Twilight – I had only one regret when I left Canterlot High. Guilt. No matter what kind of guilt it is, I still know that it was the only motivation I had for leaving. Is it permanent? Even I don’t know if it is. All I know is that I’ve been living by myself. Maybe my parents were worried that I left. But why haven’t they called? Maybe because they might know I’m still okay. Did Principal Celestia really keep my absence under wraps?
What mattered back when I’m alone, is thinking. Back then before and during the Friendship games, I had the personality of someone who wanted to explore possibilities. You can pretty much tell when you’ve known my life that I’m like a mad scientist. I’d take that as a joke if I were you. No… in fact… Maybe take that as my deepest darkest ego. The nerdy girl with a dark side to her… most is what made my version of Midnight Sparkle.
Which is why I’m surprised I even found out later on Midnight’s spirit had changed from the last time I saw and felt her…
Twilight was all alone by herself at her rented room someplace else than Canterlot. She sighs, knowing that leaving her own circle of friends also involved leaving her parents. Although she only had a home in CHS being away from Twilight Velvet and Night Light, she knew she didn't have to worry about both of them. They believe she's strong girl ever since her past change to Midnight Sparkle and being defeated. They have no idea that she was more.
Lying down on her bed in that rented room with her glasses off, she felt a presence. There was a slight coldness at her left arm and she glared at the owner of the hand... Then the coldness faded and warmth came. When Twilight saw the very familiar figure of Midnight herself, she gritted her teeth and growled, slightly pushing away Midnight and away from the bed.
Twilight sat up, maintaining her glare on Midnight. "I don't need you, Midnight. I can take care of myself."
From her brief surprise, Midnight easily turned to smirk at Twilight. "I'm a very solid memory of the Midnight you know, but I was always around. I explored the Existence I was only around to roam on as a spirit. The moment I completely left you at Camp Everfree was the moment I decided not to return to you in a harsh manner. I let you be."
"On purpose?" Twilight asked raising an eyebrow. "Or maybe you just don't wanna make my friends aggressive if you come back."
"Definitely not," Midnight replied looking at Twilight's eyes with no sign of lying in herself. "You pushed me away, so you deserved to be left alone. But abrupt from my peace from you, your own geode of power became my ticket to returning. And... I had been made one, of another version of myself."
Twilight sighs, getting off the bed and using her magic to make it float. "Another version of yourself? You're joking."
Midnight narrowed her eyes at Twilight. "I'm not even lying to you."
"Really now?" Twilight asked raising her town and forced the bed down slamming on the floor to make a point before letting go of her magic. "You might be a part of me, but it doesn't give me all the reason to believe you."
Midnight barks back. "YOU WILL, BECAUSE I AM PART OF WHAT MAKES YOU HAPPY! I am the result of your curiosity, your knowledge, and your journey to becoming personified as Midnight Sparkle! And... I'm the only one who truly understands you as a person." She said it, and they both created a pause, since Midnight needed to see how Twilight reacts.
Twilight paused herself to try processing what Midnight said and sadly, it made sense to her. How often would she be going to Canterlot High in the past to try getting the sense out of magic? But now she knows she was getting over her head with what she finally understands, she knows it isn't just that. It's something more broad than how she knew, before she met Sunset, and after.
Eventually, Midnight saw how Twilight sighed. "Finally understanding my point?"
Twilight nods. "I just didn't want my fidgety nature to come back. It doesn't need to. But if I'm going to accept having your logic, I might create problems with Sunset." She then decided to sit on the bed again. Patting a spot beside her, she saw Midnight nod and eventually join her to sit on the bed. "But enough about that. You said you met another version of yourself. What did you mean?"
Midnight chuckled. "You'll like how I define things, since it'll be requiring your understanding of dimensions." With that statement, she got Twilight's attention and began to tell her story...
She chuckled before she spoke up. "You don't know all the things I went through just to understand another perspective of me. After you've banished me from your body, my spirit traveled to another instance where I existed. You always hear of Twilight's student, Starlight Glimmer, right?"
Twilight nods. "Yeah. Sunset Shimmer tells me stories. She's Princess Twilight's student."
"Well, unlike in my instance where I would exist soon, the Twilight Sparkle who was supposed to take Starlight Glimmer in had a dark vision of Starlight. Instead of taking Starlight in, Twilight took Starlight to a dark void. It was supposed to be used for critical emergencies, but she knew by using it, she could never go back. So she used it, and she transported both of them into that place with only minimal light.
"Princess Twilight explained that Starlight's actions were unforgivable, and that there's no such thing as equality without cutie marks, or core purposes given to every pony who lived in Equestria. Starlight argued she made mistakes and wants to be reformed, and she even begged for it. Twilight only smiled and laughed, before she started to unleash her powers of darkness, part of which was learned while reading Sombra's dealings with his own dark magic. Starlight was turned into black stone, just before Twilight fired a magic beam that completely shattered Starlight's stone figure into pieces, thus killing her.
"Princess Twilight's cutie mark had darkened, and she transformed into that world's version of Midnight Sparkle. You know why? Because her purpose was renewed: What if there was a better power to rule over Equestria instead? Fallen from the grace of her friends and Princess Celestia, that world's Midnight had been busy trying to get Tirek out of Tartarus. Much to Twilight's surprise... Her newfound power of Midnight Sparkle was able to stun and subdue Tirek's guardian, Cerberus, before she broke Tirek out of captivity, not to give him a chance to backstab anyone again, because she'd already got that in mind for him.
"Stealing his essence of eating magical power like he used to, Midnight proceeded straight to Princess Celestia and Princess Luna under the guise of Twilight, who eventually told them she'd gained more if she'd taken the helm for Equestria. It was too late that the two other alicorn princesses would react and Midnight shown her true majestic form before eating up the magic power of both princesses.
"Years have passed after that, and her conquest of Equestria was over. Her friends were captured, and she even executed one of her friends as well: Fluttershy, the only one who was able to at least bring a spark of light in Midnight Sparkle. Fluttershy's actions of convincing Midnight of what better she'd do than subdue Equestria to doom was able to convince her, even if Fluttershy had already passed away. But even if Midnight is poised to rule over Equestria to make it better, she needed to change things."
Twilight sighs as Midnight told that story to her. "What kind of changes, exactly?"
"It's a kind that's good for almost everyone. There wouldn't be any need for anyone fancy, and those who are needed are business people, the general workforce, and no one showboating their own fortunes. Citizens who aren't any of them were given the choice to just be themselves or serve Midnight's kingdom to explore other worlds on other dimensions. Heck... she even granted travel to other dimensions with her power-"
"Look... Just tell me what happened to her and how you were able to fuse her spirit to yours," Twilight said, running a bit impatient on the storytelling.
Midnight nods and smiles. "That dimension's Midnight as I watched, battled other gods who refuse to be friends with her and she fought to the last breath to spread her influence. Just as she was about to die, ready to accept that the doom of Equestria would be her own absence, she sensed my spirit who was watching this. And she told me she knew I was there.
"I remembered these words as she was fading away. 'Remember all that I've done was to better Equestria.' I didn't ask for anything else once she said those words. I had questions of what would happen if happiness fades from her world? Her own answer once I infused my spirit with her, is that happiness comes at another form, and so does anything else. We might think it disappears, but it mostly becomes another form entirely. I figured everything else would fall into place with that question answered. And with her knowledge... I understood. I became... so much more."
Twilight looked away having heard Midnight's story. "So you're basically an Empress who destroyed Equestria, made it better in a way, and then you come back to me as- I don't know if I could ever trust you for plunging your own version of Equestria into chaos. But... making it better in the end? How?"
Midnight stopped Twilight from speaking by putting her hand on Twilight's shoulder. Twilight's eyes glowed bright blue, matching Midnight's. "Then let me show you all that I've lost, what I've done... and what you could do if you decide for yourself."
Twilight was then taken to a vision of memories from Midnight's eyes, telling her the whole story, how she'd overthrown Celestia and Luna, defeated all of her friends, and how she spread power to the right places to better Equestria...
Later... Twilight decided to be in a convenience store that same night to think. Her conversation with Midnight was on a whole new level from before, and her calm nature, became one of better-calculating confidence in herself. She no longer had her glasses that time and she was browsing for items. She was by herself and the store clerk was at the cashier.
Then a black-hooded figure entered before equipping a gun and pointing it at the cashier, he was quiet declaring his intention to rob the store and the cashier raised his hands, knowing he doesn't have security measures. Twilight caught wind of this and told herself this was typical, before approaching both of them. She saw the cashier taking out cash from the cash register.
Then Twilight made a firm tone as she spoke at the Cashier. "Don't give him anything. And... hide." With that, the cashier quickly pulled the cash away from the counter and ducked to cover.
The robber pointed his gun at Twilight. "What about you shut up?"
"What about putting the gun down?" Twilight said before walking toward him. She then saw him squeeze the trigger, firing a round right at her before she glared and worked her magic. At the robber's awe, his own bullet stopped, so he kept firing at her until he had emptied his pistol and throwing it away. He was terrified, seeing all his bullets hovering near Twilight but never hitting her. She then lets go of her magic-hold on the bullets each hitting the floor. "You could have made it easy. Now you'll be judged."
The robber then felt a sharp pain on his arm, the same one that held his weapon, before he felt a bone crack. He screams, just before he felt his wrist, and then a bone broke again, making him scream more. He was scared, forcing him to try recovering and stand, then make a run for it. But as he ran to the door, a frying pan flew to his head and hit him, eventually making him drop on the ground unconscious. Twilight easily overwhelmed and defeated him there.
Then Twilight went to the cashier who was against the corner of the counter with fear in his eyes. She saw it, and knew what it meant. "You saw, didn't you?" As she asked, he nodded and never spoke a word, shaking in fear. "I left you cash on the counter. More than enough for you." Then she held up a box of orange juice in her hand so he could see. "Keep the change." And she left the cashier alone before walking out of the convenience store, opening up the box and drinking its liquid from there, safely walking away from the scene...
Twilight returned from the convenience store, and she put the box of orange juice down at the small table in the apartment room before taking off her jacket. With magic drawn, she had spread her wings influenced from Midnight Sparkle. Though it had a mix of dark purple, she knew it was significantly lessened and it was colored with a brighter purple. She felt her power that night rise to a good height, but she had enough in her mind she didn't want to have a lust for more.
Twilight groaned, folding her wings and trying to get used to the power she's wielding. "Midnight... if only it was easier..."
Midnight spoke to Twilight through a voice in her head. "Nothing is easy. I once thought about it, and training DOES get you anywhere. You need practice. What you've done at the convenience store... It's a good thing you have control, but you don't want to lose control of it. I've been trained to practice peace in my time, so you should do the same. And your feelings towards your friends now? You've got to find peace against those feelings."
Twilight nods. "I understand."
By what Twilight has in mind, she spreads her wings again, before picking up her box of orange juice. Bright purple flames came from her arm, traveled to her hand and to the box before it was ignited in flames. She dropped the box and the carpet it touched started to spread the fire...
Twilight was later watching multiple fire trucks outside the apartment building and felt the fire was extinguished.
Midnight's voice spoke to Twilight. "You predicted that they could put out your fire?"
"It’s not too big. And they're fast enough for that kind of emergency. Besides... I'm not one to doubt unless they really slack." After making her response, Twilight walked away from the building. "I'm not like you, Midnight. But I want to know what else I could do with the power I got. And I'm not one to succumb in lusting for more. What happens to me shouldn't shake my friendship with them further as it is now."
"Sunset might not look like it, but one day... she'll use you." Midnight's words weren't putting Twilight in a trance.
And Twilight knew it. "We'll see."
For days, I’ve been practicing to better my powers. Midnight and I were talking often ever since. The darkness that she had from Sombra… It never existed. That’s why I’m never able to get the worst of what she is. She was a reformed Midnight Sparkle, my voice from another view.
And the training really pierces into my emotions. I felt fear… hatred… lust. But channeling it together with the current power and alignment I have towards friendship? It made me feel that I’m so much more… Midnight was right. I have to overcome my own darkness to open a new mind…
Twilight was reading a book in a town library that sunny day. She adjusted her glasses for a little while she was reading. She turned a page and sighed, knowing not much has to change to what she thought was the norm. Then she winced, lifting her eyes away from the book. Her breathing started to pace faster before she turned her head and her body around seeing a man under the cover of a shadowy aura. This entity had yellow glowing eyes. It even slowly etched a smile with its mouth that looked like it had fangs shaped from the shadow.
She narrowed her eyes, closing the book she read while looking at the shadowy figure. “You seem out of place. If you like… I can send you straight to hell.” And after she said it, the shadowy figure chucked and started to walk towards her. She snorts at this before she walked towards the shadowy figure.
In the eyes of the shadow entity, it chuckled, just before its target suddenly used magic to disappear. It then heard a voice from behind. “Surprise,” said the girl who it saw and the entity felt the back was pierced and the blade-like object goes through until the chest. It grunted in pain while seeing the sword made out of a lavender magic aura. “I’d like it if your kind never came into existence. You’re interesting though.” She said it with a chuckle before the entity was feeling too much heat from where it was stabbed.
Twilight was pushing flames from her magic into the shadow entity and smirked just before she overloaded her target with fire. Soon, the shadow was turning into smoke, and soot had spread all throughout the library. It sent out fire alarms all over the place. But no sprinklers were installed in the library. Some people were starting to scream in panic as they ran out. But as no one saw her, she chuckled to herself, feeling her power surge well throughout her body. “I feel one… with my flames…” She muttered to herself just before she levitated off the floor, closing her eyes, she felt her own spirit morphed her clothes for a while before they turned back. She descends and lands back to the floor with a smile in her face.
The boy who witnessed it all who was dirtied with the thick soot didn’t feel his legs shaking. But they were. “W-what-what-? What in the hell-? Who… are you?!!”
Twilight smiled to herself. “Well that’s a very good question.” She grinned while turning her head to him with pupils dilated.
Ehehehe… I was sure to tell him exactly who I feel I was. I’m great at releasing my darker side. And whether I’ve been feeling both sides of me, I can tell which to apply. This time… my own personality is whatever I please. And this is so much better than what I was before.
She chuckled before replying to the boy. “I am Midnight.”