Dim Outlook
Sunset's apartment was the kind of place where a description said more about the person describing it than the apartment itself. Fluttershy called it "cozy", appreciating the simplicity of the place and overlooking any half-empty takeout containers of indeterminate age. Rainbow Dash called it "awesome" on the simple basis that Sunset didn't have to live with her parents. Rarity had called it "very fitting" the first time she'd seen the place, shortly after the Fall Formal, and hadn't offered her thoughts since.
No one could call it sinister, but Pinkie still tried her best to make the term work, sitting in Sunset's computer chair and stroking Gummy like an evil mastermind's cat. "So, you're probably all wondering why I called you here today."
Sunset quirked an eyebrow. "For one, I called us here. And it was explicitly because I'm worried about Twilight."
That got a variety of agreements from the rest of the Rainbooms strewn about Sunset's living space. "After school let out," said Rarity, "it was a struggle to drag her out of her laboratory. But as the summer has gone on, she's been acting most... peculiar, shall we say."
— — —
Rarity was normally all for quiet relaxation, especially at the beach, but that presupposed both quiet and relaxation. Twilight Sparkle shifting positions every few seconds on the towel next to her, making little worried noises with every motion, didn't qualify as either.
Finally, Rarity shut her romantic novel. "Everything alright, Twilight?"
Twilight jumped as though pinched, sending the thick paperback on some topic Rarity couldn't pronounce tumbling to the terrycloth. "Of course! Nothing's wrong." Twilight offered a smile so fake that Pinkie Pie might have had to smack her on principle. "Why would anything be wrong?"
Rarity's only answer was a flat, expectant stare.
After several moments of darting eyes and wringing hands, Twilight finally spoke again. "W-well, it's kind of embarrassing, but I was hoping you could help me with, um..." She trailed off into unintelligible muttering.
Rarity offered an understanding smile and a hand on Twilight's shoulder. "Whatever it is, darling, I assure you, I won't judge."
"Well, it's... Do you think you... Should you ever..." Twilight bit her lip, eyes once more looking everywhere but Rarity. They settled on the lifeguard station. "Can you teach me how to flirt?"
It took a moment for Rarity to think through her shock at hearing Twilight Sparkle say those words. "I beg your pardon?"
"I mean, I have a boyfriend," Twilight said as though just realizing that. Every word that followed had the same air of being directed to herself. "I should, you know, show my affection for him. Behaviorally. But not too behaviorally. So flirtation. But I have no idea how to actually do that."
"I... see," Rarity said, giving a slow nod more so her head had something to do than because she agreed.
Twilight looked back at her, eyes widening as she registered Rarity's shock. "Is everything okay?"
"Just feeling a bit surprised, and more than a little conflicted. I've been hoping for this moment for several of my friends. I just never thought you'd be the first to volunteer." Rarity cleared her throat. "No offense intended, of course."
"Oh!" Thankfully, Twilight smiled at that. Though she then pulled a honest-to-goodness notepad and mechanical pencil out of her beach bag. "Well, if you've been anticipating this, I'm sure you have a lesson plan in mind. So, where do we begin?"
— — —
"She asked me for help with flirting." Rarity shook her head. "Her. Twilight 'Seductive as a Potato' Sparkle."
Applejack frowned at her. "Hey now."
"Look me in the eye and tell me I'm wrong."
"No, yer right that Twilight ain't the type t' sweep folks off their feet, Timber or otherwise." Applejack's gaze darted to Sunset for some reason before she scrunched up her face and turned back to Rarity. "I just ain't gonna hear no one badmouthin' spuds."
Rarity raised an eyebrow. "This is because they're 'apples of the earth' in Prench, isn't it?"
There went the face scrunch again. "Maybe."
Sunset scowled. "Girls, can we get back on topic? I'm seriously concerned about Twilight."
"Of course, Sunset," said Rarity, dipping her head. "My apologies."
"Same." Applejack lowered the brim of her hat to a more sorrowful angle. One learned to read her hat language after a while. "'Specially since I'm worried about 'er myself. She keeps askin' t' help with farmwork, but, well..."
— — —
It was like watching a train wreck, thought Applejack. Worse, watching a train wreck in slow motion. She didn't want to stare, knew it was wrong... and yet she just couldn't look away from the unfolding disaster.
Finally, she shook herself out of her daze and said, "Sugarcube, y'know I'm yer friend."
Twilight didn't so much nod as let her head bobble. The rest of her was busy trying to hold up a barely full basket of apples and staggering towards Applejack's house. "Uh huh."
"So I'm sayin' this from a place o' love an' concern an' suchlike: Y' got arms like a pair o' sickly twigs." Applejack tried to take the basket from Twilight's shaky grip as gently as she could, only for the other girl to totter away from her and nearly into a nearby tree.
"It's healthier to lift with the legs anyway," said Twilight, who'd started weaving drunkenly after that maneuver and didn't seem to know how to stop.
Applejack shook her head. "Yer legs ain't much better, Twi. I don't expect you to do this th' way I would. You could move half th' Gala harvest at once with yer magic if'n you'd a mind to. Heck, I'm usin' my magic for some o' these hauls." She called on a little, moving her three baskets up and down for emphasis. "Ain't no shame in it."
"Thanks, Applejack, but, you know, I could use the exercise anyway." The smile grew wider, and faker than a three-dollar bill, especially given how the sweat trickled down Twilight's face. "Arms like sickly twigs, remember?"
"Is that so." Applejack didn't even phrase it as a question, daring Twilight to double down.
"It is so. So so. So..." Twilight stumbled, cutting herself off. Once she recovered, she gave a sheepish little chuckle. "Yeah, that kind of fell apart."
"You ain't far behind there."
What cheer Twilight had died there. She locked her gaze forward and sped up as much as she could. "I'm fine, really."
Applejack caught up easily. "Sure, an' I'm th' queen o' Prance." She reached out an arm again. "C'mon, Twi—"
They passed out of the trees at that point, and Twilight used the available room to dart away further. Her glare only intensified. "I'm. Fine."
Applejack huffed out a frustrated breath. "Fine, then."
They said nothing until they dropped off the apples. Twilight slumped against the side of the barn the moment she put her basket down. By the time Applejack came back with two glasses of sweet tea, she had barely recovered. She took one and, head bowed, said, "I'm sorry about that."
"Apology accepted." Applejack gave Twilight a worried look as she sat next to her. "But you ain't gonna help nobody if you tear somethin', Twi."
"I know. But I have my reasons, and I'd really rather not discuss them right now."
Applejack sipped her tea before answering. "It'd help if'n you did. Granny says anybody who just says they got their reasons usually don't got good ones."
Twilight took some time to respond, long enough for Applejack to get her hopes up. But in the end, Twilight shook her head. "I want to be certain first. I'm still in the data collection phase."
After a sigh, Applejack said, "Well, at least lemme know when you're ready."
"I will. But not until I am."
"Fair enough."
— — —
Sunset bit at a thumbnail as she thought about that. "That's... deeply concerning."
"She won't use magic when she helps at the animal shelter either," said Fluttershy. "Even when she tried to help clean out the litterboxes and had to run into the bathroom."
Pinkie hummed to herself as she spun on the computer chair. "I mean, she didn't use it when baking either, but you'd want to be close to those smells. Although she did get really nervous when I said it was chemistry you can eat. I thought she'd like that sort of thing!"
"She's started jogging with me," said Rainbow Dash. "Remember how Princess Twilight played soccer? It's about that bad. But she still keeps doing it. One time she said it's 'safer.'"
Sunset got off her couch and started pacing as she thought. "And she's nervous around me basically all the time. Flinching away when I even get close. She knows I'd never read her thoughts without her permission—"
"You do kind of do that a lot," said Dash, who'd lounged into the available space.
"Only when magic's running amok, not just because I feel like it. But Twilight's so nervous about hiding something that she's still wary of me." Sunset sighed. "And this definitely explains why she keeps turning down offers to talk about magic or test out what we can do."
The others traded uncertain looks. "It does?" said Pinkie. "'Cause I thought she thought my lab procedures were unsafe."
"Well, it establishes the pattern of reluctance around magic and science, at least. We need to talk to her to know the reasons for certain." Sunset nodded to herself with a look of determination. "Who's available tomorrow? I want to talk to Twilight about this as soon as possible, preferably in a way she can't disconnect."
Rarity shook her head. "I have a shift at work tomorrow."
"Ditto," said Pinkie, who'd somehow twisted herself upside down, her hair nearly brushing the floor.
"Volunteering at the shelter."
"Chores need doin'."
Dash smiled. "Don't worry, I got your back."
Sunset nodded. "Thanks, Dash. Tomorrow, we talk to Twilight in her lab."
"I'm there."
Sunset blinked. "What do you mean she's not there?"
"I mean she's not there." Dash jerked a thumb at the garage laboratory. "It actually looks dusty in there."
Sunset felt an eyelid twitch. "Where the actual hay is she then?"
A snort gave her a focus for her building frustration. "Did you seriously just use 'hay' like a curse?"
"Rainbow Dash."
"Like, I get you're a unicorn, but that's like if I stubbed my toe and shouted, 'Oh bread!'"
"We have a sub-critical Twilight Sparkle wandering around unattended." Sunset threw her arms into the air. "Is now really the time?"
Dash grinned, still snickering. "Hay if I know."
"Can I help you girls?"
Both blinked and turned to see a pale-skinned woman with white and lavender striped hair dressed in a light blouse and capris as she came out of the house. The house that, as Sunset's tunnel vision receded, she remembered was attached to Twilight's garage laboratory. "Um, hi, uh..." Sunset winced as she realized she didn't actually know the woman's name. "Twilight's mom. I presume."
Thankfully, the woman smiled. "You presume correctly. I'm Twilight Velvet. You must be Sunset Shimmer and Rainbow Dash." The next thing Sunset knew, Velvet had her in a tight embrace. "Thank you. Twily's told us so much about you and all you've done for her."
Sunset had been friends with Pinkie for long enough that surprise hugs weren't enough to fluster her, but someone who sounded so much like Twilight Sparkle threw her off kilter. "Um, uh, you're welcome?"
"Uh..." Dash cleared her throat. "When you say all we've done..."
Velvet released Sunset and scowled. "Including the incident at the Friendship Games. We were one hundred percent behind her transfer to CHS." She kept going, ticking off events on her fingers. "Also Camp Everfree, the mall, that cruise..."
Sunset gulped. "Uh, well, you see, Mrs. Velvet—"
The older woman crossed her arms, and the scowl softened into a pout. "I know you girls have had some close scrapes, but I'm still jealous. A shame she's never had you over. Something about giving me ideas even without magical mishaps."
"Wait," said Dash. "Twilight Velvet? As in the romance author?"
Velvet blushed, especially noticeable with her skin tone. "Well... yes. I mostly do editing, though I have cranked out a few potboilers."
Sunset turned to Dash. "How do you know that?"
"My mom's a huge fan."
"Really?" Velvet beamed. "Oh, you'll have to introduce us!"
"I mean, if you want. Fair warning, when I say huge fan, I mean huge fan." Dash rubbed the back of her head. "My family doesn't do anything halfway."
Sunset shook her head. "We're getting off-topic. Mrs. Velvet, we're looking for Twilight... uh, Twilight Sparkle. She's been acting strangely lately."
Velvet nodded. "I've noticed. I was going to call you girls myself, but Twily's the one with all your contact information."
"We can fix that after we figure out what's going on." Sunset looked around as though Twilight might pop out from behind the mailbox. "I don't suppose you know where she is?"
"I can take you to her."
Velvet guided them to the backyard. Shrubs and flowers surrounded a furnished patio. The younger Twilight squatted in front of a rosebush in a ratty T-shirt and cutoffs, pulling out weeds and tossing them into a trash bag.
They stopped far enough away that Velvet could quietly say "She never helps with the gardening, but this morning, she volunteered." She shook her head. "I thought she'd do it telekinetically, but..."
Sunset nodded. "Yeah, that seems to be part of the problem."
"I wasn't sure how it worked; maybe she just didn't want to waste it on something trivial. But now..." She approached Twilight and called, "Twily! You have visitors!"
"I have what now?" Twilight turned. "Rainbow?" Her eyes moved one person over and she bolted up, her latest handful of clover going flying. "Sunset! What are you doing here?"
Sunset approached as well, a sad frown on her face. "We're worried about you, Twilight."
"Worried? About me?" Twilight made a sound that might be called a laugh if one had never heard one before. "Wh-why would you be worried about me? I've been fine. Just fine! Nothing could be finer." She turned a desperate smile to Velvet. "Right, Mom?"
Her mother shook her head. "Twily, I've written too many horrible webs of lies to help you with this one."
"Thanks, Mom," Twilight deadpanned. "Real helpful."
"Also," said Sunset, "you're clearly afraid of me touching you."
"I mean, 'afraid' is a strong wo—"
Sunset took a step closer. Twilight all but launched herself backwards. Sunset just crossed her arms and waited.
"Okay. Fine." Twilight looked away, worrying at a sleeve of her shirt. "I especially didn't want to tell you, Sunset, but..." She took a deep breath and faced Sunset with a concerned expression. "I suppose you deserve to know more than anyone."
"Yeah, you two go get your nerd answers."
Sunset blinked and turned to see Rainbow Dash heading for the house's patio. "Dash?"
"Look, this is gonna be half technobabble, half touchy-feely stuff. You don't want me for either." Dash stopped by the sliding doors into the house. "Mrs. Velvet, you got any books you can autograph for Mom?"
Velvet glanced at the other girls, smiled, and followed Dash. "I do keep a few copies on hand."
Twilight blinked. "Wait, Rainbow Dash's mother reads Mom's novels?"
"Apparently." Sunset's casual expression hardened. "So, what do I deserve to know?"
Twilight hesitated for a moment before sighing and slumping. "Come with me."
They went back to the garage lab. Twilight visibly cringed when she flicked on the lights. Some was at the dust, but even after sweeping off the PC, she still touched the keyboard gingerly. "Okay, so we're going to need to look at a series of photos to appreciate the phenomenon properly." She opened a folder labeled only as "The Hypothesis."
"Ominous," said Sunset. "Also vague."
"I'm the only one who looks at these files. Spike just uses the video editing software." Twilight highlighted and opened a number of image files named only with numbers. "First, me at Crystal Prep."
"You look miserable." The Twilight in the picture had all but folded in on herself, looking at the camera with hopeless despair like she expected it to shoot a bullet and could barely bring herself to care.
"I was. I just didn't know it at the time. Now..." Twilight shuddered as she hit the down key. "Midnight."
Sunset barely registered the blurry cell phone picture. She was far more concerned about the girl she'd saved. "Twilight..." It took an incredible amount of Sunset's willpower not to put a hand on Twilight's shoulder. The last thing they needed were more touch trust issues.
"It's okay! It's okay." Twilight held the brave look for a few more seconds before her shoulders slumped. "It's not okay. But I need to do this. You all deserve to know what's been worrying me all this time. And the low quality of the shot helps, honestly."
Sunset just nodded. "So what are we looking at?"
"I'd like to show you more photos before I explain my reasoning. You should be able to come to the same conclusion that I did." Twilight managed a ghost of a smile. "Thank goodness for Rarity and Pinkie Pie. Given their MyStable, Snapgab, and Immediagram accounts, I barely needed any other sources." Another click of the down key revealed one of Sunset's bad memories. "Now, here's your yearbook photo from the year before Princess Twilight came to this world."
"Uh huh." Sunset wanted to punch that smug expression off the spoiled little monster's face. She took that as a sign of her growth.
"And now— Oh." Twilight looked up at Sunset. "Um, this next one is of... well, you. When Princess Twilight came to this world. And you were..." She looked away. "Well, I think you can guess. Would you rather skip it?"
Part of Sunset wanted to, but she shook her head. "You just faced your outer demon. This is only fair."
"Okay. Here she is."
It was clearer than the blurry image from the Friendship Games. The memories of that time were oddly distant things, like scenes from a movie Sunset had only seen once, years ago, but she definitely remembered spending much of her time hovering in place rather than tearing apart reality or clashing in a magical dogfight. She looked into the crazed pits the demon of Canterlot High called eyes, and she felt only pity. "I've come a long way since."
She felt a touch on her hand. Twilight smiled when Sunset turned to look. "Based on what the others have told me, you really have."
They shared a smile. A few seconds later, Twilight realized what she was doing and pulled her hand back like she'd burned it. Sunset cleared her throat and ignored the ache in her chest. "So, who else?"
"Gloriosa Daisy and..." Twilight hesitated after moving to the next monstrosity. "Should we call her altered form Gaia Everfree?"
"Debatable." Sunset probably should've cared more, but she couldn't pull her attention away from Twilight. "I'm afraid I don't see where you're going with this."
"To today. Or a few days ago, when this last photo was taken." It was all seven members of their inner circle. Twilight seemed just as nervous in the shot as she did in her chair. "Do you see the trend?"
"I—" Sunset's eyes widened as it all clicked. She still took a few moments to review her epiphany before saying anything. It seemed too ridiculous to be true. "Wait. Is this about your skin color?"
Twilight nodded, unable to tear her gaze away from the photo. "Midnight was several shades darker than my own skin, likely a reaction of the chromelanocytes to a massive influx of magic. Chromelanin having a partially magical basis would actually explain a lot about the pigment we don't understand. You and Gloriosa support the hypothesis. And now, we're all shifting darker over time. You, me, even the others, who haven't even experienced malicious transformations yet."
"Yet?"
"At the rate we're all going, it's only a matter of time. Even if it were constant exposure to our geodes doing it, we can't just stop using them. Wild magic is still drifting in from Equestria, and we're the ones best suited to deal with it. Rarity appears to be an exception, but it seems like it's only a matter of time before she'll have to put down the rest of—"
"Twilight." Sunset didn't know if she wanted to laugh or scream, but she knew she had to end this. "Shading."
Twilight finally turned away, blinking up at Sunset like she'd just switched to Equish. "Huh?"
"Chromelanocytes don't just respond to magic. They also respond to ultraviolet light. We've all been spending a lot of time outside in the summer sun." Sunset gave a lopsided smile. "Probably more than you have in years in your case."
"Well... Yes."
"The point is, we're not on the verge of magical overload. We just need to make sure we wear sunscreen."
"But what about..." Twilight trailed off and facepalmed. "White chromelanin doesn't shade, it glosses. Rarity becomes more reflective to ward off UV light. Ugh, even Juniper Montage defies this hypothesis."
"I think she put all her magic into sheer size." Sunset rested a hand on Twilight's shoulder. When she did immediately shrug it off, Sunset wrapped Twilight in a tight embrace. "Were you really so afraid that you forgot how skin works?"
Twilight sighed into her ear. "You remember how I behaved at Camp Everfree. Midnight makes me terribly irrational."
Sunset squeezed her tighter. "You don't have to fear her anymore, Twilight. We put her down at Camp Everfree."
"Did we?" Twilight pulled away. "Yes, you all dove into my mind and filled it with rainbows, but... the parts of me that made up Midnight are still there. They have to be. They're a part of me." She put her hands over her heart. "She is a part of me."
"Twilight—"
"I didn't say that was a bad thing!"
Sunset blinked and took a moment to restart her train of thought. "You're going to have to walk me through the logic here, because now I'm starting to get concerned."
"Midnight was my thirst for knowledge, my desire to better myself, my willingness to go to great lengths to fulfill my goals, and other attributes of my personality that are not inherently negative. She just took them to unhealthy extremes." Twilight got out of her chair and began to pace about the room. "And, now that I let myself think about this and say it out loud, I realize another aspect of her has driven my fear of her. We both have a need for control. That, more than anything short of her indifference towards taking lives, is what horrified me about being her. The rest of me, my morals, my empathy, my sense of restraint, it couldn't do anything but watch."
"I remember that much," said Sunset, shuddering at the Harmony-muted recollection. "It's like being in the back seat of your own mind, watching yourself do everything you fantasize about but would never do. Except now you're actually doing it."
Twilight offered a smile. "But just because those parts of me make up Midnight doesn't mean I have to fear them."
"But you do."
The expression fell. "I do. Because fear isn't rational. And any phenomenon can be replicated by recreating the conditions that caused it to happen." Twilight shut her eyes and grasped her geode. "And they're all here. We've already seen that all of our powers grow out of control if even one of us abuses them. What if we face some threat so great that we have no choice but to go over the line? What if all seven of us go mad with power simultaneously?" She shuddered. "I'm not just afraid of Midnight. I'm afraid of her friends. Who defends the world from its own defenders?"
Sunset smirked. "I'm pretty sure that's when Spike calls in Princess Twilight and her friends."
Twilight's eyes snapped open. "Oh. Right. Multiverse." She cleared her throat.
"And a lot of the equation that added up to Midnight is missing. That magic rightfully belongs to you, there's no Principal Cinch pressuring you to unleash it, and you have friends by your side to keep you from going over the brink." Sunset grinned. "Including one who's already gone through the whole 'mad with power' thing herself and would really rather not do it again. Just let us know before you spend half the summer denying yourself what you love."
"I mean, I did enjoy some of what I did. If nothing else, I had fun spending time with my friends, if not necessarily the activities we did together. That said..." Twilight wrapped her arms around the other girl with a smile on her face. "Thanks, Sunset."
"Of course." Sunset may have nuzzled Twilight. Not that anyone could prove anything.
The sound of a camera shutter challenged that.
"MOM!" Twilight shrieked directly into Sunset's ear.
Twilight Velvet smiled shamelessly from the other side of her smartphone. "Honey, if I'd had a girlfriend like that at your age, you wouldn't exist. Unless she had an open mind..." Velvet brought a finger to her lips and hummed. "Sunset, does your species exhibit herding behavior?"
Sunset blinked as she looked from mother to daughter. Part of her mind found herself considering what she had to look forward to in a few decades. "Uh..."
Force shoved her from behind as everything went purple. "Okay, crisis over, yay friendship, Sunset can go now."
"I mean, I didn't want to say anything, but—"
"Later, and not in front of my mother," Twilight snarled.
"Oh, come on, Twily," Velvet said as she followed them out into the yard. "You haven't had friends over since you were twelve."
"There's a reason for that!"
And, despite blushing cheeks and awkward flop sweat, everyone involved couldn't help but smile.
Also LikedSimilarAuthor
- FanOfMostEverything · 9.6k words · 78 4 · 2.5k views
- FanOfMostEverything · 3.5k words · 96 6 · 1.4k views
- FanOfMostEverything · 2.9k words · 137 9 · 2.6k views
- FanOfMostEverything · 6.9k words · 156 0 · 3.3k views
- Dalek-Galvo · 1.1k words · 30 4 · 2.1k views
- DualSoul1423 · 3.5k words · 143 6 · 3k views
- FanOfMostEverything · 4.3k words · 71 2 · 1k views
- FanOfMostEverything · 4.2k words · 123 5 · 2k views
Stats
Page generated in 0.165 seconds
Total duration
916 users online
1,370,898 hits today, 2,054,621 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
Well, it has been said that your greatest weakness is your greatest strength pushed too far. Happy to see Sci Twi understands that those traits aren't inherently negative, just the amount of them was.
And the lack of morals. Having morals is somewhat important.
Thanks for the story FoME, it was a fun read.
Inside Baseball Alert: The story's title is a Magic card. This is probably not a coincidence, at least insofar as FoME does this on purpose with his blogs.
Sunset could have easily proven she wasn't turning into Midnight Sparkle.
- Twilight didn't have a horn, Midnight did
- Twilight doesn't know how to flirt. Look at Midnight; she needs no help
- Twilight's voice struggles to register higher than a 4/10 on the Ham-o-Meter. Midnight struggles to register anything lower than 10
- Twilight has probably not experienced an increase in bra size, a clear sign she is not Midnight Sparkle
That was certainly a very Twilight train of events.
Yup. That's our nerd.
I would like to remind Twiggles of Occam's Razor. I get that there's a negative association in her mind with darkening of her chromelanin, but automatically assuming demonic transformation when sun-shading is an explanation is a bit out there. Then again, this is Twiggles we're talking about, and she's got trauma, so, eh, not entirely odd to have her mind go there.
Bit of narrative confusion on my liquidy mind. Twiggles mentioned in Rarity's section that she's with Timber ("I have a boyfriend"), yet the implication at the end is that she's with Sunset. Is she dating both, or is she with the former, but share's mutual attraction with the latter that both of them have yet to act on?
10332266
Twilight's been a shut-in most of her life, so she likely never even considered her own sexuality to be something she should explore.
BRB losing it at “Oh, bread.”
Ah yes, the chromelanin. Lovely concept that, and one I quite enjoy.
I forget, are you the one who said Applejack and Macintosh essentially suffer from systemic vitiligo due to an incident with dodgy soap?
10332179
I can say with 99.9% certainty that this story has nothing to do with Nicol Bolas or the Planar Bridge.
10332185
"Midnight was my idealized self-image. More idealized in some areas than others."
10332215 10332259
Twilighting makes for some very fun storytelling.
10332266
Mutual attraction that neither's acted upon. It remains to be seen whether Twilight Velvet's upcoming tale of a naive young mage and the summoned demon who goes from familiar to very familiar indeed will help or hinder any developing relationship between the two.
10332337
Masterweaver came up with that one. Doesn't completely line up with how I intend the chemical to work, but it is a neat idea in and of itself.
10332349
"She also played the violin like Lindsey Stirling and had perfect grammar."
10332266
Maybe that's what the "herd" joke was about?
10332349
Ah yes. So many stories so little time. After a while it all starts to blend together a bit.
Hah, nice. :)
Seems as if this is my 100th favorite on this website. Pretty neat!
This was a very cool story, and I could totally see this as something Twilight/SciTwi would do. As always, you have a knack for writing some great quips, but this one—
—definitely takes the cake. Great stuff as always!
10332349
Twilight: Mom, about the draft of your latest novel…
Velvet: Yes, dear, what about it?
Twilight: It's just… the characters and story seem awfully familiar…
Velvet: Really, how odd.
Twiligth (deadpan stare): I ask because… you didn't happen to find that flash drive that I lost a couple weeks ago, did you?
Velvet: What flash drive?
Twilight (blushes hard): The one where I put all of my fantasy fiction about me and Sunset!
Velvet (predatory smirk): Oh, so that was you and Sunset in all of those stories.
Twilight (horror): No… wait… that's not what I… (runs away in embarrassment)
Velvet (whistfully): So innocent…
Aww! Concern!
And everyone's Sunlight shipping!
Wow.
----
----
So, did Rainbow Dash just leave off screen?
----
Velvet was Moonlight shipping!
----
Nice opening!
----
I was thinking it was some weird magic thing, but no. Sweet though.
10332349
Yeah, you've stated before that Nicky stays as far away from Pinkie as he can.
10332349
I would very much like to see that story. Preferably with reactions from Sunset and Twilight. You have infected my mind with Sciset, and now you must feed the demon that you have conjured.
Huh. Worldbuilding, Twilinanas, hugs, and shipping. This really ticked all my boxes at once.
I can't applaud this work.
As in I can't applaud this work hard enough. What's not to like about both individual parts and the whole delivery?
Now onto the next question. Is Velvet going to survive her meeting with Windy Whistles? Or is she going to wind up needing to have a very awkward discussion with Nightlight?
It seems that Velvet is just as much of an adrenaline junky in this world as she is in Equestria.
This all felt very in-character for Twi. Who's a silly bookworm?
I gotta side with Applejack here, there’re some pretty seductive potatoes out there.
media.discordapp.net/attachments/507771626121723904/732029648199745556/image0.png
Is Twilight still going to jog with Rainbow and do farm work with AJ after this? She was completely right that she should be in better shape. If she’s going to keep superheroing it’s a line of work where people who rely exclusively on their powers and don’t pick up basic fitness and self defense inevitably regret it.
Somewhere, even though she is Human, SciTwi has the metaphysical Unicorn tendency to make things more complicated than they need to be.
Given an opportunity, she would find a way to make a trip to the corner store involve a hang glider, bungee cords, and an accordion.
Ah yes, that's advanced stupidity; the kind of stuff only someone very, very smart can manage!
Another hilarious story, FoME!
Is Sunset thinking about how Twilight will grow up to be a MILF like her mom, or something else?
So the activities were just for friends bonding but why her lab was dusty? Doesn't she use it anymore? And the gardening?
10332349
Please. Tell me. It's gonna be a thing.
10332723
I think she was just trying to avoid things that she thought might strengthen her Midnight Sparkle side. Doing lots of magic, pursuing knowledge so hard that maybe it's too hard...
10332723
'tis a FoME story, and he cannot go against his own nature. The star nerds will be together, however it may come to pass.
10332356
Velvet: Why ship my kid with a boring young adult when I can ship her with the magical unicorn from another dimension?!
clever adjustment of the normal biological terms to match the colorful denizens of that world
So what's with the picture of Sci-Twi in that?
The heck is Spike doing that invloves vid...On second thought, I'm fine not knowing.
Regardless of whatever Spike's doing, this is a great story! Twi's Mom is honestly my favorite character here.
This is too awesome not to love
Seriously, this needs to be its own short :3
10332365
Oh, I definitely know how that feels.
10332374 10332583
Applejack will defend the honor of anything even vaguely apple related, from pineapples to pommes de terre. Especially the one Naiad posted.
10332375
Some time later, the flash drive reappeared, with every file annotated in red. The comments ranged from "Repetitive use of 'crimson' in this paragraph" to "Oh, Twily. I don't know what you're looking at on the Internet, but prepare for disappointment."
10332388
If anyone knows parentally induced embarrassment, it's Rainbow Dash. She kept as far away from that ending incident as she could.
"Twily's the one who said she wanted to marry Moondancer."
"I was nine!"
10332415
Darn it, this is why I try to avoid dabbling with the Lower Planes... If nothing else, it's on my idea list.
10332465
Any Twilight-focused story that doesn't fill out a checklist is clearly doing something wrong.
10332535
I'm not sure if anyone is prepared to meet Windy at maximum fangirl intensity. She's the one who mentored Dash in the art of the squee. At least Velvet enjoys a good adrenaline rush.
10332581
There's definitely a sense that both Velvets live vicariously through their daughters. Or at least use them to generate story ideas.
10332619
She'll probably keep up the jogging. The farm labor not so much. Everyone benefits from endurance training, but physical strength's kind of redundant for the team's telekineticist.
10332621
The thing about living in a world so closely linked with Equestria is that a lot of equine foibles will show up in the humans. (And possibly vice versa.)
That's easy: Go there with Pinkie Pie. You'll check off everything on that list before you're even halfway there.
10332651
Speaking as someone who's personally performed such brilliant foolishness, I know exactly how Twilight feels. Glad you enjoyed it!
10332655
That was in fact what I was going for. To paraphrase the song, Twilight's mom has got it going on.
10332723
)
As 10332803 said, Twilight abandoned the lab in her efforts to stave off Midnight's return as long as she could. (Which ended up having the opposite effect, since it meant spending more time outside in the sun.
10332820
As several people have noted, the locals of the EqG universe definitely aren't humans as we know them. More gracile, more colorful, and the question of how cutie marks work in that world still hangs over all of it. Exploring their unique biology can be just as fun as plumbing the unexplained depths of pony magic.
10333079
Depending on how you look at it, the image is either Midnight at the beach or Twilight with a tan. Which is, of course, the point.
10333094
Spike actually has a canon reason for using video editing software. And I'm glad you enjoyed the story.
FoME? Are you okay?
Ah, there it is.
Oh, so that's how she hides that folder.
10332349
I predict no effect, as Twilight Sparkle won't find out about the plot specifics. No teenage girl would read romantic fiction penned by her own mother. Of Twilight's friends, Rarity is the only one who might pick up the book, but the fantasy elements would probably turn her off from it. (Maybe Fluttershy would read it, but if she discovered the connection, she wouldn't dare mention it to Sunset or Twilight.) Unless Windy Whistles is really invested in the personal lives of her daughter's friends (Rainbow Dash tunes out any time she raves about the latest book), who else would recognize the similarities and be bold enough to mention it to the two girls?
Which is good, as it means that Sci-Twi won't have to question what kind of mother imagines her own daughter doing what Lavender Spark did with Evening Radiance in chapter twelve.
10333262
I generally assume that they're essentially elf-shaped ponies. Not as heavy-set as humans, more willowy.
Ah, the most intelligent do tend to be the stupidest, don't they?
And Velvet has definitely got Plans. Telling you, she ever meets Stellar Flare and the world is doomed.
DOOMED, I SAY!
The best part about kids is embarrassing the crap out of them in front of their friends. Caaaan't wait. *Grins wickedly*
10333246
True. The hard part is convincing her to leave the sousaphone & aubergines at home.
Bi-light Velvet
OUCH. Oh DAMN Rarity, that's cold...
The Pinkie Pie has many layers to her master plan.
Twi is gonna Twi
She CAN talk Fancy. She just doesn't out of principle.
Sage advice.
Clearly Applejack in disguise, laying on truth like that... But she's failing to consider the deep and abiding love ponies have for puns.
Just a few paragraphs after her introduction and I already like her.
Ah Sunset, using violence as a solution to Friendship Problems may be cathartic but it's hardly productive. Next time use rainbow death beams fired by manifestations of cosmic principles. Much safer.
DAMMIT TWI!!!!!
Silly concepts I really love.
Nah. Her escalating magical psychosis gave her a delusion that her wish was fulfilled, thus cutting the Discordant feedback loop short and leaving her with just a size boost. But that's beside the point.
Neat.
Well, I'm dead.
10332349
Okay, real talk though, I had this story idea bouncing around, and part of me really wants to act on it.
10333330
Bold of you to assume that she leaves that folder accessible through anything other than the command prompt.
Hmm. Fantasy romance novel. Who would be interested in that, personally know Twilight and Sunset, and mention the connection to their faces?
It's no worse than what Burnished Breastplate did with the mysterious and exotic Passione two books ago.
10333538
Oh goodness. Imagine if Twilight and Sunburst had met at Celestia's school. Their mothers would've had the whole wedding planned out the moment they got wind of it.
10333838
Just the demon-summoning part, or also the "Twilight Velvet writes a Sciset-based bodice ripper" framing device?
10333771
Her silence since has been a blend of shame and the "If you can't say something nice..." adage. It's not like Sunset's picked up the place since.
She had to take several years of a foreign language. Rarity convinced her to go for Prench back in middle school. "Pommejacques" has been an inside joke for the two of them ever since.
By the time school's back in session, Principal Celestia can make a parabolic reflector just by cupping her hands.
A viable explanation. I like it!
That was amusing
A fun little fic with a lot of witty dialogue. I enjoyed the line about Twilight being as seductive as a potato especially 😄. Poor girl can't catch a break.