Love Is Never a Mistake

by kudzuhaiku


Chapter 5

Pacing, worried, Twilight Sparkle considered her course of action. The library castle was now quiet; Fluttershy was gone, both Spike and Adora were now sleeping on a big pile of cushions together, leaving Twilight Sparkle all alone with herself.

A single strand of long pink hair. Twilight Sparkle had found it after Adora had shed it. The hair was laying upon the floor. It held a faint, strange, odd magical signature. Twilight Sparkle could not help but wonder about the magical properties of draconequus hair.

Curious, Twilight wondered if she sent this hair back in time, would it come back? Would something strange happen? She began to think a curious thought; if she sent it back in time, why wasn’t Twilight seeing it now or observing something strange? Twilight, pacing through the halls, peered around in the dim light cast by her horn, looking for strange phenomenon, wondering what her future self was doing.

Entering her study, Twilight Sparkle lit the many candles contained therein with a flick of her magic. She found that she much prefered candlelight, a trait that she shared with Princess Luna. Candlelight, soft, warm, was great for setting the right kind of mood for thinking.

Twilight Sparkle held up the long strand of pink hair before her and her eyes narrowed as she studied it. It shimmered in the glow of her magic. She set the hair down, releasing it from her telekinesis, placing it upon a silver tray that had once been used for holding tea cakes, but was now used to hold samples.

Princess Mi Adora Cadenza. Twilight wondered what Adora had done to deserve princesshood. Was it an inherited title? That seemed unlikely. A title of affection? Possible, but Twilight believed it also to be unlikely. The title, and all that came with it, was far too serious to be taken lightly. Twilight made a mental note to ask Adora about it to see if the draconequus knew anything.

Pressing her lips into a straight line, Twilight Sparkle concentrated upon the long pink hair, and began casting spells to help discern its nature. The hair glowed with an eerie light and Twilight Sparkle’s eyes narrowed as the brilliance surrounding the hair intensified.

The hair bore an odd magical signature that was remarkably similar to Cadance’s magic. Twilight, determined to never be fooled by changelings again, had made extensive studies into magical signatures and believed her magic to be quite accurate. Cadance’s magic radiated love—an obvious outcome that should shock nopony. It was distinctive, unique, and had a few well defined characteristics. It was a magic defined by dedication, devotion, and duty. It was a magic that had discipline, for lack of a better word, according to Twilight Sparkle’s thinking.

Adora’s hair bore a magical signature that was also strong with love, but it was chaotic. It felt more random, almost crazy, like the bizarre heady affection that one feels during their first crush. The unpredictable and sometimes panic inducing feeling of love at first sight. The manic desperation of unrequited love. Adora’s magical signature held far more emotion than Cadance’s.

Lifting her head, Twilight dismissed all of this. This was not proof that Adora was Cadance’s offspring; this only meant that Adora was a draconequus filled with chaotic and unpredictable love. It proved nothing, but it did raise a few interesting questions.

Were there types of love that were not harmonious?

Summoning more magic, Twilight Sparkle made ready to send the hair back in time. Her horn glowed like the sun and she closed her eyes. A few feet away, there was a bright flash of magenta magic, then there was a loud crackle, followed by a pop. The silver tray flew from the table and clattered to the floor. Twilight Sparkle tumbled to the floor with a thump as a tall figure loomed over her.


“You idiot… you just can’t leave anything alone!” The tall figure stared down at the small crumpled body upon the floor. “You have to poke your nose into everything! EVERYTHING!”

The tall figure circled around the small, limp body on the floor, shaking its head. “Some things, you just have to accept at face value. Not everything can be measured or studied! You took love, something beautiful, and reduced it all into chemistry, stealing away the mystery and the beauty!” The tall figure snorted. “It all started in this room… you created the beginning of the end.” The tall figure lifted up its front hoof, pulled back, and stood over the smaller figure, looking as though it was going to deliver a kick to the small purple pony’s backside.

“Twilight?”

“Spike!”


Spike, clutching his own tail, looked up at Twilight Sparkle and then down at the other Twilight Sparkle laying upon the floor. His eyes darted back to the other Twilight. She was tall, just as big as Princess Celestia. Her mane and tail flowed in ethereal winds, billowing in some invisible, unseen force. Twilight’s eyes were crazed; they had turned yellow and red—reminding Spike of a certain draconequus.

“Twilight,” Spike said, tugging his tail and backing away from Twilight Sparkle’s tall, imposing form. “I heard a noise and it woke me up…”

“Spike… you’re so small…” Twilight Sparkle took a step towards Spike, stepping over her comatose body. “I had forgotten how small you used to be.”

“I don’t understand what is going on… are you going to hurt me?” Spike asked.

“I would never hurt you… I know this looks bad.” Twilight turned her head and gestured at her own body on the floor. “I had to stop her. But you seeing me complicates things.”

“I won’t say a word, I promise!” Spike continued to back up and bumped into the wall. He yelped, began shaking, and looked up at Twilight.

“I was always able to trust my Number One Assistant.” Twilight lowered her head as she approached. She blinked away a few tears. “Spike… I need your help.”

“Anything for you, Twilight,” Spike said, wringing his tail in his hands, his claws squeaking against his scales. “I’ll Pinkie Pie swear… I’ll do whatever you ask—”

“Spike, calm down.” Twilight said in a soft voice.

“Okay.” Spike took a deep breath, swallowed, and peered up at Twilight, who seemed much larger now that she was up close.

“I can’t tell you everything Spike… but I suppose I can tell you a little to help you understand what is going on. I ruined everything Spike… I made a terrible mistake. Other things happened too, but I am the most direct cause of everything that happened. And it all started right about now, at this time, not long after I became the Princess of Friendship. I can trace it all back to now.”

“Twi?” Spike whispered in a fearful voice.

“Spike, I need for you to distract me as much as possible. Be demanding. Be needy. Say you need me… do whatever it is that you need to do—”

“But why, Twilight?” Spike asked.

Twilight Sparkle lifted her head and closed her eyes. She took a deep breath, held it, and then let it out as she spoke. “Spike, I need to learn to accept some things on faith. I need to know that I can’t know everything. I need to learn to let go and let some things just happen.”

“I don’t understand.” Spike shook his head and continued to tug his tail.

“Spike, everything is gone. Everything… I’m trying to fix it. I sent Adora back to completely destroy the timeline… it wasn’t enough to disrupt it, I tried that, it failed, I kept making the future worse. But by sending Adora back in time, I ripped my future away from this timeline… but there are complications, Spike.”

“I don’t understand…” Spike looked up at Twilight, blinked, and then sat down upon the floor with a plop.

“Every time that she tries to study Adora, or tries to figure this out, she creates a connection to the future that I come from. Those connections multiply and gain strength, and she pulls the future I am trying to prevent back into the timeline, reinforcing the behaviour that caused all of this in the first place.” Twilight Sparkle pointed at her unconscious form with a wing. “Already today I had to go back in time, make a few corrections, and erase a portion of her memory… we had a terrible argument she and I, and she refused to see reason. She refused to be logical. She refused to take my word that this all leads up to a bad end. So I had to drop her and scrub away the entire encounter that we had earlier today from her mind.”

“This is really confusing.” Spike’s voice was a low whine. “Twilight, you look so different… you’re so big.” Spike swallowed and then his voice dropped into a low, scratchy whisper. “Is Discord dead?”

“Spike, I am all that is left in that future. Discord died after he gave not just his powers to me, but his life force. Without Adora or Discord, Cadance grew weaker and weaker… she gave me her powers and told me to fix it if I could… and then slipped away. I held her as she went.”

“Princess Celestia and Princess Luna?” Spike asked, feeling a growing lump in his throat and blinking away tears.

“Spike, everypony is gone… there is only me, a sea of darkness, and an all consuming nothingness that I contributed to creating,” Twilight replied. “Even you… you’re gone… and I miss you so much.” Twilight’s horn ignited and she lifted Spike up, holding him up to eye level. Extending her wings, she drew Spike into a hug.

“I will do whatever I can to help,” Spike promised in a raspy, emotional whisper.

“Look after Adora. She was loved and adored by all. She is not bound by the natural laws that surround harmony. She is a primal, chaotic force of nature, the very essence of the biological urge to create more life. She inherited some of Cadance’s power and influence.” Twilight Sparkle held Spike close, pressing him to her neck. “I couldn’t stop the future, but I could sever the timeline. Now I need to keep the timeline from self correcting or being mended as harmony attempts to re-assert its will.”

“What happens to you?” Spike asked.

“I don’t know.” Twilight held Spike a little closer, crushing him to her. “I suppose if we are successful, and I learn to leave some things be, I’ll just wink out of existence when the future I am a part of collapses in upon itself.”

“I don’t want that!” Spike cried.

“It needs to happen. I sacrificed everything to change the future. I don’t want to exist forever in the darkness… and there is no way I can come back here,” Twilight said to Spike. “Keep me distracted Spike. Ask me questions. Be a silly dragon. Get me to play with Adora. I’ll keep doing what I can to sever new connections when they happen. Hopefully, I’ll give up before I have to take drastic measures.”

“Drastic measures?” Spike looked at Twilight, fearful.

“Better that you don’t know. I don’t think it will come to that, if it makes you feel any better.” Twilight gave Spike a sad smile. Seeing Spike’s worried face, Twilight reconsidered. “Spike, if this gets bad enough, I have the idea to send Adora further back. Perhaps even to a time when I am not yet the Princess of Friendship. I sent her here to this time, because it felt right… this was where I came into my own and everything started to go wrong.”

“I still don’t understand.” Spike reached up and wiped his eyes with his clenched fists.

“Spike… from the moment Adora was born, you loved her. You doted on her, spoiled her, for a long time, she was your world. I even started getting jealous because you just ignored me… and she loves you. Can you trust in that?” Twilight Sparkle set Spike down upon the floor.

“Yeah.” Spike, unsteady on his feet, wobbled a bit as he stared up at Twilight.

“Okay Spike… when I wake up, which will be soon, I need you to lecture me about using dangerous magic… I’m going to be missing some time… I need you to scold me about using dangerous magic and putting Adora and you at risk… say that you were woke up by a big explosion.”

“Explosion?” Spike’s eyes narrowed and he looked around the study.

Future Twilight’s horn flared. The doors slammed shut, but did so in perfect silence. The entire room glowed in a magenta light. There was a sudden explosion, singing papers, books, everything exposed, including the Twilight Sparkle comatose upon the floor, burning away patches of hair and some of her mane. She smouldered and smoke rose from her body.

“She’s fine. It looks much worse than it really is,” Twilight said in a reassuring voice. “So, there was a big explosion and it woke you up and you’re really, really scared because I am being irresponsible. Make certain you tell me that.”

“Okay.” Spike nodded.

“I love you Spike,” Twilight Sparkle said.

Spike blushed. “I love you too… any other advice from the future?”

Twilight heaved a sigh and then gave Spike a weary smile. “Don’t ever give up on Rarity. She is going to make some bad decisions. It is going to hurt you. But it will all be worth it in the end.”

Spike smiled, but still looked a little fearful. “Maybe now that the future is changing, I can show Rarity how responsible I am by taking care of Adora.”

“Spike, that is a brilliant idea… I gotta go, Spike… I love you…”