Twilight slammed the library door open, groaning loudly before sulking to the middle of the room, her friends soon following. “What a day…” Twilight said, laying down in sadness.
“Yup,” Spike said. “It was; it’s not everyday you hypnotize all your friends to try and teach them about not being hypnotized.”
Twilight was too tired to even flash a glare at him. “Spike...I don’t wanna talk about it, can you please just find all the books for fixing this mess, I’m way too tired to handle this right now…”
“Can’t you just tell them to snap out of it or something?”
Twilight shook her head. “It’s hard to explain, Spike, but I’ll just say that telling them to not be under mind control while they're under mind control might just fry their brain, so, just grab some of the books and bring them here, please.”
Spike shrugged and started searching while Starlight sat next to Twilight. “Hey, cheer up. I-I mean, at least one of them snapped out of it, right?”
Twilight craned her head up to Glimmer. “Starlight, Rarity currently has her head buried in Dash’s mane...I don’t think she’s ‘snapped out of it’ yet…”
Starlight looked at Rarity, seeing that she was looking at all different angles of Dash’s hair, all the while, Rainbow Dash stood still, looking at Twilight with a smile. “Well, w-what about the others? Do you think they-”
Twilight grabbed Starlight’s neck and pulled her closer. “Applejack has a brain so weak it fell for a trick, Fluttershy’s mind is to innocent that she’s still in a trance, Rainbow Dash’s ego filled mind made her easy to control, and Pinkie’s brain trusts me so much that she could fall for anything!”
Hearing that last bit gave Starlight an idea. “Um...t-then why not just find a pony who doesn’t trust you for-”
“This is about my friends, Starlight! Not others. Those ponies can wait.” She shot her head to Spike, seeing him on a ladder. “Spike! Have you found everything yet?”
Spike almost fell from the outburst. “Give me a sec, Equestria wasn’t build in a day, ya know…”
Twilight sighed and let go of Glimmer, slumping back on the floor. “I can’t believe this...I’ve un-discorded their minds and brought their memories back! How is it this hard to teach them to not have their minds be under control?”
Starlight had many theories. “Well, they trust you with every spell you did, so since their mind knows it’s someone they trust is doing it, then-”
“But I told them to not do what I say! Explain that!”
Starlight but her lip. “Um...m-maybe it’s just what a brain does, it’s like telling someone to not think of a pink elephant...they’re gonna think of one the second you say it.”
Twilight stood up. “But they...t-their minds are...t-they just...it’s not...we...huh…” She sat down, thinking this through. “I...guess you have a point, b-but hypnosis is still hypnosis! Some part of their head has to fight back against control, t-that’s just natural!”
“You girls are thinking about this way too hard…” Both mares turned to Spike, who had a small stack of books on his arm.
Starlight turned back to Twilight while Sparkle narrowed her eyes at Spike. “Listen, Twilight, all I’m saying is that you can’t expect this to be done in a day, controlling the mind is a pretty tough thing to do, and you’re wanting to do this without magic.”
Twilight took a deep breath, knowing she had a point. “I know, Starlight...I just want to plan ahead, there could be foes around us this minute, waiting to take their minds and forcing me to play along with them till I can get them back.”
Starlight tilted her head. “You really think every single villain we’ll meet has some form of mind magic on them?”
“It’s happened four outta six times, the first with Discord, than Chrysalis, than Sombra, and then...a-and then...uh...” She started trailing off, realizing who else she was going to list.
“Me…” Starlight said plainly. “Yeah, I...guess you have a point, most foe’s you’ll meet will try to control your friends…” Despite the depressing tone of voice, Starlight smiled. “But I’m sure even if they have your friends, you can still beat them.”
“It’s not just about that, Glimmer…” Twilight turned to her friends. “I don’t want to see them like this...like they’re not themselves anymore, like I’m looking at a pony who I’ve never even met.” She looked away from them, hating the looks they were giving her. “I want to be ready for anything we’ll face.”
Starlight couldn’t argue with that, that if Twilight didn’t prepare herself and them for any type of mind control, then they’ll...Starlight repeated that thought in her head, realizing something that she should've pointed out from the very start of all of this. “Hey, Twilight. I have a question.”
After everything that happened today, Twilight was almost too sad to answer. “What is it, Glimmer.”
“Uh, w-what about you?”
Twilight turned her head to her. “What?”
“Your mind. Are you just as easy or…”
Twilight looked at her friends, then at Glimmer, then laughed loudly. “Oh, that’s a good one, Starlight, but my mind is far too clear for it to be corrupted.” She sat in front of her, teleporting a pocket watch with a chain attached in front of her. “Go ahead, try me.”
Starlight was a little hesitant, but decided that it might be a good laugh, so, she held the watch up to Twilight’s face while Spike continued going through the pages. “Okay then, Let's see…uh.” She tried to think of something silly for her to do while she swung the watch in front of Twilight.. “Twilight, I command you to go around and dust everything in a maids outfit!” She said with her head high and her eyes closed, waiting for Twilight to laugh.
“Yes...Master…”
“Heh, I guess it was kinda sil- wait-” Hearing this, Starlight opened her eyes and looked at Twilight, her jaw dropping the second she looked at her. “Tw-Twilight!?” She stopped swinging the watch as Twilight held up a feather duster in one hoof and a maid's outfit in the next. Her eyes swirling around.
“It will be done…” She said blankly as she slowly stepped back, passing her friends and exiting the door, leaving Starlight with a flabbergasted expression.
Starlight blinked, her mind having a tough time comprehending what she just witnessed. “D-Did...did she...just-”
“Found them!” Starlight turned to Spike, who was walking toward her with a stack of books that were taller than he was. “I have to say, Twilight, there sure are a lotta different ways to trick a mind, I’m still surprised AJ fell...for...that...” The second he set the books down, he realized there was one less pony in the room. “Hey, where'd Twilight go?”
His question was answered once the library doors opened. Twilight standing straight with a feather duster in her magic grip, a maid’s outfit on, and a smile plastered on her face. “Where do you want me to start first, mistress?”
Once Spike took all this in, he looked at Glimmer with an expression that said, “D-Did you just…”
Starlight rapidly shook her head. “I-It was just a joke, Spike. She said she wouldn’t succumb to it’s control. I-It didn’t even take that long anyways...I guess she is just as weak...h-heh.” She cleared her throat. “A-Anyway, uh…” She picked up a book, starting to have very bad deja vu. “L-Let’s get this all cleared up, shall we!?”
Spike looked at the book, then at Twilight, then at Glimmer, then at Twilight’s friends. “Uh...maybe it’s time for a break, don’t you think?”
With a nervous tone and shaking hooves, Starlight turned back to Spike. “Wh-What!?”
Spike closed the book in Starlight's hooves. “Twilight said it herself, it’s been a pretty long day, and I think that...well, all of us need some rest.” He pointed at the hypnotized mares. “Those girls, especially.”
Starlight shook her head and flung the book open. “Spike, the last thing we need is rest in a situation like...l-like, THIS!” She threw her hoof at her friends.
Spike crossed his arms. “So you just wanna bring them back? What about what Twilight said.”
Starlight lit up her horn, walking up to Twilight first. “All she said was that they needed practice.”
“Then help ‘em practice.” Spike suggested.
Hearing this made Starlight’s horn fizzle away. “M-Me? Help them?”
Spike shrugged. “Helping is a pretty nice thing friends do for each other, despite the circumstance we’re in. I’m sure it’s something Twilight would want. Right Twilight?”
“Yes...master…”
“See?” Spike said, only for Starlight flash the same glare Twilight had been doing.
She turned back to her friends, ready to finally get them out of these trances, but part of her knew he was sorta right. If a villain were to show up soon, none of them would be prepared for this. So, with a big sigh, she looked at all of them and asked. “Okay, I-I think now would be a great time to practice some more, don’t you think?”
“Yes...Miss Glimmer...”
“Yes! Miss Glimmer!”
“Ah will practice some more…”
“Yes...Master.”
“Mmmmh hmm.”
“D-Does that mean I’ll get to see the colors again!?”
Starlight gulped while Spike watched. "Uh..." Glimmer stepped back, looking through all the books while she hyperventilated. “Oh...okay, Glimmer.” She thought. “D-Deep breaths, you’ve done this before, you can do this again, a-and it’s to help ‘them’ this time, n-not just you...o-okay, focus. L-Let’s just start with something easy…” She cleared her throat, looking at Dash. “Okay, Dash, would you kindly step right here pl-”
“Yes! Miss Glimmer!” Rainbow Dash was inches away from Starlight, a few strands of her hair gone from Rarity’s grip.
Starlight closed her eyes, trying to find her happy place in all of this “You can do this, Starlight, just. Focus.” She opened her eyes, looking at the book for the first step in getting her out of this hypnosis. “Alright Dash, I’m gonna say something, a-and I need you to listen carefully, okay?”
Dash wagged her tail. “Listen to you, got it!”
“Alright...here goes…” She cleared her throat, hoping that saying this will snap her out of this.
“Code Yellow.”