Twilight walked alone in the streets of Ponyville.
She shouldn’t have been alone. She knew that. Why was she alone?
She looked around and noticed it was nighttime. All the stars in the sky had been painted away by the black overcast, so there was no chance of stargazing tonight. The weather schedule had stated clear skies all week long, though. Had Rainbow Dash changed it at the last second?
Still, she could see the moon through a small gap in the cloud cover. She didn’t like it, though. Something chilled her about it, and it was more than the cold night air. It was different, somehow, but familiar too. What had changed about it? And why?
Twilight shook her head and kept walking. She needed to get home soon or Spike would worry about her.
She was outside Carousel Boutique for some reason. The lights in the building were flickering on and off seemingly at random. Maybe Rarity was trying something for inspiration. Twilight wasn’t a master of creative muse or anything, so she decided not to think on it too long.
A window was broken. The topmost window of the boutique had been reduced to shards. It had probably been the doing of Sweetie Belle and the Crusaders trying to get window-washing cutie marks or something. Rarity must’ve been livid.
It wasn’t Twilight's place to pry, though. She kept walking.
Her path led her past Sugarcube Corner. No light came from Pinkie’s window. That struck Twilight as odd. Normally Pinkie was still awake at this hour, hyped up on candy and cupcakes. She seriously needed to talk to Pinkie about better eating habits. Better sleeping habits, too.
Or maybe not. Apparently she was asleep now. Maybe she was learning on her own. Either way, Twilight decided it could wait until morning, and she kept walking.
Suddenly, Twilight remembered something. There was supposed to be an aurora tonight. From the Crystal Empire. Other than the moon, though, the sky was empty. Even with the cloud cover, she should’ve been able to see some of the colours in the sky. It was probably just too early for it.
Then it hit her. She’d been out to go and watch the aurora with her friends, and she was supposed to meet up with Fluttershy so they could walk to the hill together. Fluttershy didn’t like walking alone in the dark. Applejack was going to join them, too.
Twilight smacked a hoof to her face and turned back towards Fluttershy’s cottage. They’d probably been waiting for her when she’d spaced out.
How had she spaced out, anyway? That wasn’t like her.
She noticed Canterlot in the distance. It seemed brighter than usual. And there was a thin circle around the city.
A… shield?
It certainly reminded her of Shining Armor’s shield spell, but why would that be there? Had there been another threat made against Canterlot? Were the changelings attacking again? She’d have to write to Princess Celestia and ask about it.
She looked back to the distant city. The circle was gone, now. Odd. Maybe it’d just been a trick of the eye.
Twilight shook her head. It wasn’t her concern right now. If the princesses needed her help, they would’ve asked her by now. Surely they could handle it on their own, if there was even an “it” to handle.
She walked past the opening in the fence which led to Sweet Apple Acres. Looking over the hill, she could just make out the homestead in the distance. The darkness made it look strange, though, like it was just a jumbled mess of wood rather than a house. Of course, most of the Apple family had gone to bed already, so there was no light coming from the house itself, making it a silhouette. Twilight decided there wasn’t anything wrong with that, and she kept walking.
She arrived at Fluttershy’s cottage not long after, but was surprised to see that all the windows were black. Maybe Fluttershy and Applejack had gotten sick of waiting and had left without her. They were her two most patient friends, though, so that seemed a little strange.
How long had she spaced out? What time was it?
Shrugging, Twilight knocked on the door and waited. The animals must’ve been truly sound asleep because there wasn’t a single reaction to her knock. Not a sound. Not a light. Not a movement. Twilight decided it wasn’t worth waiting any longer. Fluttershy wasn’t one to keep ponies waiting if she could help it.
Twilight turned around and walked towards the stargazing hill.
She had expected to pass by Rainbow Dash’s house along the way, but it wasn’t in its usual position. Being made of cloud, the house was easily moved, and Rainbow Dash made frequent use of that fact. Still, most nights her house was in this general location. Perhaps Rainbow had just found a better spot for it, or maybe she found it had gotten in the way of the stargazing.
Not that the black clouds above didn’t already accomplish that.
Twilight just shrugged it off and kept walking.
She arrived at the top of the hill just a minute or so later, and she was rooted to the spot by what she saw.
None of her friends were there to meet her. She was alone on top of the hill, and a ring of strange gold fragments surrounded her. Some sort of dust glittered in the moonlight around her.
Twilight stood. When had she fallen down? She looked around with one eyebrow quirked. Then she looked back up at the moon.
And she remembered.
The Crystal Heart cracked into two pieces, and Princess Cadance vanished.
Shining Armor teleported away, his face broken and bloody.
Discord was a statue again, and the statue was snapped in half.
A horrific beam of darkness struck Princess Luna, and she was gone.
Princess Celestia was crying. A rainbow engulfed her, and all that remained was her crown.
Fluttershy had her eyes closed and was shaking. Rainbow Dash had fire in her eyes. Pinkie’s mane was flat, and she was staring at the ground. Applejack was crying. Rarity wasn’t there. Spike looked furious, but he was crying too.
Twilight landed. Her horn was glowing. Her wings were wide. She was smiling.
Twilight was suddenly aware of the Element of Magic resting on her head, perfectly unblemished. She looked around at the shards of the other Elements. None were left even partially intact.
She looked at the moon. It was frozen in the sky. The silhouette of Princess Luna’s head looked down at her coldly.
She looked ahead at Ponyville. Carousel Boutique was ablaze. Billowing black smoke grew from the building and absorbed the sky.
Alone on the hill, Twilight Sparkle sat down in the dust of the Elements of Harmony.
Alone on the hill, Twilight Sparkle laughed.
***
Twilight awoke with a start.
She touched a hoof to her head, and all she felt was her mane and her horn. No crown.
She looked out her bedroom window. The sky was clear, and the moon was just finishing its descent. Its face was bare.
She listened to the room around her. Faint, familiar snores came from the foot of her bed.
Not so alone in the darkness, Twilight Sparkle sat in her bed.
Alone in the darkness, Twilight Sparkle cried.