The Beginning
Princess Twilight Sparkle levitated yet another book off the shelves.
"No, no. That's not it! Spiiiiike?!!!"
"Yes Twilight?" Replied her scaly assistant.
"Where is The Ultimate Guide to Life by Smarty Pants?"
"Your doll wrote a book?"
"No! The author!"
"Oh. Why do you even need The Ultimate Guide to Life?"
"I'm going to check out the entry about becoming a Princess."
"I thought you were fine with it after the whole human thing."
"I'm still not used to ponies bowing and calling me "Your Majesty" and stuff like that. Where's the book?"
"Top left shelf." Twilight levitated the book (which was almost as big as The Magical Compendium volumes 1 through 36) off the shelf. She put it on the floor and began turning pages.
"No, no, no, no, yes!!" She let the pages fall. "Don't worry, this has never happened to anypony. You should be safe?!!!!" She cried, reading from the book. "Safe?!!!!"
"Calm down, Twilight. So Smarty Pants doesn't know everything. It's not the end of the world." There was a knock on the door.
"A letter for the Princess!" Twilight tried to put the book away and open the door at the same time, but she was so frazzled she put the door away and opened the book. The door was now in the bookshelves.
"There you are, Princess! A letter from the Crystal Empire." Said the mailpony. He was a Unicorn stallion.
"Thank you!" Cried Twilight, Shutting the book. Then she replaced the door. "Dear Twilight," She read. "Please come to the Crystal Empire. We have a surprise for you. Love, Cadence and Shining. P.S. Bring Twinkle. Spike isn't this exiting?"
"Yeah! I just have one question. Who's Twinkle?"
"Twilight Twinkle. My sister. Didn't you go to her party she had when she got into Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns?"
"No. The Princess was giving you a test. I had to stay and help."
"Oh. Well you'll like her. Lets go pick her up!"
Twilight and Spike arrived at the station just as the train pulled in.
"Train from Canterlot, comin' in!" Announced the conductor. It screeched to a stop. Ponies of all ages swarmed off the train.
"There she is!" Cried Twilight. "Twinkle!" A young Unicorn filly ran over to them. She was slightly darker than Twilight, and her mane was more curly and had light blue instead of the purple in Twilight's. Also, she had a lighter color of pink in it.
"Twilight!" Her voice was small and squeaky, a little lower than Sweetie Belle's. "I missed you!"
"I missed you too." On the way back to the library Twinkle pestered Twilight with questions.
"What's it like to live in Ponyville?"
"Nice."
"What're your friends like?"
"Nice"
"Can I meet them?"
"Yes."
"Do you really live in a library?"
"Yes."
"I want to be just like you when I grow up."
"That's nice." By now Twilight wasn't really paying attention. "Twinkle, were here." She said absentmindedly.
"Ooh! Your library!" Cried Twinkle. "Can I go in?"
"Yes." Twinkle levitated to door open. As she did so a beam of light landed right on her Cutie Mark, a flower-like star. Twilight realized she hadn't noticed that Twinkle had a Cutie Mark.
"What's your talent?" She asked.
"Stars."
"Stars? What do you do with the stars?"
"I create them, and sometimes Princess Luna lets me rise them."
"Princess Luna?"
"I'm her personal student now." Twilight stood there for a minute, thinking. "You have something new too." Said Twinkle. "I was at the Coronation."
"You were?"
"With Mom and Dad." The two sisters walked into the library.
"It's bedtime!" Announced Twilight. She walked upstairs, signaling Twinkle to follow. They got into bed.
Twilight opened her eyes.
"Twinkle?" She called.
"Here." Said Twinkle.
"Today we're going to go to the Crystal Empire."
"Is Shiny still there?"
"Yes." Twilight got out of bed. "Come on!" The two of them left the house for the train station.
"Here we are!" Said Twinkle. Twilight's friends were at the station, too.
"Howdy, Twilight!" Said Applejack.
"Hello, Darling." Greeted Rarity.
"Hi." Whispered Fluttershy.
"Hiiiii!!" Cried Pinkie Pie.
"Hello." Said Rainbow Dash.
"Hello!" Cried Twinkle. "I'm Twilight's sister, Twilight Twinkle, but you can call me Twinkle! I've heard soooo much about you!" A head poked out from behind Rarity, then quickly back in. The seven ponies boarded the train. After a couple minutes, the head came back out, followed by the entire body of Sweetie Belle. Then, slowly Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Babs Seed did the same.
"What are you doing here?" Asked Rarity, sternly.
"We-uh we wanted to go to th' Crystal Empire with ya." Said Apple Bloom.
"To see what it looks like!" Explained Sweetie Belle.
"It was Sweetie Belle's Idea." Said Scootaloo.
"You supported it." Said Babs Seed.
"It doesn't matter." Said Twinkle. "We can't turn back and get you off the train. By the way I'm Twinkle."
"Hi, Twinkle." Said Apple Bloom.
"Say," Said Scootaloo, How'd you get your Cutie Mark?"
"Well," Started Twinkle, "One day, not long after Princess Luna came back from Canterlot, I was in the garden after dark. I was practicing a spell used to make things appear. I had to have a vision of what I wanted to make. It was a starless night, and so I decided to make some stars. I had a vision of what I wanted the stars to look like, so I did the spell. Little tiny stars appeared next to me, one by one. I pick one up, and felt it's power. At that moment I knew I wanted to do this forever and ever and never stop. Then my Cutie Mark appeared. Now I make stars for Princess Luna, and sometimes put them in the sky."
"Wow." The four blank-flanks sighed.
"Were her! The Crystal Empire!" Cried Twilight. The ten ponies got off the train. Walking through the Crystal Empire they realized that the ponies were not crystalline, but dark shades, like before the Crystal Heart came back. They soon discovered the reason for this--the Crystal Heart was gone!!!