Your Friends From Across Time

by EquestrianKnight97

Chapter 6

Author's Note:

Heads up: some spoilers from the G5 comics are up ahead. So if you haven't read them yet or read any reviews, you might want to do that first.

My story is also on Fanfiction, AO3, and Wattpad.. So please check those websites out and fav the story there, just in case FimFiction ever goes down.

You remembered.

You remembered everything that happened.

The attack on the festival by that horrible monster that chased you and Luster. The incredible pain you felt throughout your body, right before you woke up in a strange forest. The shadowy entity that attacked you at the house, where you hoped you would find the answers for a way back to Ponyville. And the beam of rainbows that struck the creature and made it retreat into the woods.

Yet, despite all those harms that came your way, there was only one thought that swarmed your mind above the rest. It was like a fog that would not stop bothering you. It was the quote from that yellow mare you met --- Posey, you believed her name to be:

Did you get your head hit by a rock or something? It's been hundreds of years since all the three pony races were united. I really think you are just trying to pull my leg with this joke of yours.

You did not know much about the mare, but you were certain that she was not trying to play dumb with you, given her irritable attitude once you had entered her home space. Even the other mare, Dahlia, seemed confused and worried when you talked to the two about Ponyville, the school, and the pony races. Unless this was an elaborate prank by somecreature from school or town --- in which you guessed that Gallop would be the likely mastermind --- you had no doubts that these two were serious about everything they said to you regarding what Equestria was like now.

Has it really been over a hundred years? Did I really travel forward into the future? What kind of magic even brought me here, to begin with?

You had awakened up suddenly from your sleep with cold sweat running down you face, and a chest so exhausted that you found yourself gasping for air. As the thoughts of your predicament raced through your mind, your eyes traced the environment that you were in.

You were laying on a simple, red couch. with either a blue or black cover over top of you. To your left was a circular window that revealed that the day was over, as the night-time sky cast a shadow over everything else outside, though you spotted some light clouds floating in the distance.

Turning your eyes away from the window, you looked around the area you were in. Given the couch, the chimney fireplace, the rug underneath a small glass table, and the few sofa chairs and cabinets spread around, you came to the conclusion that you were in a living room. Far beyond the foot of the couch was a door, and through the window you spotted what appeared to be flowers standing on a table.

This must be the same house.

Twisting around underneath the cover, you found yourself looking beyond the head of the couch, where there was an opening leading out of the living room. The room ahead was lit with lights, where inside you saw drawers attached to the wall, and above the drawers was a faucet. But the most noticeable details of the room were the noises that emanated from there. You could not make out the sounds clearly, but to you they seemed like whispers, as if somecreature or creatures were talking lowly.

Slowly, you lifted the cover off of you and planted your hooves gently on the wooden floor. As you stood in between the couch and the glass table, you tuned your ears to the sounds emitted from the kitchen, and those the noises were still heard to discern, you were somewhat certain that they were whispers.

You saw no faces in the kitchen, yet alone any shadows, but you were driven to enter inside and find out who was there. Perhaps it was Dahlia and/or Posey, and if that was the case then maybe you could ask them some more questions that were on your mind. Mainly, you wanted to know why the pony races had separated until recently, and perhaps even learn what that monster truly was.

You were cautious with your movements, though --- not wanting to take any quick or heavy steps that would scare whoever was in the kitchen. Once you reached the entrance space, you would announce yourself and ask to come in. You were sure that they would be surprised by your presence, but it seemed a better plan than just barging in.

"Oh! You're awake!"

You nearly lept into the air as you jolted around, letting out an embarrassing, high-pitched yelp. Your heart pounded against your ribcage in anticipation of whatever danger was now coming your way. Luckily, the panic in the brain died down as quickly as it came once you saw what was before you.

It was a pony. A simple unicorn mare. Despite the darkness in the living room, a purplish light glowed from the unicorn's horn that revealed her light purple coat and long blue mane. Around her in their own auras were a blanket, two pillows, a tray of cookies, and a glass of what you guessed was milk.

The most telling thing the light revealed was the unicorn's smile. The mare had a wholesome, unbothered smile on her face, a face that did not seem to even register how startled you were by her sudden appearance. Even as you stayed in a crouching position, like a cautious cat, the mare continued to grin at you without any shift in expression.

"I didn't know if you were allergic to any nuts, so I got you just chocolate chip and raisin cookies. Oh, and you don't need to drink the milk if you're, you know, lactose intolerant."

"I..., um...," was all you could muster before you heard several sets of hooves coming from behind you.

Turning around, you spotted four ponies coming out of the kitchen. Two of them, who you recognized, were Dahlia and Posey, which confirmed that you were still at the same house. The other two ponies were ones you had not met yet.

One was an orange earth pony mare with a long purple ponytail with rainbow highlights, with a blue satchel around her neck. The other was a yellow earth pony stallion with either light green or light blue mane, with a sash around his chest that held an emblem of a silver star within a horseshoe.

Dahlia, the mare, and the stallion all came to you with looks of concern, with a rather angry Posey being the exception.

"Izzy! What are you doing with my pillows and blanket?!? And are those--- When the hay did you get into the cookie cabinet and my fridge?!?"

Like with your reaction to her, the unicorn was unfazed by Posey's irritation. "Oh, well you told me to take care of your guest after you didn't want me talking to you for some reason. So, I figured I make them all cozy until they woke up. That's why I decided to get more comfortable with some pillows and another blanket. I figured that they might need them."

That explanation was not enough to calm down the yellow mare. "But why did you take my food?!? I didn't even see you come back to the kitchen!" She glared at the others. "Did any of you spot her? Without telling me?"

"Well, I was too busy listening to you and Dahlia explaining what happened," the stallion said.

"And I was too busy checking up on them to have been in the kitchen," the orange mare added in.

Dahlia scratched the back of her neck. "I guess I was still a bit shaken up by everything to have noticed anything Izzy was doing, especially with Hitch interviewing us."

After the other three ponies gave their own answers, Izzy giggled. "Well, I guess that's just my medium sneakiness. But I thought you really wanted them to feel at home, so I thought some cookies and milk would do the trick."

Posey stomped her forehoof. "Ugh! I didn't mean that you could just take whatever you wanted. You had to ask me first. It's basic common manners."

Izzy seemed genuinely surprised by that statement. "Oh. Sorry. Well..., would you have been okay with me giving them all of this if I asked?"

"No," Posey plainly said. "They're mine, not anypony else's."

The unicorn tilted her head in confusion. "Well, that doesn't seem like basic common manners. You're always supposed to treat a guest well when they come to your house."

You could have sworn that a vein popped off on Posey's temple. "I didn't decide to take the kid in, alright! The brat just showed up out of nowhere talking about all this nonsense. If you think---"

Stepping forward, the stallion put a hoof up in front of Posey, who donned the appalled face of somecreature who had just gotten slapped, even though the stallion made no contact with her.

"I think we're all getting off-topic," he stated with a mix of authority and calmness in his voice. The stallion moved forward between you and the mares from the kitchen. With a small smile, he offered a hoof for you to take, which you reluctantly did after staring at it for a quick while.

"Hello, I'm Hitch Trailblazer," he stated. "I'm the sheriff of Maretime Bay. I can ask what you're name is?"

"Um, my name is [Y/N]," you said.

The sheriff kept his smile. "Well, that sounds like an interesting name. But to get to the point, the reason me and my friends came here is because of the monster attack that occurred here not so long ago. We just had some questions for you about what happened."

"How do you know about the monster?" you asked.

"Well, the Unity Crystals shot their magic toward Posey's house a few hours ago. That's when Sunny and Izzy got me from the sheriff's station. And when we all got here, Posey and Dahlia told us all about what happened."

You tilted your head. "Unity Crystals? What are those?"

A realization came upon Hitch's face. "Oh, right. I forgot about your amnesia or whatever it is you have. Sorry. The Unity Crystals are from the Crystal Brighthouse. You must have seen it when you came to this house. It's hard to miss. It's the blue building in the distance with the rainbow shooting out into the sky."

You connected the pieces together. "Yeah... I remember. That's where the rainbow came from that saved me."

"Me and Izzy were just doing our own thing when the Brighthouse just shook out of nowhere," spoke the orange mare. "When we went outside, we saw the beam heading outside of town. After we got Hitch, we came across Dahlia who told us about what happened. So we all raced here to talk with Posey."

You could only give the mare a deadpan stare. "Um..., okay."

"I should probably introduce you to everypony else," Hitch said. "I see that you already met Posey and Dahlia. The one with the pillows and stuff is Izzy, and the one you just talked to is Sunny. They both live in the Brighthouse. But back to my original question: do you know what happened when you encountered the monster?"

"Posey and I couldn't really much of what was happening to you," Dahlia admitted with a shiver. "That thing just seemed to swallow you up."

"Well...," you started to say. "It felt like the monster was sucking away at my entire essence. My bones felt weak. I could barely lift a muscle. I felt like I was suffocating. In general, my life was slipping away from me. If it wasn't for that rainbow, I might not..."

You had been looking down at the carpeted floor when you said those words, but you hoped that the sheriff and the others were able to get what you were saying: you had almost died because of that beast.

Oddly enough, you felt a hoof press against your shoulder. Looking up, you saw the orange mare --- Sunny --- staring at you with sincere, apologetic green eyes, as if she was attempting to make amends with you over a slight.

"I'm so sorry," she said with sadness in her voice. "Nopony should ever have to go through something like that."

Instinctively, you backed away from the earth pony, as one would from a snake. You had no real control over the action, but you were not really appreciative of the mare's action either. Though you know she probably meant no harm, it was undesirable for you to be touched like that, especially by somecreature you just met.

When you looked back at her, Sunny seemed neither sad nor upset, but rather calm and understanding of your reaction. As you examined her, you noticed something that made your eyes widen a bit. On the strap of her satchel were three pins, each with its own symbol. But these were not just any symbols, they were cutiemarks.

The cutiemarks of three of the Elements of Harmony.

Having grown up with the stories of the Elements ever since you were a foal in school, you recognized each of the cutiemarks. One was of Rainbow Dash, the other was Fluttershy's, and the final was the cutiemark of Princess Twilight Sparkle herself. You only lifted your eyes off the pins once you heard the sheriff's voice.

"[Y/N], when I was talking to Dahlia and Posey about the monster attack, they mentioned something that bothered them. Before the attack, they said that you basically had no knowledge of what Equestria has been like for the last hundreds of years. You were talking about a town they never heard of, you mentioned creatures that nopony has seen in moons, and even though you're an earth pony you've apparently never lived in Maretime Bay."

"You mentioned that you were from Ponyville," Sunny said. "But nopony's been there in ages. It's been so long, that it's not even on the map anymore."

That last line made your heart sink. You were certain that you were not able to hide the despair on your face. "Has it been that long?" you muttered.

"'That long'?" Sunny repeated. "What do you mean by that?"

You looked past Izzy and to the couch. "Is it okay if I sit down?" you said, looking back at the sheriff.

"I don't mind," Hitch said. "But it's not my house. Posey, is it okay with you?"

The mare in question gave you a light scowl. "Just don't mess up anything."

Taking her hostility as reluctant approval, you went over to the furniture and sat on the cover. Everycreature else came closer into the living room, with Izzy placing the blanket, pillows, cookies, and milk on the glass table. The unicorn made her way to one of the couch chairs, but Posey beat her to it, blocking the path by standing on her hindlegs.

"No way! I don't need you messing around with more of my stuff!"

Sunny frowned. "She just wants to sit down, Posey. Don't be like that."

Posey planted herself on the chair. "And she can, just NOT on my chairs. It's my house, after all."

You could not help but wrinkle your nose at the mare and her contaminating attitude, but Izzy on the other hoof seemed to take it with many strides. "Oh, well! I guess I'll just be hanging around, then."

Unlike with Izzy, Posey seemed to have no trouble with Hitch occupying the other chair. When he sat down, he bestowed on you a stoic stare, eagerly waiting for you to explain yourself. Sunny and Dahlia chose to stand in between you and Hitch.

"We're all ready, [Y/N]," Hitch announced. You took a while to collect your recent memories and the thoughts that have been in your mind for some time. When you were ready, you spoke.

"I think I know what happened to me, even though I don't understand why or how I got here. But I'm certain it has something to do with magic." You take a deep breath. "I'm from the past --- back when the pony races were still united."

To yourself, what you said sounded stupid, and definitely unbelievable, even though you knew it to be the likely truth. And to be additionally honest with yourself, you were certain that the ponies before you would have casted doubt on your simple explanation and told you to stop fooling around.

But as Hitch's eyes met yours, you saw that you were continuing to receive his attention, with the stallion waiting for you to finish speaking with a stoic expression. Other than an uninterested Posey, everycreature else seemed patient for your next comment. Sunny, however, had her own questions.

"Wait, you're from the past? Like, when the princesses reigned over Equestria?"

You nodded. "I am. Though, technically, Princess Twilight was the ruler when I was born, since Luna and Celestia were already in retirement."

You could have sworn that you saw a twinkle shine in Sunny's eyes, but before you could examine them any further your attention was brought back to Hitch.

"Do you have any memory of what happened before you got here?" he asked.

"Well, I was just exploring the town after my classes at the School of Friendship were over," you answered. "After school was done, my classmates---"

"Wait a minute," Sunny interrupted, taking a few steps closer to you. "The School of Friendship? As in the one in Ponyville? You're a student there?"

With each question, Sunny's voice was raised up a bit, making you somewhat weary of the earth pony. "Yes, that's the same school. But I'm not really from Ponyville, I'm from---"

A white, toothful smile sprang from the mare, and that same twinkle you saw in her eyes returned in full force.

"Oh my hoofness! Did you meet any of the Guardians of Harmony? Like Applejack or Rainbow Dash or Pinkie Pie? My dad's research suggests that they were the first teachers of the school, and that Princess Twilight was the founder."

You squirmed on the couch a little as the mare approached you. "The Guardians? They're still referred to as the Elements from my time. But yes, they were the first professors of the school, but they retired by the time I came by. Applejack's and Rarity's sisters were teachers, though, and I was in their classes."

"Ok, but, like did you meet any of the Guardians? Did you meet Twilight Sparkle herself? You have to tell me!"

Though not particularly eager to answer the excited mare, you reluctantly responded to Sunny. "Well, I've never actually met the Princess. She was always busy in her castle, and when she was out, I wasn't there to see her. Rarity and Rainbow Dash were mostly outside of Ponyville doing their own businesses. The only mares I got to know about a little were Applejack, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie, mostly because they were still active with the school."

Without any pre-caution, Sunny let out a high-pitched, sugary squeal throughout the living room that surprised everycreature, even Posey. Having been close enough to you, she grabs your shoulders with both of her forehooves and nearly rammed her face into yours. Your confused and bothered expression did nothing to convince her to let go of you.

"This is just AMAZING! I have sooo many questions for you! What kind of ponies were the Guardians like that you knew about? Other than being heroes, they must have had their own personalities!"

"Well, I guess my favorite was Fluttershy because of how---"

"OH! What was the golden age of Old Equestria like under Twilight before the ponies started fighting? Was it truly peaceful when she ascended to the throne?"

"Well, before I was born the last big threats were the Legion of Doom and the Knights of Harmony. But other than that, Equestria's been pretty---"

Sunny pressed her nose against yours, never letting go of that smile of hers. Instead, you were sure that it grew wider. "What was it like living with the non-pony races? I heard that Old Equestria was teeming with dragons and changelings and hippogriffs and yaks, but now nopony knows where they went! Did you learn anything about their cultures?"

You gulped, with a single bead of sweat beginning to form on your forehead. "I exactly don't know that much about other species' cultures, but I can promise you that the school brought creatures from all over the Known World together. In fact, some of my teachers were non-ponies. But I really want to get back to telling my stor---"

"But there's more you know right?" Sunny interrputed, not willing to hear you out. "Were there any signs that Equestrian society was about to collapse? You're the only pony who might know about what could have happened besides Dis---"

You saw that the mare's excitement died down once she turned around to find an unamused Hitch with his hoof on one of her shoulders.

"I really, really, would like it if you could stay on the same page as me and help us get back on track to the original discussion."

With an embarrassed blush, Sunny let out a nervous chuckle as she stared at you. "Sorry," she apologized, letting go of you. "I didn't exactly mean to scare you like that. It's just that I'm big into Equestrian history, and finding another puzzle piece to understanding what society was like a long time ago is just too much for my brain to handle."

"Great," you heard Posey mutttered. "Like like school all over again."

You turned your attention back to Sunny, with a bit of apprehension toward the seemingly calm mare on your part. "It's okay."

"I'm sure it won't happen again," the sheriff promised you. "So you can go back to telling your story."

Having been handled roughly by Sunny, you readjusted your position on the couch, making sure you were comfortably suited. You looked around the room again and saw that most of the ponies here were still giving you their attention.

"Well, as I was saying," you began. "One day, classes ended a bit early because that day was the Grateful Festival. I meant to spend some time to myself, but my classmates dragged me to the festival in town. It... wasn't really for me, but all of a sudden this monster came and attacked the fairgrounds. I was trying to escape from it when I felt this pain spread throughout my whole body. The next thing I knew, I woke up in a forest not far from Posey's home. I used this rainbow I saw shooting into the sky to get out of the woods."

"The light from the Brighthouse," Hitch added in.

You nodded. "I went over there to talk to Posey and Dahlia, and that's where we all got confused about what time period I thought I was in. Then the sky got cloudy and there was all this wind, and we all saw this... monster come out from the woods. It managed to swallow up a few animals before it got to me. I already told you how it felt to be in its grasp. The next thing I knew, the... Brighthouse shot its rainbow at the monster and it went back to the forest."

"And then you fell asleep?" Sunny asked.

"Yeah. I guess the monster must have drained something out of me. But that's about it. That's everything that happened to me until I woke up."

Dahlia spoke up. "So, you're from the past, and you suddenly found yourself here in the future?"

You hear the reluctance of belief in her voice, and you were certain that most of the ponies, excluding an attentive Sunny and curious Izzy, were doubtful of your claims of having been born centuries ago. Posey herself had been dismissive the whole time, with her eyes roaming around elsewhere besides where you were, and Hitch only stared at you with his stoic amber eyes.

"And this creature, was it like the one that attacked you here?"

You shook your head. "No, they weren't similar at all. The one back home was like a giant lion with wings."

Hitch sighed, which made you a bit uneasy. "I don't know about this. Are you certain you're from the past? Maybe something happened to you earlier on that messed up your memory. I just don't see how this time travel thing is possible."

"It has to be," you answered back. "I don't see how else I ended up here. I have to be from the past."

"I have to agree with them, Hitch," Sunny interjected, smiling. "It all makes too much sense."

Amazed, the sheriff shot a look at the mare, who held on to her upbeat demeanor. "Sunny, what do you mean?"

"Well, it's just too much of a coincidence. Remember what the message from the Unity Crystals? It said that magic is now stronger than ever. So maybe something magical brought them here."

"She's right," chimed in Izzy. "The giant hologram mare did say that."

Sunny seemed appreciative of her friend's comment. "And that's not the only thing. There's another reason why they're not from here: their cutiemarks."

Hitch tilted his head. "Their cutiemarks?"

"I just noticed it, but they have a cutiemark on each of their hindquarters, not just the right one. Back in the times of Old Equestria, ponies had two cutiemarks instead of just one, but that all changed after a while for some reason."

You looked over at Sunny and Dahlia and were taken aback by what you witnessed. Their left hindquarters were completely blanked, with no cutiemark in sight to be seen. You knew, however, that Dahlia had one, which you think was a magenta-colored box, and you were certain that the others in the room definitely had their own.

"I guess we were too shook up to notice that," Dahlia admitted. "We just grabbed them and placed them on the couch."

"Well...., I guess that makes it clear, then," you said, looking at Hitch. "If ponies only had two cutiemarks in the past, then that means I'm telling the truth."

Leaving the couch chair, Hitch walked around the glass table and came to your right side, inspecting your hindquarter. When he was done, she shifted over to your left to look down at the other one.

"I see what you're talking about, Sunny," Hitch admitted before facing you. "But just to be sure, can you lick your hoof and rub your left flank? Just where your mark is."

The request irked you a bit, as you knew that there were enough reasons for everycreature here to believe in your story. But the unmoving stare that the sheriff gave you made you give in. You gave your forehoof three tongue strikes before rubbing it against your flank for a good ten seconds.

Hitch crouched a bit to examine your flank but quickly came back up.

"It seems you really are telling the truth here, [Y/N]," he said to you. "So... You really are from the past?"

With that last sentence, you noticed that the confidence in his voice was dialed down a bit, as if he was uncertain of what to say to you.

"Yes. I'm from the past. I don't know how else to explain it, but I'm here."

Hitch straightened himself up a bit more. "Of course. Well, if that's the case, then I'm sorry to say that we can't really do much for you."

"What do you mean?" you asked, trying not to sound worried.

"What I mean is that we don't really any clue how to send you back," the sheriff answered. "We don't exactly have any technology that can defy the physics of time travel."

You rubbed the back of your neck. "Well, what about magic spells? Ones that unicorns can perform? You guys have to have like wizards or sorcerers among you, right?"

"You see, the thing is that won't work either," Izzy said. "Magic's been here for less than a year and all we unicorns can do is move things up and down. Nopony here is really an expert on magic --- except maybe Rufus. But he's an earth pony, and also more of a magician than a wizard."

"Wait. What was that thing about magic?"

Sunny spoke up. "When the pony races were brought back together, it returned magic back to the land of Equestria. Unicorns could use spells and the pegasi were able to fly again. Magic went away sometime after the races were divided."

You returned your eyes back to Izzy. "Ok, but you still have books for spells, though, right? The headmare of the school, Starlight Glimmer, once talked about a time when she used a spell to travel back in time to mess around with events."

Sunny gasped. "Oh my goodness! You met Starlight, too?!?"

"Sunny...," Hitch scolded.

The mare grinned sheepishly. "Oops! Sorry."

"Books?" Izzy said. "Well, I know we unicorns have a library back at Bridlewood with books and scrolls containing spells, but as the moons pass on plenty of them either get lost or just ended up getting messed up. Magic had been gone for so long that we barely read that stuff. There may not even be a time spell anywhere."

"Oh," was all you managed to get out. A hopeless gloom overtook you and separated you from the others in the room. You thought about whether or not you would ever make it back to your time, given the news that Izzy brought to you. Looking for those books might be one thing that could be feasible, but finding a unicorn who could perform the spell that you desired was something else.

But from that darkness of yours came another thought: the disaster at the festival. So many creatures must have been injured, or faced something worse, because of that monster. And for all you know, one of those creatures was Luster --- whose concerns were more for others' sake than for her own.

With you disappearing into the future, you had no clue as to whether or not she was safe from that beast, or whether she was a victim of it. And then there were the others to think about at the picnic table. Did they make it out of the fairgrounds safely, or did they go seeking out Luster instead? Was it possible that they crossed that monster's path?

"Well, there's always Discord to ask," Izzy said. "Maybe he could help."

The gloom around you weakened. "Wait. What did you say?"

Unfazed, Izzy looked back at you. "Discord. You know --- the Spirit of Chaos. He could help you get back home."

"Discord? He's still here?"

"Well, kind of. It's really complicated. We tracked him down to Canterlot after he took the pegasus unity crystal and---"

"Canterlot?" You nearly jumped into the air as you got off the couch. "Canterlot is still around, too?"

Sunny's face soured a bit. "It's not how it might have been to you all those years ago. It's a ruin now. Basically nopony lived there except for him and a few of his animal friends." She turned to look at Izzy. "I don't think Discord will be able to help them. We don't even know where he is."

"Well, that's the thing," Izzy said all upbeat. "You weren't here when it happened, but Pipp told me about a message she got from this pony who lives in this old abandoned town near the coast. I can't remember everything she told me, but the pony said in his message that he might know where Discord is."

Hitch spoke up. "It could just be another red herring, like all the ones before, Izzy."

"I know. I said the same thing to her, but Pipp was certain that this one was different. She had this feeling about it, you know?"

"I don't understand," you said. "Why is Discord hiding from creatures?"

"It's a bit too much to explain everything right now," Sunny told you. "But to sum it up real quick, there are three unity crystals out there that hold all of Equestria's magic, and Discord took one of them so he could find a way to destroy magic."

"Yeah. That's why the thief is on the run from us," Hitch stated with contempt.

The answers given were not enough for you. "That doesn't make any sense. I don't know much about him, but I've met him a few times to know he's kind of a chill guy. Why would he want to get rid of magic? Doesn't he know that he's dooming the world?"

"Eh. I don't know about that last part," Izzy said. "Remember. We all spent many moons without magic so getting rid of it again wouldn't really do too much damage. But, I know he said something about ponies fighting each other again due to their magical differences or something."

"Still," Hitch started, "there's nothing to prove that the pony who messaged Pipp actually saw Discord. And with Pipp over at Zephyr Heights with Zipp, we won't know how authentic this message is until they both come back tomorrow."

"But maybe Izzy's idea isn't so far off to ignore," Sunny suggested. "From my dad's research, Discord can bend reality and travel to different dimensions. As the Lord of Chaos, he might be able to open up a portal through time, or space-time."

"You're telling me you want to take a chance with Pipp's message and go to this abandoned place?"

The orange earth pony nodded. "We're already looking for Discord and the crystal, and it's obvious that [Y/N] is from the past. We'll be solving two problems at the same time if we take them with us."

The sheriff sighed. "If you insist on going with Pipp to this place, then I can't do much. But are you sure that taking [Y/N] with you is going to work out? Discord might see it as a trap."

"We have to at least try, Hitch. What kind of example would we be setting if we didn't help a pony in need? But at the same time, I won't force them to come if they don't want to." The mare turned her face to you. "It may be a long shot, and maybe even a dead end, but if Discord can bring you back to your time, you should at least give it a chance."

Silence filled the room, indicating to you that it was your turn to talk. You stared at your hooves for what must have been two minutes as thoughts raced through your head on what to do.

"Guess I don't have much of a choice," you finally uttered out. "I've seen a bit of Discord's magic before --- never on a huge scale or anything like that, but enough to convince me that he could do some serious stuff. I just hope that he can help me."

Sunny was unable to hide her grin. "That's just wonderful! It'll be a while, but we'll take you to him as soon as our friends come back from a royal meeting in Zephyr Heights."

Izzy trotted over to you with a similar smile. "That means you can stay at the Brighthouse until we go on our trip. There's plenty of space in the living room for you to sleep tonight."

"Yes," Posey cut in curtly. "I would very much appreciate it if you didn't stay here."

Comments

[Starlight Nova]

Why is chapter three so much longer than the other chapters?

[EquestrianKnight97]

11414395
It wasn't something I expected to happen. I originally planned for it to be around 5k words, but I guess I realized I had to add it more details to the chapter as I worked on it. I guess I could have split Ch 3 into sub-chapters (e.g., Ch 3.1 and 3.2), but I felt weird about doing that. I might do sub-chapters in the future if I feel that the second half of a chapter is going to take a while to publish.

[FlamingYoi]

Yay another chapter!!! :D

[EquestrianKnight97]

11512775
Thanks! I'm glad you're enjoying the story! Chapter 7 should be coming out this March.

[FlamingYoi]

11512866
Great 👍