"Dear Twilight, Celestia, and Luna,
Are you sure there isn't anything we can do? Is there a spell we could use to get you back? Princess Cadance is running out of excuses.
Well, she's ran out of excuses.
A long, long time ago.
Oh yeah, Discord's rai-"
Celestia stopped reading so that she could let out her chuckles of amusement. Twilight twiddled her hooves in impatience.
"What?" she urged her. Her mentor managed to hold in her giggled and continued.
"Oh yeah, Discord's raising the sun and moon.
-Spike."
"...I don't get why that's so funny," Luna grunted.
"I can just imagine him trying to do my job..." she breathed out her final huff of laughter.
---
Discord hatefully watched the sun slowly fall down from the sky. So boring... so slow... he couldn't take it...
"That's it," he said, finally giving up. With a snap of his fingers, the sun dashed down behind the hills, the moon zipping up straight after, much like the two celestial bodies did when he was in power.
"That's cheating!" Cadance complained. "You can't just-" Discord wasn't about to hear one of her lectures all over again. Without turning around, he snapped his fingers again, causing her mouth to literally zip shut. Her voice turned into frustrated mumbles.
"Stop talking, or I'm quitting. You're not making anything better," he told her. Cadance's horn glowed blue magic, then in a bright flash, the zip on her mouth disappeared.
"I'll try and take no offence from that then," she muttered.
---
"I agree, I'd hate to do her job. And who's Cadance?" the chained draconequus added.
"She's the Crystal Princess. Surely the Crystal Empire exists here?" Twilight raised a brow.
Discord nodded. "Yes... but Sombra rules there right now. Kinda."
When he said that, Twilight choked on her own tongue. "What?!" she gasped. "But where's Cadance?"
"She's not a princess here," Celestia said, "there's no reason why she would be. She's probably still a pegasus."
Twilight's ears drooped and her eyes began to grow more moist. "She probably doesn't even know me..." she sighed.
Celestia put a hoof on Twilight's shoulder. "No, but your friends don't either. Then again, we're going to rebuild relationships in this world like they are in ours."
"I know... but what if Cadance-"
"We can't put any focus on Cadance now - we have to stick to our original plan," Luna said. Twilight hesitated at first, but then nodded in agreement.
"Maybe I should go," the young alicorn suggested, "for all I know, my friends may be scattered around Equestria." With that, she galloped out of the cave and flew off into the night.
"Be careful!" Celestia called after her. She doubted that she heard her though.
"What is she, your daughter?" Discord rolled his eyes, causing Celestia to turn on him.
"No, but I like to think so," she scowled.
"Sister?" Luna tapped the white alicorn, whom turned her head back to her, "Should we follow Twilight?"
Celestia looked at the cave entrance for a moment, then shook her head.
"We each have our own plans, we each stick to them."
---
Twilight trotted through the Everfree, recapping the plan that she didn't have. She knew very well she had reunited her friends in her own world before, but there, she reunited them with the friendship that was already there, and was just forgotten. Here, it most likely didn't exist at all. Her counterpart wasn't Celestia's student, was never sent to Ponyville to make friends, and they never united in the first place.
...So she had to start from scratch.
She hadn't noticed her hooves leading the way back to Applejack's dying farm. Though, it was a good place to start, considering she'd already met the farm pony before.
The princess was confident, but it sickened her to walk in her friend's home where the place they lived was crumbling around her. Nor did it help this was under two of the ponies whom she looked up to's what-could-be rule. It was rather awkward to stand around the two good versions, if she could admit it to herself. Especially Luna - she hoped nopony noticed her flinch when she felt her hoof touch her.
Twilight escaped her thoughts when she heard the same sound she had last time she was here. It still being night, she couldn't track down much by vision, she was forced to use other senses. Her ear perked up as she followed the sound, not even noticing herself maneuver around the rotting trees. Relief flooded her when she found herself able to use her eyes again, for she saw a familiar orange coat not far from where she stood.
At first, she though Applejack was bucking, since that's what she had heard at first. But at a closer angle, she could see she was no longer doing that. Instead she seemed to be separating one type of apple from another. Those being bad and... well not good. A better word would be...average.
Twilight took a deep breath, then she stepped forward.
"Hello again." She said, trying sound as un-sinister as she could. Despite her efforts though, Applejack still flinched at the sound of her voice. But once again calmed when she recognized the pony who had greeted her.
"Howdy." She answered back, still concentrating on the job she was doing. Twilight slowly trotted up to her, glad she wasn't intimidated, but still unsure how to begin.
"Why do you seem so... startled when you hear me?" She asked, tilting her head.
"I'm not sure... I guess 'cause nopony speaks around 'ere." The ruffled mare shrugged. "I'm not used to it."
"Oh..." Twilight looked at her hooves. "Does that mean you don't have any friends?" Because that would be such a good start... She added silently.
Applejack shook her head. "Can't be distracted by that stuff, y'know?"
The alicorn widened her eyes. "But... you love making friends!"
"I know that, but... wait, how'd you know that?" For the first time, she looked up from the three buckets she was shuffling her hooves in and gave a suspicious look.
"Uhh..." Twilight stuttered. "Everypony loves making friends!" She grinned in a not-at-all-suspicious style.
"Pshh," Applejack scoffed, "y'all maybe right about me, but out of the few ponies I've talked to, I defiantly know the most unsociable pony you can possibly meet."
Her first guess was her counterpart, but then she remembered what Discord had said. So she ran out of ideas.
"Uhh... who's that?"
"A rock farmer named Pinkamena," she told her. Twilight paused. Why did that name sound familiar? She knew no one in Ponyville called Pinkamena...
Then her jaw dropped. Oh yes... she did indeed. She had just never spoken the name, because there was never a need.
"P...Pinkie?!" she gasped, frozen in place. How could that be possible?
"Uh... yeah... she is pink. Ya know 'er already?" Applejack raised a brow, more curious than surprised.
"Gah... not exactly?" Twilight nervously chuckled. That's when the farm pony thrust her face forward.
"Okay... why y'all acting like that?" she narrowed her eyes.
"Acting like what?" the lavender mare rasped,a few sweat drops starting to roll down her face.
"Y'all are acting like ya know me... yet you said the other sun's hour that you've never been 'ere before. Also, I can tell in your tone that your hidin' somethin'."
At first, the mare's quick thinking surprised Twilight. Then she realized.
Dear Princess Celestia, never lie to the Element of Honesty in any world. Because it never ends well. She noted to herself.
"Applejack, I can explain," Twilight assured. But this just made Applejack gasp.
"I.... I haven't told ya my name. How'd y'all know? Did somepony tell ya?"
The thought of lying occurred to her again, but she saw no point. She'd get found out sooner or later.
"No, I already knew," she sighed. Applejack's eyes widened.
"H-how?!" She didn't even blink. "Have ya been spyin' on me?" her tone changed to a more bitter style.
"Of course not!" she gasped, "It's... complicated."
The farm pony gave an uncertain huff, "Complicated? How'd ya mean?"
"I promise I'll tell you, but I must gather four other ponies first... or there would be no point." Reminding herself she'd saved them before helped. That, or it was Cadance's method of keeping calm and collected.
"Um... what four other ponies and why?"
Twilight shook her head. "You'll find out why. But I need your help finding them first, it'll make things so much quicker."
Applejack stared at her, not sure how to respond. Then her eyes slowly trailed towards something that wasn't on her face... more like on her body. Twilight raised a brow.
"What are you staring at?" she gave her a confused look.
"Tell me the four ponies, Princess," the farm pony bowed before her. Twilight gasped, and looked at the two feathered body parts on her back.
You don't have to call me that...