Darkness. Pure, unadulterated darkness. I can't even see my hoof in front of my face, and if it weren't for the fact that I feel its normal force beneath me, I'd be half convinced that the floor is gone.
...I take light steps, just in case.
A lesser pony would panic. But I'm Twilight Sparkle, after all, chosen bearer of the Element of Magic, thrice-over savior of Equestria, and now a Princess to boot. I reserve my panic sessions for when the situation truly warrants it.
Here in the darkness, I know that I am merely lucid dreaming. So, just as in any lucid dream, the appropriate thing to do would be to experiment. A light spell should suffice.
...Except that it doesn't. That tiny piece of data allows me to make one of two sweeping generalizations... either I've dreamed a scenario where I'm all alone in a world of featureless black abyss, or I've dreamed that I'm completely blind. Neither sounds particularly appealing; frankly, I was hoping my dreams would have a little more oomph than this.
"Hello?" I call out. My voice rings out into the emptiness, and I strain my ears to catch wind of a response. What's a featureless, infinite void without company, right?
Just as I expected, a sound reaches my ears, barely audible, yet distinct enough to notice. It's not a voice, it's... noise, plain and simple. It's static. It's feedback. It's the ringing sensation you get after a particularly loud sound fades to silence. And it's all I have. I take tentative steps, first one, then another, towards where I believe the sound is coming from.
The ringing persists, increasing in volume. The timber of the noise changes, too - it's no longer a ringing... but more like a buzzing, or a dull hum. Visions of Vespidae and Aphoidea dance in my subconscious, and I instinctively try to shrink away...
...only to be betrayed. My movements are no longer my own. Fear grips me as I move forward against my will.
Hoofsteps become wingbeats as the floor drops out from under me. My wings flap faster and faster and even faster beyond the point of logic. They feel different, somehow, but I cannot even turn to look. My vision takes on a shade of blue that is all at once alien and entirely familiar.
All the while, the buzzing gets louder and louder and louder still. I want to scream... but all I can do is keep flying, on and on, and the noise gets louder and my head feels like it's on fire and oh Celestia oh mommy somepony please help
"-light! Hey! Twilight!"
I catapult myself up out of bed. My breaths come in quick, ragged bursts.
"A...are you alright?" Spike whimpers. He's curled himself up at the edge of my bed, trying to make himself look as small as possible.
A pang of guilt shoots down my spine, and I take a deeper, slower breath to try to calm down. "I'm fine... but if you could find that dream book by Clift..."
Spike straightens up, scratching his head with a claw. "Symbols of Transformation in Dreams?"
I nod, not wanting to reveal the details. He hops off the bed to fulfill my request when I'm struck with another whim. "...And our copy of The Unabridged Equestrian Bestiary, Volume Five, C to Ch, if you don't mind."
"C-h like in changeling?" Spike's eyes widen as he rushes back to my side. I do my best to keep my expression level in the face of his surprisingly adept deduction. "What happened?"
"It's nothing, I'm sure," I decide to say, but he isn't convinced. His claws tighten around a roll of parchment. "...what is that in your hands, anyway?"
This defuses Spike's worry and allows him to chuckle a bit. "Oh, this... it came for you a few minutes ago, that's why I was trying to wake you up..."
My eyes instantly lock onto the wax seal that was holding it down. It's Celestia's personal seal - which means that she had taken the time to write it herself. An odd lump forms in my throat as I retrieve the scroll and pry it open. Surely it wouldn't be anything bad, right?
The letter starts innocuously enough. "My dear Twilight Sparkle," it reads,
Two nights ago, you fulfilled your destiny and elevated yourself to new heights. Yesterday, you accepted the crown of Equestria's newest princess, and the duties and responsibilities it represents.
Today, I ask you to make the hardest decision of your life.
I gnaw on a hooftip as my eyes scan the page. Princess Celestia is asking me to return to Canterlot. To... leave Ponyville.
A hoofkerchief drifts into my line of sight. I take it from Spike's claws and use it to dab my watering eyes. I finish the letter in numb shock, acutely aware that she hadn't bothered to write "Princess" in front of "Celestia" this time around. The letter and handkerchief drop silently onto my sheets.
Spike already knows what the letter said without my clarification. He places an arm across my shoulders, careful to avoid my folded wings. We stay like that for a few moments; his gaze remains trained on me save to skim over the contents of the letter. "So... what are you going to do?"
I gaze at the floor, eyes dark. "What can I do, Spike? The Princess gave me orders to-"
"No, she didn't," Spike argues. "She asked you. You can say no."
I pull away from Spike, scandalized. "No, I can't! I can't just abandon the throne, or the title, not after getting in front of all of Canterlot to accept the crown!"
"That part doesn't matter," Spike counters. His arms grip my shoulders. "The Princess didn't make the choice for you, and neither did the rest of Equestria. It's supposed to be your decision." He suddenly grips a scroll of vellum in one claw and a dipped quill in the other. "Just say the word, and I'll send in your resignation."
"Abdication," I correct absently, "not resignation. I'd be abdicating the throne."
Spike gives me a half-lidded stare, and I have no choice but to continue.
"Spike," I say with reproach, "abdication is a very big deal. If I were to quit and go back on my promise now... how many ponies would I be letting down?"
"You know it's not that simple, Twilight. We were all caught up in the moment, so no one ever questioned it... but you have a life in Ponyville. You have friends." The look we share reminds me just how impossibly amazing that fact would have been not three years ago. He clears his throat. "Your time in Ponyville has been the best two-and-a-half-odd years of your life. And I've been there for most of it, so I know I'm right."
I sigh. "Of course you're right, Spike. And I wouldn't give up my friends... not for anything." I dab the cloth to my face again, but it's been moistened beyond use by the constant flow of tears. "I... I just don't know."
"Hey." Spike takes my hoof in both his claws. "Whatever you decide, I'll be there for you."
His eyes are full of love, and I can't help but pull him into a big hug and drink it in, let it fill me up and nourish my soul. I'm honestly surprised at how much better I feel after that.
It's then that a curious thing happens... A sound reaches my ears, barely audible, yet distinct enough to notice. It's not a voice, it's... noise, plain and simple. It's static. It's feedback. It's the ringing sensation you get after a particularly loud sound fades to silence.
This is oddly familiar. I scratch at my ear, and the noise begins to fade out.
Spike sighs into my coat, which is signal enough to let him go. "You know," I tease, finally able to smile, "if I take the job, you're getting a pretty big promotion too."
"Number One Assistant to Princess Twilight Sparkle..." Spike sounds it out, scratching his chin. "I kinda like the sound of that. Throw a few gems in there and we have a deal."
The two of us share a laugh before a knock at the door breaks the mood.
"Twilight? Are you home?" A refined mare's voice drifts up through my bedroom window. Silence reigns for whatever amount of time is considered polite and proper before she raps smartly at my door again. "Twilight?"
Spike stands at attention. "That's..."
I glare sharply at the dragonling. "No, Spike. Give me a second, I still need to-"
Aaand he's gone. I sigh and step over to the bathroom sink to wash away the dark rivulets where tears had flowed.
I can hear the squeak of the door and Spike's dreamy "Hi, Rarity..." as he lets her in. "Nice weather we're having..."
"Yes, yes, of course," Rarity replies curtly. "Is Twilight up and about yet? I don't mean to bother, but I absolutely need to see her this instant!" I can hear her hoofsteps on my staircase, so I hastily dry my face and run a brush through my mane.
"I'm up here," I say once I've gotten myself in order. "Come in!"
"Allow me," Spike says from just outside, and he opens my door with a flourish.
Rarity very nearly tackles me to the floor. "Ah, there you are! I need you, urgently!"
An alarm bell rings in my head. I study her expression - she doesn't look injured, nor does she look upset, but she's definitely excited. It's nowhere near Pinkie Pie levels of energy, but the change is definitely startling enough to notice. What could she possibly-
"I was organizing my shop last night. Applejack left quite the laundry list of problems to fix in her brief stint as the owner of the boutique... I need to reorder my fabrics, un-bar my windows, salvage the... things that Applejack put together... Her choices of fabric and color are rather disturbing, but I think I can make it work if I just-"
"Um, Rarity?" I interrupt, nervously. "You needed me for something?" I glance at Spike, who only shrugs in reply.
"Oh, my apologies," she says, just as frantically as before. She pulls me close to her. "As I was working, I had the opportunity to reflect on the last few days... and then I remembered your coronation gown!"
My eyes travel absently to the heap of discarded cloth in the corner of my room. Rarity's gaze follows mine, and in an instant the dress is picked up in an aura of pale blue and turned about gently.
"Now that I look at it closely... it seems to be one of Hoity Toity's designs. It's absolutely wonderful, of course, but it's not... you. Hoity and his people, they don't know you, Twilight. This dress may match your coat, but it fails to resonate with who you are..." She drapes the dress elegantly at the foot of my bed. "I was musing about exactly that last night... when it hit me."
Spike and I glance at each other before I reply nervously. "What hit you, exactly?"
Rarity lifts her leg to her forehead dramatically. "Inspiration." She let out a giggle that was entirely unbecoming of a lady before reining herself in. I gulp audibly. "Never before had a design taken hold of me this way! I worked all night. I even sacrificed my beauty sleep!"
"Really? I hadn't noticed." Rarity turns to Spike and flushes crimson, her monologue briefly forgotten. Smooth move, casanova. Now all I have to do is find a way out of this mess. I creep slowly towards the door with every intention of locking her in and absconding to... oh, I don't know, anywhere but here.
But my movements don't go unnoticed. "Twilight, my muse, where are you going?" She moves so quickly to bar my exit that I could have sworn she teleported. "You must come with me! Darling, I must have you. I need your body!"
Spike's eyes roll into the back of his head as he faints on the spot.
Before I can think up any kind of response, Rarity's got me by the hoof and goes about dragging me across town. I get the odd glance or two, but it's more because of Rarity's uncharacteristic enthusiasm than the fact that I'm an alicorn princess. Or maybe it's the idea that somepony has the audacity to push royalty around. It could go either way, really - but in any case, Ponyville's citizens ought to be commended for their ability to take such strangeness in stride. I'm going to miss the quiet when I go.
If I go. Not when.
Those apology letters are going to be fun to write. I'm sorry, but I'm going to turn down the chance at being royalty. My job at the library is way too cushy for me to just ignore. ...Can an alicorn even hold a normal job? I really need to research that godhood theory...
"Oh, you're going to look stunning!" Rarity gushes. I snap out of my reverie only to realize that we've already made it to the boutique, and she's already set me on one of her dressing platforms to take measurements. "It's a deep blue silk, blues and purples work so well on you, and the luster of silk would be make it look comfortable and luxurious while breathing better on your coat."
She's pretty much committed herself to this, hasn't she? This wasn't how I had hoped to spend my morning. I decide to try a different tack - hopefully she'd get the hint. "You know, Celestia, Luna and Cadance don't usually wear dresses."
Rarity wrinkles her snout as she stretches her measuring tape down my hind leg. "Oh, and you could tell, couldn't you? Their gowns during your coronation? Ugh! So last century. Though it's no surprise to me that their sense of style is a bit dated, all things considered. You'll be just the thing to breathe fresh air into the fashion of royalty." Suddenly, she blanches. "You... you won't tell them all of that, will you, darling?"
I only have time to shake my head before she redoubles her efforts.
"I'm experimenting with some decorative clips on the wrists of the wings. I've always wanted to try this, but Fluttershy's no help, the dear, and Rainbow Dash turns tail when she hears the words 'clip' and 'wing' in the same sentence..."
"You know, you don't have to do all of this..." Hint. Hint.
"Oh, hush, there's no need for modesty." Her horn glows, and a loosely stitched dress turns a corner to come into view. "Now, if you could put this on, and stand over there..."
I sigh, resigning myself to my fate. Pale blue shifts smoothly to magenta as I take the dress and pull it carefully over my body. I turn in place, just to see how the fabric flows about me. As expected, it looks absolutely beautiful, and I tell her as much.
Rarity blushes. "Thank you, darling. That means a lot, it really does. Now... could you hold out your front left leg? I made the dress according to your old measurements, you see, so I have some adjustments to make." I comply, holding still as best as possible. She puts a hoof to her lips, deep in thought. "Ah, you're a little taller now. Perhaps it needs a collar, to take focus away from the neckline."
I bristle. "Hey. What's wrong with my neckline?"
"...and the wing openings need to shift down your back slightly, they're wrinkling the fabric."
"I was going to ask about that..." I instinctively try to flap my wings, but she slaps at them with a hoof and mutters "hold your pose please". My patience begins to run thin. "Is there anything else?"
"Ah," Rarity says after a moment, "I have good news for you yet. I'm going to need to bring the dress in half an inch at the barrel."
My ears perk up.
"Who knew becoming an alicorn was so good for your figure?" She begins to muse absently. "I mean, especially considering how you still eat like a student at Celestia's School..."
Oh no she didn't. I open my mouth to offer an incisive rejoinder, but am silenced by the sudden appearance of pale blue motes of light all around the boutique. "R-Rarity? What is-"
"Now, hold still, please. I wouldn't want to stick you," she says coolly.
Oh dear Celestia. The blue spots are needles. With the familiar hum of active magic, the needles gather into a single swarm that circles the room before bearing down upon me like the insects from this morning's nightmare. I can feel the electrical pulses streaming from every nerve ending in my body, trying to kick-start my reflexive nervous system and get me out of what is quite obviously harm's way. But fear has frozen me to the spot. For countless, unbearable seconds, my entire existence is shrouded by flying needles and telekinetic glow.
And then, Rarity smiles. "Perfect!" she snips, punctuating it with the sound of scissors cutting thread. I dare to peek into the mirrors, only to gasp in shock. Rarity's masterpiece has transformed into something else entirely before my very eyes. "Rarity... this... what did..."
Rarity giggles. "I'm sorry, dear. One cannot help but show off for royalty, non?"
"No, forget the needles... the dress... it's..." I'm almost afraid to say it, but the dress is no longer beautiful.
It's downright gorgeous.
I surreptitiously shake my perfectly-framed flank, and can already picture lesser stallions going weak in the knees. A single profane utterance graces my lips. "Hot damn."
My reaction draws a high-pitched squeal from my fellow unicorn. She pulls me into a deep, loving embrace... and the noise returns. I shudder at the sound, and try my best to ignore it.
But the ringing persists, increasing in volume. The timber of the noise changes, too - it's no longer a ringing... but more like a buzzing, or a dull hum. Visions of Vespidae and Aphoidea dance in my subconscious, and I instinctively try to shrink away...
"Twilight? Are you alright?" Rarity has let me go, her original expression replaced with one of concern. I lock eyes with her, and the noise disappears again.
In that moment, I think of Cadance and lift my hoof to my chest. In... hold... out. And out goes my hoof, pulling all the stress away with it. "It's nothing," I insist.
Rarity isn't convinced, and she continues to look askance at me. When it's clear that I'm not going to continue, she sighs. "You can come down from there now, I'm all finished."
I shrug, scratch at my ears for a moment, and use my magic to extricate myself from out of the perfectly-stitched dress. It was nothing, I tell myself. A trick of the imagination, or lingering stress from the dream... and the letter...
Rarity is holding up the dress, turning it over to get a look at all sides. "It's... perfect!" she squeals. She pulls me closer to her, holding out her other forehoof. "Imagine the heads you'll turn in Canterlot with this on!"
Canterlot. A little sigh escapes my lips.
It's all Rarity needs. She puts the dress down and looks me in the eye. "Now I know something's wrong. I wasn't going to ask, but you leave me no choice. Why were you crying this morning?"
I give a little start. She had noticed after all - I had thought that I had hidden it well enough. I try my hardest to swallow the lump in my throat as I reply. "Rarity, I promise I'll tell you all about it. I want to tell you all about it. But I want the other girls around to hear."
Rarity's warm, loving smile nourishes me down to my core. "Of course, Twilight." All of a sudden, she glances down at an invisible wristwatch. "My stars, is it that time already? And I'm absolutely famished," she moans, entirely too dramatically. "Would you care to join me for brunch?"
"Of course," I reply. I haven't eaten anything since last night. I don't particularly feel hungry, but that's probably an alicorn thing. "How does Sugarcube Corner sound? That way we can go see Pinkie Pie."
"P-Pinkie?" Rarity exclaims. "Oh, no, no. We can't go to Sugarcube Corner!"
I tilt my head. "We can't?"
I can see little droplets of sweat forming on her brow. Something's up here. "I... of course we can go to Sugarcube Corner. But... well, I'd love to pick up dear little Spikey-wikey first. After all, I did disturb your morning. It's only fair he joins us."
I may not be the Element of Honesty, but I can tell a bold-faced lie when I see one. So I egg her on, a wry smirk crossing my face. "Sugarcube Corner is on the way. We can just pick something up for him there."
Rarity's sweating buckets now. "No, ah, that won't do at all. It, well..."
"Besides, I'd absolutely love to see what Pinkie Pie is up to this afternoon."
The fashionista lets out an unladylike grumble-sigh. "Oh, for heaven's sake, I'm almost as bad at keeping secrets as Applejack is."
I chuckle. "You were laying it on a little thick back at the library." I cast a glance back at the blue dress. "I can't really argue with the results, though."
Rarity throws on a light scarf and swings open the door to her boutique. "Come on, then. You can at least pretend to be surprised."
Pinkie Pie's party was a rousing success, as usual. She hadn't busted out the party cannon - in fact, she confided in me that she was prototyping a portable hoof-mounted launcher for those smaller party emergencies. But a quiet gathering of seven suited me just fine. It makes the next part easier.
"Everyone," I start, clearing my throat. "I have something to say." Hoof goes in... breathe in, hold, breathe out, out goes the stress. Relax. Don't get worked up. If they see you stressed out, imagine how they'll take the news.
My friends wait with varying degrees of patience. Spike nods, beckoning me to continue.
"I... received a letter this morning, from the princess." Breathe in, hold, out. This is it. The bombshell. "They're asking me to move to Canterlot. To take up the responsibilities of the crown." I cringe, awaiting their panicked protests.
They don't come.
"Well, shucks, Twi, that sounds great!" Applejack states, matter-of-factly.
"Gosh," Fluttershy breathes. Her face is the picture of wonder and anticipation.
Rainbow Dash shrugs. "So what's the problem with that?"
That's... not what I had expected. Where's the panic? The sadness? The anger?
"What's the problem?" I repeat, even though I heard her just fine. "The problem is... I'd have to leave Ponyville! I'd be leaving you girls behind! I can't just..."
Pinkie Pie giggles. Giggles! Can't you see I'm in turmoil here? "Oh, don't you worry your silly alicorn head about that!"
Rarity clucks her tongue. "Now, darling, I remember the last time we ignored your concerns-" I cringe. We all remember the last time that happened. "-but I can say with certainty that you have nothing to worry about this time."
"If'n you think a little thing like a chariot ride to the palace is enough to split us up, then you don't know us very well, do ya?" Applejack winks, catching me completely off balance.
I should have known. What was I worried about? My friends... they care about me. I smile back at all of them. "Thank you..." I begin, but I find myself unable to continue as a ringing - the same blasted ringing - enters my ears.
I reach for my ear and rub it. When the noise fades, Rainbow Dash is gesturing at herself proudly, halfway through a sentence. "...to Canterlot and back in thirty minutes, forty tops!"
"Really?" Pinkie Pie teases. "Not ten seconds flat?"
Rainbow Dash chuckles. "Maybe at double- or triple- or quadruple-Rainboom speed, I could make that." She puts a hoof to her muzzle. "I kinda want to try it now."
The ringing becomes full-fledged buzzing. I grunt and shake my head rather violently to try and clear it. When the spots fade from my eyes, Fluttershy is beaming at me. "Twilight, you'll always have a place here in Ponyville... and in our hearts, too." She flies forward and wraps me in her tender embrace. Seconds later, I'm in the center of a group hug. Even Rainbow Dash and Spike can't help but smile warmly as they press against me.
"We love you, Twilight."
And I can feel it. The love. Five ponies and one dragon, giving me the purest, unconditional friendship love I have ever experienced. It feels... so...
The buzzing reaches a fever pitch. A single drop of sweat drops down my forehead. I growl, and prepare a Perception Filter spell. No stupid buzzing is going to ruin my heartfelt catharsis.
I cast the spell...
...and stare into a pair of green, insectoid eyes and a wide, fanged smile. It's Chrysalis... Queen Chrysalis. I yelp and throw everypony off of me. I look around wildly, but her fearsome visage is gone, just as quickly as it had appeared. The girls look at me with concern. Spike opens his mouth, but no sound comes out.
Chrysalis is gone. The ringing is gone. But something else has taken its place. A voice. A different voice. Her voice.
You will return home. All at once, my will evaporates into thin air, unable to take the brunt of Chrysalis's command.
"return... home..." I intone, blankly. I feel like a passenger in my own body. Chrysalis... she's done something to me. I can't...
"That's right," I suddenly hear Rarity say. "You can always return home to us, whenever you..." I honestly can't comprehend the rest of her words as I begin to take wing.
My friends watch me with looks of confusion as I begin a slow, wobbling ascent towards the skylight window.
"Hey, Twilight, where are you going?" Rainbow Dash keeps pace with me, trying to get my attention. And I want nothing but to turn around, tell them all everything's okay.
"Home... return..."
Rainbow flies into my face. "Twilight! Snap out of it!"
The wall comes tumbling down. I let out an odd, staccato noise before my entire body goes limp. With fading vision, I see all my friends, screaming my name in panic, waiting to catch me before I hit the floor.