> Who is Stars
>  by ff0000
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> In Tricky Situations
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Chapter 1, In Tricky Situations


Getting to Ponyville had been a real disaster for the Great and Powerful Trixie. First off, she was supposed to arrive on New Year's Eve, but her first steps into the village were on the bright and early first day of the new year. It was chilly with a light breeze going weaving through the bare branches. The buildings and gardens of the town were coated with an old layer of snow. While most of the fields were well-worn, with remnants of snowmen and snowball fights, sunlight shined brightly from the smooth white roofs. The roads were clear but damp and filled with dirty puddles.

And now, Trixie missed the event that she was invited to. She was actually pretty excited to come back to Ponyville as a guest. After dropping some hints about having nothing to do for the New Year's Eve, and how wonderful it would be to grace this small town with her awe-inspiring presence, of course Twilight Sparkle would be asked to come over.

The answer really was a no-brainer. Trixie was a stylish blue unicorn with a starry purple cloak and wizard hat. Who wouldn't want her around? Not to mention she was both great and powerful, maybe even magnificent. But life had conspired to delay her. When she wanted to take the train over yesterday, she had forgotten the bits. It only caused her to miss one train, which wouldn't have been a problem if all subsequent trains hadn't been stopped due to bad weather in her area. Hopefully, everypony wouldn't be too disappointed. She had promised them a show, after all.

Ponyville was still looking fancy with colorful decorations everywhere, though all the festivity was drooping a bit. The atmosphere was matched by the ponies trudging around early in the morning. With the celebration passed, everypony was weary from having fun all night. Many of them had returned to work, such as a group of pegasi getting ready to deliver some heavy packages. Trixie drew her lips at how poor of an audience they would be now.

The sound of bells drew Trixie's attention, but it was only someone entering the post office and not any signs of renewed celebration. She couldn't see who it was past the closing door, though mushy clawprints were left in the ground. It was pretty early to go to the post office, but that wasn't any concern of hers.

Maybe her friends would be more open to a wonderful show of magic. Just where were they, anyway? Twilight would most likely be at the library. Twilight, that magic-spewing unicorn-turned-alicorn. Trixie took a deep breath. This was just a friendly visit. No need to bring up past events. She had been in Ponyville enough to know the way to the library. It stood by itself, built into a giant tree with a massive trunk.

Trixie pouted when she saw the state of the place. The exterior was a bit of a mess, and one of the windows had been broken entirely. How could they even think about having such a wild party before the she, The Great and Partying Trixie, arrived?

A lot of noise was coming from inside, and not a bit of it sounded happy. Even though it was somepony else's home, Trixie just strode right on in. She couldn't believe the view in front of her eyes. Nearly matching the frayed exterior, the main room was a mess with books on the ground mixing with the confetti and loose decorations draped everywhere. Unattached balloons had floated off into the ceiling while others were sadly deflated on the ground.

"I didn't take anythin'!" Applejack shouted. She was that peach-toned earth pony that was always wearing the hat. Trixie had to admit a good hat could make a powerful statement.

"I saw you eyeing it!" Rainbow Dash, the aggressive pegasus with a rainbow mane, shot back.

Rarity, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie were watching the ensuing argument with worried expressions, their eyes moving back and forth depending on who was speaking at the time.

Twilight was standing in between the two of them with hooves stretched out to keep them apart. Fallen books were spread out on the floor by her legs. Her regal wings were also wide in an attempt to look more authoritative.

All that accomplished was making Rainbow Dash swat the hoof away and shift her attention. "Maybe you took it." Her eyes angled downwards.

"It was already here, where could I have taken it to?" Twlight asked.

"I don't know! Maybe somewhere outside." Rainbow Dash whipped her head around, looking for the whatever it is they were speaking about. "Maybe you had Spike take it away."

Twilight let out a gasp. "Spike? Hey, where is he? Spike!" she called out to no response. She did a double take when something caught her eyes. "And what's this?" Her hoof landed on the table in the center of the library. A note was scribbled onto wrinkled parchment.

"I AM stars?" Rainbow Dash read off the sheet. The writing was shaky and messy. Lines trailed off and letters were merged together with strokes going from the end of one to the start of the next. "Did this Stars pony take it?"

Applejack lowered her head, causing the brim of her hat to cover the eyes. "Wouldn't that be Spike? He's usually the one that writes stuff down."

Twilight tilted her head up a bit as a purple glow emanated from her horn. The note floated closer to her squinting eyes. "I can't tell if this is Spike's writing. It doesn't really look like it, though."

"Who is Stars, then?" Pinkie Pie exclaimed.

Trixie has had enough of the going on, talking about something and ignoring her. She reared back, raising her arms up. Then, she came crashing down. When her hooves landed, red sparks flashed and was followed by a loud boom. It vanished just as fast, but it certainly got everypony's attention.

"The Great and Powerful Trixie has finally arrived," she announced. "Now what is going on here?"

Everyone launched into an explanation all at once. It was more of an excuse to continue arguing with each other rather than explaining anything. Fluttershy and Rarity were on the same side, as far as Trixie could tell. They were in a three-way argument with Applejack and Rainbow Dash. Twilight was still more looking for Spike than anything else. That annoying, hyper pink one, Pinkie Pie, was babbling on about donkeys or something.

"Okay, never mind," Trixie said. "It's obvious my presence has stupefied all of you. I don't know why I bothered coming out here, anyway."

Twilight broke away from the group and called out, "Trixie, wait. I'm sorry. We just have a lot on our minds right now."

"Well, explain what's going on then."

"Wait, Trixie is perfect!" Rainbow Dash suddenly spurted out.

"I know," Trixie responded, "but in what, specifically?"

Rainbow Dash flew over and landed between Trixie and the door, boxing her in. "You were supposed to get here yesterday, weren't you? But it's good that you're late. You can sort this out."

"That's right!" Applejack said. "You have no sides in this and can think clearly. I'm just too miffed right now."

Rarity, a fanciful white unicorn, and the only one among them wearing a dress, walked over with full on stomps. "Oh, great. We're going to ask Trixie for help now, are we?"

"It might be a good idea," Fluttershy said in a breathy squeak. She was a meek, yellow pegasus following being the unicorn with light steps that barely made a sound. "We're not getting anywhere on our own."

Without even understanding the full situation, Trixie stood straight and proud. She conjured up a wind so her cloak would flap indoors. "I'll do it! Now, everyone separate."

They all looked at her with confused expressions.

"The great and deductive Trixie knows what she is doing!" Trixie proclaimed with arms spread wide. "I will question you each on the events of the previous day one at a time. That way, you don't have to worry about anypony else butting in."

The six friends mumbled in agreement. They relented to the fact that it was probably the best method.

The loud noise of, "Me first! Me First!" cut through the mumbling. Pinkie Pie hopped up and down from the back of the group with her arms flailing wildly. Her curly hair was almost bouncing as much as she was.

"Okay, annoying pink one," Trixie said, "come with me. As for the rest of you, Twilight, go upstairs, to your room."

"How'd you know that was my room?" Twilight asked.

"Oh, I was looking around in here that time I sort of accidentally kicked you out of Ponyville." Trixie forced the blush off her face and then turned to the others. "Applejack, you wait around back. Rainbow Dash, you wait by the balcony, Rarity, go to that other room. And I guess Fluttershy can stay here. Well, let's move it!" Her hoof clapped against the ground twice.

Trixie let out a silent chuckle through her toothy smile. It was time to put all that knowledge being an assistant for that PI to good use. It was time for The Great and Powerful Trixie to work for the benefit of her friends.
> Rosie Outlook
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Chapter 2.1, Rosie Outlook, Pinkie Pie's Story


Trixie in her ever-grand wisdom, decided to separate the six ponies. That way, she could get their stories without the others interrupting. The things she did for her friends, the ponies she accidentally-on-purpose hurt with her magic but not really since she was under the influence of some amulet she picked up herself. No need to think about that too much. Trixie felt that this would be an adequate way to spend her time. It was no show or party but everypony would be indebted to her.

First up was Pinkie Pie's chance to tell just what happened yesterday. They were standing out the front door of the library, away from the prying eyes and ears of her friends.

"So Pinkie Pie, tell The Great and Deductive Trixie what is going on. First off, what was taken?"

Pinkie Pie hopped at the answer. "It was a pretty, pretty package! It had a shiny bow and colorful wrapping and everything. There was a card from Princess Celestia!"

Trixie turned up her nose. "Of course Princess Celestia would send something to her former pupil."

"Nope. That's the thing. The present was for Rainbow Dash."

"Really? What was in it?"

"I dunno," Pinkie said with a casual shrug. "The card also said not to open it until the new year. The package went missing before that, however. Last night, the lights suddenly went out and when we managed to find more lights, it was gone! Then we found the strange note this morning."

"Do you know what it means?" Trixie asked.

"Nope. But I do like stars. They're so pretty in the clear night sky. They're like New Year's decorations that just appear by themselves. Maybe since I like stars, I'm Stars!" Pinkie drew her hooves close to her mouth and let out a loud gasp. "What a twist!"

"Trixie will be the judge of that. Now, tell me what happened yesterday."

"Well, yesterday started yesterday, on a cold and stormy night." Pinkie Pie waved her hoof across the sky.

"I'm pretty sure it wasn't stormy here yesterday. And mail is delivered in the afternoon at the latest," Trixie said.

"Alright, you got me! I was a fine day during the morning, and I was hopping along preparing the It's a New Year to Cheer Party, trademarked. It all started like this..."

The day of New Year's Eve was wonderful! Sure, it might have been a bit chilly, and clouds rolled across the sky but that only meant the snow wouldn't melt from the sun. Pinkie Pie was up bright and early, moving along the streets of Ponyville. That night, she was going to throw the best party ever. That's right, every party is the best party ever, so it must always top the last one.  That meant she needed more balloons, more streamers, more confetti, more everything!

Even with so much to do, Pinkie found the fun in just travelling down the street. She bounced down the way, making sure to hit every puddle. Every time the cold water splashed on her hooves, she let out a bubbly giggle as if it was the first time she had experienced it. Higher and higher! Pinkie landed on a large puddle to create an even bigger splash.

The wave got so high, it completely obscured her view. Before it fully crashed, Pinkie was off again. The thoughts of her very special party brought her to the store to refill her current stocks. Twilight had agreed to throw the party at the library. It was the second-most spacious place after the Apple Family barn. That place was too cold during the wintery months, however.

When the party store appeared, Pinkie's eyes lit up like lights. She was in there for a long time and came out with several saddlebags across her back. It was a bit much to continue bouncing, so the happy pony walked the rest of the way to Twilight's house.

A few of her friends were already there, but they felt disturbed, somehow. Twilight, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy and Rarity were all gathered around the table in the center of the main room, however.

"Hey, girls, what's up?" Pinkie Pie asked.

"Rainbow Dash received a package from Princess Celestia," Rarity answered.

Pinkie staggered forward a few steps under the weight of the decorations. Everyone else was too distracted to help at the moment. "Ooh, what's in it?"

"We're not sure, dear. The instructions were not to open it until tomorrow."

Pinkie finally just shrugged off all the stuff. She squeezed in between Rainbow Dash and Twilight Sparkle to get a good look at the package. It appeared innocent enough, being a small box wrapped with rainbow paper. Gold ribbons held it together, and it topped with a gold bow.

"Oooh, sparkly." The present was reflected off Pinkies wide eyes.

Rainbow Dash strut over proudly. "This is a package from Princess Celestia to me. But Twilight is being a real worrywart and keeping it here."

"I'm only saying-"

Pinkie Pie shoved her hoof in front of Twilight's mouth. "No fighting. A party is going to be here! It's a wonderful time of the year." She went back to the bags on the ground. A bunch of confetti was tossed into the air with a delightful squeal.

"Oh, did anypony hear from Trixie? She's coming isn't she?" Pinkie asked.

(Trixie leaned forward with a penetrating eye. "Did you really ask about me?"

"Of course I did." Pinkie let out a nervous laugh. "Why wouldn't I ask about my good magic friend that certainly won't use that magic on me? Continuing on with my day!")

Rarity walked over to the beautifully wrapped parcel. She cast a furtive glance over, while batting her eyelashes. "We should just open it and find out what it is. Whatever is inside must be spectacular."

Rainbow Dash waved an arm in exasperation. "I want to, but Twilight won't let me."

"The note did say not to open it until the new year," Twilight pointed out to the folded card sitting right next to the package. That was indeed what it said in golden calligraphy.

Pinkie suddenly squeezed in between the two winged ponies, throwing her arm around both of them. A colorful hat was on her head and a party blowout was in her mouth. She unfurled the long plastic tongue with a squeaky whistle.

After putting the blowout on the table, she said, "Opening a present would make a great start to the new year! So come on, everypony, let's get ready to party! In a six hours! Now get out. I want this to be a surprise."

The others all left, but Rainbow Dash was reluctant to do so. She did after one last glance back at the package on the table. Twilight went upstairs, to her room.

Pinkie Pie put Spike to work in putting up the decorations. It didn't take much convincing since he was most insistent on helping around the library. She set him off to work on the rest of the place while she handled the main room.

Everything was going to look fantastic, fun, fabulous and every other f word that was not four letters long. Pinkie set up a gramophone for music, cleared tables for the food and drinks, blew up balloons with her helium breath and set them off towards the ceiling. Then there was the main banner and all the streamers.

Before finishing up, Pinkie Pie went to see how Spike was doing with rest of the place. Aside from the upstairs, which was Twilight's room and undecorated, everywhere else was looking great! Spike really did a good job. With a pleased smile, Pinkie returned to the main chamber, but that joy was soon wiped away by puzzlement.

Princess Celestia's gift had disappeared. Did Twilight put it away? "Aw phooey. I really thought it was a really nice centerpiece," she said. "Oh well, I'm sure I can come up with something else."

("So you didn't see anyone?" Trixie asked. She leaned in with one eye wider than the other.

"Nope." Pinkie shook her head vigorously, causing her curly hair to sway.

"Then who were you talking to?"

"Myself."

"Ah, naturally. The Great and Talkative Trixie does it all the time. But you also didn't see anyone else? The present was there and gone in the few minutes that it took you to look around the library."

"Hmm." Pinkie sat down with her arms folded. She tilted her head from side to side. "No. I really didn't see anypony else."

"Only Twilight and Spike could have done it in that amount of time!" Trixie shot.

"I don't think they did it," Pinkie Pie blocked. "Twilight was up in her room all while I was decorating. She was just sitting there not moving. Spike didn't do it either. He was too busy helping me! And where would they take it to anyway, unless," she gasped, "they have a secret second library home!

"Besides, the gift came back."

"It what?" Trixie's mouth hung open slightly.)

While the present was gone, there wasn't enough time to worry about it. Pinkie Pie had to pick up the cake. It was the most important part, after all. Then there was the second most important part, the cup cakes. Her special order should be ready at Sugar Cube Corner right about now.

She was drooling slightly all the way back. The sweet scent of fondant, fudge and cake was really hard to resist, but resist she must. They were for everyone.

There was a pleasant surprise that took Pinkie's mind off the cakes. The sparkling present had returned! It felt different, somehow, but maybe it was just her imagination. The rainbow wrapping paper was still topped by a nice, golden bow. It was just a bit duller.

Pinkie zipped over with a bright smile. Along the way, her legs got tangled in some banners. How odd. She knew how to organize for a party and wouldn't just leave them in ponies' path like that. But her attention was too focused on Princess Celestia's present to care. It was in the completely wrong position. It messed with the party energies she had going on around the room. She shifted it to the side, on top of a piece of paper. That was a much better location for the gift, and the paper was a nice base. Now everything was flowing smoothly again.

"Ooh, the space looks wonderful."

Pinkie turned to the source of the voice: Twilight Sparkle. She was coming downstairs with Spike following close behind.

"My first two guests!" Pinkie zipped over and tossed on party hats.

"The party isn't starting for a while, Pinkie," Twilight said.

"It's never too early! Here, have some punch." While speaking, she had already gotten them some punch. "You know, it's really strange but Trixie still isn't here."

"Yeah," Twilight said. "I wonder if she found something else to do?"

"And I had gotten eight shares of everything too," Pinkie said glumly.

Twilight suddenly had both arms on Pinkie. "If Trixie doesn't arrive, will everything portion out evenly?"

"Um, sure?"

Twilight began pacing around. Her drink was floating by her head through use of magic. "Cutting things into seven is so annoying. It's not like we can just do three slices, sixty degrees apart from one another. Maybe we could mush everything up and do it by weight."

All Spike could do in response was slap his own forehead. "This isn't the time to worry about that, Twilight."

(Trixie was staring at Pinkie with an incredulous look. "Does Twilight really do that?"

"Oh, yeah. It really bothers her otherwise."

"The Great and Powerful Trixie thinks slightly less of Twilight now.")

Pinkie Pie collected the party food meant for Trixie. "Why don't we just put it away for now and give them to Trixie once she's here?"

That was a satisfactory solution to Twilight. She took a nice, calming sip of punch.

Soon, everyone else started to arrive. First Rainbow Dash, who immediately checked on her present. Then came Applejack. Rarity arrived wearing a flashy party dress. The last to arrive was Fluttershy, and she was looking way too nervous for a fun party.

"So, we're going out afterwards, right?" Applejack asked.

"Yeah. It will be nice to enjoy the new year outdoors," Twilight said.

Rarity shook her head. "If you insist. I still don't see why you would insist, however."

Rainbow Dash was grinning near her present. "Sure thing, AJ, but only after I open Princess Celestia's present."

"Oh, that." Applejack turned towards the present. She let out a forced chuckle and backed away from it. "Come on, Rainbow, that thing can wait."

"What do you mean?" The feisty pegasus shot a glare over.

Applejack had a toothy, but evasive, grin. "Nothing." Her eyes were clearly avoiding contact with Rainbow Dash's, and sweat was dripping down her face. "Hoo, I am thirsty. I'm going to get some of that there punch." She backed away, still with a wide smile, until her butt bumped into the table. Once there, she scooped a cup and then downed it all in one gulp.

"Right," Rainbow Dash said slowly.

But everypony was having a good time. Spike was dancing with Rarity, Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash were talking and laughing, Pinkie Pie was trying to get Twilight and Applejack to loosen up. Both of them were really tense. She offered them a massage, but they refused.

There was music, food and a great atmosphere with friends. It was as wild and crazy as it could be without making too much of a mess of the library. How couldn't anypony be having anything other than the time of their lives? But Pinkie couldn't help but feel some ponies weren't having as much fun as they should be for her It's a New Year to Cheer party. She prowled around, staring at her friends. Nope, they were happy. Maybe it was just her imagination.

"Hey, girls," Twilight called out. Her arm was extended towards a simple, wooden clock. It was hanging on the wall and had a small pendulum swinging underneath. Everyone knew what she meant. It was almost twelve and almost the new year, at least according to library time.

Rainbow Dash pushed up her cheeks into a broad grin. "Almost time to open my present!"

"About that," Applejack said, "don't you think it's better if you don't?"

"I think it's a great idea, so stuff it, Applejack," Rainbow Dash shot back.

Pinkie slapped Rainbow Dash on the back, sending her staggering into Applejack. "Come on, come on," she said. "It's almost time for the new year! In Ten, nine, eight!"

Everyone else joined in for, "Seven, six, five, four!" They stared at the clock with wide, expectant eyes. The swinging pendulum brought the next year closer and the current year closer to an end.

"THREE!"

"TWO!"

"ONE!"

"HAP-"

A loud crash shook the walls. Sounds of glass hitting the floor ringed out, and then a great gust of wind blew out all the lanterns in the room. Darkness fell across them like a great blanket. Everyone let out gasps of surprise and yelps of pain as they crashed into each other. All the moving brought down more crashing noises as decorations and books tumbled down. They were being really unfriendly, trying to talk over each other.

"Calm down!" Twilight shouted.

A bright glow, coming from her horn, lit up the room, though it was still rather dim. Shadowy shapes flickered across the walls. A lot of the shelves were messy while much of the decorations have been pulled down. Rarity added her light to the mix.

"What happened?" Fluttershy asked. She was curled up on the ground.

"Someone broke the window," Rarity pointed out. "Who would do something as barbaric as that?"

Twilight looked outside, but all she could see were lights from the rest of the village celebrating. There weren't even any hoofprints outside.

The loud exclamation of, "Hey!" brought her attention back inside.

Rainbow Dash pointed towards the central table. The present had vanished! "Alright, who took it?"

"Calm down, Rainbow," Twilight said. "I'm sure there's an explanation for this."

"The explanation is," Pinkie Pie proclaimed ominously, "that there is no fighting at my party! Everyone hug it out." It was worded more like a command than a suggestion.

("And we all hugged it out," Pinkie said.

"Is that so?" Trixie questioned. The look on her face clearly stated disbelief.

"Of course! Good friends will never fight for long. And then it was morning, and you came along."

Trixie rubbed her chin thoughtfully. It didn't look like Pinkie was going to elaborate any more. The pink pony was just smiling brightly. After giving instructions to wait and not talk to anyone, Trixie walked off. It was time for the next pony's story. There was something about that story that felt off, but there were still other tales to hear.)
> A Wonderful Gift
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Chapter 2.2, A Wonderful Gift, Rainbow Dash's Story


The obvious candidate to hear the next tale from was Rainbow Dash. The present from Princess Celestia was for her, allegedly. Trixie found the pegasus by the door leading to the balcony, fuming. Rainbow was pacing back and forth with a huff and a frown.

When Trixie came, Rainbow Dash rushed over. "Did you find out who took my present?"

"I may be great, but I'm not immediate," Trixie said. "I've only just started. You're next to tell me exactly what you did yesterday." She paused to take a bite of a cupcake with swirled pink frosting. After finishing a bite, she asked, "First off, do you have any idea what the message, 'I am Stars,' means?"

"No. Who would call themselves Stars, anyway?" Rainbow looked up in thought. "The only one I might think of is Rarity. But I don't know why she would do something like that."

Trixie patted away the crumbs around her mouth. "Ahem. Alright, tell The Great and Powerful Trixie what happened yesterday."

"Okay, so it went down like this..."

Rainbow Dash's morning went pretty awesome, just like always. She woke up, brushed her awesome teeth, had some awesome breakfast, read some awesome Daring Do and generally had an awesome time in her house made of clouds.

("Stop saying awesome," Trixie commanded.

"Fine," Rainbow Dash spat.)

From the window, she could see most of Ponyville. The rows of homey cottages were blanketed by snow. There wasn't that much that the villagers would be troubled with cleaning the streets but still enough for fun, just the right amount. It was something Rainbow Dash and the other ponies on the weather team did. There was a calendar on her bedside table, but it showed more than just the date. There were exact instructions for the weather. For this day, the only words were to keep it the same as yesterday.

That was great. It meant there was nothing for her to do today. She could just go and enjoy the party Pinkie had been planning since the start of the month.

Looking out and down to the ground, she saw the mailpony drop by. Rainbow Dash had an expectant grin. She waited by the window until the mailpony was far out of visual range. With a trailing streak of rainbow, the pegasus flew down to her mailbox, a lonely post at the end of the road. A sign on the side let ponies know that it was her home.

Rainbow Dash had a large smile as she looked inside. Normally, she wasn't so interested in getting mail, but this was always the time of year for that exception. Waiting there were a few letters, but her eyes were immediately drawn to a shimmering package. She snatched out the package, pushing the rest of the contents onto the ground.

This was great! It was a package from, "Princess Celestia?" Rainbow Dash gasped and almost dropped it. Her wing thrust out, catching it before it landed. Okay, that was not the package she was expecting.

The present was carefully wrapped in rainbow-toned paper, but it wasn't as vibrant as the colors on her mane, being a paler shade. A golden ribbon neatly tied everything together, and there wasn't a wrinkle anywhere. She had to admit, it looked really awe- great.

Rainbow recoiled as far away from the present as possible while it was resting on her wing. She looked at the card slipped in between the ribbon and the present again. Yes, it definitely said Princess Celestia. The address card, on the other side of the present, was definitely to her.

She plucked out the non-address card with her teeth. It read, in elegant handwriting, was, "Only open in the new year, Princess Celestia." Rainbow Dash looked back to the present, then to the card, then the present again.

Rainbow Dash checked the mailbox but didn't see anything else. None of the letters on the ground were of any use to her, either. How strange. She usually got something from her dad this time of year.

Why would Princess Celestia send something specifically for her? But Rainbow Dash couldn't suppress a cheek raising grin. It was so exciting. Maybe her friends got one as well. Thinking of Princess Celestia, the first one she went to was Twilight, of course. There party was going to take place in the library, but Pinkie hadn't started doing the decorations yet. Rainbow Dash was a bit disappointed to see that only Twilight and Spike were inside. She kind of wanted to show off the gift.

"Twilight! Hey, Twilight!" Rainbow Dash yelled despite her target being right in the same room.

Twilight and Spike were in the middle of clearing up loose books, pages and note-taking tools in preparation for the party later. Twilight levitated some things over to her assistant and then turned towards Rainbow.

"What is it? Is everything alright?"

"Better than alright, check this out!" Rainbow thrust out the golden present. "It's from Princess Celestia! Did you get one, too?"

The wide-eyed shock on Twilight's face clearly said she did not like the look of things. "Princess Celestia? What is it?"

"I have no idea!" Rainbow exclaimed. "I'm not supposed to open it until tomorrow." She placed the simple card onto the table. "This is so wow. I've never gotten anything from Princess Celestia before."

"Yes," Twilight mumbled. She shifted her gaze away from the card to the gift, but she didn't look happy or even pleased. Cautious was the best way to describe her demeanor. A soft glow enveloped both her horn and the present. It was carefully levitated into the air.

"Hey!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed. "Get your own."

"I didn't receive anything like this," Twilight said. "I'm not sure, but I think I should take a look at it, make sure it's safe."

Rainbow Dash made a swipe for the gift, but it floated away. "Come on, what's the worst that could happen?"

"I don't know how much you remember, but last time Celestia sent something, it completely changed your true self."

"Wasn't that because you were poking with it?" Rainbow Dash shot.

"Well," Twilight sputtered.

"And look how that turned out." Rainbow spread open her wings. "Hey, maybe I'll become an alicorn, too! Give me!" She surged up towards the present with hooves outstretched. Just before making contact, the gift flashed away.

It reappeared on the table in the center of the room with Twilight standing in front of it. "You're not supposed to open it yet anyway, according to the card."

"How are you going to examining it, then?"

"I have ways. Don't worry, Rainbow, I won't do anything to it. You'll get it back. I just want to make sure it's not something magically obtuse."

Rainbow Dash was frowning as she examined Twilight. She wouldn't just be jealous that Celestia didn't send anything to her, right? This was addressed to Rainbow Dash and Rainbow Dash alone. "You promise to give it back, right?"

Twilight gave a reassuring smile. "Of course, Rainbow Dash. I have no intention of keeping your present."

Rainbow Dash decided to hang around for a while and watch Twilight, but it wasn't long before the unicorn was interrupted. Fluttershy and Applejack came arrived for a visit.

"What's going on here, Twi, RD?" Applejack asked.

"Check it out!" Rainbow Dash jabbed a hoof towards the package. "This came for me from Princess Celestia."

Fluttershy carefully walked over to the table watched over by the sculpture of a horse's head. "Ooh. What's in it?"

"I don't know, Twilight won't let me open it," Rainbow Dash said. "Did either of you get a present from Celestia?"

Both Applejack and Fluttershy shook their heads.

"Wow, this must be a gift for my awesomeness."

"So you're saying that this thing here is a gift from Princess Celestia?" Applejack asked.

"Yes!"

Fluttershy clapped her hooves and had a soft smile. "That's great. I'm happy for you, Rainbow Dash."

"At least somepony is," Rainbow Dash said.

"All I'm saying," Twilight grunted in exasperation, "is that I want to make sure it's alright. Don't worry, you'll get it back."

Applejack walked over to Rainbow Dash. She tilted her head towards a more secluded part of the room and said, "Can I ask you somethin'?"

"Sure, what's up, AJ?"

"You say you got a present from Princess Celestia?"

"Uh, yeah," Rainbow Dash stated.

"That seems stranger than mice sneaking out of the barn." Applejack glanced back towards the present.

"Yeah, so what's your point? This totally makes up for my dad's gift being late."

"Wait." The farm pony suddenly perked up, standing straight with back stiff. An odd look came over her. "You usually get a present from your dad this time of year?"

"Yeah," Rainbow Dash said. "What of it?"

"Oh, it's just that, well." The words were jumbled up inside Applejack's mouth.  "How should I put this?"

"What, do you think like Twilight, that I can't handle a present from Princess Celestia?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"No, I wouldn't quite say that."

Before Applejack could explain further, Rarity came strolling into the library. The unicorn was immediately taken in by the present, which was obviously the center of attention. Rainbow Dash was quick to catch her up to the current situation, mostly to brag about the gift.

"How glamorous for you." Rarity's voice was dripping with sarcasm. "It's not like any of us did as much as you."

"Hey, it's not my fault I'm so much more awesome," Rainbow Dash said.

"Still, whatever is in there must simply be magnificent!" the unicorn squealed.

"It sure would be nice if we could open it." Rainbow Dash shot a derisive glance towards Twilight.

Twilight extended a wing, blocking off the two of them from the package. "The note said to wait, so we'll wait."

"Yeah, but why do you get to keep it?"

It was then that Pinkie Pie burst in and livened up the mood greatly. She wanted to start decorating, so everyone was asked to leave. What the finished space looked like was part of the surprise, after all. Rainbow Dash did so, though reluctantly. She didn't really want to leave her present here with Twilight but convinced herself that no real harm would come to it.

There wasn't much for Rainbow Dash to do during the afternoon. She flew back home to check on her mail, hoping that the mailpony made a second round. No such luck. Now what to do for the rest of the day? It was too cold for her to feel like doing much flying. She merely piddled around her home, reading Daring Do again. And Daring Do was the greatest novel series ever. All the adventure, the danger, the treasure, it all brought a sparkle to Rainbow Dash's imagination.

("Okay, okay," Trixie cut in. "I do not require a full synopsis of every Daring Do novel. The Great and Literate Trixie does read, you know."

"Fine, geeze," Rainbow Dash said with a huff.)

Night came quickly in the cold months, and the village was soon alight with hundreds of lanterns. A bit of cloud cover had fallen over the village from just natural formation. All of the weather ponies were on break that day.

Though Rainbow Dash was flying to a party, she was more anxious than happy. Princess Celestia's gift would still be there, right? It wouldn't be anything dangerous and Twilight certainly wouldn't have done anything drastic. But she just couldn't get the prickly sensation out from under her skin that something had happened to her gift. It made her flying erratic as she stretched out her body repeatedly, like trying to get comfortable in a wool sweater.

The library in the great tree was lit up brightly, more so than the nearby homes. There were a few lights hanging along the branches outside. Nothing too fancy, but warming to the feel.

"Hello!" Rainbow Dash greeted brightly as she flew through the door. Her eyes immediately flickered towards the table. There was a great feeling of taking off the wool sweater when she saw that the shimmering present was still there.

Pinkie, Twilight and Spike were already there. Soon, their other friends started to arrive as well. They greeted each other mirthfully. Applejack was talking about enjoying the night air for a bit after the party.

Rainbow Dash was standing by her present. "Sure thing, AJ, but only after I open Princess Celestia's present."

"Oh, that." Applejack turned towards the present. She let out a forced chuckle and backed away from it. "Come on, Rainbow, that thing can wait."

"What do you mean?" The feisty pegasus shot a glare over.

Applejack had a toothy, but evasive, grin. "Nothing." Her eyes were clearly avoiding contact with Rainbow Dash's, and sweat was dripping down her face. "Hoo, I am thirsty. I'm going to get some of that there punch." She backed away, still with a wide smile, until her butt bumped into the table. Once there, she scooped a cup and then downed it all in one gulp.

"Right," Rainbow Dash said slowly. She remained staring at the earth pony.

There was music, food and a great atmosphere with friends. It was as wild and crazy as it could be without making too much of a mess of the library. Rainbow Dash could feel the energy bursting through her body and was rocking out to the music. Time seemed to almost fly by while everypony was having fun.

"Hey, girls," Twilight called out. Her arm was extended towards a simple, wooden clock. It was hanging on the wall and had a small pendulum swinging underneath. Everyone knew what she meant. It was almost twelve and almost the new year, at least according to library time.

Rainbow Dash pushed up her cheeks into a broad grin. "Almost time to open my present!"

"About that," Applejack said, "don't you think it's better if you don't?"

"I think it's a great idea, so stuff it, Applejack," Rainbow Dash shot back.

Pinkie slapped Rainbow Dash on the back, sending her staggering into Applejack. "Come on, come on," she said. "It's almost time for the new year! In Ten, nine, eight!"

Everyone else joined in for, "Seven, six, five, four!" They stared at the clock with wide, expectant eyes. The swinging pendulum brought the next year closer and the current year closer to an end.

"THREE!"

"TWO!"

"ONE!"

"HAP-"

A loud crash shook the walls. Sounds of glass hitting the floor ringed out, and then a great gust of wind blew out all the lanterns in the room. They were plunged into sudden darkness. Everyone let out gasps of surprise and yelps of pain as they crashed into each other. All the moving brought down more crashing noises as decorations and books tumbled down. Who was the wise guy that turned out all the lights?

"Calm down!" Twilight shouted.

A bright glow, coming from her horn, lit up the room, though it was still rather dim. Shadowy shapes flickered across the walls. A lot of the shelves were messy while much of the decorations have been pulled down. Rarity added her light to the mix.

Rainbow Dash looked around the room. There was a bit of a mess on the ground from their scrambling around. Her eyes fell on the center table and widened. "Hey!" she shouted. Her hoof shot out towards an empty spot where the present used to be. "Alright, who took it?"

"Calm down, Rainbow," Twilight said. "I'm sure there's an explanation for this."

"Applejack stole my present!" Rainbow Dash said. It must have been that earth pony!

"What?" Applejack shouted. "Why in the hay would I do that?"

Rainbow jabbed her hoof into the other pony's chest. "I don't know, but you've been acting strange around my present all day!" Not to mention, Applejack was the closest one to the present when the lights went out.

Applejack glared back and pushed the hoof away. "I'm sure it just fell down somewhere, let's look around."

("Yeah, well we looked," Rainbow Dash spat with bitterness. "But we couldn't find anything. Sure, it was dark, but the present glowed!"

Trixie tapped her mouth in thought. "And you think Applejack took your present from Princess Celestia?"

"Yeah. I mean, who else could it be? Unless...." Rainbow Dash fell quiet, "Twilight. Twilight was the only other one that showed a great interest in my gift. She must have used magic to get it away or something." She slammed her hooves against each other, and her wings sprang to life. "I'm going to get her."

"Calm down, Rainbow Dash," Trixie said. "I'm in charge of this now, remember. You just sit tight. I'll get to the bottom of this."

"But-"

"Sit tight. Unless you would rather randomly accuse your friends of things."

Rainbow Dash flailed about but couldn't muster a response.

"Ok then, The Great and Powerful Trixie is off." The unicorn walked off. It was time for the next pony's story. There was something about that story that felt off, but there were still other tales to hear.)
> Strange Obsession
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Chapter 2.3, Strange Obsession, Fluttershy's Story


Trixie circled around Fluttershy, causing the meek pegasus to shiver on the ground, but Trixie didn't relent her piercing gaze.

"So-"

Fluttershy let out a yelp. It changed to a nervous chuckle as she turned away causing her long, pink main to cover half her face.

"So," Trixie said again in the same intensity, "first question: Do you know anything about this Stars pony?"

Fluttershy fell to the ground and broke down crying. "I admit it, I took the package from Princess Celestia. I am Stars!" Her tears flowed down in a stream from each eye.

Trixie took a few steps back. That wasn't the response she had expected. With a bright, toothy smile, she patted the trembling pegasus on the head. "Okay, okay, stop crying. Tell The Great and Compassionate Trixie your story. I won't judge until you tell me why you stole the package. I'm sure you had a good reason."

The pegasus sniffed a few times and wiped away the tears on her wings. "Okay, I'll tell you what happened. Yesterday..."

Fluttershy's morning had been rather normal. She spent it helping out her woodland friends. Baskets, woven out of soft branches, sat on the table with straw lining the inside. Piles of food, blankets and other things needed to comfort during the winter were prepared to the side. They were going to be turned into care packages for the squirrels, rabbits, birds and other friends. Angel was sleeping peacefully in his bed.

A gentle humming filled up the wooden cabin with comforting warmth. Fluttershy flew around, dropping things into the baskets.

("Fluttershy," Trixie interrupted.

"Yes?"

"Does anything relating to the package from Celestia actually happen during your morning?"

Fluttershy scratched her nose and then looked away. Her eyes were angled down in embarrassment. "Um, not really."

It was through huge effort that the unicorn restrained from rolling her eyes. In a sweet voice, she said, "Let's just give a quick summary of these events. If anything important or out of the ordinary does pop up, mention it."

"Okay." The pegasus nodded meekly.)

So nothing else happened that morning that was out of the normal. With the woodland creatures well cared for, Fluttershy left for the library. It was a day to be spent with friends. Why, just on the road up ahead was one of them.

"Hello, Applejack."

Applejack turned around. "Oh, howdy there, Fluttershy. I didn't notice you."

Fluttershy noticed that where was a bit of a dent in the mud and some random shallow holes everywhere. "Is everything alright?"

"Yup. You going to Twilight's, Fluttershy?"

"I am."

"Come on." Applejack motioned down the road. "Let's walk together."

Side by side, they mostly talked about their plans for the new year. For Applejack, it mostly involved the farm and what could be done to improve. After fixing one thing, the next breakage would certainly be right around the corner. Fluttershy spoke about the next Winter Wrap-up and how wonderful it would be to see her animal friends again. They talked about how great the weather was currently. It might be chilly, but not overly so, a rather pleasant day for a party. That night, both of them wanted to spend time outside to get the feel of the night sky of the new year. Of course, they planned to invite the others and wouldn't go too far away from the warm comfort of the library.

"Hey, Fluttershy, would you mind coming with me to the furniture store?" Applejack asked. "I'm going to order a surprise for Granny Smith. A brand new rocker."

"Oh, that sounds lovely."

But who knew there were so many styles of rockers now? The two of them browsed through an entire section of them at the furniture store. There were rockers that had drink holders, rockers with stabilizers and even rockers that could massage at the same time.

"I like this one." Fluttershy pointed to a simple, wooden chair with a floral carving.

Applejack nodded once. Her eyes were still wide from the amount of choice available. "Yeah, I think that's best."

(Trixie tapped a hoof against the ground. "Does this really have something to do with the events of the day?"

"Maybe? I don't know what could be important or not."

The unicorn let out a sigh. "Fine, continue.")

By the time they got to Twilight's home, Rainbow Dash was already there. From Twilight and Rainbow's expressions, brows furrowed and frowning, it looked as if they were arguing. But that certainly couldn't be the case. It was a fine day, and there would be a party later.

"What's going on here, Twi, RD?" Applejack asked.

"Hello, Applejack. Hello, Fluttershy," Twilight said.

"Um, we were talking, that is Applejack and I," Fluttershy said, "about going out tonight. We think it would be nice to go out and enjoy the night."

"I think that's a great idea," Spike said.

"You do?" Twilight asked.

The small dragon nodded. His claws were clasped together. "Yeah, you girls can go out, and I'll stay in here and clean up all the cakes, I mean mess of the party."

Fluttershy giggled. "You should come, too. We probably won't be outside for long. It would be much too cold."

Rainbow Dash interrupted with a, "Yeah, yeah, forget about that. Check it out!" She jabbed a hoof towards the package. "This came for me from Princess Celestia."

Fluttershy carefully walked over to the table watched over by the sculpture of a horse's head. "Ooh. What is it?"

"I don't know, Twilight won't let me open it," Rainbow Dash said. "Did either of you get a present from Celestia?"

Both Applejack and Fluttershy shook their heads.

"Wow, this must be a gift for my awesomeness."

"So you're saying that this thing here is a gift from Princess Celestia?" Applejack asked.

"Yes!"

Fluttershy clapped her hooves and had a soft smile. "That's great. I'm happy for you, Rainbow Dash."

"At least somepony is," Rainbow Dash said.

"All I'm saying," Twilight grunted in exasperation, "is that I want to make sure it's alright. Don't worry, you'll get it back."

Rarity soon arrived and was dragged into the current topic of the present as well.

Fluttershy had just been standing in the back, listening in on their conversation. She wanted to get a word in but wasn't sure exactly what would be appropriate to stop all the arguing. The sparkling rainbow present was enticing however. Just what was in there that mysterious gift from Celestia and why couldn't it be opened until the new year? Maybe it was more symbolic, and they could open it any time. Fluttershy edged closer to get a better look.

It was then that Pinkie Pie burst in and livened up the mood greatly. She went on about decorating everything and needing space to do it. Fluttershy left with Rarity to give Pinkie what she needed to make a great party.

Even away from the library, Fluttershy just couldn't get the present from Celestia out from her mind. She hadn't said much about it, but the thoughts were nibbling away at her concentration. Even while walking away, she kept on looking back to the library.

"Darling, what's wrong?" Rarity asked.

"Um." Fluttershy ground her hoof into the dirt. "I'll see you around, Rarity. I have some things to take care of."

Rarity looked on curiously. "Oh, well, alright. I'll see you at the party, then, I suppose."

"Sorry."

"There's nothing to apologize for."

Fluttershy pretended to turn away. Once Rarity was gone, she went back to Twilights. Peering in through the window, she saw that the happy pink pony was bouncing all over the place, putting up streamers and the like. Twilight and Spike were nowhere to be seen. Then, Pinkie left the room to do something else.

This was Fluttershy's chance. She flapped her wings to hover just a bit off the ground so there wouldn't be any sounds of hoofsteps. Sweat rolled down her face as her eyes shot from side to side, looking for signs of her friends. She flew ever closer to the center table where the sparkling present was waiting. It almost seemed to glow with magic and beauty.

Fluttershy only wanted to look inside. She was all ready to unwrap the present, but she heard someone coming back into the main room. Her eyes widened with panic, and her wings snapped tight against her body. In a panic, she just snatched up the gift with her mouth and then bolted out the door. She could barely even see with her long, pink mane acting like a curtain in front of her face.

She didn't stop until tumbling over into a pile of snow. A cough spat the package out onto the snow.

(Trixie rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "So you're telling me that you stole the present sometime in the afternoon? You, the wimpy one?"

Fluttershy nodded once. She stared at Trixie with a fierce determination, or about as much fierceness as her soft eyes could muster. "I am a dangerous pony with a risky side."

"I never would have guessed," Trixie said in completely sincerity. "You always seemed nice. And also, I thought the present didn't go missing until later. How did the note get there?"

"Um, well, you see." Fluttershy turned away, letting her pink mane hide her face from view. It took a few moments before she finally spoke again.)

Fluttershy shook her head, sending flecks of snow everywhere. Her attention immediately went towards finding the present, which was stuck in the snow. She let out a loud gasp. It had gotten dirty and soaked! There was no way she could return it as is. But there wasn't a choice; she would just have to own up to it. Hopefully whatever was inside was water resistant.

When she reached the library again, Pinkie Pie was just coming out. The pink pony bounced away merrily. With a spark of hope, the pegasus sidled up to the doorway. The main room was completely empty! It also looked rather festive with balloons in the ceiling and a colorful streamers hanging between the shelves. Even the horse-head sculpture was wearing a party hat. There was a bunch of decorations lying around, some of which looked really close to the material used to wrap the present. Maybe, just maybe, she wouldn't have to return a ruined present.

Her plan was to replace the wrapping, but she couldn't undo it for some reason. No matter how hard she pulled and tugged, the dirty bow wouldn't come loose. Another plan was to make an empty gift first, then go home and clean up the real one. Yeah, that would work.

From the shelves, Fluttershy took down two books that, when combined, was about the size of the present. She took some paper and ribbons from Pinkie's supplies. The end result was something that looked sort of similar to the original gift; as long as no one noticed it didn't shine as brightly. She quickly scribbled down a note saying, "I am sorry," though her rush made it tough to read, somehow transforming it into, "I AM stars."

("What?" Fluttershy asked. "It's tough to write with just my mouth.")

With the real present hidden underneath her wing, Fluttershy took off for home.

("So the present is at your home, then?" Trixie said.

Fluttershy lowered to the ground, further avoiding the sharp eyes. "Um, not anymore."

"What do you mean?"

"I lost it?"

"You what?" Trixie sputtered.

"Um, it was like this...")

After a gentle scrubbing, Fluttershy had set the present to dry in her home. She fluttered around, tending to some chores just to keep her mind off the gift. It was just simple stuff, busywork. She dusted the same shelf at least four times. But when she was about to check on the drying process, her face widened in horror. Two raccoons had taken the present and were in the process of exiting out a hole in the wall.

"Wait!" Fluttershy cried.

She flew towards the raccoons, arm outstretched, but they didn't hear her. A loud bang followed by several quieter clatters of random things falling off shelves followed when she crashed against the wall. With her arm was stuck inside the hole, it took the strength of her hind legs to get free.

Often, she would bring back gifts for her woodland friends, and they must have thought Princess Celestia's present was one of them. She bit down on her lips and flew through the windows after the raccoons. Her eyes frantically searched through the snow, but there were too many different tracks, and the raccoons had disappeared into the woods.

Fluttershy searched until the sun began to set but found nothing. Her head was drooping and her limbs hung limp when she fluttered back to her cottage. There was nothing she could do other than go to the party.

There, the fake present she had put there was still sitting innocently on the table.

"Hey, Fluttershy!" Rainbow Dash called out.

Fluttershy let out a yelp while jumping into the air.

"Whoa, calm down there."

She slowly hovered back down with pink blushing on her cheeks. "Sorry."

"What are you doing by yourself in the corner? Come have fun with us." Rainbow Dash pointed towards the center of the room, where the others were enjoying a bowl of ruby punch and dancing to music.

"Y-yeah," Fluttershy said.

The party went mostly well until it came close to midnight. Everyone was eagerly counting down the end of the year on their unofficial clock. At zero, a great bang shook the walls of the library. It felt like the entire library was quivering. Horrible noises ripped through, and all of the lights suddenly went out. A suffocating darkness spread throughout the library.

(Fluttershy clammed up about the rest of the party. After being pressed, she mumbled something about a fight because the present wasn't the real one.

Trixie placed a hoof on the pony she was interviewing and said, "Alright, I think I got it now."

"Oh, thank goodness." Fluttershy smiled in relief a finally finishing her story. She wiped away the sweat forming on her brows.

After giving instructions to wait and not talk to anyone, Trixie walked off. It was time for the next pony's story. There was something about that story that felt off, but there were still other tales to hear.)
> Here it Stays
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Chapter 2.4, Here It Stays, Twilight Sparkle's Story


"So we meet again, Twilight Sparkle." Trixie sneered.

"Um, yeah. Hi, Trixie," Twilight said.

The two of them were in Twilight's room, a place Trixie had explored the last time she was here. And she was definitely glad that she didn't just start destroying the books last time. She had to admit, that bed was comfy.

"First off, were you worried about me when I didn't arrive yesterday?" Trixie fired.

"What? Does this have anything to do with anything?"

"Just answer the question."

Twilight looked down. "Well, sure. But really, there were other things on my mind yesterday."

"So you didn't care about me at all?" Trixie's eyes widened sadly, and she bit her lower lip.

"I'm not saying that, Trixie. I did invite you over, afterall."

"That's true." A deep breath helped Trixie regain her usual swagger. "Anyway, let's begin. Do you have any idea what that note meant?"

Twilight shook her head. "I can't even think about what it might mean. I don't know who would call themselves Stars either."

"Then why don't you take me through your day?"

"Okay. The morning was..."

The morning was chilly, but fine. Twilight was looking forward to the new year and all that it would bring with excitement. There were so many new experiences and lessons to learn. Ponyville was covered in a layer of snow, and clouds lazily drifted through the sky. Enjoying the view through the window next to her was a purple dragon, her assistant, Spike.

Later that day, Pinkie was throwing the It's a New Year to Cheer party at the library. A lot of things still needed to be cleaned up, mostly odd research material that she had been looking at the night before and random diagrams.

"Come on, Spike," she said perkily. "We should put these away for the party."

"Sure thing, Twilight!"

Their first visitor came much earlier than they had anticipated, however. Whilst in the middle of putting away books and other things in the main room, Rainbow Dash came bursting through the door.

"Twilight! Hey, Twilight!" the pegasus called out.

"What is it? Is everything alright?" Twilight asked.

"Better than alright, check this out!" Rainbow thrust out the shimmering, rainbow-toned present. "It's from Princess Celestia! Did you get one, too?"

Twilight eyed the present suspiciously. "Princess Celestia? What is it?"

"I have no idea!" Rainbow exclaimed. "I'm not supposed to open it until tomorrow." She placed the A card onto the table. "This is so wow. I've never gotten anything from Princess Celestia before."

Twilight mumbled to herself, reading out the content. It merely stated, "Only open in the new year, Princess Celestia." It was definitely the princess's magicwriting.

"Yes," Twilight mumbled. She shifted her gaze away from the card to the gift. A careful air was around her.

Why would Princess Celestia send something to Rainbow Dash? Twilight hadn't gotten anything important in the mail at all, just a bunch of advertisements. It wasn't that she believed Rainbow Dash wasn't deserving, but what exactly was sent? Was it a magical item of some sort. Just from a quick examination, she could tell that there was magic inside the present. A soft glow enveloped both her horn and the present. It was carefully levitated into the air.

"Hey!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed. "Get your own."

"I didn't receive anything like this," Twilight noted. "I'm not sure, but I think I should take a look at it, make sure it's safe." She didn't want to sound like an alarmist.

Rainbow Dash made a swipe for the gift, but it floated away. "Come on, what's the worst that could happen?"

"I don't know how much you remember, but last time Celestia sent something, it completely changed your true self."

"Wasn't that because you were poking with it?" Rainbow Dash shot.

"Well." Twilight looked away. Okay, that part was true. But this time, she would be much more careful.

"And look how that turned out." Rainbow spread open her wings. "Hey, maybe I'll become an alicorn, too! Give me!" She surged up towards the present with hooves outstretched. Just before making contact, the gift flashed away.

Twilight had teleported it, and herself, to the center table. She gave a quick tap to the card. "You're not supposed to open it yet anyway, according to the card."

"How are you going to examining it, then?"

"I have ways. Don't worry, Rainbow, I won't do anything to it." Twilight smiled at her crestfallen friend. "You'll get it back. I just want to make sure it's not something magically obtuse."

"You promise to give it back, right?"

Twilight nodded. "Of course, Rainbow Dash. I have no intention of keeping your present." She started her work immediately. "Spike, get me that book on magic detection."

"Aw," the small dragon groaned. "I just put that away." Still, he dutifully climbed up a stepladder to pluck out a thick, green book from the shelf. He merely held it out for Twilight to levitate over.

Every movement Twilight did seemed to make the hair on the back of her neck stand up. She looked around to see Rainbow Dash staring. Even a simple page flip caused her friend to become more alert. "You can sit down, if you want."

"I'm fine right here," Rainbow Dash said.

Twilight forced the uncomfortable sensation out of her mind and returned to the present. It looked normal, but magical energies were pouring out from it. The feeling was faint, something she couldn't feel unless her cheek was near touching it. From her book, she cast several spells. It confirmed that the gift contained magic as all of her attempts to check was it was slipped right through. That did not help with figuring out what was inside at all.

"Spike, get me the magnifying glass, and the book on detection spells, volume two," Twilight ordered. A mess soon piled up on the table again.

Fluttershy and Applejack dropped by, interrupting Twilight's concentration. The others began chatting, mostly about the present. There was no way she was going to be able to work with all the noise, and she was getting frustrated at how none of the things she tried worked. She decided to take a break and chat with her friends for a bit.

Pinkie Pie was the last to arrive, bursting in with bags upon bags of party decorations. The pink pony shot down any chance of concentrating in the main room. Pinkie wanted to start decorating, so everyone was asked to leave. Twilight went back to her room, where she could research in silence. For the moment, she left the present where in the main room. Mostly, it was just to reassure Rainbow Dash, who didn't seem to want to leave.

Spike had been conscripted to help Pinkie Pie with the decorating, so it was just Twilight. But that was fine with her. Being alone in her room was how she focused best. The huge pile of materials sat on the study desk, waiting to be perused.

Time seemed to pass by silently, and the world melted away when she started looking over the spell books.

("Oh, Twilight," Trixie interrupted.

"What is it?"

"This reminds the Great and Powerful Trixie, there was a book I wanted to borrow."

"What book would that be?" Twilight asked brightly. "I've got all kinds, though you're oddly one of the few ponies that actually want to borrow anything."

"Prestidigitation Tactics," Trixie said.

"Yeah. I'll find it for you we're done here. Anyway, where was I?")

While researching, time seemed to pass by silently, and the world melted away. Someone tried to get Twilight's attention, but she merely waved her hoof and said, "Okay." She was currently at a good part of her research and put all of her attention into that.

Her initial bright-eyed optimism dipped when she realized that the spell wouldn't help much. And Twilight was finding it increasingly hard to concentrate. The words just seemed to jumble together into an unreadable mess.

She staggered away from the desk in a daze. Her body, limbs and wings all strained as they were forced to move again. The early night had fallen. Twilight let out a small gasp. Though the clock read it was still an hour to the party, hopefully, it was still on the same day. It had been known for her to read for a long time before.

Twilight rushed downstairs, almost crashing into Spike.

"What day is it?" she asked.

"New Year's Eve?" he said uncertainly, as if this was some sort of trick question.

A sigh of relief escaped her mouth as she realized the party hadn't yet started. Going downstairs, Twilight found the main room barely recognizable under all that colorful decoration. It was bright and cheerful, with balloons, streamers and a banner hanging across the middle.

"Ooh, the space looks wonderful," Twilight said.

"I helped," Spike pointed out.

"And you did a nice job."

Pinkie hopped with her hooves fluttering cheerfully. "My first two guests!" She tossed party hats on the two of them.

"The party isn't starting for a while, Pinkie," Twilight said.

"It's never too early! Here, have some punch." While speaking, she had already gotten them some punch. "You know, it's really strange but Trixie still isn't here."

"Yeah," Twilight said. "I wonder if she found something else to do?"

"And I had gotten eight shares of everything too," Pinkie said glumly.

Twilight suddenly had both arms on Pinkie. "If Trixie doesn't arrive, will everything portion out evenly?"

"Um, sure?"

Twilight began pacing around. Her drink was floating by her head through use of magic. "Cutting things into seven is so annoying. It's not like we can just do three slices, sixty degrees apart from one another. Maybe we could mush everything up and do it by weight."

All Spike could do in response was slap his own forehead. "This isn't the time to worry about that, Twilight."

Pinkie Pie collected the party food meant for Trixie. "Why don't we just put it away for now and give them to Trixie once she's here?"

That was a satisfactory solution to Twilight. She took a nice, calming sip of punch.

("I'm certainly glad that you didn't give my portion to the others," Trixie said.

"Yeah, sorry. But you hadn't arrived yet, and it seemed unlikely that you would come later. But, hey, you're here now. We still have it saved up for you."

"I already got some, thanks.")

Everyone else started to arrive. Rainbow Dash was relieved to see that her present was still sitting on the table. Twilight hadn't really found any answers for the present yet and still regarded it with suspicion, but there was no need to bring down the mood right now.

"So, we're going out afterwards, right?" Applejack asked.

"Yeah. It will be nice to enjoy the new year outdoors," Twilight said.

Rarity shook her head. "If you insist. I still don't see why you would insist, however."

Rainbow Dash was grinning near her present for most of the party.

Overall, things went great, and Twilight even forgot about the present for a while in the middle of all the drink, food and fun. Her dancing skills had gotten slightly worse with the addition of wings, but she boogied all over the floor only accidentally knocking over a few stacks of decorations.

After her wings nearly knocked over the punch bowl, Twilight decided to stop. She smiled when she noticed the clock hanging on the wall. A small pendulum swung underneath, bringing the second-hand ever-closer to the end of the current year.

"Hey, girls," she called out. It was less than a minute until the start of the next year, at least according to the library's clock.

Rainbow Dash pushed up her cheeks into a broad grin. "Almost time to open my present!"

Pinkie cheered, "Come on, come on. It's almost time for the new year! In Ten, nine, eight!"

Twilight joined in with the others as she counted down, "Seven! Six! Five! Four!"

"THREE!"

"TWO!"

"ONE!"

"HAP-"

But then, a loud crash shook the walls. Sounds of glass hitting the floor ringed out, and then a great gust of wind blew out all the lanterns in the room. The room was suddenly plunged into darkness. Everyone let out gasps of surprise and yelps of pain as they crashed into each other. All the moving brought down more crashing noises as decorations and books tumbled down. Everyone was trying to talk over one another, so no one was understandable.

"Calm down!" Twilight shouted.

A bright glow, coming from her horn, lit up the room, though it was still rather dim. Shadowy shapes flickered across the walls. A lot of the shelves were messy while much of the decorations have been pulled down. Rarity added her light to the mix.

"What happened?" Fluttershy asked. She was curled up on the ground.

"Someone broke the window," Rarity pointed out. "Who would do something as barbaric as that?"

There were shards of glass and pieces of the wooden frame on the ground. Using light steps, Twilight moved over to the window. She looked outside, but all that she could see were the lights from the rest of the village celebrating. There weren't even any hoofprints outside.

The loud exclamation of, "Hey!" brought her attention back inside.

Rainbow Dash pointed towards the central table. The present had vanished! "Alright, who took it?"

(That was when Twilight stopped talking. When it became apparent that she wasn't going to speak again, Trixie asked, "So? What happened to the present?"

Twilight let out a nervous chuckle and rubbed the back of her head. "I'm not sure. One moment, I went to check out what had happened to the window, the next, the present just vanished. I have no idea what happened to it."

"It was there before all the lights went out?" Trixie asked.

"Yes. I think so at least. I was more focused on the party." Twilight gave a weak laugh.

"And how long was it dark before you lit up the room with your horn?"

"Hmm, about fifteen seconds? Maybe." She shrugged. "We looked all through the library, but no one found anything. I hoped that we were just missing it because it was dark, but we didn't really find anything this morning either. So I'm not sure what happened to the present."

"Ah, ah." Trixie swept her hoof up dramatically. "You might not, Twilight, but the Great and Persistent Trixie is getting ever closer to the answer. You just sit tight for now. I still have a more ponies to interview!" The unicorn walked off leaving Twilight sitting there, bemused. There was something about that story that felt off, but there were still other tales to hear.)
> One Look and That's It
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Chapter 2.5, One Look and That’s It, Rarity's Story


Trixie strode over to a white unicorn that was, for the lack of anything better to do, examining herself in the mirror, fixing up her mane and smoothing out her dress. It didn't seem that just standing there was going to get the unicorn's attention, so she yelled, "Rarity!"

"What is it, Trixie?" Rarity responded, but she was still more engaged in looking at her eyelashes.

"You like to be fashionable, if I recall," Trixie said, her words slithering. "You like attention and fame." Then she struck. "Out of everypony, you are the one most likely to call yourself a star!"

"What?" Rarity cried. "Sure, I might want to be a star, but I'm not involved in any of this. I barely even had any contact with the present! And even then, why would I refer to myself as multiple stars?"

"I don't know, but I'm going to find out, and you're going to tell me."

"I don't know what there is to tell. Alright, I'll admit I might have been a bit jealous of Rainbow Dash for having a present from Princess Celestia while I didn't. I mean, who wouldn't be? I think I deserved one, too. I do make dresses that many elite in Canterlot wear. They even go to the Grand Galloping Gala with my styles."

Trixie raised a hoof to stop the ranting. "Can you start from yesterday morning?"

"Yes, of course." Rarity took a deep breath to regain her normal poise and composure. "Then let's start in the morning, shall we?"

In the morning, the first thing Rarity did was beautify herself. Must get that mane and tail all nice and curled and shiny. Then came a good breakfast to start off the day. The boutique was closed, so she could take the time needed to make something fancy: an omelette with mushrooms, peppers and onions. A few pieces of parsley were sprinkled on, and it was paired with a side of freshly squeezed orange juice.

After breakfast, and properly washing up the dishes, Rarity went back to her room to decide what to wear for the party Pinkie Pie was throwing later that day. There were just so many choices. Maybe a cool, alluring blue would be nice. Or a warming red might fit the mood better. And should it be sleek? Frilly? Poofy?

(Trixie stopped the recollection at that point and asked, "About how long were you picking out an outfit?"

"Five, maybe six hours," Rarity answered. "So as I was saying-"

"Skip that part."

Rarity turned up her nose with a huff. "Fine. Forgive me for trying to impart some style and fashion.)

After laying out a dress onto the bed, Rarity decided to go out for a bit. She wasn't about to just spend all day at home. It did look rather chilly outside, with bleak skies and bare trees. This was definitely an occasion for a scarf. Rarity sifted through her armoire where she found scarves of all tones and styles. She chose one that was simple and worked well while not wearing anything else. It was plush, soft and a deep, crimson hue. Just wrapping it around her neck made her smile.

Perhaps she would go to the library and take a peek at how the party preparations were going. And with the marvelous scarf, there was nothing to fear from a little cold trek.

It seemed like nearly all of her friends were already at Twilight's. The only one not there was Pinkie Pie. They were all gathered around the table in the center of the room, the one with the sculpture of a horse's head. All of their attention was focused on something that Rarity couldn't see.

"Hello, darlings!" Rarity said.

"Hi, Rarity," they all said, though their attention was clearly focused on the thing in the middle.

"What, no one is going to comment on my fashionable scarf?" Apparently so. With a pout, Rarity levitated the scarf over to the table next to her. She craned her neck to see just what was so important. And, in her opinion, it looked pretty important. There was a shiny present wrapped in rainbow paper and brought together with a gold ribbon. It was absolutely gorgeous.

"Fluttershy, what's going on?" Rarity asked.

"It looks as if Rainbow Dash got a present from Princess Celestia."

"What?" The unicorn nearly screamed.

Rainbow Dash thumped herself on the chest. "That's right. Straight from Princess Celestia to me."

"I didn't get anything."

The others echoed Rarity's sentence, though not with as much overblown hurt.

"How glamorous for you." Rarity's voice was dripping with sarcasm. "It's not like any of us did as much as you."

"Hey, it's not my fault I'm so much more awesome," Rainbow Dash said.

"Still, whatever is in there must simply be magnificent!" the unicorn squealed.

"It sure would be nice if we could open it." Rainbow Dash shot a derisive glance towards Twilight.

Twilight extended a wing, blocking off the two of them from the package. "The note said to wait, so we'll wait."

Rarity drew Fluttershy away from the others to just talk with her.

"What's in the present?" Rarity asked. It wasn't in a whisper, but her voice was still low.

"I really don't know. We'll find out whenever Rainbow Dash opens it."

"But that won't be until midnight at the earliest. Don't you want to find out now?"

"Um." Fluttershy's eyes widened in alarm. "Not really."

"I'm sure a little peek wouldn't hurt anyone." The unicorn batted her eyelashes.

"It's probably not a good idea," her pegasus friend said.

"I suppose you're right." But she continued looking at the present far longer than was necessary.

It was then that Pinkie Pie burst in with all her usual fun-loving ways. She wanted to start decorating, so everyone was asked to leave. What the finished space looked like was part of the surprise, after all.

Fluttershy went with Rarity to find something else to do for the rest of the day. The spa was closed, and they didn't want to go to a restaurant while there was a party waiting. Before they got far, however, Rarity let out a light gasp that was carried away by a gust of cold wind. The library wasn't even out of view. Rarity's teeth chattered as she said, "Oh dear, I forgot my scarf. Go on without me Fluttershy, I'll return to Twilight's to get it."

"I'll go with you."

"That's not necessary," she said firmly. "No need to drag you back for something so silly. I'll meet up with you later."

Fluttershy backed down. "Oh, alright."

Rarity hurried back to the library. She only snatched her scarf with magic and then left again, not wanting to fully see what Pinkie was doing.

(Trixie leaned forward until their faces were nearly touching. "Was that all?"

"Of course!" Rarity sharpened her eyes at the affront. "Just what are you insinuating?"

"Nothing, nothing." Trixie’s analytical gaze lingered on Rarity, however. “Continue.”)

The outdoors felt much nicer now that Rarity had her nice, plush scarf again. She could smile warmly even in the frigid, breath-whitening air.

The middle part of the day was filled with mundane things mostly, so it jumped to nighttime, when the party was beginning. Rarity had returned home during the day and changed into her party dress. Sure, it was supposed to be a casual affair, but her sense of style demanded an attire of some sort for a party important enough to get a rhyming name.

"Hello!" Rarity announced. She entered with flair and a flick of the mane.

"Hi!" Pinkie Pie greeted with an immediate cupcake thrust forward on a plate.

"Thank you, dear." Using magic, she floated the cupcake up for a bite.

The party space certainly was Pinkie Pie. It was lively, loud and colorful. There were only seven of them, but it was energetic enough to be a festival. Their party included the works, from fun foods to swinging music to party favors.

Before she could enjoy any of that, Fluttershy had snuck over and whispered, "Rarity".

She had to look around before finding her friend crouching behind. "What is it, Fluttershy."

"Can I talk to you for a second?"

"Of course. Whatever could be the matter?"

While the others were dancing to the music and having fun playing games, Fluttershy was able to talk without worrying about being overheard. She was faced towards the table in the center of the room, where Princess Celestia's gift was sitting perfectly still.

"Where did you put it?" Fluttershy asked.

"Put what?"

"It." She tilted her head towards the table.

"What, Princess Celestia's Present?"

Fluttershy waved her arms in a panic. "Shhh. Yes, Princess Celestia's Present."

"I'm afraid I'm not following," Rarity said.

"You can tell me, I won't tell anyone else. I just want to make sure everything is alright."

The unicorn shook her head. Concern had fallen over her face as she gently pressed a hoof against her friend. "I really don't know what you're talking about, darling."

"Really?"

"Really."

"Really, really?"

"Really, really."

Fluttershy drooped towards the ground. "Um, okay, if you say so. I'm sorry for bothering you."

Before Rarity could inquire further, Rainbow Dash had came over after seeing the two of them huddled on the outskirts. "Come on, girls, this is a party! Let's shake it!" She pulled Fluttershy away to the center of the action.

"Would care for a dance, my lady?" a voice said, attempting to sound suave.

Rarity smiled at Spike and placed a hoof on his outstretched claw. "I would love to."

They joined the others for a wild night of laughing and fun. Everything was going well late into the evening. Twilight got everyone's attention and had her arm was extended towards a simple, wooden clock. It was hanging on the wall and had a small pendulum swinging underneath. Everyone knew what she meant. It was almost twelve and almost the new year, at least according to library time.

Pinkie was smiling expectantly at the clock, as if come midnight, it would spew out more confetti. "Come on, come on. It's almost time for the new year! In Ten, nine, eight!"

Rarity, Spike and the others all joined in. "Seven! Six! Five! Four!"

"THREE!"

"TWO!"

"ONE!"

But then, a horrid crash shook the walls, and the screech of glass hitting the floor rang out. A great gust of wind blew out all the lanterns in the room, causing darkness to fall over them like a great blanket. Everyone let out gasps of surprise and yelps of pain as they crashed into each other. All the moving brought down more crashing noises as decorations and books tumbled down. Everyone was trying to talk over one another, so no one was understandable.

"Eeee!" Rarity squealed as someone stepped on her dress. A dash to get away only caused both of them to fall into a pile.

A bright glow, coming from Twilight's horn, lit up the room, though it was still rather dim. Shadowy shapes flickered across the walls. A lot of the shelves were messy while much of the decorations have been pulled down. Still from the ground, Rarity added her own light to the mix. The pony that stepped on her was Fluttershy. She extended a hoof to help her friend up.

"What happened?" the trembling pegasus asked.

"Someone broke the window," Rarity pointed out. "Who would do something as barbaric as that?"

The air got cold quite fast with the broken window. Loose streamers fluttered in the wind. All of their tripping around had knocked books off their shelves and popped balloons on the ground. The wonderful room was ruined that quickly. It was a real shame.

Rainbow Dash shouted, "Hey! Alright, who took it?" She was pointing towards the center table where the present was now missing!

They spent part of the night searching for it, but Rarity was only doing so half-heartedly. She was wearing a nice dress and didn't want to perspire all over it. It was a relief once Twilight called for them to stop for the night. They would search in the morning, once there was more than just the light from horns.

("The strange thing is," Rarity said, "that we could have easily relit the lamps. I'm not sure why we didn't.

"That's true," Trixie mumbled. Her face was scrunched up in concentration. "So you didn't have any direct contact with Princess Celestia's present?"

"Not at all. I thought about it for a bit, but, alas," the prissy unicorn pressed a hoof against her forehead and leaned back, "I didn't get one."

"Okay. The Great and Attentive Trixie thanks you for your time."

After giving instructions to wait and not talk to anyone, Trixie walked off. It was time for the next pony's story. There was something about that story that felt off, but there were still other tales to hear.)
> Mix Up
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Chapter 2.6, Mix Up, Applejack's Story


"So." Trixie eyed Applejack.

Applejack was shivering after spending time outside in the cold with nothing to do to keep her warm. "So?" she hissed through a numb mouth. Her hat was pulled down tight, but it wasn't exactly built for winter.

"I probably should have given you a scarf or something. Oops," Trixie said with any real feelings on the matter. "Anyway, you're the honest one. You wouldn't lie to Trixie, would you?"

"I have nothing to lie about."

"Good. So, tell me, who is Stars?"

"I have no idea.  Listen, can we go inside or something? I am colder than a sphinx cat in the tundra here."

Trixie looked around. Her eyes fell on the door back into the library. "Okay, fine, let's go back inside." The unicorn wasn't bothered much by the cold. Her cloak, aside from looking stylish, was also good at keeping out the weather. She was used to travelling a lot, after all.

Inside, they found Fluttershy puttering around and doing a bit of cleaning. There was a pile of colorful trash on the floor. A bunch of streamers were tangled up in the pegasus's wings.

"Fluttershy, you may vacate this room," Trixie instructed. "But remember, don't talk to anypony. Or else."

Fluttershy gulped down a thick wad of nervousness. "Okay."

Now that it was just Applejack and Trixie again, Applejack started her story.

It was a cold day yesterday, the kind of day that made old wooden houses creak and groan at the slightest movement. The gaps in the walls let in air with every gust, but a roaring fire kept the interiors nice and toasty.

With the cold season, the orchards were hard and rough to work. Not that it was a good idea to grow apples in the winter, anyway. That didn't mean there weren't still things to do. After a breakfast, of apple products, Applejack went to root through their records. They had to look over yields, decide what worked, what didn't work, decide what sort of fertilizer they could produce and all of that. Though for today, she just really tidied up a bit. It was the end of the year, and everypony deserved a break.

Applejack just couldn't sit inside all day, even if it was cold outside, so she decided to go to Twilight's. She was certain that constantly moving would keep her warm, so she left the comfortable indoors for the great outdoors. The vast sky was wonderful, and she would bet her left horseshoe that the night sky would be even better. Maybe they could go out tonight after Pinkie Pie's It's a Good Year to Cheer party.

On her way into town, she saw a flustered mailpony. It looked like he had just taken a slip, probably on some ice, and much of the packages in his mailbag had tumbled out.

"Howdy there, can I offer a hoof?"

"Huh?" the mailpony said. He was a reedy fellow with long legs. It barely looked like his body could carry all the heavy packages ponies were sending for the end of the year. "Yes, if you could, please."

"My pleasure!"

It was a huge mess. Not just carefully wrapped gifts, but cards and letters had gotten wet from the snow. The mailpony was wiping things up with a towel, one that was getting dirtier by the present.

A biting cold went up Applejack's hooves when she dug into the snow for the various presents and letters. She set everything on top of a nearby fence post. It looked like there were some cards that had came loose with the mailpony's fall, as well. "What happened, anyway?"

"I'm not sure. I was just doing my route when all of a sudden, I saw a wave of water! I dove to the side, and while I didn't get wet, almost all of my deliveries spilled out." The thin pony hung his head in dismay. "I really need to hurry up. Thank you for all your help. I would definitely be late if not for you."

"Not a problem," Applejack said.

Though she was a bit confused at which card went where. It was a really good thing that the designs on the cards matched up with the wrapping paper. The card with a picture of a golden bell on it went with the present that had golden bells on the wrapping paper. The rainbow card went with the present with the rainbow wrapping paper. Simple as that.

("That's completely strange," Trixie interjected.

"Pray tell what is?"

"Putting cards and stuff on the outside! If something like that the mailpony falling happens, then everything turns into a huge mess," Trixie sputtered. She had to gesticulate with her arm for added strength.

"Then ponies won't look at the card first before they open the package!" Applejack tapped Trixie on the head. "I mean, just think."

"No! You put the addressing card with the wrapped present, then you wrap something around on the outside of everything!"

"Then everything would look ugly and brown." Applejack stamped her arm on the ground. "And then we could need to unwrap twice as much to get to the present."

"But then it doesn't matter if the outside gets dirty."

Both of them glared at each at each other, hat-to-hat. At the same time, they took one slow step backwards.

"Let's agree to disagree," Trixie said through a forced smile.

"I agree," Applejack responded.

"Please, continue with your story.")

The mailpony was all sorted out now. Applejack waved as he went about a duty that he did through the cold and snow. She was still watching the mailpony recede into the distance when a familiar voice called out, "Hello, Applejack."

Applejack turned around to see a yellow pegasus with long, pink mane. "Oh, howdy there, Fluttershy. I didn't notice you."

Fluttershy was looking at the curious state of the snow and ground. She carefully walked around all of the dents and grooves. "Is everything alright?"

"Yup. You going to Twilight's, Fluttershy?"

"I am."

"Come on." Applejack motioned down the road. "Let's walk together."

They spoke for a bit about their plans for the new year. Applejack really wanted to improve the farm. Things were just breaking left and right. Fluttershy had plans about the next Winter Wrap-up and how to best wake up the animals. They also made some small-talk on the weather. It wasn't bad, being a bit chilly but with clear skies.

"You know what would be nice? The clear night sky. Being outside, feeling the cold air enter your body, that'll jumpstart the new year," Applejack said.

"Um, I'm not sure about the cold air," Fluttershy said, "but I think going out to look at the sky would be beautiful. We should do that after the party, probably somewhere near the library. It would be too cold to go far."

"I'd agree with that. I wouldn't want to go too far in the cold, either."

Going through the town, a store caught Applejack's eyes. "Hey, Fluttershy, would you mind coming with me to the furniture store? I'm going to order a surprise for Granny Smith. A brand new rocker."

"Oh, that sounds lovely."

But who knew there were so many styles of rockers now? The two of them browsed through an entire section of them at the furniture store. There were rockers that had drink holders, rockers with stabilizers and even rockers that could massage at the same time. Applejack's eyes were spinning at all the advancement. Simple was best, that was for certain, so she chose the one without any of those fancy, dandy features. It would be delivered directly to the farm later.

By the time they got to Twilight's home, Rainbow Dash was already there. From Twilight and Rainbow's expressions, brows furrowed and frowning, it looked as if they were arguing.

"What's going on here, Twi, RD?" Applejack asked.

"Check it out!" Rainbow Dash jabbed a hoof towards the package. "This came for me from Princess Celestia."

Fluttershy carefully walked over to the table watched over by the sculpture of a horse's head. "Ooh. What is it?"

"I don't know, Twilight won't let me open it," Rainbow Dash said. "Did either of you get a present from Celestia?"

Both Applejack and Fluttershy shook their heads.

"Wow, this must be a gift for my awesomeness."

"So you're saying that this thing here is a gift from Princess Celestia?" Applejack asked.

"Yes!"

Hold on a minute. Applejack was staring intently at that present, as if it had stolen her apple. But that wasn't the case. It looked familiar. She walked over to Rainbow Dash. Tilting her head towards a more secluded part of the room, she said, "Can I ask you somethin'?"

"Sure, what's up, AJ?"

"You say you got a present from Princess Celestia?"

"Uh, yeah," Rainbow Dash stated.

"That seems stranger than mice sneaking out of the barn." Applejack glanced back towards the present.

"Yeah, so what's your point? This totally makes up for my dad's gift being late."

"Wait." Applejack perked up, standing straight with back stiff. It couldn't have happened, could it? Did she accidentally put the wrong address card on the wrong present while helping the mailpony? But the system of putting the card to the matching present, it was perfect!

("Shocking," Trixie intoned.)

Applejack asked in a cautious manner, "You usually get a present from your dad this time of year?"

"Yeah," Rainbow Dash said. "What of it?"

"Oh, it's just that, well." The words were jumbled up inside Applejack's mouth.  "How should I put this?" Sweat was now pouring forth from underneath her hat, and it suddenly felt really hot inside the library.

"What, do you think like Twilight, that I can't handle a present from Celestia?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"No, I wouldn't quite say that." She craned her neck away.

Before Applejack could explain further, Rarity came strolling into the library. The unicorn was immediately taken in by the present, which was obviously the center of attention. Rainbow Dash was quick to catch her up to the current situation, mostly to brag about the gift.

Applejack felt as if a pressure had released around her chest, and she could breathe again. She wanted not to do the same thing as always, and that was rush into things. Nope. Going back to the post office to confirm things, that was the smart thing to do. This time, she was not going to just blurt out things.

While everypony else was busy, Applejack slipped out of the library. Her hooves pounded the muddy ground as she rushed down the street. There weren't many ponies out and about that day, so she didn't need to stop for anything. It was just taking sharp corners and straight ways until the post office. That was when she slammed headlong into the door.

Applejack bounced back onto the street. She pressed her hat tightly against her stinging muzzle. This time, she calmly walked up to the mail center. A large sign was hanging on the door, directly at the height of the head. They were closed early for the day due to it being the eve of the new year. Funny how she missed that before.

With a thunk, Applejack plastered herself on the window. It was dim and devoid of staff inside. Squinting, she managed to see a sack of undelivered gifts. That one, the blue one had a similar hue to Rainbow Dash's coat, that was the only one lying near the rainbow-colored package. It must be where the card addressed to Rainbow Dash had fallen from. It was so close yet so far.

After thinking for a bit, Applejack resolved to just fix it tomorrow. She would take the wrong present back to the post office first thing in the morning and explain about the mishap. Simple as that. She did scratch her head in regards to Rainbow Dash, however. It felt pretty wrong to take away the present before the one from her pa had arrived. Maybe it was alright just to leave Princess Celestia's gift there for the time being.

But she didn't return to the library. Applejack just meandered around outside, keeping warm by moving at a canter. As the sun was setting, she finally decided to return. It was about time for the party to begin anyway.  She was the fifth to arrive, after Twilight, Spike, Pinkie and Rainbow. Once Rarity and Fluttershy arrived, the party went into full swing, with music, games and food.

"Hey, girls," Applejack called out. "Once it's the new year, how about we go outside to look at the night sky?"

Rainbow Dash remained guarded by her present. "Sure thing, AJ, but only after I open Princess Celestia's present."

"Oh, that." Applejack turned towards the present. She let out a forced chuckle and backed away from it. "Come on, Rainbow, that thing can wait."

"What do you mean?" The feisty pegasus shot a glare over.

Applejack had a toothy, but evasive, grin. "Nothing." Her eyes were clearly avoiding contact with Rainbow Dash's, and sweat was dripping down her face. "Hoo, I am thirsty. I'm going to get some of that there punch." She backed away, still with a wide smile, until her butt bumped into the table. Once there, she scooped a cup and then downed it all in one gulp.

"Right," Rainbow Dash said slowly.

There was music, food and a great atmosphere with friends. Applejack's apprehension was slowly eroded away by Pinkie Pie's antics. A good party with friends could cure what ails a pony.

"Hey, girls," Twilight called out. Her arm was extended towards a simple, wooden clock. It was hanging on the wall and had a small pendulum swinging underneath. Everyone knew what she meant. It was almost twelve and almost the new year, at least according to library time.

Rainbow Dash pushed up her cheeks into a broad grin. "Almost time to open my present!"

"About that," Applejack said, "don't you think it's better if you don't?"

"I think it's a great idea, so stuff it, Applejack," Rainbow Dash shot back.

Pinkie slapped Rainbow Dash on the back, sending her staggering into Applejack. "Come on, come on," she said. "It's almost time for the new year! In Ten, nine, eight!"

Applejack pulled her hat down, but she joined in with everyone else. "Seven, six, five, four!" The swinging pendulum created a distinct tick-tock rhythm.

"THREE!"

"TWO!"

"ONE!"

"HAP-"

A bang shook the library walls. Glass definitely sounded like it broke from the impact. Wind blew through the open hole and huffed out the lanterns in the room, sending it into darkness. Applejack did notice a brief flash, but she had no idea what it was.

Everyone let out gasps of surprise and yelps of pain as they crashed into each other. All the moving brought down more crashing noises as decorations and books tumbled down. Everyone was trying to talk over one another, so no one was understandable.

"Calm down!" Twilight shouted.

A bright glow, coming from her horn, lit up the room, though it was still rather dim. Shadowy shapes flickered across the walls. A lot of the shelves were messy while much of the decorations have been pulled down. Rarity added her light to the mix.

"What happened?" Fluttershy asked. She was curled up on the ground.

"Someone broke the window," Rarity pointed out. "Who would do something as barbaric as that?"

Rainbow Dash suddenly cried out, "Hey!" and brought everyone's attention away from the window. She pointed towards the central table, where something was conspicuously missing. The present had vanished! "Alright, who took it?"

"Calm down, Rainbow," Twilight said. "I'm sure there's an explanation for this."

"Applejack stole my present!" Rainbow Dash said.

"What?" Applejack shouted. "Why in the hay would I do that?" She happened to be the one closest to the table at the moment, however.

The annoyed pegasus jabbed her hoof into Applejack's chest. "I don't know, but you've been acting strange around my present all day!"

Applejack glared back and pushed the hoof away. "I'm sure it just fell down somewhere, let's look around."

(Trixie leaned in and said, "Did you take the opportunity to take the present so Rainbow Dash wouldn't open the wrong one?"

"No!" Applejack said firmly.

"Are you lying?"

"Of course not. I just haven't gotten around to telling the other's the truth yet." Applejack raised her head as if she had been grievously insulted.

Trixie prodded the earth pony and sniffed. "I'll be the judge of what is true and what is not true around here. Now, you just wait here."

There was something about that story that felt off, but everypony had told their story now, and Trixie was ready to give an answer.)
> New Light
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Chapter 3, New Light, Trixie's Answer


Trixie went around the library and gathered up the other ponies. They all reconvened inside the main room, with her as the center of attention. A smug grin was on her face because she had all the information about the previous day. She had all the power right now!

"Ah hahaha!" Trixie laughed. She soon stopped when she realized how crazy it made her seem and how everypony else was staring at her. "Ahem. I have now gotten all six of your storied. TGaP Trixie shall now reveal the truth of what happened yesterday! And what? Believe it or not, I do get tired of saying my full title all the time, too."

Trixie swept across the six ponies with her cloak billowing in some conjured wind. "Now, after listening to all of your stories, I am ready to say exactly what happened yesterday."

"Wait!" Twilight called out. Everypony else was giving her the sideways eye, but she merely said, "Have you seen Spike at all? I haven't seen him all morning, and I'm worried."

Trixie let out a chuckle. "Spike, I'm sure he'll be back before long. Now, let me tell you what happened." Her hoof whipped out towards Pinkie Pie. "You, you are the cause of all this!"

The six friends let out a gasp, Pinkie most of all. "How could I?" she said accusingly of herself.

"It all started yesterday morning," Trixie explained, "when Pinkie Pie was bouncing through the puddles for fun. She didn't realize it, but the mailpony had crossed her path at that time. That large splash she made caused the mailpony to stumble over and drop all of his packages and letters.

"From there, Applejack told me that she helped the mailpony pick up the presents, but she accidentally put the wrong address card with the wrong present, because some people didn't decide to wrap something on the outside of the entire present. Rainbow Dash usually gets a present from her dad this time of year. I'm guessing the card is usually rainbow-colored, right, Rainbow Dash?"

"Yeah." Rainbow ran a hoof through her mane. "It's just like this styling do."

"The present from Princess Celestia also used rainbow-colored wrapping paper, though I'm thinking it's more like Princess Celestia's mane-color from your descriptions. That's why Applejack placed the card with the address for Rainbow Dash on the present from Princess Celestia."

"What?" Rainbow asked. She was suddenly glaring daggers at Applejack. "Did you know this?"

"Did I know what? I'm sorry, I was looking at my hat." And by looking at her hat, Applejack meant holding the hat in front of her face.

"AJ."

"Ok, fine, I did know," Applejack cried out. "I was planning on going to the post office today and getting your real present, but I couldn't do that without Princess Celestia's present."

"If you're going to react like that, I can't be too mad. So you really didn't take the present last night?"

"On my honor as an Apple, I did not take your present last night."

Trixie rubbed her chin and mumbled, "How interesting. Anyway, continuing on, the present from Princess Celestia actually was not going to Rainbow Dash. Fast-forwarding a bit to the night, I say that Twilight was the one that took the present!"

Everypony else gasped again, and Pinkie yelled, "How could you, Twilight?"

"But-" Twilight sputtered before being cut off.

"Twilight might not have been anywhere near the present," Trixie stated strongly, "but she can just use magic to move it if needed. Twilight has been suspicious of the present, so she had to get rid of it when Rainbow Dash was about to open it. Only Applejack and Twilight were really in a position to move it, and after hearing Applejack, I conclude that it must be Twilight."

"Then, then where's the present?" Rarity asked. "We searched last night and all morning and haven't seen a trace of it."

It was Twilight that answered in a meek voice and a downcast expression. "Remember when the window broke? I tried to use magic to transport the away Princess Celestia's present just at that time. I was so shocked that I think I transported it somewhere else entirely, and I don't know where."

"Oh, Twilight," Rarity said. "Accidents happen to the best of us."

"So Princess Celestia's present is lost completely?" Rainbow Dash asked.

Trixie was still looking smug. "Not so at all. The present that you were all seeing during the party was a fake!"

Pinkie was about to gasp again, but the others just placed a hoof on her mouth. Nothing was going to surprise them anymore.

"So what happened?" Rarity asked.

"It was during the afternoon that the real present was stolen. You described the wrapping paper as shimmering, glowing almost. In the darkness last night, it would have been easy to see, unless Twilight really transported it far away. Oh, silly me, I'm getting ahead of myself."

"Just tell us what happened," Applejack growled.

"Forgive me for trying to build a moment." Trixie sniffed in derision. "In the afternoon, Pinkie and Spike were decorating the space for the party and Twilight was in her room, looking for magic that could see into the present. There were several times when the main room was left completely empty, however, and that was when someone came in and took the present.

"Rarity was the one that came in here and took something!"

"It was a scarf!" Rarity protested in a pitch higher than normal. She had recoiled back and was holding an arm up in front of her chest. "Don't any of you remember me showing off my lovely scarf?"

"Not really," most of them admitted.

The white unicorn let out a frustrated grunt. "Why do I even bother trying to look nice for you girls?"

Trixie waved her hoof to regain everyponies' attention. "Rarity taking it is just a hypothetical. But you might be asking yourself, how did the present come back? Don't think being quiet and hiding in the back will keep me from remembering." Her hoof shot out with enough force to make speed lines. "Fluttershy made a fake gift."

The only thing the trembling pegasus could do was let out a weak, "Meep."

"Originally," Trixie started again, "Fluttershy told me that she had taken the gift, but I thought it was not really in her character. But if she was trying to cover for somepony else, then she might admit to a crime she didn't commit. Fluttershy thought that Rarity had taken the gift out of jealousy. That was why she confronted Rarity about it while having a fake present."

"Oh," Rarity exhaled as a previous conversation came rushing back to her mind. She turned towards Fluttershy. "Darling, I didn't take it, really."

"You didn't?" Fluttershy asked.

"No. Was I jealous? I admit I was for a bit. But really, I wasn't about to just take Rainbow Dash's present."

Trixie nodded. "That's right, Rarity didn't take it."

Fluttershy's head hung low, and her main brushed against the floor. "I'm sorry for thinking you did, Rarity."

"Don't beat yourself up over it, Fluttershy." Rarity nuzzled her friend on the nose.

Trixie walked over to some books on the ground. From underneath them, she plucked out a dull, rainbow wrapping paper. It looked much like the one around Princess Celestia's present, but it didn't shine. "This was used to wrap up some books so it was about the same shape and size as the present. It probably came loose when Twilight teleported it, but you girls didn't find it because you weren't looking for books."

"Hey," Pinkie Pie said, "Isn't that part of my banner? No wonder it got shorter, and I had to improvise a new hanging location."

"I'm sorry, Pinkie," Fluttershy said.

The pink pony just shrugged. "Oh well. No big deal."

"Then I'm certain you're all wondering where the real present is," Trixie said. "Consider who came by to the library in the timeframe where it was taken. Twilight, Spike, Pinkie Pie, Rarity and Fluttershy. Neither Rarity nor Fluttershy took it. Twilight and Pinkie Pie never left. But none of you can account for Spike's whereabouts during that time, can you?"

Uncertain mumblings rang out among the group, but Twilight stepped forward. "Spike wouldn't do something like that!"

"He was here at the right place and the right time. And he had a reason to as well."

"What reason could that be?"

"It's simple," Trixie said. "Spike was ordered to take the present. I believe it was sent here in error, and he's returning it to the sender right now. He couldn't do it yesterday, since, as Applejack said, the post office was closed. But this morning, that would be his first task. That's why he's not here."

"How could you possibly know any of that?" Rainbow Dash said.

"A magician never reveals her secrets," Trixie said. "And I am TGaP Trixie, after all."

"Really, how did you know?" Twilight asked, though her tone was one of genuine curiosity.

"Magic! Believe me, Spike took the present and returned it to the sender."

Rarity scoffed and flicked her mane. "I suppose you'll be able to tell us about the note as well. Why would my dear Spike say that he was Stars?"

Of course Trixie had an answer for that. "That was because of Applejack and Fluttershy. They wanted to see the night sky, but that could also mean the stars. Look at the note. Stars isn't capitalized, so it's not a name. Spike was writing one A M stars, as in, you were scheduled to go outside and look at stars at one in the morning."

"That's," Rarity sputtered, "that's very reasonable."

"What's your answer for the window, then?" Rainbow Dash shot.

What answered her was a knocking on the front door. It was such a surprise for someone else to come into their day that none of the ponies moved to open it. Twilight shook her head when she realized this was her home, so it was logical that she should open the door.

"Um, hello?"

"Hiya, Twilight," a grey pegasus mare said. She had yellow mane and tail, and her eyes didn't seem to point in the same direction. A saddle was strapped across her back, and a large brown box was tied to it. "Here's your new window. I'm sorry about breaking yours last night. I was just so excited about the new year that I wasn't watching where I was flying. I don't know how to install a window, though."

Applejack raised her hoof. "I do, I suppose." She sounded uncertain but was dragged along by the flow of things.

The grey pegasus unhitched the window from her saddle. "Well, here you go. Sorry again, Twilight. I hope you forgive me."

"Yeah, sure," Twilight said, though she was in a sort of daze at how fast things were happening. With a smile, she received the window, and then the grey pegasus flew off.

Everyone was still standing around in confusion when Trixie placed a hoof on the newest delivery. "You're welcome for me solving the window problem."

Still staring at the door, Twilight passed the window over to Applejack. "You'll get on that soon?"

"I'll get on that soon." Applejack slid the window in between her legs.

"Um." Fluttershy raised her hand. "Does this mean Spike will come back if we just wait around?"

"I imagine so," Trixie said.

Wait around they did. An awkward silence hung in between six of the ponies. They all wanted to speak, to break up the barrier in between them, but none of them could. The gloomy feelings made the apparent coldness in the air that much harsher. Each wind through the open window was like a frigid gale. Trixie was feeling no such effects and was just sitting around.

The door opened with a near-deafening crack. Spike just strolled in with a bright smile and a spring in his step.

"Spike!" Twilight rushed forward, nearly tackling him. She pressed her cheeks up against his.

His little arms flailed. "Whoa, Twilight, what's going on?"

"Where did you go, Spike? I was worried about you."

"I went to the post office," Spike answered. He immediately wished he hadn't as six ponies were now staring at him with large eyes. "Um, what? Is-is something wrong?"

Rarity asked, "Spike, darling, why did you go to the post office?"

"To send a package of course," he said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. And it was, logically, one of the few things ponies would go to the post office for.

"Hmhm," Trixie chuckled. She threw her arms out, causing her cloak to flare up. "See, TGaP Trixie knows all and sees all!"

Twilight looked at her assistant. A soft smile was on her face. "Spike, you went to mail Princess Celestia's present, right? Tell us what happened yesterday."

"Don't you know?"

"Please do it. There are some things I want to clear up."

"Okay, sure." The young dragon was still looking between everypony. Worry and confusion fell over his expression, but he maintained a smile.
> Only the Facts, Please
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Chapter 2.7, Only the Facts, Please


Spikes day began simply in the morning. He woke up grumbling and complaining at how cold everything was. If ponies could control the weather, why would they bother having winter, anyway? He liked the summer, where it was nice and warm. But this day was one covered with an old layer of snow. The road had been cleared, and most of the fields had been trampled already. He slumped back into bed, but Twilight used magic to pull off his covers.

"Wake up, Spike," Twilight said.

"It's too early and cold for that kind of cheer," Spike grumbled. When he couldn't reach his blanket, however, he sat up, still seeing blurs around the room.

After breakfast, Spike was feeling much more awake and willing to do things, which was a good thing as Twilight wanted to clean up the library a bit for Pinkie Pie's party. Twilight used magic to levitate over books as he threw them onto the shelves. Everything went to their proper position, of course. Before they could get started on the quills, parchment and the like, Rainbow Dash dropped by.

Spike saw something glimmering, and saliva formed in his mouth. But it was wasted since Rainbow Dash wasn't holding a delectable gem. It was a nicely wrapped present that looked good but not tasty. He listened to their conversation while putting away the loose paper. The present was apparently from Princess Celestia. How nice for Rainbow Dash.

Twilight, however, was eyeing the present suspiciously. "Princess Celestia? What is it?"

"I have no idea!" Rainbow exclaimed. "I'm not supposed to open it until tomorrow." She placed the A card onto the table. "This is so wow. I've never gotten anything from Princess Celestia before."

They started arguing about the present and what to do with it. It ended with Twilight teleporting the present away to keep it away from Rainbow Dash. The alicorn wanted to do what she did best, research it.

She started her work immediately. "Spike, get me that book on magic detection."

Spike snapped to attention at the sound of his name. He slumped forward with arms hanging limp. "Aw. I just put that away." But as the ever-faithful assistant, he dutifully climbed up a stepladder to pluck out a thick, green book from the shelf. He merely held it out for Twilight to levitate over.

After Twilight prodded and poked at the present with magic, she raised a hoof, while leaving her head down. "Spike, get me the magnifying glass, and the book on detection spells, volume two."

After Spike brought over the magnifying glass, it was another thing, and then another thing. Their freshly cleaned library now had a mess again. He brought everything out with a bright expression, however, because that meant he was useful.

Soon, more of their friends dropped by, making it too difficult for Twilight to concentrate, so she stopped for the moment. They were mostly focused on the present, but Fluttershy made another suggestion.

"Um, we were talking, that is Applejack and I," she said, "about going out tonight. We think it would be nice to go out and enjoy the night."

Spike was the first to respond with a, "I think that's a great idea."

"You do?" Twilight asked.

The small dragon nodded. His claws were clasped together. "Yeah, you girls can go out, and I'll stay in here and clean up all the cakes, I mean mess of the party."

Fluttershy giggled. "You should come, too. We probably won't be outside for long. It would be much too cold."

"I'm not much for cold, or late nights, but if you really want me to. Let me make a note of it." Spike grabbed a quill and parchment from the newly-made stack. He scrawled down that they would be going out at one in the morning to see the stars, but with his off-claw since he was holding something else with his dominant one.

Everypony else was arguing about the present from Princess Celestia. Before anyone could get too riled up, Pinkie Pie burst. Her loud cheer instantly brightening up the mood and brought attention away from the present.

"I'm ready to start decorating!" she cried happily. "Everypony leave, so you can come back and be surprised."

One by one, they agreed, leaving the party-loving pony to her task.

"I'm going to go upstairs and look at the books some more," Twilight said. "I'll leave the present down here, for now."

"Okay," Pinkie said. "Hey, Spike, you want to help me decorate?"

Spike showed off his best cute-eyes. "Can I, Twilight?"

Twilight smiled and nodded. Using magic, she carried all the materials up to her room.

"Okay! Let's get cracking," Pinkie said. She pulled out a parchment that when unrolled went across the floor. But the only checkbox on it was, "Make Good Party."

He knew how to handle checklists. "Make good party. Got it."

Mostly, that involved grabbing a lot of balloons, confetti and streamers and then chucking it in a random direction. Somehow, they landed in all the proper positions, bringing a splash of color and festiveness. Spike was given the task to decorate the side rooms while Pinkie handled the main room.

He was tossing around streamers when a bubbling started in his stomach. The shaking quickly threatened to burst forth. It welled up so much that he wasn't able to suppress it. With a spew of green flame, a letter unburned in front of him. He caught it before it fell to the ground.

There was only one pony that sent messages this way, Princess Celestia. As usual, Spike looked over the parchment first. While it was a message for Twilight, he felt like this was something he could handle alone.

The message read, Dear Twilight,

By mistake, I sent the wrong package to you. The one I sent out was meant for my sister, Luna. Please do not open it and send it back to me as soon as possible. With the post office now closed, I'll send the present for you and your friends tomorrow.

Sincerely yours, Princess Celestia.

Spike rolled up the message again. The task sounded simple enough, just hold the present until tomorrow, when he could mail it back. With the message tucked under his arm, Spike ran off. The main room was empty at the moment, but he could hear Pinkie humming off in the second library room. The present Princess Celestia had sent was just sitting on the main table. It was carefully scooped up into the dragon's claws.

He returned upstairs, where Twilight was hunched over the table with her muzzle almost touching the book.

"Twilight," Spike called out, "this present was actually meant for Princess Luna. I'm going to put it in my bed so I can remember to send it back tomorrow."

"Okay," Twilight responded without looking up at all.

("Hang on a minute here," Applejack blurted. "Spike told you about this, Twilight?"

"Did, did he?" Twilight had a thick patch of red on her cheeks.

"Ooh!" Pinkie waved her arms. "Were you talking to her during one of her super serious concentration times? The time when she just tunes out the rest of the world and responds automatically?"

Spike nodded, and he looked as if that was a perfectly fine time to ask Twilight stuff. "What?"

Twilight let out a noise that was partially groan and partially a roar. It took all her energy not to hit her head against something. "What happened next, Spike?" she said sweetly.)

With the present carefully stowed away, the party happened next. Spike came down with Twilight a bit before the celebration was supposed to begin. His chest was puffed out upon seeing the main room, full of festive fun and colors. There were balloons, a plethora of streamers crisscrossing across the ceiling and even a banner. "I helped," he said.

Twilight nodded. "And you did a nice job."

Pinkie hopped with her hooves fluttering cheerfully. "My first two guests!" She tossed party hats on the two of them.

"The party isn't starting for a while, Pinkie," Twilight said.

"It's never too early! Here, have some punch." While speaking, she had already gotten them some of that tasty beverage.

Spike was staring curiously at the center table, where there was a present waiting. "Hey, Pinkie, about this." He raised the claw holding the cup towards it.

"Like it?" Pinkie asked. "It's a great center decoration for the table, isn't it?"

"Yeah, it really is." Spike just shrugged. A copy must have been made since it looked so good, something he couldn't really argue with. The room did seem less joyful without a big, mysterious and colorful box in the middle.

Their friends soon started to arrive. Spike felt his chest well up when he saw Rarity. She was wearing the most wonderful dress and looked even more magnificent than normal. Moving over to her, he almost felt like he was walking on air.

"Would you care for a dance, my lady?"

Rarity batted her eyes at him. "I would love to."

The party went great. Anytime he could spend with Rarity and be around her beauty and generosity was a great time. Everyone was enjoying the food, music, fun and great decorations that Spike had helped put up.

Spike’s recollection of the party mostly followed what everypony else had. Turning back to the present, he concluded the night the same as the others, with something breaking the window. The others were all feeling pretty silly about getting worked up over the whole thing. They all had sheepish grins when catching each other in the eye.

"And there you have it." Trixie spread her arms out grandly. "TGaP Trixie has solved all your problems. Bask in my light."

Spike still wasn't finished, however. He continued, "Anyway, this morning, I-"

"Ah!" Trixie gasped. In just one moment, she appeared by his side with a hoof shoved against his mouth. "I think that's enough story time, don't you?"

"Um," Fluttershy mumbled, "I want to know what happened this morning."

The others all nodded in agreement. Twilight moved over to her assistant, bumping Trixie away with her rump. "So, Spike, what happened this morning?"

"Of course, I woke up bright and early. That way, I could be first in line at the post office. You will never guess who I ran into along the way." Spike shook his head at several responses and gave a crooked look to Pinkie's guess of the cat that spewed a rainbow out from his butt. "No, no." He extended a claw towards their guest. "I ran into Trixie! I was really surprised, but we talked for a bit. She saw me with the present, so I told her all about it."

Trixie suddenly found six pairs of eyes glaring at her direction. She took a few steps back while trying to maintain a smile, but her face was twitching.

"So that's how you knew the truth about the present," Fluttershy said.

"Do you mean to tell me," Rainbow growled, "that you knew the answer all this time? And you had us go through all that anyway?" Her voice steadily grew to a shout.

Trixie scoffed and said, "Did you really think that account back in Chapter One of my coming here wasn't my own version of things?"

"What?" Twilight asked.

Trixie swept the cape up, leaving only her eyes visible. Hey gaze slid from left to right, then from right to left. A puff of smoke burst out from where she was standing. When it cleared, Trixie was taking off down the Ponyville streets.

"Get her!" Applejack yelled as she tore out from the library. There was still more than enough clean snow for a good snowball.

Trixie weaved left and right as snowballs pelted the ground around her. One well placed shot took off her hat completely. Still, she was laughing, as was Twilight and her friends. There was nothing like a first day of the new year snowball fight.

They hadn't even noticed the mailpony walking past. He went straight up to the open library door, where Spike was still standing.

"Delivery for Twilight Sparkle."

"I'll take that," Spike said.

This was a package that was also from Princess Celestia. It was addressed not only to Twilight, but also to Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Rarity and himself.  It was something for all of them.
> Post Script
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Chapter 4, Post Script


Twilight and her friends, Trixie included, were enjoying a nice cup of hot chocolate inside the library after their snowball fight. They were all soaking and stinging from the cold, but the happiness inside their bodies kept their spirits high. The present from Princess Celestia was sitting on a nearby table, but it didn't seem as important to rush and open it. Enjoying each other's company felt much more important to them right now.

"Twilight," Trixie said. Her tone was unusually somber. "Thanks for inviting me over."

"It's fun having you around," Twilight admitted.

Trixie lowered her head. "I want to tell you why I decided to make you all tell me about what happened yesterday. I came up with it on the spot, really, when I saw you all fighting. I thought that if I could solve your friendship troubles, you would all like me more, and I would really be your friend."

"Oh, Trixie. We like you just fine. Just tone down all the bravado and treat us as friends. It's that simple. Now, how about another cup of hot chocolate?"

"The Great and, er, I mean, I would love another one, thank you," Trixie said.