A Peaceful Reunion
As they managed to break free of the raucous crowd thanks to the brave efforts of their teacher, Ganondorf couldn’t really say he was exactly surprised by the fact he was once again drawing breath after dying of old age in what was, from his point of view, mere moments ago. This wasn’t the first time he had been reincarnated, after all. By Din’s crimson flame, it wasn’t even the hundredth!
Though, he had to admit, the fact that he was now apparently female was new. Or would that be, she had to admit? Was he supposed to change what pronouns he used to refer to his person due to his change in gender? It would probably help avoid some complications when talking to others without having to explain the whole bloody situation, something that he really couldn’t be bothered to do most of the time.
Eh, why not. It would cost nothing, and one less hassle was always good.
Mind made, she followed Link and Zelda’s new forms into a small side room where Miss Cherilee asked them to wait for a moment as she calmed down the crowd and sent for their families. Apparently getting their cutie marks at the same time in such a dramatic fashion was enough that the teacher felt that calling their families was warranted.
Feeling a small shiver run down her spine at the mere thought of the accursed name those marks carried, she once again bemoaned that all her efforts during her previous life to get the things’ name changed to the far more dignified title of ‘emblems’ never panned out. Real pity, that.
“Okay, Ganondorf, what did you do this time?” Zelda rounded up on her the moment the door was closed and they were left alone, a warning tone clear in her words. Not even slightly fazed by the princess’ admonishing look, the Wielder of Power instead took a moment to fully absorb their new appearances.
The little princess remained a white-coated unicorn, though the light-violet mane would take some getting used to since Ganondorf really couldn’t remember an incarnation in which Zelda wasn’t some kind of blonde. Though seeing Link without a hint of green upon his person- or rather, her person- was what took the cake. Her being an orange-coated pegasus with a purple mane this time, neither being a color the Wielder of Power was used with associating to the Wielder of Courage. And she herself was a yellow-coated earth pony with a red mane. So at least that last one remained consistent. Thankfully, since she did enjoy the color.
Oh, and all three of them were downright tiny. Couldn’t forget to mention that. She missed her old size already.
“Ganondorf!” Zelda complained with an angry stomp of her hoof, cutting the Wielder of Power’s musings short.
“What?” she questioned without a hint of shame as she realized that apparently Zelda had been talking this whole time and she hadn’t paid attention to a lick of it. The fact that the angry ‘shout’ had sounded more like a squeak also really undermined the princess’ efforts to sound stern in Ganondorf’s personal opinion.
“Zelda would like to know if you are somehow responsible for our current situation,” Link helpfully said with a small smile while the tiny unicorn fumed next to her. “Also, my current self’s name is Scootaloo, if any of you are wondering. It’s a pleasure to meet you both once again.”
Rolling her eyes at her friend/rival/nemesis being her usual unflappable self, Ganondorf decided that there was no harm in actually answering Zelda’s question. “No, I didn’t do anything that could’ve caused this. I didn’t add anything in regards to this particular situation when I made the original ritual back on Hyrule, and I think that’s the problem. And the name is Apple Bloom this time around, if you must know.”
“The cycle of reincarnation, while you broke the chains that bound us to Hyrule, the ritual did nothing towards our bounds to the Triforce and the cycle of reincarnation it sustained,” Zelda said as she rested her muzzle upon a hoof, swiftly understanding what was happening from Ganondorf’s brief explanation and thinking about its possible implications. “And my new name is Sweetie Belle, at your services.”
“So we are still getting reincarnated then, good to know,” Link, Scootaloo? Eh whatever, either was fine. The no longer green wonder calmly continued. “Now the question is, were we reborn by chance, or for a purpose?”
That little curveball of a question made the earth pony filly blink in surprise, not having really considered that possibility yet. Now that would be really annoying if it held true. She had more than enough with being Fate’s chew toy to last several lifetimes already, and she knew the other two felt the same.
“Hard to say, but considering how we only got our memories back when we actually got together for the first time, I’m inclined to say it was chance. That never happened before, after all,” Zelda reasonably pointed out. And the former Dark Lord had to give her that.
In all their previous reincarnations, it had never been necessary for the three of them to get so close to each other before the process took place. Din’s fury! Most of the time it happened when they were literally countries apart! Not to mention the light show that had been involved, that had been new too. Point in fact; in neither this nor her last life’s memories did she ever remember such a showy light show accompanying a pony getting their ‘emblems’. Odd that.
Huh, guess there actually was a valid reason for Cheerilee wanting to contact their families, how about that? But before she could keep thinking about it, and how it basically happening right in front of the whole school would affect things, Zelda continued to talk, bringing the yellow-coated filly’s attention back to the present.
“Not to mention that, unless the calendar has been changed since our last life, it has been almost eleven hundred years since our passing,” she judiciously pointed out, right hoof still gently cradling her chin. “Those two facts, alongside how this realm has a lack of gods to meddle with things, makes me think it was merely chance that allowed the reincarnation cycle to stumble upon an appropriate situation to allow us to be reincarnated into suitable beings.”
Ganondorf could see it happening, the logic was solid. But sadly they didn’t really have much besides pure conjecture to draw hypotheses from right now. And the Three Goddesses as her witness, everybody knew that making conjectures based upon conjectures was never a good idea. It was just like inbreeding. You may even manage to pull it off successfully once or twice if you were lucky, but keep going long enough and you will inevitably end up hitting crazy.
But before they could discuss things further, all their ears swilled towards the door as they heard the swiftly approaching sound of quite a few hoof-steeps. The next moment, the door was barreled open in order to allow their teacher back, accompanied by several other ponies, including her new older sister, who was looking a little on the harried side.
“Apple Bloom!” Applejack shouted at the top of her lungs even as she rushed towards the filly and promptly proceeded to hug her in a quite considerable show of strength.
As she stoically endured being hugged by the orange-coated mare, who promptly started assuring her that everything was fine and praising her for getting her own ‘emblem’, Ganondorf mused that this was something else that would take some getting used to. She never had had a sibling before, after all, much less an older one. And now she had two of them. But as the mare she had nothing but good and fond memories of in this life released her from the embrace and started to ask questions about what had happened, she mused that maybe it wouldn’t be that much of a hassle in the end. Family was important, after all. And at the very least her new siblings weren’t weaklings. So she could cope.
And no, the fact that the hug had felt warm and comforting had nothing to do with it.
“Well, Ah knew that filly would end up causin’ some kinda trouble if left by herself, but when Ah thought that, this hadn’t been in the list!” Applejack half-heartedly joked in an attempt to break the ice, not really knowing how to interact with the white-coated unicorn she was sharing a table with.
“Quite,” Rarity primly said as she gracefully served some far too sweet smelling tea into two cups that looked far too fragile for Applejack’s peace of mind. “I must admit that I shared similar thoughts, after all Sweetie Belle is around that age where mischief seems to follow a young pony as if it’s their own shadow. But this was an unexpected development.”
Very carefully accepting the teacup with a hoof, the orange-coated mare did her best to politely sip some of the beverage without accidentally shattering the very decorated and fragile piece of porcelain. Some kind of jasmine, not bad, but also not really to her tastes.
A moment of slightly uncomfortable silence followed as both mares sipped from their cups, both of them not really knowing how to really get things going. Letting her eyes roam around Rarity’s boutique, where they had relocated after Cherilee had explained the situation and given the three fillies the rest of the day free due to it being the closest of their homes to the school, Applejack wracked her brain for how to start a conversation with this virtual stranger who had invited her into her home.
She knew Rarity in broad terms as the posh, prim and proper owner of the town’s fashion boutique. And that was it. Their only real interaction was when the white-coated mare bought a few apples during market day once in a while. The fact Applejack had never really needed any fancy frilly dress also meant she had never visited the boutique before, limiting their interactions even further. Horseapples, if they had ever said anything to each other beyond the vague pleasantries you said to everypony in passing everyday Applejack would eat her hat!
Holding back a sigh, she took another gulp of the tea. All the while wondering how her sister and her new… acquaintances, were fairing upstairs. This was awkward, that was the honest truth. Something that was not helped by the fact that Holiday, one of Scootaloo’s aunts who were taking care of the filly, had been forced to apologetically decline joining them due to work commitments. At least it was clear that the poor mare had wanted to stay to offer support to her niece, but Applejack understood that sometimes work really didn’t give a pony much of a choice.
Anyways, the fact was that she really hadn’t expected to end up sharing tea alone with the town’s fashion obsessed dressmaker when she had woken up today. But then again, she also hadn’t expected her little sister to get her cutie mark on her very first day of school in such a dramatic fashion that ponies would probably still be talking about it when she was Granny Smith’s age!
“So… entwined marks,” Rarity leadingly said while putting down her empty cup and looking Applejack straight in the eyes, apparently deciding to grab the bull by the horns and start the conversation already. “While I have always known that Sweetie Belle was special, I must say that this was most unexpected.
"It’s almost like, like-” the unicorn trailed off, dramatically waving a hoof aimlessly in the air as she searched for words. She knew that the mare had a reputation for being overdramatic, but this time Applejack felt that it was warranted. Entwined marks were something so rare to almost be folklore, after all. And yet, here they stood, with their little sisters sharing a linked mark with each other and a third filly.
“Like somethin’ straight out of a story book, yeah,” the apple farmer helpfully completed the broken sentence as she carefully put her own cup down as well, inwardly somewhat pleased that she hadn’t cracked the darned fragile thing.
“Yes, precisely,” Rarity said with a small nod, her eyes drifting towards the stairway to the upper floor, where said fillies currently were talking inside Sweetie Belle’s room. “I know it sounds silly, but it almost sounds like a dream!”
“It isn’t silly when it’s the truth. Ah’m not sure Ah believe this is not a dream myself!” Applejack replied as she removed her hat and distractedly passed a hoof over her mane. “Sweet Celestia, Entwined Marks! This kinda thing belongs to campfire stories, not bargin’ in the life of good honest hardworkin’ ponies!”
“Though you may have been born apart, henceforth you shall live as one; one heart, one purpose, one fate,” the unicorn said with a faraway look, clearly quoting something, probably a story, but for the life of her Applejack had no idea which one it was. “Yes, to consider this as a tale straight out of a storybook is indeed quite fitting.”
Giving the equally lost and unsure unicorn sitting across from her a long look, Applejack suddenly made up her mind. Sure, Rarity was a stranger to her in all but name and she really couldn’t understand what the mare saw with all those fancy schmancy clothes. But considering how Apple Bloom would undoubtedly end up spending a lot of time with the fashionista’s little sister, it was clearly time to at least try and change that,
“Ah feel that we should start this right, we never did introduce ourselves to each other, did we?” Applejack firmly said as she stuck her hoof forward over the table, after all, they would probably end up having to interact with each other quite a bit in the following months and years, what with their little sisters’ now being literally fate bound to each other. So better get used to the other pony. “Ah’m Applejack Apple, co-owner of Sweet Apple Acres, home of the best tasting apples of all of Equestria, and proud member of the Apple family, nice to meet you.”
Rarity on her part blinked in slight surprise for a moment, before a look of understanding dawned upon her features as she probably reached the same conclusion Applejack had achieved moments before. And so Rarity daintily pushed her own hoof forward and gently gripped AJ’s offered limb.
“Rarity Belle, fashionista and owner of the Carrousel Boutique, where everything is chic, unique and magnifique, it is a pleasure,” Rarity declared as she gently started to shake the orange-coated mare’s hoof. A hoof-shake that immediately got stronger as Applejack took the lead and gave it a good proper shake. And despite a brief uncertain look, the fashionista actually answered properly to the action, briefly matching AJ’s movements before letting go.
“Well, Rarity, guess we will have to tackle this new crazy situation together,” Applejack said with a firm nod while inwardly wondering that perhaps miss prim and proper wasn’t that hopeless, after all. “Should you or Sweetie need anything, know that the doors of the Apple family will be always open to you!”
“Likewise, should the need arise, me and mine are at your family’s service,” Rarity replied with a small smile. “Should any help be needed, know you have but to ask.”
A tentative smile of her own surfacing on her muzzle, Applejack thought that perhaps this could actually work out alright in the end. After all, while entwined marks were indeed something straight out of a story, most of those stories did indeed have happy endings.
Though, now that she was once again thinking about her little sister’s new cutie mark, she couldn’t help but wonder what the golden triangles actually meant. It was a really odd choice for a cutie mark in her honest opinion. But then again, analyzing the things could get real complicated real fast, what with all that subtext and interpretation of symbolisms and other whatnots that got involved.
Eh, her little sister seemed happy enough with it, and with the two new friends that came along for the ride. That was more than enough for the apple farmer.
“No prophetic dreams, no foretellings of doom, no whispered tales of grim tidings on the horizon. Nothing,” Ganondorf mused out loud while pacing around Zelda’s room, which was placed atop a fashion boutique of all places. But then again, considering how she now lived on an apple farm she really couldn’t throw any stones in regards to unusual living arrangements. “There is actually not a single hint that anything even remotely wrong or foreboding is happening around the kingdom. At least as far as my memories go. What about you two?”
“The same,” Zelda promptly replied while Link simply nodded her head. “In fact, I’m quite sure there hasn’t been any major incident in living memory. Princess Celestia has actually managed to keep the kingdom peaceful and prosperous for centuries as far as I’m aware.”
To that, the yellow-coated filly could only firmly nod her head, her crimson bow flapping a little due to the motion. For all intents and purposes, it seemed that Equestria was actually experiencing a golden age, the kingdom actually experiencing a period of peace and prosperity that had lasted for millennia!
One thousand years of peace! The mere thought of it was enough to boggle the mind! Din’s fury, she sincerely couldn’t remember any moment in Hyrule’s history were peace had reigned for even one century! By the Three Golden Goddesses, even the times when ‘peace’ had lasted more than a decade or two were few and far between!
“Sweetie, would I be correct in assuming that even before reawakening your memories you were still a scholar at heart?” Link asked, cutting the Wielder of Power’s musings short as she took a moment to remember that Sweetie was Zelda’s new name.
“Well, yes, I did have very good studying habits and read quite a few books, so I guess that’s correct,” the unicorn filly promptly replied even as she gave the young pegasus a look, clearly wondering why Link wanted to know that.
On her part, the orange-coated pegasus simply nodded her head in apparent satisfaction, before calmly continuing. “Good, so do you perchance know what happened to Luna?”
That little question brought both Ganondorf and Zelda short for a moment as they realized a very obvious thing that had been slipping them by. Celestia was still alive and well as the ruler of Equestria after over a millennium, that was public knowledge, something everypony with half a brain cell knew about. But therein laid the problem, for she was the sole ruler of Equestria, which brought forth the question:
“What the heck happened to Moonbutt?” the Wielder of Power mused out loud, head tilted to the side in slight confusion even as the Wielder of Wisdom narrowed her eyes as she also pondered this unexpected development.
10633683
The three times split canonical timeline you mean.
Well this should be very interesting now that cmc have the memories of link zelda and Ganondorf and not only that in the mind of the Cutie Mark Crusaders this should be very interesting how this will work out and how would the family will react to this?
Friendly reminder of the background pony from Flutter Brutter with a green floppy hat, a Heart Container cutie mark and a cartful of Rupees. Also that Scootachicken has been crossed over with Cuccos more than once.
Yes a new chapter! The same day as the very first chapter, and I was still waiting impatiently for this!
I can't wait until the Terrible Trio announce their new memories and identities to their sisters, and whether they'll be believed.
10633693
I never specified how many or how varied of a split it was. Just that it IS a canonical split.
10633709
Yes, this will be fun.
Especially since ponies like Ganondorf wouldn't even think it important to tell their families that unless prompted.
10633717
I am aware of both of them. Actually playing with the idea of making a joke using that Background Pony. Like Ganondorf and Zelda wondering if Link managed to split himself into multpiple parts, again.
10633722
Indeed.
10633731
True.
10633756
" How did you learn to make these alloys? Ah've never even heard of them!"
"I learned it about 5,000 years ago, from the smiths of the desert Gerudo tribes."
""
"Oh, did I not tell you I'm the reincarnation of an ancient Dark Lord yet? I could have sworn I mentioned that at some point."
10633772
Pretty much that, yes.
Excuse me while I laugh like a MAD Man
This story sounded so promising that I just skipped the normal to-read folder completely and just tracked this without even reading it first. And there is no regret after reading it!
Now i want to see Apple Bloom just walk up to Celestia, bold as ever, in the middle of court and ask "Where has Moonbutt gone?"
Actually here is one possible way she could really get Celestia to believe who she is:
Celestia: "How do you know her?"
Apple Bloom: "She still owes for the warlock style magic lessons. She never did pay me those 1000 bits."
Celestia: "GANONDORF!!!"
Sorry about that. I'm not very good writer but I had to get that one out.
Well this timeline's going to go all out of whack pretty much immediately. Asking Link not to get involved in a crisis is like asking an anvil not to be heavy. It doesn't even know how to begin.
Well congrats on making me lmfao. This is being added to Tracking and Faved.
On a side note: mark this as a sequel using the FimFic site feature.
OMG!
When will Gannon try to make a type of steel using the wood from the everfree?
10633784
Indeed.
10633790
Please, feel free to do so.
10633799
Happy to hear you enjoyed it.
And no worries, it was fun, and we all start kinda bad, only practice makes it get better.
10633807
Head-minion is still minion. But yes, that filly does have potential.
10633815
10633827
Exactly.
10633831
Happy to hear you enjoyed the story.
I don't know if I should or not, because there will be a 'proper' sequel to TPoF, titled The Courage of Hope.
10633799
Hey, I'd read that story.
10633845
Stories can have multiple sequels using the FimFic site mechanic but only ever 1 prequel so yeah it'd be perfectly fine.
10633845
I can just picture it" hey Moonbutt where ya been?"
NIGHTMAIR MOON "WHO DARE To call US such?"
CMC "WE ARE BACK!!!!"
NIGHTMAIR MOON "OH NO NOT YOU THREE!!! NOT AGAIN."
Celestia "THEY HAVE RETURNED!!! HIDE THE POTTERY!!!!"
So it's been established that the Triforce Crusaders knew Celestia and Luna in their previous lives. I have to wonder if Celestia and Luna will recognize their Cutiemarks.....
I love it, can't wai to see celestia.
And Luna
10633799 I figure it'll be more or less after the cleansing while tia and Luna are hugging:
HEY MOONBUTT! HOW"S GOIN'??" and when Luna looks she gets sent across the room by a righthoof and when everyone's freakin' out Ganobloom cracks off with That'll teach her to skimp out on paying for lessons.
tia while facehooving: Hello, you three. It's been a while.
Well, no more Crusades, so that town-wrecking series of events won't happen as planned.
On the other hand, you now have the Legendary Trio from Starswirl's Era, and him and the gang are still in Limbo with Stygian at this point. ..
I'll be honest, when I first read your plan to make this story, I was skeptical. And yet, the thought of our trio in the CMC's bodies dealing with Nightmare Moon is immensely interesting to me. Your style of writing continues to keep me interested and entertained.
The only mild spoiler concern is if you progress far enough in this story to potentially spoil the trio's interaction with Luna and Celestia in your main story. This chapter confirmed that they met them (or at least heard of them) in their past life, but Zelda's dream made it pretty obvious that that would happen.
Indeed, what did happen to moonbutt
10633859
Hmm, will think about it.
10633879
Lol, indeed.
10633886
Well, conidering that Appledorf probably won't even bother to try and hide that she knew them...
10633919
Glad you liked it.
10633944
That would be fun, yes.
10633989
You do remenber who we are talking about, right? Commom sense, staying out of trouble, and keeping the colateral down aren't exactly their strongest points.
10633991
Actually, Link as Sweetie got the least votes when I was deciding who would reincarnate as who. First was Zelda with 15, then Ganondorf with 7, and last Link with only 2...
10634026
That, and the interlude with the Celestial sisters where Celestia has her own vision and proclaims they are going back to the Three tribes area.
The only 'spoilers' that will make an apearance are very minor ones that are pretty obvious to everybody. So don't worry.
That aside, happy to hear that I surprised you in a good way with the story's quality.
*dies in laughter* Damn it Ganondorf. You took the words out of my mouth. I can't wait see him mouth off to Nightmare Moon
10634026
Remember, the story is NON CANNON
10634071
Indeed.
Appledorf: Moonbut, is that you? Loved the new gothic look!
10634073
I think he is talking about general knowledge stuff that could leak from this story giving hints about the development of things on TPoF.
Wait, does this mean that the CMC suffered Death of Personality when the LoZ trio awoke? Or do their somewhat different personalities even before meeting mean this was more of an amnesiac recovering memories?
Tazu! We don't drink "t"ea while sighing! I've tried, it results in choking.
- Your Editor, TC
10634198
The latter, I think. They still have the memories from before they reawakened, and its pretty clear that they were more similar to their previous incarnations than the Crusaders we know even before they got their memories back.
10633989
Oh yeah, good point! Now I can't wait until the Pillars come back. That plot point never gets enough attention in fanfiction anyway.
I would love to see Celestia's face when she spot three little fillies with the triforce cutie mark, and one of them is giving her a knowing smirk. XD
Yeah, i can totally see them knowing the sisters.Willing to bet Zelda is their teacher/big sister while both Ganon and lInk are like their big brothers they look up too XD
Ohh oooh! Suggestion. During the nightmare night episode, Zelda/Sweetie should narrow her eyes in recognition and disdain when she spot Twilight wearing the Starswirl costume. Hinting she had zero positive thing to say about the wizard
Nightmare Moon: Why did we had a sudden urge to teach manner to a filly down there?
Discord: I need to re-stock my popcorn supply.
Fantastic!! I love it! I wonder what the interaction with the elements is going to be like. Will they go on the main adventures? Or will they carve a path of their own? Only time will tell, and if it's as well written as this, it will be a fantastic one.
Celestia suddenly paused in eatting her midday cake and tilted her head "Huh...I sense the presence of ponies I have not sensed in a very long long time" she paused again "Why do i feel like things are going to get a bit chaotic.."
Imagining these in the CMC voices makes this story much more amusing.
Non-cannon, you say? I will now proceed to ignore you saying that and totally take this entire story as a legitimate sequel because it actually IS a really interesting premise in my opinion. Will definitely be looking forward to more.
Wow so basically Applejack and Rarity never met each other yet so this is basically before season 1 came along okay cool and pretty much so early for the Cutie Mark Crusaders ( link zelda and Ganondorf ) to meet each other okay cool but it looks like Applejack and Rarity became good friends well at least for their sister's sake I wonder how their Adventures go and how cmc ( link zelda and Ganondorf) well do I guess we'll find out next time
10634066
Oh my.... and the mayhem they are gonna cause... Chrysalis’s wedding girls and if they also let Discord out... the possibilities
10634232
And then giving breaking Twilight by giving her some information about her idol that didn'tmake it to the history books. Then again think just how Sweetie/Zelda would react if Twilight idolised/dressed as her instead of Starswril. Just thinking about the amount of teasing potential there makes me feel all warm inside.
10634436
Since she's not a princess, she's called Zelda Hyrule the mystic. Mentor and possibly the princess's nanny. Whos strict but they love her nonetheless.They probably preferred her over Starswirl, while he;s just as strict in his teachings but he's frustrating to deal with while Zelda who has Ganon to reel her in is more understanding , patient and straightforward without that cryptic BS, she tell them how to perform the spells correctly and give them more concrete clues to figure it out easier instead of vague BS
Oh of course not
Considering what is going on...
I honestly expect Celestia to hear of this VERY shortly. Entwined Marks are rare after all. And her getting a message about it and hearing about the nature of the marks themselves?
Celestia's reaction to those three being back is going to be... telling.
I've been long waiting seeing the Sisters interact with the Triforce wielders in the original story. Because fuck yes. So this is going to be a very neat thing and a clue for things to come. Because their relationship is going to be amusing... though I kinda expect Celestia and Luna both getting rather interested in Link and Ganondorf in a possible romantic light. Ganondorf especially.
Celestia has that thing where she likes stallions who are bigger then her, after all... poor mare just needs to be Little Spoon sometimes.
10634198
It definitely seems to be that this was never the original CMC. They always been Link, Zelda and Gannon, just growing up as children.
It's more like they've just been reminded of who they once were, and had the rest of their memories restored.
Okay, if Gannon ended up as Sweetie Belle, I'll die laughing!
Oh yes this is going to be good.
Also, that ending
Well, this looks fun. :D
Thank you for writing. :)
10634547
Apple bloom actually.
Anyways, this is highly amusing. And I am looking forward to the chaos the Hyrule cmc will bring to your MLP canon.
I say your because i doubt that Twilight won't recognize the triforce cutie mark. Wait a sec, i will have to reread the first story, i am not sure if our trio had the same cutie ma4ks back then...
Yeah, I’m just gonna slap a +fav on this now. I may not know exactly how things are gonna go, but I know how things are gonna go, here.