This story is a sequel to My Little Teelo: Winter's Silence
Her third trip to Equestria was supposed to be dull, just “cultural summer school” writ large. Dozens of dedicated bureaucrats had burned the midnight candle to insure that this would be the case. After all, no one, including her, wanted too much excitement this time.
So it was too bad that neither Teelo nor the civil services of two Equisian governments had anticipated her best friend’s unswerving loyalty, an ancient enemy’s patient attention to detail, or Crush’s flair for spectacularly gruesome efficiency.
Now Teelo has to survive a heaping helping of excitement—while making sure the United States government and the citizens of three empires, five countries and two planets remain blissfully unaware of what’s really going on.
It was going to be a long summer…
The cover image is composed of clip art since I'm no artist! However the background was created by an artist, named Pony Berserker, and the original can be found at Deviant Art.
Teelo's head comes from the Inkscape clip art library, and the fonts are "Celestia Medium Redux" and "PostCrypt".
Haha, after reading this chapter twice on two sites i still love it. Please continue the excellent work!
not a bad start
can't wait for the next chapter
Heh, I think Chrysie really should have taken the time to learn about her opponent. For a race of shape-shifters the Changelings really lack subtlety.
looks like another winner.
Oh no it looks like this takes place after discords reforming... this should be interesting.
So easy to ruin carrots by cooking them… Best to leave them raw. Silly cafeterias. (Don't mind me and my ruminations on root vegetables…)
Is looking good, the story is.
Heh, the voice of trouble!
Perfect timing.
I see what you did there…
ominous planning eyes are never a good sign.
Behold, I hath caught up to the current chapter!
Ahh… So the upper
classcrust does do something useful!Oh no they have incurred the wrath of powers more horrible then
Discord, Chrysalis, Celestia Luna or any other in Equestria dweller can fathom...
upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f3/Uncle_Sam_(pointing_finger).jpg
Phantom fleas.
Seems legit.
Must have next chapter now!
2621547
Heh, heh.
You have NO idea...
this should be good.
There are many things going on at once. I cannot help but think that longer chapter length would help to give each part more time in the spot light. Or maybe that thinking is backwards, and giving each part more time in the spotlight would increase the chapter length. I'm sorry, I'm just a bit obsessed with nice long chapters, and I'm often giving people this advise. I'm maybe a bit paranoid of people misunderstanding what I say, among other things, so… What I meant is that the pacing of the story is good, but I'd rather see more of the story at a one time, than have less at a time, but more frequent chapter updates. I have no experience writing a story of any size larger than microscopic, so… *head-desk* I need to talk with people more.
I have to wonder, what might the reaction be if the Trollestia meme was mentioned.
Considering trolls here are not very “troll-y”. 
2714678
Actually, I used to write the entire story before posting anything. That's why the first two Teelo stories completed so quickly. Now that I've gotten bitten by the "weekly posting" bug I find it changes my focus.
I've always tended to write short (around 3k words) chapters, but MLT2 for instance has a couple of 10k+ chapters in it.
You're right, there are a lot of plot threads running simultaneously, which would make longer chapters a bit confusing in my opinion. For example we have separate threads for Earth and Equestria, and in Equestria we have a thread following Teelo & co, another following Celestia/Discord/Chrysalis, yet another for Fjell/Sannheten, and finally one for Twilight and Professor Nimbus.
That's 5 threads, which I believe is the limit most readers can comfortably handle. Naturally some of these threads will coalesce but new ones will undoubtedly branch out.
However, many of my stories start with multiple threads that eventually collapse to one or two as the story reaches the end. At this point I'd say we're nearing the middle of MLT3.
what no more cliffhangers
!
2779945
Keeps you coming back...
Yay, germane Discord is amusing.
The chance to read the latest chapter took a while in getting to me, I was unable to use my computer much for two days, and then seven different stories in my favorites updated all at once, one of which with multiple chapters.
I noticed that when Emma first used the toys, she was recognized as "Lady Teelo", yet now the figurines know she wasn't Teelo. That is an inconsistency.
Luckily it can be easily corrected.
2804381
Actually, it isn't.
Can you guess why?
Don't you mean Celestia?
2805928
Hmm, either you assume that changing the first chapter derails the rest (although I at least can think of a way to patch things up) or for some reason I'm not aware of you aren't wrong. So no.
Assuming you wish to keep this Denglish correct, I would write:
BTW, replying to my comments on that story page doesn't inform me of any of your replies. I only noticed because I didn't managed to read this chapter before. Knighty should fix this bug.
2806186
Yeah, I fixed that in the manuscript. I'm going to repost all chapters once the story's done so these glitches all disappear at one time.
As for the toy "not recognizing" that Emma wasn't Teelo, this *is* Celestia we're talking about. Remember Luna and Twilight's figurines did recognize she wasn't Teelo.
So did Celestia's...
...except she was stirring the pot, giving Emma a "sneak peak" behind the curtain.
Celestia's figurine has her anima, a shadow of her personality. And since she's a thousand years old...well plotting is sort of built into her habits. Besides, she could see Emma wasn't an adult.
Clearly, whoever Emma was she was A) close enough for Teelo to give her the keepsake and B) smart enough to figure out its secret and C) brave enough to come back after the initial shock.
Celestia has a thousand years of experience reading people and judging their character. She recognized Emma's value to Equestria, mere simulacrum or not.
She's not all sweetness and light. She said it herself, she'll do anything for her little ponies...
2806555
Thanks for the Denglish, I'll change that. It does sound better!
2807577 Hmm, Sun Hammer didn't seem to notice. Also, rereading the chapter 2 I didn't see Lil' Luna and Lil' Twilight interacting with Emma. In chapter 3 she already used their batteries up, so the conversation happened off-screen. So either I missed the clues again, or you forgot the actual details, misremembering what you wrote.
2807580 Happy to help, although I only noticed that I misspelled Denglisch - or maybe it is more correct to say Germish? At least the rest is ok.
2809992
Ok, Sim!Sun Hammer was a mistake.
If you remember, the conversations did happen off screen, because both Sim!Luna and Sim!Twilight mention the strange questions Emma was asking, and definitely recognized she wasn't Teelo (when they were talking to the parents)
Have to fix that Sim!Sun Hammer thing tho...good catch. At least that one one won't derail anything.
Nice update
I like it when chapters are longer than 5,000 words
hope next chapter is out soon
Ahh!! I must know what happened to Celestia!
shit meet fan
Celestia's inability to grasp humans being gray not black and white is still a joy to read. But she will probably get a glimpse of Teelo's darker side when she gets her hands on that Troll.
fucking cliffhangers again... ill see you in a week...
LOVE IT!!! Keep up the good work!
Can Crush destroy a soul? Something tells me that a troll is about to find out, very soon.
3130839
You'll have to wait and see. Just remember Matt's motto: "It's never that simple".
3130879 "Nothing ever is!"
I get the impression the 'corpse' will still be breathing when she buries it
Ponies and Trolls, welcome to why you don't mess with humans 101
ouch, cue awkward situation in 3...2...1...
Hardly awkward.
Some things are better off dead.
Somepony should have said after the above: "That is crashing pretty hard."
Oh, I forgot to ask: How did Teagan move so fast with Pinkie, when Heavy Hoof tried to outwit her?
3276844
She was riding Pinkie...
Also, the time she and Pinkie confronted Heavy Hoof she had used Crush to fly, much like the Hulk jumps, or like Thor uses Mjolnir. Crush can pick which way "down" points.
watch out for that cultural first step, its a real lu lu.
another chapter, another cliffhanger.
Looks like child services will have an interesting day.
Dammit Celestia, what the hell?
You don't get to claim that you aren't going to tell her what she should do and that it is her choice completely after all but stating that you think she should stay. Emma initially seemed to want to go home, but then Celestia pretty much did everything she could to convince Emma that she should stay without outright telling her that. What the hell is she playing at? Furthermore, Emma is still very much a child by her own culture and laws regardless of what Equestrian or Troll society might say on the matter. Her parents deserve to know what is really going on, legally and morally.
Bullshit. She says it is her decision, but not-so-subtly pretty much tells her she thinks she should stay. "Now, I'm not saying that she should stay... But she would probably be very useful and it would probably be good for her and everyone else and there's so many reasons why I think sending an untrained child into a warzone would be an excellent idea. Of course, it is entirely her choice and I'm not going to tell her to do anything one way or another, but I'm just saying..."
She isn't infallible, Emma. She has made many, many mistakes in her life. Particularly in recent times.
You know what would be perfect? If Emma ends up getting killed pointlessly as a result of this bullshit. Oh, and if Celestia doesn't manage to weasel her way out of being largely responsible for it. Of course, since this is a rather typical fantasy story what'll probably actually happen is that Emma manages to somehow save the day and grows and matures from the experience and everything turns out happy and for the best and Celestia gets to look wise and shit instead of a goddamn moron. Goddammit.
Seriously, what the hell is Celestia playing at? What the hell is wrong with her in this chapter?
Twilight, you dumbass.
3587931
First, let me thank you for leaving a long and detailed comment. This is the kind of feedback all authors appreciate and really enjoy.
Celestia is being Celestia, this is exactly how she acts in canon. See the Nightmare Moon incident, Dragonshy, The Return Of Harmony, The Crystal Empire, and Magical Mystery Cure.
A couple of chapters earlier Chrysalis accuses her of saying or doing anything to protect her little ponies, and Celestia agreed with her.
Celestia is a chess master, she lays plans within plans, and she always has an eye to the long game. Her weapon of choice is always suggestion, never (or almost never) direct orders. She arranges matters so that everyone acts of their own accord to accomplish Celestia's goals.
Yes, exactly. This is how Celestia has ruled for a thousand years. She never orders, she only suggests...and it works. Even better, all actors, acting of their own accord, firmly believe they themselves brought about the result. Which, of course, is true.
Celestia is kindly (which is not the same as being kind), and she's polite. However, no one ever said she wasn't a politician...
Ah, but now you may be letting your outrage bias you. She does make mistakes, but she wins more often than she loses. As Lady Silkwind pointed out earlier, there is a reason the soft and colorful ponies haven't become food for apex predators like dragons and griffins.
Without providing any spoilers, give me a little credit.
Emma is not a fighter, will not become a fighter, nor will she become a hero. As she said, she's not an idiot. While she is a typical teenager, with more confidence in her own capabilities than is warranted, her role is that of counselor and support system for Teelo, not a hero-in-training.
Now that would be telling.
Yes, well, Celestia moves in mysterious ways. Wait till you catch the next chapter and I suspect your eyes will bug out...
3589709
Oh no, I understand all that. I just don't get why nobody there seemed willing or able to call her out on her bullshit.
She's being incredibly stupid, manipulative, and well... she'd being a bit of a bitch and doesn't even seem to see anything wrong with it. Yes, she is a bit like that in canon, but I kinda hoped she'd either... learn a bit of humility or at least have someone call her out on her very obvious attempts at manipulation. I'd have thought that the events of your previous stories could have helped her character develop a bit, but apparently not. Also: A big difference between her in-show behavior and her stupidity here is that the threat facing them now is something that she herself may not be able to face and knows next to nothing about. In most/all of the in-show examples, she actually had a plan for how the characters in question would deal with the situation.
Yeah, I had guessed all of that. Celestia's actions are still ridiculously stupid and infuriating. Emma should not be in a warzone, full-stop. Celestia has a responsibility to ensure Emma's safe return to her parents. She has a responsibility to make sure Emma is kept alive and well. She most certainly should not be encouraging Emma and company to lie to their parents so they can go to somewhere where she very likely could and would get killed.
I'm really hoping it all blows up in her face and she feels a shitton of remorse and maybe even learns some damn humility. Hopefully without Emma actually dying, but if that is what it takes to show her how much of a goddamn moron and manipulative bitch she is being then so be it.
3590038
Actually, as someone else pointed out, Celestia's job is to win the war, not necessarily save lives. Although naturally she'd prefer to do it that way if possible. I think her plan is making sure Teelo stays stable. The trolls should be able to keep Emma safe, more or less, but an unstable Teelo with the unanticipated power of Crush (which, you'll remember, surprised Celestia after the Flying Discord incident) is a major concern right now. I mean, flashback Teelo = potentially uncontrolled nuclear-level weapon gone berserk...
And there's always the long view to consider.
3590456
Well I suppose I can understand it, though I can't say I agree with it.
Still really want to see her pay for that shit.
It would have been nice for her to, you know, ask first. Seriously, I thought Celestia saw Teagan as kin, as equals. Wasn't she going on about something like that just last chapter? I am finding Celestia more and more annoying and unlikeable as time goes on. Teagan really needs to tell her to fuck right the hell off soon.
Going to have to face-palm right alongside Teagan here. Even with that (relatively minor) limitation, that thing is insanely useful. It's pretty damn crazy that the ponies never thought of it until now. It's also pretty crazy how dismissive Twilight is of it, because you'd think she'd be intelligent enough to realize all of the implications. Even basic military use: Get a unicorn in each squad to wear one, and have the other half connect to unicorns back at base. Bam, instant command and control capabilities. Yes, there is only a one-to-one connection, but each connected unicorn can pass on messages verbally or in other ways as well. They become something like living telegraphs. This thing is revolutionary.
Wait, so if one end is connected to Teagan... why doesn't the connection break as soon as she travels to Equestria?
...Heh. Someone's going to have to explain the situation to them better, because I don't think they really get it.
Okay, seriously, what the hell is going on with Emma? She's acting all crazy-like. Teagan didn't go full batshit the first time SHE visited Equestria.
Trolls aren't particularly bright, you see.
Wait, you're telling me that Teagan actually FELL for Celestia's bullshit? That manipulation was transparent as all hell! Just tell them the truth: Celestia tried to convince Emma to stay in Equestria, though she tried to pretend otherwise.
I notice that none of them are mentioning that they plan to go into a warzone. I kinda despise all of them right now, pretending like where they are going might not be dangerous as all hell. Seriously, do they feel any remorse for this shit? Goddammit Emma, are you even listening to yourself? The comparison is not with Australia, the comparison is with somewhere like Somalia or any war-torn country.
Exactly!
Yes, an exchange student in a goddamn warzone.
Also valid points!
Agreed completely. Go Jacob, be that voice of reason!
Goddammit, stop telling that lie about Celestia not telling her to do one thing or another. She doesn't just want Emma to choose, she wants Emma to choose to return to Equestria.
Fuck you Twilight. How DARE you say that with a straight face. You know VERY well what she'll probably be facing.
1. She hasn't technically made her choice yet. 2. Fuck no, the fuck's wrong with you? 3. Stop acting like they're the bad guys here.
Hell. Fucking. Yes.
Yes. And he's right on pretty much all counts. Especially the last one.
Kinda, yeah, considering that I know exactly how all that happened. And even if I didn't, that doesn't actually prove anything. You kinda suck at arguing, Emma.
She may not be stupid and clueless, but she's a fucking manipulative bitch.
Except their logic and laws and stuff are pretty damn alien, and she kinda neglected to mention the rogue trolls and/or the fact that some of them once considered killing Teagan.
In this case, on this subject: Yes.
I'll admit that at least Teagan is trying to stay out of it, but Celestia sure as hell didn't. I'd have to say that she isn't stupid and clueless on the grounds that she actually realizes that have Emma return with her is a spectacularly bad idea.
You're doing a pretty damn good job of proving it, Emma.
Irrelevant. The choice you are making now is stupid.
An excellent point.
Really fucking common, lately.
Hear, hear.
Fuck no.
Not a fair comparison and you know it, Teagan.
Fuck yeah, Olivia.
I like Jacob. He's not only sane, but perceptive.
Ahahaha. Yeah, they're lying to you and/or holding things back and it is too dangerous. Of course, she probably IS going to keep lying/holding stuff back to them (apparently she has no guilt or shame, and neither do any of the others), or they're going to inexplicably decide it isn't that dangerous.
What the hell, Teagan's family are all conspiracy nuts?
Not so much, actually. Ponies, on the other hand... Well, we've seen enough instances of that both in this series and on the show itself.
Goddammit Teagan, stop lying to her. I get that you really don't want her going outside and I suppose terrifying her might be a good way to accomplish that, but this shit is probably going to have consequences.
Fucking brainwashing? The fuck is wrong with you, Twilight?! Don't you have any morals? Goddammit, does she not even realize how monstrous that is?
Exactly! Besides, even if it does work as planned it would still be a horrible thing to do to someone.
Teagan and Emma have shown that we apparently actually are easily manipulated.
I'm pretty sure 1. They were trying to help her and 2. Teagan, you're being a colossal bitch. The hell is wrong with you?
Current hopes at this point: Emma dies, Celestia gets her comeuppance (and a shitton of guilt and a realization that what she did was fucked), Jacob gets vindicated, social services realizes something is fucked up, government gets invovled, diplomatic relations established with the other world.. Alternatively, sanity prevails and Emma doesn't go back, social services still realizes something is fucked up, government gets involved, diplomatic relations established.
I'll be honest: I kinda hate Celestia at this point. And I hate Twilight just a little bit too. And Emma, to a lesser extent. Current favorite character is Jacob, who has shown himself to be the only sane, intelligent, and reasonable person around.