It was raining outside the Castle of the Two Sisters. It was also raining inside the Castle of the Two Sisters, except for a single room armed with protective spells, and filled with supplies, the warmth of a small magical fire, five foals, a princess and a dragon.
None were in excellent moods.
"I don't know, okay?" Twilight said, her whispered voice as fierce as possible. "I don't know!"
Even the small outburst caused two of the five foals nestled against her side to start squalling softly and Twilight quickly lifted them in her magic, gently rocking them until they settled once more.
Spike gave a soft sigh, the rumble vibrating though their small dry haven and into the expanse of the empty castle. Long ago, they had considered turning it into a tourist attraction, but the Everfree was too dangerous for it to be practical, and the project had been scrapped. The abandoned castle had been Twilight's emergency bolt hole of choice for years, a place to escape, and a place Celestia never thought to look for her. Much too close to home, and filled with far too many painful memories. It was unexpected, and perfect.
The room was stocked with food, water, toiletries, several hundred thousand bits, stocked on several different pre-paid crystals, as well as some recently added bags of diapers and dehydrated baby formula. Twilight had always liked to be prepared.
"We can't stay in the Everfree forever, you know." Spike said softly.
"Well I know that!" the alicorn snapped as quietly as possible, before putting her hooves over her head. "I just need to think"
"Hey..." Spike reached out to put a claw on Twilight's shoulder.
"I know, I know I'm being hysterical." She pushed the touch away. "I'm alright, I'm okay, I'm okay!"
Pushing herself up to almost a sitting position she took several seconds to breathe deeply, just until the walls of the room stopped seeming so close. Stumbling, she attempted to get to her hooves, wings fluffing outward in an awkward attempt to balance herself. Rarity woke up, and immediately began to whimper, several of the other fillies beginning to stir soon after.
Spike stood up, and, picking up Rarity in one arm and reaching the other out to Twilight.
"You're alright, Twi. It's okay. Everything's okay." He said, gently pushing her back to a sitting position. "It's all okay"
"I just- Everything is- I don't know..." She struggled to stand against his claw, stringing together a few breathy half sentences.
"Shhhh...Shhhhh...."
Finally, with Spike's soft ministrations, Twilight lowered herself back to the ground, tucking her forelegs up to her chest, breaths steadying once more. There was a long silence.
"Thank you, Spike," the soft murmur broke the quiet, as Twilight looked up, eyes clearer. "I...I'm sorry."
"Don't worry, Twi." The dragon's soothing baritone voice was warm "That's what I'm here for"
A small smile graced Twilight's face, before she gave a sigh, expression turning to thoughtful focus. "Alright, a plan."
Reaching out with her magic, she rummaged around until she found a small hinged box made of dark wood. Biting her lip, Twilight considered it through narrowed eyes.
"Do you think..." She spoke slowly, "this would be a good use for the Favor?"
"Is that the best option?" Spike queried back.
"I knew this would happen eventually, so I have some preparations, but putting them into effect would take months at best. He could do it in hours"
"Do you trust him though?"
"I don't know...but his silence could be stipulated in the Favor." Twilight folded back her ears "Besides, I don't think he would be eager help Celestia."
Spike and Twilight regarded each other for a moment.
"Alright." he said.
Surrounding the fillies in a soundproofing spell, so they wouldn't be woken, Twilight opened the box, taking out a delicate blue sphere. She raised it above her head, took a deep breath, then smashed it on the ground. The instant it hit, It dissolved into a glittering puff of smoke and then into nothing. For a moment, there was silence.
Then a presence settled into the room, slowly, Twilight looked up.
"Why hello there, Sparkle!" A cheery voice greeted, it's owner lounging in a solid gold chaise on the ceiling.
"Discord." Her voice was wary, measured.
"Ah! I've missed you!" The draconequus somersaulted down from the ceiling, to stop directly in front of her and 3 inches off the ground. "You look fabulous, not a day over three hundred, let me tell you. Not a wrinkle in sigh-"
"Cut the games." annoyance now distinctly flavoring her tone, Twilight flattened her lips into a thin line.
A pout crossed Discord's face. "And here I thought we were friends." Ignoring the darkening in Twilight's expression he continued, "I know we had a bit of a falling out...but..." There was a pointed pause. "I think you've come to see the truth, isn't that right?"
A stormy silence filled the room as he muttered, "You can't say I didn't try to warn you"
A low, menacing, growl emanated from Spike "She said, cut the games."
Discord didn't even look the dragon's way, instead meeting Twilight's gaze "So you have come around then." A grin spread across his face, before he planted a paw on it in mock surprise "Oh! But where are my manners?"
With a snap of his eagle talons a cake materialized, covered in pink frosting, decorated with gum paste pacifiers, and sporting the words Congratulations On Your Quintuplets!
"My treat for the proud mummy, and my, aren't they just adorable..." In a flash of light, Fluttershy appeared cradled in his arms, cooing gently as two butterflies materialized in front of her nose and flittered gently above her. Discord's expression was almost gentle.
Shy was immediately snatched up in Twilight's magic, a sound almost like a snarl emanating from the alicorn. "Don't touch them!"
Lion paw and eagle claw raised placatingly. "Alright, alright..."
Twilight never took her eyes off Discord as she returned Fluttershy to her side, slowly spreading a protective wing over her and the other foals. She narrowed her eyes.
"No need to elaborate. I see how it is." After his catty tone and expression merited no reaction, Discord caved. A suit jacket materialized onto his serpentine frame, and a briefcase into his arms, and after adjusting his tie, he folded his arms on his newly appeared mahogany desk in a business-like manner. "So what do you want, Princess? I'm assuming you didn't call me for a friendly chat."
"I need your help setting up some aliases. Me, Spike, and the girls, that's all. Not airtight, just believable. I trust you can do that quickly and without Celestia catching on?"
"Under Celly's nose? Oh, ho, ho!" A chuckle burst from Discord, before he stroked his beard suspiciously, squinting his eyes. "Are you sure you're really Twilight? Not some pod-pony? Changeling perhaps?"
"Can you do it?" Twilight's voice hardened.
A scaly claw gave her a condescending pat on the head "Now there's the naive young Twilight again." Discord flashed her a grin, zipped open a hole in the wall and stepped through. As the hole closed itself, Discord voice came back to the group, "Try to give me a challenge next time."
The next morning, a strange looking group sat together in a small town cafe, talking with each other intensely. Two purple ponies, a male and female, sat in a booth opposite a large grey stallion. In a cluster of baby seats on the end of the table were no less than five foals of all different colors and races. Several ponies looked on curiously, a few even attempting to eavesdrop on whatever was being discussed but any serious thought into the matter was always hampered by sudden acute distraction. Did they leave the stove on? That coffee smelled amazing. Was that waitress mare hitting on them? Where was their pancake platter anyway?
Discord gave a low whistle. "Color me impressed. Joint illusion and diversion spells? Not too shabby."
"I've picked up a lot." Twilight's expression was distinctly blasé.
"Well, let me show you what I've done."
In a puff of smoke, a folder appeared, and Discord flipped it open, spreading out several papers on the table for Twilight to see.
"I picked some common names that were similar to your own, just to make things a bit easier." He used his flexible tail to separate and push several papers towards her, then clapped his paws together and made a stage magician-esqe gesture with his arms. Despite the fact that the diner was lit by windows, somehow the lights around them dimmed so he could narrate in a more dramatic spotlight. "Without further ado, allow me to narrate your life story."
Twilight's eye roll at that moment was quite possibly the most impressive in recorded history.
"Your new name is Twilight Prose, a twenty six year old aspiring writer, who worked several odd jobs while trying to pen your future novel. One such job was foalsitting for a group of close knit families, all of whom you were very close with, and all of whom had young foals of about the same age. One of the occasions you were sitting for them was the fateful day of the Fitte's Magic Corp. disaster."
A wince crossed Twilight's face. The accident had destroyed nearly a block in Canterlot several weeks ago when a volatile magical artifact had destabilized in the middle of being transported to the other side of the city. Several restaurants and other shops had been entirely obliterated. The tragedy had then been transformed into a hot-button issue into the safety and practicality of the newer developments into magic power and technology.
Discord continued without missing a beat. "All five foals were orphaned in the incident, and you made it your mission to gain custody of the foals so they wouldn't be separated by the system, and would be raised together as their families intended. The legal battle was settled in record time, thanks to everyone being incredibly touched by your story, and now you have decided to move to a small town and start over with your brother," he gestured to Spike, "Emerald Stone, to help you raise little Pinkie Berry, Shy Leaf, Rare Heart, Rainbow Dancer, and Applejack."
Twilight slowly covered her face with her hooves. "Discord...nopony, is ever going to believe that. Ever. It’s absolutely ridiculous!"
"Oh ye of little faith." Discord grinned, "if anyone chose to look into your story, they would find it completely airtight. They could talk to the judge who granted you custody, look up the five families killed in the disaster, even find records of you attending several writing seminars. In fact, you'll find ponies who vaguely remember hearing about it, though they aren't sure where..."
Twilight pursed her lips.
"You're welcome, by the way." Discord prompted.
"That still won't stop Celestia from catching on in a hot second. The names are practically the same, you didn't even change Applejack's!"
A grin from Discord. "You forget how good I am at hiding things. All those names? Even yours? They're everywhere. Unique as dirt. Did you know there are over seven hundred Rainbow Dancers in this county alone?" A smug expression crossed his face. "In fact, I think I've outdone myself. This town is pretty tiny, and not too immersed in magictech, so you shouldn't have to worry about too many pictures or documents of your little family getting into the word, and you should have individual recognition covered with your library of perception manipulation spells. I'll keep Celestia looking in all the wrong places and as long as you-" An eagle talon booped Twilight on the nose, "don't do anything stupid....you're golden."
Twilight made a grudging expression. "I hate to admit it...but you're good, Discord"
"Aren't I always." The draconequus gave a theatrical bow, he handed her a card with a handwritten address on it. "Look for Seaside Library and a pony named Banned Books. They've agreed to let you stay in the loft above the place until you can find a home."
Discord gave a quick salute and raised a paw to snap himself into a puff of smoke, before pausing. "Oh...and, Sparkle?"
Twilight looked up, "hmm?"
"Take care of yourself, eh?"
A tiny smile tugged at Twilight's lips. "I'll try...thanks."
Then Discord was gone.
Slowly, Twilight stood up, picked up the foals in her magic, and distributed them between her and Spike's back, comfortably nestled between their saddlebags. They had nothing else. A nervous quietness hung between them.
"So...how do I look as a stallion?" Spike asked, he shook his green mane and gave an awkward laugh.
"You look fine Spike." Twilight said softly, before nudging him in the ribs and added with a sardonic smirk "We'll have to beat the mares away with a stick"
They both chuckled, an actual laugh this time, then walked to the door, pausing there. Twilight took a deep breath, leaning her shoulder against Spike's. "Here we go."
Then she stepped outside.
This chapter has a lot of errors and could really benefit from some proof reading but i'm still enjoying it a lot. Cant wait for more.
Still wondering what Celestia even did, although I assume it's bad... Also, inb4 Twilight pens Twilight.
Brilliant job mate! I think you did Discord quite well, putting him into a more business man facade was perfect. I've often seen Discord be a sort of man of business in fanfiction, and you hit the nail on the head with this. Call me a satisfied customer!
that was good, very good. though i have to wonder why thingsw went sour once more with discord.
and am i detecting a time skip?
Why is Celestia trying to find Twilight and kill her foals again?
Twilight possessiveness of her foals/friends is showing. She is never going to let them live their own lives. After they die again, she'll just bring them back to life again. And again, and again, and again, she's not doing this for her friends, she's doing this for herself.
The fact Twilight was like she was to Discord for touching Fluttershy (in spite of the fact Fluttershy, the cray baby, wasn't upset to be near him, should have said something that Twilight didn't want to hear).
To be frank, the sooner these foals are away rom Twilight's hooves the better. She'll protect them, she'll blow up a city to protect them. But she's never going to let them live their own unique independent lives, and she'll never let them go, ever.
4835686
Or what Discord did, for that matter; why did Twi and Spike reacted that way when he got close to the foals (including Fluttershy)?
Argh! I so wanna know what happened before!!! So many questions, very few answers! It's maddening, but addicting!
4835743 okay i think you are thinking too darkly here. is there a risk for that behavior? yes. however what seems to have triggered this situation is less that they and more that something happened to them. they did not live their full lives.
she is terrified of their lives being stolen once again. not to mention that it is likely maternal instincts are mixing into her fear and paranoia. not to mention they are only a month old.
........a thought just occured to me. do any of her friends posses memories of their old lives?
4835754 To be fair, she did go through all the trouble of bringing them back to life through a laborious and probably taboo (11 months I think?) magical pregnancy. I very much doubt she'd let her own parents touch the foals were they still alive.
A very nice Chapter. Can't wait to read more :)
4835809 He does have a point that the situation could escalate into the total mess he just described.
What is Twilight's long term plans? they can't hide forever. Dash and Pinkie will make that impossible as they get older.
MOAR NOW if that's alright with you
I had put this on my "read later" list when the first installment was posted. Definitely following it from now on.
4835856 i kinda admitted that point. it has the potential. still spike is there to keep that from happening.
Pretty good job, Discord, kinda wonder what's Spike's back-story, though?
Does this mean Spike will age as an Unicorn or is it 100% illusion?
Great chapter, by the way.
Something tells me I'm going to like this story. I'm going to like this story a lot.
New Identities...
Undercover Sparkle Starts NOW!!!
Pretty good chapter, and as you open Celestia's point of view in the last chapter, I feel more connected with the Story. Something that also caught my attention, was the fact that Twilight is going to live another "Life" in Ponyville but more than 300 years after the show... meaning new ponies, deal with the fact that everypony that she knew is death, and maybe new technology and stuff..., so that could represent a problem.
Nonetheless a very good chapter, and I hope you keep up the good job
4835876 XD
I also feel a burn notice feel to this story with a fake identity and new name and so on so forth
Don't get me wrong, I'm glad for the update, but the first part of the update in particular looks kinda, well, poorly edited. You may need a beta reader.
4835817
They don't, she planned to raise them as similarly as possible to make sure they would.
Which is creepy.
4835734
Because she used soul magic to rip her friends souls back into herself from the world of death, gave birth to them, and is planning on raising them up again to become substitutes for her friends again.
Needless to say Twilight handled grief in a manner that involved necromacy, and is really, really showing herself as having gone over the deep end with actual grief.
i loved this chapter! keep churning them out, and if they stay as good as this one, you'll be fine!
I'd like to think those names are common because they are in part named in honor after the bearers of the Elements.
Also it looks like Spike might need to get a job to support the family if Twilight isn't already getting some kind of royalties.
Then again there was something mentioned about a crystal with loads of bits stored in it. I'm assuming that's the equivalent to a credit/debt card.
4836146 necroamncy? well her medium was natural even if the means were more complicated than that.
and yeah she is a bit crazy. though it seems her thoughts on the matter were already changing just a month after the birth. she is viewing them as much as her own children as her friends now, perhaps more. though now a wrench has been thrown into the original plan even further.
we will have to see if they retain theri memory. they certainly retain theri identity.
either way there is one thing certain. they eased the madness in her head more than a little.
4836242
She used Necromacy to rip their souls from the nether, drag them inside her, give birth to them and still plans to raise them as carbon copies of their former selves, and likely considering her efforts thus far when they die again she will raise them in an eternal cycle of friendship.
I'd say she's still pretty much deep in "Madness" just her trying to justify it better.
Ah! I was hoping Discord would make an appearance, and I wasn't dissapointed! (Well, just a little bit that Twi is still so standoffish with him, although at the moment she's like a mama lion protecting cubs.) I'm guessing he's the one who warned her, from that one cryptic line, about Celestia? No? Not sure if I'm interpreting it right.
I got a good laugh about AJ still being AJ since generation one. Of course, there was a g1 Rainbow Dash too, but she was more of a.. Well, not-awesome. Always dresses in style! Five bucks says Rainbow doesn't much like the 'Dancer' bit.
With a name like Banned Books, I wonder what their host will be like? And gosh, does this make Spike Rarity's pony daddy? Or maybe he's just that weird boyfriend who comes around to drink all of Twi's beer and spoil the kids rotten once in a while.
Unless they're siblings. They are both purple.
4836146 Twilight at any age has a history of not handling things well, and maybe a wee bit of hubris when it comes to her own intellect/power. Maybe she is a bit nuts. Maybe she did terrible things to the natural order of the universe (although turning frogs into oranges and such might mean it wasn't much of a stretch.) Sure, agreed! But she didn't bring them back as shambling corpse zombies or make magical simalcrums (simalcri?) to mimic her friends in life. She just made bebbehs with old souls out of not just grief, but friendship and love.
Friendship is necromancy! Yay!
I suppose I've always thought immortals have a tendency to go mad sooner or later, even if they recover from it. Is there a such thing as a sane madness? If so, that's totally Twilight.
Okay. Before I say anything of Twilight's behavior, I would like to know the full story. Mainly, what happened to her friends originally?
4836351
Necromacy does have more fields then zombies and liches, usually involving souls what with it being literally "The study of Death" and all, but who knows what happens if you constantly force a soul to inhabit a body over and over and over.
4836432 I guess it varies depending on which fantasy version of necromancy is being used! I suppose I still think of resurrection/life magic being a priest or druid thing.. Well, guess we'll all hold on and see, there's definitely a chunk of missing backstory which would explain so much.
4836432 necromancy is evil if misused. thinking about it, she did not really fuck the cycle of life up. she simly bent a rule or two.
4836492
Problem is we don't really know if she fucked it up or twisted it around her finger and then shattered it.
4836476
I suppose that's true, the thing about those realities is that there is a natural system in place for resurrections, she's using a spell long forgotten to twist things into her favor where there is no known domains. Unlike the revolving door and domains of the gods of Dungeons and Dragons.
especially when rarity grows up again, or is that a bad thing to think?
4835901 I sure hope Spike is up to the challenge of keeping Twilight from going of the deep end.
4836476
You heal someone in the name of the gods and you're a fine upstanding citizen, but when you do the same thing without some god's approval suddenly you're a pariah. e_e
i.imgur.com/9Xb47XN.jpg
4836635
Oh jeez, now filly Rarity is going to have a crush on Spike.
4836691 oh man the tables have been turned! the overly young one will be into the older one!
Pony librarian you must include this!
4836687 She's an alicorn! Can't she be her own god? Or at least say, 'well, I'm the avatar of Magic, and thus have divine mandate'?
4835743
Would a mother not do anything to protect her children? Is it crazy to protect the one bright spot in your long life safe from others who would take that away from you?
Twilight Sparkle, like most people, never did get over her friends' deaths. They were like family to her. I know I would jump at the opportunity to bring back the lives of friend or family. Also, Twilight did want the foals to live their lives as closely as possible to her late friends.
4835743 First, unless the memories from their previous lives leak through to the reincarnations, I see no problem with bringing them back. Second, the whole 'she'll never let them go' thing is probably a problem for any mother, friend, or family member, so Its more likely to add(or prove) true bonds between them. Third, your grammar and errors are killing your credibility.
4836008 yes.
Twilight Prose? I like it. Discord seems to have done remarkably well in his mission. I suspect that we'll be in for some rather interesting adventures shortly.
I loved Discord in this! You wrote him beautifully
Great chapter, excited for more!
enjoyable, but is twilight still an alicorn, just hiding her wings with her magic, or did discord turn her back into a unicorn. if the latter, that's not good. twilight should stay an alicorn, even if just hiding her wings with magic.
4837723 dang i lose
Okaaaaay, I didn't see that coming, but nice job surprising me.
I've been waiting for another chapter for a while, and I wasn't disappointed
GJ