This story is a sequel to Aftermath of the Games
Change happens, no matter what any creature wishes. Actions have consequences, no matter how badly you want to ignore them. And now, magic is starting to grow in the human world in a very big way, a way that can't be hidden in a single high school.
With the inevitable coming, inhabitants of two worlds have to scramble to get a grip on what's going on before it flows out of control. Hopefully they can figure out this new magic in time to ensure a peaceful relationship between the two worlds.
Too bad there's another party interested in magic...
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Chapters (28)
And yet again, Spike proves to be comedy gold! Thank you for keeping that up there! Poor Shining Armor...
Overall, very enjoyable, and I'm looking forward to what comes next.
Enjoy this magic while you can, girls. Government scrutiny will make you feel like an abomination before long...
I'll keep reading this story, but no offense, but I'm not into Human!Rainbow Dash having a thing for Human!Big Mac. I think my comments on "About Last Night" have made it clear who I ship Dash with. Still, it looks like things are getting more and more interesting. Here's hoping Human!Twilight can overcome her dark side like Sunset did.
6807900 you can say that again. I was practically rolling around laughing myself into oxygen deprivation there.
Ooh, we don't see both casts at once often. This promises to be quite a ride.
Oh, Spike.
Intelligent and vocalizing he may be, but that doesn't mean he's going to make as much of a fuss about biological imperatives as humans do.
I'm liking this so far. Looking forward to your next chapter!
Honestly, until I looked it up, I thought she were talking about actual chickens fighting each other. Needless to say, Fluttershy would not have been amused (
).
This makes sense, but I have chosen another path for my own series.
On the subject of their magic, I would have thougt that they would have been able to use it in their anthro forms. Also, I'm glad Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy havn't grown any permanite wings yet. It'd make things pretty awkward for them.
Last but not least, I loved Spike's response to Shining Armor's attempts to train him. Is he doing that on purpose, or is he really that ignorante of human culture? It would be halarious if it was the former.
poor Dash.....both now, and if the wings grow in gradually...
This is so cool! I love your writing style in all your stories, and can't wait to see where this goes!
She's been living in the human world for more than just a year and a half. We saw pictures of her winning three fall formals before the one in the first movie, in the first movie, meaning she's been there for at least four years.
That is my only complaint. Other than that, loving this and can't wait for more.
Yes, Twilight and Sunset will have to confront the seductive call of the Dark Side again. Possibly they will need to do so many times but the Princess was right: They do not have to do this alone anymore. They have their friends and something to hold them to the Light.
I wonder if Fluttershy and Rainbow will actually grow wings or if they'll just gain the ability to fly (channelling Pegasi air magic)? If it's the latter, I think it would be cool if they manifest 'wings' made up of their Element's light when they use that power.
Oh god... I just realised... that Pinkie is going to get her pony self's reality-warping powers!
So, the girls' magic has started to manifest. With great power comes great responsibility, of course. Has the Age of Heroes begun?
6807939
Eh, I didn't want to use the same ship twice. Besides, it's going to be a very small part of the story.
6808539
Were those all Fall Formal pics? I kind of assumed there had been more than just that dance. And anyway, this is already AU. (Forgot that tag)
6808991
"Get"? She was pulling the balloon pattern off her dress and blowing them up as early as movie one. Don't question Pinkie.
This is going to be great! I'm interested to see where this will lead. I wonder what the pony side of things will show.
So that's how trying to train a dog goes when the dog can talk back.
I only have one tiny thing to point out, shouldn't Cadance say Twilight hasn't been this happy since before her parents died, not since her parents died? Just my thought.
Something I should add: You can practically feel Sunset's joy at being able to use her magic again. It's going to take a very, very level-headed AJ to keep track of her and make sure she doesn't blow her cover by casually using her TK to do almost anything that she normally uses her hands to do.
A good start to what I hope to be a great fic.
Also Twilight still being afraid of losing herself to her dark transformation only makes sense. While this seem a good opportunity for dream therapy (because can see Twilight having even more nightmares from this) I doubt it'll really happen (this world's Luna can dreamwalk, for starters)
Looking forward to your next chapter.
Huh, it'll be interesting to see just how this story will unfold, especially with how the prequel story ended. One minor question- where's the Sunset Shimmer tag? Unless she just counts as part of the (Hu)Mane Six by now.
Wonder if Sunset will start seeing her old demon self too, and if it'll just be nightmares or literal split personality. Sunset's more stable than Sci-Twi, partially due to more recovery time, but she still has some old trauma too (reconciling with Princess Celestia is probably the biggest remaining issue). Not to mention if/how Sunset fits into the Elements (with SciTwi lining up with Magic already). As well as other threats still out there.
The attempt to train Spike was funny, especially the idea that Shining had tried before he could talk.
6809092
AU? OK, works for me.
Everything below this is just me clarifying my point in my last comment, so feel free to ignore it.
It is never explicitly stated that they are all Fall Formal pictures, but within the context that they were shown, it is safe to assume that they are. Also, yes, there are other dances, but the only ones in cannon are the Fall Formal and the Spring Fling.
Hey there. Excellent job on this first chapter. The exchanges, emotional content and humor (especially with Spike and Shiny in the case of the last one) are all well done in all the right places. Not to mention the future action set-up. :-D I'll definitely be looking forward to more of this as soon as time and inspiration will allow.
6809154
Yes, you're right.
6809342
You know, I initially forgot the Sunset tag on the prequel for the same reason: I think of her as a member of the Mane Six.
Sunset has put her past behind her, so no Sunset Satan. Reconciling with Celestia and where she fits in with the Elements are topics that will be covered soon.
There should be stories about this issue. In the human world, the Age of Magic is upon them. The two worlds are connected now for good or ill, and things are going to get 'interesting'. Sunset may have brought Equestrian magic to the human world, but if the Sirens were able to survive there for centuries, then humans must have some kind of magical energy already, most likely something that humans either can't access at will or is something that has been forgotten: there's been stories about magic in the forms of witches, wizards and the like [assuming that this human world is similar to ours].
And the government will find out or, depending on what story you read, is already looking into it with agents placed in the student body. I'm sure some know who I'm talking about.
6812616 Actually, as for the Dazzlings surviving for centuries, we don't know if that's the case or not. For all we know, Starswirl MIGHT have sent them 1000 years into the future AS WELL AS into another dimension. It would certainly be a possible explanation to how they are still alive when they were around so long ago. You bring up an excellent point about everything else though.
I am liking it so far!
Also, the evil self in the mirror thing eh with Sci!Twi? Not sure if I like that or not...
Nice chapter, I hope the girls do "Pony Up" permanently and gain all the abilities of their pony counterparts, I also hope you deal with all the implications beyond some people calling them freaks, like Applejack and Pinkie Pie having to learn how to control super strength and Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy having to learn about wing maintenance, plus Rarity might have to create whole new wardrobes for Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy as they will be needing clothes that they can put on with considering their wings, I also wonder if Sunset, Twilight and Rarity will end up growing horns.
Oops there was a typo I meant that Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy will be needing new clothes that they can comfortably wear without constricting their wings.
Loved the chapter, especially Spike failing to understand human norms. Good work.
And why do I get the strangest feeling that Midnight Sparkle will end up being instrumental in defeating human world Chysalis?
i just want to see them go super saiyan god
Is SciTwi going to encounter Berry Punch, the drunk driver who killed her parents, in any future chapters?
6832090 Well, I don't know about that. That might be best saved for a future a short story rather than be in this story.
Still, if it DID eventually happen, it would probably happen when Twi has enough control over her abilities and emotions to refrain from killing her (though Berry will still probably get the tongue-lashing of her life).
6834832
You sure about that? Because I think it would be perfect for this story. SciTwi's still dealing with the remnents of Midnight Sparkle, and an encounter with the one responsible for her parents' deaths would determine whether she lets go of her anger and grants forgiveness, or gives into it and transforms again. Personally, I think the deciding factor in this would be whether or not Berry Punch had a daughter of her own.
6834929 All right. I see your point. I just assumed they would have enough on their plate just worrying about Miss Chrysalis and Cinch. Besides, I thought Berry was already in prison (though I admit I MIGHT have misread that). The cops might seriously frown on Twi harassing somebody who was ALREADY in the slammer, even if it WAS her parents' killer.
And, yeah, I also see your point about the deciding factor.
"As much as I will always despise you for what you did, I grudgingly acknowledge that you didn't DELIBERATELY kill my parents. Thus, if I purposely killed or even just seriously hurt you, I would be - not as bad as you. No, I would be even worse than you. As sorely tempted as I am to render you too scared to even step inside an automobile anymore - much less actually behind the wheel - I won't stoop that low. But keep in mind that I might not be the only one you hurt that badly. There might be others out there with even greater abilities than mine and an even bigger grudge. Others who lack my restraint. Of course, I will admit I could be wrong and what you did to my parents might be an isolated incident. But, well, I'm willing to wager you don't know that one way or the other for certain."
Sorry. Couldn't resist.
6835210
She is. I was just thinking that they might let her out early for good behavior or something like that.
6835242 Okay. I can see that point.
Off to a grand start, though by this point I'd expect nothing less from you!
I like how Dog!Spike is already differentiating himself from dragon!Spike, while still being Spike. (As well, it should be: dragon!Spike is been raised with pony culture, dog!Spike is an ascended animal, they really ought not to be THAT similar.)
6807904
Well, you never know, this universe's human government may be an exception from the omniversal norm and might not be so paranoid and controllahahahahahahahahahaha!
Sorry, sorry. I couldn't even type that with a straight face.
6818592 Embrace it. Conflict and drama are the lifeblood of any story.
6840514
Oh I know! Conflict and drama are cool. I was referring to the "Evil Self in mirror" being a bit cliche.
6832090
....maybe...
Twilight you should be spending more time with your student fast. Yes I understand that you have pressing concerns about magic in the human world but your student is jumping to some dangerous conclusions. I hope she can become better then her alternate future self.
Hmm...Starlight seems to be slipping back into the "no one should be better than others" mindset...but her focus doesn't seem to be about Cutie Marks. Instead, it seems to be about caste, leading to an obsession with eliminating the noble caste.
...is it wrong I'm in no rush to see that ambition crushed or redirected?
Hello there. Great job on getting the next chapter up. I really appreciate you going to the effort. Excellent job once again on the exchanges, emotional content and future chapter set-up in all the right places. However, Twilight is wrong about the "no one can do what Pinkie can" part (she's obviously forgotten about Discord and Cheese Sandwich). But that's just a VERY minor detail. Anyway, I'll definitely be looking forward to more of this as soon as time and inspiration will allow.
This is going well. The talk with Fleur certainly revealed a thing or two, and her visiting the human world would be interesting. I'm worried for Starlight, she seems like she is starting down a dark path again. I hope Twilight can give her the help she needs. I hope we see more of the pony Shadowbolts, the idea of them being Twilight's guards is great!
Also, don't worry about over-complicating your stories too much, I still find them fun and entertaining regardless.
My personal opinion of why Pinkie never ascended is that Yggdrasil simply cannot take the strain of dealing with an Alicorn Pinkie Pie.
...that... can't be good...
So either she will relapse, or it's perhaps foreshadowing regarding her human counterpart?
Nice chapter, good work.
Yay! More please!
The Shadowbolts being Twilight's guard honestly feels a tiny bit contrived, but it works.
No idea where things may go with Starlight. I would think Twilight would have had some idea on how to nullify her resentment, but either she needs more time to work or she's just redirecting it.
And this mysterious backstory with Pony!Cinch (and possibly Human!Fleur's parentage) adds a new wrinkle. Or maybe it's just coloring and it won't go anywhere at all.
*hissssss!* you're canonize get the hideous game typo. Fleur Dis Lee doesn't MEAN anything! Kill it with fire!
And here's something I just thought of: Maybe One of the later chapters can have Twilight introducing Starlight to Moon Dancer, who has experience with reacting badly to a friend leaving, with Twilight even adding this admission:
"Yes, I will admit I was a pretty lousy friend before I moved to Ponyville. I admitted earlier that I was badly hurt when I found out most ponies who pretended to be my friend were just using me to get to Celestia or for help on their homework, but that's still no excuse. There were actually five fillies (now grown mares) who were trying to befriend me for the RIGHT reasons even before I became Celestia's personal student, but I barely paid ANY attention to them at the time. I'm not going to blame paranoia because, as I said before, they were trying to befriend me before I became Celestia's personal student. Rather, it points out that, by my own admission, I'm just as flawed as the next pony. Subconsciously, I think that the reason I might have paid them so little attention is because I didn't consider myself worthy of calling myself their friend."
And Twilight might have missed a few on her note to Sunset about first check-ups: namely Lyra, Principal Celestia and Vice Principal Luna (since Celestia and Luna are alicorns in Equestria, it means they have the best abilities of ALL THREE tribes [meaning they shouldn't be ruled out as "first checks"])
Still, this is just a minor point out. As usual, looking forward to more of this as soon as time and inspiration will allow.
So, instead of going on an anti-Cutie Mark crusade, Starlight may now be heading towards an anti-Princess crusade? I suspect that the key moment will be the degree to which Twilight is able to bond with her. It is hard to work to overthrow someone you love and trust as much as if she were your own mother. That said, you deserve congratulations for her not being all healed and better all at once. It is obvious what happened with Sunburst was a tremendous and destructive experience for her emotional health and it will be a long time before she's entirely able to trust again.
The comparison of Fleur is interesting too. I'm not sure if she can help her human counterpart because there are significant enough differences in their stories and (I suspect) their backgrounds that young Fleur is a much more twisted personality than her pony counterpart ever was.
#1
Oh boy. Things are about to get dicey.
#2
Damn it Darth, you just couldn't go with the adoption route, could you? You just had to blow our minds with this.
#3
I have to ask: in your Nuptialverse, you've indicated that Celestia and Luna are the only immortal alicorns thanks to Discord's curse. How do things work here?
#4
Pony Cinch was assassinated? Well, I'm not going to shed any tears for her, but I hope things don't end so grimely for the human versions of her and her daughter.
#5
Call me petty, but I kinda wish you hadn't given Twilight's guards' three peagasus ponies; it feels unbalanced. I would have prefered it if it had been two from each of the three tribes, like the mane six were at the beginning.
The idea of the Shadowbolts being Twilight's personal bodyguards being contrived... Maybe not.
Consider that after hearing from the others of what happened, Twilight would know that this group of girls who nominally form their own little group of friends in a school which encourages everyone to go it solo at all costs, after only a couple days at Canterlot were willing to leap to their opponents' aid during a crisis, and stood against their own principal to defend Twilight. That shows a strength of character you're not going to find just anywhere. Hearing that, it makes perfect sense Twilight would have gone deliberately looking for these girls, with the intent of giving them the opportunity to shine.
Also, I really like the idea floated around in various other stories on this site of the Shadowbolt girls developing more in their own right. I heard somewhere that the original ending for the Friendship Games movie was supposed to be that Twilight goes back to Crystal Prep, and the other group becomes another group of close friends similar to the Mane Six, but it was changed to "keep the band together." Since they're apparently making a fourth movie, I hope they don't just drop the entire Crystal Prep group by the wayside and vanish them. I would really like to see them as another group of friends with Twilight.
6870079
Every Alicorn is immortal here. Once Harmony decides they're worthy to represent something important (Sun, Moon, Love, Friendship...), they ascend.
I made every Shadowbolt what their Wondercolt counterpart was (Sugarcoat = Applejack, thus Earth Pony). Maybe I'll get another Unicorn in there somewhere.
6879812
I'm sorry to hear that, because I've strongly opposed the idea that Twilight (and Cadance) became immortal upon becoming alicorns ever since Mysterius magical Cure. I don't even believe that Celestia or Luna are immortal; just incrediably long-lived due to rather ambiguous lifespans (for example, aging to a certain point, and then "stopping", or whatever you prefer; they can still die, it's just incrediably hard to kill them). I can't control your headcannon, nor do I particularly want to, but I very much prefer your original idea; giving Twilight immortality doesn't add anything to the story, and it overcomplicates her relationship with Flash.
That works too.