When the medicine is worse than the cure... (Concluded)

[SteelEagle]

 

Twilight had to take stock of Bluebelle's reaction, which bucked her expectations somewhat. She had honestly expected a more reserved expression and feelings of contentment before she was ushered away in a pale haze of decisiveness. Instead Bluebelle almost collapsed, her eyes dilated in shock at how long it would be. It was almost enough to make a mare question the theory that she was operating on, as of Bluebelle was honestly not happy being Bluebelle. She was able too pull herself together but the whole display gave Twilight pause in her consideration. Maybe she needed to come up with a new theory?

Unless it all fit. Which it might. The shock may come from being forced to reveal what had happened to everypony long before she had the courage to do so could have provided ample cause for the demonstration. The quick recovery from something that should have been so highly discomforting, and the way she acted initially seemed to indicate as much, could also mean that the news was truly not that bad for the new Princess and that she just retained some old behaviors from Blueblood. Namely poor reactions to events outside of her plan and a demonstrator's skill set always on display with an air of ill-conceived dramatics. This may be wrong, but the fact was that the newest movement in Blue's rather discordant symphony didn't necessarily disqualify any reasonably backed theory.

 

And how cute was it that she called them her aunties? “That is probably for the best. Better to tell them yourself than have the gossip journals report it. We all know how incorrect they get matters. Remember when they reported that I killed myself every time I teleported and that what appeared when I came back was a near-exact but not quite clone? That ruffled some feathers. As for Rarity- well, in all honesty I'd just say that she likely still probably isn't a fan of you, but she'll be a professional. Just tell her I sent you and that should smooth things over. Anything else I can do for you before I go, Bluebelle?” Twilight asked, levitating what few things she had either brought or accumulated since she had arrived.  

[Blueblood]

As Twilight went on, Bluebelle managed to muster a smile, a weak one, as she remembered those headlines.  The Prince had from an early age kept an eye on the society sheets, as they were called, being fond of reading stories about himself, occasionally deigning to browse articles on less distinguished individuals.  This habit had held, even as his profile was depicted less and less flatteringly, and was shunted further and further back in the page numbers, as Twilight and her cadre began to dominate the talk of the town.

 

"Gad, yes.  Trust journalists to make whopper out of nine-tenths of the truth.  What they'll make of this I shudder to think."  And she did shudder, right in front of the alicorn.  The unicorn mare was not quite sure she was ready to face her re-introduction to the headlines under this new guise, nor indeed anything that was likely to come up in the next month.  But... well, a mare has to do what a mare has to do... but what was it exactly that a mare had to do?

 

Not having any prior experience to speak of in this matter, Bluebelle put it in her last question to Princess Twilight.  "Yes... is there... anything I ought to know, about being a mare I mean, that's likely to come up in the next month?  I would prefer to endure as few blindsidings as possible, you know."

[SteelEagle]

 

It was time to make a decision on how to pursue the future. How to look at yourself, how to look at society and how it operated. How you fit into the puzzle of life and how all the edges needed to be minded. Each and every pony wove one integral part of a tapestry that was bigger than infinity and longer than eternity, and in this endless drift one could almost be lost. What made your singular element so attractive and memorable was how well devoted you were to it, and how great you shone in that role. Part of that was being comfortable with the fabric of that quilt, the small patch you wove, being comfortable and happy with yourself.

Twilight didn’t know if Bluebelle was happy or unhappy. Shock dispelled all accurate readings of her current emotional state. She could not count on Bluebelle being happy in her current state for two causes: Not a preferred gender identity or the fear of reveal. Or even both. Even if Bluebelle was only now starting to understand how happy she was there was always the possibility that adjustment was simply way too hard. And who could blame her- it was anything but an enviable position to be in. And for that, twilight had nothing but sympathy for the former Prince and possibly future Princess.

But one step of becoming comfortable, short term or long, was understanding your body. And that was when things got significantly more awkward. She was not that sort of teacher. Telling somepony about their body was…well, a parent’s job, wasn’t it? Or some sort of qualified teacher? Not a Princess who was decidedly less enthused and extremely embarrassed by the subject. She blushed as her brain ran a mile a minute trying to come up with a good answer.

Her horn lit up, checking a library a town away.
“Umm…” she began, “Eureka! I’ve found it!” Panicked relief across her face. “Hereyagoitshouldtellyouwhatyouneedbye!” Twilight said, vanishing in a flash…leaving a book in her wake.

“Your Changing Body: A Filly's Guide to Marehood” by Harsh Truth.

[Blueblood]

It was true, a lifetime of being trained to 'keep up appearances' made it difficult for other ponies to get a clear reading on one's emotional state.  And when one is also raised to see an obvious display of emotion as a social display of weakness... altogether one could hardly blame Twilight Sparkle for not being able to accurately diagnose 'Princess Bluebelle's' true emotional state.  The unicorn hardly knew it herself!

 

So far, so good.  The unicorn did not expect advice on how to sort out her emotions, and therefore did not resent it.  But problems of the body were surely easier to discuss!  Not that Prince Bluebloood had discussed them; those were matters reserved for mares, and he had suspected that the interposition of male curiosity was resented.  However, given that he was now expected to be a female for a whole month, surely a little frank warning about what pitfalls were ahead from one mare to another was surely not too much to ask!

 

 “Hereyagoitshouldtellyouwhatyouneedbye!”

 

Apparently it was.  Bluebelle sighed as she regarded the book.  "Of course, of course she would leave a homework assignment."  Had Twilight Sparkle been familiar with Blueblood's prior academic record, it is probable that she would not have entrusted this task to his own work ethic in the matter.  As it was, the newly-minted mare put the book on a shelf for later, and turned to the more immediate concerns of settling the ever-numerous social difficulties this change had effected.  The real questions would have to wait...

 

(Finis)