Celestia puts the newly-read scroll to the side. She cannot help but chuckle. Some things never change, for [i]both[/i] Twilight and Pinkie. All she hopes is that Twilight doesn’t hole herself up in her multiversal studies with peculiar Pinkie by her side. And that bit about that magic nothing space Pinkie accessed that one time… typical Pinkie Pie! Shortly after, another scroll appears in the princess’s room. Unlike the previous one, however, it's bound by seals. Not one seal, but seven seals. They take Celestia by surprise. It's unusual. She slowly opens each one of them with her magic, noting the difficulty it takes to rip them all off, like some active force was trying to ward her off from the letter. After the seventh seal is removed, the scroll finally unfurls. Celestia’s heart begins to pound. It's not normal for Twilight to use two seals, let alone seven. This is overkill. Unless… unless it’s something [i]septuply[/i] important. She closes all the windows. Double-, triple-checks the locks on her door. Casts anti-break-in spells on all points of entry for good measure. With that, she slowly levitates the scroll to her eyes. [hr] [i]Princess Celestia.[/i] [i]I know what you’re thinking: Why the security? Well, what I’ve found in my extra-universal research is dangerous—for your eyes only. I made it so that only you can open it. Not even Luna.[/i] [i]The scroll I just sent is a cover-up—just in case. All of it is technically true, but it’s outdated: I started two weeks ago, expecting to have Pinkie only help me along in my studies due to her quirks. Maybe she’s discovered an extra-reality equivalent to ley lines or somesuch, as maybe evidenced by her inexplicable teleportation.[/i] [i]But the deeper I dug, the more the evidence pointed to Pinkie herself. She may be Laughter, but it turns out we’re not the only ones she’s laughing with. That alone won’t fully explain the [/i]non sequiturs[i], the constant exaggerated reactions, the aforementioned teleportation, the times when we all stop—all for a Pinkie quip or a Pinkie gag.[/i] [i]After much prodding, she gave in and told me it’s for “them”. But who are “they”? Who is she being a clown to? A secret or imaginary friend? Or a manipulative villain? I couldn’t pin who “they” are.[/i] [i]Then, nothing.[/i] [i]I guess Pinkie decided she can’t shake me off. She took me back to that nothing space—the very place where I’d returned her mouth after Trixie’s rampage. She wasn’t smiling. Was serious all the time.[/i] [i]I asked her what this place was.[/i] [i]Do you really want to know the truth, princess? Do you want to know it so bad? Even if it will scar you forever? If no, burn this letter. Assume I’ve gone a little cuckoo.[/i] [i]If yes…[/i] “[i]This is beyond the fourth wall.”[/i] [i]On cue, I could see flickering glimpses. Windows to another world like ripples. I could discern their features: a creature or some. Bipedal, like the ones in Sunset’s world. And they’re watching me. Watching Pinkie.[/i] [i]Watching us.[/i] [i]Pinkie told me everything: We and this world—this reality—is nothing more than a play from which these other-worldy creatures derive some entertainment and morality. And we’re not even highbrow. Pinkie says it’s more like foal’s theater... so we’re all just for foals and their parents? She tells me there are way more than that, but still—[/i] [i]Forget the history books. Forget the creation myths. Forget cutie marks, destiny, and life’s purpose. We were all made… to entertain, to teach, to sell toys even. To them, we are merely characters beyond [u]their[/u] magic mirrors.[/i] [i]My life’s not my own. It’s all a lie. It’s all staged. At least we can teach, not just entertain—help their children learn the magic of friendship... but we’re not our own.[/i] [i]We’re not.[/i] [hr] Celestia looks on at the scroll. She looks on, trotting nearer to the fireplace, feeling its warmth as she levitates the scroll ever closer. She stops. Something arrests her, stops her in the dread. In the corner of her eye, a portal to darkness. [hr] “Come, Celestia. I… I’m sorry, did you read the—“ She nods. Nothing to say in the dark nothing. Just her, Twilight, and Pinkie. “Well… that’s it. Just us… actors on a stage and… them.” The two little ponies look on, staring off into the empty nothing horizon. Celestia looks there too, gazing through those strange magic mirrors. She sees through them. She sees us.