Chapter 6
“Love Remembers All”
I stared at Faust as she stood before me. She gave off an aura of goodness and warmth that dwarfed Celestia’s aura. I felt warm and comfortable when she was there, like I was meeting an old friend. I can’t explain it at all, but, I felt like I knew her.
She smiled slowly, and lifted a hoof. “Do not stand there gaping, come to me child of magic.”
I blinked and stepped forward. I eventually came up to her, I only came about to her chest. She smiled down at me and said. “You’ve grown well, Preventus.”
“How do you know me?” I asked, narrowing my eyes.
“Simple, I made you,” she replied, as if I asked what the weather was.
I gave her a skeptical look and asked, “You, made me?”
“Yes, I did,” she said, still smiling brightly at me. “Everything about you. From your coat, to your horn, to even the tiniest quirks. I took from both of your parents and made you a new being in your mother’s womb. It was by my magic that you received your cutie mark at age six. It was my reward for you discovering your true destiny as a detective.”
“You have to admit this is all so hard to swallow," I said, shaking my head. “You’re saying you’re a… god?”
“In a sense, yes,” she answered. “I created this world thousands of years ago. I made the trees, the animals, and your kind to inhabit it.”
“This is, all so impossible,” I said, shaking my head.
“Anything is possible, Preventus,” she said, nodding firmly. “The knowledge is just out of reach or you simply can’t understand it yet.”
“You seriously expect me to believe you created the world?” I asked warily.
“I would like you to believe that. But, it is your choice whether you believe in me or not. Whichever you decided, proving my existence is not why I am here, child of magic.”
“Why do you keep calling me child of magic?” I asked.
She frowned slowly and said, “You have been taught in school about the Alicorn Kingdoms?”
“Yeah, Alicorns once covered the whole of Equestria,” I said, drawing on the memories of Twilight’s many lectures on the subject. “A great cataclysm destroyed them fifteen hundred years ago. Only a few dozen remain today, but what does that have to do with your name for me?”
“Have you ever wondered why there are three races of ponies?” she asked.
“Um, variety in unity?” I guessed.
“Closer than you would believe, Private Eye,” she said with a nod. “The Alicorns believed themselves to be the perfect and the sole ruling race on the planet. They believed themselves superior to all the other races. They tried to destroy the dragons, griffons, and several other races just to expand their empires.”
I took all this in, wondering when I was going to go back and face Twilight.
“Discord, a being created by the Alicorns after a terrible accident with alchemy, tried to persuade me to destroy them. Instead, I told him I would cast a curse on the Alicorns. I’m sure my follower Voidera told you of the results.”
“The three races were born that year,” I said with a nod. “But why? Why choose that route? You could’ve easily destroyed them and started anew.”
She closed her blue eyes and replied, “I am not heartless. I had hoped they would show mercy to the young ones. That they would understand it was for their own good, but they refused to listen to my warnings. They only heard what they wanted to hear. Only desired what they wanted out of the world. They cared not for the innocence of the young, only seeing them as obstacles to be destroyed. In truth, though, the three races were created for one reason, harmony.”
“Harmony?”
“All three races rely on one another to survive. Earth ponies tend to the earth, pegasi, the sky, and unicorns for magic. By working together all three races would see past hubris and learn to rely on one another for strength. I believe Celestia called it, “the magic of friendship” very fitting.”
“Look, this was a very nice history lesson,” I said, turning around, “but I need to get back to Twilight and stop this”
“DO NOT TURN FROM ME!” I heard her voice call, it was like Luna’s Royal Canterlot Voice only spoken twice as loud. I fell on my face at the force of it. “YOU THINK YOU ARE BLAMELESS HERE, PRIVATE EYE!”
I turned back to her, saw her blue eyes gazing at me. I glared back. “Who are you to tell me how to live my life? You think yourself a god! Well fine, that won’t stop Twilight from dest-“
“You blame her still?” she asked, shaking her head. “I thought you had learned…”
“What do you want from me!” I yelled. “Just say what you want and let me be!”
She held up a hoof and replied calmly, “I just want you to come and pray.”
“Pray? Seriously?” I asked, in absolute disbelief.
“Yes, and once you have, I will let you return. Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye. I always loved that,” she said with a big smile making the motions as she recited the familiar oath.
“Fine,” I said, walking up to her as she held her hoof out. I slowly took it, closed my eyes and said, “Um, dear Faust, I guess, I want you to, feed the hungry, help Applejack stop her rebellion. I also want you to help Rarity to recover from the trauma she will have. Above all, watch over the orphans that will come from this. Amen?”
She smiled as I opened my eyes, “That was good.”
“Really?” I said, raising an eyebrow.
“If you were running for Miss Equestria,” she said snidely.
I frowned and asked, “Am I done here?”
“No, you are not,” she said, a firmness in her voice. “I want to know, Private Eye, what is it that you want?”
“What I want?” I said, shaking my head “What do you wanna know that for? I already did your stupid prayer.”
“That was hardly a prayer,” she said, shaking her head “A prayer is more than a simple list of things for me to do. I’m not some unreachable deity. I can hear every word you say and care about you. So tell me, Private Eye, what is it you want?”
I looked down and then back up. “For Tail- No, he’s gone…”
“You knew that already,” she said, nodding. “What is it you really want? The one thing you would sacrifice everything for. The one thing you risked life and limb to protect! The one thing you wanted to make part of your life forever… the one pony.”
It dawned on me like the rising sun. The one thing I wanted, the one thing I needed. The one thing above anything else I treasured. The one pony I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. The pony who'd helped me face the darkness inside myself and my past. The pony who cared for me above anypony else…
Twilight…
“Twilight,” I said, feeling a tear come down my cheek. “I, I want Twilight…”
She smiled sympathetically and laid a wing on my shoulder. “Yes, that is what you want above everything else. You want her to accept you back?”
“No, I just want her to be happy,” I said, slowly looking down. “She, is immortal, she’d, she’d just forget about me. She wouldn’t want me anymore.”
“That explains your behavior when she ascended,” Faust said. “You were simply scared. You grew to care for the fact she looked to you for everything. But that was a double edged sword. Twilight is not a shrinking violet, but a blooming flower just hoping to be appreciated.”
“I love her, I still do,” I said, feeling more tears stream down my face. “All those things I said, I hurt her. I couldn’t stop myself! I hurt the mare I loved!” I shook my head. “No, that changes nothing! She still had Tailspin kil-“
“You are the reason,” she said firmly.
“What? What are you talking about?” I yelled at her. “She’s the one who erased everyone’s memories! She’s the one who ordered hybrids slain! She-“
“Was overcome with grief by your passing,” she interrupted, returning my glare.
“Mine…” I said slowly.
“You remember when you had to choose between catching Glimmer or saving Dinky? Well, this time you chose to catch Adamus.”
I looked up at her.
“You chose to follow him, while Twilight was unconscious and in pain. You could’ve helped her overcome the miasma, yet you chose to follow your duty. That is what cost you. I had set up a portal there, hoping you would not go. This future, was meant to show you what folly your decision would’ve been. You are the cause for all this. You gave up on Twilight because she didn’t fit your ideal.”
I felt the weight of her words come down on my shoulders. She was right, every word…
“You needed an excuse to put the blame on somepony else. So, you chose to use Tailspin’s death as an excuse to fight back against Twilight. To fight against the idea of her becoming more than you.”
She was right…
“But, Private, ponies change. Twilight was always destined to become an Alicorn. She loves you, Private Eye, of that there’s no doubt. However, you must accept her for all that she is. Wings or not, deep down inside she is still the Twilight you love.”
“I, was afraid,” I admitted, looking at her. “I was afraid Twilight would forget about me. That after she became immortal, I would die and leave her alone, or that she would pick another over me. I would have been useless to her. I hate being useless to anypony, because…”
“You’re afraid they would leave you, as your mother did,” she said, looking at me gently. “You are a lonely soul, Private Eye, who is afraid to fill his heart because somepony might poke a hole in it. I am telling you right now, Twilight will never leave you, all you have to do is tell her why you were afraid.”
I looked down and asked, “How, do you know so much about me?”
“Because I made you,” she again replied. “I wasn’t lying about that.”
“Why me?” I asked, still looking down. “Why does it have to be me?”
“Would you rather it have been another?”
“I’m nothing, compared to Twilight,” I admitted. “Compared to anypony, I’m nothing special. If it wasn’t for the element, I’d be nopony special at all.”
She suddenly hugged me tenderly. For a minute, I thought I was with mom again. She said gently, “You, Private Eye, are beautifully and wonderfully made. As are all of my creations. You are all unique and special in your own way. I know, because I made you all that way. Every pony, from the tallest to the smallest, is special in my eyes. I believe, that you are the one deserving of Twilight. I know, because I made you both and know that you are meant for one another.”
“How do I go back?” I said, looking at her as she let me go. “Can you send me?”
“I could, but I think Twilight of this era would be a far better choice.”
“You want me to convince her?” I asked, in absolute disbelief “In case you hadn’t noticed, she doesn’t even remember who I am!”
“Yet, she didn’t hurt you when she had the chance,” she pointed out with a smile.
She’s right. That last attack, Twilight is about as good a sharpshooter with magic as I am with guns. She would never miss a target like me, no matter what the circumstances. However, during the entire fight, she never hit me.
“Convince her. She has a spell called Starswirl’s Grand Reversal, a spell that will rewind the flow of time to a certain point in history. It can send an individual back with the memories of the future. She's learned it but never used it because of the risks. You must convince her of who you are, and have her send you back.”
“Then, when I go back?”
“You must promise me that you will change your decision. To stay and help Twilight rather than hunt down your grandfather. For she needs you, Private. She has always needed you. It’s time you accepted her for all she is.”
I looked down, then back up and said, “Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.”
Suddenly, a bright light caused Faust to disappear. I heard her say something one last time.
Hope lies in the Palace of Old.
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I groaned as I opened my grey eyes. This was starting to become an unhealthy habit, me getting knocked unconscious. I know Doctor Stable is not going to be happy with me if I get back home.
I climbed to my hooves and saw Twilight was standing there, glaring at me. “How did you learn to perform magic like that!?” she demanded. “No hybrid should be capable of something like this!”
I closed my eyes and said, “The fight is over Twilight.”
“You insolent cur!” she growled. “You think you can order me around? I am the Princess of Equestria! You are nothing more than a gnat compared to me!” Her horn glowed brightly.
I stood my ground, and waited as she fired her spell at me. The magic bolt zoomed towards me, and I braced myself for the hit. Only, it never came. I watched as the bolt curved away and into the wall behind me. “I don’t have to order you, Twilight. I know for a fact, you won’t hurt me.”
“What!” she cried, incredulously. “This is impossible! What trick are you using this time!” She fired another spell at me, again it curved out of the way. No matter what spell she threw at me, it always curved harmlessly out of the way.
I walked forward, undeterred by her spells. “Because Twilight, you know me, even if you can’t remember me. You know who I am, and what we are.”
“I’ve never met you before in my life!” she screamed, firing more spells that just missed. “This is impossible! No spell can do something like this! I’ve read every tome! Studied every theory! This is impossible!”
“Not, if you don’t want to hurt me,” I said, looking at her. “You know me, deep down in your heart; you remember me and know who I am.”
“No, forget my heart!” she yelled, her eyes narrowing to slits. They looked just like Nightmare Moon’s! She yelled, “The heart is weak! Prone to mistakes and miscalculations! Logic should rule! The mind is king!”
“No Twilight, you taught me otherwise…” My horn glowed. “Now, I will make you remember that!” I yelled and charged at her. She fired as many spells as she could at me, but all of them missed. I tackled her, knocking both of us to the floor. I pressed my horn to hers and activated the memory spell. Twilight’s eyes grew wide as memories came flooding back…
____________________________________________________________
Good afternoon, my name is Twilight Sparkle.
Well, howdy doo, Miss Twilight. A pleasure to make your acquaintance! Ah’m Applejack, we here at Sweet Apple Acres sure do like making new friends!
Friends? Actualliiiy, I, uh…
So, what can Ah do ya for?
________________________________________________________
Oof! Hehe, uh, excuse me heheh.
Mmm…
Let me help you!
*Swoosh*
Oops, I guess I overdid it, um… How bout this? My very own patented Rainbow Dry!
*Whoosh*
Now, now, don’t thank me, you’re quite welcome…
Ge.. Bah hahahaha!!!!
Let me guess? You’re Rainbow Dash?
The one and only, why ya heard of me?
_______________________________________________________
Good Afternoon.
Just a moment please, I am in the zone as it were. Ah yes, sparkle always does the trick, does it not? Why Rarity you are a talent. Now, how can I help yo- whoahhh!!! Oh my stars, darling! Whatever happened to your coiffure?
Oh, you mean my mane? Well, it's a long story. I'm just here to check on the decorations, and then I'll be out of your hair.
Out of my hair? What about your hair?
______________________________________________________
What kind of welcome party would this be if it were quiet? I mean, duh, bo-ring. You see, I saw you when you first got here, remember? You were all, hello, and I was all, *gasp*, remember? You see I never saw you before, and if I never saw you before that means you're new, 'cause I know every pony, and I mean every pony in Ponyville, and if you're new, then it meant you haven't met anyone yet, and if you haven't met anyone yet, you must not have any friends, and if you don't have any friends then you must be lonely, and that made me so sad, and I had an idea, and that's why I went *gasp*, 'I'll just throw a great big ginormous super-duper spectacular welcome party and invite everyone in Ponyville'. See? And now you have lots and lots of friends!
__________________________________________________________
“Thank Celestia you’ve made it! I was afraid you wouldn’t come!”
For a second I was tongue tied staring at this mare of simple beauty. I shook my head to fix that and nodded at the mare before me. “Yes that’s me, Detective Private Eye, happy to be of service.” I tipped my hat to her as she descended the steps from her room. I’ll admit that I did that less out of politeness and more so she wouldn’t catch me gaping at her like a dragon would a diamond.
____________________________________________________
I lifted my head from where it was in her mane and looked at her with my grey eyes. “Truth is Twilight, I realized something the moment I fired you that one time…”
“Private, I know you missed me…”
I put a hoof on her lips to shush her. “Truth is, I realized that I…” The words were so simple…yet so hard and beautiful to say. “I love you…”
Twilight’s eyes became wide as I said those three words to her. I never had the guts to say those words to her before. Now that I did I desperately waited for her response. Her approval was all I desired and wanted now… nothing else.
Her eyes looked down at the ground. Her body shook a little and I heard a sob. I grew worried at this... had I said something wrong? She raised her violet eyes to me., and I noticed they had tears in them. I feared the worse. “Twilight I…”
She put a hoof to my mouth then shook her head. She then just reached a hoof around me and pulled me into a loving kiss. I stared at her as she blinked away tears. She stopped kissing me for a moment and said softly, “Private, I love you too.” She wiped away more tears. “I just never thought a stallion I loved would say something like that…”
__________________________________________________________
“How long was I out?”
“Twilight, it ain’t pretty.”
“Where’s Private?”
“Gone, Sugarcube, along with Rainbow and lots of folks…”
“No, Private wouldn’t. He…he promised he’d never leave me!”
“Twilight, please calm down.”
“No! You know what! It was inevitable anyway! Why make friends? They only leave you one way or another! Nopony could stop that jerk from hurting so many! My friend is gone! My brother, and my mentor dead! Everything I loved was torn asunder!”
“Twilight, wait, stop! Private will come back! He said he would!”
“I, I just want to forget Private, and all of this, forever…”
______________________________________________________
Tears welled up in both of our eyes as my spell finished it’s work. She looked at me for a long moment and said, “I, remember, Private…”
“Twilight!” I said, holding her tightly. I felt her hug me back just as tight.
“Private, I’m so sorry!” she said, crying on my shoulder. “I, I was just so overcome with grief. I wanted to forget everything! I just, you left me…”
“I’m so sorry, Twilight,” I said, crying myself. “I, I've made a terrible mistake. I shouldn’t have been against you becoming a princess. I should’ve been right by your side. I’m so sorry.”
We looked at each other for a moment. Twilight reached a hoof and wiped away tears from my eyes. Just the way she used to.
“I just wanted to run away from the pain. I didn’t want to do this. I thought if I locked my heart away then I would never feel pain again. I can see now how I destroyed everything by making that decision.”
“It’s not your fault entirely,” I said guiltily. “I should’ve been there, I should’ve stopped the ceremony before you would fall. I should’ve followed my heart and ran to your side. Instead, I went and turned my back on you. I was afraid, Twilight...”
“What were you afraid of?” she asked, looking at me pleadingly “Why did you not want me to become a princess! Tell me why, Private!”
…”I was going to propose,” I admitted finally.
“What?” Twilight said, her eyes wide in shock.
“When I found out about you becoming an Alicorn I was afraid you wouldn’t want me. That you would turn your back on me once I grew old and wrinkled. I’m no Alicorn, nor will I ever be, I can’t live forever, Twilight. But I was too proud to admit I was afraid. That’s why I got angry…”
“You, were going to propose… to me?” she said, trying to comprehend what I said. “Private, you wanted to marry me?”
“Yes!” I said, looking at her. “I love you more then life itself! I kept coming up with stupid ways of trying to propose to you! I should’ve just done it right after you saved me from the fire! I knew there and then I wanted you by my side forever! I need you Twilight!”
Tears began flowing from her eyes, and she slowly walked to me.
“But you can reverse it, all of this, you remember the spell Starswirl’s Grand Reversal? It’ll send me back to fix everything!” I said happily “The future will change! Everypony will be happy!”
She smiled and then suddenly her eyes became slits. She screamed in pain as another voice entered her own. “NO! Do not give in! He is a liar! He abandoned you! They all did!”
The miasma! It was still in Twilight!
“Let me go!” Twilight demanded “I want to help him!”
“He only cares for himself, like every pony in existence!” The other voice said through my marefriend. I knew that was the miasma talking “He’ll still leave you alone! Even if the future changes! Your friends will still leave you! Friendship is useless and only leads to heartache! Only leads to pain! All you need is us, we will never betray you…”
“You get the hell out of her!” I cried my horn glowing once again. I struggled and felt a sharp pain in my horn. Twilight jerked as if she was in an exorcism. “Friendship isn’t useless! It holds a power greater than even time itself, for it will always exist!”
I heard a chanting coming, more powerful than before, I looked around, there were my fellow elements in spirit looking at Twilight. They all nodded at me, I felt the cords of light reach out to each of them. Time to send the miasma packing!
Twilight jerked as the blue mist left her. The mist swirled into a face. “NOOOOOOOOOO!” it cried, as light glowed from each of our elements.
I raised my hooves and a bright sphere of light formed between them. I then threw it at the miasma and shouted, “No longer will you taint her! I will make sure you never touch her again!” The sphere scored a direct hit on the miasma.
The being screeched in pain then suddenly vanished before my eyes. I fell back down to earth and saw Faust standing behind Twilight. A smile was on the strange maker’s face and she gestured to Twilight, who fell over.
I ran to her as all the apparitions disappeared. I lifted her head gently in my hooves. She smiled up at me and said, “I always admired your element. Tenacity, what a powerful name.”
“I’m nothing compared to you, Twilight” I said with a smile. “You were always the strong one really. I was just the broken mess that somehow managed to fix everypony’s problems but my own.”
She smiled and her horn glowed. “I’m using the last of my magic on the Grand Reversal. It will rewind time, and you will remember all of this. I’m sorry that you somehow ended up in this horrible future.”
“Don’t blame yourself, you dork,” I said, kissing her on the horn. “You just got a little crazy, happens all the time with you.”
“You always knew how to keep me sane,” she said, and then reached a hoof to touch my cheek. “I know you will change the future for the better, Private. You always made me feel I could do anything.”
“You did the same,” I admitted. “I just didn’t say it as often. You showed me so much, made me so much more than I was. I love you for that…”
She then pulled me into a deep and tender kiss. Despite her being seven years older I still felt love for Twilight. The sparks were there as the kiss became deeper. I knew, this was the last we would share until I changed things. I wanted to savor it.
Twilight’s horn was almost blindingly bright now. She broke our kiss and said simply, “Yes, Private.”
“What?”
“Yes, I would have married you,” she said, smiling. “I will always want to marry you. I would have waited years until you were ready. For my love will never waver, and my hope for our future will never blot out. I love you, Preventus…”
“I love you too, Twilight” I said, tears streaming down. “I promise, I will care for you always. Wings or not! Crown or not! You are Twilight Annemarie Sparkle! The cutest, dorkiest, most overactive, sweetest, smartest, and most talented mare in all of Equestria!”
With that, she touched my horn, and I fell back into unconsciousness…