//------------------------------// // S4 CH 3. Second Try // Story: The Story of Twilight Glow // by Jeweled Pen //------------------------------// “You know what?,” Bon Bon said before leaping onto a small rise to the side of the path before offering her hooves to help the others up. “I for one am looking forward to proving Nightmare Moon wrong. She said some pretty hurtful things back there, you know.” “Yeah, she does that,” Moondancer said before looking ahead at the vine covered path. At least they weren’t hostile. “Hard to believe she’s really Celestia’s little sister, huh?” Lyra asked. “Could you imagine Princess Celestia getting like that?” “Oh, I don’t know,” Lemon said. “If you annoyed her enough I could see her being nasty.” “Lemon!” Minuette said, glaring at her. “What?” Lemon asked. “I’m not saying she’d normally be like that. But everypony has a breaking point and nopony’s flawless. Even a princess. I wouldn’t be surprised to find out even Princess Celestia said a few cutting words now and again. Come on, you had to see her do it at least once, right Moondancer?” “I guess. But she never did it to really hurt,” Moondancer said sheepishly. “Only when somepony was being real thick headed. She always knew exactly just how much to cut if she had to. There’s quite a few ponies I wish I could use that talent on.” “See? Even Moondancer agrees and she practically worships the ground Celestia walks on,” Lemon said. “I-I do not!” Moondancer said, her face burning. “I just… really look up to her is all. Or I did. Before I messed everything up.” “Um, everypony?” Minuette said softly. “I think we’re being watched.” “I think you might be right,” Bon Bon said. Her eyes narrowed before she glanced back towards Twinkleshine. “Think you can give me some cover?” “Huh? Oh! Right, yes, just give me a moment,” Twinkleshine said before her horn began to glow. Moondancer’s eyes went wide. Wait. No. She remembered what that-- she ducked down along with the other girls, a moment before a light boom came from Twinkleshine’s horn and smoke filled the area. For a few moments there was silence. Then a startled yelp and the sound of cracking wood. The smoke cleared a few seconds later and Bon Bon came trotting out from the woods, a smug look on her face. “Dealt with. But, uhhh, we should go. We should really, really go.” “Ohhhh I love it when she does that,” Lyra said with a small grin. “I wasn’t kidding, let’s go,” Bon Bon said before she quickly started trotting away, jumping over one of the spiked vines. “Come on, what was it?” Twinkleshine asked. “Cockatrice,” Bon Bon said. “I spooked it, but I don’t want to be here if it comes back.” “Wait, really?” Lyra asked. “I thought it was like, a monster or something! Wait, comes back?” “I spooked it,” Bon Bon said again. “I’m not going hoof to hoof with a cockatrice. Are you crazy?” “Sigh, and there go all those fantasies and stories about you wrestling manticores,” Lyra said with a teasing tone. “A manticore wouldn’t have been nearly as bad,” Bon Bon said. “You just need a chair and a whip. A cockatrice is far worse. One look and you’re stone. Less aggressive, at least. Usually.” Moondancer couldn’t help but smile when they startedto lightly trot through the forest. It was familiar, yet so far behind them now. The first time they’d walked through the woods. All she had to do was stay out of their way and they’d handled everything. All until the end. Where she’d finally been needed… and she let them down. ------ “It’s going to be okay,” Minuette said, giving Moondancer a little nudge. “I know all of this is a little scary, but they’re just vines.” “Vines that are probably demonically possessed or something,” Twinkleshine said with a light giggle. “It’s not that,” Moondancer said. “It’s… I’m just worried about what’s at the end. If we find this tree. What happens if I let you down again?” “You never let us down to begin with,” Minuette said. “How can you all keep saying that?” Moondancer asked. “How can we not blame you for failing to single hoofedly stop an alicorn princess who has the power to take down nearly every single pony in Equestria with one hoof?” Bon Bon asked, glancing back at her. “It’s a mystery, that.” “But if I hadn’t failed--” “Then things might be different,” Lyra said with a shrug. “Maybe Celestia would be here. Maybe something else would have happened. But the Elements didn’t respond to you, we weren’t able to do what Princess Celestia wanted us to do. It happens. Maybe she should have given some better instructions rather than trusting you to figure it out all on your own.” “Equestria falling into the hooves of a tyrant isn’t something that ‘just happens’,” Moondancer said firmly. “But it did happen,” Lyra said. “And nothing we do now will change what did happen. Besides, I think you’re doing a pretty good job all things considered. The sun is back, that’s nice.” “It’s only back because of… of…” Moondancer paused and glanced up. “Honestly, I don’t know why. Probably something Twilight did.” “You know,” Twinkleshine said before walking up besides her. “Sometimes you talk about Twilight the way you used to talk about Celestia. You ever think that maybe you are helping, too?” “I’m usually just getting in her way most days,” Moondancer said. “I’m sure that’s not true,” Twinkleshine said. “You don’t… know her like I do,” Moondancer said. “She’s special. She’s…” She trailed off, letting the words die in her mouth. Twilight was the one who the elements responded to. If her friends had been there with Twilight instead, surely they would have reacted then and Nightmare Moon would have been stopped. But she couldn’t endanger them and tell them about the Elements. “She’s just special.” “We’re all special in our own way, Moondancer,” Minuette said. “You can’t just focus on what went wrong. Eventually you’ll need to focus on what you did right. I’m sure if you looked and stopped trying to ignore it, you’d find plenty. This is just like teleporting objects for beginners all over again.” Moondancer cringed. “Ugh, don’t remind me, please.” “Yup, exactly like it,” Twinkleshine said with a roll of her eyes. “Hm? What happened then?” Bon Bon asked. “Oh, right, you and Lyra weren’t around for it, were you?” Lemon asked. “It was hilarious.” “Please don’t,” Moondancer said, her cheeks burning. “Oh, it’s happening,” Lemon said. “So, for our final we were supposed to teleport something from home, right? Something special to us. At least, attempt it.” Moondancer gave a low groan. “But it was just for beginners, so nopony was expected to actually succeed at it,” Lemon said. “I think only three ponies managed to do it. Except Moondancer. Unfortunately, wellllll…” “I was lucky I wasn’t expelled,” Moondancer said, her face burning. “She teleported Princess Celestia into the classroom!” Lemon said before bursting into a fit of giggles. “You should have seen the teacher’s face! I thought he was going to faint! Suffice to say, she got an A.” “I interrupted a very important diplomatic meeting with her and the horses from Saddle Arabia,” Moondancer said. “I could have tossed weeks of diplomatic discussions down the drain.” “But you didn’t,” Minuette said. “But I could have,” Moondancer said. “If I had just--” A sudden howl filled the air. They all went silent moments before the world seemed to come to a stop around them. Moondancer looked around in confusion, only to realize the world HAD stopped around them. Or, not quite stopped, but slowed considerably. Minuette. She could see the light of the unicorn’s horn and quickly recognized the spell. Controlled, local time dilution. Making everything around a pony seem as if it was moving a hundred times slower, amplifying a pony’s reaction speed many times. In many ways, the mare’s signature spell. “Tttttttthhhhhhhhheeeeeeeeerrrrrrrrrrreeeeeeee,” Bon Bon’s voice came, motioning to their right in slow motion. The six turned towards the location and could just make out the shapes of three timber wolves breaking through the foliage. “IIIIIIIIIII’lllllllllll ttttttttttttaaaaaaaaaaakkkkkkkkkkkeeeeee ttttttttthhhhhhhheeeeee oooooooooonnnnnnneeeeee oooooooonnnnnn tttttttttthhhhhhhheeeeee llllllllleeeeeeeeffffffftttttt!” The earth pony grinned to Lyra and the two shared a small nod. “Wwwwwwwwwwwweeeeeeeeeeee’llllllllllll ggggggggggeeeeeeeeeetttttttttt ttttttthhhhhheeeeee ccccccccceeeeeeeeennnnnnntttttttteeeeeeerrrrrr,” Twinkleshine said before she and Lemon moved towards it. Moondancer felt a small burst of anxiety. Wait, did that mean SHE had to deal with the last one? How was she supposed to-- Oh. Right. Magic. Her horn lit up and, very, very, very slowly a nearby vine began to untie itself. It was nearly unwrapped by the time the timberwolve’s head was fully unveiled from the trees. She, as quickly as she could, tied it into a loop and then yanked it forward. It wrapped around the timberwolf’s head before it fully managed to get out from the bush. Time began to return to its normal speed. Lemon and Twinkleshine had their horns together and after a few moments a flurry of pies, complete with tins, shot out from their horns and rained down on the startled timberwolf. One slamming into its face while it stumbled and lost its footing, slipping on the tins before finally crashing into a tree and shattering into bits of wood. Bon Bon easily stepped around her timberwolf, avoiding its snapped jaws and making it spin around. A moment later Lyra ran at it, turning to buck it in the side while it was contorted, shattering it into timber across the ground. “And that’s that,” Bon Bon said. “Good timing, Minuette.” “Woo, that spell is always a doozy,” Lyra said before shaking her head. “I swear I can still feel myself vibrating.” “Hey, if you know one trick you should make sure it’s a good one, right?” Minuette said with a light giggle. “I uhhh… t-thank you,” Moondancer said sheepishly before following up behind them. “I--” “Thanks for having my back,” Minuette said. “I knew you wouldn’t let me down. How about you add that to the list of things you do right?” “W-what?” Moondancer asked before her cheeks went red again. Still, though, she couldn’t help but smile. “Well, thank you for giving me all the time I needed to figure it out.” “What else are friends for?” Minuette asked. “Good friends are worth waiting for.” “They are,” Moondancer said. “They really, really are.” ------ “Oh, that’s definitely a cragadile,” Bon Bon said. “How can you tell?” Lyra asked. “Conveniently placed stones,” Bon Bon said. “Inside that water? Ew. If you look you can even see where the air bubbles are coming out of its mouth every so often.” “So should we go around?” Moondancer asked. “No,” Bon Bon said. “We just need to make sure it’s full. Lemon, Twinkleshine, can you two summon some more pies? I have an idea. Mint cream, please. Minuette, do you have your drill?” “Yes, because I often carry around expensive and delicate dental equipment,” Minuette said in a flat tone. “Fair enough,” Bon Bon said. “I guess we can antagonize it with something else.” “Oh, wait, you wanted me to annoy it? That I can do,” Minuette said. “Are you sure? Its scales are pretty thick,” Bon Bon said. “I’m a dentist, Bon Bon,” Minuette said proudly before a small dental pick popped into existence by her head. “It’s one of the things we’re best at.” Moondancer couldn’t help but snicker while she watched them work. She really did have to give Bon Bon some praise, the only pony she could think who would be as knowledgeable of giant monsters was Twilight. Then again, Bon Bon DID have a masters in it. ------ Moondancer took it back. She took back ALL the praise. “Hold on, I think we’re going towards some rocky terrain!” Bon Bon yelled. Riding on a cragadile’s back through the forest had its advantages, namely in that nothing would harass them. Unfortunately, it was a painful, bumpy ride and she didn’t know how much she trusted that makeshift rope they’d made out of the vines to hold. Judging by how tightly Lemon was holding onto her, she suspected the other mare felt the same way. ------ “I think I’m going to be picking crag scales out of my flank for weeks,” Twinkleshine whined. “So it wasn’t my best idea,” Bon Bon said. “It got us through the manticore though, so that saved us some trouble.” “And made a whole lot of trouble for the manticore,” Minuette said. “I hope they’ll be okay.” “I’m sure they’ll be fine,” Moondancer said. “They’ll likely rough each other up a bit, but I don’t believe they’re really predators towards either of them, so one of them will likely retreat before long.” “Girls, look! The castle!” Twinkleshine yelled before galloping ahead, her pained flank forgotten for a moment. “Twinkleshine! Don’t run off alone!” Lemon yelled before galloping after her. A moment later the rest followed suit, staring at the castle across the ravine before they found their eyes drown down towards the ravine itself. “That’s… convenient,” Bon Bon said. “A little too convenient.” “It’s a plant,” Lyra said. “A little too plant,” Lemon said. “How can something be a little too plant?” Minuette asked. “I don’t know,” Lemon said. “It just felt right to say. Is that it?” “We don’t know it’s there,” Moondancer said. They could see a small cave down in the ravine separating the castle from the rest of the forest. The vines seemed to be coming out from it, spreading through the forest from it. “How do we get down there, though?” Lyra asked. “Hmmmm,” Minuette said before glancing around. “Okay, perhaps we could make a rope out of these vines. Now, the spikes can possibly be filed down a bit, in which case they’d make wonderful hoof holds and--” “Or,” Bon Bon said. “Just throwing this out here. We could take the stairs.” She pointed off to the side of the cliff. “… Stairs work too, if you’re into that,” Minuette said with a light chuckle before they turned and started walking towards and then down the stairs. “You know, once this is all over we should go to the spa,” Lyra said. “Aloe and Lotus are miracle workers.” “Ohhhh, I would fight a hydra for a proper hooficure after all this walking and bouncing around,” Bon Bon said with a blissful sigh. “Ohhhhh, that sounds like so much fun!” Minuette said with a little squeal. “You’ll come too, won’t you Moondancer?” “W-what?” Moondancer asked, barely suppressing the urge to rear. “Once we get back? But, ummm, Nightmare Moon might--” “Then we just go before going to see her, silly,” Lemon said. “Ohhhhh, that sounds so naughty,” Twinkleshine said. “We should do it. What she doesn’t know won’t hurt her. So long as the thorns are dealt with, it’s fine, right?” “Can we please NOT antagonize Nightmare Moon?” Moondancer said, her tone far more curt than she intended. She felt a small pain in her chest at the hurt looks on her friend’s faces. “Wait, no, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean… I just… I don’t… I don’t want any of you to get hurt again. This has all been fun, really. Scary, but fun. But the longer we’re together, the more time she focuses on all of you, the more danger you’re all in. I don’t want to see any of you get hurt over me.” “Yeah… it… always sucks seeing your friend getting hurt,” Minuette said softly. “Knowing that she’s trying her hardest and that she’s pushing herself more than anypony has any right to ask her to,” Lemon said. “Not being able to help her, no matter how hard you want to,” Twinkleshine said. “Knowing the only thing you’d do if you tried is make it worse for her,” Lyra said. “Knowing she blames herself for what happened, even though it’s not her fault,” Bon Bon said. Moondancer paused for a moment, eyeing the five of them. She wanted to object, but what could she really say? She knew exactly how it felt to watch that. It felt like half the times that was how it felt when she watched Twilight do… anything she did. Oof, that was a painful thought. At least she didn’t try and throw a tyrant. “Sorry. I’ll… try and lay off myself a bit, okay? And thank you. I just… I really want to keep all of you safe. But I’m guessing you want to keep me safe, too.” “We wouldn’t be here otherwise,” Bon Bon said. “But you’re here now! And what a trip it has been,” Discord’s voice rang out, making them all freeze for a moment before they looked in the cave. Discord was lounging on a strange crystal tree, which was wrapped in the spiked vines. “My my. She actually DID send the B-team, didn’t she?” He asked before plucking a thorn from one of the vines and picking his tail with it. “Let’s take a look at you lot. The dentist, the monster catcher, the party planner, the musician, the star summoner and the student. You know, when I say it like that it’s not entirely boring.” “Discord!” Moondancer yelled, her eyes narrowing on him. “What are YOU doing here?” “Me? I’m helping,” Discord said before snapping his fingers. Moondancer let out a yelp when her saddle disappeared, revealing her wing. “You’re not quite a princess, but I suppose you’ll have to do.” “Leave Moondancer alone!” Minuette said, her horn glowing. A moment later it flickered out. “Huh?” “Oh, come now,” Discord said with a roll of his eyes. “What part of help-ing don’t you ponies understand? Why do you think none of the vines tried to eat you lot?” “Wait, are these vines your doing?” Moondancer asked, her eyes going wide. “Ah, finally caught on, have we?” Discord asked. “You see, the Tree of Harmony and I have a little bet going on. As much as I dislike the notion of repeating things, I think it should just go for old reliable. Still, it put up quite the argument and as long as I get what I want in the end, I don’t mind playing along. For now.” “What?” Moondancer asked, her eyes turning towards the tree. “It… talked to you? How?” “Oh, you just need to know how to listen,” Discord said before his grin grew. “After all, it’s all bark, no bite.” He was rewarded with four groans and two face hooves. “But indeed, it has. And I, in my infinite kindness, have agreed to help it.” “Help it… how?” Moondancer asked. “An opportunity,” Discord said with a wicked grin before disappearing and appearing once more by her good ear. “A… mmmm… prequel to the main event, as it were. A game. You win and I’ll tell you how to use the Elements of Harmony to stop Nightmare Moon once and for all.” “And… if we fail?” Moondancer asked. “Nothing,” Discord said before disappearing once more, appearing on top of the tree again. “I was going to turn you all into gophers, but the tree got so annoyed at that. Something something not very nice, something something friendship, something something gag. So, if you lose… absolutely NOTHING will happen.” Moondancer gulped, staring at him. Then she glanced towards the tree and the vines before sighing. “Girls, I think we can--” The ground began to rumble underneath them. A moment later five strange pod-like plants shot out from the ground, enveloping her friends. “W-what? HEY!” “No no no no,” Discord said, the grin on his lips getting wider. “This game isn’t me versus six. This game is just me and you, Moondancer.” “W-what?” Moondancer asked before taking a step back. She yelped when she realized she backed into a wall of vines. “It’s the top of the fourth, Moondancer, you’re at the bat,” Discord said with a light chuckle before a baseball appeared in his hand. An angry bat appeared on her back, making her shriek. “Can you get a home run? Or will you strike out just like every. Other. Time? I wouldn’t worry too much about it… after all. It’s not like there’s any real stakes here, now is there? All that you have to lose… Is your chance to make up to every pony you’ve failed.” Moondancer went entirely still for a moment before her horn glowed and she grabbed the angry bat in her magic, shoving it away. “F-fine. Let’s play. Show me your worst, Discord.” “Oh, I won’t show you MY worst,” Discord said before snapping his fingers. A moment later she let out a shriek and a pod rose up from under her, dragging her in with a shriek. “We’re going to see just what it is your so-called friends faced in THEIR worst.” For a moment there was silence before he sighed. “Yes, I know it’s traditionally bottom of the nineth. That’s why it’s a JOKE. How do you even KNOW about baseball? You’re a tree. At best you’d be the bat. What? Heh. Oh, that one was hilarious. Have you ever considered doing stand up? Oh, right. I guess you are a little tied up right now, aren’t you? No, no, don’t worry. They’ll be fine. Hm? Oh, of course. I’m sure I COULD tell you exactly why the change of heart, but that wouldn’t be very fun now would it? What? No, I’m hardly going to follow the original script. Do I look like a two bit street performer? I am a PROFESSIONAL chaos spirit, good tree, and I would remind you NOT to forget it. I’m not going to do the same act twice.” “Hm? Oh, they’ll be fine. It’s not like ponies need air or anything. Oh. They do? Well, I guess we’d better move along to this little game then, shouldn’t we?” Discord snapped his fingers one last time, closing the scene.