Tristan grunted as he awoke the following day. His neck felt stiff and it pained him to move it much. He sat up and ran his fingers through his hair, inhaling deeply as he started to focus on getting the rest of his body fully functioning. Rubbing his eyes, he saw that everyone else was already awake. Rainbow Dash trotted over to him, checking his shoulder where the knife once was.

"How ya feeling?" she asked, more perky than concerned. Tristan groaned and cracked his neck. The initial tinge of pain was quickly replaced by a wave of relief.

"Much better now." he replied sarcastically. His voice reflected his groggy state and he moved to place his feet on the floor. Flinging the blanket off of him, he noticed that the shirt he was wearing the night before lay just beside the couch. He leaned over and picked it up, bringing it close to his face to examine the back of it. The mass of blood had oxidized around the knife hole, thus ruining his purple v-neck. He lowered the shirt and sighed a little. Rainbow Dash, who was also inspecting the shirt, winced at the blood stain.

"Yikes." she slipped. She forced a smile to counteract her reaction. "Glad you're okay, champ." she said, turning to walk back to the recliner. It seemed to Tristan like that was her favorite spot in the house. Twilight Sparkle was next to check on Tristan. She took an extensive look at his shoulder, then beamed at him.

"Good afternoon!" she said cheerfully.

Tristan tilted his head to the side. "Afternoon?" he asked, confused. He checked his phone. It was indeed a little past noon. He figured that he must have slept like a brick after he had fallen back asleep. "Why didn't you wake me up earlier?"

Twilight gave a smirk. "After yesterday, you needed the rest." she reminded. "Besides, I've built our itinerary around a later time frame." She levitated a piece of paper towards him and he grabbed it. The handwriting was nothing short of spectacular, much better than his own. He skimmed the list, and was quite surprised that somehow, she had almost had the trip planned out by the minute.

"You really put some thought into this, haven't you?" he asked, half teasing. Twilight, however was oblivious to the remark and instead, took it as a compliment and smiled at him.

"Oh, absolutely." she replied. "I want today to go off without a hitch."

One can only hope. he thought. He rubbed his eyes again. "Well, then." Tristan returned. He stretched and stood up. "I guess I better get myself cleaned off. Be back in a few." He began walking through the living room and down the hallway towards the bathroom for a much needed shower.

After getting dressed and somewhat groomed, he returned to the living room, finding that Twilight had already transformed herself into a fair-skinned human and was already dressed. She stood to about Tristan's shoulders and her purple hair was styled much similar to her pony form's mane. Her body was slender, with an average bust and a few curves otherwise. Twilight's deep, purple eyes used Rarity's mirror to view her new form, causing a grin to spread from ear to ear.

Tristan slipped on his shoes and retrieved his car keys from the end table next to the couch. "Are you ready to go?" he asked Twilight. She handed Rarity back her mirror, which she accepted with her magic.

"Yes." she confirmed, putting on a spare pair of Tristan's shoes. Her giddiness showed as she awkwardly walked to the door, pulling it open. The two waved goodbye to the others and walked down to the car. "So this is how humans get around?" she asked, touching the cool metal surface of the door before opening it and climbing in. "How does it get the energy needed for propulsion?" she asked, fascinated. "What do all these buttons do?" Tristan put the car in reverse and backed out of the driveway. He did the best he could to answer her questions as they drove off to the discount store.

Tristan took a drink of gas station coffee while Twilight Sparkle sat in the passenger seat admiring her new clothes. She was wearing a lavender polo shirt with a purple skirt and a pair of black flats. She had been spewing questions to Tristan the entire ride to and from the store. Although Tristan was more than willing to answer her questions, he started to feel a minor headache coming on.

The two entered the city and arrived at their first stop of the day: the science museum. Twilight tapped her feet in excitement at Tristan pulled into the parking lot and parked in a spot near the back. He turned back the key and they exited the car. Tristan drained the rest of his coffee while trying to keep up with Twilight, who was walking briskly towards the entrance doors. Once inside, Twilight marveled at the fine marble floors and ornate walls of the museum's lobby. Given, it was no Canterlot Castle to her, but it was still a magnificent sight. Groups of people wandered around them as they made their way towards the prehistoric section of the museum.

Twilight had brought along with her a small notepad for note taking, and already the pages had begun to fill. Information in regards to trilobites, dinosaurs, and other early life started decorating the pages as she flipped feverishly from one to the next. They continued on in the exhibit until finally coming to a display of human evolution. Twilight observed the different life-sized models that represented each stage of development all the way up to now. She took notes and leaned in closer to the last mannequin, who was unclothed like its predecessors.

"So that's what you look like underneath." she said quizzically. More notes were taken.

Tristan raised an eyebrow to her comment and felt his face getting hot. "Couldn't you have just looked it up on the computer?" he said. He was getting weird looks from passersby. Their eyes all seemed to question the purple-haired girl's reason for staring at the naked mannequin. He shrugged at them, not knowing what to say.

"I did," she replied. She turned back towards Tristan. "But I wanted to observe the human anatomy first hand. Spike was too embarrassed to cooperate and I'm pretty sure you wouldn't have assisted me, either. So that's why we're here." Tristan simply sighed and continued to lead Twilight through the rest of the prehistoric exhibit.

Next stop in their museum visit was the Space Center. It was far darker than the rest of the museum with only black lights and a few stray spotlights to illuminate their path. Twilight gasped as she saw the constellations, planets, and other astronomical bodies unfurl before her. The notes flew faster than ever as she quickly moved from one display to the next. It was then when she made an important discovery.

"Tristan!" she beamed, eyes wide. "You won't believe this!" She ran back to him, holding up a piece of paper. "The stars and constellations are exactly the same in my world as they are in yours! They're in the same position and everything!"

Tristan scratched his head, trying to think of how this is a big deal. Instead, he smiled and tried to match Twilight's level of enthusiasm.

"It's almost like we're in the same exact spot on a completely different plane of existence!" Twilight continued, writing more notes down. She continued walking through the space exhibit with Tristan barely able to keep up behind her. "Oh, Celestia will be pleased with all these findings!"

After Tristan and Twilight had walked through the Space Center and watched a chemistry demonstration, Twilight finally ran out of notebook paper. Tristan led her to the museum's gift shop, where he bought her a new one that featured multiple planets on its cover. Twilight squealed with delight as she clutched the notebook to her chest and started walking towards the entrance of the museum.

"Wait!" Tristan asked, dumbfounded. "You're done? There's still a whole lot of museum left to explore, like the physics department and the biology exhibit."

Twilight smirked at him. "As far as I can tell, our worlds are scientifically the same, with the exception of technological advancements and some life forms." she replied. "I'd actually like to know more about your history." She produced the itinerary from her pocket and showed Tristan that the history museum was on the list right after lunch. "Shall we get going?" she asked him. Her stomach grumbled a little bit and Twilight blushed a little.

"Whoops. Seems like I'm ready for lunch." she said, looking down at her torso. "How about you? I noticed a small cafe near here when we arrived. Sound good?"

Tristan agreed with the plan for lunch, considering he slept straight through breakfast. They walked back through the front doors and into the beaming sunlight. They then exited the parking lot and crossed the street to where the aforementioned cafe was conveniently located. It resembled a coffee shop in many aspects, but had a full lunch menu as well. Twilight quickly ordered a veggie-burger meal. The cashier punched it in her machine and looked over at Tristan, who was having trouble deciding.

"I'll have the same." he said sheepishly. The cashier nodded again and typed in the rest of their order. Tristan paid her and within a few minutes, they received their food and sat down at a small table in the middle of the dining area. Twilight let out a soft moan of pleasure as she took her first bite of the veggie-burger, letting the new experience savor before swallowing with a loud gulp. Tristan tried ignoring the noises and began eating as well. After taking his first bite, he found out for himself the reason for Twilight's reaction.

"This is actually pretty good." he said, continuing to devour his discovery. Twilight nodded in agreement as the two quickly finished their meals. Tristan threw away the trash and with their hunger more than satisfied, they walked back across the street and over to the history museum that stood just next door to the science museum.

Upon entering the history museum, Twilight noticed that its interior was much akin to that of the science museum. The lobby had been adorned with portraits and busts of historic figures from every era of American history. Twilight had her new notebook ready and eagerly followed Tristan through the lobby and into the first exhibit.

Twilight took much more time going through the exhibit this time around. She carefully read, reread, noted, and read again every paragraph on every plaque on every display. Though Tristan found this redundant and boring, the purple-haired girl found it exhilarating. Every word that flew gracefully from her pen was pure ecstasy to her. She quickly scribbled down some key points from one George Washington display and skipped gleefully over to the next. Tristan's heart swelled a little seeing her so happy and full of life.

After a short while, the two left the area of the museum that covered colonial America and made continued their journey through history in the Industrial Revolution exhibit. Twilight took a seat at the bench near the exhibit's opening for a small break.

This walking on two legs ordeal is tiring! she thought to herself. How can these humans stand to do it all day?

Tristan took a seat next to his companion and leaned back onto the bench's backrest. Twilight took this opportunity to review some of the data she had collected so far. Tristan raised an eyebrow to the studious female that accompanied him.

"You really dig this learning stuff, huh?" he asked. Twilight beamed back at him, giving him his answer before making it verbal.

"Oh, yes!" she quickly replied. "It's my favorite thing to do! Well, other than reading, experimenting, theory writing..."

"I think I got it." Tristan chuckled. Twilight bounced a little in her seat, but her facial expression quickly changed as a question came into mind.

"So," she began, "Why did you leave your university?"

Tristan was taken aback by her question that seemed to fly in out of nowhere. He leaned forward and sighed, keeping his eyes locked on the floor.

"Well," he hesitated, "I wasn't exactly fond of the whole idea of going to college, really. Why should I spend years and years in an institution learning something, and then have to spend the rest of my life paying it back?"

Twilight wore a look of confusion, but decided to keep silent, hoping there was more to Tristan's explanation than a silly financial problem.

"But when my mother died," he continued, "I fell in such a funk that my grades in the classes I actually was passing started to slip. I eventually just quit caring about my education and was soon expelled for lack of academic progress. That's why I've been slaving in that factory until lately."

Twilight nodded in understanding, but Tristan's head continued to hang from his shoulders and his gaze on the floor remained. Twilight watched him for a second, then closed her notebook, scooting close enough to lay an arm over his shoulders.

"I understand that losing a loved one can be a devastating, and even traumatic, event." she said, hoping to comfort her guide. "But I know that wherever she is now, she would want you to push on and be the absolute best you can be." Tristan lifted his head to meet her eyes and she smiled warmly at him. "Which will be pretty tough, considering you're already such a great person. When you rescued Fluttershy from being harmed, I knew that Celestia had made a wise choice in electing our host for this world."

Tristan returned the smile and embraced Twilight Sparkle. Blushing from the sudden act, she wrapped her arms around him as well.

"Thanks, Twi." he whispered. Twilight tightened the embrace momentarily and then pulled back, trying her best to hide the redness of her face.

Tristan stood and stretched his arms out. Twilight stood also and reopened the notebook back to the page where she had left off.

"Ready to go on?" he asked, his spirits much higher after their little conversation. Twilight nodded with excitement as they began through the next exhibit.

As they walked, they saw the rise of industrialism from the meager factories to the formation of labor unions and the marvelous inventions that eventually came. Twilight took extra detailed notes, hoping to bring some of these ideas back to Equestria with her. Tristan was carefully speculating a massive steam-driven machine, which was secretly something he was fascinated by.

Twilight stopped taking notes and watched Tristan as he followed the brass tubes around and around. She smiled while he tapped the gauges and fiddled with the knobs and levers. A small chuckle escaped past her lips, causing Tristan to stand upright. He put a hand behind his head and looked around nervously.

"Yup, yup." he said, trying to seem preoccupied. "Very, uh, interesting." Twilight's chuckle had evolved into full blown laughter. "What's so funny?" he asked. Twilight shook her head and approached him.

"Nothing, nothing at all." she lied. "I'm just glad to see you taking interest in something, that's all"

Tristan looked back at the machine and smiled. "For some reason, I've always been drawn to things like this. It's a secret passion of mine, I suppose."

Twilight Sparkle admired the machine as well, then turned to Tristan, realizing that their faces were but a few inches apart. She blushed and took a step back with nervous laughter.

"Well," she said, clearing her throat, "Your secret's safe with me." She smiled sheepishly, and found relief in Tristan's laughter. Unfortunately, their moment was crushed when a voice all too familiar rang out from behind them.

"Well, well, well." she said. "If it isn't the idiot Tristan Shay and the goody four-hooves Twilight Sparkle."

Twilight's and Tristan's face froze in horror, realizing that they both knew the voice. Their hearts both stopped and their minds raced, trying to somehow put this possibility together.

What the hell is she doing here?

How the hay did she even get here?

The two both turned their heads slowly, hoping to not see what terror stood behind them. Much to their despair, the figure stood, dressed in a single periwinkle dress with icy blue hair that hung down over her shoulders and piercing purple eyes. As if on the same brainwave, they said the name together.

"Trixie?!"