And we are off! The third of a trilogy is always the best, right?

Surely you didn't think that I would leave Twilight hanging? This is her turn to sparkle... or glimmer... Shimmer maybe?

As usual, expect there to be plenty of consensual fun as Twilight, Starlight, and somepony else learn a new type of friendship.

Stamped on the tag was a number, zero-eighty-three.

Thank you...

Huh...
Well, depending on how things go in this, this might end up being the first story in THIS series I end up faving...

Will there be spanking in this story?

8161387 I feel like you should still give it a chance.
I mean, before CotLM, I read AND enjoyed quite a few fics that focused on Diamond Tiara, and I hated her then.

8161402 That is planned for, I believe.

8161423 ...I'd say something about that, but at the same time I don't want to.

8161431 join the club here is your membership card

8161466 hey me too moment i saw her i was like "KILL IT WITH ALL THE FIRE"

Yeah ... I knew we had to address Twilight's transgression. Not even the talking-to she got from Thunderlane was quite good enough. I can't even imagine making that kind of mistake; I might feel too guilty to look Fluttershy in the eye again. That being said, I thought before they even began that she was too inexperienced to do a scene with a gag; Cadance made a good call there.
Now, Glimmer as her 'training pet' ... that's an interesting choice. She has a pretty serious complex over control as it relates to her; she's obviously the sort of person, in most of her life, who takes charge. However, she's afraid of how she might hurt somepony if she gets carried away with her power ... oh. A lot like what Twilight's trying to rectify in this fic, eh? That might make her perfect to help Twilight learn these lessons.

Starlight, you've never really been outmatched or dominated in your life; being in a submissive role will be totally new for you. Nervous?

8161492
She did make a really great villain, that's true. If you asked me in the first half of S6, I would've agreed. But now I think how well she worked as a villain is why she's compelling as a struggling hero-to-be; she was just so damn terrifying and effective at doing horrible things, she finds it hard to believe she isn't somehow predisposed toward being evil. Imagine trying to be a good person when you're having so much trouble understanding the distinction between 'right' and 'wrong', leading you to suspect there's something broken inside you and all the effort is pointless. It does make her harder to understand as a character when her moral compass is so skewed, but it also makes her more interesting (I think) because the path to redemption is uniquely challenging for her.

8161387 Absolutely not a problem. I can understand not wanting to read about a character you don't like.

8161403 No need to push them. If they don't like her I am happy that they state as much and don't vote the story down as a matter of course.

Cadance lit her horn and tested out the new spell she had been learning. Teleporting across the room, she reached a wing out at the doorway and pulled Starlight Glimmer into the room.

'Don't be a fool! What have you heard, and why did you listen?' Cadance's eyes flashed and her brows stuck out like bristles.
'Princess Twilight, ma'am!' cried Starlight quaking. 'Don't let her hurt me, ma'am! Don't let her turn me into anything unnatural!'

8162154
That is true; everypony else's reaction to her is uncharacteristically good. I will totally concede to that. Like, Trixie still gets under Twilight's skin, but Starlight doesn't? I cannot figure out how that makes any sense, even taking everything I know about Twilight into account. The worst part was not getting to see her village's process to forgiving her. Just a bit of a montage and then they hug her and apparently everybody's fine. The closest we come to hesitation on their part are the moments after Starlight would slip up and use magic to control somepony. That little moment with Big Mac, and then of course the mass-brainwashing. They were pretty mad at her about that, at least.

Damn, so much hate on Glim-Glam 'round here. And I swear to gods, half the folks that bitch about her would be complaining that the show is stale and never changes if she wasn't added. Whatevs. This story looks like fun.

So, why is this put into the "TwiGlimmer As A Side Ship" folder when this is an actual TwiGlimmer fanfic?

8164571 I thought I got the groupings right. There will be a 3rd character forming a little poly group. I figured since the TwiGlimmer stuff will be about 1/3 of the action, it was a side thing?

8162532 Yeah, but I doubt that anyone want another Tantabus incident, and Starlight Glimmer IS powerful enough to do that. I think that Twilight has learned a bit from Luna's mistakes.

8162532

Well as far as the town knows she never did anything. Only Twilight experienced the time travel.

I just get annoyed by how she's better at magic than Twilight ever was with seemingly no training at all.

8172668
Sure they know she did something. She lied to them about being markless, convinced them to give up their marks, and then intimidated them into remaining markless when they regretted that decision. A cult leader is culpable for what they do to their members.
And, yes, the magic thing is a problem. Not just being as good as Twilight; Starlight Glimmer's talent is also magic, it's not inconceivable that she's about as strong as unicorn Twilight, and Twi hasn't been an alicorn for long, meaning one could suppose that alicorn power has to be matured into. And as to 'training', she said she studied her Equality spell for years. I imagine studying magic for years makes her at least as much an academic as Twilight, and she's pretty clearly older than her, so perhaps she's even more experienced.
The problem to me is that she was as powerful as that before her redemption, back when she hadn't had any friends since she was a little kid. If you remember back in early season 1, Twilight's magical ability rapidly got better right around the time she made her friends, like having those relationships is what made her so strong. But now with Starlight's lonely, vengeful self being just as powerful, that throws a wrench into how we thought magic worked.

8172963 Discord threw the wrench in first. Do Not forget Sombra and Triek either. Magic is just power, and in world such as theirs, it seems that hard work WILL eventually grant greater power. In the first Episode she was introduced, Starlight was nowhere near as powerful. But do not forget, she popped up spying on the ponies from time to time, and admitted to preparing to ruining their friendship. The preparations probably involved a LOT of training, enough to increase her power to Twilight's level, or higher. I think it ultimately came down to the fact that Twilight became complacent, and Starlight did not.

8175550
I suppose that's a decent point, certainly possible. Their power level was never entirely depended on the quality of their relationships, training was always a factor. It feels a little hollow to think that one can overcome the loss of magic gained through friendship simply by training harder, but then again, Starlight alone could never have the kind of group magic that the Mane 6 can wield, so I could say that is the magical level that cannot be accessed by those without friendship.
Though in the case of the major villains, I assumed they followed different magical rules. Tirek stole his power, somewhat similar to Chrysalis. Discord comes from a dimension of constant entropy which means he certainly follows different rules or has a different form of magic; he's inherently a wild card.
And as for Sombra ... well, my justification there isn't so much a well-cited, plausible theory as it is a headcanon, but I imagine that what makes him so powerful his use of yet another magic type, possibly pure dark magic (It must exist because Twilight called the Inspiration book 'dark magic'). I think Sombra's power must be that, because it looks so different, even changes the aura/eye colour of the otherwise normal-looking ponies who use it. Possibly, those changes in appearance are more extreme and permanent if a pony uses it too much, which explains why Sombra was only called a 'unicorn', not any kind of monster, but he was almost as tall as Celestia, his mane moved on its own, and his horn was a sabre (I know the comics, but B canon only counts for B canon). We don't know a lot about his personality, but having enslaved a people and built so many layers of protection around his palace, that means he must have no regard for other's suffering and be deeply distrustful and pessimistic. He doesn't score high on the Elements, is what I'm saying, which ought to make him less powerful ... unless he's using dark magic instead, and why would dark magic need friendship to work? It probably works better the more friendless and evil he is. How do I figure that? Well, let's go back to Inspiration Manifestation: the creation magic was incredibly powerful, hard even for three alicorns working in tandem to break, which suggests that dark magic can be stronger than the normal kind, and explains why Sombra was strong enough to curse an entire empire out of existence. But what broke that power was an act of friendship, specifically one of honesty, which suggests that dark thrives on the absence of the Elements.
Like I said, really more of a headcanon, but that's how I make sense of it.

8176144 There is one thing you are forgetting. Twilight herself would admit that there is much they do not understand about magic. Look at our history with science. Until the voyage of Columbus, everyone believed the world was flat. Who is to say that the common belief of magic is always harmony?

8176180
Oh, I didn't say all magic was always harmony, though I'd understand if you didn't read my whole text wall. Specifically I suggested that maybe dark magic runs on disharmony instead. If what you mean, though, is that ordinary magic that we see ponies using day-to-day might not always be strengthened by friendship ... anything is possible, but that's real stretch. The whole ethos of the show is 'friendship is magic'. And in a lot of cases or even all cases we could name, friendship was the driving force behind all the powerful magic that saved the day (romantic love in the case of Shining and Cadance, but that's basically just extremely good friendship). To say that friendship might not be what makes magic strong? When did Twilight or anypony else imply that magic had so many unknown depths that ponykind could have gotten that basic of a detail wrong?

8176231 You are also forgetting natural magic. Thinks like timberwolves and the ursa's. Also, I think discord has the command of disharmony magic. My view is that there are different magic types, with different strengths and weaknesses. Emotions would play a powerful role though.

Harmony: powerful with many united hearts, but far weaker without them. The elements of harmony are a great example. Almost useless alone, stupid levels of overpowered when united. The most well known, but least understood.

Chaos/Disharmony: Powerful all the time, but completely unpredictable. Users tend to go mad. Discord should be the poster boy.

Dark: Destructive emotions. Arrogance, hatred, greed. Things that can break you. Powerful, but difficult to control without it controlling you, and leading you down a destructive path. Can be controlled though, as both Celestia and Twilight have done in proper Canon. Sombra and Nightmare Moon are uncontrolled, and Celestia/Twilight using it are controlled.

Wild: The natural magic of beasts and plants. By far the most versatile, but least usable. Everything from a timber wolfs regeneration to Parasprite Reproduction, and even the variety in effect of poison joke. Using it takes a great deal of understanding, but yields more options than any other kind when/if mastered.

Disciplined: Magic gained from training and effort. It is raw, but very usable. The hard work needed to obtain it guarantees the user mastery over it, as if it were an extension of themselves. This is what I was referring to, In that with complacency it deteriorates, but diligence makes it stronger. This is what Starlight used against Twilight, and gained a great advantage due to the mastery it naturally provides. It is the least well known, but most understood form.

8176259
Hmm. That makes a lot of sense. If we have light, dark, and chaos, I suppose there's an 'order' magic as well, that being 'disciplined'. And if that's what you were driving for, that totally works for Starlight! Her whole problem could be described as an excessive need for order and control over others. It would make sense if the Equality spell had to be created within the order school, and also make sense that she began studying the order school rather than the customary light school in the first place. And order, of course, doesn't depend on friendship, which explains how she was powerful while alone.
It still seems to me that light magic, aka the magic of friendship, must be the most commonly used form and must have the most effect on ponykind, but why is that? Are they just naturally more disposed toward it because they're a friendly people? Does it biologically agree with them more, as chaos magic does for Discord? Or is this strong leaning toward light magic a holdover from the formation of their country, when light magic drove off the dark magic of the Windigoes?
Oh ... ponyfeathers ... you just expanded my headcanon and I need to go update my fimfics!

8176282 Then you have emotional magics. Changelings, sirens, windigo...

8176301
Ones that directly feed on the emotions of others, sapping them as other schools don't. It's not the same as magic that depends on the caster's own feelings or relationships, those being our run-of-the-mill light and dark. What those creatures use could almost be called voyeuristic, gaining power from relationships that they aren't even a part of, or in the case of changelings not genuinely a part of.

Is that ... the vampric school?

EDIT: No, I've got it! Been working on this idea for a while, but it needed a little updating. Here's how I explain them:
I submit that those creatures need to use a particular sort of magic for nourishment and magical strength (Changelings need light magic, Sirens and Windigoes need dark), but lack the capacity to use it on their own. Why do they lack it? It's not because they don't have friendship or negative emotions themselves, no. It's because there’s an invisible ‘second phase’ in ponies when they use magic.
Step 1: ‘feeling love’
Step 2: ‘creating love energy’
Step 3: ‘using the energy to fuel their magic’
It's like magical digestion. And that second phase happens so quickly that it’s barely noticeable. But those creatures don’t have that second phase. They are not biologically able to create that energy, and so have to drain that energy from those whose bodies can perform that process. They even use phrases like 'love energy' and 'negative energy' in the show. They're not feeding on magic exactly, they're feeding on what the magic runs on.
Think of it like how an animal can't just absorb things from the sun and soil and create nutrients inside their bodies to nourish themselves. Only plants can photosynthesize like that. So to get nutrients, animals have to eat the plants or eat the animals who ate the plants.

8176282 You had discipline magic half right. In addition to order, it also encompasses trained discipline and mastery. It is easier to use a skill you mastered than one you simply learned. Granted, without chaos for flexibility, it is wholly predictable. In the case of friendship and harmony, you cannot push it hard, or it may break. With Discipline magic, you can push it all you want, as it is designed for that kind of strain.

Weird considering she is one of best characters on the show.

Brilliant backstory. Great redemption. Everything is just perfect with her.

And if you actually pay attention to the show, none of the villians had to pay for their crimes. Discord betrayed them to Tirek, yet received no punishment. Trixie enslaved Ponnyville yet received no punishment. Luna imprisoned Celestia and tried to make eternal night again. No punishment.

Sunset betrayed Celestia and stole an important artifact from Equestria. No punishment. The human 5 were even willingly to look after her despite the fact they should have the most reasons to hate her. And she was quickly forgiven by them. It's her own fault that she stays in the school of people filled with people she wronged. The only ponies surrounding Starlight that she wronged were the Mane 6, but they already showed they forgive quickly. The rest of Ponyville don't even know who Starlight is. Trixie, too, came to a town filled with ponies she wronged, so of course the town would be distrustful of her.

Starlight committed no crimes because her village was outside Equestria, if you pay attention to the map, which does show large areas that are not Equestria and has sent them to places that are not Equestria before. She committed no crimes in Equestria itself. Heck, she never committed any crimes period in that village before the Mane 6 arrived and even then its debatable. Each pony gave up their mark willingly. The fact that they were only mad at her for lying should tell you that. And they could have gotten them back at any time except for the fact they were spineless.

Think about it. The cave with the marks had no guards. The staff, which they assumed takes the marks, is floating unguarded in front of the marks. The glass is easy to break. They are allowed to go to the cave anytime they want. For all they knew, they Starlight couldn't stop them if they got their marks back, because she would be just as weak as everypony else without their marks.

More likely they were afraid they would have to leave the town and the people if they got their marks back.

Are fans just so dumb that they can't put 2 and 2 and 2 together?

As for the Mane 6, they were in her village where she is the highest authority. Not the princesses because they are not in Equestria. They come in and threaten order, so she has every right to do something about that. You may not like it, but that's her job. To prevent anarchy.

As for the time travel, using time travel and changing the past are not actually crimes, despite what idiot fans think. Why would it be? The closest anypony ever got to it was Starswirl, and he couldn't change history.

Plus if you go by Twilight's experience, you can't actually change the past. By its very definition, its impossible. IF something was changed, they would already be living in that reality because it happened in the past. Which means history wasn't changed. They just ended up in an already existing alternate reality, which was always completely seperate from the original. The original timeline would always stay safe and sound, and if Twilight had stayed in it, nothing would have happened.

It's kind of like Star Trek 4. They were already living in the reality the way it would be when they go back to the past. The transparent aluminum formula was always supposed to be given to that one company, because that's how it actually happened in history. In the Next Generation, they found Data's head despite the fact he hadn't gone to the past yet, and pretty much only goes to the past because they found his head.

Basically, any changes in the past were meant to happen, because that is how it's always been. What happened with Starlight and Twilight was more of a Sliders type of thing.

And this is if you don't go with the idea that the whole thing was just a simulation created by the map to help Starlight. The map does show it had the ability to take the scroll anytime it wanted, meaning it knew there was never any danger.

You know, Starlight haters are the worst kind of people. The kind of people that really shouldn't be watching this show to begin with. They are shallow. Everything about the show goes over their heads. As bad as they like to say Starlight is, they're worse. They're against friendship. They're against forgiveness. They make judgements without understanding characters. Yep. Starlight is definitely better than them. 😈

8662408 Whoa. Okay, but you might have wanted to tag the others in this conversation or else they won't see this.

8662408
So what you’re saying is that her so called crimes were not in Equestria and that those timelines aka “alternate realities” already existed without Starlight creating them?

Your first point makes sense, but the second point is kinda questionable didn’t those realities need Starlight’s interference to happen? Let’s not forget she almost blasted her villagers with some kind of spell while I doubt it would have killed them because she’s Starlight she would not hurt a fly it was probably just to take their marks again since she said she studied that spell for years. I can’t imagine her using a spell that would murder ponies if she was so against that in Cutie Re-Mark also why she wasn’t punished you are right her crimes were very small compared to Discord, Trixie, Luna, and Sunset.

You are such an amazing person overall, but Starlight haters aren’t the worst people in the world some are pretty respectful, only the toxic Starlight haters stink since they take the hatred too far at times.