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// Prelude: The First Signs 
// Story: The Curse of the Elements 
// by Art Inspired 
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It was a nice summer's day in Equestria. All of the ponies were doing what they normally do. Twilight was on the verge of completing a huge experimental spell that she thought could allow her to do something amazing. Applejack was bucking apples as always. Fluttershy was caring for her animals and tending to the one pig that had fallen ill. Rarity was having an epileptic breakdown due to some huge commission that had just came in at about nine, and Rainbow Dash was clearing the skies. There weren't any storms scheduled for the day, but somehow there was an abnormally high cloud population anyways, so Rainbow was busier than usual.

She said with a huff, "I have to get these clouds outta here before they get too big!" One cloud after another disappeared as the blue dot whisked by. 

Her job was soon completed, and at long last, she could relax. Flying down to the ground to catch her breath, she felt something within her chest. It was a warm and fuzzy feeling, and then, a flash of imaginary thoughts popped into her head.

The imaginary photos were of her and Pinkie Pie kissing. "What the...?" She thought for a few seconds as she tried to remember the image. "Why would I be thinking about something like that? Why with Pinkie Pie?" She decided to try her best to put it out of her mind, and headed on over to a nearby dining area to quickly grab something to eat. As she looked up at the clock hanging from the structure, she noticed it wasn't even two minutes passed twelve. "Huh... That's odd, but whatever. I'm starving!"



Meanwhile at Sugarcube Corner, Pinkie was baking cupcakes as usual. She had all the ingredients out and all the things she needed to get going. "Ok, time to get..." 

Suddenly, her Pinkie sense was going off. Her tongue felt numb. "Oooh! My tongue feels numb," Pinkie Pie said. "This means I should look at the clock… but why?" she checked what time it was. Five seconds to twelve o'clock… a flash of visions came to her. They were of her and Rainbow Dash. "What…? That's just plain silly! Me and Dashie, kissing!" Since her tongue was still numb, she mumbled some more, "Oh, I know what it must be! I've been working too hard! Maybe I should take it easy... by making muffins instead!"

When she was done, the muffins came out with Rainbow's cutie mark somehow labeled atop each one.

"I swear, I didn't... mean to do that..."



Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash kept thinking about one another all day. At about one o'clock, Fluttershy and Rarity started to have the same flashy images, too. Fluttershy was cleaning up Angel's lunch mess when it happened to her. The images struck her mind almost harshly, and nearly made her drop the plate she had been holding in her mouth. "Wow, me… and Rarity… that's uhh... Before now, I've never thought of her as much more than a good friend. Maybe it was just the summer heat." Fluttershy decided to finish cleaning up and went out to greet the birds with the image still fresh in her head.



Rarity was at her store working hard and seemingly going in circles. She was working on a diamond themed dress that had to be the best dress she had ever made, as requested by the buyer. "This should have more Jewels, but not too much," she said. "A-a-and some purple would go nice around the collar! Also-"

It happened just as she turned to make a one hundred and eighty degree circle. The flash of imaginary pictures danced vividly through her mind and almost completely put her work to a halt. She waited and thought about what had just soared through her head.

"Me... and Fluttershy kissing…" She stated clearly, "Oh, come now Rarity... That is simply absurd! Perhaps I'm working myself a bit too rampant... Eh, I'll just rest once this is done!" She got back to work on the dress still thinking aloud. "That was an interesting vision, though, me and her… kissing. Honestly... I usually imagine me and Fancy Pants doing that sort of thing."



About an hour later, Twilight Sparkle and Applejack would have the exact same visions wind up in their minds as well. Twilight was standing next to Spike about to perform the magical spell. She told Spike to take a note. "At this time…" She checked the clock. "Two minutes to two o'clock, I began the experiment!" Her horn lit up, and slowly her hooves disappeared. The invisibility slowly inched itself toward the upper part of her body, too, and just when it reached her neck, the visions of her and Applejack kissing threw off her concentration. Her body became visible once more and her horn stopped glowing. "Ugh, failure?! I was so close to finishing it!" 

Spike was still taking log of what had occurred and everything that Twilight was saying. "Close... to... finishing... it... Go on."

"At this time… two o'clock, the magical experiment did not succeed! Reason… The was a severe lack of mental focus." Spike finished up and asked if he should send it to Princess Celestia. "No, not yet Spike." Twilight decided to sit down on a pillow and think of why the experiment ended so horribly. "I know it wasn't because I couldn't manage... It's that image. It was of me and Applejack, but why? I've never had this kind of imagining before… That's another thing... Spike? What time is it?

"Two..."

Twilight rubbed her chin and thought some more. "If there is one thing I know, it's that everything abnormal always happens in patterns."



At Applejack's farm, she and Big Macintosh were busy bucking apple trees. Applejack had worked up a heavy thirst after all that difficult labor, so she went inside to get some water. She checked the clock while she went. One minute from two. She took a long and refreshing sip, and was headed back out when the image floated through her mind as well. She stopped in her tracks and stood still for a moment. She pondered on it for awhile. "Me and that unicorn, Twilight... kissing? Ah barely know her. Well, that doesn't make much sense. Hmm..."

She saw Big Mac kicking a tree a few yards away, and then said to herself, "Ah've probably just been bucking around too much lately… Why does that just not sound quite right to me?" With the image now stuck in her head, she got back to work.

What could all this mean? Could the main six become even closer companions than they already are? Or were the images all just coincidental? Find out next time on The Curse of the Elements.