My Little Pony: A Race Against Time

by CJ Esmerio

A Special Event

"THE PROM?!"

"[BEEP], Rarity!"

EG Rarity gave her friend a sheepish smile, and said, "Sorry..."

She and EG Stardust, along with Sci-Twi, were at their usual hangout - the rooftop of Canterlot High.

It had taken some time for the whole group of friends to be able to get back up there again, considering what had occured last time, but now, it wasalmostlike those events had never happened.

"Please let me create a suit for you," exclaimed EG Rarity, as she grabbed EG Stardust by the front of his shirt.

"Um... I appreciate the offer, but I think I'll pass," retorted EG Stardust, who gently pushed his fashion-loving friend away. "Now, let's all just-"

Before he could finish, EG Rarity turned her attention over to Sci-Twi, and cried, "Pleaselet me design your prom dress!"

"Um... okay?" replied Sci-Twi, and EG Rarity squealed with delight before giving her friend a tight hug.

EG Stardust rolled his eyes, and shook his head. "I'd figure you would be more concerned about your own dress rather than someone else's, Rarity."

"Oh, psk-k-k-k," scoffed the fashion-crazy teenager. "Don't be so ridiculous, darling... and besides, I already got my dress doneagesago!"

Why am I not surprised by this?

EG Stardust raised an eyebrow, and he asked, "So, who areyougoing with?"

"Moi?"said EG Rarity, letting out a fake gasp. "I don't have to go withanyone, Stardust, and just because you..."

And, here she goes again,thought the reformed teenager, as he ignored whatever she was saying to him, while Sci-Twi silently laughed at her boyfriend's bored expression.

Then, once EG Rarity had finished talking, she asked, "Now, does that make sense?"

"Oh, sure, absolutely," said EG Stardust, as he began heading over to the door. "Now, let's get back to class before-"

"$%&$!"exclaimed the young teenager, knowing that if he didn't get to class in thirty seconds, he would have to stay after school in detentionagain."See you after class, love."

Sci-Two gave EG Stardust a bashful smile, and she replied, "Looking forward to it."

Courtesy of his own geode necklace, EG Stardust raced inside the school, and flew past several of his friends, including EG Applejack, who found herself spinning around.

"Dog... gone it, Star... now, you're gonna make me dizzzziiiieee-"

"Oh, here, let me help you!"

Suddenly, EG Applejack felt herself being stopped by someone, and as her eyes got back into their regular position, she turned around to look at a young man she had never seen before.

"Why, thank you kindly, sir," said EG Applejack, tipping her hat at him.

"Oh, no worries, I just didn't want you to get hurt or anything," replied the newcomer, giving her a shrug. "And you don't have to, um, call me sir."

EG Applejack smirked at him, and crossed her arms. "Well, alright then, whatshouldI call you?"

"Wake up, Sleeping Beauty...ow!I wasjoking!"

"Missed you... too, pal," chuckled Casey, who was still recovering from Anti-Stardust's attacks and thefusionevent that had happened a few days ago.

Princess Twilight sighed, and she gave her counterpart an apologetic look. "I'm sorry about my special somepony, he's been a littlecrankythese past few days."

"Well,youtry being woken up by an Earth Pony every morning at 8am," exclaimed Stardust, as he let out a yawn, and stretched his limbs. "So, how you holding up, Casey?"

The orange-yellow Earth Pony gave a shrug, and replied, "Well, I can talk now without feeling a pain in my chest, so... a bit better than yesterday."

He tried sitting up, but Twilight gently pushed him back into bed, saying, "I don't think so, Casey... you aren't ready for that yet."

As Casey went back down, Stardust sighed, and said, "Look, um... I'm sorry, Twilight and Casey."

"Huh?"

The three ponies looked at Stardust, not expecting to hear him say those words, and Princess Twilight asked, "Sorry for what?"

"For letting him get hurt and... everything else," replied Stardust, as a sad frown appeared on his face. "I didn't mean for it to happen, and-"

"Well, frankly, none of us did," interrupted Casey, letting out a chuckle. "Besides, if Celestia hadn't forgot to checkeveryportal, then none of this would have ever happened."

Both of the Twilights rolled their eyes, and Stardust began to laugh. "I see that the fusion effects haven't worn off just yet..."

"Oh, that reminds me," said Casey, remembering something important he had wanted to say. "I'm sorry for letting your charm necklace get destroyed."

"Ehh, don't even worry about it," replied Stardust, shaking his head. "I'm not like one of those guys who wantsalmighty power... and, seeing that I still don't like my Cutie Mark, you did me a favor, honestly."

Then, Twilight chose to ask a question. "How are things with Rainbow, Stardust?"

The young human-turned pony gave a small shrug, and he answered, "It's improving alittle, and her wing is still healing, but she hardly speaks to me, and I just don't know how to make this all better."

"A party, perhaps?" suggested Casey, and Stardust immediately shook his head.

"No, I already had to deal withyourPinkie'sworld-combiningparty, and the last thing I want right now isanyPinkie, in general, to throwanysort of party..."

Princess Twilight just looked at him, and asked, "So, if Pinkie chose to tell everyone that she wanted to-"

"Nope, not going," answered Stardust. "And, there isnothingthat Pinkie can do to get me to come."

This was like deja vu...

EG Stardust was currently making his way to Sci-Twi's doorstep, holding a similiar corsage to the one he'd gotten before, because he was about to take his special someone to a dance-related event.

The pony version of me was right... It was foolish of me to throw away something like this just so I could live in Equestria.

It had only been a week or so since those events, and as of now, EG Stardust looked more like his old self again... if it wasn't for the fact that he still had a slash mark over one of his eyes, thanks to Sunset Shimmer.

Something to remind me every day of the horrible choices I made,thought Stardust.I wonder what Pony Me has to remind him of the choices he's made.

After reaching the front door, EG Stardust knocked on it a few times, and heard a familiar voice cry out, "Be right down!"

EG Stardust smirked, and he replied, "Take your time, love! I'm not in a rush!"

As he waited, the young teenager also started to wonder what his other self was doing.

Um, I am not entirely sure that it works that way, Jack.

"Well,why...not?"

Stardust was currently pulling down on a rope that was in front of him, and so far, nothing had happened.

I believe that only Miss Pie can activate it, replied Starswirl.

The young pony let out a groan, and he released the rope from his hooves, not realizing that Twilight had now entered the room.

"Jack? What are you doing?"

Before Stardust could answer her, Pinkie Pie suddenly appeared next to him, and she was shaking her head. "Silly Star, that's not how you're supposed to do it."

"Not how you- well, humor me, then, Pinkie," replied Stardust, doubtful that it would work for his friend.

"Okay!"said a happy Pinkie, while Stardust walked over to stand by Twilight, and they watched her take several deep breaths, as well as stretching out her limbs.

"Don't hurt yourself, Pinkie," warned a concerned Twilight, while Stardust rolled his eyes.

I don't think you've completely accepted the fact, Jack, that one does not-

However, instead of pulling hard on the rope, like Stardust had done, Pinkie simply gave it a quick tug, and-

The room was now prepared for a party, and Pinkie looked at Stardust with a wide smile. "See? Easy as chocholate cake."

Stardust just gave a small nod of his head, not giving much of a reaction, and that made Pinkie confused. "You okay, Stardust? You don't seem too happy about this party happening."

"Well, now that I didn't have to wake up so early in the morningh, I don't mind this party, Pinkie," explained the young pony, as he collapsed into a chair that had appeared behind him. "I'm just... I feel bad about what happened to Casey... and this whole thing with Dash..."

The only time that Rainbow had said more than a few words to Stardust - ever since Anti Stardust had revealed to her that Stardust wasn't the one who vandalized her home - was when she'd saved him from getting hurt by her alternate self; every other moment only had her telling him minimal things like a"hey, Star"or"sounds cool".

It was almost as frustrating as it was for a parent who wants to know everything about what their teenage child did or learned at school, but the only words of response that they recieve are"eh, fine"or"whatevs."

"So, basically, Casey is stuck in the hospital, Rainbow hardly says anything to me, and I just... I don't know..."

Twilight then put a hoof on his shoulder, which seemed to help Stardust relax, and she said, "Don't be so hard on yourself, Jack. None of us ever thought that we would even end up seeing what your worl-"

"Ooh, that reminds me!"cried out Pinkie, and she placed a plush-like object on the table next to them. "Check it out!"

Stardust blinked his eyes a few times, and said, "Uh...Pinkie... why am I looking at a stuffed toy version of you?"

"Because it's what I took back with me from your world," replied Pinkie, oblivious to her friend's dry tone of voice. "And, look, everypony else is here, too!"

In just a few seconds, the table now had stuffed plushies of the rest of the Mane 6, and while Pinkie Pie was beaming with happiness, Twilight and Stardust didn't know how to react or what to say.

"So, Twilight, this one of you is gonna stay here, and Spike gets this littl one of himself, and - oh, sorry about not finding one of you, Stardust. I looked almost everywhere, but no one in the store had any idea who I was talking about."

"That's fine, Pinkie," replied Stardust, giving her a faint smile. "I didn't expect them to-"

"Oh, I think I could help you out with that!"

Suddenly, a stuffed toy version of Stardust was on the table, as well, and Discord had now appeared next to the human-turned-pony. "It even talks if you press one of his hooves!"

"Ooh, I wanna try!" Before Stardust could even say anything, Pinkie got ahold of the plush, and started pressing all of its hooves, trying to see one would get the toy to talk.

"[BEEP!]"

Twilight looked over at her special somepony, who quickly shook his head. "I didn't say that."

She turned her attention over to Discord, and asked, "Are you saying that you made it so that the toy only says-"

"Oh, of course not, Twilight," said Discord, starting to laugh. "You really think I would have the toy Stardust say that wordover and overagain everytime you pressed his little hoof? I'm much better thanthat."

Not wanting to figure out what else Discord had programmed his toy self to say, Stardust retrieved it from Pinkie, and said, "Thanks, Discord... I think..."

He then started walking away, to Discord's surprise, and once Stardust was gone, the draconequs asked, "What's wrong with him? Usually, he would have delivered some sort of comeback or-"

"He'll be fine, Discord," replied Twilight, who did not want him to try and "help" her special somepony feel better.

I sure hope his other self is doing okay.

As they reached the steps of Canterlot High, Sci-Twi noticed that her boyfriend looked a little uneasy. "Are you okay, Star?"

"Yeah, I'm just... havin' a little, er, flashback to homecoming, love," replied EG Stardust, trying his best to look more comfortable. "Seein' as it was the night before I... well, you know..."

"Oh..." replied Sci-Twi, realizing what he was talking about. "Well, I don't think that history plans on repeating itself, Star, and having us go through it all over again... unless you've thought about-"

EG Stardust quickly shook his head, and said, "Trust me, love, I have kept my thoughts in a positive light when

it comes to you and the others."

There was also the fact that (and only EG Stardust currently knew about this) if he showed any signs of disgust or hatred when it came to living in this world, Kronos would have him spend all eternity in a place that the young teenagerneverwanted to revisit ever again.

"And it doesn't mean that I am not happy about tonight, either," reminded EG Stardust, smiling at the young and beautiful teenager walking beside him. "Rarity certainly did a great job in-"

"Well, howdy there, you two!"

EG Stardust and Sci-Twi were now at the front doors of the school, and to their surprise, EG Applejack was there, along with someone that neither of them recognized.

"Uh, hey, AJ," greeted EG Stardust. "What a surprise. I could have sworn that you said you weren't coming... um, no offense there, new guy."

EG Applejack, who was in her own lovely Western-themed outfit, blushed just a little bit as she replied, "I thought so, too, but then I met him after he saved me from fallin' onto the floor a few days ago, we got to talkin' and havin' a conversation, then next thing I know, he's askin' me if I would like to go with him to prom."

Her date offered the other two a handshake, and they politely accepted it, with Sci-Twi saying, "Well, hello, I'm Twilight Sparkle, and this is Stardust."

"Nice to meet you both. My name is-"

"Pizza's here!"yelled EG Rainbow, as she raced past everyone to get inside of the school, and heading towards the gymnasium."Sorry, you guys!"

"And, Rainbow's here, too, I guess," chuckled EG Stardust. "Is everyone else showin' up to the prom?"

EG Applejack shook her head, and replied, "Fluttershy's got her hands full at the pet shelter a few blocks down from here, Sunset offered to stay so she could help her, and I think Rarity is-"

"Oh, mygoodness, Twilight, you and Applejack look amazing!"

Everyone turned back around, and saw EG Rarity walking up the steps, wearing a dress that was equally beautiful as Sci-Twi's and Applejack's.

"Good thing Spike's asleep right now," whispered EG Stardust, as he spoke to Sci-Twi, who tried to hide her giggling. "Otherwise he'd be drooling at her feet."

Then, he looked back at EG Applejack's date, and asked, "What was your name again?"

"It's-"

Rarity took a closer look at EG Stardust's suit, and she said, "Well, it's not whatIenvisioned, but... you look rather lovely, darling."

"Well, thanks, Rarity," replied the young teenager, with a smirk. "As do you, but what happened to your date?"

The fashion-obsessed teenager scoffed at EG Stardust, and said, "Itoldyou, Star, that I donotneed to have a date. I'm not going to let a perfect dress-wearing opportunity like this go to waste just so I can-"

"Hey!" EG Rainbow was back at the doorway, looking at all of her friends. "Are all of you going to spend the rest of the night out here, or..."

She paused after noticing the newcomer standing next to EG Applejack. "Who are you again?"

"How are you feeling, Casey?" asked Starlight, as she walked into her friend's room.

The orange-yellow pony, who was getting out of his bed, gave her a small shrug, and said, "Better than how I felt a few days ago at the hospital... but still a little sore after all of those walls I crashed into... I could've sworn that I saw rubble fall out of my mane when I was taking -whoa!"

All of a sudden, Casey felt himself being lifted up into the air, and put back into bed, courtesy of alicorn magic that belonged to Twilight.

"Itoldyou, Casey, you're resting until you get back to feeling a 100% again."

While Casey rolled his eyes, Starlight offered a suggestion. "Maybe I could use a spell on him that-"

"Sorry, Starlight, but I want him to heal naturally," said Twilight.

Casey smirked at his special somepony, and replied, "You mean until I stop showing mannerisms that are similar to those of Stardust?"

"That, too, but I'm serious about your body, Casey," said a concerned Twilight. "You've been tossed, thrown, slammed, and whatever happened during that time you and Stardust were fused together... I just want to make sure you'll be okay."

"Iwillbe, Twilight," replied Casey, as he got out of bed again. "But I can't just spend the rest of the day in bed."

Then, as a joke, he added, "I'll probably end up getting kicked off the show for being too boring."

"Huh?" Starlight said, now looking confused.

"It's a long story," replied Twilight, letting out a sigh.

Why exactly did you come into your room again?

"To play some video games... why?"

You've sat in your game chair for almost an hour, and have yet to turn onanyof the electronic devices.

Realizing that Starswirl was right, Stardust gave a shrug, and replied, "I guess I changed my mind, then."

Or you are still thinking about the fact that Casey remains hospitalized, and Miss Dash hardly speaks to you anymore.

Stardust let out a sigh, and he muttered, "Yeah, someheroic warriorthat I am, huh?"

You've already proven yourself worthy of that title, Jack.

"And, yet, I'm here in my room, almost feeling like [BEEP]," said Stardust, resting the side of his face on his front right hoof. "I mean, yeah, the world is saved and all, but I told Princess Twilight that I would never let Casey get hurt if he was ever with me, and I promised Rainbow that I'd be a better friend, but instead, I let my evil self toss him into the walls and the ground like a rag doll, and I don't even know what to say to fix things with Rainbow."

Not yet, you do not,pointed out Starswirl.But I have a feeling that you'll know what to do once you see her at the party later today... which reminds me... did Miss Pie mention to you where the party was being held at?

Stardust frowned, and he replied, "Here in the castle, obviously... why?"

Because it looks like she had a last-minute change, and is now choosing to have it somewhere else.

"And, where wouldthat be?"

As EG Stardust took his seat next to Sci-Twi, the human version of Twilight asked, "Youarehaving a good time, right?"

"Of course, I am," replied the young teenager. "I just need to… um… get more used to the fact that this is my home."

Then, as a joke, he turned to whoever was on the left side of him, and asked, "You agree with me, right?"

"To an extent, yes," replied Stardust, and his human counterpart nodded his head.

"See, Twilight? Even my own self agrees with…"

Suddenly, he stopped speaking, and looked again at Stardust, who gave him a small wave, as well as the pony-turned-human version of Twilight.

"Hello, you two," greeted Twilight, who was sitting next to Stardust.

A confused expression appeared on EG Stardust's face as he asked, "Who in the… how did… why are you here?"

"Well, it's because that, for some reason, Pinkie wanted all of us to celebrate her partyhere," muttered Stardust, and he made a gesture to parts of the gymnasium, where the rest of the Mane 6 were hanging out with their EG counterparts.

Even though he was still a little bit confused, EG Stardust decided to just "roll with it", and he said, "I'm gonna get us some more drinks, Twilight, okay?"

Sci-Twi nodded her head, and as her boyfriend walked away from the table, Twilight looked at Stardust, asking, "Could you get me something to drink, too, Jack?"

"Sure thing, love," replied Stardust, who started to go after his other self.

Once they were at the refreshments table, the young teenager asked, "So… uh… are you and Rainbow still arguing with each other?"

"Well, we're not exactlyarguing, per se," replied Stardust, letting out a sigh. "She just doesn't talk to me as much as she used to."

An apologetic look appeared on EG Stardust'sface, with the former antagonist remembering what he'd done to Rainbow.

There must be something I can do to help-

All of a sudden, the music playing from the speakers changed from fast to slow, and it was like a light bulb appeared above EG Stardust's head.

"I think I got an idea…"

After his other self told him what it was, Stardust didn't look too entirely sure about the plan actually working.

"You got something better in mind?"

Stardust didn't have an answer for him, so after EG Stardust gave his pony-self a small shove, he began walking over to Rainbow, who had been helping her other self out with fixing up all of the pizza boxes.

Well, here goes nothing…

The young hero sighed, and he cleared his throat, causing Rainbow to turn around so that they could look at each other.

"Uh… hey, Star," muttered the athletic teenager. "I think Twilight's sitting over there with the other version of herself."

"Yeah, I know," replied Stardust, to her surprise. "I came here to… uh… have a dance with you."

She gave him a confused look, and said, "Er, why would you…?"

"Because you're one of my closest friends, Rainbow," said Stardust, who was sounding a little more confident. "So, would you please… have this dance with me?"

Back at the table, Twilight and Sci-Twi were watching what was going on between them, with EG Stardust's girlfriend asking, "Should we, um… help them out… or something?"

A smile appeared on the pony princess' face as she replied, "No, I don't think that will be necessary."

As for EG Stardust, he was about to return with the drinks when EG Applejack's date suddenly came to the table, also planning to bring back some drinks.

"So, are you and AJ gonna spend more time together after this, or…?" questioned EG Stardust, and the young newcomer began to blush.

"Um… well, we haven't really, er, reached that discussion just-"

EG Stardust chuckled, and he gave the young man a pat on the shoulder. "I'm just messing around, man… oh, and before I forget, what's your name again?"

"Oh, I'm sorry," apologised AJ's date, who offered EG Stardust a handshake. "My name is Casey."

The two of them shook hands, with EG Stardust wondering to himself why it sounded so familiar.

Once he and Rainbow began to slow-dance with each other, Stardust was about to speak when his friend said, "Hey, er, look… I'm sorry about… well, everything… it's just that-"

"Hold that thought, Rainbow," interrupted Stardust, speaking in a gentle tone. "I'm not mad at you anymore about that whole thing with the graffiti… I just hate myself for not keeping my promise about being a better friend to you."

Then, to his surprise, Rainbow said, "No,Ihaven't been a good friend… you've been doing great, Star… I mean, who else would have introduced me to some awesome new clothes, and heck, those fish n' chips weresupergood to eat!"

Stardust chuckled, and he gave a small shrug, saying, "Well, it might be a while before we ever eat tha… oh, wait, I forgot, Pinkie could probably get some for us."

The two of them both started to laugh, much to the pleasure of Twilight and EG Stardust, who had returned to the table with drinks.

"Okay, maybe I spent a littletoo muchtime feeling guilty and stuff," admitted Rainbow. "Sorry if I made you feel worse about anything, Star."

"No need to apologise," replied Stardust, giving her a smile. "You're one of my best friends, Rainbow… we're stuck with each other, no matter what… considering that I can never go back to my world ever again."

"But we just came back from there," said a confused Rainbow.

We'll talk about that another time, Jack.

Stardust chuckled, and he shook his head, saying, "I know, Rainbow, just… it doesn't matter anyway… the point is, we're always going to end up arguing with each other, but that doesn't mean you'll evernotbe my best friend… does that make sense?"

Rainbow nodded her head, but then, she gave a sheepish chuckle as she asked, "Does that mean we're going to be… um,dancingand stuff like-"

"Not really," replied an amused Stardust. "This is just because… well, it's not ahug,but it's something that we both needed."

"Yeah, you're right about that," said Rainbow, smiling in agreement. "But there's something else I've been curious about... where exactlydidKronos send theevil you?"

Stardust had no idea, so he shrugged his shoulders, and replied, "I hope that it's some place where he deserves to be."

Before Rainbow could give a response, the music changed again, and as he heard the new song, Stardust immediately froze in place.

"Oh, no, no, no, no..."

"Ugh… where in the…"

Evil Stardust slowly opened his eyes, and the first thing he noticed was that someone has securely tied him to a chair.

"What the hell is-"

"Yeah, you're awake! Now you can enjoy our tea party!"

The sinister pony's eyes became wide, and then, he instantly closed them back up.

Go back to sleep, go back to sleep, go back to sleep!

"Star? What is it?" asked Rainbow Dash, after her friend immediately stopped moving once the song had changed.

Ooh-ooh, yeah!
Hey, hey, we may seem different as night and day

"I recognize that tune," explained Stardust, who was starting to frown. "And there isno waythat I am going to-huh?!"

To his surprise, EG Stardust and Sci-Twi were heading out onto the dance floor, as well as his own Twilight, who was making her way towards him.

"Come on, Jack, I want to see if we can do this."

Stardust shook his head, and crossed his arms. "Nothing doing, love… there's no way that I amevergoing to-"

"Hey, man, if I'm doing it, then there's no reason why you shouldn't,"called out EG Stardust, while his other self rolled his eyes.

But Equestria Girls see things a different way
Just look a little deeper and you will see

"Jack, come on, how bad can it be?"

The young teenager continued to refuse dancing to the song, saying, "I have alimitwhen it comes to doing certain things in this world, love… and dancing to this song isway pastthat limit."

You know I'm just like you and you're just like me

As the music began to get louder, Twilight gave her special someone a sly look, and said, "Come on, Jack, just have thisonedance with me."

The young teenager shook his head once again, and replied, "You and everyone else enjoy dancing, love… I am just going to sit down at our table, and watch this all go-"

"Aw, no you don't, Star!"exclaimed Rainbow, who then pushed him towards Twilight, causing him to almost crash into her.

Stardust glared at his friend, who laughed as she gave a small shrug. "Just being a better friend to you!"

Generous, honesty
Laughter, kindness, loyalty

Everyone that was out on the gym floor was having a fun time as they danced to the song… except for Stardust, who didn't exactly look happy.

Free to be what we will be
Living life in harmony

We're Equestria Girls and we're here to shout
That the magic of friendship is what it's all about
We're Equestria Girls and we're here to say
We're gonna see things a different way

Then, a smile slowly started to appear on his face, and Twilight said, "See? I knew you'd come around!"

"Yeah, well… this is just a one time thing, love," replied the young teenager, as his smile grew a little more.

We're Equestria Girls and we're here to shout
That the magic of friendship is what it's all about
We're Equestria Girls standing side by side
Finding the magic of friendship deep inside
Equestria Girls!

As she ate a slice of cheese pizza, Rainbow laughed to herself, and muttered, "Oh, I am never going to let him forget about this."

All of the CHS students were now leaving the school, and as EG Applejack walked down the steps, EG Casey asked, "So, um… what happens now?"

"Oh, er… well…" replied the country-speaking teenager. "Maybe we can find out on the way back to my house?"

"Sure… I'd love to walk you home," said EG Casey, giving his prom date a warm smile.

As for EG Stardust and the pony-turned-human Stardust, the two of them were sitting on the school's steps as EG Stardust said, "Thank you again… Star… for helping me realize what's important in this world."

"Hey, no problem, friend," replied a smiling Stardust, who gave him a pat on the back. "And, since we're talking… whatkind of placewas it that you'd never want to go back to again?"

EG Stardust remained quiet, for a moment, and then, he said, "If I told you, then we wouldbothend up having Vietnamese-like flashbacks."

Before Stardust could say anything else, Twilight and Sci-Twi came out of CHS, and were walking over to their respective love interests.

"So, I guess you two are goin' back home, then, huh?" asked EG Stardust, and to his surprise, Stardust shook his head.

"No, not just yet," admitted the Warrior of Twilight. "There's somewhere else that I have to and pay a visit, too."

Then, the two of them shook hands, and after Twilight hugged her other self goodbye, she followed her special someone into the time portal, which made them vanish as soon as they stepped inside it.

"Hey, Twilight?"

Sci-Twi looked up at her boyfriend, and asked, "Yeah, Stardust?"

With a chuckle, the young teenager asked, "How would you feel if I started wearing a fedora more often?"

"Hey, Casey, I was wondering if-" began Twilight, but she stopped after seeing that her special somepony was currently fast asleep.

A warm smile appeared on the young alicorn's face, and she thought to herself,I'll come back later when he's done with his rest.

As Twilight left the room, Casey turned his body over to the other side of his bed, mumbling some words quietly to himself.

An hour later, when Twilight returned, she saw that Casey was no longer asleep.

Instead, the young pony was letting out a yawn, and then, he asked, "So, now, am I able to get out of this bed?"

Twilight chuckled, and she nodded her head, saying, "Yeah, you should definitely be better now than how you were after returning from yourlife-changingfield trip adventure with Stardust."

"That it was, your Highness," replied Stardust, who was now a full-fledged pony again, and he shared a quick hug with Casey, as well as helping him get out of the bed.

Twilight looked over at her other self, who smiled as she said, "He's been going through a lot of emotions today."

Once Casey was standing on all four hooves, he looked at Stardust, saying, "Let me guess… is this the part when-"

Stardust laughed, and he shook his head, saying, "No, we've already talked about all that… I just came to make sure you're doing alright."

"Hey, I'm feelinggreatright now," replied the orange-colored pony. "In fact, I would say that I'm ready for us to have our rematch regardingyou-know-what."

"Oh,is that so?" said a smirking Stardust, who was also raising an eyebrow. "You think you could handle losing?"

With his own sly smile, Casey asked, "Couldyou?"

A few feet away, Twilight rolled her eyes, and said, "Great… he's still acting like Stardust."

"Well, maybe, but I think that they're just being good friends," replied Stardust's special somepony. "Pretty soon, they'll probably even bebestfriends."

Twilight smiled, and as she watched the two ponies playfully argue with one another, the young alicorn said, "I think I'd really like that."

Inside of his clock-filled realm, Kronos was smiling while watching the events unfold in both Stardust's and EG Stardust's world.

Now that's what I call a happy ending…

Figuring that he would no longer have to worry about them, Kronos made the two portals disappear, and he moved on to whatever portal was next.

"Well, well, well… it looks like I underestimated those two."

The voice was coming from a dark-colored Earth pony, who was also using a portal to see what Casey and Stardust were doing.

"So, um… does that mean it's our turn next, sir?" asked his right-hoofed pony, who also happened to be a Pegasus, and his master let out a dark chuckle.

"Very soon, Ronxor… since neither Rowan norEvil Stardustcould get the job done… but the time has to beright… it has to be when they least expect us to attack…"

With a sinister smile, the Earth pony added, "Soon, all of Equestria is going to belong to me, and there will beno oneto stop me."

"But, uh… didn't Rowan and Evil Stardust say the same thing?" reminded Ronxor, and his master rolled his eyes.

"Yes,but those twoidiotsmade unexcusable mistakes, and look at where it got them… no, my friend, I will bemuchdifferent when it comes to dealing with Casey and Stardust."

Then, before erupting into a fit of evil laughter, Elixir Nova added, "Iwilltake over this wretched planet… and there will beno ponyto stop me… it won't be the Mane 6… it definitely won't be the so-called rulers of Equestria… and I'm going to take care ofthese twomyself!"