Ryan was thankful for the lack of sleep that night. Any reprieve from his nightmares was welcome, even if he had to sacrifice some of his wakefulness as a consequence. He spent the night in his room, dissembling and reassembling Lucky over and over again, inspecting his bullets, engraving small clubs into them, and keeping a watchful eye on both his Pip-Boy and the darkened parts of the room. He checked his Stats screen and noted that the Sanity bar was gone still; his Luck stat held at 4.

It was time for him to go, he knew that much.

First light brought with it anxiety. It had been some time since he had felt something of that caliber. All the time spent fighting for his life, in combat first, then politics, had rendered him basically immune to the emotion. When you face such uncertainty every day, how can you help but tire of it?

His Pip-Boy made a sound reminiscent of dry air blowing across the wastes. Looking down at his Quests screen, he saw that it had updated once again.

"Return"

-Depart

-Party like it's 2281! [Completed]

-Find Twilight [Completed]

He gathered his things and left his room, for the final time. On the way out he left his key at the unoccupied front desk, no guesses as to where the pony who normally runs things there was. He took a quick moment to admire the architecture and design of the room, taking quick note of the differences to the designs in the Mojave; Equestrian art was something he had neglected to study or even look into during his few days spent in Ponyville. The thought of the broken mirror crossed his mind and he briefly regretted overreacting in such a way. Hopefully Celestia would be able to cover the expenses for it.

They had told him at some point during the party last night that the spell to send him back to Earth would be performed in the Map Room of Friendship Castle, citing some reason associated with the placement of leylines. He had encountered the term while reading, and understood how it applied to the spell they were using, which was essentially a reversed summoning spell, but it wasn't too important to him, given how leylines were typically utilized in rituals.

It didn't take him long to cross the tiny township. Many friendly ponies had waved to him or gave him some alternate form of greeting as he passed by. He recognized some of the faces, but he was more occupied looking out for any scowls being sent his way. He wasn't trying to be negative, he just wanted to see just how much a "Pinkie Party" could shift the public opinion. He was astounded to find that there didn't seem to be any hostility or even slight ill will directed toward him. Of course, with a small, cheerful town such as Ponyville, he supposed that reputations could be changed for the better much easier than in New Vegas.

The lower floors of the Friendship Castle were empty, as barren as they were when he entered last night. But, somehow, the structure felt warmer. The crystals lacked the sinister depth that they held when he gazed into them in passing, and a low, barely audible hum of power was present, vibrating in the air. He took deep breaths as he crossed the hall and opened the doors at the end.

His thoughts were plagued with worry as he ascended the staircase to take him to the Map Room. His main concerns were probably going to be addressed by any or all of the three princesses that he knew awaited him in the room, but he still couldn't help but feel uncomfortable with his lack of knowledge going into the whole process. After all, he'd only crossed the barriers between worlds once.

When he approached the door to the room, he could hear several voices making seemingly making small-talk. With a final, steeling breath, he entered.

"—and so we need to ensure that the trajectory is the exact same for reentry," he heard Twilight finish saying as he walked in.

Three alicorns looked over to him as he took strong steps towards them. The chairs and the map that normally sat in the room were gone, presumably collapsed into the floor as Twilight had told him about before. "Hey," he began lightly, "is everything ready?" he asked, his voice holding even, despite some of his nervousness.

"Yes, Courier. We're ready," Celestia stepped forward to say.

"But there are some things we wished to discuss before you depart," added Luna.

"I feel the same way," Ryan stated blandly.

A small smile graced Twilight's lips. "About the spell, I'm guessing?" she asked.

Ryan reached a hand up to scratch the back of his neck. "Yes." He noticed the three of them looking at him expectantly. "I just want to be clear on a few things. This will take me back to where I was on Earth before coming here, right?"

"Yes. Relatively. It's more of an approximation, as we have no way of knowing the exact point of your exit from Earth, so we're guessing based on residual magic from the spell that got you here. If I had to guess, I'd say that you should arrive within five miles of where you left, at the most." Leave it to Twilight to have the specifics of a spell.

"Alright." He nodded. "I also wanted to ask a question that's a bit more general. This spell uses a lot of power, right?"

"It requires the power of three alicorns to even begin casting. I believe that saying that it uses a "lot" of power is extremely justified," Celestia answered.

"Why do you ask?" Luna inquired.

"Because Atë said she was drawn to me because she could sense my Luck. And I'm guessing that since she used some sort of magic to get me here, she'll be able to sense magic getting me back. I want her to know I'm coming for her," he said, a fire burning in his eyes.

The three alicorns looked amongst themselves for a moment. The two sisters' expressions were unreadable, but Twilight clearly looked nervous.

"Courier," Celestia began, "are you sure that you wish to leave now? And not stay to gain more knowledge of magic? Twilight told me that you have made great strides in only a few days, the sort of progress that is seen only by prodigies in the studies of the arcane. Surely if you stayed for just another day, you would be able to make up for your missing Luck with more skill?"

The thought had some merit, Ryan knew. "I gave that option a lot of consideration, but I decided that this would be the best time, when my Luck and skill with magic are most evenly matched, both just under average."

Celestia's eyes flicked back and forth, reading his expression. She looked, for a moment, like she wanted to push the matter further, but gave up on it with a sigh. "I see you've made up your mind."

Ryan nodded. "I have." Seeing the opportunity to change the subject somewhat, he continued. "Before I go, I'd like to thank you all. It's truly been a pleasure, spending time in Equestria, and it's thanks to your kindness and willingness to help that I was able to learn so much, and that I'm able to go back to Earth at all. If the situation was reversed, I don't know what would've happened..."

"Courier?" Luna interrupted.

"Hmm?" asked Ryan, startled a bit by her suddenness. He could see some strange determination in her eyes, though he couldn't guess as to why.

"I wanted to speak to you about something of a more private nature," she stated firmly. She then stretched a wing out to the side. "Could we perhaps step out for a moment?"

A bit confused by the sudden shift in tone, Ryan nodded and followed Luna beyond the threshold of one of the adjacent doors in the room. The subdued voices of Twilight and Celestia accompanied their exit, neither of the two seeming to know why Luna was taking him aside.

Ryan and Luna stepped out onto one of the balconies of the crystal castle. Looking out over the railing, Ryan beheld a spectacular view of Ponyville just as the community was awakening. Far off in the distance he could see the stands setting up for the daily farmer's market, and close by he noticed a steady stream of ponies walking in or towards Sugarcube Corner. A plume of fluffy white smoke was lazily drifting upward into the sky, showing all passerby that the small bakery has been hard at work making all the goods they'll eat over the course of the day. It was a lazy sort of bustle, far different from what Ryan was used to in New Vegas. While he wouldn't trade up his place in the Lucky 38, this... was a view he could get used to.

"Courier." Luna's voice snapped him out of his thoughts.

"Is something wrong?" he asked quietly, his mind still away in Ponyville.

"There is something I wished to confess," she said, her voice held taut as a steel cable.

Turning away from the view, he faced her.

Her face matched her voice, even and steady. When she took a short breath in, Ryan knew that she was going to say something that he wouldn't want to hear. "I wish to confess that I monitored your dreamstate for the nights that you slept here. As the princess of the night, it is my duty to keep watch over the sleep of my subjects and interject in nightmares as needed. However, while I did notice your dreamstate, I did not interfere, as I believed it would be a breach of trust between us." Her expression softened. "Even so, I wanted you to know that I bore witness to the maelstrom that is your dreams. And I also wanted you to take caution, to not let it tear you apart... as mine did myself."

Ryan, for once, was at a loss for words. Part of him was outraged at the invasion of privacy, despite her not even looking at his dream directly, if her words were to be believed. He couldn't think of a thing more secure or private to him than his own thoughts and dreams. After the incident in the Big Empty he had become a bit more paranoid when it came to his brain or his body's inner workings. But another part of him wanted to focus on what else she said, about her being torn apart by her own dreams.

Silence continued between the two. He recalled what he had read of Equestria's history and what Twilight had told him about Luna and her counterpart, Nightmare Moon. The story of a mare set in conflict with her desires and the shadow of her potential power, and her subsequent fall from grace as her destructive side got the best of her and shattered everything that she once held dear. It was a tragic tale, one that he knew would stick with him for years to come. And thinking about it now, after the events with Christopher... he could see the parallels.

Luna's eyes darted between his, unable to focus on one for more than a few seconds before switching to the other. She was anxious to see how he would react, clearly, and she was also... concerned? Perhaps she truly does care to see him fare well after he leaves Equestria. Or maybe she just wishes to save him from falling to despair like she did. It could be a mixture of both.

Hesitantly, he held out a hand and placed it on her shoulder. She froze up immediately, her muscles tensing under his touch and his unmoving expression. "I will not become the man I used to be," he said firmly, his stare full of resolve.

As he removed his hand he felt her muscles unclench, a pent-up breath releasing from her lungs slowly. "I could not bear," she said, finally, a hint of pain in her voice, "to see another fall to mistakes similar to my own."

"I would sooner die than shut myself away from the world again," Ryan said with finality, knowing that he had nothing else to say.

"Then you are ready," Luna said, turning to open the door to lead them back inside.

Twilight and Celestia were silent in the room. There was no doubt they had speculated on what Luna and Ryan were talking about while outside, but the conversation must have died down before they reentered. A swift nod was exchanged between all three princesses, and, without another word, they arranged themselves in a triangle in the middle of the room.

Their horns glowed, and Ryan could feel the tug of magic from the atmosphere. Waves of it flowed into their horns as they channeled the spell, weaving the power into something palpable and secure. After only a few brief moments, a small shimmer appeared in the air in the center of the three. A bead of sweat trickled down Twilight's forehead, and the shimmer rippled and grew bigger.

One minute, no doubt a slow one for Twilight, passed and the shimmer expanded to reach up to the ceiling. It had transformed to a cylindrical segment of torn space and time. It glowed an ominous purple, and he could see pinpricks of light in the void, like stars in the night sky. The power supply from the three alicorns shut off as the gateway manifested, leaving the three panting and slightly exhausted.

"All that's left is for you to step through," Twilight panted out, giving him a small, but proud, smile. "I hope you remember most of what we discussed before, I know I'll never forget learning about Earth. And I'll never forget learning about you either," she said, beaming.

"Thanks, Twilight. Well," he said, looking at the three princesses of Equestria, "I guess I'll see you around." He put his hand up to his head in a little salute, before walking forward to the portal. But, just before he could cross the threshold between worlds once again, he was stopped by a voice.

"Oh, and Courier?" Celestia asked.

"Yeah?"

"Kick her ass."

Ryan's smile turned vicious. "You can bet on that."