The train screeched to a halt at the Ponyville train station just in time. The doors slide open and more ponies begin pouring out than in. Amongst the group of ponies exiting the train, a tall, black pegasus mare with long white hair trotted out with a confident smile on her face. Her grey eyes sparkled in the sunlight as she looked around with a mix of curiosity behind joy.
"So, this is Ponyville in Equestria, huh?" She asked with a relatively deep yet friendly voice.
"Yeah, this is the place," a female griffon with a raspy voice says as she exits the train as she pulled a wheel case behind her. Black fur covered her lion half while her eagle head shined white in the sunlight. "I've heard the griffons think it's lame." She stops next to the pegasus. "What does 'lame' even mean anyway, Night Wing?" She asked as she looked at the mare.
"I think it's something along the lines of 'boring' or something like that," Night answered with a shrug of her shoulders. "Though I don't understand how anyone could think this place is boring. I mean, look at all the happy ponies trotting around, Cora!" Night exclaimed as she gestured to all the colorful ponies in the station.
Even though the train station was simple and open air, it was filled with earth ponies, unicorns, and pegasi alike. All of them with smiles on their faces as they greet their families and friends arriving or the few departing.
Neither Night Wing nor Cora spent any time in Ponyville, let alone Equestria. Night Wing was not born in this country. She was born on a small island just outside of the Equestrian border. Though she resembled a pegasus mare from Equestria, two distinct differences separated her from the Equestrian ponies. The first was the blue gem dawned on her forehead. The second was -
"Hey, mom! Look!" a young voice called out. Night looked over to find a filly earth pony pointing a hoof her way with excitement as a mare followed her hoof in curiosity. "That pegasus has no cutie mark!" The older mare took a double-take.
"Cutie mark?" Night Wing asked as she glanced at her form to see if something was wrong. Then she realized something. She glanced at her flanks before looking around at the other ponies around her. Most of the ponies, especially the older ones had different images on their flanks.
"That's odd," some ponies said aloud. "She's a mare. Where's her cutie mark?" others queried. "Don't stare," some parents told their foals.
Cora showed signs of discomfort at all the eyes staring at them. She could not help but notice that if it was not Night's lack of a 'cutie mark' the ponies kept staring at her.
"Is that a griffon?" some ponies queried to each other. "I've never seen a creature like that before," others observed.
"What's about a 'cutie mark'?" Cora asked as she looked around. "And why do they keep staring at me?"
"That's right!" Night exclaimed. "Equestrian ponies have special marks on their butts." Night looked at Cora. "And I assume griffons are rare in this part of the country."
"Well, the part about me makes sense," Cora observed as she glanced at Night's hindquarters. "But, why don't you have one of those 'cutie mark' things?"
"Maybe because Muneris aren't like Equestrians," Night observed as she started walking off. "After all, I am from a different country."
"An island is hardly worth calling a country," Cora observed as she followed Night with the case firmly in her claw.
"We still are independent from Equestria," Night explained with a smile.
"So, why are we here again?" Cora asked. "If we're independent, why come here at all?"
"To learn," Night answered. "The president would like to form a relationship with Equestria someday, and it'll help to have some residents learn everything we can." Night stopped to look at Cora with a smile. "Besides, with griffons being native to Equestria, this'll be like a return home to you."
"It's not a 'return home' if you've never been here before," Cora sighed. "You found me as an egg, remember?"
"Oh, right," Night observed as she scratched her chin with her right forehoof. "I wonder how a griffon egg managed to get all the way out there in the first place."
It was a complete mystery how Cora's egg got so far from Equestria. Night Wing found the gold nugget as a filly when she was outside playing in the sands on the beach. Gold had no real value in her homeland, but she kept it anyway. That is, until it hatched. Ever since then, Night Wing cared for Cora until they both reached adulthood. The two could not be separated and remain close friends to this day. So when Night Wing was assigned to visit Equestria, Cora jumped at the opportunity to join her friend.
"Anyway," Night said as she shook her head. "We came here to learn about this 'Summer Sun Celebration' so, let's get to it!"
Just as they left the train station, an expensive gold carriage pulled by two white stallion pegasi landed. A lavender unicorn mare hopped out with a purple and green baby dragon on her back. The mare politely thanked the stallions who pulled the carriage before trotting off.
"Wow!" Cora exclaimed. "She must be one important pony!" she observed with an excited smile. "Hey! Where are you going?!" Cora called to Night who trotted up to the stallions.
"Excuse me, sirs," Night called out as she approached. They looked at her with narrow brows. "Forgive me, but who was that mare you just dropped off?" she politely asked with a friendly smile. The stallions looked at her, taking note of her blank flanks with raised brows before snorting.
"That was Twilight Sparkle," one answered. "Princess Celestia's personal protege."
"She's here to make sure preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration are in order," the other added.
Night glanced at Twilight's direction with an excited smile. "Wow! The Princess' protege!" she exclaimed as Cora walked up.
"Night Wing, vex'gnai jura, what were you thinking?!" Cora protested.
Night shot Cora a sharp glair. "Watch your language, Cora!"
Cora always had a tough time holding her tongue in times of stress, so she took to using the Arish language, the primary language of the Muneris, whenever she cursed. Night Wing never liked it when Cora cursed in any language. Even if no one understood what Cora said, Night Wing did know the words, and she always voiced her displeasure.
"Sorry, but those guys look serious," Cora observed the stallions. "One wrong move and you could be pony food!" she whispered in protest.
"You know equines are vegetarians, right?" Night countered.
"You know what I mean!" Cora snarled.
Night rolled her eyes before smiling at the stallions. "Thank you," she said with a respectful bow of her head. The stallions inclined their heads before they turned to take off. "Well, if we could meet that Twilight Sparkle, I'm sure we could learn a lot about Equestria! The president will be so happy!" Night beamed in anticipation while Cora rolled her eyes with a smile.
"You're incredible, you know that?" Cora asked with a chuckle. Cora always took pleasure in Night's joyful demeanor and positive attitude.
"I guess it's why you stick around," Night observed as she rubbed the back of her hoof against her chest with a confident smile. Cora took Night in her claws and gave her a noogie, earning a fit of laughter from her equine friend. "Oh, stop it, Cora!" Night protested. After a few seconds, Cora relented and let Night go with a smile. Night straightened her mane with her foreleg and a smile. "Now, we need a place to stay for the night. Any place catching your eye?"
"I don't see anyplace," Cora observed as she looked left and right. "Just a bunch of small houses."
Suddenly, a streak of pink flashed passed them, causing a gust of wind to woosh past them and making their hair and feathers puff up. They stood there in shock for a few seconds before looking at each other.
"What the jura was that?" Cora asked as the gem on Night's forehead flashed blue and a comb appeared in front of her and landed in her hoof.
"I have no idea," Night answered as she started combing her mane and tail before passing the comb to Cora. "And, watch your language." Cora rolled her eyes as she took the item in her claw and straightened her feathers with it. When the two finished, it vanished. They looked up to see several ponies staring at them in shock and confusion.
"What are they staring at?" Cora asked as she leaned closer to her friend.
"We are strangers here," Night answered as she glanced back and forth. "It's probably the blank flank and griffon thing, like before."
"Excuse me," a male voice called from behind. The two looked back to find a yellow pegasus stallion with orange stripes smiling at them. "Did I just see you use magic?" he asked with a friendly smile.
"Why?" Cora asked. "Isn't magic common in Equestria?"
"For unicorns and alicorns, yes," the stallion answered. "But, you're a pegasus..." he stopped to notice Night's lack of a cutie mark, "... with no cutie mark," he observed. Night glanced at her flank.
"Oh, I'm a Muneris," Night explained with a smile.
"A moon-air-ee?" the stallion queried as he scratched his chin. "Wait, isn't that the breed of pegasi from the island outside the border?"
"That's the one," Night answered. "You know it?"
"Barely," the stallion answered. "I've been all over Equestria and learned a bit about other nations, but nothing major."
"Well, the gem on my forehead," Night began as she pointed to the blue stone under the tuft of hair on her head, "is what gives us Muneris our power. We're all born with one and they grant us each a unique ability. In my case, I can conjure up any object I please." She held up a hoof and made a mug appear. "Some of us can levitate things, teleport; It's all different." She smiles at the stallion as she makes the mug vanish.
"I see," the stallion observed with a smile. "That's really cool."
"You said you've been all over Equestria," Cora observed with a raised brow. "You special or somethin'?"
"Oh no," the stallion chuckled. "I'm just a humble pegasus who lives in little ol' Ponyville." He blinked. "Oh, I'm Blazing Feathers, by the way." He extended a hoof.
"I'm Night Wing," Night said as she bowed her head with a smile. "And this is my best friend, Cora." She pointed at the griffon who bowed too. Blazing held his hoof out with a smile.
"Um, why are you holding your hoof out like that?" Cora asked as she pointed a claw at Blazing's extended hoof.
"It's a hoof-shake," Blazing answered. "It's a form of greeting here in Equestria."
"Like this?" Night queried as she took his right hoof in her left and shook it.
"Close enough," Blazing chuckled. Cora followed suit. "Well, welcome to Ponyville!"
Suddenly, the skies were cleared out of all the clouds, catching the attention of the trio on the ground. "Wow!" Cora exclaimed. "That was ten seconds flat!" She looked at her wrist as if looking at a watch that was not there.
"That would be Rainbow Dash," Blazing explained. "She's the pegasus in charge of the weather in Ponyville." He stretched his wings out with a smirk. "She's gonna wanna burn off steam now!" He kicked off the ground and in a flash of fire, he flew off. "Catch ya later!" he called out as he flew away. Night and Cora stared at where he was with their jaws on the ground.
"Wow!" Cora exclaimed. Night looked at the ground where Blazing stood and took notice of the small flame left in his place. Four flames in the shape of horseshoes exactly where his hooves were. In a flash, a dome bowl appeared and Night placed it upside down over the fire to smother it out. "Was he a Muneris?"
"I don't think so," Night replied as she finished with the fire. "He didn't have a gem on his forehead and I swear there was that special mark on his butt."
"Staring at his yza, Night?" Cora asked with a smirk, earning a sharp glare from her friend for a couple of reasons this time. "Sorry," Cora chuckled. "Well, if he wasn't a Muneris, then how'd he create fire like that?"
"I remember learning about another rare breed of pegasus who have magic powers in their wings," Night observed. "It's mostly elemental, like fire or lightning, but I thought they were on the other side of the world."
"So, why is one here?" Cora asked.
"We're here, aren't we?" Night replied as she started to walk off.
"True," Cora agreed as she grabbed the case and followed.
"It's very possible that some settled this land and he's one of their descendants," Night observed. "Or maybe it's some kind of mutation." That statement earned a few sharp glares from the ponies around them. "I guess that was the wrong choice of words." Night observed as she continued.
The two toured the small town for a while, asking about places to stay and what the celebration was all about. As they walked through the streets, Night could sware she heard harmonic music coming from birds in the distance. "That's interesting," Cora observed.
"What, the singing birds?" Night asked as she stopped to look at her friend. "Birds sing all the time."
"Not like this," Cora countered. "Those birds are in perfect harmony, minus one. Like they're being conducted."
"Maybe they have something to do with the celebration tonight," Night observed. "Come on. We still need a place to stay."
After a bit more walking and asking around, they were interrupted by a pink earth pony with a big grin on her lips. "Hi there!" she cheered. "I'm Pinkie Pie and I'm throwing a party at the Golden Oak Library! You should come!"
Night blinked at the sudden appearance of this pony. "Um..."
"After all, you're new here just like that unicorn, so this party is perfect for you too!" Pinkie continued.
"What are you-" Cora began.
"C'mon!" Pinkie said as she poked her head from behind Cora's shoulder. "You two will have lots of fun there!"
"Um, Pinkie, is it?" Night asked in a state of confusion, but it was useless.
"Less talking, more walking!" Pinkie cheered as she began pushing the two toward a large tree being used as a building. Cora dropped the case behind them as they were pushed by the pink pony.
They soon arrived at the library and Pinkie quickly pushed them inside before closing the door behind them. "Quick! Turn off the lights and find a place to hide!" Pinkie dived behind a table in the middle of the room as the lights went out. Night made a flashlight appear in her hoof and turned it on to find a crowd of ponies gathered within the room. "Hey! Turn that light off!" Pinkie whispered.
Night looked at Cora, who looked frustrated about losing their case before they both shrugged and found a place to hide. Night turned the light off and made it vanish just in time for the door to open.
"Thank you, bye!" A mare's voice called out before the door slammed.
"Rude," a young male said.
"Sorry, Spike," the mare replied, "but I need to convince the princess about Nightmare Moon without a bunch of crazy ponies trying to make friends all the time. Now, where's the light?"
Just then, the lights turned on and everyone in the room cried out "surprise!" at once. Night flinched at the sudden lights and sounds for a second before smiling at the joy in the room.
"Well, that's quite a greeting," Night observed as she stood from her hiding place. Cora stood next to her.
"Yeah," Cora said as she scratched the inside of her ear with her pinkie claw. "All this for that unicorn."
Night looked to find the unicorn, Twilight Sparkle being greeted by multiple ponies while looking annoyed.
"That's Twilight Sparkle," Night observed with a smile. "Maybe we can learn more about Equestria from her."
"What makes her so special?" Cora replied with a raised brow.
"She is the princess' protege, remember?" Night smiled at Cora. "She came to town on that fancy coach with those pegasi." Night began to make her way toward Twilight, who ran upstairs before Night could get close to her.
"Right," Cora sighed. "Well, you go talk to her while I go back to find our bag." Cora tried to get to the door to no avail with all the ponies enjoying the party. She rolled her eyes and eventually gave up. "Whatever. It's not as if these ponies are gonna steal an unattended bag left in the streets."
"Relax," Night chuckled as she stood next to her griffon friend. "Ponies are extremely nice in Equestria. I'm willing to bet somepony is trying to find the owner as we speak."
"What happened to talking to Twilight?" Cora asked.
"She went upstairs and I don't want to fight the crowd," Night answered with a smile. "Besides, this might be fun."
"You might be right," Cora submitted with a roll of her yellow eyes. She kept thinking about their case outside.
The door opened and a blue pegasus stallion with black hair came in with a friendly smile on his face and the wheelcase on his back. "Somepony lose a case?" Night smiled.
"See?" Night asked with a smile. "I told you someone would return it to us. Excuse me, that's ours." She waved at the stallion with a smile. The stallion smiled and started for the two.
"I bet griffons would've ransacked it by now," Cora observed with a relenting smile.
The stallion walked up and slid the case over his head onto the ground in front of him. "I heard Pinkie Pie was throwing a party for some newcomers and saw this on the road." Cora took the handle in her claw.
"Yeah," Night began, "we only just arrived earlier today, and that Pinkie Pie character just came out of nowhere and brought us here."
"Yeah, she does that," the stallion chuckled.
"Thanks for bringing the case to us," Cora said with a smile as she grabbed the handle of the case.
"Hey, a polite griffon," the pegasus observed. "Usually your kind would demand a bit for something like that." Cora raised her brow.
"I knew griffons were hard-heads, but I didn't know they were greedy," Cora observed. The stallion raised a confused brow.
"I'm Night Wing, and this is my friend, Cora," Night introduced herself to the stallion. "We're not from Equestria."
"You're a Muneris pony, right?" the stallion asked with a smile.
"You know my kind?" Night asked with a smile while Cora raised a brow.
"Oh yeah," he replied, "My dad used to travel a lot and told me about the island outside the border. I'm Zuro, by the way." He bowed. Night smiled and bowed back. "And your Equestrian is quite good. You have the accent right and everything."
"Something's different about this one," Cora whispered into Night's ear, earning a nudge from Night's right fore-elbow.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Zuro," Night greeted with a friendly smile.
"Welp," Zuro stood tall with a smile. "I'm gonna join in the fun!" He rushed into the crowd.
"You know something was up with that one, right?" Cora asked Night as soon as Zuro vanished into the group.
"Zorumxu, Cora!" Night countered. "It's not our place to decide what's odd about the ponies here. Besides, he was kind enough to return our case to us."
"Yeah, but I bet we're missing some stuff," Cora said as she dove her head inside the case to search its contents. Night giggled at the griffon half-buried in the case. After a few minutes, Cora pulled her head out of the bag with a raised brow.
"Anything missing?" Night asked with a smile.
"No," Cora answered as she closed the case. "Not a single thing out of place."
"Come on," Night giggled. "Let's join the party and get to know everypony here."
The party lasted throughout the entire night. Every pony indulged in games, treats, drinks, and more until the early morning hours. The entire time, Cora kept the case in a tight grip to make sure they would not lose it again. Night Wing mingled with everyone she could to learn everything about the ponies while enjoying the fun. Many of the ponies could not help but notice Night's lack of a cutie mark, which she was happy to explain again and again. The more they mingled, the more the ponies accepted and welcomed the two.
"Come on, everypony!" a voice called out. "It's time to watch the sunrise!" The ponies began leaving the building as Twilight came from upstairs with the baby dragon by her side. The unicorn did not look any less annoyed. In fact, she looked more concerned since the party began last evening.
Night ignored the concerned look on Twilight's face and instead looked up at the others with an excited smile. "Let's go with them!" she told Cora, who began to drag the case behind her. "Just leave the bag, we'll come back for it later."
"But-" Cora began to protest.
"It's not like we won't know where it is, and everypony will be gathered for the celebration," Night explained. Cora rolled her eyes and placed the bag in a corner by the staircase before following her friend.
At the town hall, every pony gathered around to watch the princess rise the sun with her magic. The Birds sang in harmony and the lights dimmed.
"This will be quite the experience," Night observed as Cora sat next to her at the back of the crowd.
"It's just the sunrise, what's so special about that?" Cora asked.
"Shh!"
Cora blinked at the random shushing from the crows.
"Let's respect the event," Night whispered with a smile.
The birds chirped a regal melody as a spotlight shined on the balcony overhead. Night Wing and Cora watched along with the rest of the crowd only to find no one standing where the spotlight shined.
"Um, isn't this princess supposed to appear now?" Cora asked as she looked around. Night raised a brow at the confused ponies around them.
"She's gone!"
The crowd gasped in shock.
"That can't be good," Cora observed with a raised brow.
"Look!" Night cried out as she pointed at the balcony.
A cloud of purple smoke filled the area before taking the form of a black alicorn dawned with cyan armor. Her mane and tail flowed like smoke around her as stars sparkled within. She cackled over the crowd.
"Is that the princess?" Cora asked Night as she kept her eyes trained on the alicorn.
"No," Night stated sharply. "I can't believe it, but that's Nightmare Moon." She kept her voice quiet so no one would hear, but all the ponies were too focused on this new being before them to take notice of their conversation.
"That's just an old pony tale," Cora observed.
A crack of lightning filled the air in the building. "Stand back, you foals!" Everyone watched as Nightmare disappeared in a purple cloud that flew out the front door.
"Come back here!" a cyan pegasus with rainbow hair flew after the cloud.
"What should we do?" Cora asked Night as the two ran outside.
"What can we do?" Night replied. "That's the ancient alicorn of darkness."
"Then, let's get the vex'g out of here!" Cora protested.
"Cora! I'm not gonna tell you to hold your tongue again!" Night snarled. Cora only rolled her eyes. "Look, maybe we can find some information back at the library. Any information we can find at all might help get everything under control."
"Smart," Cora agreed. "We can grab our case and get on the next train to the coast."
"You two aren't gonna leave when things start getting exciting, are you?" Blazing asked as he came out of Town Hall behind them.
"You gonna stop us?" Cora asked.
"Nope," Blazing replied. "But, I wouldn't be so quick to jump to conclusions. I saw several ponies heading back to the library already. We can follow and see what's up."
Cora looked at Night as if looking for approval. Night scratched her chin in thought. "Well, we were planning on going to the library anyway. If there's some way we can help at all, I want us to take that chance." Cora groaned.
"One of these days, you're gonna get yourself killed, Night," Cora protested.
"That's why I have you at my side, Cora," Night smiled as she nudged the griffon's shoulder.
Blazing led them back to the library, where they found a book already opened on a stand at the end of the room. "Looks like somepony's already been here." Night observed as she walked up to the book.
"What gave it away?" Cora retorted. "The mess of a party?"
"No, this book," Night corrected as she looked through the pages.
"What's that?" Blazing asked as he walked up.
"It's a book on something called 'The Elements of Harmony'," Night answered as she read the pages. "A source of power that was used by Princess Celestia a millennia ago to defeat Nightmare Moon."
"Any idea where to find them?" Cora asked as she walked up to Night's other side.
"No-" Night began. "... wait. There's something in here about an ancient castle in the Everfree Forest."
"Woah, no can do on that department," Blazing interjected. The two looked at him in curiosity. "The Everfree Forest is a dangerous place. I'm not taking some newcomers someplace where they could get seriously hurt or worse."
"We can handle ourselves," Cora protested.
"I'm sure, but-" Blazing began only to be interrupted by the book being closed. Both Blazing and Cora looked at Night who turned toward the door.
"A Muneris, a griffon, and an elemental pegasus," Night said. "Between the three of us, we can handle whatever comes our way in that forest."
"Are you sure about that?" Blazing asked. "I mean, I'm sure your ponies wouldn't like it if they learned something bad happened to you and I know the princess would not be happy with me for letting a couple of guests get hurt on her land."
"I'm sure," Night replied with a confident smile. "Let's go!"
The trio headed out of the library. "Blazing, you know this area, you take the lead!" Night ordered. Blazing smiled as he kicked off the ground.
"Follow me!"
Night and Cora took off after him and they flew toward the forest. However, by the time they got to the trees, the sun peaked over the horizon. The three stopped mid-flight to look around.
"Um, what just happened?" Cora asked as she looked at Blazing who wore a smile on his face.
"I guess we won't have to do anything after all," he observed. "If the sun is up, that means Princess Celestia's back and Nightmare Moon must be gone."
"Well, now what?" Cora asked Night. "I was actually starting to get excited instead of scared." Night only chuckled at her friend.
"Come on, let's go back to town," Night said as she turned back.
When they got back to Ponyville, everyone began filling the streets with smiles on their faces. Everyone mingled with each other as they talked about what was going on. Excitement for the return of the princess. The whole thing went on for several minutes before a large carriage landed in the streets. A white alicorn with flowing technicolored hair sat next to a blue alicorn with a bit of a frown on her face as she hung her head. These two had to be the princesses of Equestria. The whole town gathered around to greet Princess Celestia and her newly reformed little sister, Princess Luna. Night Wing stood beside her griffon friend staring at the new princess with intrigue; Almost in a hypnotic state. A nudge to the side pulled her out of her trance and she looked at Cora.
"You okay?" Cora asked. "You've been staring at that blue alicorn for a while.
"Sorry," Night smiled. "I read about how Equestria was ruled by two sisters, but I thought that was just some old pony tale or something."
"Yeah, who'd have thought it was all true," Cora observed as she glanced at the two regal sisters. "Omxlutopru."
"Incredible indeed," Night agreed as she smiled at the sisters.
"Now, can we find a place to crash?" Cora groaned. "We've been up all night and the train was the worst place to sleep." Night giggled.
"Of course," Night answered. "Let's go back to get our bag."
"Need a place to crash?" Blazing asked with a smile. Night and Cora looked at him with a smile of their own. "I have some room in my home. You two can use the spare room while you get settled."
"That's kind of you," Night said with a warm smile.
"Hey!" another familiar voice called out. The three looked to find Zuro running up with the case on his back. "You might be needing this!" He smiled as he handed it over to Cora.
"You went back to the library to get this?" Cora asked. "How'd you know it was there?"
"I went there earlier with some friends to find out what the hay was going on and saw it there," Zuro explained. "So, how long you plan on staying in Ponyville?"
"Not long-" Cora began.
"We were planning on just staying for the event, but this place is warming up on me," Night piped up. "Maybe we can settle down here?" she asked Cora with an eager smile.
"Seriously?" Cora asked. "We're here to build up relations, not build a home."
"And what better way to learn all we can than by living here?" Night countered. "This place is wonderful! Full of magic, friendly ponies, and excitement!" Night bounced in place at the thought of more adventures in Equestria.
"You call an ancient alicorn appearing out of nowhere, then vanishing without a trace exciting?" Cora retorted.
"So what if we missed everything?" Night asked. "We might run into more adventurous things the longer we stay here!"
"I could fill you in on the details," Zuro offered with a smile.
"Maybe later," Cora yawned. "Right now, I need a nap." The three others chuckled before following Blazing to his home.