//------------------------------// // Ponyville - Pink Welcome // Story: The Ever Changing Moon // by CommanderX5 //------------------------------// The Ever Changing Moon - Chapter 1 Ponyville Part 1 - Pink Welcome The two pegasi guards gave another synchronized flap of their wings, the sunshine gleaming off of their golden armor as they towed an official chariot carrying an important VIP and not so important assistant towards Ponyville. The VIP being none other than Princess Celestia’s faithful student, Twilight Sparkle. Despite the pleasant weather, Twilight’s mood was anything but cheerful as she stared at the castle in the distance, her head supported on her forelegs with her ears flattened against her head. Only yesterday she had been reading books, happily studying in her private tower while being oblivious to the ominous threat looming over Equestria. Now she was on the way to Ponyville, ordered not to face and stop Nightmare Moon, but instead to ensure that her conquest will continue uninterrupted. The feeling of hopelessness overtook Twilight as she wondered if she would ever see her mentor again. Would she end up under the tyrannical rule of the corrupted princess, unable to do anything despite her powerful magic and many years of studies? Upon feeling Spike’s hand on her shoulder, she glanced at him, seeing concern in his eyes. She sighed and said, “I don’t know how to feel, Spike… knowing that Princess Celestia is going to face such a dire threat while we do nothing to assist her." Both guards looked at each other for a moment, hiding their worry behind their stoic masks. “Would you prefer being sent to defeat Nightmare Moon blindly,” Spike asked, “unaware of the danger because you were chosen by some ancient artifacts?” “I would,” Twilight said, nodding. “At least I would have an opportunity to help my mentor and protect Equestria. I prefer risking my life to staying on the sidelines and doing nothing.” “It can’t be helped,” Spike said before opening Twilight’s saddlebag, picking up one of the two books that the princess had provided. “It might be a good idea to read up on this, Twilight," he said, hoping that this might pull her out of her funk. Twilight nodded, levitating the book up to her face with her magic. "You're right, Spike. Maybe I can figure something out." Minutes passed as she read through the pages, skimming over it while picking up the most useful information. Her arrival will change the world... She shall bring night eternal… Twilight thought, repeating two sentences in her mind. “Change the world? The world will become a frozen wasteland without the sunlight. Why would my mentor think that surrendering Ponyville to her will keep it safe?” “Beats me,” Spike said, shrugging. “Still, you should trust the princess. Surely she knows what she’s doing.” “I trust her, but it doesn’t make her plan any more appealing,” Twilight said before levitating out three rolled scrolls from her saddlebag. “What’re those?” Spike asked. “A map of Ponyville,” Twilight said as she unrolled one of the scrolls and took a quick glance. She rolled it and placed back in her saddlebag before checking the second one. “And this is a list of candidates for the Element Bearers. Princess Celestia instructed me to inform them about Nightmare Moon’s return before announcing it to the rest of the town.” “Why?” Spike asked. Twilight raised her forehoof in a lecturing gesture. “According to the princess; since they were chosen by the Elements, they must be individuals with great potential. They would be the first to rebel against Nightmare Moon. Best to make sure they won’t do that in advance.” Spike rubbed his chin before glancing at Twilight’s horn. “Hmmm… Considering that you can levitate tons of weight and memorise hundreds of spells, if those other ponies are even half as extreme, we’re up for some fun.” “Yes… fun,” Twilight murmured before pointing at the third scroll. “I will also inform the mayor of Ponyville. This scroll is a royal decree to replace the Summer Sun Celebration with a Celebration of Nightmare Moon’s return, as well as our surrender to her.” “So in short,” Spike started, “we can’t beat them, we join them?” Twilight sighed before looking over the wall of her chariot, her attention now fixed on Ponyville. Instead of tall buildings made of stone, she saw small colorful homes made of wood. While it was nowhere near as impressive as Canterlot, it did seem to have a charm of its own. After placing her forehoof on the chariot’s wall, she gently grabbed Spike, preparing herself for the landing. “We have arrived, Miss Twilight,” one of the guards spoke in a firm tone. Twilight nodded before stepping from the chariot, approaching the tall stallions as she said, “Thank you, Sirs.” Even an upcoming world-ending crisis wasn’t a reason to forget about politeness. The guards raised their heads proudly and flew back towards Canterlot, slowly disappearing into the light-blue sky. Spike looked around as he stood between two lines of homes, scratching top of his head. “So… where to now?” Twilight looked between her map and the pictures of the Element Bearers, analyzing the best course of action. “The closest place is Sugarcube Corner, so that should be our first stop.” She took a closer look at the picture. “There we should meet with a pony named Pinkie Pie, a potential Element of Laughter.” “Is she a pink mare with a long pink mane?” Spike asked. “Actually, her mane should be puffy, not long,” Twilight corrected as she shook her head. She glanced at Spike before turning in the direction he was staring at, noticing an approaching pink earth pony with a saddened smile. She took a quick glance at the picture. While the cutie marks were identical, the brightness of pink and shape of the mane were different. “Excuse me,” Twilight called as she walked towards the approaching mare. “Is your name Pinkie Pie by any chance?” “That’s me,” she answered with a firm nod before rubbing her chin. “Wait a moment…” Pinkie took a step forward, examining her suspiciously. “I know everypony in Ponyville, but I don’t remember seeing you two before? "Are you the ones my Pinkie Sense told me about?" “Pinkie what?” Twilight asked before nodding hesitantly. “And yes, I arrived in Ponyville just a moment ago.” Much to her surprise, Pinkie's long mane puffed and brightened, and so did her fur, while her sad smile was replaced with a broad grin. “I knew it!” Pinkie shouted and jumped, throwing confetti into air as it rained upon the newcomers. Twilight flinched as her attention focused on the slowly descending Pinkie Pie, the Laws of Gravity clearly not affecting her. “You know what this calls for?” Before Twilight could respond, she shouted, “A party!” The moment she noticed the energetic mare galloping away, Twilight lit her horn, pulling said pony back with her magic. “Where are you going in such a hurry?” she asked, turning Pinkie around and placing in front of herself. “To organize you a surprise party, duuuh,” Pinkie said with roll of her eyes, only to put forehooves on her mouth. “Nooo! I spoiled the surprise!” “A welcome party?” Spike asked, now hopping in place from excitement. “Oh, I cannot wait!” He pointed at his parental figure and said, “Twilight is a total bookworm. The only parties we ever participate in are birthday ones. Ummm… no offense.” "Only birthday parties!?" Pinkie gasped. "That's so sad!" “Tell me about it,” Spike said, placing hands on her sides. “We were even invited for today’s birthday party by Moon Dancer, but with the evacuation going on, I doubt it will be happening.” “Did you say Moon Dancer?” Pinkie asked. After seeing Spike’s nod she added, “She was one of a bunch of ponies that moved to Ponyville from Canterlot yesterday, and weehoo! That was a large party.” She stood up to her rear hooves and squeezed her cheeks with her forelegs. “And to think that I almost missed somepony’s birthday? I need to redouble my efforts immediately.” “Excuse me,” Twilight called. “Can I have your attention for a moment, pleaseee!” Pinkie sat and nodded, her ears forward. Twilight took a deep breath and spoke, “I know this may be very difficult to believe, but during the upcoming Summer Sun Celebration, the corrupted sister of Princess Celestia will return from her thousand year banishment on the moon. Now, I know it sounds like a crazy-mare’s talk, but–” “She’s returning tomorrow night!” Pinkie gasped. “Oh, my gosh, this is bad!” She trotted in place, nervously looking around. “I need to organize a welcome party for you and so many other ponies that arrived today, and then there’s a birthday party for Moon Dancer. And now I need to organize a welcome party for the two-faced princess for tomorrow evening. There's not enough time!” "To be precise, she will return in two days early in the morning if Princess Celestia and the tale of Nightmare Moon is correct," Twilight corrected as the gears in her head moved. “Wait a moment, two-faced princess!?” She pointed accusingly at the panicking earth pony. “Did you actually know about her return?” Pinkie once again held forehooves to her mouth. “Oh no! I did it again.” She circled around Twilight, leaving her in a cloud of dust before vanishing from her sight. Twilight and Spike coughed, waving the dust away before they looked at each other in confusion. “That was weird,” Spike said. “That was more than weird,” Twilight said, rubbing her chin as she looked ahead with half-closed eyes. “She shouldn’t know anything about Nightmare Moon’s return.” She massaged her forehead. “Now that I think about it, nothing she did made any sense.” “So, what now? Are we gonna search for her, or head to Sugarcube Corner like you talked about?” “No,” Twilight said, shaking her head as she took out her map and list of the Element Bearers. “I made some calculations and set up an order of who we should visit before going to Mayor Mare. Our next destination will be Sweet Apple Acres.” *** The double doors into Ponyville’s resident nightclub slammed open as Pinkie Pie galloped inside. She slid to a stop in the middle of the dance floor after plowing through a table or two, yelling "Vinyl, we have a problem!" The musician dropped the repair tools from her magic, turning away from her gutted loud speakers to look at the panicked mare. She fixed her glasses and asked, “Sup Pinkie? Did somepony push your panic button or what?” “Worse,” Pinkie said, taking a few quick breaths while recovering from her non-stop sprint. “The two-faced princess that the bad pureblooded pony was talking about is coming! She will arrive during the Summer Sun Celebration and Fluttershy is still in her super-duper-years-long nap! This is a disaster.” “What is all this commotion,” asked a grey earth pony with violet treble clef as a cutie mark. “Oh, hello Pinkie. What brings you here?” “The two-faced princess is returning for the celebration!” Vinyl said with a relaxed tone. “With Flutters still napping, we kind of lack the smart leader pony to tell us how to handle it.” Octavia stepped onto the stage as she adjusted her bowtie and cleared her throat. “In this case, allow me to ask you a question, Pinkie, since you know Fluttershy well. What would she do in your opinion?” “I dunno…” Pinkie shrugged before rubbing her head thoughtfully. “I suppose she would welcome the princess respectfully and politely ask her not to conquer Equestria.” Octavia raised her forehoof and spoke firmly, “As members of Fluttershy’s clan, it is our responsibility to welcome the returning princess and convince her that peace between thestrals and other races is possible.” “I know, I know,” Pinkie said, once again in panic. “But she’s returning in two days, early in the morning and I already have so many parties on my schedule. How can I make it in time?” Vinyl lowered her glasses and smirked. “Then allow the night-shift of the Party Patrol to help you out. I will prepare a party worthy of a princess, one she will never forget." Pinkie smiled widely. “I knew I could count on you, let’s make this party epic!”