What If...

by TheMajorTechie

Starlight Glimmer never held a grudge?

Twilight set the tip of her pen down on the blank parchment and began scrawling on the paper.

What would my life be like if Starlight Glimmer never came back for revenge?

~~~o~~~

Starlight Glimmer watched from the chilling hillsides. She never thought that she could feel so wrong, stealing cutie marks from innocent ponies she had lured for years. Her head dipped low as she thought of her past actions, her intents on what to do with Twilight's cutie mark. As she slowly trudged away through the cold storm, the freezing blasts of wind suddenly died down. Noticing the sudden change, Starlight's eyes slowly drifted upwards, meeting eye-to-eye with a blue pegasus with rainbow hair. Starlight jumped back in fright. "R-rainbow?!" She looked behind the pegasus, and found to her fear that it wasn't just the speedy pegasus, but all of the mane six. "What have you come back for?!" She shouted angrily, "Why do you torment my sorrow like this?!" She began sobbing, and dropped to the ground.

Twilight slowly walked towards her. "Starlight, we didn't mean to cause any hurt feelings, we just wanted to make sure you're alright. Back when we were leaving, I looked behind us, and I saw you -- you were standing up on that mountain, and I saw that you were harshly regretting your actions. It's okay, Starlight, you don't have to beat yourself up over this.

Starlight looked back up from the hole in the snow she had made, tears still shimmering in her eyes. "Really?" she asked weakly, "You really mean it?"

Twilight nodded. "It's only fair that if you have come to acknowledge your actions, then we should at least help you get back on your hooves."

Starlight paused for a moment, and suddenly, broke back out into crying. "But why? Why must you treat me so kindly, when I practically forced communism over the ponies in Our Town?!" she took a breath to stifle her sobs. "And besides, I..." her lip began trembling. "I ... I don't have any friends... and I haven't had any since I was a filly..."

Twilight nodded in empathy. "Well, if you haven't had friends for that long, than why don't you just go out there and make another?"

Starlight's facial expression slowly twisted from a sad, depressed one to a face of anger. "Do you even know HOW I lost my ONLY friend?! " She took a step towards Twilight. "Do you know?! HUH?!"

Twilight jumped back. "No, Starlight, how?"

Starlight seethed with anger. "THAN I'LL SHOW YOU HOW!!!"

~~~Flashback~~~

Her horn lit up, and suddenly, the ponies found themselves standing at a window. Twilight looked inside, Starlight standing firmly next to her. Inside, Twilight saw a young filly who looked almost exactly like Starlight, stacking books with a young colt, when suddenly, the tower of reading material began to sway. As it began to collapse, the colt saved his friend by taking hold of all the books at once, sending them all flying back to their respectful positions on the nearby shelf. After the ordeal ended, a bright light began to shine from his flank.

Starlight turned to Twilight. She spoke firmly, "This... this was how I lost my friend."

The colt was now being carried away by his family and friends, leaving a lonely and upset filly behind on the doorstep. She began to tear up, and mumbled the words, "Goodbye..."

~~~o~~~

As the scene ended, Starlight's horn stopped glowing. As it did, the mare began to tear back up. I-I remember it all... After that day, I never made another friend... I was too afraid that another cutie mark would take them away from me..."

Twilight set a hoof on Starlight's back. "It's okay, Starlight, you have us now. We can be your friends!"

Starlight's mood lifted a little. "Really?"

Twilight turned to her friends. As they nodded, Twilight spoke gently, "Yes, Starlight. you'll never be lonely again."

~~~o~~~

Twilight set down the pen and read through her work. She turned to her proofreader and friend, Starlight Glimmer. "Like it? I based it on you."

Starlight read through it. Afterwards, she looked back at Twilight, and replied, "Yeah, I like it. I kinda wish now that that's what happened instead..."

Comments

[NicLove]

Makes me think of this
http://doublewbrothers.deviantart.com/art/Final-577958989

img02.deviantart.net/1262/i/2015/348/5/0/final_by_doublewbrothers-d9k3o0d.jpg

[lunarderpy1]

7554496 i love this comic!!!!! but, its weird.
*finishes reading* nooo, it cant end this way. the timeline will be screwed, and the season 5 finale will never happen.

[Lancerlot]

Nice. But I still climb onto my trusty soap box and claim her system was socialism rather than communism.

[titanhades70]

So it's confirmed the village was only a few months old and she had only been collecting cutie marks for less then that when the Mane 6 arrived.

[TheMajorTechie]

8607222
Honestly, aside from the potato chapter, I hardly even remember these first few chapters anymore.

[titanhades70]

Sorry. Bad habit. Just saw Rock Solid Friendship. Then I read this and just had to post.

[TheMajorTechie]

8607338
Ok.

[Moises Munguia]

Without Starlight holding a Grudge: the Equality war will not happen, M.A.T.O. was not organized, Protect Starlight did not Exist, Modeca will not be a Big Player of the Canterlot Wars, the Beamed Katana is not in production, Modeca will not be a Major Superpower, Modeca will be finished off by CG without Project Starlight, Rumble was never assanated the Fear of Equality was Week and Modeca will be a Obsolete Country until they find a Sorce Similar to Protect Starlight. (Those are my thoughts for my world)

[TheMajorTechie]

9303983
I do not understand the context of any of that. Is this an idea from an existing fanfic or something?

[Skittlebug]

Why must you treat me so kindly, when I practically forced communism over the ponies in Our Town?!"

Change to

Why must you treat me so kindly, when I practically forced facism on the ponies in Our Town?!"

Remember: communism is about the workers owning the stuff needed to make the stuff to survive, aka the means of production (farms, factories etc.) Her ideology was not that, it was a police state.

[TheMajorTechie]

9312733
I noticed. Though, given how I treat this anthology as a comedy, I usually end up leaving inaccuracies as-is within the story. I haven't bothered to come back and correct older chapters in a very long time.

I hope you understand.

[Adorkable]

Don't touch the Quantum Space Portals Of Endless Time And Possible Paradoxical Possibilities!!

~Narrows Eyes~

[titanhades70]

9312733
It was neither. It was a simple cult.

[Reactception]

I like it. It’d be great to see a whole fic based on this alternate version of events for starlight

[BezierBallad]

Remember when the chapters were 500-1000 words?

[TheMajorTechie]

11265374
pepperidge farm remembers.