//------------------------------// // 4. Friend or Foe? // Story: Equestria Girls - The Legend of Friendship // by Danieru //------------------------------// Star Twinkle and Twilight walked through the school halls confused and almost lost of what to do next. It was all so frustrating that they both knew where the crown was but in order to get to it, they had to make sure that Twilight would become the Princess of the Fall Dance here in Canterlot High. But in order to do that, she needed to convince most of the students to vote for her instead of Sunset Shimmer. And with Sunset Shimmer basically ruling over the whole school, in a way, chances were slim that they could archive that in just a few days. Being aware of that, made Star Twinkle's worry grow. “The others sure don't sound like as if they think that you can win against Sunset Shimmer,” he pointed out after he remembered how his friends of this world all tried to talk Twilight out of going up against Sunset Shimmer. “But we have to try. If we don't, then the crown will be gone,” Twilight simply replied. Of course, Star Twinkle knew that. Getting the crown was at the highest priority right now. Princess Celestia was counting on the two...or rather, three of them now. They just had to focus on what to do next. “What are gonna do now? Where are we going anyway?” Star Twinkle asked as he wondered why he and Twilight were standing right at the end of the hallway. “I don't know. I just followed you,” Twilight replied casually. “But I thought I followed you!” Star Twinkle replied frustrated. Spike only rolled his eyes, seeing how the two were absolutely lost. They found themselves in a dark corner of the hallway. It was almost menacing how dark it was in this specific corner. As if there were some dangers in there, waiting to approach the three. Soon, exactly that happened. “Are you lost?” A voice said from inside the darkness of the hallway. Star Twinkle quickly recognized the voice as Radiant Blast who walked out of the shadows. Not only that but right behind Star Twinkle, Twilight, and Spike, another figure approached. Star Twinkle slowly recognized that it was the girl that he bumped into a while ago. ”So that is Sunset Shimmer, huh?” Star Twinkle realized as he took a first look at how Sunset Shimmer looked like in this world. Sunset Shimmer walked up to the two with a sinister smile on her face. “Shoulda known Princess Celestia would send her prized pupil here after my crown, along with her little dog and her...what?” She asked after she took a look at Star Twinkle. “Her knight in Shinning Armor,” she added as she tipped Star Twinkle's cap away from his head, causing it to fall down on the ground, making Star Twinkle pick it up again, annoyed. “No. Shinning Armor would actually be her brother,” Radiant Blast corrected. Sunset Shimmer got confused by those random words that Radiant Blast just had to share right now but didn't mind it much and walked right next to him, focusing her attention to Twilight again. “Whatever. This is just a minor setback for me. You don't know the first thing about this place, and I already rule it,” she said confidently. “If that's so, why do you even need my crown? You went to an awful lot of trouble to switch it with the one that belongs here,” Twilight pointed out, which actually was a really good question. Sunset Shimmer seemed to a good job intimidating the whole school already. She didn't even need the crown to do all this. This only further raised the question why she was after it. Fortunately, Sunset Shimmer was doing everyone a favor and explained, in a way. “Pop quiz: what happens when you bring an Element of Harmony into an alternate world?” She asked. She seemed to expect an answer from Twilight but none came. This only amused Sunset Shimmer. “You don't know? Seriously?” She said amused, clearly feeling superior, laughing about Twilight's unawareness. ”And you're supposed to be Princess Celestia's star student? Then again, what were the chances she'd find somepony as bright as me to take under her wing after I decided to leave Equestria? Bit embarrassing that you were the best she could do,” she further added which eventually caused Spike to growl at her angrily. Despite being startled for a second by that, Sunset Shimmer wasn't intimidated. “Oh, and I'd keep an eye on your mutt. Hate for him to be... taken away from you,” “Is that a threat?” Spike replied. “Oh, of course not,” Sunset Shimmer replied. “But I'd cut down on the chatter if I were you. Don't want everyone to know you don't belong here, now would you? You wanna be a princess here? Please. You don't know the first thing about fitting in,” she said as she walked away confidently about her own words. “Radiant, let's go,” she added, causing Radiant Blast who was just standing there the whole time, letting Sunset Shimmer do the talking, to follow her slowly. Those last words of Sunset Shimmer did a good job to make discourage Star Twinkle and Twilight. Sunset Shimmer didn't look worried in the slightest that Star Twinkle and Twilight came to this world to stop her. She didn't take them seriously at all and Radiant Blast didn't make the expression to be worried as well. Still, Star Twinkle couldn't just stand there and let that discourage him. He knew the moment that he set hoof...or rather foot in this world, that things wouldn't be easy. He just had to ignore Sunset Shimmer's words and continue to support Twilight. Ironically, this support came in the form of getting something to eat. Worrying about Sunset Shimmer's words would only waste time which was something they were short of now. Granting, grabbing something to eat was not helping them getting the crown back as well but that shouldn't keep them from eating something. “So...how is this gonna work?” Twilight asked confused. “Well, there is food inside so there must be a way to get to it right?” Star Twinkle replied confused. They both stood in front of some weird...thing. It was kinda like a showcase but filled with food. Little snacks could be seen inside of it. Some of them, Star Twinkle even recognized. Other Students were eating some of the stuff that he saw inside of this thing so they somehow must have got them out. Now the problem is, how Star Twinkle and Twilight were about to do that. Star Twinkle didn't have the nerves to deal with little things like that. “Well, got no choice then...” he said determined before he placed his hands on the ground and turned his legs towards the machine, raising one of his legs up. “What are you doing?” Twilight asked confused, by Star Twinkle's action. “Breaking it open,” Star Twinkle casually replied. Twilight was about to tell him that this was a very bad idea, hadn't it been for another girl showing up behind him and giving him a rather confused look. “Excuse me,” the strangely familiar girl said as she wanted Star Twinkle to step away from the machine. The girl stepped in front of the machine. “The Great and Powerful Trixie! ...Needs some peanut butter crackers,” she said as she pulled out a bit...or at least what Star Twinkle thought of being the currency in this world and put it into a slot on this machine. Only seconds later, something came falling down from inside of the machine and the girl grabbed what she was probably after. “Voilà!” She said victoriously as she walked away with her crackers. Trixie walked away from the two and minded her own business again, leaving Star Twinkle and Twilight still in front of the machine. Knowing how this machine worked was a good start but having actual money from this world would be great too. All of the sudden, Star Twinkle noticed how Twilight's mood was getting worse. It came from the sudden realization that Sunset Shimmer was right about Star Twinkle and Twilight not knowing anything about this world. This made it even harder to deal with Sunset Shimmer and Radiant Blast who were probably, right now, making sure that they would get most of the votes. Star Twinkle didn't like to admit it but the chance for Twilight to win was very slim so he decided to start thinking about a solution. “Come on. There's got to be a way to find out more about this world and how to properly fit in...A place to get some research...” Star Twinkle mumbled to himself as he scratched his head. “That's it!” Twilight said in a sudden mood change. “This place has a school. I have to believe it's got a...” she started as she coincidentally stumbled across what she was looking for. “library!” She said excitedly before she stepped into a room that was this school's library. Being a library, of course, it was filled with books. Books that could contain information about this school and even the dance and how to become a princess. If there was anyone who could get some knowledge out of those books within a short amount of time, then it was Twilight. This would have gotten their spirits up if they wouldn't have stumbled across their next obstacle. “So I just push the letters here, and then the words and moving pictures will come up here?” Twilight asked uncertainty in hope that Star Twinkle would give a clear answer as she tried to operate some other machine in the middle of the room. It was some kind of board with letters on it with a screen behind it. “Um...maybe?” Star Twinkle guessed in uncertainty as he tried to make sense out of this thing himself and lifting the screen-thing up to inspect it. “That's right,” a cheerful voice said next to the two before she took the screen away from Star Twinkle and placed it on the table again. Twilight pushed some of the buttons and noticed a change on the screen. She didn't know exactly what she was doing but it was good that her previous assumption proved to be right. “Maybe this place does have magic,” she said happily, finding something that was similar to Equestria at least. They continued to find out how this thing worked but suddenly music came from another table right next to them. There were three younger girls who were enjoying the music. But the lady from before reminded the three that this was a library and that it was supposed to be quiet. Star Twinkle took a look at the three while Twilight mashed some buttons on the machine in front of her. They looked strangely familiar and given that Twilight figured that this was a parallel world, Star Twinkle even had a guess who they were from their behavior and voices alone. “It's just as well, y'all. Some of the comments about our song were really awful. "Epic fail"... "Funniest thing I've ever seen"?!” one of the girls began. “Funniest thing they've ever seen, huh?” Another one of them said, causing all three of them to smile in victory, clearly misunderstanding those words. But before Star Twinkle could explain that to them, the three wandered off and out of the library, making it a lot quieter now. Twilight continued to press some buttons but Star Twinkle was not sure if she actually knew what she was doing. Then again, he probably wouldn't know what to do either so he just watched and hoped that Twilight would get some answers. Still, it didn't felt right to just let Twilight do all the work so he offered his help which she gladly accepted. “I think I'll manage to get the research done on my own but...” Suddenly, a loud growl could be heard from her stomach, making her feel a little embarrassed. “Alright. I got it. I see if I can find something to eat for you,” Star Twinkle replied before he walked towards the entrance of the library. “Thanks,” Twilight replied. “I'll see if I can get more information out of this thing,” she added before she focused back to the machine in front of her. Of course, the last time when Star Twinkle found something to eat, it was in a strange machine where they didn't know how to get to the food. So finding something to eat might not be as easy as he initially thought. “Food...just where do I need to start looking for that?” He began to think. “Maybe the mess hall is still open?” He wondered as he looked around the hall, only to realize that he didn't remember where exactly it was, thanks to his poor sense of direction. He grabbed his head out of frustration and released some annoyed grunts as he scratched his head. That is when he realized that someone was watching him from behind. “You really don't know how to deal with this world, huh?” Radiant Blast said as he was leaning against the wall right next to the door of the library, crossing his arms and giving Star Twinkle a rather serious look. Star Twinkle didn't even notice him when he walked outside. And he wished he wouldn't since dealing with Radiant Blast would only be a bother, like the last time. “What do you want? Are you trying to get in our way?” Star Twinkle said as he gave Radiant Blast a serious expression, which mirrored the expression that Radiant Blast had. But Radiant Blast's expression changed his expression to a more confident one after Star Twinkle's words. “I don't have to...After all, it's just like Sunset said...you have no idea about this world. There is no need for me to stop you. You've already lost so just give up now before you get your false hopes up for nothing,” he advised smugly. “Pretty intimidating words for someone who knocked himself out back then in the toilet,” Star Twinkle said, reminding Radiant Blast to their previous encounter. “This was an accident! They happen!” He burst out as he stomped on the ground offended. It didn't take long until he calmed down, coughing in his fist in the process due to some embarrassment. “What I am trying to say is, you could avoid a lot more trouble if you just sit back and admit defeat. That way, you won't get embarrassed or hurt. I'm trying to warn you,” A warning was the last thing that Star Twinkle expected from Radiant Blast. It caused him to be cautious. He didn't know what Sunset Shimmer and Radiant Blast were about to do once they get the crown but whatever it was, giving up and letting them do as they please would only be bad. After that, another action from Radiant Blast caught Star Twinkle by surprise. “Here, catch,” he said before he threw an apple at Star Twinkle. Star Twinkle clumsily caught the apple and just more questions. “I overheard that your little princess is hungry. You should eat something,” Radiant Blast added as he avoided eye contact with Star Twinkle. Star Twinkle didn't know what to think about this and straight out mistrusted Radiant Blast. “It's not poisoned or anything, isn't it?” Star Twinkle asked in distrust, narrowing his eyes. “Of course, not!” Radiant Blast replied offended. Star Twinkle just didn't know what to make out of this guy. The more he talked with him, the more he got confused by his actions. The only thing that he did was giving him more questions. “Tell me something...” Star Twinkle began, causing Radiant Blast to listen to what he had to say. “All this time, everyone is warning us to go up against Sunset Shimmer. She also said herself, that she wants to the crown for herself. You also want her to have the crown...” Radiant Blast didn't quite understand. “And your point is?” “Where do you come in into this picture? What are you after?” Star Twinkle asked which actually seemed to caught Radiant Blast off guard for a moment. “I have the feeling that you are not helping Sunset Shimmer because you want to,” Star Twinkle pocked in further, causing Radiant Blast to give him an annoyed look. “I don't need to tell you anything. All you need to know is that if you are planning to stand in Sunset Shimmer's way, then I will stop you,” Radiant Blast was clearly done talking with Star Twinkle and walked away. “It doesn't matter what I am after as long as Sunset Shimmer gets what she deserves,” he added while he looked at Star Twinkle menacing, not breaking eye contact even once. This could be a pretty intimidating scene if it wasn't for what happened next. Radiant Blast, due to looking at Star Twinkle the whole time, accidentally walked head first into a wall. He probably thought he was walking around the corner and didn't see how he walked right into the wall. Needless to say, he grabbed his head with his hands out of pain but then looked over to Star Twinkle embarrassed. In a matter of seconds, he gave Star Twinkle a serious look and again walked away without breaking eye contact as if nothing happened just now. This time he didn't walk into the wall and disappeared out of sight and around the corner. “This guy...I don't know if I should be cautious or ignore him...” Star Twinkle thought after this weird encounter. He almost forgot what he was about to do if he didn't realize the apple in his hand. “I should return to Twilight...” he said as he walked back into the library. Twilight was surprised how fast Star Twinkle returned and of course asked where he got the apple from. To that Star Twinkle only explained that someone gave it to him. There was no need to tell Twilight about Radiant Blast. The only thing it would do is distract her from her research so he decided to not mention Radiant Blast at all. Later... Star Twinkle, Twilight and Spike spent the rest of the day in the library. Twilight did most of the research though. Star Twinkle tried to read some books as well to help her but for him, it was almost impossible to read so many books at once and remembering everything in them. For Twilight it was no problem. Not only was she reading ten times as fast as he did but she also managed to read ten books in the time that Star Twinkle would take for only one. It was insane, to say the least. It was already getting dark outside and a voice that came from inside the library announced that it would be closed soon. The two realized that they did enough for one day and started to prepare to go to sleep. There was only one problem, though. “Oh no!” Twilight said in a shocking realization. “I was so focused on doing research, that I didn't think about where we gonna sleep tonight!” Star Twinkle had to admit that this thought didn't cross his mind as well with all the things that happened today. But to their surprise, Spike got up from his little nap and explained that he had taken care of it. “Way ahead of you two,” he said as he prompted both of them to follow him. He was leading the two to some corridor of the library which didn't seem to be visited too often, judging from all the dust that was on the shelves and the books. In the corridor, there were two things hidden under a sheet. Spike removed the sheets and revealed two beds that were made out of books. It looked really provisionally but it was better than nothing. “It's perfect Spike,” Twilight thanked as she petted Spike, much to his liking. “Well, in emergencies, even Celestia eats flies...” Star Twinkle thought as he looked at the “bed“ in front of him. “Thanks, Spike,” he expressed towards the little dog, making him shake his paws as if he wanted to say “It's nothing”. Star Twinkle sat down on his book-bed and quickly cut to chase. “So if remember right, we only have two more days left. Did you manage to find something that would help us?” “Kinda,” Twilight replied with a smile on her face. “I found this book. It's called a yearbook,” she explained as she showed Star Twinkle and Spike a blue book with a yellow hoof on it. She began to open it for the two. “It seems to be something they use to keep a record of things that have happened at the school,” Something like that would definitely handy in order to understand this school a little better but that was not the only reason why she was so interested in that book. “Here, take a look,” she said, causing Star Twinkle to sit beside her and inspecting a picture on the site that Twilight pointed at. The picture showed five girls. Three of them looking very similar to Applejack, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie. The two quickly came to the conclusion that the two other two girls in the picture were Rainbow Dash and Rarity, judging from the way they looked alone. “They do look like our friends but...” Star Twinkle started while showing a worried expression. “Yeah...you realized it too, right?” Twilight said, thinking the same thing that Star Twinkle did, in this very moment. Spike seemed to be the only one who didn't understand their reaction. “What? Is something wrong in this picture? They look happy to me,” “Exactly...” Twilight replied a little worried. “In fact, they look like really good friends in this picture,” “And what's wrong about that?” Spike replied, still not getting at what Twilight meant. Star Twinkle finally explained. “She means that they don't seem to be friends right now. So something must have happened between them to act like that now...” Star Twinkle continued to guess. “And I bet that this something was Sunset Shimmer and Radiant Blast,” Twilight concluded. “I wouldn't put it past them. But they wanted your crown 'cause they are planning on doing something even worse!” Spike pointed out, reminding everyone of their original goal. “If you're gonna stop them, you have to focus on making friends here. Can't worry about why these girls aren't friends anymore. Even if they do remind you of your Ponyville friends,” he further explained before he began yawning a little. It may sound a little cold but in the end, that's exactly how it was. They would leave this world in a few days anyway so there was no reason to deal with all problems. Right now, just like before, getting the crown back still had the highest priority. And that meant dealing with Sunset Shimmer and Radiant Blast and making Twilight a princess in this world. “We should get to sleep now. Even if it is a little strange sleeping on books,” Star Twinkle said as he tried to get comfortable. “I think it's not all too bad,” Twilight said as she laid down on her bed. “Sleeping in a library surrounded by books sure don't seem to bother you, but I would gladly love to spend the night in a real bed...” Star Twinkle said even though he was relieved that he didn't have to sleep on the ground. “Don't worry, Star Twinkle. Once we stopped Sunset Shimmer and Radiant Blast, we can go back to Equestria...to our friends...” Twilight said as she closed her eyes and covered herself with a sheet, with Spike already sleeping right next to her. “But for now, let's just get some sleep. Night Star Twinkle,” “Yes...good night...Twilight,” Star Twinkle replied as he closed his eyes as well to get some rest so that he could wake up in the morning and hopefully deal with everything then. To be continued...