This story is a sequel to In the Absence of Sunset Shimmer
Continuity diverges after Rainbow Rocks.
Twilight Sparkle's power over magic has grown since she visited the strange parallel world populated by ponies. She's trained under Sunset Shimmer, learning new spells daily, earning herself greater focus and stronger friendships.
However, magic can be found outside their small circle of friends. Sunset Shimmer is invited overseas to visit a school that is dedicated to teaching humans the mystic arts. The headmistress, Starlight Glimmer, appears to have good intentions, but Sunset's doubts rise as she meets the source of their knowledge: Another visitor from the far reaches of the multiverse.
Meanwhile, Twilight encounters a murder committed through the use of magic. Danger closes in on every side as she unravels the mystery clue by clue. With Shining Armor at her back, and magic flowing through her veins, she's sure she can conquer any challenge.
But the school and the murder are connected, and when the plots converge, Twilight will have to face her greatest challenge yet...
In an infinite multiverse with infinite possibilities, there is a third Twilight Sparkle.
And she's made Sunset Shimmer's home her own.
Rated Teen for
Muchas Smoochas
and
Severe Butt-Whooping
Part of The Heart's Promise Continuity
Lord Mayor Applejack
Fahr Drill
The Unmitigated Disaster
Scootaloo Will Fly!
Nature in the Wild
DayBreak
Lightning Struck Home
In the Absence of Sunset Shimmer
An Equestrian Griffon
If You Weren't Afraid
The Worst Kept Secret
Rhythm and Rhyme
In the Absence of Twilight Sparkle
The High Pariah of Breezy Bastion
The Heart's Promise
In the Description:
Shifting careers from science cop to reporter?
Time to read!
--Spade
Okay, haven't started reading the story yet, but I just have to say, even though I knew the mirrorverse existed in this continuity, I did not anticipate that version of Twilight showing up, even when you showed the cover. Looking forward to finding out what's up with that.
Edit: Now I have read it.
Wow, and I thought I was giving the Twilight of my AU a hard time . . . how much time has passed between the first and last parts? She's described as being around Starlight's age in the last part, and she's old enough to drink, so she couldn't have been sent there immediately.
I like the setup for the relationships from "In the Absence of Sunset Shimmer", although I do wonder why Big Mac didn't also "recognize" Twilight, unless he'd heard the name from Shining Armor a while ago and has already had time to come to terms with it?
I'm detecting shades of Terminator in that last segment.
Awesome beginning, and looking forward to seeing what comes next.
Fascinating. Lets see he hows this plays out. Curious to see how this Twilight is handled. Is she pure evil, Sunset Shimmer levels of bad, or something else.
So, here we have two Twilights, neither of which is BookHorse?
I'm in
Oh shit! I loved the first one. Gotta remember to read this soon.
It's here! It's finally here!!!111!
This is indeed a red-letter day! You better believe I'm going to be awaiting each and every update with baited breath!
Um...what's a "scantron?"
8028688 A scantron is basically a sheet of paper with a bunch of circles that you can fill in for multiple choice quizzes and tests that a machine can scan and automatically grade. I had to use a lot of them in college.
8028793 Well...I've been to three universities and have two degrees and I'd never heard or seen the word before.
Thanks!
8029535 The last time I was in school was 1992 (and I didn't start college until I was 26 1/2), so it must be a new-fangled thing.
8029622 I was in college from Jan. 1984 to Dec. 1987; and as I said, I was 26 1/2 when I started and thirty when I graduated.
I was in a master's program from '89-91 and in a Ph.D. program for one year ('91-'92) before suffering total burnout. I was 35 at the time.
Wow. Was that really so long ago???
A trip through memory lane, this chapter.
I guess given how Shining was the last chapter reveal meant that we couldn't see the past back in the prequel... but it's really cool to see the past stuff here.
Of course, the Twilight conundrum over Sci-Twi and Princess that AJ was grappling with in this chapter didn't ever really get resolved and the only person who was able to act like Sci-Twi was her own person without awkwardness was Sunset. They told her something, though. It just didn't fix it.
And it looks like Starlight is a bit less hella awful in this world... but her better attitude toward her compatriots could conceal a personality that could be just as manipulative and self-centered.
What happened to Starlight in main-verse, here, given that we haven't seen her in Heart's Promise yet? It could even happen the same for most of S6 (until the finale) since she could simply be somewhere else this whole time.
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Well... the EQG verse tends to make minor antagonists into bigger antagonists, see how Snips and Snails were "evil" and so was Filthy Rich. (Although, I always liked it when a Sunset redemption story paid attention to Snips and Snails, who graduated from "stupid local boys" to "evil minions", and sorta... had Sunset be the mentor that evil overlord Sunset couldn't be. *siiigh* if only.)
Anyway... I guess for Starlight it's hard to believe she'd be worse, though. Maybe having to respect them to get anywhere might have softened her up?
... Or maybe it just meant she never learned the lesson of "Even if you have the power to dominate others. Don't."
Oh man am I excited, I love the "Reflections" universe! Looks like this chapter is set about 8 years in the past before the previous Absence.
I'm guessing here Shining Armor is in the sway of Empress "Hearbreak" Cadenza of the Crystal Empire.
I love the backstory this gives.
The day I get tired of Applejack's countryisms is the day they can put me in a box.
Yeah, I completely agree with you Sunset and Applejack, I hope you don't change your mind down the line...
So, two romantic meet-cute moments, a wonderful slice-of-life dinner, and dramatic introductions to the third Twilight Sparkle! I wonder why this meeting of Twilight's double never caused Sunset Shimmer to look for her own double.
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I was wondering the same thing, but it is possible he never actually met her. In the first movie I don't think he's a student, he just makes a cider-delivery and bounces. Of course, it is really weird that Applejack never mentioned that name to Big Mac as the name of one of her friends.
HEH!
Hence why I will never consider being a teacher. I just don't have that kind of patience.
I'm more of a cyanide guy myself.
This amuses me far too much.
Granny Smith, not a known giver of fucks.
I didn't really like that song.
Well! How interesting...
Glad I finally got around to starting this. Looks to be interesting times ahead. Also,
I am so glad I forgot about this if only so I could laugh about it as if I'd heard it again for the first time. Also also,
Not sure what a botato is, but if it's anything like a potato it's probably delicious when cut up and deep fried!
Hm. So this, in the timeline, is a prequel to Absence of Sunset. Where the cast is just meeting EQG-world Twi for the first time, after Rainbow Rocks. Yet a third Twi appears, one who is magically gifted and isn't Princess-Twi?
I feel we're in for a wild ride.
Strangely, only ducks live in Peopleburg.
And already I'm amused.
Shining Armor and Sunset Shimmer, unexpected.
And with a son.
Aunt Scootaloo, interesting.
And Aunt Twilight. There is some explaining that needs to happen.
Which, is impossible with normal means I believe as a heat blast enough to make all the moisture from your body vanish would probably be enough to set you on fire.
I figured.
Yeah, that's for later.
Moondancer. Neat.
How interesting...
Bullshit.
Raven, Ray, coincidence? Possibly, but as this likely involves at least a murder mystery SUBplot, if not the main plot, I'd say this is important.
Celestia. Lesti. I'd probably have picked it up sooner if not for my having never seen that as a nickname for any Celestia, it's usually Celly or Tia. But, I suppose that'd have been too obvious.
'Fraid so.
Maybe, but he still managed to discover in a matter of seconds, possibly a few minutes, what might have taken you days if not more.
You would.
I'm inclined to agree.
This should prove interesting.
That, sounds about right.
Hm...
R.I.P, Spike The Dog.
Adorable.
Hm, King in one world, Doctor in this one.
Oho! Ain't that a twist.
Such romantic, slice of life scenes with Sunset and Shining. Kind of funny, how in so many Sunset stories, Sunset resents Cadance for getting what she wanted most (alicornhood). I wonder if this world's Cadance feels something similar.
Poor Principal Celestia, hopefully Twilight tells her pseudo-daughter to call her as soon as possible, I suspect a few hours snuggling Sunny is going to be highly therapeutic.
I'll admit, it's been so long since the first chapter was published I had to really wrack my brain to remember everything that happened, but I got there! (I could have just gone back and reread it I guess, but who has time for that?)
You really do write nice slice of life scenes that are simultaneously believable and fun to read. I'm really looking forward to seeing how things pan out!
I am so sorry for taking so long to have a look at this chapter. It's coming along nicely, although I'm just realizing how much you like to have characters killed off. That's not a bad thing in this case, but it may partially explain your downvotes.
As for the mystery, I know Sombra and Starlight have met thanks to ItAoSS, and the death seems magical in nature (almost vampiric), but I don't see why he would be involved in the death of his own sister. If it wasn't by his will or consent, it may act as the basis for a heel-face turn later.
Hey, officer tape shouldn't give her so much trouble. If he's the father of this world's Scootaloo the two of them may be indirectly related.
I'm looking forward to seeing more.
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They've been a couple since In The Absence of Sunset Shimmer, soooooooooo... Shrug!
A lot of the time I just wanna do something different than the thing everybody else is doing, whether it be Scootaloo's flight, Celestia's immortality, or Spike the dog's likability. It's the little things that set a fresh new world apart, alongside the big things. And the medium things.
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Jury's out on whether Cadence even knows about Shining and Sunset, since she became the President of United States of Pedestria rather than the Dean of Crystal High. Aaand since there's no First Man in sight, the poor woman hasn't even got a booby prize to replace her high school heartthrob.
Sadly, many things must happen before the recovery can occur. Messages must be sent, lives must be changed, and horrible things must be uncovered.
But then they can totally snuggle!
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Mmyeah. Try remembering what happened in the first story as well. That's the real ticker!
I'm a bit embarrassed that chapters have taken this long to produce, but that's what happens when you have responsibilities and a life and a job and a healthy video game addiction and a love for film and several shows to binge watch and time to sleep and aaaaaaaaaaaaa...........
Thank you. I do love showcasing the life of my characters before and after I overturn their worldview. It's an opportunity to really make the world lived in and alive. I do need to write more pure slice of life and comedy stories one of these days... but probably not very soon.
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I find that slightly hard to believe that all my downvotes come from people butthurt over character death
I've only killed Raven, who is a practical non-character in the show and my story, and Dog!Spike, who perished in a previous story. That's not to say that's the only body-count we'll see, but...
Frankly, I'm pretty sure I'll have at least some downvotes on every multi-chapter story I post, because some folks just don't like my writing. My humor, my pacing, my subject matter, it's all suspect. And besides, what's a few red marks to me? I've had fun writing the story, and I've had a few dedicated souls to join me on the journey. I'm gonna keep writing what I like!
I do like to kill characters, because I enjoy the emotional impact it can have on the characters and the readers. The death in this chapter I know wasn't very affecting for the audience, but it wasn't supposed to be. The one in the previous story, though? That's a thing with long-reaching consequences and still can leave an ache in the reader's heart. So I make sure to play out the emotion for all it's worth, because strong emotions are more memorable.
I always make sure to only kill a character when the resulting story would be better than leaving them alive.
Besides, you can't very well have a murder mystery without the requisite murder.
If the murder has anything to do with them! Which it might! Or not!
Boy, what would you even call that? Foster sister in law's biodad? That's quite the indirect relation!
Though, considering the strange turn genetics takes between the worlds, he may very well not be related! Maybe? Will I ever admit one or the other? Probably one day.
Yay! It's back! I've missed this story, since I'm such a fan of its prequel, "In the Absence of Sunset Shimmer."
I hope it won't be as long before the next chapter is posted.
Huh?
I, see.
We do.
No.
I can imagine.
No.
Yikes.
True enough.
It is.
Yup.
Beg pardon?
That's, a relief.
Clever stallion.
Could you get surgery for that or something?
Hm...
That name alone is making alarm bells ring in my head.
A LOT.
You have no idea.
Good luck.
Oh jeez...
Can't make bricks without clay.
Oh boy.
Oh she is. She's just an EFFECTIVE mad scientist.
Accurate.
Ah, another round with one of my favorite stories.
I enjoy the fact that this dark mystery thriller nevertheless has spent the majority of its time luxuriating at the Apple Family Reunion. Is it weird that I kind of wish, in the manner of an Agatha Christie novel, that the entire mystery of alternate universes and mysterious deaths tied to a cross-continental university could somehow be solved over the course of a weekend on-site at Sweet Apple Acres, while everyone munches on a Brown Betty?
That's never going to change, buddy. A good farmer should know when the time is ripe!
An interesting digression on teleportation. However, I'm quite confident the subject won't come up again in this story.
Oh Shooot! And it was now I realized one of the advantages of mirror universes: When an author has built a ton of rich characterization into someone that nevertheless needs to die, there's a second chance to see that character again.
Does Daring Do of Equestria know about the Portal?
Interesting. It feels like this Fancy Pants is slightly sneakier than Equestrian Fancy Pants (but only slightly). A lot of fans forget that pony Fancy Pants is a fairly sneaky noble himself.
I am intrigued indeed. If you're really tying this into the reflections-verse, the relationship between Sombra and Celestia could not be ignored...
Now I hope that this Moondancer gets quality time with her Twilight Sparkle. It doesn't sound like Moonie has other friends.
Interesting. Sounds like Twilight made a magic detector, but in this AU she never got a chance to build a magic trapper.
Good to see this still going. I feel like I should point out that some of your paragraphs aren’t separated, thanks to Fimfiction’s poorly implemented autoformatting. I’d recommend giving every new chapter you upload a careful look before publishing.
The chapter itself is pretty good, with some lovely bits of foreshadowing/set up something tells me that Dulcimer’s presence here is a red herring, and he’s not going to be nearly as bad as his pony counterpart.
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Could you pick out a couple? I can't find any. The only suspects I see are just long paragraphs where the one sentence ends right at the end of a line.
Like this:
This is on purpose.
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Hmm, I can't seem to find them now. Weird. Of course, I'm only skimming through the chapter now. If I read through the entire chapter again carefully I could probably spot them, but I just don't have the time for that atm
Tension bombs going off in SPADES.
Shadow Shadow Bobado?
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It's Spanish, apparently. Oscuro/Dark, Sombra/Shadow, Relampago/Lightning It's an in-joke regarding a previous series of mine, in which a disguised Sombra made his mark as a fashion designer under the pseudonym Dark Shadow Lightning.
Sounds rough.
Indeed?
Ah hell.
Nice call back.
She's had a DAY.
Oh boy.
Sombra.
Fun fact, Oscuro and Relampago mean dark and thunder. So his name, is Dark Shadow Thunder. Which sounds stupid as hell and I LOVE IT.
The Dazzlings.
Nuts.
Both?
I don't like this one bit. I get that she's not the same psycho cult leader as the pony her was, but...
Oh.
Oh boy do you.
Yeah, I've been there.
I like you.
Granny Smith best character.
BEST. FUCKING. CHARACTER.
Well, better than continuing to screw up with no correction.
Ah...
And who knows how to avoid making things blow up in their face.
And it is beyond hilariously edgy.
Poor Twilight. Does Big Mac know that Spike could talk? Because losing a pet is really tough, but people would get over that within a year or two. But losing your talking, intelligent pet is almost like losing a child...
I don't know how Twilight would ever be whole again, not without some serious therapy that I doubt she'll submit to because then she would have to talk about magic.
I like the callback to Moondancer, and the parallels to Amending Friendship. I always knew keeping magic a secret was a bad idea! Now it looks like Moondancer will have to be the one that clears Twilight's name.
9201867 Good times!
Poor Moondancer, always left behind and forgotten no matter what universe she's in. Good chapter!
Yup.
HAH!
So it seems. I should reread this at some point to remember what's going on.
They're good dogs, of course she does.
Oh that's gotta sting.
Probably not.
Glad to see this back in action!
Heheh, Apple Bloom is hilarious. I wonder who she will end up with in this world.
I hope the Princess of Friendship can solve the friendship problems of a second Moondancer.
Man the Highborn Isles are throwing off so many red flags. I feel like a rebel terrorist attack on the school is only a matter of time.
Geez Twilight, could you not see what it would do to Sci-Twi to see the living version of her dead
sontalking dog appear in front of her?I love this so much, I really hope to see more
Vinyl?
Nope. Starlight or the third Twilight from the description.
Or just Princess Twilight.
I think the Queen Of Air And Darkness is more interested in one Harry Dresden than Shining Armor.
And he's voiced by the Ocean Dub's Vegeta.
Let's hope SHE'S not evil.
Prime Minister?
Hm, what's going on?
Eh, some people are into that.
That's fair.
To say the least.
Biologically.
Teleporting.
I don't think it'd backfire like that.
Ooof.
Sounds about right.
Aw, but it's funny!
Oh that's fun.
Damn right.
Hm...
You know how fucking edgy that sounds if translated, right? It means literally "Dark Shadow Lightning". Which sounds like a bad OC.
To say the least.
How don't you know Luna?
Like Tirek?
That, sounds horrifying.
Ah shit.
Interesting...
There's history here.
Jeez.
Aaand there she is!
Also, good thing Shining stopped pony Twilight from going to the police station. That would have seriously complicated things.
Hehehe, you know Spike is going to return the favor when he goes back to Equestria, we'll see which of the two of them is more pettable then!
Very cool to see the positive effects of this new magic. Call me crazy, but I doubt this Dulcimer is somehow a good guy.
Also, have I pointed out before how ironic the title is? Unless the absence is the two other dimensions currently lacking a Twilight Sparkle.
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It's the only thing I'm working on storywise right now, so more shall come, in its own time.
More. Shall. Come.
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I also have a recap in this blog post.
Oh that's just precious.
Dulcimer is acting on behalf of Prime Minister Fancy Pants, in order to study the school. But Dulcimer's more interested in magic than taxation.
Dat's de joak.
Twilight Sparkle never went to Canterlot High in this version of the tale. She got super sick and was unable to attend the AcaDecathlon.
These are the questions the story seeks to answer!
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Took her two flibbing years to show up, but there she be!
I gotta throw myself a bone occasionally. Things get messed up in much different ways later down the line.
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Mm, you know I'm the East India Trading Company when it comes to background ships!
Jury's out on Bloom. Sometimes I wanna ask her how she feels about bowl cuts, and the rest of the time I just realize I've put Featherweight through enough heartbreak to last three lifetimes in as many worlds. He's at least a friend, though that's about as far as it can go unless something happens on either end.
We know Scootaloo's still on friendly terms with Lickety Split in this world. She had a lunch date planned with him at the tail end of the last story.
Sweetie hasn't said a word, and never has she ever watched Button Mash's live streams on Spontaneous Muscle Movement (SpoMo). So she claims.
Admittedly, Spike's as much a guilty party in this as she is. And, well, there's something that I hope to address later...
C'mon, now. The drake has some decorum.
They are equally pettable.
Truth be told though, it's a paradigm shift every time he meets this Apple Bloom, followed by a period of confusion going back to his Apple Bloom. The mind takes a moment to readjust, you know?
A heroic Sombra you can believe, but Dulcimer? The very name sends chills down your spine! Truly, Dulcimer is the source of all evil in this world, and shall ultimately take the position of Final Boss come the climax.
Ha. Hammer Dulcimer, One Stringed Angel.
Sombra and Dulcimer both have a connection to the mummification spell... and they’re both at the new school. The plot thickens. That and the fact mirror Twilight is there... methinks the School is much bigger than it appears.
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Yare yare, indeed.
It's quite fun to learn the slang and colloquial phrases of another culture.
To reveal the absolute depths of my ignorance, I had no idea Touhou had an anime. I thought it was just a video game series.
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One variation certainly does. But the undead unicorn wizard and the time-stopping mad scientist don't necessarily reflect their counterparts in the here and now. Unless, of course, they do...
Here there be dragons, indeed. But be they friend? Or foe?
Something along those lines.
You're a very clever woman.
Mirror Pony Twi, gotcha.
Probably for the best considering what he can do.
That's fair.
It's something.
Well then.
Wonder what that's like?
That worries me.
Effectively.
That's not ominous at all.
Should be interesting.
Or neck if you push the wrong buttons.
You didn't get along one bit, did you?
Closer to good doppelganger. Well, the Doc doesn't seem evil so, more successful doppelganger, I guess?
In a manner of speaking.
Only other Artifact with the word Alicorn in it in the show proper is the Alicorn Amulet. You seem, well not harmless but, not dangerous enough but, so did Sci-Twi and she went full "Fuck reality, I want science!"
And so the plot thickens.
This just... gets better with every chapter.
Interesting. We finally get a POV on this new Twilight Sparkle. Good to get her universe confirmed. And with Starlight, we've gone from fearing the school might get caught up in a rebellion, to realizing it's probably where the rebellion is going to launch from, once Starlight has converted the school into a Shadow Academy.
Now that Twilight knows about the portal to Equestria, I wonder if she'll think about going there instead. Given how much easier magic is to perform there, I would think her goal would be much more easily accomplished on that side. (I mean, the lower ambient magical energy in Pedestria is probably the reason Daydream Shimmer didn't become a permanent alicorn). On the other hand, there would probably be a lot more magic-savvy eyes on her in Equestria.
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This is Twilight we're talking about. And one with a doctorate at that!
None of this is ominous! It's just a bunch of people with magical power getting to know each other and nothing bad will ever happen.
Yeah, every Twilight Sparkle's about as harmless as a nuclear reactor--good at what it does, but don't irritate it.
Not everything to do with Alicorns is sinister, see Celestia and Cadence, but they are not tame lions, so to speak.
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It's almost time for it to begin to twist and turn!
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Thank you for saying so! In every story it's important to grip an audience tighter and tighter with each passing page, lest they get bored and wander off. Let it not be said that a MyHobby story was boring!
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It's kinda the unreveal, but I felt it was important to spell it out. I feel like implying that there are more than three Twilight Sparkles might break the bonds holding our world together.
Said it before, will say it again, the Young Jedi Knights series rocks major socks. Kinda impressive how much the Second Imperium's assault on the Jedi Academy is an inverse of the Death Star battle that took place twenty years previously. Now they're the rebels.
That said, something serious needs to happen to turn Starlight Glimmer, peaceful protester and vocal dissenter, into the next Robespierre...
Smart--Twilight-level smart--but it does ultimately depend on what her ultimate goal is. The Grimoire Alicorn is the pathway to many abilities some consider unnatural, with Alicorn just being the eye-catching upgrade on the cover. Maybe she's content to be a teacher in this world and only has everyone's best interest at heart?
In this continuity, Daydream didn't happen on account of the Friendship Games playing out in a very different manner in the absence of Twilight Sparkle--more on that in a couple chapters.
In the context of the show, I'm not sure. Maybe they didn't wanna touch the whole Sunset becoming an alicorn thing because of the drama surrounding the end of Season 3. Both she and Twilight have wings and a horn during Legend of the Everfree, but when they actually visit Equestria, there's none of that.
I'd blame a lack of consistency, but we're in fanfiction land, goshdangit. I require closure!
We know the Elements of Harmony that found their way to Pedestria have transformative properties. Perhaps that's the thing, making it a temporary increase in magical prowess tied to the stone rather than their bodies, because their bodies aren't built for this sort of magical ability. That's why when they go to Equestria, they're themselves--but if they used the power of the stones, they'd probably either go Rainbow Power or full Alicorn.
Maaaaaaaybe.
Eyes both good and ill-meaning. But which side would be more interested?
Why are the rest of the stories in this series complete, but this one isn't?