Peter and Lois Griffin were watching television when a very different program appeared on the screen.

"Hey look," Peter said, "it's Dan Vs. with one of those really long opening credit sequences."

Twilight Sparkle knows a lot about magic; she loves studying and making new friends!

Applejack's so strong and honest, she's really hardworking and would never tell a lie!

Rainbow Dash is athletic and loyal and just like her confidence, she soars through the sky!

Pinkie Pie's a real party animal, she loves singing and dancing and baking up cakes!

Fluttershy's kind to all the creatures, she'll make a connection, whatever it takes!

Princess Celestia's an awesome ruler, even one time she sent her sister to the moon!

Princess Luna's been gone for a while but she's gonna make sure Equestria hears her voice!

Vinyl Scratch is an incredible DJ and she's never shy about playing your song choice!

And then there's Dan!
*chorus* And then there's Dan!
And then there's Dan!
*and then there's Dan!
The hot as Cajun, super-ragin', can't up stage him Dan, oh Dan!

Our four weary travelers followed the train tracks all the way into Canterlot. When the earthen surface changed to cobblestone and concrete, the group switched from rail to road, entering the city streets.

"I don't think I'll be taking the train again... for a while, at least," Twilight remarked, her own voice heavy with fatigue. They were all exhausted from the trip; the train ride alone had been enough of an ordeal, that plus the walk from the collapsed train tunnel to Canterlot had taken a lot out of them. Having at last reached the city as the sun went down, they were all collectively eager to find some place to crash for the night.

The others turned to her. "Chrys, we're all tired. Do you REALLY need to stop us now that we're finally in Canterlot?" Dan asked.

"Well, that's the thing..." Chrys clipped her hooves together nervously. "This is the first time I've been in Canterlot since..."

Twilight's eyes went wide as she began to understand. "Chrys, it's going to be okay. We know you're not evil any more; you're good now. Everypony's forgotten about what happened at the wedding," Twilight consoled her.

To be honest with herself, Twilight wasn't sure. The reformation of Queen Chrysalis hadn't exactly been publicized. While those closest to Twilight knew of the Queen's redemption, greater Equestria was still aware of Chrysalis only as a heinous war criminal who had attempted to conquer Canterlot two years ago. As far as everypony else had been concerned, the changlings and their ruler were vile creatures and villains who had been vanquished by Twilight, her friends, her brother and his wife, Cadence.

"Why would anypony have a problem with Chrys?" Dan asked. Having only arrived in Equestria after the beginning of season 3, Dan was largely unaware of what had transpired in the world before he started living with Twilight. To Dan, Chrys and Fluffle Puff were just houseguests of the purple princess like himself.

"If they're going to have a problem with you, why don't you just change into somepony else?" Dan asked, matter-of-factly. "Why is it I always have to remind you and Twilight you can do these things?!"

Chrys practically facehooved. "Dan, that's actually the perfect idea." In fact, it was a little TOO perfect; this was exactly how she'd infiltrated Canterlot the first time. But there was no time to worry about that now. "Who should I change into?"

"Hmm..." Twilight thought. Who would be the perfect pony to accompany them? Maybe her brother or Cadence? Was it too early to suggest that?

"I thought you were a-" Pinkie was interrupted by Twilight stuffing a hoof in her mouth. But Pinkie might've actually had the right idea.

"Chrys, is there any way we can make you look... like, not a changling?" Twilight asked, trying to be sensitive.

Pinkie spat out Twilight's hoof. "That's easy! All you need is some paint over your coat, a nice wig, maybe a saddle for the wings and something to cover up your holes!"

The pink mare grabbed the queen's forelegs and held them up for her to see. "These!" Chrysalis looked at the perforations on her hooves. She knew about them, naturally but didn't think much about them.

Chrys pulled her legs away from Pinkie. "Okay, so what can we cover them up with?"

"I know!" Pinkie popped a pair of Oreos in both the holes on Chrys's hooves. "There we go."

Twilight shook her head. "Pinkie, that's not gonna-wait, where did you get those Oreos?"

The purple alicorn looked down in futility. "You're right... bad idea." Rule number 1 when trying to understand Pinkie Pie: don't try.

"This is ridiculous," Chrys stated. "I'll just turn into Cadence again." Green flames erupted around the Queen and instantly she changed into the princess. Scalded Oreos were flung from the flash, disintegrating into ash. The classic Nabisco cookies were designed for milk, not magic.

"Great, that solves that. Can we get going now?" Dan asked, beginning to lose patience.

"Yes, let's go," Twilight nodded, thankful that ordeal was over for now. But it did bring up other questions. How were they going to explain Chrysalis to everypony? Was this a bad time to tell Chrysalis she hadn't exactly informed her brother and Cadence about her living with them? Too many questions; hopefully, she'd be able to meet with Princess Celestia and get some idea of how to proceed. Together, the four walked further into the city.

Being one of the most opulent cities in Equestria, Canterlot was also a very large city by pony standards. While Dan had been in larger cities on Earth, he'd also mostly driven places and hadn't had to walk. After twenty minutes of walking through the busy streets and still not being close to the castle, the group's exhaustion levels were being pushed to the limit.

"Look... Canterlot Castle..." Chrysalis pointed a hoof in front of them. Although it seemed close, the lavish palace was actually still a good distance away. A distance none of them were in the mood to make.

"Me... neither," Dan added. The four looked like they'd been through the ringer. Manes and hair were frazzled and out of place, Dan's shoes were coming apart and Pinkie was collapsed on the pavement. It took a moment for the others to notice her.

"Pinkie, get up," Twilight said, urging her friend with her hoof. Pinkie was sprawled on the street on her back, eyes shut. Twilight's horn glowed to try and move her but only managed to lift her tail, which quickly fell back down again. "I'm too tired to do magic."

"Ho...tel," Chrys's mouth began to form words. "Hotel, let's find a hotel. Some place to stay; we can head to the castle in the morning."

"Good idea," Twilight wearily agreed. Dan nodded his own approval and together, the other three carried Pinkie to the nearest inn with vacancy.

As luck would have it, they didn't have to look far. Finding a place to stay was easy enough but even more surprising was the fact that Twilight's princess-ness actually paid off for once. Checking in for at a hotel near the train station, the staff was overjoyed to serve authentic royalty. The room itself was charged to Canterlot Castle's own private accounts and a pair of clerks carried Pinkie down the hallway to it. Dan would've been impressed if he wasn't so exhausted.

Upon reaching their room, the three conscious members of the group immediately noticed a problem.

"Were you trying to cut the, the bed in half?" Chrys was about to fall over from exhaustion.

"YES!" Twilight yelled. "I WAS TRYING TO CUT THE BED IN HALF! I don't need any more problems right now!" she huffed. Dan and Chrys looked a bit frightened at her. "I'm sorry... I'm really tired."

The three propped the sleeping Pinkie into bed and slid under the covers alongside her. In any other circumstance, this situation would make at least two of them uncomfortable. But after all that had happened, they were too tired to raise any objection. Snuggled together with their heads on the same pillows, Twilight had just enough magic to turn off the lights as the they went to sleep.

The rest of the night was quiet, allowing the quartet an evening of uninterrupted rest. They slept peacefully, snoring and dreaming of a relaxing, fun day to come. It probably was the best night's sleep the group had ever gotten outside their library home.

At the same time in Ponyville, Spike and Fluffle Puff were curled up in the overturned tree house, sleeping themselves. The pair had actually made negative progress in fixing the home, though this was understandable considering the tree had fallen over and the only real tools at their disposal were construction paper and glitter glue(being so young, neither Spike nor Fluffle were allowed to use supplies other than from the arts and crafts store).

The next morning was equally peaceful. Warm, cozy and comfortable still in the luxurious hotel bed, Dan had a smile on his face as his eyes opened. The smile quickly turned to a frown as he realized Chrys's limbs were wrapped around him and she was nuzzled into his hair.

"Dan, what's wrong-why are you yelling?!" Chrys asked, jostled awake herself. "IT'S TOO EARLY FOR THIS!"

"You had your hooves wrapped around me! You were practically breathing in my ear!!"

"Oh, uh, I'm sorry, Dan," Chrys blushed. "I sometimes get a little... clingy at night."

"Dan, please calm down," Twilight said, wiping the sleep out of her eyes. What would've been worse- waking up with an Ursa Major in the room or Dan shouting?

"I'll calm down when I get my own room! I'm not sharing a bed with either of you... or ANYPONY for the rest of the trip!" Dan declared. He'd clearly been shaken up about this though it was probably just because of the odd sleeping arrangement rather than anything to do with Chrys or Twilight.

"We'll each have our own rooms when we get to the castle," Twilight said groggily. "Princess Celestia will take care of everything, I'm sure."

Chrys smiled, though couldn't help but feel a small amount of discomfort. It just seemed odd that Twilight thought of Canterlot Castle as a safe place, of Tia as somepony that was so capable. This odd feeling was strange for Queen Chrysalis until she realized what it was: concern. She was concerned about her friend, Twilight Sparkle.

This wasn't normal nervousness or anxiousness at something to be fixed; this was a deep concern. Despite that Twilight Sparkle had become a princess herself, she still saw Princess Celestia as a mentor and teacher, a guide that would always be there.

A guide that Queen Chrysalis had beaten. Chrys's eyes went wide as she realized exactly what she was concerned with; Twilight Sparkle put too much faith in Princess Celestia. All of a sudden, it all seemed to make sense. Chrys could tell Twilight's friends new it as well, even Dan from the way he talked to her on the train. The feeling of discomfort settled itself in Chrys' stomach and sat there like a piece of ice. This feeling was something she didn't know how to get rid of but now was entirely sure of why she felt it.

Princess Celestia had ruled Equestria for over a thousand years, almost as long as Chrys had been imprisoned underneath Canterlot. Chrys remembered what Equestria was like back then, simpler times. During her time as ruler, Celestia had freed Equestria from tyranny on multiple occasions, triumphed over many obstacles, prevented many disasters and imprisoned her own sister in the moon. She raised the sun and moon for centuries, preserved harmony in Equestria alone. She had also trained students like Twilight in magic, understanding and harnessing powers for the good of all in this world.

It was hard not to see ponies like Twilight so devoted to Celestia. But her power was not without limits. During the wedding two years ago, Chrysalis had been so empowered by Shining Armor's love for his wife she had been able to defeat the princess in single combat. If not for Cadence and Shining Armor using that same power against her, Canterlot would have fallen to Queen Chrysalis and her changlings.

But Twilight and her friends had saved the day. Chrys was actually thankful for that fact but she couldn't shake the feeling that... Twilight placed a little too much faith in the princess. She wondered how Celestia felt, if she knew how faithful her student was. Was she doing this on purpose? It was almost as if... but Chrys couldn't be sure; she hadn't seen Celestia in two years. She only had the reactions of Twilight's friends to tell her she was right, that they felt the same thing. And Chrys was Twilight's friend too, right? That's why she was concerned. Another realization hit her: she was Twilight Sparkle's friend.

Wow. That felt weird... but nice. Chrys decided she would ask Twilight's other friends, tell them her concerns. But who to ask first? Well, probably telling Twilight she was worried was a good idea and she still had concerns she could always ask-

Twilight and Dan both looked around, equally surprised. "I don't know. She was in bed with us last night," Twilight said, lifting up the covers.

"Pinkie?" Dan asked aloud. There was no telling what Pinkie Pie was going to do next; she could try to surprise them with a wake-up party or she could be baking them various goods for breakfast. Dan checked under the bed, half-expecting to get blasted by a party cannon. But she wasn't there. Checking the bathroom, the closet, all the dresser drawers, the space behind the t.v and even all 89 channels on the t.v yielded no results. Pinkie was gone.

"Chrys, give me a leg up," Dan said, positioning himself in the middle of the room. The changling queen moved to assist him immediately and Twilight knew Dan was clearly checking the ceiling vent next. While Twilight would've thought that a bit excessive in any other circumstance, this was Pinkie Pie. However, she thought she had an idea of where her zany pink friend might be already. Then, she found the note on her nightstand that proved it.

Dan, in the middle of tearing off the ceiling grate with a toenail clipper and Chrys lifting him both looked over to Twilight.

"What's it say?" Chrys asked, walking over. Unfortunately, she forgot she was still supposed to be holding Dan up.

"Wait! Wai- AAAAHHH!! AAAAAAAAHHHHH!!" Dan now dangled from the unhinged ceiling vent. It detached under his weight and he fell, faceplanting on the floor.

"Yeah," Dan remarked, his voice muffled from his face being against the carpeting. "I think that might have been a mistake."

Twilight continued looking over the pink note. It read very clearly in all capital letters:

And that was it. Twilight turned it over. Nothing was on the back. She flipped it over again; why did Pinkie write her name and nothing else?

"That's all. This isn't like her. It's like she started writing and then stopped in the middle for some reason."

"Why would she stop in the middle of-" It was in that moment that Dan was asking that question that Pinkie fell from the ceiling grate.

"Pinkie?!" Twilight gasped. "What are you doing?! You're acting even more... you than normal!"

"Don't mention it..." Dan replied, his face muffled once again by the floor. "That was a mistake."

Chrys raised an eyebrow. "Wait... standing under the grate, removing the grate, waking up or-"

Dan, his face muffled for the second time said, "Yes, once again, yes. NOW GET OFF OF ME!" he pushed Pinkie aside. "What the hex where you doing in the air vent?!"

"I'm sorry!" Pinkie recoiled. "I wanted to get to the castle early so I could bake another cake. So I started to write a note but I only got to TWILIGHT before-" she ran towards the window and pulled back the curtains, "I saw this!"

Twilight, Chrys and Dan walked over to see what Pinkie was talking about. All three gasped at what they saw; Canterlot.

Following her gesture, the three narrowed their gazes to see what she was talking about.

"I still don't see what you're- oh, wait," Chrys said. She noticed a long procession of ponies leading up the street, a line that must've stretched at least a block from what she could see.

"So? They're standing in line," Dan remarked. "New restaurant, movie or something? Is the circus in town?"

"That's the line to the castle?" Twilight asked, shocked. She'd lived in Canterlot for the majority of her life and she'd never seen a line to get into the castle. She remembered reading about long lines during the food shortages, when ponies had to ration supplies during the famine. But having a supply shortage overnight didn't seem possible. Whatever this was, it didn't seem right.

Pinkie nodded in affirmation. "And it's only gotten longer since this morning. The moment I saw it, I panicked! I can't get into Canterlot, won't be able to make another cake, nopony will ever want my business again and I'll wind up in Game & Watch Gallery in one of those-"

The pink mare grabbed Chrys' face. "YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND! I sunk two-hundred and fifty-thousand bits into that cake!"

"I took out a loan from the First National Cloudbank of Cloudsdale to bake that cake! With the money I made from it getting eaten at the party, I would've almost doubled my initial investment!"

"I put my house up as collateral for the loan! If I don't make any money at the party... I'll have to move back in with my parents!" Pinkie broke down.

"Pinkie," Twilight knelt down to Pinkie, "this is the reason why you were so protective of that cake, isn't it?"

She nodded, her head hung low. "I knew I wouldn't be able to make another cake in time for the party so... I tried to hide in the air conditioning vent."

Twilight lifted up her friend's chin and smiled. "Pinkie, you know if you needed help, all you'd have to do is ask us."

Sniffling slightly, she looked up at Twilight. "You really think we'll be able to get in and bake another cake in time?"

"Absolutely," Chrys stated. "Even if we have to use the caves underneath Canterlot to get there."

"We shouldn't have to," Twilight said, returning her attention to the window. "Why is there such a long line, anyway?"

"This doesn't make any sense," Dan assessed. "Is the only working bathroom in this town inside the castle or is your brother's wedding just that popular?"

"I don't understand," Twilight admitted. "There wasn't any line at the wedding, there shouldn't be one now. Why is everypony standing in line to get into the castle?"

"Well, we're not going to find out up here," Chrysalis said. "And the line's certainly not going to get any shorter..."

"Not if it's like any amusement park I've ever been to. Let's get down there and see why everypony's wasting their time," Dan said, walking to the door. The others followed him out, none of them bothering to replace the ceiling grate. Outside, the end of the line had just reached the end of the hotel as more ponies wandered from the streets to join it.

Dan looked down the street, trying to gage how truly long the queue was. "From here, I can't even see the end."

Twilight approached a white, brown-maned stallion in line. "Excuse me, but what is this line for?"

"There's a big reunion party that's going to be happening at the castle. Royal guests from all over are attending and everypony in town's been invited," he answered.

A shades-wearing brown stallion behind him tapped him on the shoulder. "I thought this was the line for the raffle."

The white pony turned around. "Michael, there's not going to be a raffle. I told you already!"

"Reunion party?" Twilight asked herself. "There wasn't anything about a reunion party in the note."

"I'm confused," Pinkie said. "I thought we were here for your brother's anniversary, not a reunion. Wait," she stopped, realizing. "WE WEREN'T INVITED TO THE REUNION PARTY! HURRY, WE HAVE TO GET IN LINE!"

Pinkie immediately shoved her friends out of the way and took position at the end of the procession. She immediately adopted a pace of nervous waiting while the line lurched another painfully slow and short length forward.

Once again, Twilight didn't know what she should do. She only knew what she was going to do. Her brow furrowed. "Whatever's going on in the castle, we're going to it."

"I know," Chrys said, "but what are we going to do about the line?" She actually did have a good point. It was massive, long and rivaled that of both the lines of the "Occupy Barn St." protest and the release of the PiePhone 6.

Three puzzled mares turned their heads to him. "Um, what makes you say that, Dan?" Pinkie asked.

Dan smiled at them confidently. "In case you guys forgot AGAIN, we HAPPEN to be the special friends of a princess, remember?"

"Oh, right!" Chrys exclaimed, happy. While Twilight didn't act like it often, or at all really, she was still a princess.

"So let's head to the front of the line and find out what's going on!" Dan said, marching in the direction of the castle's front gates.

Chrys reached out a hoof to stop Dan. "Wait, Dan we should probably let-" But it was too late; Dan was already heading down the street. "... Twilight go first." She let her hoof fall to the ground.

"Yeah... he acts like a princess more than you do, Twilight," Chrys said, walking off to follow Dan.

"I know... hey, wait, what's that supposed to mean?" Twilight asked. But it was too late for her as well; Chrys was already down the road, catching up to Dan and leaving Twilight with a puzzled look on her face.

Pinkie put a foreleg around Twilight's shoulder. "Boy, there's no predicting those two, huh?"

Compared to Ponyville, Canterlot seemed almost modern to Dan. Admittedly this was the second city on Equestria Dan had ever seen but even then, he could tell this place was very different from Ponyville. The architecture of the town, from the cobblestone roads to the curvature of the structures and banners all conveyed regality, luxury and a sense of pride that Dan hadn't ever seen before, not even on Earth. To him, Canterlot felt like it was half country club, half museum all around an outdoor museum.

To be honest, Dan liked Canterlot. He liked all of Equestria he'd seen so far; the whole world seemed so pure, free of the irritations Earth was full of. At the same time though, Equestria seemed to have its own annoyances Dan and the others were forced to deal with.

Comparatively, ponies seemed to be at harmony with their world, sharing a union with nature that complemented and supported their society and the environment, a peaceful balance. However, this relationship also lead to the ponies act differently when that balance was upset: during times of crisis, they tended to panic or behave irrationally, losing control when difficult circumstances arose. Humans seemed to be better at dealing with larger problems, uniting only when necessary. So the main difference was that ponies dealt with the day-to-day operations better while humans were better at handling big issues. Big issues like absurdly long lines.

"Please have all baggage open and ready for inspection," a royal guard stallion spoke over the crowd as Dan approached. The single line of ponies led under a large, green tent at the end of the road with tables set up underneath. Carts, bags, crates and all forms of luggage were being inspected by royal guards. Each article was examined carefully at different table stations before ponies were allowed to exit the tent and continue to the castle beyond.

Dan rolled his eyes and sighed heavily at the display; it reminded him of the security setup of airports back on Earth. He understood the need for such measures(he didn't agree but he sympathized) on Earth but that was just the problem; this wasn't Earth. Ponies had magic, some of them could FLY. Why were they all funneled into ONE LINE? Why couldn't there be a special queue for pegasi ABOVE the street or unicorns who could TELEPORT? Instead, all ponies, even ones without any baggage, were pointlessly forced into one procession making it so long it literally stretched down the street. Needlessly inefficient bureaucracy seemed to be a common part of both Earth and Equestria.

Even more annoyed than was when he woke up this morning, he walked to the side of the tent to a group of royal guards monitoring the procession.

"Excuse me? Hey!" Dan wasn't used to waiting to get someone's or somepony's attention. "What is all this for?" he asked, his voice frustrated as he gestured to the line behind him.

One of the royal guards turned around and approached him. "I'm sorry sir, the castle's currently under lockdown status. If you're going to be attending the celebration, you're going to have to wait in line."

"Oh, well," the blue-maned stallion paused for a moment as if considering if he should tell Dan, "there was an incident on the railroad yesterday, something about a train exploding and blocking the tracks. We've had to step up security until we learn more about the situation, find out whoever's responsible."

Dan's eyes went wide. Obviously, the guard was referring to the train he and the others had been on yesterday but from the way he acted, he didn't seem fully aware of what had transpired or who was involved. Dan decided it was probably for the best if he didn't find out from him.

"Uhm... yeah, that's probably a good idea," Dan rubbed the back of his neck, nonchalantly changing the subject. "So, how long do you think the wait to get in is?"

"TWO HOURS?!" Dan's jaw practically dropped as he shouted. Not a chance he was spending two hours outside standing in line to get into the Equestrian-equivalent to the White House, which as far as he was concerned, might as well have been a three-ring circus. Or Carnegie Hall.

"Well, uh, wait," Dan thought quickly. There had to be an exception for guests of royalty. "I just so happen to be attending the festivities with a princess!"

"Uh," Dan felt a lump hit his throat. Of course; this was Canterlot. He should've known it would be packed with royals. There went using Twilight's status to get them anything, once again. Thanks O Celestia.

"I'm sorry but w really can't make exceptions for royalty, especially after Prince Blueblood made a scene... so, if there's nothing else-"

"Hey Dan!" a pony called from up the street, trotting towards them. Dan immediately recognized it as Chrys in her Cadence disguise.

"Hey Chrys," Dan said, his voice sounding defeated. They were running out of options but maybe Chrys could turn into somepony that could help them slip past the guards. Maybe even-

"Cadence?" the royal guard asked, stepping in front of Dan as she approached. "I thought you were in the castle."

The guard approached her. "Is everything okay? I don't know how much longer I'm going to be what with us so short staffed."

Dan could tell something was wrong but he couldn't tell what. Chrys' Cadence disguise was blushing horribly, even sweating as the uniformed stallion got closer.

Dan's jaw practically hit the pavement. This guard, whoever he was just kissed Chrys right on the lips. He practically watched the embrace in slow motion and for a reason he couldn't explain, his fists involuntarily balled themselves.

Twilight's own face looked panicked, concerned as she ran up to Dan and the two ponies.

"Twily, it's so good to see you!" the guard hugged Twilight. "What happened, Twi? We were expecting you yesterday."

Twilight, looking no less nervous, rubbed the back of her neck. "It's.. it's a long story."

The guard chuckled again. "I'll bet. You can tell us all about it in the castle, right Cadence?"

"I'm Dan," he quickly interjected, "and I'm here with my close, personal friends, Princess Twilight Sparkle, Chrys and Pinkie Pie."

"Ah," the guard said, seeming to understand. "Well, any friend of my lil sis is a friend of mine."

"And this is my wife, Princess Cadence," Shining said, snuggling into Chrys. The queen's eyes jolted as discomfort returned to her.

"Wait, no, that's not your wife," Dan said. He thought it best to clear up the issue now.

"That's my wi- I mean," Dan tripped over his own words, "that's our friend, Chrys. Err, Queen Chrysalis or something."

Shining laughed at Dan's revelation. "What? That's not-wait... wha-" his smile quickly faded, something approaching shock dawning on his face. Slowly, Shining turned towards Chrys. "I..."

Deciding it was enough, Chrys dropped the disguise. In a bright flash, green flames engulfed her and she transformed back to her changling form.

"Um... hi Shining... err, Prince Shining Armor," Chrys said, grinning nervously and shaking.

The shock had not left Shining's face. He took a couple steps back in horror. The crowd behind them let out a collective gasp and also backed a bit away.

Twilight moved to her brother's side, putting a hoof around his shoulders. "Shining, I can explain. Queen Chrysalis-"

"-is reformed," Twilight finished. Her brother's body fell on its side in the street, hitting the ground with a plop.

"Not... exactly," Chrys answered. She and Twilight knelt down to tend to Shining, checking on him.

"Ch-ch-ch-changling!" a pony resembling David Bowie shouted and pointed. Three other ponies with him screamed, "Run away no jutsu!" as they fled down the street. The crowd soon followed, panicking and galloping away from the scene.

Dan smiled, noticing the line was gone. The path to the castle was clear; he could see into the castle. "Hey! The line's gone, we can head on into the castle. Whatever we did, we should've done that-"

"The queen was exposed right in front of Shining Armor and he fainted. The guards are taking them to the station right now."

"I need you to distract the guards, do something to get them out of the station. Once our friends get out, they're going to need a way over the wall so make sure they have something helpful nearby."

"Call me when you're done. Once we get them into the castle, I think it might be a good time to get a closer look at our developments."

"You'll see. When the time comes, they should make the connection on their own. We might have to give them a little more... encouragement but we should have an indication of how much more we need to do in a couple days."

"Please, you don't understand," Twilight pleaded. The royal guards didn't respond; they continued practically pushing, shoving and carrying Twilight, Dan and Chrys through the hall of the first floor of the guardhouse.

"Aren't you going to at least tell us 'we have the right to remain silent'?" Dan asked.

"You assaulted a prince of the royal court of Equestria, you're in association with a changling-"

"Wait, that was my brother!" Twilight tried to explain. "We didn't assault him! I swear!"

One of the guards shot an angry glance at the purple captive. "Prince Shining Armor would never faint in front of an enemy of Equestria! The former captain of the guard, ruler of the Crystal Empire, no threat in the city could make him simply... pass out! This is clearly the result of some sort of dark magic!"

"Dark magic?!" Dan shouted, exasperated as his hands were clasped behind his back by spell bindings, "I WAS THERE! HE FAINTED LIKE A PRE-MED STUDENT SEEING BLOOD FOR THE FIRST TIME! FOR ALL YOU KNOW, HE COULD'VE BEEN OUT IN THE SUN FOR TOO LONG!"

Unlike the hotel they'd stayed in last night, the guardhouse's interior was completely absent of lavish furnishings of any kind. The drab, gray walls exuded none of the opulence of the architecture on the outside. Dan understood right away; this is what passed for jail in Canterlot, or at least a holding area where suspected criminals waited transfer to a major correctional facility. A police station complete with its own cells and he and the others were its newest inmates. This was not the first time Dan had paid a visit to such a facility.

"But wait!" Twilight begged one last time as they pushed her and the others into the cell, "I'm a... I'm a princess!"

"Yeah, yeah, tell it to the judge, changlings," the guard said, locking the cell door behind them.

"Except me!" Chrys quickly added. "But I'm a good changling now!" The guards didn't even look back as they turned and walked away.

Dan jumped on the cell door. "This is a mockery of justice!! I KNOW MY RIGHTS! THIS ISN'T DUE PROCESS!! THIS ISN'T ANY PROCESS!! I'LL SEE BOTH OF YOU POMPOUS PEONS LOCKED IN HERE FOR THIS!!!"

"Dan," Twilight gripped him with her own magic, "it's no use; they're already gone."

"We can't let them get away with this!" Dan shouted, face still red with rage. "We have to do something!!"

Chrysalis looked around. "Well, at least the accommodations are better than last time," she remarked, a hint of sadness in her voice.

"You!" Dan accused her, "What did you do to him? He kissed you and then fainted. Is there some kind of law that ponies can't kiss in public? And for that matter, WHY DID HE KISS YOU?!!"

"That's actually..." Twilight began and then stopped. Was this the right time? She looked over to Chrys who's gaze was fixed on the floor in a mixture of sadness and regret. A kind of hollow frustration where one futilely accepts their unfortunate circumstances and simply waits for the sorrow to pass, hoping it will soon. Twilight knew that feeling well. "Chrysal- Chrys?" she asked. "Is it okay if I tell Dan about... the wedding?"

The changling queen stood, almost a third taller than both Dan and Twilight. "My kind aren't... embraced by pony society. While Twilight has opened her home to me, not everypony wants me around..."

Dan held up his hand in a halt gesture. "Wait, Ponyville's perfectly fine with you. Nopony there comes to our house and complains and I haven't seen anypony have a problem with you around the neighborhood. Did I miss the 'No cats, dogs or changlings' sign somewhere?"

For centuries, my kind, my horde languished in the caves underneath Canterlot, under the very ground we stand upon now. I waited, waited ages until the time was right, until everything was set and we were ready. That day... was going to be perfect. I never considered what would happen the day after.

By taking Princess Mi Amore Cadenza's place, I defeated Princess Celestia, imprisoned Twilight Sparkle and nearly conquered Canterlot. Equestria was almost mine. I couldn't possibly be defeated. But...

I was beaten. The very magic I used to empower myself and my army, Cadence and Shining Armor used in a different way. By combining their love, they unlocked a magic far greater than anything any darkness could stand against. I and my entire horde were expelled from Canterlot, flung across Equestria in a single blast. My plans for the future, for my kind, were over in an instant.

We landed in the badlands. After all that time, hundreds of years, I had failed. My changlings were weakened. Without food for so long, they entered into a state of hibernation like before. Scattered across the wastes, they cocooned themselves until the time came their strength could recover on its own. I remained awake to watch over them as I had before. But unlike the caves underneath Canterlot, the badlands were far harsher than I could contend with. Severely weakened myself, I did the only thing I could do.

I abandoned them. It had been my responsibility to take care of them for generations, for as long as I lived. But I had lived through so much, seen a future I never thought my kind would ever see. And I didn't see changlings in that future, not as we were. So I left them where they lay and traveled to the only place I knew to go to:

I tried to make it back to Canterlot. In my injured state, I only made it to the Everfree Forest. And that's when...

I became lost in the Everfree. Unable to go any further, I passed out in a clearing. That's when she found me. Fluffle Puff... a creature capable of only loving found me. At first, I sought to feed off of her but something was... different. Fluffle Puff's love was different than any I had encountered before. It wasn't intensified by any one thing nor diminished. It was simply there, an inexhaustible amount of love, of feeling that transcended any form or shape to become an energy so pure it lacked definition and yet defined everything around it. Compassion so strong it went beyond anything before, turning into an unstoppable force that flowed through all it touched filling everything with spirit, with emotion, with life.

Unconditional love. Everything I knew about love, about magic was changed by one creature who was just happy to see me. I couldn't understand it; I stopped feeding on love and started feeling it. Fluffle Puff nursed me back to health and I slowly recovered. I no longer needed to feed on others' love, something I never thought possible. I tried to take her back with me to the badlands so that my horde could gain the same benefit but when I arrived there...

"One day, I found Fluffle Puff in the Everfree Forest and she showed me to Chrys," Twilight remembered. "I didn't trust her at first but... something about her seemed different than before. Somehow, I knew she'd changed. I invited her and Fluffle to come stay with me and she's been living with me ever since."

"So," Dan said, standing up, "you found one of the greatest enemies you've ever faced weakened and helpless in the woods... and you invited her and her friend to live with you. Wow..." He walked over, smiling and placed rubbed his hand through Twilight's mane. "That's showing genuine initiative. I'm proud of you, Twilight."

A little surprised to hear that, Twilight almost felt herself blush. "Uh, thanks Dan," she said, a nervous glee in her voice.

"I'm sure you told all your friends about a former villain moving in, right?" Dan asked, still smiling.

"Absolutely! I sent her a letter and she got back to me the next day. She also commended me for showing initiative."

"Great, great," Dan said, smile widening. He bent down to Twilight's level and put both hands on her shoulders. She felt even more nervous, wondering what was going to happen next as he looked into her eyes and said, "I have just one more question, Twilight."

The shout echoed down the halls, making the building shake in a cartoony fashion.

In an instant, Princess Twilight Sparkle became Fluttershy. "Well I, um- I don't-"

"This could ALL have been avoided if you told your brother BEFORE we got here! You told your friends, you told the princess but you DIDN'T tell EITHER of the ponies that beat her in the first place who you were bringing to their anniversary?!"

Chrys placed a hoof on Dan's shoulder from the back as he held Twilight. "Dan, I don't think we really had time to-"

"You didn't think it might've been strange seeing a former would-be conqueror's name on the guest list?!"

"I understand if he never writes to you unless it's something important and you might not write back but NOT if it's something as important as, oh I don't know, A VILLAIN MOVING IN WITH YOU! WHY DIDIN'T YOU TELL HIM?!!"

Twilight's lip trembled. She knew why hadn't told Shining and Cadence but hadn't realized the consequences of not telling them until now. It was like a conversation you knew you'd have to have at some point and you were biding your time, preparing. Unfortunately, that time can come before your ready and for Twilight, it had.

"When were you going to tell your own FAMILY about who you were LIVING WITH? Did it even occur to you that this MIGHT cause a little problem?!!"

"I... I was waiting for the right time," Twilight admitted. "I didn't know about the anniversary and by the time I invited Chrys, I'd kind of forgotten about it."

Twilight nodded. "Well, yeah. I'd just gotten so used to having you, Chrys and Fluffle Puff around, it didn't seem like a big deal. Everypony in Ponyville was fine with it, so was the princess and the three of you just really became my friends so fast... I thought it would be okay."

Chrys's practically felt her heart explode. She clutched a hoof to her chest. "Twilight, do you really mean that?" The purple princess smiled and nodded back at her. "Oh, Twilight!" she embraced both Dan and Twilight, hugging them both together with the young man in between them.

"I really like having you live with me, Chrys. You're one of my best friends," Twilight said, hugging back.

Chrys closed her eyes and hugged tighter. "You're one of my best friends, too! I love you both so much!"

"I'M NOT FINISHED!!" Dan shouted, clutched in the embrace of two mares, "I'M STILL MAD AT BOTH OF YOU! YOU BARELY TOLD ANYPONY ABOUT EITHER OF US!"

"Aww, it's all right, Dan," Chrys said, nuzzling him with her cheek. "From now on, we'll tell everypony together!"

"That's right, Dan," Twilight said, nuzzling him as well. "Starting with my brother and Princess Cadence! We'll tell all of Equestria that you're both my friends!"

The hug lasted well over a minute. "Can we let go now?" Dan finally asked, disgruntled.

The two mares released him and each other. "Aww, what's the matter, Dan?" Chrys asked. "Don't you like hugs?"

"I'm fine with hugs," Dan replied, still sounding gruff. "I'm not fine with the fact that the three of us haven't showered since the library got wrecked."

"Oh," Twilight said. Both she and Chrys' eyes widened in realization. Suddenly, they both remembered that Dan was correct; the last time any of them had used soap was before the house was destroyed. That explained Dan's discomfort at embracing the two. The changeling queen gave her under leg a cautious whiff. Discomfort indeed.

"The two of you seem to forget little details quite frequently, especially when major incident happens, which might as well be every other day!"

"Well, that's why we have you, Dan!" Chrys put a hoof on his back. "You're our reminder!"

"Right," Dan smiled. "You know what I'd like to remind you both of now? THE FACT WE'RE STUCK IN A JAIL CELL!!"

"Yeah, that's a good idea," Chrys agreed, removing her hoof. "Is there any way we can get the door open?"

"No," Twilight said, checking the cell door. It didn't budge an inch when she pulled it with her hooves. "And I don't see any other ways out."

"Of course you don't see another way out," Dan said. "That's the whole point of jail. But you know what we can do?"

"Yes you can!" he happily rubbed her mane. She WAS learning to think outside the box. That made him genuinely happy. "Good girl! Who's a good little magic pony?"

"That's right! You're finally learning to see the full extent of your abilities!" Dan said encouragingly. "Now, let's teleport out of here, get to the castle and find your brother before we waste the whole weekend!"

"Right," Twilight agreed. Closing her eyes, she concentrated on the teleportation spell. In a flash, the three disappeared and reappeared... still inside the prison cell. The trio's heads clunked against the cell door with a metallic clang.

"No," Dan stopped her. "No no no no no no no no NO!" he got up. "DO NOT tell me that there's some kind of-"

"Well, that would make sense," Twilight remarked. "Being a jail for ponies, they would have to guard against all manner of magic. It's likely they've equipped it to handle all manner of other creatures, too."

"NOOO!!" Dan pounded a fist on the stone wall. "We have MAGIC! TWO different KINDS of MAGIC! And we STILL CAN'T GET THROUGH A DOOR?!!"

"It's not fair..." Dan sounded sad now. "Magic doesn't even exist on Earth. You can do the impossible here but never when you need to... IT DOESN'T MAKE ANY SENSE!"

"What are we going to do now?" Chrys asked. "It doesn't look like they're going to let us out any time soon."

"They're not going to let us out at all!" Dan turned around. "If the justice system here is anything like the one on Earth, we're going to spend weeks fighting this in court, get accused of being SUSPECTED CHANGELINGS and by the time they find out we're innocent and you're reformed, THE VACATAION WILL BE OVER!! TWILIGHT, YOU HAVE TO GET US OUT OF HERE!!"

Chrys ran over to the door. Standing on her hind legs, she spread her fore hooves out wide and said, "Open sesame!"

The trio watched the door, waiting for a response. None came; it didn't even budge.

"This... this isn't possible!" Dan yelled. "You're supposed to be an alicorn princess! You're one of the Elements of Harmony that defends Equestria's very existance! You've got to know some kind of magic that can get us out of here!"

"Magic isn't that easy, Dan," Twilight said defensively. "I'm still getting used to being an alicorn and a princess."

"But you were good with magic before! You were like one of the highest-level unicorns in town! You beat Trixie at magic... twice!"

"I wasn't stuck in jail after my brother fainted in front of my friends that time."

"Oh, so you're going to bring that up now? Well, what about that time you built an answering machine and-"

The two continued to argue as the topic got further away from the present and into the past. Chrys didn't even sigh; she just ignored it. She approached the cell door, taking a closer look at it. A metal bar door, it slid open and had an access panel built in the center of it in the approximation of where a doorknob would be on a normal door. Sliding this hatch did nothing so Chrys decided to examine it closer.

Equestria seemed to have a lopsided way of dealing with criminals, Chrys thought. For her crimes, Chrys and her entire hoard of changelings had been imprisoned underneath the city. She'd heard from Twilight that Celestia herself banished her own sister into the moon. And before that, Chrys remembered Twilight saying a character named Discord, who apparently ruled Equestria in a state of chaos was turned to stone by the two sisters. So part of her counted herself lucky she was just stuck in this dingy cell.

Though at the same time, she remembered when Trixie took over Ponyville and enslaved all the town's residents. Twilight eventually beat Trixie and saved Ponyville but they didn't do anything to punish the blue showmare. Trixie probably would've gone on to conquer Equestria if she hadn't been stopped and when she was, she wasn't given so much as a stern talking to? There must not have been a lot of ponies with cutie marks that symbolized justice. And if there were, they must've been out of town that day.

Chrys didn't see any way of getting through the door. She examined the keyhole and the tumblers inside. If only her skill in lockpicks had been higher and she had some bobby pins. But of course, she put her skill points in melee and energy weapons because sledgehammers are common and lasers are cool.

She looked at the hatch from an angle and noticed something about the outside of it. A lever was attached clasping over it from the bar on the other side, like a latch. Using her own levitation magic, she lifted it.

"Huh," Chrys remarked to herself. She put a hoof on the hatch and slid the door open. "Hey guys?"

"-and they changed her voice actress and didn't even use her name in the remake when it was a CLEAR reference to the fans that-"

Chyrs smiled proudly, holding the door to the cell open. "You wanna take this party outside?"

One pony jaw and one human jaw hit the floor. "How... how did you get it open?" Dan asked.

"We've been stuck in here... for two chapters... and THE DOOR WASN'T EVEN LOCKED?!" Dan screeched.

"But... it's gonna be okay now, Dan," Twilight assured him. "We can leave now and head to the castle."

"That's a great idea!" Dan declared. "And when we get there, I'm going to have a little chat with ANOTHER princess on how she happens to be running her legal system!" He stomped out of the jail cell.

"You might wanna be careful how you do that; I tried that once and it didn't really work out for me," Chrys commented.

"This injustice won't last another day! First your brother and then the princess!" Dan yelled, breaking into a run.

"Oh no, oh please no," Twilight said, wishing this wasn't happening. She and Chrys ran out of the cell to follow Dan down the corridor.

"RRRRRRAAAAAAAAGGGH!!!!" Dan's fury echoed down the hallway as the two mares struggled to keep up behind him. Wrongfully accused, wrongfully imprisoned, he was rightfully fed-up with the way he'd been treated by Equestrian authority and was now going to do his best to make it right. Even if it was the wrong way.

The two ponies chased the young man as he ran through the halls. They passed other prison cells on their right, barred windows on their left but encountered no other guards or prisoners. Twilight looked over her shoulder and all around quickly, trying to see any potential threat before it was upon them but there was nothing. If they could just make it outside and get to Shining...

Dan rounded a corner without missing a beat, his shoes screeching on the stone floor.

"Augh!" the other individual yelled. Both bounced off each other and crashed on the floor. A metallic object of some kind hit the floor, dropped by whoever it was Dan just collided with.

Chrys and Twilight ran over to Dan. Both he and the strange he'd just bumped into were getting off the floor.

"Hey! Why don't you watch where you're going, jerk!" Dan yelled at the other individual.

"We both ran into each other, dumbass so maybe you should-" the other stopped midsentence. "Twilight?"

Twilight and Chrys looked at the other character. It was another pony wearing some sort of cloak, a dark-blue stallion covered by a hood.

He looked back at her, narrowing his eyes. "I... need to get going. I don't want any trouble."

"Yes," Dan agreed, "We happen to have bigger problems than running into somepony in prison. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to get my hands on a world leader. Figuratively, metaphorically and literally," he said, walking off.

Twilight reached down to pick up the stranger's item, some sort of sword. "We're sorry we bumped into you-" When her hoof touched the blade's hilt, it vanished. Twilight's eyes went wide as she looked around for it only to see it had materialized back in the cloaked pony's mouth.

"It's all right," he said, biting down on the hilt. "If you happen to see two stallions arguing about a raffle, tell them I said hi."

"Okay..." Twilight said as the stranger left. He bolted down the hallway with the blade in his mouth like some knight from a kingdom far away. Something about him felt... familiar.

They both watched as the stallion turned around another corner. "Do you know him, Twilight?" Chrys asked.

"Well, you are a princess, Twilight," Chrys reminded her. "We better get going if so we don't lose Dan."

"Right...," Twilight said, casting one last glance down the hallway. She'd met many ponies before, many faces that sometimes blended together. But something told her that one wasn't just another stranger on the road.

"Dan's gonna break a lot in this Kingdom, Hearts included," Chrys remarked with a chuckle, both she and Twilight breaking into a run to follow their friend.

Turning to his right, Dan saw the opulent Canterlot Castle just a short distance away. The guard station he'd just exited was actually only a few doors down from the castle. Despite the inconvenience of being arrested and imprisoned, it seemed Dan and the others had only taken a short detour as their destination was right down the street.

There were no other ponies around; the street and security checkpoint were both empty. With a diabolic grin, Dan made a mad dash through the street and past the checkpoint up to the makeshift barricade separating the road from the castle. Under normal circumstances, the castle wouldn't have such tight security measures in place but with the recent incident on the railways, apparently the higher-ups had seen it fit to erect a massive 10-foot wall between the castle and the rest of the city. Its flaws were obvious to Dan immediately.

"RRRRrrgggggggh, first you lock me in, now you think you can lock me out?!" Dan pulled on a large, steel ring that served as a door handle. It didn't budge. And unlike the jail cell, it didn't look like he'd be able to just undo the latch on the other side and get through. Still, he yanked it again, shaking the door futilely in anger. "ARRRRRRRRGGGGGGHH!!!"

This was when Twilight and Chrysalis caught up to him. "Dan, what are you doing?" Twilight asked, her voice heavy with concern.

"What does it LOOK like I'm doing?!" Dan shouted, bracing his foot on the door and yanking harder. "I'm going to deliver a message to your princess personally! Help me get this open!"

"What's the matter? You should both be helping me!" Dan said, turning his sinister smile on them. "You get to introduce me to your princess and I get introduce her to my hands around her neck!" He then returned to struggling with the door.

Twilight turned to Chrys, shocked. "Why would you say that?! We're not going to let that happen! We have to-"

Chrys stopped her, giggling to herself, "I'm kidding, Twilight. But I was thinking, if she sends Dan to the moon... I really hope she sends me with him." The queen blushed.

"THAT'S IT!" Dan shouted, apparently having heard none of conversation and began climbing the wall. "This might be a little over the top but I'M GOING OVER THE TOP!!"

"Oh brother," Twilight put a hoof on her forehead, looking to the ground as her friend began to scale the barricade. The closer she got to Canterlot, the more stress she encountered. The questions of what are we going to do and how am I going to explain this pounded on the door of her mind like Dan pounding on the gates of the castle. She knew both doors had the same key: patience. Unfortunately, Dan wasn't going to wait to look through the metaphorical key ring to find it.

Chrys put a hoof on her shoulder. "Once we're inside, you think we'll be able to explain things to your brother and sister-in-law?"

Twilight knew what she was really referring to. "I really hope so," was her reply. But that was actually an under-exaggeration. She didn't really hope so; she depended on it. "You think you can help him over the wall?"

Twilight turned up. Dan was actually almost to the top, grunting and growling like some kind of ninja-ursa(still number-one threat to Equestria according to Stephen Coltbert).

"Oh," Chrys realized. She wasn't the only one that was still getting used to how things were now. While Twilight would need to learn how to use her wings eventually, not every moment had to be spent teaching, demonstrating and/or explaining things to her. Without another word, the black queen knelt down next to the smaller purple princess so she could climb on her back. Twilight carefully swung her leg over and mounted the larger mare.

Chrysalis took to the skies the moment Twilight was in place. It was odd for Twilight; Chrys' wings were insectile in nature, entirely unique to the changelings but they resembled the wings spawned by the wing spell. Was there a connection of some sort? Twilight's mind swam with possibilities and questions. More than anything else, she wanted all that she didn't know to be in some book she could just as easily pick off her shelf at home and read. Instead, she found herself in a situation she wouldn't believe if she read it as she was carried up.

"No problem," Chrys replied, not sounding at all strained from carrying Twilight. The pair ascended to Dan's level just as he climbed to the top under the power of his own adrenaline-fueled rage.

"You call this an adequate defense?" Dan asked, standing atop the wall. He looked on both sides, examining it and then looking onto the castle in front of him. "What? That's it?"

"No electric fence, no barbed wire, no towers, no minefield, no defense emplacements, surface-to-air missile batteries, guard patrols, minefield or even a moat? What kind of castle doesn't have a moat?"

"Well, be sure to point them out along the way," Dan said, preparing to hop to the ground.

It was too late; he jumped. But instead of dropping down to ground level, he was stopped in midair. Although it had been invisible to all of them at first, Twilight, Chrysalis and especially Dan were now very aware of the protective energy shield surrounding Canterlot Castle.

Unlike the classic bubble and the advanced expulsion energy barriers, the transparent Electric Magic Protector(EMP) shielding spell was designed to defend against assaults that were known about ahead of time. Sophisticated magic, the EMP not only repelled attacks but also delivered a powerful shock to anything unfortunate enough to come into contact with it. Like Dan.

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!" Dan screamed, arms and legs spread out as his body was electrified. In an instant, Dan was zapped and bounced off the shield like a fly getting too close to a bug zapper. A trail of smoke followed the young man as he rebounded off the shield and flew back over the fence to the street below.

"Maybe it doesn't need a... a moat after all," Dan commented as he smoldered on the ground.

"An invisible electric shield spell... that's a new one," Chrys remarked, looking over her shoulder.

"Well, you two are magic!" Dan exclaimed, standing up. "How do we get through it?!"

"I think I read about this spell recently" Twilight said, hoof to her chin. "The Shield-Shocker Surprise, one of the new EMP spells. I'm pretty sure it's still a prototype."

"No," Dan flatly stated. "I did NOT take a weekend off from living in a library just to visit another one. We're getting through that shield one way or the other IF I HAVE TO BRING THE CITY DOWN AROUND IT!"

"Wait!" An idea came to Twilight. "Chrys, how did you get into Canterlot two years ago? My brother put a shield over the entire city; you must've found someway around it."

"Oh, uh," Chrys stammered shyly. "Well, we actually just used the tunnels underneath Canterlot. The caverns run all under the city, including the castle. I was conserving my strength, waiting for the day to strike when..." she trailed off.

"When I saw Cadence and Shining. I could sense it when they first entered the city; they were in love. The love they shared was so powerful, so overwhelming they could only be in Canterlot for one thing- the wedding. So, I lured Cadence away, took her place and figured I could leech off Shining enough power to takeover Canterlot then and there. Almost worked, too," Chrys explained.

Chrysalis took the opportunity in that instance to change into the pink princess herself. "Oooh! We can be like twins! And then Cadence and Shining will-"

"A disguise. Something that'll make them open up the doors for us and we'll be able to walk right in like we own the place."

Chrys clapped her hooves, wings buzzing in delight. "OH yes! I love disguises! I'm the best at them. Who should I change into? Maybe-" a green flash enveloped her, "Princess Luna! You both are banished! The shun has been doubled!" she announced before another emerald burst overtook her. "Or how about Granny Smith?" her voice became crotchety. "Won't a young whippersnapper help an old mare inside? Or what about-"

"What about you and Twilight just keeping watch for me from up high while I handle this?" Dan suggested.

In fact, it still hadn't been long ago that Twilight had lived in Canterlot. The nearest pizza purveyor just happened to be a Sbarro that was just down-

Just because my name is Barro and we're doing the pizza delivery gag doesn't mean that-

Hey, I wasn't even thinking about that at all. We just needed a pizza place and I just happened to think of one.

It's easier than you realize. You just have to take a minute and think, creative process.

All right, fine come up with something right now. Ponify a pizza chain right now.

"WILL YOU TWO JUST GET A ROOM ALREADY??!!" Dan shouted at the author and director. The two arguing stallions ceased.

The pizza parlor was vacant when the trio arrived and its name wasn't relevant to this story anyway. It hadn't taken long for Dan and the others to appropriate a spare delivery uniform and even make an authentic pizza for delivering. Satisfied with the plan, the three marched back down the street to the barricade.

"Don't. Just don't," Dan silenced Chrys' singing. Still a good distance away from the wall, he turned to them. "All right, I want you both to get up somewhere high. When they open the gate, I'm going to pie whoever opens it in the face and you two will rush in to cover me. Sound good?"

"Are you really going to hit a guard in the face with the pizza? We haven't eaten anything all day," Chrys held her stomach.

Dan had to admit, he was hungry too. But he was also hungry for vengeance. "When we get in that castle, we can raid their stores of all the food they've got. Which is why I've emptied my pockets," he said with a grin. "Now, get in position and be ready for my signal!"

"Right!" the two mares confirmed. Twilight hopped on Chrys's back and up they went again, flying to a nearby rooftop.

Gripping the pizza box, Dan took a moment to pull out a mirror and inspect his disguise. He took a moment to adjust his moustache. Perfect, they won't suspect a thing, he thought to himself. Smiling diabolically, he walked up to the barricade.

"Probably," Twilight replied. "Plenty of cake, pie, pizza and everything else we don't already eat tons of at home on a daily basis."

"I don't know," Twilight answered. "but if I know Pinkie, she's probably already inside the castle."

"We're about to find out. Here he goes," Twilight and Chrys gripped their binoculars as they focused in on the scene.

Dan reached out and knocked on the thick gate three times. The sound reverberated through the wooden wall a bit. Dan's menacing grin grew wider as he waited for an answer. But none came.

Watching the display, Chrys and Twilight couldn't help but see the flaw in Dan's plan.

"It's probably too thick for anypony to even hear him knocking on the other side. Even then, they're probably still a good distance away from the actual barricade to hear it," Twilight commented, thinking.

Twilight put a hoof on her chin. "I don't know. Maybe if I could contact somepony inside the castle, we could explain everything to them. I don't know how Dan is going to react when he finds out his plan isn't going to work."

Looking back through her binoculars, Twilight saw the enraged Dan climbing up the side of the barricade again. The angered form of a pizza delivery boy, complete with fake moustache and hat scaled his way to the top of the wall. Taking the pizza in both hands, Dan jumped over again and landed on the shield. Since the uniform disguise he was wearing wasn't any more insulated than the clothes he was wearing underneath, the results were the same as before.

The shield flung a smoldering Dan back over the wall again. The pizza flew from the box as Dan landed in the street. Twilight and Chrysalis quickly rushed down to aid him.

"I think this is the first time in history when a pizza boy has been charged for the pizza," Dan remarked.

The two standing looked around for the misplaced Italian delicacy. "There!" Twilight pointed.

The pie in question had landed on the roof of another building, a garage by the appearance of it.

"Ha, roof pizza," Chrys chuckled. "So that's Spongebob and Breaking Bad in the same sequence. That has to be a record."

Dan brushed himself off as he stood, his moustache askew. "Can we please get through ONE episode without breaking the fourth wall?"

Chrys shrugged. "Maybe next episode. So, how are we going to get into the castle now?"

Twilight and Chrys quickly realized that Dan's 'plan b' was in lack of something right away: any actual planning. Dan's 'plan b' apparently involved the furious pale human trying to break through the barricade and shield by whatever force he could manage. With the entire mysteriously vacant Canterlot at their disposal, Dan was free to attempt entry with any method he pleased. Meaning all of them.

The two mares did little more than watch as Dan tried about everything imaginable to bust through the heavy, wooden gates. From hitting the doors with a sledgehammer to using dynamite, tunneling underneath the wall to trying to teleport through it, Dan's temper only increased as he failed to assail the impenetrable wall and shield behind. Now dressed in a hardhat and construction clothes complete with goggles and another moustache, Dan was attempting to jackhammer his way through the door while Chrys and Twilight played that Battleship game seen in Read it and Weep.

"What!!?" Chrys yelled. Though they were sitting right across from each other, they couldn't hear very well because of Dan's jackhammering.

Dan's jackhammering abruptly ceased. "WHAT IS THIS THING EVEN MADE OUT OF?!!" he shouted, throwing down the tool. After using explosives, blunt objects, sharp objects, brute force, a fire hose, Space Balls: The Flamethrower, and saying 'Open Sesame' again, the wooden palisade didn't show a scratch or dent from Dan's siege.

"I don't know," Chrys said stopping the game, "but we should definitely build the new library out of it."

Twilight nodded in agreement. Whatever tree this wood came from, it was sturdy enough to take the full force of an enraged Dan. Truly, it was built to withstand anything.

"Why do they even need a barricade when they have an ELECTRIC SHIELD behind it?! Is it there in case somepony blabs about the secret knock?!" Dan turned to Twilight and Chrys. "We've tried everything short of an atomic bomb! Tell me you have an idea. I'm open to suggestions if they'll open this door!"

The queen giggled. "With the hardhat and moustache, all you need is a denim jacket and you'll look like Wario!"

"Mm-ah ha ha ha ha!" Twilight laughed, holding her muzzle to try and stifle it to no avail. Chrys started laughing and then the two both burst into an uncontrollable fit of laughter. Dan's expression slowly became one of seething rage again.

"Garrrrrrrrr," Dan's teeth were gritted and his fists were balled, which only served to make him look like an angry Wario. The two mares fell over, clutching their sides.

"Oh gosh, not Mario Kart!" Twilight said, unable to stop laughing. "I'm sorry Dan, it's just-"

"Oooh! Oooh!" Chrys waved while on the ground. "We have to get a picture of him in a kart! Or a motorcycle!"

And then, Dan's rage was gone. His gritted-teeth scowl slowly turned upside down to form a smile. A new idea had hit him, or rather had just been suggested.

"I know! Where on Equestria are we even going to find one?!" Chrys laughed again.

"Well, I don't know about a motorcycle but I do happen to know something I could ride..."

"No, not exactly," Dan said, taking a step forward. "But I do think it might be time to 'saddle up', as the saying goes," he grinned.

"Ha ha...." Chrys's smile faded. All too late she realized what Dan was referring to. "Oh."

Twilight however hadn't yet. "Ha ha, is he going to ride a dragon? A golf cart?"

Realization finally dawned on the purple princess. "Oh! Ha ha ha... ha... oh crapple seed."

While Dan had some experience in horseback riding, that experience was limited to a time in his childhood when his parents took him to a ranch, once when he rode a pony at a friend's birthday part and an incident at a renaissance faire when he believed he was being ripped off and challenged the faire's owner to a joust. With these fond memories in mind, Dan mounted Twilight and prepared to charge the wooden barricade.

Twilight, on the other hoof, was not a work mare. The few times when she'd actually been used to carry another were few and far between, instances she didn't exactly remember fondly. Dan was also heavier than Spike but being supported by four legs, she found his weight easily manageable. And then he put on armor. Now, she was beginning to feel awkward and uncomfortable as she stood in the middle of the road. Of course, most of the awkward feeling came from Chrysalis over to the side who was taking pictures of them.

Queen Chrysalis was trying very, very hard not to laugh. But seeing the pair in this situation was just too funny to be contained. The three of them had visited a Nightmare Night store and acquired a suit of armor and lance for Dan to use in his attempt to breach the barrier. Underneath him, Twilight wore a saddle and a large, white sheet with two eyeholes cut out of the front so she wouldn't be recognized in the event her family or friends were on the other side of the shield and a third hole for her horn.

Roughly eighty meters from the barricade, the knight-suited Dan lowered his lance into position. "All right, are we all clear on the plan?"

"Chrys," Twilight said, "If I don't make it out of this... please, tell my friends what happened."

"Oh trust me, I'm going to tell everypony," Chrys assured her as she snapped a photo.

"That thing's withstood everything we've thrown at it so far... but not everything at the same time!" Dan declared. "With all the dynamite strapped to the lance, we'll smash into the barricade at full force while Twilight focuses her magic to shield us. Then, we punch through the wall and use the forward momentum to break through the shield!"

"Twilight," Dan smiled at her, "you're the best when it comes to shielding magic. Chrys still only knows so few spells."

"He's right, Twilight," Chrys said. "But you know, you could ride me if you wanted to," she blushed slightly.

"That's good enthusiasm, Chrys but we'll only need the one time," Dan said as his eyes narrowed on his target.

Chrys rubbed her left leg with her right shyly. "Well, I meant you could ride me later.. for fun... if you wanted," she said quietly.

Squinting, the covered purple mare broke into a gallop. With Dan on her back, she raced down the street as fast as her legs could carry her. Her hooves clip-clopped in rapid succession on the cobblestone road as the wooden barricade came closer. The sight of a knight riding a ghost pony through Canterlot in the middle of the day would've seemed quite bizarre if anypony other than Chrys had been around to see it. Fortunately, Chrys was determined to take lots of pictures to commemorate the moment. She even switched on the stereo nearby which somehow played the theme of My Little Pony G1 rewritten to apply to the current situation.

My little pony, my little pony
Overcoming obstacles any way that you can
My little pony, my little pony
With Twilight Sparkle, Chrysalis and Dan!
Magic and science, explosives and violence,
However is this sequence going to end?
My little pony, my little pony,
It's crazy what you'll do for your friends!

Dan gritted his teeth. There was no way this couldn't work. They'd smash through that wall like it wasn't even there and he'd storm into the castle like a knight invading. Everything was perfect. The dynamite was active, his lance was lowered, armor in place and Twilight was charging at full pace. He was happy she wasn't holding anything back, running at full speed to execute his plans. This was the fastest he'd ever seen her run. In fact, she might've been too fast.

"Twilight, slow it down just a bit," he said, rotating his grip on the lance. But Twilight didn't respond; she continued galloping headlong towards the barricade. "Twilight, slow it down, I can't hold the-"

Dan's experience, or lack thereof in horseback riding and to be even more specific, jousting, had just caught up to him. Balancing on Twilight was easy enough, in full armor was a bit harder but he managed, doing all this and holding a lance was difficult but he found he still could, but a lance covered in dynamite? Gravity's grip on the explosive stick combined with Twilight's velocity proved to be too unstable a combination for Dan to hold onto.

"Twilight! TWILIGHT!" Sticks of dynamite began to fly off the lance as he bounced on the saddle. Twilight would've noticed this if she hadn't been focusing so hard on the wooden gates ahead of her. Her own teeth were gritted as she carried the flailing Dan, preparing to cast her shield spell just as soon as they reached it. But only she would reach it.

As Dan bounced, the lance dipped too low and he lost his grip on it. Just as he and Twilight were about to hit the barricade, the lance pinned the ground and Dan pole-vaulted himself off Twilight's back and into the air. Now unencumbered by Dan, Twilight continued to run past the point where the lance had stuck.

"AAAAAAAHHHH!!!" Dan screamed as he flew. Twilight finally noticed when Dan's shadow passed over her. She stopped running and looked up into to see him soar over the barricade and into the electric shield again.

"GGGRRRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAARRAAAAAAAAAAAARRRAAAAAGHH!!!!!" Dan screeched. The shield sparked and crackled as voltage surged through the unfortunate human stuck on the side. Finally, Dan rebounded off the shield and back into the street, next to his lance which was still stuck in the ground.

Flat on his back, smoke rolling off of him, Dan's head looked over to notice his lance right by him. Far too late, he realized it was still covered in dynamite.

Twilight turned around just in time to see the resulting explosion. A massive fireball engulfed the road sending flames, debris and Dan into the air. This time, he wasn't flung far enough to hit the shield but instead hit the barricade before it.

Smoking, smoldering, his suit of armor all but completely destroyed, Dan yelled, "CANTERLOCKDOWN!!" as he slowly slid down the wall.

"Maybe... maybe I should ride a missile next time. Or a bomb. I think that would be safer."

Chrys ran up to them, panting. "That... was... awesome!! I ran out of film! Can we try that again when I get a new camera?"

"Sure," Dan replied, standing and brushing himself off for the third time. "Next time, it'll be YOUR turn."

"No, YOU'LL be riding Twilight while you're both strapped to a bomb on a mine cart! Once we find a bomb, that is!"

"Oh," Chrys said. "Well, I saved the dynamite that fell off," she levitated a bundle of lit TNT sticks in front of her. "What should I do with them?"

"NOOOOOOOOOO!!" Dan and Twilight screamed. Thinking quickly, Dan grabbed the bundle and chucked it as hard as he could over his shoulder. "That was lit dynamite! It was about to explode!" Dan shouted at Chrys. "What were you thinking?!"

"I'm sorry!" Chrys answered. "I've never seen anything like that before! I didn't know how it worked!"

"I see..." Chrys nodded. Unfortunately, Dan had apparently forgotten how the electric shield behind him worked. Instead of setting off the dynamite, the shield bounced it right back at him while his back was turned.

Twilight and Chrysalis, noticing the shadow on the ground, took a couple cautious steps away.

"And another thing, you-" Dan looked at the circle over him a bit too late. The dynamite landed on him and exploded. Once again, the street was awash in fire. The road cracked under the force of the blast.

Lying flat on his back, Dan was covered in ash and soot. His shirt had been burned so that only the collar remained around his neck, exposing his pale flesh to the sun. His fists gripped the ground as he rose.

"I don't know, Dan," Chrys said, "I don't think we'll be able to build up enough speed on the road what with the smoldering craters and debris everywhere. And I think we're all out of dynamite. And lances and knight armor."

Twilight removed her ghost costume. "I think I've been ridden enough for today."

"All right, fine," Dan submitted. "Do either of you have any OTHER ideas? Some that might actually be successful?"

Dan threw his hands down. "What's to look at? It's a wall! There's no way around it; we've tried tunneling, teleporting and going through it!"

"I have to agree with Dan," Twilight said. "There's no spell I know of that can dispel an EMP and I know a lot of them. It looks pretty impassable."

"I just think we should take another look at it. Maybe there's something we missed," Chrys insisted.

"Fine," Dan finally agreed. "Let's look at the impenetrable barrier again, shall we?"

Dan and Twilight both climbed on Chrys's back and she carried them up to the top of the wall. She sat them down on it and together they looked out at the castle beyond, so close and yet still out of reach.

"See?" Dan gestured to the lightning bubble encompassing the castle. "Shield's still up. No way around it."

"Hmm," Chrys put a hoof to her chin. "Why would they need this barricade if they have a shield?"

"It's the castle," Twilight reminded her. "The guard wouldn't spare any defense if the castle was threatened."

"They're probably inside, enjoying the party. LIKE WE SHOULD BE DOING!" Dan yelled.

Chrys surveyed the castle. She'd done this at least a few times long ago, probing the castle for weaknesses. It hadn't changed much since then, she had to admit, and it still looked as new as it did centuries ago. Except for an odd crater in the middle of the stretch of road beyond the barricade.

"Hey, was that always there?" Chrys asked, pointing at the blackened mark breaking the otherwise pristine-white cobblestone street.

Twilight squinted. "No... no, it wasn't. And if it was there for very long, somepony would've repaired it."

"The dynamite!" Twilight yelled. "Dan, when the dynamite exploded, a stick of it must not have detonated right away! It must've been blasted by the others when they went up!"

"After everything that's happened today, I actually believe that," Dan said, staring at the crater. "That would mean..."

"What are you doing? Don't get too close to the shield or you'll get shocked!" Twilight warned.

"It's okay; I know what I'm doing," Chrys said. She flew high up, looking closely at the shield. It had been invisible when they first attacked the barricade but now it was sparking, a pulsing warning. Twilight was right: the shield was a prototype and its flaw was evident right away.

Both Dan's and Twilight's eyes went wide as they watched Chrys just slip through the shield unscathed. She landed down on the street passed it.

"The shield doesn't cover all of Canterlot! It's stops only a few feet higher than the barricade!" Chrys shouted.

Dumbstruck, Dan's jaw and Twilight's jaw hit the floor. "Seriously? SERIOUSLY?! NO, NO THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING! THIS DOESN'T MAKE ANY SENSE!!" Dan yelled. "You're telling me... YOU'RE TELLING ME, WE SPENT THIS ENTIRE TIME TRYING TO GET THROUGH THE SHIELD AND THE SHIELD DIDN'T EVEN... it didn't even..."

"AAAARGAGRRAAAAAAARRAG!!" Dan's shouted, his vocalized rage becoming even less coherent than it already was.

"Isn't this great, Dan?" Twilight asked, trying to cheer him up. He turned to her, slowly an insane look in his eyes. "Now we can finally get into the castle."

"AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!" he screamed. "REVENGE!!" he jumped over the barricade.

Not high enough. Dan hit the shield. "GLRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAARRRRRRRGHH!!" Zapped, slammed and bounced, Dan was flung from the shield and over the wooden wall again.

Twilight and Chrys quickly hovered down to him. "Dan?" Did they even have to ask this time?

For all the hassle of trying to get into Canterlot and through its defenses, Dan, Twilight and Chrys were overjoyed that no visible obstacles remained between them and the castle. The unbroken white cobblestone ran right up into the courtyard, walls of white and gold welcomed the trio as they approached. Ornamental grass sculptures artfully crafted in the shapes of ponies and fillies of all kinds lined the walkway up to the steps leading to the doors.

Burned, bruised and shirtless, Dan ignored most of these decorations as he lead the other two to the castle entrance and pushed both the doors wide open.

"Where's Celestia?! And if anypony tells me the princess is in another castle, heads are gonna roll!" Dan announced as he entered.

"Maybe we could just, I don't know, forget what happened outside now that we're here," Twilight suggested.

"I'll forget getting over those walls when all of Canterlot is erecting a statue in my honor," Dan answered.

"Oh my goodness... it's so lovely in here," Chrys remarked. "I guess I never really got a chance to admire the interior last time, what with the whole 'takeover Equestria' thing." The lavish foyer of the castle matched the opulence of the exterior perfectly. Red carpeting covered the floor and ran throughout the hall. Archways branched off at symmetrical points further into the castle. Everywhere to look were flower arrangements and vases on pedestals, gold livery and tapestries. Stained glass in a myriad of designs, colors and depictions filled every window and suits of pony armor guarded every door. There was not a space in the castle that did not accentuate elegance.

"It's beautiful but it's a lot of work to maintain," Twilight said, looking around herself. "Attendants have to work every day to make sure everything is clean and in pristine condition. Ambassadors and diplomats from all over the world arrive here so everything has to be kept in an orderly fashion. Lots of ponies, even the royal guards have duties to maintain the interior. Everything here tells a story."

One might initially think a native Canterloter like Twilight would be used to the luxurious surroundings of the castle. But Twilight was ever the student and as such, she looked at the castle as just one massive library. One of the reasons being a princess intimidated her was the simple fact that she might actually have to learn everything about the castle. Which she would enjoy up until she was tested on her knowledge by say, a visiting representative of another country. Or literally anypony.

"Used to get dragged to Disney Land every now and then but otherwise, no. Still, I wasn't expecting this much junk to just be hanging around."

Dan thought for a moment. "Actual gold, treasures, jewelry on everything, coats-of-arms, portraits, solid-gold statues,... guards."

Twilight laughed out loud. "Dan, all those things you described WOULD be in museums! And the gold's kept in the Equestrian National Reserve Center. And the guards are-"

Royal guard ponies sprang fourth from the columns, from behind archways and even under the rugs. In an instant, the trio was surrounded by furious armored stallions with horns glowing. The three paused, freezing as instructed mostly from the shock alone.

Dan threw his hands out and approached the nearest guard. "Well, finally! It was hard enough trying to get in here but at least now we can get some service! Now, the first thing I want-"

"I don't know how the three of you escaped but it won't happen again. You're going to the dungeon this time and-"

Dan reached up and slugged the royal guard in the muzzle. "We aren't going anywhere!"

Now standing, the rejuvenated biped turned to them. "Ha! I've been shocked so many times today, I don't even feel it any more!" he then turned back to the guards. "Now, who were the ones who locked us up in the first place?!"

"Maybe... maybe it wasn't a good time to visit Canterlot. Maybe we could just go home?"

After everything they'd been through... yes, it was a lot to consider. The train ride, trying to get inside, so much had happened, Twilight had reached her limit. If it meant another altercation, her body told her she wasn't going to be a part of it.

"It's been a long... couple of days, Dan," Twilight said. "I don't think it's worth it."

"I... I..." Dan stammered, not knowing what to say. Angered, frustrated, he looked into the tired pony's eyes. Both she and Chrys were exhausted, beaten. Not quite as badly as he had been but he'd taken them along with him for most of it. As he looked at both of them, he felt his own fatigue set in, stinging him.

"What's that?" For once, Dan was agreeing with her. That actually gave Twilight a bit more energy. Despite her weariness, her spirit found the strength to be enthusiastic for one last venture. "What can we do?"

"Before I leave," Dan spun back, announcing to the guards, "we demand to see Princess Celestia!"

The guards let out a collective gasp. "No changelings are getting anywhere near the princess!"

"We are the closest associates of Princess Twilight Sparkle and we demand to see the princess right now!" Dan shouted.

"You don't get to see the princess!" the guard Dan punched shouted back. "The princess is the ruler of all Canterlot, of all Equestria and she-"

The guards gasped again and immediately came to attention. Dan, Twilight and Chrys slowly turned around to see...

"Princess Celestia!" Twilight exclaimed. The purple mare ran over to her mentor, the regal Princess Celestia, standing just in front of the doorway.

"Twilight Sparkle!" the princess said. The two ponies embraced one another, sharing a warm hug. "It's good to see you, Princess Twilight."

"It's good to see you, too, princess," Twilight answered, unwilling to break the hug. The young princess was practically teary-eyed. After all the overwhelming things that had occurred, she was overjoyed to see the alicorn who always looked out for her, the one pony she counted on. It felt like being home at last since her home had been destroyed.

Luna blushed slightly and joined the hug. Sun, moon, and Twilight were reunited again.

"Your majesties," the royal guards bowed. A sea of horns and armor lowered to the ground in respect of the return of the rulers.

A certain changeling queen and shirtless pale human raised eyebrows. "Really?" Dan asked. "How do you know THEY'RE not changelings?!"

Chrys put a hoof to her chin. "Ya know, I haven't really tried impersonating Celestia or Luna lately..."

"A minute ago, you all thought WE were changelings, including Twilight!" Dan yelled, angry. "They share one hug and now everything's okay?"

"Yes," Dan said, turning to the princess and smiling. "You'll forgive me for not wearing a shirt but WHEN YOUR GUESTS CAME OVER, YOU FORGOT TO DISARM THE ELECTRIC FENCE!!!" he shouted angrily.

Twilight and Chrys, even the royal guards looked nervous but Princess Celestia only calmly smiled back. "I noticed," she giggled. "When Luna and I returned from investigating the train, we were a bit surprised to see the palisades and shield in place. Fortunately, we knew how to get around it. I'm surprised you three were able to figure it out so quickly."

"I..." Dan stopped before saying something else. "I... I guess it wasn't that hard to get around once we found out how. But it shouldn't have been up in the first place," he remarked.

"It was unnecessary and a bit excessive," Celestia agreed. "We'll have to see about finding a more reasonable way to protect things from now on."

Although he didn't notice it, Twilight did. As Celestia mentioned about protecting things, her eyes looked at Dan for some reason. The two caught eyes very briefly as the princess passed.

Just as tall as Celestia herself, the changeling queen was one of the only other ponies who had ever actually matched her in magic. The two stood evenly, almost a full head over everypony else in the room. Even Luna was slightly dwarfed by her older sister and the queen. The two were equals in many ways both known by the pair and unknown. Though Celestia had been defeated the last time she stood before the queen, in this very castle, it was Chrysalis that now looked beaten.

"Um, hello," Chrys said, rubbing her right leg with her left, averting her gaze to the floor. "Your majesty, thank you for inviting us."

Princess Celestia's expression was an aura of calmness in front of her former foe. "I see my former student keeps interesting company lately."

Chrys swallowed. What was going to happen now? Although she was sweating, nervous as Twilight in any given situation, Chrys pulled up her head and looked Celestia back in the eyes and smiled as softly as she could. Whatever Celestia was going to do, render judgment, render criticism, cast her out again, she would take it. Right here, right now, right away, she was standing with her friends.

"Queen Chrysalis... or should I say, Chrys," Celestia began. "On behalf of Equestria, welcome to Canterlot Castle."

Practically breaking into tears, Chrys said, "Thank you, Princess Celestia. I'm very happy to be here."

"We're happy you could join us," the princess put a hoof on the queen's shoulder. "And thank you for taking care of my student and her friends."

Chrys was a bit surprised at that last comment. "Yo-you're welcome, your majesty."

"Now, Twilight," Celestia turned to her former student, "I believe your friends arrived here already. They should be in the garden."

"Yes," Luna confirmed, "Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Applejack and Fluttershy arrived here yesterday and Pinkie joined them just an hour ago."

"WHAT?!" Twilight yelled. They were already here?! How did they get here? Why-oh, she should've been expecting this, she realized that.

"Now, if everything is cleared up, we have a celebration to prepare for tomorrow. Princess Cadence and Prince Shining Armor are celebrating their anniversary here at the castle and I am sure they would love to see you," Celestia said. "I believe they're out back with your friends."

"Oh!" Twilight remembered. "Yes, we should go see them and see if they need any help for the party!"

"Let's get going!" Twilight called, running past the guards as she suddenly found her energy.

Dan and Chrys shrugged at one another. "Might as well go see how the gang's doing," Chrys said.

"And at keeping them," Celestia added. Was there a hint of jealously in their voices, perhaps? If there was, it was far too vague to detect and just as easily disappeared. Just because the two sisters were long lived did not mean they had grown accustomed to quick changes. The duration of time, centuries, was just as long to them as a creature who's lifespan is measured in moments. They both knew all too well that no matter how much time is measured, every moment counts. As they watched Twilight, Dan and Chrys depart, their minds drifted back into other moments they remembered from long ago.

"As for the rest of you," Celestia said to the guards still bowed, "in light of the preparations for the anniversary, you are all dismissed for the weekend!"

The guards erupted into a cheer and galloped out of the castle like school colts and fillies at recess. They stormed past the two princesses and outside, some throwing off their helmets and leaving them where they dropped. The doors to the castle shut behind them, leaving Celestia and Luna alone in silence together.

Celestia sighed. "We'll do what we can. Whatever they need, whenever they need it... and until then, we'll watch. And wait."

The two sisters cleaned up after their protectors, taking the discarded pieces of armor and straightening out things as they went along. So few things were ever as they were "supposed" to be, changes, compromises continued to flow in and around their lives. And yet, some things remained. It was those things the sisters, old as they were looked on as uncertainty blocked their view of the future.

Celestia and Luna both shared many things. Right at that moment, they shared a feeling together. They realized that the passing of the torch had happened long ago and now they were racing after a light they may never catch up to knowing one day... they will fall behind it.

What they didn't know, what they hadn't learned yet was that the same light, the same torch might be passed to them again. Until then, they would chase after it... perhaps they were even seeing a new light to carry?

Dan and the others reached the rear exit of the castle, the opening to the gardens.

"And it's easy to get lost, too," Twilight said, looking for her friends. "Where are Pinkie and the others?"

"I don't know," Chrys said, shading her eyes with a hoof and looking. Of course, her foreleg had holes in it that made shading a bit difficult as light would shine through her perforations.

"Twilight!" Rainbow Dash called, leading the rest of her friends behind her. The rainbow mare dashed to Twilight and tackled her, giving her big friend a hug. The others quickly ran and bounced over to her and soon, there was another group hug taking place. Chrys joined the hug and so did Dan.

"Oh my goodness, I'm so happy to finally see you all again!" Twilight exclaimed.

"Shining! Cadence!" Twilight broke from the group hug to join her brother and sister-in-law.

"Wouldn't have missed it for anything," Twilight said. Just minutes ago, she was thinking of turning around and going home. How could this change have happened so quickly?

"WHAT TOOK US SO LONG?!" Dan repeated, exasperated. "YOU FAINTED IN FRONT OF THE ENTIRE CITY AND WE GOT ARRESTED! WHAT DO YOU THINK TOOK SO LONG?!!"

"We did," Chrys said, stepping forward. "We all did. They thought we were... all of us, were changelings. Invading Canterlot. Again."

Shining put a hoof on his forehead. "Oh, Twily, I'm so sorry. I just... after I woke up in the castle, I thought you were already inside. I didn't know."

The stallion prince put a hoof behind his head. "Well uh, it was... kind of a shock."

He smiled bashfully back at her. "Uh, I just uh, didn't really get around to it."

"I think some explainin' is in order," Applejack said, encouraging a little honesty.

Chrys stepped forward. "Allow me," she walked over to Cadence. The pink princess was a bit surprised, maybe even shocked to see the changeling queen emerge from the crowd. Her expression was one of nervousness combined with awkwardness. Nawkwardness, Pinkie thought to herself. "We... kind of figured that me being seen in Canterlot again might frighten a few ponies. So, I changed into you so we could get through the line into the castle. But when Shining saw me..."

Chrys changed into Cadence to give it more of a point. Shining swallowed hard, feeling faint again.

"He kissed me. Then I changed back," she returned to her normal changeling form, "and he passed out. Right in front of everypony."

"It was hard enough just trying to get here," Dan commented, arms folded. "Finally we've arrived and it looks like the party's over."

"Are you kidding?!" Pinkie shouted. "We just got done with the pre-party party! The REAL party's not till tomorrow! And I'm baking a new cake!"

"If you hadn't showed up, I would've searched all of Canterlot to find you guys!" Rainbow declared.

"Though, I think some of you might be needing some new clothes," Rarity commented, looking at Dan.

Looking down, he realized he was still shirtless. "Yeah, new shirt would be nice. Maybe something durable, fireproof. You guys have that, right?"

"So," Chrys rubbed her hooves together, "Now that we're here, we've got the rest of the day to ourselves before the party! What should we do?"

Shining smiled. "Well, since this is the three of you are going to be staying at the castle, I recommend registering and getting a room."

Pinkie nodded. "I couldn't find you guys after we got separated so I went ahead and got my room already. I don't know about it now, there might be kind of a line."

Just around the back of the castle was guest relations, a registration area for those visiting the castle. Royalty, visitors, guests of all kinds had to register before being allowed to stay within Canterlot castle, princes, princesses, queens, elements of harmony and short-tempred aliens included. Had they arrived early, the registration process would've been a lot short... as would have the line.

The group turned the corner to see a massive qeue of ponies leading into the guest area of the castle. Dan broke down to his hands and knees. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!"

Chrys put a hoof on Dan's shoulder. "Don't worry, Dan. I'm sure it won't be that long of a wait."

"We'll see you guys in the castle!" Shining said, leading Cadence and Twilight's other friends minus Dan and Chrys back inside.

"We'll meet up with you as soon as you get your rooms!" Twilight called back. "What do you say, Dan? You want to try this again?"

Dan picked his head up. "Well, actually... this one does look shorter. And I think I've waited longer in lines at Disney Land."

Chys smiled. "And with the three of us here, I'm sure we'll be at the front in no time at all."

You and I, we've been doing this forever
And once again, we're in for some bad weather
I might be wrong but it seems like we
Can't seem to stay out of trouble at least for very long!

You and I,
it looks like we're stuck again!
And I wonder why,
are we just that lucky then?
No matter how we try,
it always seems that you and I,

Will wind up in some kind of trouble in the end!But I'm happy to be in it right here with you, stuck here with my friends!

It seems that we, whenever we take chances,
We run into circumstances,
That go upset whatever we plan...

And through it all, no matter what we can do,
I'll be right here with you,
To help any way I can!

Yes, you and I,
It looks like we're stuck again!
And I wonder why,
Are we just that lucky, then?
No matter how we try,
It always seems that you and I,
Will find ourselves in some kind of trouble in the end!
But I'm happy to be right here in it with you, stuck here with my friends!

Are we just two of a kind?
In every single incident I find,
That some way you and I are intertwined

And although sometimes it's a grind,
No matter where we up and wind,
If there's a problem, I only have one thing on my mind!

You and I,
I guess that we're stuck again!
And I wonder why,
How I can be so lucky, then?
That every time,
When I find myself stuck in this strange and crazy trend?
That you're always right here in it with me... now matter what's around the bend...
You're always here to help me, and that makes me so lucky... to be...
Stuck here with my friends!

Before long, Dan, Twilight and Chrys were at the front of the line and registered at the castle equivalent to a hotel's front desk. It only took a matter of minutes and they were ready to see the rest of their friends.

"Yeah, it was definitely easier than getting through the barricade," Dan remarked. "But now that we're here, I'm ready to start enjoying myself."

Chrys and Twilight both raised an eyebrow at Dan. "What exactly do you mean by that?"

The three entered the castle wondering what the weekend had in store for them. Although, one of them already had a pretty good idea.

What they didn't know was that there was another 'guest' that had ideas of their own. And they were watching them.

Next time on an all-new Dan Vs. The Magic of Friendship...

"IT'S TIME TO PARTY!!!"

Let the festivities begin!

"There's something wrong with the fireworks display!

"What's wrong? I think everything's setup properly."

"Except it's pointed at the ground!"

Join the celebration... and the revelation.

"Have you ever wondered why he's here, Twilight? Why he was brought to Equestria?"

"I don't know... there's just so much I don't know... I wasn't ready for this."

"He's unstable! He's a threat to our world, our way of life!"

"Dan is my friend..."

Next Saturday, you're invited...

"They don't have any purpose! There's no meaning for any of this!"

"Failure will mean wasting everything we have done."

"I can get them in there, I can make this work."

To the Danniversary!

"Did you really think you could avoid this?"

"You're going to have to choose, Twilight!"

"Everything in Equestria has a purpose."

Next Saturday, you're invited to...

"Fillies and gentlecolts, the royal court of Equestria hereby presents-"

Dan Vs. A Canterlot Anniversary!
It's a night you'll never forget on Dan Vs. the Magic of Friendship!

"What's a party without a little... chaos?"

Only on FIMFiction.net.

Canterlot Royal Guard Station- Castle Precinct
Interior Security Camera 8A, West Corridor
Warning: Unauthorized Access Detected
Time: 14:04

The power was restored quickly to the Canterlot guard station though the reason it went out in the first place remained a mystery. The cameras swept the interior; one in particular picked up quite an interesting conversation. But it wasn't transmitted to any suite in the guardhouse...

"It's right this way, sir," the royal guard said as he escorted the visitor down the hall. "Don't know why you'd want to represent these three. Changelings trying to attack Canterlot, assaulting a prince, causing a panic, and let's not even count the property damage. You must be some kind of dedicated."

"What?" the guard said as he stared at the empty cell. "They're gone! They've escaped somehow, I don't know but-"

"Calm down," another royal guard, walking down the hall said. "We made a mistake, anyway."

"Yep," the new guard said. "It turns out, they were telling the truth. That actually WAS a princess with them and the changeling queen was reformed."

"Yeah," the other nodded. "Heard it from Princess Celestia herself. They just registered at the castle, special guests of the princess."

(The police here sound just as 'resourceful' as the ones back home. I wonder if they have a clueless detective too?)

"Well, one of them was," the second guard responded. "But she's reformed and staying at the castle now."

The first guard swallowed again and turned to face the taller visitor. "Hey, you said they were friends of yours, right?"

"Yeah," the guest replied. (They don't really know I'm here right now but it would be nice to see them again.)

Sweating, the guard asked, "You think you could maybe, put in a good word for me? Apologize for the misunderstanding for me-uh, I mean, for the force?"

The other guard approached the vacant cell and slid back the door. "Looks like the door locks disengaged when the power went out. We must be overdue for maintenance."

(Great. Now they remind me EXACTLY of cops back home.) "You said they were at the castle, right?" the tall visitor asked the other guard stallion.

"Hey, you'll be sure to tell them how helpful we were, right?" the guard called as he left.

The two guards continued their discussion as Phoenix Wright, defense attorney rounded the corner and headed to the exit.

Phoenix didn't say anything back. While this wasn't the first time he'd visited Equestria, he still found surprises literally around every corner. It was another world, that much was clear but his friends were here. And while it wasn't the specific reason he'd been summoned, he did want to make sure to see them again while he was here.

(I wish I could've brought Maya with me. I'll have to ask if she can come with me next time... before I'm magically summoned to this dimension.)

Phoenix exited the guardhouse, taking a moment to get his bearings before stepping out on the street. He'd only visited Ponyville the last time he was here and still didn't know his way around, well, anywhere in this world. Fortunately, the castle dominated the view of the horizon and so he headed in that direction.

(Even in another dimension, I'm too poor to stay in a place like that.) he thought to himself as he viewed the castle he was approaching.

The streets were vacant in the afternoon but Phoenix noticed a few interesting things, clear evidence of activity. A couple holes in the street, blackened pock-marks scored the cobblestones at various places. Shards of a metallic weapon were scattered around a steel rod sticking out of the middle of the street, how it got there he could only guess. As he got closer to the castle, he noticed a large, wooden barricade separating it from the rest of the street.

He turned to an alleyway off to the side, a hooded figure stood in the space between buildings.

"Oh, it is," the stranger replied. The figure had a female voice and stepped forward. "You're Phoenix Wright, aren't you?"

"Yes," Phoenix answered. "Do I know you? Were you the one who called me about Twilight?"

"No, that was actually a friend of mine. We've never really met but I have to say, I am a really big fan of yours. I watched that whole trial where you defended Rainbow Dash; it was awesome."

"Thanks..." Phoenix replied. Whoever it was, their face was obscured by a brown hood, unlike the pony he'd bumped into in the guard station. "Are you here with another hooded pony?"

"Oh no, I'm here with a couple other friends. But listen," the mysterious mare stepped forward, "I can't let you into the castle."

"Your little friends need to see something very important in the castle and right now, they don't need any distractions. Capiche?"

"I'm really sorry to do this Nick; like I said, I'm a big fan. I hope you'll sign my autograph after this."

The mare raised a hooded foreleg and out flowed a jet of vapor. In an instant, Phoenix was enveloped in a cloud of pinkish gas.

"Sweet dreams, Mr. Wright," the hooded mare said, stepping over him. The cloud quickly dissipated and she reached a hoof into his coat pocket, pulling out his cell phone.

Raising it to her ear, the mysterious assailant called a number that only she knew.

The voice on the other end was silent for a moment. "No, we might need him again. Put him someplace out of the way and make sure he doesn't see you when he wakes up."

"Understood." The mare closed the phone and put it back in the unconscious lawyer's pocket, not noticing a glowing stone next to it. She dragged him into the alleyway and down into the basement of a deserted store, a bakery.

Dan Vs. The Magic of Friendship(Season 1)

by Barrobroadcaster

Episode 5: Dan Vs. Canterlockdown