Silver Wing woke up on account of being really thirsty. He had the desire to quench it, but he could barely stand, let alone walk.
It was the middle of the night. Or at least, there was no trace of sunlight in the sky that he could see from his room's window.
In a moment of weakness and laziness, he activated his broomstick enchantments to float downstairs and get a glass of water.
The lights had been off. It was late. Nopony should have been in the public library when it was closed.
"WELCOME TO PONYOhmygoshyou'reanalicorn!"
The entire town was in the library.
Well, not the entire town, but more than enough of it.
A good amount of adrenaline forced him fully awake, and he immediately dropped to the ground. His mind quickly generated a defense, almost on automatic.
"Don't jump to conclusions, Pinkie." He sighed dramatically, tapping his horn with his hoof and almost startling at the fact that it was sensitive. "It could just be an incredibly good costume."
This probably would have been sufficient to trick the town. Widened eyes were unwidening, beginning to roll, beginning to believe that they weren't looking at Equestria's newest-
"Dern it colt," said Applejack, present at the party. "What did I say 'bout bein' truthful?"
And eyes began to widen again.
"That I should do it more, which is why I have. I told the truth just now. I can honestly say that I'm not a prince, and the truth is that it could just be a costume."
Eyes began to roll...
"That there might be the truth, but it ain't honest. What'd I tell ya 'bout trickin' ponies?"
And now everypony was just confused.
"And what did I tell you about privacy?" Silver asked back. It had come out slightly scathing, thanks to a memory of past annoyance with Applejack.
The game of truth or dare, played between him and her and Twilight and Rarity months ago, had ended when Silver refused to answer a question he didn't want to answer. After his deceptively true words had fallen through in the presence of the Element of Honesty.
"What's that got ta do with anything?" asked the Element of Unforeseen Consequences.
Silver would have pinched the bridge of his nose if he had fingers. "I'll put it this way. Since you got in the way of the trick, you get to make sure this-" he pointed at his horn "-doesn't get out to the rest of Equestria. Or if it does, you deal with the consequences. You break up the paparazzi. You ward off the gawkers. You make sure my life isn't ruined by all the extra attention that could have been avoided by one little deception. Sound fair?"
Applejack's jaw dropped.
"Sounds fair to me," said the Element of Laughter, who was giggling. Then, being her usual self, Pinkie launched into his personal space and started launching personal questions...
"What happened? Where were you? How'd you get a horn? Where's Philomena? Oh, I didn't finish saying it, so WELCOME TO PONYVILLE!"
...that Silver successfully ignored in favor of the library's front door, which had just opened to reveal-
Coincidence, thought Silver's Inner Critic. Twilight and Hermione walk into the library with Pinkie shouting those words at that EXACT moment? And I just happened to be getting a drink of water at the perfect time to set this all up in the first place?
Seers are above coincidence, Silver's Ravenclaw part quoted in reply, and it is beneath them. Seems Snape was right about that. The only thing I'd like to know is... "Isn't it a little late for a welcome party?"
"Nopie-lopie-dopie!" said Pinkie. "It's just on time! My twitchy tail told me to wait because you two weren't here yet, and now you are, so here's your party! It's a double party!"
"Why not wait for a triple party with Mr. Book?"
"He's not here yet, silly! And he's not Mr. Book anymore."
Silver was tempted to ask what she meant by that, but he learned early on to stop asking when her answers started adding to the confusion.
Are we only 'here' because we're alicorns? And we're not self-actualized yet, so even now, doesn't that mean we're not fully here? Or do you just mean that Hermione's finally back and we're both physically present? And how much do you actually know for that matter?
None of these questions would have gotten straight answers, not that he'd've been able to ask some of them in the first place.
"Did your Pinkie sense tell you how I feel about typical parties?" he asked instead. He didn't like small talk or silly games.
"Yepperino!" Pinkie replied peppily. She pulled out a box of small sugar cookies from her hair. "I had to think extra hard to plan some super special party games just so you wouldn't be bored, Mister Picky. First game: cookie face!"
Which, after a bit of explaining, involved...
The object: a cookie, placed on a pony's forehead (or on top of the base of their horn).
The goal: get the cookie in your mouth.
The constraints: no hooves, no magic.
Intended solution path: use facial muscles to move cookie to mouth.
The prizes: Fastest pony gets a free day at the spa.
Second fastest pony gets a magical item (no further descriptors).
Third fastest pony gets fifty bits of credit at the bakery.
Everypony else who won would choose from a pile of nick-knacks.
"Can I go last?" Silver asked.
"You can go whenever you want," said Pinkie. "You're the party colt!"
"What if Memory wants to go last, too? Isn't she the party filly?"
While this question was busy breaking Pinkie Pie, Silver disengaged and reengaged. Other ponies had already started practicing cookie face, so he wasn't the center of attention anymore, letting him move through the library without ponies staring at him.
"Did I miss anything when I was out?"
"Almost," Twilight answered. Her horn glowed, and a few presents floated out from beneath a decorated tree in the center of the library. "Happy Hearth's Warming."
"Um..." What's Hearth's Warm- "Thanks. I'm sorry I didn't get you two anything."
"What you did for me was more than enough," said Hermione.
Twilight used her magic to pull them into a hug. "And I'd say bringing the brightest pony I've ever met into my library is a plenty good present. Now go ahead and open yours."
He looked at the presents.
Looked at his hooves.
"You know," he spoke in a speculative tone, "I might appreciate a magic lesson just as much as whatever's in these. Is the levitation spell something that can be learned in minutes?"
"Not usually," said Twilight, at the same time Hermione said, "Yes."
"But," Hermione added, "I don't think you should try it. I've been practicing for three days and I wouldn't be able to open a present with unicorn magic if I tried for ten minutes."
Silver nodded, then set about grasping the wrapping paper with hooves. He got the hang of it soon enough, and soon enough he was the proud new owner of...
The 'suit' he'd requested from Rarity for the Gala way back when...
A book titled Credible Conspiracies, from Hermione...
A book titled So You Want to Use Magic? from Twilight...
A pair of flight goggles from Rainbow Dash...
A note from Fluttershy saying some of her friends would like new homes, if he wanted a pet...
An apple pie from Applejack...
Two more pies from Pinkie, one cherry, one blueberry, both with notes reading, 'for throwing, not eating'...
And two admittance letters to Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns, probably from Celestia herself. He passed the extra to Hermione.
"Silver!" shouted Pinkie. "You're next! You too, Memory."
"I'd rather not play that game."
"Then I'll be right back," Silver said. He walked to the box of cookies. "What are the times to beat?"
"First place is Apple Bloom at twenty-seven seconds. Second place is Scootaloo at thirty-two. Third place is Button Mash at thirty-nine. Think you can beat 'em?"
"Oh, I know I could, so long as I don't miss," said Silver, grabbing a cookie and putting it just above his horn. "But I'm not going for first place. Can somepony count out loud?"
"Sure!" Pinkie pulled a watch from her hair. "Ready, steady, go! One, two, three, four, five... um, Silver? I said 'go'!"
"Keep counting please," said Silver, carefully maintaining balance of the cookie.
At the twenty-six second mark, he crouched slightly, craned his neck, then pumped his head up like a piston, sending the cookie into the air. His eye-mouth coordination was barely good enough to chomp down on the cookie as it fell.
"Hay!" shouted a colt slightly younger than him. "That's cheating!"
Silver chewed and swallowed. "I didn't use magic and I didn't use hooves," he said. "If you don't break the rules, it's called technique, not cheating. What was my time?"
"Twenty-nine!" Pinkie declared. "Second place. Here's your magic item: a funny muffin! Eat it, and something funny will happen! Sorry, Button, that means you're down to fourth. Better luck next time. And next time is right now! Second game:" an arcade machine fell from her hair. "Pony Kombat!"
"Alright!"
"Huh," said Silver, putting the muffin on his back because he didn't currently feel the impulse to eat the comed-tea equivalent. "Been a while since I played a video game."
With the last time that he could recall being a session of Super Mario Bros where he still hadn't been able to get past world 3, level 2. Before Hogwarts, video games and computers were the closest thing he had to magic. He'd taken a big interest in them, naturally. And come to think of it, wasn't this world supposed to have 50's era tech? What was a video game doing here?
"You going to skip this one too?" he asked Hermione.
"Yes. That's a boy game."
"So were the battles, General Sunshine. But now that you mention it, that is a reasonable hypothesis." He sighed dramatically. "And all this time, I thought the Dragon General and I beat you because of our better strategies and ideas. But I guess, since it was a colt game, it was only natural for the colts to win, not the army led by the filly general."
...
"Pardon me," Hermione said to Twilight. Ten seconds later, she was asking Pinkie Pie how the game was played.
Ten minutes later, she and Silver were pouting. They are still twelve-year-olds, even if they rarely acted like it.
"Button Mash wins!" Pinkie shouted. "Here's your prize! Tickets to the arcade!"
"Aw yeah!"
"Next up: Memory!"
Hermione perked up. "Yes?"
"No," said Pinkie. "That's the name of the game. Memory!"
A set of paired cards were scattered face down on the ground.
Hermione perked up even more. "Oh, I love memory!"
The winner to that game was a foregone conclusion, though Silver did get second place. The adults played as well, and the winner to the adult contingent was also a foregone conclusion.
"How'd you get everpony to come over on a holiday?" Silver asked the adult winner as another game – pin the horns on the minotaur – was begun.
"I didn't," said Twilight. "You'd have to ask Pinkie. But I'd guess that everypony was promised free cake and games."
"Don't forget the prizes!" Pinkie added from across the room. "Oh, and everycolt-and-filly wanted to share their presents with their friends."
"Hm." Silver suddenly grinned. "A chance to show off our presents? That sounds like an excellent idea." He picked up his Gala 'suit'. "Do you mind if I leave for a moment to change into this?" he asked Twilight.
She didn't. But then, she also didn't seem to know what it was.
Before he could reach the bathroom, Rarity – as if called by some sixth sense having to do with clothes – intercepted him. She informed him how to turn the enchantments on and off and asked if he needed help changing.
He declined. He wouldn't be able to use the Prim and Proper charm if she was there.
When he stood in front of the mirror, outfit on, enchantments activated, he felt a sense of disappointment.
Then again, maybe he shouldn't compare this to the terror enchantment Professor Quirrell wore in the Forbidden Forest. A fairer comparison would be to what Fred and George did for that prank against Neville. Once he'd recalibrated his expectations, he decided that, yes, this would serve. (Though he would be asking Mr. Book about a true terror enchantment later.)
The cloak changed his fur color from white to black. It frayed at the edges. It blurred his face. It gave his voice a nice, deep pitch, plus an echo. Not quite as creepy as the ritual obelisks that had been chanting during Mr. Book's recent resurrection ritual... (recalibrating expectations)... but barely better than what the Order of Chaos had done outside the Hogwarts express.
Still, even with all that, he couldn't help but feel like something was missing. A dark aura, maybe. Or perhaps...
His eyes widened as he thought of something, but then he wondered if it was even possible.
What had she said?
"...though it may come out in moments of fulfillment..."
Hm...
Maybe...
Maybe that meant...
Pin the horns on the minotaur. Memory politely declined.
This one wasn't quite a boy- er, a colt game. But walking while blindfolded didn't seem like it would be a good idea, especially since she was still getting used to walking. (Though she wasn't really having trouble, strangely enough. It felt weird moving around on finger and toenails, but when it came to actual movement, she found everything except flying to be effortless and graceful.)
She hadn't quite gotten used to her new name either, but three days of talking with Twilight Sparkle had helped.
In the middle of Button's turn, the lights went out and a chilling chuckle reverberated around the room. A pitch-black pony wearing a tattered cloak walked out from around a corner, illuminated by a white glowing mane that looked more like whisps of light than actual hair.
For a fleeting moment, Memory's first instinct was fear, but that was quickly replaced by annoyance, especially once she remembered where she'd seen the hair before. "Mr. Silver," she said, loudly enough to hopefully stop a panic. "Are you really planning on scaring everyone on- on Hearth's Warming?"
That was close. She almost said 'on Christmas'.
Despite the near-mistake, her question was a success. The younger ponies, and even some of the older ones, stopped screaming.
"Well how else was I supposed to show off my new present?" asked a creepy, echoing voice in a petulant tone that wasn't creepy at all.
"Oh, I don't know, maybe by putting it on in front of us and asking what we thought?"
"But then I wouldn't know if it was working properly," he argued. He argued. "You can't really know if something is scary unless you put it to the test under realistic conditions." A creepy sigh. "But fine." The lights of the room turned back on, and he removed the hood of the cloak. "What do you think?"
She thought that the impact of a simple fur color change was very significant.
"Oh, I love that effect with your mane, darling," Rarity chimed in before Memory could say anything out loud. "It looks just like a ghostly mane should. How are you doing it? Has Twilight taught you a spell already?"
"No, this is alicorn magic," said Silver.
And that set off the younger ponies for a different reason.
"Cool!"
"Yup."
"Can I touch it?"
"Nope." He waved his hoof through his 'hair'. "Can't be touched, see?"
"It's a lot shorter than Celestia's."
"Yup."
"But it's brighter!"
"Sure is."
"How come it wasn't like that before?"
"It's not automatic yet."
"Is it what I think it is?" Memory asked.
Silver stared at her for a second. "Pretty sure the answer to that question is yes. But just to be certain, can you clarify? And please put your clarification in code."
"January?" she decided after a time, then became suddenly worried that they might use a different calendar system here, then realised that if they did, it would just make the code even better-
"Yup," Silver answered. "Remind me to teach it to you later. Now that you've been through... um... what you've been through, I'm pretty sure you'll be able to learn it."
"Okay," said Memory. "I'll just add it to the long, long list of things you'll be telling me 'later'."
His mane turned back into ordinary hair. "Ah... right." He turned to face Pinkie. "Can we wrap up the party?"
"Yupperino!" Pinkie declared. "Cake time! And for entertainment: The Amazing Spike!"
Which turned out to be a magic show. Funny, how those exist in a world with actual magic.
But after the first minute, it became the 'will Silver successfully guess how the trick works?' show, which was greatly enjoyed by everyone except the hosting magician.
Spike had initially accused him of peeking at his Hearth's Warming present, but Silver asked how that could be possible, since he's been gone and/or asleep for the past three weeks.
Spike still didn't seem convinced, so Silver said that he wasn't cheating, he was just making educated guesses, and began explaining his reasoning.
Like how the disappearing ball trick was probably magnetic because, when he wanted the ball to disappear, he flipped the cup over, put the ball in the cup, then gently placed the cup on the table, and when he wanted it to reappear, he slammed the cup firmly down, as if, perhaps, to dislodge the magnetically-attached ball from the top of the inside of the cup.
Silver knew real sleight-of-handers who could do the cup-and-ball trick without magnets, with just the momentum of the cup's movement and clever misdirection and dexterous fingers, and this didn't look like that at all.
Ignore the 'magic wand' and the showmanship, look at what's actually there, assume no real magic is involved, and offer hypotheses. That was enough to solve most of the tricks, according to Silver.
Though to be fair, he said, this is a kid's learning kit, and therefore not the kind of thing a professional would try, and if Spike wanted to get to the point where Silver didn't know what had happened, he'd have to practice a lot, keep looking for new tricks, and in particular keep an eye out for the ones that are hard for the audience to figure out. And maybe, if he really kept at it, he would think of a few himself.