Nopony had expected what had happened, least of all Chrysalis, apparent by her bewildered expression. Applejack opened her eyes and looked to each of her friends with a smile that tried its best to show them her sincerity.
Chrysalis glowered at Applejack. “What?! You refuse me?” The words seethed out, dripping with malice. Applejack turned to her with a strong gaze that held no trace of love. Chrysalis looked into Applejack's eyes and found that a change had occurred. No more was there that strange look that held its place within those orbs of green. A sense of peace permeated outward.
“Ah'm done with ya. No more. It's over.” Applejack spoke in a rigid tone, indicating her seriousness at the situation.
An outraged shriek echoed throughout the hall as Chrysalis took to the air, looming over them all. Bitterness and antipathy became an aura which completely enveloped her. Her twisted horn shined a bright green in reaction to the tides of anger within her. “You insignificant, pathetic, little wretch! How dare you cross me! I will not allow you stop me when victory is still mine to take!” she roared violently.
A ray of magic erupted from her horn as it made a beeline for the group of five mares. The group was dazed by a bright flash as a white, transparent barrier shielded the group from the changeling's wrath. Celestia's horn glowed just as intensely as Chrysalis's. The princess and former-queen locked gazes. “I will not let you have your way any longer!” declared Celestia.
Chrysalis halted her attack. “You think you can stop me, Celestia? I am done playing games with you and these fools! No more will I attempt at simple imprisonment. While I would have delighted watching you decay from your failure, I am through wasting my efforts. I will wipe you out of existence!” This would finish it. No more holding anything back for some unanticipated distraction. Tendrils of green magic lashed outwards from her horn, tearing apart the wind around her. The ornate hall danced in a gleam of radiant power. A torrential gale swept around the changeling, engulfing her in its fury. The tapestries hanging on the wall flailed in wild abandon.
Celestia was not going down without a fight. She took to the air... or she would have if the wind around her wings would cooperate and carry her. Teleporting would be a bad idea given how volatile Chrysalis's magic had become. Flying into a lightning storm is foolhardy and teleporting into a magical one is the same. She loosed a bolt of powerful magic aimed for Chrysalis. The air around the changeling tore the pathetic excuse for an attack asunder before it got anywhere near its intended target.
Chrysalis growled a low chuckle filled with mockery. “I will not be stopped. You cannot defeat me, Celestia. Feel free to run.”
It was not an option to run. Celestia could not leave. Those who resided in the castle would be lost with it and she could not grab them all in a teleportation without knowing where they were exactly.
“Why that–oof!” Rainbow couldn't finish. She had tried to fly, but as with Celestia, the wind would not lend itself to her use and she flopped on the ground after a modest leap. Getting back to all fours, she shook her head and looked at the others. “What do we do?”
Rarity looked clueless. Fluttershy looked petrified, mouth agape. Pinkie didn't even seem concerned at what was happening; she looked like she was conflicted with something else that was on her mind.
Twilight looked fearful, even more so after witnessing Celestia's futile attempt to stop Chrysalis. “I... I don't know. There's nothing we can do. Princess Celestia has to stop her... somehow.” Twilight gave the floor a dejected look.
“Well shoot, it ain't like the princess is alone here.” Applejack looked to her friends who turned to look back at her. She reached up and lifted her hat to grab something. She smiled sheepishly as her friends' eyes widened. A golden necklace with an orange apple-shaped gem rested in her hoof. “Twilight, if ya don't mind...” Nothing more needed to be said. Twilight nodded and in a flash of her own violet light, a brown chest with golden markings appeared that contained the other elements. In another flash, the chest lay on the ground, empty. Rainbow Dash wore the Element of Loyalty, Fluttershy wore the Element of Kindness, Rarity wore the Element of Generosity, Pinkie wore the Element of Laughter, and Twilight was crowned with her Element of Magic. Applejack grinned as she found herself wearing her own Element of Honesty once again. The six mares glowed in rhythm as the elements began to empower.
“I think not!” Chrysalis was not going to wait any longer. She unleashed all the power she had accumulated from feeding on Applejack's love. An explosive green wave screamed as it dove for the six ponies. The beam of of magic slowed, however, from an opposing force. Celestia had placed herself between the attack and the element bearers, mustering all of her magical might to stem Chrysalis's attack for as long as she could. “Curse you, Celestia!” These words were her last. The sun princess had delayed her long enough. A rainbow-colored light discharged from the six Elements of Harmony and charged for the changeling monster, intertwining with Celestia's magic. The two forces pushed back Chrysalis's attack and swallowed her in a maw of Harmonic splendor. She cried out as she was swept back, crashing through a window, and banished toward the horizon in a manner not unfamiliar to her.
---
“Is there... somthin' ya wanted to talk to me about, Princess?” Applejack was quite nervous. It had been not long since Chrysalis had been defeated. Before she and her friends could talk much, however, Celestia had interrupted and asked the others to wait in the throne room while she talked with Applejack. Celestia led her up a winding staircase and out onto this balcony that overlooked a side of Canterlot, with a magnificent view of the Everfree Forest. They reached the edge of the balcony and sat down, but said nothing. Applejack waited for Celestia to say something, but the sun princess remained quiet.
Applejack hung her head low, thinking what Celestia was contemplating. My punishment of course she thought. Knowing the princess was going to enact some kind of punishment wasn't the worst part, it was the waiting for it that really got to her.
“Applejack.” Applejack snapped her head up to look at the sun princess, who had not turned her head in the slightest. “There are some instances that I can ignore, that do not require disciplinary action. I am sure you understand that your actions do not merit such a lenient response.” A pause hung in the air. Celestia took her gaze from the horizon to glance down at Applejack with an expectant look.
“Oh, uh, yes, Ah understand.” Applejack gave a heavy sigh. “Ah understand completely.”
“Then please explain to me what happened.” Applejack wore a confused look. Celestia returned her gaze back to the forest that seemed so far away. “At your farm, when I broke Chrysalis's enchantment on you, you remained at her side. But that is not all. The enchantment was rather weak, much weaker than what I was expecting. I had at first attributed this to the idea that you were resisting it and fighting to break free. Yet that was not the case. It felt as though you allowed yourself to become her pawn. So please, explain.”
Applejack gulped a little. She was afraid this question would come up. But she couldn't lie about it, it wasn't her style. “Ah suppose you're right, Princess. Ah did let myself get caught up in her spell. It was mighty strange, though. Maybe it had somethin' to do with my bond with the element, like ya said, Ah dunno.” Celestia looked back down at her with a curious expression. “The spell she put on me didn't work. Well, at least it didn't work how Ah think it should have worked. But it did somethin'. Ah don't know how exactly to explain, but here goes. It kind of tore my head in two sides. One side was most of me, the hard-workin' me that loves her friends, loyal to you and Equestria, and holds the Element of Honesty.” Applejack's expression saddened. “The other side was a part of me that I hadn't really been able to get rid of. It was a scared little filly who blamed herself for the loss of her momma. She jus' wanted to get back what she lost and be a daughter who was loved again.” Applejack shook her head a little and put away her frown. “Anyway, the little filly saw a chance to have her momma back again, so she used Chrysalis's magic as a means to try and live a happy lie and escape a sad reality. But split apart or not, that was still me. It was still my doin'.”
“I see.” Celestia took this in and gave it some thought.
Wing-beats could be heard in the distance, getting closer. Both Applejack and Celestia looked upwards to glimpse the arriving pony. Celestia gave a joyful smile. Applejack smiled too, but was a bit nervous as the pony landed.
“I am happy to see all is well. In truth, I was unsure of what the outcome would be.” Luna looked a little worn out. Despite her posture and composure in her voice, it was evident she was exhausted.
“Sister, so good to see you. Although you look like you have not rested for some time. Tell me, where did Chrysalis keep you imprisoned?” Celestia inquired.
Luna appeared slightly abashed at the reminder of being imprisoned. After clearing her throat, she spoke, “She held me in the dungeon of the old castle in the Everfree Forest. It seems she has a twisted sense of humor. Her binds kept me awake as well as weak. But I was not alone.” She glanced down toward Applejack with little emotion. “Two others kept me company, though no words could be spoken due to the magic shackles that bound us all.”
“Wait, two others?” Applejack pondered for a moment before arriving at the troubling conclusion. “Ya mean Granny Smith and Big Mac!? Are they OK? Are they–”
“Both are fine, have no fear for their well-being. The magic bindings vanished when, I assume, you defeated Chrysalis and her power had weakened significantly. I personally teleported them both to your farmstead. I was rather magically drained myself after that, hence why I chose to fly here.”
Relief poured onto Applejack's face. “Thank ya so much, Princess. And also–”
“Sister, I will be retiring to my chambers now,” Luna spoke to Celestia. “I would be most grateful if you handled the moon and stars tonight.”
“Yes, of course. I understand. It will be no trouble.” Celestia and Luna gave short bows to one another.
“Princess Luna, Ah'm real–” Luna had taken off towards her room without giving a second to Applejack. The orange mare looked hurt and looked down in remorse.
Celestia gave a moment's thought to Luna's actions before gently smiling. Not being forgiven... nor even a chance to apologize. A fair punishment. “Applejack.” Applejack's head raised to look at Celestia. “I have considered your punishment and have arrived at a suitable one for you.”
Applejack closed her eyes and braced for whatever may come. Exile? Dungeon? I deserve whatever it is.
“Your punishment... is to forgive yourself”
Applejack's eyes opened slowly as she quizzically stared at Celestia. “For-forgive myself? Beggin' yer pardon, Princess, but what do you mean exactly?”
“It is hard to mete out punishments when they are called for. I do not enjoy it, but sometimes it is necessary. Yet, simply sending you to the dungeon, for instance, would do little to rectify the problem that caused the situation in the first place. You blame yourself for your mother's death, do you not?”
She could hear the screams of panic coming from her mother. Over her shoulder, those timber wolves were dragging her mother away. Applejack shuddered from the terrible memory. “Yes, Ah do. She needed me. But Ah didn't try to help. Ah ran away 'cuz I was scared and didn't know what to do. Ah should have gone back to help her. Ah should have tried somethin', anythin'! But Ah didn't.” Applejack felt a familiar pain pierce into her. “It was my fault. Ah abandoned her.”
“And that is why your punishment will not be easy. It will be difficult, true, but I believe that should you conquer that guilt, then this situation can be avoided in the future and that is the best punishment I can think of, one that will prevent future tragedies.” Celestia truly hoped Applejack understood. “You may go now. Your friends are waiting for you, Applejack.”
Applejack nodded and bowed to the princess before taking her leave and finding her way back down to where her friends were waiting. “All set to go,” she stated nonchalantly. Without more words, the group headed out of the castle, exited the gates of a still-deserted looking Canterlot, and began the trek back to Ponyville. Nopony was sure of what to talk about. They traveled in silence and soon the yellow sun bore an orange glow as it neared the edge of the horizon.
On the outskirts of Ponyville, Rarity couldn't stand the silence any longer. “OK, that's it. I've enough.” Everypony stopped and turned to face her, each holding a befuddled look. “It's obvious we can't just ignore what has happened and only trying to do so is just going to make things worse. So let us just talk now while we are all together.” She sighed as she looked over to Applejack, though with hesitation. “We know that you... what I mean to say is... Princess Celestia thought that... some help, please!” Rarity angrily turned to the others, begging for somepony to say what she was wanting to but couldn't.
“Um, did you really know what you were doing?” spoke up Fluttershy. Eyes focused on her and she shrunk back slightly.
Just like with Celestia, Applejack was afraid this would pop up. “Yes, Ah did. Explainin' would sound like an excuse. Just know that Ah was fully aware of what Ah was doin'.”
“Liar!” Rainbow exclaimed. “There's no way you were really you. I'm not buying it!”
Applejack wasn't about to let Dash defend her. “No, Dash. Ah was really me. Ah knew exactly what Ah was doin' the whole time.”
“No! Stop lying! Just... stop! Quit lying to us like that! You... you liar!” Before Applejack could say anything, Dash had bolted into the air and out of sight, thunder rumbling from her speedy departure.
“Sorry Ah let ya down, Rainbow,” AJ whispered to herself quietly.
“It's OK, Applejack. She'll come around, I'm sure of it.” Applejack looked over to Fluttershy with a smile, but it quickly faded. Fluttershy wore a kind smile, but AJ could see right through it. Fluttershy had no feelings of forgiveness for Applejack at the moment, but her kindness forced a smile on her face. “Um, well, I better get going. The animals need me and I have a lot of catching up to do. Bye girls.” They muttered their farewells to the timid pegasus as she walked away towards her cottage full of creatures that depended on her.
“Applejack, I'm... not sure what to say really.” Twilight took a few steps toward the farm pony. “I have some thinking to do about this, but I can safely say one thing.” Applejack was delighted to see a genuine smile at last. “I'm glad you're back.” The two of them shared a brief hug and Twilight began walking to her library.
“I suppose, I'm in a state similar to Twilight.” Rarity spoke softly, yet sincerely. “It will be hard for things to return to the way they were, but that is life, is it not? However, I think that with enough time, all things can be forgiven.”
“Thanks, Rarity. Ah appreciate it.” Applejack and Rarity exchanged a few waves as Rarity headed off to her home and her sister.
“Applejack.” Applejack turned to face Pinkie. Since being back together as a group, Pinkie had returned to her usual-looking self, poofy mane and all. “This is going to sound weird. But I'm a little scared.”
Applejack raised an eyebrow at her pink friend. “Scared? Why are ya scared, Pinkie?”
“Because you're my friend. And I want to forgive you, I really do! But, something's wrong. Some feeling I have won't let me forgive you and that scares me.” Pinkie looked like she usually did, but her voice was layered with distress and unease. Her eyes held back fearful tears that wanted everything to go back to the way it was.
Applejack pulled Pinkie into a tight hug, as tight as she could muster. “And Ah won't ask ya to, Pinkie. Ah'll do whatever it takes to earn your forgiveness. Ah'm gonna work real hard on repairin' everythin' so we can all be happy again. Ah don't want ya to be sad. Because you're my friend, too.” The two ponies held the embrace for a little while, letting each other's feelings soak in.
After bidding each other goodnight, they went their separate ways. Applejack walked through the gates of the farm and headed up the path towards her house and her bed. Her brother was helping Granny Smith with some cleaning in the kitchen, but she didn't stop in to say anything. She was tired. But she was not so lucky to make it to her bed without an obstacle.
“Hey, sis!” Apple Bloom jumped happily around her older sister as they headed upstairs. “Yer not gonna believe this, but Ah was over at Sweetie's, right? But Rarity has to leave or somethin' and so now it's just Spike there. We were havin' lots of fun, but then Spike gets a letter from THE PRINCESS! Can ya believe it!? Ah knew he got letters from her an' all, but it was still real neat. But he didn't tell us what it said, guess it was real important or somethin'. 'Course, the three of us wouldn't let slide. If the princess needed somethin', we thought we might be able to help. So Scoots started... Applejack, ya OK?” They were in AJ's room and Applejack just flopped down on her bed.
“First, Apple Bloom, Ah'm real sorry Ah got mad at ya a while back. Wasn't right of me. Second, ya can tell me the rest in the mornin'. Ah'm bushed now, so Ah'd really appreciate it if ya would let me get some sleep now.”
“Oh, yeah, OK, got it.” Apple Bloom gave her sister a hug. Before heading out the door, she said, “Thanks, sis. Glad to know yer alright.” She closed the door with a soft creak.
Applejack turned onto her back and looked up at the ceiling. She breathed in deeply, smelling the familiarity of her room. The soft covers cradled her with tenderness as the room around glinted with a setting sun from the windows. It wasn't going to be easy to get things back to normal, or at least as close to normal as possible. She would need to talk a bit with Big Mac and Granny Smith about what had happened and to make sure they were OK. Forgive myself. It seemed simple enough, but she knew it would be anything but. To get started on this, she'd need the help of somepony special. It was a good thing she knew where to look.