Twilight's 1000th Birthday Blowout

by Cyndaquil

18 A Little Experiment

Silver Streak hovered into the building, and up three flights of stairs. Like all the robots of fun city, its arms were one of several detachable extremities, this one was meant for holding objects of medium size, and with the arm it carried a medium size potted plant.

The robot flew up to where Luna sat and placed the plant in front of her.

Princess Luna was resting her muzzle upon her hooves, purposely trying to look as bored as possible. She didn’t ask for a plant of any sort, so she eyed it suspiciously.

“Why did you bring these flowers? Is Starlight Glimmer attempting to look in on us?”

“Indoor plants are natural air purifiers, and flowers give a pleasant odour. Earlier you made a comment about the libraries must and ink smell of the library, hearing this I logically concluded you would benefit from the presence of an arranged bouquet.”

Ignoring the robot, Luna plucked a daffodil and ate it. There was no cry of pain, still she only ate the one.

“Arrghhh! Tia, are you done yet? _{Only Twilight would build a library in a theme park.}”

There was an odd rule in the library, that no ponies could borrow non-fiction books written after the time period from which they came. Luckily, this did not apply to Celestia, who was expected to stay in the current time period. It was only protected by an honour system anyhow, and a few ponies had already come to look up sports almanacs and lottery jackpots.

Celestia had only meant to borrow a history book for light reading, however she discovered this brilliant invention of the future, called microfilm, by which old (or new) newspapers were stored.

She was currently engrossed in learning how, in her absence, an elected council had been formed.

“Just a little longer Lulu, this is fascinating.”

Luna eyed the planter, ready to munch on another flower. The flowers showed no sign that they were aware of her intentions. Instead, she levitated the planter with her alicorn magic, and carried it into the study room with the microfilm projectors. On the screen was an image of Cadence and Luna, signing the declaration which effectively removed Luna from the seat of power in Canterlot, and abdicated any claim which Cadence may have to that particular throne. In the picture, Cadence wore a comforting smile as though to reassure the doubting citizens. In contrast, Luna’s expression was resigned and irritated.

Right now, and not in the picture, there was a particular expression upon Celestia’s muzzle. To most mares it would seem serious, stern at worst. Luna knew that this was in fact her angry face. Jumping to conclusions, she figured that Celestia did not approve of the declaration signing; or the formation of the democratically elected council. How was she to explain this to her sister, she still remembered the turmoil of her own feelings on the day of the signing, and how she asked herself, ‘What would my sister think of this?’

Luna stuttered slightly, unsure what to tell her. “Sister, is there anything you’d like me to explain.”

“Yes, sister!” Celestia held out a hoof, gesturing that Luna wait one moment.

She took out a smart phone, and began scrolling for something on the touch screen.

“Where did you get that?” Luna asked. It was the newest model, Luna had not even updated to that one yet.

“Flurry Heart, helped me buy it, and set it up. The young ones are quite good with these devices.”

Celestia found something on her phone. She zoomed the screen, for comfortable reading, then hoofed it to Luna.

“This is the same article you are looking at on microfilm.”

“Yes, sister, the newspaper, ‘The Canterlot Citizen,’ keeps it’s backlog on their website.”

“I don’t understand. Why are you showing me two copies of the same newspaper?”

“Compare that one to the microfilm.”

It didn’t take Luna long to spot the differences. In the microfilm version, the Chairpony of the time decreed that he would turn parliament over to Twilight Sparkle whenever she ‘felt’ ready to lead. In the version on the smart phone, it went into extensive detail describing Twilight as mentally incompetent to rule, explaining that doctors had declared it so, and stating that turning parliament over to her was an impossibility because of her ‘brain damage.’

Seeing this, Luna needed to be stopped from smashing the phone.

“Twilight meticulously recorded the newspapers to microfilm herself. We can be absolutely certain that they are the unaltered versions.”

Celestia thought that this was great foresight on Twilight’s part. It is also possible Twilight just forgets she’s not a librarian anymore.

Right now Luna seethed with anger. How could this have been going on right under her muzzle? Because of her past as Nightmare Moon, Luna resisted taking the highest seat in Equestria herself. Also, her responsibility of protecting dreams, coupled with the raising of the sun made it difficult to rule anyhow; and though she was loath to admit it, Luna questioned Twilights ability far more then Celestia ever had.

For the longest time, Luna was a supporter of the elected council, she had been friends with many of the past Charponies; though not so much the current ones. She found it fascinating how government would continuously reinvent itself, and sincerely wanted to believe each new version reflected the current will of the ponies. Now she wondered if any of these ‘dear’ friends were involved in this revision of history.

With Celestia’s return, Luna feared the turmoil it would cause if her sister tried to take back power in this current generation. If Celestia had asked her a minute ago, Luna would have told her to forget the throne. Their nation was larger then it once was, having formed confederation with Kludgetown, and the land of the Hippogriffs. Progress had left princesses behind.

This is not what Luna was thinking now.

“Sister, you shall take back the seat of power in royal Canterlot.”

“Yes, I intend to.”

---

“Sister, you shall take back the seat of power in royal Canterlot.”

“Yes, I intend to.”

“Did you hear that Chairpony Flam”

“Indeed I did Chairpony Flim.”

The two had ‘borrowed’ some audio equipment, from Countess Coluratura’s outdoor performance, and placed a small microphone inside a flower pot. With some cheesy disguises, and a little smooth talk, they convinced Silver Streak to give Luna the bugged planter.

Using a flower planter to spy on the princesses was an especially bold choice. They figured even if Glimmer channeled herself through the flowers, how would she know the planter was bugged.

Yes, the Chairponies of Canterlot’s elected council knew quite well that the flowers have ears. Their predecessor, Mayor Mustang, had warned them about the flowers when they were still just campaign aides, working their way up the political ladder in Mustangs office.

Once upon a time Flim and Flam had looked up to Mayor Mustang, in is hay-day the stallion had been a better crook then either of them could ever hope to be. However, over the years, Mustang became exceptionally paranoid, believing that the posies were watching him. Eventually, Mayor Mustang had to go on stress leave. It probably didn’t help his paranoia that some anonymous pony twins would send him flowers almost daily. This allowed Flim and Flam the opportunity to hijack his campaign, and jumpstart their own careers. Despite thinking Mustang was a mad, they soon realized that there was a flower pot in every room of Canterlot Castle, and there was even a city ordinance that stopped them from removing the flowers. When Flim faked allergies, Twilight herself came personally to deliver some hypoallergenic plants she bred as one of her many hobbies.

One night while they were whispering about the strange goings on, Flim could swear he saw a tulip lean in as though trying to listen more closely.

Something was up with the flowers.

When discussing anything they did not want others to hear, they were careful to speak only in their secret twin language. That language was just pig-latin, and they overestimated it’s effectiveness. Fortunately for them, they also acquired a fragment of a changeling magic warding artifact. This anti-magic mcguffin was what really kept their plots and schemes secret from Twilights top informant.

“Celestia wants to take back the throne of Canterlot.”

“Ridiculous!” Cried Chairpony Flam. “For four centuries, aside from some minor veto rights, the role of a princess in Canterlot politics has only been ceremonial at best. We can’t allow her to backtrack the progress Equestria has made as a nation, in the name of some antiquated sense of Royal Alicorn entitlement.”

“Yeah!” agreed Chairpony Flim, “and we wanna keep our jobs too.”

“Democracy is the way of modern Equestria, and it is the will of the ponies that shall rule.”

Flim pounded his hoof against the table. “Unless the will of the ponies is to be ruled by a princess, which I admit it pretty much is.”

“So what’s the plan dear brother.”

“My plan, I thought you had a plan.”

The two scratched their heads and pondered for a few moments.

“What if, now hear me out,” said Chairpony Flam, “what if we send the princesses further into the future, and frame Twilight.”

“I get it,” said Flim. “Everypony will think that Twilight just screwed up again, and we’ll be able to forbid her from using time travel spells for the good of all ponies.”

“Yes, exactly! We’ll just send the princesses six years into the future. By then our political terms will be completed. You know that we need to complete our terms in order to collect on our lifelong pension and benefit packages.”

“Of course dear brother, and once we get those, who cares if Celestia becomes Monarch again.”

“I do! I’d rather have her then somepony who intent on carrying on our crazy policies.”

The two laughed hardily, clapping their mugs of root beer together and drinking to their new plan.

---

The Flim Flam were not the only ones busy devising plans, Twilight had her own little scheme.

She had recently learned that some pony has the ability to defy the loop. This pony, and this pony alone has the ability to cause changes in the otherwise predestined timeline. She just wasn’t certain who this pony was. Her top suspects were: Screwball, Minty, Pinkie Pie, Flurry Heart, and herself. Now she needed to devise experiments to test just that.

The only test she could think of was to cause changes in the timeline. Twilight had the unique ability to be aware of these changes. The changes would have to be things that she would notice, yet not things that would greatly upset the history of her world.

Twilight held four envelopes in her hooves, thinking it was time to start.

As they stood in line for the two pony luge, she explained the situation to her daughter, Screwball.

“So what yer sayin’ is that youse got a some kinda plan to fig’ya our which pony can break the time loop.”

“Yes, a simple test that will tell me who the pony is with 35% certainty,” Twilight insisted.

“Thirty-five is a lil small, don’t cha think.”

“I have to start somewhere.”

They made it to the front of the line, and Screwball strapped her mother in. Twilight explained a little bit more as they rocketed down the artificially frozen track.

“First I want to test if you’re the one.”

“How are youse gonna do that?”

At that moment, they rocketed over a ramp, and made an 80 hoof jump. Both made screaming faces as the park camera’s took their picture, there faces returned to normal the moment the flash was gone.

Twilight hoofed something to Screwball. “All you have to do is give this letter to Lily Valley.”

“You mean the broad I tied up, and impersonated at the wedding.” After saying this, Screwball realized, it probably is not the sort of thing you tell your mother about.

“Yes her! You said you were going to make it up to her, right?”

“Youse want me to give doll-face Lily a letter? What’s in the letter?”

“Just numbers from past lotteries.”

“Lottery numbers!” The luge made a dizzying five twists and a loop.

“Yes, Lily never won the lottery. If she does, it’ll alter history, and I’ll know about it.”

“Isn’t that kinda a big change to history?”

“Nah! I know that money wouldn’t change Lily.” Twilight grew close to and fond of the flower ponies in the years after she parted with the mane six.

“And if I ain’t the one who can defy the paradox?”

“If you’re not, then everything will go the way I remember it. Lily will still have a long happy life, though money will always be a little tight for her, and she’ll be too proud to let me help out.”

“Okay, I’ll give her the letter.”

---

An hour later, Twilight was in an arcade with her niece, Flurry heart. There was a game where the screen directed them what dance moves to make upon a 3 by 6 grid of pressure sensitive plates.

Flurry thought she could distract her aunt by conversing with her as she played.

“So you want me to give a letter to Daisy the flower mare? — Oh horsefeathers” By talking Flurry caused herself to miss one step.

“Yes.”

“And this will help you figure out which mare has the ability to alter time.”

“It will change history in a way that I will notice.”

“What’s in the letter?”

“Instructions on how to breed blue roses.”

“That’s it!”

“Blue roses didn’t exist until long after her time. She’ll probably even get rich if she takes credit for figuring out how to breed them.”

“Who did figure it out?”

“I did.”

Flurry eyed her aunt with a smirk.

“Well I’m not going to give her my secret for breeding zap apples year round.”

At that moment, the machine sang at Twilights new high score.

---

An hour later, Twilight and Minty were ice skating. As a park event, they turned the main boulevard into a rink.

“You want me to give a letter to Roseluck.”

“Yes.”

“Why me… I mean, you’ll see her plenty of times before we leave, won’t you.”

“I can’t tell you why. Knowing might interfere with our past.”

“I thought we couldn’t interfere with the past, that everything was predestined.”

Suddenly Minty started to loose her balance. Twilight rushed in to catch her.

“You’re too smart, Minty. I can’t keep anything from you. Please just trust me.”

“Of course I trust you Twilight….will you at least tell me what’s in the letter?”

Twilight adjusted Minty’s toque hat, which was coming off, and swung the puff out of Minty’s eyes.

“It’s just a gift, a season pass of buck-ball tickets. She’s a fan.”

“That’s nice!”

---

Pinkie was doing that happy-hoppy-bounce thing she does, when Twilight flew up next to her.

“Hey Pinkie, could you give this to Derpy for me?” She hoofed Pinkie the final letter.

“Oki Doki Loci!” Pinkie took the letter into her mouth and hopped on.

“Hey, you wanna do star-fighters with me AJ and Rainbow Dash tomorrow?” Pinkie yelled, her voice slightly muffled by the letter.

“Sure, see you there.” Twilight called back.

---

At last, Twilight breathed a sigh of relief. Her plan was well underway. If any of those letters made it through, then she would know _{with 35% certainty} who is the one pony capable of altering history. If they all make it through, then either it was her all along, or the timeline is already far enough in flux that every pony is able to re-forge their own destinies.

Most likely the pony she needed to identify was either Screwball, Flurry Heart, Minty, or Pinkie Pie.

All there was to do was wait and…

Her eyes glowed white, the pupils and irises disappearing as Twilight became aware of another new timeline.

Comments

[Honey Lavender]

Now that's a cliff hanger if ever I saw one. And I'm willing to bet good money that not one, but ALL the changes occurred!

[Prysmkitsune]

huh....chapter thirteen says it was posted on friday the 13th, but its posting date is the 14th....

[Cyndaquil]

9109351
Guess that's what went wrong.

[Cyndaquil]

9109319
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VkZa_fsRPEA