~~~~~Canterlot Castle~~~~~
Twilight Sparkle, the Nightmare Queen sat quietly in the tower study that had once been hers, so very long ago. Books were piled upon more books in neat stacks that reached well up past her head, and the sun shone gloriously through the big window. She sat in a spot she remembered well, and stared out over the grounds of the castle, her Dissonance tainted eyes glowing green and vibrant purple. How long had it been since she'd sat in this very spot, dictating a letter to Celestia about the imminent return of Nightmare Moon? Years ago, but it seemed like longer now.
Sometimes, she wondered what it might have been like to have continued on with her life - blithely unaware of the realities of her world. What would it have been like to follow in Celestia's hoofsteps and take on her powers willingly, eagerly? What would it have been like if Cadence had succeeded in her plans, and she'd lived the rest of her life unaware of the greater powers of the world? Twilight was quickly coming to find, now that she had ascended her throne and taken the reigns of the world in her hooves, the power and the horror of those two most terrible words.
What If?
She sighed gustily. No time for these thoughts, I have far too much to accomplish today. Twilight gently took hold of her magic and pulled down yet another tome from the shelves, flicking it open with a thought and scanning the pages. It turned out that life as a Queen wasn't all that different from life as a librarian in Ponyville - there were just more flowery words preceding the same desires. Solve this problem, figure out that problem, deal with this paperwork, make everypony do what somepony else wanted them to do. Ugh.
If it wasn't for Rarity and Applejack, she'd probably have murdered half the nobles in Canterlot by now. As it was, she'd only indulged in the action of banishing Blueblood to Stalliongrad. Watching Rarity do a little victory dance after he'd given her the excuse to have him cashiered had been... immensely entertaining. Still, it was annoying.
She had high hopes that the arrival of Stratego and the so-called "Nightmare Court" would provide her with an excellent opportunity to cleanse the court of the useless courtiers and replace them with individuals who had the competency to get things done without bothering her every half hour. But they were only hopes - Cadence had told her that these sorts of ponies were usually impossible to permanently get rid of. Rarity had some irons in the fire to that end though.
Then came the knock on her door.. a soft knock in a gentle four-rap pattern. Twilight killed her irritation immediately, and a slow smile spread over her face. "Come on in, girls." She called out quite firmly, unlocking the latch with a touch of magic. Goodness but I have got to arrange a night off with the girls. Something simple. Maybe board games. It was an amusing thought that these days, she'd still be enamored by board games played with her friends. A reminder of simpler times, perhaps, and of course the knowledge that those five wonderful ponies would never treat her as anything but their friend. In private, anyway.
The door swung open a moment later and admitted Rarity, Applejack and Pinkie Pie. Applejack was still stubbornly refusing to give in to Canterlot couture, and stuck with her hat and usually very little else. Not that she needed anything else to intimidate anypony she so desired. She'd been working her way through the clerks and bean counters of the Equestrian government, rooting out corruption and graft wherever she'd found it. Given nearly a decade of experience in the labyrinthine trenches of the Equestrian tax system, she was awfully good at finding it too.
Pinkie Pie, on the other hoof, had taken to the whole 'Nightmare' thing with a vengeance - favoring darkly elegant and sexy dresses straight from Rarity's hooves. She was wearing one of those pieces today - a sleek and chic wine red silk dress with a split skirt to show off her stocking hooves, her mane having been artfully styled to appear it's normal, heavily poofed-out self but with a great deal more elegance.
And Rarity? What could Twilight say? If she had been asked who amongst her five friends Twilight would most come to rely on in this new world, she never would have picked Rarity. Yet she seemed to have been born for this sort of thing, deftly maneuvering here, quietly laying the foundations for future needs there. Twilight was coming to rely on Rarity's innate political sense to keep her afloat in the tortured waters of Royal Politics. Only Luna was perhaps as important in keeping Twilight fully grounded in her day-to-day duties.
Still, it was good to see all three of them. "Hey." She said simply, with a soft smile that the three friends returned. "We've got some problems in Ponyville, girls. I need your help." She turned her eyes to the freshly delivered scroll gently laid on the ground nearby, and took a deep breath. "Things are moving much faster than we originally anticipated."
~~~~~~Ponyville~~~~~~
"Some bruised ribs, a few first degree burns, she's gonna have a backlash headache for a few days - but nothing too serious. No chaos infection, no long term damage." The doctor grinned a little at the relieved looking mare in front of her. "Tough kid you've got there. Once she's ready, you can take her out of here yourself. We'd like her to stay for a day or two of observation, but since you're her mother and she's not critical, we'll leave that up to your judgment."
Phantasma Lulamoon nodded once. "Thank you, doctor." She said with a quiet smile, as the unicorn quickly trotted down the hallway of the first aid station they'd set up not far outside of Ponyville square. She sucked in a deep breath and exhaled it, then pushed open the door to the recovery room and slowly crossed over to the bed, where Trixie was sitting upright with a bundle of bandages tied tightly around her middle. She had a book... a very familiar book... laying in her lap and obviously heavily read given the wear on the pages.
Trixie looked up a moment later with a soft kind of smile, and Phantasma shook away those thoughts. Now wasn't the time to worry about Harmony. Phantasma gently sat down next to the bed, and placed her hooves hesitantly onto the bed covers. "Trixie... I..." Phantasma hesitated, wondering what to say, wondering what there was to say... until Trixie set the book gently to one side and gently pulled her hooves around Trixie's body and then folded her own around Phantasma.
Trixie held her close to her, and Phantasma could feel a little wetness gently pressing up against her chest. "I knew you'd come back." She whispered softly, her hooves grasping at Phantasma's cloak. "I knew it..." She sobbed out softly, tugging firmly on the cape as though she wanted to make sure her mother wasn't going to vanish on her again. My poor little girl... Phantasma thought sadly, softly stroking her hoof down Trixie's back.
She opened her mouth to speak, but Trixie was overriding her again. "I'm sorry... Sorry I couldn't be a showmare like you." she whispered softly, as though she was confessing something that had weighed rather heavily upon her for a long, long time. "I tried so hard, mom... I..."
Phantasma could take more of that, gently lifting Trixie up and pressing her hoof to her mouth. "Hush. I could not possibly be more proud of you, Trixie." She said softly, a gentle smile across her face. "You have become such a wonderful young mare. You have learned so much, and grown and matured beautifully. The only pony here who ought to be apologizing is I... for what I had to do." She looked down to the bed, feeling the clench over her head.
Trixie sat up a little straighter and nodded, her hooves now wrapped around Phantasma's. "Tell me the story, momma. I want to know what happened." Trixie paused and exhaled softly. "I need to know what happened." she intoned softly, firmly - grasping Phantasma's hooves much tighter.
Phantasma nodded and took a deep breath. "I wasn't just a showmare, Trixie. I was a personal agent for Princess Celestia." She paused, gently shifting on her seat. "I hunted dissonance sorcerers and rogue changelings. I rooted out corruption in government and brought down criminal organizations. Whenever Equestria needed to act behind the scenes, I was there. My act was my cover - nopony could believe a stage illusionist could possibly have done half of what I'd done. But when you do the job I did as long as I did... your past starts to catch up with you."
She could remember it now. The attack on her private rooms at the Waldhoof Hotel. Trixie utterly unaware as she fought to the death with a trained assassin. It still set her heart to aching, remembering finding the sets of knives - one for her, and one for Trixie. "I made enough powerful enemies that they finally came after me.... and you. I couldn't..." She took in a deep breath and exhaled. "I couldn't risk them hurting you. I was just about to quit and take you on the run when... when the Princess offered me a way out. Offered to make sure your aunt and uncle could take care of you, offered the best protection for you the crown could provide. All I had to do was follow her plan."
Phantasma looked away then, conscious of the tears rolling down her cheeks and the squeezing hooves around hers. "It was the hardest thing I've ever done in my entire life. I remember seeing you up in the rafters. I remember hearing your cries as I teleported away. I... I hated myself." She sobbed out. "Every scream, every tear I heard from you was like a dagger through my heart. The EIS agent they'd sent to pick me up had to drag me away." her hooves began to shake, from a secret kept so long that still it hurt.
Trixie gently pulled her close, and kissed the tears away from her cheeks. "It's okay, momma. I understand. You wanted to protect me... and I can understand that, now." She whispered softly, and Phantasma felt the weight of nearly fourteen years lift completely off of her shoulders. "Where did you go, then? I looked for you... I looked everywhere." she repeated, the look in her eyes not sad... but gentle. Loving. Oh Harmony, thank you... she does still want me.
Of course, the next bit was going to be worse. Phantasma took in a breath and smiled just a little. "I am quite the illusionist you know. I went into EIS' witness protection program, and with a little help from Celestia I created a magical disguise. As for where I was..." She looked up out the window, and wondered for a moment about another little filly, and wondered if she would understand too. "I was in Canterlot. Not all that far from Crackle's shop, actually. There is... something else important you need to know, Trixie. About me... about Princess Celestia... about our family... and about what I had to do."
Trixie waited patiently, and Phantasma began to speak...
~~~~~~Golden Oaks Library, that evening~~~~~~
Tia opened her eyes slowly as she took stock of where she was, and what was going on. Firstly, she was someplace soft. That was usually a good first sign, as it generally meant she'd fallen unconscious someplace friendly. Second, she could feel a gentle hoof squeezing her own, which was also usually a good sign. Finally, as her eyes cracked open - her sight was filled not with chaos-touched ponies, but of just one pony - Cheerilee. She had her hooves folded around Tia's, and a much battered and worn copy of The Book of Harmony lying by the bedside.
Cheerilee appeared to be silently praying at first, though when Tia stirred herself a little she immediately snapped out of it to smile softly at her. For some reason, that smile sent a little warm shiver down Tia's spine and blossomed into a big happy ball in the middle of her stomach... which only served to remind her that she was suddenly rather starving. "Welcome back to the land of the living, Tia." Cheerilee said softly, her voice full of good humor. "How are you feeling?" she queried, lifting up a hoof to gently press against Tia's forehead just above the horn.
Tia shook her head a little, gently reaching up to squeeze the hoof that was against her forehead. "I'm fine, Cheerilee. How is everypony else?" She spoke gently, still feeling the weakness in her limbs - but it was fading quickly, and thank Harmony. "Is everypony okay?" She continued, feeling the worry gnaw at her center as she tried to shove herself up off the bed... only to be pushed firmly back down by Cheerilee.
"Stay. Everyone is fine, your shield protected us and all of those ponies who'd been... affected by the madpony's magic." Cheerilee said firmly. "You are going to stay in bed until I am absolutely certain you aren't hurt yourself. What was that shield you conjured up?" Cheerilee continued, as she went back to taking Tia's temperature with her hoof.
Tia swallowed the lump in her throat. "S-Shield? What shield?" Truth be told, she didn't remember all of that much after it became clear that Harmony was going to do what she lacked the courage to do herself. She had simply presumed it had done something quite obvious and dramatic, and that now everypony was going to be afraid of her. "I... I don't really remember that much." She hedged, hoping that Cheerilee wouldn't press the issue.
Cheerilee continued doing the school-teachers checkup - pulse, temperature, and checking for strength in the forelimbs. Once she was satisfied, Cheerilee gently tugged Tia up into a sitting position before she spoke. "Tia..." She began, with a soft smile. "I know you called upon some power greater than yourself to save us... and that's okay. Harmony works often in mysterious ways." She said, gently squeezing Tia's hoof. "What matters is that everypony is safe... and that includes you, Tia Sunbeam." Cheerilee spoke the last in her most stern teacher's voice, but her soft eyes told the tale of a far greater concern.
Tia smiled hesitantly back, and softly squeezed the hoof surrounding her own. "Thank you, Cheerilee. I... I'll explain about it sometime but not right now." The words poured out of her in a rush... and to her astonishment, Cheerilee nodded understandingly. Tia looked up around her, for the first time taking in the features of the room... and noted the scattering of chairs around the bed. "Wait... who else was.." Tia began to ask, when the door to the room swung open.
"Arright! No more of this closed door bullshit!" Vinyl Scratch proclaimed loudly and vibrantly to the air. "We just survived a bucking chaos attack on the town, and that means it's time to PAR-TAY!" She further proclaimed - levitating at least a dozen bottles of something alcoholic, several large bags of snacks and what looked like a tray of sandwiches. "Tia! Good to see you're awake." Vinyl continued, shoving a bottle into her hooves telekinetically. One glance at the label identified it as some sort of hard cider. "A drink for the conquering heroine!" Vinyl proclaimed, dropping the rest of the spread onto the bedcovers, side tables, and anywhere else she could find a flat surface.
Tia just stared in bemusement, as Vinyl twisted off the cap of her own bottle - and then Tia's. "Hey," Vinyl began, offering up her bottle. Tia paused then felt a big smile creep across her face, raising the vessel in her hooves to clink against Vinyl's "New rule of Ponyville. If you're gonna fly off the handle and go charging into every little bit of danger, you'd better make sure you got your friends at your back." Vinyl took a deep pull of the beverage, and then let out a satisfied 'ah!' sound. "Which now includes me, so don't try doin' stupid shit behind my back. If you're gonna be stupid, then at least we can be stupid together." Vinyl concluded with a satisfied nod, then grabbed a sandwich.
Tia had only a moment or two to absorb that particular statement when Ditzy trotted in. She did not stop to say a word to either Vinyl or Cheerilee, but instead went straight to the bed and threw her hooves around Tia's neck and hugged the stuffing out of her. "Ditzy..." Tia began to speak, and Ditzy jerked her head back and forth, obviously uninterested in words right now. So Tia simply hugged her back with one hoof, and took a long pull of the rough alcoholic cider. Truth be told., she needed a drink herself.
Ditzy took a few minutes to get that hug out of her system - by the time she did, Vinyl was already done with her first sandwich and grinning at them. Ditzy pulled back with a slow, tremulous smile. "You saved Dinky." Was all she said at first, a soft sniffle in her voice. "Nopony... Nopony's ever done something like that for me." She continued in a soft, hesitant voice, and then kissed Tia. Not her cheek. Not her head. Ditzy kissed her lips, dead on - and quite out of nowhere. Vinyl spit out a mouthful of cider, and Cheerilee fell off the chair she was trying to get on top of.
For a few long moments, Tia was... stunned. Although that was mostly her mind - her lips were returning the affection quite willingly, even as Ditzy gently cupped her cheeks with her hooves - then pulled back all of a sudden. Ditzy's cheeks were as red as strawberries and she spoke whisper soft words, "Thank you, Tia." in the cutest voice Tia had ever heard, no exceptions. Of course, then she turned upon Cheerilee and Vinyl. "And not One WORD of that to anypony else for right now!" she said in the most serious and flustered possible voice.
Cheerilee held up her hooves with a sly smile, and Vinyl was simply grinning fit to beat the band. Tia was still trying to absorb the fact that she had now been kissed by two ponies in as many days, and began to wonder if perhaps she was better looking than she'd originally thought. She was luckily saved from this line of thought by some new guests - Cloud Chaser and Bon Bon had arrived and began to partake in sandwiches and bottles of hard cider. The five of them sat around her bed, chatting, laughing - and including her every chance they got. No one asked about the strange power. No one seemed to care about the weirdness of the attack.
Twilight had often observed on just how resilient the citizens of Ponyville were, but seeing truly was believing. Of course, there was one last niggling little thought that was getting in the way of Tia's enjoyment. One last observation that... that she just couldn't shake.
"...So I'm gonna bring over my stereo, and Big Mac's gonna take care of all the kids tonight." Vinyl enthused to Ditzy, her head bobbing eternally to that unheard beat. "So Tavi's gonna come over, and we're gonna have ourselves a big ol' girls night in! Just us friends, not half the town this time. Maybe we'll even get Tia here to crack a joke, eh?" She chuckled brightly, turning those shade-hidden eyes towards Tia... she lifted them up to wink with one beautiful ruby-red eye before dropping them back down.
Tia couldn't help it - she laughed softly. "Oh, I don't know about that. I mean, I am supposed to be the prim and proper librarian." She said in her most arch tone. "Really, I ought to be spanking all of you for being too loud! This is a library you know!" She scolded sternly - and everypony in the room burst into helpless laughter as she shook her hoof at them. "I mean it! Don't make me get the ruler!" She continued, keeping the stern look on her face for as long as she could before joining in the laughter.
Vinyl, predictably - was the first one to cut in with her ribald humor. "Don't joke too much about that, Tia. I hear Cheery and Ditzy might enjoy that!" She said with a sly grin - eliciting blushes from both mares and a pelting of pillows taken from the bed and couches around the room. "Ack! I was joking! Joking!" she tried to plead, but to no avail until she started returning fire with the other pillows.
Bon Bon rolled her eyes - but smiled as she watched on. Her eyes met Tia's for a moment, and she winked cheerfully. Tia sought out the attention of Chaser... who was smiling with a certain amount of anticipation on her face. However, she was nothing but gentle and kindly smiles for Tia. Something truly had united them back there, in that town square. Something vital and important but... Tia dare not wish, dare not even hope that it could be that.
For now, she'd rather simply hope and wish for a night of fun and games with her... with her..
With her friends.
~~~~~~~~Canterlot Castle~~~~~~~
Knock Knock Knock
Twilight looked up - just a trifle annoyed at the intrusion, but they had been cooped up in here for some time. "Enter!" She proclaimed, and the door swung open to reveal a rather... familiar looking figure with Shining Armor right alongside him. They were laughing at some shared joke, and the pair of stallions turned to smile at Twilight... who stared for a moment before realizing exactly who it was she was seeing. She swallowed softly and said in a gentle voice, "Dad, what are you doing here?"
Night Light smiled a little, his eyes soft. "Hey, Sparkles. Do you have a few minutes? There are some things we need to talk about. Things you need to know that Princess Celestia hasn't told you yet." he paused. "About our family, I mean."