//------------------------------// // Many Mares of Mystery // Story: The Twilight Child // by Detectivefish //------------------------------// Midday woke to the sound of birds singing, of the slight breeze of the early winter wind, the somewhat bothersome sound of workstallions working, and yawned. Perhaps she was trapped twenty-three years into the past relative to herself, and perhaps it was only two weeks or so until Twilight Sparkle's birthday, but nonetheless- She paused. She rewound her internal monologue. Only two weeks? "Ah." She sat there for a moment, and decided not to let that bother her. She was going to make the most of her stay in Ponyville of the past, regardless of what happened. After brushing her teeth she made her way downstairs, where Twilight was sitting, as she always did. "Good morning, Twilight. What are you getting up to today?" "Nothing." The mare smiled back. "Oh, that's nice, I-... Nothing?" "Nothing. I'm on a study break." She smiled. Midday paused, and tried to wrap her head around such an idea as Twilight not studying. It was as strange as Applejack speaking with Recieved Pronunciation. "A... study break?" She asked, slowly, trying to make sense of these foreign words. "Yes. I am just going to relax, and take my mind off of looking at books or practicing spells." Midday shook her head. This couldn't be right. Twilight Sparkle deliberately not wanting to study? It couldn't be. "And besides, Heart's Warming Eve is coming up, and Celestia asked if the girls and I wouldn't mind performing the traditional play. And I agreed." Midday smirked. She knew a mind like Twilight Sparkle's would not be able to resist trying to 'alter' the play to make it more accurate. There was a sigh. "If only I could make it more historically accurate." And there it was. "Why don't you?" Twilight Sparkle stared at her like she'd just burnt a book. "I couldn't do that! It's a tradition of the Equestrian holidays!" "So's waking up with a bright orange plastic cone on your head. C'mon, you're Princess Celestia's student. Surely you have the authority to make it more accurate?" "Well... I could, I suppose." "And besides, if it isn't accurate, then it is... inaccurate. And we can't have that, can we?" That seemed to seal the deal. "You're right!" Twilight Sparkle stood up, apparently trying to look dramatic (which didn't really work as the two mares were just about the same height). "I shall write a letter to Princess Celestia asking if I can make the play more accurate!" ***** "Nice day, isn't it?" Midday said. After writing the letter, Twilight had decided to go for a walk around the town, and had somehow managed to convince Midday to tag along. "Yes, actually. It is a nice day." There were barely any clouds in the sky, and it was rather warm, despite being late in November. The only major concern Midday had was the occasional creaking sound, almost like... poorly built masonry. And the occasional oddly dressed pony, of which there seemed to be an increasing amount all of a sudden. "Twilight?" Midday asked. "Yes?" "If I asked why there are ponies running around with poorly-fitting rainbow wigs and shirts bearing Rainbow Dash's face, would I like the answer?" "That's probably just her fan-club." "She has a fan-club? For what?" "Well, there is the fact that she helped saved Equestria, twice. And she's the fastest flier in Equestria." Midday frowned. "Isn't she also lazy, irresponsible, shallow, blunt, childish, and brash?" Twilight's expression hardened, "She's also loyal, willing to risk her life for others." "Twilight, that doesn't excuse the fact the she frequently puts off doing work she could easily do in seconds until the last minute, and appears utterly unconcerned about the feelings or considerations of others until they affect her." Midday looked around, and coughed. "Not that I have any room to speak of in that area." She muttered quickly. "She's a good friend, and dependable, and I couldn't think of anypony I'd rather have at my side in a crisis." "Not even the best of the Royal Guard, or a Wonderbolt? Because I wouldn't mind one or all of them helping out in a crisis." Twilight's expression changed, but their argument was halted by the distant sound of screaming. "Did you hear that?" Midday said, her head alert. "Yeah. Come on." Twilight rushed off in the direction of the screaming. They rushed to a well, where several ponies (including Applejack, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie) were standing, staring at the well. "What happened?" Twilight Sparkle asked. "My daughter! She fell into the well." Midday looked at it. It was quite a way down, especially for a filly. She heard a strange rippling noise, and wisely took a step back as a rainbow blur whooshed past. And then zoomed back out of the well. It was Rainbow Dash carrying a small filly covered in mud on her back. Midday couldn't help but notice several more ponies had shown up wearing those ridiculous wigs and shirts. Rainbow Dash landed almost gracefully, and the filly hopped off. The crowd swarmed around Rainbow Dash, praising her. The pegasus actually looked embarrased by the attention. "Wow." She said. "What's with this crowd? Thanks, everypony. It was really no big deal." Midday looked at Rainbow Dash's blushing from the small girl's praise. Maybe she was wrong. Maybe this past version of Rainbow Dash wasn't a raging egotist. Maybe all those pranks Rainbow Dash kept throwing at her were simply just good natured attempts at humour. Perhaps. ***** And then the cliff accident blew that out of the water. A mother had been walking with her newborn in a basket, and had been distracted right next to a very steep cliff. Needless to say, the moment she took her eyes off the carriage, it began to hurtle down towards a rather sudden cliff. And Rainbow Dash valiantly stepped in at the last minute to save the child. At which point she started waving to the crowd, before gasping in horror. "Oh, no!" She shouted to the crowd standing at the bottom of the cliff. There were mumurs of concern. "She's not cheering for everypony's favourite hero, Rainbow Dash!" The pegasus cheered. The crowd laughed a good-natured laugh. "You have got to be kidding me!" Midday said to herself. And then several ponies with cameras arrived. Rainbow Dash began posing for them, each one more self-aggrandizing than the last. "There just aren't enough words in the dictionary to describe Rainbow Dash!" cheered a voice that sounded distinctly liked Scootaloo. Midday just rolled her eyes. "I can think of a few words." She heard Twilight mutter, as Rainbow Dash took to the sky to create a stylized vapor trail version of her Cutie Mark. "An' I bet 'modest' is not one of them." Applejack added underneath the roar of the crowd. Midday turned to Twilight. "I'm gonna go back to the library before I suffocate from all the ego Rainbow's handing out." "Okay." Twilight said, not really paying attention. She was too busy watching Rainbow Dash. ***** Midday returned to the library to find Trixie drinking a rather odd-smelling liquid. "Hangover cure." The showmare croaked, upon noticing Midday's staring. "Somepony been burning the candle at both ends?" "A bit." There was a slight pause. "Trixie may also have had a horrific nightmare." "Ironic or just regular?" Trixie fixed Midday with a slight stare, though she seemed to have trouble maintaining it. "Regular." Midday pulled up a chair and sat next to her. "Why don't you tell me?" Trixie stared straigh ahead for a moment and sighed. "I dreamt I was being chased around Ponyville by a pony in a concealing hood and cloak. And then I found myself in an abandoned courtyard, where dozens of ponies were standing around in a circle, wearing cloaks and muttering something." "And then?" "Then one of them stood up, and it turned out to be... Applejack, I think. And she started speaking in this really, really deep voice at me." "So they knew you were there?" "It was a dream. They don't have to make sense." "And then Applejack said, in this really deep voice: Come, Trixie. It is time to keep your appointment with. The. Wicker. Pony." She said, briefly putting the hangover cure down and rubbing her head slightly. "Oh, shouldn't have done that" she mumbled. For a few seconds she rubbed her hooves against her temples. "And then I woke up. And I had this horrific headache. Please tell Trixie there is currently no madness occuring outside." Midday bit her lip. "Would you define everypony worshipping Rainbow Dash for saving children from wells madness?" There was a pause, punctuated only by the sound of the clock ticking. "Trixie's going back to bed." Midday wondered whether it was worth mentioning it was almost lunchtime. She looked around, and decided she didn't feel up to the task of making a meal. As she walked to find a good café or restaurant, she tried to not think about the Rainbow Dash of her time. She was the Element of Loyalty, amateur writer, Wonderbolt, occasional leader of the Royal Guard itself (though she wasn't sure of how that one had happened), friend and mentor-for-hire. As the representative of loyalty, she could inspire and foster it in ponies, usually by being all-round selfless and heroic, and though there was the occasional moment of ego, after everything she'd done in her life she could get away with it. This Rainbow Dash, Midday thought to herself, was an embarrassment. She had saved one filly from being stuck in a well, fair enough she gets some praise for that, then she saves a newborn from plummeting to an untimely end and she starts showing off. She wondered what the Rainbow Dash she knew would do if she met this Rainbow Dash. "Probably pummel herself senseless." She mused. She allowed herself a slight smile. ***** Unfortunately the search for lunch proved infuriating. Everywhere she went ponies were talking about Rainbow Dash, or gossiping about Rainbow Dash, or wearing those silly hats (which did look adorable, in a childish sort of way). Hungry and irritable she quickly walked back to the library, where she found Twilight, Rarity, Applejack, Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy all talking to each other in a small circle. "Afternoon" She said, walking right past them and into the kitchen. As she fixed herself a sandwich, she heard faint mutterings from the other room. She wandered back into the front room, calmly munching on her sandwich. "Oh, hello" said Fluttershy. The other four turned to look at her. "Afternoon." She replied. There was an odd mood in the room. "You girls aren't up to something, are you?" "No." Blurted Pinkie Pie. Midday raised an eyebrow. "We're just... talking" Applejack said. "You girls aren't concerned about Rainbow Dash and her current behaviour, would you?" The five mares looked at each other. "Yes" they said. "We just think that if she keeps on like this, somepony's going to get hurt." Twilight Sparkle said. "It's okay to feel good about your accomplishments, but Rainbow Dash, she... she's gone too far." Midday nodded. "I was there when she started posing for pictures." "Oh, yeah." Twilight Sparkle said. "So, what have you come up with?" Fluttershy raised a hoof. "I suggested asking her if she wouldn't mind being a bit more modest." Midday stared at Fluttershy, who stared at her hooves. "So you haven't actually thought of anything yet?" There was a pause as the mares looked at one another. "Not as such, no." Twilight sighed. Rarity looked around. "I... had thought of something, but I was going to wait until everypony else had spoken." Rarity said. The others turned to her. "Go ahead Rarity." "Well" The mare blushed slightly, "I was thinking, what if we started performing heroics? Beat Rainbow Dash at her own game." There was another pause. "That sounds..." Applejack frowned. "I think we could do it." Twilight said. "I don't know." Fluttershy said, "What will Rainbow Dash do? She might get upset." The six mares hummed. "And of course there is another problem" Twilight said, "None of us are as fast as Rainbow Dash. We'd have to be aware of problems before they start, and have the skills to solve them." "Hello?" Said Pinkie Pie, who actually looked indignant. "Oh, yes. Of course. Sorry, Pinkie." "And there's Fluttershy's point. Rainbow Dash is hardly the most... rational thinker around." Midday said, inbetween mouthfuls of sandwich. "And we're forgetting something." She said quietly. "There is?" "If Ponyville knows whoever is doing these heroics, we'd be bugged incessantly, we'd never have the freedom of movement to actually help anyone, since they'd probably be bugging us for autographs or photos. Or we could be ignored, our motives dissected endlessly." There was a moment of silence. "She has a point." Twilight sighed. "Although..." Rarity mused, "What if we wore a disguise?" It was like a light had been turned on in a darkened room. "Yes." Twilight said. "A disguise? I don't know." Applejack mused. "Actually, that would... yeah. Ponies can't bother you for autographs if they don't know who you are" Heads turned to Fluttershy. For a moment there was some slight confusion, but one by one they remembered Fluttershy's former modelling career, and realised she knew this from experience. "Well then, a disguise, masking whoever performs these heroics." Rarity smiled. There was a noise from the stairs. They looked to the door to see a rather unsteady looking Trixie standing there. She said some garbled collection of words. "Trixie, do you need something?" More garbled words. "Still got a headache." The blue showmare nodded. Midday rolled her eyes. Her horn glowed briefly, and a slight lance of mint-blue coloured energy shot from it, hitting Trixie directly in the forehead. In an instant the mare's eyes shot open, and she reared onto her hind legs (bashing her head on the ceiling.) "Trixie feels like she could do anything! What was that?" "Anti-headache spell. Also works on migranes. Can also cure mild brainwashing." The blue showmare looked at the circle of mares. "What are you six doing?" ***** A short time later in Carousel Boutique, after Trixie had been reluctantly inducted into the little conspiracy, and the seven mares were standing around a mannequin as Rarity displayed the many varieties of fabric she had. "So, purple and blue-ish black, then?" Rarity said. "Purple goes well with everything." Trixie beamed. "Glad we have established that one." Rarity sighed. "Now then, what shall this costume look like?" There was a pause. "Well, she's going to need a hat, to hide her hair." Fluttershy said. Trixie nodded vigorously at that. "And a cape, to hide your wings, Fluttershy." Twilight pointed out. "Oh, yes. Of course." The pegasus said, sheepishly. She almost looked unenthused about the whole idea. "A hat and a cape? Trixie senses something fishy about all this..." "Why would there be fish in here? That's just silly, Trixie." Pinkie smiled, not noticing the glare from Trixie. "Okay, so a cape, a hat... And it would need to conceal all visible features, something to see out of. Now, all we need is somepony to model it." The room went silent, and almost instantaneously six ponies shuffled backwards. "Girls," Rarity said in a weary tone, "I do need somepony to try it out, to see whether this costume could actually work or not." "Well, it can't be me" Applejack said weakly, "Ah'd probably tear it the minute ah moved." Fluttershy said nothing. At least, nothing audible. "I'd rather not" Trixie muttered, pulling her hat over her eyes. "I wouldn't be able to stay still long enough for you to make it. Or what if my Pinkie Sense goes off? Who knows what might happen?" This left Twilight and Midday. "Twilight? Midday?" Rarity smiled sweetly, the sort of smile usually used by cats about to do something to a priceless rug. "Oh, I couldn't possibly..." Twilight blushed, "I mean, I couldn't... that is... I should probably go check on Spike!" She yelped, teleporting out of the room before anypony could stop her. Rarity fixed her eyes on Midday. "No." She said. "Please." Midday winced, and desperately tried to fight down the dreaded P-word, "No." "Can't somepony else do it?" "No." "Can't we wait for Twilight to come back?" Rarity laughed. "No." "Do I have any say in this at all?" "No" Midday hung her head. Somepony placed a hoof on her shoulder. "Come now, Midday dearest. It's for the greater good." "(Trixie's heard that one before.)" Midday sighed. "Fine, fine. I'll do it." She said, wearily. Rarity beamed. "Thank you." Midday looked up at her. "Oh come now, you'll enjoy it." At those cursed words Midday felt a chill that went straight through skin and bone right down to her very soul. And then she tried to run through the door. Amazingly, Pinkie managed to tackle her before she could take a step. "You and your unnatural Pinkie Sense!" She hissed. ***** To be fair on Rarity, it was hardly the most uncomfortable thing she ever endured, which probably went to dress-fitting when she was ten. It was rather long and unpleasant all the same. Of course, Fluttershy was helping out as well every now and then. "There." Rarity said eventually. "Let's see how it stands up to movement." She walked over to the floor-length mirror nearby. "Not bad, if I don't say so myself." Rarity mused. Midday looked at it. She was not overly fond of purple, but it did look rather fetching. Although it didn't leave much to the imagination. She looked at the mask. With the bright blue eye-pieces, combined with it's colouration, it looked alarmingly familiar "Now what?" She said. "Perhaps you should put it through its paces." Rarity offered. "Tomorrow." She said. Rarity looked outside. The sun was beginning to go down, although since it was winter this didn't mean as much. "Very well." She sighed. "I suppose disasters will have to wait for tomorrow." "yay" Everypony turned to look at Fluttershy. "I thought you'd gotten over your cheering problem?" Twilight said, trying not to laugh. "I have. That wasn't me." Fluttershy said. "Then wh-?" Rarity turned to see Midday carefully disrobing. "What?" She said, defensively. "How about we go get something to eat?" Offered Rarity. "Good idea. Trixie feels like she could eat a whole block of cheese." There was a loud yelp from Rarity, almost like she'd been kicked, and she rushed away into one of the changing booths. "What was that?" "Oh, it's... Rarity has a severe fear of cheese." Twilight said, quietly. Trixie just looked confused. "She's never said why, we just take care not to mention it." And that was that for conversation on Rarity's strange phobia. Once she removed herself from the changing booth they went to eat dinner, carefully discussing their plans to solve the Rainbow Dash problem. ***** The next morning and Midday found herself rudely woken by Twilight. "Can't I just sleep a few more hours?" she muttered. "Come on. You said you'd demonstrate the costume today." Midday sighed. She had. "Just a minute then" she said, before trying to figure out which limb was supposed to be doing what. ***** Some half an hour later, and Midday was calmly sitting on a rooftop. She didn't feel at all safe, mainly because of the sheer number of collapsing buildings there seemed to be of late. However, thanks to the ingenuity of Rarity and Fluttershy, she was at least slightly warm. She wasn't entirely sure why she was standing on the rooftop, but it felt like the sort of thing to do. She also wasn't entirely sure how she'd been convinced to have the first go at heroism. Vague recollections of statements to the effect of 'It has to be you, no-one else's is ready yet' or 'you have the most experience in it' came to mind. She sighed. Then she heard the scream. A hot air balloon was plumetting towards the ground, the poor pony inside (Cherry Berry, if Midday had her name right) was screaming for help. And nopony was doing anything. Midday stood up and gingerly walked along the rooftop. She could see Rainbow Dash a short distance away. And she was still signing autographs. Midday looked up again. The balloon was getting incredibly close to the ground. Rainbow Dash was still signing autographs. She glanced at poor Cherry Berry, who looked a bit down. Midday stood up. "Guess it's time for me to make my entrance" She sighed. She took a few steps back, then noticed she had her invisibility spell still going. She let it fade, and cast another spell that boosted her jumping. She braced her, ignoring the fear she was feeling, she took a deep breath... and she took flight.