Only the Broken, Only the Cursed (please read blog post)

by DougtheLoremaster

Chapter 21- A Moment of Sincerity

Twilight blinked. Taller? That’s when she noticed her reflection in a hallway mirror, a mirror that had been above her head on the way in. Not just that but her back seemed to have sprouted feathered wings. Beside her trotted the little adolescent mare, Pinkie; as energetic as possibly conceivable.

“I can’t believe it’s your birthday! We need to tell the others!”

“Pinkie, I don’t think…”

“Yeah...Uh-huh...It’s settled then. See you soon, Aunt Rarity!”

Twilight turned and saw Pinkie was on her walkie-talkie.

“Pinkie...What did you..”

Pinkie, however, was already contacting another creature.

“Hey-o who wants to party?”

On the other end, Twilight could hear grumbling, before an annoyed voice called back.

“Who is this? How did you get on Trixie's frequency?”

“Party for The Tyrant’s daughter in 15. Be there or…”

Suddenly there was a loud noise on the other end of the line, Twilight swore the recipient just fell out of bed.

“Starlight! Get your gear, goin’ to a party for the Princess. Yeah yeah, no Trixie doesn't think your flank looks fat in that...Oh for the love of...We’ll be there...Starlight you look fine!”

The line went dead as Pinkie giggled.

“Well, I guess we know who she’s doing later…”

Twilight laughed.

“Okay, that one got me, but Pinkie you don’t need to..”

“Hello, in the mood for a party?”

The other end was apparently anything but enthusiastic to get Pinkie’s random call.

“Ugh, Celestia Dammit Cozy, who is it?”

“This better be important, Sunset was tucking me in.”

There was a giggle on the other end and then the tone shifted and a low, almost crazed voice whispering.

“You have exactly five seconds to explain, before my axe kisses you goodnight, permanently.”

Pinkie was undeterred though Twilight shivered at the murderous tone.

“Well the Tyrant’s kid, is joining the family and…”

The tone shifted instantly.

“That’s tonight? Sunset make me some coffee, we got a party to attend! No, I don’t know where you threw your jeans. Hang on…”

Pinkie grinned evilly at Twilight whose face was flushed trying to hold in her laughter as more words issued from the walkie-talkie.

“Yeah, we’ll be there! Sunset, I don’t know, make some bucking toast, ugh, vegetarians…Click. ”

And so it was, as the two made their way down the long, hallways of indeterminate length. Every few minutes, Twilight bore witness to Pinkie Pie calling random creatures on the walkie-talkie; many of them quite surprised at the call, since they didn’t have any walkie-talkies of their own. How Pinkie managed to get a hold of a changeling while he was in the shower preparing for his guard shift, Twilight never figured out, but not for lack of trying.

“Pinkie? How are you doing that?”

“Huh? Doing what?”

“That!”

Twilight pointed a hoof at the cupcake that Pinkie stopped to eat. Even watching her the entire time, Twilight still was unable to pinpoint the exact moment it appeared in her hooves. Pinkie looked at the cupcake and appeared thoughtful for a moment before devouring the rest hungrily.

“Sorry about that, I got hungry, and I really wanted a cupcake. Hmm, now that I think about it, I’m not sure where it came from either. Well anyway, I got more calls to make. By the way, do you have a favorite food?”

Twilight was completely dumbfounded by the statement, as the walkie-talkie just sort of appeared once again, but when exactly or how, Twilight couldn’t fathom. She sighed, maybe I’m not supposed to know everything after all.

“Well, I do enjoy quesadillas. Maybe with some peppers, and some fried onions. Why do you ask?”

“Oh, well I have to start cooking them if they are to be done by the time we arrive. Needed to know what to cook.”

Twilight blinked.

“What?”

Pinkie held up a hoof.

“Sorry gotta take this call, Twilight.”

Before Twilight could say another word, Pinkie began chattering to a rather surprised resident.

“Oh hi, no, I don’t mind that you were pouring milk when the carton you were pouring, started ringing. Anyway, wanna come to a party?”

***

15 minutes later, Twilight and Pinkie stood outside the massive dining room. Reaching for the handle, Twilight was surprised when Pinkie’s hoof quickly grabbed her own.

“Pinkie, what giv-?”

Twilight stopped in mid-sentence at what she saw. Pinkie was smiling. Genuinely smiling. For the first time since she became hyper again, Twilight saw her real smile. It wasn’t forced, or over-the-top, it was just a surprisingly gentle grin.

Twilight marveled at the shine of her grin, but even more than that, Pinkie seemed to be completely at ease, her eyes shined with a clarity Twilight hadn’t seen in the others all night; her pain and despair seemed to have vanished completely. Pinkie was truly happy.

“I just wanted to tell you, thank you.”

Her voice wasn’t cracked nor hyper, it was a soothing, mellow tone. Twilight swore she had heard a similar voice, but for the death of her, she couldn’t remember where.

“The others are my family, and I love them dearly, but I’ve never felt like they listened to me. Oh sure, they are there to smile and nod and hear my concerns, but you walked right up to me, aware of the danger, and reached out anyway. I haven’t felt anything since my sister died.”

She paused and Twilight could see her eyes beginning to water.

“In my maelstrom of pain, the pain I inflicted on others and on myself, you embraced my suffering and helped carry my pain. That dance has shown me just who you are. And I just wanted to say, from the full depths of my soul, thank you, big sister. Thank you for being there when I needed you most. You really are just like Maud.”

Twilight could hear in her voice just how hard it was to speak such words, and just how heartfelt her words had been. She felt strange, she felt different. She felt flush, and why did her heart pound in her barrel? It wasn’t love. Of that she was sure, and yet, she could not deny it was affection. Twilight gritted her teeth.

If Pinkie could do it, she could too. All her life she saw only what was, never why or how, or even what would be. Closing her eyes, she gave Pinkie the reply she deserved. She shut off her brain, and let her heart guide her for once;

“That’s what a big sister is for. That’s what I’m supposed to say, right? That I had no fear of my own, reaching out to you in the ballroom. The truth is, I was terrified. Like you, I lived life burying all my emotions deep down. It was what it was, or so I always thought. No, that’s not entirely true, is it? I ran. I ran away from responsibility for anything. Everything I did was because of my mother, but it wasn’t. No, it was my choices that caused my own pain. As a result, I pushed them away, anyone and everyone who got close to me. Even the Tyrant who literally tore her own soul apart, just to save mine, I pushed to the side.”

Giving a heavy sigh, Twilight took a deep breath before continuing her confession.

“And then I came here, a child mentality that lashed out when things went wrong. That doesn’t work, it never does. There comes a time in every pony’s life, when we have to leave behind the cowardly ways of fillies and colts and become the mares and stallions the world needs us to be. Tonight, seeing you lost and alone in the ballroom, standing there; desperate for somepony anypony to take your hoof and dance with you, cemented that reality in my mind. No, it wasn’t just you. The others too, each of you has your skeletons that dance in the closet. For once I’m not alone. I’m not a filly anymore. I’m done running. I’ll be here for as long as you need me, Pinkie. I’ve never had a younger sibling before, but I look forward to our time together.”

Pinkie pushed open the door; laughing loudly, she proclaimed.

“That’s enough sentiments, let’s party! It is your special day after all!”

As the doors flew open wide, a massive crowd of- surprisingly dressed in formal attire- hundreds of creatures shouted.

“Happy 18th birthday Twilight!”

***

Twilight had been standing alone by the punch bowl. 15 minutes in, and her birthday party was in full force; a musical bass blasted across the dusty floor, while the sound of a smooth cello provided accompaniment. The tables were packed with hungry guests, all of who were enjoying the cheesy goodness of the quesadillas Pinkie had somehow made. After several dances, Twilight went to get some punch for a quick rest from the sensory overload, of music and loud noise, flooding her senses.

She wiggled the feathery wings that had sprouted from her back. They seemed familiar, yet strangely alien; almost as though she had them once before. She sighed and took a sip of the punch before spitting it out in disgust. It was too bitter and...she sniffed at it. Was that a hint of Dandelion?

Twilight watched in silence as a raspberry-colored mare with a strawberry and a bunch of grapes for a cutie mark, took a sip of the questionable liquid, before getting a big grin and chugging the contents of the bowl in almost no time at all.

Before she could say a word, Twilight watched the mare wobble erratically. She spoke to Twilight, though her words were slurred.

“Thashts the shuff.”

The mare immediately leaned forward and planted a kiss on Twilight’s lips, before toppling forward into the empty punch bowl. Blinking in disbelief Twilight watched as she began snoring, face-down in the glass bowl. That confirmed her suspicion, this was not punch at all. It did smell familiar, like what mom drank with dinner every night. Dandelion and Elderberry wine. Just great, my first kiss, and it's stolen by a drunk mare.

“Oh dah-ling, those wings look gorgeous on you. Who would have ever guessed you were originally created as an Alicorn filly?”

Turning to face the speaker, Twilight’s face lit up to see Rarity, alongside Fluttershy and Applejack gazing up at her.

“Oh thank you, Aunt Rarity! It’s been so long, even I’ve forgotten. I guess I’m finally mature enough to embrace the throne now.”

Applejack shook her head, chuckling slightly. The sounds of laughter at Pinkie’s antics during ‘pin the tail on the pony’ could be heard amidst the clinking of glasses in celebration.

“Oh, sugarcube, you’ve grown so much since ya got here, but ya ain’t got the experience of bein’ a leader, just yet.”

Twilight’s face fell, prompting Fluttershy to speak up, in her quiet way.

“That doesn’t mean we aren’t proud of you, sweetie. You’ve come so far, and yet there’s further to go. It’s true your maturity has hit its peak, but there is still more for you to learn. And I promise we’ll be by your side the entire way.”

“By my side?”

Twilight sounded confused.

“You are all quite wonderful, but mom said home by sun up, and that’s in about an hour. I gotta start saying goodbyes, mom’s waiting.”

Both Fluttershy and Rarity exchanged a look with Applejack who stepped forward. In the background, the music of the party played on.

“About that, Sugarcube there’s something you should know…”
“Huh? What’s that?”

Scuffing a hoof, Applejack took a deep breath.

“Twi, we can’t find your dra-”

*Ahem*

The sound of a fake cough alerted the four to a blue Unicorn standing quietly in their midst. Twilight recognized her, she was the one from the hallway, the embodiment of Death, itself; Trixie, one of the Four Horsemares of the Apocalypse. She looked as though she were extremely uncomfortable but her words were soft, respectful, even.

“Mrs. Nightmare, we need to talk. Can you please come with Trixie?”

“Now just hol' on a dern moment! Y'all just can’t interrupt like that!”

Turning her head to gaze into Applejack’s eyes, Trixie’s own were ablaze with a raging maelstrom. Trixie kept her soft tone though it carried the imminent danger.

“You don’t tell Trixie what she can or cannot do. Though Trixie apologizes for the interruption, this cannot wait. Trixie has her orders. Now, if that is all, Mrs Nightmare…”

The flames in her eyes died down as Trixie finished.

“This way, if you please.”

Applejack was at a loss. It was true, and she knew it, that the only reason Rainbow was in charge of them, was because The Four Mares enjoyed her company. Truth be told, they obeyed no mortal, and their commands came from Grogar and Clover, themselves. Usually, though, they were not the kind to pull rank like this. What was going on?

Whatever it was, it was no trivial matter. Rarely did the four ever interfere with others, keeping their conversings only to Dash and even then just a few words at a time. Seeing her approach Twilight was unsettling, to say the least. Whatever they wanted with Twilight, it certainly wasn’t to wish her a happy birthday. Rarity whispered to Twilight as she started to follow Trixie out of the room, amidst the ongoing partiers. A single solitary prayer.

“Be safe Darling.”

The three watched in eerie slow motion as Twilight, following Trixie, took one step outside the doorway and vanished. Meanwhile, the clock on the wall slowly ticked the seconds away, causing the minute hand and hour hand to synchronize, pointing at the twelve.

*Dong*

The chime rang out twelve times, and on the twelfth, the small walkie-talkie on Applejack’s midriff squawked to life.

“Come in! if anybody is still able to hear this message, please come in! ”

“This is Applejack, who is this?”

“There’s no time, I don’t have long!”

“I asked you your-”

“Listen to me, I don’t have much longer until she finds me. If you can, get to shelter, stay there!”

A loud crash and the howling of wind could be heard in the background as maniacal laughter could be heard.

“What in tarnation? What’s goin’ on? Who’s after you?”

Hurriedly, the speaker continued in a choked gurgle, as though their throat was being crushed. The speaker didn’t falter, they continued, desperate to get their words out as they breathed their last.

“Canterlot’s fallen. The Tyrant is dead!”

There was an explosion, a strangled gargle on the other end of the line, before nothing but white noise, crackling away. Applejack exchanged a knowing glance with Rarity and Fluttershy. They nodded. The time had come.

“Get the residents back to their rooms, Flutters. Rar...get the file. And round up Rainbow and Pinkie. It’s time.”

As the two ran to fulfill the commands, Applejack silently swore. Damn it, your majesty. Are you really planning on doing that to her? Your own daughter?

Taking her hat from her head she stared at it, in silence. The worn, frayed and tattered stetson was the last thing she had to remember her parents. Would you do the same? No, of course, you would. I wonder though, will Twilight be able to make that call?

She slowly placed the hat back upon her head, perfectly covering her cursed wounds. Applejack sighed in distress. There was no going back now, they were out of options. The midnight hour was finally upon them.

Comments

[sykko]

Curiouser and curiouser. Did Nightmare Moon return or did the Tyrant go nuclear?

[WhitewolfStormrunner]

10704011 Maybe a bit of both?

[Pete100]

It can’t be that hard to put trixie in her place.