Now that they've earned their Cutie Marks, the Crusaders and their new friends must discover their destinies...and the Crusaders have a greater destiny than they ever imagined.
After years of trying everything under the sun, the Cutie Mark Crusaders finally earned their Cutie Marks and realized their destines.
But destiny is a funny thing, and the Crusaders are in for more than they bargained for.
A visit from Princess Celestia starts the Cutie Mark Crusaders and their new friends Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon on a journey of discovery the likes of which Equestria has not seen in thousands of moons...
The entire town of Ponyville was caught up in the celebration of the Cutie Mark Crusaders' new Cutie Marks. Ponies were dancing and singing in the streets, Pinkie Pie was busy keeping the entire party stocked with punch, cake, cupcakes, and cookies, and the Crusaders' sisters were still gushing over their newfound marks. Despite all the chaos the three fillies had wrought over the years with their numerous ill-fated, ill-conceived misadventures, the Cutie Mark Crusaders were adored by one and all, and if there was one thing Ponyville loved, it was a big town-wide party.
The guests of honor sat at a specially decorated table, decked out in the three colors of the shields that made up their matching Cutie Marks. Friends and family kept coming up to them and congratulating them. "Mah hoof's gittin' sore from hoofbumps an' hoofshakes," Apple Bloom said with a grin.
"Yeah, me too," Scootaloo said, laughing.
Sweetie Belle looked over at a nearby table and saw Diamond Tiara sitting alone, nursing a bottle of soda with a straw in it. "Hey girls? Diamond Tiara looks pretty bummed out."
The Crusaders exchanged glances, then got up and trotted over to their new friend. "Hey, Diamond Tiara? Whut's up?" Apple Bloom asked.
Diamond Tiara smiled and sighed. "It's...Silver Spoon," she said.
"I thought you made up?" Sweetie Belle asked.
Diamond Tiara shook her head. "She's still pretty ticked off at me." She looked down and sighed. "And I don't blame her. I've been a horrible friend."
"Well...yeah, pretty much," Apple Bloom said. "Ah mean, no offense, but..."
"I know," Diamond Tiara said, rolling her eyes. "One good deed and one song and giving my mother one good chewing-out is a good start, but it doesn't really make up for years of being...well...me."
The Crusaders looked at each other. "Well," Scootaloo said, "have you tried apologizing to her?"
Diamond Tiara glanced to the side. "I...I'm not very good at apologies," she said.
"Yeah, you still really haven't given us one either," Sweetie Belle said. "I mean, we're totally happy to be your friends now and all, but—"
Diamond Tiara gave her a sharp look...then scuffed her hoof on the floor. "Yeah," she said. She took a deep breath. "I...I'm sorry I called you three blank flanks and picked on you and...and everything. And tried to blackmail you, and that whole Gabby Gums thing, and..." She blinked, then looked down at the table. "Wow. I'm an awful little horseapple, huh?"
"The important thing is that's all in the past now," Sweetie Belle said. "The old Diamond Tiara was the worst pony ever, but this new Diamond Tiara, that's nice and that helps other ponies? I think we could get to like this Diamond Tiara. Right, girls?"
"Right!" Apple Bloom and Scootaloo agreed.
Diamond Tiara sniffled. "Thanks, girls," she said. "I...I feel like I still have a lot to do to make up for the way I've acted..."
"Start by makin' up with Silver Spoon," Apple Bloom suggested. "An' then all five of us can be friends an' hang out together!"
Diamond Tiara smiled. "Y-yeah," she said. She stood up. "Excuse me." She trotted over to where Silver Spoon was eating cake and chatting with Pipsqueak and Button Mash. Seeing her approach, the two colts recoiled reflexively, which made Diamond Tiara grimace.
Silver Spoon turned, raised an eyebrow, and pushed up her glasses. "Hello," she said guardedly.
Diamond Tiara smiled weakly. "H-hey, Sil," she said. She looked at the two colts. "Could you please excuse us for just a minute? I...I need to talk to Silver Spoon."
Pip and Button looked at each other, nodded, and wandered off.
Silver Spoon crossed her hooves and watched Diamond Tiara silently.
Diamond Tiara swallowed nervously. "Sil, I...I'm sorry," she said. "I'm sorry for the way I treated you, I'm sorry for ignoring your advice, I...I'm sorry for always..." She hung her head. "I'm sorry."
Silver Spoon watched her for a long moment, then let out a sigh. "I'm sorry too," she said.
Diamond Tiara blinked. "What for?"
Sil toyed with the fork on her plate. "I...I've always thought you were...not the nicest pony," she said. "I've been your friend because..." She shrugged. "Because we grew up together and our dads are friends. My mom pretended to like your mom, but never really has..." She laughed. "We almost ended up just like them." She shook her head. "Anyway, there's lots of times I thought you went too far, but...I never said anything." She looked at Diamond Tiara, sadness in her eyes. "I can't help but think that if I'd said something sooner, it...it might've changed things."
Diamond Tiara frowned and looked down. "It probably wouldn't have," she said. "I probably would've just yelled and screamed at you like I always do. It...it took the Cutie Mark Crusaders to really show me how to change..."
Silver Spoon looked over at the three fillies. "You wanna know a secret?" Diamond Tiara looked up at her. "I've actually always liked those three. I made fun of them because, well..."
"Because I did," Diamond Tiara supplied.
"Yeah." Silver Spoon scuffed a hoof on the floor. "But there's just something about them, you know? They're good ponies. A little crazy, and they can act kinda dumb sometimes, but..." She looked up at Diamond Tiara. "Whenever I see them playing, I think, 'that's what real friends are supposed to look like.'" She chuckled. "The fact that Princess Twilight likes them so much but barely gave us the time of day says a lot, doesn't it?"
"It really does," Diamond Tiara agreed. She sighed. "Can you forgive me?"
Silver Spoon rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I can forgive you," she said. "But from now on, I'm not walking around with my nose up your butt, got it? I have my own opinions, and they matter."
"Of course! I wouldn't have it any other way."
"Yeah, right," Silver Spoon said teasingly, sticking out her tongue. She looked back over at the Crusaders. "So...we're friends with them now?"
"Well, I am. You still have to actually talk to them and make friends with them. You're your own pony with your own opinions now, remember?"
Silver Spoon giggled. "Now you're getting it!" She smiled broadly. "Come on, let's go hang out with the Cutie Mark Crusaders."
* * * * *
"Alright, everypony! Smile for the camera!" Princess Twilight Sparkle looked at the front row. "Girls, make sure those new Cutie Marks are right up front in the shot!"
"Jes, JES!" Photo Finish said. The flash on her camera went off once, then a second time. "I haff keptchured...ze CUTIE MARK MAGICKS!" She tossed her short mane. "I GO!"
"Remind me why we keep gittin' her t' do these big group photos again?" Applejack said.
Once Photo Finish and her assistants had packed up and left, the afterparty got underway. This time, the Crusaders, their sisters and closest friends, and Miss Cheerilee were gathered in one of the banquet halls of Princess Twilight's castle.
As the younger ponies chatted at one table, the grown-ups gathered around another. Spike the Dragon carted food and drink around to all the tables. "It's the most amazing thing I've ever seen, though!" Cheerilee said to the Princess.
"Three fillies getting their Cutie Marks at the same time for the same thing certainly is unusual," Twilight agreed. "I'd have loved to have been there when it happened."
"It wasn't just unusual though," Cheerilee said. "Here, let me call Diamond Tiara over." She stood up. "Diamond Tiara, could you come here a minute please?"
Diamond Tiara glanced over from the fillies' table, looked curiously around at her friends, then trotted over to the adults' table. "Yes, Miss Cheerilee?"
"I was just telling Princess Twilight about the moment the Crusaders got their Cutie Marks," she said. "Would you mind telling her what you saw?"
Diamond Tiara nodded. "We all saw it," she said. "I mean, when I got my Cutie Mark, it was just a quick flash of light and it was there, but those three? There was like, this big magic explosion and it lifted all three of them into the air!"
Twilight's eyes widened. "Really?" she said. "That's...definitely unusual."
"Honestly, I thought they were about to explode or transform or something," Cheerilee said. With a chuckle, she added, "Or maybe even turn into alicorns!"
Diamond Tiara giggled. "Those three, alicorns? They're nice ponies and all, but isn't that a bit much?"
Twilight rubbed her muzzle with a hoof. "Still, the way you described their Cutie Marks showing up...that's very strange." She shook her head. "I think I'd like to write to Princess Celestia about this, to see if she's ever heard of anything like that before." She smiled. "I'm sure it's probably just because of the close bond between them and all three having the same special talent. Cutie Mark magic can behave strangely sometimes..."
* * * * *
Princess Celestia smiled as she read a letter that had just arrived. "Luna! Come here!"
Luna approached the throne. "What is it, sister?"
"The Cutie Mark Crusaders finally got their Cutie Marks!"
Luna tilted her head. "All three of them? At the same time?"
"Yes..." Celestia smiled. "There's even a...photo..." She blinked, then read Twilight's letter carefully. Her eyes widened. "Oh...oh my..."
"Sister?" Luna took the letter from Celestia and read it, then studied the picture. Her muzzle crinkled in confusion. "That's...certainly strange..."
"It's not just strange," Celestia said. "It's..." She shook her head. "I must go to Ponyville, quickly. Can you take over my afternoon appointments?"
Without waiting for a reply, Celestia disappeared in a flash of light.
On the floor of the throne room, dropped in Luna's surprise, lay the photo of three smiling fillies with nearly identical Cutie Marks.
Princess Twilight Sparkle had just picked up her tea and settled in for an afternoon of light reading when Princess Celestia appeared in her study. "Twilight," she said in a breathless rush. "I need to speak to the Cutie Mark Crusaders at once."
Twilight very nearly spilled her tea. "Princess Celestia!" She turned around, setting her book and her cup aside. "Is something wrong?"
Twilight frowned. "Alright, but it might take a little while to get them here. What's this about?"
Celestia took a deep breath, then smiled. "Something very unexpected...something that may very well be as important as your ascension."
* * * * *
It took half an hour for the two princesses to track the Crusaders down. They found them at Diamond Tiara's mansion, hanging out with their two newest friends and a crowd of their classmates by the pool.
Upon seeing the two princesses approach, the foals gasped and sent up a great cheer, crowding them. Celestia smiled out over the young ponies. "Good afternoon, my little ponies. I see you're enjoying a lovely day by the pool." She spread her wings. "I don't wish to disturb your little get-together, but I must speak with the Cutie Mark Crusaders for a little while."
The Crusaders looked at one another and blinked. Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon exchanged a puzzled glance.
"We can use the atrium, Your Highness," Diamond Tiara said. She looked around at the crowd of schoolponies. "Alright, everypony! Be sure to keep things nice and clean out here! No using the pool as an outhouse!" She nodded to the Crusaders, who followed her around the side of the house; Silver Spoon followed behind them, with the two princesses bringing up the rear.
As Diamond Tiara led them to a spacious atrium lined with fancy columns, Celestia nodded to her. "Thank you...Diamond Tiara, was it? It's most gracious of you."
"Not at all, Your Highness," Diamond Tiara said, bowing. "Do you mind if Silver Spoon and I stay?"
"If it's alright with them," Celestia said, dipping her head to the Crusaders.
Apple Bloom nodded. "Sure, it don't bother me none."
"Me either," Sweetie Belle said.
"Whatever it is, we'd tell them sooner or later anyway," Scootaloo agreed. "Since we're friends now."
"And I'm delighted to hear that," Celestia said with a broad smile. She sat down; Twilight took a place at her side. "Very well. I'll get right to the point.
"I heard from Princess Twilight that there was an unusual magical reaction when you girls discovered your Cutie Marks. And I see that, aside from the slight difference in emblem, your marks are almost identical."
"Yeah. We figured out our special talent is helpin' other ponies figure out what they're supposed to be, what makes them happy," Sweetie Belle said.
Celestia smiled. "So I heard, and that is truly a remarkable special gift. But there is more to your destiny than you realize, my little ponies." She took a deep breath.
"There is a very rare type of magic that has not been seen in Equestria for thousands of moons. It is so rare that not even Starswirl the Bearded knew of its existence. I myself have only seen it take shape once in my lifetime." She swept her gaze over the three fillies. "It is called Trinity Magic, and you three have brought it back to Equestria."
Everypony blinked in confusion. "Trinity Magic?" Twilight asked. "I...I've never heard of it."
"Of course not, my student," Celestia said. "As I said, it has been thousands of moons since three ponies last possessed Trinity Magic." She stood and began to walk in a slow circle around the three fillies. "Trinity Magic...well, the simplest way to describe it is that it's very closely related to alicorn magic. Trinity Magic is created when an earth pony, a unicorn, and a pegasus find that they share a common bond of destiny." She stopped and looked at the Crusaders. "You fillies have shared a special bond of friendship for years. Now, you've learned that you share a bond of destiny. It is these bonds that have taken shape and created this rare type of magic."
The Crusaders looked at each other in confusion, then at their flanks. "So...we're like...some kind of mini-princesses?" Scootaloo asked.
Celestia chuckled. "Not quite, my little pony, but you do share something in common with Princess Twilight here." She looked over at Twilight. "Princess Twilight's role in Equestria is to spread the magic of friendship. Her friends are an important part of that role. She and her friends are the living spirits of the Elements of Harmony." She looked at the Crusaders. "The three of you have chosen your own destiny: the destiny of discovery. Of helping young ponies find their place in this world, just as the three of you have searched for your own destiny for so long." She smiled. "I heard that some time ago, you helped a pony named Troubleshoes discover the true meaning of his Cutie Mark, am I right?"
"Yeah, he thought it meant bad luck, an' we helped him see whut it really meant," Apple Bloom agreed.
"Well, that's part of what your new role in Equestria entails," Celestia said. "The three of you will not only be helping ponies who have not yet found their special talent, but also ponies who are living unfulfilled lives because they don't understand their own special talents—they don't truly understand what their Cutie Marks mean."
"Like me," Diamond Tiara said softly. "For so long, I didn't really understand...I thought what my mother wanted me to be was what I was supposed to be. Now I understand that..." She frowned. "That I can be a leader without demanding things for myself all the time. That I can act on behalf of others."
Celestia smiled. "That's very wise of you, my little pony." She looked back at the Crusaders. "You will be able to help ponies far and wide, both young and old, learn and grow and understand their own destines." She paused. "But there is much more to it than that."
"What else is there?" Scootaloo asked.
"Trinity Magic is a special form of the magic of friendship," Celestia said. "In many ways, it's similar to the Elements of Harmony, and it will only grow more powerful over time as you mature and grow and the bonds that unite you strengthen." She looked at each of the three fillies, then said, "By the time you have grown into mares, Princess Twilight may very well be calling upon you and the special power you possess to deal with the type of threat to Equestria I myself have asked her and her friends to face time and again."
Twilight looked mildly alarmed at this. "Are you serious?" she asked.
Celestia nodded. "Girls? I want you to stand flank to flank, close your eyes, and concentrate on your special talent. Think about what you've learned, think about the path you've chosen. Think about your strong friendship."
The Crusaders glanced at each other, shrugged, and did as instructed. For a long moment, nothing happened. Then, slowly, a wind stirred at their hooves. Bands of pinkish-red, light pink, and fuschia magic swirled around them, rising and falling and spinning and tilting. Then, with a loud, clear, ringing chime, a big, bright pink heart shot straight up into the air, hanging in the sky above Diamond Tiara's mansion. Inside it were the bright purple silhouettes of a music note and a lightning bolt.
The fillies opened their eyes, stepped away from each other, and stared at one another with wide eyes. "Whoa," Scootaloo said.
Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon stared at them with gaping jaws and wide eyes. Twilight Sparkle had a similar expression on her face. "Princess Celestia, what..." Twilight shook her head. "HOW?"
Celestia laughed. "Surely you of all ponies understand the magic of friendship when you see it, Twilight."
"Well, yeah, but..."
"As I said, Trinity Magic is extremely rare." Celestia shook her head. "I had honestly never expected to see it appear in Equestria again. Now that it has, I must prepare you three for what lies ahead."
"Umm...do we have to..." Sweetie Belle pawed the ground nervously. "Like, leave Ponyville or go on some epic journey or something?"
"No, my little pony," Celestia said. "Not as such. Not yet. Not for years, perhaps. But one day, your destinies will take you far across Equestria. For now, you need to learn how to fulfill your destinies, and I believe the best place for you to start is right here in Ponyville." She smiled. "There are some special magical artifacts I must retrieve from deep within the protected vaults in Canterlot. They're relics I created for the last ponies who possessed Trinity Magic. Once I return, I'll have much to teach you." She glanced over at Twilight. "Also, I believe that your map may very well summon these three fillies to help solve friendship problems. Problems that might just require their unique talents."
Twilight's ears wilted. "Greeeeat, MORE getting to sit around doing nothing while other ponies get to go off on friendship adventures." She shook her head. "Still, I can't be too upset about that. Not now. Not when these three finally found their destiny."
Celestia laughed lightly. "Alright, then. You girls go back to the party. Enjoy yourselves. You're only young once, so make the most of it. You have a long time ahead of you to worry about your destiny, after all."
"We've got all the time in the world," Scootaloo said with a grin. "Come on, girls! Let's hit the pool!"
"YEAH!" the other fillies chorused. They raced off, giggling.
Once the two princesses were alone, Twilight walked up beside Celestia. "This Trinity Magic..."
Celestia sighed and draped a wing over her. "Come with me to Canterlot. I have much to tell you."
Twilight Sparkle stared up at the ancient portrait that hung in a dusty, disused room deep within the bowels of Canterlot's most secret and secure vaults. "So these are the three mares you told me about," she said.
Celestia nodded. "Indeed. Three of the greatest heroes in all Equestria."
The ancient, faded portrait depicted a trio of mares in the ancient armor of the E.U.P. Protective Pony Platoons. In the center was a pink earth pony mare with a long orange mane held back by a big red bow. Her Cutie Mark was a large heart, made up of three smaller hearts in alternating shades of pink; at the center was a bright purple chrysanthemum. To her left, a sky blue unicorn with a short blonde mane tied up in twin tails. Her Cutie Mark depicted the same heart, with a bright purple octopus at the center. On the right was a green pegasus mare with a boyish black mane; the purple emblem on her heart Cutie Mark was of a winged sword.
"History has forgotten these ponies, but I have not," Celestia said. A small tear formed in her eye. "I offered, repeatedly, to commemorate stained glass windows and statues in their honor, but they refused time and again. Even this portrait was only painted on the condition that it never be displayed in the castle."
"Because they were very humble," Celestia said. "And because their own power bothered them. They did not wish to be held up above their fellow guardsponies." She sighed as she began unlocking several complicated spells on a large silver-bound trunk. "They were squires when I first met them. You understand that this was a very different age."
Twilight tilted her head as she studied the armor the ponies wore. "It looks to be about...two hundred years after Nightmare Moon was banished," she said.
"That's right," Celestia replied with a nod. "These three ponies possessed unusual strength of heart, and their desire to protect Equestria and...and me...created a bond that became, until now, the only recorded instance of Trinity Magic." With a loud clack, the final lock on the trunk snapped off, and the lid swung open. Three silver peytrals floated out, each adorned with a large, dull purple gem cut in a triangle. Twilight couldn't help but notice that the silverwork bore noticeable damage and was badly tarnished.
"I'll have to have the Trinity Gems set in new peytrals," Celestia said. "Sized for the Crusaders and, well..."
As the light of Celestia's horn spilled over the three artifacts, Twilight realized that some of the "tarnish" was actually ancient blood stains. She cringed. "What...happened to them?" she asked quietly.
Celestia smiled sadly. "They fought many battles," she said. "They defeated many powerful and terrifying foes. Like you and your friends, they fought monsters, demons, and the dark forces that arose to threaten Equestria." She sighed. "And...they gave their lives protecting me."
"They...they died in battle?"
"Yes," Celestia said softly. She looked down at the floor. "For the first time since my sister's banishment, a mighty foe threatened the peace and safety of Equestria. I led the charge into battle, determined to protect my subjects with my own power. The Trinity refused to let me stand alone, even though they had no chance of surviving if they fought this enemy. There was no need for their sacrifice...I pleaded with them to leave the battle to me. But they would not abandon me. Their sense of duty and justice was too great.
"They were able to weaken the enemy using their power, but it...it wasn't enough. They were struck down."
Twilight gasped.
"Their sacrifice was not in vain," Celestia said. "If not for them, the battle might have waged for days...it might have destroyed much of Equestria. I am eternally grateful to them. I just...wish they had not chosen to..."
She began to weep silently. Twilight watched her for a long time, discomfited at the sight of her mentor in such a state.
Celestia sniffled. "Forgive me," she said. "It...it has been a long time since I last thought of my most loyal guards..."
"It...it's alright," Twilight said. She tentatively put a reassuring hoof on Celestia's shoulder and gave her a smile.
Celestia smiled back. "Come, let us return to Ponyville," she said. "By the way...I am entrusting you with guiding the Cutie Mark Crusaders into their new role. Not only their Trinity Magic, but the special talent they share."
Twilight ducked her head. "I'll do my best."
* * * * *
By the time the two princesses returned to Ponyville, it was time for Celestia to lower the sun. She chose to perform her nightly duty from Princess Twilight's castle. As Luna's moon took its place in the night sky, Celestia sent a letter to Canterlot informing her sister that she would remain in Ponyville for a day or two, then settled into one of Twilight's guest suites.
The next day, Twilight and Celestia, along with Rarity and her measurement kit, paid a visit to Ponyville Elementary. In order to avoid disrupting Miss Cheerilee's class, they waited outside, out of view, until recess.
When the students poured out of the schoolhouse, they were surprised and delighted to find two princesses in their midst. Cheerilee trotted up to them, bowing. "Is there anything wrong, Your Highnesses?" she asked with a mild, confused frown.
"Nothing at all, Miss Cheerilee," Twilight said reassuringly. "We just need to speak to the Cutie Mark Crusaders for a minute."
Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo trotted forward. Diamond Tiara, Silver Spoon, and Pipsqueak followed curiously. "Rarity? What're you doing here?" Sweetie Belle asked as Rarity began unrolling a measuring tape.
"Princess Celestia asked me to measure the three of you for...well, best to let her explain."
Celestia opened the clasp of the shimmery silk saddlebags she wore, which had her sun Cutie Mark emblazoned on the sides, and withdrew three ancient, tarnished silver peytrals. "These gems are specially attuned to Trinity Magic," she explained. "In a way, they are similar to the Elements of Harmony. I'm going to have to have them set in new pieces, sized to the three of you. Once Rarity gets your measurements, I'll take them back to Canterlot—"
Silver Spoon raised a hoof. "Excuse me, Your Majesty," she said. "You're going to have them set in silver, right?"
"Err...yes, that's right, my little pony," Celestia said, blinking at the interruption.
Silver Spoon smiled. "You don't need to take them back to Canterlot for that. My daddy can do it right here in Ponyville."
"Oh?" Celestia asked.
Silver Spoon nodded. "My daddy is a genius when it comes to working in silver," she said importantly. "He'll be more than happy to take on such an important order!"
Celestia smiled. "That would save a lot of time. Thank you for bringing that to my attention."
"So whut're we supposed t' do with these things?" Apple Bloom asked.
"For now? Nothing. In fact, until you come to better understand your destines and the special magical bond you share, I would prefer they remain in Princess Twilight's care. You may wear them for lessons with her so that you can become attuned to them, but their original bearers were twice your ages when they first wore them." Celestia smiled. "Right now, it is important that you continue to live your lives exactly as you have always lived them. Be young, make friends. Have fun, make mistakes, learn new things. But you will take on additional lessons with Princess Twilight, and I expect you'll be trying to help more of your young friends discover their destinies."
"Don't worry, Your Highness!" Scootaloo said. "We'll make our mark and do Equestria proud!"
"I'm certain you will, my little pony," Celestia said.
During their entire conversation, Rarity had busied herself taking the Crusaders' measurements. She put away her measuring tape and her notebook. "All finished!" she said brightly.
"Excellent," Celestia said. "And now, my little ponies, Rarity and I will pay a visit to the silversmith. Twilight, please remain to assist these fillies."
"Of course," Twilight said.
As Celestia left, Cheerilee stretched. "You know, it's quite a lovely day," she said. "I was going to give the children a grammar quiz this afternoon, but I think instead I'll extend recess for a while and take a long lunch in town. Princess Twilight, could I ask you to watch over my students for a little while? Perhaps you can spend some time with the Crusaders?"
"I'd be happy to," Twilight said with a knowing smirk.
"Then I leave it to you, Your Highness," Cheerilee said. Whistling cheerfully, she trotted off into Ponyville.
"She has a date with your brother, doesn't she?" Twilight stage-whispered to Apple Bloom.
"Eeyup." The fillies giggled.
"Hey, Twilight?" Sweetie Belle asked.
"Yes, Sweetie Belle?"
Sweetie Belle shuffled her hooves. "I've been wondering...how are we supposed to figure out what a pony's special talent is? I mean, we've been trying to find our own special talents for years. All we ever seem to do is make messes and get covered in tree sap."
Twilight laughed. "Well...I have a feeling you're probably going to keep doing what you've been doing and dragging some of your little friends along for the ride," she said. "I mean, doing crazy things does seem to be what you three excel at."
Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon giggled.
"Still, I think..." Twilight paused, rubbing her muzzle thoughtfully. "I think if you're determined to help fillies and colts find their special talent, first you need to get inside their heads, get to know them, really figure out what it is they like to do the most."
Apple Bloom blinked. "That...makes a lotta sense, actually," she said.
"Why didn't we ever think of that?" Scootaloo wondered.
"But if it's something they already do all the time and they haven't gotten a Cutie Mark for it yet, how does that help us help them?" Sweetie Belle asked.
"Hmm." Twilight frowned. "You know, it might be easier to show you rather than try to explain it." She looked around the yard. Spotting a portly unicorn colt with a fez, she teleported over to him and spoke to him for a minute. He looked puzzled, but followed her back over to the group.
"Alright, here's your first lesson in..." Twilight paused, frowning. "I guess you could say reverse-engineering a Cutie Mark." She looked to the colt. "What's your name?"
"Truffle Shuffle," the colt replied.
Twilight blinked, but hid her bemusement. "Alright. What's your special talent?"
"I have a discerning gourmet palate," Truffle Shuffle said, pointing his nose up importantly. "I can tell from just a few bites if a food is perfectly cooked, undercooked, or overcooked, as well as whether or not the right seasonings were used."
"That's fascinating!" Twilight said. "So, what is it you plan to do with your life?"
Truffle Shuffle smiled. "When I'm older, I'm going to culinary school in Prance, then I'm going to study with famous chefs in Manehattan!"
"You want to be a chef?" Apple Bloom asked.
"No, not a chef," Truffle Shuffle said. "A food critic! I'm going to travel all over Equestria and review restaurants! That's my dream."
"That's a good dream," Twilight said. "So, how exactly did you find your special talent?"
Truffle Shuffle shrugged. "I like to eat," he said. "Probably more than I should, but I can't help it. I can't get enough of new foods and new flavors." He paused, then tilted his head. "The day I got my Cutie Mark, I was eating at the Hayburger." He frowned. "My hayburger was overcooked and didn't have any salt or pepper on it. The lettuce was all soggy and the tomato was mushy. It was the worst hayburger I'd ever had. I went to the back to complain, and the manager got mad, but then he saw what the cooks were doing and he yelled at them a lot, then thanked me for calling it to his attention. They made me a new one and it tasted perfect." He smiled. "That's when I knew. A little while after that, I got my Cutie Mark."
"How wonderful!" Twilight said. "Okay, thank you for your help. Run along and play with your little friends now!"
Truffle Shuffle bowed, then ran off to the merry-go-round.
"So we just...talk to ponies and find out what they like to do, then work with that?" Scootaloo asked.
"That sounds too easy!" Apple Bloom exclaimed.
"I doubt it'll be that simple," Twilight said. "After all, there are some ponies who don't even really know what they like to do yet. Or maybe they like to do something, but it's not really related to their special talent."
"Yeah, if it were really that easy, Button Mash would've had his Cutie Mark ages ago," Sweetie Belle said.
"Still, it's a good place to start," Twilight said. "It's also a good way to help ponies who don't understand their Cutie Mark figure it out. You'll need to build up your observational skills and learn a lot about ponies." She rubbed her muzzle with a hoof. "I probably need to start you all studying psychology and philosophy at some point..."
"UGH!" Scootaloo complained. "That sounds like boring homework..."
"If it'll help us help other ponies, we'll do it," Apple Bloom said. After a pause, she added, "but maybe when we're a little older? Ah think fer now, we'll stick t' doin' it our way. Gittin' ponies covered in tree sap." She winked.
Twilight giggled. "Alright. Small steps. Ease into it. Nopony's expecting you to turn into Cutie Mark guidance counselors overnight, after all."
"Still, maybe we should practice interviewing some of these ponies about their Cutie Marks," Sweetie Belle said. Her eyes brightened. "How about Snails? I've always wondered what his Cutie Mark means."
Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara looked at each other in mild panic. "You...really don't want to do that," Diamond Tiara said.
"Why not?" Apple Bloom asked.
Diamond Tiara glanced at Silver Spoon. Sil grimaced. "Snails' Cutie Mark...it isn't for something very nice," she said.
"Oh?" Twilight asked, leaning in with interest.
Silver Spoon sighed, her ears flattening. "Snails' Cutie Mark isn't...really what you'd call a special talent. It's..." She glanced at Diamond Tiara.
Diamond Tiara bowed her head. "Snails is...well...mildly retarded," she said. "We used to tease him about it a lot, actually."
Twilight blinked. "He's...seriously?" She tilted her head. "I always thought he seemed a bit slow, but he's really...?"
"Yeah."
"That's awful," Scootaloo said.
"Ah never knew," Apple Bloom added.
"What about Snips? Is he...?" Twilight asked.
Diamond Tiara snorted. "Snips? No, he's just an idiot. That's why they get along so well." She cringed. "Oh wow, that sounded awful. I'm sorry."
"It's alright," Twilight said. "Honestly, just between us, I've never been especially fond of those two." She grimaced. "Ever since they brought that Ursa into Ponyville..." She shook her head. "But yes, we shouldn't make a habit of saying bad things about other ponies. It isn't very nice."
"We know," Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon said in unison.
"How about we take our time to talk to some of your classmates? Some who have Cutie Marks, and some who don't?" Twilight suggested. "Maybe you can start to get some idea of how you can help ponies." She glanced at Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon and added, "You two should join us. I have a feeling you'll be helping the Crusaders a lot."
As the group moved into the crowd of laughing, playing foals, Apple Bloom asked, "Say, Silver Spoon...whut about your Cutie Mark?"
The school day had ended half an hour ago, and the Cutie Mark Crusaders, Silver Spoon, and Diamond Tiara were relaxing at Sugar Cube Corner.
"Well, we sure learned a lot about kids at school we don't really talk to much," Scootaloo said, "but I think we need more practice at this whole perverse-engineering thing."
"Reverse-engineering," Sweetie Belle corrected.
"What are you, a—"
"Yes, I'm a dictionary." Sweetie Belle slurped her milkshake. "But yeah, Twilight's advice was good and all, but I feel like we still need more to work with."
"Yeah, that didn't get us as far as I thought it would," Silver Spoon agreed. Brightly, she added, "Maybe talking to some older ponies? Grown-ups have had a lot longer to think about their Cutie Marks."
"NO!" the Crusaders shouted in unison. At the other fillies' stunned blinks, the Crusaders blushed.
"Sorry," Apple Bloom said. "We, uhh...we already did that. With Twilight and her friends. A long time ago."
"That was a really long day," Scootaloo muttered.
"Besides, their Cutie Mark stories aren't exactly what you'd call normal," Sweetie Belle said. "They all got their Cutie Marks at the exact same time, like us."
"Huh," Diamond Tiara said. "I did not know that."
"Yeah, it involved a pegasus race and a Sonic Rainboom...really crazy story." Apple Bloom shoved a cookie in her mouth and crunched noisily.
A grey pegasus trotted past their table, headed for the counter. Silver Spoon watched her pass, muzzle propped on a hoof. "Hmm," she said thoughtfully. "You know, I've always wondered..."
"Hm?" Apple Bloom grunted around her cookie. She swallowed, then asked, "Wondered whut?"
Diamond Tiara followed Silver Spoon's gaze. Her muzzle crinkled. "Yeah, there's a lot to wonder about there."
Scootaloo elbowed her. "Be nice."
They watched the pegasus buy four large blueberry muffins, then trot cheerfully for the exit. Seven bubbles adorned her flank. "She's a mailpony, right?" Silver Spoon asked.
"Yeah, sometimes," Apple Bloom said. "Ah think she does odd jobs too. Ah know she ain't too good at nothin' she does..."
"So what's up with her Cutie Mark?" Diamond Tiara wondered aloud.
And then, it happened. The Crusaders' Cutie Marks suddenly lit up brightly.
The fillies looked at each other, eyes wide.
Pinkie Pie wandered over. "Hey, umm...girls? Your butts are glowing." She gasped. "Is it the Cutie Map? Are you being summoned to help with a friendship problem? No wait...that only happens to—"
"I think we just found a Cutie Mark problem," Sweetie Belle said over her.
"What, her?" Diamond Tiara asked, pointing a hoof at the grey rump disappearing through the door.
The Crusaders nodded to each other, got up, and trotted rapidly after her. Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon looked at one another, shrugged, and followed.
When Pinkie Pie realized she was talking to an empty table, she blinked twice, mentally backtracked, and gasped again. "Oh my gosh! CMCs in action! Mrs. Cake, I'm taking a break!" And with that, she zipped off in a pink blur.
* * * * *
The fillies found their quarry sitting on a bench, happily munching a muffin. As they approached, furious whispering flew back and forth:
"So umm...what was her name again?"
"I think it's Derpy? Rainbow Dash always calls her that."
"Ah thought it was Ditzy Doo?"
"I always hear Derpy."
"Really? I could've sworn it was Muffins."
The fillies approached the bench. Apple Bloom stepped forward, clearing her throat.
The mare looked at them and smiled. "Oh, hi Cutie Mark Crusaders! Congratulations on finally getting your Cutie Marks!"
"Thanks," Apple Bloom said. She rubbed one foreleg nervously with the other. "Listen, umm...Miss Doo, wasn't it?"
The pegasus paused. "Am I Ditzy Doo today? I thought I was Muffins today."
The fillies looked at each other, blinking in confusion. "Huh?" Sweetie Belle asked.
The pegasus smiled sheepishly. "Everypony uses a different name for me every day."
"Yeah, but...what's your actual name?" Diamond Tiara asked.
The grey mare shrugged. "I don't even know anymore," she said. "I forgot years ago."
Five fillies faceplanted into the ground.
"Let's just go with Derpy then," Scootaloo suggested in a half-grumble.
"Okay!" Derpy said cheerfully, finishing the last bite of her muffin. "So, what's up, girls?"
"Well..." Sweetie Belle picked herself up and shook herself off. "We were just wondering about your Cutie Mark."
"Yeah, it kinda set off our, umm...Trinity magic," Apple Bloom said. "At least, Ah think it did. We just kinda got th' sense somethin's off."
"Oh, okay," Derpy said, looking at her own flank. "Yeah, I have no idea what my Cutie Mark is all about." She shrugged. "I woke up with it one morning and I was like, 'huh?' But after a few days, I just kinda gave up caring because it wasn't worth worrying about."
Silver Spoon blinked. "But...it's your Cutie Mark," she said. "It...it defines who you are and what your talent is."
"I dunno," Derpy said. "All I do is deliver stuff, klutz up, and eat muffins. That's just who I am. I have no idea how bubbles have anything to do with that."
"But...don't you wanna know?" Apple Bloom asked.
Derpy studied the fillies, then shrugged again. "Sure, I guess. I mean, it'd be nice to know, even if it wouldn't really change anything for me." She tilted her head. "But how do we find out what it means?"
Sweetie Belle grinned. "Well, our special talent is helping other ponies find their special talent, so if you just roll with us for a bit, I'm sure we'll figure it out sooner or later."
Derpy smiled. "Okay!"
Diamond Tiara tapped a hoof. "This isn't gonna involve one of those charts of crazy things to try like you keep at your clubhouse, is it?"
The Crusaders looked at one another and grinned.
* * * * *
Derpy frowned at the scuba mask. "Are you girls sure about this?"
"Well, bubbles could mean you're good at deep sea diving," Scootaloo said. "And wouldn't that be awesome?"
"I guess?" Derpy shrugged as Sweetie Belle helped her adjust her mask and tank. Hesitantly, she jumped into the lake with a big splash.
Twenty minutes later, one mare and five fillies lay on the shore of the lake, soaking wet from mane to tail and covered with lake algae. Diamond Tiara spat out a minnow and glared at the Crusaders. "Seriously?"
"Don't look at us!" Apple Bloom said, waving a hoof at Derpy. "How were we supposed to know she couldn't swim?"
"You didn't think to maybe ask?" Silver Spoon said archly.
Derpy tugged off her scuba mask and smiled sheepishly at the girls. "Sorry," she said. "I didn't know I couldn't swim either."
Diamond Tiara growled as she surveyed the damage to her coat and mane. "Now I'm starting to wonder if being friends with you three is a good idea," she said sourly. "Ugh!"
"Hey, it ain't like we do this on purpose," Apple Bloom said.
"Yeah, you have any idea how many baths we hafta take after somethin' like this?" Scootaloo asked.
"Speaking of which," Sweetie Belle said, "that brings us to the next item on the list: bubble baths!"
"Ooh, that sounds like fun," Derpy said. "And safer than scuba diving!"
"Well...a bubble bath does sound pleasant," Silver Spoon said.
"Ooh! I've got a nice big scrubba-dubba tub you can use!"
The fillies and Derpy jumped, startled, and turned to see Pinkie Pie lounging by the lake, a big bowl of candy corn in her hooves. "Pinkie Pie?" Sweetie Belle asked. "Have you been there this whole time?"
"Yeppers!"
Scootaloo frowned. "And you didn't think to help us pull Derpy outta the lake why?"
Pinkie giggled. "Silly! And get covered in bleeches like you all did?"
The fillies blinked. "Bleeches?"
Pinkie trotted over and dug a hoof into Diamond Tiara's mane, pulling out a fat little albino tube leech that was slightly lavender at one end. "Bleeches!"
"GAH!" Diamond Tiara shrieked. "GAAAH!"
Scootaloo frowned and ran a hoof over her side. Another bleech fell off; this one had started to turn orange. Where it had latched onto her, her coat was discolored.
"Oh horseapples," Sweetie Belle moaned as she frantically combed through her mane, tail, and coat with her magic, dislodging a dozen bleeches.
Pinkie Pie rolled her eyes. "Come with me," she said. "I've got bleech remover and coat conditioner that'll fix you right up."
"But...just...with these things still all over us?" Diamond Tiara demanded.
"Oh, they're harmless," Pinkie Pie said. "They're just sucking the color out of your hair! Like I said, I can fix this."
Five fillies and one mare trotted after her. Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon kept casting surly and disgusted looks back at the Crusaders, who looked sheepish and embarrassed.
* * * * *
Freshly clean, scrubbed, de-bleeched, and vibrant, two mares and five fillies lounged around a large table, sipping sodas. "Well, that was fun, but I don't think taking a bubble bath is my special talent," Derpy said, letting out a mighty belch.
"Of course not, it's Spike's!" Pinkie said with a giggle and a snort.
"Farting in the tub's probably not it either," Silver Spoon said with a grimace of distaste. Derpy blushed sheepishly.
"What about blowin' soap bubbles?" Apple Bloom suggested. "Y'know, with one'a them bubble wands?"
"I think she'd have a bubble wand with her Cutie Mark if that was it," Diamond Tiara said.
"I was never any good at blowing bubbles anyway," Derpy said. "They always came out square." She let out another huge belch, then peered at her soda bottle with one eye shut. "There's too much fizz and not enough syrup in this," she complained.
"What do you mean?" Sweetie Belle asked. "Tastes like any other soda I've ever had."
"Same here," Apple Bloom said.
"I guess I still miss the old hoof-made fountain drinks from when I was your age," Derpy said with a wistful sigh.
"Fountain drinks?" Scootaloo asked.
"Yeah, back before the Cakes opened Sugar Cube Corner, the old place that was there used to have this soda fountain," Derpy said. A dreamy smile crossed her muzzle. "They used to have the best cream sodas. I'd go there every day after school!" She tilted her head. "Actually, when Mr. Soda Jerk moved away from Ponyville, they left behind the old soda fountain, and I talked Mr. and Mrs. Cake into selling it to my daddy cheap because they were just gonna throw it out. I had a fun few weeks with that old soda fountain, but then it just kinda ended up in the shed." She looked down and sighed. "You kids don't know what a real soda tastes like," she said.
The five fillies looked at each other, eyes wide. A slow, crafty smile spread across Apple Bloom's face. "Are you girls thinkin' whut Ah'm thinkin'?"
"I think so, Apple Brain," Pinkie said, "but what does re-enacting the building of the pyramids of Anugypt with rubber chickens and chihuahua slaves have to do with Derpy's Cutie Mark?"
Everypony stared at her.
"What?" Pinkie whined. "You set up the joke!"
Apple Bloom gave her a half-lidded glance. "Your elevator don't quite go all the way t' th' top floor, does it?"
"Nope!"
Apple Bloom groaned. "Anyway, here's the plan..." She gathered everypony for a huddle.
* * * * *
"So what do you think, Daddy?" Diamond Tiara asked. The five fillies, Pinkie, and Derpy all stood before Filthy Rich.
Filthy Rich scratched his chin thoughtfully. "I don't rightly know, pumpkin," he said slowly. "I already have a very lucrative contract selling Pony-Cola at Barnyard Bargains. This don't seem like it'd be—"
"And you'd still keep selling that," Scootaloo interjected. "I mean it'd be cheaper and ponies would still wanna keep it in their own homes or to drink on the go. Besides, it's not like everypony would want fountain drinks all the time. Some might prefer Pony-Cola."
"This is just an added opportunity," Silver Spoon said. "You know, diversification!"
"Actually, it'd just be a loan," Apple Bloom said. "You have business connections and finances, you could get the equipment and the start-up supplies, then the Cakes and Miss Derpy could pay you back out of the fountain soda sales until you're square."
"Hmm." Filthy tilted his head. "Well, I do remember Soda Jerk's old soda shop, of course," he said. He smiled fondly. "Why, Spoiled and I had some of our very first dates there." He appraised the fillies shrewdly. "Now, the Cakes are willin' to go along with this?"
"Oh, I'm sure I can convince them," Pinkie said. "Besides, they could use the extra bits. I mean, business is great and all, but the twins are growing up fast, and you know how much it costs to raise a foal these days!"
"True, true," Filthy Rich said, nodding. "Well, alright, I'll go ahead and order everything you'll need, but everything else is up to you, including payin' me back." He gave Derpy a stern look. "You sure you wanna get into this?"
Derpy nodded. "Oh, absolutely," she said. "I mean, bringing back good old fashioned fountain sodas to Ponyville? It feels...it feels right."
Filthy Rich laughed. "Heh! Well, alright then. Pleasure doin' business with you, Miss Doo."
As the group left Diamond Tiara's house, Apple Bloom turned to Pinkie. "Now all that's left is to get the Cakes on board."
"Leave that to me!"
* * * * *
Mr. and Mrs. Cake looked at the group, blinking. "You wanna do what now?" Carrot asked.
"We wanna set up a soda fountain here at Sugar Cube Corner!" Pinkie said. "Derpy'll run it by herself, Filthy Rich already agreed to finance the start-up expenses."
"We'll split the profits any way you want," Derpy said sincerely. "I don't care about the bits, I just wanna bring back the fountain sodas I loved when I was a filly."
"It's a good idea," Sweetie Belle said. "It won't take up much space and it'll really increase business!"
"You remember how popular Soda Jerk's shop was when we were all kids, right?" Derpy asked. "I mean, you two were barely out of your teens when you came to Ponyville."
"Well, that's true enough," Carrot said. "Cup Cake? What do you think?"
Cup put a hoof to her muzzle. "Well, as long as it's not costing us anything but floor space..."
* * * * *
Two weeks later, the five fillies sat at a corner table at Sugar Cube Corner. The little bakery was busier than ever; three days earlier, Mr. Cake had installed a jukebox, which was playing lively music as ponies of all ages talked, laughed, ate baked treats, and slurped a variety of freshly-made sodas from tall, wide fountain glasses.
At one end of the counter, Derpy stood, wearing an apron, a bow tie, and a little white hat with blue trim. She waved cheerfully to the Crusaders with one wing as she scooped crushed ice into a glass and sprayed soda from a nozzle, then stirred in flavored syrup and added a ripe cherry. She topped it with a dollop of whipped cream before handing it to Twist, who smiled brightly as she took her first big sip.
"Oh my, it's become rather lively in here, hasn't it?" Rarity asked as she, Twilight, and Rainbow Dash made their way through the store.
"You gotta try the root beer floats, Twilight," Rainbow said enthusiastically. "So awesome!"
"Can't wait!" As they reached the Crusaders, they slowed. Twilight smiled at the fillies. "Congratulations, girls. I heard all about how you helped Ditzy Doo figure out her special talent."
"Yeah, who knew Derpy could make the best sodas in Equestria?" Rainbow Dash said. "Or anything at all that isn't a total disaster."
Twilight cuffed her upside the head with a wing, then turned back to the fillies. "So how did you know she needed help?"
Apple Bloom shrugged. "Our Cutie Marks started glowin', kinda like how y'all's do when th' Cutie Map calls you."
"Really!" Twilight's eyes sparkled. "That's interesting! I'll have to research that."
"Egghead later. Egg cream now!" Rainbow insisted.
"I thought we were getting root beer floats?"
The Crusaders and their friends giggled as the mares wandered over to the fountain. "I have to admit," Diamond Tiara said, "it feels good to help you three help other ponies. Even if we did end up covered in bleeches."
"Hanging out with you three is way more fun than I ever thought it'd be," Silver Spoon said. "We should've been your friends a long time ago!"
Sweetie Belle smiled. "Here's to friendship!" She raised her glass, and the others clinked theirs against it.
Less than a month after earning their Cutie Marks, the day arrived when the Crusaders would have their first Trinity Magic lesson with Princess Celestia and Princess Twilight Sparkle. Nervous, excited, and not a little afraid, the three fillies entered Twilight's castle on the outskirts of town. Although Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon expressed an interest in watching, the Crusaders asked them not to, as they were nervous enough and an audience could lead to disaster.
As they entered, Spike met them in the foyer. "The princesses are in the garden in the back," he said.
"There's a garden?" Apple Bloom asked, tilting her head.
"I know, right?" Spike said as he led them through the crystalline halls. "We're still finding new stuff in this place! Yesterday I found a wine cellar. We don't even have wine!"
"Don't let Rarity know there's a wine cellar. She'll have half of Canterlot here in a blink," Sweetie Belle advised.
"So what're they doin' out in the garden?" Scootaloo asked.
"Something for your first lesson," Spike said with a shrug. "I didn't stick around to find out what because that weird bush they're messin' around with gives me the creeps."
The Crusaders glanced at each other. "Weird bush?"
"You'll see." A few minutes later, they stood at a door which led out to a large garden which seemed to have been planted in a concealed hollow of the castle's crystal trunk. Thin, translucent crystal formed low, clear walls around a broad expanse of lush grass, healthy trees, bushes, and climbing vines that disappeared up into the thicker recesses of the trunk. An open section of the trunk let bright sunlight into the garden, which was magnified by the surrounding crystal. A thin stream, fed by a waterfall that started somewhere up inside the crystal tree, bisected the garden; two crystal bridges spanned the stream.
"Wow," Sweetie Belle breathed.
"Everything's so alive back here," Apple Bloom said.
"Well, I'll be in the kitchen if anypony needs me," Spike said. "Good luck, girls!"
The Crusaders trotted gingerly through the garden, searching for the two alicorns. As they wandered through the garden, Apple Bloom's ears kept twitching. "Y'all hear that?" she whispered.
"I don't hear anything," Scootaloo said.
"I...think I hear something," Sweetie Belle said, her muzzle scrunched up in concentration. "It's like...a whispering."
"Must just be the wind," Scootaloo said.
"Uhh, Scoots? There ain't no wind here."
"Sure there is," Scootaloo said, her wings buzzing. "Okay, so it's not very strong, but there's always an air current, especially in an area exposed to the outside..." She stopped and looked at the other two, who were staring at her incredulously. "What?"
"That's...the first time I've heard you say anything, well...book-smart," Sweetie Belle said.
Scootaloo snorted. "Just because I can't fly doesn't mean I don't know what every pegasus knows," she said.
"There you three are!" Twilight said, gliding over a tall hedge nearby and landing next to them.
"Hey Twilight," Sweetie Belle said. "Umm...are we late?"
"No, you're right on time," Twilight said. "Come on, Princess Celestia is waiting for you just over here."
The girls followed Twilight along the edge of the stream to the westernmost part of the garden. As they walked, a constant rustling, chattering sound reached their ears. "Okay, now I hear it," Scootaloo said. "And it definitely isn't the wind."
"Indeed not, my little pony," Celestia said, smiling as the rest of the group approached her. Several paces away, a large bush with purple leaves and enormous clusters of swollen, ripe yellow berries stood, quivering and rustling. The fillies stared at it apprehensively.
"What th' heck?" Scootaloo asked, her wings flaring out.
Apple Bloom's irises shrank to pinpricks. "That plant's...awful chatty," she said. "Ah mean, dang..."
"And it is the subject of today's lesson," Princess Celestia said. "I've decided to sit in on your first few lessons since Princess Twilight herself is not yet fully familiar with Trinity Magic, having only learned what I've been able to tell her. Once she witnesses it in more detail for herself, she'll be mentoring you alone." Celestia smiled wistfully. "I would love to be here for every step of your discovery of this wonderful new magic, but my duties permit precious little time..."
"We're grateful that you're spending any time with us at all, Your Majesty," Sweetie Belle said, bowing. "It's not every filly that gets personal attention from the ruler of Equestria."
"From both rulers of Equestria," Scootaloo added. "Princess Luna's helped all three of us out with nightmares and problems."
"Indeed," Celestia said. "I'm finding that Luna is rapidly becoming the favorite princess of every filly and colt in Equestria." She leaned lower and smirked conspiratorially. "You'd think I'd be jealous, but in truth, I'm delighted. I had no idea Luna would be so good with children."
The Crusaders giggled. Twilight smiled. "Alright, girls, I think it's time we get started."
"Indeed it is," Celestia said as she opened her saddlebag and withdrew three small, gleaming silver peytrals, each with a brilliant purple gem embedded in it. Each peytral was engraved with the Cutie Mark of one of the Crusaders. She levitated each one in place around the neck of its owner, then clasped them securely. "For the time being, you will only wear these during your lessons at the castle," Celestia said.
"They're gorgeous!" Sweetie Belle enthused.
"Sil's dad did an amazing job!" Scootaloo said excitedly, her wings buzzing.
"Indeed he did," Celestia said. "I don't think any of the silversmiths in Canterlot could have done a finer job." She touched a hoof to her muzzle. "I wonder if perhaps this is the reason Fancy Pants and his inner circle are visiting Ponyville so often lately?"
Twilight laughed. "Yeah, a lot of Canterlot ponies come down here to shop ever since Rarity came into her own in Canterlot," she said. "Well, the ones that are savvy enough to listen to Fancy Pants when he tells them the difference between 'high price, distinguished location' and 'high quality'."
"Mmm, yes," Celestia said with a frown. "That's been a problem in Canterlot for a long time. I'm ashamed to admit it's even becoming a problem with the restaurant culture. There's a new food critic working Restaurant Row who I'm afraid might be undermining..." She shook her head. "Forgive me. I'm wasting everypony's time on an old mare's worries." She turned to address the Crusaders. "Now, your first few lessons are going to deal with the most fundamental aspect of Trinity Magic." She gave them a small smile. "What do you suppose that might be, my little ponies?"
The Crusaders looked at one another, then looked back at Celestia. "Blastin' stuff with friendship lasers?" Apple Bloom suggested.
Twilight facehoofed. Celestia laughed musically. "I'm afraid not, Apple Bloom." With a mischievous twinkle in her eye, she added, "That comes later." She glanced over at the bush. "Though I imagine by now you'd probably like to blast that bush."
"Yeah, it's...kinda gittin' on mah nerves," Apple Bloom admitted, shuffling her hooves.
Scootaloo frowned. "Whaddya mean? I mean, okay, so it's makin' a lotta racket, but—"
Celestia raised a hoof. "Let me ask you a question," she said. "Equestria was founded when ponies from all three tribes came together in friendship, was it not?"
"Well, yeah," Apple Bloom said. "That's why we celebrate Hearth's Warmin'."
"Right you are," Celestia said. "Now, what do the three of you know about alicorns?"
The Crusaders glanced at each other, then at the two alicorns. "Well...you're all princesses," Sweetie Belle said.
"You've all got wings and horns," Scootaloo added.
Apple Bloom tilted her head. "Umm...y'all live a really long time?"
"All true," Celestia said. "But you're missing one important thing. Though in all fairness, it's a thing most ponies don't know about alicorns." She walked over to a pear tree which stood not far away, then turned and gave it a swift buck. A dozen ripe golden pears dropped to the ground.
Apple Bloom's jaw dropped. "Y'all have earth pony magic too?"
"We sure do," Twilight said. "Applejack hasn't been telling you about trying to help me with that part of my new magic?"
"Uh-uh," Apple Bloom said with a shake of her head.
"Well, just like Rainbow Dash had to teach me how to fly, Applejack's been teaching me about earth pony magic," Twilight said. With a grimace, she added, "Mostly, it's just so I'm aware of my own strength."
"Alicorns tend to have an amplified version of each pony tribe's natural abilities," Celestia said. "I have, on occasion, been known to shatter large boulders with my bare hooves. Twilight withstood blows from Tirek that should have smeared her across half of Equestria."
Twilight paled. "Thanks for that," she said. "Luna's likely to have words with you tomorrow."
"The point," Celestia said with a sheepish smile, "is that alicorns exist in a natural state of balance between the three types of pony magic. Of course, we also have our own, unique magic—alicorn magic—which not only amplifies our other abilities and extends our lifespans, it allows us to do things other ponies are incapable of."
"Like moving the sun and the moon?" Sweetie Belle asked.
Celestia grimaced. "Well...in a sense," she said. "Before Equestria was founded, the unicorns controlled the sun and the moon. It took large teams of unicorns to move them, and after a number of years, every unicorn who aided in moving the heavens would burn out all their unicorn magic forever." She bowed her head. "Luna and I had been ruling Equestria for quite some time when we were finally made aware of this. We were...not pleased that this had been kept from us. Not when our magic allows us to control the heavens much more easily, and also forms a connection between our own lifeforce and the heavenly body we control."
Scootaloo blinked. "Huh?"
"She means th' reason she's thousands of years old is because she's linked to th' sun," Apple Bloom explained. "Right?"
"That is essentially correct, my little pony," Celestia said. "Though alicorns live much longer than other ponies as a rule, Luna and I are unique in that our ties to the sun and moon have made us ageless." She glanced at Twilight. "And if what I suspect about Twilight Sparkle's connection to the Tree of Harmony is correct, she may also be on her way to achieving agelessness as well."
Twilight took a step back, raising a hoof. "Gah! Can we not bring that up again for like, at least a hundred years?"
Celestia chuckled. "As you wish." She turned her attention back to the Crusaders. "The reason I'm explaining all of this, my little ponies, is that the natural state of balance between the magic of three tribes which we alicorns represent is also the fundamental power of Trinity Magic, and therefore your first lesson."
"I don't get it," Scootaloo said.
Celestia smiled. "You will, soon enough." She studied the three of them. "At its most basic, Trinity Magic amplifies the magic of each pony in the Trinity by connecting them to the magic of their two partners. In much the same way that the balance of earth, unicorn, and pegasus magic creates and amplifies an alicorn's power, your Trinity amplifies your own power through the balance between you." She turned and nodded to the bush. "You're no doubt curious about this strange plant."
"Yeah, kinda," Apple Bloom said, shooting the bush a scowl.
"This is an ocea berry bush," Celestia explained. "They're indigenous to Neighpon. They don't grow easily in other regions, and then only with the presence of alicorn magic to sustain them. I transplanted this one here from Canterlot." She smirked. "The royal gardeners despise these bushes."
"Ah don't blame 'em," Apple Bloom said. "Don't that thing ever shut up?"
"I'm afraid not," Celestia said with a sigh. "But that actually makes it the perfect subject for your first lesson in Trinity Magic."
"According to Celestia," Twilight said, "the easiest magic to synchronize with is earth pony magic. That's why your first lesson is to synchronize with Apple Bloom's earth pony magic using your Trinity Gems."
"And how do we do that?" Scootaloo asked.
Celestia smiled. "Touch hooves," she said. "Concentrate. Focus on your friendship, on what makes the three of you inseparable."
The Crusaders looked at each other, nodded, and touched hooves. The Trinity Gems flared with brilliant amethyst light. The fillies closed their eyes, brows and muzzles furrowed in concentration.
—never work, you old nag. They're so stupid! I mean, look at them! And that pegasus, what a joke! I've seen bigger wings on the bees in the gardens—
Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle jumped away from Apple Bloom, eyes wide. "What the heck?!" Scootaloo shouted.
Sweetie Belle stared from Apple Bloom to the ocea berry bush and back. "Was...was that...?"
"Yeah," Apple Bloom said with a grimace. "Sorry about that, Scoots. Y'see why Ah've been in a sour mood since we got here?"
Scootaloo shook her head in disbelief, her wings buzzing. "That...that bush was talking?" She blinked, then glared at the bush. "HEY! That stupid bush was dissing me!"
—catches on quick, this one. Well, I guess if her wings are garbage, at least something about her's almost kinda fast—
"Still is, I'm afraid," Twilight said. "Celestia, didn't you have an ocea berry bush with, well...more social skills?"
Celestia laughed. "Sorry," she said. "I'm afraid most ocea berry bushes are like this. That's why they're so rare."
"Because every earth pony whut spends too much time around one goes fer th' weed killer?" Apple Bloom asked with a lidded sidelong glare at the bush.
"Who'd even WANT a stupid bush like that?" Scootaloo asked.
Who'd want a pegasus that can't fly?
"Ocea berries are useful in curing speech impediments," Celestia said with a shrug. "The few herbalists who cultivate these are patient enough to tolerate the plant's nasty attitude for the greater good."
"Speech impediments, huh?" Apple Bloom asked, rubbing her muzzle with a hoof. "Ah might need some'a them berries later."
"For Twist?" Sweetie Belle asked.
"Eeyup."
"I have exactly the potion you need in my copy of Super Naturals," Twilight said. "Feel free to use my lab and mix it up at your leisure."
"Just be careful not to eat any of the berries yourself or even accidentally swallow some of the juice," Celestia cautioned.
"Why, are they poisonous?"
"Only if you call blabbing every single stray thought you have until they pass out of your system poison."
Apple Bloom winced. "Right, Ah'll be careful."
—can't be much in that head worth blabbing. One-fruit farm ponies are all the same. She probably thinks 'apple' every other word—
Celestia grimaced. "As obnoxious as this bush is, I'm afraid it really is the most expedient way for the three of you to learn to share Apple Bloom's earth magic." She gave the Crusaders a sheepish smile. "If you'd care to try again?"
Swallowing, the Crusaders touched hooves and closed their eyes. The Trinity Gems shone, and once again the voice of the ocea berry bush filled Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo's heads. Tuning out its insults as best they could, they listened as Celestia and Apple Bloom guided them through the feelings and sensations her earth pony magic afforded her. Gradually, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle began to understand, at least in part, the way an earth pony was connected to the land.
An hour later, Celestia called a halt to the lesson. "Splendid, my little ponies!" she said. "I can sense that you're developing a feel for the connection Trinity Magic creates between you."
"Why don't we all go to the kitchen? I'm sure Spike has snacks ready for us," Twilight suggested.
"Sounds good to me," Sweetie Belle said in an exhausted tone.
"Tomorrow," Celestia said as they trotted back into the castle, "we will focus on the connection to Scootaloo's pegasus magic."
"Princess Celestia?" Scootaloo asked. "What exactly are we supposed to do with this whole 'connection' thing? I mean, it's kinda neat an' all, but..."
"This is but the first step," Celestia said. "For now, you will simply learn to feel what it is your friends feel when they use their magic. That understanding is the very core of Trinity Magic. It is the foundation on which everything you will learn in the years to come is built."
"If you say so," Scootaloo said. "But...maybe no more ocea berries?"
Celestia laughed. "No more ocea berries," she promised. "From now on, any lessons related to earth pony magic will take place at Sweet Apple Acres." Her eyes twinkled. "But for tomorrow's lesson, you'll all need to be up bright and early for the hot air balloon ride."
"Hot air balloon ride?" Sweetie Belle asked.
"That's right, my little pony," Celestia said. "Tomorrow, we'll all be going to Cloudsdale."
Later that afternoon, the Crusaders met up with Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon at Sugar Cube Corner.
"So, how did it go?" Diamond Tiara asked.
"Well," Sweetie Belle said, "it...it wasn't what we were expecting."
"It was a mix of boring, annoying, and eye-opening," Scootaloo said.
"Honestly, you didn't miss anything special," Apple Bloom added. Shuddering, she went on, "you both bein' earth ponies, you would not have enjoyed it."
The two rich fillies looked at each other in confusion. "But...it was a private lesson with two princesses!" Silver Spoon protested.
"And the most annoying berry bush in Equestria," Sweetie Belle muttered. Shaking her head, she added, "Anyway, the whole lesson was pretty much meditation."
"And we learned a lot about alicorns," Scootaloo added. "That was the best part. Well, the part that didn't involve standing still and concentrating on a dumb bush."
"What did the princesses have you three do, anyway?" Diamond Tiara wondered.
Sweetie Belle suddenly smirked. "You know, if you wanna find out what it is we're doing, you could come along for tomorrow's lesson," she said.
"They could?" Scootaloo asked.
"Sure, why not?" Sweetie Belle responded with a shrug. "I mean, now that we know what we're doing, them being there won't make us nervous, and..." With a half-lidded gaze and a mischievous smile, she added, "Well, we are going to one of the few places in Equestria these two can't buy their way into."
The two rich fillies perked up.
Apple Bloom frowned at Sweetie Belle. "Okay, one, that's awful petty, an' two, that don't make no sense. It ain't like Cloudsdale is some secret place or restricted or nothin'."
The two rich fillies blinked.
"Yeah, but earth ponies and unicorns don't really get to go there," Sweetie Belle pointed out.
"So uhh...how are you two going there?" Silver Spoon asked. "I mean, even if Scootaloo can't fly, I'm pretty sure she can still walk on clouds like any pegasus, but—"
"Twilight has a cloud-walking spell," Scootaloo said. "She went to Cloudsdale with all her friends back when Rainbow Dash won the Best Young Flyers competition."
"So," Sweetie Belle said with a grin, "you two in?"
Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon exchanged a glance.
"Absolutely!" they cried.
* * * * *
Early the following morning, the five fillies headed for the balloon dock, where Twilight Sparkle was waiting. She smiled brightly when she saw the Crusaders. "Good morning, girls!" she called. She then noticed the other two fillies and tilted her head. "Oh, are you bringing your little friends along?"
"We thought they'd enjoy seeing Cloudsdale since earth ponies don't really get to go there," Sweetie Belle said. "That's okay, isn't it?"
"Of course it is!" Twilight said.
"Where's Princess Celestia?" Apple Bloom asked.
"She's meeting us in Cloudsdale," Twilight said.
The fillies piled into the basket; Twilight kept pace with the balloon as it ascended into the clouds. Scootaloo watched Twilight longingly as she made lazy circles around the balloon. "It's not fair," she complained.
"What's not fair?" Twilight asked.
"Two years ago you didn't even have wings, now look at you."
Twilight's face became sad, her ears folding down. "I'm sorry, Scootaloo," she said gently.
Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle moved in to put a hoof each on Scootaloo's shoulders. Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon shifted uncomfortably.
"I don't know," Twilight said sadly. "Rainbow Dash doesn't know, Fluttershy doesn't know, even Princess Celestia isn't sure."
"It's gotta be because of my stupid tiny wings," Scootaloo grumbled.
"No, that's not it," Twilight said. "I mean, Bulk Biceps has the same wing size problem you have, and he flew in the Equestria Games. There's some other cause." She offered Scootaloo a reassuring smile. "You're a pegasus. One of these days, we'll figure out what's keeping you on the ground. I promise."
Scootaloo sighed. "I hope so," she said.
"It might even be something as simple as you're just a late bloomer," Twilight went on. "I mean, there are unicorns who can't use magic at all until they're teenagers or later."
"Hey, yeah!" Diamond Tiara said brightly. "I mean..." She paused, then looked around as though checking for predators. "I don't like to admit this—so I never do—but my earth pony magic? Is really, really weak." With a self-deprecating chuckle, she added, "If you three had gotten sick enough of me to clobber me, I wouldn't have been able to defend myself. All I've got going for me is a big mouth and an attitude."
"Oh, we were sick enough of you," Apple Bloom said. "It's just that if we'd done that, we'd have been worse than you two." She paused, then added, "No offense."
"None taken," both rich fillies said.
"That's right, girls," Twilight said. "When you're dealing with a bully, violence is only the answer when the bully is violent. Then you're just defending yourself."
Sweetie Belle blinked. "I thought grown-ups always say violence is never the answer."
Twilight sighed. "In a perfect world, it really wouldn't be, but sometimes it can't be helped. I mean, sometimes you do have to stand up to a bully. That's just how it is."
"You mean like when you fought Tirek?" Silver Spoon asked.
"Exactly."
"You know, we learn so many interesting things just from talking to princesses," Scootaloo said. "I wish half the stuff we learned in Miss Cheerilee's class was this interesting or useful."
Twilight shot her a dirty look. "Education is important," she said. "You do not want to follow Rainbow Dash's example when it comes to school."
"Gotta go with Princess Egghead on that one, squirt," a new voice intruded. A colorful blur resolved itself into Rainbow Dash herself, coming to a sudden stop next to Twilight, her wings beating lazily to keep up with the climbing balloon.
"Rainbow Dash!" Scootaloo shouted excitedly, her wings buzzing.
"It's great to be awesome, but..." Rainbow Dash leaned in close. "Pay attention in school while you can, kid. Trust me. If you don't, one day you'll end up freaking yourself out because you didn't learn how to learn stuff." She cracked her back. "So, you kids goin' up to Cloudsdale today, huh?"
"That's right," Twilight said. "Princess Celestia and I are conducting their second lesson on Trinity Magic there."
"Oh yeah, that cool thing these three can do since they got their Cutie Marks," Rainbow said. "Man, I kinda wanna sit in on that." She frowned. "If I didn't have a shift at the weather factory..."
"Trust me, you'd get bored in five seconds," Scootaloo said. "All we're doin' right now is standing still learning how each other's magic works."
"It's not the most interesting process to observe," Twilight agreed. "It's important for what they'll be learning later, which will be something to see, but these first lessons are almost entirely meditation."
"Oh," Rainbow said, drooping. "Well, guess I'll see you all later, then. Maybe when I get off work I can show you around a bit!" She waved and flew away.
"I didn't know Rainbow Dash worked at the weather factory in Cloudsdale," Silver Spoon said.
"It's a temporary thing," Twilight said. "She's working off the damages she did when she tried to stop winter last season."
"You mean that freak blizzard was her fault?" Diamond Tiara asked.
Twilight laughed nervously. "Well, she thought what she was doing made sense..." She shook her head. "Anyway, we're almost there, so let me cast my cloudwalking spell now..."
Five minutes later, the balloon docked in Cloudsdale. A nervous, anxious group of fillies looked at one another. Silver Spoon swallowed heavily, clambered over the lip of the basket, and screwed her eyes tightly shut as she stepped out onto the clouds. She let out a frightened squeak as her hoof sank a half inch into the fluffy surface...then stopped. Opening one eye, she watched her hooves carefully as she emerged fully onto the cloud.
"How's it feel, Sil?" Diamond Tiara asked anxiously.
Silver Spoon opened both eyes, looked around at the expanse of white mist around her, and gave a little hop. The cloud caught her as easily as the grassy ground below. She giggled. "This is incredible!" She turned back to the basket. "Come on out, girls! It's safe!"
The rest of the fillies laughed as they scrambled out of the basket. "So this is Cloudsdale," Scootaloo said as she looked around.
"You've never been here?" Twilight asked.
"Not since I was three or four," Scootaloo said. "I don't really remember anything. Mom and Dad brought me to a pegasus hospital up here. I barely remember that." At the sad expressions on her friends' faces, her ears fell and her eyes widened. "Not about that! I had wing mites. They wanted a pediapegasus doctor to take care of me instead of an earth pony or unicorn doctor, that's all." She shrugged. "I mean, wing mites are no joke, especially in a foal."
"Oh," Twilight said. "Well, anyway...Princess Celestia's waiting for us in the north side cloud garden. Follow me, my little ponies!"
The fillies followed Twilight through the streets, gawking at everything around them: the banks of clouds, the columns, the fountains full of rainbows. Passing pegasi watched the little group with interest, unaccustomed to seeing not only an alicorn roaming the city, but a group of wingless ponies walking on clouds.
A pegasus colt flitted over to their group, flying backwards to talk to them. "How come you're in Cloudsdale when you don't got wings?" he asked.
"Princess Twilight knows a spell that lets us walk on clouds," Apple Bloom said.
"Yeah but how'd you get up here? Cuz you don't got wings!"
"We flew up in a balloon," Diamond Tiara answered.
"Twister!" a pegasus mare snapped. "Quit bothering these nice ponies!" The harassed-looking mare swooped up the colt and gave Twilight a simpering, apologetic smile. "I am so sorry about that, Your Highness," she said. "Twister's never left Cloudsdale, so he doesn't know much about the world below."
"It's quite alright," Twilight said with a smile. "I can understand his being curious. It is pretty unusual to see a bunch of earth ponies walking on clouds!"
The mare tilted her head. "I must admit, I am a bit curious myself. Oh! Not that I'd dare to meddle in a princess' business!"
"Oh, I'm not here as a princess today, just a teacher," Twilight said. "We're having a little field trip for a special lesson." She paused. "Actually, Miss—?"
"Windwhistle," the mare supplied quickly.
"Windwhistle," Twilight continued, "could you tell us the quickest way to the north side cloud garden? I don't get up to Cloudsdale all that often and I want to make sure I don't get lost."
"Oh, certainly! Just keep going down Nimbus Avenue until it meets Cirrus Circle, take a right, then a left on Stratus Street and go all the way to the end and you're there!"
"Thank you," Twilight said.
Twister, meanwhile, was studying Scootaloo curiously. "Wow, your wings are tiny," he said.
"Twister!" Windwhistle snapped. She snagged him by the tail and dragged him away.
Twilight forced a smile. "Well! Let's get going."
* * * * *
The cloud garden at the north end of Cloudsdale was a broad expanse of puffy white clouds ringed with columns and sculptures. Four large fountains stood at each corner of the garden, pools of rainbow collecting in the basins as rivers of separated rainbow flowed from the mouths of the Wonderbolt sculptures that topped each fountain. In the center of it all stood Princess Celestia, smiling beatifically at them as they entered. "Welcome, my little ponies! Oh? I see we have guests today."
Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon bowed to Princess Celestia. "We hope it's alright if we came to watch," Diamond Tiara said.
"Of course it is," Celestia said. "Though I expect you'll find your surroundings far more interesting to watch than the lesson." The Trinity Gems levitated out of her saddlebags, once again fastening around the necks of the Crusaders. "Alright, girls. You remember yesterday's lesson? Do the same thing today, only this time focus on feeling Scootaloo's magic."
The Crusaders sat down in the middle of the fluffy clouds, touching hooves and closing their eyes. The Trinity Gems glowed brilliantly.
"Feel the shape of the clouds," Celestia said gently. "Feel all the little raindrops living inside them, waiting to be born. Feel the colors of the rainbow, how they come together to create natural beauty. Ponies must be like the rainbow, different but beautiful when they unite. You three are the rainbow."
As the minutes dragged on, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon slowly lost interest in watching the Crusaders sit still and silent and began roaming the cloud garden, examining the fountains, columns, and sculptures.
After half an hour, the Crusaders separated from each other. "Ugh," Sweetie Belle groaned. "This is a lot harder than last time."
"Yeah, Ah feel it, Ah know it's there, but Ah can't quite..." She shook her head. "Course, you two already did this part, Ah was th' center last time."
"It will be difficult for you to synchronize with Scootaloo, Apple Bloom," Celestia said. "Earth pony nature and pegasus nature are direct opposites."
"Yeah, it took me a while to really get a feel for your magic too," Scootaloo said.
"I don't think it's that," Sweetie Belle said. "I think there's more of a..." She frowned. "I mean, it's..." She sighed. "How do I explain it?"
"I think I know what the problem is," Twilight said suddenly, her voice quiet and sad. "Scootaloo...how often do you do things only pegasus ponies do?"
Scootaloo frowned. "Not often," she admitted. "I mean, since I can't fly, I don't really...y'know?"
Celestia sighed. "That...is a problem," she said. "You two will not truly be able to feel the flow of Scootaloo's pegasus magic if she herself is not..." She trailed off.
Everypony present watched Scootaloo with sad expressions. She bowed her head, her ears folding down. "Not a real pegasus," she said.
"Scootaloo, you most certainly are a real pegasus!" Twilight said. "It's just that, well...you don't have any experience being a pegasus." She frowned. "So the question is...what do we do about that?"
"Uh, hello?" Diamond Tiara said. "We're in Cloudsdale?" She snorted. "Seems to me if you arrange for Scootaloo to stay here for a few weeks doing weather stuff she can do without being able to fly, that should be enough of a crash course in pegasus magic." She paused, blinked, then took a step back, blushing. "I mean...would that help? Your Highnesses?"
"It would indeed, my little pony," Celestia said. "Scootaloo? Would that be acceptable to you?"
"Well..." Scootaloo frowned. "I don't like the idea of being away from my friends and family for too long, but..." She scuffed a hoof through a tuft of cloud. "I mean, it's true I don't get the chance to come to Cloudsdale or do pegasus stuff that often, so..." She looked at Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle, then swallowed. "If it's for the Cutie Mark Crusaders, if it's for Equestria, then yeah, I can deal with a few weeks of pegasus boot camp."
"Very well, Scootaloo," Celestia said, dipping her head in acknowledgement. "I'll make the arrangements. Twilight, why don't you and the girls spend the rest of the day touring Cloudsdale?"
"Of course," Twilight said. "Come on, girls. Let's go visit the weather factory." She smiled. "Maybe it'll help Scootaloo get started finding her pegasus roots!"
Sunset over Cloudsdale was a breathtaking sight to behold. Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, Silver Spoon, and Diamond Tiara all faced west, watching the deep orange sky turn the fluffy expanse of Cloudsdale into a sea of golden cotton.
"Wow," Silver Spoon breathed.
"This is amazing," Sweetie Belle said.
"Pegasi get this kind of view every day?" Diamond Tiara asked.
"Yeah, it's pretty awesome," Rainbow Dash said. She stood with the group of fillies, looking out over the clouds. "Gotta admit, I used to take this view for granted back when I lived here. I guess seein' it for the first time..." She shook her head. "C'mon, we gotta get you girls headin' back down. It's gettin' late and Twilight's spell can't last too much longer."
Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle exchanged a reluctant glance, then turned to Scootaloo. "You gonna be okay?" Apple Bloom asked.
"I'll be fine," Scootaloo promised. She smiled gamely. "See you girls in a few weeks!"
"Take care, Scootaloo!" Sweetie Belle said. She and Apple Bloom hugged Scootaloo, then climbed into the balloon. Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara gave Scootaloo a last glance, then followed.
Rainbow Dash rustled her wings awkwardly. "Twilight should be here to...to pick you up any second," she said. "I gotta get goin' with these girls. Hang in there, Scoots. I'll be checkin' up on you, okay?"
"Thanks," Scootaloo said.
"Bye, Scootaloo!"
"Hang in there!"
"See you in a few weeks!"
"Bye, girls!" As the balloon began to descend with the four fillies in it, Rainbow Dash hovering close by, a flash of magenta magic heralded the arrival of Twilight Sparkle.
"Ready to go, Scootaloo?" Twilight asked.
Scootaloo sighed. "Yeah," she said. She fell into step beside Twilight as the princess led her through the darkening cloud streets. "So, uhh...where am I staying?"
"Princess Celestia and I arranged for you to stay with Fluttershy's parents," Twilight said.
Scootaloo perked up. "Fluttershy's parents? Huh. Wonder what they're like?"
"They're very nice," Twilight said. "They're a lot like Fluttershy herself." With a slightly sheepish smile, she added, "Actually, they're...kind of like the extreme version of her. I thought Fluttershy was the most meek pony in Equestria, then I met them."
"Oh." Scootaloo didn't look too impressed by that.
"But they'll be good for your training," Twilight said. "Mr. Shy has worked his entire life at the weather factory. He's retiring next year. Mrs. Shy does cloud gardening. I think you can learn a lot from them."
"Cool," Scootaloo said.
* * * * *
Dusk was giving way to night when the two ponies trotted up to a squat two-story cloud house with a sloping roof and a ribbon of rainbow encircling the sides and rear of the property. Scootaloo stared at the brick facade of the left half of the house, then at the oddly-sloped roof over the rest of the house, supported by a single cloud column on the south wall. "Pegasus houses are weird," she opined.
Twilight laughed. "It sure doesn't look like anything we have in Ponyville, I'll give you that." She trotted up to the door and gave a brisk knock. "Mrs. Shy?" she called. "I'm back!"
After a moment, the door opened, and a middle-aged pegasus mare with a yellow coat, curled red hair, and large square-framed glasses peeked out. "Oh, hello Twilight," she said in a soft voice. She glanced over Twilight's shoulder and smiled. "You must be Scootaloo," she said. "Fluttershy's told us all about you and your little friends. Come on in!"
"I have to be getting back to Ponyville," Twilight said, cracking a yawn. "While I can still fly."
"You can stay the night if you want," Mrs. Shy offered. "It's really no imposition."
Twilight shook her head. "Thanks, but I've got an early day tomorrow." She stretched her wings. "If I stayed, I'd have to be up an hour before sunrise to get back to Ponyville in time, and I wouldn't wanna wake everypony up." She smiled. "I'll be checking on you when I get a chance, Scootaloo. In the meantime, have fun!" With that, she took off into the night.
Scootaloo watched her go with a pout. "I still say that isn't fair," she grumbled.
"What isn't, dear?"
Scootaloo shook her head. "Nevermind. Just me being grouchy about my not being able to fly."
"Oh. Oh dear." Mrs. Shy worried with her hooves. "Umm...why don't we get you settled in? I've cleaned up Fluttershy's old room for you."
"Thanks," Scootaloo said. She followed Mrs. Shy through the house to a small room on the second floor. It was a little cramped, with a clearly filly-sized cloud bed, a pink dresser, and several shelves with snowglobes and stuffed animals on them. A few framed photos hung on the walls, mostly depicting a young Fluttershy with her family or with—
Scootaloo's wings buzzed as she flittered to the wall, studying one of the photos. In it, a meek, long-legged, embarrassed-looking Fluttershy was not so much posing for as being dragged into a photo with a stubby runt of a blue pegasus filly with a short, choppy rainbow mane and a big, cheeky grin. "Is that Rainbow Dash as a filly?"
"Oh my, yes," Mrs. Shy said. "Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash were...I guess you could say they were good friends." She paused, tilted her head skyward, then added, "Well, it was more like Rainbow Dash decided Fluttershy was her friend and hung around all the time, and Fluttershy went along with it. Oh, don't get me wrong! They were definitely friends, it's just..." She worried at the floor with a hoof. "It was mostly because neither of them had any other friends, and I think Rainbow Dash just latched onto the first filly that didn't mock her and fly away."
Scootaloo's ears wilted. "Really?"
Mrs. Shy nodded somewhat wistfully. "Mm-hmm." She sighed. "Rainbow Dash wasn't very popular as a filly. Not the way she is today. Today, she's practically a celebrity, but back then..." She shook her head.
"Wow," Scootaloo breathed.
Mrs. Shy tilted her head. "You're the filly who looks up to Rainbow Dash like a big sister, right?"
"Yeah," Scootaloo said. "I'm an only child and my parents work all the time, so I'm pretty much on my own a lot. I don't know what I'd do without the Crusaders and Rainbow Dash."
"Oh, you poor thing," Mrs. Shy said soothingly.
Scootaloo fidgeted uncomfortably, then looked around the room. "So this is Fluttershy's room, huh?" she asked. "That bed musta been cramped when she got up in her teens."
Mrs. Shy looked away. "Oh...she'd moved out by then," she said. "Well, mostly."
"Really?" Scootaloo asked.
Mrs. Shy sighed as she looked around the room. "You've seen Fluttershy with her animals, right?" At Scootaloo's nod, Mrs. Shy continued, "Well, after she got her Cutie Mark, Fluttershy started spending more and more time on the ground with the animals. It got to the point where she was only at home for family meal time most days of the week. Oh, she made sure to help with the chores and never let us forget how much she loves us and how important we are to her, but she felt her place was closer to the ground, and we understood that and gave her her space. She wasn't much older than you when she started getting earth ponies to help build her cottage in Ponyville. After that, she spent more and more time on the ground until she was only coming back home on the weekends."
Scootaloo blinked. "So...Fluttershy left home when she was that young?"
Mrs. Shy smiled somewhat sadly. "She's always been such a strong and independent pony, not at all like her father and I. And definitely not like her brother."
Scootaloo tilted her head. "Fluttershy has a brother?"
Mrs. Shy grimaced slightly. "Yes..." She sighed. "Nevermind that. You must be exhausted. Why don't you get settled in? I'll bring you something to eat, then you can turn in for the night so we can get an early start tomorrow."
"Okay." Scootaloo yawned. "Wow, I didn't realize how tired I am." She crawled up onto Fluttershy's old bed and curled up. Before Mrs. Shy even made it to the door, she was sound asleep.
Mrs. Shy smiled fondly, tousled her mane, and glided out of the room.
* * * * *
By the time Scootaloo woke up, sunshine filled the little cloud house. She yawned and rubbed sleep out of her eyes, then headed downstairs, following the smell of oat cakes. "Good morning, Scootaloo!" Mrs. Shy called. "Breakfast will be ready in a second."
"Thanks," Scootaloo said. She headed for the kitchen and sat down at the table. Across from her, a white-maned stallion with a moustache was reading the morning paper. He looked up and smiled at her.
"Good morning," he said. "You're Scootaloo, right? I'm Fluttershy's dad."
"Nice to meet you," Scootaloo said. "So, you work at the weather factory?"
"All my life," Mr. Shy said. With a sigh, he added, "I'm retiring next year, though. These days, making weather is a young pony's game, and my wings are getting stiff and sore in my old age."
"My dad gets sore wings sometimes," Scootaloo said. "There's a zebra named Zecora in the Everfree Forest who makes all kinds of medicines and potions. She's got a pretty good liniment for that."
"Oh, right, Fluttershy mentioned that," Mr. Shy said. "I think she was planning to bring some next time she visits."
Mrs. Shy served three plates of oat cakes with honey and crispy hay, then sat down. "So, Scootaloo," she said, "Twilight says you need help connecting with your pegasus magic."
Scootaloo grimaced. "Yeah," she said. "Since I can't fly, I never really do pegasus stuff. I guess that's why I don't know how to use my own magic."
Mrs. Shy and Mr. Shy exchanged a glance. "Well," Mrs. Shy said with a soft smile, "how does this sound? For the next few days, you can help me around the house and the garden, and I'll help you with some basic cloud shaping?"
"And after that, when you're ready, you can come to the weather factory with me and get a feel for what we do there," Mr. Shy said.
Scootaloo nodded. "That sounds cool." She tilted her head. "How's doing housework gonna help me learn pegasus magic, though?"
Mrs. Shy smiled. "Well, we do live in a cloud house in Cloudsdale," she said. She frowned. "Which reminds me, it's time to deal with..." She looked off in a different direction and made a disgusted face.
Mr. Shy's moustache twitched. "It is, isn't it?" He sighed. "I remember the first time I had Zephyr Breeze help me with that."
"With what?" Scootaloo asked, looking back and forth.
Mr. and Mrs. Shy exchanged a pained look. "W-well," Mrs. Shy said timidly, "we're going to have to deal with a certain...bathroom-related chore today."
Scootaloo frowned. "Cleaning the bathroom? That's not such a big deal."
"Your family lives in a ground house, right?" Mr. Shy asked. "With the kind of indoor plumbing earth ponies and unicorns use?"
"Well, yeah," Scootaloo said.
Mrs. Shy's face twisted into a sickly grimace, the sort of expression one wears when they're about to deliver bad news. "Scootaloo, dear...the plumbing in cloud houses is a little...different from what you're used to..."
* * * * *
Scootaloo stared, wide-eyed, down the "well" bored through the Shy house's foundation underneath the bathroom. Its walls were made of densely-packed, reinforced cloud, and at the bottom...
"Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww," Scootaloo complained, face twisting up into an expression of utter revulsion and cheeks turning green.
"Yes, it's...not very pleasant," Mrs. Shy agreed. "Oh, I hate this chore..."
Scootaloo pulled her head back, took a deep breath, then looked down the hole again. At the bottom, held separate from the well of clouds by a constant static discharge, was a sickly brownish-green mass of what looked like mud mixed with cloud. "So uhh..." Scootaloo gulped. "That's like...that's like, crap, right?"
"Yes," Mrs. Shy said. "And...other things. Basically any waste we make from using the toilet or brushing our teeth or bathing is all packed into that little septic cloud."
Scootaloo's expression became even more nauseated. "You don't like...pigeon-bomb that down on Equestria, do you?"
"Oh goodness no!" Mrs. Shy said with a shocked gasp. She rummaged through the cabinet under the sink and pulled out a box, from which she extracted a crusty-looking yellow object about the size and shape of a bar of soap. "Running low on these, need to put it on my shopping list," she muttered absently to herself.
"What's that?" Scootaloo asked.
"It's an agitator tablet," Mrs. Shy said. "It's...well, you'll see. You might wanna stand back." As Scootaloo moved to a safe distance, Mrs. Shy dropped the agitator tablet down the cloud well, then quickly stepped back to stand at Scootaloo's side.
For a long moment, nothing happened. Just as Scootaloo was about to step forward to look down the hole again, the entire bathroom floor suddenly turned black. With a tremendous BOOM that knocked Scootaloo on her rump, a massive column of lightning lanced straight up out of the well, tearing a hole through the ceiling.
Scootaloo stared, wide-eyed, at the hole. "Wha-what the...?!"
Mrs. Shy flew up and reshaped the ceiling, closing the hole in the clouds. She motioned Scootaloo over to the edge of the well. Scootaloo looked down...
The waste cloud was completely gone. All around it, the tightly-packed eyewall of the well had collapsed into a ragged, fluffy mess. "Whoa," Scootaloo said. She tilted her head. "So...you just blew it up with lightning?"
"Yes," Mrs. Shy said. "Unfortunately, now we have to rebuild the septic well. It's going to take about two hours." She smiled gamely. "At least it'll be good cloud-shaping practice for you."
Scootaloo pulled a face. "Eww, we have to put our hooves in that?!"
Mrs. Shy rubbed her chin with a hoof. "Hmm. Actually, since you can't fly, I might put you on a different task while I do this. Let's go out to the garden..."
* * * * *
The backyard of the Shy house largely consisted of a round brick storage shed with round windows and a path of paving stones balanced on the cloud surface leading up to it, with flowerbeds surrounded by low walls of clouds that looked more like cement than moisture. "Wow, so this is what a pegasus yard looks like," Scootaloo said.
"Oh, it's nothing special," Mrs. Shy said. "I wish we had more space...maybe a little more money, we could really...but nevermind." She led Scootaloo over to nearest flowerbed. "Now, what I'd like for you to do is water all the flowers," she explained. "But you're going to do it the pegasus way." She looked around, then nodded and trotted over to a patch of the yard where the clouds were raised and puffier than the rest of the smooth, even cloud top. "See how the cloud has gotten a little high over here?"
"Yeah," Scootaloo said as she joined her.
Mrs. Shy pushed her hooves into the mass of cloud and gathered up a ball of it, then rolled it around for a minute until she had a hoofball-sized cloud. "What you do is, you gather up some of the cloud that's gotten messy, and you gently guide it over to the flowers, like so..." She wrapped a wing around the cloud, shooing it in the direction of her flowers. "You can also use your hooves, or make a breeze if you can. Err...can you make a breeze?"
"A little bit," Scootaloo said. "I do kinda make my own tailwind when I'm on my scooter."
"Well, whichever way is easiest for you," Mrs. Shy said as they trotted back over to the flowers. She carefully positioned the cloud over the flowers, then turned her back to it. "Once it's in place, you just...!" She gave the cloud a buck; it dumped all its rain onto the flowers. She smiled at Scootaloo. "Think you can do that?"
"Looks easy enough," Scootaloo said. She looked around at the smooth cloud layer that served as the lawn, then at the rough, piled patches of cloud like the one Mrs. Shy had just scooped from. "So this is kinda like mowing the lawn and watering the flowers all rolled up into one?"
Mrs. Shy beamed. "It's exactly like that!" She patted Scootaloo on the head. "Now, don't overwater the flowers. There are four beds total. Give each set of flowers about two clouds. Once you're done, come inside for lunch."
"Yes ma'am!" Scootaloo trotted over to the cloud pile and set to work while Mrs. Shy went back inside. As Scootaloo worked with the clouds, she started humming to herself, building up a rhythm as she hummed, then sang, the latest Countess Coloratura hits. The unruly cloud pile slowly shrank; by the time Scootaloo had watered all the flowers, the cloud lawn was smooth and perfect again.
Scootaloo headed inside and sat down in the living room. Mrs. Shy poked her head out of the bathroom. "Finished?" she asked. Scootaloo nodded. "Alright, I'll go check and see how you did in just a minute. How did it feel?"
"It felt...right," Scootaloo said. "Making clouds, making it rain, it felt..." She smiled. "It felt natural."
"That's good," Mrs. Shy said. "Looks like you're getting the hang of it." She trotted out back; when she came back in, she was all smiles. "Very good job, Scootaloo! Now, let me wash up, and then I'll get lunch started."
The door opened, and a male voice called out, "Hey, Moms! Guess who!"
"...for three," Mrs. Shy said in a slightly strained tone.
A green stallion with a spun-straw mane done up in a bun and a day's growth of stubble sauntered into the room, grinning a huge, self-assured grin. "It's just your favorite son!"
"Hello, Zephyr Breeze," Mrs. Shy said, pasting on a smile. "What brings you by? In the middle of the day? When you're supposed to be at school?"
"Oh, you know, a pony's gotta be where a pony's gotta be," Zephyr Breeze said airily. He espied Scootaloo and tilted his head. "Oh, now come on, Moms! You and Pops didn't go and have another kid while I wasn't looking, did you?"
"Oh, no," Mrs. Shy said with a laugh. "This is Scootaloo. She's staying with us a few weeks."
"That's cool...that's cool," Zephyr Breeze said, his cheerful demeanor dropping slightly. "Of course, if she cramps my style, she's gonna have to go. You understand, right shrimp?" Zephyr Breeze clapped his hooves together. "Now, when's lunch? This pony is starving!"
Scootaloo watched Zephyr Breeze as he carefully dissected each layer of the sandwich Mrs. Shy had placed in front of him. "Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Hmm." He sighed. "Well, looks alright. Not your best, gotta say. Remember when you used to put those little crispy red onion rings on your sandwiches, Moms? That was always my favorite."
Mrs. Shy grimaced. "W-well, dear, I...I'm afraid I just don't have any red onions right now. I actually haven't even gone shopping for the week yet, we're running low on everything."
Zephyr Breeze sighed. "Well, you tried. Course, with a freeloader in the house, I guess things run out faster, huh?" He glanced at Scootaloo.
Scootaloo stared at him. "You...you seriously just..."
"SO!" Mrs. Shy said as loudly as she could, clapping her hooves together. "This is nice. This is nice. Three of us, having lunch together. Just like old times, isn't it?"
"I guess," Zephyr Breeze said. He took a bite of his sandwich, then glanced at Scootaloo. "So what is your story? It's not like Moms and Pops to just take in some half-pint off the street. I mean, this old house only has so much room, you know?"
"It seems to have plenty of room to me," Scootaloo said. "Especially since I'm staying in Fluttershy's old room."
"Yes, it's not as though Fluttershy's using it anymore," Mrs. Shy said. "Since she has her own house and her own life."
"And doesn't come home to keep you and Pops company near as much as your favorite son," Zephyr Breeze said. "Oh, don't get me wrong, Flutter-Butter's great and all, but she thinks she's too good for us sky ponies, am I right?" He chuckled. "You know I'm right."
Mrs. Shy frowned mildly. "Now, Zephyr dear—"
Scootaloo slammed her hooves on the table. "Fluttershy doesn't think she's too good for anypony!" she challenged hotly. "Fluttershy's the sweetest, kindest, most caring pony I know! And she's a hero!"
Zephyr raised an eyebrow. "Well," he said. "That's one filly's opinion, I guess. That's cool. That's cool." He leaned forward. "You, uhh...wouldn't happen to be my big sis' baby love child, would you?"
Scootaloo spluttered. "WHAT?!"
"Hey now! I'm not sayin' there's nothin' wrong with that!" Zephyr protested, holding his hooves up placatingly. "Just that Fluttershy stays on the ground so much, who knows what she gets up to that we never hear about up here, y'dig?"
Mrs. Shy's brow creased. "Now, Zephyr, I'm certain if I were a grandmare, I would know about it by now."
Scootaloo clenched her teeth. "My mom and dad," she ground out, "are a Ponyville weather pony and a delivery pony. They barely even know Fluttershy. I know her because my friends and I spent the night at her cottage one time and because everypony in Ponyville knows Fluttershy and loves Fluttershy."
Zephyr tilted his head. "Ponyville, huh? You're from that one-horse farm town? Well that figures."
"So's your sister," Scootaloo pointed out.
"Yeah yeah," Zephyr replied dismissively. "So you're here because...what, you finally got tired of all that boring ground life and wanted to see how real pegasi live?"
"Scootaloo is here to get in touch with her pegasus magic," Mrs. Shy said. She glanced at Scootaloo with a wrinkled muzzle and a question in her eyes.
Scootaloo sighed. "I can't fly," she said bluntly, reflexively bracing herself. "So my pegasus magic is shot. Princess Twilight brought me to Cloudsdale and arranged for me to stay with Mr. and Mrs. Shy for a few weeks so I can get a feel for my own magic."
"Can't fly, huh," Zephyr mused. "No wonder you live in Ponyville." He shook his head. "So anyway, Moms, my room's just like I left it, yeah?" He grinned. "Got a feelin' I might be stayin' for a while..."
* * * * *
Over the next two days, Scootaloo helped Mrs. Shy with the housework while Zephyr Breeze lazed around the house, doing his best impression of a sack of potatoes when he wasn't busy taunting and insulting Scootaloo. For her part, she did her best not to let him rile her up, though there were a few close shaves and more than a few heated exchanges of words.
Then on the third day, Zephyr's attitude toward Scootaloo changed abruptly when Rainbow Dash dropped by to check on her.
"How's it goin', squirt?" Rainbow asked cheerfully as she descended over the garden, where Scootaloo was busy reshaping clouds and watering flowers.
"Great! At least, the part I came here for is," Scootaloo said. "Well...mostly great. I've kinda been having a few...problems."
Rainbow tilted her head. "Problems? It's not your wings, is it? Are your wings messing up your—"
"No, it isn't that," Scootaloo said. "I'm really getting the hang of my cloud magic and stuff. It's just..." She frowned at the house. "Sometimes I have trouble concentrating because a certain lazy jerk won't stop messing with me."
Rainbow blinked. "Lazy jerk? Wha—" Her irises contracted to pinpricks. "Oooooh no. Don't tell me Zephyr Breeze is here."
"Yup," Scootaloo said flatly. She tilted her head. "You know him?"
"Hey hey, is that Rainbows I hear out there?"
Rainbow Dash dragged a hoof down her face.
Zephyr Breeze sauntered out into the garden, carelessly trampling a bed of posies Scootaloo had just watered, and gave Rainbow a big, cheesy grin. "What it is, Rainbows? Bet you heard I was back in town and rushed right over to see me!"
"Yeah, right, like I'm gonna fly toward a massive hemmorhoid," Rainbow muttered under her breath. Out loud, she said, "Actually, I came to check up on Scootaloo and see if she's almost ready to start spending her days at the weather factory."
"I am ABSOLUTELY ready for that!" Scootaloo declared emphatically.
Rainbow mussed her mane. "That's the spirit, Scoots! Just what I expect from my number one fan."
Zephyr blinked. "Wait. You two know each other?"
"Oh, did I forget to mention?" Scootaloo said with a smirk. "Rainbow Dash is kind of like my adopted big sister. She takes me under her wing, teaches me stuff, lets me hang out with her while she's being awesome..."
Rainbow laughed. "Yeah, we're pretty close," she said.
"Really," Zephyr drawled, stroking his muzzle with a hoof.
"Well, I'll make the arrangements for you to come in starting tomorrow," Rainbow said. "You can just come with Mr. Shy when he leaves for work." She waved with a wing. "Later!"
Scootaloo watched her fly off, then went back to work. Zephyr fell in beside her, shaping stray bits of cloud. "So, you're in tight with Rainbows, huh?"
"Yeah."
"Cool. That's cool. You know, maybe you're not so bad after all. Here, let me help you with that..."
"No thanks, I've got it."
"No, really, I insist. Uhh...by the way, you know Rainbows is totally into me, right? Oh yeah. When we were little, she was always tryin' to impress ol' Breeze..."
"Riiiiiight..."
* * * * *
Scootaloo looked around the weather factory in awe as Mr. Shy helped her into a white slicker and a hardhat. "Wow," she said. "I mean, yeah, I saw this place the other day with the others, but I guess I didn't really...wow!"
Mr. Shy chuckled and smiled. "Yeah, this old factory is pretty amazing," he said. "I've worked here my whole life. Though right now I'm flying a desk," he added with a sigh. "I used to work in the cloud room. Now I just process reports..." He shook his head. "But enough about that. Let me show you something every little pegasus loves!"
The two ponies made their way through the factory; busy pegasi waved at them and greeted them as they passed through various large chambers and long corridors. Eventually they entered a cavernous chamber taken up by tiers of basins supported on cloud columns, with a river of rainbow flowing from the higher tiers to the lower tiers. At each basin, pegasi with long wooden spoons were busily stirring the flowing rainbow.
"Wow," Scootaloo breathed, her wings flaring out. She tilted her head. "What are they doing, anyway?"
"It's complicated," Mr. Shy said. "To be honest, even those of us who've worked here our entire lives don't entirely understand it." He chuckled. "What I can tell you is the spectrum skimmers are mixing in special stabilizing agents that thicken and separate the colors of the rainbow."
Scootaloo tilted her head. "But...it's all mixed together in the little pools," she said.
"Yeah, but it thickens and separates in the outflow traps," Mr. Shy said. He pointed at the higher basins. "See how the rainbow's thinner and clearer up there, and how down here closer to the floor, it's thick and vibrant?"
"Yeah," Scootaloo nodded. She frowned, looking around. "And some of what's coming out at the top is going into the bottom without anypony mixing it."
"That's right," Mr. Shy said with a smile. "You see, there's several grades of rainbow we export all over Equestria. What you see coming straight down from the top is misty rainbow. That goes over waterfalls and into rain clouds. What you see down below is permanent rainbow. We use it in pegasus architecture and decoration."
"Like the fence around your house?"
"Exactly."
A pegasus skimming one of the lower basins suddenly lost his balance and toppled into the rainbow with a loud splash, spraying huge globs of color everywhere. The other skimmers stopped stirring to watch as he erupted from the basin screaming his head off, his face rapidly changing colors as he belched a plume of prismatic flames into the air.
Scootaloo stared, wide-eyed. "What the—"
All the pegasi laughed as the afflicted pony's color-changing and screaming subsided. He looked around with a sheepish grin, scratching the back of his head. Mr. Shy chuckled. "As far as weather factory accidents go, Rainbow Room accidents are always funny." He trotted toward the exit. "Come on, I'll show you where I used to work next."
As Scootaloo followed him, she kept glancing back over her shoulder. "What...what just happened?!"
Mr. Shy smiled. "There isn't a hot sauce in Equestria that's as spicy as rainbows," he said. "Actually, there's an annual rainbow guzzling competition at the Cloudsdale Fair."
"Really?" Scootaloo asked. "How come I've never seen it in like, stores and stuff?"
"Because it tastes terrible," Mr. Shy said. "Anyway, here's the cloud...condenser...room..." He trailed off, his face paling. "What in Equestria?"
Scootaloo followed his gaze and gasped.
Dozens of tiny black thunderclouds were zipping around in the large room they'd just entered. Machinery was smoking and puffing and wheezing as the clouds let loose with painful zaps of lightning, scattering pegasi who were attempting to corral the chaos.
A burly stallion landed by the door. "'S not safe here," he grunted.
"What happened?" Mr. Shy asked.
"Control wheel blew," the stallion said. "It ain't worked right since Rainbow Dash trashed the factory. We're still waitin' on a replacement from Unicornassus."
Mr. Shy frowned. "But that happened months ago! What's taking them so long?"
The stallion shrugged. "Couldn't say. Control wheels are hard to make, y'know? I mean, we only change it out every twenty years or so. Anyway, best steer clear for now."
"Y-yeah," Mr. Shy said. "Come on, Scootaloo. Let's go see the snowflake room."
"Snowflake room's off-limits," the stallion grunted. "Bout all that's open right now for visitors is the Rainbow Room and the Rain Vault."
"Well that's a shame," Mr. Shy said. "I guess we'll go to the Rain Vault then." He led Scootaloo down a series of twisting corridors into a large room with dozens of shelves lining the walls from the floor all the way to the high ceiling. Scootaloo trotted closer to a shelf to examine a row of clear boxes full of grey clouds. Each box had a little yellow tag on it; the tags listed a town where the rain was to be delivered, the type of rain contained in the box, and the delivery date.
"So you make the rain, then you store it in boxes with little yellow tags on every one?" Scootaloo asked.
"That's right," Mr. Shy said. "At any given time, we keep four months' worth of rain for eastern Equestria right here in this vault."
"What about western Equestria?" Scootaloo asked.
"Oh, their weather is made in Seaddle," Mr. Shy said. He let out a sigh. "I've always wanted to see Seaddle's weather factory. You know they make twice as much rain as we make here in Cloudsdale?"
"Huh. Cool."
"Well, I guess that's all the interesting stuff we can see today," Mr. Shy said. "I think we'll come back tomorrow and see if we can't find a little job for you. Maybe you can learn how to skim rainbows! Or maybe we can get you into a breeze flapping class for fillies and colts. After all, breeze magic is really important."
"Wow, it seems like there's so much for me to learn," Scootaloo said. "I've already learned so much, and now there's all this other stuff I didn't even know pegasi did..."
Mr. Shy ruffled her mane affectionately. "By the time you're ready to go back to Ponyville, you'll know everything you need to know, and maybe you'll really understand what it means to be a pegasus."
"I hope so," Scootaloo said, frowning. "It's just..." She examined her wings. "How can I ever really be in touch with my pegasus magic if I can't do the one most important thing every pegasus does?"
Mr. Shy's face fell. "Hmm. Well." He sighed. "Tell you what. Once you've gotten a better grasp of what it is we do here in Cloudsdale, you can spend some time talking to Fluttershy? She's certainly just as much a pegasus as anypony here, but she spends most of her life with her hooves on the ground. If anypony can teach you how to be a real pegasus without flying all the time, it's her."
Scootaloo brightened. "Hey, you're right!" She pumped a hoof. "Alright! I'll learn everything I can here, and then when I'm ready, I'll go see Fluttershy!"
The rest of Scootaloo's time in Cloudsdale flew by swiftly. Every day was packed with new experiences and hours on end of learning everything from making breezes to skimming rainbows to introductory frost formation. She had been surprised to learn that frost served an important role in protecting Equestria's crops and foliage from the bitter winter chill.
Curiously, nopony had seen Rainbow Dash for over a week by the time Scootaloo's training was coming to a close. There were also some curious stirrings about pegasi going missing; the last communication from Ponyville had simply been a date and time for Scootaloo to be at the balloon dock, and that had been ten days after her arrival in Cloudsdale.
At last, the day came to bid farewell to her hosts and return to Ponyville. When the Twinkling Balloon arrived at the dock, however, it contained four very tense and anxious fillies, and there wasn't an adult pony to be found.
"Hey Scootaloo," Apple Bloom said glumly.
"Hey girls," Scootaloo said, tilting her head. "What's wrong?"
The fillies looked at each other. "W-well..." Sweetie Belle began.
"Ponyville's...sort of in trouble," Silver Spoon said.
"Right now...right now, us little ponies are pretty much on our own," Diamond Tiara said. "Even the Princess is..."
"It's a mess down there," Apple Bloom said with a grimace. "Jes'...be ready. It ain't purty."
Scootaloo's ears pinned back as she climbed into the basket. "It...it isn't a monster invasion, is it? Or...or another Tirek or Discord or something?"
"Nah, it ain't nothin' like that," Apple Bloom said as Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara began piloting the balloon back to Ponyville. "It's jes', well..." She looked at the others, then sighed and reached into her saddlebag, pulling out a little glass bottle and a magnifying glass. Sweetie Belle used her magic to steady them so Scootaloo could see.
Inside the bottle were two fat, ugly, spidery ticks with long, sharp-tipped legs, serrated mouth-parts, and sharp, bristly hairs. One of them was red; the other was blue. "What in the world...?" Scootaloo asked.
"According to Equestria's Best Pest Digest, they're called polly ticks," Sweetie Belle said. "Every single adult pony in Ponyville is infested."
"They even got Zecora when we went t' her fer help," Apple Bloom said miserably. "Right now, it's only us little ponies an' Spike that're safe."
"Some ponies from Cloudsdale came looking for Rainbow Dash and they got infested too," Sweetie Belle said. "We had to...we had to get creative to stop them from flying away."
"Not that they're in much of a hurry t' go anywhere," Apple Bloom muttered.
"We can't even send for help from Canterlot," Silver Spoon said miserably. "If one of the Princesses came to Ponyville, they'd end up infested too."
Scootaloo's eyes widened in alarm. "But...! Is everypony okay? They're not..." She looked at the polly ticks with alarm. "They're not...deadly or anything, are they?"
"Well..." Apple Bloom drawled, scratching her muzzle. "It ain't so much th' ticks as it is..." She looked at the others, who looked away.
"It's the way they're making everypony turn on each other," Sweetie Belle said miserably.
"Yeah, Ponyville's gone from peaceful and friendly to mean and shouty," Diamond Tiara said.
Scootaloo's muzzle crinkled. "I don't understand."
"You will," the others said resignedly...
* * * * *
"NO, dangit!" Applejack snarled, stomping a hoof. "Ah'm tellin' ya that there tax ain't gonna do nopony no good an' it's gonna hurt all us hard-workin' farm ponies!"
"Oh, puh-lease," Octavia scoffed. "Ponyville simply must raise taxes that will cover the cost of all the emergency repairs from rampaging monsters and other shenanigans!"
"We should make the PRINCESS pay for those repairs!" Golden Harvest snapped. "After all, most of those damages are her fault somehow!"
"I'm telling you, the sales tax in Ponyville is too high!"
"And I'm telling you the sales tax is not high enough!"
The five fillies wandered through clusters of arguing ponies. "What's going on here?" Scootaloo asked, wide-eyed.
"Polly ticks," Sweetie Belle said as she watched Rarity and Berry Punch bicker.
"When has Mayor Mare ever done her job right?" Amethyst Star shouted through a megaphone. "It's time for change! It's time we reform our local town government and give Princess Twilight complete oversight of Ponyville!"
Several ponies cheered. Several more booed. One stallion stood up and shouted, "WE NEED REPRESENTATION, NOT ROYAL MANDATES!"
"TWILIGHT IS A FAIR AND JUST PRINCESS!"
"TWILIGHT IS A NEUROTIC FREAKSHOW WITH TOO MUCH POWER AND NOT ENOUGH SENSE!"
The fillies watched as the mob degenerated into uncontrolled violence, blood and dust flying from the crowd of fighting ponies.
"Come on, let's go to the schoolhouse," Silver Spoon insisted. "It's the only safe place right now."
As they trotted through town, Scootaloo watched, horrified, as ponies who were lifelong friends argued over the most ridiculous things. "How did this happen?" she asked.
"Like we said, it's polly ticks," Sweetie Belle said as they reached the schoolhouse. All the town's fillies and colts were crowded inside; there wasn't a single adult pony present.
"There you girls are!" Spike bustled over to them. "You picked up Scootaloo, huh?"
"Yeah," Apple Bloom said.
"Good, maybe you three can fix this," Spike said as he padded over to one of Twilight's saddlebags, which lay against Cheerilee's podium, and fished out the peytrals with the Trinity Gems.
"Uhh...how?" Scootaloo asked as Sweetie Belle fastened the gems around their necks with her magic.
"Honestly, I have no idea, but it's just about the last hope we've got," Spike said. "I wrote Princess Celestia for help, but she basically quarantined Ponyville. It seems these polly ticks nearly destroyed Equestria hundreds of years ago, and only young ponies are immune to them." He frowned. "Well, and dragons."
"So how'd they get rid of them last time?" Sweetie Belle asked.
"According to the Princess, they died off on their own when winter came," Spike said. "Couldn't stand the cold. By Hearth's Warming, the polly ticks were gone and everypony was back to normal."
Apple Bloom frowned. "But...it's the middle of spring," she said.
"I don't think Ponyville can last until winter!" Silver Spoon cried.
"Can't we get Fluttershy to ask Discord to—"
"Wouldn't work," Apple Bloom said with a sigh. "They've spent the last four days arguing about who's Best Princess. Fluttershy's animals aren't even getting fed anymore."
"Well then what are we supposed to do?" Silver Spoon whined. Around the room, several other young ponies whimpered and whispered.
Scootaloo frowned, stroking her muzzle thoughtfully. "The polly ticks can't take the cold, right?" She looked around. "It doesn't have to be winter, it just has to be cold."
Her friends looked at each other. "Well...yeah, Ah guess," Apple Bloom said.
Scootaloo began pacing. "I learned a lot about air currents and temperature fluctuation this past week," she said. "I also learned how to make frost. It's all about how cold the air is and how warm the surface is and..." She waved a hoof. "I can't explain it, but I know how it works."
"Whut're you gittin' at?" Apple Bloom asked slowly.
"Well what if we can make Ponyville cold enough so frost forms on the ground? Just for a little bit?" Scootaloo suggested. "Just long enough to get rid of the polly ticks, then the weather patrol can fix things."
The others looked at each other, frowning. "But...how do we do that?" Sweetie Belle asked.
Scootaloo looked around the room, brow furrowing. "I think..." she said slowly. "I think we're gonna need every pegasus pony here, plus Spike's dragon fire, and..." She glanced at her two friends. "Okay, we know how to synchronize with Apple Bloom's magic, but we couldn't get in synch with mine and we haven't even tried with Sweetie Belle yet, but..." She took a deep breath. "I think...if we're gonna save Ponyville, we need to get in synch, and fast.
"Because we're gonna need to flash-freeze Ponyville, and the only way that's gonna work is if we can use Trinity Magic."
It had taken the better part of a day for the schoolponies of Ponyville and Spike to set up Scootaloo's complicated plan to freeze Ponyville. Nopony really understood what she was doing or where she was coming from.
"So Spike's going to evaporate this with his fire," Scootaloo explained, "which is going to create an air current over this, which will...no! Don't put that there, it needs to be over here! Hey, careful with that rainbow! If you stir it up too much, it'll lose potency! We need that for Snips and Snails to give us the final boost!"
Apple Bloom scratched her head. "Scoots? You sure you know what you're doin'?"
"Honestly? I'm making this up as I go," Scootaloo admitted. "But I'm pretty sure if we get this set up just right, we can make a cold enough air current that we can use our Trinity magic to—"
"But how are we going to do that?" Sweetie Belle asked. "It takes us forever just to get a reaction!"
"Yeah, but it's different this time," Scootaloo said with determination.
"How so?" Silver Spoon asked.
"This time, we're doin' it to save Ponyville," Scootaloo said grimly. "We gotta get it right, there's no other way."
"Yeah, well you'd better," Snips said as he trotted up hauling a wagon of ice sheets. "It's gettin' worse!"
"There's like four different marches goin' on, eh," Snails said as he stacked hay bales in two rows while Snips laid out the ice sheets between them, forming a long path of ice leading from the schoolhouse into Ponyville. "Some of 'em are yellin' pretty nasty things at each other."
"The hospital's stopped taking patients," Diamond Tiara reported as she ran up breathlessly. "They're rejecting Ponyville's current health care system—"
"No more updates on what's going on in town!" Scootaloo declared. "We need to focus!"
While Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon took over directing the other fillies and colts in their preparations, the Crusaders turned their attention to synchronizing their magic.
Once Luna raised the moon, they were ready. "Now," Scootaloo said.
Spike blew fire over the ice corridor, creating a cold breeze as the ice began to melt. Fillies stood by with buckets to extinguish the hay as it burst into flames. The young pegasi collected the steam from the melting ice and spun it into clouds, which they pushed along on the breeze. Crystals of ice formed in the tiny little clouds.
"NOW!" Diamond Tiara yelled as the clouds reached the end of the ice corridor. Snips and Snails chugged huge jars of liquid rainbow, then dunked their heads into massive washtubs full of cold water. Steam billowed from the tubs, gathering into the clouds and expanding them as they picked up speed. The pegasi added their own power to the breeze, boosting it marginally.
The Crusaders closed their eyes and touched hooves. The Trinity Gems lit up brilliantly. The three of them rose into the air, sparks of pink and purple magic swirling around them as their Cutie Marks lit up like stars. A miniature tornado spun up around the fillies, forcing their classmates to back away, shielding their eyes from both the glare and the swirling dust particles in the air.
A shrill, piercing chime rang out into the night, echoing across the land. With a near-blinding flash, a massive, ghostly shape made of pink smoke and purple light surrounded the three fillies. At first an indistinct, blurry heart, it slowly took the shape of a phantasmal alicorn without a face, wings spread wide and head bowed low.
Another shrill chime rang out, and a humming, strobing column of pink light rose from the ground, coursing up through the Crusaders, their gems flashing in time with the thick rings of pink light that climbed the column and fed into the spectral alicorn, who grew brighter and brighter by the second. Then, as the light become intolerable to look at, it exploded outward in a ring of magical force that ripped through Ponyville and its environs in a magical shockwave.
The piercing chime and humming of powerful magic died out instantly, replaced by the sharp crackle of ice forming. The Crusaders dropped to their hooves, the Trinity Gems dimming and slowing their pulses until they went completely dark. The three fillies opened their eyes and looked around.
"Whoa," Sweetie Belle breathed.
All around them, their classmates stared in awe even as they shivered, for a patina of frost had formed over each pony's coat. A shivering Spike slowly made the rounds, gently breathing warm enough air in bursts over the ponies to let the frost begin to thaw without leaving them all damp, sodden messes.
The ground in every direction was encrusted in a thick, sparkly layer of crystalline frost.
"It...it worked?" Apple Bloom asked, blinking rapidly.
"It worked," Scootaloo said in a wondering tone. "It worked!" She jumped up, her wings buzzing excitedly. "We did it!"
"Mmm, you certainly did something, my little ponies," a regal voice said. "Though I would be most curious to learn what you have done."
The crowd of schoolponies gasped as Princess Luna descended into their midst, looking around at the frosty ground. Her hooves crunched on the frosted grass as she folded her wings at her side. She frowned slightly. "Most curious. It is spring, and yet Ponyville remains in the grasp of winter."
"Umm...we did that," Scootaloo said. "We...we kinda used our Trinity Magic to flash-freeze Ponyville."
Luna tilted her head. "Oh? And why, pray tell, would you do such a thing?"
"They had to do it to thave our town from the polly tickth!" Twist cried.
"It was a nightmare, Princess Luna!" Pipsqueak added. "Everypony was fighting and arguing and yelling and none of us were being cared for or fed or played with or anything!"
"More importantly, Ponyville's shops and services were all shut down," Diamond Tiara added. "Even Princess Twilight was affected!"
Luna nodded. "Ah yes, my sister warned me of these polly ticks," she said. "Polly ticks are serious business. Yet I do not understand what an infestation of parasites has to do with manipulating the weather in such a drastic and potentially destructive manner."
"The only way to get rid of polly ticks is to wait for them to die off in the winter cold," Spike explained. "Scootaloo figured if we could make Ponyville freeze over for just one night, it'd—"
"And she was right," a new voice interjected.
Princess Twilight Sparkle glided into their midst, looking battered and bruised, but grateful and proud. She landed beside Scootaloo and mussed her mane affectionately. "Thank you," she said. She looked around the schoolyard. "Thank you all," she added. "This plan of yours may have been dangerous and could have done serious damage to Ponyville, but your gambit paid off."
One by one, Twilight's friends showed up. They all looked harassed, abused, rather embarrassed, and quite damp...but also proud.
"Y'all saved us," Applejack said. "Ah couldn't be prouder."
"You flash-froze Ponyville without even being able to fly!" Rainbow Dash cried. "That is awesome!"
"I don't think we should be praising how they did it," Fluttershy said mildly, "because one night of unseasonable weather can do a lot of harm to plants and animals..." She smiled. "But I am proud of you all for finding a way to save Ponyville all by yourselves."
"I only wish I had been lucid enough to witness this," Rarity said. "We all saw the light in the sky, but the spectacle was over with by the time the polly ticks died."
"Speaking of which," Fluttershy said with a concerned tone, "we all need thorough bathing to kill their eggs, or we'll have to go through all of this again."
"Yeah, and then we'll have to check every crop in Ponyville for frost damage," Applejack said with a grimace. "Ah mean, Ah reckon it coulda been worse if'n we'd been stuck with them ticks, but—"
"Applejack? We'll worry about that," Apple Bloom said. "And the cleanup." She looked around at her friends. "Right?"
"RIGHT!" the schoolponies all shouted.
Luna chuckled. "You won't do it alone," she said. "I shall return to Canterlot and dispatch assistance for the cleanup and the crop survey. And anything else you require."
"Actually, if you could ask Celestia to come help me set up a bunch of giant washtubs," Twilight said, "that'd be great. It's gonna take days to decontaminate everypony in Ponyville after all this, but it'll go a lot faster if we have some really big tubs."
Luna nodded. "I shall alert her at once."
"I'll go get the Wonderbolts to come help us fill the baths," Rainbow Dash said, shooting off into the sky.
"Somepony should go find Zecora and get her to help mix up the special shampoo we'll need," Fluttershy offered.
"I'll do it!" Pinkie said cheerfully, zipping off in the direction of the Everfree Forest.
As the ponies dispersed to their various tasks and Luna flew off toward Canterlot, Twilight approached the Crusaders. "That was quick thinking, girls," she said. "And that was a huge leap forward in learning to control your Trinity Magic."
"Thanks..." Scootaloo yawned. "Twilight."
"It was..." Apple Bloom yawned. "Least we could..."
The three fillies collapsed in a snoring pile in the frosty grass. Twilight smiled and ruffled their manes affectionately.
It took the better part of a week for life to return to normal in Ponyville. Once the daily routine resumed, the Crusaders and their friends gathered in the clubhouse at Sweet Apple Acres.
"So, Scootaloo, you learned some awesome pegasus stuff in Cloudsdale, right?" Diamond Tiara asked.
"Yeah, Scoots, Ah ain't never seen nopony come up with that crazy a plan," Apple Bloom said with a grin. "Ah bet we'll be able t' move on with our Trinity lessons now for sure!"
Scootaloo frowned. "Maybe, but..." She shook her head. "I dunno. I mean, sure, I learned a lot about clouds and wind and rainbows and stuff, and I'm glad I learned all that stuff, but I still feel like something's missing." She looked at her wings. "Every pegasus I learned from could fly. It's like, they don't even think about it. It's just part of their nature." She bowed her head and sighed. "And it's not part of mine. And...I just don't think my pegasus magic is complete, you know?" She shrugged. "I just...it's hard to feel like a real pegasus if you can do everything except fly."
The other fillies let out sympathetic whines and bowed their heads, studying the floor.
"You know, I don't get it," Silver Spoon said. "I mean, it doesn't make sense that you can't fly. Don't tell me it's because your wings are stunted. I mean, have you seen Bulk Biceps? And he flew in the Equestria Games! So if that oversized mess can fly, then..." She trailed off. "Sorry."
"No, it's okay," Scootaloo said. "I've wondered that myself. Like, a lot. Nopony's ever really explained it to me, but...I think I kinda have an idea of what's wrong with me after spending so much time in Cloudsdale."
"Really?" Sweetie Belle asked.
Scootaloo nodded. "The thing is...I can feel pegasus magic with every part of my body except, well...my wings." She spread her feathers. "Up there in the clouds, with the wind blowing, I...I could feel the wind in my mane and across my coat, but it gets to my wings, and it's like, it's not there, you know?"
Apple Bloom bit off a curse. "Manacirculation," she said. The others turned to face her. She looked around, then dragged a hoof across the floor. "It's somethin' Ah learned about at Zecora's place. It's like...alright, y'know how everypony has blood vessels an' stuff, your heart pumps th' blood, it goes all through your body? Well, ponies actually have two circulatory systems, an' one of 'em's invisible. It's th' way magic flows inside you." She looked at Scootaloo sadly. "Ah wouldn't be surprised if your problem is your manacirculation doesn't...doesn't reach your wings."
"You'd think that's something a doctor would've told her by now, though," Silver Spoon said.
Apple Bloom shook her head. "It ain't common knowledge," she said. "Ah wouldn't be surprised if Twilight don't even know about manacirculation. Zebras know all kinds'a things about magic that ponies jes' don't."
"Then do you think Zecora could fix me?" Scootaloo asked hopefully.
"Ah doubt it," Apple Bloom said. "Ah mean, it's like...if a pony's born with three legs, you can't just make 'em grow a magic leg. There's ways t' cope with it, but you can't fix th' problem if that's jes' th' way you're born."
Scootaloo sighed. "Great. So I'm right back where I started."
"Maybe," Sweetie Belle said thoughtfully, "or maybe you just need to look at this a different way."
"What do you mean?" Scootaloo asked.
Sweetie Belle started pacing. "Well, so far, you've tried connecting to your pegasus magic by doing things flying pegasi do. It seems to me you need to spend time with a pegasus who doesn't fly, get a feel for how they stay in touch with their magic."
The other fillies looked around. "But...there aren't that many pegasi who can't fly," Scootaloo pointed out. "I mean, I'm the only one I know of."
"I didn't say can't fly," Sweetie Belle pointed out. "I said doesn't fly. A pegasus who lives on the ground and doesn't really fly all that much. One that can fly, but just...doesn't."
"Where are we gonna find a pony like that?" Diamond Tiara asked. "I mean, sure, there's a lot of pegasi in Ponyville, but they pretty much fly if they aren't doing something they have to be on the ground for."
"There's one pony I can think of," Apple Bloom said, realization dawning. "Ah know for a fact she's a pretty good flier, but you almost never see 'er flyin' around town."
Scootaloo gasped. "Fluttershy!" Her wings buzzed excitedly. "That's a great idea! I should go visit Fluttershy, see what I can learn from her!"
* * * * *
"Oh! Hello, Scootaloo!" Fluttershy said as she looked up from filling a long feed trough with acorns. Dozens of squirrels, chipmunks, and other fuzzy little things gathered around it, scooping up nuts and cramming their cheeks full before scurrying away again. "I heard you had a wonderful visit with my parents. Mom says she really enjoyed having you around the house!"
"Your parents are great," Scootaloo said. "I learned a lot." She rubbed one hoof with the other. "But...there's still something I need to learn, and, well..."
"Oh? I thought from the way you and your friends saved Ponyville, you'd gotten past whatever trouble you were having."
"Well, that was more desperation than anything," Scootaloo said. "The thing is, I did learn a lot about pegasus magic, but I'm still not...really connected with mine."
"Oh. Oh my." Fluttershy gave Scootaloo a sad look. "Is it...is it because of your wings?"
"Something like that." Scootaloo flicked an ear. "Me and the girls were talking, and we think we figured out a way for me to get around this. But I'm gonna need your help."
Fluttershy blinked. "My help? I don't know, I mean...I don't really know much about pegasus magic, or—"
"But you feel your pegasus magic, right? You're in touch with it?"
"Well, yes," Fluttershy said. "I can't imagine not feeling it, even if it isn't really something I think about or rely on that often."
"That's why I need your help," Scootaloo said. "All the other pegasi I've been learning from live and work in the clouds. You're a pegasus who keeps her hooves on the ground. Since I can't fly, I need to learn how a pony who doesn't spend half her life in the sky stays in touch with her magic."
"I see," Fluttershy said, nodding. "That certainly makes sense." She smiled. "I'd be only too happy to help. It's just...I'm not entirely sure how much help I'll be. I mean, my pegasus magic is just there. I wouldn't even begin to know how to help you learn to connect with it. Oh, but don't worry, I'm sure we can figure something out together."
For four days, Scootaloo had gone to Fluttershy's cottage early in the morning and left late in the evening. She spent each day helping Fluttershy with all her animal chores, her housecleaning, and her shopping. Each day, she would ask Fluttershy questions about what her pegasus magic was telling her just from walking around Ponyville doing her usual things, and Fluttershy would describe her sense of her pegasus magic to the best of her abilities.
On the fifth day, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle decided to join Scootaloo in her daily trips to Fluttershy's place, in the hopes that adding their own minds to the problem at hoof would glean some new insight—or at least make it easier for the two of them to synchronize with Scootaloo's magic.
The progress they made was gradual—not substantial enough to yield any huge flashes of insight, but substantial enough that the entire exercise didn't feel like a waste of time. They also enjoyed helping Fluttershy out, and Fluttershy admitted that having some extra hooves was a huge help.
Eight days after Scootaloo started helping Fluttershy, the Crusaders arrived at her cottage to find her sitting on her living room sofa, cooing to a small black piglet which sat in a wicker basket on the floor. "Hey Fluttershy!" Apple Bloom called.
"What a cute little piggy!" Sweetie Belle said. "I haven't seen him around here before!"
"I found this poor little guy on the edge of the Everfree Forest last night," Fluttershy said. "A couple of really big scary owls were after him. I chased them off and brought him home. He was so scared."
"Bwee," the piglet oinked, raising his tiny snout to snuffle curiously at the three fillies as they approached.
"Wonder what he was doing out there," Scootaloo said.
"I'm not sure," Fluttershy said. "There aren't any wild pigs living in the Everfree Forest or the Whitetail Woods as far as I know. I thought maybe he got lost off from Sweet Apple Acres, but..."
Apple Bloom shook her head. "We only got three piglets that size on th' farm right now, an' they're all pink. Ah don't think he's from around Ponyville at all."
"I was afraid of that," Fluttershy said with a sigh. "We need to figure out where this poor little guy's family is."
"Maybe he's all alone," Scootaloo said.
"Bwee, buki," the piglet grunted.
"Would you girls mind taking him for a little walk around the glade?" Fluttershy asked. "I want him to get used to the area around the cottage so he doesn't get lost and the other animals can get to know him."
"Of course, Fluttershy!" Sweetie Belle said.
"Thank you," Fluttershy said.
"C'mere piggy!" Apple Bloom said brightly, crouching low and nickering. The piglet's ear twitched as he watched her curiously; after a moment, he lazily hefted himself up on his trotters and waddled over to the three fillies. Making light noises of encouragement, they herded the little pig out the front door and around the side of the house. Fluttershy smiled as she flew up into the rafters to start the daily cleaning of the birdhouses.
* * * * *
"We oughta give this little feller a name," Apple Bloom said suddenly a half hour into their walk around the glade. They'd explored every inch of Fluttershy's property, then walked the piglet up and down the banks of the creek. Now, they were across the bridge, letting the piglet poke around in a mossy grove not far from the main road into town.
"Hmm...how about Blackfoot?" Scootaloo suggested.
"What about Waddles?" Sweetie Belle offered. "Because he waddles."
"We don't call you Trots because you trot," Scootaloo pointed out.
"I kinda hope you don't call me Trots at all."
"Ah think Ah'll call you Bumper," Apple Bloom announced to the piglet as he snuffled around in some moss.
The other Crusaders shot her odd looks. "Bumper?" Scootaloo echoed.
"Why Bumper?" Sweetie Belle asked.
Apple Bloom tilted her head. "Don't he look kinda like a rubber baby buggy bumper?"
"Bwee?" the piglet tilted his head curiously.
Scootaloo scratched her muzzle. "I guess so," she said.
Sweetie Belle shrugged. "It's as good a name as any," she said.
"Alright then!" Apple Bloom said cheerfully. "From now on, we're gonna call you Bumper!"
"Buki," Bumper snorted indifferently. Then, his ears and snout twitched. "B-bwee?" His eyes widened, and he suddenly darted across the grove, disappearing behind a large rock.
"H-hey, wait!" Sweetie Belle cried. The fillies chased after him, calling out for him to come back.
When they caught up to him, Bumper was digging furiously at the base of the rock, grunting and snorting. "Ah think he found somethin'," Apple Bloom said.
"Bukikwii," Bumper oinked, teeth bared as he furiously clawed at the rock with his tiny trotters.
"Let's help him out!" Scootaloo suggested, wedging her hooves under the rock and heaving it. Sweetie Belle's aura glimmered around the rock, and it shifted ponderously, huge clumps of earth and dried roots clinging to the wet, loamy bottom. Apple Bloom lent her weight and earth pony strength to the effort, and after a minute's hard work, the rock tipped over, landing with a mighty crash in a patch of moss.
"Bu-KWEEE!" Bumper oinked ecstatically, dancing on his trotters. The Crusaders stared at what had been unearthed, eyes wide.
"Wow," Scootaloo breathed.
A dozen or so bumpy black mushrooms lay before them, each slightly smaller than a kiwi fruit. Bumper pounced on them, but Sweetie Belle seized him in her magic and held him back. "Are those truffles?" she asked.
"Ah think so, yeah," Apple Bloom said. "Didn't know you could find 'em around these parts."
"We should take these back to Fluttershy's house with us!" Scootaloo said excitedly.
"Sounds good to me," Apple Bloom agreed. She carefully dug out the truffles and deposited them in her saddlebag. Bumper kept struggling in Sweetie Belle's magical grip; once Apple Bloom closed her saddlebag, Sweetie Belle dropped the piglet, who snorted and snuffled petulantly but fell in step with the fillies as they returned to Fluttershy's cottage.
* * * * *
"Welcome back, girls!" Fluttershy called cheerfully from the kitchen as the Crusaders returned. "How was your walk? Did our new little friend have a good time?"
"He sure did!" Apple Bloom called. "Bumper found somethin' amazin' out in th' grove over th' creek!"
"Bumper?" Fluttershy asked as she emerged from the kitchen, blinking and tilting her head curiously.
"We named him," Scootaloo said. "Anyway, check out what we brought back!" Apple Bloom's saddlebag opened with Sweetie Belle's magic, and the truffles floated out.
"Goodness!" Fluttershy exclaimed. She favored the piglet with an encouraging smile. "Bumper, is it? You found these?"
"Bwee-bwee!" Bumper oinked, nodding his head rapidly.
"What a clever boy you are!" Fluttershy said, patting his head with a hoof. "You know, these would be perfect in the salads I'm making us all for lunch! Sweetie Belle, would you mind helping me slice them up?"
"Sure!" Sweetie Belle followed Fluttershy into the kitchen, the truffles in tow. Bumper watched them go longingly, but relented when Apple Bloom picked him up and set him in his basket.
"You've had a busy day, feller," Apple Bloom said. "Time t' rest." She stretched out, yawning. "Lunch sounds mighty good right now."
"Yeah," Scootaloo agreed, perching herself on Fluttershy's couch. "Digging out that boulder was hard work. I'm so hungry I could eat a hippo!"
"Oh my," Fluttershy said from the kitchen door in a lightly amused tone. "Well, I'm afraid I don't have any hippo, but I do have some fresh, delicious garden salads, and these truffles are just the thing to give them a little gourmet flair." She ducked back into the kitchen; Apple Bloom and Scootaloo heard Fluttershy and Sweetie Belle humming cheerfully as they worked. A short while later, they returned with a large bowl overflowing with salad, four smaller bowls, and four glasses of iced green tea. Sweetie Belle set the table; as the other Crusaders took a seat, Fluttershy distributed helpings of salad into each bowl, then deposited a small amount onto a saucer for Bumper.
"Wow, now that's a salad," Scootaloo said, licking her lips. The salad consisted of crispy green lettuce, shredded carrots, red cabbage, red onions, thinly-sliced radishes, black olives, and thick, meaty slices of black truffle; blue cheese had been crumbled over the entire thing, which had also been sprinkled liberally with crunchy herbed croutons and finished off with Balsamic dressing.
Fluttershy attentively made certain each Crusader, as well as herself, got an entire truffle on their salad, then sat down with a smile. "Dig in, everypony!" she said.
"Thanks, Fluttershy, this looks amazin'!" Apple Bloom said as she dove into her salad with gusto. The others joined her; Scootaloo buried her muzzle into her bowl, while Fluttershy ate daintily and Sweetie Belle used her magic to employ a salad fork.
"Oh wow, this is good," Sweetie Belle said between bites.
"These mushrooms taste..." Scootaloo tilted her head. "Kinda smoky? The taste is really intense."
"It sure is," Fluttershy agreed, tilting her head and chewing thoughtfully. "Sort of like...Camembert and raspberries, but with a hint of...chestnuts?"
"Reminds me of some fancy Canterlot food Rarity brought home one time," Sweetie Belle said.
"Buki~iii," Bumper opined.
Each pony had seconds on the salad, getting slightly more than a whole truffle in their portion. Fluttershy gave Bumper one of the leftover truffles that didn't go into the salad, and he went at it with gusto. The ponies made light conversation over the remains of their lunch.
As bowls emptied and bellies filled, Apple Bloom let out a yawn. "Ah'm gittin'..." She yawned again. "Kinda sleepy."
"Me too," Scootaloo said, cracking a huge yawn.
"Same here," Sweetie Belle agreed.
Fluttershy's eyelids drooped. "Oh my," she said. "Me...me too..."
"Bweeee..."
* * * * *
Scootaloo's eyelids fluttered open. She cracked a huge yawn, smacking her lips and grimacing at how dry her mouth was. She pushed herself to achy, leaden hooves and let out a massive fart.
"Ugh!" Sweetie Belle complained. "Scootaloo!"
"Sorry," Scootaloo said as her eyes opened. Her vision was bleary with sleep; after rubbing her eyes with a hoof, she blinked and looked around. "Wait...what?"
"Hey, where th'—?!"
"Fluttershy! Wake up!" Sweetie Belle cried insistently. "Wake up, Fluttershy! Something's really wrong!"
"Hmm? Wuzzah?" Fluttershy opened her eyes sleepily. "Oh goodness, did I doze off after lunch? That's not like me at all. I hope I didn't put you girls to any trouble..." She blinked and looked around. Her irises shrank to pinpricks. "G-girls? Where...where are we?" Her wings flared out wide. "Where's my cottage? Where are my animals?"
"Buki-kwiii!"
"Well, Bumper's here," Apple Bloom said as she looked around, her eyes wide. "Wherever here is..."
The four ponies stood in an empty, frost-covered clearing. A few sparse, dead trees dotted their immediate surroundings. A thin creek ran nearby, its surface covered in drifting chunks of ice as it lazily burbled past. In the near distance, a line of dark, gnarled trees cast a spooky shadow over the cold ground. The sky above was pale grey with clouds. As they looked around, a team of armored pegasi flew past, plowing into the clouds overhead. A chill seeped into their skin through their coats.
"W-why is it so c-c-c-cold?" Sweetie Belle whimpered.
Fluttershy frowned as she looked around. "Girls," she said quietly, "I know this is going to sound crazy, but..." She swallowed a lump in her throat. "I'm pretty sure this is exactly where my house is supposed to be."
"Ah think you're right," Apple Bloom said. "There ain't no bridge, but that's durn sure your creek. An'..." She pointed a hoof at the tree line. "That's th' Everfree Forest."
"And that's Canterlot," Scootaloo said, pointing a hoof at an unmistakeable spire of craggy rock that towered over the chilly landscape. "Only...I don't see Canterlot, just the mountain."
"Hey! You there!" a gruff voice called. The ponies looked up as a pegasus stallion descended toward them. He had a dark grey coat and wore antiquated iron armor that covered his entire torso except for his wings. A short, stiff brush of reddish-brown tail emerged from the studded pleats at his flanks, and tufts of reddish-brown mane stuck out from the polished morion which sat atop his head. A lightning bolt emblem was engraved on the front of his helmet, and a stiff ornamental comb on the crown matched his mane in color. Steely eyes swept over them. "Civilians? Children? What in the name of Tartarus are you doing out here in the middle of nowhere?"
Fluttershy ascended slightly, meeting him in midair. "Excuse me," she said. "We're a bit lost and confused. You see, we were just having lunch in my living room, and then we all got sleepy, and when we woke up, we were...well...we were here." She frowned, looking around. "Which is where my living room should be, and my entire house, and all my poor little animals..." Her eyes scanned the horizon, and widened in terror. "Oh, and Ponyville. Ponyville's missing." She paused, then flew straight up, her wings spreading wide in alarm. "PONYVILLE'S MISSING!"
The Crusaders whinnied in terror. "Ponyville! It's gone!"
"What happened?"
"Our homes! Our families! Our friends!"
"CALM DOWN!" the stallion thundered. The fillies and Fluttershy stilled, looking at him in terror. He frowned at them. "I know of no Ponyville," he said. "Your claim to have a house in this area is preposterous. Do you not see the Everfree Forest yon? It would be suicidal to try to live so close to such a place."
"W-well, yes," Fluttershy admitted. "But it's not really...that bad. Just...if you know how to be careful..." She shook her head. "What do you mean you don't know Ponyville?" She narrowed her eyes. "Who are you, anyway?"
The stallion drew himself up. "Ma'am, I am Sergeant Stormchaser, Sergeant-At-Arms of the Third Pegasus Platoon, Northwest Company."
"Oh," Fluttershy said in a small voice. "W-well, I'm, umm...I'm Fluttershy, these fillies are Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo..." She trailed off, looking around, her face growing more distressed as she took in the bare spire of rock, the dark shadow of the Everfree, and the barren, frost-covered expanse of ground that should be Ponyville. "And we're very lost, very confused, and very frightened."
Sergeant Stormchaser let out a sigh. "Well, it isn't safe for civilians to be out here, especially not while we're still cleaning up after the Windigoes. Follow me, we have a base camp in the woods to the northwest of here. We've already cleared the weather there. It's still pretty cold, but we have blankets and warm soup."
"Thank you," Fluttershy said. "Come on, girls. Grab Bumper and...and let's go with this nice pony."
Stormchaser flew low and slow, leading the group into what, more and more distressingly, they recognized as where Ponyville was supposed to be. The Crusaders' faces fell as they looked around at the vast stretch of nothing but frosted plains, frozen lakes, and distant forests and hills. "Fluttershy?" Apple Bloom asked in a small, scared voice. "Whut...whut happened t' our home?"
"I don't know," Fluttershy said. She frowned as her eyes scanned the skyline where she knew Twilight's castle should be. "Canterlot's gone, Twilight's castle isn't here..." She tucked her wings in tightly at her side. "Something terrible's happened to Equestria. But how did we miss it?"
Stormchaser glided closer. "What do you mean, 'something terrible' has happened to Equestria?" he asked. "If you mean the Windigoes, well...is it not the result of their defeat that we now have this new nation?" He studied their little group curiously. "Though I must say, I would not have expected to see a unicorn filly and an earth pony filly in the care of a pegasus so soon, let alone in the middle of nowhere. Yours is quite an odd group."
"What's wrong with an earth pony an' a unicorn bein' with a pegasus?" Apple Bloom asked hotly. "We're all ponies, an' we're all friends!"
"Wait," Sweetie Belle said, holding up a hoof. "New nation...Windigoes..." Her eyes widened. "Mr. Stormchaser," she said slowly.
"Right, sorry," Sweetie Belle said absently. "This cold weather your team's working to clear out...it isn't natural, is it?"
Stormchaser snorted. "I should say not," he said. "The Windigoes have been banished back from whence they came, but much work remains to restore the beautiful Spring weather our Glorious Leader reported before the unicorns and earth ponies showed up with their own scouting parties." He landed, rustling his wings. "Though I suppose I shouldn't speak ill of the other tribes. After all, are we not supposed to be living together in fellowship and harmony now?"
Fluttershy gasped, eyes wide. "I don't believe it," she said.
"Yes, it is difficult to come to terms with such a dramatic change in the way we all live," Stormchaser agreed, nodding.
"N-no, not that," Fluttershy said. She drew back, gathering the Crusaders together. "Girls?" she whispered. "You don't suppose..."
"We've traveled back in time to the founding of Equestria?" Sweetie Belle finished. "Yeah. That's exactly what's going on here."
Apple Bloom and Scootaloo stopped dead in their tracks, eyes wide. "Whoa," Apple Bloom said.
"We've traveled back in time to the founding of Equestria?" Sweetie Belle finished. "Yeah. That's exactly what's going on here."
Apple Bloom and Scootaloo stopped dead in their tracks, eyes wide. "Whoa," Apple Bloom said.
"This is heavy," Scootaloo added.
"Bwee-kee," Bumper opined.
A silence fell over the group.
"So...Discord?" Sweetie Belle suggested.
"Hmm...no, not his style," Fluttershy said. "Besides, he's spending the week in Yakyakistan pretending to be a yak so he can take part in Yikslurbertfest...whatever that is."
"Yeah, th' last time Discord took us back in time, he was there with us," Apple Bloom pointed out. "He'd pull this kinda thing on Twilight, but not us."
Scootaloo's stomach made a disgruntled noise, and she let out a moan. "Oh man," she grumbled. "I think those mushrooms did a number on my tummy."
"Mine too, now that you mention it," Sweetie Belle said. Two other stomachs rumbled in agreement. Bumper let out a squeal-snort, looking among them.
"Pardon me," Sergeant Stormchaser said, dropping to the ground in front of the group. "You say you are all suffering a malady of the digestion?"
"It...seems so," Fluttershy said. "Before we...well, earlier we ate salads garnished with some truffles we found." She paused. "Oh my. I hope they weren't...oh dear..."
Stormchaser grimaced. "Well, fortunately, we do have a healer at camp. I'm positive he can prepare a remedy."
"We'd be much obliged," Apple Bloom said.
The small group walked a long distance, the three fillies groaning and complaining about their stomachs from time to time. Their complaints ebbed when they recognized their surroundings after over an hour's walk. "Hey, isn't this—" Scootaloo began.
"—th' Whitetail Woods?" Apple Bloom finished. "It sure is." She frowned. "Wow, th' trees here ain't nearly as...well...big as Ah remember."
"I doubt they're even the same trees," Fluttershy said thoughtfully. "I mean, other than the Tree of Harmony, the oldest tree in Equestria is only about twelve hundred years old."
Stormchaser frowned. "Pardon me. I have tried to refrain from eavesdropping, but you ponies tend to say odd things which make little sense. You refer to these uncharted woods by name? You know of the age of a tree?" He tilted his head. "There is more odd about you than where I found you and your strange grouping."
Sweetie Belle stepped forward. "We're from the fu—" She was silenced by Fluttershy spreading a wing in front of her.
"I'm sorry," Fluttershy said. "Our, umm...our herd passed through these lands once before. We named these woods because of a tribe of deer that guided us through. I...I don't know if they're still here, though."
Stormchaser nodded. "Perhaps not. We have seen no sign of deer in these woods. But deer are skittish and avoid ponies." He turned. "I suppose it matters little. Let us continue. The camp is yet a distance from here."
It took another twenty minutes to reach the "camp". The fillies gasped in wonder.
"Y'call this a camp?" Apple Bloom asked. "It's huge!"
In a vast clearing in the woods stood a grand palisade of uprooted logs, the tops sharpened to points. Rope and plank walkways above the palisade held earth pony sentries, while pegasi flew about overhead. Six guards—two each of unicorn, pegasus, and earth pony—flanked the interlocked logs that formed a gate through which the group could see bustling activity amid a veritable city of tents.
"This is Camp Giddyup, where the three tribes have come together to lay the groundwork for living together in peace," Stormchaser said. "Come, I will find a spare tent for you and fetch the healer." He led them to the gate, where he nodded to the guards. They cast a dubious gaze over the group.
"Stormchaser," one of the other pegasi said, "who are these ponies?"
"Stray travelers," Stormchaser said. "I found them by the edge of the cursewood. They need rest, warmth, and a visit from the healer."
"Children? In the cursewood?" a unicorn guard asked, rearing in alarm. "What's in your head, lass?" he spat at Fluttershy.
Fluttershy cowered. "It, umm...it's a long story," she whispered.
Stormchaser spread a wing, fixing the unicorn with a steely gaze. "I will do any asking of questions," he said. "And any berating of pegasi that need berating. You need but open the gate to allow us inside."
The unicorn glared at him, but nodded to his companion. Their horns glowed, and the gates opened. The little group was ushered through, and Stormchaser led them on a winding path through tents, piles of crates, and ponies moving to and fro. Finally, he reached a tent which appeared vacant and ushered them in. "You may rest here," he said. "I will see to it that warm broth is brought to you, and the healer will attend to you as soon as he's free."
"Thank you," Fluttershy said. Once Stormchaser withdrew, the group laid down on piles of fluffy straw and thick fleece blankets.
"Is it just me, or are the tribes kinda...still fighting?" Sweetie Belle asked.
"But that doesn't make any sense," Scootaloo said with a frown. "The Fire of Friendship fixed...well, everything, right? Ponies should be all friends now!"
Fluttershy sighed. "I'm pretty sure our Hearth's Warming stories are, well..." She paused to choose her words delicately. "They tell the important parts, but leave out some...details."
"Y'reckon maybe it took longer'n jes' one night an' one day fer ponies t' come together an' really achieve peace?" Apple Bloom asked.
"It seems that way," Fluttershy said. "I mean, they did have generations of distrust and aggression to overcome. I doubt they really came together as one nation until, well...until they finished building that nation together."
"Huh," Scootaloo said, scratching her head with a hoof. "So what do we do now?"
"Well, in all the stories I've read," Sweetie Belle said, "time travelers either have to fix a problem to make sure history goes the way it's supposed to, or they have to avoid doing anything to change history."
"Umm...I vote for not changing history," Fluttershy said. "I say we find a way to get home as quickly as possible."
"I'm all for that," Scootaloo said. "But how?"
"I'm afraid I don't—" Fluttershy broke off, eyes wide. "Wait! I do know who can help us!"
"Princess Celestia?" Sweetie Belle suggested hopefully.
"No, but close," Fluttershy said. "If we're at the beginning of Equestria, then he's alive. And he created the only time travel spells known to exist!"
The fillies looked at each other. "Who?" Apple Bloom asked for the group.
"Starswirl the Bearded!" Fluttershy exclaimed. "If anypony can help us get back to our own time, it's Starswirl!"
"Oh yeah," Apple Bloom said. "He was Clover the Clever's mentor, right?"
"Hello?" a voice called. A dark blue stallion poked his head into the tent. "I was told there are sick ponies here?"
"Oh, you must be the healer," Fluttershy said. "Yes, we...our tummies hurt a little. We, umm...we ate some mushrooms earlier that might not have been very good for us."
The healer entered fully. "Oh dear," he said. His mustache, a light silver in color, twitched worriedly. "What do you remember about these mushrooms?" Even as he spoke, he began spreading out tools and powders from his saddlebags.
"They were black truffles," Scootaloo said. "Big, kinda bumpy, just...pure black."
"Hmm," the healer mused. "Were they growing on a tree or under a rock?"
"Under a rock."
"Well, black truffles are generally not dangerous," the healer said. "How do your stomachs feel now? Worse than before, or better?"
"A little better actually," Fluttershy said. Her cheeks colored. "Umm...I've been, kind of, umm...passing wind on the walk here. I think...that helped."
The healer chuckled. "Ahh, yes." He put away half of the things he'd taken out and began mixing something which fizzed. He filled four small cups and passed one to each pony. "Well, the mushrooms you ate weren't toxic. But apparently they were very gassy. Just drink this, it'll help with the gas."
"Thank you," Fluttershy said sheepishly. The fillies all giggled as they took the medicine. Once Fluttershy was finished, she asked, "Excuse me, but we were wondering..."
"Yes?"
"Is...is there any way we might be able to arrange a meeting with Starswirl the Bearded? We...we need his help with something. A spell."
The healer frowned. "Well...I don't know where he might be found, but his apprentice is in the camp. She's been rather busy lately, but I'll ask her to stop in and visit."
"Thank you," Fluttershy said. She yawned mightily. "Well, girls, I suggest we get some rest. We could be here a while."
* * * * *
Two hours passed. Warm, delicious broth had been provided. In between sips of broth, Fluttershy and the fillies had discussed their situation, trying to figure out how they ended up in their current predicament, but ultimately getting nowhere. They decided to rest until Clover the Clever arrived.
"Excuse me?" a soft voice called, rousing Fluttershy from a light slumber. She blinked her eyes opened sleepily and looked to the tent flap. A unicorn mare with a pale green coat and a vibrant dark green mane which was cut in a short, tidy bob stood in the entrance. She wore a plain burlap cloak; the hood was folded down around her neck.
"Oh, hello," Fluttershy said softly. "Please, come in."
The mare entered. "My name is Clover the Clever," she said.
"Starswirl's apprentice," Fluttershy said, nodding. "Thank you for coming, we're in a real bind."
"Yes, I was told you wanted to meet with my master," Clover said, taking a seat on an empty bed as the fillies woke up. "I'm afraid he's been gone for some time—he isn't even aware of the pact to create a new nation yet. At least, I don't think he is. I mean, sometimes he disappears for many moons at a time, and yet seems to know what's happening back home better than most ponies..." She paused, then blushed. "Sorry. Sometimes I...ahem."
Fluttershy giggled. "You remind me of a friend of mine. Oh, my name is Fluttershy. These fillies are Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo."
"Buki!"
"Oh, and that's Bumper."
Clover nodded to each in turn. "I'm pleased to see a group of ponies such as yourself traveling together, though I admit I'm also a bit confused. I mean, three young fillies, each from a different tribe—"
Fluttershy held up a hoof. "Miss Clover," she said, "I can explain, but the explanation may sound a bit...strange."
"Alright, I'm listening."
Fluttershy took a deep breath. "We're from the future," she said. "Well over a thousand years in the future, actually. We have no idea how we ended up here, but what's happening right now, the founding of Equestria? It's our ancient history. We put on pageants at Hearth's Warming every year where ponies play you, Smart Cookie, and Private Pansy and celebrate your defeat of the Windigoes."
"The three of us have been best friends for years," Scootaloo said. "We all got our Cutie Marks at the same time." The Crusaders showed their flanks proudly.
"We live in a town called Ponyville, where all types of ponies live together in harmony," Apple Bloom continued. "It don't exist yet, but it'll be in that big valley yonder, between these woods an' th' Everfree Forest."
"We're going to need Starswirl the Bearded's help to get home," Sweetie Belle said. "We don't belong in this time, we've got friends and families back home that we want to see again."
Clover sat back on her haunches, considering this with wide eyes and a contemplative frown. "You say you're from the future?" she asked. "But...time travel...it's not possible..."
"It's possible," Fluttershy said. "Your own mentor, Starswirl the Bearded, will discover time travel spells at some point. We've, umm...we have a friend who's had a little...misadventure or two with those spells."
"Hmm." Clover pursed her lips. "Well that sounds like something he'd do."
"We don't know how we ended up in your time," Fluttershy said. "I mean, one minute we were eating lunch, the next we woke up from an afternoon nap in a cold empty field that should've been my warm comfy living room."
"Please, Miss Clover," Apple Bloom said. "We need your help. We need Starswirl th' Bearded's help."
Clover sighed. "Well, of course I'll help you," she said. "Your story is a bit far-fetched, but I can sense you're telling the truth, and if you are indeed from the future, this is a matter that demands my master's immediate attention." She frowned. "I suppose I'll have to use the emergency contact spell he created..." She stood, trotting outside. Curious, Fluttershy followed her.
A small cart was parked outside the tent, loaded with magical supplies. Curled up atop the cart on a pile of old blankets was a small sapphire-scaled dragon. "Oh my," Fluttershy said.
"It's quite safe, I assure you," Clover said. "Young drakelings such as Sulfur here can actually be quite pleasant."
"Oh, I know," Fluttershy said with a smile as Sulfur opened orange eyes that shone like jewels and regarded them lazily. "I happen to have a very good friend who's a dragon just a little younger than this one, his name is Spike."
"Spike, huh?" Sulfur asked, digging in one earfin with a claw. "Sounds like something you'd name a pet." He glanced at Clover. "Well?"
"Just a moment, Sulfur," Clover said, rummaging through her supplies for parchment, ink, and a quill. "These ponies have an emergency, I need to send a message to Master Starswirl straight away."
"Ugh," Sulfur complained. "I wish the old fart never invented that spell. I'd rather be lying on a rock in a volcano than hanging out with you ponies playing messenger."
Clover frowned. "Now, Sulfur—"
"Let me," Fluttershy said. She leaned close. "Sulfur? You don't really mean that, do you? Have the ponies mistreated you in any way?"
Sulfur frowned. "Well, no," he admitted. "Actually, they're pretty nice. I mean, okay, so blankets and pillows and hay are more comfortable to lay on than rocks. And I guess maybe ponies have pretty good food."
"And?"
Sulfur rolled his eyes. "Okay okay, so maybe it's nice to have somebody to talk to who can think about more than gems and belching. I mean, don't get me wrong, gems and belching are great, but these unicorns come up with some pretty neat stuff." He sighed. "Okay, okay, so maybe the ponies aren't so bad."
Fluttershy smiled. "There, that wasn't so hard now, was it?"
"Well, I've got the message ready to send," Clover said. "Sulfur, if you would please?"
"Yeah yeah," Sulfur said. He took the scroll from Clover and breathed emerald fire on it. It burned away, becoming a stream of sparkling smoke that disappeared into the distance. He smirked at Fluttershy. "Bet your buddy Spike can't do that!"
"Actually, he can," Fluttershy said.
Sulfur blinked. "But...I'm the only dragon who can—"
He was interrupted by a loud crackle of static. Clover and Fluttershy gasped as their hair stood on end. Tiny bits of dust and rock in the clearing rose off the ground. A low hum filled the air. Ponies milling about the camp stopped still, looking around wildly.
The hum rose to a high, whining pitch. A bright flash of light lit up the camp.
Bells jingled.
A wizened stallion with a long, white beard stood a short distance from the two mares, his blue cloak trailing the ground. The bells on his floppy hat jingled as he turned to regard them.
"Clover," Starswirl the Bearded said with a nod of greeting. "Sulfur." His gaze turned to Fluttershy. "And you, my dear pegasus...if what you say is true, we have much to discuss, and it is imperative that we find a way to return you to where you belong as swiftly as possible."
"If what you say is true, we have much to discuss, and it is imperative that we find a way to return you to where you belong as swiftly as possible."
Fluttershy couldn't help but stare, wide-eyed, in awe. "Starswirl the Bearded," she breathed. "Wow."
Clover coughed. "Perhaps...we should talk inside?" she prompted, pointing to the tent flap behind Fluttershy.
"Oh? ...Oh! Yes, of course..." Fluttershy backed up into the tent, the two unicorns following her. Her eyes never left Starswirl. "Goodness...I mean, you'd think I'd be used to meeting living legends by now, but you're Starswirl the Bearded..."
"Whoa, cool!" Sweetie Belle said.
"He sure is, umm...bearded," Apple Bloom said.
"And old," Scootaloo added.
"Scootaloo!" the others hissed.
Starswirl chuckled. "I am all these things and more," he said. He examined the little group curiously. He blinked as his eyes landed upon the flanks of the Crusaders. "My word," he breathed, stepping closer. "Your Cutie Marks..."
"Yeah, we all got 'em at th' same time," Apple Bloom said. "We've been best friends for years, an' we all have th' same destiny."
"Incredible," Starswirl said. His horn lit up, and his eyes glowed a faint golden-green with sparkles trailing from the edges. He gasped. "This magic...! It's like nothing I've ever seen before!"
"It's called Trinity Magic," Sweetie Belle said. "Princess Celestia and Pri—" She suddenly found herself struck mute. She blinked.
Starswirl's eyes went back to normal, and he turned sharply to Clover the Clever. "Please wait outside," he said. "I'm afraid I must cast a silence bubble over us for a few moments."
Clover nodded and left. Starswirl cast a spell that enveloped the group in a magic field. He took a deep breath, then looked at Sweetie Belle. "Forgive me," he said. "You must be careful around whom you speak of such things."
Sweetie Belle blinked, then worked her muzzle for a moment. "Umm...sorry?" she offered.
Starswirl snorted. "In any case, I now know beyond a doubt you are not of this time," he said. "Only ponies from the future would know of Celestia and Luna." He stroked his beard. "Hmm..." He shook his head. "I would ask you more about this Trinity Magic, but I suspect I am not meant to know of it. Curious..." He looked at the fillies. "And Celestia and Luna, they're mentoring you?"
"Princess Luna isn't," Scootaloo said. "Mostly it's Princess Twilight."
Starswirl's eyes widened, his skin going pale. "You are from farther into the future than I have dared to gaze," he said softly. "I know of no Princess Twilight..." He frowned thoughtfully. "The Tree...yes...yes, of course..."
"So you already have time travel spells?" Fluttershy asked hopefully.
"Spells? No, not spells," Starswirl said distractedly. "If you know of me, surely you know that I am...shall we say, unique among unicorns?"
Fluttershy blushed. "Umm...I honestly only know what my friend Twilight has told me about you," she said. "Sorry, but studying ancient unicorns and magic isn't really something I..." She ducked her head. "I mean, it's fascinating and all, but it's a little outside my wheelhouse."
"Of course, of course," Starswirl said, nodding. "I understand entirely." He straightened up. "Then you should first know this about me: For reasons even I do not entirely understand, I am a wizard whose life is lived in reverse. As you see me now, I am yet young, and yet I know of the many things I will do as the centuries pass, if only in broad strokes at times. I have seen myself as a much younger unicorn in visage yet far older and wiser in spirit, in an age that is not yet born, performing feats I cannot fathom with my present knowledge of the world." He frowned. "It is conceivable that one day, I will possess the ability to freely brave the currents of the river of my own life, but at present, I can only see glimpses of what is to come. Very detailed glimpses that are very enlightening, I grant."
"Goodness," Fluttershy said, blinking. "Then....we need to be careful what we say about the future even to you, don't we?"
Starswirl's mustache twitched. "You understand these things well for a pegasus," he said.
Fluttershy blushed. "I...have a certain friend who isn't exactly what you'd call...well...a normal pony," she said. "And, umm...this isn't the first time I've traveled back in time."
"Really now?" Starswirl asked interestedly. "Forgive me, I should not ask, but—"
"Discord," Scootaloo said quickly. "Took all four of us on a trip to Ancient Anugypt once."
Starswirl's jaw dropped.
"Umm...that might be one of those things you really don't need to ask about," Fluttershy hedged.
"I should say," Starswirl said shakily. He shook his head. "But no matter. Of more import is how you came to be in this time in the first place."
"We're not really sure," Fluttershy said. "I mean, we'd all just finished eating lunch and we laid down for a nap. When we woke up, my cottage was gone and we were, umm...well...here," she said. "I mean, in the past, not here specifically."
"Hmm." Starswirl stroked his beard. "And nothing in particular happened that stands out? Nothing you recall? Nothing unusual about your day?"
"Not really," Fluttershy said with a shrug. "Nothing strange was happening in Ponyville, I don't think anyway...unless something happened while we were sleeping..."
"Yeah, only thing out of the ordinary today was us findin' them truffles," Apple Bloom said with a helpless shrug. "Pretty normal day until all this happened."
Starswirl looked at her sharply. "Truffles?" he asked. "Solid black, bumpy, dug from beneath a rock?"
"Yeah," Scootaloo said slowly, frowning. "Why?"
Starswirl groaned. "Time truffles," he muttered.
The fillies and Fluttershy blinked. "Umm...time truffles?" Fluttershy asked, raising an eyebrow skeptically.
"An extremely rare and very mischievous fungus," Starswirl said. "Though they usually only grow near areas inundated with poison joke pollen..."
"Well I do live on the edge of the Everfree Forest," Fluttershy said. "Umm...I've had a couple of...couple of experiences with poison joke..."
Starswirl blinked. "You actually live near that—nevermind." He shook his head. "Well, that solves the mystery of what happened to you all. You ingested time truffles and were transported across time into this era." He nodded firmly.
"Oh. Well. Alright then," Fluttershy said. "So...how do we, umm...how do we get back?"
Starswirl grimaced. "Therein lies the problem," he said. "I'm afraid the only way for you to return to your own time is to eat white time truffles. And even then, the results...may vary."
Fluttershy frowned. "If we eat the exact same amount of white time truffles as we ate of the black ones, would that put us back where we were?"
Starswirl made a vague gesture with his hoof. "I can't make any promises," he said. "The best I can hope for is you'll end up somewhere far enough into the future where my older self can return you to your own time." He harrumphed. "In any case, the problem is finding white time truffles in the first place." He dropped his silence bubble. "Clover!"
Clover trotted back in. "Yes, Master?"
"I must leave immediately on an expedition to find a rare magical fungus," Starswirl said briskly. "I have determined the cause of this group's displacement through time, and we must work swiftly to return them to whence they came. If you would, please look after them while I'm away."
"Of course, Master," Clover said with a respectful dip of her head.
"Thank you ever so much, sir," Fluttershy said.
Starswirl smiled. "I only hope I can truly help you find your way home," he said. With that, he teleported away...only to return a second later. "By the way, I shall need to borrow that pig."
"Buki?"
"Bumper? Oh! Because he can sniff out truffles, right? Of course," Fluttershy said, nodding.
"Good. Come along, little fellow," Starswirl said, lifting Bumper onto his back and disappearing again.
An awkward silence descended. Clover coughed. "So, umm...in about an hour we'll be gathering for a banquet. It's an important meeting, we'll be discussing the future of this new nation we're trying to build." She worried at her lip, her ears folding down. "Do we..." She raised a hoof nervously. "Does it work?" she asked softly.
Fluttershy smiled. "You know you shouldn't ask that," she said. "What you should do is trust the friendship you share with Private Pansy and Smart Cookie."
Clover blinked several times. "Umm...I think you just answered my question anyway," she said softly, eyes wide. "You...you wouldn't even know our names unless..." She looked at the three fillies, a thoughtful purse to her lips. "So this is all going to work," she said thoughtfully.
"Yes, it's going to work, but I think you and your friends still have some work to do to make sure it all works out, don't you?" Fluttershy offered mildly.
Clover set her jaw, nodding. "Of course," she said. She sighed. "Yes, there is...still much work to do. King Bullion and Princess Platinum are being...difficult."
Fluttershy grimaced. "We noticed things are still a bit...tense," she said. "I mean, at least you all seem to be working together to wrap up winter so you can plant farms and build homes, but..."
Clover tilted her head. "Wrap up winter, huh?" She pursed her lips. "I like that. I bet that could catch on. Maybe we could even make sort of a festival out of it?" She began pacing. "The Winter Wrap-Up Festival. I should talk to my friends about that!"
Fluttershy winced, ducking her head. "Me and my big mouth," she said.
Sweetie Belle giggled. "Well, now we know where Winter Wrap-Up got its name," she said teasingly.
Clover blinked. "Should I ask...? No, nevermind." She turned to leave. "I'll return in an hour to collect you all for the banquet."
"Thank you," Fluttershy said. "For everything."
Clover smiled and left.
"So...we just wait around for Starswirl to find the mushrooms we need to get home, and try not to screw up the future in the meantime?" Scootaloo asked.
"Pretty much," Fluttershy said with a sigh. "This...may be more difficult than I thought..."
* * * * *
An hour later, Clover led the group to a long, low hall at the rear of the encampment, into which a steady stream of ponies entered. "The leaders of all three tribes are gathered here," Clover said quietly. "Be respectful, they're...a bit temperamental at the moment."
Immediately upon entering the hall, they heard voices raised in ire, shouting over each other.
"You don't say," Scootaloo said flatly.
The hall was arranged in two square rings of tables, with the inner ring raised up on a hastily-assembled wooden dais. At this table sat a group of very important ponies: A broad-framed unicorn stallion with a pale gold coat and a flowing golden mane, wearing purple velvet robes and a big gold crown; a unicorn mare with a silver-white coat, wearing the same purple robes, whose flaring silver crown sat atop an elegantly-coiffed deep purple mane styled in drill-like coils that framed her face; a burly armored pegasus whose pauldrons were adorned with stars and lightning bolts, flanked by a confident, assertive mare in burnished bronze ceremonial armor and a somewhat timid-looking mare wearing similar armor to Sergeant Stormchaser's; an earth pony mare with a pale yellowish-white coat and a short, tousled brown mane who wore an outfit with a broad ruffled collar and a giant pudding-shaped hat on her head, and a greyish-brown earth pony stallion with a short, choppy mane the color of raisins, wearing a brown peasant outfit and a flared-brimmed brown cap with a feather in it.
Clover pointed at each in turn, whispering to the group. "King Bullion, Princess Platinum, General Jetstream, Commander Hurricane, Private Pansy, Chancellor Puddinghead, and Smart Cookie." She pointed along the outer ring of tables. "If you'll take seats over there, I...I have to be up on the main dais with the planning committee."
"Of course," Fluttershy said. "Good luck. Come along, girls."
On the dais, the founders of Equestria were engulfed in a heated exchange...
"But of course my dear father should rule Equestria!" Princess Platinum was saying. "He is after all a king..."
"Well I'm a Chancellor!" Chancellor Puddinghead put in. "And I'm pretty sure that outranks kings and generals—"
"What Her Excellency means to say," Smart Cookie said, shoving a hoof in Puddinghead's mouth, "is that we need equal representation for each tribe if this thing's gonna work."
General Jetstream frowned. "I'm not fond of the idea of wingless ponies dictating the actions of my pegasi," he rumbled.
Sweetie Belle turned to Fluttershy. "This guy isn't in the Hearth's Warming stories at all," she whispered.
"I thought Smart Cookie was a mare," Scootaloo added.
"History isn't really clear on some points," Fluttershy whispered back. "Now hush, we're witnessing something very important here!"
"You earth pony ruffians wouldn't know proper leadership if you were on a leash!" Princess Platinum huffed, tossing her mane. This earned shocked gasps from many ponies present.
"Why you spoiled little—" Chancellor Puddinghead growled.
Commander Hurricane got in Princess Platinum's face. "Your Uppityness would do well to behave," she said. "Just because pegasi and earth ponies can't do the kind of magic you can doesn't make you better than us!"
Clover coughed. "Everypony? This...this is exactly the kind of behavior that caused the Windigoes in the first place," she pointed out. "We're here to unite ponykind into a single nation, not...not keep acting like this."
"Clover's right," Private Pansy said. "We should be learning how to get along with each other, not...not fighting about things that aren't worth fighting about." After a pause, she added, "Umm...but I agree the unicorns shouldn't rule all of Equestria without...without pegasi and earth ponies having a say..." She ducked her head. "Sorry, not helping."
"No, you're right, Pansy," Smart Cookie said. "We need a government that works together to make fair laws and rules for everypony. Now, if you'll just listen—"
"We unicorns," King Bullion rumbled, "who invented reading and writing and the very concept of law, are best suited to the task of creating a government."
"Psh. You can write fancy laws, but without an organized military, you can't do anything to keep ponies in line!"
"Umm...I don't think you're getting the idea of how friendship and harmony work at all..."
"No duh!" Chancellor Puddinghead said. "Even I get it and I'm a puddinghead!"
Princess Platinum snorted. "Too easy," she said airily.
Chancellor Puddinghead blinked. "H-HEY!" She jumped up and down angrily. "You...you little—!"
"STOP!" Sweetie Belle shrieked.
The squabbling adult ponies fell silent, turning to stare at her. Apple Bloom and Scootaloo moved in tighter at her sides, planting their hooves firmly.
"Sweetie Belle!" Fluttershy hissed, eyes wide and wings flared in alarm. "What are you doing?!"
"Excuse me," King Bullion said, tilting his muzzle up and glaring imperiously at her. "You children are here only by the grace of my court sage. We are deciding the fate of all ponykind. We are establishing the very leadership of a pony nation. By what right do you interrupt our great work?"
Sweetie Belle cringed, but at Apple Bloom's gentle urging, she stood tall. "You're not deciding anything, you're just shouting at each other and insulting each other!" she said. "And I'm sorry, but Chancellor Puddinghead and the pegasi are right! Unicorns shouldn't rule Equestria! Even if you start out alright, even if you mean well, it won't be right to have the unicorns in charge!"
"HAH! You see?" Commander Hurricane said, pointing a hoof at Sweetie Belle. "This unicorn doesn't think you should rule over us!"
"That's right!" Chancellor Puddinghead said. "My plan for a council of leaders from each tribe will—"
"Not work either," Scootaloo interrupted forcefully. "They'd maybe get some things done at first, and maybe they'd start out with good intentions, but sooner or later the unicorns, the earth ponies, and the pegasi would all want different things the other tribes don't agree with, and you'd go right back to what you were before."
"Well then what, pray tell, do you children suggest?" Princess Platinum asked in an exasperated tone, throwing up her hooves.
"Y'all need a leader who understands whut everypony needs," Apple Bloom said. "Somepony who won't play favorites, who ain't on any one tribe's side!"
The adults looked around at one another.
"Yeah...so how do you suggest we find a pony like that?" Commander Hurricane demanded, gesticulating wildly. "Any pony we put in charge of Equestria is gonna be from one of the three tribes!"
"Not if it's an alicorn," Sweetie Belle said.
A hush fell over the room. Fluttershy folded her ears down and facehoofed.
"An alicorn..." King Bullion said in a reverent whisper. "Child...alicorns are practically a myth."
"Nopony's seen an alicorn in hundreds of moons," Chancellor Puddinghead said.
"Alicorns aren't even real," Commander Hurricane said dismissively.
Clover coughed. "Umm...actually," she said quietly. "I, umm..." She shuffled her hooves. "I know how we can find an alicorn."
All eyes turned to her.
Clover scratched one fetlock with her other hoof. "Master Starswirl...he takes a sabbatical every six moons to visit the alicorns. He could...he could ask them."
The assembled ponies began whispering excitedly amongst themselves. After several long moments of hushed but heated debate, King Bullion raised a hoof for silence, then swept his gaze across the room. "I...would not object to having an alicorn rule Equestria," he said. "Alicorns are said to be wise and powerful, and would no doubt lead our new nation to peace and prosperity. What say you, my fellows?"
Chancellor Puddinghead shrugged. "Works for me. We're honestly gonna be too busy planting crops and growing food for everypony to bother trying to rule Equestria. We just want everything to be fair."
"As long as whoever's running this show has wings, that's good enough for me," General Jetstream said. This earned a few glares from the other ponies.
"It's decided then," King Bullion said. "Clover, see to this immediately. Inform Starswirl the Bearded of our decision and our request. Ask him to beseech the alicorns on our behalf."
"At once, Your Majesty," Clover said, bowing before hurrying from the room.
"Well then," Chancellor Puddinghead said, rubbing her hooves together. "Looks like we don't have anything else to do until we hear back from Starswirl. Let's have a feast!"
The atmosphere turned from tense and quiet to jubilant as servants hurried food out to all the tables and serving dishes were quickly emptied onto the waiting plates of hungry ponies. As they loaded their plates with vegetable stew and bread and stewed berries, Fluttershy looked at the three fillies with a flat, nonplussed expression. "You do realize what you've done, right?"
"Yeah yeah, we interfered in history, but does it matter?" Scootaloo asked. "You saw what was happening there, right?"
"They needed a nudge," Apple Bloom said.
Fluttershy sighed. "Perha—"
"Pardon me."
Sergeant Stormchaser had trotted up behind them, eliciting a squeak from Fluttershy. "Y-yes?" she asked meekly.
Stormchaser looked the four of them over. "The odd things you have said since I discovered you, and now this sudden suggestion about how Equestria should be ruled..." He narrowed his eyes. "Just who are you ponies?"
Fluttershy and the Crusaders looked at each other. Scootaloo shrugged. Apple Bloom shook her head. Fluttershy ducked behind her hair.
Sweetie Belle looked up at Stormchaser. "We're just a bad mushroom dream you're having," she said, wriggling her hooves at him. "We're not really here..."
As the ponies at Camp Giddyup waited anxiously for word from Starswirl, Fluttershy and the Crusaders did their best to stay out of history's way and not involve themselves any more than they already had beyond minor chores—helping carry wagons, tending to wounded or tired ponies, assisting with the first ever Winter Wrap-Up.
Shortly after breakfast a week after their arrival, the future ponies heard a great commotion outside the mess tent. They joined a queue of curious ponies milling out into the compound. Gasps, whispers, and excited whickering filled the air.
"Oh my," Fluttershy said with a smile. "Girls, look."
Starswirl strutted down the camp's main road, two strikingly beautiful young mares flanking him. One had a shining white coat, pinkish-grey eyes, and a long pearl pink mane. A long, slender, tapered horn protruded from her forehead. The other was much younger—more a filly than a mare, really—with greyish-green eyes, a dark blue coat, and a short, pale blue mane. Her horn was the length of a normal unicorn's horn, but came to a much finer point.
Both mares had wings.
"Alicorns," a pegasus whispered. "They're...they're real..."
"Look at that horn!" an earth pony said.
"They don't have Cutie Marks," somepony observed.
King Bullion, Chancellor Puddinghead, and General Jetstream bustled through the crowd, approaching the alicorns and Starswirl. King Bullion immediately went down on one knee, bowing his head. "Your graces," he said. "It is an honor to meet members of your esteemed, elusive tribe." He looked up. "By your grace, I am King Bullion of the unicorn tribe. My companions are Chancellor Puddinghead of the earth ponies and General Jetstream of the pegasi."
The white alicorn smiled. "It is a pleasure to meet you," she said. "My name is Celestia. This is my sister Luna. You'll have to excuse us if...if we say or do anything strange, or if we have difficulty adjusting to you all. We spend so very little time amongst ponies who are not like us."
"By which she means the only pony we've ever seen who isn't an alicorn is this geezer," Luna said.
"Luna!" Celestia snapped.
"What? He's oooooold," Luna whined.
"Yes, he's very old, but please show some manners and dignity!" Celestia hissed. "I swear, this is why Mother gets so frustrated—"
Starswirl coughed. "Tia. Lulu. Not the time for this." There was some giggling from the crowd, along with some whispering and snickering.
"Ahem. Yes." Celestia blushed and cleared her throat. "Forgive me. As I said, we have rarely ventured beyond our own realm, and have little experience with other ponies."
"Quite alright, your graces," King Bullion said. "And...where is the realm of the alicorns, if I may ask? Forgive an old unicorn his curiosity."
Celestia grimaced. "We can't tell you," she said. "Or rather, trying to tell you would be useless. Only alicorns may see its borders and enter. Well, alicorns and the occasional, very rare, unicorn of exceptional magical talent."
"There's a reason Starswirl's the only pony from outside we've ever met," Luna said.
"I see," King Bullion said, sounding disappointed. He harrumphed. "Well then. Has Starswirl explained to you our situation and our request?"
"He has indeed," Celestia said. "Our Council was not fully in favor of what you requested, but..." She twitched an ear. "Starswirl's argument was most persuasive, and he convinced Mother that our own destines were somehow intertwined with this new nation you propose to build. Mother has learned to trust Starswirl's sense of destiny, and has felt the same—that Luna and I will not achieve our fullest potential if we remain among our own kind."
"Then you will lead our three tribes in this united nation of Equestria?" King Bullion asked. "You will assume the throne of Queen?"
Luna made an indignant sound. Celestia closed her eyes. "Neither my sister nor myself will accept the crown of your Queen," she said.
The ponies gasped. "B-but—!"
Celestia laughed softly, musically, and held up a hoof. "Luna and I wish to rule as equals," she clarified. "There can be only one Queen. For us to rule together, neither of us can be Queen."
An uncertain murmur rippled through the crowd. "Then...then you'll lead us as, err..." Chancellor Puddinghead scratched her head. "Princesses?"
"That will do," Celestia said primly.
"Princess Luna has a nice ring to it," Luna said, ruffling her wings. She made a face. "Much nicer than Queen Luna. Queen Luna sounds...evil."
"There is much to be done before Luna and Celestia can assume the thrones of leadership of our three tribes," Starswirl said. "A full and complete government must be established, a site must be chosen for their castle, and...well..." He glanced at the two young alicorns. "They themselves must be prepared for leadership. They are yet young and inexperienced. Among their kind, they are but children. Learned and wise, yes, and more powerful than any ten unicorns, but they will need to be prepared for the burdens of ruling a kingdom."
"More studying," Luna said boredly. "Wonderful."
"Now, Luna," Celestia said lightly, "studying is important..."
"I'm almost tempted to let you be Queen by yourself just so I don't have to study," Luna huffed.
"I will not rule without you at my side, sister," Celestia said patiently.
"Wow," Scootaloo whispered. "They're a lot different from the princesses we know!"
"They sure are!" Sweetie Belle agreed with a giggle.
"Then come, your graces," King Bullion said. "We have much to discuss..."
"Go with these ponies, you two," Starswirl said, his eyes scanning the crowd. "I have other business to attend. Once I am done, I will join you."
"Sure, leave us with the stuffy-looking ponies," Luna muttered good-naturedly. With a world-weary sigh, she turned to Chancellor Puddinghead. "Your hat looks delicious. Do you have any actual pudding? Or other tasty desserts?"
Puddinghead laughed. "We'll see what we can round up," she said.
"I wouldn't mind a nice strawberry chiffon cake if you can manage one," Celestia said lightly as she fell into step with the others. As they wandered up the broad road, Starswirl weaved through the gathered ponies, homing in on the Crusaders and Fluttershy.
"I was able to procure some white time truffles," he said. "I would have returned with them sooner, but apparently somepony suggested to the leaders of Equestria that we needed an alicorn to guide the new nation." His mustache twitched.
Sweetie Belle scratched the back of her neck sheepishly. "Aheh..."
Starswirl chuckled. "That your future home is ruled by the very same alicorns tells me this was meant to be, so you have done little except perhaps prevent months of disastrous and tiresome bickering." He nodded in the direction of the group's tent. "Now, if you will follow me, we can prepare to speed you along your way."
"Thank you, Mr. Starswirl," Fluttershy said meekly.
* * * * *
Over the next hour, Starswirl performed complicated arcane equations, with Fluttershy's assistance to pin down the exact slippage of time, to determine the precise amount of white time truffle each displaced pony (and pig) needed to return home. Once he was reasonably satisfied with the accuracy, he and Clover cut, measured, and prepared the truffles for their wayward guests.
As Clover placed the prepared truffles before them, she smiled. "I...I just want you to know, it...it was a pleasure meeting you." She swallowed. "I—I had my doubts this 'Equestria' of ours was going to work. Having met ponies who live together in harmony the way you do—now I know it's all going to work out fine."
"There'll always be dangers to face, enemies to overcome, and friendships that need saving," Fluttershy said with a smile, "but what you've started here? Not once has it fallen, not even during the worst of what's to come." She looked from Clover to Starswirl. "It was very nice meeting both of you," she said. She giggled. "Twilight Sparkle's going to be so jealous when I tell her about this." Her eyes twinkled. "She's a big fan."
"She is, is she?" Starswirl asked, his moustache twitching.
"That's hardly a surprise, considering how legendary Master is even in our time," Clover said.
"Oh, she's a big fan of both of you," Fluttershy said. "She's even played Clover the Clever in the annual Hearth's Warming Pageant!" Her eyes widened, and she covered her mouth with her hooves. "Oops. You, umm...didn't hear that." The Crusaders giggled.
Clover blinked, blushing. "I...I'm a character in an annual pageant? W-wow..."
Starswirl chuckled. "Well, I believe it's time you were on your way. Your lives in your own time await!"
"Y-yes, of course." Fluttershy, the Crusaders, and Bumper dug into the white truffles. After they finished eating, Starswirl and Clover bid them farewell and left. The group quickly grew sleepy...
A loud boom of thunder woke them. Jumping to her hooves, Fluttershy looked around wildly. "Whuh, where..." She gasped. "Girls. GIRLS!"
"Huh?" Scootaloo muttered drowsily. "Are we home?"
"Ah don't think so," Apple Bloom said nervously. Sweetie Belle looked around and shrieked.
They were in the Whitetail Woods...probably. What was left of them, anyway.
As far as the eye could see, jagged, blackened, uneven stumps of trees stood like silent gravestones amid dusty, dark grounds speckled with sparse, unhealthy grass. A hot, arid wind blew through the ravaged forest. Heavy, dark clouds overhead rumbled with thunder and spat stark forks of jagged purple lightning.
"Oh my," Fluttershy whimpered. Her ears flattened as she looked up at the clouds, then around at the trees. "What happened here?"
"We musta missed th' mark," Apple Bloom said worriedly. "Not gone far enough forward. Maybe there was a fire or somethin' in th' woods we don't know about."
"Has to be," Scootaloo agreed uncertainly.
Sweetie Belle gulped. "M-maybe we could ask somepony over th-there," she said. The others followed her shaking hoof. A sparse collection of grubby tents and patched lean-tos stood among the dead trees. A few worn, haggard pony and donkey faces peered out curiously at them, then withdrew into their tents.
"Oh...oh my goodness," Fluttershy whimpered. "When are we? What happened here?"
"Fluttershy?" a weak, reedy voice called out.
"Eep!" Fluttershy's wings flared out in alarm as she turned to the source of the voice. Her eyes widened.
The thin, ragged blanket covering the entrance to a lean-to was pulled aside, and Discord limped out on his mismatched legs. He looked faded, washed-out, and beaten-down. His wings were limp and unresponsive, his jaundiced eyes had deep bags underneath them, and his eyebrows and beard were mere tufts. Patches of his coat and mane were missing entirely, and the tip of his tail was gone. His goat horn was broken off and filed down to a stump. He approached them, wild disbelief in his wide eyes. "F-Fluttershy?" he called out desperately, hopefully.
"Discord?" Fluttershy whimpered. "Wh-what happened to you?"
Discord stumbled, but steadily approached, his eyes never leaving her. "Where have you been the last two hundred years?" he wheezed.
Fluttershy's irises shrank to pinpricks. "T-two...hundred...years?"
Thunder crashed overhead. Somewhere in the distance, an urgent alarm clanged out.
Discord's eyes widened. "Inside, quickly," he said urgently, rounding Fluttershy and the Crusaders up as best he could. "It's not safe out here."
"Not safe, what—Discord—what's going on?" Fluttershy whispered as she was ushered into the lean-to.
Discord looked out into the dark sky with troubled eyes, then drew the sheet over the entrance. "Can't let her find you," he muttered. "Can't let her find you..."
Discord sagged against a threadbare old cot as the others sat on frayed pillows. Watery tea sat before each of them. Outside, the wind howled and the storm raged.
"What happened to you, Fluttershy?" Discord asked. "I searched everywhere. We all did. You, the Crusaders, you just...vanished..." He shook his head. "Ponyville was never the same after..." He gave Fluttershy a pleading look. "Where did you go that I couldn't find you?"
Fluttershy ducked her head. "We, umm...accidentally ate some time truffles," she said. "We, err...sort of wound up in the past..."
"The...past..." Discord smacked his face with his lion paw. "I didn't even think to look everywhen," he muttered. "That's not like me."
"More importantly, what happened to Equestria?" Sweetie Belle asked. "Who's this Shattered Empress?"
Discord went still. "Oh...oh, you poor girls..." he whispered. "I'm so sorry. Just so you know, I...I tried. We all tried..."
"What happened?" Scootaloo insisted.
Discord sighed. "It happened so suddenly. She showed up out of nowhere one day. Her magic was so powerful...so explosive. She brought with her dangerous artifacts from far beyond Equestria. She...she used them to steal the four alicorn princess' magic. The Royal Guards were no match for her, and the princesses, well..." He closed his eyes and winced. "She came prepared for their power. None of them could break down her shields. And...and when I tried to stop her, she stole my powers too. I at least escaped the worst of their fate." He drooped. "The princesses stand in the Storm Palace in Canterlot, petrified in obsidian for all time, monuments to her triumph."
The ponies gasped in horror.
"There are camps such as this one for refugees with no pony magic," Discord said. "We've managed to survive despite, well..." He waved a claw vaguely. "You saw what she did to the forest. Of course, the resistance has never stopped fighting. The Dragons are constantly at war with the Shattered Empress on the western front. The Griffons fight from the east. Princess Flurry Heart is keeping the Crystal Empire out of her hooves, but being the only alicorn left in all of Equestria is a constant strain on her."
"Princess Flurry Heart?" Fluttershy asked.
"Cadance's daughter," Discord said. "She...she wasn't born yet when you disappeared. When the Empress attacked Canterlot, Flurry was safe in the Crystal Empire, in the care of her Crystaller. He raised and trained her in secret. She's...she's the last hope we have, other than the Dragon Lord and his mate."
"And...and Ponyville? Our...our families?" Apple Bloom asked quietly.
Discord looked away, bowing his head.
The fillies began to sniffle. Their sniffles soon broke into wretching sobs. Fluttershy's eyes brimmed with tears. "This is...this is horrible," she whimpered. "We...we have to do something...we have to..."
"There's nothing you can do," Discord said miserably. "Nothing anypony can do." He paused, frowning. "Unless..."
"Unless?" Fluttershy asked.
Discord looked over the three fillies shrewdly. "You three have that...that Trinity Magic thing," he said.
"W-well, yeah," Apple Bloom said, sniffling and wiping her nose. "But we don't got th' gems."
"We...we left them in Twilight's castle," Sweetie Belle said.
Discord went pale. "I see," he said. "That's..." He grimaced. "Then again, perhaps..."
"Perhaps?" Fluttershy asked.
Discord frowned, stroking his beard. "Twilight's castle still stands...mostly," he said. "The problem is, it's been taken over by the Mad Witch. She's...she's dangerous. Unpredictable. And so powerful even the Shattered Empress has given up trying to subdue her. They...they largely ignore one another. The Mad Witch doesn't care about Equestria, so long as nopony bothers her. She has what she wants."
"Which is...?" Fluttershy asked.
Discord blinked. "Why...Twilight Sparkle dead, of course."
A particularly loud crash of thunder shook the forest. Lightning flashed so brightly it threw strobing illumination into the shanty.
"If you can get into the castle, find your Trinity Gems..." Discord frowned, nodding. "Yes. It could work..."
"What could work?" Scootaloo asked.
"Well, there's nothing the four of you can do to dethrone the Shattered Empress, and even if you could, it wouldn't bring back Equestria or the princesses," Discord said. "But...but if you could use your Trinity Magic to reactivate that map table in Twilight's castle..." He nodded absently. "It's been done before. The Mad Witch did it before..."
"Did what?" Fluttershy asked hesitantly.
"You could return to your own time," Discord said. "Back before any of us knew you were missing. And...and you could warn Celestia and Luna about...all this." He waved his hands vaguely. "You could stop all this from ever happening."
Fluttershy and the Crusaders looked at each other. Fluttershy squared her jaw and fluffed her wings. "Tell us everything we need to know," she said.
* * * * *
Ponyville.
Once upon a time, generations ago, it had been a bright, sunny hamlet where ponies from all trots of life lived, worked, and played together in harmony. Today, it was a perfectly ordered internment camp, rows of squat steel huts erected in a grid of paved roads, with signs pointing to work assignments. Colorless, lifeless ponies shuffled listlessly to their assigned jobs every day, toiling away for the Empress, eating what they were told, sleeping when they were told. There was no joy to be had. There was no deviation from the routine. There was only the work, the endless drudge. Like every city in the Equestrian Empire, it was founded on the principles of rigid structure and rigorous order, all in the service of the Shattered Empress.
She was power without purpose, and her Empire reflected this in its endless, pointless stagnation.
On the outskirts of Ponyville stood a jagged black crystal tree, massive and impossible. In its high branches sat what had once been a glorious crystal palace. Its gold towers and fine banners were tarnished and tattered; anything bearing the mark of its rightful mistress had long since been burned or destroyed. What remained was, like Ponyville itself, a shell of what once was.
Deep within this ancient ruin, there was a room with seven crystal thrones arranged around a large crystal table. The thrones were the only remaining trace of the castle's original occupants; after several years, the current resident gave up trying to destroy them or even erase their marks from the high backs. She had finally resorted to covering them with drab black tapestries.
A deep, whirring thrum sounded from within the crystal table as a flickering illumination struggled to light it up from within. Dim at first, its brightness increased in fits and starts. Bright blue arcs of electricity crawled across the table's surface, accompanied by a grinding sound and a thrill of static in the air.
In an electric blue flash, a cloaked, hooded unicorn appeared in the room. Old, tired eyes framed by heavy wrinkles watched in dismay, confusion, and anxiety as, slowly, flickering magic filled the room, the table shining brilliantly as the whirring and thrumming increased to a frantic pitch. A map of the Equestrian Empire faded into view on the table; in a bright flash, four Cutie Marks appeared above the map, spinning and flashing and strobing urgently, insistently.
Three butterflies.
Three near-identical crests, each with a different purple insignia in the center: a heart and apple, a pegasus wing and lightning bolt, and a star and musical note.
The wild display of old, forgotten magic reflected from the surprised light purple eyes of the old mare, whose mouth worked soundlessly as she lowered her hood, allowing a messy tangle of faded purple mane with pale silver-green streaks to spill out, cascading down her wrinkled grey-purple face and neck.
"No," she whispered in a dry, croaking wheeze. "No, you can't. I won't let you! You can't! I won't let you! You can't! I won't let you! You can't! I won't let you!"
The map ignored her, continuing its insistent summons of four ponies who hadn't been seen in two hundred years.
"They're going to save her. Can't let them save her. They're going to save her. Can't let them save her. They're going to save her. Can't let them save her..."
Dancing lightly on her hooves, she charged into the castle's dusty, dilapidated old library. Her horn lit up; dozens of books and scrolls flew hither and yon. Flasks full of powders and potions went sailing this way and that. A furnace burst into magical flames.
The light of spells danced off the walls. Colorful, odorous smoke billowed out of the library. A great magical explosion shook the old castle.
A laugh, clear and malevolent, tinged with insanity, rang through the old crystal halls.
The mare reappeared in the throne room, only...changed. The faded colors and heavy wrinkles of extreme age were gone, replaced with smooth skin, a glossy coat, and a vibrant purple mane with aquamarine streaks. Bright purple eyes full of madness and fury gleamed wickedly above a smooth, young muzzle. The tattered, worn cloak was gone, replaced with a sleek black silk cape that covered her pinkish-purple flanks.
She sneered at the Cutie Marks hovering above the Map.
"Well, well," she said. "Fluttershy. I still have a score to settle with you. After all, you're the one who cost me everything...aren't you?"
She smiled sadistically.
"I'll be waiting for you, my little ponies..."
Starlight Glimmer, the Mad Witch of Ponyville, threw back her head and laughed.
Two hundred years of a rigid, totalitarian regime had changed Canterlot.
The top of the mighty mountain had been flattened, and the city, once a shining marble monument to the ingenuity of pony magic, had become a broad, flat metal cap that spread over the valley below like a poisonous mechanical mushroom, supported by networks of steel scaffolds and struts anchored not only into the mountain, but the ground below. Great pneumatic lifts had been installed into many of these struts, and some were even broad enough to function as towers where ponies and lesser creatures toiled for the Empress. The original shining castle where the Royal Sisters ruled from had been razed and replaced with the Storm Palace, an angular, obtrusive obsidian thing which reflected the dark, jagged heart of the mare who ruled all she surveyed.
The name had been chosen out of irony—it was the name of the palace of her former employer, before she overthrew him and seized control of his armies and assets. He had been a fool, had not truly understood the power he sought—had been unworthy of wielding such power.
Tempest Shadow, the Shattered Empress, stood rigidly upon the dais from which she ruled her Equestrian Empire. After all this time, she still favored the jet black armor she'd worn as the Storm King's lieutenant, but had embellished it with a chainmail cloak and a tight-fitting skull cap. A long, sharp horn carved from obsidian and ringed with shining golden runes had been fitted over the stump of her own broken horn. Presently, her attention was focused on the valley below, past the edge of the Imperial City. She had felt a powerful surge of magic from that direction, more powerful than she had felt in some time.
A jet black pegasus stallion in gleaming purple armor with a gold silk cape entered, flanked by two massive, masked yeti in black and grey armor, who knelt before her dais, each pressing a massive fist to the floor and bowing their heads.
"Captain Ebon Wing," Tempest said coldly. "What have you to report?"
"Your Excellency," Ebon Wing began. "The Mad Witch is doing...something in her lair. Whatever it is, it's setting off all the alarms. The thing is..." He paused, frowning. "The Mana Monitors report that whatever's going on down there, it...it isn't all her. They're detecting powerful magic that defies measure, and they insist its power is similar to, well..." He swallowed. "The Tree of Harmony."
Tempest frowned. "The Tree of Harmony," she said. "So, not all the magic in Princess Twilight Sparkle's castle was burned out. Something yet remains...but what?" She shook her head. "It is of no consequence. Inform the Ponyville Watch to monitor the situation. If Starlight Glimmer is preparing to challenge me, or if...something else happens that defies the order of my Empire, I expect to be alerted immediately."
"Of course, Your Excellency!" Ebon Wing saluted and withdrew, the two guards flanking him.
Tempest turned back to staring out at the distant black spire of the Mad Witch's Lair, pursing her lips in thought. "What are you plotting, Starlight Glimmer? It has been well over a century since last we crossed horns..."
* * * * *
Fluttershy and the Cutie Mark Crusaders trotted cautiously through the blackened woods, wrapped tightly in smelly burlap cloaks, hoods pulled low over their faces. "How're we supposed to get past a crazed super-powerful unicorn and a whole town full of pony-stomping guards?" Scootaloo asked.
Fluttershy swallowed. "I don't know, my little ponies," she said nervously. "I...I really just don't know." she sighed. "I honestly think I'm going to have to follow your lead on this one."
"Our lead?" Sweetie Belle asked.
Fluttershy turned to her and smiled wistfully. "Well, you three do have a knack for sneaking away and getting into all sorts of mischief when the big ponies turn their backs," she said.
The Crusaders looked at each other and giggled. "It's true," Apple Bloom said.
"What worries me is this 'Mad Witch' Discord was talking about," Sweetie Belle said. "From the sound of things, she must be an awfully powerful unicorn. But powerful enough to live for two hundred years?"
"Yeah, I thought only alicorns could do that," Scootaloo said.
"Yes, I...I'm worried about that too," Fluttershy said. "Especially since Discord was so cryptic about the whole thing. I mean, Discord's always been a little...eccentric...but if things have really gone this badly, he'd be more straightforward with the details. I mean, he'd be using the actual names of the ponies who conquered Equestria and destroyed...destroyed our home..." She swallowed. "He wouldn't be using the kinds of titles you find in old storybooks..."
"Ah dunno," Apple Bloom said. "Ah git th' feelin' Discord's mind's kinda slipped since everythin' went all pear-shaped 'round here."
"Yeah, he kinda had that mad rambling hermit vibe," Scootaloo agreed.
"Even so, it's me," Fluttershy insisted. "He'd...he'd be straight with me." She chewed her bottom lip. "Unless everything that's happened has broken him so badly he's..." She shook her head. "We don't have time for this. We need to get into Ponyville, sneak into the castle, get past the Mad Witch, find your gems, and...and figure out how to use the Cutie Map to go back home."
"Without help from any of the Princesses," Sweetie Belle added glumly.
They walked in silence for a long time. They soon approached a seven-foot-high stone wall, perfectly straight, with iron gates flanked by jet black pegasus guards in purple armor and hulking yeti in black armor and black masks. They looked at each other and swallowed nervously.
As they approached the nearest gate, one of the pegasus guards extended a wing. "State your business," he said in a bored tone.
"Umm...we're just...p-passing through," Fluttershy said. "We n-need to go t-to Ponyville—"
"Ponyville's under lockdown," the guard said emotionlessly. "Move along."
Scootaloo stepped brashly forward. "You will let us in," she said. "We're here on orders from the Shattered Empress."
The guard eyed her sourly. "Nice try, kid," he grunted. "Only the Resistance calls Empress Tempest that." He sighed. "Look, I don't wanna hafta rough up a bunch of kids today, so just get lost, alright? We'll pretend you were never here. Final offer."
"O-oh. Well...okay," Fluttershy said meekly. "Girls, let's...let's go back..." She turned away, leading the Crusaders away like a line of ducklings. They walked back into the wreckage of the forest, the guards' eyes never leaving them until they disappeared below the crest of a hill.
Once they were out of sight, they crouched low. "Well, that didn't work," Scotaloo said sourly.
"You overplaying it didn't help," Sweetie Belle pointed out.
"So what do we do now?" Apple Bloom wondered. "Ponyville's locked up tight like a fortress, an' them guards are mighty strong-lookin' fellers."
"I need time to think," Fluttershy said softly. "Twilight would think of a way in, or...or Rainbow Dash, I just need to think—"
In the distance, a series of loud, wailing klaxons went off. The ponies' ears perked up. They could hear a great tumult of pony voices raised in alarm. "Whut'n th'—?" Apple Bloom wondered.
"Umm...is it me, or is it getting warmer here?" Scootaloo wondered.
Sweetie Belle jumped to the top of the hill, then scrambled back down, eyes wide. "It's not just you," she said fearfully. "Ponyville's on fire."
The others gasped.
* * * * *
"Fire brigade three, take C-block! Fire brigade two, take A-block! All patrol units, mobilize!" Commander Onyx Sentry, head of the Ponyville Guard, barked orders as he watched the sudden conflagration spread through the industrial sectors of the city. "I want to know what started this fire and I want to know NOW!"
"Sir!" a lieutenant with charred armor and feathers reported, saluting. "The fire...it's..." His eyes held a haunted, fearful look. "It's coming from—"
A massive firebolt seared across the sky, slamming into Ponyville's outer wall. One of the gates exploded, spraying twisted metal and stone everywhere.
Onyx Sentry's eyes widened as he tracked the firebolt. "No," he whispered.
A shrill, deranged cackle split the night, amplified by magic. Ponies below reared in terror and stampeded in any direction that took them away from the burning city and the insane unicorn shooting firebolts at them.
* * * * *
"Oh Celestia," Fluttershy whimpered. "That's..."
"So Ah guess that's that there Mad Witch Discord was talkin' about," Apple Bloom said, eyes wide with terror.
"She's...she's torching Ponyville," Scootaloo breathed in disbelief. "Just...just shooting fire at it, blowing stuff up..."
"We gotta do somethin'!" Apple Bloom said. "We just...we gotta!"
Fluttershy faltered for a moment, then shook her head. "There's nothing we can do," she said. "If this Empress Tempest has the kind of guard forces we saw before, we'll let them deal with the fire. We've got a job to do. We...we have to get into the castle—"
"Past all the fire—"
"—and find your gems—"
"and not get barbecued by some insane unicorn—"
"—and use the Map to get home." Fluttershy smiled gamely. "We—we can do it, girls. I...I know we can!"
The Crusaders looked at each other and swallowed. "We're doomed," Scootaloo said.
Apple Bloom took a deep breath. "Come on, y'all," she said. "We ain't never gave up before, an' we can't afford t' give up now! Ah know it's scary, Ah know it's gonna be dang near impossible, but...we gotta do this. We just gotta!"
"You're right," Sweetie Belle said. "Equestria is counting on us."
"Yeah, we have to get back home and stop all this from ever happening," Scootaloo agreed. The Crusaders put their hooves in, and Fluttershy's shaking hoof joined them.
"CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS, GO!"
Cloaks billowing behind them, the four ponies galloped for the exploded gate in the distance, ignored by herds of ponies stampeding into the wilderness. The guards paid them no heed as they burst into the black paved streets, charging headlong into the inferno. Within minutes, they were through the flames and on the steps of what used to be Twilight's castle.
The Crusaders and Fluttershy discarded their charred cloaks and patted out smoldering tails and coats, then looked up at the blackened crystal tree. "Wow, this place sure looks awful," Scootaloo said.
Fluttershy trotted up to the gates and pushed them open. They creaked ominously. The entrance hall she was so familiar with—that she'd walked along so many times before—was a blackened, cracked, decrepit mockery of its former glory. She gulped, but put one timid hoof before the other. "Let's...let's do what we came here for and get out of this horrible, awful future..."
"Oh, I don't think this future is all that bad," a syrupy sweet voice echoed down the hall. The four time travelers froze.
Slow, deliberate hoofsteps approached them, hooves clacking on crystal. Torches burst into flame in the wall sconces. A young, strong, powerful unicorn mare approached them, her glossy violet mane, pinkish-purple coat, and bright purple eyes shining in the firelight. A black silk cape trailed across her flanks.
Fluttershy gasped, eyes wide, and drew a hoof up in shock. "S-Starlight Glimmer?!"
"Well hello there, Fluttershy," Starlight Glimmer said with false cheer and a sinister smile. "What do you think of the new, improved Equestria?" She tossed her mane and smirked.
"By the way, you should really drop by Canterlot and pay Twilight Sparkle a visit." Her horn glowed, and an image projected itself on the floor: four rough obsidian statues, each one depicting an alicorn princess frozen in their last, horrified moment of life. "That is, if you're still in any condition to go anywhere after I'm finished with you." Her horn flared brilliantly, the pressure of her electric blue magic filling the hallway.
Fluttershy stood protectively in front of the Crusaders, who trembled in terror. Starlight's mad laughter echoed off the crystal walls...
