//------------------------------//
// Preparations 
// Story: Twilight Sparkle the Dragon 
// by PlutoMilo 
//------------------------------//

When the pair entered the farm area, an orange earth pony with a straw hat was bucking apples. Her build spoke of constant hard work. They were much bulkier than the other earth ponies in town, and with the way they moved fluidly through the trees, they definitely knew how to utilize their bulk. There were very few ponies who would be able to hold their own against her, physically speaking anyway, that Twilight could count them on one paw. Mentally, she added another.
They were quite tall and the fur around their hooves was caked with mud. Their cutie mark was three apples. Their blond mane was cropped close to keep out of the way. Bits of leaves and twigs stuck out haphazardly from their long tail, which was tied together with a red string, but the pony didn’t seem to mind. With each clop of their hooves, the ground trembled just the slightest amount. This was an earth pony that was very in tune with their earth magic.
Twilight cleared her throat, not wanting the pony to panic. The last thing Twilight needed was a frightened earth pony that could most definitely knock her out with a single blow. Or depending on how they reacted, she did not want a face full of rocks. Back in Canterlot, she heard stories of earth ponies who were strong enough to cause a mini earthquake or rupture the ground with enough effort.
“Hello?”
The pony looked over and their jaw dropped. Twilight grimaced slightly at the folded ears and the trembling back hooves but pushed forward anyway. She stayed far enough away to not crowd the pony, but close enough to talk without raising her voice an obscene amount. So far so good.
“Good Afternoon. My name is Twilight Sparkle and this is Spike. I was sent by Princess Celestia to supervise the preparations of the Summer Sun Celebrations. You are in charge of the food?”
For once, eyes were not widened, posture wasn’t corrected, and a chest didn’t puff out. There was no reaction to her family name and it put Twilight off-kilter. But she was also relieved. All her life she wanted to live without all of her titles attached to her and for once, she was.
“Er, Howdy Miss Sparkle. Woah nelly, you’re big. Uh, my name’s Applejack. Yes, we here at Sweet Apple Acres are in charge of the food. Would you care to sample some?”
The last part was delivered hesitantly and Twilight could tell Applejack was ready to bolt but held her ground anyway. She wanted to smile, but she knew her smile oftentimes made her look more terrifying than gentle-looking. Razor-sharp teeth weren’t exactly comforting.
Twilight could also tell that Applejack made a real effort to not let her country accent slip into her words. She wondered if the earth pony could just tell they were from Canterlot or if it was something else.
“I am fine thank you,” Twilight assured her and Applejack looked very relieved and a wobbly smile appeared on her face. Spike gently nudged at Twilight’s side, “But I think Spike would like to try something,”
Applejack’s smile faded into something more genuine looking, “Of course, Sugar Cube,”
She trotted over to a nearby table where all the treats were laid out and gave Spike an apple fritter on a plate. Applejack’s eyes remained trained on Twilight’s looming form. Spike’s eyes glittered and was about to take a large bite when he caught Twilight’s eye.
“Thank you, Miss Applejack” he said hurriedly.
“You’re mighty welcome, Spike. No need for all that ‘Miss’ nonsense here,” Applejack assured, looking significantly calmer than before.
“Everything looks taken care of, keep up the good work Applejack. Come on Spike,”
Spike cantered over with half the fritter still in his mouth. As they left, they heard Applejack let out a breath. Even if she heard that sound every day in her life, it still hurt, but it was better than she thought it’d be. Twilight busied herself by swiping the checklist from Spike’s saddlebags.
“Next is the weather,” Twilight paused to look up at the cloudy sky, “Someone named Rainbow Dash is supposed to be clearing it,”
“Doesn’t look like they’re doing a good job of it,” Spike muttered as he finished his fritter, “This is really, really good,”
Twilight chuckled. She would make sure to swipe a couple during the festival then.
Suddenly there was a long-drawn-out scream of, “Dragonnnnn!” and a blue blur crashed into Spike, sending him tumbling into a mud hole.
“Spike! Oh by the moon,” Twilight magicked him out of the mud and began to check him for injuries, “Are you ok? Where does it hurt?”
Spike groaned, fruitlessly trying to wipe the mud from his purple fur, “Mom, I’m fine. Just really muddy,”
Satisfied, Twilight turned her attention to the sky blue pegasus who was peeking over her cloud above the mud hole and staring at them, agog. Her multi-chromatic mane fluttered in the breeze. She bared her teeth at her for good measure.
Her body was smaller than the average pegasus, but her wingspan was much bigger. The thick fur that all pegasi have on their chests looked too big for the small pegasus and goggles hung around her neck. Her mane and tail were cropped close, Wonderbolt style.
“You! You need to be more careful! Someone could’ve gotten hurt!” Twilight glowered.
“The dragon talks!” the pegasus gasped dramatically, “Don’t worry little pony, I gotcha!”
Again, the blue pony attempted to dive for Spike, only to shriek and sharply turn away from the burst of purple fire Twilight blasted out. She made sure to send it far above the pegasus’ head as a warning. The last thing she wanted was a charbroiled pony in a town already lacking in pegasi and unicorns.
“Let me guess,” Twilight ground out sarcastically, snout still smoking ominously, “You’re Rainbow Dash,”
The fact that the pegasus wasn’t running, or flying in her case, for the hills confused the dragon. Either this was a very stupid pony, or her confidence spoke of something else. She did after all, nearly singe off the pony’s already short mane.
The mare’s eyes widened, “What? You’ve heard of me?”
“I heard you were supposed to be keeping the sky clear,” Twilight snarked. She made an effort to tamp down on her annoyance and said between gritted teeth, “I’m Twilight Sparkle and the Princess sent me to make sure the weather was good enough for the Celebration,”
“The Princess sent a dragon?” Rainbow Dash gaped again, sitting up attentively on her cloud, “She must be serious. Aye aye, Dragon. This sky will be clear in ten seconds flat!” She gave a mock salute and became a blue blur as the clouds slowly disappeared under her onslaught.
Confidence then, Twilight decided. Rainbow Dash knew how to do her job and was good at it. Her attitude was a whole other issue.
“Mom, do you have a cleaning spell?” Spike asked quietly as he smeared the mud more fully across his vest in an attempt to clean it. It took everything for Twilight not to cringe.
“Yes, hold on,” Bubbles engulfed Spike and when they all popped, he was clean. Spike smiled gratefully.
“Um, I guess I’ll see you around Dragon. Maybe we can hang out sometime later,” and then she was gone. A rainbow streak across the sky was the only indication she’d been there at all.
“Jerk,” Twilight muttered under her breath, still ticked off about Rainbow Dash’s uncaring attitude and treatment of Spike.
“Alright, decorations,” Twilight clapped her paws and headed toward the Townhall, Spike following close behind.
Twilight made sure to keep an eye on the sky for any more unsuspecting pegasi dive-bombs.



When they entered the Hall, Spike ran into Twilight, nearly impaling himself on one of her tail spines. Thankfully he bumped into the furred part of her tail. Twilight had stopped in amazement to gape at the sheer magnificence she found herself standing in.
“This is beautiful,” she exclaimed to the empty and half-decorated Hall.
Glittering ribbons hung from the ceiling and gave the illusion of hanging diamonds. Beaded suns that bore a striking resemblance to her mentor’s cutie mark decorated the pillars. Tables were already set and awaiting the goodies that would be placed on them later, and the red curtains that hung to cover the balcony looked like a whip made of yellow glitter had slashed across them.
“Woah,” Spike was quick to agree.
Even the half-decorated Hall was breath-taking and Twilight wondered how it would look once the entire thing was finished. This half-finished masterpiece put even the Grand Galloping Gala decorations to shame.
“Thank you, darling,” A posh voice came from the back, “I will be with you in a moment. I am in the zone!”
The Baltimarian accent threw Twilight for a loop since they were quite a ways from the city. A beat later, an alabaster unicorn with a perfectly curled purple mane stepped out from behind the curtains near the far wall. Considering Ponyville was a farming town, seeing a unicorn was a shock in itself. Seeing a unicorn that could most definitely have a future career in modeling was even more of a shock.
Twilight grew up around unicorns. Her immediate family was unicorns. By the moon, she used to be a unicorn. She was acutely aware of how gracefully unicorns moved. She’d spent almost two years feeling like a bumbling oaf since she couldn’t replicate the gracefulness of moving around like everyone else in the city. But nothing could’ve prepared her for the utter elegance this particular unicorn moved with. Despite being quite over her futile wishing of moving like so, Twilight suddenly felt like a bull in a china shop.
Her delicate legs stepped with perfect poise yet it didn’t convey any weakness whatsoever. Her whip-like tail held the longest, impeccably curled tail Twilight had ever seen. This unicorn radiated feminine charm yet Twilight also had the distinct feeling that the unicorn wouldn’t hesitate to get up in her face if the situation arose. Twilight was suddenly very aware of how much space she was taking up and how close she was to the nearby tables.
“Beautiful…” Spike murmured, though this time he wasn’t talking about the decorations.
“Oh, my stars! You’re a dragon!” the unicorn softly shrieked, her ears folded back in the familiar gesture of fear.
“Yes, thank you,” Twilight responded, her wonder suitably banished, “I’m Twilight Sparkle and here from Canterlot to oversee the Celebration preparations, which I must say look absolutely amazing,” For once, she did not need to lie about her compliment.
The pony gasped, completely forgetting about her fears, “Canterlot? Oh the glamor, the sophistication, the elegance. I’ve always dreamed of living there!” The pony had a far-off gleam in her eyes as she thought about it.
The abrupt change in topic nearly sent Twilight reeling, but she caught herself and responded only a beat or two too late.
“Are we talking about the same Canterlot?” Twilight wondered, privately thinking the unicorn would put nearly all of the residents there to shame just by walking around.
“Whatever do you mean darling?” the mare questioned.
“Well, Canterlot is more snobbish than elegant or sophisticated,” Twilight cautioned, feeling the familiar anxiety about whether or not she was reading the room correctly, “Not to mention the middle-class neighborhoods. Not everything is fancy all the time,”
“Oh,” the pony visibly deflated. Twilight internally winced, the wrong thing to say then. A few seconds later the unicorn straightened her posture and exclaimed, “Oh dear, where are my manners? I am Rarity and I am the owner of Carousel Boutique,”
Beside her, Spike let out a dreamy sigh. Twilight rolled her eyes with a smile, “I’m the town’s temporary Librarian until the Festival finishes. The decorations look amazing, keep it up,”
“Oh, but of course, darling. They will look nothing less than fabulous,” Rarity promised, seemingly completely over her initial fear of Twilight.
Twilight spared her with a grin and she herded Spike back outside. Twilight could almost see the stars shining in Spike’s eyes as they walked outside.
“Wasn’t she amazing?” Spike sighed as he stumbled after Twilight.
“She doesn’t seem to be the type to judge a creature by their appearance, that's for sure. But, focus Casanova,” Twilight said good-naturedly, “What’s next?”
Spike held up the list in his hoof, “Music, it’s the last thing on the list!”
Before Twilight could say anything, they were interrupted by bird song. Twilight bent down long enough for Spike to latch onto her back and then they were up in the air, following the music. A few minutes later, they caught sight of a tall yellow pegasus directing the birds responsible for the music.
Unfortunately, the moment Twilight’s shadow passed over the pegasus, the pony dove into the nearby bushes with a short scream. The scream scattered the birds and Twilight landed guiltily.
“Should’ve walked,” she sighed, “Spike? Why don’t you go talk to them? I’ll probably scare the poor thing even more,”
Spike slid off his mother and walked over to the trembling bushes. A few minutes later Spike walked back and declared they were all good to go.
“Fluttershy is just, well shy,” Spike explained, “But she has the music all covered. I’m not sure she believed me when I said you were harmless,”
Twilight grinned and started the long walk back to the library. Twilight Sparkle was the furthest thing from harmless considering her numerous horns and other spines were classified as dangerous weapons in certain rooms.
“Carry me please?” Spike asked hopefully.
Twilight huffed out a laugh, “I thought you were a growing colt and couldn’t handle being carried more than necessary,” She teased but leaned down all the same.
Eventually, the two opened the library doors. When Twilight turned around, she froze, her dragon eyesight easily allowing her to see in the dark.
“Where’s the light switch?” Spike questioned.
A moment later, light flooded the library and there was a collective scream of “Surprise!” Spike let out a yell and threw himself under Twilight. Twilight’s wings settled over her sides protectively as her child trembled beneath her.
There were gasps as several ponies caught sight of her. Several ponies even threw themselves out the windows in fear. Twilight lifted her upper jaw a little and flashed a fang before speaking.
“Libraries are supposed to be quiet,” Twilight rumbled in a deadpan. A collective shiver went down the necks of all the ponies.
The pink pony that Twilight saw earlier in the afternoon popped up, seemingly from the ground. If Twilight thought Applejack was in tune with her earth magic then this pony was an absolute master with their earth magic. Twilight felt as if an earthquake were happening when the pony began to bounce in place. Sometimes she cursed her ability to sense minute magic so easily.
Their build was slimmer than Applejack’s. They looked like they did a lot of running. Their mane looked like the pony decided to get too close to a lightning rod and then their mane and tail decided to stay all poofed up.
“Hi! I’m Pinky Pie! I threw this party just for you! I first saw you when you landed and almost hit the fountain and that’s when I gasped super loud remember? I gasped because I’d never seen you before and that means you’re new! Then I thought of how lonely you must be and then got super sad. Even if you’re a dragon, you deserve friends! Since you’re new and since I know every pony in town, I thought I’d help you make some friends! Were you surprised? Were you? Were you?”
The speed at which Pinky Pie spoke nearly gave Twilight a headache. Not to mention the number of run-on sentences that would give any being with a sensible brain a hard time.
Twilight let a puff of smoke escape her nose, “Yes, I was very surprised to see my library filled with ponies I don’t know,”
“Well, that’s how you make friends silly!” Pinky Pie exclaimed jovially. She then turned around to address the rest of the ponies who were staring rather rudely, “Let’s get this party started!”
The small crowd cheered but parted as if she were Celestia herself when Twilight passed them. Confetti rained down from the ceiling in some inexplicable manner and some caught in her horns and hair. Right when the music started blasting, Twilight closed her new room door and sighed.
“Ponies in this town are crazy,” Spike declared, shaking himself to rid the confetti that settled over his fur. 
Twilight laughed lightly and began to tuck Spike into the bed. “Try and get some sleep alright? We have a long day tomorrow.”
Twilight kissed him on the forehead before sliding down to the floor with the click of scales. Soon enough, Spike was snoring. Grinning slightly, Twilight reached into the pack to pull the book out.
Something about this was suspicious. There was no doubt about whether Celestia knew that the Mare in the Moon would be returning tonight. The alicorn was either hiding or using Twilight as a shield. She growled at the thought. She glanced at the pages that declared Nightmare Moon would escape and looked to the full moon.
“I really hope it’s an old mare’s tale,” she murmured over the muffled music, knowing it was a futile gesture.