//------------------------------// // Finding Friends Again // Story: What Didn't Happen // by Zeg //------------------------------// What Didn't Happen by Zeg Chapter II – Finding Friends Again Twilight knew that her revelation that she was a 'friend from the future' was going to spur an avalanche of questions, but she felt she couldn't leave her friends completely in the dark since something was obviously wrong with this past. She had managed to fend off answering any more questions right away by using her current state of cleanliness, or rather lack there of, as an excuse to escape and buy some time to think. Fluttershy had kindly offered Twilight the use of her shower, to which Twilight graciously accepted. Her coat, mane, tail, and wings felt like they still had buckets of dirt imbedded in them. She stood there in the tub, the shower pouring warm water over her back as her magic absentmindedly worked a scrub brush through her coat to purge the grit, but her mind was completely focused elsewhere. The entire situation was a really big problem. She mentally recounted the facts that she had been able to collect so far. First, her past self was not where she should be. Second, because her past self was no where to be found, nopony had discovered the Elements of Harmony; therefore, there was nopony to challenge Nightmare Moon. Third, the Everfree Forest had been marked as 'off limits' and her friends seemed to be terrified of the Nightguard, which meant that Nightmare Moon must have already established her power in Celestia's absence. Twilight then flinched at a stray thought that made it into her mind. In the past she remembered, Nightmare Moon had reversed the imprisonment spell that held her in the moon and used it against Celestia, but this past had a different history. What if Nightmare Moon had done something other than imprisoning Celestia? Twilight scrunched her nose, shaking her head at the thought and shoved it aside. She had no facts on Celestia's whereabouts in this past and pondering on what sort of horrible things could have happened without any tangible proof would do no good. No, she needed to focus on the facts, and the one fact that was really throwing a wrench into Twilight's thought patterns was that her own past had obviously been altered, but yet her memories of what should have happened were still unaltered. “This... goes completely against all my theories,” she mumbled to herself as her eyes wandered around in thought. There was no precedent for how time travel could change history, at least not real time travel like what she had just done. She had once used a modified teleportation spell created by Starswirl that allowed a quick jump to another location at a time in the past, but that spell still kept the caster linked to their original location and time and only lasted half a minute, which would limit just how much a pony could change things. And since the spell was only a modified teleportation spell and not real time magic, there was no proof that it could be used as an example of the consequences of changes brought on by mucking with the fabrics of reality. The magic that Twilight had developed over the years to actually travel through time was many orders of magnitude more complicated than Starswirl's attempt at time travel. Her magic actually allowed a pony to sever their connection to reality in order to move themselves relative to time and space in a direction and speed other than the normal, allowing a pony to permanently travel to a different time and location with no annoying whiplash effect yanking oneself back. However, her spell had never been used. She honestly had no proof that the spell would work at all, until now. And so all of those possible consequences of using the spell were theoretical, and it was looking like at least some of her theories were wrong. Twilight's thoughts were jarred back to reality, finding herself standing under the running shower. The light knock at the door that had grabbed her attention was followed by a muffled voice that she couldn't quite understand. “Is somepony there?” Twilight asked as her ears swiveled to the closed doorway. Fluttershy's small voice came through the doorway clearly the second time. “Oh um... I was just making sure you're okay. You were taking a while. I'll leave you alone.” Twilight blinked, and then seemed to fully realize that she was still standing in the tub. She wasn't sure but it was quite possible that she had just been standing there scrubbing at a single spot on her side for the last five minutes while her mind had been busy. “Sorry! I'll be done soon,” Twilight said as her ears swiveled back against her head and she grinned sheepishly at the closed door. “Oh, no rush. Take your time,” Fluttershy called back. The door went quiet after that, leaving Twilight alone with her thoughts once again. She scrunched her nose up in thought as she simultaneously grabbed a bottle of liquid soap with her magic and squeezed the contents onto the scrub brush. “Why would she do something to the past though,” Twilight said to herself as her thoughts once again returned to trying to solve the plethora of problems that were laid out before her. That particular one stuck out as the most bizarre of all of them, that she couldn't figure out a reason for why her past had been targeted. She shuttered when her mind considered some of the possibilities as to how the change had been accomplished. --- Having finished the much needed shower and gotten some time to think things over, Twilight was feeling a bit more at ease. However, as she finished toweling off and prepared to make her way into the living room, she knew that she was in for quite a strange conversation with her old friends. She still wasn't sure just how much she should reveal to them. Did the rule of 'don't say anything about the future' apply in a past where things had already been changed? Since things didn’t seem to be matching up to her previous theories, she wondered if that rule had ever applied at all. And what if fixing things depended on revealing the future? She knew that was going to be the likely case, that she was going to have to tell them something if there was to be any hope of returning things to what they should be. Twilight had opted to leave behind the remnants of her ruined regalia on a table in Fluttershy's bedroom, planning on dealing with them later. She wore only her crown perched upon her head as she made her way to the table that the two pegasi had been idly chatting at while they waited on her to return. Rainbow Dash was the first one to speak up as Twilight approached and sat down at the table. “Leave any hot water for the rest of Ponyville, Princess?” Rainbow asked with a grin. “Just Twilight, please. And sorry, had lots of dirt to take care of,” Twilight said as her ears pressed back against her head. Rainbow waved her hoof dismissively, her grin shifting to more of a smile. “I'm only joking with ya. I'm sure if I had taken a dirt bath like that I'd been scrubbing myself for hours to get it all out too.” “Hours? Was I really in there that long?” Twilight asked. While this exchange was going on, Fluttershy had left the table briefly to return with a cup and saucer delicately clasped in her teeth that she sat down on the table just in front of Twilight. A small wisp of steam rolled and curled up from the cup from a gentle breeze as Fluttershy sat back down at the table. “You were only in there about an hour I think,” Fluttershy said as she glanced toward the clock on the wall, which read some time near three. Twilight took notice of the clock as well, and her subconscious immediately noted that it must have been incredibly late at night. “Wow, I really didn't mean to be keeping you two up all night. I didn't realize it was this late.” “Huh?” Rainbow said as she glanced over at the wall clock. “Oh, no it's not late. It's midday now, not that anypony can really tell by looking outside,” she said as she pointed her hoof out a nearby window at the moonlit night. Twilight gave Rainbow an incredulous look for a second before understanding sunk in. “Oh right, Nightmare Moon.” Of course it was night during the middle of the day. “Yeah,” Rainbow said as she brought a cup of warm tea up to her lips to take a sip. “Yes... I think we're going to have to try to do something about that,” Twilight said as she gazed down to the tea cup sitting before her, tapping her hooves against the cup's sides. The thought had crossed her mind while in the shower that Nightmare Moon could prove to be an obstacle toward getting anything solved. She needed some very specific answers, and the best place to find them was probably also one of the last places Nightmare Moon would allow an unknown alicorn into. Rainbow put her tea cup back down quickly causing the saucer it sat on to rattle a bit. “Okay before we get into any 'lets save the world' stuff, I got more questions.” Twilight looked to Rainbow, and let go a sigh as she put on a smile. “Right, of course you guys do. I can't just ask you to go do something dangerous and crazy sounding without explaining some things. I'll try to answer what I can.” Rainbow wasted no time getting right to the questions. “So you're really from the future?” she asked as if to really confirm what she had been told earlier. “Yes.” “And you know us from the future?” “No no, that's not how it happened,” Twilight said as she shook her head. “My past self should have met you two here in Ponyville over two weeks ago.” “Oh right, you did say that,” Rainbow said as she scratched her mane with a hoof. “But that obviously didn't happen.” “Right, it didn't happen, which means the past has been changed.” “...Wait, really? I don't remember it changing.” Rainbow was already thoroughly lost. Twilight quietly lifted the tea cup in front of her with her magic, and took a sip before gently placing it back down, which her two friends watched as they waited for some sort of response. Twilight seemed to strain her thoughts as she furrowed her brow for a moment, then she nodded once. “Okay, let me see if I can make this make some sense,” she said as she collected her thoughts. “As I mentioned earlier, I came here by a spell that let me travel through time. I was following somepony through the spell, but on the way here I ended up falling out of the spell early.” “Who were you following?” Rainbow interjected. “That's... actually not important, and would probably only make this sound even more crazy.” Twilight noticed the disapproving look playing on Rainbow's face again. “Rainbow, I can't explain every little detail. Doing so could be very dangerous.” “Dangerous?” Fluttershy quietly asked from the other side of the table. “Well, the danger being that the more I say, the more I could change history. It's obvious things have already changed some but I could do more harm than good if I'm not careful about what I reveal.” “Soo...,” Rainbow drawled out as she pondered on her next question. “You mean you wouldn't be able to tell me if I become a Wonderbolt in the future?” she asked with an innocent looking smile. Twilight raised her eyebrow at the not so innocent question. “Most certainly not.” “Drat,” Rainbow said as she clunked her hooves together just in front of her face, partially hiding her brooding at the disappointing answer. “Rainbow, we need to take this seriously,” Twilight said as she leaned an elbow on the table, propping her chin up on a hoof. “Alright alright, fine.” Twilight glanced down at her tea cup again. The honest truth was that she wanted to tell them everything. She wanted them to fulfill their dreams like she remembered, and she was a bit worried that with the changes that this past was already seeing that those dreams may not come true. For a moment she considered going back on her 'no telling' stance, but then reined that desire back in. She had to focus on the one major problem sitting right before her now, and then she could worry about the smaller ones later. Twilight took one more sip from her tea before continuing. “What I can tell you is that we were all supposed to work together to defeat Nightmare Moon and return Celestia back to Equestria.” “Just us? Against her?” Fluttershy said as she shrunk down at her seat, seeming to hide herself behind her small tea cup. Twilight turned to face Fluttershy. “Actually no, not just us. There are three more ponies here in Ponyville that are supposed to help.” Twilight sat up straight as she began to recount the other three mares missing from their group. “There's Applejack, from Sweet Apple Acres.” “Oh... I know her,” Fluttershy said as she sat up from her hiding spot. “I buy things from the Apple Family's stall in the market square for the little animals all the time.” Twilight nodded with a smile and continued. “There's Rarity, the owner of Carousel Boutique.” “...Who?” Rainbow said as she scrunched her nose up. Fluttershy tapped at her chin with a hoof in through for a second before speaking up again. “I think she's the white pony that makes those pretty dresses. I've seen her before at Lotus and Aloe's spa when I go there.” She beamed a smile when Twilight nodded an affirmative to her. “Right. And there's Pinkie Pie.” “Whoa... whoa whoa wait,” Rainbow Dash said as she suddenly pushed herself up standing with her hooves planted on the table. “That crazy pony is going to help us save the world?” Fluttershy shot a scowl across the table in a fashion normally only a skilled mother could manage. “Rainbow, that's not nice,” she scolded with her quiet voice. Twilight chuckled lightly. “Believe it or not, yes, Pinkie is part of this group. I know she does some off the wall things now and then—” “Meaning always,” Rainbow grumbled as she crossed her fore-hooves. “—But, she is one of the bearers of the Elements.” Rainbow's ears twitched at that little piece of information. “Bearers of the Elements?” she questioned as her eyebrows slowly climbed. Twilight mentally cursed her slip up as she grit her teeth. She hadn't quite been ready to reveal that yet, hoping first to gather the entire group. “Yes... that... that is actually something we need everypony here for before I go into it.” “Oh come on!” Rainbow cried out as she threw her forehooves above her head before letting them flop to her sides. “There you go with more secret stuff! This is really going to get on my nerves.” “Rainbow, please. This is something the entire group needs to hear, and we're missing the other three.” Twilight could see that her excuse wasn't really cutting it and didn't want to leave her friend fuming. She considered what she could tell her friend, and came up with an answer. “Tell you what, I'll tell you something. Something that's just for you, okay?” Rainbow's ears perked up at this. “Like what?” “Your Element, the one that you represent. It's Loyalty. And it fits you perfectly.” Twilight turned herself in her seat so she could look straight on at Rainbow and continued. “I always knew that no matter what happened, and no matter how bad things might get, you of all ponies in the world would never abandon your friends.” Twilight paused for a second to let the words sink in, watching as Rainbow silently sat there thinking. “Right now, your friends really need you and they don't even know it yet. All of Equestria is going to need you. Most of all, I just really need you to trust me for now.” Rainbow shifted in her chair, seeming to be suddenly uncomfortable in her own skin. “Wow... when you put it like that I guess I really can't complain.” “I know that the 'not knowing' is driving you up the wall. It would me too if things were reversed, I'm sure. But if you can just put up with me for a while, I promise all this will start to make sense.” Rainbow grinned and scratched at her mane as she leaned back in her chair. “Alright, you've made your point. Patience, right?” “Right,” Twilight said with a smile. She then turned and glance at the other end of the table that Fluttershy was quietly sitting at. “Fluttershy, you're being awfully quiet, which I know is normal but still, I'm sure there's something you want to ask.” “Oh... well... I wouldn't want to bother you with more questions.” “Nonsense,” Twilight said as she waved a hoof. “I told Rainbow Dash something, I can tell you something. Just ask and if it's something I can tell, I'll tell.” Fluttershy shyly traced the edge of her tea cup with her hoof, her nervous behavior betraying that she definitely had something she wanted to ask. She glanced up to and away from Twilight a few times before she finally began to meander around her question. “Well... you said you can't really tell us much about our future.” “Most things I probably shouldn't, but if it's something that's pretty vague I might be able to give you a hint, maybe a yes or no.” “Oh... hm,” Fluttershy seemed to ponder on this for a moment as she continued to trace the edge of her mostly empty tea cup. “Well... I was wondering... I mean...,” she mumbled as her voice quietly trailed off. Twilight raised an eyebrow as she leaned closer to her friend. Across the table Rainbow leaned in as well and asked, “What was that?” “Um,” Fluttershy shuttered a bit and lowered herself so her chin was resting on the table. “I was wondering... if someday... if I have a family... in the future,” she nearly whispered. Twilight blinked in surprise. She hadn't seen that one coming. Next to her, Rainbow's jaw seemed to be dangling half way to the table. “Y-you don't have to answer!” Fluttershy whispered in a small panic as she hid her face under her pink mane. Twilight closed her eyes and smiled as she sat back in her chair. Of course she knew the answer to that, and the way the question had been asked was rather harmless. She thought about the question for a few more seconds and then opened her eyes again to peer over to her friend. Fluttershy was peeking out from her safe haven at Twilight, the look in her eyes seeming to be begging for an answer even though her shyness was punishing her for asking. Drawing in a breath, Twilight simply said one word in response. “Yes.” Fluttershy's eyes grew incredibly wide, and then disappeared as she drew back under her pink mane. “Whoa! Way to go Flutters!” Rainbow cheered across the table. “As shy as you are, I never thought you'd get yourself a coltfriend.” The only response from the pegasus hiding under her pink mane was a slight reddening of her yellow coat and a pitiful sounding groan. --- “Come'on, give me one hint,” Rainbow said as she walked along side Fluttershy under the moonlit day. “Nooo,” Fluttershy moaned back as she continued walking along the path with Rainbow and Twilight. The three of them were currently on their way to seek out the first of the three missing mares, traveling toward Sweet Apple Acres. Before they had ventured outdoors, Twilight had requested something she could use to cover her wings as to not broadcast to all of Ponyville that an alicorn had suddenly appeared. Fluttershy had offered something of hers to wear, and so Twilight now wore a single color knitted sweater that came fairly close to matching her natural coat color, her wings safely tucked underneath out of view. Her crown no longer appeared on top of her head, having been taken care of with a simple translucency spell that she had cast on it to hide its presence there. “Is it somepony in Ponyville?” Rainbow asked, continuing her badgering questions. Fluttershy didn't answer to this one, instead just making a frustrated groan. “Not a no, so must be a yes. A pegasus?” Rainbow asked trying to narrow down her guessing options. “No, stop it.” “Unicorn?” “Nooooo.” “Earth pony then,” Rainbow nodded. “I guess you would be the type to go for an earth pony.” “Rainbooooow,” Fluttershy whined as her face sunk behind her mane. Fortunately, her annoying friend quit asking questions for the time being when Rainbow began mentally considering the earth pony colts that she knew and how they would match up to her shy friend. The walk to the Apple family farm wasn't a long one. Like Fluttershy's cottage, it was also along the edge of Ponyville somewhat near the border of the Everfree Forest, and so the three had been able to skirt along the edge of town. It wasn't that they were intending on avoiding all contact with other ponies, but Twilight had made the point that the less attention they drew to themselves for now, the better off they would likely be in the long run. After all, they still had an advantage in that Nightmare Moon likely had no clue that they were planning anything at all, and that was an advantage that Twilight would like to keep for as long as she could. The darkened silhouette of the sign hanging from the archway that marked the entrance to Sweet Apple Acres appeared on the path ahead of the three mares. Rainbow Dash still seemed to be going over her mental check list, quietly mumbling to herself as she discarded names that she knew obviously wouldn't be a match for her shy friend. She glanced up and happened to look at the sign up ahead, and then it clicked as if she had suddenly realized what she should have known all along. “I've got it!” she said as she whirled around to face Fluttershy head on, to which the latter flinched back a step with a quiet yelp. “He's perfect!” “W-what?” Fluttershy said shuttering. “That big red stallion at the market! The one that runs the Apple Acres stand and never says a word other than 'Yep'?” Fluttershy simply froze in place, not even taking a breath. “BINGO!” Rainbow Dash called out triumphantly. “Twiliiiight! Make her stop!” Fluttershy whined as she scampered over to Twilight’s other side, hiding herself. Twilight couldn't help but let go a laugh, but knew that this little interrogation had probably gone more than long enough. “Alright, Dash, I think you've had your fun.” Rainbow walked up next to Twilight, tilting her head with a confused look. “What do you mean? I'm trying to help.” Twilight raised one eyebrow. “Does it look like you're helping to you? Because to me, it kinda looks like torture.” “Ah come'on. If you really know Fluttershy, then you know she's going to need some help speaking up or this coltfriend thing isn't ever going to happen.” “Rainbow,” Twilight said as she placed a hoof on her friend’s shoulder, “things happen as they happen. Rushing things to happen before their time would probably be a bad idea.” Rainbow let out a long groaning sigh as she rolled her eyes. “Yeah yeah... patience.” Twilight nodded approvingly and patted Rainbow on the shoulder before turning to head up the path to the farm house, leaving behind a flustered Fluttershy staring down a Rainbow Dash that flashed back a cheshire grin. After passing just beyond the archway marking the entrance to the farm, Twilight took a moment to glance about at the surroundings. A lot can change in two and a half centuries of time, and Ponyville was no exception to that. Seeing Sweet Apple Acres as she remembered it long ago was a bit shocking. But even more so was what she saw under the moonlight near an empty wagon just outside of the bright red barn. Applejack was wrestling one of the wheels of the wagon, slamming a forehoof against it here and there as she worked it back onto the axle. The wagon itself was propped up with a barrel under one end to keep the axle raised off the ground, and a discarded broken wheel laid in the dirt just near by. Twilight trotted up, and then just stood near by watching as if amazed. She felt that same feeling of a shiver through her spine that she had noticed when she first saw Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy in the forest. Seeing a pony that she never thought she would see again was proving to be a very strange emotion to deal with, and she wasn't entirely sure she liked the sensation. The farm mare grumbled something unintelligible as she turned around and slammed her back hoof against the hub of the wheel hard, causing the entire wagon to rattle at the blow. “Dag-NABBIT,” she bit at the air loudly in front of her, but then caught herself when she noticed somepony was there. “Oh, I apologize. This here wheel is just givin’ me all kinds of fits.” Twilight realized that her mouth had been hanging open slightly, and she clasped it back closed as she put a smile on. “I didn't mean to bother you in the middle of your work.” “Ah I need to take a break anywho,” Applejack said as she swiped a hoof at the stubborn wheel. Reaching up to her hat hanging on the wagon's back corner, she tipped the hat with her hoof and allowed it to fall down, catching it atop her head. “Name's Applejack, and this here is the Sweet Apple Acres farm. What can I do ya fer?” “Well, I'm Twilight Sparkle, and I was hoping that I might convince you to help me and my friends out with a little problem.” Twilight realized that she was grossly understating the 'little problem' part, but coming right out and asking somepony to help save the world would likely not cause a favorable answer. She only hoped the mare that represented Honesty would forgive the half-truth later. “Ah see,” Applejack nodded to the request as she noticed the other two mares that were approaching. “They the ones with ya?” “Oh, yes. They're actually from Ponyville. I'm... visiting after having been away for a while,” Twilight said, deftly dancing around the truth with her words. “Oh I recognize them,” Applejack said as she took a few steps past Twilight to the other two mares. “Say, didn't you two just stop by the market stall today?” Fluttershy shrunk back a bit at the sudden question, and Rainbow Dash stepped forward to take the lead to answer. “Oh yeah, we did. Fluttershy here just about cleaned you guys out didn't she?” Fluttershy scowled a little at her friend's recount of the day's earlier events. “Oh right, you bought up almost all the rest of what we had. I appreciate all the business though. Things been kinda unsteady these last couple weeks if ya know what I'm sayin’.” “Oh yeah I hear ya,” Rainbow said with knowing nod. “By the way, I'm Rainbow Dash, the weather pony around here. And like I said, the shy one here is Fluttershy.” “I knew I'd seen you around these parts somewhere else before. So you take care of the weather eh? How's that been goin lately?” Rainbow Dash hummed a sigh. “Dark, boring. The Queen wants all the skies clear all the time so everypony can see her stupid moon.” “Yeah, kinda figured.” Once the idle conversation died back a bit, Twilight tried to jump back to her earlier request. “So...,” she started. Applejack's attention snapped back to the 'unicorn'. “Oh right. Sorry didn't mean to ignore ya. You ladies need some help with somethin’, right?” Twilight nodded. “Yes, do you have time to come with us to the library this evening?” “What's at the library,” both Applejack and Rainbow asked nearly in union, which caused them to glance at each other with equally confused expressions. Twilight let a nervous laugh out as she tried to remain convincing. “Well, I'll let you all know when... we get there?” The statement hadn’t come out sounding nearly as convincing as she had hoped. How was somepony supposed to ask for help for something without going into any details on what the something was? The farm mare gave a blinking stare to Twilight for a few seconds, and then shrugged. “I suppose I could tag along. But if it ends up bein’ somethin’ I can't help with I'll have to decline. Don't wanna fib and say I'll help if I ain't able.” “Oh, I'm sure you'll be able to, AJ,” Twilight said with a relieved smile. “Oh er, you don't mind me calling you AJ, do you?” The farm mare shook her head. “Don't mind at all. 'Sides, lots of my family and friends call me that anywho, and you seem nice enough. Oh! Right that reminds me, hang on a sec.” Applejack quickly trotted over to the side door on the barn, which had the top half open. She draped her forehooves over the half-door and drew in a breath before yelling, “Hey, Mac!” inside. Stepping back down from the door, she looked back to the group of mares. “Gonna make sure my brother can take care of that dang wagon first. Can't leave it busted like that.” “Yeeep?” A large red stallion's voice drawled out as his head appeared at the doorway. Rainbow Dash noticed the sudden fidget in Fluttershy's wings at the appearance of the stallion, and couldn't help but grin as she hummed an 'ah ha' to herself. “These here ladies need me to help out with somethin’, but I haven't gotten the wagon done yet. Would ya mind takin’ care of it?” Applejack asked as she pointed over to the stubborn wheel. Without any additional prompting, 'Mac' pushed the lower half of the door out of the way and walked out to take a look at the wagon wheel. He eyed the hub for a few seconds as he swiveled the loose wheel on the axle a little, then turned around and slammed his back hoof against it sharply. The wagon creaked at the sudden hit and tilted away, letting the barrel roll out from under it before the wheel settled on the ground, snugly secured to the axle. Applejack deadpan stared at the wagon for a short moment before she huffed and walked past her older brother to the group of mares. “Ya dang show off,” she muttered under her breath. “Ya'll need any help with anything else?” Mac asked, seeming to be unfazed by his sister's complaint. At this, Rainbow decided to prod Fluttershy's side to see if she could get her shy friend to speak up, but was only rewarded with a sudden sting of yellow wing feathers swatting her nose. Rainbow muttered a quiet 'ow' as she clasped a hoof against her stinging muzzle. Fluttershy narrowed her eyes at Rainbow in a silent warning. “I think we're good,” Twilight said keeping a practiced smile on her face, hoping to escape before the pegasi caused a scene. Mac nodded and began to make his way back to the barn. “Alright. Ya'll take care then.” As the group of four mares were making their way back toward the farm's entrance, Rainbow decided to strike up a little conversation with their new recruit. “So... that was your brother?” Applejack nodded in response to the question. “Yeah, that's Big McIntosh. He ain't much for words but that don't mean he don't care, he's one of the hardest workin’ ponies you'll ever find. Don't let his looks fool ya either, he's gentle as a puppy and about as friendly, even if he is strong enough to buck a tree in two.” “He seems cool,” Rainbow said with a sagely nod. She then turned her attention to Fluttershy as a side grin crept onto her face. “What did you think about him?” The stare that Fluttershy returned seemed to warn Rainbow that she was going to receive some sort of retribution for her continued meddling later. However, Fluttershy's expression softened and she managed to respond. “He seemed... nice.” Applejack's brows perked up. “Cool and nice? Don't think I've ever heard of Mac bein’ called that, but alright.” --- With one stop completed and the group one step closer to having been reassembled, Twilight decided that Sugarcube Corner was the next logical location to visit. The hanging bell above the shop's door jingled to announce the arrival of the group of mares. From behind the cash register, a stallion perked up with a smile at the sight of customers visiting his shop. “Welcome to Sugarcube Corner!” he greeted merrily. “Good evening, sir!” Twilight greeted in return as she felt a rush of nostalgia at the sight of the shop's owner, Mr. Carrot Cake. “I was hoping that we might find Pinkie here. Is she working today?” “Oh, you girls are friends of Pinkie's? Wait here for just a minute, I'll see if I can track her down for you.” Mr. Cake turned to trot up the stairs in the back that lead to the loft that Pinkie called home. His voice sounded from the stairway as he disappeared around the corner. “Pinkie? You have guests!” Twilight decided to take in her surroundings while she waited, trotting over to the display case of sweets at the cash register and looking over the various confectioner creations that the Cakes had for sale. She realized that she had nearly forgotten this place over the years. The sweet smells, the colorful sights, the bright... pinkness...? Twilight blinked at something bright pink that she had spotted in the display case, or rather reflected in it. She turned around just in time to come nearly nose to nose with a bright pink pony staring back at her wearing one of the widest grins in Equestria. She couldn't help but suck in a gasp at Pinkie Pie's sudden appearance. “Pinkie!” Twilight said, slightly startled. “Oh, you scared me.” Now it was Pinkie’s turn to gasp. “You... you know me?” she seemed utterly shocked by having met another pony who knew her, but she did not yet know herself. “Ah... hm... well,” Twilight stumbled on her words as she tried to invent an excuse. “I've... heard of you! Everypony in Ponyville knows who Pinkie is because Pinkie knows everypony, right?” “Right!” Pinkie chirped back. “Buuuuut, I don't know you yet, so hi! I'm Pinkie Pie!” Pinkie offered a hoof to Twilight, her wide grin returning to her face. Twilight hooked her fetlock with Pinkie’s extended hoof and gave her a hoofshake. “I'm Twilight Sparkle. I just got here.” “Oh! Goodie, there hasn't been any new ponies in Ponyville for a while. And that reminds me... I have something I need to go setup! See you soon!” Pinkie began to dash off toward the shop doorway in a hurry. “Wait!” Twilight called out, causing Pinkie to freeze with her forehoof outstretched to the shop's door. Her head swiveled back to look at Twilight with a slight tilt, an inquisitive look playing on her face. “Uh, would the something be a... welcoming party?” Twilight asked. Pinkie blinked a couple times, her mouth slowly falling agape. She then looked back and forth, as if checking to see if anypony had noticed (paying no mind to the audience of three mares in the shop that had been watching this strangeness play out) before she 'stealthy' crept back over to Twilight's side. Her eyes darting back and forth once more, she leaned in toward Twilight's ear raising a hoof up next to her muzzle, and in a whispering voice loud enough to carry to everypony's ears in the room she asked, “Are you from the future?” A loud snicker-snort sound escaped Rainbow Dash from across the room before she could cover her muzzle. Applejack glanced at her with furrowed brows, obviously not seeing what was so funny. Twilight let a nervous laugh escape. If only Pinkie knew just how right her playful guess had been. However, the future-princess-in-hiding decided that playing along may actually work to her advantage as she thought of a way to easily get Pinkie to where she needed to be. She lowered her voice to an equal whisper to let Pinkie in on the 'secret'. “Shhh, don't tell anypony, but I come from a future where there's this awesome welcoming party at the library.” “Oooh, you like libraries?” Pinkie asked, the secretive sounding voice having been discarded. “Oh yes, I lived in one for a while.” “I see! Then I better make sure that future me gets this future party setup at the library for future you!” Pinkie happily bounded off to the shop door again. “Oh wait, one more thing!” Twilight called, catching Pinkie just as she was walking out the door. Pinkie paused again, the same inquisitive tilted glance looking back. “I'll bring the guests,” Twilight said. Pinkie tapped a hoof to her chin in thought, then smiled slowly. “Oh. Ooooh you're good,” she said as the sly smile spread across her face. “Future you already knows who's going to be there. I gotcha,” she said with a quick wink. She skipped out the doorway, humming a cheerful tune. The shop fell dead silent for a moment after the doorway closed. “Wow,” Rainbow said, breaking the silence. “You handled that like a pro.” “Yeah, it's like she didn't even faze ya,” Applejack added as she gave Twilight a thoughtful stare. “You sure you and Pinkie never met before?” Twilight's nervous laugh returned again, but before she would have to try and explain her strange behavior, Mr. Cake entered the room again from the stairway. Twilight silently thanked him for the rescue. Mr. Cake let go a light sigh as he walked back up behind the display case. “Well I'm sorry, but I think she's out somewhere at the moment.” “Actually she was just here,” Twilight said, and then pointed toward the door and added, “and already left.” “Oh! Well, that filly. I can hardly keep track of her. Were you able to get what you needed from her?” “Yes, I think so.” “Good good, well if there's anything else I can do for you girls...,” Mr. Cake trailed off, a hopeful smile on his face as he leaned over the display case slightly. Twilight looked between Mr. Cake and the display of sweets, her gaze lingering on the sugary goodies for a moment. She glanced over her shoulder to the other three mares with an embarrassed grin. “You guys wouldn't happen to have a few bits I could borrow, would you?” --- “Thanks girls. I would have felt bad walking out without buying anything.” Twilight now had a small white box in her possession that she kept balanced on her back as the group of four made their way through the streets of Ponyville to their next stop. Applejack hummed an 'uh huh'. “I know whatcha mean. Chattin’ with customers is nice an' all, but it's always nice to get a sell too. Kind words and gossip don't spend well.” “Left your bits at home?” Rainbow asked casting a sly grin in Twilight's direction. Twilight raised an eyebrow as she side glanced to her friend. “Yeaaah, you could say that,” she said with a hint of a smirk turning up the corners of her mouth. Their final stop before reaching the library was coming up. Twilight traced her eyes across Carousel Boutique, its circular windows lit from within doing a fine job of illuminating the exterior décor. Walking up to the shop's door, Twilight reach out a hoof, seeming to hesitate for a short second before she tapped on the door. “It's open,” a golden voice sung from inside the shop. Twilight couldn't help but smile at the sound of the voice that she hadn't heard in nearly two centuries time. Taking hold of the door's latch with her magic, she pushed the doorway and entered. Another place she hadn't seen in over a lifetime greeted her eyes. She lost herself in the surroundings, the sights causing old memories to come flooding back to her. She took a moment to set the white box she had been carrying on a table near the entrance, not wanting to chance a mishap with baked goods around Rarity's finely crafted garments. Then she spotted the mare coming out of the work room in the back of the shop, pristine white coat and styled violet mane, red frame glasses perched on her muzzle and a tape measure dangling across her withers. “Goodness, so many guests!” Rarity said as she trotted up to the group of mares. “Welcome to Carousel Boutique ladies. I'm the shop's owner and fashion designer, Rarity. I do hope you all find something here to your liking, and if not, just let me know! I may be able to work in a special order just for you.” Rainbow Dash had already made her way over to a rack of dresses, and was rifling through them with a hoof. “Uh... have something that's not quite so... sooo...,” she struggled to find the right word. “Froufrouy?” Applejack offered her description of what she saw around her, her expression showing just how much she didn't agree with the surroundings. “Yeah... that,” Rainbow agreed with a nod. Rarity seemed to take the comments in stride as she walked up to Rainbow and looked her over quickly with her discerning eye. “Well you do have a rather athletic build, I suppose something more sleek would be to your liking.” “Sounds cool.” Twilight cleared her throat, trying to politely find a way to interrupt. Rainbow noticed and silently mouthed an 'oh' before she tried to shift the conversation. “Actually, Twilight here is the pony you should be talking too. She came here looking for you.” “Oh? You wanted to see me specifically?” Rarity asked as she turned toward the 'unicorn'. Twilight put on her best smile, and calling on her years of experience in doling out greetings she prepared to introduce herself properly, making a mental note to leave her title out. “Yes. I am Twilight Sparkle, and I have a favor that I would like to ask of you.” She tipped one of her front hooves on its side, giving a slight courtesy as she spoke. She was sure Rarity would appreciate the gesture. “Goodness me! What an honor this is,” Rarity spoke as she returned the polite greeting with a courtesy of her own. “What favor would you... like... tooo,” her brow furrowed as her gaze locked on the... thing... that was wrapped around Twilight's barrel. “Oh, darling no, this... this doesn't work for you.” “Huh?” Twilight blink-blinked at the sudden change in behavior. She then noticed the hard stare that the fashionista was giving the sweater that she was wearing. A sudden wave of panic struck as she realized her disguise had just become a target. She tried to find a way to deflect the sudden interest that Rarity had taken in what she was wearing. “Oh this? I was just feeling a bit... chilly?” “I would imagine so, since we haven't seen the sun in weeks, but we can do better than this!” Rarity exclaimed as she trotted around eying the offending garment. “Look at this, it even has wing holes. This is designed for a pegasus, dear.” “Actually, I borrowed it from Fluttershy,” Twilight mentioned as she motioned to her friend across the room. Fluttershy ducked down at the mention of her name, a shy smile gracing her muzzle. “I see,” Rarity said as she eyed the pegasus over the top of her red framed eyewear. “Well she is definitely a pegasus who would look wonderful in sweaters, but it does not work for you!” Rarity turned her attention back to Twilight, and lit her horn. Before she knew what was happening, Twilight felt the sweater shift up her barrel as a light blue aura took hold and pulled. Rarity released her hold only a second later, taking in a surprised gasp as she stepped back, raising a hoof against her chest. The sound of shock had drawn the attention of everypony in the room to Twilight, and the sweater that was now hiked up on her barrel far enough for the tips of her wings to be visible. Twilight pressed her eyes closed, letting out a defeated sigh. The room remained otherwise silent, until Rainbow finally muttered an 'oops' that echoed through the room. Applejack frowned, her stare never leaving the feathers jutting out from under the sweater. “What the hay is this about?” Rarity seemed to make a face that looked somewhat like a goldfish as she searched for her voice. “Y-you... you're an alicorn?” she questioned as she looked straight to Twilight's still closed eyes. “We already knew,” Rainbow mentioned to the side as she casually pointed a hoof between herself and Fluttershy. Twilight slowly opened her eyes, setting back on her haunches. Magic lit from her horn, and it took hold of the sweater and fully removed it, exposing her wings fully. As she removed her disguise, something else glittered in her aura, and eventually took a physical form as she placed it back on her head. The appearance of the crown seemed to make Rarity relapse into her fish-face state. “You're a princess!?” Rarity nearly screeched. “I am,” Twilight nodded. “Knew that too,” Rainbow said coolly. This garnered her a wide-eyed look of confusion from Applejack next to her. Rarity seemed to stare off into space directly in front of Twilight. She began to quietly mumble something to herself, repeating it slightly louder the second time. “There's a princess... in my shop.” After saying it twice, it suddenly seemed to make sense to her. “There's a princess in my shop!” she exclaimed as she took off at a gallop, working her levitation magic to begin straightening anything that appeared to be even a fraction of an inch out of place. “I will be with you in just one minute!” Twilight's face became pained with worry as she watched her friend sprint off to perform a whirlwind cleaning session. “Er, Rarity you don't—” “Just one minute!” Rarity's stressed voice called back. Twilight facehoofed with a light groan, rubbing her forehead at the slight headache she could feel coming on. She then noticed a presence next to her, and glanced to her side to see Applejack giving her a hard look. “Mind tellin’ me what's goin’ on?” Twilight sat up straight, turning herself to look Applejack directly in the eyes. “AJ, I promise you, I only hid this because right now isn't the best time in Equestria to be flaunting to the world that one is a princess. I was intending on telling all of you about this at the library.” Applejack seemed to think on the words for a moment as her eyes shifted around and her mouth worked back and forth. “I suppose I can see that bein’ a good reason. But I'm gettin’ the notion that the 'little problem' you need help with might not be so little.” Twilight's head drooped toward the floor as she looked away, the guilty look saying all that needed to be said. Applejack regarded Twilight silently for a moment before blowing a breath of air through her bangs. “Ah said I'd hear ya out, and I ain't a pony that goes back on her word. But try to be straight with me from here on out, alright?” Twilight looked back up, locking her eyes with her friend’s. “I promise.” “There!” Rarity said in a pant as she stopped beside Twilight, her impromptu cleaning session completed. She had discarded her glasses and tape measure at some point during the cleaning, and now put her best smile on for the Princess that was visiting her shop. “Now, this favor you were asking for. Of course I would be most honored to serve as your personal designer. You have no idea what this means to me, you taking time to seek me out personally.” “Rarity,” Twilight silenced her by placing a hoof on her shoulder. “The favor I need to ask has nothing to do with clothes, but it is something only you can do for me.” Rarity was getting really good at her fish-face impression. She gawked for a few seconds before she caught herself, realizing how silly she must look. Forcing the smile back to her muzzle, she tried to think of something to say in response. “I... honestly don't know what to say, Princess. I-I'm afraid you have taken me a bit off guard.” “Please Rarity, just call me Twilight.” Rarity raised her eyebrows high on her forehead. “Oh, but I couldn't. Your title is so important, and I'm but a normal pony.” “I insist,” Twilight said as she gave Rarity's shoulder a light shake. “Well, if you insist then I suppose I have no right to deny you that wish.” Twilight smiled warmly. “It's not a command, Rarity. I ask because I want you to treat me like a friend.” Looking over her shoulder to the other mares in the room, she added, “All of you.” “Well, I never imagined a day would come when a princess would walk up to me and ask to be my friend. I-I'm very grateful.” Rarity glanced to her side, noticing the discarded sweater on the floor. “In fact, there is something I would like to do for you, Twilight, to show you just how much.” Rarity quickly trotted over to a rack of garments that appeared to mostly be vests, jackets, and cloaks. She began to work her magical aura through the clothing as she deftly shuffled through them, speaking as she searched. “I do apologize for exposing you like I did, I'm sure that wasn't pleasant. But worry not, your secret is more than safe with me.” Finally stopping at one of the jackets on the rack, Rarity removed it and brought it back over, passing it from her magical aura to Twilight's. “A gift, from one friend to another. I think this one will suit your purposes very well.” The jacket had a velvety look to its outer surface that seemed to change shades from midnight blue to dark violet depending on how the light reflected from it. The collar was trimmed with down feathers that were a slightly lighter shade of the same colors. Three large silver snap buttons lined the upper front edge, leaving the bottom edges of the jacket open to flare out. Twilight sat back on her haunches to put her forelegs through the jacket sleeves, wrapping it around herself and snapping it closed. She then stood and took a few steps to a nearby vanity mirror to get a better look. Turning to her side, she could see how the jacket flared open to just barely cover part of her cutie-mark, and the sides of the jacket swooped down just past her hocks fully hiding her wings from view. Twilight smiled and turned back to her friend. “It's beautiful. I love it, Rarity.” “It looks fabulous on you, darling,” Rarity cheerfully spoke as she tugged at the collar and sleeve cuffs with her aura to straighten them. “Now... this favor that you were asking about....” “Right,” Twilight nodded. “I have something that I need to show all of you at the library that will help explain everything. That is, if you have the time.” Rarity let a giddy smile grace her muzzle shortly before she cleared her throat to regain her composure. A princess had just asked her if she had time to spare. “Well, you do have me intrigued. Allow me to close up shop and we can be on our way.” A short time later, Rarity was closing the door to her darkened shop. With the latch secured, she turned and nodded to the rest of the group just outside, and they began on their way to their final destination. Twilight found herself pleased at how well things were going so far, but realized that gathering her old friends together was just a small hurdle that came before the real challenge; convincing them all that they are the saviors of Equestria.