*(~)*

Romans 8:28-29~

And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.

*(~)*

Mirror Magic

Chrysalis happily stretched her limbs once she exited the door of hers and Kuvira's apartment. The sun was bright and the sky was clear as the sparkly ocean out in the horizon. Kuvira called out the young changeling's name, handing her bag. She thanked her care taker/roommate with a hug and flew off to meet her friends.

Friends. The word was still so new and strange to her, yet as the days went by, it slowly started to grow on her. For the first time in thousands of years, Chrysalis the changeling was finally free. She could start all over with a new life and a new family. The idea of moving away from what she used to be filled her up with such joy her sparkly transparent wings flapped faster and faster, seeing Harmony Park just up ahead.

Once she planted her feet firmly on the ground, she noticed a sudden change in the air. Normally, on a bright sunny day, the rustle and fast paste of the city would create unintentional, yet upbeat music in the air, morphing effortlessly with the sounds of singing birds, quaking turtle ducks splashing in the lake, giggling children and rustling leafs from the beautiful trees that appeared to dance against the soft breeze, sprinkling with faint traces the salty sea water from the bay.

But today, it felt as if the entire world had gone silent, save for the sound of disapproving murmurs coming from the people and ponies at the park. All eyes were on Chrysalis, either with looks of fear, confusion, hesitation or even, as much as she hated to even admit it… anger.

She caught faint words like "What's she doing here?", "What is with that outfit?", "Who does she think she's fooling?". Chrysalis spotted a young girl playing with her dolls. She waved and smiled, but the child's mother swooped in and shielded her from Chrysalis, narrowing her eyes in a threatening manner. Chrysalis recoiled as if the women were a viper and stepped back. She wasn't trying to harm the child, she was just saying hello.

She sighed in relief when she saw her friends gathered neat the statue of Avatar Korra. "Hey, guys!" Chrysalis called out, waving her arm excitedly as she sprung towards them. Their backs still facing her, as if they hadn't heard her calling.

"Why is with everybody today? Did something happen?" Chrysalis' question fell on deff ears. None of her friends turned to speak with her. "Uh, guys?" she gently tapped Iris's shoulder. The Avatar spun around, her eyes soulless.

"I… you invited me." Chrysalis said, her ears lowering and taking a fearful step back when Iris stared at her with those emotionless eyes. The same eyes shared by the rest of the Guardians of Harmony. Their cold gazes made the changeling feel small and insignificant, more so than she normally did.

"Me neither." Akari said, her voice matching the same tone as her friend. "We've got some important princess stuff to take care of."

"Oh, O-okay then." Chrysalis stuttered, trying not to sound disappointed, which she was. "But, you'll be back for the premier tonight, right?"

"You're not going, are you?" Nori asked, folding her arms and arching an eyebrow while her ears pressed back against her head. A common pony gesture that signified anger or annoyance. In Nori's case, it was definitely annoyance.

"Why wouldn't I?" Chrysalis asked, seeing everyone's cold gazes sharpen as they gained up on her. Chrysalis felt like a helpless rabbit being caught between a rock and a pack of hungry wolves. "Why are you all looking at me like that? Did I do something wrong?"

Mai, of all people, was the first one to burst out laughing historically, tilting her head back, her mouth wide like a psychopath with the eyes and tone to match. "What kind of question is that? Can you believe her?" she said, optioning her thumb at the still terrified and confused changeling.

The rest of the team laughed maniacally alongside the Element of Honesty. The skies darkened and Chrysalis saw everybody else in the park laughing at her, all the while drawing in closer, entrapping her in a circle. She could have flown away but her fear weighted her down to the point flying didn't even strike her as a possible option right now.

"Only everything!" Gallant Steed exclaimed, pointing an accusing finger at Chrysalis. "Did you seriously believe we would be friends with a soul sucking changeling for this long? You're even more pathetic and we thought!"

"No! I'm not like that anymore!" Chrysalis cried out, tears already forming in her eyes. "Gallant! Nori! Mai, you know me!"

"Do we?" Hiro asked, narrowing his eyes. He was normally the upbeat one, but right now he was inspiring fear rather than joy. "You've fooled people before, who's to say you won't again?"

"No, I won't! I swear!" Chrysalis's voice trembled and cracked, getting down on her knees as the bodies of everyone began to morph together as one. Their eyes and maniacal smiled and laughter were the only things visible in the now darkened void that surrounded her.

The shapes then rose upwards, manifesting into the body of a sickly thin woman. The rows of laughter were now converged into only one. The laughter of a woman, echoing far and wide, ringing in Chrysalis's ears.

She looked down, only to see that the beautiful cloths Nori had given her were now replaced with nothing but the dark rags. Her body began to wither, her beautiful pale blue and pale light yellow skin turned gray before becoming pitch black. Her healthy full body became dangerously slim and holes began to form in her long hair, loosing its yellow green highlights. She felt her teeth suddenly become sharp and something grew from her forehead.

The world spun around until Chrysalis was face to face with a shimmering crystal rock, where staring right at her was the hideous monster of the once wicked and heartless Queen of the Changelings!

She looked just like her, old and starved, but rather than having a look of confidence and greed, Chrysalis could see the very evident fear in her own eyes. She shook her head.

The voice echoed, revealing a shadow of Chrysalis's own silhouette then changing into a larger version of her old evil self, towering over her, her mouth wide open, ready to consume her once more.

"You can never get rid of me. You created me. Why fight it? Deep down you know how powerful you can be. How powerful WE can be! Just let me into your heart again, Chrysalis. We can gain everything we've ever wanted."

Chrysalis could feel the green energy sinking into every part of her body, gripping her soul, her mind, everything she needed in order to break free was now subdued. All she could hear was the sound of her evil self consign every fiber of her being all over again.

The changeling jerked awake, sweat dripping from her brows and panting. Her hair was sticky, and her hooves gripped her blanket. Like all equine creatures, whenever she was in Equestria, or asleep, Chrysalis automatically changed back into her normal four-legged self. She resembled any other changeling, except her eyes were different and she had hair, both of which were a result of her many years of using royal changeling magic. She no longer had that magic, but some elements from her centuries of using it still remained. Nori had done a wonderful job making her hair and tail look lovely, so she would feel happy looking at herself in the mirror, and for the most part, it worked.

Kuvira sat beside the frightened changeling on her own bed, just across the room from Kuvira's own bed. The far off light of the spirit portal let off a faint illuminating light that radiated off of the window, not too much to blind them but enough to give a serene glow. It especially helped that the portal's lighting seemed to naturally adjust to the atmosphere. At least it's the reason why no one else had complained about it for years, and the vines that wrapped around the lower half assisted in that was well.

Kuvira held the changeling close, rubbing her back to try and sooth her anxiety. "It's okay. It was just a dream."

"I've been having a lot of those lately." Chrysalis said, her breathing leveling. "Is that normal?"

Kuvira gently nodded her head, smiling empathetically. "They're be difficult to manage for a while, but I can say, from personal experience, they will get better. Just try not to push yourself too hard. Healing takes time."

Chrysalis managed to relax against Kuvira's upper torso, her hand tracking through her long mane. The metalbender began humming a soft tune, one which Suyin used to sing to her when she was young. Back when she was innocent and before her falling out with the woman she admired and respected for years.

She knew better than anyone what Chrysalis was going through, and she was more than happy to be there for her in her time of confusion and fear. Chrysalis, in her part, was grateful for that. Kuvira truly was the mother/older sister she never had, or knew she could have had in order to guide her down the right path back then.

She just had to remind herself she wasn't a monster. She wasn't the same changeling she was before. All the things she aimed so hard to achieve were not what she wanted anymore. She was a new creature, with a new dream, and a new life.

But even if it was a dream, that dark version of her was right. She did create that monstrous form. She was the one who ruined so many lives. Lives she could never get back. Kuvira empathized with this, sharing her own story about Asami's father, Hiroshi Sato.

Kuvira was living prof that things would get better for Chrysalis. But, unlike Chrysalis, Kuvira had already done so much to make up for the messes she had made to the point wherever she went people happily greeted her and she was welcomed into their homes with open arms.

What could Chrysalis do to really feel she had changed and will stay the way she is now rather than turn back?

As if the horribly colored uniform, exaggerated film-strip headband and the endless smell of salt in her hair wasn't humiliating and unbearable enough, she mall's speakers bursted with the song the Guardians of Harmony used to win the Dance to Prance competition alongside their friends from Golden Dragon Academy. What's worse, there was even a poster of them, in their music video get up, on one of the poles from which the music boomed out of.

Juniper growled, trying to block out the sound to no avail. Even long after the song was over, bystanders hummed and sang the lyrics, even some were commenting on how amazing the Guardians of Harmony were. Some of them were classmates who they either knew personally or just admired them. Some girls swooned over how cute Hiro Sato was, while a few female ponies commented on how adorable Gallant Steed was, only for one to remind her that he was in a 'sort-of' relationship with Princess Akari.

Similar admires for Princess Iris and even Mai Sato spoke amongst themselves, all agreeing that the two cousins were undeniable beauties like their mothers, and a few girls envied Nori's creative style, even saying who grateful they were for the merpony who introduced them to Rarity's boutique and couldn't wait to try on their new commissioned outfits.

Adults spoke about how they saved the world from Queen Chrysalis and a few kids even said they hoped to be like them when they grew up.

If Juniper didn't know any better, she would have assumed there was some kind of Guardians of Harmony convention she didn't know of, or the day was so slow there was literally nothing else to speak about.

"Ugh! Ahh!" Juniper yelled, "First, they get me kicked off the Lady-Mare and Stal-Noir film set. Now..." she crashed backwards into a cardboard cutout of Lady-Mare and Stal-Noir, a promotion for the movie. In the right end corner, she saw images of the team themselves, all posing as every day people, but Juniper recognized them in an instant. The movie's grand premier was happening that very same night, so it was probably one of the reasons why the Guardians were such a hot topic today. The music playing every other hour wasn't helping either.

"They're everywhere!" Juniper exclaimed, tugging angrily at her long pigtails, "No doubt they'll be at the premiere tonight. I bet I'll be the lucky one ushering them to their seats. Ugh!" she angrily slapped at the cardboard. It tilted to the side before getting back into place. In a fit of rage, Juniper just outright kicked the cardboard down with her foot, ignoring the bypassing shoppers giving her confused looks.

The walkie talker in her apron's pocket went off and her boss's voice was heard through the static. "Juniper, where are you? We need you back at the popcorn popper stat."

Juniper mocked his words with her mouth, simultaneously making a talking mouth with her hand. Times like this she was glad he couldn't see her. She blew through her gritted teeth, making a radio static sound into the walkie talkier.

She shut off the walkie talkie and put it back into her pocket, ignoring her responsibilities. She walked over towards a small booth that sold sunglasses. She sighed as she looked at the options.

"If those so called Guardians hadn't shown up, I would have played Lady-Mare! Tonight would have been about me. I would have been a star!" Juniper put on a pair of sparkly, red star shaped sunglasses. The clerk at the cash register, who was listening to music, only shook his head.

Juniper studied the glasses herself and placed them back. "You're right. They are a bit much." seeing as there wasn't too many options that caught her interest, Juniper kept on walking, only to stop when she heard the sound of an old anthro male earth pony struggling with a box he was carryon out of his antique store.

Juniper looked in disinterest at the small shop. It was filled with all sorts of ancient, useless junk like old china sets, candle holders, hats, novelty skulls-- or at least she hopped they were of the novelty kind-- plain, boring looking jewelry with gaudy stones that looked more like rocks that had been painted on. What was the point of jewelry if they couldn't use actual gemstones. Even common, everyday one ones they find in a Ponyville mine were more appealing than those.

She even saw scrolls, vases, weird looking statues of various creatures like a lion-turtle, one resembling a dragon-bird, and one that looked like an odd combination of a pony and an eagle. She rolled her eyes at it, somebody probably took two pieces of two different statues and smashed them together.

"Careful!" the pony shouted at Juniper, who's hand hovered over a small clothed table display with various antique objects, like spins, quills, books and a mirror, all haphazardly placed near several boxes.

"These items will be shipped to Canterlot." said the pony, while a delivery pony arrived just in time with an empty trolley and packed the now boxed items onto it. "Some of them are very dangerous." He warned.

"Oh, believe me, not everything is at is seems. If you value your life, and those you love, don't touch anything! In fact, just leave the premises now, the shop is closed for revelations anyway!" he said, swatting her away and got back into his store to pack more materials into them. At least the ones he needed to get rid of. "I learned my lesson with the Alicorn Amulet, I'm not making that mistake again!" he muttered to himself, but Juniper didn't catch it.

Never the less, Juniper's eyes was drawn to at least one item on the table that had yet to be packed.

The crystal-styled hand mirror with a pink circle around the reflective glass and amethyst stones engraved onto its edges shimmered in the sunlight that came down from the skylight above. While the delivery guy was busy, and the shopkeeper inside, Juniper grabbed the mirror, if to just marvel at its stunning design.

Now this was the kind of beautiful she was talking about. Compared to everything else she saw, this mirror looked like it belonged in a jewelry shop, or Rarity's boutique. Anywhere but here.

The mirror's surface rippled like water and white sparkles danced around it to reveal Juniper's reflection. Only, rather than see the scrawny, butter covered face of herself, Juniper saw a stunning, slightly older, more mesmerizing version of herself. Her hair was styled elegantly, long and curled, lips as pink as a peach and bright as a diamond. Her eyes slender and alluring that any boy who looked at her would immediately fall under her spell. She also caught a glimpse of a dress, black, purple and green sparkly, elegant, and yet sassy all at once.

She was a vision of what Juniper had always wanted to see. She only flinched and dropped the mirror, letting out a terrified yelp when the reflection suddenly winked at her.

Juniper looked around her, relieved that nobody else heard her. "What was that?" she asked before tentatively picking the mirror back up again. For a moment, she saw her actual reflection, but the imaged quickly shifted to reveal the beautiful version of herself, blowing kisses and winking like a movie star.

Rather than get scared again, Juniper felt drawn in by the sight of herself in such a way. It was she was staring directly into her own dreams. This woman, this beauty was everything Juniper had hoped to become one day. Confident, stunning and adored by many. She saw the real her.

The shop keeper was right, these items were magic… and they would be shipped to Canterlot.

Well, they probably won't miss one little hand mirror, now would they? After all, why would such a beautiful treasure be cooped up in a stuffy museum anyway?

At Air Temple Island, Chrysalis watched from the stairs outside of the temple, watching Kuvira and Avatar Korra mount the last remaining bags into their private airship. She observed Akari and her mother Twilight levitated a few papers and scrolls onto a box filled with files, clipboards, pens and such, perfectly organized to the letter, no doubt. King Flash Sentry conversed with Korra about something that was muffled due to the distance between them and Chrysalis.

Kuvira walked on over to grab another bag, hoisting it over her shoulder. "How long are you going to be gone again?" Chrysalis asked, trying and failing to hide the disappointment in her tone.

"It'll only be for three days. As an Earth Federation representative to the United Republic, I was personally requested to attend the meeting between the Queens and the Governors of Ba Sing Sea and Omashu." Kuvira said sweetly, ruffling Chrysalis's hair. It had only been a few months, and yet the earthbender was already feeling a deep fondness towards the reformed teenage changeling. "I promise, I'll be back before you know it."

Chrysalis smiled, but she couldn't hide her sadness. For someone who spent years and years deceiving others to get what she wanted, Chrysalis was a surprisingly easy creature to read. Even when she tried to hide her emotions something in her eyes, body language or the way she would rub her arm, have her bangs cover part of her face or the way her ears would drop gave it away every single time. Then again, it was Chrysalis's emotions that helped kickstart her descent to madness. Her ambition and desire. She was a very passionate and ambitious changeling back then, but now the memory of who she used to be made her feel ashamed.

"You don't have to stay in the apartment if you don't want to." Kuvira said, gently cupping Chrysalis's cheek. "You can always stay at a friend's house. It won't be a problem."

The changeling nodded her head and Kuvira took her hand, helping her back up, leading her towards the airship for her to get a closer look. Another thing Kuvira noticed about Chrysalis was the way her green eyes sparkled when she saw modern technology at work. She really had been deprived of so much anything new was an adventure for her. Kuvira knew Chrysalis has a vivacious spirit just waiting to come out. She just needed to learn to move past the guilt in order to fully allow herself to shine.

Akari handed her mother her bag. "Have fun on your boring political trip, Mom and Dad." she said with a disinterested tone.

"Don't get too casual about it, Akari." Twilight said. "You may be one of the new Elements of Harmony, but you're also a Princess of Friendship, their for, a future Queen of Friendship, which means it's you're responsibility to maintain balance and harmony amongst the three worlds and--Quit it!"

Akari flinched. The entire time Twilight was talking, Akari had been mimicking her mother's hand gestures and mouth movements while giving her grand speech. The young alicorn blushed and hung her head apologetically.

Flash only chuckled. "They'll have plenty of time to worry about that stuff later, honey." he patted Twilight on the back. "Let them enjoy their childhood while they still got it."

"You absolutely sure you guys won't be gone long?" Iris asked, almost anxiously. "I mean, what if there's some new threat or maybe one of the prisoners from Tartarus breaks loose?"

"If anything does happen, the city has you guys." Korra said proudly, placing her hand on her daughter's shoulder.

Iris only arched an eyebrow, giving her mother a pout. "You're seriously placing the fate of an entire city and all the lives in it on the hands of a bunch of teenagers?"

If a thousand year old war was stopped by a twelve-year-old boy and his companions, the majority of which were in their early to mid teen years, an Avatar/Alicorn could reunite three worlds on the brink of destruction at only eighteen-years old, and a fourteen-year-old girl and her friends managed to defeat a power hungry changeling woman-monster, not to mention all the times Tenzin's own children no older than Korra and her friends could face their own enemies without breaking a sweat, there really was no reason as to why Mako and Korra wouldn't trust that Iris and her friends could handle any situation.

"Plus, it's not like you'll be left in charge of running the place." Mako said, "You've got Iroh, Tenzin, the Alicorns, the rest of the Mane Six. Whatever happens, you've more than enough family an friends backing you up."

"I know, I know. I just don't want to fall behind on my Avatar training is all." Iris said, shyly rubbing her arm.

Korra wrapped her arm around her child. "Iris, your Avatar lessons aren't going anywhere. Besides, there's a lot more to being an Avatar than knowing how to throw a rock at a tree."

Iris and her parents shared one more hug before parting ways. "You and your friends have a great time at the premier tonight, okay?"

"And don't let Naga and Akhlut into the kitchen cabinets again!" Mako called out, "I don't want any another mountain of vomit on the rug!"

Kuvira and Chrysalis embraced once more before waving farewell. Twilight and Flash hugged and kissed Akari and the five adults waved from the window of the airship which took to the skies.

Chrysalis was already feeling sad seeing the airship grow farther and farther away. She saw how Iris and Akari waved happily while shouting "I love you"s to their respected parents. She thought about Kuvira's words and the suggestion of staying with either of her friends, for a moment, made her feel relaxed.

That feeling didn't last long. Visions of her nightmare flashed before her eyes. Seeing her friends staring at her with cold eyes and the face of her monstrous form towering over her, teeth sharp as knifes, ready to pierce through her skin and devour her soul.

"Chrysalis, you okay?" Akari asked, notching the changeling's horrified expression. She shook her head, trying to eradicate the image from her brain.

"Y-Yeah. I just remembered, I have to go water the plants back at the apartment."

"I'll be fine. Besides, the place has become a mess since I moved in. I-I want to do Kuvira a favor and spruce the place up a bit, you know." Chrysalis tried to sound convincing, but knew her stuttering and rubbing of her arm, and her dropped ears, weren't helping with the charade.

"Okay, but we'll see you at the premier, right?" Iris asked, hoping her friend hasn't forgotten.

"Of course. See you guys." Chrysalis didn't waste a second and flew off into the sky, wiling herself not to look back at the two princesses down bellow.

Iris scrolled through the pictures in her geo-phone, smiling at the happy looks on her friend's faces. It's been months since the event, and so far everything was settling back to normal. There were no word on any monster attacks, no world ending crisis of any kind. Everything was just… perfect.

She learned the hard way that she shouldn't focus so much on trying to be like her mother, feeling important an at her same level, but instead use her powers to better the world for their sake and not her own. Her friends have all been doings wonderfully with their powers, and Iris's Avatar training was progressing nicely. She even practiced her waterbending with a glass melted ice from her empty juice cup.

She should feel happy, and even exited that tonight was the premier of the Lady-Mare and Stal-Noir film, with them playing extras. It wasn't a huge premier with flashing cameras and limos, but it would be cool to see themselves on the screen. Their classmates would flip once they saw their scenes!

Never the less, Iris couldn't help but struggle but worry. Normally when all was quiet and calm was when danger would strike at unexpected moments. It's what happened the last time. Chrysalis managed to get the better of everyone, kidnapping her family and the most powerful beings, and Iris didn't know how to master her powers. Her foolishness nearly cost her friends their lives, so she was determined not to make the same mistake twice.

Even so, the last thing she wanted was to stress her friends out. Though, something was telling her they weren't the ones running around inside their heads worrying about what may or may not happen. She wanted to ask her mother about this before she left, but it didn't seem like much of an issue before. Now that she was gone, all of those worries and concerns just came back with striking force.

"I know that look." Akari said, taking her spot next to Iris on their table, putting her lunch tray on its surface. Her surprise greeting nearly caused Iris to drop the water she was bending. "What's gotten your feathers in a ruffle this time?"

Iris chuckled, playfully rolling her eyes. "It's nothing. I was just practicing my bending a bit. That's all."

"Chillax, Avatar Shine." Hiro said, leaning back into his seat, taking a sip of his smoothie.

Mai shook her head. "For pete's sake, we only have bit parts in this flick. We're not movie stars."

"Would it even matter?" Nori asked, "I mean, we are the New Elements of Harmony. We're already a big deal." she winked at a few bypassing male ponies, all the while flipping her hair. The boys all sighed dreamingly and literally fainted. Nori only smiled in satisfaction.

But Akari wasn't buying Iris's excuse. "There's more bothering you than just Avatar training, isn't there?"

"C'mon! Share your troubles." Chi said, wrapping her arms around the young Avatar, "It might help soothe your stressed nerves."

"And that's bad how, exactly?" Nori asked, finding it hard to see the issue in that statement.

"It's not. It's just that instead of enjoying the fact that things are calm, I'm constantly thinking about things going wrong, even when they aren't."

"I don't know. I shouldn't even be thinking about any of this stuff right now. And neither should any of you." Before Akari could speak, Iris's phone started to vibrate. A reminder flashing on the screen. Iris grabbed the phone and gasped. "Oh, shoot! I almost forgot, I've got some liberty books I have to return to day!" Iris got off of her chair, flinging her backpack over her shoulder. "I'll be back, I've got to get to there before they close early!"

With that, Iris dashed away towards the library, leaving her friends, and her troubles, behind for a short while.

At the mall's movie thither, people came and went, mainly to see what was playing while others walked in to see the movies already playing. As for Juniper Moon, who was working the popcorn popper, she just leaned against the counter, dreamingly gazing at her mirror self, basking in all of the attention from her adoring fans. She became more and more beautiful the longer Juniper looked at her, it gave her a sense of pride. Everything she ever wanted to be was staring right at her in this beautiful, precious, enchanted object.

"It's like this mirror is the only one around here who gets me." Juniper's private moment with herself was interrupted by her boss, irritably clearing his throat.

He was a tall man with hair tied into a messy ponytail, with a small mustache over his lip. He wore the typical manager's uniform, and carried a broom with him, which he angrily handed to Juniper. He only agreed to let her work her out of a favor, but in all honesty, Juniper was by far a nightmare to work with.

Juniper huffed and showed him the mirror. Maybe if he saw just how magical it was, and how stunning she looked, he might second guess forcing her to run much a mundane shore.

"No. It looks like someone about to fire somebody." said the manager. Juniper arched an eyebrow, only to realize that her beautiful self was gone, replaced by only the common girl before her. Her boss didn't even see her other self, only his own reflection.

Indeed, the manager was none other than the once street urchin Schoochy. An old accomplice of Mako and Bolin during their street-rat and pro-bending days. Over the years, he had gained a number of pony and spirit friends and even was adopted by a loving family long before Kuvira and the Siren's attack on the city years ago. Now, he was the hard working man with a stable career, a home of his own, and living a more honest living compared to his past.

There was rarely anything he didn't like about his job, but stubborn Juniper was beginning to change that.

Juniper dragged the broom towards the spill of salty, sticky popcorn, groaning in frustration. "Ugh! This is the worst." she didn't even bother cleaning it up. She could care less if she got fired. In fact, the sooner she got out of here, the better.

"Hey, I know what will perk me up! A little Mirror Me time!" Juniper pull out the mirror again, and this time she saw her mirror self, signing autographs, blowing kisses and just being a vibrant star amongst everything else around her. Juniper sighed. "That's more like it! I wish this popcorn would just clean itself up so I could just stare at you all day."

As soon as the words left her mouth, the mirror's surface started to shimmer and sparkle, radiating with vibrant colors on part with the Northern Lights. Spiraling vortex opened on the surface and a beam of magic came bursting out, sucking in all of the dropped pieces of popcorn from the ground, leaving it sparkly clean.

Juniper temporarily turned away, eyes closed as the beam was sucked right back into the mirror. The colors fading, but one stream of green aura came spiraling from the mirror and across Juniper's arm, reaching her eyes. Her blue orbs briefly glowed a vibrant green before reverting back to normal.

Schoochy walked by, surprised to see all of the popcorn picked up. "Whuh? Done already? I'm shocked." he said before walking off to do his work.

"You and me both." Juniper gazed at the mirror. She already knew it was magic, but she didn't know it could do things like this. First it showed her what she wanted, now it was actually doing what she wanted.

Iris sighed a breath of relief she didn't even know she was holding. She arrived at the Harmony City Library in the nick of time. Only one hour and thirty minutes left before closing early. They normally did that on Sundays.

The library was still as strong and beautiful as it was in the days before the spirit portals opened. Beautiful flower covered vines adorned the marble polished staircases and the roots of spirit trees helped support the structure. Little spirits nuzzled in their nests above, happily listening to the sound of flipping pages from old and new books.

Iris walked towards the counter, returning her books to the co-librarians. A human and a pony, with a book-styled cutie mark on her cheek. Both were a couple of nice looking elderly women, with matching glasses. If it weren't for the fact that they were two different species, Iris would have assumed they were twins.

After she returned the books, Iris looked out on the back of the library, pass the glass windowed doors. Behind the library was a small patio, with a koi fish pond, lovely trees and benches for one to read outside in the cool breeze.

She spotted someone sitting close to the pond, happily tossing some treats to the fish, all of which swam towards her, flapping their tail fins happily. Iris walked out. There wasn't anyone else out right now, no doubt due to the closing hours, so she was left alone. The Avatar slowly approached the girl, noticing her familiar aquamarine hair with yellow green tips.

She hummed a lovely tune while marveling the fish swimming around. She even poked her finger into the waters, marveling at the ripples, while the fish sucked any traces of food that was stuck to her. She giggled at the tickling sensation.

She gasped when she saw another refection in the water. She nearly fell back, only to transform into a koi fish herself right when she fell in the water.

The transformed koi fish flipped into the air, becoming engulfed by a blue aura again before revealing the young changeling, her sparkly wings flapping and landed back onto the ground beside the human alicorn.

"I did. I watered the plants, fixed things up which didn't really take very long. It's a relatively small apartment. Then I decided to come here for a while. Looking at the koi fish always calms me. I thought you were at the mall with the others."

Chrysalis stood there in awkward silence, unsure on what to say next. Iris noticed her hesitation. "So… any word from Kuvira?"

"They left only a few hours ago, Chrysi. Pretty sure they're still flying over the ocean at this point."

"Right." Chrysalis mentally slapped herself. What a stupid thing to ask. "Does your mom get called away a lot?" she asked, hoping this one didn't sound as stupid as the last one.

"Not all the time, but when she is, it's usually to solve a friendship problem or a political issue. Happens more often than you think." Iris said. Her mind drifted back to her original concerns. "Never knowing when you might be called on to save the day. Dropping everything at a moment's notice. How does she do it?" she whispered the last one, though Chrysalis was wining hearing range so she caught wind of it very quickly.

"Oh, my bad. I was just thinking out loud at that last part." Iris said, blushing in embarrassment from her slip up.

The awkward silence returned, only to be penetrated when Chrysalis spoke again, picking up a notebook that had been laying beside her while she was gazing at the koi fish. "O…kay… I guess I'll be going now." just as Chrysalis lifted the shells to reveal her sparkly wings, she stopped when Iris spoke again.

"It's an old changeling lullaby." Chrysalis said, rubbing her shoulder. A gesture that was so common to her at this point many just anticipated it from her now. "I had completely forgotten it until a few months back."

"It sounds beautiful." Iris then noticed her notebook, along with a few detailed lines that resembled scales, drawn on by pencil. "Is that new?"

Chrysalis looked down at her notebook, shyly showing it to Iris. "Oh, um. Yeah. I started sketching a while back." she allowed Iris to look at the image. Indeed, it was a surprisingly well detailed drawing of the koi fish. She flipped through the pages, seeing sketches of a trolly, the park, even a few reptile pigeons that were eating food from a street corner. "I never really got to see much back when I was… you know." Chrysalis said, turning her gaze to the ground, "So, I just wanted to commemorate what I find memorable. I'd take a picture on my geo-phone but, I kind of like the feel of a pencil in my hand."

"These are really good." Iris said, her violet eyes shimmering at the careful and very organized details of every image, shaded with light shades of gray. "These are really good."

"Kuvira thought so too." Chrysalis's ghost of a smile morphed back into a frown. She really was missing Kuvira. She knew the metalbender told her to try and spend more time with her friends but, in all honesty, she didn't feel as comfortable talking about her "issues" with them than she did with Kuvira. After all, none of them were every a power hungry changeling queen, or an in-over-her-head dictator for that matter. She even felt afraid to talk about it with them. Friendship, which indeed wonderful, was still so new to her.

Iris didn't want Chrysalis to go back to the apartment by herself. Seeing these drawings gave her an idea. "Hey! I just remembered, there's this brand new art store that just opened up at the mall. You want to check it out?"

"Come on, it'll be fun. Besides, I doubt Kuvira would want you to stay cooped up in the apartment while she's gone."

Chrysalis bit her bottom lip, her mind wrestling with the idea. But, then again, maybe looking at art supplies and such would be a nice distraction from her thoughts. After all, Iris only said they could see the store, she didn't say they needed to talk about her own issues.

The young changeling nodded in yes and the two flew off back to Harmony City Mall.

It wasn't the first time Chrysalis had seen the Harmony City Mall, but every time she did she felt like she were entering a massive changeling hive bursting with bright colors, beautiful spirit plants, music bursting through the speakers, and the happy chatter amongst the many people, ponies and spirits that walked and or hovered on by.

Iris led her friend to the art store. At first, Chrysalis was hesitant to go inside. It was much larger than she had expected, with employers still pulling materials off of boxes and stacking them into shelves, but for the most part the store looked highly presentable. There were clay sculptures, portraits of various art pieces, stretching from plants, to people to locations. The colors came to life on the page, it reminded Chrysalis of the stunning colors of her fellow reformed changelings.

Fuchsia, aquamarine, yellow, green, reds and oranges and purples and violets. The place even smelled of dried paint and potpourri on the checking counter, along with beautifully fainted lanterns that hung on the ceiling for decorative purposes. The shelves aligned with paintbrushes, notebooks, blank canvases, and paints of all shades, probably more than she could count. Instantly, the changeling could feel herself becoming emerged in the store. There were even taller shelves with books that taught one how to draw, as well as books on folklore from Equestria and all four Nations and how to draw them.

Chrysalis flew upwards and flipped through the pages, her smile growing wider and wider, her eyes sparkling with childlike glee and wonder as she looked at all of the diverse creatures and myths. One of her favorites was that of the mythical Painted Lady. Iris told Chrysalis all about her story, having heard it from her Aunt Asami when she was younger.

Chrysalis explored the shop some more and found some brushes, color pencils, normal pencils for shading, paints, brushes, a few canvases and more notebooks. Chrysalis even bought a lantern, blank colored so she could paint the designs on it later on. She would surprise Kuvira with a few decorative lanterns to adorn the apartment.

Iris watched as her friend zipped and zagged all across the room like a moth to a flame. She was such a different creature from before. Shy and timid one moment and then bursting with life and color the next. Chrysalis's mind was just buzzing with new ideas she wanted to do she couldn't keep still. It made Iris laugh, but in a good way.

It was a lot like seeing Akari get excited over an antique sword or exploring new locations in the Everfree Forest. The way Nori's tail would literally wag whenever she heard a new hit single from Songbird Serenade. How Mai's eyes shimmer like the dancing flames of the fire from her fingertips when a new invention of her works flawlessly after hours of figuring out the kinks. Or even how Chi would flip around like a torpedo with no sense of direction whenever a new issue of Lady-Mare and Stal-Noir came out. Or even Iris herself whenever she uncovers a new spell to master.

Chrysalis shared the same passion and vicarious spirit as the rest of the team. But, when she was just standing beside them, or had nothing else to say she would be silent, still and resistant. Iris knew it was mainly because Chrysalis was still adjusting to her new life as a former villainess, but it was clear that she was capable of so much more than being a dictator Queen.

Once she knew she had everything, Chrysalis landed on the counter and placed all of her items on top. The cashier was both surprised and delighted. Their store was already becoming a huge hit, and she hoped this changeling would be a recurring costumer in the future. Once she told Chrysalis the amount, she reached into her wallet and frowned.

She had money, but in her excitable rush she didn't think much about the prices. Buying all of these would literally take up all of her money, and Kuvira wasn't going to be gone for long so she didn't think to pile up more on cash. The items weren't that expensive, but the money just didn't add up.

Her ears perched upwards in surprise when Iris, instead, pulled out a bag of a few gemstones from Equestria. Normally, these tips of gems didn't amount to that much, and were used as no different than common yuans in the human world. Thankfully, Harmony City ran on both human and Equestrian currency, so the gemstones were more than what needed to be paid, but Iris insisted she keep the change.

Chrysalis didn't know what to say, but Iris only casually brushed it off saying it's what friends do.

Next, Iris took Chrysalis to one of her favorite stores. Ever since she was young, Iris always had a love for music. She inherited her mother's beautifully enchanting singing talents, and her father's natural gift for playing stringed musical instruments, specifically the guitar. Both parents would sing to her every night or whenever she was feeling scared. It's another one of the reasons she had become fast friends with Nori, who shared the same love, and too held an emotional attachment to it.

Chrysalis was swayed by the sound of classical mussy playing, smiling at the children playing instruments like a tambourine and a flute. Iris found an old vintage guitar and started strumming along. Chrysalis realized she was playing the same tune Chrysalis was humming back at the library.

The music seemed to take hold of her and the changeling started humming the tune, along with Iris's guitar strumming. Costumers turned their heads to listen to the beautiful sound. Chrysalis had her eyes closed, letting the music whisk her away. She often sang the song to calm herself before she went to sleep, and now hearing it being accommodated with music made it come alive. She could even see the season change in her mind as she hummed and twirled in place to the sound.

Once the song had ended, Chrysalis let out an adorably frightened yelp when the room bursted into applauds. The changeling recoiled and her eyes widened like a deer in headlights. She gripped her newly purchased art supplies close to her chest, her knees pressed together and her ears dropped. Iris gently tapped her shoulder, letting her knew she wasn't in any danger.

Chrysalis slowly calmed, realizing that everyone was smiling at her rather than laughing maniacally and gaining up as if to attack her. This was nothing like her nightmare at all. Her racing heart slowly eased and she took a bow, which made everyone clap even louder.

Iris then surprised Chrysalis with a side hug. It wasn't the first time and the gesture still took some getting used to, but overall this trip wasn't such a bad decision after all.

Juniper took out some popcorn from the popcorn popper and tossed it to the floor behind the counter. The theater was nearly deserted at this hour, with only a handful of small movies playing. She held the mirror to the floor.

"Mirror, pick up this popcorn!" she ordered. Nothing happened. She expected the same magical sucking, whatever that was, to come back and clean up the mess like last time. But it seemed like the mirror refused to obey her. Maybe a different form of command was in order.

"Mirror, I command thee, pick upeth this poppage of corn!" Still, nothing happened. Juniper grunted in frustration, staring at her common girl reflection once more. Eyes narrowed and her free hand curled up into an angry fist. "Ugh! Why won't this thing work anymore?"

"Excuse me?" a costumer spoke, getting Juniper's attention. "We were gonna eat some of that." he said, his companion arching an eyebrow at Juniper.

The young girl them aimed the mirror at them, "Mirror, make these annoying people go away." she ordered. The two costumers only shook their head, concluding that this girl had been working for far too long and just up and left. They weren't that hungry anyways.

"Well, that kinda worked…" Juniper said, looking at the mirror. She was really just trying to make herself feel better.

A familiar voice nearly caused her to drop her beloved mirror. Thankfully she caught it in the nick of time. She didn't know what she would do if it broke. Why, the very idea was just…

"What the heck are you doing here?" Mai Sato asked. She and the rest of the Guardians had arrived to get the specific hour from when the movie was going to air. They weren't expecting to see Juniper Moon of all people to be by the popcorn.

"Were you invited to the Lady-Mare premiere? Ooh, that's exciting!" Hiro said excitedly, only to quickly recall just how unpleasant their last meeting was, "No, crazy! No, concerning! No! Just no! No offense."

"I wasn't invited to the premiere." Juniper said, adjusting her glasses and dusting the popcorn off of the counter. "My Aunt Zhu Li and Uncle Varrick felt bad for firing me, so they pulled some strings and got me this job." she showed them her horribly purple and yellow striped apron.

"You're working here now?" Gallant Steed asked, though more so with concern than anything. They all knew how much Juniper disliked them since the incident at Varrick's movie set.

"As little as possible." Juniper said bitterly after she tossed the last popcorn onto the ground and kicked it with the foot of her shoe.

"Y'know, if you hadn't tried to sabotage the movie, you could be celebrating with us." Chi said. It was true, if Juniper hadn't been so upset about not getting her way, Varrick and Zhu Li wouldn't have needed to punish her by making her work at the one place where they had movies but she couldn't watch them.

Apparently, Varrick too his time at Sweet Apple Acres to heart when it came to disciplining his wife's niece.

If only Chi knew just what type of can of worms she had just unleashed. Juniper Moon, while not the most terrifying foe they had encountered, was not someone you wished to mess with if pushed too far. They were about to learn that the hard way.

"This should be my night!" Juniper exclaimed, stepping away from behind the counter to directly face the Guardians, pointing an accusing finger at them all. "I would have found a way to be in the film if you all had stayed out of it! I would have been Lady-Mare! Everyone would've loved me! See?"

She help the mirror right at their faces, determined, desperate to prove just how wrong they were about how. How wrong they all were about her. But rather than see that beautiful version of Juniper, all the kids saw was their own reflections. Nothing out of the ordinary, just themselves. They all shared the same confused reactions.

"Can't you see what's right under your noses?" Juniper said, looking at the mirror, only find that it didn't show anything other than what was right in front of her: An adverse nobody with no friends. Someone who wasn't special at all. Not like them.

"Ugh! You think you're all so great! With your fancy powers and good looks! Why does everybody have to love you!? I wish you'd all just go away and leave me alone!"

Juniper took a step back when the magical energy from before came bursting out of the mirror, engulfing the Guardians in its powerful grip. Their bodies shrunk and turned white before becoming sucked right into the mirror, screaming all the while trying in vain to fight back. The same green energy from before spiraled around her arm and reached her eyes, which glowed a sinister green.

The sensation made Juniper smile. Looking down, she noticed Nori's shell-shaped barrette on the floor. She gladly picked it up and placed it on her vest, smiling maliciously at herself in the mirror.

The mirror rippled and once again she was greeted with the beautiful version of herself, giggling and winking, radiating with confidence and importance. She waved at her real world self.

"Okay, this is weird." Iris strolled through her contacts list one more time. "Six geo-phones, all straight to voicemail."

After seeing a few more stores, Chrysalis and Iris decided to get some ice cream and sat near the fountain to enjoy them. Iris ordered a chocolate/vanilla small sunday with rainbow sprinkles, while Chrysalis ate a chocolate chipped pistachio ice cream cone. She licked it like a happy little child who was was overjoyed to have sugar in her body.

Iris had spent the last ten minutes trying to reach her friends, but none of them answered. Normally at least one or two of them would. Hiro almost never misses a phone call, and even if he did he made sure to always call back as soon as he got it. Sometimes even two minutes after the voice mail was recorded. Something didn't feel right. She hoped nothing had happened while Iris and Chrysalis were having fun. After all, something like this is exactly what happened the night their parents were taken.

"I'm sure they're around. What's the worst that could have happened?" Chrysalis asked, licking her ice cream.

"Well, given our family history, any number of terrible things could have happened." Iris said. Her words made the air around the two immediately awkward. Iris inhaled deeply. "Our friends are probably fine. I'm overreacting." she said, smiling in reassurance. Only it was a fake smile and it faded very quickly. "But maybe not. I can't tell anymore."

"I'm gonna take a shot in the dark here and say that something else bothering you." Chrysalis concluded. Her years as the Changeling Queen had given her some knowledge on knowing when someone is behaving out of character, or hiding something. Iris was definitely trying to cover up something else that was on her mind. They were both so distracted with how much fun they were having that any worries they had just faded to the back of their minds. Only now, with none of Iris's friends answering, her previous worries came back.

Iris sighed, levitating her now empty ice cream cup into a near by trash can. "Yeah. I've never really been good at hiding my problems."

Chrysalis nodded her head, more so because she could relate to that statement. Iris took in a deep breath.

"It's just… ever since my friends and I became the new Elements, things have been kind of slow and calm. Which, in of itself isn't a bad thing, but I also want to be ready for whatever is gonna be thrown at us but we never know when stuff is going to happen. I guess knowing that is making me feel like I could never really relax and let my guard down, so I end up obsessing about it and can't get out of my own head."

"Tell me about it." Chrysalis blurted out, only to quickly cover her mouth afterwards. Too late though, for Iris already heard her. "I mean, I…"

This was the first time Chrysalis felt she could confined in someone about this sort of thing who wasn't Kuvira. Maybe this was one of those friendship things. Trusting your friends enough to talk your problems out.

"I think I know where you're coming from." Chrysalis began. A bit hesitant at first, but slowly growing more confident as she went on. "Ever since I transformed back I keep trying to tell myself that I've changed, or at least I want to. But I still don't feel like I've really done anything to earn this second chance, or that I have changed. I just keep--"

"Wandering around the same thing." Iris finished for her, "Even when everybody else tells you you'll be fine you're having a hard time believe it yourself and unless you do something to prove you've earned this you won't feel like you did?"

"Because I've been there. When I found out I was the Avatar, I wanted nothing more than to prove I was worthy of my powers. And, maybe even be on the same level as my mom. But by focusing so much on that I lost sight of what was really important. That no matter what, my powers are only as strong as they are because of my friends. I should have trusted them more instead of trying to fix things by myself."

"Maybe that's why you're so concerned." Chrysalis said, "You don't want to make the same mistake twice so that's why you wind up worrying about what could go wrong before it even happens."

The two were silent for a while. This was the first deep, serious conversation they have ever had since becoming friends. After a while, they didn't know how or why, but they just started laughing. It was as if the relief of letting everything out just made them want to smile and laugh it off. Chrysalis certainly did feel more at ease with herself. Like a huge load had been lifted off of her shoulders, the same went for Iris.

"You know, I think our problem is we're being way too hard on ourselves." Iris said, wiping away a stray tear as her laughter eased down. "We both messed up, and we both regret our mistakes. The most we can do now is learn from them and trust that things will work themselves out in the end. If you spend too much time worrying about the bad things that might happen, you'll miss out on all the good things that are happening."

"Looks like that Avatar wisdom is already kick in." Chrysalis said. Her voice sounded a bit more confident now, a real contrast from before.

The two shared one more laugh and Iris helped Chrysalis off of the side of the fountain, linking their arms together and walked through the mall again.

"Come on. Let's go take a look around the theater for the others." Iris said, feeling more relaxed than she had all day. "I'm sure they're fine."

Akari, Nori, Mai, Hiro, Chi and Gallant Steed found themselves inside a wide, blank void. There didn't appear to be any walls or even a floor, yet they didn't hover in mid air. They stood upright as if they were touching actual ground, yet the so called floor felt like nothingness, even when their hands were pressed against it. It was legitimately like touching an invisible wall.

"Uh… Any clue yet where we are or what just happened? Anyone?" Nori asked, hearing her voice echo within the wide space.

"Hang on to your hooves, everybody. Hiro Sato is on the case!" Hiro cracked his knuckles and his neck then rubbed his chin, inspecting what he assumed was the wall. He took in a deep breath and then started running around the place.

Hiro had been shouting the word CHARGE for a really long time, running around the place with his hands outstretched. He disappeared when he ran towards the left, only to reappear suddenly, and with no logical explanation whatsoever, emerged running from the right in the opposite direction. When he ran right back from where he started, he was stopped when his sister grabbed him by the hood of his jacket.

"I'm trying to hit a wall." Hiro replied, "If I hit one, maybe we can find a door that will lead us out. Now, if you'll excuse me." He cleared his throat before proceeding to run around again, all the while everyone just gave him a deadpan look.

"CHARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR--- "Yeah, I've got nothing'." Hiro finally stopped after disappearing from one view only to reappearing in the exact opposite, as if everywhere he went he just ended up in the same place. "There's no walls in here anywhere!"

There might not have been a wall, but there was a hovering flat circle with a glowing purple outline right above them. Magical energy seemed to burst from all sides around it, and they could see their own reflections on the surface.

Akari started pacing back and forth, her mind hard at work. "Wait, I think I know what's going on. This is a wishing mirror!"

"I read about them from one of the books from the StarSwirl the Bearded wing in Canterlot. These mirrors were originally from the Crystal Empire, long before King Sombra's reign. But because of how powerful they were, ponies feared their magic and they were lost for centuries. Somehow, someway, Juniper managed to get her hands on one of them."

"And from the looks of it, she's figured out how it works." Mai said, her eyes narrowing in frustration, "Now we're stuck in some kind of freaky limbo."

Gallant Steed started to tremble and crunched down, hugging himself, his pony ears pressing hard against his head. "I think I feel the cluster-phobia kicking in again!"

"Why? This place is ten times bigger than your living room." Chi said, floating right beside him.

"It's an enchanted mirror with nothing but blank space and no easy access to an exit, so it qualifies as an enclosed space!"

"On the upside, there's popcorn in here!" Hiro had found popcorn on the floor and started munching on them. His cheeks puffed up and he immediately spit out the already chewed up pieces. He gagged and spit in disgust. "Gah! Floor lint! Blech! That one had floor lint!"

Nori placed the back of her palm on her forehead in a dramatic fashion. "How could this happen on the night of my very first movie premiere? Of all the nights!" she then waved her fist at the blank void above her, shooting dramatically, "Curse you, cruel fate!"

"Not our number-one problem right now, Nori." Mai said, hands on her hips. If there were a number of things that annoyed Mai, and so far, being trapped inside an enchanted vanity object was already making its way onto the list.

Gallant Steed gripped Akari's shoulder for protection. "Is there really no way out of here? Please?" he pleaded, and Akari gently patted him on the back.

As if things couldn't get any worse, brown pellets began falling from the opening. Small, but hit them hard on their heads. "Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!"

Nori acted fast and created a pearl shield to cover herself and Mai. "Mother of a kraken! What is that?"

Using her super speed, Chi managed to swat the pellets away with her hands. She managed to catch one in her hand and felt the surface literally melt in her hand, followed by seeing the brown substance already fading, catching sight of a brown colored shell.

Using her magic, Akari made the aliments freeze in mid air. Despite the situation, Hiro happily ate the still clean candies with nothing but his mouth.

Back in the real world, Juniper, now knowing how her mirror works, used it as her own personal vacuum cleaner to suck away the dropped box of almonds on the floor.

The doors of the theater opened and Iris and Chrysalis walked inside. The Avatar quickly stopped when she spotted Zhu Li's niece behind the counter. Dragging Chrysalis by the arm, the two hid behind a cardboard cut out of another action movie that was currently playing. It was the cutout of what appeared to be a robot, consisting of black, blue, red, green and yellow colors with a lion-themed motif.

"I don't know." Iris squinted her eyes and noticed something familiar attached to Juniper's vest. "Wait… that's Nori's barrette."

Her friends hadn't called her back, she hadn't seen them for hours, and now Juniper was wearing Nori's favorite hair accessory for no explained, or logical reason. If Avatar instincts were a security alarm, her's would be buzzing like mad right now going; RED FLAG! RED FLAG!

Iris handed her bag to Chrysalis. "Wait here. Don't come out until I give a signal."

Chrysalis nodded and watched as Iris approached the counter. Juniper was too busy gazing at her mirror, but gasped when her beautiful self disappeared and saw Iris's reflection approaching her from behind. She gasped in fear, but quickly smirked.

Rather than answer, Juniper smirked and giggled mischievously. She didn't see any reason to hide her intentions. After all, she now had six of the seven Elements of Harmony trapped inside her mirror, why should be intimidated by a new-bee Avatar anyways.

Iris didn't like the sound of that laugh. Juniper obviously knew something, why she wasn't hiding it she wasn't sure, but it couldn't have been good.

Iris then noticed something odd about the mirror she held in her hand. It was giving off a very strange and, even familiar energy. Her Avatar connection to the other Elements kicked in all on its own and she could see their faces clearly inside the mirror. She gasped and pointed at Juniper's mirror.

"I don't know what you're talking about!" Juniper placed the mirror behind her back, but it was already too late. Iris knew what she had done to her friends. And she knew what that object was.

"Juniper, you need to give it back! That's an ancient Equestrian artifact, and if you keep using it it's only going to make things worse for you!"

Juniper sneered at the princess, holding the mirror protectively like a mother would her child. "You're just saying that because you want the mirror for yourself."

"What I want is my friends back. Please, Juniper. You wished them into that mirror, only you can wish them out."

Wish them out? Why would she do as she said? Just because she was a princess didn't make her the boss. Juniper had the power now. She had everything she could ever want. She was the one calling the shots now. The mirror reacted to her thoughts, fusing her with its magical energy, causing her eyes to glow green once more.

Just like her friends, Iris too was forcibly sucked into the mirror. Her screams were ignored as Juniper smiled wickedly at the princess struggling to break free of her magical grip. Once she was gone, Juniper went back to admiring herself.

From behind the cutout, Chrysalis gasped. "Iris!" she quickly cupped her mouth and hid when Juniper turned her head. The sound was faint and unrecognizable. She easily dismissed it, but now Chrysalis was left alone. Her friends were trapped inside a magic mirror in Juniper's hands.

Akari tried desperately to break through the opening, but no matter how many punches she threw it never broke. She should have guessed as much, after all, it was an enchanted mirror. Maybe it couldn't be broken from the inside.

The sound of echoing screams filled the blank void and Iris came crashing down from the opening, landing hard on her stomach.

"Iris!" Akari quickly helped her best friend back up to her feet and Hiro hugged her from behind.

"But wait. If we're all together, then nobody out there knows where we are!" Akari exclaimed.

Gallant Steed stopped his hyperventilating once he noticed the cutie mark on his arm started to let off a faint, almost unnoticeable glow.

"Chrysalis does!" Iris said, trying to reassure her friends that not all hope was lost. They were so caught up in their current situation they hardly noticed the slowly glowing glow of their marks.

"But how is she supposed to get us out? She doesn't have her old powers anymore." Mai said, completely unaware of the mark in her arm glowing.

"She can get the Mane Six or somebody else with magic to get us out." Iris said.

"Um, sorry to interrupt, but—" Gallant was cut short when Chi showed everyone her glowing mark, making everyone else notice their own.

But it wasn't just their marks that were glowing. It was everything around them. Colors that matched their color schemes flashed behind them like the flashing lights at a dance party. The aura around the opening glowed with more intensity.

"Maybe it's because all seven of us are together now." Iris concluded, while Hiro hid behind her.

"Is this a good thing or a bad thing?" Hiro asked, his voice trembling. Their entire bodies began to glow and the auras struck the opening, surrounding it with the essence of their magic while their marks still glowed. Their respected colors danced on the surface, and the mirror itself shimmered with bright and intimidating colors. Every bone in the bodies could feel the negative energy emitting from the other end.

Nori held her clenched hands close to her chest, her eyes widening in horror. "A bad thing. Definitely a bad thing!"

While Juniper continued to gaze at her faux reflection, a multicolored energy suddenly emerged from the mirror itself and spiraled around the sides. That same rainbow-colored light spiraled around Juniper's arm, engulfing her entire body. Rather than question what was happening, or even show any signs of concern, Juniper happily embraced this incredible surge of power. Chrysalis watched from behind the cutout as the young human girl's body began to grow in size.

Her head now reached only a few inches bellow the ceiling, but would tower over the normal everyday human or pony. Her skin, if possible, actually became paler, shinier like that of a pearl, her body matured in a short span, resembling that of a fully grown, healthy, athletic looking woman with a slim figure that would make any man turn his head.

She gained cheek bones, longer eyelashes and her blue eyes now carried a purple aura around the outline of her irises, matching the purple eyeshadow. Her hair was styled into a high willow's peak, curled like the spirit vines of the mall. Any trace of her black hair had disappeared, her blue streaks having taken over, now with shades of darker with strong dark cerulean colors added with the lighters shades.

Shimmering glitter was sprinkled across her hair, skin and dress. Her new wore a beautiful mermaid-tail styled dress with a vine/plant motif. She wore a black corset with green vines sharp purple and green leafs around her neckline and shoulders. Leafs of purple and green adorned her hips and the black dress underneath ended at her knees, followed by a cape of purple that was left open around her knees and flowed behind her feet, dragging behind her. Her shoes were high heeled with green leafs around her ankles and wore green leaf-styled gloves with sharp nails that resembled claws.

She looked at herself in the mirror but, just to be sure, she looked at her actual reflection in the reflective surface of the vending machine. The same reflective version of herself that she witnessed in the mirror was now more beautiful than anything else she could have imagined.

Only, this wasn't just some magical trick of the mirror. This was real. This was who Juniper was now. She was everything she ever wanted to be. Beautiful, confident, adored. Her dreams were finally coming true.

Juniper cal walked out of the movie theater, eager to see her adoring public. Chrysalis quietly stepped out from behind the cutout once Juniper had left and silently followed her.

"Okay, first things first. I need to get that mirror away from her." she said to herself, hiding behind a potted plant, seeing the still shimmering mirror in Juniper's hand.

When she walked out, everyone inside the mall gasped and screamed in terror at the fifty foot woman inside the mall. Some even asked the spirits if maybe she was someone new from the spirit world, but none of them had claimed she was. In fact, they could plainly see she was in fact all human, but carried some essence of magic in her. Their first instinct was to run away, for they knew she couldn't be from Equestria, seeing as she was human, but she couldn't be human is she was this massive.

As Juniper approached them, the people stepped back, some taking out their geo-phones to take pictures of the unusual sight, if to only to ask someone else more questions later. More and more screams filled the entire mall, even those from the upper levels, where they saw at least the top of Juniper's new hairdo.

But Juniper didn't hear screaming. She didn't hear frightened gasps or even saw anyone backing away or running in terror at her massive size and intimidating presence. Instead, her eyes shimmered like the reflective surface of her mirror.

In her eyes she saw them smile, cheer, applaud and even chant her name. Some were even fighting the already massive crowd just to get a closer look at her while cameras flashed here, there and everywhere.

Juniper spotted a young boy eating ice cream with his mother. He smiled and gazed in awe at the movie star.

"Want Mommy to take our picture together?" Juniper asked. In her eyes, he was excited, but in reality, the boy was terrified beyond belief. He started to scream and cry and his mother quickly took him into his arms and ran away, dropping his ice cream cone in the process.

Everywhere she went, Juniper could only see her adoring fans, screaming her name and showering her with all the flattering compliments and praises she had always dreamed of and she blew kisses their way, never being aware of the horrified screams as they ran away. She didn't even question on wether or not this was real anymore, because in her eyes, in her mind, and in her heart, this was real. This was her reality, and nobody, not even some spoiled, pampered Avatar Princess was going to take that away from her now.

Juniper swatted an annoying fly that kept buzzing at her face. Only, it wasn't a fly, but a bee. "Hey, get away! I'm allergic to bees!" she exclaimed. The wasp's tail poked her hand, but rather than feel her allergies act up, she realized all the bug did was poke her very hard and its tail didn't even fall off.

Juniper gasped and reached out to grab the mirror, only for a green glow to temporarily blind her and Chrysalis grabbed the mirror in her hand before flying away. Juniper growled in anger, furious that this changeling had managed to trick her.

Chrysalis knew she had to get out of the mall and towards someone who could help. Maybe Starlight Glimmer, or Sunset Shimmer, or the Alicorns. Anyone with powerful magic who could free them, and maybe bring Juniper back to her normal self before she hurt somebody.

However, Juniper not only increased in size, but in strength and speed also. She was able to effortlessly catch up to the changeling girl, grab her by the ankle and toss her across the room. Bystanders ran away as Chrysalis slid across the floor and into a dress shop.

In the process, the mirror had fallen right beside her. The sound of cracks made her gasp in fear.

From inside, the same cracks appeared on the opening above the Guardians, and even more, larger, black cracks started to form inside the blank void itself. From the floor, to even the non existent walls. Hiro poked his hand through one of the cracks, seeing nothing but emptiness and no place on where they could stand on. It felt like a true empty space that had no end or start. Just, nothingness.

"The mirror is breaking!" Iris exclaimed, trying to step away from more of the forming cracks. The sound of shattering glass echoed inside.

Chi held Akari's arm, pulling her away from another forming back beneath her feet. "If Chrysalis doesn't find a way to get us out of here soon, I don't know what's gonna happen!"

"Chrysalis, I hope you know what you're doing." Iris said, seeing more and more cracks forming.

Chrysalis held the mirror close. This could not be good. If the mirror broke while her friends were still inside, they could be lost in there forever.

Chrysalis had spent almost an eternity stealing nothing but the love others had for one another for herself. Now she would do whatever it took to save the Guardians of Harmony. She couldn't abandon them, no way, no how.

Juniper came bursting through the store, her claws digging into the stone surface of the entrance, causing everyone inside to either hide in whatever hiding place they could find, or run out as fast as they could

"Give that back!" Juniper slammed her hand at Chrysalis, who narrowly dodged her sharp nails. Chrysalis flapped her wings and reached the upper balcony, where designer bags, shoes and party dresses were placed. Not once did she let go of the mirror.

"No! This mirror is nothing but trouble. You have to realize that. Ah!" Chrysalis screamed and nearly fell backwards into a row of mannequins when Juniper crunched down and leaped up to the balcony, using her upper body strength to hoist herself up, angrily pulling the sparkly chandelier that annoyed her face when she arrived.

"What I realize is that you are just like those spoiled brats!" Juniper pulled the mannequin where Chrysalis was hiding behind away, "I wish you'd join them!"

Chrysalis held the mirror's surface away from her, anticipating for the same vortex that sucked in Iris to do the same to her. She breathed a sigh of relief when nothing happened.

Furious at the mirror's disobedience, Juniper lifted up one of the shelves that held the expensive looking shoes and hurled it at Chrysalis.

She managed to fly away in time, but the impact caused the balcony to crumble. One innocent costumer tried to run but slipped and was now hanging for her life.

Chrysalis quickly flew right in, catching the woman in her arms, her fingers having slipped very quickly. Chrysalis flew out and landed her safely back in the ground.

Juniper jumped from the balcony and chased after Chrysalis across the mall again.

"Looks like you can't make that wish unless you're the one holding the mirror!" Chrysalis shouted as she flew off, but Juniper managed to grab hold of a ficus potted plant and hurled it at Chrysalis. She lost her momentum and fell again to the floor, causing the mirror to shatter once again.

Gallant Steed tried to balance himself when another crack formed on the ground. It was so freaky, cracks even started to form even in thin air, right over Chi's head. She had to literally duck in cover.

Before long, most of the blank space was become nothing but broken pieces of hovering nothing, which then crumbled and fell into the darkness that was taking hold of everything that wasn't there to begin with.

The guardians all gathered together, with Iris creating a force field to shield them, but there was no telling how much longer they could hold on.

Chrysalis jumped behind the same sunglasses booth Juniper had visited earlier that day. If wishing was what got the others in there, then wishing would be the only way to get them out.

"I wish Princess Iris and her friends would come back!" Chrysalis shouted, eagerly awaiting for them to return. Juniper gave a smug grin when all that came out of the mirror was nothing more than a small broken shard.

"Looks like you can't use it, either!" Juniper laughed as she reached out to grab her. A came of cat and mouse ensued with Chrysalis running away from Juniper around the booth, her already limited patience was wearing thin.

She grabbed more a nearby bench and even a vending machine and hurled them at Chrysalis, which she dodged, all the while holding the mirror close. While Juniper held it close out of vanity, Chrysalis held it because if she let it fall into her hands again, she would loose something far greater than any supernatural makeover.

"Give it back to me!" Juniper threatened, her now sharp teeth bare, her eyes shrunk in madness.

"But my friends are trapped in there!" Chrysalis exclaimed, tears already forming in her eyes.

Right on cue, the same song from the Guardians's music video plays from the speakers again. Juniper's eyes widened in anger, her jaw clenched so hard a vain started popping onto her forehead.

"Your friends stole my one chance at being famous!" Juniper growled and knocked the speaker down with one punch.

Inside the mirror, the one piece of floating space was already breaking apart, which in turn was splitting the team apart. Mai took a leap of faith and jumped from her floating spot and was caught by bother her brother and Chi. Hiro held his younger sister protectively.

Nori was left in her own corner, too far away from the others for her to jump. The pieces cracked and fell beneath her and the merpony screamed as she fell.

Thankfully, she was levitated herself back up, using her pearls so she could land back with them. She hugged them in relief, but her relief was very short lived whenever the small spot they now stood was cracking faster and faster.

Chrysalis hid inside the booth, seeing more and more shards breaking and falling off. The tears that had formed were now rolling down her cheeks. Chrysalis felt she had let them down. They gave her nothing but kindness and support, and now she was about to loose them forever.

Juniper, in a flurry of blind range, kept bunching and breaking the speaker, and every other speaker that played the song over and over again.

"I could have had everything!" she shouted, breaking another into pieces. "Everyone would love me! I would have finally been something more! Something greater! But your stupid friends took it from me! Now, you'll know exactly how it feels to loose everything! To be alone!"

Since her wicked self took over and lied to her fellow changelings, she had been alone. She had an army of followers, but she never really cared for any of them they way she should have. The way Kuvira, Iris, and everyone cared for her.

Juniper wanted to be respected, to be loved, to have everything. Only, even if she had this new body, and powers… nobody was adoring her. Everywhere she went, she inspired fear. Yet, she couldn't see it.

She wiped away her tears, taking in a deep breath as she held the mirror protectively. She couldn't explain how, but she now knew exactly what needed to be done. Chrysalis stood up to Juniper, her heart pounding and her hands trembling, but she stood tall none the less.

Chrysalis flinched a bit when Juniper now held the to of the booth over her head, ready to crush her opponent.

As soon as the word left her mouth, Juniper froze. Her expression was still tense and filled with furry, but her brows furrowed, as if internally wrestling with the decision to either destroy here right then and there, or reconsider her question.

Because… because I understand you, Juniper. You think getting all of this power is going to make you feel better about yourself, but it won't. You'll only end up becoming a prisoner of your own ambition. You may have all this power, but you'll still be alone!"

Without her mirror in hand, the deception from the magic had wavered. No longer did she see people cheering her name, or showering her with love and adoration, but rather the only thing she saw in their eyes was…

"Wha… what's wrong? Why are they so scared?" she asked, a part of her refusing to accept this as real.

Juniper lowered the roof she held in her hands looked at her own reflection in one of the store glass windows. She still looked just as beautiful as before, but she also didn't recognize herself. At all. She wasn't a fourteen-year-old anymore, she was an adult. A very pale, very intimidating looking adult. She couldn't believe she had once thought this to be beautiful.

More whimpers and screams of terror filled her ears. She didn't had to turn around to know how everyone was looking at her. She only wanted people to like her, but now… she was more alone than ever.

"No… not, I didn't ask for this! This makes no sense, I only wanted people to like me!"

"I understand, I really do." Chrysalis held her hand close to her heart, along with the mirror. "But this isn't the way, Juniper. It will never be the way. Please, don't make a mistake that you'll end up regretting for the rest of your life."

"I've already made too many mistakes." Juniper's voice cracked and she hung her head in shame. "What I've done is... is... unforgivable."

Chrysalis stepped out from the both, reaching her hand out to the now horrified young girl. "No, Juniper. I know they'll forgive you. But first, you have to set them free!"

Chrysalis held the mirror to Juniper, seeing more shards of the mirror falling off and traces of magic going haywire from within.

The Guardians all gathered together, with Iris, Akari and Gallant trying to keep them steady and stable with their magic, but with every shard that broke off, a bit of their magic continue to give way. The space they stood on was falling off fast, and it wouldn't be too long before they were all lost in the darkness forever.

Juniper grabbed the mirror. She knew they would be angry with her once they were out, but if she didn't, then she won't get what she wanted after all. She will be stuck like this, hated forever for what she did to Korra and Twilight's children. Their families, even her own would never speak to her again.

It was then she realized, she would rather than them mad at her now and eventually forgive her rather than live the rest of her life knowing what she had done. If the former Queen of the Changelings could be given a second chance, maybe she could too.

She held the mirror in her hands and then outreached her hand, the mirror now facing the sky.

The sound of screamed echoed within the black void. The kids expected themselves to just fall and fall forever, but they all breathed a deep, huge sigh of relief when they felt very solid, and very hard ground.

The last of the mirror's shard had fallen off, and along with it, it's magic became undone. Juniper Moon had reverted back to her normal, human self, and all the destruction she had caused was magically fixed in a flash of blinding light that engulfed the mall.

The team helped one another stand back and Iris spotted the changeling, wiping away her tears. She ran up to the Avatar and hugged her.

The changeling was then surround by all of her friends, safe and sound. She didn't even mind that they were nearly crushing her ribs. Anything to make her certain that they weren't going anywhere any time soon.

Juniper looked at the now useless, non magical mirror in her hand and seeing Chrysalis being surrounded by her friends. All she ever wanted was to be loved like she was. But, in her efforts to get what she wanted, she lost so much more than she cared to admit. The magic had consumed her she couldn't even tell reality from fiction anymore.

"There you are!" a voice called Juniper from behind. It was the same shop keeper pony from before. "You're the one who stole that mirror! I told you it was dangerous!"

Iris quickly stepped in, "Sir, if I may. I apologize on behalf of my friend Juniper."

"No, Iris." Juniper stepped forward. "I'm sorry. I never should have taken it." she handed him the now worthless mirror, which Iris gently took.

"If you ask me, I'd say this was a welcomed loss." Iris said, "A power like this should never be in the hands of anybody."

The shop keeper couldn't deny that much. It was the whole reason why he planned on shifting these items to Canterlot where they would be safe. But, then again, perhaps loosing one dangerous artifact was more of a blessing than anything.

"Very well. I'll let this slide." he narrowed his eyes and pointed his finger at Juniper, "But if I see you near my shop again I'm calling security!"

With that, he left in a huff, leaving Juniper to face the rest of the Guardians. Aside from Iris and Chrysalis, who looked at Juniper with sympathy, the majority of the others looked at her in either disapproval or sadness.

Juniper didn't blame them. At least they were safe and sound, and whatever punishment they had in mind, she would face it.

"I'm so sorry. I didn't know I was…" she was silenced when Chrysalis held her hand.

"It's okay. I didn't either. But, a wise friend once told me, it's never too late to start over."

"So do we." Iris said. "Besides, if my mom could forgive your uncle Varrick for attempting to kidnap the president and pushing for a war, I think we can do the same for you."

Juniper didn't know what to say when they all surrounded her. Two reformed villains for the new Generation of heroes already. It would seem they were definitely following in their predecessors's footsteps.

Before the premier for the movie, the team visited Rarity's boutique, where Nori helped Juniper pick out an outfit for the occasion. She was still surprised they forgave her so easily, but she knew she would have to face the punishment that awaited her from her aunt and uncle. But, for now, she would just enjoy being herself again.

For the first time ever, she finally felt like she didn't need to be grand and famous to have friends. All she needed was to be honest.

"Thanks again for saving our necks, Chrysi." Iris said as she and Chrysalis stood side by side next to one of Rarity's water tribe themed mannequins.

"No problem. " Chrysalis became silent for a moment before speaking again. "I think I finally understand."

"I've doubting myself a lot lately on how much I have changed. But, after today, I realized that while I can't erase my past, it really doesn't defy who I am anymore. And, I should have trusted you guys with that sooner rather than keep it to myself. Guess I've still got a lot to learn about this Friendship stuff.

Iris chuckled and wrapped her arm around her friend. "Lucky for you, you won't have to learn on your own." her phone chimed and Iris saw a text message. "Looks like my Mother agrees, too."

"Iris, I'm very proud of you kids for handling that wishing mirror problem. As for any concerns you may have: Some lessons are better learned in action, and you kids are great teachers. Make Juniper feel welcome and enjoy the premiere! Love you and see you soon."

"Chrysi, I'm very proud of you. Never doubt that you can make a difference. I love you and I expect to hear the full details on the movie when I come back."

The team all smiled at Kuvira's sweet text to her roommate. Chrysalis placed the phone back into her pocket. "So, now that I resolved my problem, think maybe you can focus on the positive from here on out?" she asked Iris, not forgetting her own concerns regarding the future.

The two friends fist pumped and everyone celebrated with a group hug, Juniper included.

For the rest of the evening, and long since, Chrysalis not only learned that she had indeed changed, but that by her own experiences, she now knew she could help others from falling into the same trap as she once did.

In time, she no longer felt ashamed of being a former villain, and Iris no longer stressed over what could happen or what could not happen.

After all, if her mother and her friends could face all of those dangers, threats and near death experiences together, then it wasn't too far as stretch that they could too.

…………………..

Everywhere you go

Friendship there will grow

When you find it, it's the key

Friends can change the world, you see

Everywhere you go

Friendship there will grow

When you find it, it's the key

Friends can change the world

(ah-ah)

Friends can change the world

(ah-ah)

Friends can change the world

You see!

……………….

*(~)*

Romans 8:28-29~

*(~)*

The Little Pony Legend: Magical Tails

by MaggiesHeartLove

Mirror Magic