//------------------------------//
// 1. Learning to let go. 
// Story: THE MAGIC OF LOVE 
// by Twilight_Ragnarok 
//------------------------------//

A knocking is heard on the door. “Rarity. Rarity. I have a surprise for you!” Twilight opened the door.
“I know you will love this it is like…” Twilight stopped speaking. Her voice lowered in volume “Rarity?”
The house was dark as Twilight entered the boutique. Her steps echoed like her voice. “Rarity?”
Twilight's enthusiasm dropt. A feeling described as a heavy metal ball twisting in Twilight’s stomach, which causes to make her feel noxious. The red chair where Rarity relaxed came in eye sight of Twilight 
“Are… you okay?”
When Twilight got closer she noticed. Twilight fell down with her hooves before her muzzle. She hurried to the front door, this time she slammed it open. 
“A MEDIC! I NEED A MEDIC!” she yelled. The ponies walking outside that afternoon stepped in and helped Twilight.
A doctor observed Rarity and nodded like he confirmed his diagnosis. “I am sorry princess.” He said. “Rarity passed away… And I assume of old age.”
Tears welled up in her eyes. Not Rarity too. Twilight thought. She knew that an alicorn had a long lifespan but Rarity was the last of her friends she visited. Twilight sniffled. She tried to thank the doctor without letting him know that her voice cracked.
She couldn’t and ran out of the boutique. She wanted to go to her castle but decided to head to the castle of the two sisters in the Everfree forest instead.
Hours have passed. Twilight. Alone in a dark part of the library in the castle laid on the ground sobbing... Crying her heart out. She was all alone.

“Twilight…” She heard a voice coming closer to her. Celestia, she had a troubled look on her face. She felt the pain Twilight endured.
“Leave me alone.” Twilight hissed.
Celestia stopped moving. “She was the last one. Yes?” Celestia spoke with a sincere voice.
Twilight did not react on her words only her heart-breaking cries of agony echoed through the castle.
Celestia knew that she could not reach Twilight at this moment. Her pain was too fresh and decided to leave her alone. 
Before she left, she let an envelope fly towards Twilight with her gold shining magic.
Celestia turned around and left the castle. Her heart also aching, she could not endure seeing Twilight like this.

A week has passed. Twilight and Spike were moving towards the funeral.
Everypony that knew Rarity was there. Her boutique was quite famous even now, Twilight realised.
This whole week was a rollercoaster of emotions. 
Spike did what he could to help her but the denial, anger and even trying to bargain with the use of spells for reviving her friends took a toll on him…
Even though Spike grew up, this was draining him of energy, making him tired. Twilight lost hope, faith and love. Depression… that is the word.

“Sister she is not looking very well.” Luna said to Celestia.
Celestia looked down to the memorial pedestal where Rarity and the rest of her friends laid. They earned their place on the royal cemetery, as the elements of harmony.
Celestia looked up and focussed her eyes on the plainness face of Twilight. Rain started to fall from the clouds. But Twilight just stood there. Letting the rain fall on her purple coat.
The priest tried to make contact with her so she could speak a few words to honour her friend. But there was no response.
After the ceremony Twilight stared blank at the names written on the five pedestals. Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Applejack and Rarity.
“Twilight… I am worried about you.” A warm voice came from behind her.
“What does it matter. Nothing matters.” Twilight responded.
Celestia drew closer and approached her. She touched Twilight with her hoof but a bitter cold stare gazed from the ground towards Celestia. “Friendship was it?” These words of Twilight pierced Celestia in her mind and shocked her for a moment.
“Did you read the letter?” Celestia asked.
“Meh.” Twilight replied and walked away back to her castle.

As Twilight entered the throne room she noticed the envelope Celestia gave her Containing the final words of Rarity if she did not could speak to Twilight in time. She opened the envelope and started to read the letter.



Dear Twilight,



When you read this, I could not speak with you in time. I wanted to thank you for the fabulous time we had together. It is sad that we could not be friends in eternity. That would be divine….

...





Twilight stopped reading. “Wait that’s it!” She slammed her hoof on the ground. “We can be friends for eternity.” She said.
Spike heard the sudden commotion in the throne room. “What are you doing?” He said.
Twilight turned around smiling a wide grin at Spike. “Spike… I am… okay now…” She said.
“That is good to hear.” Spike looked cheerful at Twilight.
Twilight walked towards him. “The Smiths Pony is he still here in Ponyville?”
“I guess so. I saw him yesterday. Gathering materials for blacksmithing equipment.” Spike replied stroking his chin with his claw.
“Great. You deserve a vacation. You have been helping me a lot lately.” Twilight continued almost hyperventilating.
“Thanks, Sparkles I could use a vacation.” He replied and stretched his wings to gather luggage for a trip. Some time has passed and Spike left the castle.
“Now for my plan to be set in motion.” Twilight whispered to herself Purple/red magic radiating from her horn.

Sweetie belle, Apple bloom and Scootaloo also matured decided to meet up at the memorial pedestals of Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Applejack and Rarity. When they arrived they noticed that something was not right. Five empty holes were the friends used to lay.
They looked at each other motionless, not knowing what to do.
Sweetie belle muttered “What do we do?”
Scootaloo took up in the sky to see if she could find the culprit. “There is no one I can see. Do we need to tell Twilight?”
Apple bloom pondered. “No, she has a lot to deal with right now. Maybe we can ask Celestia or Luna to provide some aid?”
The three girls nodded and hurried to a messenger to tell the sisters what they saw.

A few days and nights have passed Luna entered Celestia’s room. “Sister. I have troubling news. I think that I just saw where the bodies of Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Applejack and Rarity are taken.”
Celestia looked up and rubbed her eyes.” What do you mean?”
“I saw a dream of Twilight Sparkle. She is using the elements for something. I think we need to check it out.”
Celestia gracefully jumped from her bed. “We should go immediately.”

The door of Twilight’s castle opened with a squeaking noise. Dust covered the halls of the castle and an eerie silence.
“I don’t like this sister.” Luna looks frantically around.
Suddenly the noise of metal clashing on the stone floor is echoing through the castle followed by a sound of frustration.
“It came from that direction.” Celestia said. The sisters moved as fast they could to a door that was leading to a large room.
“Twilight?” Celestia said with a cautious questioning voice.
Suddenly lights were turned on and a stage was visible. On that stage Fluttershy, Pinky Pie, Applejack, Rainbow dash and Rarity were standing. The lights shining from their eyes was like the colour of the elements the represented.
“Do you like it.” The voice of Twilight is heard from behind the two sisters.
“What have you done?!” Celestia shouted angrily.
Twilight snorted. “I am the princess of Friendship. What am I without friends?” Her voice was twisting. “Even Rarity wrote that she would stay with me forever.”
“This is not right. These are soulless automatons. Your friends are still…” 
But Twilight interrupted Celestia “STOP!”
The sisters noticed the twitching eye of Twilight.
“We should never have left her.” Luna whispered to Celestia. “I felt something was off in her dreams.”
“You are right sister. We need to remind her what friendship is.” Celestia replied. She looked at the motionless Ponymatronics on the stage. 
When she looked closer a black stream of oil was dripping from the eye sockets of the five. “Are they... crying?” She whispered to herself.
A bolt of purple/red magic launched towards them making them move frantically. The movement was not like a normal pony this was just terrifying and ugly, sounds of cogs and gears shifting and moving echoed through the room. Just as every step they took which sounded like a heavy metallic object that is dropt on the floor. The five unable to think on their own where closing in. The glowing iris pairs of the five where focussed at Celestia and Luna. Pink, red, orange, blue and purple.
Twilight laughed with a high-pitched sound. 
Luna teleported herself to her and slapped her like a mother would do to a bad behaving child. “Stop this nonsense!” Luna shouted with her Canterlot voice.
Twilight remained silence. 
As reality hits her and she came to her senses. Luna and Celestia looked at her. “Do you really think that your friends. Fluttershy, Pinky Pie, Ranbow Dash, Applejack and Rarity would like to live like this?” Celestia said with a stern look on her face. 
Twilight looked at the abominations she created. They looked like her friends, but the metal skeleton inside in combination with the coating made them look like metal zombies. As she looked closer it was like they were crying tears of oil.
Again Twilights eyes began to well up with tears. As quick as she activated them Twilight deactivated the monstrosities. Releasing them from their pain. As she did she dropped herself on the ground crying, weeping heavy tears. It affected Luna and Celestia as well.
“Come with me Twilight.” Celestia said. “Luna will take care of Spike.”
Celestia picked the elements of harmony from within the metallic housing. “Luna. Would you do me a favour and can you make sure the girls will get back were they belong?”
Luna nodded and took off.
“Dear Twilight. I have to admit your element of love just like Cadence’s. They are powerful but it can have a great consequence on the heart and mind if you lose your loved ones. Luna is like a mother she knows that she has to let go of her children. And me. Well I look upon everypony, unconditional love taught me the art of letting go.” She looked in the watery eyes of Twilight.
“Twilight it is time for you to let go. It hurts but, this pain shows that you truly loved them.”
Twilight, double breathing at the moment tried to say something but no words came from her mouth. Celestia walked closer and embraced Twilight in her soft white wings.