//------------------------------//
// It's Time... 
// Story: Magic Duel Vol. 2 
// by FoxMcCloud7921 
//------------------------------//

	After all that happened, Twilight was both surprised and relieved to see Sunset. She was able to bring Twilight up to speed on everything that happened while they were in Twilight’s study and needless to say, Twilight had a hard time processing everything.
“I honestly had no idea Sombra was even still alive, even if barely,” Twilight said. “It must’ve been a difficult fight.”
“Well…yeah you could say that,” Sunset brushed it off casually. “I’m just glad the pathway has been restored.”
“How exactly did you do that?” Twilight asked.
“I had some help…” Sunset wasn’t going to go into details. Radiant Hope wanted to stay in the shadows for now and Sunset was willing to respect her wishes.
“Well anyway, I’m just relieved everything’s been taken care of,” Twilight smiled. “Actually since you’re here-”
Suddenly, there was a knock on the door and Starlight walked in. “Sorry to bother you Twilight but-oh…”
“It’s alright Starlight, I don’t think the two of you have been properly introduced,” Twilight said.
“You’re the new student right?” Sunset asked as the two of them shook hooves. “So what do you rate her?”
“Excuse me?” Starlight asked.
Sunset laughed. “I’m just kidding. I’m sure Twilight has been an excellent teacher.”
“Oh she has,” Starlight beamed. “She’s certainly had to put up with my antics, that’s for sure.”
Twilight sighed dramatically. “You could say that again…”
“So you’re pretty powerful huh?” Sunset asked.
“Well…I don’t want to sound like I’m bragging but…yeah,” Starlight smirked. “I’ve given Twilight a few runs for her bits a couple of times.”
Twilight scoffed. “As if.”
“Now I’m really curious,” Sunset grinned. “Twilight did tell me you were interested in a duel.”
“Well I did yes, but I don’t want to take up too much of your time,” Starlight said politely.
“It’s not a problem,” Sunset waved her hoof. “Actually, it’s been awhile since I’ve really used my full power as a unicorn. It’s…kind of different in the other world.”
“That I can agree with,” Twilight added.
“So…you’ll do it?” Starlight asked.
“I think we should let the princess decide, since this is her domain after all,” Sunset said, giving Twilight a wink.
Twilight cleared her throat. “Well, as the Princess of Friendship, I can’t possibly pass on this potential moment of bonding so…sure! I actually would like to see Sunset’s full potential as well. How about we schedule it for tomorrow?”
The two mares nodded in agreement. “Actually Twilight, if you don’t mind, I think I might go explore Ponyville a bit,” Sunset said. “This is my first time here after all.”
“No problem at all, I’ll have Spike prepare dinner later on,” Twilight said, waving her off as Sunset left the room.
“I can’t believe I just agreed to this,” Starlight said. She was now looking around nervously. “Am I even prepared for this?”
“You’re not getting cold hooves on this now are you?” Twilight asked.
“N-No it’s just…well from what you said she’s a very gifted unicorn!”
“Well of course she is, considering she was Celestia’s student before me,” Twilight said. “But believe me, if you can handle what I’ve thrown at you I think you’ll be just fine.”
“Maybe you’re right, maybe I’m just over thinking things. Still…” Suddenly her eyes widened. “Of course! I know what I can do! I just need somepony as a coach! Somepony who knows the way of the magic duel!”
“Well Starlight, if you really want to know…”
“And I know just the mare!” Starlight said, galloping out of the room.



“Oh Starlight, you’ve come to the right mare,” Trixie said with a wide grin on her face. “The Great and Powerful Trixie has dueled your teacher, not once but twice! It was a one to one tie but Trixie was still proud of herself.
“Gee, I wonder why that was…” Twilight muttered. The three of them were currently outside of the castle. Starlight managed to get a hold of Trixie and the magician was more than happy to help.
“Trixie admits she…had some help on the matter,” Trixie said casually. “However, I do know the ways of the duel and will do everything in my power to make you win!”
“W-Well let’s not get too carried away…” Starlight said.
“Yes Trixie, this is a friendly competition that’s all,” Twilight warned her.
Sunset was returning back to the castle when she saw the mares outside. “Hi girls…oh hi Trixie.”
“Ah, it pleases the Great and Powerful Trixie to know she’s well known even by strangers!” Trixie said with glee.
“Um…right…” Sunset said. She leaned over to Twilight and whispered, “I see this Trixie isn’t any different…”
“Not really…” Twilight responded. She then cleared her throat. “Trixie has offered to coach Starlight for the duel tomorrow. Is that alright with you?”
Sunset shrugged. “I see no reason why not. But I guess I’ll need a coach too.” She gave Twilight a slight grin.
Twilight blinked. “Oh! Me?”
“Well, considering you are a princess and an expert of dueling…” Sunset said.
“Well…I can’t possibly say no, can I?” Twilight grinned.
“Splendid!” Trixie said. “It’s only appropriate to have two such veterans teach the um…rookies everything they need to know.”
“Right…well I suppose we all better get started preparing,” Starlight said.
“In that case, let us go to my carriage, I know the perfect place to get some practice,” Trixie said.
“Then I guess we’ll have the castle to ourselves,” Twilight said. Once the two mares were gone, she looked over at Sunset apologetically. “I’m sorry, Starlight and Trixie are close friends and Starlight got the whole idea of having a coach…”
“It’s fine, really,” Sunset said. “Besides…I’ve been kinda wanting to go head to head with you anyway.”
Twilight smiled. “I admit I kind of wanted to do the same. Say, there’s a little training regiment that Starlight and I do time to time…you interested?”
“You bet I do,” Sunset grinned.
“Alright then,” Twilight grinned in return. “Keep up if you can…” She then teleported off and Sunset, chuckling slightly, followed suit.



“Now then, the first rule of any such duel is to expect the unexpected,” Trixie said. “Your opponent will do everything in her power to throw you off guard and if you hesitate for even a moment, you’re toast. Therefore, the first order of business is to test your reaction time. Trixie admits her power doesn’t quite stand up to Twilight’s but…I’ll throw whatever I can in your face and you have the full choice of doing whatever you want to counter. That’s the beauty of the magic duel.”
“Wow Trixie, you really do sound passionate about this kind of stuff,” Starlight commented.
Trixie looked away slightly. “I may have…well you know the story about my grudge against Twilight. You know how the story ends but in the process I did learn a thing or two. Honestly, considering how skilled you are I don’t think there’s much to teach you.”
“Oh stop Trixie, I’m more than willing to learn,” Starlight smiled.
“Very well…think fast!” Trixie said as she quickly summoned random objects.



Meanwhile, Sunset followed Twilight around much of Equestria, but it wasn’t just playing tag. Every now and then Twilight would throw something Sunset’s way and Sunset didn’t miss a step, attacking or dodging if need be. For Sunset, it was definitely a good warm up to get her used to her old form.
“If that’s how you start things off, no wonder Starlight is as good as you say she is,” Sunset panted slightly once they returned to the library.
“Thank you, I came up with it myself,” Twilight beamed. “Now quick question: how good is your shielding spell?”
“I think it’s pretty good why?” Sunset asked.
“Well, I’m going to give it to you straight: Starlight is all about offense and she’ll throw every spell she has your way. The trick is keeping on the offensive and she’ll have to rely on her shield magic, which is very good but as we all know, it can drain our stamina quickly.”
“I’ll keep that in mind…you’re gonna throw a huge load of magic at me aren’t you?”
“Heads up!” Twilight grinned as she attacked with a large beam of magic. Sunset managed to get her shield, a bright orange,
“Is that all you got?” Sunset taunted her.
“What’s that? Increase power? Alright!” The beam increased in power and Sunset suddenly felt herself straining to keep her shield up. She then teleported behind and attacked, which Twilight deflected with ease. Guess being an alicorn had its perks.
“Your reaction time could be a little faster,” Twilight noted. “But honestly, I’d say you haven’t missed a beat at all really. We keep working on your defenses and speed and you’ll be unstoppable in no time. Now then…” She then used a bubble shield spell which surrounded the entire room. “Shall we continue?”
About twenty minutes later, the library looked like a bomb went off. “Phew…I don’t think I’ve worked that hard since I lived in Canterlot,” Sunset said, wiping sweat off her brow.
“No kidding,” Twilight giggled. “This is going to be a duel of the ages.” Her smile suddenly froze as she heard her words.
“Oh dear Celestia, I’m going to end up destroying Ponyville aren’t I?”