Pinkie Pie got herself ready for the number’s finale. She was feeling over exuberant at that moment. It wasn’t just that she had just remembered her true destiny (at least according to the script), but that this particular episode was going fantastically well. It was a lot of hard work to be sure, and it was emotionally taxing on everypony during the sadder moments. However it all came together wonderfully thus far, and Pinkie was ready to send this particular number out of the park. She turned to the camera, operated as always by Spike. Thank goodness for the switch to videotape, she thought. This would have been hard to do live.
The dragon signaled thumbs-up. “Cameras are ready to roll!”
Pinkie nodded in response. She then turned to her friends. “Everypony ready?”
“We’re good to go Pinkie!” Twilight smiled. Her other friends nodded enthusiastically as well. Pinkie turned back to the camera. She closed her eyes and inhaled slowly, focusing her energy.
“Count me down, Spike.”
Spike responded quickly. It was finally time.
“In 5… 4… 3… 2… 1… ACTION!”
The camera’s red light blinked on.
“COME ON PONIES!!! I WANNA SEE YOU SMILE!!!”
“PINKIE!!!” The crowd shouted, overjoyed that Ponyville’s party pony has returned.
They all quickly transitioned into the song’s finale, Pinkie marching alongside her friends down the streets of Ponyville.
A true, true friend is a friend in need
A friend will be there to help them see
A true, true friend helps a friend in need
To see the light (to see the light)
That shines (that shines)
From a true, true friend!
“Cut and print! That was fantastic!!!” Spike yelled from behind the camera.
The large crowd allowed themselves to relax. A few of them cheered and hollered as they wrapped up the song. Twilight Sparkle and her friends had finally broken away from their group hug that punctuated the number.
“How did it look?” Pinkie Pie asked.
“It was absolutely perfect!” Spike gave an a-ok gesture.
Pinkie nodded. She turned back to the crowd.
“Ok everypony, that’s a wrap for today! Thanks a bunch, you did great!!!”
The crowd gave themselves a nice cheer as they began to go off on their own way.
“We did it! I can’t believe we actually did it!” Twilight shouted.
“Guys, I think that was our own personal crowning moment of AWESOME!!!” Rainbow Dash shouted.
“Ah honestly think that that was the best number we’ve ever done!” Applejack added.
Rarity smiled with pride. “I knew a musical episode would have been a fabulous idea!”
“It was tricky, but we pulled it off!!!” Pinkie jumped in excitement.
“We rock! Woo-hoo!” Fluttershy cheered in her own small voice.
Rainbow Dash chuckled and gave Fluttershy a gentle, playful nudge. “Still got a ways to go there, Fluttershy.”
“Oh I know, but I can’t help myself,” Fluttershy blushed. “This whole episode has been great! I hope the fans will like it.”
Pinkie Pie gave Fluttershy a reassuring pat on her back, her usually bright smile a bit brighter than normal. “Trust me, the fans will absolutely love every second of this!”
“I know I for one will appreciate all the hard work we put in this episode,” Rarity said, wiping off a few beads of sweat from her forehead.
“Hard work?” Rainbow Dash scoffed. “Who do you think actually brought all those clouds to Ponyville in the first place? Not to mention I DID help you arrange those clouds too! By the way, checkerboard clouds? Really?”
“It just seemed more tidy that way!” Rarity defended herself. “I was just trying to make it *ahem* 20% cooler as it were.”
“Ugh, it’s bad enough you had my cutie mark, but could you lay off my catch phrases, please?”
“I thought it was 200% cooler, Rarity.” Spike said, losing himself in another Rarity-filled daydream.
The cyan Pegasus could only groan. She then turned to her fellow Pegasus comrade. “By the way Fluttershy, I’m NEVER babysitting Angel ever again!”
“He was only supposed to tie you up when me and Twilight came in. I didn’t know he was going to go that far,” the timid Pegasus explained.
“You have to admit that it was pretty funny Dash,” Twilight giggled.
Rainbow Dash crossed her hooves. “But it’s still embarrassing when you get overpowered by a bunny.”
“At least you didn’t hav’ ta try your hoof at dressmaking,” Applejack chimed in. “Ah had bad Manehattan flashbacks back there.”
Pinkie sighed. Filming the switched cutie mark scene was particularly rough for all of them. Not only was there extra make-up work required to ‘switch’ the cutie marks, but the act of being so miserable seemed to sap all the energy away from all of them. Thankfully, this latest song number was more than enough to perk everyone back up.
“I know it was emotionally rough back there,” Pinkie told her friends, “but it was all worth it though, right?”
“It really was Pinkie,” Twilight nodded. “We’ve had adventures before, but we’ve never had a story that illustrated friendship like this before. I just can’t wait for the big finale with Princess Celestia!”
“Don’t worry, Twilight. Everything is all set for tomorrow.” Spike announced.
The ending to the “Magical Mystery Cure” episode was set to be spectacular indeed. The Mane 6 would decide that they learned so much about friendship that day that a letter wasn’t enough to contain it all. So instead, they all travel to Canterlot where they deliver the friendship report to the princess in person in the most elaborate musical number they’ve ever done, where they sum up the lessons they all have learned over the past three seasons. I hope Octavia’s ready. She’s been practicing her duet with Rarity for months Pinkie thought.
After the number, Celestia would congratulate Twilight for accomplishing her goals and offers her a spot at the prestigious Canterlot University as the head professor of Magic Studies. That bombshell would mark the end of the episode, and lead into a two-parter to open up season 4 where Twilight is faced with the prospect of leaving Ponyville, and her friends, forever. Where that plot point goes from there, Pinkie didn’t know. However, that was a question that she had time to mull over the summer. For now, however, the season 3 finale still had to be completed.
“We can worry about the finale later,” Pinkie said. “It’s getting late anyway. How about wrap up for the day? I think we all deserve it.”
“Sounds good to me! See ya later!” With that, Rainbow Dash bolted off back to her house before anypony else could blink. Applejack simply shook her head in amusement before starting to make her way back to Sweet Apple Acres.
“Ah guess Ah’ll mosey on off mahself. Bye, y’all!” Applejack tipped her hat on her way out.
Spike was the next one to set off. “I’m gonna head back to the library to get this tape set down. Is that ok, Twilight?”
Twilight gave her little assistant a hug. “You go on ahead. I’ll be along soon.” Spike returned the hug and began to make his way back to the library.
Rarity stretched her legs. “Well, I think I shall retire to the spa. Anypony care to join me?”
“Thanks for the offer, Rarity. But I’ve got to plan tommorow’s big Season 3 wrap-up party.” Pinkie replied.
“Uh, I kinda wanted to catch up on some important research tonight. Sorry,” Twilight smiled sheepishly.
Fluttershy gently pawed the ground. “Well, I guess I wouldn’t mind joining you. I need a relaxing treatment after trying to run Sugarcube Corner for a day.”
Rarity beamed. “Oh wonderful, Fluttershy! Maybe we can get some honest girl talk in without Photo Finish barging in.”
“Have fun you two!” Twilight waved.
“See you tomorrow!” Rarity waved as she and Fluttershy began their trek to Aloe and Lotus’ spa, leaving Twilight Sparkle and Pinkie Pie by themselves. Twilight took a look at the quaint town that she has called home for the past three years. She began to feel a bit nostalgic.
“Hey Pinkie? Do you remember our very first story? ” Twilight asked
“You mean the one when I did this?” Pinkie proceeded to leap straight up in the air, letting out an overdramatic gasp much like she did in her very first scene.
“Yeah, when you did that,” Twilight giggled.
“I know what you mean. I just can’t believe it either. Three whole seasons,” Pinkie sighed. “When we started, I was worried we wouldn’t even make it half-way past season two. By the way, you sure you’re not mad about not getting as much screentime as previous seasons?”
“Why should I be mad? It gave me some time to catch up on my Advanced Quantum Teleportation readings. I was worried I was going to fall behind there.”
Pinkie let out a small laugh. “You’re such an egghead, you know that?”
Twilight blushed. “I guess that’s just the way I am. But at the same time, we sure did come a long way since I first came here. This episode made me realize how much I’ve changed over the past three years.”
“We’ve all changed Twilight,” Pinkie pointed out.
“Heh, you’re one to talk Ms. G3!”
“Hey, don’t hold that against me!” Pinkie laughed.
Twilight giggled softly for a moment. She then sighed sadly.
“This is actually why I don’t know if I can go through with this next storyline. I don’t think I can handle losing the friendships I’ve made here in Ponyville if I take that job. It was bad enough going through being responsible for messing up everypony’s destinies.”
“We still have some time to talk about it,” Pinkie reassured her friend. “But after an episode like this, we have to try to start thinking about ways to keep our fans invested. We do have to think about the future, after all.”
“You’re probably right, but I’m still uneasy about it.” Twilight admitted.
“Everything’s going to be just fine, Twilight. You said it yourself, remember?” Pinkie reassured Twilight with a warm smile. “Tell you what, we still have a whole summer until we have to worry about season 4. We’ll worry about it later. Let’s rest up for tomorrow, ok?”
“Sounds great, Pinkie.”
“That’s the spirit! Now don’t forget we have to go to Canterlot tomorrow for the grand finale.”
“Don’t worry about me. I’m just more concerned about Rainbow Dash sleeping in.”
“I’ve got that covered. I told her if she was late, that ‘Lady Rainbow’ will fill in for her instead!”
Twilight cringed at the thought. “The ‘dress-in-style’ Rainbow Dash? Ouch, that wasn’t very nice.”
Pinkie winked. “Hey, what are friends for?” They both giggled.
“Well, I guess I’ll head back to the library now before it gets dark. See you tomorrow Pinkie!” Twilight waved before trotting back.
“Goodbye Twilight!”
Pinkie waved back as she watched Twilight head home. Pinkie lingered for a few more seconds, taking one last good look at what has been an absolutely fantastic day. She then began to head back to Sugarcube Corner, a huge smile on her face.
“This is gonna be one the bronies will be talking about forever!”
~~~~~
Later that evening, Twilight had finished catching up on her readings and had decided that she had a little bit of time to try to get ahead. She wandered to her shelf browsing through her books. The room grew rather messy as the purple unicorn went through her large book collection.
“Hmm… Ancient Transformation Theories… The Biography of Ludwig van Neighthoven… Human Mysteries in Equestrian History? Hmm, I see Lyra finally returned this one.”
Twilight continued her search as Spike entered the messy room.
“Hey Twilight! Whatcha doing?”
“Nothing much, Spike. I’m just trying to find something to read.”
“Shouldn’t you be resting up for tomorrow? We’ve got a big day after all.”
“I know, but I trying to keep my mind off it for now. I guess I’m a bit nervous.”
Spike took a seat on a pile of books next to Celestia’s student. “Don’t worry, everything’s gonna be just fine!”
“Thanks Spike. I shouldn’t worry about the show this much. I should be more worried about how messy my library got tonight!”
The dragon assistant shrugged. “Even I’ll admit we’ve got a few too many items laying around here. I mean, I even found the Alicorn Amulet replica.”
Twilight arched an eyebrow. “We still had that?”
“Yeah, check it out!” Spike then whipped out the prop. Twilight chuckled as memories of her magic duel with Trixie played in her head. She remembered she was particularly scared going into the episode. It wasn’t because it meant the ‘return’ of the Great and Powerful Trixie, the two had been on good terms since around the end of the first season. Her fear was mainly due to the amulet. It was the most powerful artifact she read about outside of the Elements of Harmony. It was also the most dangerous since the full extent of the amulet’s power remained unknown to many. Thankfully, for everyone’s safety, the amulet used for the show was just a very well crafted prop, and it magic was fueled thanks to Princess Luna, giving a magical assist backstage. Despite the darker feel of the episode, everypony had a blast making it.
“I still can’t believe that this is just an imitation.” Twilight observed as she levitated the prop to her face. She took the opportunity to scrutinize every inch of it. “It looks so real…”
“Well, Rarity does have an eye for details,” Spike sighed.
Twilight rolled her eyes as her #1 assistant lost himself in another marshmallow-filled fantasy. Looking at the prop and knowing that the thing was completely harmless, she decided to put it on just for fun.
“Well what do you think, Spike? Do I look ‘Grrreat and Powerful’ now?” she asked, imitating Trixie’s own signature style.
“You’re gonna need to get your pointy hat and cape for that!” Spike laughed.
“I will say that Rarity did a great job with this replica. She even included the inscription on the back.”
Spike tilted his head. “Inscription?”
“Apparently, the actual amulet had an inscription that supposedly unlocked its full power when in the right hooves. Problem is that there are no records of that ever happening, so nopony knows if it’s just another tall pony tale or not.”
“What does it say?”
“It’s actually inscribed in Early Equestrian so it’s kinda hard to read, but I remember reading a translation in a book.”
Twilight closed her eyes as she recalled the words she read a while back.
“A power desired by many but possessed by few.
To achieve such greatness, you must first look to you.
A journey complete is a journey begun.
An Alicorn’s path is never done.
For one so brave, one so bold.
A brand new chapter is about to be told.
It is destiny, it is fate.
Take heed, for a whole new world awaits.”
As Twilight recited the incantation, the amulet’s jewel changed from its red color to purple. When she finished, the jewel began to emit a purple light. A magical hum began to fill the library.
Spike grew confused, and then frightened as the supposed show prop continued to react magically. “Uh, Twilight? The amulet is glowing!”
The unicorn’s eye’s shot open.
“What?!” She looked down to see the amulet, its purple glow growing brighter and brighter. Twilight’s pupils shrunk as the amulet continued to react.
“But, how can…” she stammered.
Before she could utter another word, she was suddenly completely enveloped in a ball of bright purple light, which shone impossibly throughout the library. The intense magical energy crackled the air around it as the magic reached its peak, the mess of books swirling around it. Spike had to shield his eyes in order not to be blinded.
“Twilight!” The dragon shouted as loud as he could. The only thing he could hear was the loud humming and crackling of the energy ball, and the screams of a pony in agony.
After what seemed like an eternity, the light faded away, and the disturbed books settled back to the floor. All was quiet in the library once more. It took Spike a few moments to recover from witnessing such a surge of magic. It had virtually buried Twilight underneath the books. Spike immediately took to the book hill and tried to get Twilight out of it. He could hear her moaning in exhaustion.
“Twilight! Are you Ok?” He asked with grave concern.
“I… think so.” Twilight answered, her strength slowly returning. “Hold on, I’m gonna try standing up.”
Spike got out of the way as the hill of books began to stir. Seconds later Twilight Sparkle emerged, looking rather worn out, but thankfully she didn’t have a scratch on her.
Spike sighed in relief as he saw Twilight was ok…
…and then his face froze with shock.
“Spike? Is something wrong?” Twilight asked as she noticed her assistant was looking at her very strangely.
“Uh… uh… uh…” Spike stammered. His mind seemingly broken as to what he was seeing.
Twilight began to panic. “Something’s wrong isn’t it?”
Spike nodded slowly.
Twilight ran towards her assistant.
“Spike, what happened? What did that thing do?!?”
“They’re… They’re…” Spike continued to stammer, slowly pointing a claw towards her.
“What are you pointing to? Is there something on my back?”
“You could say that…” Spike said, his voice shaking uneasily.
Twilight slowly reached her hoof towards her back, completely unsure about what she would find.
And then she found them.
The peaceful Ponyville evening was briefly interrupted by the sound of a pony shrieking in terror.
~~~~~~
In the kitchen of Sugarcube Corner, Pinkie Pie pulled out a batch of freshly made, rainbow-colored cupcakes from the oven. She grinned, they were absolutely perfect! She made sure that this batch came out just right. After all, Rainbow Dash herself requested them. And Pinkie knew just why.
“I never knew she would have like that story this much! She really does love a scary story, even if she’s the victim!”
It was all part of the big Season 3 Wrap-Up Party. This particular party was by far the biggest one she had ever put together, not only to celebrate the success of the show and the end of 3 great seasons, but also to celebrate the recent news that they had been green-lit for season 4, and that they may also be a possible movie in the extension too! It was certainly time to celebrate, and Pinkie felt that she needed to go all out with this one.
Unfortunately, planning a party this large was nearly impossible for one pony to handle on their own. Thankfully, the Cakes went on ahead to secure the major party essential from Canterlot, leaving her alone for the evening. Also, she was being assisted by one of her older friends from another Ponyville, a mint green earth pony with a light pink mane with three mint-shaped candies on her flank. And that pony hadn’t been seen for a few hours.
“I wonder what Minty is doing up there,” Pinkie said to herself, making her way up to her bedroom.
When she opened her door, she was greeted by an avalanche of balloons.
“What the…?” She tried to make her way past the first wave only to find her room was almost filled with balloons from the floor to the ceiling. In the middle of the scene was the mint-colored pony, catching her breath as she finished blowing up what seems like her millionth balloon in a row.
“I see those balloons are coming along fine, Minty.” Pinkie asked while trying to make her way toward the middle of the room.
“I don’t think I’ll have any air left to breath after this!” She huffed.
Pinkie could only chuckle. Ever since she was reunited with her old Generation 3 friends last summer, they had proven to be an invaluable asset behind the scenes. Starsong helped out with the songs; Toola-Roola helped out with the art work; the original Rainbow Dash, now known as Lady Rainbow to avoid confusion, had teamed up with Rarity in the costuming and design aspects of the show; and Cheery Blossom, who used to go by the name of Cheerilee, turned out to be a fabulous script writer and story teller. Meanwhile the original Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo, who opted to go by the names of Sweet Heart and Sparkleworks in Equestria, were instrumental in keeping the young fillies and colts entertained and well-behaved. The current incarnation of Cheerilee was especially grateful. Minty on the other hand, tended to stay out of the way due to her clumsy nature, but was happy to help out any way she could. Pinkie was happy that her old friends were able to chip in with the success of the show.
“You didn’t have to blow all the balloons in one go,” Pinkie pointed out.
“I know…” the mint pony gasped. “…but this is such a special occasion! If we’re even one balloon short, it would be catastrophic!”
Pinkie giggled. “Oh Minty! Don’t worry about the small things. That’s how the whole Santa fiasco started that Christmas, remember?”
Minty blushed. “I guess I got carried away a bit there, didn’t I?”
“How about coming downstairs and help me with the treats?” Pinkie offered.
“I can do that!” Minty shouted as she made her way past the mountain of balloons towards the hallway. “So how did the episode go today?”
Pinkie couldn’t contain her smile. “It went better than expected. I don’t think I’ve ever done an episode this excellent. This is already the best episode ever!”
Minty arched an eyebrow. “Better than the gala episode?”
“Yes!” Pinkie nodded
“Even better than Nightmare Moon?”
“Yup!”
“Better than the Princess Promenade!”
“It’s even better than that!”
“Even better that… Newborn Cuties?”
Pinkie cringed on that last one. Now THERE’S a mark on her resume she’d like to have expunged from history.
Pinkie let out an exasperated smile. “Yes, it’s even better than Newborn Cuties.”
Minty’s eyes lit in amazement. “Woooow!!! How do you guys do it? What’s your secret?”
Pinkie could only shrug. “I can’t really tell you. Lauren was the one who set it all up. She gave us our personalities, and she gave us some adventures to go on. We’re just being ourselves really.”
“Man, this Lauren sound amazing. I can’t wait to meet her!”
Pinkie’s face fell slightly. “Actually, I don’t think she’ll ever come back. She left after our first year. She only told me that she had to move on, and that I was in charge. And then… she was gone.”
“Oh.” Minty said softly. “I’m sorry.”
Pinkie sighed. She sat on her haunches as she began to reflect. “She saved me, you know. When the old Ponyville vanished? She could have just left me there to vanish alongside it. I don’t know why she did it, but she saved me. She brought me here, gave me a new life, a new purpose… and new friends. I owe it to her to make sure this show keeps going strong for as long as possible.”
“Well you’re doing a great job Pinkie! I bet Lauren is super proud!”
Pinkie looked out a nearby window at the beautiful Ponyville night. She smiled. “I know she is, Minty. I know she is.”
“Hey! Don’t get too touchy-feely! We’ve still got a party to plan!” Minty shouted, pushing Pinkie towards the kitchen.
“Ok, Minty. Could you help me frost the cupcakes?”
“Sure thing, Pinkie! I’ll make sure they are all frosted real goo…. Hey, why are the cupcakes rainbow colored?” Minty asked, a little warried.
Pinkie giggled. “It’s was Rainbow Dash’s idea. She got it from a story she read.”
“Oh thank goodness, for a minute there I thought you might have actually…”
The conversation was interrupted by a loud banging at the front door.
“Who could that be?” Pinkie wondered. She cantered over to the front door and shouted to the mystery customer. “Sorry, we’re closed now! You could come try us again tomorrow and…”
“PINKIE!!! OPEN THE DOOR!!!” shouted the voice on the other side. It sounded like a young boy. Or rather, a young dragon.
“Spike?” Pinkie gasped. She opened the door. “Spike, what’s the matter?”
She opened the door to be greeted by not only Spike, but Twilight Sparkle as well. Spike was wearing a very worrying look on his face, and Twilight looked as if she was in the midst of a panic attack. She was hyperventilating, failing desperately to preform her calming breathing exercises. Her wings were flapping in panic. Her eyes were shrunk into pinpricks, seeming unable to cope with the shock. Pinkie couldn’t understand what could have caused Twilight to…
Wait a minute…
Wings?
Horn still in place, albeit a tad bit longer?
Wings?!?
A few inches taller?
WINGS?!?
Pinkie Pie froze in panic. Somehow, someway, Twilight had become an Alicorn.
“We have a bit of a problem.” Spike simply stated.
“What’s going on out here?” Minty ran over to the front to see what the commotion was all about. Then she noticed the freshly-minted Alicorn. “Oh my…”
Pinkie let out a soft moan as she fainted over, overcome by the shock.
Minty groaned to herself. “I knew I should have blown up that last balloon.”