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// 3 Return to the Pool 
// Story: All That Glitters 
// by Bronyxy 
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The four ponies dragged and carried the unwelcome alicorns up the stairs to the top of the ravine and then set off towards the Mirror Pool that wasn’t too much further into the Everfree.  Manually handling the alicorns would have been a lot easier had the unicorns got their magic or the pegasi not lost their wings but eventually they stood, tired and sweaty in front of the translucent pool where the nightmare had begun.

Their captives were sweating too, not from exhaustion, but from fear as they were now so close to what Pinkie had overheard them say was their nemesis.  Twilight approached the quieter of the two and spoke to her;
“OK” she said “We know this place scares you, and you know we’re more than ready to throw you in together, so it’s time you made up for all the trouble you’ve been causing.  Now; I’m going to remove this gag and you’ve got one chance to behave or you’re both going in – got it?”
Sunaj stared terrified at the evil look that had spread across Twilight’s face and knew her bluff had been called.  She nodded furiously, eager to grab any chance of reprieve.

Twilight undid the strap holding in the gag and Sunaj started straight away:
“I’m sorry!” she cried “Please don’t throw us in!”
The other alicorn stared daggers at her clone.
“These ropes are really tight, please would you slacken them off a bit?” she pleaded.
“Not a chance” said Twilight with a determined look on her face “Clock’s ticking and then in you go – tick tock, tick tock.”
“OK, OK” begged Sunaj “We came here to steal the magic from the Tree of Harmony.”
“Yesterday’s news already” said Twilight “I also researched my mythology after I met you.  Your cutie mark; it’s nothing to do with protecting ponies is it?  The two-faced pony is Janus, that’s Sunaj spelled backwards, and Janus is the deity presiding over the past and the future, or even war and peace.  Now talk – and you’d better make it good.  No more second chances.”

Sunaj had been caught off guard by this last revelation and stared back at Twilight, stunned.
“OK” she said quietly, looking down in humiliation “If we go into the pool together we cancel each other out and cease to exist, but if we go in separately, we will pass through into another realm.”
“What have you done with Celestia and Luna?” demanded the lilac alicorn now Sunaj was on the ropes.
“They’re in our realm on the other side of the pool; it’s like an exchange, two go one way, two go the other.  So if we go in together and we cease to be, your Princesses can’t come back.”
“What were Celestia and Luna doing at the pool in the first place?” continued Twilight.
“We summoned them in just the same way as we summoned you” was the reply “It was all part of the plan.”
“How can we trust you?” interjected Rainbow, wearing a fearsome grimace that made Twilight’s sinister expression pale into insignificance.
“Let me undo my magic spell and restore your powers” suggested Sunaj.
“Only if I can keep my hooves right next to your face” menaced Rainbow “I may not have my wings, but I can kick as hard as Commander Hurricane.  Any funny business and it’s goodnight and sweet dreams and that’s just for starters – OK?”
The threat was heartfelt and Sunaj knew she had no room to manoeuvre.
“OK” she said, looking away in defeat.

Rarity tugged and twisted at the magic inhibitor on the alicorn’s horn eliciting screams of pain as she tried to wrench it free. The howls of pain echoed all around the walls of the light blue grotto and Fluttershy turned away pressing her forehooves to her ears until Rarity eventually enlisted Twilight’s help to pull it free.
“My, that glue was strong” gasped Rarity as the two friends eventually pulled off the magic inhibitor.
Sunaj could barely see through her watering eyes:
“Please would you let me wipe my eyes?” she asked.
“Not a chance” said Twilight and Rainbow together, exchanging smiles between each other.
“OK, OK” said Sunaj “I’m ready.”
“Just remember” said Rainbow coldly “My hoof is a really good fit for your face.”
“I think she wants her wings back” said Twilight to Sunaj, who just nodded.  She had worked that bit out for herself.
A glow sparked at the end of her horn and a magic aura began to form.  Rainbow gave the alicorn’s face a subtle nudge with her hoof, just as a gentle reminder that she was still there.
Sunaj screwed up her face in concentration and after a build up of energy there was a sudden flash as it discharged.

The friends were all a little groggy, but they recovered quickly, principally because they wanted to see if their captives had tried to pull a fast one, but all seemed as it should be; the one who had cast the spell was clearly exhausted from her effort while the other was still fully restrained.  Only then did they look at each other and check whether their individual attributes had been returned to them.
Rainbow let out a whoop as she flexed her wings and it felt good, then she followed this up by fluttering tentatively onto the air, and once that worked she performed a loop out of sheer pleasure.
The others too, tested out their special skills and found everything to be in order, then turned back to Sunaj.

“I think you’ll find that I have undone the spell we cast during the party.  It took a lot out of me because I had to undo by myself what both of us had done together, but I’m sure it’s back to normal.”
Cued by a quick glare from Twilight, Spike secured the magic inhibitor back in place, just in case Sunaj had any second thoughts about reversing her recent epiphany.
“What about what you did to Pinkie?” demanded Twilight.
“I have also undone the silence spell and the bubble prison too.  Will you let us go now, please?”
“Rainbow” said Twilight “Fancy testing those wings of yours and seeing if everything’s as she says it is back in Ponyville?”
Rainbow saluted smartly and turned on a rear hoof before springing into the air and shooting off leaving her trademark rainbow trail behind her.
“You still don’t trust me then?” enquired Sunaj.
“Nope” replied Twilight, and the others all nodded in agreement.

Rainbow found Ponyville in celebratory mood; pegasi flying simply for the joy of flying, while unicorns were going around changing inanimate objects in to oranges or whatever they felt like, just because they could once more.  What was more important to Rainbow was the fate of the pink party pony whom she had last seen in a bubble on the ceiling.  Landing on a window sill overlooking the ballroom, she looked around and then diverted her gaze upwards, catching sight of Pinkie resting on a net suspended from the ceiling.
“Hey Rainbow!” she called “It’s not often I get to look down on you!”
Rainbow smiled, glad to have her friend back safely and hopped in, alighting the floor with the merest bump.
“Hey AJ!” called the cyan pegasus over to the farmer who was securing a rope “Want me to go get her? It will be a whole lot safer than that contraption of ropes you’ve got there.”
“Now don’t you go dissin’ my work, yuh hear?” said AJ indignantly “It sure as applesauce stopped Pinkie leavin’ through the window.”
“Yeah, great job AJ – seriously.  Couldn’t have Pinkie being the first pony in space – my name’s already top of that list!”
The farmer smiled, grateful for the recognition of her work that she knew was in Rainbow’s heart even if she didn’t write her a poem to prove it.
“Go on then, show off” said AJ with a smile on her face and Rainbow fluttered up to see the stranded party pony and held her tightly, carrying her safely to the ground to the accompaniment of Pinkie shouting “Wheeee!”

“Would you say everything’s back to normal round here?” asked Rainbow.
“Everything ‘cept the windows as far as I call tell” said AJ.
“I always wondered what it would be like to be a party balloon” bubbled Pinkie, going off at a complete tangent as usual “But I don’t think I want to try it again.”
“OK” said Rainbow “I’ll go tell Twi.  Later, you guys!”
And with that, Rainbow left through the nearest window, heading back for the Mirror Pool.

The cyan pegasus returned to find three ponies and a baby dragon waiting for her report on the situation in Ponyville.
“Well, how’s it all looking?” asked the lilac alicorn, her tone striking a balance between scepticism and hopefulness.
“It’s OK Twi” reassured Rainbow “But your castle’s going to need some repairs.”
“What about Pinkie?” she pressed.
“Yeah, she’s fine” came the reply, then adding with a smirk “She’s normal, or at least as near to normal as she ever is.”

Twilight turned to face Sunaj who was looking up pleadingly.
“OK, you seem to have done as you promised” said the librarian, the look of deep suspicion still etched across her face in spite of the good news.
“I have upheld my side of the deal” implored Sunaj “Please would you honour yours and let us go now?”
“OK, what’s the drill?” asked Twilight.
“One of us goes in and disappears then the other goes in and follows; simple as that.  Once we’ve gone, then your two Princesses should come out in our place” explained Sunaj, now on a roll “The Mirror Pool is for more than just duplication you know; it’s a portal to other dimensions.”
“Can you guarantee we’ll get our Princesses back?” asked the lilac alicorn.
“Yes” said Sunaj “Their biological signatures are held in the portal and it will draw back the right ponies when we go through on a one-for-one basis, don’t you worry.”

Twilight had no choice other than to trust the duplicitous alicorns.
“Spike” instructed the librarian “Make sure that magic inhibitor is firmly in place.”
“Checked and checked” replied Spike once he had applied a little more glue.
“And gag her again” she ordered.  Sunaj groaned at the treatment, but on reflection consoled herself that although they would be going back without the magic from the Tree of Harmony, things could have been a lot worse.

Twilight walked over to the other hogtied and gagged alicorn and stared her straight in the eye:
“When I let you go, you go into the pool and go home.  No funny stuff, OK?”
The silver alicorn stared resentfully.
“She said scram!” barked Rainbow waving her forehoof threateningly close to the alicorn’s face “Got it?”
Sunaj nodded and Twilight cut the bonds holding her legs together, letting her flex her limbs for the first time in far too long.  She massaged the rope marks and staggered unsteadily as she fought to get onto her feet.
“In you go!” ordered Rainbow.
The silver alicorn may have been resentful and bitter, but she could barely walk and her horn was inhibited – there was nothing she could do but blindly obey.  She walked off, beaten, not looking back until she disappeared.

Twilight released the last of duplicates and she too struggled uncertainly to her feet and as soon as she was ready, set hoof into the pool and started walking, watched by five purposeful pairs of eyes.  Just before she reached the point where her colleague had vanished, she turned back for a last glance at the ponies on the shoreline with a sad look on her face and shook her head gently, her beautiful golden mane shimmering as ripples ran down each hair, then she turned back and proceeded to face her destiny elsewhere.

The friends waited expectantly on the shoreline and about a minute later, the line that separated the surface of the pool from the air above inverted over their heads as two familiar forms appeared in the pool, walking towards their improvised welcoming committee.
“Princess!” shouted a delighted lilac pony as she saw the white alicorn leading her sister to the shore.
“Twilight Sparkle” said Celestia softly once the two Royal alicorns climbed out of the pool “I’m guessing that you have had a hoof in securing our release?”
“Well, yes” said Twilight blushing slightly and giving her a friendly nuzzle “It was a team effort, and we’re all very glad to have you both back.”
“It would seem” said Luna as teacher and former student enjoyed their moment together “That no matter how securely the Mirror Pool is blocked up, there is no barrier that cannot be breached by a determined librarian …”
At this, Twilight blushed even more fiercely.
“I think we should go tell Pinkie to arrange a ‘welcome back Princesses’ party; her last party was cut a bit short” said Rarity.
“Yeah, she was on the ceiling” chipped in Rainbow.
The two Royal Princesses looked at each other with mixed expressions of fear and bewilderment.
“I think a party is in order Sister” said Luna with a wicked twinkle in her eye “If that is what Pinkie Pie can do if the party is cut short then I cannot wait to see what she will do with a whole evening to experiment!”

“Um, Rarity” said the cyan pegasus a little hesitantly “You didn’t get your gags back …”
“Well Rainbow” replied Rarity a little prissily “I for one didn’t want to hear any unpleasant parting comments they may have wanted to share with us.”
“Also” she continued with a mischievous smile forming on her face “Can you imagine how embarrassed they will be when they emerge the other end wearing magic inhibitors and gags?”
“They’d certainly have some explaining to do!” giggled Rainbow.
“Besides” replied Rarity raising an eyebrow and shooting her friend a coquettish glance “I have more where they came from.”
Celestia looked startled and her mouth dropped open as she exchanged a look with her sister who was trying hard to suppress a giggle; Twilight meanwhile felt her cheeks turning pink and quickly covered Spike’s ears with her forehooves.
“Just exactly what type of party are you inviting us too?” enquired Celestia.
“Oh shush, it’ll be lots of fun” fussed the dressmaker with a toss of her mane.
“I am looking forward already” said Luna with a cheeky smile on her face.