Crystal Heart

by Luna Nightshade

Chapter 3 - Waking Memories

Celestia fought her way through the snow, down the slippery steps, and toward the cave she and her sister had for a home. She had tried to find more food in the Everfree Forest. The rainbow colored apples hadn’t returned, and other magical food hadn’t appeared either. At least those wolves hadn’t appeared either.

She sighed, and shook off the snow from her mane and legs before entering the cave. It was unusually warm compared to all the snow outside, and any snow that was left in her coat melted quickly. The source of that warmth was the big crystal tree that stood just in the center of the cave. It kept the bitter cold at bay. Five crystals were attached to its branches, like fruits. Inedible fruits. The trunk of the tree was marked with a sun and a moon.

Celestia walked to her sister, who was soundly asleep at the base of the tree. The blue filly, seemed to have a restful sleep for once. Celestia smiled and let her sleep. Instead she slowly went to the saddle bags that contained the little food they had. The few rainbow colored apples she had managed to harvest before the sudden snow had turned the forest into a white winter wonderland. A land where she had to wonder how to get food. They might have to leave the forest and dig for some grass outside.

Celestia blinked. Had these bags always been this askew? She opened one of the flaps and counted. There were seven apples left. That was very meager. They could get by two or maybe three more days without being hungry. Maybe more, if they allowed a little hunger to torment them.

Seven … didn’t they have an even number of apples? Had her sister woken and taken an apple? Celestia’s stomach rumbled. Being very hungry and having overly delicious food didn’t mix well. She hadn’t eaten for quite some time. One more apple wouldn’t hurt …It would hurt, but she had been out foraging for supplies, and she needed some strength. She walked back to her sister, and settled down next to her. The warmth radiating from the tree managed to banish the cold from her bones. Celestia carefully extended a wing over her sister’s body, careful not to wake her. She was rewarded with a smile from the blue filly. The rainbow apple kept floating next to her. She fought with herself, whether or not she should eat it now. They were so short on supplies, but she needed strength, especially if she needed to go even further to find new food. Something about this sudden winter just felt wrong, really wrong.

Celestia didn’t know how long she just sat there, staring at the apple, but at some point, Luna stirred. The little filly stretched hooves and wings, so that Celestia had to retract hers. “Good morning, Lu”, she said, and smiled.

“Morning, Tia”, the filly answered and snuggled into Celestia’s fur. “Is it time for breakfast?”

She smiled. Her little sister had developed an affinity for sleeping through the day; whether she slept through the night as well, was on a different hoof. As she woke particularly early, she had found Luna at the cave entrance, gazing at the stars, but that had been one of the few days when there was no snow.

“We need to save as much of our food as possible”, she explained her. “No midnight snacks, and no midday snacks, understood?”

Luna nodded. “I haven’t touched the bags”, she answered.

“Then one of the apples must’ve gotten away while you slept.”

“They can do that?” Luna sounded genuinely surprised.

“Apparently they can”, Celestia answered, and split the apple. “Can you stand guard while I sleep?”

“Of course, sister”, Luna said, and she seemed proud have been asked. When food was as scarce as it was, it easily became a very precious resource.

“Good”, she said and hoofed Luna the apple. Maybe she just miscounted before. Or could the filly be so proficient at lying? She didn’t want to think so, not when it was crucial that they could count on each other. She bit into the apple and looked to the tree, hoping that it could answer her plight.

The apple’s taste was as crisp, sweet, and full of flavor as she remembered; It was as if someone had combined all her favorite fruits into one perfect blend. The taste chased any doubt she had about Luna away. She looked at the little filly, noticing only moments later, that her sister had vanished. But her sister wasn’t the only thing that had vanished. The stone floor of the cave had been replaced by lush, green grass. The cave had made place for a beautiful blue summer sky. The only things that remained was the Tree of Harmony, and her. Could it be that she was dreaming?

She had been here before. At least once. The tree bore something akin to a crystal fruit, that looked red, and ripe for the taking. It was attached to the countless crystal “vines” that hung from its branches. She got up, much taller now than in the other part of the dream. She extended her wings and started to flap them gently, but rhythmically. She was on one level with the “fruit” in front of her. Never before had she seen the tree bear fruit in such a fashion. She stared into the red, and felt as if she was drawn in …

There was a big hole in the ceiling, probably caused by magic. Stones at fallen and broken on the marble floor. Many runes had been painted on the walls, and they were magically active. Or were. Now they only flickered with the glow of magic. Their spell had been broken by the blast that left the hole in the ceiling. It was the room she had prepared. The room where they had started to remove the nightmarish presence from Luna’s memoryscape. But if everything was in this state … No! This couldn’t be! They couldn’t fail. She couldn’t fail her sister! What had gone wrong? She looked around. A black crystal lay where the crystal they had channeled the darkness into used to be. Shattered. Three pieces, enveloped in a dark aura. How could this be? Was this really too much for this one crystal?

“Celestia, show yourself!” The angry voice from outside sent a shiver down her spine. This wasn’t a memory. This was too real. Why? Why hadn’t she been able to save her? Why had history this need to repeat itself?

“The crystal! We should get the crystal!” another voice added. Was that Twilight? Was she working with the Nightmare? How could this project have gone this wrong? Her magic aura wrapped around the three pieces of crystal. Although it was broken, it was still filled with dark magic. Dark magic that the Nightmare couldn’t be allowed to have. She galloped to the door, opened it, and everything shifted. She felt as if she needed to puke, only to look into the eyes of her sister, and Twilight. Or more the nightmare versions of them. Twilight’s fur was dark purple, her eyes discolored and slitted.

“Dear Princess Celestia”, she intoned as if she would write her a letter, her voice slowly slipping from a friendly tone into a threatening one. “It is time for you to die!”

Everything around her exploded all at once, pieces of crystal flew everywhere, for a moment she saw the fruit hanging on the Tree of Harmony, black, as if it had become foul. It grew into Nightmare Moon, and her teeth snapped at Celestia’s throat.

She woke, panting heavily. She shivered despite the warmth of her bed … It had all the makings of a vision, but it was far more disturbing. If it was true, then this project would be going to hell one way or another. She needed to keep the one crystal filled with darkness safe. And then … Then she needed to make sure that her vision wouldn’t be coming true.

- [ § ] -

Luna walked along a path made of countless stars within her dreams- There were many doors to the left and the right that would lead to other ponies’ dreams. This night she wasn’t looking for a pony that was plagued by a nightmare. This time she was looking for a very particular door. A door made of a big book. If everything went according to plan, then Twilight was home now, and already within the realm of sleep. The doors were never at the same place, but they always had the same look, their design connected to the interests and the special talent of that pony. It took her quite a while to arrive at the book that represented Twilight’s dreams. She probably had had trouble falling asleep. Luna opened the book-door - it only allowed to be opened to a particular page - and stepped into the page that represented the doorway into Twilight’s dreams.

Luna, of course, stepped into a library. Books were flying around, some came out of their shelves, others flew back to them, resting once more on the wooden boards. This library was alive, maybe even organizing itself. In midst all of this sat a single pony on a single desk, reading a book, and scratching notes with a quill on a scroll next to her.

As soon as Twilight would become aware of Luna, she would become a lucid dreamer. A few ponies had trouble staying in that state for long, but she had confidence, that Twilight would be able to go through a few lessons with her. There was no need to make a flashy entrance, no need to create a doorway - the book she had come through was neatly tucked in a corner - and thankfully there was no nightmare to battle. Some part of Twilight expected Luna to show up, which allowed her much easier access to the dream than she would have had otherwise.

“Greetings, Twilight, and sweet dreams”, Luna said.

“Princess Luna!” Twilight closed her book and scrambled to her hooves. “What are you doing in … my … home … oh …”

“I guess you didn’t fall asleep in bed?”

“I … wanted to, but I wanted to write a few things down first, and then … you appeared.” She blinked. “Do I drool when I sleep? Please tell me I do not drool!” Twilight almost shook Luna.

“I don’t know”, Luna sighed. “And it doesn’t matter.” She cast a spell, taking control of Twilight’s dream world. One of the books fluttered close, started to grow, and open its pages. It stopped growing as it was a bit larger than Luna. The page showed a drawing of a door, and the page beside it read gibberish. Luna reached for the door’s handle, and pulled it open. “Follow me”, she said to the young princess.

“Are spells in the dream world really that different from the ones cast in the waking world?” Twilight followed Luna to the book.

“Spells cast within the dream world are essentially different from those cast in the waking world, as my sister has now power in the dream world. And both magics are different from that of the astral. You should be able to cast spells there, since you became a princess, but usually no unicorn, pegasus, nor earth pony can use any magic in the astral.”

They stepped onto another floor made of stars. It was similar to the plane that allowed her access to the dreams of everypony.

“I remember this place”, Twilight said. “This is where I landed when I fixed Starswirl’s spell.”

“Welcome to the astral plane”, Luna said. “Only very few ponies have made it here, even less with their own body. It is far easier to reach with just your mind: Being here with your physical body can result in a … transformative experience.” Luna pointed to Twilight’s wings with her own.

“Didn’t you want to teach me about dream magic?”

“Yes, and no”, Luna answered. “Dreams are a part of our mind, as are memories. We are dealing with memories, which means that we need to learn how to handle those. I brought you here, because it should allow us to enter your memoryscape.”

“MY memoryscape?”

Luna nodded. “I will not risk bringing you into mine. It is far too dangerous. The only other place we can use, is your memoryscape. Practicing there will also allow you to conjure your memories far easier.”

Twilight took a deep breath. “You’re right.”

“Good. Let me teach you how to summon your memoryscape. Close your eyes.”

The young mare closed her eyes. It wasn’t a necessary step, but closing her eyes would help her to concentrate on the memories she needed to call up. Now she could see whether or not Twilight was as much of a prodigy in magic, as Celestia claimed.

“Focus on an important event of your past. It can be anything, but it should be something that has left a strong impact on your memories, something you can call up as cleanly and easily as a levitation spell. Take the first that comes to your mind.”

“I have one”, Twilight said.

“You need to imagine it as clearly as possible, try to feel it, try to see it, try to smell and taste it. Then basically cast a teleportation spell. It should allow us to jump into that memory.”

“Give … me … a … moment …” Twilight concentrated, and her horn began to glow. It was a subtle light at first, but it got stronger with every word she uttered.

There was a brilliant flash, and Luna had to close her eyes for a moment. Twilight was panting as Luna opened her eyes. She was clearly exhausted, which was expected after casting such a spell in the astral plane for the first time.

For Luna it seemed as if they hadn’t moved at all, but something had appeared. Twilight hadn’t brought them into her memory, she had brought something here. There were pictures floating, pictures showing Twilight and her friends walking through the Everfree Forest.

“This almost looks like the moment I became an alicorn”, Twilight said, walking next to Luna. “But Celestia had showed me different pictures than these.”

“Was your ascension what you focused upon?” Luna asked.

“No”, Twilight answered. “It was the moment when I realized that the others were my friends …”

Luna walked past the image. “Summoning the memory in this way isn’t enough, apparently.” She stopped at the picture where Twilight confronted Luna’s dark self. “We need to enter the memory directly.” Luna touched the picture with her hoof. She wanted to desperately erase this part of her past. This and everything that led up to it. How much would she give to change her feelings back then …

“I can try again”, Twilight offered, “but I need some time. Casting that spell took a lot out of me. I thought this was just a dream!”

“The things we do in dreams, or in the astral, still have impacts on our body. Although you didn’t cast the spell in the real world, you still cast it.” Luna turned away from the scene … or she wanted to. Something was wrong. Her hoof was stuck to the surface of the picture. No, it wasn’t just stuck, it was sucked in. Slowly at first, but the deeper it got, the stronger the pull became. She stemmed her remaining hooves into the starlit ground, and tried to dislodge herself.

“What is happening?” Twilight was at her side and tried to help her. She pushed and pull despite her own weakness, she set her hind hooves against the picture and pushed. But instead of coming lose, they were now both pulled into the picture. “Luna?” Twilight asked just before both of them disappeared in the strange phenomenon.

They were thrown on the hard stone floor of Celestia’s and Luna’s old castle. She quickly scrambled to her hooves. This hadn’t been her plan at all, and even for the realms of dreams, memories, and the astral, it just seemed off.

What was standing in front of Luna was a bad trip down memory lane. Nightmare Moon stared at them. She was neither a portrait nor a simple statue. This was who she had been.

Twilight was still struggling to get to her hooves. “You’re kidding. You are kidding, right?” the Nightmare asked. This was wrong. Twilight hadn’t been like this - without wings, struggling to stand.

“How fortunate”, the Nightmare suddenly said. The memory was reacting to them. That shouldn’t be possible. “Let me remind you why you became … ME.” The Nightmare stormed at Luna, her dark magic blazing. She had just enough time to jump out of the way.

“I have the resolve to do the things you can’t do!” The Nightmare turned and looked to Luna. All these ponies need to be taught a lesson!” The Nightmare went slowly closer to Luna. “Tell me: Have things really improved? Doesn’t everypony still look to your sister, instead of you?”

“They respect me”, Luna shouted. “This is nothing like the past!”

“Is it now?” The Nightmare smiled, showing her sharp teeth. “You put your life, your sanity on the line every night, and your sister? She just negotiates with those ponies. She just talks. And yet she is far more respected than you are.”

“That’s not true”, Luna answered, a bit less certain than she wanted to be.

“You know that you want me back. Even if you don’t want to fight your sister, you appreciate my strength, my resolve to deal with any problem in a more permanent matter … The Tantabus is proof!”

“The Tantabus was a mistake”, Luna spat back.

“You won’t convince her”, Twilight said, finally standing on her hooves once more. “Everypony in ponyville respects and love her!”

“Ah, yes. Equestria’s newest princess … although you are old news.” The Nightmare turned to her. “I have to thank you. You’re keeping my memory alive. Quite literally, if I might add.”

“Why are you here?” Twilight grit her teeth.

“Ah yes. The core of the matter. The rotten core of the apple …” She walked a bit closer to Twilight. “Tell me, why should I give that information? What’s in it for me?”

“You are not even real”, Luna said.

“Am I not? Are we not talking? Are you not wondering how I … can be?” The Nightmare shook her head. “You know nothing. Nothing about me, and nothing about what will happen!”

“But you do?” Twilight asked mockingly.

The Nightmare grinned.

“Twilight, we should leave”, Luna said.

“Very well. Go on. Leave me here.” The Nightmare waved with a wing. “I don’t need either of you meddling in my affairs.”

“Is it safe?” Twilight wondered.

“Yes, Luna. Tell her. Is it safe?” The Nightmare’s grin grew, showing even more teeth.

“Neither option is safe. But in here … we are powerless.”

The Nightmare kept quiet. Which meant that leaving was probably the best idea.

“How … do we leave?” Twilight asked.

“Leave that to me”, Luna answered and walked over to Twilight.

“Good bye”, the Nightmare said, far to pleasantly. “I am sure we’ll see each other, soon.”

Luna teleported both of them into one of her memories.

As she opened her eyes, somepony tugged at her mane. “Uhh, Princess Luna. I know there’s not gonna be anymore Nightmare Night”, a young white colt with brown splotches in his fur said. “But do you suppose, maybe, you could come back next year, and scare us again, anyway?”

Luna smiled at the memory, then dismissed it, bringing both of them back to the Astral Plane. “Twilight”, she turned to the other princess, putting a hoof to her chest. She retracted it before Twilight could notice that it was shaking. “I am sorry for what has happened.” She sighed, putting the hoof on the ground. “We need to get the Nightmare out of your memoryscape, somehow.” The Nightmare could be a parasite. A parasite that infected one’s memoryscape, and blocked access to certain memories, allowing her to take over.

“I think I know how”, Twilight said. “I’ve studied Celestia’s spells. I should be able to remove her.”

“You need a crystal for this to work”, Luna cautioned.

“I know where to get a crystal”, Twilight smiled. “Rarity collects thousands of them. She should be able to give me one that is suitable to hold the Nightmare.”

“Good”, Luna took a deep breath. “Time is of the essence.” And getting a suitable crystal from the Crystal Empire would take days. If not more. “How long do you think this will take?”

“I believe I’ll be done in about two hours.”

“I will meet you in two hours time, then”, Luna answered. “I would bring Celestia, but she has duties to perform.”

Twilight nodded. “Don’t worry. I should be able to cast the necessary spells.”

Luna inclined her head. “I believe you, Twilight. You should go now. There is no time to waste.” She cast a spell that connected the Astral Plane back to Twilight’s dream. They stepped through the doorway, out of the book, and back into the dream library.

“Good Luck”, Luna said, before leaving Twilight’s dream. She turned into several books that flew off, like a flock of bats fleeing from an intruder.

Luna awoke in her bed, panting heavily. Her room was still dark, and the shadows seemed to move.

“You know that you want me back.” The Nightmare’s voice echoed in her mind. Or was it one of the shadows in her room? Luna used her magic to open the curtains, allowing the morning sunlight into her room. It banished the deepest shadows, calming her heart. Only then did she realize that she was afraid of the dark. The Princess of the Night was afraid of the dark …

- [ * ] -

Twilight felt stiff all over as she woke. Her desk was littered with scrolls and blotches of ink from a fallen quill. Her notes were safe. Although she drooled, her spit had somehow avoided her scribblings. She had managed to record most of Sombra’s memories. It was just too bad that she couldn’t read the scripts Sombra held in his magic. That would have been invaluable.

She got to her hooves, and stretched. She needed to write these things down, properly. She just had to go and buy new scrolls. And maybe quills. Wasn’t there something else that she needed to get? There was something about last night … She looked back to her scrolls, hoping that they would help her remember.

Yesterday she had accompanied Celestia and Luna into the Moon Princess’ memoryscape, where they unwillingly witnessed another set of memories. Those were the ones she had tried to write down. Then Luna told her that they would meet in their dreams. They did meet, but they also met somepony unexpected. Well, half unexpected. She remembered clearly how the Nightmare spoke to Luna. But was that in her dreams? Or her memories? No, it wasn’t her dreams, they had left those to venture into her memoryscape. Then it was in her memories. But that didn’t make any sense. She remembered going into the castle of the two sisters in search for the Elements of Harmony, but then she only recalled how the Nightmare spoke to Luna. But Nightmare Moon and Princess Luna were the same pony. The only logical conclusion was that her memories had been altered. Or something like that.

At the end of this, she had promised Luna something. She wanted to prepare … and remove the Nightmare from her memories. But wouldn’t she then forget the Nightmare completely? Something just didn’t add up.

She had to restore her memories. But would removing the Nightmare do the trick? Could she trust Luna’s judgement? Could she trust Luna at all? She shook her head. Of course she could trust her, she was … reformed? She couldn’t remember her being reformed. She could remember her coming back from the Moon as Nightmare Moon. She could remember that she was able to shift back and forth between her current look and that of the Nightmare. She could also remember how she created the Tantabus to … to what? To escape the realm of dreams and plunge Equestria into Chaos … ?

She had to remove the Nightmare from her memories first, then she could work on restoring them, and then she could see the truth about Princess Luna. But to be safe, she would have to do this alone. But how? From what she remembered of Celestia’s spell, she would need a crystal. Then she could seal the Nightmare in the crystal. But she couldn’t just capture the Nightmare, create a stream through herself, and shield her thoughts at the same time. Even Celestia managed only two of these spells at the same time.

Too bad she couldn’t just bring the crystal into the memoryscape with her … or could she? She needed a point of reference on both sides, connect them using a similar method she used on the magic mirror, and she would have a portal. Which meant that she needed another magic mirror, and a crystal.

First things first: Get a mirror. Then, go to Rarity and get a flawless crystal. She should also get the necessary spells from the “Starswirl the Bearded”-wing of the Canterlot Archive. With that she could get to her own memoryscape and seal the Nightmare. After that she could go back to Rarity, and have her use the memory restoration spell on Twilight. She took a scroll and quickly pinned down what she wanted to do. It always helped to have a To-Do-List. Especially if you just couldn’t trust your own memories …

- [ + ] -

Celestia walked down the corridor, Kibitz at her side. Her magic was busy at work, raising the sun. Her mind was at work on how to solve Luna’s problem. Kibitz was at work telling her about today’s schedule. She didn’t listen. Usually it wasn’t necessary because he reminded her before every appointment once again; but sometimes she had to make mental notes about certain … dignitaries. This time Luna was much more important. She wouldn’t lose her again. She had seen the vision. A vision that spelled doom for her, and for Equestria. She couldn’t let that happen. She wouldn’t let that happen.

But what could’ve been the problem? Did the crystal break before or after her sister would turn into Nightmare Moon again? It doesn’t matter. She could store this crystal away and use a new one for the next bit of darkness. That way she could minimize the risk.

“Kibitz?”

“Y… yes your majesty?” The stallion was startled slightly at her sudden request.

“Would you please order new flawless crystals from the Crystal Empire? First Grade. And by Courier.”

“Very well, I’ll put out the order as soon as possible.”

“Thank you, Kibitz.” Both he and Raven were her most trusted aides. They got the job done, and they didn’t ask unnecessary questions.

Her mind wandered back to the vision. The wards on the wall hadn’t been able to contain the Nightmare, and she would corner her. That much was clear. There had been no clues as to why Luna would fall again. Maybe it was because it was already set into motion? She had shielded her mind from the effects of the dark energy, but neither Luna nor Twilight had been shielded.

She would need to keep an eye on them. But what should she do, if either of them showed signs of falling to the darkness? Maybe she could do something preemptively? They were already deep within Luna’s mind, and she just couldn’t probe any deeper. The real problem was Twilight -

“Your majesty!?” Kibitz raised his voice.

“Sorry, Kibitz. What is the matter?”

“You seem very absent minded today”, he said. “Maybe you’d like me to cancel Morning Court?”

Celestia sighed. As much as she wanted to … “No, I can’t be absent from court again, after yesterday”, she answered. She somehow had to balance all her problems. She made a mental note to speak to Twilight about these problems.

“Very well”, he said, and continued. “As I said, there are a few ponies that were dissatisfied with yesterday’s rulings.”

“They are always dissatisfied. I trust that neither Twilight nor Luna would have ruled any differently than I. Tell me, are these dissatisfied ponies part of the nobility?”

“Ah, yes.”

“Then their dissatisfaction tells me that everything is alright.”

“I shall inform them that these rulings were in your spirit.”

“Thank you”, she said, and entered the throne room. There were a lot of familiar faces. Probably the usual ponies with their usual requests. Which allowed her to concentrate more at the problem at hoof.

She had to put some safeguards in place, should worse come to the worst. She had no access to the Elements of Harmony, but maybe she could still seal the Nightmare with enough time to prepare. She even had a rough estimate on where she would emerge. This would allow her to create a banishment sphere by strategically placing a few enchanted objects within the castle.

“Silver Tongue.” The guard announced the first petitioner. The name was unfamiliar to her.

"We now live in modern times", the gray stallion began. "The world opens to us, and we're opening to the world. Many ponies I know want to visit faraway lands like Saddle Arabia. Or Yak Yakistan. But they can't. They are financially bound, and even if they were to work more, it doesn't become viable." He walked a bit closer and levitated a scroll in his silver glowing magic. "I propose that taxes should be lowered for those that choose to work more. It won't generate more income for the crown, but there also won't be less. But it will enable ponies to realize their dreams."

Celestia took the scroll in her magic. "I will look at it", she said. "And if there aren't any problems, consider it accepted."

"Thank you, your majesty."

She nodded in acknowledgment and turned her thoughts once more to the problem at hoof. She needed even more crystals, maybe even a big one, and she would need to plant the objects in strategic locations, one of which was Luna’s room. Redecorating her room without permission was probably the trickiest part about the spell.

“Please include two crystals in the size of a pony in the order to the crystal empire”, she whispered to Kibitz as the guard announced the next petitioner. As for Luna … she would need to get her something she always wanted. Then she’d get away with a little redecorating.

She could only hope that she wouldn’t need to use that spell.

Please, sister. Endure. I don’t want to lose you again!

- [ § ] -

Luna paced inn her room. Two hours. Why had she agreed to meet in two hours? Why not right away? How much damage could the Nightmare do in two hours? She couldn't remember how her memories faded or whether they faded at all.

What should she do, if Twilight suddenly became ... Midnight Sparkle? Or however she would call herself then? Maybe she should ask Celestia ... No she couldn't just disturb Morning Court.

But maybe she could meet Twilight earlier. And then? Remind her constantly that she had a Nightmare in her memories? But maybe that would even allow the Nightmare to destroy her memories more easily ... Or it could hamper the progress.

She just couldn't stand around and do nothing.

Luna left the castle on the shortest way possible, while she pictured the sky above Ponyville in her mind. As soon as she had left the castle, and had a clear picture in her mind, she extended her magic, charged her horn, and pulled herself through. She didn’t even notice the sounds of magic and displaced air, while Canterlot around her was replaced by the air above Ponyville.

Twilight's crystal castle stood at the edge of the town. Luna didn't bother to land, she just flew to the balcony and stormed through the doors.

"Twilight? Twilight Sparkle? I've come to assist thee!"

"Twilight left some time ago. She was in a hurry", a young male voice answered. Spike answered from some room in the castle. He came out, carrying some books. "Do you want to leave her a message?"

"Do you know where she's gone?"

He shrugged. "Beats me. But I guess she has gone to order a mirror, as she wanted me to free some space for a new one."

Luna turned and jumped off the balcony, letting her wings catch air. Why would Twilight want a mirror? This wasn't the time to redecorate her castle! Luna needed to find her. She had to search for the mare.

But where in Ponyville would she get a mirror?

- [ * ] -

"Hello, Darling", Rarity greeted her. "So nice dor you to stop by."

"Hello Rarity", Twilight said. "Do you have a few moments?"

"Of course, dear. Do you need a new dress for some royal business?"

"I have a favor to ask of you. Actually two, but the first is much more pressing."

"Of course, Twilight. What is it?"

"I need a flawless crystal."

"That's no problem. But what for?"

"I need it to sort out a few memories", Twilight answered. "Which is also why you need to perform the same memory spell on me that I used when we first met Discord."

"I'm not very sure about this. Wouldn't it be better to ask somepony else?"

"We need similar memories for it to work. It's basically just a forceful reminder of what happened."

"I see", Rarity nodded. "I will try, but I won't make any promises. But Twilight ..." She touched Twilights shoulder with her hoof. "May I ask why?"

"I'm not quite sure. Ask me again, when I've sorted this all out?"

"Very well. But promise me to come to me when there is the slightest problem."

Twilight nodded. "I promise." This made Rarity smile.

"Now then, let's find you the perfect crystal." She walked to one of the chests in her boutique and got a few dozens of crystals. She examined all of them fairly quickly. "No, no, not this one, maybe this", she sorted them quickly in two piles, the larger one the rejected crystals, and the smaller one the maybes. Then she did it once more before coming to Twilight. "This is as flawless as I can give you on short notice", she said.

The crystal looked amazing. It had a clear uniform blue color, had a symmetric shape, and no visible imperfections. "This one is perfect."

"The color is slightly off for a sapphire." Rarity shook her head. "I could give you the heart shaped ruby I got from Spike ..."

"No, no. I'm sure this one is fine for my purpose. Thank you, Rarity." Twilight took the gem in her magic and put it into her saddle bags.

"Don't worry about it.” Rarity waved her off with a hoof. “Now then. How do I perform this memory spell?"

"I’ll tell you later. For now I need to sort out my memories. Then we can think about restoring them."

"All right. You know these magic things better than I."

"Thanks again, Rarity. I'll come back to you." Twilight turned away and walked out. On the way she scratched the gem off of her list. The mirror was ordered, and should arrive soon enough. Next on her list were Starswirl’s spells. They were kept in the Canterlot Archives, which meant that she had to fly to Canterlot. She could only hope that she made it before her deadline. Two hours. And roughly thirty minutes had already gone by. She was on a very tight schedule.

Twilight spread her wings, and took to the skies, heading toward Canterlot.

- [ § ] -

Luna sighed heavily. The shop pony didn’t even know who the Princess of Friendship was, and even Princess Twilight Sparkle only slowly ringed a bell for him. It was as if sprouting wings wasn’t enough for everypony to immediately recognize a princess. Now she at least got to know that Twilight had, indeed, ordered a large mirror, but he didn’t know where else she’d gone. That meant she had to ask the citizens of Ponyville, just to get to know where Twilight had gone.

“Hey, Luna!” A pink pony suddenly appeared in front of her. “Are you here for another Nightmare Night party?”

“Greetings, Pinkie”, she sighed. “No, I’ve -”

“Come to find Twilight, because she has a living Nightmare in her memories, and you want to make sure she gets rid of it before anything happens?”

The pink pony was sometimes really frightening. “Something like that”, she answered. “Do you know where-”

“Twilight has gone? No, beats me.”

“How can you know why I am here, and not where Twilight has gone?”

“Eh. Lucky guess”, Pinkie shrugged.

Luna blinked. How could something so specific be a lucky guess? “And if you had to guess where Twilight is right now?”

“Oh, silly”, Pinkie waved off, “it doesn’t work like that. You can’t make me tell you what you need to know.”

Luna sighed. “Thank you anyways, Pinkie.”

“Well, good luck. I’m off to get sunscreen.”

Luna shook her head. That pony was and would forever stay a mystery to her. Still, she could visit her friends and ask them. They probably were her best chance to find Twilight.

She looked around and got her bearings. The one who lived close by was Rarity, and Rarity’s boutique was … over there, with over there being on the opposite site of the town. Taking a deep breath, she spread her wings, and took the most direct route. Luna opened the doors, not caring for any formalities. She was in a hurry, and who would knock on a boutique anyway?

A bell rang, and one mare shouted from the back “one moment please.” It took about two minutes until the mare in question came to the front; an eternity in Lunar Time. Luna managed to only tap her hoof while she waited. “Oh, hello, princess”, Rarity said. “Is there something you need?”

“In fact, there is. Do you happen to know where Twilight Sparkle is?”

“Twilight? She was just here minutes ago.” Rarity came a few steps closer. “Does this, by chance, have anything to do with her needing to sort out her memories?”

“Unfortunately it does.” Luna answered truthfully. It was a good thing that Twilight was preparing, but it still didn’t answer why she ordered a mirror. “’Tis of utmost importance that I find her. Did she return to her castle?”

“She came here to get a flawless crystal, and she took off shortly after that. I think she wasn’t headed to her castle, but to Canterlot.”

Canterlot? What would Twilight want in Canterlot? Had she decided to meet her in Canterlot instead? “And I only missed her by a few minutes?”

“I think so. I just made a few stitches on that dress … attaching the sleeves, and … oh my … this might have actually been half an hour. I’m sorry Prin-”

Luna’s hastily invoked teleportation spell cut out the rest of her sentence.

She reappeared high above Canterlot Castle. After orienting herself, she dove toward one of the towers, and galloped to her room. Luna stopped in front of the guard, who tried to be as inconspicuous as always. She wasn’t sure whether they just wanted to give the appearance of being one with the background out of tradition, or because they didn’t want to be noticed, and given more work by her or her sister.

“Has Princess Twilight Sparkle been here?” she asked.

“No, ma'am.”

“Good. Let her in as soon as she arrives.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Luna nodded, and entered her room. Twilight should be here in a few minutes. She stifled a yawn, and looked to her bed. She would usually be asleep by now, she just needed to get past this dead point and she was good to go for a few more hours. Enough to sort out Twilight’s memories …

- [ * ] -

Twilight counted herself lucky. The first scroll was already the one she needed. It detailed not only how to open a portal to another realm, but also how to enchant a mirror, making it a permanent, and safe gateway. It cautioned from sending any person to the dream-world. Whereas a dreamer could control it, anypony physically present couldn't. A dreamer could wake, and flee easily in this manner, the intruder couldn't. But Twilight would only pass an object into her dreams, which meant she had nothing to worry about.

There was one thing she still had to figure out: She needed to lucid dream. Luna could induce that quite easily, but she couldn't trust her. Training lucid dreaming could take weeks, or even months. She also needed a reference point in the dream or the astral realm to open a portal. Maybe ...

Twilight looked through a few more scrolls, and found the one she needed. The "Mirror Mare" spell would allow her to create an exact double of herself. The only drawback was that it cut her overall strength in more than half as long as it was actuve.

She took a few quick notes, and checked her checklist once more. The mirror should have arrived by now, she had the spells, and the necessary crystal. And she had twenty minutes to return home, and implement the plan before her deadline. Too bad she didn't quite have the power to teleport there right away. But she could, maybe, cut her flight time in half. She would be exhausted, but that would also help her to fall asleep.

"Princess Twilight", a guard stopped her as she left the archives. "Princess Luna is waiting for you in her chambers."

"I ... I'll be there. Shortly." Did Luna suspect anything? "I forgot something important at home."

"I understand, and will inform the Princess."

Twilight bit her lip, then nodded. "Do that. Tell her I'll be there in ... half an hour." She didn't wait for the guard's reply, and took off. Flying, and teleporting short distances. Time was running out. Fast.

- [ § ] -

Luna walked through the darkness. She could only vaguely make out the floors and ceilings around her. Were those made of crystal? Where was she? This was neither Canterlot Castle nor their old Castle within the Everfree Forest in all its glory, as it usually manifested within her dream. This was somewhere else. She felt as if she had been here before. Had it been another dream? Or had it been in the waking world? She wasn’t sure. She felt as if she forgot something, but she couldn’t quite put her hoof to what it was.

Her heart pounded while she continued on, walking slowly through the vast halls. There was a chill in the air; in her bones. Her eyes darted from left to right, and back. The walls creaked, and her eyes, and ears, went to the source. Never finding anything. Dreading everything. She knew this feeling. She was afraid. But she couldn’t help it. She knew that this place was dangerous. Yet there was a reason to why she was here; a reason why she couldn’t leave. She just couldn’t remember what it was.

Her ears swiveled again. There was a new sound. Somepony cried quietly; She said “no” all over, and plead with … something. That pony needed her help. Luna’s pace quickened, changed from a walk to a trot, then to a canter and finally to a gallop. The sound guided her through the halls of this place. Whoever that pony was, she would be there, soon. With each corner she took, the crying got louder and clearer, the voice more familiar. Finally she arrived a large room.

A lone pony sat in front of a mirror, unmoving, and sobbing. Luna’s heart quickened its pace once more. She knew that pony: It was her sister. Celestia stared at the mirror, as if mesmerized by what she saw there. Her eyes were tinged green, tears flowed out of them, and magic leaked like dark mist from her irises. She had fallen into a trap, pleading to the mirror. “No, please … I can’t do this alone … Please … come back … This can’t be true … you can’t be …”

Luna took a deep breath, steeled herself, then walked toward Celestia. She spread her wings, and blocked the view of the mirror, pulling her sisters head to the side at the same time. She could only hope that this would break the spell.

The white alicorn looked up to her, ears pressed to her head, tears running down her muzzle. Celestia shivered, and bit her lower lip. Then the green faded from her eyes. “L… Luna”, she said, and stood up, carefully extending a hoof. Celestia touched her shoulder. “Y… you are fine.” Her older sister embraced her in a hug. “Thank goodness. I thought … I thought you were … were …”

“I am fine, sister”, she reassured her. “Nothing happened to me.”

“Oh, thank the stars. This mirror …”

“Don’t speak of it. This is all a trick.”

“Yes. It is.” She pulled back. “It’s good that you found me. Now we need to continue. I am sure that we can only defeat Sombra together.”

“Sombra …” This wasn’t a dream … not quite. It was a memory. A memory that was influencing her dreams. Yet there was still something she forgot. Something important …

“Princess?” echoed through her dream. “Princess? Princess Luna?” Something knocked on the door. Which door? Must be her door … The dream shattered into thousand pieces, and she was back in her room, looking into the brown eyes of an armored stallion. The royal guard.

“Y… yes?” She answered. She didn’t even notice that she had fallen asleep. A daydream?

“Princess Twilight said she would be here in another twenty minutes.”

Twilight! Yes, that was what she had forgotten. Usually she was up to her game, even in her dreams. But why not this time? Why had she fallen asleep in the first place? “Wait a moment! Twilight has returned home? Why?”

“She said that she forgot something important, and that she will be here in half an hour. That was ten minutes ago.”

“Thank you”, Luna nodded. But something felt off. Twilight knew that Luna was supposed to meet her in Ponyville. Why had she come here in the first place? “One more thing. Where did you find Princess Twilight?”

“She was in the Royal Canterlot Archives.” The guard supplied.

The archives? Ordering a mirror? What was she planning? Maybe it was best, if she met Twilight at home, as they had planned to. “Thank you”, she said to the guard once more, and left her room. As soon as she was in the corridor, she spread her wings. Runes stopped anypony from teleporting in or out, but nothing stopped her from flying …

- [ * ] -

After Twilight landed on the balcony of her castle, she found Spike in her study, looking at himself in the newly set up mirror. He was probably imagining himself with a mustache once more.

“Hey Twilight”, he greeted her. “Luna was searching for you; Did you meet her?”

“Not yet”, she answered. “And she might show up again.” She shook her head. “I need more time, Spike. Stall her, if necessary.”

“Stall her? But how?”

“I don’t know! Talk with her about comics, if necessary!” She took the spells from the Canterlot Archive out of her saddle bags.

“Comics? Luna doesn’t strike me as one that likes comics …”

“Try it”, she said, setting up the rest of the things she needed. “You might be surprised.”

Spike shrugged. “I could get the special issue of the Power Ponies …”

“Good Idea”, Twilight closed her eyes. “I need to concentrate.” She heard Spike leave, the patter of his feet on the crystal floor becoming quieter. First step: Create a magic clone. That alone was a high level spell, and she was probably the first pony since Starswirl, and maybe the princesses, to use it.

She felt a shiver running over her whole body as the spell created her likeness, then she provided the copy with a spell that would allow it to perform the tasks she wouldn’t be able to perform. The copy wasn’t self-aware, but would just follow a preprogrammed path. She even added a few things for distracting Luna, should it become necessary.

As she opened her eyes, she looked into her likeness. “Hello Twilight”, she said, and the clone answered: “Hello Twilight.”

“You know what you have to do?” she asked.

“Yes. Enchant the mirror with a pathway to the dream realm as soon as possible, and give you the crystal.”

“Good. Now I’ll just need to fall asleep.”

The other Twilight smirked. “Just leave that to me. I know a good way.”

“Huh?” Before Twilight understood what was happening, something hit her in the back of her head, and she blacked out.

- [ § ] -

Luna landed once more on the castle's balcony. She didn't bother to knock, and went straight inside.

"Hello Luna", Spike greeted her with Comic Books in claw.

"Greetings, Spike. Has Twilight returned?"

"Well, yes. But I was wondering if you read the latest issue of the Power Ponies?"

"The return of the Shadow Mare? I've not had the time." She walked by Spike, who's feet pattered on the ground while he kept up with her long strides.

"We could read it together!"

Luna stopped. There was no time for this right now. "Maybe later." She needed to see Twilight. Spike had used her moment of indecision to stand before her, holding the current issue before her eyes. On the cover the Shadow Mare was rising out of the combined Shadow of the six Power Ponies, her eyes glowing red. This sent a shiver down her spine.

Luna pushed Spike aside with a wing. "I am sorry, but this is more important. Twilight needs my help."

"I'm sorry, Princess. I put him up to this." Twilight walked toward her, a big smile on her muzzle. "Spike, it's okay. You can leave us now."

He shrugged. "Okay." He walked away, but turned again after a few steps. "By the way, Luna, the offer still stands." He waved the comic in the air, then left.

She smiled for a moment, then turned to Twilight. "Why would you make him stop me?"

"You see, I needed more time."

"Time for what?"

"With all the changes to my memories, I couldn't trust you. In fact, I still can't." She turned and led the way through the castle.

Luna gulped. "Then ... what did you do?"

"I came up with a method to fix myself." They entered the study where Spike had made space for a mirror. Luna walked toward it. There was only a faint reflection of herself, but nothing else in the room was visible in the cloudy surface.

"A portal mirror." Luna recognized it from Starswirl's experiments. "How did you ..."

"That was easier than you think. I just cloned myself, then used my own magic signature as a beacon to create the portal."

"Then this leads to ..."

"The dream world." Twilight smiled.

"This is dangerous", Luna exclaimed. "Nightmares could leave the dream world and manifest in reality!"

"Isn't that the whole point? Sealing a Nightmare in an object in reality?" Twilight walked next to her. "Only I seal it directly in my memory plane. You risked channeling it through your sister."

Luna looked at Twilight. Something was off about her. Her coat looked a lot darker.

"W... what is the matter with you?" She asked with a shaking voice.

Twilight went to the mirror. "I believe my spell is ending. But that also means that I, or rather Twilight, has accomplished her mission."

Suddenly a black crystal fell through the mirror.

"Is that ...?"

"Yes, that is your darker half from her memories sealed into a crystal." Twilight's colors faded more and more toward black. She almost looked like the Shadow Mare from Spike's comic.

"Do you know the one issue sealing anything into crystals has?"

Luna gulped, and shook her head.

Shadow Twilight took the crystal in her magic, lifted it above her head, as if inspecting it.

"Crystals can be awfully brittle", she said, and smashed the crystal against the ground.

A piece flew off, and black smoke fled from it like hot steam from a kettle. It formed into a black mare, wings spread, horn glowing, while Shadow Twilight faded behind her.

"Hello again, Luna", Nightmare Moon said.

Author's Note:

Well, this has been a long time in the making ... and, as I started writing again, I went back, and revisited a lot of what I have written - I made minor changes to chapter two; changes that were necessary, as it had some logic errors.
And this one - well, a lot has changed, and yet ... it's not too bad.
Hope you don't mind that I take very long posting chapters now - and sorry, but I had something different to write inbetween ... Something non-pony.