It had been a whole day since Vesper mysteriously collapsed and there had been no sign of her or Cloud since he had flown off with her and left the rest of us to contemplate what was wrong. Obviously, the we were all worried about Vesper and whether she'd was okay. I didn't really want to talk to the girls or hear their (most likely stupid) theories, so I'd walked to the hospital to see what what was wrong. I'd arrived just in time to see Cloud teleport outside, still holding Vesper, and fly off again, this time into the distance and quickly out of sight. Instead of following him, I'd gone inside to ask what had happened.

I'd learned that Vesper was dying from an unknown cause, and that there was no way the doctors could save her. I knew instantly who Cloud had gone to:

My feelings on Vesper were mixed. On one hoof, she was a mass murderer that killed with no remorse, but on the other, she treated me with respect (maybe) and was pretty cool once I got a chance to know her. Well, aside from the mass murderer part... Plus, she never killed without a very good reason sometimes. She even healed me up once when my stomach had split open and my organs were spilling onto the floor. Although it was her that caused it in the first place. Bucking shovels...

Either way, I respected her (for some reason) and wanted to make sure she was okay. So off I had rushed when I learned of her state, off to the KGBNRB to drive to Canterlot and see if Master Vesper was okay and if I could help her. I should really ask Cloud whether it's pronounced K.G.B.N.R.B. or Kirgnurb. He usually says the the second, but still...

And that's why I had just burst open the door of study 34B to find Princess Celestia and Princess Luna playing Jenga. They both looked up at me.

"Watcher?" Asked Princess Celestia, sporting a confused expression. "What are you doing here? I thought I already sold you off into slavery?" She's not even trying to hide it!

"Where's Vesper?" I blurted, ignoring her question. The look changed from confused to suspicious.

"Why do need to see her?"

"Because I want to know if she's alright."

"Why do you want to know?"

"Because she-"

"Wait, have you fallen for her?" Wait, what?

"Huh?"

"Oh! You have, haven't you?"

"What?! N-No! I just-!"

"And you're here to take advantage of her in her sleep!"

"First of all; that's messed up, and second; why would I? We already bang multiple times a da-"

"I know your tricks, you sly dog!" And as bucking usual she cuts me off! "You'll wait until nopony is looking, then spread her legs and act like Munch Yum at a buffet!"

"Would it even be possible to be make that much of a mess?" Princess Celestia laughed. Princess Luna just sort of sat there, staying quiet.

"I see you've picked up a few things from being around Cloud!"

"Yeah. Where is he anyway? With Vesper?"

"No, no, he's having his own buffet with Vesper's mother."

"Wait, what?"

"Anyway, if you really want to see her then go and talk to Dr. Remover. He'll fill you in. But don't let me catch you-"

"Filling in Vesper?" Celestia laughed again.

"He really has rubbed off on you!"

"Yeah. Well, see you later, Princess."

"Until next time, Sight Watcher." I started making my way to the royal hospital.

I was in Vesper's hospital room and Rib had just finished explaining what was going on to me. I stood still, slack jawed in shock of what I'd just heard.

"An alternate universe?" I asked.

"That's correct." Rib replied in his usual monotone voice and hardened expression.

"That- How did he even- Ugh, forget it." I walked over to Vesper's bedside. She looked a looked a lot less sociopathic lying underneath the white hospital sheets. The parts of her mane that weren't flattened underneath her stayed stuck up like blades in their usual fashion. "How much longer does she have?"

"Five or six days depending on how movement through universes effects time." I turned to face him.

"What do you mean?"

"Cloud headed off to Discord immediately, but based on how time traversal effects spacial coordinates, it's a fair bet that going to another universe may effect your placement in temporal coordinates."

"Let me rephrase the question; could you please explain what you mean in a way that makes sense to those of us that don't have understanding on time and space?" Rib let out an annoyed sigh.

"It may take Cloud a few days to arrive in the alternate universe. He might not be there until tomorrow or the day after. In fact, he might arrive on the last day. However, this may effect it both ways. None of us have any way of knowing."

"Both ways?"

"He might have arrived a few days ago, due to-"

"Okay-okay, that's good enough." I turned back to Vesper. "That's all I wanted to ask."

"Sir, I'm doing everything I can to keep your wife alive." I jumped back to facing him, surprised at what he'd just said. "Being snarky won't help anypony."

"W-Wife?! She's not my wife!"

"I apologize. It appeared that you had been in a long relationship due to the strength of your feelings for her."

"Feelings?! I-I don't-"

"Dilated pupils and changes in heart rate, posture and muscle contractions say otherwise."

"No-no-no-no-no-no-no! That's just-! I'm not-! I-It's just because I'm worried about- For! I'm worried for her!"

"'For' and 'about' would mean the same thing in this context."

"Well-! I just-! Gah! I don't love her, okay?!" Rib rolled his eyes and sighed again.

"If you insist. If you'll excuse me, I have work to do." Rib walked out of the room, closing the door behind him. Me in love with Vesper? That's preposterous! I'm not in love with Vesper! I looked back at her and my heart fluttered slightly. ...Am I?

Author's Notes:

When could Cloud be?!
Is Watcher in love with Vesper?!
Will Munch Yum ever have a scene?!
Find out (probably not) next time in The Quest For The Past!

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A picture of Watcher since I haven't done one for him before:

His cutie mark is a crosshair and his talent is accuracy in general (another reason Vesper is so fond of him ).
You know what? Have some more useless background info that probably won't be important:

- He's 22 years old.
- He grew up in Cloudsdale.
- He moved to Canterlot by himself at 15 to join a military school.
- At 18 he went through training and tests until he became part of the military.
- At 20 he was assigned a royal guards post.
- He isn't fond of apple pie.

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[Way, way, way, way, way, way later edit:]
I redrew Watcher's picture because the original is terrible and very rushed. Here's a much better version: