching my forehead, I found that I didn't have a Unicorn's "horn."

I bowed, and said "My Queen." I figured I better act respectable.

She smiled with approval. "Greetings, Princess Crystal Rainbow! I am pleased that yet we had no prior knowledge of you, you have the proper etiquette of a Princess. Prince Ayren wasn't even close to your politeness; very delirious and foul-mouthed. He was convinced he was a real human, but the effects of the desert can be very strange. Took a very long time to train him as a prince. I don't think we'll have any trouble with you. You seem to be a bright young Princess," she paused, "I trust that your quarters are suitable?"

I nodded, expression enthusiastic. "Yes, the accommodations are fine. Princess Primrose mentioned Prince Ayren. I would like to see him, if possible. I think I might have known him before. . ." I said, voice wandering off. I purposely wanted it to sound like I had amnesia.

Queen Tiff frowned. "I'm sorry to hear that your memory has failed you. You can probably find Prince Ayren out for a walk around the Paradise. It was lovely speaking with you."

I bowed again. "It was my honor," I said, turned, and left.

Primrose was waiting for me in the hall. "I trust it went well?" she asked anxiously.

I had to tell somebody. Primrose seemed trustworthy. "Um, Primrose, can we talk? Privately?"

She gasped. "Oh, no! It didn't go that bad, did it?"

I shook my head. "No. No Primrose, it went fine. I have to tell you something. Something about my past."
~*~

"This - " she waved her hand " - is the basement. Nobody comes down here anymore. Except when - when some of the Princes or Princesses, Lords or Ladies wish to get away from everything. Now, what do you need to tell me?"

Taking a breath, I started to tell my story. "This is gonna sound completely weird to you. I'm a human. Just like Prince Ayren said. But I'm not pulling your leg! I am really a human girl who is thirteen years old. My name is Emily Parker, and in my world, the real world, you and your Princess friends are nothing but a bunch of vinyl toy horses that are about five inches tall. I live in the United States of America, and right at the moment our President stinks. I don't like him; the liar. No wonder his nose is so big. But back to the point. I live in the state of Idaho, near Boise. I live in a nice house on a nice street with nice cars, and I'm an only child. I hang out with my friends Kyle Morone and Jan Stockman. I was riding my bicycle when I crashed, hitting my head, which was my fault. When I woke up, I was here. Before the accident, I was remarking how Princess Ponies were my favorite My Little Ponies, what you are called. They were and are toys, a movie, two specials, and two television series. Now I want to know why I'm in this dream world, but why it's so real. That crystal I broke? I purposefully broke it, and now look at my hand," I said, holding out my palm, which still had some dried blood on it. At least scabs were forming. Did Ponies bleed?

Primrose was silent. "I think you are under the effect of the desert, Crystal Rainbow. But Ayren. . . he had said. . ."

"What did he say?" I pressed on.

She cocked her head slightly. "He said. . . he said his name was Kyle."
~*~
~*~

Primrose interrupted my dizzying thoughts. "I think you should rest, Crystal Rainbow."

"No," I objected. "I need to see Ayren. How do I get out of this place?"

She sighed, rubbing her forehead. "I will show you out. But I warn you: don't come looking for me when you come back inside. You'll get lost. Dinner is at seven chimes, and is formal. I will see you there. None of what we discussed will be repeated. Follow me."

Leading me back through the corridors, I was amazed at the fact that I could actually get lost.
~*~

"Good bye, Crystal Rainbow. Hope you find Ayren soon enough," Primrose said, and left me standing alone.

I sighed, and now that my vision had cleared, I could see how large the Paradise and the castle, which looked over a hundred stories tall, actually was. It could take forever to find Ayren! And if I do see him, how would I know it's him and not some guy named, like, Excalibur or something?!?

Starting down the center path, I could smell that same wonderful smell that was in my room. Flowers surrounded the path, forming into one sweet scent. Well, at least he wouldn't have strayed from the path. The flowers are to thick to even see the ground!

I stumbled over a few rocks, and I kicked at them, too annoyed to realize or care that somebody was watching.

"Angry?"

That voice! Where have I heard that voice?!?!

Looking up, I saw a young man in more medieval clothing, a crown, and a cape like Lando Calrissian, though, grinning like a fool. That grin. . . the dark hair that made him look like Han Solo. . . Oh my gosh it is Kyle! A much older. . . Kyle. Okay, so I admit I'm the bit of a Star Wars nut. I can't help it! Not that it really pertains to the situation that was at hand, though. . .

I quirked an eyebrow. "Sort of; yes. I'm Crystal Rainbow. I take it you're the infamous Prince Ayren?"

He strolled closer. "Yeah, that's what they call me. I'm supposedly a Pegasus; dark blue with orange hair, with some convoluted square or diamond on my side, which is right here," he said, holding out his medallion.

The Princess-like medallion was indeed a "convoluted square or diamond," studded with a oval sapphire. "Pretty."

He snorted. "I don't want to be pretty. I figure I'm a Pegasus 'cuz I always wanted to fly when I was a kid," he said with a gulp. "Well, the last time I was in my world I still was a kid. That was three years ago. Now I can fly. It's easy."

Well, Kyle did want to fly when we were little squirts. But how could he have been here for three years?

"You remind me of someone," he said vaguely, squinting in the light.

I made my face look like I was confused, and said, "Oh really? Who?" Famous quote from Mrs. Doubtfire. I knew it would come in handy, some day. Oh no! Kyle's seen Mrs. Doubtfire!

He frowned. "The way you said that - reminds me of a friend of mine," he mumbled, scratching his head.

I tried to keep my innocent look, but I just had to turn and grumble, "Yeah, and Queen Tiffy looks like my mother." Well, she did, in a way.

"What did you say?"

Uh oh. I turned around to face him, my head down.

"Emily. . . is that you?"

I shook my head violently. "No! You are not the Ayren I knew! I don't know you! I don't know what you're talking about! I don't give a fig about your delusions! You're crazy, crazy!" I yelled. Hopefully somebody would hear. . .

I turned and ran. I could hear Kyle - Ayren, or whoever, whatever he - it - was, behind me. I kept on running, harder, harder, and I thanked God that I was a fast runner, even in this crazy get-up. The cape flapped behind me, and my tiara kept slipping. I yanked it off with my free hand.

I passed a couple of Princesses flying past the entrance to the castle.

"Hey, who's that Ayren? A human friend of yours?" one called.

"Shut up!" I yelled, even though I was already out of range. I also made a note not to use that term again.

I had to lose this guy. But how?

"I'm thankful that all of the Pegasi and Unicorns haven't lost their abilities. . ."

If this is really Kyle, and he can fly, then why don't I just disappear?

I came to a halt, and concentrated. . . that I could be in my room. . .

Just as Ayren/Kyle ran up to me, I felt myself dissolve into nothing, and drift up, up, up. . .

And I appeared in my room.

Giving a sigh of relief, I flopped onto the bed.

That was a close one. Now what would I do?

Just then there was a knock on my door.

Oh, no, please don't tell me he has Unicorn abilities, too!

"Who is it?" I called, wincing.

"It's me, Moondust, Crystal Rainbow!" her cheery voice answered.

Phew.

I answered the door, and Moondust stood there patiently.

"Yes?" I asked brightly.

She smiled. "I thought I'd show you around the castle. It's very easy to get lost if you don't know your way around."

Smiling back, now that I knew how big the place was, I knew that this would be something I would have to do.

Or I would, most definitely, be lost.
~*~
~*~

Dresses and gowns in all colors in the rainbow, and more natural sides of the spectrum, were neatly tucked away, waiting to be used. Everything appeared to be tailored to fit me. Surveying all of the more formal evening dresses, which were all glamorous and silky, velvety, striking, frilly, sparkly, or just drop dead gorgeous, I finally picked a comfortable creamy-white satin gown, which would fall in the category of "drop dead gorgeous." It flared at the bottom, and was sleeveless. I was surprised that something so. . . modern. . . could be in Ponyland.

I had also found my watch, yes, my watch, in the small pocket of the fuchsia dress, so I knew I'd be right on time. So I put on some diamond earrings and my medallion, and went back into the bathroom to fix my hair. In a drawer, I found some curlers and pins, which was very hard to put in when the mirror made me look like a white Unicorn. To keep from getting confused, I turned away from the mirror.

Later, adjusting my tiara around the French twist I had eventually decided on, I picked up my wand and headed out the door.

I found an escort outside waiting for me. Ayren. No, Kyle - wait. . .

"Well, hello, Prince Delusional. We meet again, yet I'm not looking for you this time," I said coolly smiling the whole time.

He was taken aback, by my response and the dress. "Wha - No, I won't bother with asking about it.  I'm sorry for what happened earlier, Em - um, Crystal. Could we be friends?" he asked hopefully, offering his hand.

I gave him a Look, just like I had on the bike and at the playground. . . "I suppose so. But no more of those crazy delusions of yours! You're a Pony, not some human. . ."

"Well, will you sit with me at dinner?"

His crown slumped over his face a little. I picked it up and fixed it.

"Now don't you worry. I'll think about it," I said sweetly, and sarcastically.

"Ha! You're getting better at sarcasm, I see," he laughed.

It was nice to hear a laugh, but this - this sounded - well, sarcastic. Right from the king of sarcasm himself. But I wasn't too convinced this was, in truth, Kyle.

I pulled out the Minnie Mouse watch I had concealed in a small pocket of my dress. Twenty minutes until seven, and it took about eight to get down to the Grand Dining Room at a leisurely pace. Moondust said to come ten minutes early.

"All right, Ayren. You've told several of the royalty here that you are a human, named Kyle. Then how can you fly?" I asked curiously.

He stopped in his tracks. "I thought you didn't want to hear about my 'delusions.' Why the sudden change?"

"Oh, but it's such an interesting story! Please, we have ten minutes. Take your time. I'd also like to know. . ." I took a deep breath, "I'd like to know if I'm in a dream, unconscious having a dream, or dead, which I know for a fact that I'm not. This is not my idea of Heaven,  'cuz what's been taught at church says that there are golden streets and there is no pain and suffering. That crystal mirror I broke hurt."

Ayren/Kyle sucked in breath. "That would be a good question. I don't know why I can fly all of a sudden, and I don't think this is Heaven. Not really, because Tiff's no God, and there are no gold streets here, only a pile of money in wealthy clothing, dinnerware, and the castle itself. But I now know for a fact that you're Emily. 'This is a fact,' or so says your precious Star Wars books."

"Young Jedi Knights! So you got me. I'm not so sure you're the real Kyle, though. Maybe this is sort of like Groundhog Day. Maybe this day can just start over again at six in the morning! I don't know! I thought you'd have answers! Like, why are you here? Why am I here?"

He chuckled. "That's an even better question, my friend. Why are any of us here? Have you noticed that Princess Taffeta looks like Mrs. Drucen?"

I stared at him. "You mean Mrs. Drucen the librarian?"

"No! Mrs. Drucen the Queen Mother! Of course Mrs. Drucen the librarian!"

"What does that have anything to do with? I want to know why I'm here, and why you're here, and for three years!"

He looked around, as if the answer could pop out from the walls. "I. . . I don't know. For once I don't have an answer. I don't have an answer at all. I. . . I don't know why I'm here. Maybe this is some unconscious yet conscious dream world. But I've been in it for three years. Well, the last memory of myself actually being back in Idaho is from the summer after fourth grade. . ."

Fourth grade! Maybe Kyle had a dream in fourth grade, and part of him still thinks about the dream! I have had the same sensation, but after reading a Star Wars book. Darn. I thought I had my finger on it.

"How am I, Emily? How was seventh grade? I somehow know a little bit, but it only comes to me in dreams."

I knew I had that faraway look in my eyes, the one you get when you look back on fond memories, kind of a dreamy look. "You're. . . you're. . . I got a huge crush on you."

He smiled. "Oh yeah. I knew that. It started to be obvious sometime in the fifth grade, I believe. Now c'mon, we better get to dinner. Don't wanna be late!"

"Okay," I said, suddenly feeling much better, but why, I'll never know.

When we eventually arrived at the Grand Dining Room, we still had nine minutes to spare. Moondust and Primrose immediately zeroed in on us.

"So, I see you've met Ayren. I hope you found your way back to your room all right," Primrose remarked with a wink.

She knows I'm not lying! Great! A believer!

"I knew you two would hit it off nicely."

My smile faded. She thinks - oh, never mind.

"Yes, I found him on the path, just as you said, Primrose. I did find my room all right, now that you mention it. So, where do I sit?"

Now it was Primrose's turn for her smile to fade. "You're. . . not sitting with Ayren?"

I smiled. "No. Is this just a regular formal dinner, Moondust? Or is there an occasion?"

Moondust literally glowed with excitement. "Oh, there's no real occasion, but I'd love to show you to your seat."

As the strawberry blonde led me away from Primrose, who looked like a storm cloud, Kyle waved good bye.

I gave a small parade wave back, and dinner started.
~*~

Applause echoed from the high ceiling, and was so loud it sounded like thunder. Maybe Primrose's storm is finally being unleashed!

Tiffany sat down, and everyone started to dig in.

First was a fresh garden salad - it must have taken a warehouse full of vegetables just to make enough salad for all of the royalty, then soup, that tasted similar to minestrone, bread, and the main course. It was some animal. I am semi-vegetarian, with exceptions for chicken, fish, shrimp, and lobster. Sure, pork was exceptable, but this?! This was stringy looking, and, well, sort of red. Haven't these guys heard of E. Coli?!?

I stabbed a tiny forkful of the small portion of meat and ate it. The portions must have been so small because it would take a million of the beasts to feed everyone. Luckily my drink, which was some sort of punch, was ready and waiting. Ugh! It was horrible! I didn't let it show on my face, though. How could anyone be enjoying this?

Looking around, I saw that the Pony-people were eating the. . . meat. . . as if it was their last meal!

The Lady on my right looked down at my plate, then at me.

"Hi. . ." I said, smiling wanly.

She looked away.

"Aren't you going to finish your dinner?"  the Princess on the left asked. "Or are you a light eater?"

I kept smiling. She was a brunette, with bright green eyes, and wore a dark pink crown with a diamond on it. On the table was a dark pink wand. "I've never eaten meat before. It doesn't seem to agree with me, now that I try it. What kind of meat, er, what kind of animal was it?"

She frowned. "Hmm. Good question. I'll have to ask one of the cooks. Usually we don't eat meat. I think it might be. . . some kind of predator to woodland creatures. Oh, where are my manners? I'm Princess Pristina. A Pegasus."

I remembered Pristina as green with yellow hair, and a diamond shaped medallion symbol. "Lovely to meet you, Pristina. Tell me, do you have to be so formal at all dinners, or are there even higher levels of formality?"

She appeared to be deep in thought. "Hmm, another good question. We always were our crowns or damsel hats. The capes we sometimes do without. But we always wear appropriate clothing. Always. Whether it's a banquet for just because, or a feast after a victory with many ambassadors from different kingdoms."

I dwelled on the thought for awhile, then moved on. "How early can we be excused?"

Pristina rolled her eyes. "At eight chimes. I'd say we have half a chime left to go. But of course, there is dancing until then." She must have seen the look on my face, which was pretty much disgusted. "Can you dance? Or do you not like dancing?"

I took a few seconds to form my answer. "I. . . haven't really ever danced. Just whirling around and hopping up and down is what I've done."

Of course that wasn't true. I've done the Macarena, line dancing, and - ew, square dancing - in elementary. But, I didn't think that would count.
~*~
~*~

Several couples were already dancing. I found Kyle leaning up against the wall.

"So, enjoy that rat meat?" he said with an evil grin.

"Funny. Not! I hate meat! With a passion! And you know that!" I whispered hoarsely.

We stood around for awhile. Finally I broke the ice. "I know that some Prince or Lord out there is gonna want to dance with me. Personally I think they could all turn into frogs. But, I'd rather dance with you than make a scene by stepping on anyone's toes. So how about it?"

Kyle's mouth dropped open.

"Oh come on. You're not that surprised, are you?"

He grinned again. "Well, Crystal Rainbow, you certainly are a quick one. Sure I'll dance."

He strode towards the dance floor. "And remember: around the royalty, I'm Ayren, not Kyle. And you're Crystal Rainbow, not Emily."

"Fine with me," I agreed, offering my hand.
~*~

Until the last dance.

The very last dance was, of course, super fast.

"Hey, you know the song for the Chips Ahoy commercials? How 'bout we pretend we're dancing to that one?

My eyes widened in horror. "No, no-no-no-no-no-no-NO! That's way too fast! Much, much too fast! You wanna make a spectacle of yourself? Not me!"

"Oh, come on, Crystal. Live a little!"

He called it living. I'd call it dying of embarrassment.

Before I knew it, I was swept away in a dance that nobody had ever seen, heard, or thought of. I was twirled, dipped, and every time I saw anybody else they weren't dancing. They were watching us.

Show them you're not worried about it! Be cool! Be happy! a little voice said in my mind.

Smiling like an idiot, I became more involved. I wanted the royalty to see that I wasn't just some wanderer in the desert. I wanted to give them a taste of my own world.

Then the song ended, and with it came a roar of approval.

Man, it would be a killer if all those kids that went to school dances could see us! Maybe we could enter some dance competition; be the dancing king and queen!

My head stopped spinning, and I saw Primrose. Frowning. No, I wasn't the dancing queen. Not yet.

But before she could say anything, the chimes started to resound. One. . . two. . . three. . . four. . . five. . . six. . . seven. . . eight. Everyone began to leave.

Over the sound of shoes on the marble shuffling and skipping, I saw Primrose open her mouth, but didn't say anything. She just stood there as everyone filed out, including me.
~*~
~*~

I wondered what was happening in Idaho, whether I was awake, in the hospital, or at home in bed. Or maybe I was still lying on the grass, Jan running toward me, with me still trying to reach out my hand to show her I was all right.

I shook my head. It wouldn't do any good to wonder. Not any.

For some reason, looking up into the night sky, with the stars coming out, so many stars, made me think of a song.

Not a song I had sung in choir, but one that I had played on my piano at home a long, long time ago.

And I began to sing.

"Candles in the window
Shadows painting the ceiling
Gazing at the fire glow
Feeling that gingerbread feeling

Precious moments
Special people
Happy faces
I can see

Somewhere in my mem'ry
Christmas joys all around me
Living in my mem'ry
All of the music
All of the magic
All of the fam'ly home here with me. . ."

Home Alone. Except I wasn't home, not exactly on my own, but. . .

Alone. All by myself. I didn't want to be alone. I wanted out.

I didn't like this anymore. Sure, it was pretty and a nice place to be, but it was creepy. Really creepy. What was it that made it creepy? The fact that Kyle, of all people - okay, maybe the school librarian, too - was here.

I wanted to cry. No, I want to jump off this balcony. Maybe if I hit my head again I'd go home. With Mom and Dad and Kyle and Jan. So what if Kyle is here. This Kyle is different. I don't like this Kyle, this Prince Ayren person. And what am I doing here? It's not like it's real.

It's not real. I hiked one leg over the railing. I got the other one over. Wait a minute. What if this is like Groundhog Day? Then it won't even matter! Then the whole day will start over. At the beginning. I'd be home! Then I wouldn't try to race Kyle, and I wouldn't get stuck here! Just then somebody knocked on the door.

I hopped back over the railing, closed the balcony doors, and the person knocked again. "Person?" All the "people" here are Ponies.

"Who is it?"

Another knock.

"Can I help you?"

More knocks in a steady stream.

"All right, all right!"

I opened the door. Kyle stood outside. "Shoulda known it was you. Whaddya want?" I demanded.

He made a pouting face. "Is that how you greet all of your friends?"

I rolled my eyes. "Puh-leeeease don't give me that. . ."

"Okay, okay, okay. I think I thought of something I shoulda thought of a loooong time ago. A solution to getting us out of here," he said.

I was delighted by this, and all my thoughts of jumping off balconies disappeared. "Ooh! What?"

He grinned. "I woulda thought you would think of this. But, come with me!"

He bolted inside, grabbed my hand, and pulled me to the balcony door.

"Hey! Wha -"

He flung open the doors. "We'll fly there. Now."

My head spun, like the dozens of times it had already done today. He can't fly. Then I remembered he could.

"Oh come on. Do you trust me?"

Giving him the Look I said, "No, Aladdin, I don't. So there. How do I know that you can fly? And how do you fly? You don't have any wings!"

He looked hurt. "I can too fly. Watch!"

With that he jumped off the balcony.

"No!" I screamed.

But he hadn't dropped. He just floated, like Superman. Great. Now one of the Justice League/Super Friends is messed up in all this!

"And who are you supposed to be? Clark Kent? The Genie? Or Aladdin on an invisible rug?!?"

He smirked. "Oh, how cute. You're ruining the image!"

"Image is nothing."

"Oh zip it," he said, refusing to get irritated. "Now do you want outta this place or not?"

"Well, yes. . . But is it safe?" I asked cautiously.

"Of course! Now come on!" he yelled, then pulled me over the railing.

It's pretty much impossible to explain the sensation of flying. Almost like riding a bike, with the wind in your face and rushing around you, sending your clothing and hair flying in all directions. Soaring like an eagle, I saw the desert, the castle, the Royal Paradise, open sea, forests, and some dark, hazy mountains. Rivers, lakes, valleys, and. . . the Volcano of Gloom. Where are we going?

"Hey, where are we exactly going, Kyle? I recognize the area, but how do you know about all this?"

"Oh please. We both saw the movie. You and Jan practically made me watch it a thousand and one times. I was thinking about this whole situation, and I tried to remember the movie, to figure out if anyone could help us. And I remembered one person who could maybe believe us."

I perked up. "The Moochik?"

He grinned. "Yup! Aren't I smart?"

"But how do you know how to get to the Moochik?"

"Look for huge mushrooms."

Okay, look for huge mushrooms.

That would be the easy part.

Once we spotted the "huge mushrooms" of the Mushromp, we dropped down and made a safe landing in front of his home.

"Mr. Moochik! Wake up!" he yelled in my ear.

"Ow!"

"Sorry E.J."

Great. Now this Kyle was getting to grow on me. Oh, please be able to help us, Moochik!

"Hide your medallion!" I hissed as I tugged mine off.

I saw a small light, and the door opened.

"My my my! Who is it at this late of night? Can't you come back in the morning?" muttered the Moochik, stumbling as his jackrabbit friend rushed by him.

"Hello! Sorry to disturb you, but this is an emergency, Mr. Moochik," I said calmly, trying to sound like Megan from the cartoons.

"Emergency? Nonsense! There's nothing that can be so urgent that I must be woken up in the middle of the night!"

I shook my head, wincing. This is my only hope! He has to come through! "Mr. Moochik, I think that you have the wrong impression about us. We are not Ponies. We're humans, stuck here, with no way out. Everyone thinks that we are royalty, but we aren't. And we need your help. We know that there's some reason why we're here, so we can't just fly away. We need your advice."

The Moochik rubbed his chin. "Hmm, interesting. Very interesting. My I ask you your names? Your given Pony names and human ones?"

"Certainly. I'm Kyle Morone, or Prince Ayren," Kyle said confidently.

"And I'm Emily Parker, or Princess Crystal Rainbow."

"My my my! Crystal Rainbow, did you say? And Ayren? Do you both have a medallion?" he asked.

"Yeah, sure. . ." I said as we both pulled our medallions from our pockets.

The Moochik inspected them closely. "Ayren. . . Prince of the Air. Crystal Rainbow. . ."

He suddenly dropped my medallion. "Jumping jackrabbits! You're the Keeper of the Rainbow!"
~*~
~*~

"Ah, could you explain what that means, please?" I asked as he picked up the medallion.

"What that means is simple. You are the Keeper of the Rainbow of Light. It disappeared some time ago, and the new Keeper needed to be found. You are the new Keeper."

Kyle didn't look very amused. "Wait. She can't be. . ."

"She is."

"But that wouldn't that mean we'd have to stay here?"

The Moochik shook his head. "No no no. That only means that you now have the power to get the witches of the Volcano of Gloom to return the Ponies to their normal selves. That's all. After that, I don't know."

My head was spinning, again. "Whoa! Hang on a minute! This messed up dream is moving too fast!"

I took time to stop and think. Okay, first we come to the Moochik to find out what we're doing here, and he tells me I'm the Keeper of the Rainbow of Light. Perfect. This is just getting better by the minute.

". . . and that can make her the Keeper of the Rainbow? Just because her name's Crystal Rainbow?" Kyle was asking.

"Well, I don't know for sure. . . but I'm pretty sure, yes, yes."

I stared down at the medallion in my hand. I wanted out. That's all.

The crystal leaf sparkled in the starlight, and I rubbed it like I would if it were my necklace. I stopped in amazement when my fingernail hit a small crack in the raised silver circle.

"Hey, there's something wrong with this. . ."

My fingernail slipped in, and I discovered a hidden catch. Gently I pulled it open. . .

Blinding light hit my eyes, and something jumped out. Screaming, I ducked down and rolled away, bumping into Kyle's legs and my skirt tangled around me.

I looked up. "Oh my gosh. . ."

It was the Rainbow of Light. The Moochik was right.

Oh no. Great. Now I gotta battle make-believe witches, and with a rainbow? Me and what army?!? Witches are bad news, no matter what kind of artillery you've got! Wah, I want outta here!

"I think we better get back to the castle Kyle. Now."

Kyle just stared at the Rainbow. "Okay, I guess so. . ."

Holding out the medallion, the Rainbow sucked itself back inside.

Kyle was still staring, but this time at nothing.

"Kyle! Earth to Kyle! Earth to Kyle! Kyle come in! Let's go! Hello?! Kyle!!"

"All right, all right, all right already! I heard you the first time!"
~*~
~*~

"Are you sure that we have to do this, Kyle? Positive?" I asked him, stalling.

He rolled his eyes. "Of course. Do you wanna get outta here, or not?"

"But we don't necessarily have to do this."

"Come on!" he said, pulling my arm.

He practically dragged me down the red carpet to Tiffy's throne.

"Ah, Your Highness, we wish to speak with you," Kyle said as I ripped my arm away from his grip.

Tiffany frowned. "Well, you're talking to me now, so I suppose I can give you a few moments before my first meeting of the day. What do you wish to discuss?"

I straightened myself, and took and extra-deep breath. Be still, my beating heart. "Your Highness, I have found the power to defeat the witches, to return us to our normal selves. I have the Rainbow of Light."

Now Tiffany just stared, her mouth gaped open. "How - how could you have the Rainbow? How do I know you aren't lying?"

"May I show you something, Your Highness?"

She looked flustered. "I-I-I. . ."

"I'll take that as a yes." I marched up next to her, pulling off my medallion. "Okay, Ayren took me to the Moochik last night. He told us that Ayren was the Prince of the Air, me the Keeper of the Rainbow. But I didn't believe him. Until I found this."

I pointed to the small crack in the medallion. "Watch. . ." I opened it, and the Rainbow sprang out in Tiffy's face, then started bouncing all over the high ceiling.

"Aah! Do not do that ever again! You could kill somebody like that!" Tiffany screeched in my ear.

"Ow!"

"Sorry," Tiffany winced. "So you do have the Rainbow. Call it back. Put it away. What are you planning, and what do you want?"

The Rainbow came back, and I clicked the medallion shut. "Protection. And backup. I plan on going to the Volcano of Gloom, ASAP."

"What?"

"As soon as possible. It's a term back. . . Oh, never mind. So will you help us?"

Tiffany looked down, rubbing her temples. "This is very. . . What's the right word?"

"Heavy?" Kyle suggested with a lopsided grin. For that I elbowed him in the ribs. He in turn glared at me, knowing somehow he'd find a way to get back at me.

She looked up. "Yes. . . heavy. I'll send for Primrose, Moondust, and several others as 'backup.' We'll leave as soon as Primrose has a team gathered."

I bowed. "Thank you, Your Highness. This day will be a day no one will ever forget!"

Walking out, Kyle stopped me. "E.J, I have to talk to you. Now."

"What? Now? Can't it wait?"

He looked very serious. "Ah, no, it can't E.J."

I had never seen him this serious before.

He sighed. "I don't want anything to happen to you, Emily. I'd feel somewhat responsible. And I'm sorry for that little crack about the Star Wars books. Just don't get me stuck in them, or I won't be happy. I'd probably end up as Luke Skywalker. So. . ." he took a deep breath, "Don't get yourself in bantha dung."

I had to giggle.

Just then Pristina rushed up to us. "Queen Tiffany just sent for me! Do you two really have the Rainbow?"

I was thankful for that interruption, really! "Yes, Pristina, I do. And I plan on giving the witches a day they won't forget!"
~*~

I instructed everyone to wait at the bottom, and that I'd give them a signal if anything went wrong.

But I already knew something was going to go wrong. At least that's what my stomach thought.

My legs shook as I neared the top of the stairs.

At the door, I said a small prayer. "Dear God, I pray that I will be watched over until this is all done, and may Your guidance help me along the way. In Jesus' name. Amen."

I wanted to knock, but I also wanted to just barge right in. So I did the latter.

Kicking the door in, I yelled, "All right! Come out with your hands up and your cookies swallowed! If we do this in a civilized manner, maybe things won't get hectic!"

"What's hectic mean, Momma? I mean Hydia!" I heard Draggle's voice say.

Hydia appeared from the stairwell. "Ah, a visitor. You have some nerve to storm in here like this, Little Pony!"

Man, she was uglier in real life than in animation! I clasped my hands together. "Ah, Your Doltishness. Thank you for coming so quickly. Let me clear up one thing first, Your Rotten-ness. I am no Pony. I am a human, and a human with the Rainbow of Light. So I'll give you one minute to return the Little Ponies to their normal selves, or I release the Rainbow and its goodness to be free in your run-down shack. Then it will not only make the place nice and clean, but you'll become a nice, motherly type of person and so will your daughters!"

I smiled on the inside. "Starting now," and I started to time the second hand on my watch.

Hydia's face had turned into pure terror. "No! No! Don't do that! I'll do anything you say! Just don't do that!!"

Heh heh heh, this is gonna be GOOD!!

My inside smile turned into gleeful laughter, but I kept my stern composure. "All right. Return the Ponies to their normal selves. You now have. . . forty-five seconds."

Hydia screamed. "Girls! Get the potions to make the Ponies not human! Now! Mix them up; quickly!! Get them ready to be released!" she wailed, her voice cracking.

Draggle ran in, hitting her head on a low beam. "Here Momma - I mean Hydia! It's all ready!"

"Fine! Release it then!" Hydia screamed at her daughter.

This time I really smiled. "I'll take that. Now, Hydia, promise you will never hurt the Little Ponies again."

"I promise," she moaned.

Yay! I won, I won, I won! "Okay. Here's the Rainbow!" I cried, releasing it.

"No!!" I heard them scream as I shut the door.

Running to the edge of the Volcano, I split the bottle open. Steam filtered up, circling into the air. . .

"I hope this works. . ." I exclaimed anxiously.

I turned around to face the small band of royalty. Running down the steps, I saw them. . . flicker. What the heck is going on?

Kyle's expression was one of terror. I looked down at myself, and saw that I, too, was flickering. From human, to Pony. Looking back at Kyle, I saw his dark blue Pony form, too. Dark blue. . . his bike was dark blue, with orange writing. . .

Primrose was smirking.

Then something strange happened. I felt myself dissolving, and, in a puff of smoke, everything was over.
~*~
~*~

I wasn't. I wasn't a twenty-year-old, either. I was still in the medieval fuchsia dress, but it was now much baggier. Thank goodness that neckline had been tight, or, well, it would have been very droopy.

The royalty, especially Queen Tiffany, was staring at me, the teenage human from Idaho. But where was Kyle?

"Hey Emily, your tiara's hangin' around your neck!" a voice called from behind me.

I turned, and there was Kyle. He too had shrunk back to normal. And my tiara was not hanging around my neck!

It was slightly askew.

"Bravo, Emily. This will make a great story someday. It's too bad nobody will believe you," he said, beaming.

That didn't make sense. Won't he remember this, too?

Tiffy flew over to us. "Crystal Rainbow, Ayren - You're. . ."

"Oh no! They weren't lying!" Primrose shrieked, and immediately fainted.

Turning back to us, Tiffy said, "I'm sorry I doubted you, Ayren, but how can we ever repay you two?"

I smiled at Kyle, then looked back at the High Queen. "You can find us a way home. Back to Idaho."

Kyle shook his head. "There is no way home, Emily. Only a way out."

He tugged my arm, and we plummeted down towards the lava. . .
~*~

A voice. . . the coolness of grass on my face. . . That's not what lava feels like!

"Uhhh. . . my head. . ."

"Jan! She's comin' around!"

I felt hands turn me over, and sunshine blinded me when I opened my eyes. Where are my sunglasses? Squinting, I could see Jan and Kyle peering down at me. Kyle knelt down by my side.

"Emily. . . Are you okay?" he asked in fright.

I sat up. "Yeah. . ."

I was still at the school, right next to the track. My bike's wheels were still spinning, not ten feet away from me.

Looking back at Kyle, I asked, "How long was I out?"

He shrugged. "We just got to you, so I'd say less than a minute."

"A minute? But. . ."

"We know. It was dark for so long it felt like more. Right?" Jan asked.

I felt around my necklace, which was still there. Checking in my pocket, I found a compact, my watch, and -

What?

I pulled out the object. It was a gold medallion on a fine gold chain, with a raised silver circle in the center, and a crystal leaf embedded in it.

It wasn't a dream. . .

"Where'd ya get that? Ponyland?" he joked, but sarcastically.

I gazed up at the sky, and a rainbow had appeared.

"Well wouldja lookit that? A rainbow, but there's no storm," Jan said, awed.

I smiled. It wasn't a dream. It was real.

I stared fondly at the rainbow, and I knew that Kyle was right. This would make a pretty good story.

Someday.
~*~
~*~
~*~