//------------------------------//
// The Mistake 
// Story: Lost and Afraid 
// by Mr Anomalous 
//------------------------------//


The Mistake


Twilight Sparkle was doing what she did best, aside from lecturing of course: researching! Of course, she couldn't research without cause, it made no sense to do that. Unless she was super bored, then she could research without reason, but that wasn't called researching, it's called studying for no test. Just...reading because she felt like it, there you go.

But she wasn't doing that, Twilight was specifically researching teleportation spells. She, of course, already knew how to teleport, herself and other objects, but she was researching a rather specific type of teleportation spell: a long-distance one.

The longest amount of distance that she had ever teleported was to her Library from across town, and that had taken a lot of energy.

This time, she was going to go even further, but she was going to cast the spell quicker, more efficiently, and somehow, somehow with less energy. She wanted to teleport all the way to Canterlot. Which, if you think about it, really isn't that far, walking distance if you're desperate enough. Then again, anywhere is within walking distance if you're desperate enough. Agh, but that isn't the point

Anyway, Twilight was reading up on ways to use less energy when there was a knock at her door. She was about to open her mouth and call for Spike, but then she remembered that he was away on Canterlot business again. She was going to have to break her studying to answer it herself.

Grumbling a bit, she hopped from her chair and began to walk downstairs. When she reached the bottom, the knock sounded again, only this time a bit more urgent.

"I'm coming, I'm coming..," she said, rather flatly.

She ignited her horn's aura and swung open the door.

"Twilight! Oh thank goodness you're here! I need a trombone, quick!" It was Pinkie Pie.

"A trombone?" Twilight gasped, "Ohmigosh, it the Parasprites aren't back are they!?"

"What? Pfft, no, of course not silly, I just wanted to play a trombone!" Pinkie said and began to mime playing one, making noises with her mouth.

"Well, sorry Pinkie, I can't help you. No trombones here."

"Aww, darn...wellseeyalater!"

And she was off. Twilight, despite her being irritated earlier, just giggled at her friends antics and returned upstairs after shutting the heavy, wooden door. 

Oh Pinkie...

She opened her book and was glad that she had remembered to place a bookmark and continued to read. This book she was particularly glad of, because it was a written by Starswirl the Bearded, her most influential role model. Well, aside from Princess Celestia of course. 

Twilight checked to see how many pages she had left. Three hundred. How wonderful! Twilight loved it when she had to read a lot. She liked reading anyway, but needing to, like an assignment. For some reason, she just enjoyed it when it was required. Made her feel more accomplishment.

She she read on.



[/hr]

It was early morning when she finally finished.

Nice job Twilight.She congratulated herself.

She now had sufficient knowledge to work on the mathematics to successfully perform the spell! Her eyes lit up, as she set to work yet again. She darted around the library, going from open book to open book, reading, taking notes, devising theorems, you know, sciency stuff.  

It took several more hours, and a heavy coffee break, but she did it! She did it! Just a few hours is actually pretty good, work like this usually takes weeks, months, years sometimes. But she did it. Another thing to add to her list of things to be proud of.

Then she did something that he hadn't done for a long time. She wrote a letter to Princess Celestia, that was not thought about. She was so excited about her spell that she didn't spend much time on it. Of course, she checked it for spelling mistakes, but everyone does that...right?

It was a simple letter that told Celestia of Twilight's success, and how she had finally figured out how to do a successful long-distance teleportation spell, and how she was willing to be the test subject.

Then she did something really out of character: she didn't wait for a response.

This spell obviously meant quite a lot for Twilight, as you might have imagined, if she did not wait for a response from the Princess. In hindsight she really should have. 

Instead, she braced herself in the center of her room and began to summon of the energy needed, which, despite her efforts, was still quite a lot. But it was far less then she would have had to without her newly-learned mathematics.

Twilight felt it coming. The surge of energy was high, and she braced herself. A buzzing noise began to rise in her ears. A pulsing light came from her aura. The sound became louder and louder, and the light brighter and brighter. Bolts of magical electricity were lashing out against anything they could find. Papers were begins strewn everywhere. but Twilight had her eyelids shut tight to ward off the light, so she was unable to see. 

Then, right as she felt herself begin to teleport, a letter came. Since Spike was not there, Celestia had set up a temporary device that received and sent the letters in Spike's stead. But it was too late; Twilight was gone, and gone for a very long time.

Dearest Twilight:
I must urge you to not attempt this spell. I know not where you found it because I had thought it put away long ago. Teleportation is not meant for long distances, and should remain so. The reason is something that I do not have an understanding for. I am not a scholar, nor a scientist, nor a mage, as you and Starswirl were, so I am afraid that I cannot explain to you the exact specifications, but I can tell you that this spell is dangerous, and that it cannot work. It never takes you where you want it to, and it does not work on the way back.
-Princess Celestia