//------------------------------// // Present Past // Story: Parties and Consequences // by Maniacal_Spark //------------------------------// The Canterlot night dissolved immediately into nothing with a loud bang that made Twilight Sparkle's ears ring as her body seemed to contort and twist as a prismatic shower of colors immediately swirled into existence to fill the otherwise empty void. Twilight opened her mouth to scream but in an instant found herself firmly planted on the grass next to a willow tree that was warming in the early morning sun. Her head swam with dizziness and her first attempt to move was met with a flailing of hooves and aching muscles before the world heaved backwards. With a gasp, Twilight fell to her haunches and waited, her hooves clutching her head as the strange after-effects of the spell dissipated, the world of past Canterlot coming into focus as the familiar pond grounds near the Outer Commons of the Canterlot Palace stabilized and became still once more. The ringing in her ears subsided and the time traveling equine could hear birds singing from the nearby trees caused a small smile to break out across Twilight's face and she slowly pulled herself back onto all four hooves, stretching out the muscles along her sides as her wings- "My wings!" Suddenly Twilight felt the absence of her wings marking her as an alicorn had completely vanished, replaced by her old saddlebag filled with books and scrolls. With a burst of telekinetic magic Twilight flung the saddlebag away, it's contents spilling out onto the ground near the still pond with a muted thud as Twilight gasped. All that was left was the smooth purple fur of her coat that lead to the unchanged magical starburst of her Cutie Mark on both of her flanks. Twilight's eyes opened as wide as they physically could as she slowly turned in a circle, ignoring Twilight Sparkle, the unicorn, felt strangely naked and exposed. And empty. The world seemed minutely larger than it had been only moments ago, her slowly developing alicorn height had been stripped away just as her wings had bee, Remembering Discord's words, Twilight attempted a teleportation spell, one of the more complex spells she had learned after becoming the Element of Magic. The familiar pulse of magic swirled through her and gathered around her horn in it's familiar magenta aura and Twilight directed it towards the pathway that led her tower. Twilight braced herself for the sudden shift in surface texture and firmness...Yet nothing happened. The magic around her horn seemed to whine as it attempted follow through on the spell that was now second nature to Twilight. Her muscles tensed as Twilight forced every last bit of her power into the spell and yet she remained in her original position on the marble patio in front of her tower. With a sigh, Twilight let the magic dissipate, the energy flowing back into her body like water on the beach returning to the sea. "I guess what Discord said was true, I really am a Unicorn again, at least just for a day..." She really was back in time. This was amazing! If she had cast the time spell herself Twilight would have returned to the present by now, but she was truly here in the past! Or possibly a simulacrum of the past, depending on if she believed Discord was capable of such a feat. Despite herself, the newly re-minted unicorn felt a stupidly large smile break out across her face before taking off at a gallop towards her tower. If her memory and calculations were correct she would be reaching the Point of Divergence in three, two, one... "There you are, Twilight!" Twinkleshine's voice called out and Twilight skidded to a stop in front of her, Minuette and Lemon Hearts. The three mares took up the entire path, with three small presents situated on their backs. It was just like Twilight remembered, only this time, the once-alicorn wouldn't make up an excuse. "Moondancer is having a little get-together in the West Castle Courtyard, you want to come?" Twinkleshine, Minuette and Lemon Hearts all leaned in, their faces brimming with expectation. In the past, Twilight had snubbed all three mares and led to Moondancer's isolation, but here was the Point of Divergence, where she could fix everything with just a few simple words. "Of course I want to come!" Twilight could barely contain herself and her enthusiasm caused all three of her friends to rear back in surprise, "I wouldn't miss it for the world!" The three mares exchanged their shocked expressions with one another before Twinkleshine shrugged and walked forward, bumping Twilight's flank good naturedly. "Well then, let's get going!" "Yeah!" Both Minuette and Lemon Hearts cried out, the blue-coated mare pulling Twilight in close as the as the small herd of horse friends walked down the path, girly laughter carrying across the small plaza as the quintet passed the willow tree Twilight had re-appeared under. The unicorn was too busy laughing with her friends, all of which had acted like nothing had changed to notice the jewel encrusted tome and handful of scrolls that had been dislodged from her abandoned saddlebag slowly sliding into the pond. Not long after they had passed the willow tree did the large archway that led to the Inner Commons rise up in front of the quartet. In the distance Twilight could see Moondancer zipping back and forth between a table load to the hilt with snacks and a smaller table where a large punch bowel sat waiting. Out of the corner of her eye Twilight saw Twinkleshine staring at her, a smug grin on her face. "What?" Twilight said, turning to face her friend, who simply chuckled and turned away. "Oh nothing. I was just so sure that you were going to make up some silly excuse about studying like you always have before...But what can I say, sometimes being wrong is really, really nice!" "You bet it is! Race you there!" Twilight laughed, sticking her tongue out at the cream colored mare. "Last one there is a rotten parasprite!" And with that, the purple unicorn took off at a gallop while the three mares gasped in surprise before chasing after her, the presents bouncing dangerously up and down across their back before all four unicorns stumbled into each other, landing in a crumpling, giggling heap right just short of the two tables and their tan-furred owner, whose glasses had slid down her muzzle in surprise. With a grin and a small burst of magic, Moondancer slid her glasses back up to their proper position and made her way to the four unicorns who were still giggling as they untangled and picked themselves up from the ground. "I can see the Running of the Leaves came early this year..." Moondancer started but was almost immediately interrupted as Twilight lunged forward and gave her friend a massive hug much like a certain pink pony would have done. "GRCK! H-hi Twi...light...!" She gasped as the air vacated her lungs and her glasses tumbled back down to her muzzle and clattered to the ground. "Oh, sorrysorrysorry!" Twilight said as she let go of her friend, her checks turning a shade darker than the rest of her coat, "I'm just so happy to see you!" Twilight didn't notice Twinkleshine giving Minuette and Lemon Hearts a knowing smile as the three of them set their gifts to Moondancer next to the cake on the end of the table. "It's...it's okay! 'm just so glad you all could be here! Thank you so much for coming!" The bookish mare's reply was stumbling, her brain trying to process the words and the huge grin that was spreading across her face. Her horn flared pale purple as a telekinetic spell wrapped around her fallen, but luckily not broken glasses and quickly plopped them back on her face. A happy grin turned to confusion however as Moondancer looked at each of her gathered friends. "Is Lyra coming?" Those three words were like a dagger of ice into Twilight's heart as it tried to leap into her throat. Her jaw fell open and panic quickly spasmed aross her mind. Had it all been for nothing? was there no way to fix the past and change Moondancer's fate? Twilight felt her eyes go even wider as Moondancer turned to her, purple eyes searching for an answer. "Oh, Lyra had to go sign her rental agreement with her new stablemate in Ponyville today, Moondancer. She really, really wanted to be here but if she didn't sign the contract she would have lost her spot to the next pony in line" It was Minuette that spoke up, pulling Moondancer's attention away from Twilight, who was no less relieved until Moondancer's searching face turned to a small smile. "Oh well" The mare began as she used her magic to grab several cups from the table and moved slwoly over towards the punchbowl, "I guess if it was something really important then it couldn't be helped. Just more fun for us, right?" Moondancer quickly filled the cups and sent them gently sailing outwards towards each unicorn, all of which used their own magic to grab hold of the fruity drink. Save for Twilight, who nearly dropped hers as her mind reeled in relief. It wasn't over! Moondancer was, perhaps, more understanding than the purple mare expected. Or perhaps the other unicorn was not as close with the teal colored pony as she was with everyone else. "Now, let's get this party started!" Lemon Hearts cried and slammed back the fruity drink. As if on cue, the other unicorns did as well and then the party was truly underway. The mares played several games of pin the tail on the pony, took turns whacking a lumpy pinata until it had cracked open in a shower of sweet smelling dust that seemed to stick to the insides of Twilight's nostrils and tasted like salt. Moondancer had quietly whispered to Twilight that it had been a spell that she had been studying since the mix-up with the salt lick in their younger days. When the summer sun had become too unbearably warm in the courtyard the group had moved into a small pavilion where they had finished off the snacks with more than a few funny moments and funny faces before Twinkleshines, Minuette and Lemon Hearts brought their gifts to Moondancer floating into the pavilion, their eyes falling on Twilight who sheepishly admitted that Spike had handled the gift, leading the four other mares to giggle as they spotted the small, purple dragon running into the courtyard, the bright red package held tightly to his chest like a precious jewel. The baby dragon scampered up the small flight of stairs into the pavilion's shade and promplty fell over backwards, his little chest pumping up as he gasped for air, his claws swaying in the air with the present perched perilously in their grasp. "Y...you...your g-gift, Mo...Moondancer!" He wheezed out, allowing his arms to go limp as Moondancer pulled the red wrapped box away from him. Twinkleshines whisked a small cup of fruit punch over to the collapsed dragon, ho accepted it the best he could and took a slow, long drag from it's contents while Moondancer carefully unwrapped the quickly delivered cargo. "Oh, a teddy bear?" She asked, the small, generic bear hanging limply in her aura's grap. "Every...everyone needs...a a bed...buddy!" Spike exclaimed as he pulled himself from his fellow colored beverage. "I just know you said you never had one so I figured better late than never, right?" Twilight couldn't help but feel a twinge of remorse through her pride at her young assistant, that young and even without the lessons of Ponyville has was still a better friend than the original past version of herself had been. But it was Moondancer's gasp of surprise that took her mind away from the darker thoughts and back to her present reality. The tan mare was holding a picture frame, with all seven of her friends . Tears filled the tan pony's eyes and she rushed over to Twilight, enveloping her in a huge hug. "Oh, thank you so much Twilight!" Moondancer's voice was quivering on the edge of tears as she nuzzled the purple unicorn before turning to the other three mares in the pavilion's shade, "You don't know how much it really means to me that you all came out here today! For the longest time I always felt like...like I was just some sixth wheel that wasn't important but now I really do feel like I belong with you girls!" Moondancer spung around and once again enveloped Twilight in a hug that felt unually strong, or perhaps it was just her not being used to no longer having an alicorn's strength. Even so,Twilight couldn't help but feel her own eyes watering, something that was shared by the other mares, though Twinkleshine's smile seemed more than a simple grin of happiness. Even through teary eyes they seemed to be studying Twilight and Moondancer, but the former alicorn did her best to ignore it. Surely Twinkleshine was just curious at her formerly bookish friend's change of heart on social events, right? The rest of the afternoon passed relatively quickly, the small herd of mares cleaning up the remains of the party and walking leisurely through the grounds of the palace before eventually ending up in the Market District where they browsed through stores and storefronts, Moondancer sticking close to Twilight's side the entire time, and Twinkleshines's smile simply growing wider during the whole trip. Celestia's sun had dipped low in the sky before the herd had entered the donut shop, where the mares had decided to call it a day, having one last sugary meal together before one by one they filtered out, Twinkleshine shooting Twilight a wink before she passed out of the shop and into the Canterlotian streets, leaving the violet equine alone with Moondancer and Spike, who was at the shop's bar, engaged in a deep conversation with the shop's owner; Pony Joe. Looking out the window with a sigh, Twilight knew her time was almost up, soon she'd be whisked back to the future to see the results of her trip through time. The mare couldn't lie to herself, she was actually quite excited to see what had changed. It was then that Moondancer truly seemed to open up, despite having been sociable the entire day. "Oh Twilight, I really can't tell you how much it really means to me that you came today." The tan mare's face was lit by the last rays of the sun and her red mane seemed to light on fire in the brilliant sunset, "I've been working, building, up the courage to do something like this for years! I don't know if I could have taken it if you hadn't shown up. It's no secret that I've always...liked you more than the others." 'I know what would have happened, and I'm so glad that gave me the change to make things right.' Twilight said to herself, picturing the reclusive Moondancer that had stormed off the night before, but she didn't dare say that to her new old friend. "Oh, I've always liked you too, Moondancer!" Twilight said instead, oblivious to the widening eyes of the other mare, "We've always had so much in common, I'm just glad to have come. This is a pretty special day." Moondancer's hoof slid across the table and laid gently on Twilight's own for a few seconds in the quiet shop before pulling away as if it's owner had been shocked. The mare's cheeks turned a flustered red before the mare began blabbering about several different spells she had been studying, all of which Twilight had mastered in the future, but she indulged the other mare in speculation until finally the fiery orb of light had sunk below the horizon and the grand moon and begun to rise into the sky. The banter between the two barely ceased even after Twilight, Moondancer, and Spike had found themselves politely shuffled out of the donut shop, the trio eventually finding themselves back at Twilight's tower in the Outer Commons. "I...guess this is where we say goodnight?" Moondancer asked, her left foreleg rubbing her right as she looked down at the marble patio on which they stood. Twilight knew that she'd transition back to her original time period soon, but remembered that Moondancer had never actually been in her tower before. Surely her past-present self would simply give her a tour even after the transition... "Uh..."The purple unicorn began, glancing between the door to her study and Moondancer, "I was wondering if you'd want to come in? I just realized I've never had you over!" The tan mare, now almost ghostly white in the pale moonlight, gasped and blushed as she nodded sheepishly. "Great!" Just let me go straighten a few things and turn on some lamps for you first, okay?" "O...okay!" Moondancer's voice was almost whisper quiet, yet Twilight could feel the excitement behind it. She beemed at her friend and asked Spike to hang tight, to which the little dragon sleepily saluted as he slide from Twilight's back. The pureple mare rushed up the twisting flight of steps quicker than she ever remembered and barely paused for breath as she nearly crashed through tthe door to her study. She had barely gotten two feet in the door, her magic aura priming as she aimed it at several magical lamps hanging in the entryway when she felt the bottom of her stomach give away. The darkened world of Canterlot fell away, all of it dissolving in a whirl of colors that seemed to twist and bend along with her body. Twilight tried to scream, but once more the trip was over before it seemed like it had truly begun, the world snapping back into place, her ears ringing loudly and she stumbled forward and fell on something hard and cold. She however remembered the disorientation the previous trip had caused and simply huddled on the floor, her eyes closed until her mind seemed to stop spinning. When Twilight Sparkles opened her eyes once more, it felt as if the air had been sucked out of her lungs. Before her was a dark wasteland, lit only by the rays of an eclipsed sun that hung dangerously low on the horizon, the dark shape of the moon blocking nearly all of the life giving light. The distant Caterhorn on which Canterlot sat was shattered, a handful of jagged peaks overlooking the silhouette of a decimated city. The grand waterfalls that had pour down the mountainside were gone, and the great lake at the base of the mountain, what was left of it, was frozen. And that was when she realized her wings had not returned.