When Twilight Sparkle decided to go to Moondancer's party instead of the Summer Sun Celebration, the entire world is thrown into disorder, and Lyra, Bon-Bon, Muffins, Octavia, Zecora and Pip are all that stand between Equestria and eternal night.
All it takes was one decision to throw an entire world into disorder.
When Twilight Sparkle decided to go to Moondancer's party instead of the Summer Sun Celebration and try to catch a late train into Ponyville later, Celestia found herself completely unprepared for Nightmare Moon's return. Unbeknownst to her, one of Twilight's friends, Lyra Heartstrings, did go to Ponyville. There, Lyra tries to fit in, and is thrown headfirst into a world full of new friends, secret agents, prejudice, unrequited love, very requited love, conspiracy, bitterness, regret and the end of all of Equestria.
“You have been expecting me for a while now, Celestia, I can tell. So why do you look so shocked?”
The Princess of the Sun whipped her head around in alarm, only to find no one. The palace throne room was as lonely as it had been for a thousand years. But Celestia could instantly tell that there was a sinister presence afoot; the usual pastel colours had become dulled, the sunlight streaming through the large open windows becoming much less illuminating. Her reflection looked back to her from the gold of the throne as she took a moment to observe it. She looked a mess, her white coat becoming grey with stress as bags collected under her eyes and her ethereal mane seeming somehow stiff, like it was struggling to maintain its usual flow. In this reflection, no intruder could be seen, certainly not the one she feared she had heard. But then, there was a flicker. Her pupil, like a dark bead with her eye, seemed to shudder unnaturally for the smallest fraction of a second. She almost didn’t notice it, but as she peered closer, she imagined that…
“Of course you imagined seeing me,” the low rumble of a voice oozed into her ears, making Celestia bite her lip in unease. Her pupils within the reflection morphed at the mere thought of them doing so, a familiar form emerging. Coat black as night, azure eyes gleaming with malevolent intent, Nightmare Moon grinned at Celestia. “Imagination was always in my sphere of influence, not yours.”
“You are not my sister, Nightmare Moon,” Celestia spat, shooting a glare as fiery as Nightmare Moon’s gaze was cool. “Do not pretend to be!” To this, Nightmare Moon’s face twisted in mock sorrow.
“My heart bleeds at how coldly you reject me,” the black alicorn said, the corners of her lips twisting upwards cruelly. She began to pace within Celestia’s reflection with practised grace. “Don’t delude yourself; Luna is as much a part of me as my wings. She’s been thinking of you a lot, by the way. Let me tell you, she has a very active imagination.”
“Your attempts to threaten me will not work. Nor will your invasion.”
“You were lucky last time and you know it, Celie.”
Very suddenly, Celestia’s wings flared, her horn crackling dangerously. “YOU DARE SAY THAT NAME AS IF YOU WERE MY SISTER?!” she screamed, her Royal Canterlot voice causing the very walls of the palace to shake.
Nightmare Moon let out a little casual titter. “Hmmph! Celie, how long has it been since you’ve used the Royal Canterlot voice?” she asked, punctuating it with a chuckle. “You must have regained some ponyhood because you’re sounding a little hoarse.”
“YOUR ATTEMPTS OF HUMOUR WILL NOT ENDEAR ME TO YOU, YOU ARE NOT MY SISTER, AND YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO USE THAT NAME!”
“And you have a right to rule? Oh, of course, it’s Princess Celestia, Miss ‘might makes right’,” Nightmare Moon said, her tone suddenly becoming bitter, with cold indignation dripping off every word. “I alone am fit to rule Equestria. You merely tricked yourself into thinking otherwise. How long did it take for the yaks to disappear after I was gone? How many monsters walk across Equestria freely now? Do the Elements even work anymore?”
Princess Celestia's speech faltered, though her glower did not. Her horn's magic died, the fierce crackling becoming dimmer as she sat straight. “Don’t claim Luna’s victories as your own, monster.”
“Cute. Ad hominem in place of a response." Nightmare Moon straightened herself to match Celestia, a smile coming back to her in a proud sneer. "Face it, Celestia, without the Elements I was always stronger. Even with your books, I was wiser. And what great documents are there of your mercy? Oh, wait, we both know what your mercy feels like. So, what exactly do you have in mind when I return? Brute force? Begging? A futile attempt to get the Elements to work again?”
Celestia said nothing, now looking above her. A burst of green flame had materialised in midair, and as it dissipated a scroll dropped to the floor. The Princess raised an eyebrow. “A letter from Twilight Sparkle?” she asked herself, levitating it over to her. Eager to distract herself from the monster pestering her, she began to read.
My dearest teacher,
My continuing studies of pony magic have led me to discover that we are on the precithrebr that something really bad is going to happen. For you see, the mythical mare in the moon is in fact Nightmare Moon, and she’s about to return to Equestria, and bring with her eternal night. Something must be done to make sure this terrible prophecy doesn’t come true. I await your quick response.
Your faithful student,
Twilight Sparkle.
Princess Celestia had to roll her eyes a little at Spike’s difficulty at spelling a word like “precipice”. Still, he was young, and Celestia already knew the response that she would have for Twilight. Her quill springing up like a loyal servant, she wrote neatly onto a blank scroll.
My dearest, most faithful student Twilight,
You know that I value your diligence and that I trust you completely. But you simply must stop reading those dusty old books. My dear Twilight, there is more to a young pony’s life than studying. So I’m sending you to supervise the preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration in this year’s location: Ponyville. And I have an even more essential task for you to complete.
Make some friends.
Signed,
Princess Celestia.
The very instant the quill parted with it for the last time, the parchment burst into a bout of green flame, a wry smile coming to Celestia’s face. “Actually, Nightmare Moon, it won’t be so futile,” she whispered to herself.
“Ah heh heh heh…”
The sun princess looked to Twilight’s first letter, the various letters now taking the form of Nightmare Moon, who had a wicked grin made of H’s and T’s. “That’s the plan? A mere foal? I take it all back, I surrender! If only I had a baby of my own to throw, or a really cute dog, then maybe I'd stand a chance.”
“You will wish you took the time to do so,” Celestia pointed out. Her expression was tempered by discipline. “That ‘mere foal’ will reactivate the Elements of Harmony, and Luna will be released from your prison.”
“My prison?” Nightmare Moon asked, the letters across her face twisted as she let out a forced laugh. Celestia looked back to the letter; two narrowed I's glared back to Celestia's own, and the princess gave a small smile. With the way the speech marks of her coat bristled, Celestia could tell there was a loss of cool from Nightmare Moon. The letter floated, still in its golden shroud, but now the way Celestia moved it was with a sweeping, dismissive motion.
“You have warped my sister’s mind and trapped her in bitterness and hatred, but your hold is not permanent,” she said. Then her smile shrank, in direct correlation to Nightmare Moon's own growing grin. Around her, the room got that much colder, and she took a deep breath.
“I assure you, my ‘hold’ on your sister is all her choice, and it will last forever,” Nightmare Moon pointed out. Then the letters on the page began to shift again as the creature on the scroll faded away, becoming a swirling jumble of disjointed characters. “Actually,” she said with an amused tone. “I think you can hear it directly from my ‘prisoner’.”
Celestia attempted not to show it, but her eyes lit up the moment she saw the letters take on a second shape. A much friendlier shape than Nightmare Moon’s, and one that Celestia gasped upon seeing. She knew it was a trick. Of course it was; Nightmare Moon would never allow this to happen if all the outcomes didn’t in some way benefit her. But she couldn’t stop herself saying it.
“Luna!”
The alicorn on the scroll looked up immediately, her face holding myriad emotions. “Sister? I-is that really you?” she asked nervously. Just hearing the voice brought tears to Celestia’s eyes; she had to hold herself back from tackling the parchment.
“Luna, it’s been so long!” she shouted, her voice cracking as her wings extended outward. “A thousand years! A thousand years of loneliness and misery! I couldn’t stand it! Luna, you couldn’t imagine how happy it makes me to see you ok!”
Celestia had to pause for a second, and took the time to gauge Luna’s reaction. The Princess of the Night was still staring back with a sadness that was torture to behold. Tears in the shape of little commas began to fall down her paper cheek. Celestia wanted nothing more than to pull her sister to her breast and tell her it was all going to be okay. The parchment hung limply in the air, Celestia forcing herself to be more careful with her magic. As the silence became unbearable, she opened her mouth once more, though it took a second to finally splutter out what few words she could muster. “Please… just come back to me." This only seemed to prompt Luna’s tears to come in greater number and with greater force. Her teeth were gritted as she looked to her feet, and Celestia awkwardly found herself copying her sister. Then Luna's muzzle rose and her brow furrowed. A fierce scowl started to form across her face, with more vehement anger than even Nightmare Moon had. Celestia’s gut fell through her the moment she saw the frown emerge, knowing that she had said something wrong. She brought the page towards her cautiously.
"Luna?"
“Thy words betray ignorance and selfishness, Sister.”
Those words could not have sounded more ominous to Celestia were they each a shot from a cannon. Each word was barbed with a miserable steel that cut deep into her. “Next to the suffering we have gone through, thine pain is a grain of sand against a mountain. We wished…” the letters that formed Luna almost dispersed as she dipped her head in sorrow. Celestia made no attempt to interrupt, despite not wanting to do anything more. “We wished that we were wrong about thee. Nothing in this world can make us happier than the idea that thou were truly in the right.” Celestia felt cracks run across her heart as the pony in the letter began to disperse into a mass of jumbled characters.
“Sister, wait!”
Celestia’s response was far too late; the voice had gone, as had her form. Instead, she merely held Twilight’s letter, the same text as before. Her shoulders dropped like weights had been tethered to them, and she cast the parchment aside. “Oh, Twilight… I hope that you can save her.”
As if in response, another letter emerged with more green fire. The white alicorn cocked an eyebrow to it, and gingerly began to read. Before she had even gotten halfway through it, it had been crumbled up and flung across the throne room, though it immediately began to uncurl, the text upon the paper unknowingly mocking the Princess as she stared at it.
My dearest teacher,
I’m afraid I’ve already got an appointment this evening. My friend Moondancer has a party that Spike has kind of forced me into going to. I’ll try to spend as little time as possible there and get to the Summer Sun Celebration right after. Besides, if I am right, I have to prioritise the future of Equestria over ‘making friends’ and if there’s anyone smart enough to work out what’s going on, it’s Moondancer.
I’m sure you have a Plan B in mind, though, and I’ll do my best to actually get to the Summer Sun Celebration. I know Lyra Heartstrings, one of my classmates, is going. Maybe she could help with the preparations?
“Ladies and gentlecolts, this is the 13:21 train service to Las Pegasus South. Calling at Stoke on Trot, Ponyville, Manechester, White Tail, Las Pegasus Applewood and Las Pegasus South. Our next scheduled stop will be Stoke on Trot. Thank you for travelling with Friendship Express.”
Lyra was forced to slide that little bit more across her seat as a new influx of passengers swarmed onto the train. The train was already packed to capacity when she got on at Canterlot, including with all of her bags on her knees, and now she felt herself getting dangerously close to the window. She turned her gaze around as she felt another shove on her right.
“Excuse me, but there’s someone sitting her…”
About halfway through her speech, she felt one last thrust and her cheek crashed against the glass of the window. Her open mouth let out a prolonged “Ppppppppppt” as the air escaped her mouth, her eyelids tightly pressed together in a wince of discomfort. When she opened them, she looked across to see a grey earth pony similarly pressed up against the glass. However, the mare was glaring at her, with her face glistening with spit. Lyra’s cheeks went pink with embarrassment.
“Ummm… You have some of my…”
“I noticed,” the mare coldly responded, her glare not softening. Lyra’s horn illuminated, and then a small handkerchief hovered across and in front of her face. Though at first the mare was hesitant, she did take the handkerchief in her hoof with a begrudgingly polite “Thank you,” before wiping her face with it. When she had finished wiping herself, Lyra finally managed to get a good look at her; the mare clearly maintained her appearance very carefully, with her mane having not a hair out of place and the pink bow adorning her neck fitted neatly and matching her eyes. Just looking at her made Lyra feel self-conscious about her own rugged appearance, with the messy mane and slightly dirtied mint coat. Lyra looked for any topic for small talk, hoping to dispel some of the awkwardness of their position, and her eyes eventually settled on a large black case behind the earth pony.
“So… you play the cello?”
The mare didn’t answer for a second, just giving Lyra a look like she had been asked if she had ears. Lyra smiled awkwardly, before carrying on. “Ok, silly question, sorry about that… umm… do you play other instruments?” To this, the grey mare’s demeanour seemed to very suddenly improve, at least upon being given the chance to talk about her own talents.
“I’ve dabbled, shall we say. Harps, bassoon, piano, viola… of course, the cello is my own true love,” she said. With more than two words to say at a time, her Trottinghamshire accent became very apparent. “If I may blow my own trumpet, I actually play the cello professionally. I’m going to be playing at the Summer Sun Celebration in Ponyville for Princess Celestia herself.” To this, Lyra listened with increased enthusiasm, and decided now to pipe in.
“I’m going there too, as a matter of fact! And you must have a great musical talent if they want you there.”
“Thank you, but you’re much too kind,” The grey mare asked, now seeming a bit more willing to chat. “If I may ask, do you play anything?”
“Ummm… well, my dad did,” Lyra said, feeling a bit self-conscious now. “He played drums in a rock band, but I don’t play personally. I actually repair instruments.”
“Why not play?”
“Well, I just… this is going to sound really cheesy, I’m sure you won’t care.”
“Try me.”
To this, Lyra looked up. The grey mare was looking a little less intimidating than before, and that alone made Lyra confident enough to adjust herself in her seat, her cheek sliding awkwardly against the window, before explaining herself. “I just enjoy helping people. I know fixing banjos and pianos isn’t exactly on the same level as saving orphaned kittens from burning buildings and diseases, but I want to do what I can and it’s what I’m good at,” she said. The grey mare just listened patiently to this. “I mean, someone in need is someone in need, y’know? I practised a lot for Dad when I was a filly, he was really cool about it even when I got stuff wrong. I had to cut it down a lot when I started school, but I still want to do repairs. It’s why I’m going to Ponyville, got a client who’s paying a fair packet for an obscure job.” She then found herself blushing, and attempted to shift her head to hide it though instead just made a loud squeaking noise as her face dragged along the glass. “Sorry, this must sound really stupid.”
“Au contraire, I think that’s remarkably admirable,” the grey mare reassured her with a gentle smile. “And your father must be a good pony to you if he’s willing to let you fixing his drumset.” Lyra beamed.
“Wow! You know, most of the classical fans I meet kind of look down on him for being a rock drummer. It’s good to know that not of you think rock music is just for…”
“Oh sweet Celestia no!” The grey mare suddenly spoke up with a sarcastic smirk on her face. “Don’t get me wrong, I’d sooner have my ears filled with concrete than rock music…”
“Oi!”
“- but a pony is not the music they listen to or play,” the grey mare clarified. “Most of my company in the orchestra are complete pigs, and the nicest mare I knew was a DJ. I have my snobbish moments, I must admit, but I think your father sounds wonderful, regardless of how much rock music makes me want to throw up.”
“I… thank you?” Lyra said tentatively, not sure if it was a compliment or not. The grey mare tittered a little, before extending a hoof.
“Octavia.” Lyra smiled, and extended her own.
“LyraaaaAAAA!”
Both ponies immediately yelped as a sudden influx of more passengers coming onto the train slammed into both of them, and a suitcase crushed their hoofs.
“Is she here yet?”
“Hold on, kid, I’ll find out. ‘scuse me, but has the 13:52 to Las Pegasus South arrived?”
“Not since you last asked, no.”
“Thank you. No, kid, just a few more minutes.”
“Oh, ok… is she here now?”
“Hold on, kid, I’ll find out. ‘scuse me…”
All of a sudden, the pony that Rainbow Dash was talking to turned tail and left, a very grim expression on his face. The Pegasus blinked, before looking down to the small grey unicorn filly who sat by her, her large pink bow blowing gently in the wind and accompanied by her hair. Rainbow gestured to the pony who was walking away. “Jeez, someone woke up on the wrong side of bed.”
“Maybe he’s nervous. He could be waiting for someone on the train too,” the little filly pointed out.
“Maybe, Dinky, maybe,” Rainbow Dash said, idly playing with her fringe as it fell in front of her face. “Whatever. I just can’t wait for your mom to get back, coz then I can get on with training for the Wonderbolts.” The unicorn looked confused.
“What about the weather?”
“What wea… oh, right, yeah. That weather. I’ll sort it out just before the ceremony, it’ll take me like… I dunno exactly, though not long.”
“You could always practise while we wait,” Dinky pointed out, a cute smile on her face. “I won’t mind.”
“Nah, I need to stick to glue like you according to the boss. At least until your mom’s here,” Rainbow Dash explained. The last three words instinctively made Dinky perk up, even if she intentionally took them out of context.
“Is it just her you’ve been helping on your part time work?”
“Nah, but she’s the only one I’ve enjoyed helping. Well, her and that pony over there,” Rainbow Dash said, pointing to a white unicorn who was walking by, her eyes hidden behind large purple shades. “Hey! Vinyl!” To this, the white unicorn shifted her gaze and waved politely back. Then, with her two front hooves, she made a series of gestures. To this, Rainbow Dash just shook her head. “Not yet!” To this, the white unicorn just smirked before walking away. Dinky blinked in surprise, her eyes fixing to Rainbow Dash.
“That was sign language, right?”
“You betcha.”
“I didn’t know you knew sign language.”
“Are you kidding? The only words in sign language I know are ‘have you learnt sign language yet?’”
There was a rushing wind that threatened to take Dinky’s bow with it, followed by an ear-piercing screech. When both mares looked back to the train platform, there was a huge pink vehicle where a blank space once sat. The doors were literally bulging outward, and when they opened a dogpile of ponies collapsed onto the stony platform. It was a frankly surreal scene to behold, but Dinky just impatiently glared at the pile.
“Mom?”
There was no response. Rainbow Dash peered at the pile herself. Unbeknownst to either of them, a third pony had joined their side and was also looking at the pile. Dinky decided to try again. “Mom?”
“No, I don’t see her in there.”
Dinky’s head whipped to her right at the sound of the voice. Rainbow Dash whipped her head to the right upon seeing Dinky look there. Muffins whipped her head to the right, pretending to try and see what they were looking at. Dinky just grinned to this.
“Mommy, you’re being silly again!”
“But I’m always acting super serious,” Muffins protested, both her eyes drifting apart further than usual. “Now, have either of you fine gentlemen seen my little girl? She’s about your height, wears the bow you’re wearing and has the same coloured coat and mane.” Rainbow Dash had a grin on her face as well by now.
“How was Trottingham?”
“It was nice, but work made it less so,” Muffins said. “It’s not as fun to go to a new place when you’ve got work to do.”
“Urgh, I know,” Rainbow Dash said. “I like taking care of Dinky and helping you around the house, but just the fact that it’s work makes it suddenly terrible, y’know?” All of a sudden, Muffins’ face became quite steely, which Dinky recognised and Dinky alone recognised; it was difficult to notice a steely look when the wearer of the expression was looking in two different directions.
“This is your last contract, isn’t it?” She said. Rainbow Dash nodded.
“Yep! Next week is the first week of my pay rise, so no more needing two jobs for me!” To this, Muffins inhaled sharply in determination.
“Ok, Muffins! This is it!” She thought to herself. “She’s flat out said she enjoys coming around. No more excuses, no more chickening out! Now is the time to take the initiative and show her how you really feel!”
“You can still come around as a friend whenever you want, you know?” She asked casually.
“Oh, yeah, definitely. Just give me a shout and I’ll be there,” Rainbow Dash answered easily casually. “But right now, I’ve gotta fly.”
“See you ‘round,” Muffins said calmly, watching as Rainbow Dash took off to the sky. A warm smile came to her face, her lips curling upwards. Her eyes looked longingly upwards, her heartbeat increasing as it always did when her crush was around. Then she heard a groan of derision.
“What was that, mommy?” Dinky asked. Muffins looked irritated to this.
“Hey! Baby steps,” Muffins pointed out. “I have to be gradual about this.”
“You’ve been saying ‘baby steps’ for months now,” Dinky pointed out.
“Well, it took you two years to walk, so actually I’m going quite quickly!”
“Are not!”
“Are too!”
“Are not!”
“Are too!”
“Nyaaah!” Both of the ponies said at once, sticking their tongues out at one another, before they both fell to their knees with giggles. With one swoop of a wing, Muffins plucked Dinky up effortlessly and placed her on her back. “Come on, let’s get to Sugarcube Corner! I’m starving!” Muffins said, much to Dinky’s delight.
Neither of them saw the huge pile of ponies shift as they pulled away. Lyra and Octavia were lying on the platform, wheezing breathlessly. Lyra looked up to see a white unicorn wearing purple shades, her spiky blue mane appearing as dark as the sea. The unicorn pointed to a piece of paper that she recognised as her advert. Lyra then gasped, pulling herself up.
“Yes, yes, I’m Lyra Heartstrings!” She wheezed, trying to catch her breath. “You must be DJ Pon-3?” To this, the white unicorn nodded enthusiastically. “Brilliant! Well, I’ll let you lead the way to your home, and we can take a look at the instruments in question. So, how are you today?”
The white unicorn nodded enthusiastically but said nothing, something that Lyra was not expecting.
“… that’s… good…” she said slowly, before offering her hoof to shake. The white pony took it enthusiastically. “So, I know about the mixing desk, but you said you had some other stuff I’d be looking at. I brought all my tools just in case, but what is it I’d be seeing to?”
The white unicorn nodded enthusiastically but said nothing, something that Lyra still was a little surprised by.
“My word, it really is you!” Octavia suddenly shouted from behind Lyra, causing the mint unicorn to leap several feet into the air. The white unicorn paused, before taking her purple shades off slowly and then pulling Octavia into a massive hug, something that Lyra was only sort of expecting so far as she was expecting anything and every by this point. Octavia pulled away from the hug first, a huge grin on her face. “What have you been doing, Vinyl? It’s been years!”
To this, Vinyl began to make a long winded series of gestures in rapid succession. Their meaning was lost entirely on Lyra, but it was clear to her that the case was not the same for Octavia, who watched with rapt attention. Her eyes were fixed tightly to her, her expression changing several times from shock to joy to sorrow, but she finally settled on a gently Trottingham chuckle.
“Oh ho ho! We never did find the body,” Octavia giggled, before looking to Lyra. “Was Vinyl your client all along?” To this, the mint unicorn nodded awkwardly, prompting another chuckle from the grey cellist. “Small world. I must say, it’s almost like fate brought us together! Tell you what, I’ll join you to Vinyl’s house; we have a lot to catch up on!”
Lyra’s heart skipped a beat at the idea of making new friends so easily, and nodded vigorously in agreement. However, the moment she did, she felt a terrible chill down her spine, simply at mention of the word ‘fate’.
Very little sunlight broke through the canopy of the Everfree Forest, but it was enough for Zecora to see what she was doing. The black, brown and green of the forest was only occasionally broken up with the colours of the various flowers, or golden rays of sunlight that streamed in through the gaps in the treeline. The summer afternoon was warmer than most days, but Zecora still had a thick cloak wrapped around her. Her life in Zebrabwe had made her used to the sweltering heat and burning sun, and she hadn’t quite gotten used to this more temperate climate that she now called home. Her eyes glanced down, idly looking to her hooves, when she noticed a lake of blue flowers in front of her. The zebra paused; she didn’t think she had walked that fast, and she had almost blindly trodden into a patch of Poison Joke. Too wrapped up in her thoughts to pay attention to the rest of the world; it wouldn’t do. She circumnavigated the Poison Joke warily, pausing only when she was past it. She looked to her satchel bag, pulled out a pair of tongs with her teeth and used them to uproot one of the flowers, roots and all. She very carefully put it in her bag, having to take the bag off of her back to do so. It was only when she was done that she heard a sound. It was a very faint sound, one of a pencil scribbling on paper. When she did hear it, her head whipped around, but there was no one there.
“Perhaps I imagined it,” Zecora thought to herself, replacing the satchel bag onto her back and beginning her walk again. Now, though, she became more aware of a strange feeling; as if someone was watching her. Her eyes darted around, looking for any hint of her phantom follower. Then she stopped, realising the absurdity of the situation. Based on a sound she wasn’t sure was even real, she was looking for somepony who may or may not be watching her. Even if there was somepony out there, who was to say they knew she was there? She put a hoof to her head, a small chuckle passing through her lips.
“Clearly my solitude is having me jump at ghosts,” she said in her native Zebran, before her face became a little forlorn. “I just wish these ponies were more welcoming hosts.” She looked ahead, noticing a red fungus on a tree and, after extracting a small blade from her bag, began to shave off a sample. She became locked in thought; it probably was her wanting company that had her starting to expect it than any solid suspicions.
Zecora let out a frustrated sigh, a pang of homesickness overcoming her. For as bitter as the land itself could be, she missed the warmth of her fellow zebras back in her home of Timbucktoo. She was self-admittedly quite the loner, more interested in her potions and charms than making friends, but there was always the opportunity to. An opportunity she was now sorely missing, and regretting not taking full advantage of. Still, she had at least had people to speak to; her family, the young pony mare who came from Equestria to study the zebra magics, and of course the nice bazaar owner who sold her whatever wares she needed. It was him who suggested moving to Equestria to study in the first place.
“If you wish to further your magic studies, I learnt all I know there. I guarantee you will find the friendliest faces and leave with knowledge to spare,” he had said, so far as Zecora could recall. It made her want to laugh.
Zecora paused in her scraping, blade still in her hoof. Did she just see a rustle in the bushes? Not unusual, in the Everfree Forest at least, but with her already wondering if there was somepony out there, it wouldn’t hurt to be too short. “Hello? Is there somepony watching me?” She asked into the darkness of the forest. “If there is, this joke is not very funny.” She then looked down, peering at a root vegetable she had nearly tripped over. She made a curious humming noise, before picking up her blade again. “I do not think I need this root, but I take it just in case.”
“Sidhani kama nahitaji mzizi hii, lakini mimi kuchukua ni kama tahadhari.”
Sweetie Drops paused, before looking into the open ‘Zebran-to-Pony’ dictionary she had positioned carefully in front of her. Once she knew what the mysterious zebra had actually said, she dug out her notebook and wrote down her notes.
‘Sentences rhyming, but ignoring syllables and accents. Timbucktoo dialect maybe? Extracting lunkroot, requires further investigation.’
Sweetie Drops looked back up, peering back at the zebra. Only to see said zebra looking back at her. The earth pony froze, her heart leaping to her throat; had her camouflage really failed her? The zebra’s eyes held a suspicious glint as she walked over. Sweetie Drops could feel a bead of sweat running down her forehead, peering at the zebra. The zebra squinted, now mere inches away. The secret agent trembled with fear, knowing that exposure was mere moments away.
The zebra placed a hoof on the large cardboard box Sweetie Drops was sat in and pushed it aside. There was a pause, lasting at least ten seconds, before the zebra seemed satisfied and began to walk away. Sweetie Drops’ nostrils flared as she exhaled in relief, before writing more notes in her book.
‘Cardboard box successful, but subject has better hearing than expected,’ Sweetie Drops thought on the words she had just wrote down, before adding another note. ‘Note; mention success of cardboard box disguise to Shining Armour and rub it in his face.’
“What are you writing, Miss Bon Bon?"
Sweetie Drops nearly smashed the box apart with her head as she leapt up in shock. Her hoof went to a pistol that she kept on her at all the times she could and pointed, only to stop. Her wide eyes narrowed in a deep-set frown. “Pipsqueak?! Shouldn’t you be in school or something?!”
“Miss Cheerilee has taken us out on a field trip, but I got lost and was hoping you had seen her,” Pipsqueak pointed out optimistically. The little pony didn’t seem concerned about the deadly weapon aimed directly at him. However, his brow did furrow in confusion. “Miss Bon Bon, why does your voice sound so odd? Do you have a cold?”
“Look, kid, just scram, alright?” Bon Bon grumbled irritably, before looking out of the eye holes she had cut into her box. Then she grunted loudly. “Lost her. Great. That’s your fault, by the way.”
“Who? That nice zebra lady?”
“You don’t know who that ‘nice zebra lady’ could be! She could be anyone! A spy, maybe? An assassin? A monster in disguise?”
“… well, which of those is she?”
“That’s what I intend to find out,” Sweetie Drops said, finally pointing the gun away from Pipsqueak’s face. She looked out of her eye holes, hoping to spot the zebra again within the dense forest, before looking back to the young child. “Don’t you have anywhere else to be?” “Well, I don’t know where my teacher went,” Pipsqueak pointed out. Sweetie Drops rolled her eyes.
“Then just go back to your house or whatever, I’m sure your mom will understand.”
“Well… I don’t really have one.”
“A house? Then your flat, or wherever it is you live.”
“You mean the orphanage?”
Sweetie Drops’ face immediately dropped, realising what he actually meant, and she looked back to Pipsqueak. It was only now that she noticed that he was on the verge of tears. The secret agent, for a brief moment at least, completely forgot about her mission and focused entirely on the child that had snuck into her box. “Oh. Wow, sorry, kid. That sucks.”
“S’not your fault, Miss Bon Bon. Besides, Dad’s alive, he’s just only in Ponyville a few days of the year,” he said, managing to hold his emotions back. It was clear that it was a very touchy subject, and Sweetie Drops knew that she was not the best at comforting children. When his eyes met her once more, though, they were filled once again with a childlike glee. “But you’re saying that zebra is dangerous, right? How dangerous? Like on a scale of one to ten?” Sweetie Drops frowned.
“I’ve made a terrible mistake,” she mumbled irritably to herself, before looking back to Pipsqueak. “You really don’t have much in the way of self-preservation, do you?”
“Well, if you need help with anything, I don’t mind at all! I’ve not got anything to do today besides find Miss Cheerilee, and then I’m at the Summer Sun Celebration, but until then I don’t mind helping you with…”
“The Summer Sun Celebration!” Sweetie Drops suddenly called out, her hoof driving into her forehead. “Of course!” For once, her face actually bore a large grin, looking to Pipsqueak. “That’s it! She must be here for that! Say, Pip, you any good at reading?” Pipsqueak’s eyebrow rose.
“This doesn’t sound too exciting…”
“It’s got something to do with monsters.”
“I’m in!” Pipsqueak enthusiastically shouted, almost throwing the cardboard box away in excitement. Sweetie Drops grinned to this.
“Fantastic!” She said, before looking around to make sure that no one was watching them. “Well, we’re going to get to the library, and we’re going to get to the bottom of this.” She looked out into the black, brown and green mosaic that was the Everfree Forest, speaking to no one in particular as she walked forward. “Just watch out, Zebra Lady, if that even is your real name… I’m onto you now...” She began to walk forward, with Pipsqueak following at her heels eagerly.
“They will accept you tonight.”
“We wish for them to do so willingly. Showing them the beauty of our night is only to convince, not to force.”
“Those ponies have had over a millennia of Celestia’s propaganda to make them fear the night. Force may be the only way.”
“Thou shalt not hurt any of our little ponies, asides in self-defence.”
“There are those who will attempt to stop you.”
“And we will talk to them. They will see that our night is truly magnificent.”
“And the cruelty of your sister, of course.”
“…”
“Oh come on, Luna!”
“Even now, it is difficult to not love her.”
“What happened to arrogance and selfishness? Those words from your lips.”
“Of course I… of course we are angry at her, but she loves us. We love her.”
“Pathetic.”
“I just… we just wish she could remember that for a moment.”
“… and she will. All she needs to do is see that we can rule Equestria better than she can, and she will bow to you. All of Equestria will bow to you.”
“And we shall return the gesture. We are here to serve Equestria, not have Equestria serve us.”
“…”
“You are silent, my trusty ally. Doth you have a concern?”
“… let’s just get back to planning our initial entrance, shall we?”
“Pipsqueak, come in. Echo darlington delta, three one two.”
“Miss Bon Bon, I can’t remember, is that code for ‘Pass the sugar’ or ‘Would you like wine with that?’”
“Just open the door.”
Pipsqueak slowly pushed the double doors of Ponyville Town Hall open, cautiously, but couldn’t work out why Bon Bon decided to cartwheel through the opening rather than simply walking in like any other pony. He looked down as she rolled under a coffee table in the corner, her eyes darting around like little sapphires as she peered into the crowd. Pipsqueak looked around too, then noticed Bon Bon sliding out of her hiding spot.
“Miss Bon Bon, why do you not want anyone to see you?”
“In my line of work, you need to know exactly who is in a room before you go in,” she said cryptically. Pipsqueak didn’t understand, but simply nodded.
“Oh, ok. Sorry we couldn’t find anything about the zebra in the library. I learnt a lot about the Summer Sun Celebration, though. Did you know…”
“It’s fine,” Bon Bon interrupted in a voice that suggested it wasn’t. “I’ll just go in tonight blind, and if anything suspicious happens, I’ll be ready. Besides, it wasn’t your fault.” She looked to the table behind her, taking a drink in her hoof. She looked down to Pipsqueak. “You had better scram, it won’t be safe.”
“Yeah, but it’d be fun, right?” Pipsqueak asked optimistically. The pony he knew as Bon Bon made an odd wince with her face, then shrugged.
“Not for a kid; it’ll be a bit of talking, and one loud bang. Besides, weren’t you supposed to be here anyway?”
“Oh?” Pipsqueak asked, then his eyes widened. “Oh!” A memory flashed in his head, and he nodded vigorously, the white and brown of his coat becoming one as they blurred together with the speed with which he nodded. “I’ve got to meet Dinky. Thank you for getting me out of the Everfree Forest, Miss Bon Bon!”
“Whatever, kid. Don’t bother me again.”
“You’re funny!” Pipsqueak shouted cheerfully, before walking away. It did not take long to find who he was looking for; the pink bow that Dinky Hooves always wore was difficult to miss, given that it was about the size of her head. When he approached, she looked directly at him and grinned.
“Pip!”
“Evenin’, Dinky!” He said, before frowning. He expected her to sound excited, but instead she almost sounded… scolding. The grey filly glared at him.
“Miss Cheerlie told me that you were lost! When she found me and asked me where you were, she realised that I wasn’t actually sick today!” She pouted irritably. “I’ve got a week’s detention because of you!”
“Why did you think it would be a good idea to pretend to be sick?”
“Adult ponies do it all the time!” Dinky said defensively. “Mom, Rainbow Dash… hey, remember when we got a substitute teacher because Miss Cheerilee had the cold?”
“Yes?”
“Well, that day, I saw her and Mom at Sugarcube Corner, drinking some of Mom’s special water that I’m not allowed to drink anymore,” Dinky proudly asserted, looking proud of herself for having worked it out. Pipsqueak just tilted his head.
“How did you know she was at Sugarcube Corner if you were at school?”
“Before you answer that question, Dinky, you should know that I listen to all of your conversations,” came a voice. Pipsqueak looked up, a toothy grin coming to his face.
“Mrs Muffins!”
“It’s, umm, Miss Muffins, now,” Muffins clarified, a blush coming to her face. “Dinky’s dad and I parted on friendly terms, and I definitely didn’t bury him in the garden. Oh, is that mud on my hooves?” Dinky smirked.
“Mom, stop being silly.”
“If I did, I’d stop being your Mom,” Muffins pointed out, a grin on her face. “Dinky, I’ll speak to you about your skiving later, but I’m being nice to you today so I’ll let you two have your fun for now.”
“You just don’t want to be telling me off in front of Rainbow Dash, Mom,” Dinky pointed out. Muffins frowned.
“It’s called being a responsible parent, and you’re right, I don’t want to be a responsible parent in front of Dash,” she said. Dinky giggled, and she smiled warmly. “Go on, enjoy yourselves. And don’t do anything I would!”
“We won’t!” Dinky clarified, before looking to Pipsqueak. “Come on, I think Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle are looking for help with their next cutie mark attempt!” The Trottingham foal followed eagerly behind the little grey filly, a smile on Muffins’ face as they went.
“She’s pretty damn awesome, isn’t she?”
“She’s more than that. She’s everything,” Muffins explained, before turning around. Rainbow Dash leant by the table, sipping on some punch and looking to her with wide eyes. Pinkish red orbs that Muffins felt she could get lost in. She looked to her hooves awkwardly. “Look, Rainbow, thank you. For everything.”
“Hey, it’s cool. After all, with how much you work, you can’t be home all the time. I’m just glad somepony appreciates my foalsitting talents,” Rainbow Dash boasted, a wide grin on her face. Muffins just smiled, though didn’t attempt to look up from her hooves.
“Well, there is something else that I need to say,” she began again.
“Alright, Muffins, but could you make it quick? I need to get to those cider cups before the last one goes.” With this added urgency, Muffins felt her stomach twist within her belly.
“Ah, right, o-ok,” she stuttered. “This isn’t really the thing to rush, but given that… well, that’s kind of what I want to s-say, I guess. I know, I mean. It’s just that, well… it’s not just been helping me with Dinky that you’ve done for me, but I… I really enjoyed your c-company. You’re such a wonderful pony; you’re funny, you’re n-nice, you see past my, umm, eyes and clumsiness and stuff. I think you’re the only person I’ve not heard call me Ditzy or whatever it is they’re saying now.” She paused to catch her breath, her eyes dropping to the floor again. “Wh-what I mean to say is that I… I think I… Dash, I luh…”
“YOU GET THAT HOOF AWAY FROM THAT TABLE RIGHT NOW!”
“Dash?”
Muffins’ gaze whipped up to confront the empty space that Rainbow Dash had occupied. Instead, there was merely the remnants of a dust cloud, and in the middle distance a cyan blur, as Rainbow Dash leapt dramatically towards the cider table. Only one mug was left, and there was a terrified looking pony with a singular outstretched hoof. The grey mare frowned, and she could feel her eyes starting to drift farther apart than usual. She then heard a set of titters from behind her.
“Is Ditzy talking to an empty space?” One spiteful voice asked.
“Probably just something mental she does, the daft poor thing,” a second said.
“Ssssh, she’ll hear you,” came a third. Muffins whipped her head around, a snarl coming to her face. It was the three flower ponies, because of course it was. They were the usual suspects when it came to gossip, and Muffins had enough experience to know when she was the subject.
“Actually, I can hear you three!” Muffins shouted angrily, turning around. They were on the other end of the table she stood by, and they all looked to her with shock painted across their faces. She intentionally put on her best scolding mother face and voice, something she had plenty of practise with Dinky. “And you know what? Maybe you shouldn’t talk behind a pony’s back like little school fillies!” She lifted a hoof dramatically, before dropping it on the table for emphasis. “This is me putting my hoof down on your behavi-”
WHAM!
As her hoof came down, straight onto the edge of a metal tray, there was a small ‘clonk’ sound, before the tray slammed into her snout. It bounced off, and Muffins’ head was thrown upwards. The lights above went in and out of focus, a hazy series of white and yellow bulbs in a dark grey sea. She didn’t move, but she felt a pair of hooves re-direct her gaze. A blue blurry ball was in front of her, slowly coming into focus, as was her hearing. She heard a raspy, deep scratch of a voice asking her questions.
“… came as soon as I heard. Muffins, are you listening? Oh, snap, you’re bleeding!”
“It’s fine, Rainbow,” Muffins pointed out, bringing a hoof to her snout. She inspected her foot as she pulled it away, a scarlet stain across it. As her stunned giddiness faded, the pain set in, a dull throbbing in the centre of her face. “Doesn’t feel broken. Hurts like hell, though. Did you get your cider?”
“Forget the cider, are you… well, no, I didn’t, but that doesn’t matter right now… it doesn’t matter that much, anyway... just a little.”
“Sorry,” Muffins said with a slight choke to her face. Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes.
“Look, don't apologise so much, just… let’s get you cleaned up,” she said, leading Muffins away. Muffins just kept her head down, her cheeks becoming as fiercely red as her nostrils. The cyan Pegasus looked just as embarrassed, pulling the pitable mare away from the table.
Lyra felt lucky in getting the last cider, but overall it had been a very lucky day for her.
She was a city girl by heart. Her world was one of huge crowds, of towers of steel and glass, of sprawling streets, impossible to navigate to all but the locals. Some little crum-bum town in the middle of nowhere, with dainty little houses and exactly one shop for each thing, did not sound like a raucous amount of fun for her. Then there was what she had given up to be here; she had originally planned to go to the party that her friend Moondancer. Apparently, Moondancer had pulled out all of the stops; she had somehow managed to invite even Twilight Sparkle, and if that closed off introvert had expressed interest in going then it must have been good. But no, there was work.
And yet, Lyra had found herself loving her time here. The town itself didn’t really appeal to her, but her company? Octavia and Vinyl Scratch were city girls by nature too, and birds of a feather may flock together. Their conversation had run the gambit all day and night, from their mutual love of music to the joys of city life. A lot of comparing and contrasting between Canterlot and Trottingham had occurred. She barely knew either of these ponies, but now she felt like they were firm friends.
Though that’s not to say there was no conflict between them.
“Why would you call them ‘crisps’?” The mint unicorn asked frustratedly. “They’re potato chips! They are literally chips of potato!” To this, Vinyl Scratch made a series of hoof gestures that Octavia nodded in approval to.
“Vinyl’s correct, I must admit,” the grey earth pony said, sipping from her glass. “Crisps do make a ‘crisp’ sound when you bite them, and they do taste crispy.”
“And how often have either of you heard that name outside of Trottingham?”
Both Vinyl and Octavia, at first, looked a little defeated by this, before Octavia’s lips curled upward. “And where were they invented? Oh, that’s right; Buck Lane, Trottingham.” Lyra blinked to this, a brief pause in the conversation, before all three of them started to giggle. Lyra looked to Octavia.
“I tell you what, meeting you two has made this trip a lot more enjoyable. How long do you think you’ll be in Ponyville for, Octavia?”
“Oh, me? I think I’m leaving early morning,” Octavia said. Lyra didn’t make note of it, but she did notice Vinyl’s usually cheerful demeanour drop immediately upon hearing this. Octavia didn’t seem the wiser, as she elaborated. “I might come back once or twice, just to see Vinyl, but I need to prepare for the next tour. Speaking of, I think I’m going in five minutes to prepare to play.” She then looked to Lyra. “How about you, Lyra? How long do you think you’ll be staying?”
“Well, I’ve still got your sousaphone to fix,” Lyra said, gesturing to Vinyl. She placed her cider on the table by her, wiping her lips. “Then after that, I think I’ll only be staying for…”
Suddenly, Lyra stopped, much to Octavia and Vinyl’s confusion. They watched as Lyra’s gold eyes widened, her mouth staying open. They looked to behind them, trying to see what she was looking at, before turning back.
“You’ll be staying for…” Octavia prompted. Then Lyra gave a dreamy smile, one that seemed drunken and distant.
“For the rest of my life,” she said, her cider mug illuminating with magic as she lifted it in front of Vinyl’s face idly. “Hold this for me,” she asked before simply dropping it on the floor. She certainly didn’t notice, and began to walk away from the two bewildered ponies. The mint unicorn marched forward, quite literally through the crowd. Any pony who didn’t move out of her way was shunted away, but she never seemed to notice. At one point, she bumped into a table and simply walked on until it was pulled out of her way by someone else. Soon, the crowd dove out of the way, as Lyra approached the opposite end of the hall.
Agent Sweetie Drops glared out of the window. There, in the darkness, she could see the zebra from the forest pacing about. Whatever she had planned must have something to do with tonight, she was sure of it. The cream pony looked around cautiously, before pulling out her trusty pistol and aiming it at the cloaked figure. The shot was far, but it didn’t matter; if she wasn’t hit, at least the zebra would probably be startled enough to run, and then Sweetie Drops could confront her at her leisure. She closed one eye, the other focusing as her hoof remained still and her breathing steadied.
“H-h-h-hiiiiiiii~”
Sweetie Drops stopped at what sounded like an angelic voice. She turned slowly, trying to keep the pistol hidden.
All of the world stopped.
Wide, golden eyes, like two suns staring back at her. Two toned flowing locks of an off-grey green and the most pearly white. A form unlike any other Sweetie Drops had seen, with a shimmering green coat and wondrous curves. For a moment, Sweetie Drops was convinced she was in the company of an angel. She dropped her pistol in shock, not noticing it fire at it dropped to the floor. The panicked screams in the background of the hall were drowned out by the voice of this mare, which to Sweetie Drops sounded sweeter than a choir of cherubs. “What’s your name?” Asked the angelic beauty. Sweetie Drops felt her cheeks going pink.
“Sweetie Dr- no, Bon… no… yes, Bon Bon,” Sweetie Drops said in a complete panic, her mind going completely blank. She forgot about the zebra agent entirely, as well as where she was. If asked her mother’s name she would have struggled at that moment. Sweetie Drops struggled to continue the conversation, already perfectly content to simply stare into this mare’s eyes all night, but she forced herself to speak. “And you are…”
“I’m in love,” the pony said dreamily, her eyelashes fluttering as she did. Then she panicked in a similar manner to Sweetie Drops. “I mean I’m in Lyra. I mean I am Lyra.” She had a blush on her cheeks as she looked back to Sweetie Drops. Those blushes, like two pink roses; such beauty and fragility. She tentatively placed a hoof to Lyra’s chin, and the mint unicorn squeaked in surprise.
“Fillies and gentlecolts, as mayor of Ponyville, it is my great pleasure to announce the beginning of the Summer Sun Celebration!”
Neither pony was stirred by this distant voice. A grey pony in a pink bow tie approached Lyra from behind and tapped her gently on the shoulder.
“Lyra, they’re starting, haven’t you notic-” Suddenly, the grey pony was subjected to a loud, catlike hiss from Lyra, who wheeled around with a terrifying rage. The grey pony immediately backed off, and those golden orbs turned back to Sweetie Drops, freezing her in place and throwing her into a world of bliss.
“In just a few moments, our town will witness the magic of the sunrise, and celebrate this, the longest day of the year!” Came the distant voice again, one that Sweetie Drops might have recognised as Mayor Mare had she been able to recognise anything of what was going on around her. “And now, it is my great honor to introduce to you the ruler of our land, the very pony who gives us the sun and the moon each and every day, the good, the wise, the bringer of harmony to all of Equestria; Princess Celestia!”
For Zecora, the loneliest times were when she was in Ponyville itself, though at least at night she could somewhat understand it.
Even though she was on the main street, and she could hear the clop clop clop of hooves and the ruckus of idle chatter, there was not a soul in sight. The main road was basked in shadow, the houses becoming blocks of black and the grass a dull grey. Only a few of the houses had the lights on, and all of them were silent. There was only one building that they could all be in, the one building with enough space and lights to accommodate them all, the one building that made any sound; the town hall, towering and imposing in comparison to the simple cottages around it. In a major city like Zecora’s own Timbucktoo or one of Equestria’s metropolises, this hall would be dwarfed entirely, but in this town it was a giant standing proud and mighty in a world of little children. Impossible not to notice.
Like Zecora herself, she reflected, though not in one very important aspect.
She knew that her presence was cause of fear among these ponies, the reason unexplained to her, and the town streets parted and emptied whenever she ventured here. She stuck out like a sore thumb, and was impossible not to notice. But the town hall was a welcoming place. It was accepted as part of the landscape by the residents of the town. And Zecora? A zebra? An outcast. An anomaly. A creature to be feared. She had come into town, hoping that the chemist that she acquired her rarer materials hadn’t closed, though they had simply, as always, left the items she needed on the doorstep and took her money when she was gone. At least this time she didn’t hear the pony whimpering on the other side of the door. And why, she thought, did she always come anyway? She could get it delivered to her doorstep and save herself the humiliation and the ponies the embarrassment.
“It is because thou ventures here in hope. Are we not correct?”
Zecora wheeled around. The voice was not in her head, so it was not her mind responding to its own train of thought. There stood a pony, taller than any Zecora had seen her travels. Her form was obscured by a mass of grey rags, though the coat of her legs was visible. Just barely though; they were the same dark blue as the night sky behind her. The voice itself was soft, though there was an antiquated edge to it. Zecora felt uneasy but chose not to antagonise; though there was an undoubtable sense of danger, there was just something about this pony that almost wanted to make Zecora bow. She was regal and exuded importance and grace.
“A perceptive pony you must be, to so quickly gain a read on me,” Zecora said.
“Thou art far from home, zebra. Loneliness recognises loneliness,” the pony explained, before tilting her head curiously. “What is thy name?”
“My tall companion, my name is Zecora. Timbucktoo is my original home,” the zebra replied, looking up. “And, if I may be bold, what do I call you? Is Ponyville your home?”
“No, it is not,” the pony said calmly. “And thou shalt address me as Princess Luna.” Zecora’s eyes widened upon hearing the name. “Zecora, we know thou art well-versed in magics. Thoughts, dreams and imagination are our domain. We know you are familiar with our unfortunate legend.”
“I… I…” The zebra backed away slowly, fearing freezing over her heart. The pony removed her hood, and Zecora stopped. Luna’s expression was impossible to read, though it was powerful and compelling. Her brow furrowed, but not in anger, and her lips tightly locked together. It was the face of authority, but a calming one.
“No harm shall come to you, Zecora. Or indeed to any of our subjects.”
“… forgive me for my surprise, Princess Luna,” the zebra hesitantly explained. “It is taught as myth in zebra culture.”
“And doth the zebras refer to ourselves as Nightmare Moon, like the ponies do?” Luna asked. Zecora’s answer was enough. “Luna and Nightmare Moon are part of the same whole, it is true. She aids me, I aid her.” She looked to the town hall. “Heed our lesson well, Zecora of Zebrabwe; ponies are fearful and judgmental. They are not welcoming to what they do not understand. You cannot simply languish behind and hope they cast their gaze to you; you must help them understand.”
“You cannot not bring eternal night,” Zecora pointed out, her voice becoming lower and more confrontational. Luna looked to her, seeming disappointed. “Even you know none can survive without light. The ponies, the crops, the animals, all will weep; is that really the harvest you wish to reap?”
“The night will only last until they understand,” Luna said testily, before marching towards the town hall. “Do not attempt to stop me. I will be confronting a very powerful pony, and this could be dangerous.” Zecora continued to back away, glaring at Luna’s coat as it began to blacken. The zebra snarled, but did indeed turn and flee. Luna turned to watch her go, only stopping when the zebra had vanished from sight, before she began her march to the town hall again.
Mayor Mare stepped aside, a beaming smile on her face, and the curtains fell away. Then, there was a gasp; no one was there. All of the eyes in the room snapped to the space Princess Celestia was meant to be in. A silent panic began to set in, though it was broken swiftly.
“Ok, sorry. I couldn’t resist.”
With that, Princess Celestia emerged from the second set of curtains behind, to a cheer of both relief and joy. She had a serene smile on her face, one of a calm elated. She looked on every pony in the room like she was a proud mother. To all in the crowd, she seemed to be nurturing, patient and overjoyed to be here.
Though behind the smile, there was a wide-eyed terror.
She gave a polite wave of her hoof, twisting it a few times regally and softly, the applause yet to die down, but all the while she was waiting for a crack of thunder, and for a beam of magic to swoop in and destroy all the proceedings. And every second the attack didn’t come, the worse she felt. What was Nightmare Moon waiting for? What could she be planning?
No sooner did the claps and cheers begin to dim, however, that she heard it. The slow, repeated beats of a very sarcastic clap. Soon, as the applause ended from one pony at a time, there was only one pony still bringing hoof to hoof. One that soon had the attention of the entire room, as she stood at the now open door like a late arrival at a wedding.
“Sorry I’m late, Celie,” Nightmare Moon said, her voice booming across the town hall. “About 1,000 years late. Still, good to see that the rightful ruler of Equestria is greeted with such enthusiasm.” All of the ponies in the room immediately backed away, trying to get towards the door.
“Nightmare Moon,” Celestia said, barely restrained anger in every syllable. The black alicorn nodded back. “You will not threaten the lives of my subjects. Now release your control over Luna, or you will…”
“In good time, Celie, in good time,” Nightmare Moon interrupted, waving her hoof and casting an eye across the room. There were a few ponies that popped out in particular. Two ponies, huddled together in the corner and looking into each other’s eyes, had only just now noticed her. Another couple just stood, slackjawed, while a third consisted of a rainbow-maned Pegasus being restrained by the tail. Under a nearby table, two sets of small eyes, the eyes of mere foals, stared back at her. However, one face was conspicuously missing. “So, where’s this student of yours? I’ve never seen her before, could you help point her out, or did you just decide to go with plan B?”
Princess Celestia was completely silent, but there was a small hum emanating from her horn.
“Plan B it is,” Nightmare Moon commented, a smirk coming to her face. “Just as well, throwing children at me wasn’t a stellar battle plan.” She then turned back to her sister, and grinned at the glowing horn. “Really? You’re going to start blasting, in a room full of your precious subjects? You really don’t have much concern for their safety, do you?”
“That’s what the first spell is for.”
The moment she heard it, Nightmare Moon rolled her eyes, intentionally appearing nonchalant as Celestia’s magic snapped around her hooves and shoved her back at a speed unlike the wingbeats of a hummingbird. The town hall was only just visible, but Nightmare Moon looked straight forward, to the white speck in the doorframe. A speck that was quickly growing, approaching.
“Ok, I take it back, your student might have started with something more impressive,” she said spitefully, before weaving out of the way of the oncoming Celestia, her horn pointed outwards like a lance. The eyes of the princess widened in shock as her tail was illuminated with a blue magic. She tried to wriggle free of Nightmare Moon’s control, but she was quickly shot through the air like she was on a centrifuge, and connected to the hard ground with an almighty SMACK! Nightmare Moon had a wide grin on her face. “Well, this was easier than –”
Kaaaaa-POW!
Nightmare Moon was flung into the air, letting out a loud grunt of pain. Her teeth gritted, she had to use her wings to steady herself. Celestia charged upward, her wings beating furiously. Nightmare Moon fired a series of small bolts of off-white lightning from her horn, all of which were easily dodged by Celestia. Celestia, teeth bared in a spiteful snarl, continued to fly upward, but was suddenly struck from behind as the missed bolts turned around and slammed into her back. She was thrown up rather than flying up, and Nightmare Moon easily caught her with a single hoof and flung her to the ground. There was a tremendous THUD when the white alicorn met mud and stone, and Nightmare Moon flew down, firing more bolts at the besieged Celestia. Celestia was hit by one as she rose, then dodged the rest. She watched Nightmare Moon get close, and her horn lit up fantastically. A ball of flame was suddenly catapulted towards Nightmare Moon, but the dark alicorn grinned. She very quickly gave a spin in the middle of the air, and the fireball was thrown back towards Celestia. Her heart leapt to her throat and she was forced to deflect it with her magic, but it gave Nightmare Moon the perfect opening. Her hoof crashed into Celestia’s cheek as she dropped, before she turned and booted Celestia in the chest. The white alicorn was thrown back, rolling onto her back and almost digging her head into the ground.
Nightmare Moon smiled; even though Celestia was not knocked out, and the two were trading blows, she could always tell that Celestia was tired and out of practise. When she was Princess Luna, she could remember the many battles Celestia had with her, but now she appeared like an aging brawler; out of practise, out of shape and out of their league. Pathetic, really. “So, it turns out that excessive cake eating DOES affect magic,” she cruelly sniped. Celestia just looked up, something that made Nightmare Moon hesitate. It was a miserable look, her eyes wide and welling with tears. A small part of Nightmare Moon, the part she recognised that Luna’s consciousness, wanted to reach out. To apologise, and to aid what she saw as a tyrant. “No. This time, I win, and Equestria falls to me,” she thought, her eyes narrowed and her horn glowing. Her sister, the fur of her chest singed and still smoking from the fireball, looked down.
BLAM BLAM BLAM!
Nightmare Moon felt three objects bounce off her skin, but the force! They threatened to rip her head off, they were that fierce. Any normal pony took a shot like that, and they could be dead. She looked over to see a creamy pony, half of the first of the three couples she saw, with an unfamiliar weapon in hand, the barrel smoking.
“Want more, ugly?!” Bon-Bon asked, twirling the gun in her hand. Bon-Bon didn’t know when she managed to pull herself away from the bottomless pit that were Lyra’s eyes, but when she did she found Princess Celestia in trouble. Whatever the circumstances, watching her employer being attacked was a guaranteed way to lose her position, so she attacked fearlessly and doggedly. However, she was forced to pause when she saw the bullets bounce off. With the way Nightmare Moon had weaved away from the bullets, it wasn’t not painful, but it was certainly concerning. Then, over her shoulder, there came a green beam of magic from Lyra. Nightmare Moon deflected this as well, but was looking somewhat surprised.
“Stay away from the princess!”
Nightmare Moon was now forced to watch as two little foals, a boy and a girl respectively, suddenly charged out of the door, screaming a number of different battle cries as they made their approach. Their tiny legs carried them like they were being chased by demons, but Nightmare Moon just smirked. In the corner of her eye, she could see a rock begin to float in the air, thanks to her magic. She threw the door, but a great grey blur obscured the two children, and suddenly the space was empty of life. The rock slammed harmlessly into the ground, and above it was a grey Pegasus. Though the pegasus’ eyes were pointing in two different directions, she looked for all the world incredibly fierce. Then Nightmare Moon was flung back by another bullet, this one to her snout.
“Gyaaaah! That almost went in!” She shouted in irritation, before looking to her five assailants. She gave a cold cackle. “Wow! So, Celie, you do have supporters!” She looked to the fallen princess, who was watching with a grim look on her face. Nightmare Moon let out a small chuckle, sadistic in the curl of her lips. “Heh heh heh! Well, I think this is a mere distraction from the main event.” The white princess’ eyes widened as her entire body began to be lifted off of the floor. Bon-Bon leapt forward, loading her pistol as she did.
“Off of her! Now!” She shouted, but she was ignored. Nightmare Moon simply grinned to the princess.
“Let’s go home.”
Bon-Bon was still flying through the air when there was a loud “ZIP” sound, and both Princess Celestia and Nightmare Moon were gone. Before she could control herself, Bon-Bon landed straight onto the ground, head first as she collapsed into a tangled mess of her own limbs. Immediately, a green aura surrounded her, and she was put on the ground.
“Bon-Bon!” Lyra shouted urgently. Something about that voice melted every bone in Bon-Bon’s body, as she suddenly found herself staring at the mint unicorn. “Are you ok?!”
“Only when you’re here,” she said, before correcting herself. She forced herself to be far more stern. “I mean, yeah. Thanks for the assist.”
“Who… who was that?” The grey Pegasus asked. Bon-Bon was about to give the answer of “I don’t know,” but stopped herself before she opened her mouth. A light bulb went off in her head, and she looked over her shoulder to where the black alicorn once was. A determined grimace slowly came to her face.
“Come with me to the library,” she said enigmatically. She then looked to Lyra. “You too. This is a long story, and no matter what, if I’m going to have a chance of fixing this, I need as many ponies as possible to hear this…”
Lyra looked to her hooves. She had gotten who she could for Bon-Bon, and it turned out that that extended to Octavia, Vinyl Scratch, two pegasi and two small children. Most if not all of them looked at least a little confused, and certainly not like potential saviours of Princess Celestia, but all Lyra could do was look apologetically at Bon-Bon.
“I’m really sorry. I did everything I could think of,” she admitted. Then she looked back up to see Bon-Bon giving her the warmest look. She felt a cream-coloured hoof slide under her chin, and she almost melted into butter.
“And I appreciate it,” Bon-Bon said. “It’ll do, I was just high strung. Now, I want everyone to pay attention!” With that, she walked towards the nearest bookshelf. Lyra’s gaze snapped to Bon-Bon’s body, watching as every step she made moved her body gracefully, with her long legs, sensual thighs, her round…
“Lyra, who is this mare?”
Lyra was snapped out of her staring by Octavia’s Trottingham accent sharply slicing through the air, next to her ear, and the mint unicorn gave a startled squeak.
“Ummm, what? Oh, her? She’s just… umm…” She spluttered, struggling to give an answer, before looking back to the cream earth pony and smiling dreamily. “Booooooon Booooooon…” She said as a quiet, half-awake coo.
“Right,” Octavia said, scepticism dripping from her tone. “And what do you know of your future wife?”
“Really? Did she say that?” Lyra asked excitedly, before re-evaluating the question. “Oh, right… well… she’s trying to save Princess Celestia.” “And?”
“Well, she’s nice… because ummm...”
“Well?”
“Would a nasty person be trying to save the Princess?” Lyra asked.
“I’m not saying that, but... whatever, why are we here?” Octavia stressed. “Vinyl and I are musicians and you’re a repair-mare. Why should we get involved in monsters and whatnot?”
“Princess Celestia was kidnapped by a monster, Octavia,” Lyra pointed out. “She might need help.”
“Exactly!” Octavia hissed. “Think about it; the Princess was thrown around like a ragdoll, and we’re supposed to charge after her like we’re the Knights of the Round Stable or something! We could die!”
“Bon Bon seemed to chase it off,” Lyra said defensively. “If we just help her, she should be able to keep us all safe from whatever that thing was.” Her golden eyes glazed over again. “And maybe, if one of us was scared, she could comfort them, maybe with a hug with those strong legs of hers, and maybe when our coats meet we can feel one another’s heartbeat, and when we brush lips…”
“Blast it, Lyra, control your hormones. You’ve known her for less than a minute.”
“Yeah. Maybe I could get to know her better as we share a blanket to battle off the cold, but it’s still cold so we have to embrace each other tightly and...”
“Urgh.” Octavia rolled her eyes, but the grey mare’s expression became one of reluctant agreement. “Though I suppose you have a point. This creature is clearly a threat to us all, and... I concede that perhaps I was overestimating the danger somewhat.”
“So, that’s a breakdown of just how dangerous this mission is going to be,” Bon-Bon said grimly, clearly at the end of a lengthy speech. “It’ll be a mess; blood everywhere, flying fragments of bone, the works. I can only really say that maybe half of us would actually survive, should we go ahead with this. So, does anyone need me to repeat anything?”
Lyra didn’t even see Octavia leave. All she heard was a loud “WOOSH!” and there was an empty space where an earth pony once stood. The mint unicorn looked sympathetically towards Vinyl Scratch, who, for the first time that night, seemed anything other than bubbly and fun. Even behind the large, purple shades, it was difficult to hide the eyebrows furrowing in pain and disappointment. Before Lyra could say anything, the white pony signed something, the meaning completely lost on Lyra, and made her leave.
“Octavia…” Lyra morosely said, before looking back to Bon-Bon. “Sorry, honey, I didn’t catch any of that.” Rather than being irritated, instead Bon-Bon blushed furiously.
“Oh, ok. I can start over,” she said shyly, pretending not to notice the groans from the others in the room. “So, the pony who attacked Celestia is Nightmare Moon; known aliases include the Mare in the Moon and the Nightmare…”
“And Princess Luna!”
Immediately Bon-Bon glared to the unicorn filly who had shouted out. “No, it really isn’t. Luna died donkeys years ago.”
Muffins hovered over to Dinky, who seemed adamant. “Sweetie, please. Also, Miss Bon-Bon, do you have to use donkeyist language in front of the kids?”
“It makes sense, though,” Dinky said. “Luna was alive a thousand years ago, she had a grudge against Princess Celestia, and according to legend…”
“Look, squirt,” Bon-Bon coldly interrupted, her frown pitiless. “- it ain’t her. There's no record of Luna turning into Nightmare Moon, and the fight between her and Celestia occurred months after Nightmare Moon first showed up. That legend was made up so little fillies like you don’t learn what killing is before you’re supposed. That and the importance of doing what your older sisters tell you.”
“So the moon thing didn’t tip you off?”
“Don’t get smarmy with me, brat,” Bon-Bon said viciously, and the unicorn backed off. Now, though, two pegasi landed either side of her, wings spread.
“You wanna repeat that one?” Rainbow Dash shouted. Muffins, gritting her teeth, looked ready to pounce. Immediately, Lyra got between them and Bon-Bon.
“Perhaps!” She shouted, getting all of their attention. “Maybe we should focus on the fact that the princess was kidnapped and not argue over who it was!”
It took a moment of silence, but eventually everyone backed down, with Bon-Bon’s expression softening, and the two pegasi folding their wings and standing upright. Finally, the cream pony continued. “Thank you, Lyra. So, according to this book, we have a pretty good way to stop Nightmare Moon; the Elements of Harmony, five magical artefacts said to represent different aspects of friendship. Loyalty, Generosity, Laughter, Kindness and Honesty. When five ponies who particularly embody those traits wield them, then they can be extremely powerful sources of anti-dark magic and pack a wallop.”
“But, Bon-Bon,” Lyra said, looking confused. “How are we supposed to use them? I mean, I know quite a bit of magic, but I’ve never even heard of them.”
“Pffft,” Bon-Bon said with a shrug. “I only found out about them with Pipsqueak over there.” She gestured to the patched pony, who now wore a very proud expression. “But it doesn’t matter; all we need to do is bring them back to Ponyville, and then find the five ponies they match up to. At that point, it’s out of our hooves.” Lyra nodded appreciatively.
“That… sounds surprisingly simple.”
“And the complicated bit?” Muffins prompted. Bon-Bon immediately became more interested in her hooves.
“Well, yes. There is a complicated bit,” the earth pony conceded. “They’re… sort of in the Everfree Forest.”
“Not the Everfree Forest!” Lyra shouted dramatically, her heart leaping to her throat as her stomach spun into a tight knot. There was a pregnant pause, before she looked to Muffins and whispered to her. “What is the Everfree Forest?”
“A forest,” Muffins answered. Lyra nodded.
“Right. Good to know,” the mint unicorn said, nodding patiently. “Well, it can’t be more dangerous than simply letting Nightmare Moon take over the world. I’m in!”
“Awwww yeah!” Rainbow Dash leapt up, doing a loop-di-loop in the air. “Let’s kick some monster butt!”
“But what about the Elements?” Dinky suddenly spoke up. Bon-Bon looked down to her. “What if they kill her?”
Bon-Bon did seem to think about it, before nodding. “Yes, they probably would.”
“But… but you can’t do that! If you kill Princess Luna…”
“Then I’ll have to have gone back in time because, as I pointed out, she’s already dead,” she said, before walking right past her. She looked to Lyra, before looking to the others. “Sort out your affairs, and meet me at the path. Lyra, you come with me.” She walked out of the door, not noticing Lyra’s look of feverish excitement as she followed. Dinky snarled.
“Urgh! Is no one listening to me because I’m a child?”
“Well, I’m listening to you because I have the mind of a child,” Muffins pointed out. Dinky rolled her eyes.
“Mom! Not the time for jokes!”
“Dinky, you take that back right this very instant!” Muffins shouted in horror. Dinky growled, and began to walk towards the door. Then she felt a hoof slam onto her tail and drag her back. “Oh no you don’t; I’d sooner have you drink a whole bottle of that special water me and Cheerilee were drinking than go on a secret mission into the Everfree Forest.”
“Mom!” Dinky bitterly snapped. “She can’t kill her! You can’t let her!”
The cross-eyed pony’s expression softened, becoming sympathetic and calm. “Are you absolutely sure that it was Princess Luna?”
“Yes, Mom!” Dinky said, before trying to walk away and making no progress, simply walking in the spot. Muffins considered her options, before letting out a sigh.
“Fine. Then I’ll make sure that she doesn’t kill Luna,” she said. Dinky’s head whipped around.
“Mom?”
“You stay here,” Muffins said, before looking to the door. “I’m going to help her get the Elements, and if they will kill Luna, then I promise that I’ll get rid of them and find another way.”
“But, Mom, you can’t,” Dinky pointed out, now turning around. “Your eyes. What if you get hurt?”
“I’ll have been in worse, Dinky,” Muffins said, leaning down. “Trust me.”
“But you can barely get through a dinner party without throwing a plateful of food all over yourself,” Dinky insisted. A hurt expression came across Muffins’ face, and Dinky’s eyes widened in shock. “M-mom, I’m sorry… I just…”
“I know, and it’s fine,” Muffins said. “But you’re only young. I’d walk through fire to keep you safe, and I refuse to let you put yourself at risk.” She looked down to her child with pleading eyes. “Please. It’s me who should protect you, not the other way around.”
“Mom… I…” Dinky mumbled, looking down in shame. “I don’t want you to get hurt just for me.”
“You are too mature for your age,” Muffins whispered softly, and immediately Dinky giggled, though when she looked back up her eyes were welling with tears. Seeing them before they could roll down her cheeks, Muffins kissed each in turn, making the grey filly beam. “Hell, you’re too mature for my age.”
“Don’t swear in front of the kids,” Dinky whispered, and both of them laughed. Muffins looked up to Rainbow Dash.
“Dash? Can you do me a favour?” Immediately, Rainbow Dash had a frown on her face.
“But I wanted to fight monsters!” She protested. Muffins hovered up to her.
“Then you can tackle that one,” she said, gesturing downward. “I know my daughter; the moment I’m out of the door, she’ll do what she can to sneak out and follow me.”
“No I wouldn’t!” Dinky said, stopping her march to the door. Both of the pegasi dropped down, with Rainbow Dash looking to Muffins.
“You sure you can do it?” She asked. Muffins nodded. Then Rainbow Dash smiled. “Then so am I!” With that, the cyan pony suddenly pulled Muffins into a strong hug that threatened to break the grey mare’s back. However, Muffins returned the gesture, wrapping her hooves around Rainbow. The cross-eyed Pegasus looked up, only to see Dinky making kissing gestures with her hooves. There was a desperate shake of the head from Muffins, and Dinky just rolled her eyes.
“Hey, that hoof of yours is getting awfully low, Muffins," came a confused raspy voice, and Muffins' eyes widened.
“OKRAINBOWDASHTHANKYOUFORTAKINGCAREOFDINKYBYE!”
There was a high-pitched whistle as Muffins shot off, flying through the door of the library and leaving it juddering wildly, threatening to fly off of the hinges. Rainbow Dash grimaced at the large, Muffins-sized hole that was left in the woodwork, before looking to the two foals she was now in charge of.
Or the only one that was left.
“Dinky, where’s the other kid?”
Dinky looked around. “Pipsqueak? He was here? I never even noticed him; he can be so quiet when he wants to be.” To this, Rainbow Dash didn’t respond, except with a scowl that could crack stone.
“You’re grounded, Dinky.”
“You can’t ground me, only Mommy can ground me.”
“And what would Mommy do if she was here?”
“… give me lots of warm fudge?”
Rainbow Dash didn’t give Dinky the satisfaction of a response immediately, and tried not to crack a smile at the rebellious spirit of the young girl.
“As cool as you are, Dinky, you’re still grounded,” she pointed out.
“Five minutes until the train back to Trottingham. Ok, I can last that long.”
Octavia was pacing nervously on the Ponyville train platform. A few ponies that arrived, hoping to get out of Ponyville while they still could. The sudden appearance of dangerous monsters usurping the authority of Princess Celestia and straight up crushing her in battle did not improve the appeal of the town. All Octavia had was her precious cello slung over her back, which she had retrieved from the town hall; after all, some things weren’t worth risking life and limb for, but musical instruments definitely were. The grey mare looked down the tracks.
“Blast,” she murmured under her breath. “Why couldn’t it be here now? Don’t they know that there could be another attack any moment?” Suddenly, the sound of a hoof meeting concrete boomed behind her, and the earth pony slowly turned around. Vinyl Scratch stood there, seeming to expect a response. Octavia blinked. “Vinyl, darling, if you’re trying to show your emotions, you need to take your shades off. Are you angry? Upset? Happy? I really can’t tell.”
A silver-ish glow came across Vinyl’s shades, and they floated off of her. Octavia seethed. “Oh. Disappointment. This is not going to be fun.” There was a series of hoof waves, and Octavia rolled her eyes. “Actually, Vinyl, yes, I fully intend on leaving right now, why do you ask?” There were some more waves of the hoof, and Octavia nodded. “Granted, Vinyl, monster attacks are a problem, but might I remind you that I am a cellist? Shall I serenade the creature into submission, or should I just hit her with my bow?”
There was another piece of sign language. Octavia gasped. “Vinyl, I am not abandoning you! I am as loyal a friend as I can be!” Vinyl’s brow furrowed, and there was more hoof waves. “Well, no, leaving for my new job doesn’t count,” Octavia protested. Vinyl continued. “I tried to write to you every day when I was in Hamburg, but pig mail takes so long to get here. I probably got back before most of the mail did.” Then there was another wave of the hoof, and Octavia dipped her head. “Well, no, but I think he knew I might end up having to break our relationship off for my career.”
Then she saw one last piece of sign language, and a massive weight slammed onto Octavia’s shoulders.
“Well, I didn’t think you needed the help anymore,” she murmured ashamedly. “You arranged to move here, and I thought you were ready for it. I wasn’t ready to leave Trottingham, is all.” Vinyl Scratch made a long series of gestures, which Octavia didn’t bother interrupting. However, her face changed several times as she watched, going from indignant anger to silent regret and everything inbetween. Finally, the grey mare rose a hoof.
“Vinyl, that’s enough!” The white unicorn froze in place, struggling to stand on one hoof while her other three were tangled together behind her head. Octavia took a sharp intake of breath. “I didn’t know you were that lonely, but didn’t you do a fine job of telling me! No letters, no visits, not even a phone call!” There was another gesture. “I know you couldn’t phone me, I just couldn’t think of a third thing to say! And that’s it, isn’t it; what about you abandoning me? You chose to come to this town before I was ready; do you know how lonely it got? I only spoke to Lyra today on the train, and it was because you weren’t there, Vinyl! You left me without a friend, and now because I am concerned for my own safety, I’m abandoning you?” The white unicorn began to raise her hooves, her face twisting in concern. “You don’t get to escape blame, Vinyl,” Octavia pointed out. “You’ve left me just as many times as I’ve left you, and you never made any attempt to contact, and I was confused and alone and I wanted to apologise and didn’t know why and now you think I’m the villain here... urgh, I mean, why do I feel so rotten about it?!”
Vinyl Scratch made an audible gasp, and Octavia’s hooves leapt to her mouth.
“Why… why should I feel so rotten about it? Th-that’s what I meant,” the grey mare stuttered, trying to back away. She turned around, hoping not to look to the white unicorn. “Vinyl… I’m sorry. I know I’ve not been the best friend to you. And I know that you need help, and I’ve been refusing to give it to you just because of my own hang-ups.” She sat down. The white unicorn walked over slowly, and sat down in front of her. There was a twist of a white wrist, and Octavia shrugged.
“Actually, yeah, I did,” she said. “In fact, the orchestra I was going to perform with didn’t even know me. I faked some forms so they would let me come down as a replacement for if one of the cellist got sick. I was already on the train when they told me that the cellist actually was sick; I came to apologise, but I’ve now gone and ruined it because I’m scared.”
Before she could process it, two hooves wrapped around her shoulders, and Octavia froze in place. The grey mare didn’t move, remaining stock still, but she felt her own cheeks becoming wet with tears. Then she buried her face in Vinyl’s shoulder and pulled her even closer. “Vinyl, I’m sorry. I love you.”
Vinyl Scratch moved away and made some more gestures. Octavia laughed, and lightly knocked the white unicorn with her hoof.
“As a friend; I’m still straight,” Octavia giggled, wiping the tears from her eyes. She looked up to Vinyl Scratch, a small smile on her face. “How can I ever apologise? How do I make this right?”
“So now there’s only three of us. Well, fantastic.”
“I said I did what I could, Bon-Bon.”
“You know what; despite going up against what is pretty much a god, I actually like our chances.”
The voices were faint from the distance, but instantly recognisable. Octavia and Vinyl Scratch looked to one another. There was no pause, and no need for consideration, as Octavia put a hoof on Vinyl’s shoulder.
“You wait here, and I will come back,” Octavia said. The white unicorn beamed, and allowed her past as the grey earth pony chased after the two ponies who were walking towards the far off treeline. It took longer than initially expected, but Octavia managed to catch up.
“Ladies, I am back!” She proudly announced herself, her chest puffing out as her coat bristled. All three of them looked to her.
“You left?” Bon-Bon asked, immediately deflating Octavia’s sense of bravado.
“’Back’ is a very strange name,” Muffins commented, dropping Octavia’s pride further. Lyra, however, seemed more receptive.
“Hey, Tia. Thanks.”
“Well, my dear friend,” Octavia said, a smile returning to her. “What are friends, if not loyal to the end?”
“Actually, you’re more loyal in the end because you did leave…”
