Bon Bon stirred the mixture in a trance. Glowing fluid of mixed reds and blues swirled in the pot at the circular motions of her wooden spoon. Far be it for a candy maker to experiment with magic brews, but Bon Bon was a bit revolutionary in that regard. Why make chocolate when you can make magic chocolate?
Not that these were going up for sale. She'd never sell something so crucial.
Yet as important as it was to make this brew just right, Bon Bon zoned out. The motions were familiar to her. She would have a harder time getting it wrong than accidentally succeeding at this point in her life. She just kept stirring, staring into the pot, letting her mind wander.
Did I leave the porch light on last night? Ugh, it figures that I would. Top of my class in the greatest academy in the world, yet I can't remember to leave myself a note to turn that light off. While I'm at it, I shouldn't forget to give Lyra those mints I've been telling her about. Perhaps Lyra will be loitering in the park, again.
The mixture settled into a pale purple solution, still glowing. As expected and desired, her job here was done. She placed a lid on the pot and lowered the heat to a simmer. Another batch of her specialty formula was just an hour from completion. All she needed now was to pour a little bit into some truffles and the rest into vials, and her monthly routine would be set. All that remained was for her to avoid getting distracted for the next sixty minutes.
There was a heavy knock at her front door. She sighed. Please let it be mailpony being a ditz, again.
She opened the door, taking in the visitor. A beige pegasus with dull yellow eyes smiled nonchalantly at her doorstep. He reached back to his saddlebags and pulled out a scroll tied by a single red string. "Miss Drops, I presume?"
Dang it, this was important. Bon Bon widened a fake smile to hide her irritation. "Oh, I'm sorry, but I believe you have the wrong house. Are you speaking of Sweetie Drops? I get her mail an awful lot. If you'd like, I could hoof it over to her for you."
The stallion's gaze went critical. "Only if you know what must be done in the dead of night."
"You prepare for the coming dawn."
The stallion relaxed at the odd response. "Well, I suppose I could let you hang onto it. Here you go."
Bon Bon took the scroll. "Okay, I'll make sure she gets this right away."
"Thanks a lot!" The stallion waved farewell and trotted merrily away.
She looked at the scroll in her hoof. Ugh, figures it would be red string. It couldn't be something less important like brown string, or less time-consuming like blue string. No no, it just so happens to be red. She sighed and closed the door.
Whatever problem deserved the red string, it couldn't wait. She pulled off the string and unfurled the scroll.
Sweetie Drops,
Our apologies for the sudden assignment, but you are the only agent we have available in the area. There is a potential large scale threat in Ponyville that requires your surveillance, that being a dark magic user. She is not an immediate threat, but we have reason to believe that there is more to her than her appearance and behavior would suggest. She may be living in disguise.
Your target is the librarian Twilight Sparkle who resides in the Golden Oaks Library. You must gather any information on her that you can. Spy on her and report any suspicious behavior and information you can find.
This assignment will be a prolonged effort on keeping tabs on a potential threat. Equestria is counting on your success.
Bon Bon, or Sweetie Drops if you were a co-worker, twitched her eye. It was kind of hard to believe that the librarian was a dark magic user, though it was probably a matter of time with her anger-issues. Though that bit about her living in disguise was worrying. Why would anypony believe Twilight was anything more than a slightly angrier than normal pony? She guessed that was what she was supposed to find out.
So Sweetie Drops had to get something incriminating on Twilight and report it. Simple stuff. Nopony ever caught on to Sweetie's work before, so this should be no different.
She only needed to burn this scroll and suit up.
The page flipped to the second page for the excessively long paragraph I needed. How complicated was this spell? This wasn't just another spell that I could cast and forget; this was a sustained action that would take two full minutes before the deed was done. Geez, it was like this spell would completely redo the musculature of my ankle.
"Any luck?" Spike asked as he left the kitchen. He just finished putting away the dishes, so he came out to see if I made any progress.
"Yeah," I finished the paragraph, finally, reading aloud the last paragraph that seemed almost like an afterthought. "'Make sure to have the subject restrained while the spell is completed.'"
"What does that mean?"
I set the book down and pursed my lips with unease. "It means this is going to suck the big one." I sighed. "Alright, let's improvise some restraints."
We found some rope in the basement. It's almost as if we need to give that place a good look-over sometime. In any case, we fastened my leg on a table and kept the book nearby.
I took a deep breath and went over the spell one more time. I didn't recognize some of the dweomers used in the spell, so they were probably from an unknown school of magic. I would have loved going into that mystery, but I knew it was just an excuse to delay the inevitable. My hands lit up with arcane power. I muttered a quick prayer for mercy and directed the energy to my ankle.
My prayer went unanswered.
I threw my head back with a scream as pain shot through my leg. Our little set-up tumbled back with me; I fell back in my chair and the table tilted back to keep my legs secured. I had my back on the floor and my legs held up at an angle with pain in my ankle and my now sore back. As I thought, it was a great day.
"D-Dusk! Are you okay?" Spike rushed to my side in worry.
"Urrgh, son of a bitch..." I sat up and applied some pressure to my ankle. "That hurt worse than I thought."
"Are you sure we shouldn't just go to the hospital?"
"I'm not paying a thousand bits for something I can do myself for free." I argued while trying to steady my breath.
"Healthcare is free in Equestria."
"Whatever." I powered up again. "I'm just going to go for it. Bear with my screaming, it's only because I'm in agony."
Swirling energy pushed into my ankle, painfully pulling and stretching torn ligaments and muscles or whatever it was doing. It certainly felt like it was stretching out my ligaments. Maybe that's what it was doing. The spell itself said it was going to "[blank] subject's internal injuries and [blank]." Who knows what that means.
This is all to distract you from the fact that I spent a solid two minutes screaming at the pain. It was just one solid yell from start to finish, and I ran out of air about halfway through, so it was more of an expression of purest agony with a wispy squeak on the second half. Poor Spike was pressed into the corner with terror on his face. It was like he witnessed a gruesome ritualistic murder, and as far as he knew, that's exactly what happened.
The pain subsided after a while. With the pain receding, I took that as the sign that it was all over. The magic died in my hands, and my breath heavier than its been in my entire life. I blinked my eyes a few times, making my vision's clarity go from "accidentally poured bleach on my smartphone" to "windshield during rain without windshield wipers".
"Is- is it over?" Spike hesitantly, fearfully, asked.
Without the breath necessary to vocalize a response, I gave him a half-hearted thumbs-up.
He took the hesitant steps necessary to kneel next to me and look me over. "Your leg is all better. That's good, right?"
I took a large breath. "Yeah," I lost my breath again.
"Are you okay?"
Large inhale. "I guess."
Spike awkwardly avoided my eyes. "Do you need a glass of water?"
I tried to sit up, but I only managed a half-crunch before my head went woozy and I collapsed again. "*Gasp* Dammit. I-" Wheeze. "I got this." I tried again, but it was pretty hard to sit up when my leg was still bound.
Noticing my plight, Spike sauntered to the rope and casually scratched the rope with a single claw. The rope snapped easily and completely unraveled. The table, circular in shape, rolled away. I sat up properly this time and felt another wave of blood rushing to my head. My eyes spun in their sockets. "Okay," I began weakly. "Let's break in my newly healed ankle with a nice, easy walk to the kitchen."
"Are you sure you don't want to just lie down for a bit?"
"Nope, just give me a minute." I sat perfectly still and regained my bearings.
I stood up and rolled my ankle a few times. There was a numb feeling to it I can't really explain. Maybe I just needed to give it a good stretch? I walked to the kitchen while Spike just shrugged behind me. He began his work on cleaning up the library's main room and I opened the door to the kitchen.
My day was just getting weird. A pony ninja froze like a deer in the headlights half-way through my window, climbing in. Her face and mane were covered with a black mask that only revealed her blue eyes. Various espionage tools were wrapped around her midsection, acting as a belt for her black full body suit. I could still see her tail: It was dark blue with a pink streak in the middle.
We held eye contact for a little while before I spoke up. "Er, you know the library is a public building, right? You could just use the front door."
The ninja mare's eyes shifted either way. "Uh... right."
"Well, I doubt you're here to return a book. Are you a spy?"
"... No."
"Celestia sent you?"
She gasped. "How did you know?"
I gave her a deadpan frown. "Lucky guess."
Spike shouted behind me. "Who are you talking to?"
"Celestia sent a spy to keep tabs on me. I mean, I'm already used to the idea of the government invading my privacy, but..." I held back on completing that thought for obvious reasons.
"Aw, seriously?" Spike groaned. "When did Equestria get a secret service?"
"I dunno." I turned to the kitchen. "Hey, when did-" The ninja disappeared. "Huh. Well, I guess I'll just do what I came here for."
I opened the cabinet where we keep the glasses. I found the ninja in there huddled into a ball. She got that shocked look in her eyes again.
I sighed. "Can you pass me a glass?" She hoofed one over. "Thanks." I closed the door on her.
I returned to the living room to find Spike had moved some of the furniture to give us more space. I wasn't sure how necessary that would be, but it was good thinking. I sat cross-legged in the middle where Spike joined me in doing the same.
"Alright, to discover your inner magic, we'll need to determine how you channel your power."
"How do we do that?"
"We think it through." I began. "Unicorns are obvious; their magic is channeled through their horn. Humans can cast from their extremities; their arms and legs. One is a four-legged creature and the other is a two-legged creature. Despite your bipedal movement and behavior, dragons are quadrupeds. To test this, I want you to concentrate on your solar plexus. There's a bundle of nerves there that's basically where your central ethereal core resides, or the base of your soul. I'll need you to flex that core."
Spike was looking a little overwhelmed. "How do I do that?"
"Find your core and tell it to expand. Force it to grow and engulf your body."
"Like, by speaking?"
"Not unless you're performing an incantation. Just make it a mental command in the same way to control your breathing."
"Oh, I think I know what you mean!" Spike breathed in deeply and held out his arms. His breath released slowly as a soft glow emanated through his torso.
I looked over this curiously, noting a few details. Spike knew exactly what I meant when I mentioned breathing and immediately glowed. That told me a few things about dragon magic. "Alright, try to force that energy to your claws."
"Okay," His face scrunched with effort. Try as he might, the glow stayed in his chest.
"Hmm, I think I got it."
Spike dropped his effort and smiled hopefully. "You do?"
"Yes, a dragon's magic comes from their chest, rather than their limbs like a human. Somewhere in their chest resides the organ that channels their energy. The only thing I can conclude is that it has to do with dragon breath. Only dragons can breathe fire like they do, and it's certainly not a natural occurrence if your use of it is any indication. If you can send scrolls with your breath, then my assumption that dragon magic is based on dragon breath must be accurate."
"So I've been using magic this whole time?" Spike asked.
"I guess so. It turned out to be really simple, huh?" We laughed uneasily. "In any case, there must be more you can do with it." I conjured a tiny box with a simple lock. "There's a simple spell I want you to try: Lock. It's a simple three word spell that even a novice can do. Here," I grabbed some parchment and a quill and wrote down the spell. "Try to memorize this and use this as a filter on the way you unleash the magic."
"Um, won't that just burn the box?"
"Not if you cast the spell correctly. Think of your magic as a beam of light and the spell as a translucent prism: applying your magic through the spell will alter its effects."
Spike nodded and read the spell. With it in mind, he breathed a green stream of fire onto the box. The flames covered the box entirely and covered it from sight. When the fire cleared, all that was left was the box's lock itself.
"Ah, that could have gone better." I said. "That, and I'm sure it's still unlocked."
"Uh, I'll try again." Spike breathed more fire. Well, it was more like a little puff than the previous stream.
"You'll need to put more power into it. Don't be afraid to apply that energy of yours; nothing can go wrong that I can't fix."
Spike's mouth twitched uneasily. He blew again, but the fire spread wide and didn't even hit anything. Mostly because it still fell short.
"You're still holding back." I noted. "I know you're nervous because you burned the box last time, but I need you to go all out here. Don't be nervous; stay focused on your goal and your spell and let loose."
He took a deep breath and blew very hard. The flames danced around the lock, and I noticed a slight key shape among them, but little else happened.
"Come on, one more time; full power!"
Spike pulled back for the longest intake of breath he could manage. He shot himself forward and let loose the most flames we've seen all day. This latest attempt was the largest cone of effect I've personally seen from a dragon, nearly reaching past the lock sitting between us. The spell was still unfocused, obviously, but his power was pretty decent for his age.
I frowned a little, though, when he didn't stop breathing the flames. In fact, the flames were growing stronger. Spike just wasn't giving up. He was determined to get this right. His eyes erupted into color. Green light filled his eyes and shot outwards like twin spotlights. The flames surged forward like a wall seeking to destroy.
I noticed the encroaching fire slightly before it reached me, covering myself in a flame-proof aura before I got roasted. The flames reached past me and arched towards the front door. I looked back to see the fire slam into the walls beyond me and set it alight.
I spun back to Spike, calling out for him. "Spike, stop! You're overdoing it!"
It wasn't so loud in there that my words were drowned out, yet he didn't hear me. Spike pulled back and sprayed fire straight up, holding his throat as if he was choking. Meanwhile, his actions spread the fire throughout the room. The library living room quickly became an inferno of magic flame that burned even through my fire resistant ward.
It was obvious to me that Spike was no longer in control of his actions. His magic was going wild and was destroying everything in the process. I lit my hands and swung them around in a circle. An icy chill swirled around the room and weakened the fires started around the room. While my storm was doing a good job with the fires trying to spread, it did nothing to stop Spike's sudden and continuing surge of magic fire.
He swung his head and body around, thrashing about in obvious pain. I grit my teeth at the sight. I wouldn't permit his suffering! I needed to fight this surge and end it now! I had only the idea to cut off his supply of magic, if only for a short time. I stopped sustaining the snowstorm and focused nullification magic in both hands. I shot them forward, sending my magic aura to encompass the entire event and stop this.
The flames were strong enough to resist my initial push. My magic only weakened the closest part of the fire. Damn it all, I had to use everything I had! I pushed again with full strength. Every ounce of power I could muster surged into the firestorm and surrounded the entirety, effectively keeping the magic flames from spreading. It didn't extinguish the other flames from their consumption, but that could wait; Spike needed me more. I maintained my push, intent on ending this.
Progress was slow at first. My magic pushed his back bit by bit, reaching ever closer to Spike himself. But this was when I was going full force, and I felt the strain immediately. I could give out at any moment, but Spike was still going strong. I squeezed my eyes shut, ground my teeth and dug my feet into the floor. My mind felt like it was slipping already.
All progress halted, and all I was doing was keeping things from escalating. I couldn't hold out for long. Already bursts of flame shot through my spell and lashed out at the bookshelves and myself. It wasn't just the room; my entire body was burning from the effort of keeping this up.
I peeked out at Spike, still struggling to keep his own magic under control without avail. He was in so much pain and his eyes were drooping.
My heart shook. Spike was fading! I glared harder than before. Black tendrils of energy coiled past my arms.
I won't lose Spike!
The black energy swirled around my aura and consumed it. Immediately, the black energy that coiled around myself and the flames constricted around Spike. With a final shout, I shoved the black energy down Spike's throat. The magic died down shortly afterwards. The light faded from his eyes, leaving the dilated slits I remember. No more emerald fire left his body. Spike's eyes drifted shut and he collapsed on the floor.
I retracted the energy as soon as it ended. I sent my magic out to snuff out the remaining fire and rushed over to cradle Spike. "Spike! Are you okay? Come on, say something!"
His only response was a wheezing inhale. I winced at the sound and laid him to the floor. I leaned in to hear his heartbeat, quick and erratic, but still there.
I squeezed the side of my head in panic. Passing out from lack of oxygen was not a good thing, even if he was still breathing. I had to heal him somehow. I darted eyes across the room to find the book I needed. Stacked on a table, mercifully untouched by the fire, was the book of medical spells. I threw out my hand, a black tendril shooting out and retracting with the book in its grasp. I flipped through it in a hurry, searching for that spell used on ponies with breathing problems.
Found it! Oxygen Transfer was a simple enough spell. I threw up my hand and condensed a ball of breathable oxygen in my power. I gently lowered it over Spike's chest as he made that all important inhale. The ball dissolved into him progressively with each breath.
His breathing steadied. I listened in on his heartbeat again, hearing it regulate on a strong, steady beat. I closed my eyes and let out a calm breath. The black coils receded into my chest while I just sat there smiled contentedly.
I pushed my hair back and looked around the room. Nearly everything was charred black from heat, but nothing was completely destroyed at least. I shook my head at it, though. I wasn't really worried about any of that.
I lifted Spike onto my shoulders with his legs draped over them and his head leaning against the back of mine. I felt his heart beating against my head, the satisfying rhythm that promised his well-being. I wasn't going to take the chance, though. He had a rough morning, and I had to make sure that he was taken care of.
I pulled the door open and strode forward with Spike's legs in my hands and a slump in my gait. Even though we were going to the hospital, I was happy with the way things turned out. Spike was alright. I knew he would be just fine.
Nearby ponies gathered around to ask what happened and if everything was alright. I was silent with a calm smile on my face. The only things that mattered at the time were my destination and my charge.
Bon Bon shook her head from her hiding spot around the corner. What kind of insanity was that? The dragon just went crazy and tried to destroy Twilight and the library!
She whipped out a piece of paper and a pen. She had to make note of this. Even though Twilight was the dark mage, she wasn't the real danger here. That dragon was a ticking time bomb!
Bon Bon wondered why Twilight fussed over the unconscious dragon, though. Didn't it just try to kill her? Twilight was awfully forgiving to excuse such an attempt on her life.
But what about that weird energy? Wasn't that dark magic? Bon Bon never saw it before, but it had to be. Was dark magic really that bad? It just saved two lives today, after all.
She shook her head again and concentrated on her notes. She could ask questions later. All that mattered now was what she was going to say in her report. Hopefully she could find something substantial in the library while they were gone.
Bon Bon is not a very good ninja.
Bonbon is not a good spy...
7332435 Well, you got the last three right. Fallout and Fallout 2 actually took place respectively in 2161 and 2241.
Absolute wiki-nerd hereWhat... how is someone so assumptive a spy?
Well... that might just depressingly put an end to Spike's desire to do magic, since he was almost killed by his outburst.
But... then again Twilight turned her parents into plants which has been very much so played for the disaster it could have been in AUs, and she still went on to be a fantastic magician.
I rarely laugh at comedy in written form. I laughed at Bon Boon though several times. Good work!
7392441 Hooves are not very good for stealth... Unless you're using socks. *Wiggles eyebrows*
I can somehow imagine Twilight just asking Bon-Bon when she's alone and needs something. Like when no-one is there to pass a roll of toilet paper or a magazine.
Also, aw yeah, use fire magic in a library. Great thinking.
-edit-
Three word breath based magic. Now what does that reminds me of?
Magic surge aside, this chapter amused me greatly. Bon Bon is best ninja, and NotTwilight's reactions are best reactions.
7392588
I could upvote this more than once.
Eh it was funny enough
I remember Howard the Duck, Beverly (IIRC) graduated from a Ninja school she found on a matchbook cover. Her 1st assignment was to track Spiderman.
Bonnie clearly went to the same school.
With over 300 confirmed chocolates.
I can think of Dusk...
7392782
K but dusk doesn't want anything to do with celly right now so more like
"Btw I've purchased a crossbow license and once the three day waiting period is up I intend to get one, next time I intend to use one"
Agent Sweetie Drops: The best/worst spy Equestria has to offer.
Poor Spike, hope he doesn't get magicphobia from this. Too scared to use his own magic for fear of hurting someone.
He is just a kid dragon after all, it makes sense that he'd have a hard time controlling his magic since he's a youngun.
7392517 Yeah, seriously, it was clear that he was being instructed in magic, and that, during his outburst, he was under considerable agony... Something somepony in her profession would have noticed... Thusly, she should not have assumed the conclusion she did...
Also, this was a fun chapter, that I've very much enjoyed! Seriously, another note, Special Agent Sweetie Drops should have also heard "Dusk's" disparaging comment about being jaded to government espionage, considering how Spike wasn't even aware the Equestria even had a secret service!
7392517 its Equestria...
that should answer the question
awww yeah its getting REALLY goood.
Dusk could've ignored Bon Bon.
Then later on, he could've gone all "I Know You're Listening" while reading a book and freaking Bon Bon the heck out
"to let things wind down for a few chapters" Will probably take the better part of a year with the rate chapters are coming out.
7351550 Luna was able to use the EoH before she turned evil, so that doesn't put Twilight above suspicion.
Bon Bon stole the chapter.
7392486 She doesn't even have a collection of paper masks or hats.
I love this.
Also i hope that the main character will join the other team.
I don't hate it, but I hope there is no Dragonball kind of stuff in this story.
At first I didn't knew what i thought about Magic Spike, but he probably had a magic surge? or how it was called and it is limited on his breath what I kind of like. (this gives his magic a little dissadvantage and doesn't makes him to strong.
I just think the arm could probably point faster in a direction, than he could move his head to aim at something.
Nice chapter, I liked the little horrorshow for Spike.
edit: shouldn't Bon Bon have heard everything and not only seeing the one little attack, or what she thought was an attack from the Dragon that haven't really done anything before?
I could think of a few reasons why she doesn't exactly know much about Spike, but I still want to ask.
7392517
Ask Rainbow Dash. Maybe she knows.
Those trendrils gave me "The Darkness" vibes
Hehe, I can't remember the last time I turned off my porch light
Good god, twilight does not follow safety procedures at all.Something like this should be done outdoors at least, since you don't really know what will happen.
7394954 I didn't even look at the date. LOL!
I require more chapters. I read them too fast.
7395315 Well, he did say he could handle any accidents. To his credit, he was right.
7392486
7392441
Bon Bon is not a very good changeling.
Eh.
To be honest all I'm reading this for now is the reveal, and with every new chapter my expectations of the reveal get higher since we're being kept wanting for it.
7394591
Just leave it off.
Problem solved.
Isn't she less powerful as a human? Why stay in human form so much if she only wants to cast a single spell? ALSO SHE SHOULD HAVE HEALED HER LEG AS A PONY!
Healing it while in human form was very stupid, it could get stuck as a human leg or get hurt again when she changes back into a pony.
You said yourself she is less powerful in human form, her only advantage is casting more than one spell at once.
At some point it stopped being fake twilight and started to become "human witch that only occasionally takes the form of a unicorn."
So I think this chapter needs a rewrite.
7403297
You're making an awful lot of assumptions.
When did I say this? The only time I could think I said that was back in "Twilight's Seven Days Part 2" or the chapter after that, but I said no such thing. Could you tell me when I wrote that? Otherwise I'm going to assume you're projecting your beliefs onto me.
A human in Equestria with great magic power will likely spend a lot of time in a natural, comfortable form. This is typically a human shape. So no, I'm not going to rewrite the chapter because you feel Dusk should spend more time as a pony, otherwise I'll need to rewrite what feels like half my story just to keep up with other such things people complained about.
Nuuu my binge is at an end! the horror! the HOOORRRROOOORRRR!!!!!
7404117
In the same chapter they argued about the spell casting benefits of using magic in human form, less power but more than one spell at once.
And really the story stopped being fun.
Goodbye.
7415773 Actually, I reread the part you mentioned. You're wrong, nothing was ever said about power output.
But hey, if you don't like the story anymore, that's fine. I didn't like your comments any more than you liked my story.
Darn, only one chapter?
7417741
7417759
Fixed!
7440598 Yeesh, this was a big comment that I put off for a while. Mostly because I didn't want to bother until now. Still, let's bring out our Devil's Advocate brand drinking glasses and take a shot for each quotation.
I object to this one on the grounds that no such thing was really established. We're never shown the cows being completely fenced in, so I can only assume at worst that they're free range. More likely, I believe, is that they're given free housing in exchange for a farmer jerking them off into a bucket every once in a while. Seems like a pretty sweet deal; the cows get to hang out in free communal living space, gossiping all day, taking unrestricted walks because there's no fence to pen them in. All for the low price of peeing in a bucket every morning. As fucked up as that sounds, it's not slavery.
If you're talking about the alicorn thing, I've always interpreted that as the culmination of every pony tribe, displaying the greatest traits of them all as a symbolic representation of their inspiring presence. It's like our common use of angels to portray divinity, but more grounded for the average pony. Throughout history, even to this day, we have a habit of exemplifying leaders we like in some way. I remember George Washington as a mediocre general whose success came from the use of unorthodox strategy, yet he's always depicted as a perfect intellectual saint who could do no wrong. Hell, we tend to evangelize any political figure we like to the point that they're less human and more political ideal. This alicorn thing, to me, is just the ponies' way of doing that.
Fair enough, but you know what they say about things that aren't broken...
There are lots of things in Equestria that don't "need to exist", yet ponies are just fine with them. I think the issue they have with the Everfree Forest, as a common fandom theory states, is how many unexplainable beasts and violent phenomena occur in there as opposed to anywhere else. For instance, the storm clouds from the Everfree are much more volatile than they're used to. As we theorize, it's filled with latent magic that make it much more dangerous. After all, Rainbow Dash claimed that nopony ever returned from the forest, so a little superstition is expected.
I wish my government would stop funding revolutionaries that eventually gain power in their region and declare war on western ideals, so I have no idea what world you're living in.
Besides, Sunset could hardly be considered a major villain, and her betrayal wasn't on Celestia. Not much is stated as canon (wherever that stands in regards to the movies), but I highly doubt Celestia made any significant pushes to turn Sunset evil. Call me crazy, but I think becoming a power-hungry, despotic, demoness is on the aforementioned demoness.
Dude, spoilers!
I'm sure there aren't many people in the real world that can identify parasprites, either. Besides, she's a politician, not an entomologist. That episode made it kinda clear that these creatures were obscure knowledge. It doesn't matter that Celestia is over one thousand years old; if she's never dealt with them or heard of them before, she wouldn't know any thing about them.
Who would you choose in this hypothetical election in Equestria? The mare who ruled the nation for over a thousand years, spearheading its meteoric rise into a multi-century golden age with a few easily corrected bumps, knowing the ins and outs of Equestria's inner workings with great detail and intricacy, or the other guy who has to take over after that? Even with the choice, it's not much of one.
The show doesn't go into much detail about how Equestrian politics works, but you can't just assume that Celestia is floundering in the water because we only see when things get bad. For every fours episodes a season in which some evil force with a poorly-thought-out grudge against the concept of happiness invades, there's an unknown period of time encompassing the last twenty four episodes in which there's absolutely nothing wrong. So yeah, I think you don't give Celestia enough credit.
I don't know how you could possibly know that. Who's to say he didn't give a hobo a dollar? Maybe I just haven't gotten to that part. Or are you suggesting he should've grabbed a rifle and start hunting terrorists and defending freedom against neo-nazi conspirators? That's a pretty big responsibility for a guy working minimum wage. It's not like he can moonlight as Batman.
BWA HA HA HA HA! You think Equestria has a caste system? Since when? I never realized that the show established a rigid power structure that empowers unicorns and keeps the other, lesser races down!
Do you mean how most nobles are unicorns? I always figured that was because of the pre-Equestrian identities of the the pony tribes. The earth ponies favored strength and endurance, so high-society stuff doesn't interest most of them. Pegasi were a warrior tribe, so they valued a more militaristic style of living based on pride and valor. It's the magical unicorns with their sense of fashion and elegance that cared more about this idea of royalty and nobility, so they fashioned themselves as such.
It's not like anyone is exempt from participating in politics because they aren't unicorns. If that was the case, then what happened to Mayor Mare's horn? It's just that a lot of the unicorn nobility descended from earlier unicorn nobles back when the divergent tribes still clung to their old ways. They still kind of do, but with less frequency. As we can see among the background poines of many formal, often royal events, there are a lot of earth ponies and pegasi roaming about, so there definitely are nobles of their tribal persuasion. If I'm missing the point, you'll have to show me.
When ponies get hurt around Fluttershy, she has a tendency to be the one who sets things right. The major example I'm using here is the dragon encounter on the mountain, where she stood up to her greatest fear to save her friends. We see her doing this from time to time. Just because she hasn't had the chance to help anypony after a natural disaster (due to a suspicious lack of such calamities) doesn't mean she wouldn't swoop in to do the right thing. That, and there's a difference between "kindness" and "a strong sense of duty in the face of tragedy".
Dear Author Person,
This might be a typo. Did you mean to write "cut off"?
7490263 Ah, yes, good catch! Fixed!
7456178
Seeing as you are supplying your intellectual conclusions on pony society, I personally have been thinking about the subspecies relationships for a while myself and would like your opinion on one of my conclusions.
During the Hearths Warming Evening pageant, it was stated that the earth ponies grew the food, the pegasi took the weather and the unicorns controlled the sun and moon. Personally, I see this as a time before Celestia and Luna, where they appeared after the founding of Equestria with the joining of the pony tribes. With the appearance of the two alicorns, the unicorns would have had their main job taken away leaving them free to pioneer the advancement of culture, magic and science while the other subraces continued to preform the previous jobs and actions without much room for change. Because it appears more likely that a pony's type is most likely the same as its parents, this would lead to a higher percentage of rich unicorns than pegasi or earth ponies. Additionally due to their ancestors fame and fortune, many unicorns no longer needed to work as hard and could therefore live in larger groups than the other subraces. As time went on, these "free" unicorns would gather together around a point of safety, AKA; the princesses. With a higher exposure rate to the rulers, they would be far more likely to receive recognition and titles. This lead to a city like Canterlot existing with a "classy" and pridefull group of unicorns.
While there may be the nobility of unicorns, they can also be the subrace that Equestria could technically survive without in a pinch because they have lost their core position as a controller of the world. In fact with closers observation, one might find that they are the LEAST racist of all pony subraces. While they may be snobbish and aloof, it is important to note that they are like that to all ponies and make very little discrimination about who or what they are insulting. Pegasi have made their main city, a city that is famous throughout the world, completely inaccessible to any race that can't fly. It required unicorns to bridge the gap between subraces by creating a spell that would allow the flightless the ability to walk on clouds, and even then, based on Twilight's comment about "finding" a spell, it is highly likely that it is not very well known based on her reading record. However I only belive this to be an oversight by the pegasi and a lack of communication among the other subraces. Pony society seems to be the type to overlook matters that humans would take for granted.
The subrace I belive to be most racist is actually the earth ponies. Based upon several comments made by Applejack stating "No Magic", a thought which seemed to be completely accepted by the community, unicorns would naturally be ostracized. Additionally when the Flim Flam brothers appeared, they brought forth a machine that not only would have greatly increased production, but would have allowed unicorns to become a labor force that could easily increase profits. While I realize that the episode was trying to recreate the story of John Henry, (Google the folk tale you uncultured hicks), the cider machine only required a minimum of two unicorns to do a job that took nine ponies (counting Applebloom and Granny Smith as one collectively basses on their ages) working to exhaustion to even give the machine a challenge. No matter what they payed to buy the machine, or even rent it, they easily could have become rich in only a few days. Of course, that can simply be explained away by Applejack having poor business sense, but I personally feel that the whole problem started with her aversion to unicorn magic.
Anyway, I really love this story and feel that it is one of the true gems in the HIE geanra. Thank you for all your hard work.
7496454 Thanks for enjoying my story! I do enjoy getting chapters out there, even if I don't do the writing part very often.
Anyway, you make a lot of good points about the days of early Equestria, but I only have a few problems with your conclusions on earth ponies. When Applejack spoke against using magic, I doubt that was a sentiment against magic. In Applebuck Season, Applejack presumably had no problem with Twilight harvesting those apples with her magic the way she did. I see Applejack's behavior less about race and more about tradition. She talks about "The Apple Family Way", and does things based on how they've always been done. When it's time for Zap Apple Jam, the whole family does these embarrassing, hokey rituals that serve little purpose other than preserving their family tradition. It doesn't allow for the use of magic because the Apples have always been earth ponies, so their traditions up to this point don't require magic. If Applejack ever had a unicorn child, that kid would be taught to do things the Apple Family Way, only because of the long-standing traditions before them. Nopony would be ostracized for their race.
So when Flim and Flam came with their machine, Applejack was against its use because it went against Apple Family tradition. And besides, unicorns always made a good labor force. All their machine did was reduce the amount of labor needed to a sum of zero, and anypony could use it.