Twilight had made up some excuse about Spike "wosing his widdle bawance" and needing to be put to bed- Applejack couldn't really tell, she was too in shock at Fluttershy's statement- before slamming the door in the poor pegasus mare's face.
"Uh, rude much?" Spike remarked.
Twilight sighed in frustration. "Sorry, Spike, but I have to convince the Princess that Nightmare Moon is coming, and we're running out of time! I just need to be alone so I can study without a bunch of crazy ponies trying to make friends all the time. Now, where's the light?"
As if on cue, the lights flickered on, revealing the pink Earth pony from earlier that day sitting in the center of the room in a crudely drawn pentagram. She sprang up and made a beeline for Twilight. "Hi! Do you have a moment to talk about our lord and savior, Kira?"
"WHAT?!"
"Oh, silly me. My name's Pinkie Pie. I saw you when you first got here, remember? You were like, "hello" and I was like-" she mimicked her own gasp, "remember? Y'see, I've never seen you around before, and that must mean you're new, 'cause I know everypony, and I mean everypony in Ponyville!"
"Twilight," Applejack spoke, her voice shaking. "Get the Harmony Note, now!"
Twilight complied as Pinkie Pie rambled on. "And if you're new, that must mean you don't have any friends, and you must be lonely, and that made me super sad for you. But then I saw that Shinigami pony hiding in the bushes and I had an idea, and that's why I went-" she gasped again. "I set up a little ritual so that we can bond over our fellowship under the great Kira the Savior!"
"Pinkamena." Applejack instructed. "Her name is Pinkamena Diane Pie."
Oblivious, the pink mare continued to saunter. "Y'see, my family's been followers of Kira for generations! When you get your Cutie Mark, there's a special rite of passage where you take an oath on the Death Note, so when I saw the Shinigami pony with you, that must mean you took the oath, too! And..." Pinkie's train of thought went blank as Twilight closed the Harmony Note. "And... What was I talking about again? And what in Tartaros is all this?!" Pinkie Pie rushed to clean up the ritual she no longer had any memory of setting up.
Twilight groaned. "Here I thought I'd have time to learn about the Elements of Harmony but, silly me, all this ridiculous friend-making has kept me from it!"
"Elements of Harmony?" Pinkie perked back up. "Oh! I can help you with that! There should be a book on it around here somewhere. I'll take the right side, you take the left, sound good?"
As begrudging as she was to admit it, Twilight was thankful to have an extra set of hooves on the case. After an hour or so of searching, she finally pulled The Elements of Harmony: A Reference Guide from the shelf and began to read aloud. "'There are seven Elements of Harmony, but only six are known: Kindness, Laughter, Generosity, Honesty, Loyalty, and Empathy. While these six work in tandem on their own, the seventh is a complete mystery. It is said that the last known location of the six Elements was in the ancient castle of the royal pony sisters, which is located in what is now the Everfree Forest.' Perfect! Pinkie, Applejack, Spike, let's get going!"
"But if we leave now, we'll miss the Princess raise the sun!" Pinkie protested.
Twilight lingered on the thought before sighing in defeat. "If you insist... 'Legend has it that on the longest day of the thousandth year, the stars will aid in her escape, and she will bring about everlasting night.' I hope the Princess was right... I hope it really is just an old mare's tale..."
"Fillies and gentlecolts," Mayor Mare began, "as mayor of Ponyville, it is my great pleasure to announce the beginning of the Summer Sun Celebration!"
The crowd cheered, which frustrated Twilight, since she was the only one who knew the true danger everypony was in. She grew even more nervous.
"In just a few moments, our town will witness the magic of the sunrise, and celebrate this, the longest day of the year!"
Twilight watched moon anxiously. Four stars closed in on it, and the image of a pony's face that adorned it vanished. She shifted her eyes to Applejack, sweat dripping from her forehead.
"And now, it is my great honor to introduce to you the ruler of our land, the very pony who gives us the sun and the moon each and every day, the good, the wise, the bringer of harmony to all of Equestria..."
Fluttershy looked over to her birds, raising her baton. "Ready?" The birds nodded.
"Princess Celestia!"
Rarity took the rope in her mouth and pulled the curtains open, but nopony came out. There were gasps and nervous chattering. This can't be good, Twilight thought.
"Remain calm, everypony!" the mayor instructed. "There must be a perfectly reasonable explanation!"
Rarity checked behind the extra set of curtains leading to the next room. "She's gone!"
Suddenly, a dark blue smog appeared on the balcony. Rarity ran back down the stairs, sensing some sort of danger coming from the unannounced lightshow. Twilight crouched down in fearful anticipation. "Oh no..." The dreaded mare manifested from the smoke. Spike fainted and fell from Twilight's back. "Nightmare Moon!"
The wicked mare cackled. "Oh, my beloved subjects. It's been so long since I've seen your precious little sun-loving faces."
"What did you do to our Princess!" Rainbow Dash shouted. Without warning, she dashed towards the stage, only to be stopped by a veil of blue magic around her as Rarity held her back.
"What? Am I not royal enough for you? Does my crown no longer count since I've been imprisoned for a thousand years? Don't you know who I am?"
"I know who you are!" Twilight declared. "You're the Mare in the Moon - Nightmare Moon!"
Nightmare Moon chuckled. "Well, well, looks like somepony still remembers me. Then you must know why I'm here."
"Y-you're here to... to..." Twilight stammered, suppressed fear beginning to well up inside her. Applejack laid a hoof on the unicorn's shoulder.
"Remember this day, little ponies, for it was your last. From this moment forth, the night will last FOREVER!!!" Mist swirled around her as her evil laugh bellowed throughout the venue, and when it faded, she had disappeared.