Seven of Six: The Longest Night

by SpectralFury

Harmony and Chaos

Once upon a time, in the magical land of Equestria, there were two regal sisters who ruled together and created harmony for all the land. To do this, the eldest used her unicorn powers to raise the sun at dawn; the younger brought out the moon to begin the night.

And it was so very very boring.

So a very powerful and handsome draconequus came along and decided to spice things up a bit. At first he enjoyed the company of the two sisters and helped break the monotony of their cookie cutter days with jokes, pranks, and beautiful chaos. At first they all got along, but like most beings, they didn’t truly appreciate a good time. The sisters started complaining about the draconequus’ actions, and generally made an effort of waving around the poles in their butts. They demanded that he stop having fun.

So he decided that they weren’t fun anymore, and took their kingdom for himself. He kicked the sisters out of their castle and, with nopony else to worry about, decided to cut loose. Days and nights lasted from a few minutes to weeks. It rained everything but water. Grass was replaced with checkered marble and obsidian. Gravity was optional. All in all, it was a total upgrade. None of it made sense but, of course, what fun is there in making sense?

Alas, chaos didn’t reign forever. The two sisters managed to find some dreadfully powerful artifacts called the Elements of Harmony. Like the cowards they were, they blasted him with them while he was enjoying a snack of some delicious and completely harmless seeds. Just sitting there, not even trying to fight them. He may or may not have had his back turned. And so the rightful ruler of Equestria was turned to stone, and made into a statue for all to gawk at.

Centuries later, the moon sister realized that ponies hated her. Something about being afraid of the night or other nonsense. So she realized that being loved didn’t matter at all, and decided to get with the times and start conquering. She fought her sister, but since she was stupid, she forgot to deal with the Elements of Harmony first. And so the sun sister banished the moon sister to the moon. Deliciously ironic, Celestia. Really. I heartily approve.

And so the sun sister ruled all alone, just as it should be, as punishment for driving all her companions away and being a huge killjoy. The banishment was supposed to last a thousand years, which when you think about it seems to be a common theme. Really, we need to switch things up a bit with how long villians are banished or imprisoned. Who is next, King Sombra?

Anyway, just a decade before Loony Luna was supposed to return, something very chaotic happened. Somepony decided to mess with time, and had a fight with their rival in what was, to their point of view, the past. Now, time magic is something you just don't mess around with, since it is way too easy to mess up and get the opposite of what you want. It is practically chaos magic on its own. Even I think twice before using it.

Something important was changed, causing a wave of chaos to spread throughout the multiverse.

And it just so happens that dear old me is powered by chaos. Who knew that kind of mischief I could get up to?

This chaos was just enough to empower the draconequus, but not enough to free him, much to his disappointment. Still, he had some ability, and decided to investigate. He found a city in the clouds, no time travelers, and a pegasus filly trapped in crystal. Being a respectable lord of chaos, he freed the filly before she suffocated. After all, death isn’t fun. He sampled the crystal and, deciding to show some initiative, sought out the villain that would go so far as to harm a foal. Expecting some manner of monster, he was quite surprised to find a crying unicorn filly in a school. He decided to nip whatever was wrong with her in the bud and take her under his wing. Also, having a minion when you are stuck in stone is a pretty big boon.

===

“What was that last part?” asked Twilight Sparkle, a lavender unicorn with a rather wild indigo mane. Upon her haunches were purple, eight-pointed stars, with five smaller stars surrounding them. She sat underneath a tree at the park in her hometown of Canterlot, enjoying the day. In front of her floated the transparent shade of her mentor, Discord, a serpentine chimera known as a draconequus.

“I said having a friend-ion is good when you’re trapped in stone.”

Twilight looked at him flatly. “We’ve been over this. I’m not your ‘minion.’ We’re friends.”

Discord huffed dismissively. “Minions, friends, what’s the difference?”

“Princess Celestia says that friends care for and help each other. Maream-Webber’s dictionary defines a minion as ‘a follower or underling of a powerful person, especially a servile or unimportant one.’”

Discord grunted in frustration and glared at her. “Curse your eidetic memory! Fine, you’re a minion then. You exist to get me out of stone. Beyond that, I don’t care.”

Twilight’s eyes started watering. “Wh- what about the time you saved me from those bullies?”

Discord cringed and looked away. “Don’t- don’t start that. You know I-” He looked again. Twilight looked like she was ready to cry. “No! No you stop-” He snarled, but it was obvious he didn’t have his heart in it. “Stop. Doing. That.” He shivered. “Okay okay! Fine. I might be slightly...fond of you.”

Twilight jumped and hugged the spectral being, her crocodile tears shoved away. “Yay!” Discord cringed, but relaxed and patted her head while rolling his eyes. He quickly tired of it, however, and slinked out of her grip.

“You really need to quit listening to Sunbutt,” he said. “I know she’s a decent teacher, but she really needs to get out more. Friendship- gag! Anyway, we’ve gone off topic. You need to save the world from dear Lulu.”

Twilight tilted her head. “Lulu? Oh, wait. You said Princess Celestia has a sister?”

Discord nodded. “Yup! Dear Luna was right by her side for centuries, and just one little betrayal and it was-” He rocketed off to the sky on a trail of fire before reappearing. “Off to the moon! Then Celestia went on a campaign of erasing her sister’s history from existence. Quite cruel of her, to be honest. She did the same to me, but some phrases are still left over, thankfully.”

“I’d be pretty mad if somepony erased me from history,” Twilight said. “I mean, so they had a fight. Why couldn’t they make up?”

Discord shrugged. “Eh, who knows. Maybe dark magic corruption. Still, I thought Moonbutt was stronger than that. Oh well. Anyway, like I said, she’s coming back.”

“No you didn’t.”

Discord sputtered before gritting his teeth. “Ugh! Okay okay, so I got a little sidetracked. Nightmare Moon- which, honestly, is a much better name, is coming back, and she plans to plunge the world into eternal night. Can you tell me why that’s bad?”

It took Twilight about three seconds to figure it out. “Oh! Because without the sun, everything will die?”

Discord snapped his fingers. “Right in one, as usual!” Twilight clopped her hooves together in pride.

“Wait, why can’t you do it?” she asked. “I mean, I know you’re limited, but you’re still more powerful than me.”

“Two reasons, my little apprentice. One, my influence doesn’t go much further than Canterlot. I can see quite aways, but after a certain point I’m blind. The residual chaos that let me investigate Cloudsdale waned years ago. Two, you need to fetch the Elements of Harmony and use them against her. They’re useless in my claws, and would probably just renew the seal against me if I tried.”

Twilight thought about this for a moment. Discord had never lied to her before, and the few times she had left the city, he did tend to become harder to hear. “But, I mean, can I use them? You’ve been tutoring me with chaos magic, and if they see it on me-” She was silenced as Discord brought his lion paw up under her chin.

“My dear Twilight, you may have invited chaos into your heart, but you’re still a pony. As evidenced by your stubborn hold on friendship and harmony, you are a far, far cry from a being such as me. Even if the Elements don’t like your chaos, I doubt they will do more than convince you to give it up.”

“But I like chaos magic! It’s so fun!” He whipped her tail, causing a cracking sound. In a violet flash, a hayburger popped into existence in front of her, which she promptly devoured.

“I know, I know, Twilight,” Discord said, sliding up to her side. “But ask yourself this, what’s more important? A little chaos, or the lives of your friends?” He opened his lion paw and eagle talon, miniature representations of both choices appearing.

Twilight glanced at the ponies displayed. Minuette, Twinkleshine, Lemon Hearts, and Moon Dancer. She wasn’t very close to them, but they grouped together at school constantly. When it came down to it, the choice was obvious.

“I’d choose them,” she said.

“Good girl.” He patted her on the head. “However, while I know you’ll do this out of the goodness of your heart, it always helps to have a bit of extra motivation.” He snapped his talons, and a closed chest with a question mark on it appeared. “Success means not only will Equestria survive, but I’ll give you a solution to your little power shortage issue.”

Twilight’s eyes went wide. It was a constant irritant that reality constantly tried to fight back when she wanted to break it. Such as the fact that matter and energy couldn’t be created or destroyed for free. Anything she conjured came from her own magical reserves, and creating even the most basic of objects from raw magic drained her heavily.

“Now…” He snapped his talons, and a train ticket appeared in place of the chest. “Here’s a ticket to Ponyville. Last I heard, the Elements of Harmony are in the old capitol, but it’s been so long I-” He let out a soft laugh. “-I seem to have forgotten exactly where it is. I know it’s somewhere in the Everfree Forest. You’ll just have to ask around. I’m sure the locals will be able to help.” He stroked at his beard for a moment in thought before slapping himself on the head. “Oh! I totally forgot. Nightmare Moon returns tomorrow morning, and she’ll probably crash Celly’s Summer Fun Celebration of whatever it is.”

“It’s Summer Sun Cele-WHAT!” Twilight glared at Discord. “You mean you’ve known about this for years and wait until NOW to tell me this?!”

Discord looked at a watch that suddenly appeared on his wrist. “Oh! Would you look at the time, I have an appointment with a whoopee cushion and your brother.”

“Discord.”

“Just remember. Nightmare Moon. Elements. Everfree Forest. Eternal night if you fail.”

“Discord.”

“And for chaos’ sake, do not use chaos magic in front of Lulu! She’ll probably take you seriously and I’d really not have to clean up what’s left of you. Okay? Super! Ta!”

“DISCORD!”

But he was already gone. Twilight glared at the spot he was at and snapped her tail ineffectually a few times. She knew she couldn’t force him to appear, but it made her feel better. When she finally noticed all the ponies staring at her, she shot them dirty glares.

“What are you looking at?” They were looking at a unicorn that was shouting at thin air, and she knew that, but she was quite frustrated. The others quickly went about their business, and she left for home.

===

Twilight opened the door to her home and stepped in. Having only recently graduated from Princess Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns, she still lived with her parents. Even with her degree, getting a job in Canterlot was difficult. Nepotism was very strong there, despite Princess Celestia’s distaste for it. Unfortunately, Canterlot itself was governed by House Gleaming Riches, and they were more than happy to perpetuate the exclusive policies.

Her father, Night Light, was an astronomer that worked at the observatory at the peak of the Canterhorn, the mountain that Canterlot was built upon. It was that job that got them a home in Canterlot, as he was very good at his work. He was likely asleep within the soundproofed bedroom, his job obviously being a graveyard shift.

Her mother, Twilight Velvet, had up until recently been a simple housewife. However with Twilight Sparkle joining the age of majority a few months back, she had returned to her special talent, painting. Twilight looked up at the door to the workshop and noted a lit bulb near it, which signified that she was with a client. Likely a noble getting their portrait done.

She walked in, considering her plan of attack. Mainly this consisted of wondering if she should take Spike with her. After a bit of thought, she nodded, and headed into the kitchen.

Unsurprisingly, Spike was busy trying to defeat the locked case around the snack gem stash.

“Spike,” Twilight said sternly. Immediately the baby dragon spun around and hid the container behind himself, a panicked and guilty look on his face.

“Gah! Oh uh, hey Twilight. Back from the park already?”

Twilight glared at him. Spike gulped and smiled nervously. She let out a stern grunt. He brought the case out, and she immediately pulled it from him.

“Spike, we’ve been over this. You’re not allowed to have new valuables without supervision.”

“I just wanted a snack,” he defended.

“And you couldn’t wait until I or mom came back?” Spike had nothing to say about this. “That’s what I thought.” She opened the case and tossed him a gem. He immediately grabbed it and started munching. “Enjoy it, because that’s the last one you’re getting for two weeks.”

Spike started coughing in surprise. “W-what!” Twilight snapped her tail, and the gems disappeared. She didn’t know exactly where besides ‘the ground’ and she didn’t much care. They could get more later. “Twilight!”

“No,” she said sternly. “We’re still fixing the workshop after you ransacked it the last time. I’m not taking any chances. Now, repeat the lesson to me.”

Spike sighed and slumped. “Dragons grow in power with their hoard, but if they get too much too fast, they turn into greedy monsters, stealing everything they see.”

“Mmmhmm,” Twilight noted. “And?”

“And I know what it’s like to do that, and I don’t want to hurt anypony by relapsing.” He almost doubled in size that day, and he stayed that way afterwards. Only nine years old, and he was almost as big as an adult pony. Large for his age, but thankfully they had managed to stop him before too much damage was done. To both the house and his psyche.

Twilight nodded. “Very good.” She put the case away. “Now, I need you to come with me.” She turned and headed for her room. Spike followed along dutifully.

“What are we doing, Twilight?”

As if it were the most normal thing in the world, she said, “We’re going to save Equestria.”

Spike looked at her a little uncertainly as they entered her bedroom. One wall contained all of her books, most of them for school, but she enjoyed reading as a hobby. Hanging on the wall was her diploma for graduating from the SGU’s standard curriculum, a source of pride to be sure, but the real gem was her Master’s in Dweomercraft. Twilight’s special talent was magic in all fields, and she had decided to seek a career in spell creation. Unicorn magic was so very limiting compared to chaos magic, and she wanted to help bring that freedom to the rest of her fellow horned equines by creating new spells. Her parents, brother, and Spike knew of her talent in the chaotic arts, and the fact that it was slightly illegal, but they looked the other way as long as she kept control over it.

For some reason, Princess Celestia thought that chaos magic was dangerous. Twilight had no idea why. Respect it, and it respects you. Like fire. Simple.

“Okay…” Spike said. He had learned early on that when Twilight declared that she was going to do something, it was best to just go along with it. She tended to be right. While she packed her saddlebags, he listened as she told him about the threat of Nightmare Moon, the need for the Elements of Harmony, and where they were going. She kept Discord’s name out of it, and in fact couldn’t even speak of him if she wanted to.

It was part of their deal, after all. He mentored her in magic and life, and she promised to help him escape from his completely unjustified imprisonment in a few years. A completely fair exchange. She could speak of him, at least from her perspective, but to anyone else that listened, she would be muttering or shouting nonsense.

“So, we need to be on the train…” She glanced at the ticket. “In an hour. Wow, that’s not a lot of time.”

Spike pouted. “Aww. We’re not going to get to go to Moon Dancer’s birthday party. I had a gift ready for her and everything.” He produced a wrapped package to show her.

Twilight froze halfway out the door, her confident stride replaced with irritation, and then anger. “Ugh! As if things weren’t bad enough, now I’m going to have to ghost on Moon Dancer! Nightmare Moon better apologize for all this. Spike, take a letter.”

Spike quickly fetched a quill and parchment.

“Dear Moon Dancer. I’m sorry to say that Spike and I won’t be able to come to your party today, as an ancient villain from Equestria’s past named Nightmare Moon is returning and ruining your special day. Spike and I are going to stop her. I hope our gifts are enough to offset our lack of presence. Love, Twilight and Spike.” They weren’t fillyfriends, but Twilight liked teasing her. As Spike rolled the scroll up, she fetched her own gift, a copy of Sixth Dimensional Rune Crafting. Moon Dancer was much more of a bookworm than her. It would be perfect.

Once the gifts and scroll were ready, Twilight had Spike send it to Moon Dancer by dragonfire. She would be ever grateful to Princess Celestia for the book on raising dragons, as it had details on Spike’s green flame. More specifically that it could be used to send objects similar to a teleport. She would also be ever grateful she wasn’t expelled due to the circumstances of Spike’s hatching.

“Uh, Twilight, shouldn’t we leave a note?” Spike suggested as they neared the front door. Twilight paused, and agreed. She quietly crept into her parents’ bedroom and told her father who, in all honesty, probably didn’t understand what she was saying. That was the point, after all. If she went saying that she was going to go on an adventure to fight a fallen dark alicorn, there would be questions. And there was no time for questions. Her parents wanted her to tell them what she was doing when she went out, and she did. If her father forgot as he went back to sleep, well...she tried.

Ready and willing, they left. The trip to the train station was uneventful, aside from the fact that the ticket was for one passenger. One simple application of magic later, there were two tickets. It wasn’t stealing if she was busy saving the world, after all. More like a requisition. Like when her brother ordered new equipment when he increased a garrison’s size.

===

Twilight and Spike were well rested when they stepped off the train. Not too far away, the town of Ponyville was visible. The architecture was about a hundred years out of date, which made sense considering it was founded around then. Cobblestone walls, thatched roofs, and a few modern buildings were interspaced, but it mostly had a theme, and that theme was ‘cozy.’

“First class is where it’s at,” Spike said after a post-nap yawn. “Where'd you get the money for that, anyway?”

Twilight snorted. “Didn’t you see me make a duplicate? It was magic.”

“But…” Spike tapped at his chin. “Didn’t you tell me that stuff like that has enchantments to stop fakes?”

Twilight smiled, only slightly remorseful. “Well...yes...mostly, but I defeated them. Is it really that bad if we’re saving the world?”

“I guess not.” Spike shrugged. “So, hero time! Where do we start?”

Twilight smiled, opened her mouth and...came up with nothing.

“You forgot to make a plan again, didn’t you?” Spike deadpanned.

“Hey! The fate of Equestria hangs in the balance. I don’t have time for plans. I’ll wing it. Now let’s see...think, think…” She opened her mouth several times, her expression shifting from thought to inspiration to disappointment.

“I got it!” she announced as her horn flared. “I’ll just divine the location of the Everfree castle, easy peasy.” The magic on her horn flashed, and she opened her eyes, seeing Ponyville. “Wait, what?” She tried again, but again her magic failed to locate her target.

“What is it?” Spike asked.

“I’m supposed to be seeing the castle. But it’s…” She facehoofed. “Of course. If Princess Celestia left the Elements in the castle, she wouldn’t want anypony to stumble across them. She’s probably got a bunch of wards on it.”

“So, what now?”

Twilight tapped at her chin. “Well, I guess we could go to the town hall and ask for a map. Surely they know?”

“Makes sense to me,” Spike said. “Wait, wasn’t that the original plan?”

“We’ve both slept since then, Spike. You know the rule.”

Spike snorted and rolled his eyes before following her into town. The populace was all abuzz with preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration. Decorations were being hung, food was being sold, and ponies were smiling.

“I’m telling you Philomena, it doesn’t make sense.” Twilight and Spike turned to find an interesting sight. A royal sky-carriage had just landed, pulled by two royal guards. Hopping off it was a unicorn with a warm yellow coat, and a curly mane of red and gold. Her cutie mark was that of a stylized sun.

Twilight recognized her instantly. Sunset Shimmer, the previously estranged personal protegé of Princess Celestia herself. Sitting upon Sunset’s back was a phoenix, and if Twilight was right, which she usually was, it was Philomena, Celestia’s pet. Why Sunset had it, she didn’t know, but since the guards weren’t busy arresting her for stealing the royal pet, she must have had permission.

“Hey, isn’t that-” Spike was silenced as a purple hoof pressed against his mouth.

“Shh,” Twilight ordered as she pulled them out of sight. They heard Philomena let off some trills of birdspeak.

“Well, yeah I know that Celestia gave me this task, but how does this deal with Nightmare Moon? I won’t get my princesshood checking up on the locals. I’m sure they’re handling it fine.”

Twilight’s eyes widened. So Sunset Shimmer knew about Nightmare Moon as well? And was on a quest too?

“The plot thickens…” she said under her breath.

Spike nodded. “Yeah, you think we can help each other o- hey wait!” Twilight was already only a few feet from Sunset. “How does she do that?” he asked himself before moving to catch up.

Twilight was casually trotting vaguely in Sunset’s direction as she conversed with the bird. Once she was close enough, she turned and let out an exaggerated gasp. “Oh. My. Gosh! Is that you, Miss Shimmer?”

Sunset’s head whipped around and locked on to Twilight. Twilight noted surprise, then a bit of irritation before it was pushed behind false content. “Twilight Sparkle...how nice to see you,” she said through her teeth. Twilight knew she was lying, of course. When Sunset returned from wherever she was banished to, Celestia had her as a guest teacher at the SGU all the time. Twilight had heard about the protegé’s pride problem, and vowed to mess with her. And so began a series of events where Twilight defeated the challenges Sunset had prepared for the classes and, later, for her specifically.

Naturally, she did all of this ‘accidentally’ by ‘stumbling upon’ the solutions. With her absolutely sincere innocence, there was no way Sunset could accuse her of anything. But they both knew what was really happening.

“Oh I know!” Twilight gushed. “It seems like it was only yesterday that you were having us practice life-to-life transfiguration.” She giggled. “Got it in three point four seconds. Tell me again, what was your record?”

Sunset growled under her breath. “Three point six,” she muttered. “Look, Sparkle. I don’t have time to reminisce. I’ve got-”

“Oh pssh. It’s not like you’re trying to save the world, Miss Shimmer.” Sunset looked at her inquisitively. “I mean, you’re here to help with the celebration, right? Princess Celestia is supposed to be here tomorrow, and she sent you ahead, right?”

Sunset narrowed her eyes suspiciously. “Right…”

“Can I help?”

Sunset looked surprised by that. She gave Twilight another look as she brought out a document. Atop her, Philomena trilled questioningly.

“She’s offering to help,” Sunset insisted. “So she can help by checking on the preparations. I have other things to do. This way everything will get done faster.” Twilight smiled, her plan going perfectly, but Sunset glared slightly. “I know you’re capable of checking on a few ponies, Sparkle. Just go down the list and make sure they’re doing their jobs.” She handed the list over.

“And what will you be doing, Miss Shimmer?”

Sunset sighed. “It’s just Sunset, alright? You’re not a schoolfilly anymore, Sparkle. I will be in the library. Princess Celestia needs me to take care of some important business, and I will. Just take care of the list while I deal with it, and everypony will be happy, got it?”

Twilight did a mock salute. “Yes, ma’am!”

“Good.” Sunset turned and began walking to a nearby tree which, upon inspection, had a library built into it. As they entered the tree, Twilight heard the phoenix trill another question, but couldn’t hear Sunset’s response.

“Uh, Twilight,” Spike said. “Aren’t we supposed to be stopping Nightmare Moon? Why didn’t we team up with Sunset?”

Twilight smiled and shook the rolled up parchment in her magical grip. “Oh Spike, we are! Except we’re doing the most important part.”

Spike raised a brow and crossed his arms. “Uh huh…how? We’re going to be checking up on the festival while she actually does research.”

“Didn’t you ever pay attention to Shining’s Ogres and Oubliettes campaigns? The wise mentor always hides what you need to do underneath a veil of mundanity, because you’re not supposed to have to be told to do it.” She held up the scroll again. “Princess Celestia obviously told Sunset about the threat, but didn’t emphasize what she needed to do, instead assigning the real work as a sidequest.”

Spike thought about it for a moment, and nodded. “Yeah, okay. But...why? And why doesn’t Princess Celestia handle this herself?”

“Hmm…” Twilight tapped her chin. “Maybe she never moved on from the betrayal? I’m not sure. Anyways, things like these sort themselves out. Everypony will learn some kind of lesson on harmony and friendship and the like, and all will be well with the world.”

Spike scratched his head. “Well, if you’re sure. What’s first on the list?”

Twilight unfurled the scroll and gave it a once over. “Well, first on the list is somepony named Madam Jacqueline.” She fake gagged. “Bleh. Nobles. Let’s start at the bottom instead. We’re supposed to check up on a pony named Fluttershy. She’s handling the music. Ready?”

Spike nodded, and they set off. It was only about a quarter hour before they approached their destination on the edge of town, a cheerful building with decorative silhouettes of a dog, cat, and pig. Above the front door was a sign labelled ‘Ponyville Pet and Vet.’ Without delay, the two entered.

The scene within was best described as a ‘free range store.’ Animals wandered freely, nests and sleeping spots were all along sloped walls, the floor, and Twilight was sure those holes in the walls were for mice. The store reeked of dirt and animal funk, and the owner clearly was used to it, as there was no attempt to cover it up. The only manner of organization was that the various pet products were stored behind the counter, safely away from the curious creatures.

Behind the counter was a butter yellow pegasus who had her soft pink mane tied back; her curly bangs were short and out of her eyes. Upon her flank was a cutie mark of an aqua medical cross flanked by two pink wings. She was shooting one of her customers a stern look, causing them to shrink back slightly.

“I told you last time that bunnies can’t survive on just carrots, Golden. They’re tasty, but don’t have all the nutrients they need.” Her voice was incredibly soft and delicate, but her tone brooked no argument.

“I’m sorry, Doctor Fluttershy,” the mare said guiltily.

“I’m not the one you should be apologizing to.” She went behind her counter and produced a small pet carrier with an adorable rabbit inside. “Now, I’m happy to help ponies when their pets are sick, but ignoring my advice is just stupid and endangers your animal friends. If I see this neglect again, I’m going to the guards, understand?”

The customer, Golden, wilted at that. “Y-yes Doctor.”

Fluttershy nodded. “Good.” The two completed their transaction, and Golden left. As Twilight approached, Fluttershy sighed.

“Some ponies just can’t understand medical advice, but you aren’t here to listen to me complain. Welcome to the Pet and Vet, I’m Doctor Fluttershy, how can I help…” She trailed off, her eyes drifting to Spike. Her irritation quickly was overtaken with extreme interest. “Is that a baby dragon?”

Fluttershy was instantly in the air and hovering in front of Spike. “Oh my! I’ve read about dragon care in the past but, I never thought I’d actually see one!”

“Well well well, look who’s got the attention now,” Spike said, shooting Twilight a smug look. Twilight just smirked and rolled her eyes in response.

Spike’s words seemed to have gotten Fluttershy’s attention, who gave Twilight a look. “Wait, have you been ignoring him? Trying to overshadow him? Dragons require an adequate amount of pride to properly develop, you know.”

Twilight cleared her throat, irritated that someone else dared to tell her how to raise Spike. “I’ll have you know that I was tutored by Princess Celestia herself on dragon care, so I’m pretty sure I know how to raise my son.” She shot Fluttershy a glare, who met it head on. After a moment, the pegasus smiled. Twilight wasn’t truly angry with her. Obviously she simply cared for the well being of all creatures. She just could be a little forceful about it.

“I believe you. So, what can I do for you?”

Twilight relaxed at Fluttershy’s acceptance and pulled out Sunset’s checklist. “I’ve been drafted to help check on the festival preparations, and you’re listed under the music. I just need a listen, and I’ll be on my way.

Fluttershy smiled before she loudly cleared her throat, and clopped her hooves together twice. Instantly, most of the birds in the shop flew up and landed on a set of perches that hung from the ceiling.

“And a-one, and a-two…” On cue, Fluttershy began conducting, and the birds began singing a bright and cheerful tune that would be perfect for an announcement or arrival for someone important. Twilight had heard of ponies that could communicate with animals, but the ability to train and coordinate a flock of birds to sing in concert was simply amazing. And on top of that, they were mixed species. She’d never see this kind of coordination between the three pony tribes in Canterlot. And yet, mere animals accomplished it. Harmony in chaos, exactly what she liked to see.

With a spectacular ending, Fluttershy nodded and flew up to a bluejay. “Well done. You’ve come a long way.” The bird tweeted humbly and looked away as Twilight stomped her hooves in applause.

“That was amazing!” Twilight said. Fluttershy tried to hide it, but her blush was visible as well.

“Thank you,” Fluttershy said, living up to her name by averting her eyes. “But really, it was the birds who did it. I just helped them out.”

Twilight waved a hoof dismissively. “Don’t sell yourself short. There’s nothing wrong with taking pride in your accomplishments.”

Fluttershy smiled faintly. “If you say so. Now, I don’t suppose you could stay? I’d like to ask your dragon a few questions.”

Twilight glanced at a clock and checked the list. Only three other stops, and they had several hours to go. “We can spare a few minutes.” Spike beamed at the chance to show off.

“What’s your name?”

“I’m Spike!”

Twilight smiled and gave them their space, distracting herself with the other animals in the shop. She often considered getting a pet, but between her schoolwork and Spike, she didn’t have a lot of time. Maybe something low maintenance? Probably not for a while. She still needed to find a job.

After letting Spike gush about himself for ten minutes, Twilight collected him and left Fluttershy to her store, but not after promising that the two could meet again later during the festival if they had time. She was out to save Equestria, after all.

Their reverse checklist led them to the Ponyville Town Hall, a large, circular building with many windows. It looked like it was built more for form than function, much like back home. Perhaps the architect was from Canterlot?

“Alright, so the pony handling the decorations is Pinkamena Pie,” Twilight noted. They stepped into the hall-

And were immediately met by Princess Celestia. The two froze in shock at the presence of their monarch.

“P-Princess Celestia!” Twilight cried out. “What are you doing here?” A number of scenarios played through her head. She was there to make sure Sunset was doing her job, she was there because she sensed Discord, she was there because Twilight was interfering in her plans. Twilight braced herself for what would come out of the alicorn’s mouth.

Celestia said nothing, just smiling serenely. In fact she wasn’t doing anything at all. Spike’s snickering tipped her off that something was amiss.

“That’s a new one,” said a voice. Twilight looked over to find who could only be Pinkamena. Light pink coat, hot pink mane in a straight and smooth cut, even her cutie mark was a chisel on a piece of what appeared to be rose quartz. The only thing not pink about her were her eyes, and the black artist’s hat she wore. She had an amused and bemused smirk on her lips.

“I’m sorry?” Twilight asked, her eyes still glancing at the strangely still Celestia.

“I’ve done plenty of statues of Princess Celestia, but I’ve never had somepony be afraid of her before. Usually ponies are in awe or happy to see her.” She smirked at Twilight. “Are you a criminal?”

“Hey I was given clemency-” She silenced herself with a hoof before reigning in her emotions, and cleared her throat. “Anyway, my name is Twilight Sparkle, and I’m helping check the preparations. Is that…” She examined Celestia more closely, finding that, yes, it was indeed a statue of her holding up a large sun with her wings. The flawless marble and sculpting had somehow surpassed the uncanny valley, creating something that invoked genuine emotion from Twilight. It was, like Celestia herself, awe inspiring, commanding, and drew attention like none other.

“This is amazing!” Twilight said, inching a hoof towards the marble. Pinkamena’s hoof gently pulled her away, however.

“Please don’t touch the art,” she said. “It’s going to Canterlot after the festival. Now then, you said you’re here for inspection?”

Twilight nodded. “Yes. Spike and I…” She looked around. “Spike?”

She heard a goofy mumble from the other side of the statue. Twilight and Pinkamena looked around to find the whelp staring at someone else. A pure white unicorn with an indigo mane set to a curly, but modest, manedo. Her cutie mark was a shining diamond. She was utterly engrossed in her work, glancing down at some kind of diagram while she manipulated various decorations in the room.

“Spiiiike?” Twilight tried again.

“She’s...beautiful,” he mumbled, staring at the unicorn. Pinkamena suppressed a snicker.

“Rarity,” Pinkamena said. “We’ve got some visitors.”

“Just a sec,” Rarity said with a peculiar accent. She adjusted a few bows before smiling in satisfaction, and turned. “Why hi there! What can I do you for?”

Twilight blinked. That’s what she thought. Rarity, like Twilight Velvet, was from Vanhoover. “Well, we’re here to check the decorations which…” She looked around. “...are coming along quite nicely.”

Rarity smiled and waved the compliment off. “Oh, really you should be saying that to Pinkie Pie. She designed it. I just helped her set it up.”

Pinkie smiled at the praise. “Aw, you helped too.”

“Tsk, just a little,” Rarity dismissed. “I’m Rarity.”

“Twilight Sparkle.”

“And who is this?” Rarity asked, turning to Spike.

Spike responded by mumbling something incoherent. Rarity just giggled and patted him on the head. “Well aren’t you just the cutest little thing?” Spike finally managed to start speaking whole words, and Twilight let the two interact for a moment.

“So, is it Pinkamena or Pinkie?” she asked the earth pony.

“Either will do,” she said, shrugging. “I usually go by Pinkamena back home and when I’m with a client, but Pinkie is easier to say. So, what do you think?” She gestured to the decorations.

Twilight took a look around, and felt her heart swell. The warm colors, the position of everything, the symbols, all centered around the majestic statue of Princess Celestia. Twilight wasn’t sure, but she almost felt the warm aura that the Princess carried with her everywhere she went.

“Well?”

“It’s amazing. I don’t think I’ve ever felt something like this before.” She looked at Pinkie, who was holding a rope.

“Ah, good. I won’t be needing this, then.” She threw it out of Twilight’s sight.

“Why would you need a rope?” Twilight asked.

“Well I gotta keep my reputation intact one way or another,” she said with a sly smile. Twilight had to think about that for a moment before she smiled, the dark joke hitting her as she cracked a smile and snickered.

“Be careful you don’t say that around my brother. He’d take it seriously.”

“Oh? He one of those protective types?”

“Try Captain of the Royal Guard.”

Pinkie seemed surprised at that, but her look quickly turned thoughtful. “Well, I have a way with hard things. He wouldn’t be a problem.”

Twilight blinked. “Uh, what?”

“What? Oh hey, look, Rarity!” Pinkie pointed at the approaching unicorn.

“Twilight, little Spike is just so adorable! And you two took it upon yourselves to help out the Princess’ student out of the goodness of your hearts. You must let me get you some lunch. Do you mind, Pinkie?” she asked.

Pinkie gave a slow look around the room before nodding contentedly. “We’re done. Thanks, Rares.”

Pinkie had other things to do, so Rarity led Twilight and Spike to one of the local diners. But not before stopping at a gem shop called ‘The Treasure Trove.’ Twilight immediately shot Spike a look.

“I...may have mentioned that I eat gemstones, and that we were out?” He shrugged and tried to appear as innocent as possible. Twilight glared. Spike gulped.

“It’s no big deal, hon,” Rarity said, unlocking the door and entering. The two stepped in to find a resplendent display of gemstones, from pea sized to some as large as a pony’s head. The latter were, naturally, under heavily warded cases.

“When Spike here mentioned that dragons need gems for a balanced diet, I couldn’t just force him to subsist on the regular stuff.”

Twilight frowned. “I don’t really have that much money on me.” She could simply conjure some bits, but replicating the anti-counterfeit enchantments was draining and difficult, and she refused to summon them from others. Filching a snack from Hayburger was one thing. Stealing someone’s rent was another.

“Oh it’s no trouble at all. The mine makes plenty, and I already donate a lot to charities. This is just another.”

Twilight blinked. “Mine?”

Rarity smiled. “Uh huh! You’re looking at the owner of Rare Mining Ventures.”

Twilight thought about it for a moment. She had seen a newspaper article-

“Wait, somepony found a huge crystal in the Canterhorn a few years back.” Rarity nodded. “That was you?” She nodded again.

“Yes, I know! I was just there with the rest of my classmates on a field trip. Princess Celestia was kind enough to let me claim it, and bought it from me. It gave me a cutie mark, and the startup funds for my business.” She giggled as she filled a bag with gemstones. Most of them were of low to moderate quality, but Spike began salivating when she held up a few larger, more high quality ones. She had been simply admiring them, but when she noted Spike’s drooling mouth, she added them as well, but with visible reluctance.

Seeing the avarice in his eyes, Twilight grabbed the bag before Spike could get his hands on them. “You can have some of these during lunch,” she said, which seemed to be enough to mollify the whelp.

Lunch was a casual affair at a sweet shop called Sugarcube Corner. The owners, Mr. and Mrs. Cake, were quite accomplished in their art, and the baked goods the two unicorns ate were spectacular. Spike got to enjoy his special treat as Twilight crushed some gemstones to dust on his fritters, giving them a more complex flavor.

All the while, they spoke of their lives. Rarity was a bit interested in Canterlot, saying she had always wanted to take a vacation there and to see the palace. Eventually lunch ended, and they parted ways. Twilight was just about to bring out the list when she heard a shout of frustration.

She looked and found Sunset Shimmer in a glaring contest with another pony. She was a baby blue pegasus with a messy, rainbow colored mane. Her cutie mark was a lightning bolt shaped wing with rainbow feathers. Oddly enough, she was sporting a set of light steel armor, common for municipal guardsponies.

“Do I have to make it an order?” Sunset asked.

“I don’t care if you’re the Princess’ student,” the pegasus said angrily. “The only pony that gives me orders is me.”

“What part of ‘the fate of Equestria depends on it’ do you not get?” Sunset said exasperatedly.

“The part where you don’t have an signed order from the Princess, and the fact that your reputation doesn’t exactly help you. I have a festival to monitor. I don’t have time to escort you through the Everfree.”

“But-” A blue hoof was shoved in her face.

“This conversation is over. Get an order from the Princess and I’ll help you. Otherwise get lost.” She took off and flew up towards a cloud before perching on it, looking down at the streets.

“What happened?” Twilight asked as innocently as possible. Sunset whirled around, her face red.

“What happened is that I found out where the El- er, I found out where some magical artifacts are. Princess Celestia needs me to get them, but they’re in that forest. I was going to get that guard...Rainbow Crash or something...to escort me there. I wonder…”

She gave Twilight a once over, then shook her head. “Nah, you’re too...soft. Guess I’ll have to find somepony else. Or go it alone.”

The sweet smile on Twilight’s face vanished. “Are you sure about that? I mean the Everfree is supposed to be soaked in wild magic. It’s probably pretty dangerous.”

“I’ll be fine,” Sunset said, and turned away.

“Do you want any help?” Twilight asked before she could stop herself. Sunset turned and looked at her curiously. “I mean, between the three of us-”

“I don’t need your help!” she snapped, and walked off. Twilight had been concerned for the unicorn’s well being, but that just evaporated.

“Fine. Get yourself killed for all I care,” she muttered.

“Uh, shouldn’t we stop her?” Spike asked.

Twilight laughed mirthlessly. “Stop Sunset Shimmer? Right, and I’ll be the next Princess of Equestria. Shimmer’s a powerhouse and isn’t afraid to use it when things get in her way. She overpowered the guard squad that was escorting her out of the palace when Celestia exiled her. I might be able to beat her, but not without destroying a few buildings in the process.”

“You have my thanks for that.” Twilight and Spike jumped at the voice of the guardspony from earlier.

“Are you trying to give us heart attacks?” Twilight asked the mare that had snuck up on them.

She just chuckled. “Sorry about that. Stealth training. We don’t get many criminals in Ponyville, but when they show up, they don’t see me coming.” She held out a hoof. “Sergeant Rainbow Dash, Ponyville Guard Service.”

Twilight shook it. “I’m Twilight Sparkle, and this is Spike.”

“Do you know Miss Shimmer?”

Twilight shook her head. “In passing. She teaches at the school I used to go to. I ran into her earlier today and offered to help her with a task Princess Celestia assigned her.”

Rainbow looked at her intensely. “Is she really here to save the world?”

Twilight briefly considered lying to the pegasus. However her parents and even Discord would be disappointed in her for doing so. Lies were cheap and crude, and were hard to handle as you wove a web of them. Plus, this was an officer of the law. Even on a good day, lying to one wasn’t a good idea.

“She told me that she was taking care of important business, but not exactly what.” She noted the way Spike shifted slightly. It may have been a half-truth, but now was the time for the real truth. “Though, the truth is I did hear that there might be a threat returning as well. The Mare in the Moon, or Nightmare Moon. I came here to investigate, and ran into Sunset. She asked me to take care of checking up on some things for her.”

Twilight brought out the scroll and looked at the names, spotting Rainbow Dash on the list. “Oh, like you! You were tasked with keeping the skies clear and…” She looked around, finding nothing but clear blue sky.

“I took care of that this morning,” Rainbow said.

“Wait, a guard is on weather duty?” Spike asked.

“My full time job is being captain of the weather team,” she explained. “Ponyville’s so quiet that there are only a few part time guards, and even then we’re usually only called out when needed, or on tourist heavy holidays. But anyway, if you’re here to look into a threat, why are you busy with this?” she asked, gesturing to the list.

“Call it a hunch,” Twilight said. “Sunset said that Princess Celestia assigned her this task, and I think the Princess knows what she’s doing, so it needs to be done. If Sunset doesn’t want to do it, I will.”

Rainbow gave Twilight an appraising look. “Fair enough, but I’m not going to abandon my post on the word of a book of old prophecies and the hearsay of two mares, no matter if one of them is the Princess’ student. One of you gets some evidence, then we’ll talk. Until then, I have a town to keep an eye on. Good day.” She jumped back up in the air and zipped up to her cloud perch.

“Woah, fast,” Spike said. Indeed, Twilight had only seen a handful of pegasi with that kind of speed, and even then she wasn’t sure if they came close to Rainbow Dash.

“I’d hate to have to run from her,” Twilight said, checking off the third task on the list. “Now all that’s left is...ugh.” She sneered at the document.

“What is it?” Spike asked.

“Spike, what kind of pony do you think has a name like Madam Jacqueline?”

“Uh, somepony old? Or rich?”

Twilight nodded. “Exactly. I’m not looking forward to this.”

There was a slight gap between Ponyville and the farm known as Sweet Apple Acres, and when the smell hit Twilight’s nose, she knew why.

“Ugh, I don’t have a problem with farmers, but does it have to stink so badly?” she asked as they approached the fenceline. Immediately visible were apple trees as far as the eye could see. However as they walked down the path, they could see several fields of other crops such as corn, wheat, and carrots. Off in the distance was a large farmhouse, several barns and other supporting structures.

A bit of movement caught Twilight’s eye, and she turned to find an orange earth pony bucking an apple tree. Her blonde mane and tail were tied up in buns, and she had a brown stetson on. Her cutie mark was that of a shining, golden apple. Deciding it would be best to get directions, she approached the mare.

“Hello, can I ask you something?”

The mare turned and smiled, clearly slightly winded. “But of course, darlin’.” Twilight wasn’t surprised to hear a southerner accent come from the farmpony.

Twilight smiled and cleared her throat. “Yes, I’m helping check on the festival preparations. Can you lead me to Madam Jacqueline?”

“Of course. Right this way.” The orange pony trotted along, humming some kind of tune. “So you’re here to check up on our preparations?”

“That’s right.”

“Well, the family brought out all the stops today. When her highness requested that we cater for the Summer Sun Celebration…” She giggled. “It was simply too good of an opportunity to pass up.” She gestured to the buildings and the setup they had. “What do you think...er...I’m afraid I didn’t get your name.”

“Twilight Sparkle.”

“Well, Twilight Sparkle, what do you think of our fair operation?”

Twilight looked around. Up close it was about what she expected, that being dirt, plants, and farming equipment. However as she looked closer, she noticed something else. Ponies. Ponies were everywhere, working, talking, having a decent time. As they approached the farmhouse, she noted that the many long tables outside were covered in all manner of baked goods. The smell of apples was pungent, and despite the fact that she and Spike just ate, she felt her stomach grumble.

“Well, I don’t know much about farming, but you all seem to have things under control. It’s very...uh...homey?” Twilight smiled, noting that the farmpony looked at her with a bit more intensity than should be necessary. It quickly passed, however, and she settled on a warm smile.

“Our home may not be as productive as the ones that are adopting the new miniaturized steam engines, but it has heart. I’m glad to see that you appreciate such virtues.”

Now close to the farmhouse, Twilight noted that the construction was actually incredibly high quality, and not only due to the craftsmanship. The mouldings were fine, and the paint job was precise. As she walked up onto the porch, she noted no squeaks from the boards, and in fact it almost didn’t vibrate at all. She glanced in through the window, and was surprised to find that much of the interior furniture looked fairly expensive.

“One moment, darlin,” the farmpony said, and walked inside.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen this many ponies working,” Spike said. “Do you think they all live here?”

Twilight did a quick calculation. The farmhouse was certainly large enough. “It wouldn’t surprise me,” she said. “House Ruby Harvest is one of the largest earth pony families in Equestria. They provide nearly all the apples on the market. This must be one of their larger farms.”

“Actually this is the largest operation outside of Appleloosa,” said a refined voice. Twilight and Spike turned to find that the farmpony had returned, albeit different.

Much different.

Her mane had been let down, and styled into an elegant beehive that was popular among the higher class. Her relaxed posture had been replaced with poise, and she had on a fair amount of makeup.

“Madam Jacqueline, a pleasure to meet you, though you may call me Applejack if you wish,” she said, holding out a hoof. Twilight took it dumbly and shook it, questions running through her mind. “You should close your mouth before something flies into it.”

Twilight’s jaw snapped shut. “I’m sorry, I just didn’t expect-”

Jacqueline giggled. “That was the intent, sugarcube. The best way to learn what kind of pony you are conversing with is to see how they treat the help. It helps me weed out the undesirables when it comes to business partners. Truth be told, I was a little confused. You’re obviously from Canterlot, but your manedo is so…” She hesitated. “...free. Alas, one mustn't judge a book by its cover. Now then, you wished to meet with me?”

Twilight blinked, still having a bit of trouble processing all of this. “Uh, yes!” She brought out the list. “I’m helping Sunset Shimmer check on the Summer Sun Celebration preparations. You’re in charge of the food?”

Jacqueline smiled and brought Twilight down to the tables. She grabbed a metal rod before clanging it against a triangle, calling out for everyone to come. Within a minute, a large crowd of primarily earth ponies surrounded them. “May I introduce…” She then began listing off names, pointing out each and every one of them. Most of them had apple related names as family, but there were a handful of off names as well. Likely just hired assistance. Finally, she ended with, “Big Mcintosh, Apple Bloom and Granny Smith.” The three being a massive red stallion, a yellow filly, and a green colored mare that looked fairly spry for her age.

“Each and every one of our fine goods was produced by the family. Would you care to sample some?”

“Please!” Spike said. The little whelp was always ready to have sweets.

“We just ate lunch, but I’d be glad to have some pie,” Twilight said.

It was delicious.

“So, what is the verdict?” Jacqueline asked.

“Hmm?”

“For the Celebration, sugarcube.”

Twilight snorted. “Oh, sorry. I was just...wow that pie was good. I’d say its good to go.”

The crowd cheered. They all said their goodbyes, and Twilight left back towards Ponyville.

“So what now?” Spike asked. “Was taking care of the list really going to help us with Nightmare Moon?”

“I have to assume so, Spike. Princess Celestia wouldn’t have had Sunset doing that if she thought it wasn’t important. Now we just have to find the old capitol building and the Elements. The city hall is pretty much set up for the festival, so I doubt we’re going to find any help there.”

“So where do we go?”

“The library, of course! There’s sure to be some maps there.” The two headed to the large oak tree that Twilight initially met Sunset at. Soon after they approached the front door, however, Discord slithered out from the leafy branches above.

“Well, haven’t you been busy,” he said. “Send your pet away, if you would please?”

Twilight rolled her eyes. “You know what, Spike? I think you’ve earned a break.” She brought out some bits. “Why don’t you go enjoy yourself. Staring at maps isn’t that fun, anyway.”

She didn’t have to tell him twice, as he took the bits. “Thanks, Twilight! I’ll be back later!” A moment later, he was gone.

“I thought you said you couldn’t be here,” Twilight accused as she walked into the library. It was homey, dusty, and smelled of parchment, a dirty pleasure that Twilight refused to tell anyone.

Discord floated in and began examining the place. “Yes I did, but I simply couldn’t bear the suspense. So I thought I would see if I could follow you here and wouldn’t you know it…” He slid underground before phasing up out of the horse head centerpiece in the middle of the room. “Surprise!”

“So you can help me?” Twilight asked.

Discord stroked at his beard. “Oh, I do have a bit of power here. I’m not exactly sure why that is, but something about Ponyville has an old, familiar smell about it. Whatever happened ten years ago in Cloudsdale caused a rift in fate and destiny. To be short, it broke spectacularly. However the thing about destiny is that it so rudely tries to piece itself back together. I’m sure that those pieces are coming together here in Ponyville. However those pieces are tainted by chaos, and thus…”

He snapped his fingers, inverting gravity in the room. Twilight immediately fell to the ceiling, landing on her hooves. She had a lot of practice, after all.

“It’s not going to be a problem, is it?” Twilight asked.

Discord shrugged, and floated up to her, cupping her face. “I don’t know. That’s what chaos is after all. What’s beautiful about it my dear, is that you get to decide what happens, not some all controlling force of destiny.” He snapped his fingers again, allowing normality to resume.

“As far as helping you, I could distract Nightmare Moon slightly, but nothing major. Doing what I just did was tough enough. Fighting Darth Lulu?” He winced. “Ehhh...unlikely. We’ll see. However I’m much more interested in what you have been doing. Instead of looking for the Elements, you’ve been making friends.”

Twilight cringed. “W-well...I mean if Princess Celestia wanted Sunset to-”

Discord put his hands up. “No no no! Don’t mistake my words for disappointment. I heartily approve.”

Twilight cocked a brow. “Wha?”

He floated over to her, wrapping his lion arm around her neck. “Twilight, when I decided to mentor you, one of the goals I set was to make sure you thought for yourself. That you don’t just always follow the instructions to the letter. You make your own decisions, and refuse to let somepony else tell you how to be or how to solve your problems. Yes, you follow Sunbutt’s friendship lessons from the school, but you aren’t a slave to them. Just as such, I sent you to retrieve the Elements of Harmony, but when you saw something new and unexpected, you stopped. You thought, and you decided to adapt to the changing reality.

“You ride the waves of chaos instead of crashing headfirst into them. I couldn’t be more proud- eck!” He pulled back slightly as Twilight hugged his noodly body. He sighed and patted her on the head lightly in return.

“Yes, yes, we’re friends, but now is not the time for hugs. You still have work to do. From what I’ve seen so far, you’re doing a splendid job. Keep up the good work, though…” He floated over to the bookshelves, and ran a talon across the spines before stopping on one.

“Aha! Here you are, my dear. This should help you nicely.” He handed it over to her, the cover reading The Elements of Harmony: A Reference Guide.

“Wow, what are the chances of this being here?” Twilight said.

Discord snickered. “Yes, what are the chances?” He reached out into the air and grabbed at nothing, opening a door to a black void. “Oh, and one other thing, Twilight? Harmony magic is very much like chaos magic in that you can’t force it. Let it come naturally. Go with the flow. Destiny wants something to happen, so what are you going to do?”

“Ride it out to where I want to go?”

Discord smiled and scoffed. “Sometimes I wonder why I teach you at all. It’s like you have all the answers already.” Twilight smiled and blushed, looking away. “Well, I must be off. I’m going to replace all the sunflowers in the palace with moonflowers. For now, I bid you adieu.” He gave an exaggerated bow before stepping into the doorway, and slammed it shut.

And then Twilight was alone. All alone with her book. A grin formed on her lips-

“Wait,” she said quietly. “HELLO! ANYPONY HERE?”

Silence.

“Yes!” She started tittering. Alone meant she could have some fun. With a snap of her tail, all the books in the library flew out to form a floating throne. Another snap, and gravity was nullified. After all, books aren’t exactly comfortable to sit on. She floated over and ‘sat’ down, opening the reference guide.

“Hmm...still needs something...ah!” With another gesture, a chocolate milkshake appeared.

“Perfect,” she said, cracking the text open.

===

“Twilight!”

Twilight jerked awake, looking around in a panic. “I’m the Queen of Books! You can’t-” She blinked, taking in the sight. She was floating in the air, surrounded by books, chairs, tables, and pretty much everything that wasn’t nailed down on the library’s bottom floor. With a yelp, she released the magic holding everything up in the air.

Naturally, she suddenly found herself in a book pile.

“Gah! Jeez Twilight, did you have to do that?” Spike said, pulling the books off of her.

“Sorry, Spike,” she said, yawning and stretching. “I guess I fell asleep studying and reading the reference guide.”

She looked to Spike, who was wearing a t-shirt with Celestia’s emblem on it, along with a pair of sunglasses. “Uh, reference guide?”

With a gesture, Twilight sent the books and furniture back to where they belonged, more or less. All that remained was the reference guide in question. “Yup! This book has all we need to know about the Elements of Harmony. Apparently there are six, with only five known for some reason. I’m betting that Princess Celestia had a hoof in it, seeing as she used them to banish her sister. Why? I dunno. Anyway, they are: kindness, laughter, generosity, loyalty, and honesty. It says here that “When the five are present, a spark will cause the sixth Element to be revealed.”

“Well, that’s great, Twi, but what about the map to the Castle of the Two Sisters?”

Twilight shrugged. “I looked for it, but anything that covers the Everfree is mysteriously missing. Somepony must have taken them.”

“What are we gonna do?” Spike asked, concerned.

Twilight patted his head. “We’re going to relax, Spike. Things will work out.” She glanced over to a clock, finding that she had been reading and sleeping until six in the evening. “Let’s go have more fun at the festival. We have time, and I have a hypothesis.”

“What is it?”

“There are five elements, and we met five mares that gave me the impression that they value those concepts.”

“And the spark…” Spike’s eyes went wide. “Sparkle!”

Twilight grinned. “Technically it’s a stretch, but that’s what I’m thinking.”

“Well let’s go get them!”

Twilight raised her hoof. “Hold on there, grasshopper. We’ve made friends with them, kinda. But if we go up to them talking about Nightmare Moon, we might drive them away. Remember what Rainbow Dash said?” Spike nodded. “So, I’m thinking we just have to wait for Nightmare to show up, gather the girls, go get the Elements, and save the day. Easy!”

Spike didn’t look all that convinced. “Eh, well if you say so.”

The two left and headed out into the festival, which had gone into full swing. Ponies trotted about, smiles on their faces as they partook in the festivities. Most easily visible was the multitudes of apple foodstuffs that everyone was snacking on. Behind that were the subtle decorations, pushing and prodding everyone into cheer and merriment. The weather was perfect and clear, and not a single cloud obscured the orange sky as the sun slowly set.

And yet, the festival wouldn’t be over for another twelve hours, culminating with the sunrise. Twilight found it amusing that the holiday celebrating the longest day of the year was celebrated mostly at night.

And so for the remainder of the night, Twilight and Spike enjoyed themselves. They played games, bought food and knick knacks from the stalls, spoke to ponies, and generally had a good time. Spike, having been out and about already for hours, was exhausted by the time midnight rolled around. Twilight had him rest back at the library’s living space, as it seemed like the thing was practically abandoned anyway.

She continued to relax and enjoy herself, occasionally playing a prank or two with a gentle nudge of chaos magic. Just enough to make things interesting without outing herself. Something was missing, however. Something she had forgotten.

She looked around, trying to spy what it was.

“Hmm…ponies, fun, food, frolic. The three F’s are good to go, so what…”

Then she saw it, a smudge of yellow and red. Twilight trotted over to it to find a dejected Sunset Shimmer sitting at an out-of-the-way table, nursing a mug of what was likely hard cider. Standing on the table was Philomena, or who she thought was Philomena. The majestic bird had been reduced to a chick, which meant one thing. She had died, only to be reborn.

“Sunset?” she asked, only getting a grunt in response. “What happened?”

Sunset sighed. “I screwed up.” She said nothing more, and just sipped at her drink.

“What. Happened.”

Sunset glared at her. “I went into the forest and almost died, okay? Happy?” She sneered and turned away. Twilight was having none of it, and sat down at the table.

“No, I’m not. What were you thinking, going into the forest alone?”

“You wouldn’t understand.” She brought the mug to her mouth again, only for it to be yanked from her grip. Sunset glared, only to be met with one just as stern.

“Alright look,” Twilight said. “Our little game is fun when there’s nothing to lose, but I think the end of the world is where it should stop.”

Sunset’s eyes widened for a moment. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said quickly.

“You’re not the only one that knows about Nightmare Moon, Sunset.”

That got the other unicorn’s attention, who immediately started glaring. “Have you been spying on me, Sparkle?”

Twilight smirked. “You weren’t exactly quiet when you arrived. Also I have my own sources. I came here on my own to stop Nightmare Moon. I didn’t know that Princess Celestia was sending you.”

Sunset stared at her for a moment, obviously gauging the others' trustworthiness. “Fine. I guess that’s plausible. So what’s your plan? Mine obviously didn’t work.”

Twilight produced the checklist. “Well, I took care of the supervisory preparations,” she said smugly. In an instant, the paper was incinerated by a red aura. “Hey!”

“Look, I’m not sure why Princess Celestia was trying to distract me with that, but I figured you would be smart enough to see through it.”

Twilight looked at her flatly before turning the ash back into parchment. She did not miss the surprise in Sunset’s eyes. “Princess Celestia isn’t stupid, Sunset. She has a reason for everything she does. If she wanted you to oversee the preparations, then it was a part of your quest. A part that you hoofed off to me.”

Sunset sneered, opened her mouth, only for silence to reign for a moment before she threw up her hooves in frustration. “Ugh! She always does this! Why can’t she just tell me what I need to do?”

“What exactly did she say, anyway?” Twilight asked.

Sunset sighed, and produced some rolled parchment. “Dear Sunset...blah blah blah, the time has come for you to prove your readiness...more things and filler...you must go to Ponyville and start there. While you work towards your goal, supervise the preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration...yadda yadda yadda...make some friends.”

She shook the parchment angrily. “I mean, who does that besides Celestia? The end of the world is coming, and she’s having me check up on this stupid festival and...ugh! It’s like she never gets the hint. I’ve tried better to learn her stupid friendship lessons, but why can’t she just understand that they’re not for me? I’m good at magic and blowing things up. Not silly fun times!”

Twilight blinked as Sunset ended her rant. “Wow. Um…” She winced and rubbed at the back of her head. “So...hear me out. Could it be possible that defeating Nightmare Moon involves friends?”

Sunset snorted and rolled her eyes. “Yeah, and the next princess of Equestria is going to be the Princess of Friendship,” she mocked.

Twilight smiled faintly. “Stranger things have happened. But really, do you think Princess Celestia is stupid enough to give you meaningless tasks when a world ending threat is approaching?”

Sunset snarled, looked away, frowned, and finally relaxed in resignation. “No. I guess not.”

“Then you’ll let me introduce you to all the friends I’ve made?”

Sunset rolled her eyes and sighed. “Fine, I guess. It’s not like we’re going to make it through the Everfree again.” She winced and looked at the baby Philomena, who hopped over to Sunset before taking refuge in her mane.

Twilight looked over at a clock. It was nearing 5 AM already. “Hmm, we might not have enough time for that.” She looked up at the moon, and stiffened when she saw it. “Yep, no time at all.”

“Why, what is it?” Sunset asked. Twilight pointed up at the moon, which had four bright stars shining around it, slowly drifting to its surface. The prophecy of Nightmare Moon’s return had mentioned that the stars would aid in her escape, and Twilight was glad she had taken the time to read these past hours. “Oh crap.”

“Don’t worry, we have time. Even if Nightmare Moon shows up and overthrows Celestia, the world isn’t going to die in ten minutes.”

Sunset grit her teeth. “I’d rather fight.”

Twilight looked at her flatly. “Hmm, yes, we should totally fight the dark magic powered alicorn of the night. That will surely work.”

Sunset pouted. “Shut up. I like simple solutions.”

“Celestia gave you the solution. You just need to follow it.” She watched as Sunset glared again, her mouth twitching with whatever she wanted to say. It was just like when Twilight played the ‘dumb lucky student’ back at school.

“Fine,” she grit out. “Where to?”

“Let’s go to the town hall. If Nightmare shows up, she’ll probably crash the sunrise. Villians do that.”

They began trotting there, with Sunset raising a brow. “So, you do this kind of thing often?”

Twilight smiled sheepishly. “Er, well no, but it fits the theme.”

“What theme?”

Twilight winced. “Um...like in fiction stories?” Sunset just stared at her flatly. “Hey, those and Shining’s OnO games are all I’m running on, okay?”

“Shining…” Sunset muttered. “Wait, you don’t mean Shining Armor, do you?” Twilight nodded. “The Captain of the Royal Guard?” Another nod. “Of fucking course.”

Twilight looked at her. “What?”

“Nothing.”

“But-”

“Nothing.”

Twilight let it go.

The whole thing was very well made. Fluttershy’s bird choir lifted any spirits that Pinkie’s decorations didn’t, and Mayor Mare’s speech certainly filled all the ponies with a bit of patriotic fervor in favor of their monarch.

“Fillies and gentlecolts, as mayor of Ponyville, it is my great pleasure to announce the finish of the Summer Sun Celebration!”

Everyone stomped their hooves and cheered. Celestia’s appearance was always well received. She had a near 100% approval rating, after all.

“In just a few moments, our town will witness the magic of the sunrise, and celebrate this, the longest day of the year! And now, it is my great honor to introduce to you the ruler of our land, the very pony who gives us the sun and the moon each and every day, the good, the wise, the bringer of harmony to all of Equestria…”

Beside her, Twilight heard Sunset suck in a breath. She followed Sunset’s eyes up to the moon, and stiffened herself as the stars finally reached its surface.

With a flash. The Mare in the Moon was gone. Nightmare Moon was free.

The bird choir suddenly grew loud again, building up for the big reveal.

Pinkie, who was the stagehand, pulled the rope for the curtains, revealing…

An empty stage. Everyone in the crowd began to whisper and worry.

Both Twilight and Sunset frowned. “Still not up for a fight?” Sunset asked.

Twilight shook her head. While she was confident her chaos magic could certainly throw the alicorn for a loop, she didn’t feel like dodging lethal attacks. “Ride it out. Once she does her thing and leaves, we’ll get the Elements.”

Sunset narrowed her eyes. “How do you know about the Ele-”

She was cut off by Rarity’s scream. On the stage, a dark blue, star speckled fog began coalescing into a large mass. Every unicorn in the audience felt the magic building up to a whine, which finally culminated in a short flash.

Standing on the stage was a pitch black mare. As tall as the Princess and bearing the wings and horn of an alicorn, she was a twisted mirror image of Celestia herself. Where Celestia was warm, welcoming, and kind, the features of Nightmare Moon reminded oneself of a predator, cold and uncaring of whatever she crushed in her path.

Even if her body language and features didn’t portray this, the armor adorning her obviously portrayed her as a bloodthirsty conqueror.

“Okay, I think I’m with you on this one,” Sunset whispered.

Nightmare spoke, her voice deep and seductive. “Oh, my beloved subjects. It's been so long since I've seen your precious little sun-loving faces.”

Rainbow Dash was up in the air in but a second. “You will tell us where Princess Celestia is.”

Nightmare sneered and lit her horn. Instantly, Rainbow was gripped in a blue telekinetic light. Nightmare dragged her forward, threatening to burn Rainbow to ash with her glare. “You dare to give orders to your rightful Princess?”

Rainbow Dash struggled, trying to fight off the magic. “Not my princess,” she managed to say. Nightmare snarled and flung the pegasus towards a wall. It was Twilight that caught her before she crashed, bringing her down to the ground. Rainbow tried to fly back up there, but Twilight held her there.

“You can’t win, but there are alternatives to fighting,” she advised. Dash glared at her, but ultimately acquiesced.

“You should listen to your unicorn friend,” Nightmare said. “And be thankful I am feeling merciful. In the past, such insubordination would have been met with an execution.” The gathered ponies in the room gasped in shock at the declaration.

“Strange that you do not know this already. Tis mere history,” Nightmare said dismissively. “Unless, do none of you know who I am? Do none of you know the legend? Did none of you see the signs?”

The ponies were smartly quiet, and for a moment Twilight thought all would be well.

Then Sunset stepped forward.

“What are you doing?” Twilight hissed. Sunset ignored her as she took another step.

“I saw the signs, and I know who you are, Nightmare Moon.”

Nightmare glanced over to Sunset, sizing the unicorn up. There was no fear, naturally. Sunset was nothing to her, but...did Twilight see a flicker of a smile on the alicorn’s lips?

“It appears that Celestia didn’t erase history as much as I thought. Then, little unicorn, you know why I’m here?”

“You’re here to bring night eternal, thus dooming all life on the planet?”

Nightmare nodded with a smile. At least at first. As Sunset finished her sentence, Nightmare sneered again. “I am not a fool, you stupid filly. Eternal night will feed life just as well as the day. I have planned for this for a long time, after all.” She stomped an armored hoof to the stage. “Know that my love for ponykind burns just as bright as my wrath. I will show all the beauty of the night, and I will lead Equestria into a new golden age!” She reared up, lightning striking outside from her deliberate theatrics.

“Stand aside, and you will be spared,” she said to the crowd. “Cross me, and perish,” she said to Rainbow Dash. “And for those that seek glory and power…” She looked at Sunset. “...know that those with drive and ambition are welcome by my side.”

With another stomp, her ethereal mane wrapped around her, turning her into an amorphous spectre. She shot through the statue of Celestia, crumbling it to its base before she flew out the door.

Silence, broken by Pinkie Pie crying out, “Really?! I worked so hard on that!”

Seconds later, chaos erupted. The mayor was quick to assume command and calm the crowd, at least mostly.

“I’m instituting a curfew,” she announced. “Everypony return to their homes. For those from out of town, remain here at the town hall.” As the ponies started filtering out, she waved to the two royal guards.

Beside Twilight and Sunset, Rainbow Dash sighed and grunted in annoyance. “Thanks for holding me back, and sorry for ignoring you.”

“Ignoring? Rainbow, what did you do?” Fluttershy said upon approach. With her were the rest of the ponies that Twilight had met earlier that day.

“She ignored my reports about the returning supervillain,” Sunset said. Instantly, everyone out of the loop was looking at Rainbow with demanding expressions.

“Hey, I was assigned to the festival. How was I supposed to know your crazy story was real? You didn’t have any evidence.”

Rarity clicked her tongue. “She’s got you there, hon. You can’t just expect a guard to drop what they’re doing for a foalish story like that.”

“I agree,” Jacqueline said. “Without seeing Nightmare herself, I would have dismissed the story as nothing but a fabrication. It’s simply too unbelievable that Princess Celestia didn’t see this coming.”

“Actually, she did,” Twilight said. “She sent Sunset here to search for the solution.”

“I actually already know what and where the solution is. The Elements of Harmony, powerful magical artifacts, and they’re in the Everfree Forest, more specifically the Castle of the Two Sisters,” Sunset said, shooting a look at Rainbow, who winced. Twilight jabbed Sunset in the ribs, prompting a glare off between the two. Finally, Sunset groaned and rolled her eyes.

“Alright! Alright. Look, officer, you were just doing your job. I can’t blame you for that.

“I guess,” she muttered afterward.

Rainbow didn’t seem too convinced, but nodded anyway.

Pinkie Pie said, “So, eternal night is upon us, and the only thing standing in its way are seven ponies and a prayer.” She smirked. “When do we leave?”

Sunset blinked. “Woah woah woah. This is like, super dangerous stuff. I’m sure Twilight and I can work it out with Officer Dash here escorting us.”

“This is not up for debate, dear,” Jacqueline said. “An Apple never lets a friend trapse into danger on their own, and I’m sure I speak for the rest of us when I say that you’re stuck with us.”

The rest of the girls nodded and agreed, which left Sunset visibly stunned.

“You’re...going to help me? Just like that?”

“Just like that,” Fluttershy said.

Sunset blinked before looking around as if someone was spying on them. “Okay?” she said, uncertain. “Um. Right. Let’s go then.” They all started to walk out of the town hall, but just before they reached the door, Sunset held Twilight back.

“You did this, didn’t you?”

Twilight arched a brow. “You mean befriending the five of them? Yeah.”

Sunset shook her head. “No, I mean this...helping stuff. You told them about me, about what I needed, didn’t you?”

Twilight smiled and shook her head. “Nope. I suspected they would help us once I read about the Elements, but I didn’t tell them anything.”

“But that never happens,” Sunset argued. “Ponies do things in exchange for favors. Or if they want payment.”

Twilight snorted and rolled her eyes. “When it comes to nobles, maybe. Regular ponies are different, though.”

Sunset narrowed her eyes. “We’ll see.”

“Are you two coming?” Rarity called out.

Comments

[Blik]

This is really interesting and quite well done so far. I thought "Madam Jacqueline" was a new character, but when she was the last one on the list I put two and two and two together and figured out who she was. Looks like something went wrong with the Rainboom and Destiny has bent over backwards to make these six figures end up together anyway. I'm looking forward to discovering which Elements have changed identities! (if any.)

[Comickook]

Excellent job on the exchanges, characterizations, humor and future chapter set-up here. Absolutely loved how well you are setting up things in the Discord-ruled timeline Twilight VERY briefly visited. I'm REALLY glad that Twi was obviously able to hatch Spike's egg anyway even WITHOUT the Rainboom and I also adored the alternate characterizations of the Mane Six in general (the right mix of in-character for canon and different enough to be intriguing). And I ESPECIALLY loved how this Twilight manages to have as good a sense of humor as one would expect from somebody who was predominantly trained by Discord while avoiding most of Discord's more negative pitfalls and already has at least a basic knowledge of friendship. And the use of Sunset is really good too.

On to the next chapter.

[resonance]

Bro, how smooth is your shining armor?

Sunset, pinkie, and of course I'm assuming cadance. Past present and future look good.

While I don't really get why people include Spike in these things, I didn't feel that any one was out of character but still had that fresh feeling while reading. Especially dash. Is have expected her to drop anything and everything to go on adventure.

And having sunset be her surly self with history between them? Fucking glorious. Frenemies with snappy dialogue kept it fast paced.

Instant favorite.

[Latecomer]

The more things change, the more things stay the same, huh? Although learning from Celestia and Discord does seem to have produced a more balanced Twilight - while being reliant on her may have had some of the same effects as his friendship with Fluttershy did in the main stream. I wonder how much he's told her about the time disruption - I mean, besides what he let slip there.

[TheIronPone035]

“You can’t win, but there are alternatives to fighting,” she advised. Dash glared at her, but ultimately acquiesced.

That's no moon. It's a space station.

It's too big to be a space station!

I've got a bad feeling about this...

[FridayPie]

10471433
I think it's another alternative timeline story, just here future Twilight had managed to tag Dash (remmember Starlight momentarily was caught into crystal and broke it but next time dodged and Twi hit Dash?)

[Direct Access]

I like new Twilight a lot, but she was getting more and more like old self near the end.
Also, what i really don't like is that everything so far goes into the same direction as always.
Why no one is trying to achieve something different, instead of copying the story and changing details a little?

[BirdsBooksBrownies]

I know I'm rather late to the party, but I wanted to say that I really like this more balanced version of Twilight. I also like that while the overall arc is the same, there are differences that make things interesting.

Main-sequence Twilight, while my favorite character (I like smart girls🤷), I would certainly not deny that she was not exactly the most friendly individual, and more like the snobby nobles than she'd care to admit. Also, the fact that, as some have pointed out here and in countless other fanfics, she did seem to be a little too devout to her mentor as in someone might suggest that Princess Celestia wasn't the textbook definition of perfection and they'd either have to run for their lives or grab a bucket of water to resuscitate a fainted unicorn.

[Kirtai]

Very nice so far :)

btw

“But I like chaos magic! It’s so fun!” He whipped her tail, causing a cracking sound.

Shouldn't this be She whipped her tail?

The voice was deep, smooth, and femenine.

feminine

[dzamie]

This is quite fun so far! I like how the Bearers have changed, but also not changed.

[Yoshifan30]

“Spike, what kind of pony do you think has a name like Madam Jacqueline?”

Oh my God I can't believe I didn't see that coming because there was no Sonic Rainboom Applejack did not go home she still stayed at Manhattan with her aunt and uncle this should be interesting how she acts I mean we did saw her during that flash back and even back in season 4 simple ways how she act

[Yoshifan30]

Her mane had been let down, and styled into an elegant beehive that was popular among the higher class. Her relaxed posture had been replaced with poise, and she had on a fair amount of makeup.

I also remember that Applejack did mention she had an alter ego that she can change her accent sometimes which that takes a lot of talent for her

[Yoshifan30]

“Shining…” Sunset muttered. “Wait, you don’t mean Shining Armor, do you?” Twilight nodded. “The Captain of the Royal Guard?” Another nod. “Of fucking course.”

Whoa sunset

and yes I did hear swear words all the time what I was not expecting this even though this is rated T goodness lol

[Yoshifan30]

Wow there was so many things happened so Discord send Twilight to go Ponyville to find the elements of harmony but it looks like she wasn't alone Sunset Shimmer was sent by Princess Celestia so both of them try to figure out how to find them but for Twilight she basically kind of went through town and meet up with the other five while Sunset goes to the everfree forest but with her failure Twilight gave her a helping hand even though she never asked but when the moon finally reached through the points Nightmare Moon Returns and with a little help from the other five ponies they begin to the everfree forest to find Nightmare Moon and the elements of harmony this is pretty good chapter

[Wydril]

Really enjoyed this setting.

[Yoshifan30]

Spike started coughing in surprise. “W-what!” Twilight snapped her tail, and the gems disappeared. She didn’t know exactly where besides ‘the ground’ and she didn’t much care. They could get more later. “Twilight!”

Oh yeah I also forgot to mention I did like how you make Twilight using her tail as a replacement of snapping fingers to use her chaos Magic

[TheDiscontent]

What I wouldn't give to see this as a Canon universe. Loving it!

[Stainless Steel Fox]

10544881 Isn't it a bit disturbing that this version of Twilight Sparkle is far less neurotic and more social than the canon version? Discord is apparently a better mentor than Celestia, based on the evidence.

[New Rebellion]

I'll admit to being a little uncertain when I started, but I am thoroughly enjoying this story!! Good job!

[DarkSnowGaming]

“But I like chaos magic! It’s so fun!” He whipped her tail, causing a cracking sound. In a violet flash, a hayburger popped into existence in front of her, which she promptly devoured.

That's how she uses chaos magic? Her tail? I thought it would be her hooves since Discord uses his claw instead of his tail.

“She’s offering to help ,” Sunset insisted. “So she can help by checking on the preparations. I have other things to do. This way everything will get done faster .” Twilight smiled, her plan going perfectly, but Sunset glared slightly. “I know you’re capable of checking on a few ponies, Sparkle. Just go down the list and make sure they’re doing their jobs.” She handed the list over.

Well... I doubt Sunset Shimmer was going to be the element of magic to begin with (Twilight has way better chances of that happening even with chaos magic, but I mean chaos magic is magic so it's also probably a part of the element of magic so probably doesn't matter) but just by giving Twilight that list, she pretty much just sealed her fate and is no way in hell going to be the element of magic, or an Alicorn for that matter which is good because she would do way more chaos that Discord ever did, some of which Discord would probably be furious about if he was so angry about a foal nearly dying.

Twilight brought out the scroll and looked at the names, spotting Rainbow Dash on the list. “Oh, like you! You were tasked with keeping the skies clear and…” She looked around, finding nothing but clear blue sky.

I love this version of Rainbow Dash, let's keep her, Fluttershy should get her named change, she's obviously not shy, Rarity? Can't say much about her, she's more or less the same. Pinkie Pie on the other hoof, she is clearly a freaking psycho.

“There are five elements, and we met five mares that gave me the impression that they value those concepts.”

Well... Congratulations, Twilight is actually smarter in this timeline. How? I thought Discord was gonna make Twilight do less reading and maker her dumber, how did Discord make her smarter? Well... This was an unexpected but not an unwelcome surprise.

I like this alternate timeline so far, could be better with Sunset Shimmer not existing or being in that portal, Celestia must have been really desperate for an element of magic if she was willing to make Sunset her student again.

So far my only complaints in this timeline are Pinkie Pie and Sunset Shimmer, that's basically it. Oh yeah another thing, how the hell was spike hatched? Did she have a second attempt at hatching the egg or what?

April 19