"Whoa; I got you," Flash said as Twilight literally fell into his arms.

Coming out of the portal was always disorienting. No matter how hard she tried; Twilight always either fell over or somehow came shooting out like a cannon ball. This time Flash was there to catch her. A good sign indeed.

Before she said anything; the two hugged and kissed. It felt good. The feeling of his arms around her, hers' around him, of their lips pressing against one and other. It was a feeling she wished she could bottle and take with her always. She finally pulled away and said, "Nine o' clock on the dot. You are punctual."

"What? - you thought I'd be late for our date? No way!" he said with a grin and a laugh in his voice. Seeing her, touching her, was all he thought about this past week. And now here she was in front of him. His heart seemed so light that it might just float out of his chest. This was the true meaning of happiness.

"No, not at all. So what's the plan for today?" she asked equally happy.

"Well, I borrowed my dad's car; I thought we could go up to Look Out Peak and have a picnic for starters. I got pickled eggs, some sandwiches, chips, grapes, salad, juice, soda, cookies, . . . "

"Oh and what army is joining us?" Twilight asked with a gentle nudge and grin.

Flash chuckled, lowered his head and rubbed the back of it. "It's a little much, but I wasn't sure what you liked, so I wanted to be prepared."

"It's ok. Just shows how considerate you are." Twilight then gave him a peck on the cheek. "Sounds wonderful. Let's go."

"Cool." Flash took Twilights' hand and they walked to the car. Flash opened the passenger side door for her. "After you my queen."

"Stop. I'm a princess; not a queen," Twilight said as she got in.

"Your title is princess; but you're still MY queen."

Twilight blushed, smiled, and twirled her hair. Flash smiled back, closed the door, walked over to his side, got in, and they took off.

*************************************************************************************************************

The ride up took them out of town and up some back roads into a forest. Twilight watched as the town gave way to scattered homes and then to nothing but trees. It reminded her of the Evergreen Forest back home but somehow more beautiful. She watched the sun twinkle in and out of the leaves on the trees. She put her hand out the window to feel the air rushing over it. It feels like flying almost, she thought. She listened as music came from the car radio. It was all amazing this strange new world. There wasn't any magic here, but it was magical.

"If you don't mind me asking," Flash started saying; catching Twilight off guard a bit, "why do you always wear that school uniform?"

"I don't have a choice. Every time I come through the portal, this is how I come out. I can't explain it; it's just the way it is."

"So no matter what you're wearing on the other side, it always get's changed to that?"

Twilight thought for a second. Should she tell him that on the other side she almost never wore clothes? It could easily lead to a series of questions she was not willing to answer at the moment. Especially any that might lead her to telling him the girl he had just been hugging and kissing was a pony. She would have to tell him sometime; but she didn't want to right yet.

"I guess it's the same for my age. I mean I'm twenty-seven but I always come out as sixteen." As soon as she was done speaking; she saw Flash's face become worried. "What's wrong?" she asked.

"Well if that's true; then what will happen after a year? Or two years? Five years? I'll keep aging, but every time you come back; you'll always be sixteen." Flash had never considered that part. How would a twenty year old, much less a forty or sixty year old explain hanging out with a sixteen year old girl? Oh no officer, she only LOOKS sixteen, but she's older than I am. He didn't see that going over well.

Twilight hadn't thought that over as well. "Could be that I'm tied to this dimension's Twilight's age. And that as she ages, I'll age with her."

"What do you mean 'this dimension's Twilight'?"

Darn it! Seems like those troubling questions came up anyhow. "Well, ok, how do I explain; in the two dimensions, yours and mine, there are doubles. Cosmic twins I'd guess you'd call them. I have a Pinkie, Applejack, Rainbow, Rarity, Fluttershy, Celestia, Luna, all. They share personality traits, somewhat similar backgrounds and such. I know there's another Twilight here. Your Pinkie even mentioned she lived in the city. So my guess is that whoever steps into the others realm is made into the image of their cosmic twin." Twilight stopped, then added, "Any of that make sense?"

Flash didn't say anything at first. He just drove with a blank expression on his face. Then he asked, "So there's another me in your universe?"

"He's a palace guard for Princess Celestia." Twilight then grimaced. She knew she had said something wrong. Not wrong maybe, but something she should have given more thought to.

"So you've met the other me then?" It was a question loaded with meaning. What it was really asking was how long will you keep coming here for me if you can have him back where you live.

Twilight placed her hand on his shoulder. "He's not you. He's a copy; not the real thing. He didn't save me when I was framed by Sunset Shimmer, I didn't dance with him at the Fall Formal, he's not the one I cried over when I thought I'd lost him to The Dazzeling's magic. That was all you. You're the one I want to be with because you're the one I have the history with."

Flash turned to her and smiled. "Thanks." He went back to looking at the road. "So if that's the case; then when I come to visit you, I'll be aged forward then. Huh, instant adult hood."

Twilight's eyes got really big. "Um, yeah. It would be a good way to test the theory out, but that'll have to wait awhile. My dimension is a bit, a lot different than yours. We have griffins, dragons . . ."

"Whoa! Dragons! You got actual dragons where you're from?"

Oh no. Instead of putting him off wanting to come to her dimension, she amped up his excitement even more. "Yeah. In fact that's what Spike really is. For whatever reason; he got turned into a dog when he came through. Whether or not all dragons would turn to dogs or vice versa; I don't know."

"Sounds awesome. Now I really want to go see where you come from."

"Um, in time. Just not right yet ok? There's still some things you got to know first. Things I'm not quite comfortable telling you just yet." Twilight was starting to sweat now. Please don't let him ask any more questions, please!

"Wait; you're not a dude back home, are you?"

"Nnnnnooooo, not a dude. I'm a genuine, one hundred percent, all woman female in both realms." Please stop!, she thought to herself.

Flash breathed a sigh of relief. "Well then, what's the problem? I love you, even if you had a giant horn coming out of your head."

"He, he. Yeah, a giant horn," Twilight pretended to laugh it off as a joke. Not just a horn buddy, but wings, a muzzle, tail, and hooves.

Before anymore awkward questions could be asked; they had arrived.

***************************************************************************************************

Look Out Peak was so named because it was a cliff where one could look out and see the whole town of Equestria in all it's glory. It was a famous location where locals love to picnic and just watch their beloved town. You felt both a part of it and apart from it at the same time.

"Oh Flash, it's beautiful. Thank you so much for bringing me here," Twilight said in awe.

Flash came up behind her and put his arms around her waist. "I knew you'd love it." He gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Come on; let's get set up."

They went to the car, unloaded everything, and laid it out on the ground. For a while they did nothing but eat. There was no need for forced conversation. Each felt completely comfortable in the other's presence. All they needed was to be near each other; nothing else was required.

As they finished up; Twilight turned to Flash and asked, "So tell me about you? How'd you get here?"

"Well, my great-grandparents fled to the U.S. from China to escape Mao and the communist after World War Two. They didn't meet until they had already settled in. They started and ran a restaurant and Laundromat. My Grandfather was born in nineteen fifty. He got the restaurant and his sister got the Laundromat. My dad was born was born in seventy-three. He was disowned by the family for meeting and marrying my mother. My mom is of Greek, German, and Irish descent. They wanted him to marry a fellow Chinese woman; not just Asian, but Chinese specifically. But as dad always told me, love is love and love knows no nationalities. - or dimensions." Flash smiled and Twilight blushed.

"Dad worked as a carpenter for years. He eventually started his own business. We're comfortable, but compared to the other people who live here, we're poor. But in summers I help my dad as much as I can. I have a lot. More so than my great-grandparents or even my parents did. But I know I only have it because my family worked their tails off to provide it for me. I'm not a trust fund baby like most at our school. But it's all good."

"So do you see your grand parents?"

"I have. Honestly, I'm much closer to my mom's side of the family. But tradition states I trace my bloodline through my father's side. I don't know. I guess they love me. They're old school. Really reserved emotionally. But my dad, my mom, and her side love me. It is what it is." Flash smiled and shrugged. "So what about you?"

"I love my family, but I don't get to see them as much as I'd like. Last time I saw my parents were at my coronation. I see my brother a bit more, but he's a prince with his own kingdom to look after. I miss them. I wish I could see them more. But I always felt that I never quite met my parents expectations. I guess that's why I've always been such an over achiever. They were never cruel or demanding, but I always felt
'pushed' so to speak. You have any brothers or sisters?"

"Nope, Dad always said one was enough."

They continued on like that. Talking, telling each other about their backgrounds and experiences. Twilight tried to make sure Flash did most of the talking. Eventually she would have to tell him everything, but; still, just not yet. Eventually their conversations tapered off and they packed everything back up.

"Ok, I came up with the first thing. So now you come up with the second," Flash said.

"Well, I guess I should get some clothes to keep here. Like you said, all I have is this uniform, and who wants to wear the same thing all the time."

"Sounds like a plan. Shopping we shall go."

"Great," Twilight said with a smile. She reached into a small sack she had brought with her and pulled out a few diamonds, 2 or 3 rubies, and some emeralds. "Will this bee enough?"

Flash's mouth dropped opened. "Yeah, yeah, that should do."

"Good. I was worried I didn't have enough. I only brought a little with me just in case. I wasn't really planning on buying anything. But, cool; let's go."