S9 E4: Sparkle's Seven (What If?)
It had been only a few weeks since Tirek's unexpected but short lived return. Life in Equestria had mostly gone back to normal since then, mostly because the ponies believed that Tirek was an isolated threat and his defeat meant that the threat had passed.
Of course, Celestia and Luna were still insistent on grooming Twilight to take their place as the leader of Equestria, but the timetable had been pushed back considerably to allow more time and training to pass before the change over. It was something Twilight was extremely grateful for, because it gave her time to focus on her School of Friendship and another promising year for her dream project. A project she would eventually have to hoof the reigns of to Starlight, but that would hopefully be a long ways away.
Then one day, Spike came rushing into the headmare's office with an important scroll tucked under his arms! "Hey, Twilight, you'll never guess what kind of scroll I just got!" The dragon declared as he pulled it out. "It's from Shining Armor, and he's got something I think you'll remember!" The scroll depicted a well worn paper crown.
Twilight smiled brightly as a wave of excitement overtook her! "You know what this means, right, Spike?"
Spike nodded. "Uh-huh! I can't believe he still has that old thing."
"Uh, mind cluing me in here?" Starlight questioned. "What exactly is so special about a toy crown? There's a dime a dozen replicas of them, I'm sure."
But Spike only laughed. "Oh, Starlight, and you call yourself an all knowing big sister. Oh well, I guess it can't be helped," He then explained. "This is no 'toy crown' you're seeing. It's the well worn and hard-won helm of the Sibling Supreme! A Sparkle family staple, or at least it was a staple."
Twilight explained to Starlight. "When Shining Armor and I were small, we competed over just about everything. Part of the reason why he taught me how to fly a kite was so he'd have somepony to compete against, and win against. But if he claims he always won, that's totally not true. Nine times out of ten I whooped his sorry behind!" She giggled at the memory.
"But I thought you once said you and your brother and I quote 'Never had a single fight.'?" Starlight questioned.
"That's because our parents invented the idea of the Sibling Supreme Contest to keep it from getting to that point," Twilight told Starlight while remembering her childhood experiences with it. "They set up a little chart for the two of us, and every time we did something truly special we'd get a gold star. We got them for things like good grades in school, sharing, and even helping with chores around the house. Kind of helped that we had horns so we didn't have to use our hooves for some of the less enjoyable tasks. Then at the end of each week, usually on the weekend, we'd add up the stars. The sibling with the most would win the Crown of the Sibling Supreme — and bragging rights — 'til next time anyway. Shining Armor won it on the last week before I went away to Ponyville, and I haven't seen it since. I thought he'd forgotten about it and threw it away."
Starlight could only comment. "Well, I guess it had sentimental value for him, kind of like how you held onto Smarty Pants. And I suppose that little contest explains a lot about you, like your love of charts for example."
Twilight nodded with a faint blush. "Well, charts were always a big part of the Sparkle family household, especially with my dad."
Spike then commented. "I always wanted to be sibling supreme, even if I was too little to really compete."
Twilight smiled. "Helping to raise you was part of why I got so many gold stars all the time in the first place," Then she asked Spike. "So, what does the scroll say?"
"Oh, right, I almost forgot," Spike realized as he held up the scroll, cleared his throat, and read: "'Dear Twilight Sparkle, Meet me at Canterlot Castle to decide who deserves this crown once and for all time's sake. Sincerely, Your Big Brother Best Friend Forever: Shining Armor'"
"Come on, Spike!" Twilight exclaimed in a tone of voice so cheerful it could've been mistaken for Pinkie Pie! "I'll race you there! And just wait until Shining Armor sees how big you've gotten!" She and Spike promptly rushed out of the headmare's office.
Starlight blinked as she watched the two disappear from sight. "Yeah, don't mind me," She sighed in a slightly unhappy and sarcastic tone. "I'll just... watch the school, like we agreed to." The unicorn promptly trotted back into the headmare's office and slumped over the desk. She wasn't going to be part of the upcoming competition that would take place in Canterlot, she would only later learn of the unexpected developments that were going to occur there. And among them was an outcome that neither Twilight or Shining Armor could've anticipated.
Twilight and Spike wasted no time in their mad dash to Canterlot, arriving in what felt like record time. The two made their way to the castle as instructed, and entered the throne room. Twilight couldn't help but gasp when she saw the old paper crown from the Sibling Supreme contests resting atop Shining Armor's head, even while he was clad in his old royal guard captain chest armor. "You're wearing it?" She blinked as she looked at her brother.
Shining couldn't help but grin. "Well, I had to make sure it still fit after all these years. It needed a bit of adjusting, but other than it fits like a glove," And he teased. "Admit it, you know you're jealous. You've been jealous because I left home with the crown and you didn't."
Twilight waved a hoof. "Who? Me? Jealous? Nah. If anypony's jealous it's you, you always complained about how many stars I got just for taking care of and raising Spike."
"It's not that I didn't let you help too sometimes, you know," Spike chimed in. "But in my mind you weren't the same as Twilight, it took me a while to warm up to you. But you turned out to be a great uncle."
Shining Armor smiled. "And you turned out to be a great nephew. Twily was right, you have gotten big."
"Come on, you saw me like this last Hearth's Warming!" Spike waved a claw.
Shining nodded. "True, but it's still gonna take some getting used to. I can still remember you as the baby dragon Twilight brought home from her entrance exam," Then he cleared his throat. "But I didn't invite the two of you here just to catch up on old times. You can deny it all you want, Twilight. But I can tell that you've longed for a chance to win back this old crown. And now, the princesses here have given me the perfect opportunity to do that."
Princess Celestia smiled as she stepped forward. "Indeed. Ever since Tirek's unexpected return, it's come to my sister and I's attention that the security detail in and around the castle could stand to be..." She coughed into a hoof. "'Improved' for lack of a better term."
Princess Luna seemed to bitterly remarked. "I said we could and should do it ourselves, but some ponies are a bit stubborn, unfortunately."
"Which is why I asked our old Captain of the Guard to come out of retirement and do the job," Princess Celestia explained. "I had hoped to have Flash Magnus do it, but after Chrysalis was arrested he told me that he felt his work here was done, and I hear he's now working with the Wonderbolts to get them into shape."
Shining just smiled as he posed in his captain's attire. "Far as I'm concerned, I never really left the job, I still had to oversee security in the Crystal Empire even after Flurry Heart was born. But it's nice to get back to my roots."
"Does Cadence know about this?" Twilight questioned.
Shining nodded his head again. "Of course. You think I could've done any of the stuff I've done if I didn't have her permission?" Then he boasted. "I've taken the security here to a whole new level. The only thing I need now is somepony to test it. So I figured 'Why not you'? For a smart pony like you, it would be the ultimate challenge."
The young alicorn gasped! "Wait a minute! You actually want me to break into the castle?! Mom and Dad always gave me an earful just for sneaking into the Canterlot Archives after dark. If Princess Celestia didn't always take it in stride, I probably would've gotten more than that. Now you're saying you want me to stage a break in?"
The prince happily confirmed. "You heard right. And if you can get past my defenses, steal the crown, and get out without being caught you'll officially be Sibling Supreme forever!"
A smile crept onto Twilight's face as she looked up to the crown. "For-ev-er..."
"But..." Shining cautioned as he threw up a hoof. "Should you fail, I keep the crown for all time. So whaddya say? Deal?"
Twilight didn't need to think about the offer for even a second! "Deal!" She happily declared before a thought struck her. "Hold on, are you sure this counts? Mom and Dad aren't giving us any stars for this."
"Not to worry, I shall represent their authority," Celestia spoke in that warm, motherly tone of hers. "After all, you've always been like a daughter to me, Twilight. And thank you for agreeing to this. More so than anypony else, I know I can trust you to give this new security system a proper test. Be sure to let me know what you discover and if there are any holes that still need to be patched."
Shining Armor seemed to snort. "Well there aren't any, I can promise you that much! I've designed a multi-tiered, impenetrable, triple-backed-up line of defense. It's practically fool proof. But I think it's only fair to let you know what you're getting into," He lit up his horn, displaying a projection of the castle that rotated from all angles. "Allow me to explain: First and most importantly, the castle is surrounded by shards of Queen Chrysalis' destroyed throne. Thanks to Starswirl, its anti-magic powers are now tuned to stop anycreature from using a spell to get inside. We've tested that and Starswirl confirmed that the throne's magic cancelling powers are still active."
"Got it, no spells and no magic. Sounds simple enough." Twilight commented while instructing Spike to write down notes.
Shining's smile grew wider. "Don't get your hopes up, Twily. You can't fly in either," The projection now displayed several giant fans around the castle. "Giant fans keep anycreature from flying too close. If you do you'll quite literally be blown away," Then the projection moved beneath the castle, indicating a series of what appeared to be tunnels. "Plus, the entrances to the tunnels below the castle have all been sealed off, so there's no underground access."
"Anything else I should be aware of?" Twilight half questioned/half quipped as Spike was writing down more notes.
Shining's smile became so wide it looked like it would fall off his face. "Yeah. Even if somehow you could get inside, which you can't, I've doubled the ranks of security. Ponies protect every hallway and door, which can only be opened with royal guard medals. I've even got the guards checking up on each other and they're to remain at their posts at all times while on duty. If anything is even slightly out of the ordinary or not supposed to be there, I've instructed them to alert me immediately."
Twilight seemed to shrug off all the security measures she'd learned about. "Is that all? I thought you said this was going to be a challenge." It was impossible to tell whether she was being sincere or if she was trying to act confident.
The prince grinned. "Oh it is," He shut off the projection as he continued. "You could bring an army with you and it wouldn't help. Even if somehow you made it past all the prior security, the throne room where the crown will be kept is the most secure room in this whole castle. I rigged a trap door to activate at the slightest touch. Watch," He trotted over to the thrones and gave the podium below them a light tap. The trap door in front of the two thrones opened up. "And if you somehow avoid the floor, I've employed nature's alarm system, compliments of the Equestrian Society for the Preservation of Rare Creatures." And several geese suddenly started honking.
Spike rolled his eyes. "Really? Geese? That's your last layer of defense?"
Shining protested in a cautious tone. "You laugh at it now, but these geese and their honking can be heard all the way in Ponyville."
"I should know." Luna grumbled under her breath.
"Oh, and they bite too," Shining Armor cautioned as one goose tried to nip at his tail. "Trust me when I say you do not wanna get on the bad side of these new flying friends of mine," He then turned back to his sister. "So, still think you can find a way past all of that and take the crown?"
Twilight's eyes narrowed as a look of fiery determination was reflected in her vision. "You'd better believe it, B.B.B.F.F! I think you've held onto that crown for long enough! And soon, it's gonna be coming home with me!"
"We'll just see about that!" Shining declared. "And know this, Twily. Either bring your best, or prepare to be defeated!"
Upon returning to Ponyville, Twilight gathered up all of her friends (except for Starlight who was busy running the school), brought them all to the throne room, and told them what Shining Armor had told her earlier. "So that's what we're up against." She declared as she finished her crudely drawn presentation of Canterlot Castle's new security systems.
Applejack couldn't help but wipe the sweat from her brows even though she hadn't done anything yet. "Whoo wee! Well, that sure is a barrel and a half of obstacles. Plus a bushel and a peck of impenetrability. Gotta give your brother credit, he's as serious about security as you are about spells."
"And this is all for the sake of some old crown from your foalhood?" Rarity questioned.
Twilight sheepishly blushed. "Maybe a little, but it's also to test the security measures for Celestia's sake."
"And you're sure that us helping you doesn't count as cheating?" Fluttershy pondered.
Twilight shook her head. "Shining Armor needed help to get all those security systems set up and he basically said I'd need an army to get into the castle. So why not take him up on the offer?"
"Then we're all in." Fluttershy firmly declared!
Pinkie Pie excitedly added! "I was already in! Come on, who doesn't want to hang with geese?!"
Rainbow Dash then commented. "So, how are we going to help you, exactly? I assume you have a plan?"
"Don't I always?" Twilight flashed a smile.
Spike couldn't help but boast. "Shining Armor may have come up with some great security, but he'll never guess Twilight's plan. He doesn't know her like I do. If she could figure out Starswirl's master spell and decipher his old journal, she can definitely outsmart Shining's security systems to get the crown."
Twilight promptly flipped the chalkboard she'd been using over, it now detailed her plan for how to defeat the security systems and who would do what to make that possible. "The plan is simple: We play to our strengths and defeat all of the security measures. That way, even if one of us fails, the others will still have a shot at getting the crown," She began to delegate tasks to each of her friends. "Pinkie, you're up first. You distract the guards with a surprise party. Make sure that it's loud enough to catch Shining Armor's attention and draw him away. If we're going to have any chance of getting that crown, we need to make sure he and the princesses won't be in a position to thwart our plans."
"No problem! When it comes to parties and noise, I'm your pony!" Pinkie proudly declared with a salute.
Twilight then looked to the rest of her friends. "The rest of you will carry out your jobs in this exact order: Applejack: You'll buck your way into the sealed tunnels, your natural earth pony strength should be able to find a way around those bricks. Rainbow Dash: If anypony can figure out how to outfly those wind turbines, it's you. Feel free to bring the Wonderbolts with you, I'm curious to see if Flash Magnus has taught them anything new that might come in handy. Rarity: You'll sew us some guard costumes so we can sneak past security without attracting unwanted attention, I know you'll make them look convincing. And Fluttershy: You'll disable the throne room security by charming the geese. Just make sure to avoid the trap door, and don't let the geese make too much noise," She clapped her hooves together. "This is the greatest plan I've ever thought of! Shining Armor will never suspect it!"
But just then Spike happened to belch up a scroll. He unfolded it and began to read it out loud. "'Dear Twily: I know you're already making up a plan to steal the crown. I just hope it isn't simply..." He read the rest of it to himself and then gasped upon finishing! "Twilight! Shining Armor guessed your whole plan, right down to the exact details!"
"What?! Let me see that scroll!" Twilight demanded and snatched it up with her magic. She read it to herself, her eyes even re-scanning the scroll to make sure she wasn't misreading things. She wasn't. She slumped into her chair as she exclaimed! "It's... it's all here! The party, the costumes, everything! He even signed it 'The future Sibling Supreme'!" She let out a loud groan! "I just can't win, can I?!"
"Well, darling, Shining obviously knows you better than anypony else. He is your brother after all," Rarity explained as she stood up and got out of her seat. "Think about it. No matter how brilliant your plan is, no matter how many variations you try, it will always be something your brother expects, and he'll always win! Unless... when the perfect chance comes along, you do something he can't expect. Then you'll win. Therefore: This plans needs a new mastermind. Since you can't plan the heist, I will! How's that for unexpected?!"
A stunned silence fell over the throne room and for a moment no one could say a word. But Rainbow eventually broke up the silence as she coughed. "What exactly is so different about you doing the heist planning, Rarity? It's still the same plan Twilight came up with."
Rarity shook her head as she then smiled and boldly declared. "On the contrary, my plan will be the exact opposite! My plan will have each of us devise our own unexpected part of it. It'll be so unpredictable that Shining Armor won't realize what's going on until it's too late! Allow me to demonstrate," She proceeded to assume her Shadow Spade attire from the time she had worked to clear Rainbow Dash's name with the Wonderbolts. "All good Shadow Spade stories involve a bit of interrogation. As you will attest, Rainbow Dash, my methods are unusual but they do get results. There's a shady bar in Canterlot that'll be the perfect place for us to extract information."
"Great idea!" Rainbow boasted! "I've been working on my interrogating skills, how about this:" She cleared her throat and spoke as strongly as she could! "Why don't you make like a glass of O.J. and spill, buddy?! You've got answers and we want 'em!"
"And while you do that, I shall be applying my natural charm to 'soften them up'." Rarity commented while appearing to sound briefly annoyed with Rainbow's rash display.
Pinkie Pie then spoke up! "Ooh! Ooh! I know what I can do that they'll never suspect! You're gonna need a lookout, so I can be your eye in the sky."
"Like when you were observing the Running of the Leaves?" Spike questioned.
Pinkie giggled. "No, silly, that's too low. You gotta think outside the box! I'm talking way high in the sky! After all, I've always wanted to go to outer space."
"Well, how's about somethin' a little more down-to-earth?" Applejack chuckled. "I was thinkin' I could distract the guard ponies with a farewell performance by my alter ego, famous country-western superstar Apple Chord!"
"Wait, since when did you have an alter ego? And what do you mean about a farewell performance?" Twilight questioned Applejack.
Applejack put a hoof to her chin. "It's a long story, Twilight. But I'll give you the basics of it. You know how I once went to Camp Friendship with Rara?" When everypony nodded she continued. "Well, between that and hearin' my ma sing her songs on a guitar, I got a real knack for music. I started playin' on the farm all the time as Apple Chord. But it wasn't long before I got noticed, soon I was playin' real shows in sold out venues. 'Course, that meant I had to leave the farm, leave my family behind. And after my folks passed unexpectedly that was a big no no, I couldn't do that. Seein' my family smile was all I ever wanted from music."
Rainbow Dash couldn't help but rib Applejack. "You made all that up just now, didn't you? Because that's the first time you've ever told anypony that story."
"Maybe I was and maybe I wasn't," Applejack just winked. "Either way, you'd never expect a pony like me to be much of a distraction. So that okay with you, Rarity?"
Rarity nodded. "Now we just need Fluttershy, and perhaps Spike as well. Having you on board would be a big help, Spike. It seems Twilight didn't give you much of a role in her plan."
"You're right, she didn't. I'd draw way too much attention, and not the good kind," Spike declared before he pondered. "But you know, I've always wanted to be a super spy. Betcha Shining wouldn't be expecting that."
And Fluttershy nervously commented. "Well... I guess the opposite of what I'm good at is..." She gulped a bit. "Being in small spaces."
"Then it's settled, Fluttershy!" Spike declared as he flew over to her. "I feel like we haven't done anything together in a long time. But what could be better than the two of us as secret agents, working together to outwit a laser security system?"
Twilight and Rarity both blinked in concern as Twilight cautioned. "Uh, Spike, you do know that there's no actual laser security system, right?"
"Yeah, but my point still stands," Spike insisted as he waved a claw. "If you can get around a laser security system, you can get around anything."
Twilight nodded. "That does make sense. And you don't need my permission to live out your fantasy. Just be careful, you're not the same little dragon you were before. You can't fit into really tight spaces."
"Don't worry, I know my limits. You promised to let your mane down more after I went through my molt." Spike half friendly replied and half whined.
The young alicorn simply looked to Rarity, desperate to change the subject. "So, what do I need to do as part of your plan?"
Rarity's reply took everyone in the room by surprise. "Simple, Twilight, you shall do nothing! It's the one thing Shining Armor would never expect from you, and it'll be just the thing to throw him off his game."
"You sure you don't need me to do anything?" Twilight hopefully inquired. "Not even just have a talk with Princess Celestia and Princess Luna so they're distracted?"
The fashionista shook her head to dismiss the notion. "No, Twilight. That's exactly the kind of set up they'll suspect. Rest assured that both princess will not be a problem. When the time comes, we'll create a diversion that'll ensure they're too busy to stop us," Then she looked around the room. "Now, you all have your assignments and know what you need to do. Are there any questions?" No one said a word. "Then it looks like it's time to give Shining Armor a run for his money, and get Twilight that crown!"
Rarity's improvised plan was soon set into motion, and Twilight could only watch as the whole thing unfolded right before her eyes.
The first part of the plan involved Applejack's "distraction". A small stage was set up for her, complete with a curtain to hide behind.
Shining Armor still spotted her though. When he did he rushed straight to the scene as he questioned. "Applejack? What are you doing in that get up?"
Applejack wore a fancy green dress with red trim, and had traded in her signature stentson for a white cowpony hat and boots. "'Applejack'?" She chuckled in a fancy sounding tone of voice. "Who's that? You must have me confused with somepony completely different. My name's Apple Chord," She pulled her guitar close. "And a little birdy told me you boys could use some entertainment."
"What do you mean? I didn't request any entertainment!" Shining Armor shot Applejack a puzzled look.
Fully decked out in her musician alter-ego, Applejack just laughed. "You didn't have to. It sounds to me like you're in more need of my songs than I thought. Come on, take a break. You deserve it," Then she instructed. "Now, clap your hooves if you know this one. And a one, and a two, and a: 'My love is like a barrel! A barrel full of hay.'"
Applejack was playing so loud and her get up was so unusual that the guards didn't see or hear a trio of Wonderbolts fly past with Rainbow Dash leading them. They landed on the ground near the same hot air balloon that was often rented out for trips to Cloudsdale, and Rainbow promptly shed her Wonderbolts flight suit so as not to attract unwanted attention. "Thanks for the assist, Spitfire. Sorry to call you in like this."
Spitfire just replied. "You kidding? Those fans were the perfect workout opportunity," Then she looked at her teammates. "But it looks like Soarin and Fleetfoot weren't quite prepared for 'em. Flash Magnus won't be too happy about that."
"So, what did you find out?" Fluttershy asked Rainbow Dash.
Rainbow explained. "That the only way past those giant fans and into the castle ducts is over there," She gestured a hoof to a small opening where the wind currents from the fans weren't blowing. "But there's no room for mistakes! So it's up to you two!" She gestured to Fluttershy and Spike.
"Not to worry, space travel will make this a breeze!" Pinkie Pie declared.
Fluttershy nervously questioned. "But we're not actually going into space, are we, Pinkie?"
With a giggle the pink party pony declared. "No, silly! I'm dropping you two off as soon as we're close to the fans! Then I'm going into space! I'll be so high in the sky they won't even see me coming, making me the perfect lookout!"
"Great, do that!" Rainbow Dash firmly declared as she watched her fellow Wonderbolts fly away. "I need to meet up with Rarity so we can wring a confession out of those seedy juice bar ponies." And she carefully trotted away, taking care not to be seen by the guards that hadn't been lured away by Applejack's performance.
Fluttershy and Spike flew out of the balloon the moment they reached the opening. But at that very moment the balloon suddenly began to lose air! "Uh-oh," Pinkie gasped in horror! "I knew I shouldn't have tossed that parachute."
Shining Armor had broken away from the distracted guards and happened to notice Twilight all by herself on the castle grounds. "You're up to something, Twily. You can't fool me."
Twilight shook her head. "Nah, you're being too paranoid. I'm just, uh..." She bent down. "Looking at the flowers. Yeah, that's it." She promptly sniffed them.
Shining didn't seem convinced if the quirked brow he shot at his sister was any indication. "Right," He cleared his throat. "Well, I'm going back to my post. Don't think you can distract me as easily as you have the guards. Remember, I'm watching you."
Twilight continued to sniff the flowers until she was certain her brother was out of sight. Then she sighed in relief. "It's working, Rarity!" She thought to herself! "Shining Armor doesn't have a clue! If this keeps up that crown is as good as mine!"
But just then there came the distressed shriek of Pinkie Pie, stranded in the hot air balloon as it had descended into the path of the fans, and was now being blown around by the gusts they were generating! "Canterlot! We have a problem!"
Immediately forgetting about Rarity's insistence to not do anything, Twilight unfolded her wings and took to the air to chase after a screaming Pinkie in the balloon! In the process she flew right past the guards!
"Well, a distraction's a distraction I guess," Applejack whispered under her breath as she used a trick string on her guitar to pull off a guard's badge while he wasn't looking. Then she put on the biggest smile she could muster up as she loudly told the guards! "Come on, y'all! I know my last song was a crowd favorite, but I ain't even half done yet!"
Meanwhile, Twilight pulled Pinkie and the balloon to safety behind the castle as she frantically asked! "Pinkie, what happened?! Where are Spike and Fluttershy?! Did they make it in?!"
"I don't know, I saw them jump out and then the next thing I knew the balloon went," Pinkie made a raspberry noise. "It's all I saw! I didn't make it into space, which is where I was supposed to be. And there's no way this baby's gonna be flying again anytime soon." The balloon had a noticeable hole in the side, almost as if someone had delibertly poked it.
Twilight frowned upon hearing the news. "Great. Well, the good news is Applejack's still playing her part. But Shining Armor's not buying it."
"You want me to distract him for you?" Pinkie offered. "Maybe I can't go into space, but I can sure look the part of an outer space invader."
Twilight shook her head. "No, Pinkie. For Rarity's plan to succeed I can't risk doing anything. I already strayed from it to save you, I'm not gonna stray any further from it," She then sighed. "I just hope Rarity and Rainbow Dash are having better luck."
Rainbow Dash caught up to Rarity just as the fashionista (still in her Shadow Spade outfit) returned with a slouched posture and a glum expression on her face. "Bad news, Rainbow Dash. I got the times mixed up. The seedy juice joint is already closed. It figures that the one thing they're not seedy about are their hours of operation."
"Great!" Rainbow complained as she stomped a hoof down. "Now what do we do?"
Rarity smiled for a brief moment. "Well, I have good news on that. I managed to 'convince' the joint owner to tell me where we can find the secret underground passage into the castle. But it looks like Shining Armor thought ahead on that, he's already ordered it to be guarded."
"No problem!" Rainbow Dash declared as she put her hooves together. "Give me five minutes alone with the guard and I'll get 'em to let us in!"
"Actually, when you see who they got to guard this passage, you may not be so thrilled," Rarity said with a gulp. "It's somepony I think you'll be very familiar with."
The guard turned out to be a pegasus stallion with a recognizable and unmistakable coat of a pale, grayish green. He had grayish purple eyes, a blonde mane and tail, and a cutie mark depicting an orange feather and two green flourishes.
Rainbow Dash gasped in shock! "Zephyr Breeze?! What's he doing here?!"
"Guarding, obviously, I saw Princess Luna place him here," Rarity explained. "Now, I know you two have a bit of a history. But believe it or not that's actually going to play into our hooves." She looked at Rainbow with an unusual big smile on her face.
The brash speedster commented. "What are you talking about, Rarity? He's the most annoying pony in Equestria, and he's totally obsessed with me, and we have to come up with a way to distract—" Then it hit her! "Oh no! No way! I am not dressing up for him! Why can't you do it?!"
"You said it yourself, he's obsessed with you, darling," Rarity snickered while trying to keep it from escalating. "So pour on the charm and distract him long enough to get that entrance opened up for us. I assure you, I will make it up to you."
The pegasus mare groaned. "You'd better mean it, Rarity! And if you ever tell anypony about this, I'm gonna literally drag you through the mud!"
Rainbow was eventually dressed into the most lavish (and embarrassing in her opinion) outfit that Rarity could sew on short notice. She also had her mane and tail pulled back to look more feminine. "Reminds me of the times I had to dress up nice for family photos," She thought to herself. "I'll never understand why my parents kept making me do it. Mom especially, those sweaters were so itchy!"
The fashionista promptly shoved her rainbow maned friend forward. "Go on, Rainbow. He's all yours. I'll be waiting for you once you can get him to open up the entrance."
It naturally didn't take long for Zephyr Breeze to lay eyes on Rainbow Dash. And when he did he could barely contain his excitement! "Rainbow! My my, how funny to see you here! Especially in such a..." He snickered. "Ridiculous outfit!"
Rainbow sighed and groaned as she forced herself to sound nice. "Well... I knew you'd like it. And I kind of feel bad for how things were the last time we met."
"Yeah, I wasn't exactly the model of a model major stallion, was I?" Zephyr Breeze chuckled. "But that's okay, it's all water under the bridge now. Bet you want to know what I'm doing here? And before you ask, no, it's not just 'cause the ladies love a stallion in armor!"
"Then, why are you here?" Rainbow Dash questioned while trying not to sound annoyed or bothered.
Zephyr's confident persona seemed to falter slightly as he answered with somewhat quivering lips. "W-well... the mane styling business has been kind of slow lately, this is a bit of a dry season. Since I can't live with Mom and Dad anymore, I needed some way to pay the bills so I wouldn't lose the nice little cottage I bought for myself. And by a stroke of luck, Princess Luna herself agreed to let me serve in the royal guard. She even winked at me when she told me I could join, though I'm not quite sure why."
The pegasus mare swallowed hard. "Oh, that's... great, I think," She then nervously questioned. "Uh, I know you're probably not supposed to, but do you think you could maybe open up that sealed off entrance over there? My friends needs to get inside for... interior decorating."
Zephyr put a hoof to his chin while his eyes darted all around, looking to see if anypony else was around. "Well, I'm part of the castle team now. And I totally rock the look even if the gold kinda clashes with my aura if you know what I'm saying," Then he commented. "If I let your friend in, do you think you can talk to the sarge about maybe redesigning the outfits? I'm going to have the worst case of helmet hair when this is over!"
"Sure," Rainbow commented. "But uh... we'll need to make it look convincing."
Zephyr Breeze grinned. "Oh, Rainbow, I thought you'd never ask. I can most definitely work with that. Now just play along," He not so secretly shoved Rainbow so that it would look like she was falling. "Whoa! We got ourselves a swooner right here! Rainbow, I know we haven't seen each other in a long time, but I'm glad you're finally being honest with your feelings for me!" He appeared to blindly trot around while declaring. "The truth is such a gift. Like, I had to follow my bliss to see guarding is my calling. Like, look at me go. I'm gonna walk over here, and I go whoo!"
The "act" worked like a charm, the guards assumed Zephyr was just being his old flirty self that they had been advised to ignore. As a result, none of them noticed when the opening to the underground tunnels he was supposed to be guarding suddenly became big enough for two fully grown ponies to fit through.
But the "act" was soon over by Rainbow who just whispered. "Now it's my turn to return the favor." She swished her tail, knocking Zephyr to the ground and leaving him momentarily stunned.
"Yeah, whatever," Zephyr muttered in a defeated tone. "Can't blame a stallion for trying."
Fluttershy and Spike weren't having much better luck on their end. They managed to fly right to the throne room, and Spike was able to use his claws to cut a small opening in one of the stained glass windows so he and Fluttershy could sneak in (as there were no vents). But when Spike noticed the nesting geese all around the throne room, he had to act fast to catch the circle he'd cut out so it wouldn't fall and alert the geese. "Oh man, I almost forgot about them." He whispered to Fluttershy.
"But I can't charm them, Shining Armor will be expecting that," Fluttershy whispered back. "So we'll just have to glide our way to the thrones, no flapping."
Spike nodded. "Got it. And watch out for the trap door." But his words fell on deaf ears as his partner had already started to glide away.
They neared the two thrones and the paper crown resting between them, only to find that one of the geese had been placed there to guard it. It spotted them and began to honk loudly and angrily! Several other geese started to do the same!
Spike and Fluttershy landed in front of the thrones, only to activate the trap door and tumble through it!
As luck would have it, this little mishap occurred just before Princess Luna happened to poke her head into the throne room. "Sister!" She called in an annoyed tone. "Another false alarm from Shining Armor's guard geese! Still think it was a good idea to set them up instead of getting that laser security system?" And as she left the throne room she muttered under her breath. "Cheepskate."
Having heard her sister's call of distress, Princess Celestia left to go investigate and Shining Armor went with her to quiet down the geese.
Twilight had overheard everything and she was quickly becoming a nervous wreck. "We should have heard by now! Something must have gone wrong!"
"More like several somethings," Pinkie commented while blowing into the hot air balloon to try and inflate it. "And don't look now, but I think Apple Chord's just about run out of songs to play."
The young alicorn gulped as she saw the guards starting to leave the concert while a nervous Applejack struggled to think of anything to sing. "This isn't good! No lookout, no distraction, and now no word from any of the ponies inside! I'm starting to think this whole operation might just be a giant flop!"
It wasn't long before Fluttershy started to hyperventilate as she and Spike remained trapped underneath the trap door with seemingly no way out.
"What's wrong, Fluttershy?" Spike questioned the pegasus. "I thought you were just pretending to be scared, like how you're so good at acting."
"Maybe I was at first, because I didn't think something like this would ever happen," Fluttershy explained in a desperate tone of voice. "But now, when I'm stuck here like this, all I can think about is the time I got trapped in the Castle of the Two Sisters with Rarity. I was separated from Angel for a long time, and at one point I even got separated from Rarity. Now whenever I'm in a tiny room, it's all I can think about! I was so worried that they felt alone and forgotten! I felt that way too!"
Spike looked down at the ground and gave a longing sigh. "I know what that feels like. To feel like you've been left out."
The pegasus mare shot the dragon a puzzled expression. "What do you mean, Spike? You're Twilight's son. Adopted son maybe, but you're still part of her family."
"Yeah, except it took her years to even acknowledge that. Years before the mare I most associate with 'Mommy' to start living up to that perception," Spike commented. "Sometimes I kind of feel more like the little brother than the adopted son. Ever since I was in diapers I can remember wanting to be part of those Sibling Supreme contests between Twilight and Shining Armor. The best I could hope for was Shining teaching me how to play Ogres & Oubliettes in his spare time, and teaching me tricks to baffle Twilight. Then, just as I started getting close to Twilight, Shining left and now it's like I never see him at all. I know he's got a family, but I really wish I could see him more often than I do."
Fluttershy draped a wing over Spike. "Sounds complicated to me, but I'm sure if you talked to them about this they would understand. You want to be part of their family, no matter what that may be. Sometimes an older sibling can be just like a mother or a father. I had to basically grow up and be the big sister once Zephyr Breeze came along."
Spike giggled. "Yeah, it's easy to see why he isn't the older sibling."
Fluttershy smiled. "And I think he could learn a lot from you about what it means to be family and growing up. Even if he's getting better now, he still seems to get wrapped up in his own flaws."
Just then there came a rumbling sound and one of the walls suddenly parted! On the other side stood an unaware Rarity and Rainbow Dash. "Look, I am sick of being lost in these slimy corridors, too! But you shouldn't pull every lever you come across!" Rarity scolded Rainbow Dash. "Half of them are traps!"
"Yeah, and the other half might open a secret passage to the castle!" Rainbow protested! "It's not my fault you didn't ask for directions!"
Rarity just sighed. "I did, but it seems they were no good. That seedy juice joint owner was either lying, or he sold me faulty instructions that were almost impossible to follow."
Just then, Spike made a coughing sound, drawing attention to him and Fluttershy. "Uh, hope we're not interrupting anything."
"No, no, no," Rarity shook her head. "It's good to see a friendly face in these parts. But what are you two doing here? Aren't you supposed to be in the throne room?"
Fluttershy reluctantly explained. "We were, but then we fell through the trap door by mistake," She then frowned. "Rarity, I don't think our plan is working."
The fashionista surprisingly agreed. "Indeed it isn't. It was too disorganized to truly be effective. Let's return to the outside, regroup and re-evaluate.
By the time that the remaining groups returned to the outside, Twilight was a nervous wreck. "Oh, of all the things to go wrong. If even this plan doesn't work, what will?"
"Well in my defense, darling, the plan was well thought out," Rarity commented as she trotted out, shedding her Shadow Spade outfit. "But we really should've rehearsed and ironed out all the flaws. It was too unexpected and too improvised."
"Then maybe we should go back to the original plan?" Spike suggested. "You know, the Twilight way?"
Twilight blinked. "Spike, you're suggesting I do exactly what Shining Armor expects me to do!"
"So, add a little bit of a twist to it," Spike encouraged. "Add in some elements that he can't expect or won't expect. You can salvage what's left of Rarity's plan and work it into your own plan. It may not be a surprise, but you have a pretty good record for planning things."
Twilight nodded. "Then I guess it's worth a try. Thanks, Spike," She then turned back to her friends. "Okay, you all know what to do! But before you all rush off, let's discuss a few last minute changes we'll be making. And remember, we must lure Shining Armor and the princesses away!"
"No worries, Twilight!" Rainbow Dash firmly declared! "Now that you're planning this, victory is practically guaranteed! I've got a good feeling about this!"
Twilight's original plan was soon set into motion. Pinkie Pie arranged a space themed party and generated a tone of noise with music and balloons popping. The guards left their posts to investigate the disturbance, and Pinkie grinned as she slipped past them while disguised as one of the fake space creatures she'd created. She then made use of the badge Applejack had stolen earlier, growling at the guards. "I come in peace. Take me to your leader."
The guards allowed Pinkie to use her badge to open the door, and she slipped inside and shut the door behind her before they could give chase.
Zephyr Breeze, meanwhile, was getting chewed out for allowing Rarity and Rainbow Dash to slip past him earlier. Pinkie had not so secretly slipped a note at the party mentioning this. "Well, in my defense, you never said what exactly I was supposed to 'guard'," Zephyr tried to argue, only to be stripped of his badge and his armor. He sighed again. "Oh well. Easy come, easy go."
Rarity grinned as she watched the whole scene unfold. "At least there was one part of my plan that worked." Then she waved to Twilight, signaling the start of the next phase.
Applejack eyed the rock Twilight was pointing to. "Twilight, I may be strong but I don't think even I can buck my way through a solid rock."
"Which is why I've brought in an expert," Twilight said with a wink. "I'm sure you'll recognize her."
The expert turned out to be Maud Pie. She spoke not a word as she examined the rock, and then used some chalk to draw a white x where the rock was weakest. Applejack had no trouble bucking her way through the designated spot, and the rock crumbled to gravel.
Meanwhile, Rarity slipped on a royal guard outfit, and with the badge Pinkie had given her she strolled right up to a guard keeping watch over a door leading down to the underground tunnels. "Captain Armor sent me early. You can take a break now." She commented, trying to disguise her voice so the guard wouldn't recognize her.
The guard breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh, thank goodness. My hooves are getting sore standing around here. He needs to start scheduling these work breaks more often. D-don't tell him I said that."
Rarity winked. "Your secret's safe with me. Now go on, go enjoy yourself!"
The guard obeyed, trotting away with a smile on his face. And once he was out of sight, Rarity used the badge to open the door and let her friends through.
Fluttershy charmed the geese with the greatest of ease. "Not a word, my fine feathered friends," She whispered to them. "Keep quiet and we'll all get what we want. The crown for my friend, and a feather massage for all of you. How's that sound?"
The geese agreed and any desire they might have had to honk faded away.
Rainbow Dash came swooping in a moment later. "I've got the Wonderbolts flying circles around the fans. Shining Armor and the princesses are still trying to figure out how to get them free," She giggled. "I could've told you those fans were a bad idea."
Spike then pointed out. "All that's left is to get to the throne room. And if I'm right, the secret lever that leads to the hallway entrance is... here!" He flew up and pulled down on a lever, causing one of the walls to slide back and open up with an audible click.
"I can't believe this actually worked! I was so sure it wouldn't!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed as the rag tag group of seven reached the throne room, the Sibling Supreme crown still resting where it had been since Shining Armor had proposed the challenge.
Spike grinned. "Well it just goes to show you that sometimes the most unexpected plan is the plan that you expect. When you expect the unexpected, you lose sight of the expected."
Twilight happily nodded. "Couldn't have put it better myself!" Then she rubbed her hooves together! "At long last, the crown is mine again, as it should've been all those years ago!"
But at that moment there came a popping sound as Shining Armor teleported into the throne room. He stood in front of the crown and grinned. "Not exactly, Twily. Nice try, but in the end it just wasn't good enough."
"What?! Oh come on! I was right there!" Twilight protested! "You couldn't let me have the crown for just ten seconds?!"
Shining just waved a hoof as he tsked. "Ah ah, that's not what we agreed to. The rules were that you would get the crown if you could sneak in, steal the crown and get out without being caught," He couldn't help but taunt. "Besides, you should know by now that there's no way to beat the true Sibling Supreme!"
"How did you even find out about my plan? Who tipped you off? And how did you outwit the elements I added in at the last minute?" Twilight complained.
Shining Armor grinned. "Why would I tell you? What matters is that you failed, which means the Sibling Supreme crown stays with me. Better luck next time, Twily."
Princess Celestia then appeared in the throne room as she commented. "I'm sorry, Twilight. But Shining Armor is right, you lost. And it looks as though Shining has truly won the crown for all time's sake."
However, at that very moment Spike started to chuckle quite audibly. All eyes turned to him as he pulled out the Sibling Supreme Crown! "Well, that's the thing about looks, they can be deceiving."
A chorus of gasps echoed through the throne room! But none were more surprised than Twilight and Shining Armor! "Spike?! I don't believe it!" Then she realized something! "It was you who tipped off Shining Armor about my original plan, wasn't it?!"
"Guilty as charged," The dragon boasted. "But as you can clearly see, I wasn't really on his side either. I played you both like fine fiddles, and you never suspected it."
"I thought there was something suspicious about you sending that note," Shining Armor realized. "But how in Equestria did you manage to pull this off?! My system was supposed to be undefeatable!"
The dragon chuckled again as his grin grew wider. "I hope you two don't think you're the only ones with a sibling rivalry. I had an inside pony's help. And not just anypony, but my favorite dragon sitter."
At that Princess Celestia seemed to break out into a cold sweat. "You don't mean..." But she needn't have asked, for all swung back around to the thrones and saw Princess Luna perched atop her own throne, ominously stroking one of the guard geese.
"Oh no, your eyes do not deceive, sister," Luna commented in a somber tone. "You and your captain have been outfoxed," She looked down to Spike and told him. "Go ahead, tell them how we pulled it off."
Spike nodded. "With pleasure," And he cleared his throat. "It wasn't hard to notice there were some disagreements over castle security. When Princess Luna said and I quote 'I said we could do it ourselves, but some ponies are a bit more stubborn.', that was an obvious tip off. So my dragon sitter and I worked out a deal, we'd give you all the wake up call you deserved about interior threats. All Luna had to do was put Zephyr in charge of the catacombs and help keep Celestia out of the castle hallways," Then he grinned as he recalled his own part in the scheme, including deflating the balloon and intentionally triggering the trap door. "As for myself, I already tipped off Shining Armor so Twilight would scrap her original plan. And when Rarity set her own plan into motion, I just had to do my part and make sure we stuck to Twilight's plan so we'd all get to the throne room at the same time. I knew Shining Armor would let it play out until the last possible second. Then, while everyone was distracted by his gloating, all Luna had to do was float the crown over to me."
Princess Celestia was the first to speak up after the revelation. She seemed to trying hard to hide her shame as she spoke in a noticeably forced tone of voice. "I, uh, apologize, for not listening to your concerns early, sister. It seems that we'll need to make adjustments to account for threats inside the castle as well as out. If you agree?"
Princess Luna replied in an equally forced tone of voice. "Only if you think it's worth discussing, sister. They're your guards after all."
"Well, maybe some of your guards would be interested," Celestia commented to her sister. "I know they're not used to daytime assignments, but they've gotta learn how to adjust."
Luna just replied while walking out of the throne room. "I'll talk it over with them and see what they think. No promises, though."
Once the princesses had left the throne room, Twilight questioned. "Spike, why would you go to such extremes? Does the Sibling Supreme crown really mean that much to you?"
Spike nodded slowly and reluctantly. "I know I'm already your son, but sometimes it feels like I'm more of a little brother to you than anything else," He held the crown in his claws. "I wanted so badly to be part of your little rivalry with Shining Armor, to feel like I truly belonged with both of you and with your parents. But I was too little to compete."
Twilight smiled. "Not anymore you're not! You've grown up, and you're more than capable of participating in things like the Sibling Supreme contest. After all, it doesn't matter what you are. You'll still always have a special place in my heart as my precious little dragon. You changed my life in ways I could never imagine, and I can't imagine what my life would be like if I never met you."
Shining Armor nodded. "Whether you're my nephew or the little brother I always had but never knew, you're still the same Spike the Brave and Glorious who taught me lessons I'll never forget," And he declared. "So congratulations, Spike. You won the contest, and the crown is all yours. For now, anyway."
The rest of the ponies could only comment with a collective. "Awww..."
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Was wondering how you were gonna tackle this one since the dynamic between Twilight & Spike was different in your stories than the show itself. At least Zephyr came out a bit likable here, other than that I'm glad that Spike came on top!💖
Here's hoping the sibling vibe between Spike & Smolder doesn't get strained when you get to Sweet & Smoky. The interactions those 2 had in the episodes featuring them were so enjoyable. 😉
Can we give that retirement nonsense a rest already? -_-
10068599 The original draft for the final season had them retiring because harmony was changing, that made way more sense than them retiring because of peace.
10068605
As long as that is used. But for the love of Luna: Don't retire Luna at all. She only came back from being in the moon a few years ago after all. :/
10068608 My headcanon is that she wouldn't be able to rule without Celestia by her side, it just wouldn't be the same. But she would stay on at least for the first few months after Twilight's coronation to ease the transition.
10068610
But still though: Her retiring is uncalled for because she hasn't ruled as long as Celestia has given the whole Nightmare Moon Incident.
Seriously, Twilight really should’ve had Starlight help because it was the one thing Shining wasn’t expecting.
Darn good job on the modifications to this chapter. The exchanges, characterizations, general wrap-up and future episode set-up were all well done in all the right places. I particularly liked the nods to the alterations from earlier in your "What If?" series (though I would think that they would have thought to have Tartarus checked out JUST IN case Tirek and/or Chrysalis escaped [which they did] so, at the very least, they would be caught less off guard in the series finale). And, yeah, Spike, you might get some siblings of your own in a couple of decades depending on how close Twilight and Flash get.
Definitely looking forward to the remaining four stories in this volume (particularly looking forward to seeing Garble get a DOUBLE-DOSE of "Mama Bear" in the "Sweet and Smoky" rewrite).
This is one reason why I’d want Spike to be the main hero in the finale and be the one to defeat the ultimate villain of this series.
10070336 You mean, like that famous underwater hotel in Key Largo, Florida?
Spike D Dragon, King of the Siblings