//------------------------------// // Epilogue // Story: A Jewel of a Problem // by Rainbow Sparkle //------------------------------// -*- Cain/Strife -*- {One Week Later} “Come on ya lazy bones, if we don’t hurry up she’s going to sick the twins on us again!” I shook my head as I gazed into the mirror, looking at the reflection that was currently showing elements of Strife’s feminine form and my marginally more androgynous form I had worked to create over the last few days. I rolled my blue colored eye as Strife’s red one glared at me, blinking our eyelid shut and replacing it with another blue one as I said “Oh hush, it’s bad enough I have to go to this party… Mrs.Cake has already told me that Pinkie’s invited half the town, and you know that I hate big parties.” Strife wasn’t too happy about being punted back into our shared mind, but relented for the moment. ~And that was a compromise you got out of her only after threatening to sneak oats into her breakfast for a week. A good idea, sure, but I was looking forward to the big crowd.~ “And you can get over it.” I replied, finishing the transition to my form as I let out a content sigh. “Besides, you’ve been reneging on part of your deal on our time sharing of this body… so making sure only a quarter of the town shows up is more than enough to get back at you.” The party of course was the usual “Welcome to Ponyville” style party that Pinkie Pie loved to throw for people moving into town. We had officially moved into a guest room in the Cake’s home just two days prior, and Pinkie had insisted that we do a party to get us both introduced to the townsfolk. The idea of being the center of attention for every. Single. Citizen. Had scared me shitless, though Strife had been ecstatic, perhaps thinking of all the sorts of trouble she could get into. Determined both to keep that from happening, and prevent the party from going sour by my fainting, I had blackmailed our new mother into doing a fair bit of trimming to the birthday guest list. For now anyways… Mama Pie had assured me that she would throw three more parties eventually to make sure we met EVERYPONY in town. ~Just remember they have to get to meet me first you know… Mama Pie said we swap out each hour til the party ends.~ Strife reminded me as I headed out of the bathroom and into the hallway. I could hear Pinkie and company downstairs, busy moving all of the food and drinks into a cart to be transported over to the community center, where the party was being thrown. “Yeah yeah… keep your horns on buddy.” I mumbled as I headed on down to join them, knowing that Pinkie Pie wanted me to come on down and ride with them… even though we could both fly…well, hover… same difference. ~By the way… I got a birthday present for us....~ Strife said in a sing song tone. “Better not be the super-duper chocolate frosted cake that has tiny bits of chocolate inside, chocolate filling and white chocolate drizzles. I really don’t want to be sick again from sugar overdose..." That monstrosity had been made while we were recovering in Canterlot, Strife deciding she was really in the mood for something sweet and Pinkie being more than happy to oblige her. ~No, I’ve been working on a way to temporarily split us in two, mostly when you are asleep.~ Hearing this put a glare on my face as I halted, midway down the stairs. “And the reason you haven't told me about this is?" ~It turns me into a filly unicorn and you into a filly pegasus, just like we were when we shared DIamond Tiara's mind. And I can't use chaos magic like that save to change back.~ "And?" ~Turns out Discord left out yet another detail out...~ "Just spill it out already!" ~When we were split like that, I felt a mental connection with you, but also with Diamond Tiara, can you guess what it means?.~ I froze, no it couldn't be, could it? "Please tell me it doesn't mean the three of us are still part of the same being." ~Fortunately, it doesn't, but once Diamond Tiara reaches a certain age and notices she is no longer getting old I dunno how she will react. We sort of share some of our power with her, and the Elements only muted that connection for a while.~ Knowing that Diamond Tiara was basically as eternal as we would be, I decided to do the sensible thing and just ignore it and go to the party. After all, we had some years until things became evident to her… and maybe Strife was wrong. A part of me was irritated at the news, fearing we could get stuck inside Diamond’s head again. The other side was happy we would have a friend our age to share the centuries with… at least assuming what Celestia and Luna had told us about Draconequi was true. Pushing such thoughts aside for later, I stepped out the kitchen door, seeing that everything was packed and ready and Pinkie Pie was eagerly bouncing in anticipation, I gave her and the Cakes a smile as I climbed on in. “Right, let’s get this show on the road, shall we?” I said as the Cakes started pulling the cart. Pinkie Pie giggled and snorted at this, booping me on the nose as she said “Silly, we’re not going on the road, we’re just headed into town.” “I think you took that too literally Pinkie,” Was my only reply as I shook my head, turning my gaze up to the skies above as I could see Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy already flying off towards the center of town. My thoughts began to wander, as they had been doing a great deal the last few days. Everything that had happened to me since getting here… it was all pretty crazy, and I’d been trying to make some sense of it all. Strife had suggested I try to frame the thoughts in the form of a sort of friendship letter to the Princesses. I thought that she had been joking… but I had gone ahead with it anyways… I closed my eyes and took a moment to recall everything I had figured out... Honesty I still missed my family back on Earth, but after a week of having it sink in, I had to admit that the friends I had made in Equestria were important for me. Twilight Sparkle saved my life even though I was a complete stranger, Diamond Tiara forgave me and befriended Strife of all people,and Pinkie Pie even adopted us… which was still a bit confusing honestly. I cared about them, and while I would still jump at any chance to get my family back, even if I was just a copy, I think it would hurt me to leave Equestria behind. Kindness I could have been a fair bit kinder while I was in Diamond’s body, and afterwards Diamond Tiara found it in her heart to show kindness to us, and she forgave us for having hurt her for heaven's sake! To forgive your enemies, or those who showed you cruelty or anger... there is no greater kindness than that. Could I ever do the same? Could I ever forgive Discord for what he had done to us? Yes I could. Not today, or tomorrow, or probably even a year from now. But even if Discord was a monster, he brought us here, he gave us a different chance at life. He even somewhat explained that all that pain and suffering, is what helped us to be real. If only for that, I should be able to forgive him, though I hope he isn’t expecting it anytime soon. Laughter I have to admit this has been fitting Strife more than me lately. She can make others laugh better than I can, and while she is rude and a pain in the tail sometimes, I have learned to see her as more than just a split personality. She… she is my sister, and I don't know what I’d ever do if she disappeared. I do wonder if the same is true for her... Strife of course has her own down times… and she uses laughter to help deal with fears and problems just like the rest of us. She just does it in a different way… hopefully me and Pinkie can keep it to the more playful and pranky variety... Generosity Luna helped Diamond Tiara face her fears and gave her a gift without asking anything in exchange, save for Diamond Tiara to try to be our friend. While being kind is to offer help and to forgive, being generous means giving to others even when it’s at your own expense. Those silly ponies… they’ve given me too much, haven't they? Maybe it’s time I gave something back. I could help Pinkie Pie make a party, let Twilight Sparkle do experiments on me, help Fluttershy clean her animal smelling cottage... I can start right now, by being nice to everyone in the party. Not that that should be too hard as long as I can manage not to embarrass myself. Loyalty I thought my loyalty was to my friends and family back on Earth, but… if there had been a way to return and the price had been to hurt Diamond Tiara, would I have done it? I don’t know… on day one I would probably have said yes. Now though… it would be an incredibly tough decision. It’s no wonder that Rainbow Dash acted as she did in The Return of Harmony. It has just been a short time, but she has become a loyal friend to us. Heck… we could probably call her a sister. Still, I think it is going to take me time, but… I will endeavor to show them the loyalty they deserve after everything we’ve put them through. Magic It was through magic, Discord’s magic, that we were brought here, or created, or whatever it was that he did. And despite the fact that we seem to have Chaos Magic, just as Discord did, the Elements spared us from their powers when it struck us. Perhaps the Elements sense in both me and Strife the chance to do some real good… to forge bonds and make Equestria better through the power of harmony and... Friendship Back home… I didn’t have nearly as many friends as I already have here. Most… I would at best consider acquaintances, work friends and people who I know and am friendly towards, but am not close enough to to really feel any sort of bond. Here though… the Mane Six, the Cutie Mark Crusaders, the Princesses… Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon… I have made many friends, and perhaps in a short bit, I’ll be making many more. Ah well, I still have time to figure it out. “Cain? Strife? Hello? Equestria to Draconequus?” I blinked, looking towards Pinkie Pie as I noticed that we were no longer in the cart… in fact, we were standing next to the rest of the Mane Six… and in front of us was the crowd of ponies that Pinkie had invited to our welcoming party. “When… when did we get out of the cart?” I asked as I stared at the crowd, all of them doing their best to put on polite smiles even as I noticed a few of them snickering quietly to themselves. “About five minutes ago.” Pinkie replied, giggling herself as she added “And you’ve been standing like that for a good four.” Our cheeks flushed for a moment… even as I felt myself being shunted back into the passenger seat as Strife took control. ~Move aside buster, this is where I shine~ With a wide smile of her own, Strife gazed out into the crowd, spotting a number of foals looking at her curiously. A mischievous glint glimmered in her eyes as she opened her mouth and shouted “Who here wants to be the first to ride Ponyville’s one and only Draconequus!” Much to my surprise, there was a sudden chorus of ‘yays!’ and ‘me me me me!’ that filled the air, a dozen or more of the adults in the room chuckling to themselves as Strife picked three foals at random to take the first lap around the party, quickly turning the ride into a game of tag as she dived straight for Rarity. Laughter soon filled the room as the brief bit of tension was smashed to pieces by Strife’s antics. I watched it all, shaking my head in bemusement as I said to myself “Here’s hoping this is a good sign of how our time here’s going to go.” A chuckle followed this, and I settled myself in, deciding that I could introduce myself later, after Strife had had her fill of fun and attention. -*- Canterlot -*- Light filtered into the small, cramped office as silence filled the chamber. The sole occupant of the room gazed past the messenger who was turning and making a quick exit, knowing that this particular pony would call for his services if they were needed. Grey Eminence gazed at the letter he had brought, having already unfurled and perused its contents in less than a minute and found them to be wanting. His muzzle shifted ever so slightly, morphing away from a thin line into a slight frown as he thought of what he should do next. The letter was from one of his many agents, this one being a mare who none was likely to pay much heed to. She was simply informing him of what he already knew, that the target was now settling into town, and as of yet had done nothing to warrant any special actions. That of course was where he disagreed. Ever since the Nightmare Moon incident, where the entire kingdom had been caught completely by surprise when Celestia’s long forgotten sister, Luna, had returned in her maddened state to usurp the throne, he had found himself questioning Celestia’s ability to rule. There had been no plans, no guidelines on how to proceed, and to make matters even worse, Celestia had simply vanished from the scene, leaving him to try and keep the whole of Canterlot from descending into total anarchy. It was only after the fact that he learned of Celestia’s plan, of relying on her prized pupil to somehow track down six magical relics to purify her sister. And how it had maddened him! It didn’t rely on anything concrete, looking for all the world like she somehow knew it was going to go exactly as she wished it! Celestia may be a powerful Alicorn Princess, but even he knew they couldn’t predict the future. To throw the fate of the whole kingdom on a single young mare, no matter how talented, was simply insane! And then of course, there was the disaster that was the Grand Galloping Gala. Well… disaster was one way of looking at it. Even he had to admit that the Gala had grown boring and tedious over the last decade, and Celestia had been holding them for centuries. He could understand her desire to spice things up a bit, but did it really have to involve bringing those six mares to the Gala? Only one of them had any idea about what it really entailed, and the moment he had seen them he knew it was going to end badly… He could have handled having to deal with some of the infuriated nobles who had had their nights ruined because of those mares, and even dealt with helping Stewardess Tilted Scales determine the easiest way to pay for the damages, but having to put up with the whining of Prince Blueblood had almost been enough to push him to resigning then and there! Discord’s first escape was something that he could almost forgive her for, had High Mage Shooting Star not informed him that they had noticed his Chaos Magic slowly seeping out for weeks, and been told by Celestia herself not to pay it any heed. She had been informed of the coming threat… and done nothing about it. Which had nearly resulted in Discord keeping his claws on Equestria once more. Another stroke of luck that the Bearers of the Elements had managed to sort themselves out and blast him back into a lawn ornament. The recent revelation to him and the others of the Equestrian High Council was only another nail in the coffin for his opinion on his liege. He was not willing to buy the idea that Celestia had known nothing of the encroaching Changelings, seeing it as likely being some sort of test for those six mares she was coming to rely on so readily. The straw that broke the camel's back, or in this case his own, was the second escape of Discord, the agreement to allow the Changelings to make the Badlands a home, and the release of the entity known as Strife from Canterlot’s dungeons. The whole incident was a complete and total catastrophe, even if the Bearers had managed to seal Discord away once again. Not like it mattered much, since Discord’s self proclaimed child was free to run amok. It was only by the grace of the ancients she hadn’t caused any trouble… yet. It was, to Grey, as if the Princess had lost all grasp of reality. To allow so many things to go wrong in the span of three years… he could only assume that she had finally cracked and was no longer caring of what happened to her Kingdom or her subjects, or that she had grown so utterly bored after over a thousand years of reigning that she was willing to risk the kingdom being set aflame just for a change of pace. Which was why he was now paying special attention to Strife. She was an accident waiting to happen… to most at least. To him, she was an opportunity. A chance to show all of Equestria how little their revered Princess cared for the safety of the realm and of themselves. To show every citizen, from the poorest beggar to the highest noble, that Princess Celestia was playing with fire. And that sooner or later, they would all burn for it. Equestria needed someone much better, far more level headed and down to earth. Someone who would actually seek to secure Equestria’s defense from threats of all sizes… someone who would not be so foolish as to rely solely on six mere individuals and a set of magical trinkets. Someone… like Grey Eminence. His frown twisted up into a smirk as he chuckled softly to himself, turning in his chair and gazing out the window upon the city below. Patience… bide your time… and soon you will have just what you need. Soon Equestria will be on the right track once again… under my guiding hooves. "To be continued…”