//------------------------------//
// Reunion 
// Story: Even In Other Worlds 
// by Rytex 
//------------------------------//


Even In Other Worlds
Chapter 11 - Reunion


When Nova told her the truth, Tracy just couldn’t believe it.

“Be serious, Nathan, why were your hands glowing?”

“I am being serious, Tracy.  It’s magic.”

“There’s no such thing as magic.”

“There is.  I used it right in front of you.”

Having heard the story secondhoof and not having seen it himself, Nova couldn’t help but wonder if this was how Twilight had been when Pinkie’s Pinkie-Sense was messing with her.

“Want me to prove it to you?” Nova asked, holding out his hand toward a random book.  At once, his hand glowed vivid blue and the book shot toward his hand at top speed, where he caught it and placed it on the coffee table.

“Wha…” was all Tracy could say as she stared at his hand, which was still glowing, dumbfounded.

“I can do more than just call things to me, too,” he said.  With an flicking-sort of flipping motion, Nova had a bright blue flame sitting in the palm of his hand.  With a wave of his other hand, the fire transformed into a simple blue were-light that added to the already-well-lit room.

Tracy’s mystified eyes never left his hand, even when he ended the spell play and returned his hands to his lap.

“So, where’s Sam?” Nova asked conversationally, as though he had not just gotten done completely breaking his opposite number’s worldview.  “With your parents for the evening?”

Tracy nodded dumbly, still staring at his hands.  Nova was starting to feel terribly awkward about it, but fortunately, she glanced at her own hands a moment later.

“I guess this means you’re wondering whether or not you can use magic, too,” he commented.  “Can’t tell you, honestly.  Maybe you can, maybe you can’t.  But you definitely have the potential to.  But I’m not the one to teach you how.”

Well, it was true.  From a certain point of view, at least.

“How do you know I have the potential to?” Tracy asked.  “How did you know?”

“You know that lady I saved from the Hellsings?” he asked.  More sort-of truths, he supposed.

“Lucy… Selene, was it?”

“That’s the one,” he nodded.  “She taught me everything I know about magic.  Including a way to detect if someone else can use it.  Give me your hands.”

“What?”

“Your hands,” Nova repeated.  “Let me see your hands.”

Tracy glanced at her hands hesitantly for a moment, and when she extended them, it was very hesitant.  But Nova meant no harm.  He took hold of her wrists and held them up in between them.

“What are you going to do?” she asked.

“Simple.  I’m going to channel a bit of magical energy through your hands,” he explained.  “If you are able to cast magic, which everyone has the potential to somewhere deep down, your hands will glow like mine.”

Before she could say another word, he let the energy flow into her.  Instead of Nova’s hands glowing, they stayed dark while Tracy’s hands began to glow a bright magenta, almost exactly like Twilight Sparkle’s aura.

Hmm, that’s weird, Nathan said, noticing that it was slightly brighter than he remembered.  Maybe it’s because she doesn’t use her magic that it glows as brightly?

After a moment, he let go of her hands and set them gently in her lap.

“All there is to it.”

Tracy just continued to stare at her hands, almost as if through sheer willpower alone, she could make them cast magic.  And perhaps she could, if her reflexes and instincts kicked in, but with her modified memory, Twilight Sparkle’s knowledge would remain locked away until the curse was broken.

“Could that woman, Missus Selene--”

“Miss,” Nova corrected reflexively.

“--Miss Selene,” said Tracy, looking up at him with eager eyes, “could she teach me?”

“How to use magic?”

Tracy nodded, and Nova saw the merest flicker of a smile tug at her mouth.

“Well,” he said shrugging, “you would have to speak to her about it yourself.  And I can only tell you where she is if she agrees to it.”

“Why?” Tracy asked.

“Well,” Nova said, trailing off as he tried to think of a suitable explanation, but then he figured a third half-truth would be best.  “You know the tension going around the town right now?  The police and the townspon-- people getting into little scuffles, me having to save you, her, and Rachel from the Hellsings, that stuff?”

She nodded.

“She’s laying low until it all stops.  Doesn’t want me telling anyone except in the strictest confidence.  There are some who do know where she’s at,” he added, thinking of Mike Appleby, “but I won’t be telling you who they are.”

She pouted and protested, but he was firm in his decision.  Nova had a feeling Princess Luna would only turn her down anyway.  It wasn’t her place to teach Twilight any magic; that responsibility was her sister’s.

“Is that all you wanted to ask me about?” asked Nova, now that it seemed he had satisfied her.

“Well, I don’t know if you would know about this,” she began, sounding nervous.

“Know about what?”

She hesitated, looking torn between telling him or not, but after a moment she just rose to her feet and indicated that he follow her down the hallway in the kitchen, towards the bedrooms.

“Wait here,” she said, stopping by her bedroom door and going inside.  Nova did as he was told, patiently waiting while he heard the sounds of wood sliding on wood, followed by a satisfied “Ah!” and a paper rustle.  Once the door opened, Twilight handed him a piece of paper.  “Have you ever seen this mark before?”

Nova looked down, and to his astonishment, the paper bore his cutie mark.  Exactly the same color, and exactly the same design.  How could she have known about this?

It must have shown, because Tracy smiled.  “Well, go on then, what is it?”

Nova hesitated yet again.  Would it be better to lie?  Another half-truth?  Or just the full truth?

After a moment of indecision, he decided to just show her, as she had shown him.  So he took hold of the hem of his shirt and pulled it up over his head.  Tracy let out a surprised little gasp and blushed, but Nova paid it no mind.  Instead, he turned his back to her where she could see the mark standing in stark contrast to the color of his skin.  And when a second surprised gasp came from her, he knew she had recognized it.

Something cold touched his back, and he flinched, but it was simply Tracy touching his mark in disbelief.

“Sorry,” she said instantly after he jumped.

“‘S fine,” replied Nova, shrugging.  “Just, a little more warning next time?”

A sudden chill ran up his spine, the result of Tracy’s touch and the chilly air from the gale outside.  Seeing as Tracy already knew of his magic, he figured there was no harm in warming himself with it.  A bright blue glow shone on the walls as his hands lit up, and instantly, there was relief as the circulating energy in his body warmed him.

Another gasp caused Nova to end the spell abruptly and turn his head.

“What?”

“Y-your mark,” she said, staring confusedly at it.  “It just… glowed.”

“Did it?” he asked, surprised.  That’s new.  My mark glows when I cast magic?

He cast the thought out of his mind as Tracy continued to stare at his mark.

“What such a big deal about my back tattoo?” he asked.

“I-it’s nothing important,” she said, cheeks going a bit red.  Nova, however, felt a familiar flare of energy emanate from her aura.

“Tracy, I can tell this is a big deal to you; you don’t have to lie to me.”

Tracy blinked.  “I-it sounds stupid…”

“Try me.”

Tracy bit her lip for a moment, her blush deepening.  Nova couldn’t help but chuckle a little; she looked quite cute when she was embarrassed, just like Twilight did.

“I’ve been having weird dreams,” she said, looking away.  “About horses.”

Uh-oh…

“Like, I’m in this cave-looking place, and there’s this white horse with a really blue mane, a lot like your hair, and your little mark on its side.  And there’s another horse, with lighter blue fur and an even lighter mane…”

“Huh,” Nova said, faking puzzlement.

“But… after that…” she trailed off, scrunching up her face as she tried to recall the details, “it’s all a little fuzzy.  The horses are talking, and I’m responding, but I don’t know what I’m saying.”

“You remember your dreams better than I do mine,” Nova lied, stepping into her bedroom and sitting down on her bed, noticing that it looked very similar to her room in Canterlot, with books lining every conceivable part of the wall..

Tracy made a funny sound and gave him an odd look as she followed him in.

“What?”

“You’re lying,” she said.  “I don’t know how I know, but I can definitely tell that you’re lying.”

Smart, Nova thought.  Even in a memoryless state, she still can pick up on energy reading.

“Alright,” he said, raising his hands in mock-surrender, “you got me.  I remember my dreams pretty well, actually.”

“Why would you lie?” she asked, confused.  She didn’t seem angry about it, which surprised him.  “I mean, it seems innocuous, what we’re talking about.”

“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you,” Nova said, shrugging.  “Actually, let’s test that.  Did you know I can randomly walk into other po-- peoples’ dreams?”

Tracy blinked dumbly.

“You can…”

“I can dreamwalk, yes.  There’s a lot of things I can do with magic.  Not just levitate.”

He held out a hand, and in a flash of blue light, his sword appeared in hand, which he promptly tossed at Tracy.  Tracy shrieked and scrambled backwards, letting the sword hit the ground with several dull thunks.

“Come on, now,” Nova said, rolling his eyes.  “Maybe you should try catching it this time.”

But instead of tossing it again, he simply handed it to her after picking it up.  Tracy had been expecting a typical sword weight, but instead, she found that it was completely weightless.  So surprised was she that she embedded in the ceiling, having expected much more of a burden.

Nova snorted, but repaired it with his magic after she pulled it out, grinning quite sheepishly.

“So you want to know what your dreams mean, eh?” he asked, and then he smirked.

“What if I told you that I’m from a land where magical talking candy-colored ponies are the dominant population?”

Tracy stared at him.

After a moment, Nova snickered, causing her to roll her eyes.

“Anyway, I can’t tell you what your dream means, Tracy,” Nova said, shrugging apologetically.  “You wouldn’t believe me if I did.  So, perhaps instead you would be interested in my work around town thus far?”

“Your work around town?”

“Oh yes,” said Nova with a small smile.  “I’m sure the thought must have crossed your mind, ‘exactly why in the hell is he trying to mend the broken bridges between those people?’  Well, in truth, there’s… something that they all have that I need to use.  Something locked away inside that I need to awaken for reasons I don’t think you would understand.”

With a wave of his hand and six little wisps of different colors appeared around the room.  One purple, one orange, one blue, one red, one magenta, and one pink.

“While these aren’t the real thing, they’re a good visual representation,” Nova explained, “but these are the six Elements of Harmony.”

“The what?”

“The Elements of Harmony,” repeated Nova.  “Each of the six elements are sentient, and their spirits rest inside of a chosen bearer, waiting to be awakened.”

Tracy stared at the wisps as they simply floated in their places.

“Are you trying to awaken these… Elements?” she asked.

“Good guess.  That I am.  Or rather, I’m trying to reawaken the Spirits of Harmony inside of them,” Nova corrected.  “You see, these Elements came from an enchanted tree, but in time they were returned to their places, else primal magic would do serious damage to the land they’re from.  However, their spirits never left those bearers, and I am striving to reawaken them.”

“What are these elements?” asked Tracy curiously, leaning forward and scrutinizing the purple one.

“Why don’t you tell me?” Nova asked, smiling.  “I’m sure you might know somewhere, deep down.”

Tracy continued staring at the purple one, before she finally reached out and poked it with a finger.  The wisp shifted, transforming into a purple diamond-shaped cloud.

“Generosity,” she said.

“Good,” encouraged Nova.

Tracy touched the orange, and it became an apple.  “Honesty.”

“Very nice.”

The blue, which became a balloon.  “Laughter.”

“Keep it up.”

The red, a lightning bolt.  “Loyalty.”  And the pink, a butterfly, “Kindness.”

And now it was time for that very special magenta element.  Nova could feel a strange tingle within his mind, not unlike the time he’d been a vessel for the Consciousness of Magic.  Perhaps its residue sensed itself?

At Tracy’s touch, it transformed into the familiar six-pointed star that Nova knew resided on Twilight Sparkle’s flank.

Tracy stared at it for several second, seeming as though she wasn’t quite comprehending it.

“I… I don’t…”

“Think about it,” said Nova encouragingly.  “What does your gut tell you?”

“M-magic?” she asked, her brow furrowing.

“Six for six!” exclaimed Nova, applauding.  “Very good, Tracy.  Very good.”

“B-but how do I know this?” she asked, sounding quite surprised and, dare Nova say it, terrified?  “How could I possibly know about these when I’ve never heard of them before?”

“Well, if you’ll allow me to continue, I can explain,” said Nova, standing.  With a wave of his hand, all six elements flew forward and arranged themselves in front of Tracy, who let out an “eep!” and flinched backward.

“I want you to tell me, who does each element remind you of?”

Tracy stared at the purple diamond for a moment.

“Regina?”

“Regina Mills?  The Bearer of Generosity.”

Next, the orange apple.  “Ashleigh.”

“Ashleigh Appleby, the Bearer of Honesty.”

The red bolt of lightning.  “Rachel.”  Her voice was growing in confidence.

“Rachel Dillon, the Bearer of Loyalty.”

The pink butterfly, “Felicity.”

“Felicity Sanders, the Bearer of Kindness.”

The blue balloon.  “Penelope.”  She made it sound easy.

“Penelope Poppentop, the Bearer of Laughter.”

And finally, the magenta star.  Tracy stared at it for a moment, before turning back to Nova and looking at the side of his face, where Nova knew she would find his engagement earring.

“Is it whoever’s little aura this is?” she asked, reaching out and touching it.

“It is,” Nova nodded.  “Think you know who it is?”

“What is it?” she asked, moving his ear to get a better look.

“My engagement ring,” Nova answered nonchalantly.

Her fingers froze, and she withdrew them a moment later.

“I’m sorry, I--” she started to apologize, but Nova cut her off.

“Remember what I said, Tracy, it won’t come between anything that may develop between us.”

“B-but you’re engaged!” she protested.  “I-it’s not fair to her if I just--”

“Once I’ve completed my objective with the Bearers of Harmony,” Nova said, placing a finger over her mouth to silence her, “I have no doubt that she won’t have a problem with it.”

Twilight blinked, evidently confused.  “She’d… be okay with this?”

“Doubtlessly,” said Nova, nodding.  “Which, of course, begs the question, ‘whose aura is it?’  And since it’s an engagement ring, another question is, ‘Where’s its twin?’”

Tracy’s eyes alighted all of a sudden, and she ran over to a nightstand and pulled it open.  After a moment of rummaging, she pulled out an earring that was glowing a bright blue light.

Her engagement ring to him.

“I-is this it?”

“Yes, that is,” Nova nodded.  “I’m sure you recognize the resonance?”

His hands glowed and a matching blue light emanated from them.

“But why would I--”

“Surely the thought crossed your mind?” Nova repeated.  “Why would you have the other ring?”

“But… but that would mean…”

“That would mean… what?” Nova asked, curiously, giving a little smile.

“We’re… engaged?”

“Right on the money!  Glad you finally figured that out.”

Tracy dropped the ring in shock and just stared at a spot on the floor as she tried to process it all.

A sobering thought struck Nova.  Tracy knew the truth, but it was something she couldn’t know.  Princess Celestia had cautioned him against this.

She must come last, Nova!

The moment that thought hit him, the good mood that had been dominating his insides since he had managed to awaken Felicity and Penelope left.  He was going to have to do the same thing to her as he had done to Trisha:  lock away these memories until the curse broke.

“Tracy,” he began, but her finger pressed against his lips and stopped his response.

“I-- I know,” she said, her head drooping.  “I… I can’t have forgotten this for no reason.  You need me to forget again…”

“I’m… I’m sorry Tracy.”

“You said you can Dreamwalk, though,” she said, sitting next to him and taking his hands into her’s.

“Yes, what of it?”

“Please,” she said, holding his hands to her heart.  “Stay with me tonight.  Give me one night with you.  If you must block my memories, do it while I dream, because I just w-want one night before I f-forget again.”

Nova could see her blinking back tears, and it hurt him to see her like that.  And so, acting purely on reflex, he leaned forward and kissed her.

It was over far too soon, after so long.  As was the night.  Nova stripped down to his boxers, Tracy to her own modest undergarments, and the two of them climbed into bed.  As they both held each other close, Nova began to cast the enchantments within his mind that would allow him to enter Twilight’s mind and seal everything away.


{E} {I} {O} {W}


The task of sealing Tracy’s memories away had not been enjoyable.  Perhaps it had been easy, but certainly not pleasant.  The only hard part was creating the fake memories that would last until the curse broke.  Everything had to be convincing, else they wouldn’t take root properly within her mind.  He’d had to modify her memories of why they were even there.  There were things he left in, such as his mark, but he changed the reasoning for her bringing him there, and modified it so that she point-blank refused to allow him to sleep on the couch.  And that she had refused to sleep on it as well.

But upon returning to his own mind, in his native pony form, who should he find waiting for him on the glass pillar of his consciousness than a green pony with a maroon mane and tail, with a glimmering ruby pendant around her neck.

Upon seeing Envy, Nova was already preparing to cast the first spells, but Envy just smirked at him.

“I wouldn’t do that, if I were you.”

“And whyever not?” Nova asked, the magic ready to burst from his horn.

“Because we’re in your mind,” Envy said.  “Granted, only the entry to it, but I could always hop behind this door over here, and then you’d be literally breaking your own brain.”

Even as she said it, an ornate door appeared behind her.

“You’re just hear to talk, then?” he asked.

“Maaaaaaaybe.  If somepony behaves, that is.”

Nova let out a soft growl at her words.

“Heard it through the grapevine that you’ve got yourself a little temper problem,” Envy said conversationally, starting to pace around him.

“How could you have heard it when you’re supposed to be under this curse as well?”

“I hear a lot of things,” she said, shrugging.  “Remember, I can turn all shadowy.”

“So you’re not under the curse?”

“That’s for you to decide,” she replied, smirking.  “You still haven’t even figured out how I’m even here.  And for that matter, I don’t think you can figure out why I’m here.”

“To gloat, naturally,” Nova said, scowling.

“Not even in the slightest.”

Envy’s horn lit up, a soft blue light illuminating the darkness around them.  Wait, hang on.

Envy’s magic is red…

“Who are you, really?” Nova asked, magic releasing and holding the imposter Envy up in the air, preventing him or her from using any magic or moving.

To his surprise, however, a tiny white light appeared within the magic and encompassed the pon he had trapped, before pushing Nova’s magic outward.  Nova felt the strain in his skull as with all of his sheer willpower, he attempted to keep the pony trapped.  The pony he had trapped was strong, stronger than anyone he had ever battled before.

When sufficient space was available, the pony dropped gracefully to the ground, before a white light cut a hole in his spell, allowing the imposter to step out of the confines of his spell.

“We must apologize for the deceit practiced here tonight,” she said, before the same light blue lit up her horn.  The form of Envy shifted and transformed under the light, until the figure was fully formed, after which the light faded.

“We meant no harm, dearest pupil,” Princess Luna said apologetically, trotting over and giving him a nuzzle.  “Part of the reason for our visit was because we were testing the extent of the powers we had gained on one we knew would not take unkindly to our presence.  Though we must admit, we did not expect you to be away from your apartment for two evenings in a row.”

.”Circumstances forced me here,” Nova answered.  “Not that I mind.”

Princess Luna’s mouth went from being a smile to being a stern line.

“Yes, we observed your encounter with the girl.  It is also part of why we came to your dreams tonight.”

“Were you trying to come last night?” Nova asked, remembering that he had definitely dreamt while he slept over at Penelope’s, but for the life of him, he couldn’t remember what of.

“We were,” she affirmed.  “However, your mind was locked to us.  We, however, know the cause, as we have witnessed many such occasions.  Nevertheless, doubtlessly, you won’t remember.”

“No kidding,” Nova grumbled.  “It sucks, because I could have sworn it was something important.”

“A long story short, Nova Shine, it was.”

“Great, that makes me feel loads better,” said Nova rolling his eyes.  “If it’s so important--”

“That is beside the point, dearest,” interrupted Luna.  “We came not to debate this, but to send a message on behalf of your parents.”

“My parents?” asked Nova.  “They’re out?”

“They are,” Luna dipped her head.  “Your mother broke free first, and assisted your father, and the both of them freed the pegasus Sharp Eye.  Beyond that, they have yet to attempt to free anyone else.”

“When you’re done here, can you make sure they know not to go about freeing anyone else?” Nova asked.  “The more ponies free of the curse, the faster the curse is going to unravel, and I can’t have that yet.  Not when I have relative peace in awakening the Spirits of Harmony.”

“We will see what we can do,” promised Luna.  “And speaking as your former teacher, we would like to say that your work with four of the Spirits of Harmony has been nothing short of excellent.  It has only been a few weeks since my rescue, and you already have four of the six needed.  However, that leads me to another reason why I’m here tonight.”

With a shimmer of her horn, the scene around them transformed into the very room Nova now slept in, his arm curled around Tracy’s sleeping form as the two slumbered peacefully.

“You, we think, need a reminder,” the princess said, gazing down at the two of them.

“A reminder?”

“Yes,” said Luna.  “Nova, we understand what you are feeling.”

“Oh, do you?” asked Nova, already knowing where this was going, and he didn’t want to hear any of it.

“You have been separated from her, and now you come back to find that she has no knowledge of your shared past, and it is quite plain that you are attempting to win her back.”

“No, really?”

He felt a wing spread around his back, and he tensed.

“Nova Shine, please,” Luna said, leaning her head onto his.  “We know what you must be going through right now.  You feel alone, without the other half of your heart there to catch you if you fall.  You are lonely in your task, even with friends.”

Nova neither confirmed nor denied it.  He just grunted, but he did relax under Princess Luna’s hug.

“Is that why you freed my parents?” he asked.

Luna blinked.

“Did we not just say that--”

“Princess,” Nova laughed, “come on.  I know you did it.  You saw I was lonely without another pony save for you, and you went and freed my parents and Sharp Eye from it.”

Luna brought her other wing to her face.

“You’re too perceptive for your own good sometimes, Nova,” she said.  “One of these days, it’s going to get you into trouble.”

“Implying the many other times I didn’t find my way into trouble,” he said.  “My diary, for instance, with me being the only one able to understand it, and proceeding to go straight to the past.”

“Indeed,” Luna dipped her head, “but it is far from the only time.  What of the incident that started this whole mess?  When you had to go and give yourself, Twilight, and Trixie nightmares to start you on this path to discovering and battling Envy?”

“I still stand by that decision,” Nova said, shrugging.  “Had to get our younger selves moving somehow.”

“We do not criticize that,” Luna replied.  “We criticize the fact that you and she had to go behind our backs about it.”

“Well, you weren’t helping when we asked…”

Luna opened her mouth, but then closed it.

“Point taken.”

“Nova Shine one, Princess Luna nil,” Nova noted, with a teasing smile at his former teacher.

“Be that as it may, Nova Shine,” Luna continued, “we promise you, you will have and hold Twilight Sparkle again.  But not now.  Not when our victory is close.  You must remain focused on your objective, lest you lose your way and it all comes undone.”

Nova had nothing to say.  It was true; he had started to lose his way.  Granted, he had gotten Felicity and Penelope only this very night, but he would have to reiterate that the last thing he wanted was for the curse to come undone prematurely.

“So… my parents,” he said, not wanting the silence to go on any further.

“Your parents.”

“Where are they?” he asked, as the dreamscape around them dissolved and they returned to Nova’s mind, with the pillar depicting him and Twilight Sparkle standing side-by-side.

“They are within the city, unlike some of your other friends,” Luna said, and the dreamscape vanished once again, leaving them standing in the sky over the town.  The towers of downtown rose high over the lesser buildings below, and the highway cut through the heart of the city on its way to the other cities where ponies were being kept in their fake lives.  Nova scrutinized where the university was, thence to his apartment, specifically for a frame of reference.

“Here,” said Luna, and a white light shone on a portion of the city close to Discord’s and Sombra’s manors.  “It seems Envy was kind enough to give them an affluent estate, little kindness though it was.”

“Are you able to drop in on their dreams tonight?” he asked, tracing a path from Tracy’s apartment to their house.  “If you can, could you let them know I’m showing up tomorrow?”

“we can.  And we can also give them your message not to free anypony else.  Will that suffice?”

“Yes, thank you, Princess.”

“You are most welcome, our former apprentice,” Luna said, bending down to nuzzle him again.  “Alas, it seems as though our time tonight must end, if I am to deliver your message.”

“Princess, one more request.”

“Name it.”

“Please,” Nova said, rolling his eyes, “don’t ever show up in my dreams as Envy again.  I seriously did consider attacking.”

“Understandable,” conceded Luna.  “Very well, next time we will visit your mind as Twilight Sparkle and attempt to seduce you.  Will that be less uncomfortable?”

The dreamscape around them changed, revealing the interior of Nova’s house in Equestria, the new one he had built in Ponyville.  More specifically, the master bedroom.  And lounging on his bed was Twilight Sparkle, eyes half-lidded, a sultry smile on her lips, and ribbon tied around her.

Nova felt his ears splay back, his eyes shrink, and a rising heat in his cheeks, before Luna as Twilight laughed, and the scene dispelled, leaving them back on the pillar.

“It seems as though we found your weak spot, dear Night Master,” she said, giving him a cheeky smile.  “Remind us to inform Tia when we return to Equestria.”

“Not on your life,” Nova said, still trying to get the image of Twilight out of his had.

Thank Celestia this is only the gateway and not actually my subconscious.

“Well, we must be off,” said Luna, who was already starting to glow a bright blue.  “Fare thee well, our Night Master.  Remember, stay the course, and then you can be with your beloved.”

And with a flash of blue light, everything around him vanished.


{E} {I} {O} {W}


Nova opened his eyes slowly.  For a brief moment, he wondered exactly where he was, why he felt so strangely proportioned, and why he wasn’t in his home in Ponyville.

But only for a moment, as the ever-sobering memory of their predicament came back to him, as did his current surroundings.  He sighed and sat up, noticing first that Tracy was still fast asleep, and that it was only about six in the morning.

Thank goodness it was still the weekend.  After the madness on Friday and the clubbing last night, he still had a Sunday to get his head back in the game before he was expected to show back up to his classes and continue the facade.

Nova got out of the bed, giving Tracy a light kiss on the head as he did so, and retrieved his clothing as he made his exit.  As he passed through Tracy’s living room, he took the moment to write a quick note, explaining that something had come up, and thanking her for allowing him shelter over the night.

And with that, he was off, back out into the streets, walking back toward uptown, thence to his apartment.

Knowing his dad, he would be up right about now, but Sharp Eye and his mother were always late sleepers.  Perhaps he would wait until sunrise before going and seeing them.

Yeah, that’s probably a good idea, he thought.

But then he realized, it would probably take him until sunrise to get there by walking.

Nova smiled rather wistfully at himself.

“So disappointed I can’t just use magic willy-nill-- wait.”

His apartment was closer to his parents’ house than Tracy’s apartment.  And he had set up a teleportation point for his cloak there.  There wasn’t anyone in the streets for more than a hundred yards in any direction, and none were in sight.  What was stopping him?

So with a little grin, Nova swished the cloak on his back around him and let his body fall forward.  A split-second later, his feet met solid ground and he found himself standing in his apartment’s living room once again.

And he immediately walked right out the door despite arriving back at his place for the first time in two days.

The walk to his parents’ house wasn’t nearly as long as it could have been, had he gone there from Tracy’s.  But he was occupied for a good half-hour.  The snow from the previous night’s storm still lay on the streets, smushing underfoot as Nova briskly walked toward the upscale portion of whatever the hell the name of this city was.

What a nice day, he thought.  The trees of the upscale neighborhood, devoid of leaves, had their own charm with the snow kept trapped within their branches.  Wonder if Dad’s kept his plants alive well in this new form.

When he arrived at the house, he was surprised to see that his dad wasn’t outside, working with the plants.  The sun was starting its progress up into the sky, though.  Perhaps he had already finished?

Nova did notice come footprints moving from the house to the plants and back.  It would seem that was indeed the case.

Raising a fist as he neared the door, he knocked three times.  Within seconds, the door opened to reveal a man a little shorter than Nova, with clear blue eyes, dark brown hair, khaki cargo shorts, and a red button-up shirt.

“Nova Shine?” the man said, taken aback, his familiar Neigh Zealand accent a welcome change of pace from the constant normal accents, aside from Alex’s british one..

“Nice to see you too, Sharp Eye,” Nova said, smirking and holding out a hand.  Sharp Eye grinned and they shook   “When did you get out?”

“Just yesterday,” he answered, stepping back and allowing Nova into the foyer of the stylish house.  It looked a lot like the house in Canterlot.  Mezzanine, halls that went to different sections of the place…  “Were you the first one out?  Your mum said you were.”

“That’s me,” said Nova, nodding.  “How are they, by the way?”

“We’re all doing well,” he answered.  “No real damage.  This curse, this ‘victory,’ seems to be a very disappointing win for them.  All we got is no memories.  ‘Snot like we’re slaves, or something.”

Nova was led along a familiar path back to the living room of the house.  His mother and father were sitting side-by-side in evening wear, his mom’s silver hair and his dad’s tidy brown contrasting each other in the dim room.

“Mom?  Dad?” Nova asked, coming inside.

Shimmer and Ray both looked back.  At once, both of them got up and gave him a great hug.  And dare Nova say it, it was the first time he had ever hugged both his parents.  It really was the first time he had ever felt like they were a family again.

“We were so worried after we got out,” Shimmer said, pulling back.  “Princess Luna told us what happened, how you faced Nightmare Moon.”

“Eh, you know me,” Nova remarked.  “A few traps here, a few beams there, and some underhanded trickery all around and bob’s your uncle, Princess Luna is running around again.”

“You’ve been hanging around Aegis too much,” noted his father, who still hadn’t let go.

“Dad, you can let go, you know that right?”

“Sorry,” said Ray, letting go and stepping back.  Nova noticed there were a few grey strands in his hair now.  Strands that weren’t in his mane on Equus.  “It’s just, I’m glad that you’re safe, given everything that’s happening.”

“We are glad you’re safe,” Shimmer said.  “Battling Nightmare Moon must have been dangerous.”

“No more than what I expected,” Nova said.  “Really, it was actually a bit on the underwhelming side, since I knew just how to push her buttons.”

Shimmer gave a wry smile.

“You know just how to push everyone’s buttons, it seems.”

“Part of being me, I guess,” Nova said, shrugging.  “So, I never bothered to find out.  What is it exactly that you guys do up here?”

“Well, I work at a laboratory, apparently,” Ray said, as the three of them moved to sit on the couple of couches in the room.  “Fitting, really.  I get to keep studying things for a living.”

“I’ve been thinking about that, actually,” Nova said, reaching back and interlacing his fingers behind his head.  “My theory is that this curse put us into familiar situations, specifically so that the fake memories would ‘feel’ real to us and take root quickly.”

“That makes a lot of sense,” Ray said, rubbing at the skin of his forehead.  “You can cover things up all you want, but you can never truly overwrite a mind.  If she had thrown us elsewhere, can you imagine how quickly it’d have unraveled?”

“Obviously, even this place wasn’t perfect,” Nova said.  “Something caused my mind to shake off the bindings holding it down.  And I think I know what that something is.”

He waved his hand in front of him, a momentary blue glow illuminating it.  And a model of the head of Natalie Verano appeared.

“Natalie Verano,” he declared.  “When I was under the curse, she was supposedly my girlfriend.”

Another wave of the hand, and Tracy Strong’s head appeared.

“Tracy Strong,” he added.  “For obvious reasons, I’m pretty sure you can see why I think I broke out.”

“So Envy duped you into dating this… Verano girl?” asked Shimmer, cocking an eyebrow.  “You told us about your adventure in the past.  What was there to be gained by this?”

“The last name,” Nova said, smiling grimly.  “And the middle, as well.  ‘Verano,’ if you’ve ever been to Mexicolt, is their word for summer.”

Realization dawned on Ray’s face, but Shimmer remained confused.

“I don’t understand.”

“Think about it, Mom,” Nova said, and with a wave of his hand, a magical model of Summer Blossom appeared in the room.  “Summer Blossom was smitten with me in the past, and she tried to kill Clover because Clover had won me, which led to her becoming Envy.  Natalie’s last name is the Mexicoltian word for summer.”

The realization started to dawn on Shimmer, but Nova continued nonetheless.

“And what’s more is her middle name, ‘Dahlia.’  The dahlia flower blooms in summer, making it a literal summer blossom.  Finally, her initials.  N. and V.”

Ray looked utterly dumbstruck.  Shimmer looked a little less impressive with her surprise, but she still appeared quite unnerved by the information.

“Hang on,” Ray said, shaking his head suddenly.  “No, that doesn’t sound like Envy.”

“What do you mean?” asked Nova, giving him a curious look.

“She would never be that obvious about it, would she?  I don’t know her like you do, but if this really is how her plan is laid out, she’s being remarkable blasé about it.”

“What do you mean ‘blasé?’” asked Nova, confused.

“If this is the case,” Ray explained, “she knows you’re bound to find her out sooner or later, so she made it obvious.  I mean, you know, what’s the point of hiding if you’re just gonna unravel it anyway?  If this is the case.  But from what I know of Envy, this can’t be that simple.  I find it more likely she put herself close by, where she can watch you without arousing suspicion.  Perhaps by also sowing a little chaos among the Bearers of Harmony as you attempt to awaken them?”

Nova opened his mouth to respond, but then it hit him.  Rainbow Dash had never shown any romantic interest in him in Ponyville.  He had almost-daily contact with her, she seemed to be a little more harsh than usual with Tracy than she was with anyone else, and she always seemed to be nearby whenever something happened.  And that’s not to mention she was almost overtly competing with Tracy for his affections.

He’d had to rescue her from the Hellsings, she had been observing him as Discord trained him, she was there when the Changelings had attempted to drag him off to Chrysalis…

But she has the red lightning bolt on her back, he reasoned.  If she’s Envy, why does she have that?

Nova voiced the opinion that had sprouted in his mind.  That Rainbow Dash, Rachel Dillon on this world, was the one who fit that description, and his concerns about the Mark of Loyalty that was below the nape of her neck.  At this, Ray scowled.

“It’s all too puzzling,” he grumbled.  “No one that you know of is definitely Envy.  PErhaps she could be leading you one way, only to subvert that in the end.  I know the residents of this world have a name for that.  I want to say... the Kansas City Shuffle?  Regardless, Nova, you cannot trust anyone at this point, save for those whom you know for a fact are who they say you are.  Such as Princess Luna.”

“Does this mean I can’t trust you?” he asked his mom and dad.  His dad rolled his eyes, but his mom just smiled sweetly at him.

“I don’t know, Nova.  Can you?  Maybe I’m Envy, and you just don’t realize it.”

Now it was Nova’s turn to roll his eyes.

“Sure, Mom.  Whatever you say.”

“Oh, I’m just teasing, son,” she said, nudging him with her elbow.  “I suppose now you know where you got that side of you.”

Ray looked over at a clock on the wall and sighed.

“You will have to forgive me, Nova,” he said, standing up and walking off toward the main area of the house.  “It may be a Sunday, but I still have things to do in the city.  You’ll probably want to spend the day with your mother, yeah?”

Nova nodded.

“I haven’t spent quality time with Mom since we made up,” he said.  “About damn time I do.”

Shimmer responded by giving him an affectionate hug.

“You two enjoy yourselves,” Ray said, heading back into the house.  “Oh, and Nova?  There’s a message for you on the kitchen counter.”

Nova got up from his spot on the couch and followed his dad until the hall split in a direction heading to the house’s kitchen.  Once inside, he noticed a small roll of parchment with nothing more than a single fiery-red feather laying beside it.

“It’s from Princess Celestia!” he exclaimed, recognizing Philomena’s plumage.  He knew Celestia was powerful enough to send messages at high speed in Equestria, but never had he guessed that Philomena was able to cross world boundaries.

        Nova Shine,

        Since I have the time, I will write everything I feel you need to know or hear from me, based on Discord’s and my sister’s updates on your current progress, but allow me to get straight to the points.

Allow me to start first with the matter I’m sure is closest to your heart:  Twilight Sparkle.  I am aware you have been seen in her human counterpart’s company very often as of late, and I am also aware that Luna has been attempting to dissuade you from pursuing her.  I have no intention of undermining her instruction or advice, but I would recommend the opposite.  Twilight Sparkle was the one who brought the other five Elements together, and you share your own bond with them as well.  If you can use Twilight to help them come together, it may save you time and effort, both of which are of the essence.

        Second, Discord has informed me he has been instructing you in Spellblade.  An unorthodox style of battle, but no doubt one you will put to good use.  I’ve heard good things of what little you have used it for thus far; keep up the good work.

        Third, I am aware of your truce with Sombra.  Luna remains unaware, as I doubt she would approve, or even allow such a truce to continue.  I also know of your uneasiness with Sombra and your encounter with him in the past.  You need allies, Nova.  Perhaps not ones with which to strike permanent bargains, but allies nonetheless.  Trust him only so far as you can throw him, but remember, he was summoned by Envy.  When the time comes to make your final moves, his Echo will need to be dealt with in some way.

        Fourth, and finally, I am leaving Philomena in your care  She cannot return to the other side of the Crystal Mirror with my Hyperbolic Time spell still functioning.  That, and I thought an extra helper might come in handy.  Philomena’s talents are many, and she will perform her duties to the letter.  As such, she knows that you are the one taking care of her until she and I are reunited.  You need not give her food, she will usually find her own.  As well, she may choose to prank you every so often, but do not take offense.  It is merely her way of showing affection.  If you wish to call her, simply say her name as if you were calling her from afar.

        Continue with the excellent progress you have made thus far, and you will return everypony to Equestria within the year.  You can do it, Nova.  I know you can.

        Sincerely,
Princess Celestia

Nova grinned.  He’d always liked Philomena, the few times he’d ever interacted with her.

“Philomena!” he called.  For a moment, he felt awkward, but in a burst of flame a moment later, the red-orange feathered form of a magnificent phoenix appeared before him, standing atop the counter, with no ash or char to be found.  The bird regarded Nova for a mere moment, before letting out a chirp and hopping onto his outstretched arm and climbing up to his shoulder.

“Nova, honey, what was--” he heard Shimmer call, before she walked in and stopped at the sight of the phoenix on his shoulder.  “Is that Princess Celestia’s phoenix?”

“Yes it is,” Nova said as the bird dipped her own head.  “Mom, meet Philomena.”

Shimmer reached out with an arm, but paused.  “May I?” she asked, looking directly at the phoenix, rather than at Nova.  Philomena responded by hopping off of his shoulder, talons briefly digging into his shoulder, and landing on her arm.  Shimmer reached up and stroked the phoenix’s plumage, causing the phoenix to let out a pleasant chirrup.

“She’s quite beautiful,” Shimmer observed.  “Why did the Princess send you her pet?”

Philomena let out an indignant squawk and dug her talons into Shimmer’s arm.  Shimmer winced, and nearly flung her into the air.  Nova could only chuckle.

“I don’t think she takes kindly to being called Princess Celestia’s pet, Mom,” Nova noted.  “I think the more accurate term would be ‘familiar.’  After all, Philomena’s more than just a bird that sits around.”

Philomena gave a happy chirp and bopped Shimmer’s head with her wing.  Shimmer couldn’t help but chuckle at the display, but proffered Philomena back to Nova.

“She’s quite a creature, I’ll give her that.”

Nova smiled up at the phoenix, who fixed him with a faux-innocent look, before letting out on loud caw and taking flight, vanishing in a flash of fire between them.

The remainder of Nova’s time with his mother was spent simply around the town, in which they talked about various things, but as the day began to wind down to a close, Shimmer had one rather large secret to reveal to Nova as they left the Londoner, Shimmer having insisted on buying Nova his dinner for the day.

They had walked out to the parking lot in which Nova and Big Mac had had their little conversation only weeks ago, where Shimmer had parked their horseless carriage.  Or car, as they were apparently known.

“Just out of curiosity,” Nova pondered aloud, staring at the very old-looking vehicle before them, “why an old car?”

“We were only awoken last night, son,” Shimmer said.  “Haven’t had the time.  But…”

She reached her right hand up and lightly bit down on her thumb, gazing at the car with a look of thoughtfulness.  Then after a moment, she reached out and placed her hands on the car’s top.

A wave of light-blue magic rippled down her arm and across the car.  After the wave of energy rippled across it, the car began to change from an old, rundown model to a sleek, expensive model right before Nova’s eyes, leaving him utterly thunderstruck.

“Wha…” he tried to say, but he trailed off.  Where a rusty old car had been was unmistakably a high-performance car.  Based on the logo on the hood, it was a Ferrari, which left Nova feeling rather weak at the knees.  How had his mother done that?  Sure, she had been a unicorn, but she had never been as strong a spellcaster as his dad had, and even Ray was only slightly stronger than an average unicorn when it came to magic.

Shimmer looked quite pleased with her handiwork, but laughed at Nova’s confusion.

“I’ve never shown you my alchemy before, have I?” she asked.

“A-alchemy?”

“Alchemy,” confirmed Shimmer.  “I know about your… shall we say, inability to use it, since Princess Luna kept us updated on your tutoring with her, but did you ever wonder why you never saw me cast much overt magic before?”

Nova couldn’t answer.  He was still gaping at what had transpired.

“The secret is in the science, son.  I can’t openly create or destroy any matter, but I can rearrange what’s already there to my liking, only if I know how it fits together.  Like this.”

She knelt down and touched the earth with her hands, her white dress grazing the asphalt beneath her as the ripple of energy flew down her arms again.  But this time, a stone statue of a horse with a dunce hat appeared in the parking lot.

“Hmm…” she mused, looking over the grey likeness.  “Nah, tail’s not long enough.”

With another use of her magic, and the horse’s tail lengthened a short ways.  And yet, Nova still couldn’t find anything to say.

But then she smirked and placed her hand upon the statue and with a flash of light, there were now two statues sitting side by side.

“But… but you said you could only rearrange…” Nova protested weakly, still reeling from this.

“Oh, I did,” Shimmer said matter-of-factly.  “I just utilized a well-known, shall we say, loophole in physics called the Banach-Tarski Paradox.  If you feel like hurting your brain, you can give it a look.”

She gave Nova a sweet smile.

“Should you ever want to learn about Alchemy from a true master of it, feel free to come visit in Canterlot when we get back.”

She opened her arms, letting Nova hug her.

“I had fun with you today, Nova,” she said, holding him tight.  “We really need to do this more often when we get back to Equestria.”

“What, go and make random statues out of the dirt?” Nova asked.

“Of course!  I might even make one right in front of your new Ponyville house and everything, just because.”

They shared a chuckle, but the time had come for him to leave.  Shimmer gave him a quick peck on the cheek, before bending down to step inside her new car.

“Good-bye for now, son,” she said, giving him a warm smile that Nova returned.  “I love you.”

“Love you too, mom,” Nova said.

And with that, Shimmer started her car, shut her door, and began to drive.  Nova watched as she drove around her statues, out into the street, around a corner, and out of sight, feeling very satisfied with how the day had gone.

He and his father had made up, that had been obvious, but he and his mother hadn’t really gotten together and done any mother-son bonding since until today.  And Shimmer was right; it was indeed very nice.

Nova smiled to himself, and set off, heading back up the familiar roads to his home, humming a happy tune as he did.  Things were starting to fall in place.  Four of six bearers awakened, four of five of the first stage, he and Tracy were starting to get on in their relationship…

Things were definitely looking up.

Suddenly, Nova felt a burst of energy somewhere to his left.  Before he could do anything, he was yanked sideways and thrown against the brick wall of an alley.  Stars erupted behind his eyelids as his head collided with the brick, and he struggled to get back to his feet.

“Well done, Molossus, well done,” came a calm, composed voice.  Nova heard the tenor behind the voice and it sounded unmistakably changeling in origin.  Unfortunately, with his current predicament, his energy senses had been completely knocked cold, leaving him feeling half-blind as he tried to stagger to his feet.

Nova opened his eyes, noticing first two dark shapes blocking his way out of the alley as the sun began to set behind them.  He noticed vaguely that he was in the alley he had defeated the Shadowbolts in, but apart from that, there wasn’t much that was making any sense to his brain.

“Who… who’re you…?” he slurred, trying to will his mind back into clarity.

“My name is Killik, Nova Shine,” came the same calm and collected voice from before.

There was something wrong with that statement, that much had occurred to Nova, but what?

“My associate here,” the smaller dark figure indicated the taller one, “is named Molossus.  You’re probably wondering why we had to toss you against a brick wall, correct?”

“Y-yeah,” Nova said, still trying to shake his mind back to working condition.

But then it hit him.  Killik had referred to him by his pony name, not his alias.  His cover had been blown somehow.

At once, everything snapped into focus.  Two changeling policemen were barring his exit from the alley, one of them noticeably more muscular and larger than the other, who carried himself with more of the air of a strategist than a fighter.

“It’s quite simple, Night Master,” Killik said, glancing down at Nova with no shortage of distaste.  “We’re here to kill you.”


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