Ends of the Spectrum

by SpinelStride


Chapter 2: Finding Friends

“We’ll let Princess Celestia decide that,” came a snap from Captain Lyra Heartstrings. “I don’t know what is going on now, but she’ll figure it out. Even if you are some other version of Rainbow Dash, you’re not going to just run around without anypony keeping tabs on you. Rainbow Dash, get back inside. You’ve got work to do.”

The blue-furred tailor struggled back up to her hooves, tears still running down her cheeks as she watched shards of color still dancing in the sky. “Yes, Captain,” she said meekly, and backed away. A moment later, her face appeared in the window, watching.

Lyra lifted her head as the purple glow about her horn faded. She glared at the six newcomers. “None of you move. I’m getting more guards.” And she began firing magic blasts into the sky.

“Captain, huh?” asked Twilight, watching the fireworks. “When’d that happen?”

“We’ve got Discord living at the edge of town with his crazy pink friend, an Everfree full of monsters, and Trixie might come back and decide to take over the town again,” Lyra said flatly. “It took both princesses to throw her out last time, and she’s still got that amulet, wherever she is.”

“I think I have a side project now,” Rainbow Dash noted to her friends. “The Alicorn Amulet here still has the curse on it. It’s not Trixie’s fault she went mad here any more than it was in our world.”

“Ah think it’s gonna have ta wait, sugarcube,” said Fluttershy, looking around at the cautiously approaching guards. “We got a Royal Summons th’ princess don’t know she’s issued, first.”

***

The train ride to Canterlot was tense. A pegasus guard Rainbow Dash didn’t recognize flew ahead, while a dozen more guards rode in the car with them, on guard the entire way. The Six spent most of the ride looking out the window, watching Equestria roll by. It wasn’t what they were used to seeing. The cloudwork was ragged at best, with lots of rolling grey masses. The trees looked limp and sagging, and many of them were overgrown and untended. When Canterlot itself came into view, the colors were faded and the entire place seemed like it wanted to slump.

The streets of Equestria’s capital weren’t in much better shape. The buildings hadn’t been painted in far too long, litter was being swirled around by every errant breeze, and the goods on display were sparse, shabby, overpriced, or all three at once. The only ponies who didn’t have a thin look were the overdressed nobleponies - almost all unicorns. Pinkie couldn’t help noticing a three-button logo on the majority of those overdone outfits - and a very familiar delicately-patterned purple cloth all over. She sniffed and lifted her nose, refusing to look further. The nobles were doing the same thing right back anyhow.

The castle was much as the Six remembered it. But the cloudy day meant that the tall, triumphant windows were dull and dim, and several of the panes had only plain glass in them that at least Rainbow Dash and Twilight remembered being filled with scenes of victory. Easily three times as many guards patrolled the halls as in their Canterlot, and with a far more angry, alert presence to them. A full company was positioned at the doors of the throne room, instead of a mere pair of ceremonial guards.

The doors opened for Captain Heartstrings, and she led the way inside. The sight of the spotless white alicorn sitting on her throne raised the spirits of the Six… briefly. First Rainbow Dash, then Twilight, then the other four, slumped, seeing the way Princess Celestia’s head was dipped - not too much, just slightly, giving her an air of quiet mourning instead of serene confidence. Her wings were settled to her back instead of being slightly spread, as she usually sat. And a white-coated unicorn with purple mane sat beside the throne, one step down, head hanging.

“Princess Celestia! I present the intruders!” barked Lyra, and gestured. The overzealous guards prodded at Rarity’s rump, producing a yelp from the bearer of the Element of Laughter.

The Rarity sitting by the throne looked up. Her eyes widened for a moment, and then she looked to her Princess.

Celestia looked down at them, and her expression darkened. “Changelings? In such obvious guises?” she asked, her voice rich with anger. “After the last battle, you think to return so soon? We will not let your incursion go unanswered! Where is your Hive now, insects?”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold up here,” Captain Twilight said, holding up her hooves. “We’re not Changelings, okay? We went through this once already.”

“Yeah, that’s gonna get real old as a running joke in a hurry,” Rarity declared. “It’s not like mrmmmph!”

Fluttershy patiently held her hoof in her friend’s mouth until the party pony stopped trying to talk. It took a while.

“They don’t appear to be Changelings, Princess,” Lyra said cautiously. Her eyes darted to a dark spot on the marble floor nearby. “At least, if they are, they’re more powerful than any Changelings we’ve ever seen. The Rainbow Dash one rainboomed. The Twilight Sparkle one was able to block my magic inside my horn directly. If the Changelings can do that now, they wouldn’t be showing it off this clumsily.”

“We’re from another universe, Princess Celestia,” Rainbow Dash said calmly. “Our Princess Luna sent us. She said we’re needed here. From what I’ve seen, I don’t doubt her for a moment.”

Princess Celestia’s jaw tightened. “My sister has been little inclined to any such thing for some time now,” she said thinly. “If you were indeed from some other reality, I do not believe she would be able to send you on her own, nor would my sister expend the effort to receive you.”

“Well, Ah don’t see how we’re gonna convince y’all we’re us, if a rainboom doesn’t do th’ trick,” Fluttershy drawled. “Twi could fix up your skies, but y’all wouldn’t trust that t’ be real either, Ah reckon.”

“Ooh! I know! I know! Pick me!” squealed the Rarity with the balloons on her flank, bouncing on her hooves. “Come on! Pick me! Pick me!”

“Okay, Rares, sheesh, fire away!” said Twilight.

Rarity bounced forward, only to be blocked by several speartips being thrust in her direction. She waved her hoof at her counterpart. “Hey, Rarity! Come over here! Oooh! This is gonna get confusing. You can be Rarity and I’ll be Rares, okay?”

Rarity slowly got to her hooves and looked up at Princess Celestia. The alicorn looked back down at her, then said, “Be careful, my faithful student. I do not know what these ponies are capable of.”

“Aww, don’t worry!” called out Rares, and pulled a sheaf of papers out of her mane. “C’mon, Rarity! You just gotta read this and then we can get on with the story!”

“What story?” asked Rarity cautiously as she made her way down the steps. Her horn lit and surrounded the papers in Rares’ hoof.

“That one, silly!” said Rares, letting go and then pointing. “Just read that and it’ll all make sense!”

Rarity scanned the papers in a flash of magic, then turned to look up at Celestia. “I don’t detect any magic in these, Princess. But… maybe you should check?”

Celestia shook her head. “I trust you, Rarity. You are more capable than you believe.”

Rarity took a deep breath and began to read, holding the pages in front of her with her magic. She started slowly, scanning through every word on the first sheet. Faster on the second page. Faster still on the third. Her eyes raced.

“Is this true?” she whispered, still flipping through pages. “It… it’s not my fault? I can still make it all right?” The last page turned and she dropped the papers on the ground. Rares’ horn lit and tugged them back into her mane.

Rarity started at her happier counterpart. Applejack’s heart was near to breaking. It wasn’t even a look of hope in those eyes. It was fear. Fear of hope. Fear that came from hoping too many times.

“The whole thing,” Rares confirmed. “Even the parts that haven’t been written yet! You never had a chance before, but now you do and you can make sure everything turns out so totally better than it ever was before that you’ll just squee and bounce around Princess Celestia going ‘Yes yes yes yes yes yes yes’ for days and days!”

Rarity trembled. Applejack charged forward, shoving right between a pair of unicorn guards before they could react, and held the white unicorn. Rarity began to sob. “Promise! Promise you mean it! Promise!”

Rares took a deep breath and looked up for a second, then discarded her usual form of promising and nodded instead. This was, after all, a promise to herself, not to anypony else. “I promise. By mom and by dad, by Sweetie Belle, by all my friends, by you and by me, by the Elements of Magic and Laughter, I promise.”

Rarity clung to Applejack, and her sobbing began to intersperse with laughter. “It… it’s true, Princess! It’s true! It’s true, I promise, it’s true, I can’t tell you what she showed me, but it’s true, they’re real! They’re real! We have a chance! We can fix it! I can fix it! I can do it! If they help, I can do it!”

Rares smiled. “Now we just need to get your friends.”

Princess Celestia started at her student, clinging to the mis-marked orange pony. Her every instinct said that these were impostors, that she should throw them out right now, throw them in the dungeons, send the army to march on the Changelings for such a brazen insult.

Her instincts hadn’t been serving her well lately. She drew on the memory of the Elements. Of bearing the spirit of Laughter inside her. Of optimism. Which had been in such short supply in Equestria for years now.

“Captain Heartstrings, you may stand down,” she said. “Guards. Find Fluttershy and ask her to come here. It would seem she is called upon to save us all once more.” She looked down at the Six. “And you… have much to tell me.”

***

The bell over the door jingled merrily as Princess Celestia, her student, and six visiting ponies walked into Doughnut Joe’s shop. Princess Celestia’s head had lifted, and Rarity’s Star of Magic mark was bouncing alongside Rares’ three balloons.

“Hiya there, Princess!” Joe called out cheerfully. “What can I get ya? On the house!”

“Chocolate-covered,” she promptly replied.

“And here ya go! And you ladies? Hey, Rarity, you never told me you had a twin!”

“Oh, it’s a long story, Joe!” she said happily. “Can I tell you later?”

“Sure thing!” he said, and pushed over her usual.

Rarity pushed it back. “I’ll just have an eclair today.”

That took him aback. “But Rarity, the chocolate-dipped chocolate-filled chocolate doughnut always cheers you up!”

She beamed at him. Rares did the same. “Do I look like I need to be cheered up today, Joe? Things are going so wonderfully!”

Doughnut Joe reached across the counter and pulled both Raritys into a tight hug. “I’ve missed seeing that smile, filly,” he whispered in her ear. “Bring it around more often, okay?”

“Every day, Joe,” she promised.

Princess Celestia looked around. The other patrons were chatting among themselves, eating their pastries and drinking coffee without making a fuss. One stallion noticed her looking and waved amiably, then returned to his newspaper.

“I am not used to being ignored like this,” she said, hesitantly.

Rainbow Dash smiled up at her. “We worked on this spell for weeks. Well, me and my version of you, Princess. A Don’t-Notice-Me spell meant everypony ignored you completely, and that caused some trouble when you were crossing the street. We eventually settled on a Get-Used-To-Me spell instead. Everypony still sees you, and they know who you are - they just don’t think of you walking around as being a big deal. Like you do it every day.”

“All I’ve wanted for a very long time is to be able to walk among my ponies and share in their lives,” Celestia said wistfully. “It’s hard to make a friend of a pony who’s kneeling and using your name to swear by.”

“I’ll teach you how to do this one when we get back to the castle,” Rainbow Dash promised. “We’re gonna set everything right around here.”

***

In her bedchambers, a night-blue alicorn thrashed. The Everfree Beast fought its bonds, fought them as it always did. Only from the fastness of the dream realm could she bind it. The few minutes she spared awake each day to perform her royal duty, guiding the moon in the morning and the evening, were proving to be too much. If it could not be defeated soon, she would have to yield up her corporeal form entirely and dedicate herself to being bound into the Everfree as herself a jail of living magic.

In some ways she looked forward to it. No longer seeing her sister’s despair, the nightmares that plagued the land… There were burdens that the Princess of the Night would be glad to yield.