//------------------------------// // 14 - The Midnight in Me Part 4 // Story: All These Midnight Days // by Ninjadeadbeard //------------------------------// Midnight threw her arms up as the moon burst like an overstuffed balloon. A rush of wind heralded the wave of crimson hellfire that poured from the crater it left behind, and a howl of endless fury and rage rattled the very heavens above. The stars were turning red. The old, extinguished flames rose up again, and soon the world of Midnight’s dream had become almost worse than it had been before. Red flames leapt and snarled at Midnight and Princess Luna, but the former simply raised her hand against the fiery deluge. With a surge of her horn’s magic, the Princess snapped an invisible dome in place, breaking the assault as though the flames of Shadow’s wrath were mere suggestions crashing upon ironclad Law and Order. Am I becoming more eloquent as my mind shatters? Midnight pondered over this for a second, before she saw something hideous crawl out of Shadow’s crater. Shadowlight, the Incubus, slowly pulled herself from out of that hole, her body transformed wholly. The demon towered over the duo at almost thirty feet tall, and her wings hung over the dream-cityscape like two ominous black clouds. She unhinged her jaw, still filled with fangs the length of Midnight’s arms, and let loose an inchoate screech. “She’s still alive!?” Midnight gasped, her empty hand still up to blunt the heavy winds that picked up as the monster flexed her titanic wings. “What does it take!?” “More than we perhaps here possess,” Luna said in an almost casual tone. She held her one hand to the side of the magical dome she’d created, while half-turning to speak to Midnight. “I was hoping my magic would remain Anathema to the Incubi of this universe. Alas, it seems that the rules by which magic operates here have shifted somewhat…” Midnight shook her head, and snarled. “So, that’s it? Our last trump card’s thrown out of the window? Just like that!?” Luna allowed a little smirk to touch her face, and the sight of it almost caused Midnight to take a step back. “Fear not, Midnight Sparkle,” the Princess gently stated. “Though my magic is no longer the Incubus’ greatest weakness, we still have three things in our favor. “First,” she said, glancing back to the gigantic Shadow as she sent a wave of fire rolling over their shield, to little effect, “while I cannot defeat the demon in a single blow as before, my magic is still quite puissant against her. We can withstand her might for ages beneath this shield.” “I don’t have ages!” Midnight snapped. “She can already take away control of my body if I’m not focusing! She’ll possess me and Twilight by tomorrow at this rate…” Luna pressed on, not really listening to Midnight's protests at this point. “Additionally, the fact that the Incubus has cast off its traditional weakness means it may be vulnerable to other forms of attack.” Midnight shrugged, and irritably asked, “Evidence?” “The rules of magic may change,” Luna said, her horn glowing as she conjured another spell, “but the laws of physics do not. There is only so much energy in existence, and only so many ways to distribute it. In magic, there are no such things as invincible or infinite…” Her horn flared again, and a passing boulder, hurled from Shadow’s clawed hands, burst into nothingness before it could collide with the shield. “STOP IGNORING ME!!!” Shadow cried in abject madness and fury. She writhed and fumed, drawing in the red flames of the dream realm even as she spat them back out at Luna’s magical shield. Midnight said nothing. Just the mention of magic and its algorithmic rules caused a knot to form in her stomach, and for the shards of her geode to weigh down on her closed fist. Plus, since she’d been the towering monster only a week ago, from one side of the time loop, she was getting the worst form of déjà vu all of a sudden. Shadow began to advance. Each footstep came down like a hammer blow, shaking the earth and sending up a hail of sparks and thunder. Princess Luna didn’t seem to notice. Her face was stuck in a placid smile, seemingly content with watching the monster approach. “And the third thing?” Midnight asked, eyebrows knitting together in worry. “What’s the third thing?” Luna’s smile only deepened, and her pony ears twitched atop her head. She turned around, slowly, and gave Midnight a wink. “I made sure to bring reinforcements,” she said, before raising her eyes to the darkening sky. “What re—?" Midnight began to ask. But as she did, a new sight stole the air from her lungs, and her voice died in her throat. Shadowlight loomed before the two, arms raised. And with a monstrous roar, she brought her might down upon Luna’s shield, shrieking in her frustrations. Each blow crashed into the shield, causing the invisible bubble to bend and warp, revealing itself in its distortions. Each shuddering hit caused Midnight to flinch, and to raise her own hand back up, by degrees, to protect her face, to shield her eyes from the demon raining down upon her. But then Shadow stopped. Her eyes, bright red dots in pools of shadow, narrowed, and her assault halted. Her ears twitched. And then, Midnight’s did as well. There was something else. Something oddly familiar, and getting closer with every passing second. “—echaaaaaaaaaaa—" “Uh… does anyone else hear…?” Luna’s smile turned into a full grin. “Wait for it...” she said, dragging out the last word. Shadow’s eyes shrank, her pupils becoming tiny specks as she seemed to realize where the sound was coming from. It was above her. “— KnnniiiiiiiiIIIIIIIGHT!!!!!" The sound arrived, like a comet out of space. Like a bolt out of the blue. Like a knight in Shining Armor…! The giant, mechanical robot knight smashed down from the sky, his blazing magical chainsaw sword a golden streak as he brought it home atop the demon Shadow. The demon shrieked in pain, and leapt backward as the machine warrior sliced her left wing clean off at the midway joint. A wall of dust kicked up at the impact, but Shining Armor, clad in his Mighty Mecha Magic Knight form with a glowing pink shield and waving red cape, was already leaping after the enemy, his theme song blaring forth with every step. Shadow reeled back, but not for long. She took a glancing hit at her side that almost cut through to her spine, exposing her innards to be made entirely of shadow. In spite of this, she had managed to spin away, her wing and lost flesh knitting back together as a wave of hellfire swept over her. And then, with the next strike, Shadow ducked under Shining’s attack, and slashed her claws across his abdomen. Sparks and flame shot out from where she hit. “Shining!” Midnight cried, startled, and covered her mouth with her free hand. “Worry not!” Luna said, quickly. She pointed with one hand to Shining’s side, and added, “Shining appears unharmed…” There was no wound, just a few blackened scorch marks. Like Shining had just been a guy in a rubber suit on one of those old fighting robot shows. Midnight sighed, though just a little in relief, “You big nerd…” Shining checked Shadow with his shield, and tried to shove her back, but the demon was already adapting. She gripped her claws around the energy-shield’s edges, and started twisting the magical construct like a car’s steering wheel. When Shining went in for another stab to dislodge her, she neatly sidestepped his blow. Her wing, newly healed, slapped him across the back, sending Shining careening into the grassy patch just in front of Luna’s shield. Though Shining tried to rise, he quickly found a clawed foot slamming into his back, sending up another shower of sparks. “Ah, good old Shining Armor!” Shadow sneered. “Arriving just a bit too late to help, as always!” Shining’s head – helm? – turned, and mumbled out some digitized threat or curse of some sort, muffled by the dead grass and soil Shadow was currently pressing him into. “Speak up, loser!” she laughed. “I can’t hear you down there—!" Her gloating was rather abruptly cut off at that precise moment. A large emerald-green ball of fire smashed into Shadow from the side, bowling her end over end. Midnight looked to where the giant demon had fallen, and then swiveled stiffly around to the other direction, from where a purple streak was rapidly incoming. “Pew pew pew!” Spike cried, green blasts of magical energy flying from his dragon-claws with every ‘pew’ as he dove down on Shadow. The muscular dragon, still sporting a pointed wizard hat, paused only to give a quick wave to Midnight before he roared past her, letting loose another bevy of magical attacks. The blasts struck Shadow about her face, drawing another snake-like snarl from her as she tried to claw her way into a standing position. Only, once she found her footing and got her hands up to block Spike’s attacks, he simply flew under her guard. And then, he threw a punch into the Incubus’ stomach that even had Midnight flinching in sympathy for the demonic simulacrum. Shadow’s eyes crossed, and she stumbled backward as Spike launched another attack, his fists landing so hard that they left a few visible Zap, Kapow, and Blammo sound effects drifting in the air around him, each one sending Shadow reeling back onto her backfoot. Shining chuckled his robotic chuckle, and whispered, “I said… sic em…” Midnight, realizing Shining was still hurt, started to rush to his side, when another voice cut through the sound of flames and the one-dragon-army receding into the distance. “Midnight!” She paused. Midnight and Luna turned around to face the voice as Twilight Sparkle descended to the dead grassy yard. She was dressed… well, like she had before. Twilight was ponied-up, back in her original blue blouse and purple starlit skirt getup, wings outstretched as she came in for a landing. The sight of her brought a swelling feeling deep within Midnight’s chest, blocking her throat. Twilight Sparkle, from before all this happened to you. “Midnight!” Twilight cried again, and sprinted headlong for her sister. She hardly slowed down, throwing herself through the air, and quickly wrapping her arms around Midnight’s neck. There was a choking sound, behind Midnight’s ear, then Twilight’s voice as she said, “We were so worried about you! That thing just grabbed you, and…” Twilight blinked several times, but did not let go of Midnight. Instead, she raised her eyes a few degrees up, and blinked again. “Princess Luna?” she asked. “Indeed, Twilight Sparkle,” Luna said without losing a beat. “It is good that you followed the path I took to reach here.” “That was you!?” Twilight blanched as she released her sister, though she failed to notice Midnight’s listless stance. “I thought Midnight did that! There was a lot of collateral damage to the Dream Realm, after all…” Luna merely sniffed, disdainfully at this remark, and returned her attention to Shining Armor, who was only now getting back to his feet. The colossal, heroic robot shook his head in a very human-like manner, before settling back down on one knee. “I might need a second…” he sighed, and rubbed the side of his head some more. “Hold still, Prince Shi… I mean, Shining Armor,” Luna blushed at her momentary faux pas, before lighting up her healing magic again. “This will help…” As the Princess tended to the frazzled Shining, Twilight looked around, and seemed to take stock of the situation. “This place looks… pretty bad, I’d say,” she said while adjusting her glasses. She glanced down at the torn and crackling grass, the shattered and burnt-out buildings, and finally the red flames that still sputtered and guttered all across the landscape. She hissed through her teeth, and clucked her tongue. “Yeah, this place is in a bad way. Can’t believe that, metaphorically speaking, this is our… uh?” Twilight tilted her head to one side, her eyes narrowing. “Did…?” she asked, frowning. “Did something happen? You look…” Midnight hadn’t moved since Twilight had appeared. Through the hug, she’d simply stood, not even returning the act of affection. And as Twilight had started analyzing the dream, Midnight just stood there, staring at her feet. But she wasn’t doing nothing. She was calculating… Twilight’s eyes focused on Midnight’s hand, and a chill sensation ran down her spine. “Midnight…” she whispered, “… While we were following your trail, or I guess Luna’s trail… I was able to Pony Up a few minutes ago.” Her brows were furrowed tight as she took a long, steadying breath. “I couldn’t do that before then. I tried, so I could fly after you sooner…” Midnight’s eyes flicked to the side. Her mouth started working, silently. Still, she didn’t look up. She hadn’t reacted to her sister at all. Twilight took a step forward, and raised one hand to her sister’s shoulder. “Midnight?” she asked, more timidly… before she saw something that finally registered. “Why are you wearing glasses?” There was a twitch, at the corner of Midnight’s mouth. And another, in her hand. The one that still hadn’t unclenched. Midnight slowly began to unbend that arm at the elbow, however. And slowly, like a glacier, she stuck it out towards Twilight. She turned it over, and let her fingers relax their grip. Twilight stumbled back, eyes wide, and mouth agape in horror. She gasped, hands up over her mouth. Then, before the echo of her cry had a chance to fade, Twilight’s hands were already out, purple magic flashing to life. The individual shards lit up with her aura, and flew from Midnight’s grasp, letting her arm drop as they left her. “No…” Twilight whispered as she brought the geode’s remains to her. She reflexively reached to her own geode, a half-gem hanging from her neck, though her eyes never left the shattered pieces of her sister’s. Two shards separated. Under Twilight’s hardening gaze, they slid up against each other for a few split seconds before one dropped back to the rest, replacing it with a different piece. It spun once, and seemed to find a seam on the other, clicking into place. Twilight’s brow glistened with sweat, and she puffed out her cheeks with effort as she began pressing the two geode shards together. They strained, letting out a grinding sigh, the whine of glass pressing against glass. And when Twilight let go, they dropped away in two parts again. “No…” she whispered again. “Oh, Midnight… I… what happened? I don’t…” Perhaps it was the sound of the geode shards crackling against each other, or the way Twilight was suddenly working herself into a stuttering, choking fit… but something in Midnight stirred. She glanced up, and finally looked at her sister. Twilight’s eyes didn’t tear up. They didn’t glisten, or begin to fill with water. They flooded the banks of her eyelids, and quickly overran her face. Every breath in, she shuddered. And every breath out came in stops and gaps. Twilight picked up another pair of shards, and though she could no longer see them through the tears, she tried once again to force them together with her magic. Luna was half-watching, but a thousand years of lunar exile probably gave her a monstrous poker face, as Midnight couldn’t read that expressionless mask in the slightest. But there was no hiding Twilight’s sudden anguish. “Hey…” Midnight said, half-heartedly. She watched Twilight squeeze two pieces until another crack formed in one of them. That startled her, and Twilight dropped the whole lot of them with another gasp. “Midnight! I… I can fix this!” she said, arm wiping at her eyes as she knelt down and tried to pick up the fallen pieces. “Don’t worry. We can do this. I-It… it will just take a while. I can get some spells from the Princess, and… and Sunset would know what we’re missing, right? Maybe some sort of reconstitution spell, or a…?” “Twilight,” Midnight began again, though her voice was still soft and quiet. “Twilight? Stop…” “No, you’re right,” Twilight said, picking the pieces up with her magic once again. “We probably need something bigger, something that… that can… maybe a blood sacrifice can…?” Her eyes froze, a wild and terrible look held within them. Twilight whispered, “Unless…?” And then she reached for her geode. Every hair on Midnight’s neck stood up at once. A cloying, biting chill ran up her spine, becoming a burning, fiery heat as it hit her face, her throat, her eyes. Energy was no longer an issue. Midnight almost felt like she was on fire herself. No sooner did Twilight’s finger form a tearing pinch on the edge of her geode, than did Midnight’s hand slap them away. Twilight yelped, and threw her hands up defensively, even as Midnight came barreling in for another – less physical – blow. “WHAT THE HECK DO YOU THINK YOU’RE DOING!?” Her scream echoed like a cannon shot. It carried far, bouncing off the distant crystalline ruins, and even the hollow sky above. Princess Luna’s guarded mask slipped as the sound crashed over her, allowing anyone watching a bare glimpse into her own distress. But no one was watching the Princess. All eyes were on Midnight. “What?” Twilight asked, once the echo of her sister’s shriek had passed. Her surprise only mildly curtailed the worry still thick in her words as she said, “Midnight, I was only trying…” “I know what you were trying to do, and you need to knock it off!” Midnight snarled. “You can’t split your geode up any more! That’s insane!” “Midnight, I already told you ‘what’s mine is yours’,” Twilight snapped back, a mote of anger flaring up. She leaned in closer to Midnight, and added, “This geode was for both of us.” Midnight shook her head again. “No, no it wasn’t…” She bit her lip, but said no more. Even though the voice in her head – the one that didn’t advocate for sororicide – was screaming at her to say something. “It was!” Twilight shouted again. “I thought we were past this…” “No! Stop!” Midnight stamped her foot and clenched her hands tight. “I won’t allow it! I can’t keep taking things from you!” “You’re not taking anything!” Twilight pressed her face almost right up against Midnight’s, and bellowed, “We’re sisters, and this is important, and I will share it with you!” Midnight pressed her forehead to Twilight’s and pushed back. “I already took Smarty Pants from you!” she screamed, a ragged cry ripping out from her throat. “I took part of your geode, and I took the memories of your friends… “For heaven’s sake, Twi! I’ve taken everything from you! This was all my fault to begin with!!!” The echo of this shout died instantly. Silence filled the air between Sparkles. Twilight blinked, slowly. “… What?” Once more, Midnight deflated. She closed her eyes, and sighed. “It was me, Twilight,” she said, her voice barely a whisper. She looked back up, and met the gaze of the person she’d wronged. “Shadow has some of our memories,” Midnight said, slowly. “She showed me… the moment when we split.” Twilight’s jaw dropped. “Wha…?” she sputtered, “… What? What did she…?” “I did it, Twilight,” Midnight pressed on, taking a quick, halting breath to compose herself. “When we decided to cast the spell that made us, I… I manipulated you. That Midnight Sparkle wanted to use the Split to create this whole Dream Realm tether. The reason we share dreams was part of… of my plan!” Twilight shook her head. “Hold on… why? What purpose did that serve?” Midnight clutched at her face, pushing back her hair as she groaned, and said, “I don’t know. To stress you out? To drive you nuts so I could slowly take over as your ability to resist me crumbled? Shadow can already physically mess with us…” Twilight’s eyes went wide. “She… she can do that?” “WHAT!?” Luna cried out. “She can…!?” Midnight’s hands reached out suddenly, and grabbed Twilight by the shoulders, cutting off the Princess’ baffled muttering. She gave Twilight a light shake, and said, “She showed me! She showed me everything…” She paused, looked away, and took another breath. When she looked back, Twilight’s eyes were glistening with tears, and filled with a new fear. “But… I’m not going to let her win,” Midnight said in a steady, calm tone that she did not feel. “That Midnight, the one who tried to hurt you… the one who succeeded in hurting you… she’s gone now. And I won’t let my heartless mistake doom you, Twilight Sparkle. “I need you to help me,” she whispered. Midnight did not blink once as she tried to radiate her own steely resolve into Twilight through their eye contact. She will need it soon, Midnight thought. “I need you to reabsorb me.” Twilight gave a quiet gasp, and froze. Her eyes, once wide with fear and pain and surprise, softened. Then, her eyes narrowed. Good, Midnight thought. Calculate the numbers, sis. You’ll see what I see soon. “If I wasn’t around,” Midnight said, quickly, capitalizing on her sister’s contemplative moment, “the tether between our dreaming selves wouldn’t exist, and most of the mental stress that fuels Shadow will be gone!” As if to punctuate her words, Shadow let off a furious war cry in the distance. This was met by a wizard-dragon Spike lassoing her with magic, and proceeding to slap her into the hard earth again, and again, and again. However, with every blow, Spike was looking more and more tired. And Shadow seemed… almost bigger and bigger as the battle went on. Midnight continued, saying, “If you don’t get rid of her, she’ll have both of our bodies, and all of our magic! Shadow is going to destroy the world if she can. And just because she can!” Twilight’s eyes had been flicking from side to side, a clear sign of her or Midnight running their “calculations”. But as Midnight’s words sank in, they slowed their manic drive. Soon, another look settled onto Twilight’s face, besides curiosity. It looked like rage. “Good,” Midnight sighed in relief, “you get it. You can see it now. “You’ll be fine without me,” she said, closing her eyes. “Once we’re… once I’m back where I belong, Shadow will fade away and life can get back on track for you.” Midnight clenched her jaw, and looked up at the stars. Almost as beautiful as the real ones. “Your friends might… they might be upset,” she conceded, “especially Pinkie. But you’ll know how the Memory Stone spell worked, so just trim a little here or there, and it’ll be like I never—" Midnight was, it had to be said, exceptionally surprised when a hand slapped her right across her face, knocking her head to one side. For an incredible moment, her entire world was simply a hand-shaped flash of pain radiating out from her face and into her very mind. She snapped her head back around, and tried to blink away the shock. Twilight… had hit her. Her eyes met Twilight’s, and the pain blared even more angrily as she fell forever into the eyes that looked back. “How…?” Twilight hissed, her eyes like fire despite the tears rolling down her cheeks. “How could you even think something like that!?” Midnight stood, silent and in shock. “What?” she muttered, unable to think. To calculate. “I said, how could you think so little of me!? Of yourself!?” Twilight reached out and grabbed Midnight’s shoulders again, and as she spoke, she shook her sister roughly back and forth. “What have we been trying to tell you all week, if not that you matter to us!?” Twilight screamed, and clenched her teeth. “And you’d just… take that away from me? From our friends!?” “Y-your friends…” “Our Friends!” Midnight blinked, and tried to look away. I don’t understand… “But… Twilight,” she tried to say without her voice cracking, and failed, “I’m not even real. I’m… I’m just all your past anger and pain. I’m not real…” Twilight looked about ready to slap Midnight again… when another voice cried out. “MIDNIGHT!” Both sisters turned at the sound of the cry, only to see Shining Armor’s mechanical form blaze with a pink light. The gigantic machine body briefly became as bright as the sun, almost blinding the nearby Princess Luna with its radiance. And then, as the mechanical knight began to break down into cherry blossoms, a lone figure leapt from its radiating brilliance, and charged straight towards them. Shining Armor came to a sliding, grinding halt mere feet from Twilight and Midnight. He almost fell over from the effort to stop, only his training and general athleticism keeping him upright. As he stopped, Shining’s otherwise pale face turned a deep shade of red. Living with her brother – or, remembering living with him – Midnight had a certain mental image of Shining. Calm, cool under pressure, and honest to a fault… when he wasn’t being a huge, huge dork. But when Shining wanted to be scary, when someone caught the wrong side of his temper, he was still a former high school track, boxing, and football star with police combat and special operations training... and right now every bit of both those lives were towering over her. Suddenly, he moved, pouncing on her with the speed of a striking snake. Midnight flinched, closing her eyes… Nothing happened. Nothing bad, at all. Shining’s arms wrapped their way around Midnight’s body, and held her close in a tight, warm embrace. Midnight tried to focus, tried to maintain her objectivity and her sense of what she was saying. Her arguments, carefully formed. Her decision to… to… She melted into the hug, slightly. Scary, yes. Shining could be scary, Midnight thought. But there was no one I would go to before him, if I was in trouble… “This time,” his voice whispered. It was steady, and low. Too steady. Too low. Shining only ever sounded like that… after Grammy Sparkle… “You asked me what I meant before,” Shining continued, in a slightly louder voice. Midnight could feel Twilight’s eyes, as well as her physical presence, just a few feet away. Shining swallowed a hard lump in his throat, judging by the sound he made. “When I found out you were going to Crystal Prep,” he said, wistfully, “I couldn’t be prouder of you. I knew it would be hard. I knew what sort of a place it was. But I thought you… I thought, ‘Twilight’s tough. She can handle anything.’” His hug tightened, by the barest degree. “But… I was never smart. Not like you.” Slowly, Shining pulled back from the embrace, yet he kept his hands on Midnight’s shoulders. Looming over her, he placed his forehead atop her own. “I didn’t realize what Cinch would do to you. What sick, twisted games she’d play. I knew she would be tough, but not… “I should have,” his voice cracked. Midnight could feel his breath on her hair as he blew out a frustrated sigh. “I should have known.” He pulled away completely, and Midnight finally saw. She could finally see her brother’s face as his own tears began to form at the corners of his eyes, and she could see how his lips trembled as he looked down at her, and Twilight beside. “I was a terrible BBBFF,” he said, wiping his eyes. “I should have seen the signs. I should have known better. I knew what Cinch was like! But I didn’t want to rock the boat… no. No, I just didn’t think it would be as bad as it was. “When you came back from the Friendship Games, and I finally started thinking about how you’d been behaving…” Shining Armor looked away, and one arm came up to his face. Once the tears were gone, he turned back to Midnight, and her heart almost broke, so full of anger, and sorrow was his gaze. “I almost lost you,” he sighed. “I… you could have left us all. And it was because I told myself you were strong. But even though you were strong, that didn’t mean you had to go through all that. And hearing you now, hearing you talk about yourself like you’re nothing…” He sniffed, and clenched his jaw. And for just a moment, Midnight could almost believe there was something… Princely in his stance. Something more than noble. “I never want to hear that again,” he said, his voice tense. “If you’re… if you’re the Twilight who never got help, then I’m here for you. Forever. We love you, Midnight. You’re our sister, and I will do anything to make you believe that.” It was a strange sensation -- Midnight might have reflected if she were in a more logical mood -- to feel so miserable, so full of pain and ache… and yet simultaneously so light, and happy, and… so loved, all at once. It was like her heart, broken though it may be, shattered and drowned by everything she’d seen and heard and felt, was suddenly set aflame, boiling that sadness away and leaving behind a laugh that just wanted to bubble up and escape into the world. Midnight’s breathing quickened, and her vision blurred again as the tears – this time of some quirky combination of despair and jubilation – filled her eyes. Her mouth worked itself, yet it did not speak. There were no words that could express what she was feeling. Shining Armor, however, didn’t need to hear anything. Something in him must have known what Midnight meant. He stepped up, and threw his arms around both his sisters. He drew Midnight and Twilight in, and didn’t let go. Instead, he planted a swift, tactical kiss atop each of their heads. Midnight giggled. She actually giggled! So did Twilight, who looked over to her from behind Shining’s back, and the two shared what may have been the first genuine smile on either of their faces in days. Somehow, as Midnight pulled out of that hug a minute later, still laughing, the world didn’t appear so… dark. The stars were silver once more, and twinkling like the amused glint in Luna’s eye. Even the flames, red and raw though they still were, almost seemed to have died down. Well. Except for the ones in Shadow’s direction. Those only bloomed brighter as the Incubus let out a wail of madness and rage across the landscape. There was the sound of something crackling in the distance, like a tree branch splintering, and a purple bullet came soaring into view from over the horizon. “Incoming!” Princess Luna shouted, throwing up a second hand to support her shield. The projectile arced, and came crashing down straight at Midnight and her siblings. The whine of the blurred shot howled as it smashed down just before the shield, the earth rupturing in a straight line under its lower rim. Shining pushed his sisters aside as the earth tunneled towards them, the bullet finally losing velocity as it reached the center of the shielded space. Twilight leaned down, her scientific curiosity overtaking her as she reached out to poke the disturbed earth. The dirt shifted, causing Shining to drag her back again. But then, what had been shot their way poked its head up out of the tunnel its crash had caused. “SPIKE!?” All three had cried out in unison as a familiar purple puppy popped his head up out of the soil and gave itself a woozy shake. “Eugh…” he groaned, and raised a paw to pat his sore noggin. “Thanks for the help out there, Shining. I really appreciated the backup…” he snarked, and shot Shining an angry look. Shining’s face burned red, and he shrank into himself just a bit. He scratched the back of his neck, and laughed, chagrined. “Uh, sorry Spike? We had a little crisis over here I had to deal with.” Spike sighed, and rolled his eyes. “Fine, I guess,” he said, and started pulling himself slowly out of the ground. Twilight’s purple magic briefly surrounded him, lending the puppy the leverage he needed for the task. He shook the dirt from his fur with wild, doggy abandon. And once a bit cleaner than he was before, Spike said, “I guess if it was to help Midnight… I forgive ya, BBBFF.” Spike’s ears drooped. “But, ah… we might have another problem. Or, the old problem, but she’s really ticked off now!” Midnight and her family turned back towards the horizon, and quickly beheld Shadow as she approached. The demon was even taller now, wreathed in a corona of flames, and sporting a scowl that spoke of her seething fury. With a single flap of her wings, she leapt the distance from where Spike had fought her to just beyond Luna’s shield. Even the Princess flinched, faltering as the giant landed, sending shockwaves through the ground. Shadow snarled, and a low growling chuckle bubbled up from her depths. “Is that finally it?” she asked, her voice deeper than the roar of an engine. “Are you finally done? Have you finally accepted the inevitable!?” Midnight still felt that heat in her chest. The feelings Shining and Twilight had reignited in her. They burned for release, to be shouted out at the monster before them. But against such a thing? Against a giant? How could her voice alone…? Luna snorted through her nose, and answered the Incubus. “Finally? Inevitable? Ah, now that sounds like the foolish, slow-witted Incubi I am familiar with. We have not yet begun to fight!” Shadow reeled a moment. Her dark eyes stared at the tiny Princess, confused and angry. “Are you serious? How can you not tell that I’ve won!?” She whined and flexed her wings. “I’ve defeated your precious reinforcements, Princess! It’s all over for you!” At this, Luna’s smile turned into a long, twisting Cheshire grin. She began to chuckle, slowly. The chuckle soon began a titter, then a giggle. Moments passed, and her laughter moved to a full guffaw as the Sparkles and Shadow looked on. The Princess continued to laugh, throwing her head back, and then wiping away her merry tears as she slowly came back under control. Shadow seethed at the display, and readied a roiling ball of fire in one claw. Seeing this, Luna appeared to comport herself. “I apologize, O Shadow,” she tittered with mocking laughter still. “I forgot myself a moment. It was just that you said you’ve defeated my reinforcements?” “What would you call beating Shining Armor and Spike to pulps?” Shadow snarled back. Both Spike and Shining growled in their throats at the shot… but neither could exactly argue that point just then. Luna’s eyes sparkled with mirth, and she said in a far more controlled voice, “Oh, then I see the confusion. My dear Shadow, you have misunderstood!” She tilted her head up, and her eyes looked to the heavens. “Twilight and her brothers were not the reinforcements I had in mind.” Slowly, with the pace of a glacier, Shadow, Twilight, Shining, Spike, and Midnight turned their eyes up as well. Up, high up in the celestial firmament, where the stars and constellations danced, there was a single star that did not sparkle, nor shine quite like the others. All the others were silver and gold, and they moved as stars were wont to do in dreams, back and forth in indistinct patterns based on a thousand glitching memories and recollections. This star, however, was blue. This star was steady, and unmoving. This star, Midnight realized, her heart leaping out of her chest, wasn’t a star! Principal Luna, Pony-Upped in every way identical to her Princess self save for a purple and pink dress the school administrator wore, sat cross-legged, upside down at the tip of the vault of the skies. She appeared to be meditating, existing, simply Being as she drifted up there in the heavens. And then, she opened her eyes, and pure silver light poured forth. Seeing this, Shadow cried out in terror, but was drowned in the silent roar of Light. Beams of silver light shot out from Principal Luna’s form, each like a lance tearing across the skies. Six beams precisely, flew across the Dream Realm, lighting up the edge of night. As they hit their marks, the world exploded. Night was swept aside as each star and lance burst out into a rainbow of light. The first star popped like a balloon, letting in a ray of pure pink light and the rumbling sounds of cannon fire. The second exploded with a dull, musical roar that swept rays of crisp green, gold, and red across the sky, accompanied by a sound like the strumming of a god’s guitar. Purple light followed next, pushing aside the dust and the smoke, leaving only the wondrous glitter and shine of crystalline palaces behind. And a buttery yellow shaft of sunlight followed afterward, almost silently, and as it passed the grass itself seemed to leap to life all around Midnight’s feet. Flowers and butterflies bloomed in the grass, and in the warming air. Midnight spun around, watching the light pour in from these holes in reality, these cracks in her mind. Watching the sky of her dream world crumble should have filled her with terror, but everywhere the light fell, her world became beautiful again. She could actually feel it, somehow. Like a cool summer breeze against a feverish temple. The distant Crystal Empire Palace gleamed like diamonds. The air smelled of baking bread, and Shadow’s red flames, already sputtering across the horizon, began to blow away. The night sky, little more than a tapestry hanging over their heads, finally ripped itself away as a lightning bolt trailing a rainbow slammed through it, another beam of light from beyond. The last beam did not strike the sky, nor did it heal the ground or the buildings of the dream. It dropped straight from Principal Luna, and flew straight down towards Midnight. And as it landed, the other beams turned and followed. Converging feet away, the lights finally dimmed. The world was beautiful again. The sun was shining brightly, and there was laughter once more. For all of Midnight’s friends were here at last. “Okay,” said Rainbow Dash as she emerged from the font of light, cracking her neck and shoulders like she’d had a good workout, “now that was pretty awesome!” Fluttershy emerged next, eyes wide as she cooed. “Oh! It’s so beautiful here! You have a lovely shared imagination, Twilight and Midnight!” Twilight’s jaw hung loose from her head for a moment. Then, she snapped her mouth closed, shook her head, and grinned from ear-to-ear. “Girls!” she cried, running to meet each one as they appeared. Rarity and Pinkie came next, with the former gushing as she saw the distant crystal buildings, “My word! I may be a bit biased, but diamond buildings? Are we sure we’re not in one of my dreams?” “Eh, I dunno,” Pinkie pondered, scratching her puffy mane. “If this was your dream, wouldn’t Applejack be here?” “Pinkie!” Rarity snarled in a dainty fashion, “Don’t be uncouth, darling. I…” “Ga-zooks! That were a blast!” Applejack laughed and cheered as she materialized next. “But all it took was a little spin-n-shine ta clean this place up, I reckon!” Glaring at Pinkie’s cat-like smirk, Rarity could only growl and make scoffing noises. And all was forgotten as soon as it was said, as Twilight leapt into their arms, and began drawing each and every one of the girls into a happy, tearful hug. Midnight did not join in. Though the shouts of mirth and laughter called to her, beckoned for her to cast aside all sense of doubt and shame… there was one more person to walk out of the summoning light. She stepped out of the light, and just like earlier that very day, Sunset Shimmer appeared to Midnight as nothing less than an angel, an ancient statue of the divine wrought in flesh. Her wings and horn were still testament to her recent transformation, and her flowing white clothes seemed at least superficially the same style – the same elegant and ancient style – as Princess Luna’s own. Sunset Shimmer looked to Midnight, and smiled softly as their eyes met. But before Sunset could speak, Principal Luna landed softly nearby, almost collapsing to the ground before Spike and Shining propped the poor, exhausted woman up. She also shared a tired smile with those around her, seemingly fitting right in as yet another member of the Pony-Upped club. Midnight swallowed, and looked on. Everywhere, there were smiles. Everyone was happy to be here, happy to see her. Happy to help. Yet, even through her own haze of laughter and glee… there was something holding her back. But… “THIS IS NOT OVER!” Everyone, briefly distracted by the light show and reunion, spun around to face the unearthly shout. Shadow stood beyond them all, beyond Luna’s shield still, as a dark pillar of flame and madness. Now, without the red flames and damages of before to strengthen her, the Incubus was smaller, though she still remained a giant amongst the regular humans. As the dream world was made beautiful again, she only looked more out of place than ever before. “Eugh!” Rarity squealed in disgust. “Red and black!? Darling! Now I know you can’t be another personality trapped in here. No one with a real soul could tolerate such a thing!” Dash sighed, and cocked an eyebrow at her friend. “Really, Rares? We’re focusing on that? Not the whole dream demon trying to hurt our friend, thing?” Rarity blushed, and gave an embarrassed titter. “Oh, yes that does put things into perspective, I suppose.” She cast a disapproving eye at Shadow’s outfit, all the same. Said demon snarled, and seethed again. Her hair flared up once more, and she gnashed her black fangs in frustration. “Friend?” she growled. “Friend!? What friends!? You don’t have friends, Midnight! You have people who pity you! They only came here to save their real friend, Twilight!” “HEY!” a voice cried out with an animal-like fury, shattering Shadow’s rhythm as soon as it had begun. All eyes turned back around, to where a certain usually peaceful and quiet Fluttershy now stood, glowering. Fluttershy tucked a long strand of her pink hair back, and continued scowling at the demon. “How dare you say something like that?” she growled. “Midnight is too our friend!” Shadow stuttered, not quite sure how to handle this situation. She clearly didn’t have any practical knowledge of how to deal with an angry Fluttershy.  “N-no!” she called back, trying to shore up the tone of her voice again, “None of you are really friends with her! You barely know her! “I’m the only real friend she’s ever had!” Shadow spat flames from her mouth. Fluttershy took a deep breath, and seemed to steady herself. Her glare lingered on the giant demon for only a moment. Then, she turned back towards Midnight, and her smile returned. “Midnight,” she whispered, perhaps suddenly aware of all the attention on her, “Do you consider us friends?” Midnight blinked, surprised at the question, and at its sudden direction towards her. Somehow, the question gave her serious pause. “I…” she began to say. Shadow stomped forward, right up to the edge of Princess Luna’s shield, and cried, “NO!” Midnight flinched under the weight of that one word, and the fel wind which accompanied it. She nearly knelt from the force of Shadow’s denial, but something held her up. Something that caused her to stand, even as a final wave of dread overtook her mind. Fluttershy hadn’t moved at all. And her smile hadn’t faded. In fact, Midnight couldn’t help but think it had gotten brighter from a moment ago. Genuine concern, and kindness rolled off the other girl like… like she was an Element of Harmony, really. What better metaphor could there be? “I would like to,” Midnight whispered. “I would really like to. But… you don’t know me…” Midnight could feel Shadow grinning like a madwoman behind her, but that grin faltered as Fluttershy’s smile remained. Actually, she let out a little giggle, and shook her head slowly. “Oh, Midnight… but we do know you.” She clasped her hands before her, as if Fluttershy was holding a microphone up to her lips. “When you sang with me and the Dazzlings,” she said, her soft voice melodical as she spoke, “I could tell you were nervous, and scared when your voice changed. But you showed real courage, and strength as well! You sang, even when you were scared, and afterwards with Aria? You also had the strength to admit you were scared. “You were so inspiring to me, how you dealt with your fear,” she sighed. Then, with another giggle, she asked, “How are we not friends?” Her words almost sounded like… like a ringing bell. A single, clarion tone carrying across the vast gulf of the universe, stretching from Fluttershy straight to Midnight’s heart. Midnight could feel it, that sound. She could feel it in her soul. Her shattered geode, lying on the ground where it had been dropped and forgotten, stirred. Rarity huffed, and crossed her arms. “Darling,” she said in the tone of a disappointed soccer coach cracking the whip, “How could you believe we’re not friends? When we talked before, you were so generous with your time! You let me…” She sighed, and blushed. “I’ll admit, sometimes I go a little too far with my fascinations and my eccentricities. But you were kind enough to indulge me in my whims!” Rarity said with a smile. “Would someone who wasn’t a friend do something like that? Make themselves uncomfortable for someone else? And you were just a darling when you gave me that magic mirror of yours…!” Twilight grumbled behind Midnight, saying just a bit too quietly for Rarity to hear, “Oh, great. Now we need another Hearth’s Warming gift idea…” Midnight tried to swallow, but it was like her mouth was full of thick, soupy marshmallows. It didn’t help that her glasses were beginning to fog up with tears again. Stupid how glasses tear up like that, she thought wryly to herself. Suddenly, she half-heard a sound. A twinkling, tinkling sound of glass. It was muffled slightly by the thunderous, shrill cries of Shadow as the demon wilted behind Midnight's back. But Rainbow Dash had already zoomed over to her, and threw one arm around Midnight’s shoulders. “And, hey!” Rainbow laughed, “You went along with all my pranks! Even gave as good as you got! No one besides Applejack has ever managed to reverse-uno me like that! You were alright in my books the second you got Pinkie to turncoat.” “Ooh!” Pinkie squee’d with delight, and bounced on over to the dulcet sound of Shadow snarling and screaming beyond the bubble-shield. “That was so much fun! I don’t know about you, but anyone who has that kind of sense of humor is my kinda gal! “Also,” she grinned manically, and pulled out a fist-sized hunk of chocolate from her voluminous hair, “I still got that chocolate bar you supersized for me! I’d be your friend just for that…!” Sunset choked back a sudden scream, dragging everyone’s attention back to her, and not to the tiny gem shards drifting up from the ground. “Uh, sorry,” Sunset said with a deep blush. “Didn’t mean to interrupt, but… supersizing food is illegal in Equestria for good, ah...” She sighed. “Look, just see a doctor tomorrow, okay Pinkie? I don’t want to ruin this moment…” Though Pinkie somewhat deflated for a second, Midnight couldn’t feel anything other than a sense of welling joy. A bright, floaty, bouncy feeling bubbling up in her heart, and filling her head. It was like being lighter than air, as each of her friends came forward. But now, she couldn’t ignore that other thing. The shards of her geode floated up into her line of sight, and it didn’t surprise her at all. Even the way one shard glowed pink, another purple, another blue… The Magic of Friendship... No, there was no surprise there. Just the sound of glass clinking together, and a distant wail from the Shadow. “Midnight,” Sunset said, taking a slow, cautious step forward, “You and I… got started on rocky footing. But, since then… I’ve seen how you act. And I’ve seen how you think, and feel.” She rested a hand on Midnight’s shoulder, and the two shared a smile as they watched another shard light up. “I understand you,” Sunset added. “You hide it pretty well, but what happened between us clearly weighed on you. And when… when I was low, you stood by me. You tried to make that connection. Not because it would make you feel better, but because you thought I needed to hear it. “We’re friends, Midnight.” Sunset smirked, and raised an eyebrow. “You don’t actually get a choice with that one, by the way.” One by one, the glowing geode shards began to pull together, tightening their orbit as everyone looked on. Spike and Shining held their breaths, watching the display, and both Lunas did as well with a knowing gleam in their eyes. Applejack sighed, and scratched at the back of her head, briefly flicking her pony ear playfully as she walked up as well. “Shoot, Sugarcube,” she said, forcing a chagrined smile onto her face, “I know we ain’t had much time ta see each other or hang out like the rest of this bunch, but that ain’t fer lack of tryin’. My cousins seem ta like ya a lot, and that’s more’n enough for me. “But that’s one nice thing about friends,” she said with a little more force, a little more conviction. “We ain’t got ta live with each other ta be friends. It ain’t a transaction, you give me somethin’ an I give you somethin’. We got all kinds a’time ta do fun stuff.” Applejack reached out, and ruffled Midnight’s hair with one hand. “I reckon I’m your friend,” she laughed, “If’n ye’ll have me, of course.” One shard pressed into another, and the seam-like cracks began to smooth over. One after another, each broken piece of geode, awash in color, drifted back to each other, and became one. In no time at all, the pendant was whole once more. Midnight reached her hands out. For a moment, she hesitated, afraid that touching the restored geode might… She paused. Midnight turned around, and met her sister’s gaze. Twilight Sparkle and Midnight Sparkle stood barely a foot apart, under a fake daylight dream. Their geode pendants each burned with their magical auras, and they were completely surrounded by their closest and dearest friends. But in that moment, that frozen moment of eternity, there was only Twilight and Midnight Sparkle. Midnight knew the smile her sister gave her. There’s nothing more to say, between us. They each reached one hand to the other, and light bloomed all around. They were standing out in front of the school. It was Monday, and the world had just been saved. Twilight, though more a spirit now than flesh and blood, sighed in relief as it became apparent that the world had indeed survived the little Chaos-induced disaster she’d just lived through. The effects of Discord and Disqord’s ill-timed prank were fading away, leaving behind all their friends to celebrate the win. Mostly, anyway. Time, space, and all relevant dimensions were somewhat suspect while she was trapped here, in the gray nothing of her mental landscape, but in between the first and second second that this realization occurred, Twilight realized she wasn’t quite alone with her own thoughts. “Hey!” she called out to a distant, retreating figure. Midnight Sparkle didn’t turn around. She paused, and remained still, waiting for Twilight to continue. Twilight rushed over to her other half, and frowned. “Where are you going?” “What?” Midnight asked. She half-turned, and looked over her shoulder. “I… didn’t mean to interrupt. Your friends are probably waiting…” “Where are you going?” Twilight repeated, more earnestly. “You… you won. I already gave you the body.” Midnight bit her lip. Then, she sighed, and turned away once more. “I… look,” she began, “It was stupid, what I did. And… and I guess I just don’t feel like taking over today. So, head back. I bet… I bet Pinkie’s gonna throw a party after this.” “Don’t you want to come?” Midnight spun around, wings snapping at the nonexistent air. “They don’t invite the Monster to the party, Twilight!” she snarled. Then, realizing what she’d said, and how, Midnight cringed at her own behavior. “Look, it’s… I’m not welcome there. They’re your friends…” “Our friends,” Twilight corrected. And for a moment, Midnight didn’t contradict her. “They don’t want to see me,” she whispered. “I almost took you away from them, again.” “You won the bet,” Twilight said with a forced smile. “Come on, at least give them a chance!” “I didn’t win the bet,” Midnight scoffed, and turned away. “I lost. I… everything I ever wanted to achieve is… It doesn’t matter anymore. I lost. I always lose…” Twilight pushed past, and found Midnight’s face again. “Your friends love you, Midnight. They want to celebrate with you.” Midnight said nothing. She crossed her arms, and sank down deep within herself. “They don’t know me…” “Then give them a chance to!” Twilight cried. “They’ll prove it to you if you only give them that chance. Just spend some time with them, and…” “Heh, while time-sharing?” Midnight grumbled. “Sorry, but like I said, they already think I took you away from them. Not gonna happen.” But Twilight wasn’t listening to her. Her eyes moved in quick, jittery jumps, like she was reading very small, fine print on a math test. Midnight noticed. “Uh, Twi?” she asked, her eyebrow raised. “You okay? You’re doing that calculating thing…?” “They just need time to get to know you…” Midnight frowned. “Twilight?” Twilight muttered to herself, “They just need… Maybe there’s a way…?” “Twilight? What are you…?” “There’s a way we can both live!” Twilight suddenly shouted, arms punching the nonexistent sky. “Uh, what?” Midnight asked, frowning even deeper. “Twi? You’re losing me here…” But Twilight wasn’t listening, a feat considering she was just a disembodied set of memories pacing in a metaphysical space right next to Midnight. “All we’d need is a Cognitive Targeting Spell, to pick apart the two personalities,” Twilight hummed to herself, while Midnight listened in with growing horror, “though if there’s a memory-leak, we’d need a Memetic Sieve to…” “What!? NO! That’s insane!” Midnight balked. “The chances of failure… my gosh! Even success is almost just as catastrophic! Getting a single variable wrong could erase entire swaths of our… your engrams!” “But it will work!” Twilight protested, mathematical equations flying up and around her in the nonexistent air. “These calculations… you did them yourself, right? You know this will work!” “I… ran some numbers, yes,” Midnight scoffed, and shrugged. “But that’s… that was just to keep me occupied while I worked on destroying you and taking over…” “Gee, thanks for the reminder…” “Good!” Midnight snapped, “Good! Remember that! I tried to kill you! I tried to kill everyone! I don’t deserve what you’re offering. “I don’t deserve to be happy! I can’t let you…!” Midnight trailed off, her eyes unfocusing. What she’d just said slowly came back around to her, and… she couldn’t quite argue against it. I don’t deserve to be happy. “Midnight,” a soft voice called her attention back to what passed here, in the mind’s eye, for reality. Twilight Sparkle was smiling at her. “Midnight, you’re not letting me do anything,” she whispered, her voice just a hair’s length from cracking. “You… we both deserve this.” No words came from Midnight. She couldn’t form them. Not yet. What Twilight said was taking up too much room in her head to make her own words. “We both deserve this,” Twilight repeated, her hands finding and clasping Midnight’s own. “It’s a chance to heal. A real chance to deal with what happened to us. “And it’s a real chance at friendship.” “After everything I did to you?” Midnight asked, her own voice cracking, and dream-tears falling down her cheeks. “After all that?” Twilight’s grip shifted, and soon the two Sparkles had one another arm-in-arm, pressed close together. So close, so intimately close… It was like having a sibling. A sister, right there beside Midnight. “After all you did… how could I not?” Twilight asked, and leaned in close to hammer her point home. “You are me! A me that… that didn’t get that chance before when she needed it most. I want to fix that. I want to give you everything you’ve ever wanted, that I already got.” “Magic?” Midnight bit her tongue, a flash of red in her cheeks at the unintended moment of reflexive honesty. “Friendship, Midnight,” Twilight laughed, and her laugh in that moment sounded like glass bells, pure music to Midnight’s ears. Midnight felt a dry chuckle come out of her own mouth, and after an awkward moment wondering just what to say… she laughed as well. They laughed together, in the grey void in between seconds, in their own mind. Two girls, born from the memory of one. A girl that once wanted nothing more than to discover the arcane secrets of magic. A girl that once nearly destroyed everything out of spite and anger and sheer curiosity. A girl who used to wonder what friendship could be. Midnight pulled Twilight into a hug, and felt her… her sister hold her back. “What do you need from me… Sis?” As the light faded, and they exited the shared memory, Midnight and Twilight were still embracing each other. Their arms were wrapped tight around one another, foreheads touching and tears streaming down their faces. The rainbow-bright haze of light around them fled slowly, seeping into the air, the ground, and everything else in the dream world. The last of Shadow’s fires fell away, replaced by greenery where dream-nature had burned, and bright crystalline beauty where dream-buildings were. The sky, still blessed by bright daylight since their friends’ reunion, shifted to a dark, gorgeous midnight blue hue, crisscrossed by gold and silver stars and constellations like the dome of the Starswirl astrology exhibit a few months back, except that these constellations swam through the night sky, and nearer to the horizon a deep purple and red sunset burned as warm as a Hearth’s Warming fireplace. All their friends oohed, and awed, with Pinkie alone pointing out how the sky in Twilight and Midnight’s dreams was like a fusion of twilight and midnight – “Tee hee, I get it!” – but it was only as Midnight opened her eyes that she saw precisely what they were gasping at. Twilight looked exactly the same. Same bright blue blouse and starry skirt, and same pony ears and wings. But something was different. Something important. Her geode was whole. Both of their geodes were whole, as if they'd always been two instead of one. At her neck, Midnight’s geode blazed with her aquamarine light. Her own pony ears perked up atop her head, and her own pony wings, the same as her sister’s stretched out at her sides. The dream glasses she'd been wearing were gone, leaving the rest of Midnight's world as crystal clear as it should have been. She spun around – causing Rarity to ‘ooh’ and ‘awe’ and ‘darling!’ all over again – and took stock of her outfit. Sure, it was sparkling and bedazzled with colorful sequins, but the long purple coat quite suited her, she thought. Especially with the dark leggings and somewhat dainty combat boots. Still, Midnight sniffed and hummed with a note of disappointment. “Is something wrong?” Sunset asked. Midnight hummed again. Then, shrugging, she said, “Eh. I was hoping for some leather pants, but these will do…” Despite Rarity’s aggravated sigh, everyone else burst into a fit of laughter, throwing their heads back, and letting the sound carry into the dream-wind. But they didn’t laugh long. Or, at least long and alone, as Midnight threw her arms around the nearest two she could catch – Fluttershy and Pinkie, as it happened – and pulled the two into a fearsome hug. And then, in no time at all, still laughing and crying all the stress and worry and fear away, Midnight found herself surrounded by all her friends. Sunset, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Pinkie, Fluttershy, Twilight, Spike, Shining… Even the two Lunas shared in the moment of light and love. But, once that moment had passed, Midnight saw there was a single, notable, absence. And so, she broke the group hug first, and started walking to find her. It was surprisingly difficult to spot poor Shadow, amidst all the light and greenery that her world had become. She was much as she’d first appeared; like Twilight under a red light. Even her wings had faded, becoming literal shadows hanging limply from her form. The demon did not seem so scary now. Now, she looked afraid. Now, she looked sad. Shadow huddled in the grass, grasping her own arms and holding herself like she was trapped in a blizzard. She shivered, and whined almost silently, keeping her eyes locked onto the ground before her. “It can’t… not possible… I won… I won…” She was muttering to herself now. Midnight took one breath, and stepped forward, ignoring the soft gasps and whispers of her friends behind her. “Hey,” she said. “Hey, Shadow.” At first, Shadow wouldn’t look up. But after a moment, perhaps a mote of curiosity got to her. Slowly, she raised her head, revealing her sightless black eyes, black tears running down her cheeks. Midnight met her gaze, and held it. Then, she held her hand out. Shadow stared at the hand. Then, she looked up to Midnight, and back to the hand. She didn’t seem to know which to look at, if Midnight was being honest. “What is this?” Shadow asked, her voice just above a ghost, and fading fast. “Come on,” Midnight said, trying to smile in spite of herself. “You really think I’m going to leave you here? Alone? “Even if you’re just some… spirit,” she said, “or a ghost or a mental break or… whatever! You don’t have to be, right? Wouldn’t it be nice to… to leave here?” Midnight held her hand out again. “Come on. Take my hand.” Shadow continued to stare at her. The look she gave Midnight could have been anything. It could have been incredulity. It could have been shock. Fear. Anger. She reached for Midnight’s hand. And slapped it away. As Shadow finally faded away into the true nothingness from whence she came, she snarled an icy, ghostlike: “Never…” She was gone. Midnight pursed her lips, and breathed slowly through her nose. She slowly stood up, and let the breath go, along with any regrets she might have still had. “I’m proud of you,” Twilight said, coming up behind her. “That was very kind of you. Though, I guess not everyone is ready for that sort of thing.” “Yeah,” Midnight said, quietly. Then, she turned back to her sister, and smiled. “I’m happy that, when you offered it to me, I was.” Twilight smiled back. “So am I. And now, we have proof that some memories might be able to be restored, given the right sort of inciting incidents.” “Twi? If I have to fight my literal inner-demons every time I want to remember how often you’ve made out with Timber Spruce, I’m so done with remembering things…” “Hey!” Twilight slapped Midnight upside the head, though with barely enough force to count as a tap. The two laughed again, and turned back towards their friends. The Lunas seemed to take this to be their cue, as they each also turned to face the assembled Rainbooms and family. “With that, I do believe the events of this evening have concluded!” Princess Luna sighed with relief. “And it would appear that all is once again well in the House of Sparkle.” “Uh, isn’t this her brain though?” “Rainbow Dash, you…” Principal Luna blew a snort in a near-perfect imitation of a horse, and simply shook her head. The Princess nodded to her apprentice, and said, “Regardless, it is high time you all went back to your own dreams. My counterpart should be commended for learning how to weave multiple dreams together with so little practice, but that I shall take care of in its own time. “For now, sweet dreams, my little ponies.” There was a beat. “Yes, I realized what I said. Get out, and Good Night!” One by one, the members of the Rainbooms vanished in puffs of light as Principal Luna cut their connections to Midnight and Twilight’s dream. As each left, they waved goodbye, and wished their friends a good night’s rest. As the last one left, Midnight felt a heavy arm fall across her shoulders. She leaned into Shining’s half-hug, and sighed contentedly. “So? Feeling better?” he asked, his voice back to his chipper, upbeat tone. Midnight hummed, and nodded, but said nothing. Shining laughed, and said, “Good. Then get us back home and we can finally get a good night's sleep!” There was a cough, nearby. Shining turned to see one of the Lunas give him a meaningful look. “What?” he asked. Luna – the Princess, he guessed – pressed her lips into a thin line, and said, “It is actually close to dawn, by now.” Shining felt his eye twitch. “Oh?” “Mm,” Luna said with a stiff nod. “Time does not always flow neatly while in the Dream Realm. It has been almost nine hours since you entered here…” If human ears could droop like a pony’s, Shining’s would have. “Oh… cool,” he sighed, and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Then… get us home so we can crash for a few hours before the most important date of my life…” Taking that cue, Midnight broke from her brother’s hug, and started for where Twilight was quietly chatting with Spike. Gotta get that portal set up. I only have a few hours till… Aria… She stopped. A certain Principal was standing in her way. “Well, look at you!” Midnight said with a genuine smile. “Helping out and everything! Though how you’ve got the pony bits…” Luna nodded, and said, “Ah, well, I don’t pretend to understand it myself. But Princess Luna was kind enough to lend me some of her own magic through a crystal of some sort.” “Cool, yeah,” Midnight laughed, and snapped her fingers, “that makes sense. Right.” “Midnight?” “Yes?” Luna frowned. She waited another moment, just long enough for Midnight’s smile to start to strain, before she said, “You realize this isn’t over.” It wasn’t a question. Midnight sighed. “Yeah…” “This demon will come back so long as the source of your stress remains, and remains untended to,” Luna said in a solemn voice. “Now, I suppose another… Split is out of the question? To remove the last of your dream tether with Twilight?” “Absolutely off the table!” Midnight stated firmly. “I don’t care if I have to share my dreams for the rest of my life, nothing’s worth trying that again!” “Good, very good.” Luna nodded with approval. “Then we are agreed!” “Agreed?” Midnight asked, frowning. “The school works with a number of psychiatrists in Canterlot City,” said Luna, placing her hands behind her back. “Several of them are fully aware of Equestria and its magic…” “What!?” Luna ignored the outburst. “Many of our students have confided in them about what’s happened since the Fall Formal. Even my sister and I have sought out their assistance in dealing with the relatively new stressors that have appeared since magic came to our world.” “So… you want me to see a shrink?” Midnight half-laughed. “I believe you and your sister should see a psychiatrist, yes,” Luna agreed. “Talking to others about our problems is a great way to deal with them. If not, it at least gives you another person to confide in, don’t you think?” Midnight sighed, and rolled her eyes. “I guess. Yeah… fine.” She shook her head, and walked past her Principal, saying, “Set it up! We’ll go…” Luna smiled, and said, “Excellent! I shall make the call in the morning… Or, now, I suppose!” Finally free, Midnight trudged towards Twilight and Spike. Perhaps it was Luna’s talk of psychiatrists, or perhaps because of the many, many hours she’d been awake without sleep, but Midnight was finally feeling… tired. Bone-tired. “… do you think?” She caught the end of something Spike said to Twilight. The little puppy wagged his tail, and looked up at his owner… no, his sister expectantly. Twilight hummed, and scratched at her chin. “It’s… tricky…” “What is?” asked Midnight as she arrived. “Spike wants us to cast a transformation spell on him,” Twilight answered, though distantly, her thoughts still lost as she pondered. “He actually wants to be human.” Midnight glanced down at her little brother, and raised her eyebrows. “Really?” “Really!” he barked back. “Seriously, opposable thumbs are the least cool thing I’ve been meaning to get in on…” A deep, long yawn cut him off. A yawn that snuck up on Midnight next. “… Dang it, Spike!” she growled. “I almost made it without…” She yawned again. And then Twilight yawned. “Okay,” Twilight sighed, “We better get that portal open before we fall asleep inside our own head.” “Can’t screw much more up, can we?” Midnight asked with a smile. Twilight chuckled, and turned back to see where Shining had gotten to. Waving him and the Lunas over, Twilight leaned over towards Midnight, and caught her eye. “Something else?” asked Midnight. “No,” Twilight said, quietly. “Just… wondering about some things. About… the future, I guess.” Midnight snorted, and reached up to touch her geode. As the magic flowed through her, and she focused her mind on the task at hand, and as Twilight’s own magic flowed into and around her as well… “I wouldn’t worry about it,” she said, sighing with content. “It’s just the first day of the rest of our lives, right? No biggie…” “Right… no biggie at all!” Luna awoke from the dream slowly, like a swimmer gently letting the current carry her from sleeping to waking. The light faded in, followed by chirping birdsong, followed by the long, loud, elephantine snores of her sister Celestia, who slept fitfully mere feet away on the same couch. With a start, Luna went from slowly awakening to ramrod straight up and alert. She had been lying on the couch in her living room, without blankets or pillows at all. It was as if she’d just been dumped there by… Celestia turned over in her sleep and let out another room-shaking snore. Luna, deciding she needed a moment to think, hopped up and made a break for the kitchen. This was about when she realized that the other Luna was still in her house. The Princess was, naturally, still a winged unicorn… horse thing. Apparently that was something to do with teleporting through portals…  There’s too much magic these days, Luna bemoaned. Can’t keep any of it straight. The Princess was also, naturally, sitting patiently on the kitchen floor for the instant coffee machine to finish pouring her a cup. The other… three previous cups, by Luna’s count, were scattered about in bits and pieces, along with approximately a couple pots’ worth of cold coffee splashed over the floor and cabinets. “Ah, yes!” the Princess cheered as her cup was properly filled with hot coffee. “Finally, thou vile machine! I have bested thee! Your inky black treasure shall be mine! Mine! Mine!” “Princess Luna?” The Princess eeped, and nearly went sprawling across the floor in her attempt to turn around and face whatever foalish fool had the audacity to— Her face lit up. “Ah! My apprentice! You have awakened!” “And you have destroyed my kitchen,” Luna said with a raised eyebrow and a low growl. “Care to explain this?” Princess Luna blushed, and glanced about at the casual destruction she’d left in her wake. “Ah… yes, I am quite sorry about the mess,” she said, slowly, “But I thought I could make everypo- everyone some coffee. I just… forgot that my magic isn’t all that strong in this universe…” Luna watched the tiny Princess lower her head in shame, and had to try very, very hard not to ‘awww’ or otherwise dote on her. It’s rather infuriating how cute these ponies can be. The Princess sighed, and looked back up at her human self. “Nevertheless, I should probably have just asked permission before… I…” Her voice slowly trailed off. Her eyes widened as her pupils shrank. Luna frowned, and cocked her head curiously to the side. “Is… is something the matter? What are you looking at?” “Ah… nothing,” Princess Luna obviously lied. Human Luna tried to follow the pony’s eyes, and found that they were aiming at something just above her head. Luna tilted her eyes up, and finally caught sight of that something. It was her hair. Her hair was moving. Billowing in an invisible breeze, in fact. Luna felt a tight knot form in her stomach as she watched her own hair moving without her permission. “Luna…?” she asked, and slowly tilted her head down to a suddenly sweating pony Princess. “Tell me that this wears off.” Princess Luna licked her lips. She reached back with one hoof, and snatched up her cup of coffee with a surprising amount of dexterity for somepony with a hoof instead of hands. She knocked back the mug, and seemed to down the entirety of its contents in moments. Then, after taking a few calming breaths, the Princess smiled, somewhat manically, and laughed, though not convincingly. “On the positive side of things,” she began, “It’s very easy to clean, it looks great on you, and you can sometimes get it to stop by wearing a scrunchie…”